4. As Christians we should examine our so-called love. One of the fruits of love is this: longsuffering... meaning slow to avenge wrongs, constant, enduring and perseverant. In other words, we should not be quick to do evil when we are wronged. Another fruit of love is simply showing kindness, not 'uppity' or self-conceited. Love is never envious, boiling with hatred or anger. Love is not covetous, wanting your neighbor's wife or possessions, or even coveting your Brother's walk with the Lord.

Love does not exaggerate of one's self-importance. The fruit of love is not proud and lofty. The fruit of love is not un-sociable, un-becoming, discourteous or improper. The fruit of love is not being self-consumed or having continual self-interest, self-indulgence or self-gratification; the fruit of love is not being consumed with the health and/or well-being of one's physical body.

The fruit of love is not being easily provoked, too easy to burn with anger or scorn. Love thinks no evil; it is not a depraved thing, and does not think of sexual relations, whether physical or emotional, outside of marriage. True, godly love has nothing to do with sexual sin.

Love is not concerned about keeping an account of evil. Love does not rejoice in any iniquity, nor does it take pleasure in any sin, whether fornication, adultery, murder, homosexuality, covetousness or any other depravity. Such are not love, and are absolutely contrary to the Love of God.

The fruit of Love rejoices in the Truth, God's Holy word as spelled out in the Bible; Love opposes the superstitions of pagans and the corruption of false teaching. The fruit of Love is enduring all things patiently. Love believes all things, meaning ‘to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), to entrust (especially one's spiritual well-being to Christ).

Love hopes all things, (hopes: ‘elpizo’, meaning ‘to expect or confide, hope(-d) (for), trust’); love endures all things. (endures: meaning ‘to stay under (behind), figuratively, to undergo, bear (trials), have fortitude, persevere’)

- Steven  4/30/2007

(Note: Effective Ministry series re-cap on 1st of May, continuing on May 2nd.)

3. The greatest influence of love was Christ's demonstration on the cross: "But God commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, shall we be saved from the wrath [of God] through him." Romans 5:8&9

Christ's love in his death on the cross, burial & resurrection permeates every aspect of a believer's life, affecting his mind, heart, what he does with his body and his speech. God's very loving-kindness towards us is what leads us unto repentance, and it is that grace, knowing we were once lost and now are found, that continually reminds us of God's great love for us.

With that passion, we see those whom are perishing and we respond by going forth and preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which often confirms our gratitude and servitude to our Lord, for His marvelous saving works.

But, others go out and preach for reasons that may be financial gain, or to acquire attention from someone and most often this is out of envy and strife, not because they love Christ. "Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defense of the gospel." Philippians 1:15-17

For as David heard the evil Philistine blaspheme the living God, despite everyone's fear he felt stirred from his love of God to respond. (1 Sam. 17:26) His brethren, however, had covetousness on their mind, and seeing David's zeal for God, their anger was kindled against him and they accused him of pride. (1 Samuel 17:28) This is classic envy and strife, aimed at those whom have found the love of the living God whom is Christ and retain it in their hearts and minds.

This is a warning for all of us in ministry, that we strive to retain our first Love, and to not become envious or bitter of our brethren... especially for their zeal and love for God.

Steven  4/26/2007

2. The indication of the love that we as believers have for God is the love of Truth, the love of His doctrine, the love of His law and the love of His word, the Bible... that this is so precious to us that is it the closest thing to our heart, by which we are refreshed and made new. Jesus said: "If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever–the Spirit of truth."

The true anointing of the Holy Spirit is being empowered by God's word. It is the word of Truth brought by the breath of God from His Word which communicates the magnificent, awesome and glorious Gospel. (Col. 1:5)

The love of God's Truth brings true peace. (Zec. 8:19, 2 John 1:3)

We as believers purify ourselves through obeying the Truth; in other words because of our love of the Truth we have confessed and repented of our sins in concordance with the Gospel, and put our faith in Christ, the Lord. (1 Peter 1:22)

A good evangelist/pastor/teacher loves, admires and feels impassioned about God's Truth, and he does not shrink back from this point: that those whom do not love the Truth perish, and cannot be saved. (2 Thess. 2:10)

Steven  4/25/2007

1. When we are born again we are given the Holy Spirit as a gift from God. The holy Spirit is the third 'person' of the triune God, in Hebrew is called "ruah haqodesh" and in Greek "pneuma", coequal and coeternal with God. He is a light unto our feet directing us towards holiness and righteousness, peace, patience and joy, mercy, grace and, in fact, works directly with our conscience, sharpening it. The Holy Spirit serves as the great teacher, and patiently speaks to us through God's word, helping us to be transformed more to the image of Christ, and our minds to be renewed. The holy spirit is like the very breath of God falling upon us, empowering us through the Gospel to proclaim good news to them which are lost, and to minister to the saints. The holy Spirit seals us unto the day of redemption.

