The Early Genesis Chapters - An Opinion

As Christians, does it really make any difference what we believe about the first nine
chapters of Genesis? From a modern perspective, it all seems to be prehistoric myth. 
Maybe it's just a Jewish attempt to account for those years shrouded in the mist of man's Neolithic brain. The creation accounts, the Garden of Eden story, Noah's flood and such, fly in the face of scientific findings. Are they are merely superimposed morality plays on, or supposed explanations of, the mysteries of nature?

Many Christians today either do not believe those accounts, or fit them to the latest science. They think they have pretty solid theological views about the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They believe in the Trinity, the virgin birth, the atoning sacrifice of Christ and justification by faith alone. They believe Jesus is coming again. They even go for the latest end-times rapture fads. They believe in a real heaven and sometimes they even believe in a real hell, but they just don't go for that old-time Genesis history. They don't have trouble with every word, just the ones that require faith.

For instance, no one wants to get rid of "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth", even Carl Sagan-types. It has a cool ring to it. Everyone likes "and the
earth was formless and void". It's got that you-can-make-anything-you-want-of-it feel.   
Another keeper: "Then God said, Let us make man in our image, according to our
likeness" and God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them." Billions of people believe in this in one form or another. The facts are hard to deny. There is an earth and the sky. There are males and females. This doesn't take much faith. The Biblical story could be interpreted pretty much any way you want to, except for all the other details given in Genesis.

If we have differences of opinion on say, just how long it took God to create the stuff
it says He created in six days, should we work these differences out? Is there a right
viewpoint and anyone who comes against it is divisive, or stupid? On my part, I think
there is a right viewpoint, and I don't think it will be found in the latest findings of
science.

I like science; don't get me wrong. But there's something sinister about all this
newfangled knowledge we've been getting lately, right at the time the church is becoming apostate. I don't trust science to tell me what the Bible is really saying.  I trust God and the rest of the Scriptures.

So, if you're one of those test-tube thumpers who can't make heads nor tails of the
scriptures until you see it published in Science magazine or proven in a lab experiment, well, I say you're on very thin ice with God. But if you're like me, a believer that just doesn't have all the facts but are willing to believe what the Bible says, we're on common ground.

I once read a book by a Big Bang theologist by the name of Dr. Hugh Ross. It appears
that he is a spokesman for the modern trend of believing in a billions-of-years-old
universe with an earth and stars formed per the latest astronomic theories. He
stereotypes believers in a literal six-day creation as harsh and unloving. This loving
and tolerant man says that these "fundies" blow away many people from coming to Christ because of their intolerant attitude (or just plain stupidity). But as Mark Twain once said, "Science is so wonderful" one gets such wholesale return of conjecture from such little investment of fact. Mark Twain was as unimpressed with scientists as he was with preachers, but do you think Dr. Ross would side with him against scientists?  Oh no, let's both go after the preacher of righteousness who bases his doctrine on Genesis.

NavPress (you know, the Navigators who have you memorize Scriptures), are all for the Big Bang theory and an old universe. They cannot deny science, can they? Science more than proves that the earth is old and any attempts argue against facts science are barbarian. They say, along with Dr. Ross and the other syncretic creationists, it is really sad to see Christians arguing over such things, bringing disunity to the body of Christ, when we could all get along if you would only agree with us. What seems to escape their attention is that once you start down the path of scrutinizing the Bible by the torchlight of modern thinking, both secular scientists and spiritual saints will laugh at you. Neither one of them goes for halfway measures.

Let's face the facts: None of us were here when it all started, including the writer of
Genesis. Trying to explain away the account of Genesis by pretending that someone is
standing on earth somewhere and getting things all mixed up, like when the sun and moon were created, only confuses matters more and argues against the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; as though God could be limiting his own viewpoint during creation. The vast words, "In the beginning God..." go beyond time and space, so why try to box something up that only God knows? True, as He creates, time and space become by stages (six days) what we know as reality. 

Why would we think we can examine this creation with our blunt, finite minds and come up with a tenable theory as to how this all happened? But we do, so now, "In the beginning was the Dot, and the Dot blew up and made all this stuff by sheer accident... or, maybe an intelligent force was directing the particles... or, maybe there is another parallel universe...or...? 

That is cutting-edge science!

Chris Simonson  3/31/2006

Nauseating Theology

Prescribed by churches Romish and the like, our world-recognized courses can redirect your faith into systemized sophistry. All-seminaries approved, including those who claim to have no dealings with Rome. Feel free to spend endless hours poring over volumes of church fathers' ravings and rarebits. Learn how to turn your conscience into "the other spread" by autodidactic emulsification of discernment. These courses are guaranteed to make you a proselyte of Biblical contortions, overawing 99% of your competition, leaving them completely baffled and un-edified. Covered subjects are:

1. Nature of God in 333 volumes
2. Nature of angels in 444 volumes
3. Nature of demons in 555 volumes
4. Nature of man in 666 volumes

Length of course depends on when you die and how long you can hold on to your sanity/integrity. Once you have established your willingness to engage in endless debates, the Church will either give you your own bishopric (if you learn to ape them correctly), or alternately, have prelates anathematize you (once you hang yourself with words). Only the most modern and insidious condemnation techniques will be used to shipwreck your faith.

(As a healthy alternative to the above, one should try faith in God's promises and commands as given through Jesus Christ and his apostles. Although they are plain words, they are useful for serving God in truth. Also guaranteed to relieve theology-induced nausea).

Chris Simonson  3/27/2006

Who Will Save You?

Each religion in the world has its own outward rituals to please some god or to secure their righteousness and each one thinks he is right. However, while the way of every man is right in his own eyes, there is One who judges the heart.

What He finds in men’s hearts and how He weighs the thoughts of men are radically different from what the world esteems. The Son of God bore testimony to us that the hearts of men are desperately wicked above all things. It is not any sort of food that a person puts into his mouth that will condemn him but what comes forth from the heart; and from the heart comes evil thoughts, murder, adultery, other sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.

Change your heart and mind, and be forgiven. Do not be satisfied with a debased nature. The natural man will be destroyed because he follows the desires of the flesh; but a mind like Christ’s will be renewed by the Word of God. Oh, stubborn man, who will save you? None other than Jesus Christ, the Son of the Most High God. Anyone who trusts in Him will never be put to shame.

