Teens, You, and God

Teens, You, and God

And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

2 Peter 1:19

A [few] years ago, during the Twilight craze that was sweeping the nation and the world and causing teen girls to violently debate the merits of “Team Jacob” versus “Team Whoever” (I can’t even remember the other guy’s name), I had the privilege to teach teens at a local Bible camp and later at a youth rally in North Carolina.  The lesson I gave at these events was probably very different from what the teens were expecting.

Teen girls knew questions about Twilight.

Teen girls knew questions about Twilight.

I started out each session asking how many had seen Twilight (99% had), how many went to the midnight showing on opening night (again, 99%), and how many had read the books (99% of the girls had).  From there I asked them to tell me the name of the female protagonist (immediately, 100% could), the name of the actress who played her (about 99% could), the names of both of her love interests (100% again), the actors who played them (99%), the name of the town and state in which the story was set (about 90% could answer this), the titles of each of the movies and books (100%), the name of the author of the books (95% could immediately answer this one), a summation of the plot of each book and movie (99% could do this off the top of their head), and how the books were different than the movies (about 90% could immediately answer this one.)

To give the long-suffering guys (who only went to see Twilight because they wanted to please their girlfriends) a chance to play, I asked them to name me their favorite professional athlete, his age, the position he played and the team for which he played, the stats concerning how well he played and the salary he earned, the stats about their favorite team’s standing in its particular league, their favorite video game, the plot of said game, their favorite movie, the star of that movie, the character he or she played, etc., etc.  As with the girls, the overwhelming majority of the guys could answer these questions correctly off the top of their heads.

I then asked how many of them were Christians.  99% raised their hands.  I asked them if they loved Jesus (100%).  I asked if Jesus was #1 in their lives (about 95% said yes to this; perhaps the remaining 5% could see where I was going with this by that point).

I then asked them to quote me John 3:16 and to tell me who said and to whom he said it.  About 40% could answer the first two questions, and none of them knew to whom Jesus was talking when he said that.  I asked them to tell me what I must do to be saved.  About 60% could tell me that I needed to hear God’s Word, believe in it, repent, confess my faith, and be baptized.  However, when I then asked them to show me exactly where in the Bible I could find each of those commands, only 5% could show me right then and there.  About another 5-10% could after about 5-10 minutes of searching.

I then asked them if they found worship services boring.  About 80% raised their hands affirmatively.  I asked them how many of them had jobs, and of those who did how many gave generously to the church every Sunday.  Only about 1-2% raised their hands.  I then asked them if they found Twilight or football boring, and if they would spend a generous amount of money to be a part of those events if given the chance.  All of them raised their hands.

I then asked them if they thought God was going to allow them to go to heaven because they cared more about a movie or a sport than about worshiping him and learning more about his Word.  The point was made.

Adults who are reading this…how different are we from those teenagers, really?  As Peter said above, we all would do well to pay more attention to the prophetic word…

Posted in Jon Mitchell | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Teens, You, and God

It’s Inspired, I Believe

It’s Inspired, I Believe

I believe in God. Therefore, I believe God. I believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6). I believe that every word, of His holy word, right down to the last jot, tittle (Matt. 5:18), dotted ‘i’ and crossed ‘t’ is absolutely and totally true (Jn. 17:17); is divinely inspired and dictated (2 Ptr. 1:20-21; 2 Tim. 3:16-4:4); and is eternally, once and for all, forever firmly and changelessly fixed and settled in heaven (Psa. 119:89 ESV; Matt. 19:4-8; 1 Tim. 2:11-13; Jude 3). Therefore, I resolutely accept and believe that we must live by every single word of God’s holy word, just as our faithful Lord Jesus said and insisted on (Matt. 4:4); and that any lifestyle or worship practices which therefore either rebelliously counteract or contradict His holy commandments, or which cannot be found in or are condemned by His holy word, are in fact vain, useless, futile, and will absolutely result in the eternal condemnation of their continuing advocates and supporters (Mk. 7:5-13; Ro. 1:18-32, 10:17; 1 Cor. 6:9-10, 14:33-37; Gal. 5:19-21; & etc).