Part of love for the Holy Spirit is to obey the word of God, being very careful to test our heart by what we are reading in His word as if our heart is on trial in front of the all-knowing, all-seeing God that very moment; by grace and mercy we cry out to God for forgiveness of our sin. By the Holy Spirit we warn the lost of the coming judgment. By the same Holy Spirit we rebuke, exhort and encourage our brethren. By that same holy Sprit, we can be struck dead, as in the case of Ananias and Sapphira whom lied to the Holy Spirit and were struck dead. Our ministry therefore should be led and closely directed by the Holy Spirit in order to be effective.

But, the fruit of the Spirit is: "... love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." (Galatians 5:22-25)

Steven  4/25/2007

Some of the foundational points for being a effective minister of God:

1. Possessing a love for the Holy Spirit: "...for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in [your] prayers to God for me;" Romans 15:30

2. And, inspired by the Spirit of God a love for the Truth, through God's word: "...because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved." 2 Thessalonians 2:10

3. Being influenced and inspired by love, though some be inspired by envy: "Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel." Philippians 1:15-17 (see envy: "Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers," Romans 1:29)

4. Testing the fruit of your love: "Therefore, as ye abound in every [thing, in] faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and [in] all diligence, and [in] your love to us, [see] that ye abound in this grace also. I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love." 2 Corinthians 8:7-8

5. Walk in Love, doing that which is befitting: "But if thy brother be grieved with [thy] meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died." Romans 14:15

6. Learning to spot the blemishes on your love feasts: "These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds [they are] without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;" Jude 12; "And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, [as] they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots [they are] and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;" 2 Peter 2:13

7. Keeping love with faith and hope: "Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God." 1 Thess. 1:3&4; "Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love [which ye have] to all the saints, For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel" Col. 1:4-5; "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of [our] faith without wavering; (for he [is] faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." Hebrews 10:22-25

Steven  4/24/2007

In modern Christendom there are two ministries for every parishioner; there are pastoral/elder ministries, feed-the-hungry-ministries, collect-the-tithe ministries, door-greeter ministries, etc... and there are street-preaching ministries. Though there are copious ministries, in order to be legitimately in the service of Christ they must they share one paradigm: they must be based upon Love.

This love 'agape' is not vague, and there are 8 characteristics which describe it, along with many sub-categories: affection, good will, benevolence, (John 15:13, Romans 13:10, 1John 4:18) brotherly love, especially the love of Christians for other Christians as prompted by their religion, (Matthew 24:12, 1 Co. 13:1-4&8, 1 Co. 14:1, 2 Co. 2:4, Gal. 5:6, Philemon 5,7), of the love of men towards God, (Luke 6:42, John 5:42), of the love of God for men, (Romans 5:8, Romans 8:39), of the love of God for Christ (john 15:10, John 17:26) and of the love of Christ toward men (John 15:9, 2 Co. 5:14, Romans 8:35, Eph. 3:19).

Now this love is not to be mistaken for the love of men for themselves, but the love of God and His Word, nor should we flippantly throw the word 'love' about as if it is some common buzz-phrase, knowing that our Lord's, and our God, blood was shed that we may boast in His abundant Love, not to mention those whom toiled, suffered and died under His banner of love.

Steven  4/23/2007

A Response to Earth Day

“When I first conceived of Earth Day, a global holiday to celebrate the wonder of life on our planet, I thought long and hard about the day on which it should fall. It must be meaningful. One that might be accepted universally for all of humankind. When the Vernal Equinox dawned on me, I immediately knew it was right. The Earth tremor that shook our California dwelling at that moment seemed an omen of confirmation. What could be more appropriate than the first moment of Spring, when day and night are equal around the world and hearts and minds can join together with thoughts of harmony and Earth's rejuvenation. Just as a single prayer can be significant, how much more so when hundreds, thousands, millions of people throughout the world join in peaceful thoughts and prayers to nurture neighbor and nature. And so it came to pass we initiated the celebration of Earth Day on March 21, 1970. The first Proclamation of Earth Day was by San Francisco, the City of Saint Francis, patron saint of ecology.” - John McConnell, “founder of Earth Day” as quoted from his website.

I must note the tendency for people to worship earth instead of earth’s creator. As far as these nature-worshipers go is to feel that god loves them if there is one. Mr. McConnell in his “77 Theses”, says in Thesis 67: “That most conflict over religious and ideological beliefs have their roots in different hypotheses about the unknown. Does God exist? What is the nature or purpose of reality?”

He says we must avoid such conflict by loving mother earth, Thesis 72: “That every adherent of ethics or religious faith should act as a responsible Trustee of Planet Earth: join the global Earth Trustee Effort and assist some Earth Care project.” He concludes:
“77. THEREFORE, LET US PLEDGE OUR LIVES AND FORTUNES TO AID THE GREAT TASK OF EARTH'S REJUVENATION, AND WITH CONFIDENCE AND FAITH, EACH DO OUR PART AS A TRUSTEE OF EARTH TO TAKE CHARGE AND TAKE CARE OF OUR PLANET.”

So, instead of worshiping God, whoever or whatever that might be, we should worship that which we do know, the planet earth. By this we might be worshiping the true god, who knows? This is merely one avenue for men to think they are gods themselves, and definitely in keeping with witchcraft’s traditions. If we read Romans 1, we see that worship of created things is totally against God, and he turns his wrath out upon those who exchange the proper use of the creation for their own lusts. He will even destroy this earth and those who worship it.