Matt Simonson  3/24/2006

I dreamed I stood in the court of God at the close of this age. No trial on earth before and, indeed, all the courts combined together since the beginning of the world, were not worthy of the intensity and scrutiny of this high court. There was no jury nor lawyers. Only the Judge sat and regarded every act, every cause, every argument for and against the one on trial. I discovered that it was me who was on trial. And not only me, but the entire human race was simultaneously judged, because the One judging can do such things.

As the evidence mounted, I could see that the Judge was fair in his consideration. He saw only the truth. I was justified only because of things that happened to me, not something I caused. If it had been left up to me, then I clearly saw how condemned I should be. But then I could see that, outside any self-will and apart from my disposition, I had been so influenced and enabled to do good things, that I stood the test of this ultimate trial. I saw it was purely by the mercy of the Same One who was Judge, that I had been prepared for This Day.

The bad things I had done had been paid for by the death of the One who judged. I saw that most of the ones being judged had neglected to take care of their evil lives while they had the chance. Many of those who professed to know the Judge personally were likewise condemned for their deeds of hypocrisy, for their words of judgment against themselves, and for their lack of care for others. I myself was just barely saved, but I was saved, and I was rejoicing along with the others in my Lord and Savior; but those condemned were weeping and wailing even before their punishment began.

Then I woke up.

Then I read:

When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. Before him shall be gathered all nations, and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

Then shall the King say to those on his right hand, "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was hungry, and you gave me food; I was thirsty, and you gave me drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in; naked, and you clothed me; I was sick, and you visited me; I was in prison, and you came to me."

Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, "Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you? or thirsty, and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger, and take you in? or naked, and clothe you? Or when did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?"

And the King shall answer and say to them, "Of a truth I say to you, insofar as you have done it to one of the least of these my brothers, you have done it to me."

Then shall he say also to those on the left hand, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, "Lord, when did we see Thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee?"

Then shall he answer them, saying, "Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me."

And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. Matthew 25:31-46.

Chris Simonson  3/23/2006

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  3/22/2006

I Read Recently ...

... where a man was arrested and jailed for warning people that a bomb was going to explode at a riverside café. The bomb did explode and killed several and injured dozens. Actually, he was not arrested because he warned anyone; he was jailed because he was right. There were several witnesses against him, who testified that he had upset them. They had initially been offended and told the man to leave the property, but afterward figured he was doubtless the bomber. Others, who were not so sure, nonetheless felt that he should have been more compelling in his warning. One witness was reported as saying “He actually drove people away from himself instead of winning them to his side.”

Either way, the public has demanded justice.

Many people have been stoned, burned at the stake and worse, for the same offense this man committed. They are prophets and witnesses for the truth. They warned others and it came to pass just as they said.  Somehow, they are seen as the guilty party. They are tried and condemned. The faithful and true witness, Jesus Christ, was crucified for his efforts. Jesus warned everyone there is a day coming in which the world will be judged in righteousness. He ought to know: He is the Judge.

He warns because he wants men and women to be delivered from the only judgment befitting to unbelievers: “Depart from me, you workers of iniquity, into the fire of hell prepared for the devil and his angels.” This tends to upset them. They are at ease, dining at the riverside, enjoying life.  Many friends surround them, assuring them that all is well. If there is a God, he loves them, they say. These friends even call themselves Christians. They especially hate the ones whom God sends by to warn the carefree consumers. They tell themselves and their friends that sitting around doing nothing but enjoying God’s creation is another word for “love.”

My friend, are you sitting at the riverside enjoying the good things of life? Does your conversation about God and his love center around your easy lifestyle? Do you hate it when someone warns you about the imminent explosion of the beautiful dining facilities? Then you really ought to re-examine your faith. Maybe it is not based on truth, but on comfort level.

Chris Simonson   3/21/2006

End Times According to Paul

We may think to ourselves that Paul was not into end-times stuff as much as John or Peter or Daniel. By thinking this, we cut ourselves loose from the plain teaching of the New Testament that there is a judgment  after death, and that’s the final wrap. In his usual clever methods of deception, Satan uses the holy scriptures as a smoke screen for his real intents. He just wants our attention off salvation and onto something else. He assures us we are saved no matter what and that it’s time to go onto bigger and better things, like eschatology (end-times stuff). By doing this, he makes our salvation unsteady and we focus on things other than godliness in Christ Jesus. This has been proven over and over again by various sects and cults that pop up whenever a thousand years goes by, or a big meteor shower or comet shows up unexpectedly, or somebody gets a message from God.

Paul says to the Thessalonians, "Let no one deceive you in any way, for the Day of the Lord will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of sin is revealed, the son of destruction." He does not go on to speak of Hal Lindsey-type prophesies or other pop theology, but he explains very carefully that God will send upon them (those who are perishing) a deluding influence in order that they might believe what is false.

We may think to ourselves that we know what 2 Thess. 2:7 means where it says "until he is taken out of the way." Pop theology says that this is the secret rapture of the church. The holy scriptures in no wise say this. This is a fabrication using wishful thinking and several scriptures relating to the visible, only, coming of Christ. That’s why the Greek text calls the second coming the "appearance" and not the "disappearance."

But let’s say you just don’t believe any of this and want to hope that you will be raptured out of here before anything bad starts to happen. On what are you placing your hope? Are you ready? Are you of those who think they are saved and yet they are so locked into this world that even if there were a rapture, the Lord himself couldn’t drag you up into the sky because you got your arms locked around the things of this world? And why do you find yourself in this fashion? Isn’t it precisely because of the doctrines you hold about the end times?

You probably find yourself absorbed in things that are totally unrelated to salvation in Jesus Christ, and yet you feel that God has called you to do them anyway. Let’s say you go around trying to sell your fellow Christians life insurance, or annuities, or legal advice, or real estate, or automobiles, or automobile insurance, or...you get the drift. You are a modern-day American Christian whose hope lies in the things of the earth and you focus others’ attention on you and your false hopes. You run the youth groups and are active in organizing all the church’s activities. You are a Sunday school teacher and the pastor lets you preach whenever he is on his vacations to Tahiti and Barbados. You can really shine.

