God is good and all the time God is good. As a child raised in an Assembly of God Church, I recall the pastor always starting off service saying this. So many other pastors and fellow believers always say this frequently. But why do we say this? Do we as believers truly know why God is good, aside from it saying so in the Bible? Christmas is always a joyful season for many, but then after Christmas, many people lose their joy. 1 Thessalonians 5:16 (NKJV) says, “Rejoice always”.
I see many people saying they cannot wait for 2020 to be over. While I agree 2020 has been a crazy year with everything going on in our world, we Christians need to realize we are not to make this our focus. Philippians 3:20 (NKJV) says, “For our citizenship is in heaven…”. Romans 12:2 (NKJV) tells us, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”. Yet sadly today we see many Christians conforming to the fear being spread by the media. While I agree common sense has its place, fear has no place in the believer’s life. If we close our churches and forsake the assembling together for months, we have conformed to the world. Many believers have been waking up to what is going on, it is time we truly seek God in all aspects of life. Therefore, it is critical for us believers to frequently be in the secret place daily because if we are not then we will stumble when trials come. I would encourage you to look at how Kenneth Hagin responded to the Asian Flu Epidemic 1957 (links at end of the post for further study), this is how we as believers should be responding to COVID-19.
I personally am thankful for the year 2020 because it has revealed to me the fine line between casual and progressive Christianity vs. true, Biblical and, historic Christianity. Today as we celebrate Christmas, I pray you reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Many Old Testament prophecies have been fulfilled by the finished work of Jesus Christ, and many more to be fulfilled when He returns! Micah 7:18-19 (NKJV), “Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”. Micah wrote of the very work the Messiah would do because he had personally experienced in Micah 7:8-9.
When the first man Adam committed high treason, sin had entered the world. Without blood sacrifices to pay the penalty for sin, our destiny would be eternal death. When Adam committed high treason, God was not taken by surprise. 1 Peter 1:20 (AMP) tells us, “For He was foreordained (foreknown) before the foundation of the world but has appeared [publicly] in these last times for your sake”.
But why do we need a Savior? When you ask many Christians why they celebrate Christmas they say it is to honor the birth of Jesus Christ. But when you look at the activity of most people you see it focused more on pagan traditions, than truly centered on the Savior. Yes, it is great to give gifts and spend time with family. But let me challenge you to this question, how sure are you that every single person at your dinner table is truly born again? We all have unsaved love ones in our families and even in our circle of friends and co-workers. When was the last time you grieved over someone you love because you know they are on the highway to hell? When was the last time you cried out to God to give you the words to witness to someone? I am not trying to put people down with this, I have a lot of work to do. But really if we as Christians have the Light of the World in us why do we spend more time finding earthly gifts for people rather than spending time evangelizing to the lost?
Again, I am not saying it is wrong to have family dinners on Christmas and exchange gifts, I am saying it has become too common for Christians to lose their focus. What honors the birth of Jesus Christ more, the casual Christian way of being a pew warmer and? Or is it to walk this walk as we are called to do? Jesus was clear when He gave the Great Commission in Mark 16:15-18 (NKJV), “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.””.
This walk on the narrow way is more than just warming a pew once or twice a week and following traditions. It is about a lifestyle of truly seeking God. It is about a lifestyle of always being prepared to give an account of why you believe in Jesus Christ. It is a lifestyle of praying for people in need. You can have a lifestyle founded upon the traditions of men or you can have a lifestyle founded upon what the Word of God says.
I pray that churches are awakened. For far too long most churches in America have preached a lukewarm watered-down powerless Gospel. It is time for ministers to either start preaching the Full Gospel or to leave the pulpit for someone who will. I am talking about the Gospel that preaches we are all born dead in sin and preaches Christ crucified and risen. The Gospel that not only gets people to repent and believe but also for people to be truly filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. I am talking about churches that operate in the true Gifts of the Holy Spirit, seeing people truly delivered and healed, not people manipulated for money.
It’s time we get real with our Christianity and sadly from most of what I see in American Christianity most people are on the broad way rather than the narrow way. I am tired of preaching that gives a feel-good feeling for its Christmas season sermons, what is feel good about God’s only Son going to the Cross to be put under the Father’s wrath to pay the price for our sin? Shouldn’t it make us tremble that it took the death of God’s only begotten Son to rescue us from our broken state? We need to take this walk seriously rather than being some sort of add-on or hobby to our life that we do on Sunday morning!
I know what I need to do, I am nowhere near perfect. I encourage you to spend some serious time with the Lord and examine yourself. Do not just make New Year’s resolutions to go to the gym more, learn how to paint, or play an instrument, make a New Years’ resolution to get to truly know God! We let ourselves get so distracted with things that really do not matter and yet lose focus on what really does matter. We need to become more Kingdom-minded than worldly-minded.
A truly joyful Christian is one who is established intimately with the Lord in the prayer closet. One who is frequent in the prayer closet. I pray that people wake up to the true Gospel of Christ. The time is drawing near for the return of Jesus Christ, and He is returning for a pure bride. Now is not the time to be playing games.
Category Archives: 2020 Posts
A Study on Acts 25 and 26
As we study the Book of Acts, we see the persecution Paul faces. I am going to briefly go over chapters 25 and 26. We see Paul is in Caesarea and Festus, the governor, wants to go see him. The Jews bring a petition to Festus to give Paul over to them so they can kill him. However, Festus wants to see Paul himself in Caesarea.