It is interesting that John received confirmation of his calling from the Northridge earthquake. He calls it an “omen of confirmation.”

The Bible speaks of the earth and gods this way: “They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course. I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes. Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.” (From Psalm 82.)

Chris Simonson  4/19/2007

Some might have thought that John the Baptist was a locust-eating crazy man, and I suppose if he were alive today, we would think the same thing. However, John the Baptist was chosen by God to turn many of the children of Israel to their God and to "...prepare a people for the Lord." (Luke 1:16&17)

Of him, Jesus said: "Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist..." (Matthew 11:11) Jesus did not leave it there, but went on to say that even the least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than him.

In the same way, those whom preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world prepare the way for the second coming of Christ, and they do this under duress, for as the Scripture goes on to say: "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force." Matthew 11:12

Likewise, many Gospel-preachers today are thought of as crazy-men and 'insignificant' compared to the more popular, 'mainstream' ministries. But, the Scriptures say those whom live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution; John suffered and lost his life because he prepared the Way, and he brought glory to God.

We also, when we preach the Gospel, may suffer and some may even lose their life, but in preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we bring glory to His name. Does your ministry bring glory to His name?

Steven  4/18/2007

We come into this world tainted with sin and that sinful nature, like a virus, effects every aspect of our lives. In fact one could make the correlation that all sickness stems from the original sin committed in the garden, and all the discrepancies in this life comes from that same sin, such as death and the constant state of slow decay which the whole earth suffers from.

One may look at a beautiful tree, and know that in spite of it's beauty, the leaves of it die each Autumn; though it grows its branches begin to fall off and the bark cracks and the tree itself will one day fall down dead, gradually disappearing into the soil. One thing is certain, we all will one day die and fall to the ground, and thus is the result of sin.

The concept of Salvation is like a jar of clay which the Master fashioned, but found out later that impurities have entered in , causing it to be weak and unstable; in His great wisdom the Master takes this jar (our heart) and smashes it to the ground. The he begins to to re-build it, in His image with His likeness, with renewed strength and purity. I believe this is what David meant when he came to the place of having a contrite and broken heart before God... that the Lord desires that the old man be crucified and the new man be resurrected in Christ. (Psalms 34:18 "The LORD [is] nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.", Psalm 51:17 "The sacrifices of God [are] a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.")

This is why the Scriptures say that while we are on this earth we must bear our cross daily, remembering that it is the Lord whom puts us back together through His love, and but through the fires of tribulation we become strong and usable, just as the jar is fired in the kiln. Through Christ, we positionally stand righteous and God Himself has prepared a place for us in His Kingdom. First, we must be broken; we have to find the weight of the world too heavy to bear and the burden of our sins too much to handle, and repent.

When we come to the place which we feel must be the very end, it is but the beginning, with Christ, and what a beautiful thing that is, for the Lord will not despise a broken and contrite heart.

Steven  4/17/2007

Hebrews 12:6-8 "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons."

Over the years, I have heard many Christians boast about how God has blessed them with things and how peaceful and wonderful their lives are now that they have 'met' Christ. They will go through many long soliloquies of how if you just go to college and get a nice job, pay tithes, and if you are 'doing right' by God you won't suffer, or have persecution or trials.

Most of this self-righteous thinking centers around money, but the fact is: if you have not experienced the chastening of the Lord then you do not know His love, and are a bastard, not a true son, and are separated from the Holy and Righteous God, unable to be called an heir with Christ.

If you fit into this category, is it too late for you? No. As long as you have air in your lungs you have every opportunity to repent. The Lord looks for a contrite heart, a heart that is broken before Him; if your heart has not been broken, then how can you know Him? How can you call Him "Lord"? If not, He's sort of like a 'lucky charm' to you, one that you keep near, which makes you feel sentimental when you look at it, or, like a movie you see sometimes that brings tear to your eye.

BUT, this is not knowing Christ; knowing Him is to know Him as Lord and Master, being convinced that He has the power to cast your soul into hell; with great fear and trembling you serve Him, all the while understanding that He suffered and shed His precious blood upon the cross to cleanse our sins, and that His very kindness is what leads us unto repentance.

So, bastard or heir... which are you?

Steve Styles  4/16/2007

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 4

"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." Ephesians 4:29-32

Thus Paul sets the order, that what is in the heart will come out of the mouth. Again, Paul mentions bitterness... before wrath, anger, evil speaking and malice, as indeed such stem from bitterness.

We, as believers, must continually test our hearts, and if corruptions are coming from our mouth, we must repent of that so that God will restore our heart and remove bitterness from us. Paul also warns to not grieve the Holy Spirit; let us be extremely sensitive to His Spirit, that when our conscience is convicted we respond quickly, lest our hearts become hardened to such sin.