But you hate the gospel of Jesus Christ. Oh sure, you believe in the four spiritual laws. You know that Jesus came into the world to save sinners and that God loves you. You even believe that Jesus died on the cross and that he rose again on the third day. You know all of this, but you still hate the gospel. If you really thought that you were saved by the gospel, then why are you so angry when someone presents it to you in a Biblical form that shows you that you must repent in order to be saved? That’s the gospel that Jesus Christ himself preached.

No, you want to give intellectual assent to a few things that Christ did for you because he thinks so highly of you. Or, if you like the gospel so much, why do you spend a fortune making yourself comfortable here and pleasing your flesh, and then giving a pittance to the Lord’s work? You base your entire life on this misunderstanding. And in order to remove the true gospel of repentance from your mind, you think a lot about the rapture and everything that happens after you are out of here. You can be a distant observer and judge of events then, even as you are now, engrossed with holy entertainment.

Now you may say to yourself, this man is brutal and crude. He should be tender and gentle with my conscience, like Robert Schuller or Pope what’s-his-name. Let me speedily add that I trust you are not a follower of either of these men, but if you are, please reconsider your salvation. Tenderness and gentleness await those who call upon the Lord out of a pure heart. But, as Paul says, "If any man does not love the Lord Jesus, let him be accursed."

Not all men have faith, even though they take great pains to assure themselves they do. They spend their days on theological issues that they cannot prove and that lead to doubtful disputations. They are ever anxious to tell you about some new accomplishment their church has accomplished (like winning the inner-city basketball championship). They will tell you that 500 people were saved during that conference (they have signed cards to prove it). And, they are very nice.

The end times are upon us, brethren. Of course, this has been said since the inception of the church, but it is the way it is. One or two thousand years to the Lord is like a couple of days to us. But the end could come suddenly, once the apostasy has reached its fullness. One after another of the big-name churches have fallen away. The best indicator is their acceptance of homosexuals. It starts with ordaining women, then goes to lesbians. By default, male homosexuals are also included.

Mark those churches who love wickedness and have nothing to do with them. If they ask you, tell them to repent. Don’t even attend their end-times conferences or their plays or their spin-the-bottle fellowships. That’s why the end-times scriptures were given to us. So we could know when things are happening and what to do. If we can’t repent, then we are of the class: "in order that they may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness."

But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. And it was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word. Finally, brethren, pray for us that we may spread the word of the Lord rapidly, and that it be glorified, just as it was with you. 2 Thess 2.

Chris Simonson  3/20/2006

Saint Patrick's Day

Patrick was born in 387 A.D. and is believed to have died on March 17th, 493 A.D. He was born near Kilpatrick, Scotland and around 16 years old was kid-napped and enslaved by Irish slavers and taken to Ireland. His new master instructed him to tend sheep in the valley of the Braid and on the isolated slopes of Slemish.

While so employed, Patrick discovered the fear of the Lord and the solace of prayer: “and His fear increased in me more and more, and the faith grew in me, and the spirit was roused, so that, in a single day, I have said as many as a hundred prayers, and in the night nearly the same, so that whilst in the woods and on the mountain, even before the dawn, I was roused to prayer and felt no hurt from it, whether there was snow or ice or rain; nor was there any slothfulness in me, such as I see now, because the Spirit was then fervent within me” (quoted from Patrick’s “Confessio”)

During his captivity, Patrick acquired an extensive knowledge of the Celtic tongue, in which he would one day announce the glad tidings of Salvation; in addition to
language he became familiar with the local pagan beliefs through Milchu, his master,
whom was a druidical high priest. After 6 years of being a slave, Patrick escaped and fled back to Britain; he attended Martin’s Monastery for many years to learn more of God and His Word; he felt a tremendous burden to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the pagan people of Ireland who’d once enslaved him.

Upon landing on the Emerald Isle, his first act of ministry was to travel to Dalriada,
where he had once been a slave; he paid the full price of his ransom to his pagan,
former master and bestowed to him the blessing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Thus is the story of Patrick, a man whom had a hunger and thirst for God and His
word, which led him back to his painful past of slavery to conquer false gods with the awesome Gospel of Jesus Christ. A classic illustration of an individual whom did not fear man but God, and answered the call to repentance.

There is a myth that says Patrick banished the snakes from Ireland; in reality, the
devilish and pagan doctrines that once enslaved the Irish people were silenced by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, brought to Ireland’s shores with boldness, by a man of faith.

Steven  3/17/2006

In reality they are depressed, heavyhearted, anxious, easily offended, etc. They blame this on everything but their own depraved minds. They think to themselves they are loved by God and even call themselves Christian. They expect society to go along with their stories of love between themselves, and today, most of society buys into the lie.

Many religious persons call themselves Christians and expect others to use this term. However, in so doing they destroy the meaning of the word, because they are not like Christ at all even though they pretend to be. They fake love, kindness, humility, etc. 

In reality, they are irreligious, not devoted to Jesus Christ or his gospel. They blame this on everything but their own unbelief. They think to themselves they are loved by God and even call themselves gay. They expect the church and the rest of society to go along with their stories of love between themselves, and today, most of society buys into the lie.

If we look at the definition of "Christian", the dictionary says: "Of Jesus Christ or his teachings... of or representing Christians or Christianity."

Don't call yourself Christian if you're not.

Chris Simonson  3/16/2006

Let's Pick on Samson

A foolish generation mocks the man of God. They mock because they do not recognize God's holiness as expressed by the man of God any more than they recognize God Himself. Samson is a questionable figure as far as holiness goes, but he was holy unto the Lord, a Nazarite from his birth. Because Samson's holiness is a little less than sterling, let us look quickly at two prophets whose holiness is indisputable, and then get back to mocking Samson.

First, Elisha. Let's look at what happened to some little children when they mocked him: "And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head. And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them." 2 Kings 2:23-24.

Not likely to hear that story in Sunday school! The effete churchgoer cannot stomach such fare. They are used to the dainties served by the friends of the world (Psalm 141:4, Proverbs 23:3).

Second, Elijah  the Tishbite: "And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty."  2 Kings 1:12.