When Festus arrives at Caesarea to hear Paul, we first see the Jews make their complaints about Paul. If you have been following along with the narrative of the Book of Acts, we see the Jews make countless claims against Paul without any evidence. How angry would you be if someone made false claims against you? Yet we do not see Paul lashing out over this, as he is one filled with the Spirit, he leads by example with the fruit of self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)
We see Festus wants to do the Jews a favor, Festus would want to turn Paul over to them. However, Festus knows that Paul has done nothing wrong. Paul declares his innocence and appeals to Caesar. Paul knows that it is God’s Will for him to stand before Caesar. In verses 13-27 we see King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and they want to hear Paul. This is when Festus realized that he should not be sending a prisoner to Caesar without any charges.
In Acts 26:1-23 we see Paul tell King Agrippa about his life before he came to know Christ. He talks about how he persecuted the Early Christians. Then he begins to tell King Agrippa about his conversion. He goes into detail about his open vision of Jesus Christ. He also talks about what he was commanded to do from that vision. Paul had such a powerful conversion, he encountered Jesus Christ. Sadly, today in modern evangelism it is only about getting people to repeat a prayer with little knowledge as to why they need a Savior. This is the main reason why we have so many false converts and backsliders in the church. We need to evangelize people in a way that they have a genuine encounter with the living God. Salvation is only a work of God, not of man’s manipulative techniques.
Paul also talks about what he was commissioned to do when he preached the Gospel. After preaching Christ Crucified, Paul would call people to first repent, and secondly turn to God. Jesus tells us in Mark 1:15 (NKJV), “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”. Repentance is not just being sorry about our sin, it is turning away from it and turning to God. Yes, we still wrestle with sin after we become a New Creation, we still must deal with our flesh. 1 Corinthians 9:27 (NKJV) tells us, “But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”. Notice here Paul is saying he disciplines his body and brings it into subjection, how does he do that? He does that with his spirit man. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 tells us we are a tri-being composed of a spirit and soul, inside a body. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (AMP) tells us, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].”. It is our spirit-man who is renewed upon conversion. A new creation is like a newborn baby in the natural world, he or she is innocent. This is the same way when we become a new creation in our spirit because our sins have been forgiven because of the finished work of Jesus Christ. We must grab a hold of the power of our New Creation when we walk this walk of faith! Thirdly, after Paul tells people to repent and believe, he also encourages them to “do works befitting repentance”. The word befitting means appropriate to the occasion. Salvation should produce good works; you will know a tree by its fruit!
Lastly, we see Agrippa challenges Paul to convince him to become a Christian. Paul responds in Acts 26:29 (NKJV), “And Paul said, “I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains.””. This is when King Agrippa and Festus realize that Paul is innocent. But Paul knows God’s Will is for him to appear before Caesar. Paul knows this must come to pass. As we read through the Book of Acts, we should be amazed and inspired by Paul’s trust in God’s sovereign plan.
Thankful for the Gospel that We Need
As we celebrate Thanksgiving today, I thought I would write a short post with a different approach. I could make a post about how I am thankful for finances, health, family, faith, and much more. This year we are celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas under very unusual circumstances. Our world has been turned upside down. Many countries have gone through shutdowns over this pandemic, and there has been much economic devastation. People have died because of this pandemic. There is much talk about a vaccine as the light to the end of this COVID-19 tunnel of darkness. I do not care how effective any vaccine or pill is, it will never surpass the power of the true Light of the World, who has the power to save lost sinners.
How Blessed We Really Are
Many of us take time to reflect on how we are thankful for our family, friends, health, finances, possessions, and much more. I believe these things have a place in our lives. So many people do not realize how blessed they are daily. I believe part of the issue for genuine Christians at least is we do not have a real sense of why we should be thankful and joyful each day.
Be Thankful Always
We can be thankful for the many earthly blessings in our lives. However, at any minute, a loved one could pass, we could lose our job, or we could receive a bad report from the doctor, and then our life gets flipped upside down. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV) tells us, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”. I believe what these verses instruct us to do is difficult for most of us, and even myself at times. This is because the church at large in America has dipped the American dream into the Gospel.
The Americanized Gospel
The American dream is all about prosperity and success, I have nothing wrong with that. However, it becomes a problem when our culture influences the core of our preaching. Much of today’s popular Christian preaching is all about self-improvement, it always focuses on what we can do to make us a better person. This is dangerous; in fact, might I say it is idolatry.
The Self-Improvement Gospel
Most preaching today has taught people that you can fix yourself, and then a burden is put on us to do all this work to maintain an image that we are a good person. Let me say something, you cannot by any means put yourself in right standing with God. Paul makes it clear in Romans 3:10 (NKJV), “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one.”. No one is a good person, and there is nothing you can do in your power to change that. Romans 3:23 (ESV) tells us, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. If we have fallen to sin, then what is the result? Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages for sin are death. It is important to note that this is not talking about physical death, but rather spiritual death. We will all either die physically or be caught up at the return of Jesus Christ.
The Old Testament
There are many lost people in the world and in the church today who do not realize their spiritual state. Often people have been told to pray a prayer and everything will go alright, and that they will make it to Heaven. Yet they hear nothing at all about their true spiritual state. What does the Bible tell us to do about our spiritual state? What is the solution to us being spiritually dead? If you look at the Old Testament there was an establishment of sacrifices that had to be made each time for sin. Study the different sacrifices in the Old Testament, had to be done very carefully by the priests in the Old Testament.
There is No Good Person
But we are under the New Testament Church Age, what is our solution? Jesus makes this clear in Mark 1:15 (ESV), “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”. What does it mean to repent? Repentance is when one not only recognizes their sins and feels horrible about them but turns away from them. 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 (ESV) says, “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point, you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter.”. Godly sorrow is always a result of the Holy Spirits’ conviction (John 16:8).
Jesus Suffered the Wrath of God
Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins. We all deserve nothing but the wrath of God. However, because of God’s love, He sent His only Son, fully God and fully man, to this earth. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins; He suffered the wrath of God on the Cross. The Cross not only shows us God’s love but His wrath. Should it not move us all that it took the death of God’s own Son to pay the price for our unrighteousness. Yet many people do not take this seriously, God will by no means leave the guilty go unpunished (Exodus 34:7). Hell is your destination if you have never truly repented and put your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8-9 (ESV) tells us, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”.