The Bible is inspired.

The Bible is inspired.

Because I believe exactly and completely what it says in God’s holy written word, I also believe that Jesus Christ – the walking, talking, living, breathing Word of God which “became flesh and dwelt among us” (Jn. 1:14) – is God’s only begotten Son Himself (Jn. 3:16). As such, I absolutely believe and accept that He is the one and only exclusive way to heaven, and that there is absolutely no other path or way there whatsoever (Jn. 14:6). I cannot for one minute, moment, second, or millisecond therefore, accept in any way, shape, or form, that we’re all just simply ‘on different paths to the same place,’ because that utterly, abjectly, and completely contradicts the eternally settled in heaven word of the incredible God I love, trust, believe and have complete faith in. He said there’s only ONE way – and that is His Son’s way. His holy word, which I summarily accept and believe exactly as it is written, irrevocably and unashamedly states that “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father…” (Eph. 4:4-6). There is, according to God in that particular passage, only one, acceptable, undivided and pre-denominational body (which is His Son’s one saved and undivided church; see: Jn. 17:20-22; Eph. 1:22-23; Col. 1:18, 24; 1 Cor. 1:10; and especially Ro. 16:16), just exactly in the same, one, exclusive way that there is only one Holy Spirit of God (Jn. 16:7-15); only one legitimate hope of getting to heaven (a hope based solely on God’s Son, word, and way); only one Lord (the Lord Jesus Christ of course); only one faith (the one faith once delivered for all the saints exactly as it was set forth in the scriptures prior to the end of the first century – see 1 Tim. 4:1-6; Jude 3); one baptism (which is exclusively for the forgiveness or washing away of one’s sins and to be saved; see: Acts 2:37-41, 22:16; 1 Ptr. 3:21); and of course, only one God (Isa. 44:8).

Now, because I believe only, exactly, and exclusively in the one God of that word (and every single word of the entire, divinely-inspired word of that one and only God), it always puts me in direct opposition and confrontation, to and with, the lost and unbelieving, impenitent and prideful, bible-denying and rejecting world all around me, just as it has done to all those who did the same who came before me (Lk 6:21-26).

The atheists will surely call me an idiot or worse; the wishy-washy, “accept anything that blurs the lines between right and wrong” (Isa. 5:20-21) “anything goes” (Jud. 21:25) crowd will probably call me intolerant and a Neanderthal knuckle-dragger or some such; the worldly and biblically-ignorant will more than likely harshly and hypocritically point their finger of judgment at me for being what they perceive as my being overly critical, mean-spirited, and judgmental; the self-righteous and rebellious religious crowd that seeks to bend, twist, stretch, ignore and/or pervert God’s truth to fit their own particular desires and preferences will probably refer to me as everything from old-fashioned, to legalistic, to narrow-minded and more; but that’s all okay (Matt. 7:13-14; 1 Ptr. 4:3-6).

And the reason that that’s all okay with me? It’s because according to God’s holy word which will judge us all on the last day (Jn. 12:48), as long as I stay faithful to and do not deny His holy and divinely-inspired word as written, my God will refer to me as His good and faithful servant on that last day and reward me with a place in His heavenly kingdom (Matt. 25)! And to me, that’s all that matters!

Posted in Doug Dingley | Tagged , , | Comments Off on It’s Inspired, I Believe

Ordinary People

Thank God for “Common People”

As our Lord came near to the end of His life, the religious leaders saw that they were losing their place of prominence in the sight of most of the people. The ordinary Jews who heard Him showed how fascinated they were by Jesus. They asked the question, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied” (John 7:15)?

Jesus spent His life dealing with the “common people.”

Jesus spent His life dealing with the “common people.”