It is true that Jesus our Lord did not come into the world to judge the world but that the world through him might be saved (John 3:17). For instance, when his disciples James and John saw the cruel inhospitality of a Samaritan village they said, "Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elijah did?" But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, "Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." And they went to another village. (Luke 9:54-56).

Nonetheless, prophets are not mocked without penalty. When Jesus came, he was
mocked and beaten and crucified and did not call down fire, but rather forgave
them. However, there is coming a Day when all of that will come into account.
Then vengeance will come from the same Jesus the Lord, who as a consuming fire
will burn up his enemies with wrath and indignation (2 Thessalonians 1:8, Hebrews 12:29).

Back to Samson: Before he was born, his mom never drank wine or liquor, nor did
she ever eat anything non-kosher. This meant that Samson was separated to the
Lord even before he was born. He never cut his hair as far as we know. He was very religious when it came to that. However, in sexual matters, he was not so dedicated to Yahweh. Whereas the Lord said to take no daughters of foreigners, he really, really, really wanted a Philistine lady whose name we never found out. His mom and dad were displeased but agreed to do the customary arrangements to have him married.

The story is short and sad. He never got to have his wife, because the marriage
was destroyed by her betrayal of his trust. Samson tried to contend with the
Philistines by posing a riddle, but his wife pulled the rug out from under him.
At the marriage feast, she wept seven days trying to get the secret out of him,
because her people had threatened to burn her and her father's house if she didn't persuade Samson to give up the answer to the riddle. Instead of trusting in her husband, she feared and obeyed her friends and family to the ruin of all. When the Philistines came up with the answer, he knew his wife had betrayed him. His "anger was kindled."

We should take note of what he said to them: "If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle." (Judges 14:18).

This is pretty graphic language. They had used his wife for their own purposes, and she had acquiesced in fear. They took away Samson's rightful use of his own wife, and he is acknowledging that his beloved heifer has been turned into little more than the enemy's draft animal as a result. This is the way it is in many marriages.

"Husbands, love your wives", we hear the manipulators say, but they are using our wives against us. There is no love, but fear of reprisal from the church. The feminist movement has flooded the churches and we hear weeping for seven days, tears flowing not from repentance due to rightful fear of God and reverence towards husbands, but from fear of man and reverence towards other men (and women).

The wives are not submissive to their husbands. They feel, because of their pastors' teaching, that the husbands must be rid of self-interest and vainglory. They feel it is their duty to reveal this (nag them with tears if necessary) because the children of their people have convinced them that this is the Christian thing to do. They have been assured by their people bad things will happen to them if they do not turn on their husbands: "lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire" or worse, they will be shunned by the women's social club.

This ought not to be.

Modern society, including the modern churches, mock the man of God. They use
many devices, the best being reserved to destroy the man's authority in his own household. As a result, the children turn out to be twice the child of hell as their parents. As Isaiah the prophet says, "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12 . When people mock the man of God, they mock God himself, who created them.

What does God do about this? In the story of Samson, He uses the evil situation of Samson to show his wrath against the Philistines. As the Bible puts it, "But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel." Judges 14:4. As we read on in the story, Samson wreaks vengeance on them and they burn his wife anyway. Instead of being honored as a hero, he is bound and given to the Philistines by his own brethren, another mockery. This does not go well for the Philistines. God, mocking them, has Samson beat down one thousand of them with the jawbone of an ass.

We know the story of Samson and Delilah, mainly because Hollywood loves stories
about fornication and adultery. However, even though Delilah mocks Samson with
her tears, and he loses his eyes and is put to the grindstone, he has the last victory.  He kills more people in his death than he did during the rest of his life (Judges 16:30). The Philistines were rejoicing that their god was more powerful than the Israelite's God, and they were making a show of it by displaying Samson in a shameful manner. Of course, this is a type of Christ. And, as a type of Christ, he destroys the house of their god and them with it. That's what happens when we mock the man of God.

Our ministry as ambassadors of Christ precludes that we curse men, but rather
that we bless them. (Romans 12:14). Samson was a man who was persecuted for
righteousness' sake, just as are the servants of God today. Although he was
a Judge of Israel and not an ambassador for Christ, this makes no difference to
the wicked, who will try to thwart God's purposes because they know that one
of his purposes is to rid the earth of them, because Jesus said, "The meek
shall inherit the earth." In order to be meek, we must be like Jesus Christ,
not like the effeminate churchmen of modern society. They deliver us over to
the world for judgment because they are scared of their own shadows. They fear
man, not God. No, they mock the man of God and turn against him as necessary to
maintain their friendship with the world.

Does God sit in heaven and do nothing about this? No, rather, he has his ambassadors preach the everlasting gospel that warns men of the coming judgment, and he delivers men if they repent. The gospel becomes the only tool for providing the power of salvation to the world. Those who mock the Gospel and say it is secondary to their gods of religious observance will be surely put to death.

God, on His part, calls men to repent of their wickedness and their idolatry. He has the men of God preach the gospel so other men can decide their eternal condition: Life, or death.

Much has been done to mock God in these last days. But, the shame that Jesus
bore on the cross shows us that we too must bear the shame. If we suffer with
him, we will also reign with him (Romans 8:17). Let us not be ashamed of the
gospel, even if it is foolishness to the world, because God is our judge.

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. For he that sows to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that sows to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Galatians 6:7-9.

Chris Simonson  3/15/2006

Truth

Once we used to look for the truth. Some of us. We thought there would be no higher calling, no more worthy adventure, than to sacrifice anything for truth. We were told in the public schools that truth was in our textbooks, given by our teachers. Math was truth, or science was truth, maybe even social studies were truth.

What we learned, however, was that social behavior was all we needed to know of the truth. If we got popular or got high or got sexual adventure or got rich, those things, and not some objective truth, were the real truth for us. As our moral boundaries eroded and shifted, we invented new truths that had been long condemned as lies. But it didn’t matter: we were taught there is no real truth, only what we make up in our own minds. So our jails filled up. Our marriages broke down. Our governments became parodies of law and justice.

Where did all the money and empowerment for this insanity come from? “Because they rejected the simple truth, God gave them over to strong deception, that they might believe a lie.” - the Holy Scriptures. That’s the truth.

Chris Simonson 3/14/2006

Death is trusting in the flesh.