No Greasy Grace
Earlier in this post, I stated that we cannot make ourselves a good person. Let me be clear, being a Christian does not give you a free pass to sin. True Salvation will have fruit. Jesus said in Mathew 7:17 (ESV), “So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.”. If someone claims to be a Christian yet is sleeping with the devil every Friday and Saturday night, then they are not truly a Christian. The label Christian has become so loosely used in today’s culture, which is why I often like to put the words true or genuine in front of it.
The Greatest Miracle
Salvation is the greatest miracle that can take place in one’s life because we are spiritually healed when we are truly saved. The heart of man totally changes upon Salvation. Titus 2:11-12 (ESV) says, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age”. Even better, God has sent His Holy Spirit to dwell inside of every single believer to empower us to do the work that we are all called to do for the Glory of God.
The Finished Work
So, what are we to be thankful for? We should be thankful for the finished work of Jesus Christ every single day. The finished work that saves us wretched sinners, the finished work that puts us in right standing with God. The resurrection of Jesus Christ conquered the grave. You might die of a disease, an accident, or just naturally by age, but that will not have the last word because for us true Christians, death has been defeated by Jesus Christ.
Jesus is Enough
I challenge you to meditate on the Word of God daily. We need to settle in our hearts that Jesus Christ is truly enough. Colossians 2:9-10 (NASB) says, “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him, you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”. We have been made complete because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Meditate His Word Daily
I encourage you to spend some time to meditate on the Word of God and settle in your heart why we should be joyful and thankful at all times as believers. Philippians 1:6 (ESV) tells us, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”. Yield to the Spirit of God, and He will complete His work in you. We are to grow as Christians in our walk with God daily. We need to seek greater manifestations of His power in our lives.
Fear of God
Proverbs 8:13 (ESV) instructs us, “The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.”. We have to talk about this walk seriously. God is love, but it is a holy love. We need to have reverence towards God. We need to be filled with the fear of God. Philippians 2:12 (ESV) tells us, “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”. Our Salvation should not be taken lightly, the blood of Jesus Christ is so precious.
Rock Solid Faith
If we do not settle in our hearts that Jesus is enough, then when a cancer diagnosis, job loss, death of a loved one, or national crisis comes knocking on our door we will become unstable. We have to have a solid foundation on the Gospel of Jesus Christ and not the self-improvement gospel. A house that does not have a solid foundation will not stand the storm.
The Jezebel Church
2020 has been an interesting year for all of us. It has not been until this year that the Lord began slowly showing me a pattern of not only error, but also heresy in the American churches. Our nation is dealing with a pandemic, our church is dealing with a plague, and it is churches that have welcomed in the doctrines of Jezebel. You might already be assuming that this post is done with the intention to be judgmental, that is not my intention. In-fact it grieves me to see the things that are aloud in many churches today. It grieves me to see many people in my generation fall in love with another gospel, and it is not the Gospel of Christ, it is gospel that has been invented in hell.
I am already well aware that some people will be offended by this post. Again, it is not my intention to do that. I want to stress how it sickens me to see the large number of churches falling for this dangerous error. Sadly, this has become the norm for churches in America, and it is lethal. It is without a doubt that we can tell we are near the return of Jesus Christ. I cannot say how many days, months, or years we are away, but each day is a day closer. I am not going to make a prediction, but I am going to give a warning. Jesus Christ will return, and He is coming back for a pure bride. Please take this warning seriously!
Who is She?
So, who is Jezebel? Looking back in the first and second books of Kings in the Old Testament we see that she was the wife of King Ahab. If you read the narrative of the two Books of Kings, you will see they were both very wicked. Jezebel specifically was the one who killed God’s prophets (1 Kings 18:4), she ordered Naboth’s death (1 Kings 21:8-10), and she also practiced witchcraft (2 Kings 9:35). We see both her and her husband were advocates of Baal worship, which is very comparable to modern day abortions.
She Killed the Prophets
We see in 1 Kings 18:4, 18:3, and 19:1, that she wanted the prophets of God killed in the Old Testament. She rejected their words that were ordained by God. You could compare the prophets of God to today’s various types of ministers and elders in the church. We are living in a day in age in which people do not want to hear Biblical preaching. Biblical preaching means preaching the full Bible in context, and yes that includes touching upon sin. Many people get offended when pastors and evangelists mention anything about sin. If it is classified as sin in the Bible, it is still sin today. We see many churches today allowing same sex “marriages”. We see many churches today say nothing at all about fornication, when there is a generation of people sitting in the church who were out the night before hooking up and on their way to hell. They might have other good works, but yet they will not endure true conviction from God’s ordained ministers. Killing the Old Testament prophets is very comparable to rejecting today’s God ordained ministers and instead settling for the wolves in sheep’s clothing who do not mention anything at all about sin, repentance, sanctification, and holy living. 1 Timothy 4:3 (ESV), “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.”.
False Worship
We see Jezebel had a desire for false worship and idol worship (1 Kings 16:31 and 2 Kings 9:22). There is a popular type of teaching today in churches that only focuses on the blessings of God, rather than truly knowing God. This type of teaching is known as the Prosperity Gospel, or the Health and Wealth Gospel. Now let me first say that I do not reject that God can heal, He certainly can. God not only can heal, but He can also move in situations and circumstances today to meet our needs. I do not reject that God is at work today. I believe on the laying on of hands (James 5:14). However, it becomes a problem when our main focus becomes getting healed, or getting out of debt, rather than our devotion to Gods Word, prayer, worship in spirit and truth, and sanctification. Each person’s greatest need is not physical or financial, but spiritual. All our problems stem from a sin issue, we must make that the priority in our preaching and witnessing. Again, there is nothing wrong with praying for the sick, but keep the main thing the main thing. When we take our focus off of Jesus Christ truly being enough, then we are in idolatry.