The religious leaders “…heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him” and “…sent officers to take Him” (John 7:32). The soldiers returned empty-handed saying, “No man ever spoke like this Man” (John 7:46). The leaders tried to use their influence as religious leaders to persuade men by saying, “Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him” (John 7:48)? This had no impact on the multitudes. Those leaders could not deny His power shown in the resurrection of Lazarus and in their frustration, “…the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death” (John 12:10).

The very next day, Jerusalem was in an uproar as Jesus made that triumphant entry into the city. He had been totally rejected by the “godly” leaders, yet His popularity was so evident. The leaders confronted Him in the temple, and He dealt with every one of their questions. “And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him any more” (Matt. 22:46). They had failed! How did the multitude respond? “And the common people heard Him gladly” (Mark 12:37).

“The common people heard Him…” Thank God for “common people,” for the kingdom of God did not attract nobility, but it was built upon the response of “common people”    (1 Cor. 1:26; Jas. 2:5). “Common people” loved Jesus.

Jesus spent His life dealing with the “common people.” He ate with sinners and publicans; He helped Legion with the demons; He was part of the life of the woman who had seven demons; He touched the lepers; He felt the touch of a poor woman who touched His garments; He spent time with a woman who had had five husbands and was now living with a man outside of any marriage; He ignored the multitude to heal that blind man who was despised by most; He chose a “terrorist” (Zealot) to be an apostle and chose ignorant and unlearned fishermen to proclaim Him to the world. Thank God for “common people.”

The lesson to be learned from this should be obvious. Our world is filled with those religious leaders and their blind followers, but there are still “common people” who are searching for the meaning of life. As we sow the seed we must never overlook the “common people.” If Jesus were here He would definitely see the “common people” as future saints!

Posted in Dan Jenkins | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Ordinary People

Disciplina & Comunion

CORTE DE COMUNION
Se le llama así por lo que implica, simplemente es retirar la comunión que se goza en Cristo con hermanos que nadan desordenadamente. Es lamentable que en la Iglesia del Señor ocurran desordenes sin embargo, no es algo nuevo. Desde la antigüedad el plan de Dios ha sido mantener su viña tan limpia como sea posible. Bajo la ley de Moises había un sistema para los ofensores en asuntos morales o asuntos doctrinales. Usualmente se llevan fuera del campamento y ahí se ejecutaba sentencia, el principio a aprender está ahí y no tiene que ver con el hecho de apedrear a alguien sino con la acción de sacar al individuo fuera para mantener a Israel limpio por dentro. Cualquiera puede argumentar que esto es extremismo y que la ley de Cristo es de amor y de perdón, y ciertamente lo es pero no lo es todo. Parece ser que esto es lo que Pablo estaba indicando cuando acusa la alcahuetura de algunos miembros de la Iglesia con el caso de inmoralidad en 1Co.5. La frase que el usa es “el tal sea echado fuera” en los versículos siguientes pasa a explicar como un poco de levadura leuda toda la masa así también un poco de desastre tolerado en la Iglesia leuda toda la congregación. Así que en primer lugar:

Corte de Comunion

Corte de Comunion

1. LA IGLESIA DEBE ENTENDER Y APOYAR CIEN POR CIENTO: No hay nada más complicado que una congregación dividida en “secreto”. Creo que el tema de la disciplina es uno de los que se debería de tocar más a menudo desde nuestros púlpitos, la hermandad debería de aprender más y más que la disciplina o el corte de comunión que se hace a un hermano que ande desordenadamente es necesario y que no es algo personal. Los pasajes son muchos y las circunstancias diversas, pero no necesariamente en todos los casos hay que pasar por todos los pasos que menciona Jesus en Mateo 18. Cuando él da esta enseñanza note que inicia: “Por tanto, Si tu hermano peca contra ti…”(Mt.18:15). La idea parece expresar la ofensa que se comete en contra de otro miembro del cuerpo de Cristo sobre asuntos personales. Pero hay ofensas que no son individuales o personales, son ofensas a la doctrina misma de Cristo, son ofensas a la Iglesia Gloriosa del Señor y al ser evidentes  en público entonces no necesitan de un proceso del que habló Jesús. A estos hermanos se les debe de hacer un corte de comunión directo como el caso que Pablo trabaja en 1Co.5. Pregunta-¿Fue Pablo primero a hablar con este hombre que cometía fornicación en privado?¿Mandó Pablo a el liderazgo de esa congregación a hablar privadamente con él?. Simplemente dijo “El tal sea echado a Satanás”,  y claro el propósito era salvar su alma. La Iglesia necesita cien por ciento apoyar y comprender con ojos de Dios el propósito y dejar de pensar que esto puede dañar o es muy fuerte. La Iglesia hace mucho más mal que bien cuando no comprende el corte de comunión hacia algún miembro desordenado. Me temo que hay cientos que están en listados en el cuaderno de la condenación por haber sido tolerados y haber encubrido su pecado en las congregaciones donde asistían que jamás le aplicaron la disciplina de Dios.
2. LOS ANCIANOS, EVANGELISTAS O MIEMBROS NO DEBEN DEJARSE LLEVAR POR LAS EMOCIONES. ¡Oh no, pobrecito!. Cuando se hace un corte de comunión injusto la frase aplica perfectamente bien, pero por alguien que se ha opuesto a sujetarse a lo que Dios manda en su palabra la frase queda corta. El aprecio y la cercanía que tenga hacia un hermano no debe de nublar el ejercicio de la disciplina Bíblica. Ese rasgo característico de amistad hace que se toleren muchas cosas: hermanos pensando que los instrumentos musicales son de Dios y por lo tanto no hay pecado alguno en utilizarlos para adorar a Dios, otros influidos por los antis dividiendo la congregación con estas ideas, otros envueltos con el liberalismo, otros más violando el rol que Dios ha establecido para la mujer cristiana en la Iglesia etc… y la lista sigue sin mencionar los problemas morales. Es absurdo pensar que Dios tolera este tipo de cosas y que es mejor dejar todo como está para no causar problemas a nadie para que no se nos vayan de la Iglesia. Que triste es no ser guiados por el E.S de Dios a través de su palabra, porque si realmente ese fuera el caso, las palabras de Jesús en Apocalipsis nos importarían de una manera especial: “Pero tengo unas pocas cosas contra ti: que toleras que esa mujer Jezabel, que se dice profetiza, enseñe y seduzca a mis siervos a fornicar y a comer cosas sacrificadas a los ídolos” (Ap. 2:20). Que triste que el día del juicio final no sea llamado “buen siervo fiel entra en el reposo de tu Señor”, sino  más bien “Apartaos de mi hacedores de mal, nunca os conocí”.
3. NO DEBE HABER CRITICA: Cuando todo se hace bajo el estándar Bíblico no debe de existir critica alguna sobre un proceso de disciplina o un corte de comunión, cuando digo no debe de haber crítica, más bien me refiero a que si la hubiere, es pecado. La critica la murmuración y el chisme son moldes utilizados por el mismo cocinero de siempre, el diablo para crear banquetes a aquellos que desean probar su cuchara.  Dios dice en Romanos 16:17 tan solo un versículo después del ya conocido versículo 16 donde se menciona explícitamente la frase “Iglesia de Cristo”, que hay que señalar y apartarse de aquellos que causen división y tropiezo en contra de la doctrina de Cristo. Como quién dice, para ser la Iglesia verdadera de Cristo del v16 hay que mantenerla pura y sin mancha de aquellos que desean poner tropiezos. Amigos, hermanos eso no es crítica, señalar a alguien que está siguiendo una doctrina diferente a la de la Biblia, no es chisme simplemente, eso se llama seguir la instrucción divina. Pero los miembros “ecumenistas”que desean que solo haya amor y amor en la iglesia y que todo se tolere pero después hablan en criticas en contra de procedimientos bíblicos a estos Dios aborrece y ellos necesitan saber eso. El chisme es uno de los 7 pecados que Dios aborrece en Proverbios 6. ¿Cual es el pecado más cometido por los cristianos? son 3 en realidad los más cometidos: 1-El chisme, 2- El Chisme, 3- ¡EL CHISME!. Jeff Abram lo pone de esta manera: El chisme es aquello que sacrifica el honor de una persona en el altar del diablo.Sin duda alguna para Dios este pecado tendrá su recompensa fuerte en la Eternidad (Ro.1:32). Hay que proceder en amor a la hora de hacer un corte de comunión buscando la salvación del alma, ¡Pero hay que proceder!.
Posted in Heiner Montealto | Tagged , | Comments Off on Disciplina & Comunion