"Open your mind", "there is no God".
You walk the broad path, fool.
Know the world, forget your Lord.
You stain your garment, fool.
Fulfill yourself, He will not see.
You will give account, fool.

Strain a gnat, swallow a camel.
Hypocrite, which is the worse?
Flush the flesh, cover the heart.
Hypocrite, which is crucial?
Keep the world, trade your soul.
Hypocrite, which is vital?

Lose your life, gain true life.
Walk the narrow path, child.
Fight the fight, run the race.
Endure until the end, child.
Hate rebellion, guard from idols;
His angels protect you from the evil one.

Life is believing in Jesus Christ.

Matt Simonson  3/13/2006

March 6, at the Sacramento Capitol, a rally took place to promote homosexual agendas within public schools. There was a parade of many individuals holding a sign printed with “Keep our schools safe for all”. However, even more showed up (mostly of Russian descent) holding signs printed with such things as “Marriage = 1 Man and 1 Woman” and “Homosexuality is a sin” and “Except ye repent, ye will all parish” and “Perversion is never safe”.

Also, those in opposition to the sodomites would yell such things as “Stop Brain Wash!” and “Repent!” every time the group of perverts would cheer.

Public school teachers brought children from their schools to make a front as if they were for the children, and had evidently convinced the children and their parents that they were supporting some minority group. One public school teacher forbid the children in his care to take literature from me about how only Jesus’ blood can wash away the sins of people, including those who were being punished in the body with AIDS for their perversion, albeit they must repent.

Some there who were against the perverted meeting, asked me, “Don’t you support America?”, when I was reluctant to take the American flag. Caught without words to say, I had to say “I don’t know”. Then later, a young Russian man asked me: “Do you want other nations to view Americans as homosexuals?” I think it was because he saw me standing in the background with my Christian tracts, and I was not yelling with those in protest. At the time I had to answer “No.”

What happens when all of America’s legislation says it’s OK for a man to lie with another man and God says it’s an abomination? Will they still be asking, “Do you support America?” or, “Do you want other nations to view Americans as homosexuals?"

If it’s true, I’m not going to cover it up.

Why did the Russian church respond only, out of hundreds of churches? Were all the other pastors on vacation when they were contacted to assemble?

News channel 3 reported on the event, but they reported with a bias for the homosexual rally. They ended with a woman stating that nobody was going to be bullied today, then the news channel showed the cops guarding –as though if the cops weren’t there, the “bullies” would be let in.

However, this was not the case. These weren’t bullies at all, but citizens who showed up because a law, which protects those who would participate in gross sexual immorality, was being passed. These Christians and US citizens were practicing free speech as legislation was being passed within the Capitol that ignored the majority view of the people.

The Lord rebuke them.

Matt Simonson  3/12/2006

Report on AB 606 Rally - Sacramento, CA

AB 606 is a proposed bill authored by Assemblymember Lloyd Levine which bolsters a current law, here in California, which disguises itself as an "anti-discrimination" law. This bill is now in the California Senate, awaiting approval. This bill specifically cuts off funding to school districts that are soft on 'harassment' against race, nationality, sexual preference (or, reading between the lines: 'homosexual') or religion, but, it is ok for school districts to discriminate against Christian students, citing "separation of church and state".

On Monday, March 6th, 2006, there was a rally at the California State Capital in support of this bill, about 400 strong, consisting mainly of pro-homosexual teenagers and naive school-children.

Dick Otterstead organized with several, local, Russian Christian fellowships to counter-protest the homosexuals at the State Capital; they outnumbered the homosexual rally by a third, but in listening to the KOVR Sacramento channel 13 news it was the other way around. The reporter for KOVR, Rafer Weigel, was upset because one of the Christian Russian counter-protestors, whose English was not perfect, would not turn around the accidentally mis-spelled, hand-made sign for them to film; disappointed, Rafer Weigel cursed and said: "He's not going to turn it around, so we can't get the shot."

Earlier, dressed in a bright red devil suit, Dick Otterstead held a sign that read "Proud supporter of AB 606" on one side and "This way to Hell" on the other with an arrow pointing toward the homosexual rally. He marched over to the homosexual rally side and stood a moment with them, until one of the leaders of the homosexual group physically assaulted him by grabbing his arm, trying to prevent him from going forward, all the while trying to pull down his sign. Seconds later the Capital Police swiftly escorted Dick back to the counter-protest side.

One Russian grandmother near me protested, calling out in a thick accent: "How can you pervert our children?", and thus is the crux of the issue which drove so many Christians to respond. The homosexuals had bused in elementary-school children from local school districts to sit on the Capital steps, at tax-payer's expense, to show support for the homosexual agenda.

The problem with the homosexual movement is that they are not just satisfied with changing legislation in their favor and making sure that everyone in this country is sodomized, but now they are trying to rape the children with their perversions. The truth be known, as spelled out in yesterday's rally, this bill is but one more step designed to protect the abominable, in-your-face, decadent homosexual agenda.

Steven   3/10/2006

March 27th, 2006 - Comment from Rafer Weigel, a reporter for KOVR news:

"This blogger got several facts wrong regarding me, my reporting and reactions. At no time did I EVER report that the numbers were "the other way around". In my report, which clearly this factually inacurate blogger never saw, I said the numbers were equal. In the estimation of police, that is what they saw. At no time did I become "enraged". It is not my job to become enraged or have an emotional attachment to the material I'm covering. Only when I'm misquoted and misrepresented by an irresponsible writer such as this man do I become enraged. The sign was spelled "fagets" and it would have made good video, which is all I'm concerned about. We asked the man show it but he wouldn't. He became paranoid at the request. Fortunately you did get the words I said correct. But there was no rage behind it. True to form of many activists--you "spin" the reality how you wish it to be to further your agenda. In this case it is to make your position sympathetic in some sort of conspiracy-like fashion that you and members of your cause are fighting against in some kind of Don Quixote-like fashion against the masses and the liberal bias of the press. If you need to do that to pump your readers up, that's fine. But don't make me or my work a part of it when it's wrong and inaccurate."

(Mr. Weigel stated in the above comment that he was not, indeed, 'enraged' so we have made the following edit to the above blog: 'enraged' has been changed to 'disappointed'.)