When we make our focus on only praying so we do not have to take five medications a day, but neglect to pray about the sin in our life we are out of balance. When we only pray to get out of debt, but neglect to pray for others we are out of balance. Jesus said that the way to life is narrow, I believe this stresses the importance of balance in our Christian walk and also in church doctrine and theology.
There are many extreme views that have birthed from Charismatic and Pentecostal circles, that are quite dangerous. Let me say I am not throwing the baby out with the bath water with these movements, if you discern properly you should be able to distinguish the meat from the cookies in these movements. There are some truths that have come from these circles that other circles neglect, however it has become apparent that the mainstream of these movements has gotten off focus. Why do I say that? When the mainstream of faith-healers constantly asks you to send in $1,000 or more in seeds, you should see red flags. When you see more false healings being broadcasted, than genuine healings, you should see red flags. Again, I do not reject that God can heal. I am however against broadcasting false testimonies and manipulating people for personal gain. 1 John 4:1 (ESV) says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”.
Witchcraft, Sorcery and Divination
The Bible makes clear that Christians should steer clear from any form of witchcraft, sorcery, or divination (Deuteronomy 18:10). Jezebel practiced witchcraft (2 Kings 9:35). You do not have to look to far to see many professing Christians involved in the occult, either knowingly or unknowingly. Harry Potter books have now become mainstream for children and even adults, as I have said in previous posts these books are nothing, but witchcraft dressed up in the form of entertainment. Another big issue is yoga, many people will jump to defend this with claims for the various health benefits behind yoga. While there may be evidence for health benefits with yoga, we must look at yoga from a spiritual standpoint. Take if from someone who was involved in New Age, Doreen Virtue says, “Every pose in the yoga sun salutation series is bowing to different pagan deities. Yoga does not glorify God, and it is breaking the first and second commandments.”. Many people claim that doing yoga brings them peace, this is a false peace, and our only hope of true peace is found in Jesus Christ. Sadly, many churches hold various fitness and wellness classes in their sanctuaries, including yoga classes. One well known church, the Potters House, has been famous for holding regular yoga classes for women. Churches are opening the doors for the occult. Preachers need to stop trying to blend in with todays culture, and instead warn people about the occult world.
Carnality
Carnality and sensuality go together. Revelation 2:19-23 (ESV) tells us, “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.”. Jesus is condemning the church of Thyatira for allowing the doctrines of Jezebel in their church. Notice in the verse 19 he acknowledges their good works, love, and faith. Many churches today that allow the Jezebel doctrines in their church have a lot of good works. They might do outreaches for the community, but yet they still tolerate these dangerous doctrines. Just because a church has a strong outreach to help the poor does not always mean their doctrine is correct. 2 Corinthians 11:14 (NLT) says, “But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”. If you are looking for a church, do not pick one based off all the good things it does for the community. First, look at their doctrine. If a different gospel is being preached, then it is a gospel that will not save. Only the true Gospel will save.
What Matters Most
I believe the church has lost focus on what really matters the most, and that is simply the truth found in Gods Word. Most churches today only teach about self-improvement, love, and the miraculous. It is sadly becoming more and more uncommon to see churches that are balanced. Most people today Christian or non-Christian just want their life to go well for them. If you look at the lives of the Apostles, they did not have their best lives on this earth, they went through much tribulation.
The other issue with today’s church is that you have people that say the church needs more of the miraculous (healing, prophecy, and other signs), but yet leave out addressing peoples core issue which is a sin problem. The Book of Acts shows two areas where the churches are missing it, one is the miraculous and the other is preaching that is convicting. Not only was the First Century Church moving in the miraculous, but they were also facing opposition from the culture constantly. How much of today’s televangelist face opposition from today’s culture? Most of what you see on Christian TV attracts people through carnal means and does not involve preaching that convicts sin.
Churches are lacking the move of the Holy Spirit, but yet people fail to realize that the move of the Holy Spirit isn’t just about signs, it is also about the Holy Spirit empowering preachers to preach messages that convicts unconverted sinners, and leads them to Salvation. Jesus tells us in John 16:8 (NASB), “”And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment”. We need the full move of the Holy Spirit in our churches today not only for sake of spiritual gifts, but to reach a world full of unconverted sinners. Charles Spurgeon once said “There must be true and deep conviction of sin. This the preacher must labor to produce, for where this is not health, the new birth has not taken place.”.
I urge you to take some time and ask yourself if you have fallen to a Jezebel church, or even a Jezebel lifestyle. Now is not the time to be playing games. We are in the middle of a global pandemic, there are people dying, we are seeing the signs of Jesus return. Jesus will return one day, whether in my lifetime or not, but we all must know for sure whether we are ready for His return. We must also be ready for our physical death, none of us are guaranteed tomorrow, we could all die at any moment. Our Salvation is nothing to take lightly. Please as the Scriptures say, examine yourself constantly to see if you are in the faith!
Halloween and Christianity
I am going to talk about something that is very controversial in the church today, and that is the subject of Halloween. It is not my intention to upset people or cause people to get angry, it is my intention to deal with this issue in an uncompromised matter. Let me also say this message is mainly written for Christians.
I would encourage you that if you want to know the origins of this holiday, please do research. I am not going to give a history lesson; I am going to speak on how Christians should respond. If you would research Halloween’s origins you will see is of pagan origin, like many holidays. Halloween has been a time of year that encourages communities to come together for various traditions and festivals, such as Trick or Treat and various parties. Children dress up as ghosts, witches, warlocks, devils, comic, and cartoon characters and so on. So, is there anything wrong with this holiday from the Christian worldview?