Sometimes, it may take years of continually confessing to the Lord, but, He will work in us a clean heart, as long as our heart is contrite or broken before the Holy and righteous God. At the same time that God works upon our hearts, we train our mouth to be used for His service, and we boldly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And... when our hearts are contrite, we will be kind and forgiving towards the Brethren.

Let us look forward to the Day of Redemption when our Lord calls us up to be with Him, of which our sins will be remembered no more.

Steven  4/12/2007

Acts 8:9-24 speaks of a certain man named Simon, a man whom once had bewitched Samaria with sorceries, but whom professed to believe the preaching of the Gospel and was baptized by Phillip. When this Simon saw Peter and John laying hands on new believers, giving to them the Holy Spirit, he offered them money... that he, too, might have this power.

At this, Peter said: "Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and [in] the bond of iniquity." Acts 8:20-23

Peter told Simon he could have no part in ministry because 1: his heart was wrong... he thought he could buy God's power, and 2: Peter saw that Simon was in the "gall of bitterness" and a slave to sin. This is true of many false converts: they make a profession of Christ and begin to follow, but their heart is wrong, thinking they can somehow buy their way into the Kingdom through their 'good deeds' or grandiose tithes, all the while having a bitter heart and being enslaved to sin.

This creates a doctrinal juxtaposition: on one hand he was told he was saved & baptized, but on the other hand Peter says his money would perish with him. The fruit of one's life determines the end; Simon's final fruit was bitterness and iniquity.

Steven 4/12/2007

The way to examine your own heart to see if it has become bitter is to watch what comes from your mouth. "O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." (Matthew 12:34) Jesus speaks of vipers here, almost like the poison of snakes, where the heart overflows with venom, defiling others.

"Whose mouth [is] full of cursing and bitterness:" (Romans 3:14) Though the word 'cursing' here may be actual cursings, it also refers to a supplication of malediction, which cursing may be a small part, but the real intent is to continually speak evil of, almost obsessing about someone; this often comes to play in the aftermath of divorce, where one spouse obsesses over the various ways their husband/wife has hurt them. This is why Jesus said of divorce: "... For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept." Mark 10:5

Jesus responded to the Pharisees so for He knew their hearts were hardened, thus why they sought divorce. Today it is no different; men and women divorce because their hearts are hardened, just as the Pharisees whom tempted Jesus were hardened, and this being rooted in bitterness.

As Christians, there is no other thing that will drive us from Christ like a root of bitterness. Just as in marriage, a root of bitterness is the slow decay leading to losing our first love, taking us out of ministry and ultimately ending in a shipwrecked faith.

So, Brothers & Sisters, we have a choice: we can either continue whining and dwelling upon our own misery, pulling bitter water from a bitter well, OR we can thank God for His mercies and His triumph over judgment... that He feeds us, clothes us and has prepared a place for us in His Kingdom.

Steven  4/11/2007

Bitterness is like an insidious little bug which starts off small... such as with a little envy, or the loss of a loved one, irritation or even a legitimate wrong. When this bug inhabits Christians, it begins to cause dis-unity among the Brethren, ending in bitter gall, extreme wickedness, a bitter root (and so producing a bitter fruit) and bitter hatred. Paul, when using the term bitterness, uses the Greek word "Pikria", which is only used by Paul, and but four times in the New Testament. In Hebrews 12:15, Paul warns that when we fall away from God's grace we begin to forget about the atoning work in our own life, growing embittered and self-righteous.

Any brother doing ministry for a length of time will experience a taste of bitterness. But, we must not be like Esau, whom sold his birthright for a bowl of boiled food; in other words we must not lose our first love because we want something of this world, or because we are angry at our Brethren. Our first love is Jesus Christ whose grace has been shed abroad and is at work in our hearts, showing our joy is not stolen by the cares of this world, or the actions, or inaction of fellow believers.

Furthermore, we shouldn't go do ministry "for God" because we're responding out of man-centered, bitter anger. Jesus said: "Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." Mathew 5: 23&24

This is very important that any ministry we do should reflect the love we have for our own Brethren, and that as we follow Christ our Brethren are the most important, even over the lost, and thus making every attempt possible to reconcile our differences, irritations, anger and even bitterness, if it has gone so far.

Steven  4/10/2007

"Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble [you], and thereby many be defiled;" Hebrews 12:15

There are many ministries which men may do; some with the fruit of Grace and some bearing bitter fruit, which becomes defiled. The one of which we should take warning is that springing of a bitter root. Is your ministry (past, present or future) rooted in bitterness?...

Steven  4/09/2007

I Believe in the Easter Bunny

If you were to ask me, ‘Do you believe in the Easter Bunny?", my answer would be a decisive "YES." Before I tell you about my belief in the Easter Bunny, let’s take a look at the Easter Bunny facade.

Easter is a historically unique time, filled with spring flowers, warm, perfumed air, flitting butterflies and festive celebrations. Little girls in white hats, white gloves and pretty pink dresses go around with baskets, hunting for brightly colored eggs, candies, chocolates and those little, stale Peeps, from last year, while little boys vested in bow ties and white shirts run around in a mad frenzy with egg and chocolate on their faces looking for any missed eggs.