Our gospel should be no less concerned with the attributes of a holy and righteous God. We should present the Law in all its glory until the soul acquiesces to the fear of God. Then we should preach repentance, a change of life. When the soul is properly prepared by God's truth, then we should preach faith in Christ. It is not faith in Christ that is preached today, but faith in some other principle to which is attached the name of Christ. Then, without any scriptural backing, today's gospel preaches assurance of salvation. Today's pastors spend a lot of time on the subject of assurance of salvation. Maybe the Holy Spirit is convicting some consciences. After all, isn't that the work of the Spirit? John 16:8. To assuage their conscience so they don't go away, the pastor presents to them the gospel of easy-believism, hoping to keep them coming back Sunday after lucrative Sunday.

The only one who can truly assure a person of his salvation is God himself. He
sends his Holy Spirit into the life of his chosen and they follow Christ, taking up their cross. As they obey Him, going places where the flesh does not want to go, He gives them His assurance. The rich young ruler was left with no assurance. We do not know whether he ever repented, but that was left out of history on purpose. Today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow. If we are called upon to preach Christ, let us preach the cross and what it means. Let us start with the uniqueness of God, his holiness and righteousness, then proceed to convict the souls of their need for a Savior. Let us not present a plastic Jesus, but one who bled and died for our sins. If the world does not want to hear this, and defames us as a result, we are to bear that cross. Do not let us begin to assure the wicked of their acceptance with God. If we have a brother who is struggling with his faith, let us preach Christ so he can believe and have assurance. Let's not become the Holy Spirit to assure him of something only the Holy Spirit knows.

And coming to the end of the matter, when we preach Christ, let us depend on God
for the results. Much of today's gospel depends on psychological techniques, though while having temporary results, do nothing for subduing the flesh. More and more people are being misled by the false gospels spawned by today's gospel, with seemingly spectacular results. But when we look around after a few moments, their converts are just as worldly as the devil's own institutions. Jesus said we would know them by their fruit. If we would stop paying heed to today's gospel and get about the business of preaching the message once delivered to the saints, trusting to God to back his own gospel, we would preach the truth unafraid of what man thinks is the right way to do it. We would be assured that our word is not our own, but his who sent us. Then we would see repentance as the Holy Spirit begins to convict souls of their shaky standing before a holy and righteous God.

Let us persuade men, but not with wonderful rhetoric and worldly entertainment,
but with the bold word of faith that says, "Repent, for the kingdom of God is
near." Let us believe it ourselves.

For there is no respect of persons with God. For as many as have sinned without
law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall
be judged by the law... In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by
Jesus Christ according to my gospel.  Romans 2:11,12, 16.

Therefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may
receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it
be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but
we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your
consciences. 2 Corinthians 5:9-11.

Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good
conscience, and of faith unfeigned: From which some having swerved have turned
aside unto vain jangling; desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm. But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, "for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for them that defile themselves with mankind (homosexuals), for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. 1 Timothy 1:5-11.

End note: Today's Gospel was first published in 1970, at the height of the "Jesus People Movement." Evidently, Walter Chantry was not impressed with the false spirituality attendant with that movement. The last 35 years have only seen a continued degradation of the gospel, to the point where many churches are ordaining homosexuals.  They all have the same gospel: "God loves us just the way we are." About the only two scriptures they know are John 3:16 and "judge not." If you, the reader, have fallen into today's gospel, pray to God for mercy that he may deliver you, because, according to scripture, we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of our deeds.

Chris Simonson  3/09/2006

Jesus knew that the young man was incapable of fulfilling even one commandment,
and yet he continued, "But if you will enter into life, keep the commandments."

The man asks, "Which ones?"

Jesus says, "You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery', 'Do not kill', 'Do not steal', 'Do not bear false witness', 'Defraud not', 'Honor your father and mother'." In Matthew he adds, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."

The point is that Jesus did not give a quick and easy how-to-believe-and-be-forgiven sermon. The man asked what was left in his life to accomplish so that he could have eternal life. He wanted a quick rundown on how to, same as modern man. He thought that if only Christ gave him instruction, he could do it. Jesus, meeting him on that ground, showed him that if one trusts that he can achieve eternal life by keeping the Law, then he must obey it perfectly. The only way to break the curse of the Law, that is, death, is to keep all the commandments. We know, as true believers, that does not mean just outward observance of Jewish laws, but something far greater (Matt. 5:20).

And like his modern counterparts, the rich young man justified himself and said,
"These things have I kept since my youth." Was Jesus shocked at this boldness? No, because the man was being honest. According to the Jewish law, he had observed the various ordinances without blame, same as Paul (Philippians 3:6). Those youth today who say they have kept the ten commandments are simply foolish. They are neither Jewish nor do they even try to keep the commandments. They definitely do not keep "thou shalt not bear false witness" when they testify about their own obedience. Yes, the man may have "observed" or "kept" the law, but he did not carry out the righteous requirements of the law. Jesus, however, did.

And this same Jesus did not condemn the man but proceeded to preach to him the
very thing that he lacked in order to inherit eternal life. The man had asked, "What else do I lack?" and Jesus was going to further his  understanding. This is the preaching that is so dearly needed today. We should not shrink back from telling a person what they lack, but instead, we are running popularity contests, filling our churches with unrepentant souls. We teach them all they lack is saying the sinner's prayer, or some such. I can't but help think that the reason so many pastors are willing to preach a half-truth is so that they will have a larger audience to insure a larger income. This is covetousness, and it is the main sin of American churchianity.

Speaking of covetousness, this is precisely the problem Jesus centered on in the
young man's life. He was rich. It is interesting that Jesus did not mention the tenth commandment, "Thou shalt not covet" when he gave the to-do list of things to inherit eternal life. Nothing wrong with being rich, we say. Jesus certainly did not dislike the rich young ruler. Mark says that Jesus "beholding him loved him". Today's wretched definitions of love defile the very God who is love. But, the love of God is pure and holy, and this is the love Jesus had for the rich young man. So, the next thing Jesus says is purely out of a heart of love, although it was the very thing that drove the man away from Christ.

The modern pastors would lick their chops when they found out about the wealth
and prestige this young man had. They would give him the best privileges available to the dues-paying parishioners. I've seen it many times with my own eyes and need hear no empty arguments to protect the guilty. This man would be saved and baptized and given the best parking spot.