Let me repeat something I just said… Children and even adults get dressed up as ghosts, witches, warlocks, and so on for the sake of Halloween. We know what the Bible says about witchcraft and sorcery right? Did we skip that part of the Bible? Leviticus 19:31 (AMP) tells us, “Do not turn to mediums [who pretend to consult the dead] or to spiritists [who have spirits of divination]; do not seek them out to be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God.”. Additionally, Deuteronomy 18:10 (MGS) says, “When you enter the land that God, your God, is giving you, don’t take on the abominable ways of life of the nations there. Don’t you dare sacrifice your son or daughter in the fire. Don’t practice divination, sorcery, fortunetelling, witchery, casting spells, holding séances, or channeling with the dead. People who do these things are an abomination to God. It’s because of just such abominable practices that God, your God, is driving these nations out before you.”.
I know you are not necessarily attempting to cast spells or anything like that on people. But if the Bible says that we should have nothing to do with witchcraft and sorcery, then why would we bother to dress up and represent it? If you like a certain sports team one of the ways you can show your support is by wearing a jersey branded for that team. If you like a certain political candidate, you will decorate your front yard with a sign that says to vote for that individual. But we think it means nothing on what we stand for when we adults dress up as these demonic characters or put these types of things in our house. We call ourselves Christians but endorse this stuff to just go with the flow for the sake of this holiday. Dear Christian, that is hypocrisy! 1 John 1:6 (ESV) says, “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”. We get upset when a politician says one thing and does another, how do you think the King of Kings takes it when He sees people proclaiming His name endorse a demonic holiday? Same way He takes it when someone proclaiming His name endorses any other type of sin.
If we are going to be Bible be living Christians, then we need to get real for once! We cannot just pick and choose; you are either all in this or not. We read in the Old Testament of people going to sorcerers to talk to people from the dead. 1 Samuel 28 tells us about how Saul sought out a medium to call a dead spirit. We see numerous accounts of the power behind witchcraft and sorcery in the Bible. Did we forget what the Bible says about spiritual warfare? Ephesians 6:12 (ESV) tells us, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”. How do we think the Early Church would have handled such a holiday? Do you think any of the Apostles of Christ in the Early Church would even think of allowing their children to dress themselves the way we let children dress today for Halloween? Do you think any of the many disciples of the Early Church would even dare to dress in such a way to a party?
Numerous news reports from 2018 show that there are an estimated 1.5 million people practicing witchcraft in the United States. Sadly, that is more than the 1.4 million people who profess to be Presbyterian. Does this not concern us? There is a growing number of people getting involved with the occult. One news report states that many millennials are turning to witchcraft, tarot cards, and astrology rather than Christianity. Shouldn’t we be concerned about this? This should be a wake-up call for the church to put away water downed youth groups and teach youth the full Gospel. Appealing carnal programs will not save our youth, only the full uncompromised Gospel of Jesus Christ can save! Our youth need to be filled with the Holy Ghost! Our youth needs to be set on fire for God!
So, what should the church in America do this Halloween? Should we continue the trend of our Trunk N Treat? While I will grant there is potential for evangelism this way to an extent, I do not believe this is a way to Biblically evangelize. On the darkest night of the year, the churches should gather for a night of prayer. There should be a national movement between churches of like-minded believers to gather the night of Halloween and pray. We should pray for the upcoming election, pray for our leaders, pray for our children and schools, pray for this witchcraft to be removed from this land, there is so much to pray for. The churches prayed together following the tragedy on September 11, 2001, why can we not make it a tradition for most churches to gather for prayer on one of the darkest nights of the year? Why not? This land needs revival, and it will only happen with a praying church that is on fire for the Lord!
A Study on Acts Chapter 24
In this blog post I am going to pick up from where I left off in my series on the Book of Acts. Looking back at the previous chapter. The people conform a conspiracy that they will not eat until Paul is put to death and Paul is taken to Caesarea, and he is placed in Herods Praetorium while they wait for his accusers to arrive. We see that Paul is constantly facing persecution, yet through it all he finds his strength in Jesus Christ. Finding strength in Jesus Christ is not so we can live an abundant lifestyle, it is to simply bring glory to God.
The Case is Made Against Paul
In the first portion of Acts 24 we see five days after Paul arrives his accusers come. We see Ananias along with the other Jewish elders arrive to bring evidence to the governor against Paul. The lawyer bringing forth the case, Tertullus, first gives complements to the governor Felix for bringing peace to their land. In Acts 24:5-8 (ESV) we see the accusations against Paul , “For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him. By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.”. The accusations are that Paul is a plague, the Greek word for this is loimos which means a pest. Some translations write it as ‘a troublemaker’. They also accuse Paul of being a creator of conflict, a ringleader for the cult of the Nazarenes, and attempting to desecrate the temple.
Paul Pleads His Case
Paul defends himself from the accusations. Unlike Tertullus, Paul does not complement Felix, he simply pleads his case. Paul mentions how what they call a sect or cult, Paul refers to it as the Way. Paul also makes mention of the resurrection of the dead, which is something that is very controversial between different groups of the Jews. The resurrection of the dead is not only mentioned in the New Testament, but also in the Old Testament, Daniel 12:2 (ESV) says, “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”.