But, all this outward scene does not really personify the Easter Bunny. The Easter Bunny, Esq. begins his crusade sometime in early March, sending out his message through mailers, newspapers, radio ads and television commercials. This is all in preparation for the Easter Bunnies to lay down the promise of golden eggs to entice the chocolate starved. It is the time when the Easter Bunny has the power to unite said starved and grow the cause of sugar worldwide. The Easter Bunny’s campaign is relentless and almost religious in it’s effort.

The Easter Bunny’s downfall, however, is that he hates proper nutrition; the real meaning behind Easter is that there is a campaign to drown out and overthrow the few fresh fruit and vegetable stands. The Easter Bunny’s portfolio is up to the ears in sugarcane and cocoa futures; naturally he feels very threatened by any other food source becoming popular. But, stemming from ancient and constant criticism of said diet, the Bunny was forced to bring in the egg as his symbol, for nutrition’s sake but also to disguise the cotton candy heart.

Not one to be oppressed by this nutritional baggage, the Easter Bunny had a very creative idea; he made a type of thick sugar-water, in a kaleidoscope of eye-pleasing colors, to coat the eggs. Therefore, the Easter Bunny was able to portray Easter as a healthy time, but also a time of color, life and the all-important human achievement of happiness.

Is there an Easter Bunny?

Well, if I have not convinced you already, then allow me to brush away the cotton candy. To me the Easter Bunny is a perfect symbol of religion without Christ, kind of like a mailer I received the other day from Bayside Church. It was an aesthetically pleasing, extravagant, creative and colorful piece of mail; it promised a huge egg hunt for my kids, a large map to their church and also talked about an upcoming seminar on ‘the five keys to a happy marriage’. However, nowhere on the mailer did it mention proper nutrition; slight promises of happiness and well being were abundant but Christ and His word was conspicuously absent. And, just as foolish as the idea of a bunny laying eggs, it promised a hope it could not deliver, for there is no hope without Christ. Just as the Easter Bunny and his stale Peeps lead to a bad diet, life without Christ and His word leads to destruction.

Now, Bayside Church is not the only fellowship doing this; there seems to be lot of bunnies hopping around. They all promise the same thing, health, happiness and nutrition, but they lack the substance of the Word of God which is the nutrition for holy living.

Every Easter opportunity knocks; in an attempt to be Number One Bunny, to gather as many stale parishioners into their paws as possible, the cuddly, little rabbits entice all they meet with aggressive advertising campaigns. Like Las Vegas casinos, thinking bigger is better, the bunnies build bigger and bigger worship centers to house their operations, throwing in more tantalizing celebrations; with the furry worship services and candy-coated messages, many are ensnared. Like leaders in a banana republic, the bunnies each attempt to cut each other off in order to get to the top, but, the one thing they do agree on is the Easter Bunny, which is false religion; because they hate Christ and his Word, when the bunnies do unite, they love to drink the blood of the saints, figuratively speaking. Thus, the story of the Easter Bunny is true; it truly is the embodiment of the father of lies.

Then, there is The Church, that looks at Easter and the time of Passover as the time of Christ’s death and resurrection, of his sacrifice for us, and finds joy in the forgiveness of sins and protection in Christ. Christ, being the chief shepherd, warns his Church against the lies of false religion. Christ and His words bring nutrition and health to believer’s life. Through Christ’s blood upon the cross we have access to the Father, by faith, and that not of ourselves, being the gift of God. Christ, who was the spotless lamb (and in this had no rivals), bore on himself the full penalty for our sins. We, as believers look forward to eternity with God; unlike the wicked and false religions that build their vast kingdoms here on Earth, we know our reward is in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus gathers His Church, the elect, as a hen gathers it’s chicks under it’s wings, unlike the Easter Bunny who cannot have chicks and attempts to legitimize it’s falsehoods by establishing a brood of hard-boiled eggs, portraying them as symbols of life. And, as on-going traditional lie tells us, the person with the most eggs wins.

- Steven  4/08/2007

We might think we know how to preach to gospel, and yet find our way of presenting the gospel in direct opposition to the way Paul would preach it. Or Peter. Or Jesus.

“Not me,” you say.

O.K. Then you would be shocked to know that when you preach the love of God saying, “God loves us just the way we are,” then you are in direct opposition to John 3:16 that says, “Whosoever believeth.” John 3:36 says that whoever does not believe, “the wrath of God rests and stays on him.” That means God hates us just the way we are. But you just won’t preach it, will you?

So, there is one little example. Your gospel may be more in agreement with many false gospels that claim “whosoever” means anyone and everyone who you can get to say the sinner’s prayer. You may have learned a cute way of “leading sinners to Christ” by using infallible logic like “whosoever means you, doesn’t it?” They agreed to the logic and said the sinner’s prayer, repeating after you. But you wouldn’t follow the same logic and say “whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire,” would you? Why didn’t you tell them that, pastor?

Why would a preacher preach a gospel not in accordance to the Word of God? The answer is: He is under strong delusion. He thinks what he preaches is correct or he would change his preaching.