A case in point: Jack Hayford's "Church on the Way" had a no-parking zone next to the church entrance, separate from the rest of the parking lot. No one could park there, except one, a Pat Boone and his Rolls Royce. Whenever we pulled up to park, searching in vain for an empty stall and having to go up the street to overflow parking as usual, there were hushed tones of admiration as we saw the Rolls, knowing that inside the church, Pat Boone himself had again blessed us with his presence. You couldn't get near him, however, because pastor Jack made sure he sat in a certain place and was surrounded with a certain clientele. I could give many more examples, but some of us know these two celebrities. Jack's preaching is very successful, accommodating itself to today's gospel.

Jesus, however, said to the young man, "One thing you lack: Go away, sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, then come, take up the cross, and follow me." 

And there you have it, the preaching of the cross of Christ. This is not the four spiritual laws, or the eightfold path to enlightenment or a long philosophical discussion about wealth. It is simply the gospel of, "Come and follow me." This gospel is not preached in America, because it involves a cross. If we do not preach the cross of Christ in its entirety, we are not preaching The Gospel. It does not matter how much we watch movies about "The Passion"; if we do not partake of the cross we are not going to inherit eternal life.

This simple command, "Go and sell everything you have and give to the poor,"
cannot be found in the commandments. And yet, this is the very command he had
to obey in order to inherit eternal life. This is probably the same commandment many who dwell in these United States need to obey. But they will hang on to their religion, thinking that a shallow observance of Christian rituals will get them to heaven. And their pastors will see to that.

And so, the commandment becomes too hard. We are told the young man went away sorrowful, because he had many possessions. The Dispensationalists, like Jack
Hayford, will say this whole episode is pre-cross and so has no real meaning to
eternal life. It is just a great story of something, like how impossible everything is without the help of God. The rich young man could have disobeyed the command if only he had waited until the right dispensation? Then he could live in this dispensation rich and ruling, going to church and paying is preacher.

Ah, the comforts of today's gospel.

Chris Simonson  3/08/2006

The preaching of the message given by the Lord and his apostles is the only way
a man can be saved. It is the only way the church can be edified. It is the only way unity of the body of Jesus Christ can be achieved. All other methods are devilish and it is no wonder the church has been overrun by doctrines of demons precisely over the matter of how to present the gospel. So, it would be good to contrast present-day methods with how the Lord himself handles souls.

Let us use a Biblical story of how Christ handled an aspiring follower of eternal life to contrast that with how today's ministers of today's gospel would handle the same situation.

Looking at Matthew 19:16, Mark 10:17 and Luke 18:18, we see a man running up to
Jesus and kneeling before him in sincere search for eternal life. Through his
encounter with the Lord, we learn that he is a ruler, he is rich and he is young. If such a man came forward at one of our evangelism outreaches, with such credentials and with such an attitude of humility and sincerity, we would unhesitatingly make him a member of our church (after a brief explanation of the four spiritual laws and the liturgy of the "sinner's prayer" of course). What a catch for the Lord!

Instead, Jesus sends the man away sorrowful. Quite a contrast.

Jesus preached, "Come to me... All those who come to me I will in no wise cast
out."  However, his disciples didn't want children hanging around and bothering him, but he took them and blessed them anyway and said, "Of such is the kingdom of heaven" Mark 10:14. 

Then the rich, young ruler ran up to him and asked what he could do to obtain eternal life.  According to today's gospel, this would be a perfect setup for a simple confession of faith. It is true that Jesus said to the young man, "Come and follow me", but he had first laid some conditions on the man that made him walk away with no eternal life? The story of the fish that got away from Jesus.

We can do no better. If our gospel catches fish that Jesus himself would not catch, then we are arrogant boasters of a greater love than that of our Savior. And, this is what we see in Christendom today, a proliferation of self-accolades on how wonderful this or that technique worked to catch a thousand souls in the net of our corporate fishing fleet. We hear that they "decided for Christ", but we cannot tell what they decided.

When the man ran up to Jesus and kneeled, he showed some reverence, far more
than the youth of today. He addressed Jesus as, "Good Master". This is a wonderful recognition of Who Jesus Is, we might think, but we had better think twice. He asked, "Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" What a wonderful question! How many times do we see such zeal for the things of the soul today? Usually, the question is more like, "What shall I do that I may be popular? or rich? or happy?"

But Jesus was determined to preach the gospel to this man. First, he did not give him the four spiritual laws. No, Jesus gave him the Law of Moses. "Why do you call me good? There is none good but one, that is, God." In saying this, he recalls the first commandment, "Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord." Jesus knew something about this man we do not at first see. We know the first commandment says, "You shall have no other gods before me."

Outwardly, the man showed great devotion to God, but evidently he did not understand the goodness of God that leads to repentance. "God is good", we say, but do we even understand what we are saying? Was the young man at fault for calling Jesus good? We know that Jesus is the Holy One of God, and that he is, like his Father, good. But it appears that the young ruler's belief was shallow, and so were his words. "Good Master", he said, but did he really mean it? Did he really mean it when he said, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" We will see.

But, first, let us examine what today's gospel would make of the question.  We
hear from many preachers that there is nothing we can do to inherit eternal life except believe, of course. They fail to mention that we must believe properly and that if we do not understand Christ we will lose any hope of eternal life. They spend little or no time describing the necessity of proper belief, skipping to the formulaic "sinner's prayer" or some such. They spend no time on the holy Law of God, thinking this will drive people away from Christ. They spend as little time as possible on the attributes of a holy and righteous God, who will by no means clear the guilty. They make up doctrines that "God loves you just the way you are" or "God loves us unconditionally" in order to manipulate by emotion the simple minded. By the time they describe Jesus, it is a Jesus stripped of holiness, purity, justice, judgment, and all the other attributes of God. Their approach to God is stripped of reverence, and talk as they might of God's mercy and love, it is a casual thing not linked to his judgment upon sinners.

But when Christ handles the scriptures and the souls, he is far more reverential. He says, first of all, "Why do you call me good? There is none good but one, that is, God." The very first part of the gospel is to present God as distinct from everything or everyone else, the Creator of all and the only good. Although Jesus knew who he is, he emptied himself and gave only his Father the glory, thus perfectly fulfilling the first commandment.