More Discussion Between Paul and Felix
We see Paul also mentions about striving spiritually in verse 16. (AMP) “In view of this, I also do my best and strive always to have a clear conscience before God and before men.”. In the ESV this is written as “So I always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man.”. We need to be striving spiritually. We need to be striving in our personal discipleship, we need to be striving towards a holy and sanctified lifestyle. John Piper says it best “the world does not need cool Christians who are culturally saturated. It needs exiles with the scent of heaven and the aroma of Christ.”. I would like to challenge every Christian to the question, are you culturally saturated right now, or do you have the aroma of Christ? With all that is going on in 2020, it is easy for us Christians to become culturally saturated. We have a particularly important election coming up in just a matter of weeks. Everyone of us has our own opinions that we are vocal about regarding what is going on. Christians should vote according to our Biblical convictions. However, what should our message be this time of year? Are we supposed to be trying to shove a particular candidate down people’s throats? Or are we to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and make disciples? No politician will save this country! Yes, God can appoint people to carry out certain tasks, but no politician is this nations savior. One day every President in this nation whether genuinely saved or not will have to bow down to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
We see that while Felix waits for Lysias to come and testify that he becomes troubled when Paul discusses self-control righteousness, and the Last Judgement. Felix sends Paul away but continually calls him back to have conversation with him. He does this to have favor with the Jews. We see that Festus takes over after and Paul will now have to testify for him. Self-control is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. If we lack any of the fruits of the Spirit, then we need to spend time in prayer and lean on Christ in our weakness. We must fight the good fight of faith and fight against all the lusts of the flesh!
Sinful Desires
Romans 6:12, “Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires.”. With the sexual immorality that is in our ‘entertainment’ system it can become so easy for us to fall into the many traps of sin. When temptation comes our way, we must acknowledge it and respond Biblically. We need to be well-grounded in the Word of God. Jesus responded to the devil when tempted with Scripture. If you are being tempted realize it right away, pick up your Bible, begin to pray, put some worship music on. We need to make war when it comes to temptation. Not every sinful habit immediately falls off when we are born again, that is why we need to develop a good lifestyle of discipleship.
Temple of Holy Spirit
1 Corinthians 6:19 tells us our physical body is the temple of the Holy Spirit indwelling in us. When we are genuinely born again, the Holy Spirit enters us. We need to treat our bodies as temples. Imagine if you owned a million-dollar mansion, you would not let it turn into a dump, you would properly maintain it. We are to treat our bodies with care. That includes what we allow ourselves to see and hear, be incredibly careful of what you entertain yourself with. We also must take good care of our bodies in a physical sense. We must eat healthy and not let ourselves live an unhealthy lifestyle.
Righteousness
Paul also talked about righteousness. Romans 3:21-26 tells us how by using the Law we see how unrighteous and guilty we were. However, because of God loved us so much He laid our punishment out on Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. Blood was shed for our sins; the wrath of God was poured out on Jesus Christ to pay the price for our sins. We must all repent of our sins and put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone. We are unable to be righteous by our own strength, it is not possible. Righteousness is only achievable through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. You will not be more righteous because of doing good works or saying the Rosary. Genuine Salvation will of course bring forth good works as a result, Jesus tells us that they will know us by our fruits.
There are many important points in Acts 24, I encourage you to study and meditate on this chapter in your own private time with the Lord. With all that is going on in the world right now, we must realize how important it is for us to be students of Gods Word. We must take time with it each and every single day. Before you read it each day, pray that God grants your spiritual knowledge and revelation, and also keep your mind clear and focused as your read His Word.
The Core Issue
There has been much going on lately in this country and around the world. We are in the middle of a pandemic, and this has impacted every single one of us at some level. Whether you have tested positive for COVID, know someone who has had it, or even has died from it. Many people have been laid off, lost their jobs, lost their businesses, and so much more heartache this year. Much debate on the credibility of everything we are hearing, I am not going to debate that because it has nothing to do with the core of the issue in this country.
We have all witnessed extreme acts of violence all across this country. People are upset about social injustice, the leadership of this country, and so many issues. Are these issues important? Absolutely! Is dealing with COVID-19 important? Yes. Is the future of the Supreme Court important? Definitely, we need to be praying about all these issues and having civil discussions about them.
However, all these issues our country is trying to solve, will not be solved by a democratic or republican solution. Yes, legislation can be put in place to make circumstances better, but we still will always have racism if we look to our politicians to fix the problem. Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, nor Mitch McConnell will be able to solve social injustice 100%. Neither will any of their successors.
The division is real in our country on so many levels, and it just has not started with this President, it has always been there. We are just living in a day in age when the division is at its final stage. It is like cancer that has remained hidden and got diagnosed at its late stage. We all want a cure for this cancer in our nation, but we look to our politicians as if they can fix it. None of them can! All they can do is offer bandages repeatedly and will fail every single time at solving the problem.
This country does not need another leader with good speech. This country needs the church to rise up and bring forth the True Full Gospel of Jesus Christ! The core issue here is SIN! When God created the world everything was perfect, yet when sin entered the world, everything drastically changed. And this is why we are in this situation today. God foreknew this would happen, that is why He sent His only Son, born of a virgin, fully man and fully God, to the world. His only Son did a brief earthly ministry and then was put under God’s wrath at the Cross, paying the penalty for each and every single one of our sins. All it takes is for us to truly repent and believe and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Yet people who are unbelievers walk around and say they are a good person because they volunteer their time at a soup kitchen. That is great, but the Bible says no one is good (Romans 3:10). People of this world and even hypocrites in the church have made a god of their own standards in their mind and fail to realize the sin they are in and the coming judgment. If you ever told a white lie, you have broken Gods Law and your final destination will be the Lake of Fire (Revelation 21:8-10). The only solution is to repent and believe (Acts 20:20-21). The repentance I am talking about is a God granted repentance meaning that your sin grieves you so much because you know it grieves God (Acts 5:31, Acts 11:18, 2 Timothy 2:25, Romans 2:4, 2 Peter 3:9). Many people claim to repent but it is a result of worldly sorrow, rather than a Godly sorrow.