“Preach the gospel.” One of these words is not popular. It is “preach.” Modern preaching is called “sharing.” Modern pastors are trained sermon-makers and not preachers. They think of themselves as teachers. They teach; not preach. They assume that is what pastors are supposed to do. If one were to ask a pastor what he pastor does, he would probably answer he shares the message of the good news with his flock, or something of that sort. Whatever the case may be, he will probably say he is not a “preacher.” In most cases he would be correct, he is not a preacher.

There is no problem with sharing the message of the good news with anyone. The problem arises when the message of the good news is no longer the gospel but some invention of popular theology. That is a real problem. That is a problem swamping the churches today. No gospel is preached. Only sermons about how to love.

That is the Law. The Law of Moses states: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. It says that in Leviticus 19:18. It doesn’t say that anywhere else in the Old Testament. When Jesus quotes it, that is what he is quoting. Why is Leviticus 19:18 so special? Because it sums up the Law in one word, as Paul said. It sums up Leviticus 19:17 “you shall not hate… but you shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and shall not incur sin because of him.” But why do you, pastor, tell your flock not to rebuke the wickedness, but to “love”? This flies in the face of the commandment itself.

Some of you are very confused at this point. You think you understand love. You think it is like that good feeling you get when you watch a romantic movie. Such romances are based on compassion, kindness and gentleness overcoming meanness and hatred and uncaring attitudes. On the face of it, this seems commendable. But have you noticed that the compassion, kindness and gentleness portrayed have nothing whatever to do with repentant sinners, but with man’s goodness? It usually involves adultery or fornication, doesn’t it? Oh sure, man’s badness can always be portrayed as some crazy preacher telling people to repent, right?

Any more, the preacher of righteousness is bad, in popular opinion. And the wicked claim to have a special relationship with God based on their love for Him, even though they obey not Leviticus 19:31 or 20:13. These ones feel an overwhelming calling to instruct others on how to love. They are all experts on the subject and have mountains of advice on how to love. Their gospel appears to be nothing more than an ongoing sermon on what they think is the best way to love. Very little of what they say is Biblical, of course, because they find their opinions constantly attacked or ignored by the Scriptures.

They only use the Scriptures for “buzz words.” They love to use the word “love.” And they use “kindness,” “gentleness,” “meekness,” “tolerance,” and other such Biblical words. But they, like the devil when he argued with Jesus, take the words and leave the meaning. In their natural reasoning they seem to get it right, thus fulfilling the Scripture that says, “there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end of its paths is death.”

Pastor, when was the last time you warned anyone to repent of their own reasoning and come to the Judge of all, Jesus Christ the Righteous, and ask for forgiveness? When did you explain who God is and why his is so outraged at the wicked? When did you set forth the judgment of God on sinners so they could rightly understand grace? So many pastors preach a social gospel of forgiveness that they don’t even understand what true forgiveness is all about.

Much of this sermonizing occupies its time instructing husbands and wives how to have good marriages. It is strange how terse the Bible is on such important affairs. It is strange how silent these “marriage counselors” are on Biblical affairs. Granted, sometimes they use the Scriptures to belittle bachelor number one, Paul the apostle. Perhaps they really dig in and mention Sarah and Abraham. Their proof texts are brief and well-arranged to get the desired result. The desired result, of course, is to submit to the pastor and his church. It is not to submit to one another in the fear of God. If the submission occurred at this level (man to God), then the rest would follow. Wives would submit to their own husbands (instead of to any man who flattered them or acted as their advocate). Husbands would love their own wives instead of ogling other women or becoming passive under the wife’s dictates. Adultery and homosexuality would become scarce. Men would become men and women would become women.

Oh, and if you want to know how to preach the gospel, I highly recommend the Bible. Also, I suggest the small book titled Today’s Gospel – Authentic or Synthetic? Published by Banner of Truth Trust.

Chris Simonson  3/06/2007

I am desperately seeking acceptance with God.

I have tried many things. Jesus appears to be the answer. I have gone to the churches, and I have faked a lot of love around a lot of other people faking love, but I still feel it’s fake, obviously. I have been baptized several times, cast out demons and spoken in tongues. I know all the doctrines about acceptance and forgiveness.

But I still don’t feel accepted or forgiven.

I have hugged and brotherly-kissed. I have washed feet and baptized toilets. If you tell me another religious saying like, “God loves you just the way you are,” or “I love you,” or “Don’t worry about it – you’ll come through it just like me,” or some such, you can save it for the judge. I have my serious doubts that you believe a word of what you say. You don’t appear to have acceptance with God yourselves, because you are hedging your bets, as they say.

Out of one side of your mouth you say that God will provide your needs; out of the real side of your life you amass as much stuff as your conscience can stand in order to throw up a bulwark against want. Are you accepted by God? Prove it to me by living the truth and speaking the truth. Give me some truth, not worldly garbage about forgiving myself. Or am I just another notch in your “fruit” gun? If so, I can’t stand your religion.

You come with smiling faces and flattering words, but you leave without having done a thing but pat yourself on your condescending backs for “saving” me. Are there any Christians left out there, or have you all become covetous? Do not respond if all you want to do is make merchandise out of me, hypocrite.