Chris Simonson  3/07/2006

How Today's Gospel Differs From The Gospel - Part One

Much of the material in this article is derived from the small book, Today's Gospel, Authentic or Synthetic? by Walter J. Chantry, published by The Banner of Truth Trust. I highly recommend it. I wish that all pastors would read it and take it to heart, as well as any layman interested in his own soul.

Today's gospel is not the gospel as preached by Jesus Christ or his apostles. That bold statement needs to be backed with a comparison of the two. This we will attempt.

We all agree that unity of the body of Christ is crucial, especially when it comes to preaching the gospel. A house divided against itself cannot stand. We do not agree on how that unity is to be achieved, however, and Jude discusses this when he says, "you should earnestly contend for the faith which was delivered once and for all to the saints, because there are certain men crept in unawares." In modern attempt to unify the church, we have become dead to the gospel that gives the body life. 

Many have crept into the church over the last two thousand years and today, many churches have a name that they are alive but are quite dead (Rev. 3:1). Our dead churches have tried every gimmick to look lively and present a gospel to a dying world. But they have neglected the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, in their
presentations. Only the word is alive and powerful, but they have attempted to
present themselves and their methodologies as able to impart life. 

This they cannot do. Instead of glorifying the God whom they profess to know, they have reduced him to a shredded string of platitudes and slogans, strung along with
shallow faith and even shallower service to God. While professing to know God,
they deny him by their works, which turn the grace of our God to lasciviousness.
The only unity that can be achieved when the churches are in this state of shame is one of devilish union with the world.

Jesus came to gather his sheep out of the world. When we read John 3:16, do we
pay attention to the rest of the gospel that says, "A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven", and "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him", and "You do not believe because you are not of my sheep...My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me", and "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you", and "Thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him?" John 3:27, 6:44, 10:26-27, 15:16, 17:2. 

To sum up, we do not save anyone by our own efforts or by our own will, but only those to whom salvation is appointed.  Many have separated over this point of doctrine, but the sheep hear their master's voice regardless.

Chris Simonson  3/06/2006

The great peacemaker, Jesus Christ, said, "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you,
Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you!" Matthew 11:21-24. 

These do not sound like the peaceful sayings of a narcotic far east religion.

When Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers", he was not speaking of
anesthesiologists in a clean operating room. Peace comes at the price of blood, and the battlefield serves as the hospital. Jesus rebuke those cities who had seen his works, and he rebukes us who have grown up with the gospel all around us. If we think to ourselves he didn't mean us, we 21st century Americans who grew up with Billy Graham and Bibles galore, then we are surely on central nervous system depressants falsely labeled "peace pills". No wonder we are on so many drugs, Christians.

The peacemakers of whom Jesus spoke in Matthew 5:9 must be something other than wimpy yes-men. Jesus speaks of peace with God. There is a reconciliation
necessary between a man and his God. God can't be bought off by religious rituals, however. Jesus said, "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"  Matthew 5:23-24.

There is a reconciliation necessary between a man and his brother. You will not
be at peace with God until you have paid your brother back what is owed to him.
Let's not be trite. If you have burned your brother by stealing from him, return the money. If you have slept with his wife, you must make some kind of amends. Don't go down to the church and attend a marriage retreat, for crying out loud. Go to your brother and plead for you life, because God will avenge him if you don't repent. If you have insulted him publicly, then you must publicly apologize. If you have been a hypocrite and told him to do something you refuse to do yourself, or have told him not to do something you freely commit, then go to him and confess. Cry out to God for mercy. If you have been gossiping about the brother, go and tell him to his face what you think of him and confess. If you can't figure out how to repent to your
brother, then I suggest you beg of Christ to forgive your hardheartedness and your pretense of love. Until you figure out how to forgive and how to repent yourself, then you will not be forgiven. There will be no peace and no peacemaking until then.

So, before we go preaching about how another person ought to be making peace
with the world by dead works consisting of friendship evangelism and "marriage counseling", we ought to examine ourselves and see if we are in the faith and whether we have been reconciled to God through Christ.

Only then will the saying, "Blessed are the peacemakers", apply to us.

Chris Simonson  3/02/3006

So how does Jesus bring peace to the earth? We hear around Christmas time how
the angels said, "Peace on earth and good will to men", but do the earth and its men receive God's peace? If peacemakers are so blessed, then why didn't the Colt "Peacemaker" gun bring a blessing? Of course, it all depends on what one means by "peacemaker".

Jesus brought peace to earth. But he was crucified because he preached good will to men. God's good will to men is that they will hear the message of peace and repent of their sins. Jesus did not come into the world to judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him, said John. This John also quotes Jesus as saying, "For judgment have I come into the world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may be made blind". So did Jesus come to bring peace or a sword? Did he come to save or to judge?

That's where the wisdom of men fail them. They cannot, repeat, cannot, come
to Christ unless the Father draws them to Christ. And this is where they stop short of salvation. They want a peace that is not God's peace. They want a love that is not God's love. They quote the proverb above that says, "Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins", but they are willingly ignorant of the proverb that says, "He that covers his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy" Proverbs 28:13.

He who covers sin without blame is God. This is the only way sin can be covered.  He is not covering his own sin, but the sin of his chosen ones. He has also given us the ministry of reconciling men to their God. The psalmist says, "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered", and, "Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah." Psalm 32:1, Psalm 85:2.

The wicked say peace when there is no peace. "To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD." Ezekiel 13:16. "For when they shall say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." 1 Thessalonians 5:3. 

This is a false peace, professed by the false brethren and their false prophets. "They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, "Peace, peace!" when there is no peace." Jeremiah 6:14

These hypocrites actually war against Christ and against his saints, speaking lies and pretending to love God. "Thus saith the LORD concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, "Peace!"", a word He did not put into their mouths, "they even prepare war against him..." Micah 3:5. 

These are not peacemakers, but divide the brethren with smooth-sounding words, with great swelling words of prophetic utterance by which they tickle the ears and take away the truth. These are two of the things that God hates: "A false witness that speaks lies, and he that sows discord among brethren." Proverbs 6:19

Chris Simonson  3/01/2006