The church in America needs to rise up for once and do what it is called to do! I am sick and tired of seeing Christian TV broadcast nothing but programs that ask you to send in large sums of money for a miracle, that is not the Gospel! (Jude 1:10-12) It sickens me that is what most people see when it comes to Christianity is people on the mainstream networks preaching the false prosperity Gospel. If the only preaching you have heard is from people like Benny Hinn, Joel Ostend, Rick Warren, and Kenneth Copeland, I am sorry you have been deceived by these wolves. These people offer a false gospel that looks attractive to the unconverted sinner, but in the end, their gospel does not save. These false teachers offer a gospel that says, ‘believe this message and everything will go well for you’. It is my prayer these people repent and in doing so shut down their ministry and sit down under the ministry of someone who preaches the True Gospel. We need to air the True Full Gospel on TV and on the radio.
Now let me say something here, me rebuking the prosperity gospel does not mean I believe God can’t heal. I believe God does heal. I am against these extremes that are off the deep end. You can go to an extreme one way or the other, we must stay balanced in Scripture.
The issue we are dealing with in life is like an iceberg. We can see the massive size of it above the water and from a spiritual perspective that is sickness, disease, poverty, and so on. However, what we do not see is far greater underneath the surface and that is sin.
Let the church rise up and preach the Gospel. This land needs a real revival, not a circus put on for money! The Gospel of Christ is the solution, not politics. If you could get a dozen Senators genuinely saved, imagine the change that would take place!
The Peace of God
We are certainly living in difficult and uncertain times right now. From the pandemic to the wildfires in California, to economic uncertainty, and even the unstableness of our leaders, it is easy for us to be given over to fear and anxiety.
For the true believer, we should know what the Bible says about fear. If you are living in fear right now you need to get into the Word of God and study it and meditate on it. We often find ourselves spending more time worrying about how to pay for an unexpected expense rather than about praying. We spend more time worrying about the results we got from the doctor’s office, rather than praying. Can you imagine how much different our lives would be if we would spend more time in prayer, than giving attention to all the worries that float around in our minds? We not only can pray for God to do the supernatural, but we can also pray for God to give us peace, wisdom, knowledge, and guidance as we deal with the worries of life.
Do We Realize What is Happening?
We are living in very unusual times. We are living in difficult times. One of the things God has shown me is two pandemics not just placating the church world, but also the world in general.
There is a pandemic of people giving themselves over to a spirit of fear. People are afraid to go about their normal routine. People get uncomfortable when someone does not wear a mask. People get worried when their throat scratches. People have spent much time soaking up information about this virus.
People have given their minds over to the “new normal”. People are getting used to doing Zoom meetings rather than in-person meetings. Some people think it is better this way and should stay this way. Let me say this, nothing is normal about this!
Not only have people given themselves over to a spirit of fear, but people have even given themselves over to idolatry. It has been made mainstream that it is “patriotic” to go by all the rules to a T and that we should even embrace the rules and the new normal. You can be given over to idolatry to many things: your car, house, spouse, finances, etc. But one of the most common forms of idolatry is an idolatry of self, and this one is often ignored.
There is a hype about a coming vaccine to get us back to normal they say. Let me tell you something, if you have hope in a vaccine, you have given yourself over to idolatry. A vaccine will not save you. The Lord has shown me in a dream that people will be forced to receive this vaccine. There will be so much cultural pressure to get this vaccine more than what there is for the annual flu shot.
Here’s part of the problem. People have bowed down to the government, schools, colleges, and workplaces telling us how to stay safe. But Christians do not realize what Scripture already tells us about walking through times like this. We are to walk by faith, not by sight. We were not given a spirit of fear, but one of love, power, and a sound mind. Yet why are we walking by fear? Churches closed for months, and many are still closed. Few churches remained open, and some caught on within the first few weeks of tyrant government orders what is really going on.
It is amazing how politically correct the church can get, but it can still be so far from Biblically correct. Part of what we are commissioned to do is lay hands on the sick and cast out demons (see Mark 16:17-18). How can that be done if most churches were closed for months at a time? The Apostles in the Book of Acts were told by government officials to not preach in the name of Jesus, did they stop? No, they did not. The Full Gospel not only includes repentance of sin (which is critical) but also healing and deliverance. Look up the original Greek for the word saved in the New Testament, it means saved, healed, and delivered. If we are not laying hands on the sick and casting out devils, then we are missing part of the Gospel. Churches must assemble in person, whether in an official building, outside, or underground. In short terms, the government may have permitted preaching over Facebook Live, but it did not permit Christians to go into Hospitals and lay hands on the sick or to cast out demons. Therefore, by government mandate, we were ordered by our own government to practically give up a majority of what we were commissioned to do by Jesus Christ.
Dear Christian, are we going to stand and begin preaching the Full Gospel as commanded? Or we going to get all wrapped up in the philosophy of man and bow down to the spirit of fear and boost our egos because we are patriotic and conforming to the ‘new normal’.
Romans 12:2 (AMP) “And do not be conformed to this world [any longer with its superficial values and customs], but be transformed and progressively changed [as you mature spiritually] by the renewing of your mind [focusing on godly values and ethical attitudes], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His plan and purpose for you].”
Tongues Explained with Caution
This is a post I wrote last year that I have updated and am reposting. The gift of tongues is a widely debated subject in the church, and it needs addressed. If we only study the Gift of Tongues from the Book of Acts then we will not get the full picture, along with important instructions. If we look in the New Testament, we will find the mention of four different types of tongues.