Jesus, the lowly and meek One, where are You?

Chris Simonson  4/5/2007

Where Will You Spend Eternity?

During your life there is but this one question that will matter in the spectrum of Eternity. All creation and even our own conscience bear witness to this reality. We did not bring anything into this world and we will leave with nothing from it; God has given us 72 years, on average, on this Earth and the decisions we make determine where we will spend eternity.

Heaven is spoken of in the Bible as a city of gold that glimmers like glass, lined with precious stones, seas of crystal, where the tree of everlasting life grows; everywhere is the presence of almighty God and His Son, who will reign for eternity. There will be no death in Heaven, nor pain, or suffering; one will not kill another, lie, steal or covet. There will be unspeakable joy at being in the holy presence of God.

Since Creation, men of faith have looked forward to one day being in the Kingdom of God; also since the beginning of man the Bible speaks of sin, and of us violating God’s commandments. The Bible says since Adam, sin and death entered the world, and all of Creation bears the mark of death: all living things perish eventually, animals grow up and devour each other, mountains deteriorate, trees decay and return to the soil and kings and civilizations rise up and fall back to the earth from whence they sprung. Since Adam’s fall, sin entered the heart of man; men have risen up and slain millions of their fellow human beings, from the Egyptian and Roman empires to Stalin and Hitler.

The Bible says that "as it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one; 11. There are none that understand, There are none that seek after God; 12. They have all turned aside, they are together become unprofitable; There is none that does good, no, not, so much as one: 13. Their throat is an open sepulcher; With their tongues they have used deceit: The poison of asps is under their lips: 14. Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15. Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16. Destruction and misery are in their ways; 17. And the way of peace have they not known: 18. There is no fear of God before their eyes."

Men backstab, they lie, they cheat and steal, they covet whatever they don’t have; they put great trust in things of this earth which are only temporary and will die eventually. Men build for themselves monuments and vast kingdoms, priding themselves on their intellectual achievements and the power of their hands.

To suppress their conscience, which constantly bears witness of Christ, the law of God and the coming judgment, men often run to substances as alcohol or drugs, others pursue careers and money with all their might and some move in political arenas to legislate either for or against morality. Worse yet, other men become consumed in religious traditions devoid of Christ, which only produces confusion, all in an attempt to ease a conscience that does not allow them to sleep at night. These men excuse those who are like-minded in sin and at the same time they sear their conscience by accusing those who follow after Christ.

The wrath of God is against all men, for "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.", and God will judge all men who reject the only way to Heaven and salvation from sin, Jesus Christ.

God, being holy, demands holiness from all men. As a result of sin, all men fall short of God’s holiness and will be cast into Hell for eternity with the devil and his angels to everlasting torment; the Bible describes Hell as constant weeping, gnashing of teeth, utter horrors, darkness... separation from God.

In the Old Testament of the Bible, we see a sacrificial system in which man sinned, then had to go to the priest and brings an offering, an unblemished lamb that was innocent of the sin; the lamb’s throat was slashed and the lamb’s blood was sprinkled on those who were guilty of sin. This process was actually a foretelling of Christ, who was the fulfillment of the Mosaic Law. The Bible also refers that only God can forgive sin and that God would provide himself a sacrifice.

Christ, the Lamb of God, who had no sin and was guilty of none, was this sacrifice; He humbled Himself below the angels to become a man, like you and me. Through the virgin birth He did not carry the sinful seed of man; He walked and talked with the priests and the elders and was perfect, having no sin. Jesus, as man and God, was charged with a crime He did not commit, was found guilty of sin that He did not do and was sentenced to immediate death by a judge who knew His innocence. Christ experienced being beaten beyond recognition, being spit upon by His people and was whipped horribly. He was led to His death as the Scriptures say "as a lamb being led to the slaughter"; he was crucified and all men’s sins were forgiven in the moment of His death. The wrath of God was poured out on His own son, whom was innocent and whom was the sacrifice for forgiveness of all the sins of the world.

Jesus Christ rose again on the third day after his death; He conquered death, and told his disciples to go unto the ends of the earth with this gospel, to warn all men of the coming judgment. During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He said, "I am the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to God without me.", referring to his own death, burial and resurrection.

People have pursued idols, men and other gods in an attempt to somehow ease their conscience, hoping to find forgiveness from their sins, but Jesus is the one and only prophet, priest and king that has provided forgiveness of sin; He commands that every man, woman and child must accept Him as Lord, and to obey His commandments. To reject Christ is to reject his Lordship over your life; one may say "I have received Christ...", but if they do not follow His commandments they are a liar and truth of God is not in them, according to the Scriptures. It is by grace, through faith that we are saved, and that not of ourselves but as a gift from God; our human attempts at righteousness are wicked and defiled before the holy God.