Hurt Feelings?

What Happens When You Get Offended

It happens to any human that lives to be the age of ten. Sooner or later someone is going to hurt your feelings. Maybe they make fun of something you are wearing. Or a group of friends goes out to eat together and you are left out. Or maybe the attacks are much worse. Maybe someone attacks your character or says something about you that is not true. How do we deal with this? What is our normal course of action?

Sooner or later someone is going to hurt your feelings.

Sooner or later someone is going to hurt your feelings.

The honest truth is that Christians do not handle conflict very well. Too often we either do nothing at all, trying to avoid any form of conflict, or our emotions propel us to overreacting. Isn’t it interesting that the church is made up of individuals—many of whom have trouble getting along—and yet our pulpits often remain silent about what to do when you get your feelings hurt? I think many of the “problems” we have in the church today could be fixed or avoided if we would just spend some time discussing hurt feelings.

Here’s what I intend to teach my children regarding getting their feelings hurt.

You will get your feelings hurt. In fact, I’ve probably already been one of the ones to hurt your feelings. Congratulations—welcome to the human race. This is one of those things that you will deal with the rest of your life, because people are not perfect.

The first thing I want you to do the next time you get your feelings hurt is to stop and ask yourself if you are really all that important. Part of the reason our feelings are hurt is because someone offended us—which means we probably have a pretty high view of ourselves. “How dare them do that to me?!” Or, “How dare them say that about me?!” Before you ask questions like that, check yourself—and remind yourself that you are not God or His sinless Son. In fact, what you are is a sinner in need of a spotless sacrifice. Don’t forget that.

Second, do your best to treat the offending person the way you would want to be treated. In Matthew 7:12, Jesus commanded, “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” This is a tough one, because if you feel hurt your normal tendency may be to lash out or punish the offender. Treat them how you would want to be treated. Because the reality is you may not know the entire situation. How many times are people wrestling with things (e.g., sickness, death of a loved one, stress at work, etc.) and you have little to no knowledge of it. Yes, they may have hurt your feelings—but you just be the recipient of something that is even more troubling in their life. It doesn’t excuse their behavior, but hopefully you might be able to better understand and be more compassionate.

Third, follow Biblical principles. The Bible has advice to both those who are offended and those who offend. In Matthew 18:15 Jesus admonishes, “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.” So have the courage to talk to them. Likewise, in Matthew 5:23-24 we read, “Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” Sadly, when someone hurts us we expect them to do what Scripture says and come to us, but rarely do we go to them as Jesus recorded in Matthew 18. Both parties have a responsibility. Part of the reason I wanted you to first ask yourself if you were that important is to check your pride. Pride has stopped more relationships from healing than probably any other issue. Swallow your pride and talk to the person. You might be surprised at how quickly something can be cleared up when you just sit down and talk.

Lastly, remember these are just your feelings. The Bible records in Jeremiah 17:19 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; Who can know it?” Some people want to “speak their mind” when their feelings get hurt. However, what you should be doing is speaking the mind of Christ. At the end of the day God is what matters. Do not allow your hurt feelings to slow you down from your ultimate purpose. Satan would love for Christians to be caught up in petty feuds over hurt feelings. This one is a tough one—and you will have to constantly be working on it. Just remember when you lay your head on your pillow that even if all your friends make fun of you, there is still a God in heaven who loves you!

Posted in Brad Harrub | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Hurt Feelings?