#1: Tongues as a Sign
The first type of tongue I would like to discuss is tongues for unbelievers, this is for public ministry. This type of tongue is the one that took place on the Day of Pentecost, believers from the Upper Room came down to a large group of unbelievers who spoke different languages and the believers were speaking in the different languages of the unbelievers. Keep in mind the believers did not mentally know the languages of the unbelievers, they were only able to speak tongues because the Holy Spirit gave them the words. Acts 2:4 (AMP) says “And they were all filled [that is, diffused throughout their being] with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues (different languages), as the Spirit was giving them the ability to speak out [clearly and appropriately].”. This type of tongue is an earthly language, for example you might have someone who comes to your church that only speaks French and everyone else speaks English. Someone in your church who truly has this gift would be able to minister to the French speaking person in tongues as the Holy Spirit gives them utterance.
#2: Tongues for Interpretation
The second type of tongue is tongues for interpretation, which is also for public ministry. This is when one speaks in tongues to the whole church and then someone else interprets it. This will require one person to speak in tongues, and then for someone to interpret the tongues. 1 Corinthians 14:27-28(NKJV) tells us, “If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God.”. Why would we want someone to speak in tongues and then interpret it for the whole church during service? The answer is found in 1 Corinthians 14:26 (NKJV) “How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.”. All these things are to be done for edification of the body of Christ. Edify means to improve or instruct spiritually. So, when one gives a message in tongues in front of the church there should be an interpretation so that the church can be edified.
#3: Tongues for Personal Edification
I would like to move on to the two private types of tongues, and the first one is your personal prayer language. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 14:2 (AMP) “For one who speaks in an unknown tongue does not speak to people but to God; for no one understands him or catches his meaning, but by the Spirit he speaks mysteries [secret truths, hidden things].”. I would like you to notice that is uses the word unknown tongue, which is probably a language not known on earth. Having your own personal prayer language is important because you edify yourself, 1 Corinthians 14:4 tells us, “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.”. In the next verse we will find that Paul wants us all to speak in tongues, he also mentions the importance and greatness of prophesy and tongues with interpretation, “I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.”.
#4: Tongues for Intercession
The last type of tongue I would like to discuss is tongues for intercession. Romans 8:26-27 (AMP) tells us, “In the same way the Spirit [comes to us and] helps us in our weakness. We do not know what prayer to offer or how to offer it as we should, but the Spirit Himself [knows our need and at the right time] intercedes on our behalf with sighs and groanings too deep for words. And He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because the Spirit intercedes [before God] on behalf of God’s people in accordance with God’s will.”. I believe that tongues for intercession will usually come during your personal time in praying in the Spirit. With intercession you might be interceding for your own self or for someone else. The important take away is this is as the Spirit gives you utterance.
Gifts Given as the Spirit Wills
So now enough about tongues, lets talk about all the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Paul told us the gifts of the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12:7-10 (NKJV), “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.”. Notice it says different types of tongues, hence why I just discussed the four different types of tongues. I would also like to point out that all these gifts are controlled by God through the Holy Spirit and given out accordingly to believers. Paul told us in 1 Corinthians 12:11 (NKJV), “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”. I would like to encourage you to not become jealous if someone else you know flows in more gifts of the Spirit than you do, God will not bless everyone the same exact way, therefore your testimony is your testimony, not someone else’s.
You Must Repent and Believe First
I would also like to talk about receiving the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The first thing that needs to happen is you need to be born again (repent and believe). When one truly becomes born again you receive the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit is what makes you a new creation in Jesus Christ. I would like to point out that true salvation should be the priority in the church before one receives the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38 (NKJV) tells us, “Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”. When one is truly born again and then asks and receives the true infilling of the Holy Spirit they must walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:16 (NKJV) says, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”. We must not only walk in the Spirit but also flow in the Spirit. Jesus said in John 3:8 (NKJV), “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”.
Cessationism Is Not Biblical
I would now like to address a popular teaching that many people hear and that is that the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are not for today and that they ended with the Apostles. The one scripture they will use in this teaching is 1 Corinthians 13:8 (NKJV), “Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.”. However, we must read on from this verse, lets look at verse 10 “But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.”. I personally believe that the only way that it can be perfect is when Jesus returns. Some may argue that the word perfect is referring to the completion of the New Testament. I disagree because of Hebrews 13:8 (NKJV), “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”. When looking at Hebrews 13:8 I also keep in mind the trinity which you can read into further in Matthew 28:18-20.
Spiritual Gifts Do Get Abused
However, I will agree there is an issue when it comes to all the gifts of the Holy Spirit today in the church. We need to number one be aware of false prophets and teachers. Jesus warned us in Matthew 7:15 (NKJV) “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”. Why do we need to be aware of false prophets? Well false teachings will lead one to hell, Satan is working aggressively to get people to fall into the trap of false teachings to land people in hell for eternity. Before warning us of false prophets Jesus also told us in Matthew 7:14 (NKJV), “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”. If you read further you will find that Jesus gave another warning regarding these false prophets, He said in Matthew 7:22-23 (NKJV) “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”. There are many ministers who focus on the signs and wonders rather than true salvation. Some examples of those who practice lawlessness are those who teach a watered-down gospel, fail to teach on true salvation, and those ministers who focus on making money. We should not just be seeking Jesus for the signs; we should be seeking Him because without Him we will spend eternity in hell. The type of Apostasy we are seeing today has been warned to us in 1 Timothy 4:1 (NKJV), “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,”. So, could there be a false Holy Spirit in churches? Absolutely Satan will do anything to deceive people. Anything done in the church needs to be done carefully and in order, that is why Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:40 (NKJV), “Let all things be done decently and in order.”.
I encourage you as you follow certain ministers on mainstream to really be careful. Just because it is mainstream Christianity does not mean it is Biblically correct. I would like to point out that anytime that someone speaks in tongues that it must be done with utterance from the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues cannot be done on demand, but only as the Holy Spirit gives you utterance. I encourage you if you haven’t already to ask God to give you a fresh and new infilling of the Holy Spirit and that you can flow in the gifts that are of His will for you.