Receiving Christ is to receive Him as Lord, in reverence and fear of the one who has power to cast into hell; repentance, confession of sin and obedience to Christ through His word are the results of true salvation and are proof of the presence of the Spirit of God. True conversion sparks a craving to read the Bible, which in turn produces a blazing faith. Rejection of Christ will lead to eternal damnation, which is separation from God. To reject Christ is to reject the bridge of mediation between God and man, and the weight of your own sins will pull you down into the abyss. Many are there that have chosen to reject Christ, and in an attempt to build for themselves a haven on this earth in that approximate 72 years, they have ignored eternity and have been irresponsible with the greatest decision.

The question you must ask yourself, in the quietness of your own heart, is where will I spend eternity?

Steven  4/4/2007

One morning, my wife and I opened up the paper and saw an advertisement for a rummage sale; specifically it was a church rummage sale, Glad Tidings. Advertised were chairs, desks, clothes, etc. We gathered up Amber and went. There, in the pleasant fray of shoppers, a sweet old lady approached my wife and handed her a tiny booklet. She said, "Good to see you, have you ever been here before? If you come to church you get a free mocha coffee."

Taking a look at the booklet, it was a card bent like a teepee and it was light green. On the cover, in festive calligraphy it read (and, these are direct quotes):

"You’re invited to Glad Tidings!!"

When I opened it up like the lid of a coffin, it read:  "We hope you’ll accept this warm invitation to be our guest at the Church of Glad Tidings; where every individual is encourage to be their very best! Experience God’s love and be a part of the excitement! Everybody is welcome at G.T. especially the kids. Be my guest and we’ll treat you to a free mocha at the Glad Tidings café! Meeting times are: Saturdays at 7pm, Sundays at 8:30am and 10:45 am. Hope to see ya there! Any questions - call me"

My thoughts were not consumed by the fact that this booklet did not have a phone number on it to ‘call me’, but why didn’t our church have something like this, too? It’s perfect...

Warm invitation... warmly invited. It made me think of a man who came to Christ: this man wanted to know how he could come to know ‘the Good Master’ and what good deeds he could do to have eternal life. This man stated that he had served God from his youth, and wondered what it was he still lacked. Apparently, this man had read this booklet, or one like it, and had experienced the warm invitation.

I’m sure this man thought to himself, "This church is where every individual is encouraged to be their very best. I can do that. ‘Everyone is welcome.’ This sounds like the place for me. They ‘hope to see me there’; I’ll be able to tithe generously, because I have many possessions."

Unfortunately, the Master did not feel the same; in truth, He said, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." And the man heard this and left, grieved; for he did have many possessions.

It’s too bad the Master was not more sensitive to the needs of this man. He should have acted out the principle of ‘love one another’ and led this man to God, and encouraged him to sit in the front row, to be noticed by all. For the Master did not realize the potential of this man; for this man possibly was an employer and might have been able to stand up in the middle of the sermon and encourage people to come work for him for minimum wage, for he has strong entrepreneurial skills and a socio-economic mind set. He could be influential in the community the church resides in; this man might have had political backing that might have led to the winning of more permits for the church to build more buildings, to house other ministries. This young ruler might have been a great speaker and a great teacher and was probably never nervous reading in front of large groups of people; for, he is on cue with his winsome and charming jokes. He can freely discuss his righteousness in front of anyone and everyone. This could even be the man to unite the churches.

Why doesn’t the Master just understand that if we could get enough of these type of men in our churches, we could put them in leadership positions and we’d take the world by storm and accomplish so much more. Instead, the Master keeps sending his servants to our vineyard, where we’ve been slaving away; they come to collect the fruit of our labor. And even after we’ve given the servants a sound beating and sent them away, they still come back. And the Master’s son, whom we crucified on the cross, who has now come to inspect the fruit, tells us we have been found wanting, with this statement:

"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot.16 'So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.17 'Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and buy also white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see.19 'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent." Revelations 3

And when this young ruler tells the master, "look, look at my praise and worship to you! I praise you every Sunday!"

The Master replies, "THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.9 BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN." Matt 15:8-9

But, he pleads with the Master, "but I have faith!"

... And the Master replies, "Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.18 But someone may well say, "You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." James 2:17-18

Coming to realize that this is a hard Master who drives a hard bargain, this young ruler was afraid and took his talent and buried it in the earth; he invested his talent into the things of ‘education’, a charming personality and all things pleasing to the eye, ‘human relations’ and the ever present leaven of religion.

Because this man is able to justify adultery and fornicators, idolaters, homosexuals, thieves, the covetous, drunkards, revilers, swindlers... and every type of evil works that men do, because he has taken his conscience and seared it with a hot iron...the Master has said that he is a worker of iniquity, and has cast this man and men like him, who are outside of Christ, far away from Him, and they will be cast into the lake of fire. All of us once were like this man, in our flesh, outside of Christ; but those in Christ have repented, been redeemed and forgiven.

I would make one statement to Glad Tidings, pertaining to the gospel represented on this booklet: if you want to experience God’s love then you need to experience the Cross. Just as the phone number was missing from this booklet, so was the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ missing also. There was not mentioned any connection between the grace of our Lord Jesus and the Cross, between sin, salvation and the resurrection of a holy and righteous God. Instead there is a ‘welcoming of everyone’ and a denying of anyone from salvation.

- Steven  4/2/2007