Blog Archives

The Death Penalty

4/30/2015

                                                                                                                           ----Tim
    In every debate concerning the death penalty both the opponents and proponents support their positions with Bible verses. This article is written to show the correct teaching of the Bible.
The Bible tells us if a person commits certain acts, he should be put to death. Among other things, if a person commits premeditated murder, kidnaps a person, rapes someone, commits adultery, commits a homosexual act, hits his parents, or commits an act of witchcraft, he should be put to death. The law of God demands the death penalty for each of these acts, and those who support the death penalty build their argument on the verses that teach this.
    Many of those opposed to the death penalty dismiss all the verses in the Bible in support of the death penalty because these verses are in the Old Testament, and now we are in the New Testament age and should love our enemies and forgive.
    The correct understanding is to realize only those who are born-again Christians are living under the New Testament, and all the world outside of Christ is still under the law of God, and therefore should be subject to the punishments mandated by the law.
    Those who live under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus are living in the New Testament grace and will never commit a capital crime. Those who commit capital crimes are under the Old Testament law and should be put to death.
Oh, and another thing. All executions should be public executions that others might fear. The death penalty is a great deterrent to crime. At least I do not know of anyone who was executed that ever committed another crime.

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I Shall Know Him

4/26/2015

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                                                                                                                                                                                      --- Betty
    There is nothing like experience to mold a person into who they are. We can learn from
books and hopefully we can learn from others. Usually unless we use what we learn and make
it a practical experience of our own, we lose what we learn, and definitely have no conviction
to abide by it.
    I knew about the Lord Jesus because my Aunt Margie was a confessing Christian. I heard
the gospel from Phil and Cindy who started a youth club in my town. I saw something clean
and pure in my high school friend Ardis who lived a Christian life. I was encouraged by them
all to call upon the Lord Jesus. It wasn't until many years later when I was pressed by great
despair that I thought to call upon Him. If He did not answer, I'm sure I would be in hell. I
would not be alive today if Jesus did not answer. Thank God He did. So from this experience
alone I know without a doubt that Jesus lives and His word is true. I know from His contact
with me that He is God, the great Redeemer who has the power to reclaim a sin-shackled life.
He has the power to clean and mend a filthy, broken life and make it pure and brand new. He
even has the power to move on my behalf and help me through physical difficulties. For this I
am forever grateful, and I still am full of the joy of my salvation.
    I have been a Christian for 27 years now. I marvel at all the promises from the Bible that
God has fulfilled in my life. God’s words are wonderful, and as I yield myself to His words, I
find that all the promises in the Bible are yea and amen. I found that Jesus saved me so that I
can live with Him now in this world. Though I cannot see Him, I know without a doubt that He is with me. And though I cannot hear His voice with my ears, I can hear Him with my heart
and my senses, and I know that He hears me when I pray.
    I do not write to brag about what I have with God, but I write to encourage you that you
may walk with Christ and have an experience with Him yourself.
    One of my favorite stories in the Bible is when Jesus met the woman at the well in John 4.
She went back to town to say, “Could this [Jesus] be the Christ?” And they went out to hear
Jesus for themselves. Afterward, they said, “Now we believe, not because of what the woman
said, but we believe because we have heard Him ourselves.” You must know Jesus Christ for
yourself, and when I say know, I mean to know Him as your friend, your Father, and your life.
You must know Him not from afar as an audience or a spectator, but you must know Him in
such a way that He knows you and delights in you. May you experience such in your life and
know that you know Him who redeems. The Bible says, “If any man love God, the same is
known of Him” (1 Corinthians 8:3).

“Having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life
that the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
--James 1:12

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
--Romans 5:13

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A Guide for Giving

4/22/2015

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I was going to a fine church. They had a new building and month by month there was much pressure to pay the bills. The congregation was encouraged in various ways to be very sacrificial and we were assured that God would reward our faithfulness by opening the windows of Heaven and shower upon us His blessings. One visiting pastor compared our congregation to a herd of cows and said, "If the congregation isn't milked of all the money they have each service they will stop giving just as a milk cow will go dry if not fully milked each day." We all gave until it hurt. One dear brother cautioned me not to come to church with any money in my pockets for I would surely lose it before the end of the service. I paid my tithes and gave offerings, special offerings, building offerings and evangelistic offerings. Our giving was for a great purpose and there was joy in working toward our common goal. I worked overtime with the joy of knowing that my long hours would enable me to give more to the church. One sunday the joy all seemed to evaporate; however, when the pastor's son, who was a minister in the church, showed up to church in his brand new Caddillac. (I guess if you preach that God prospers the faithful giver you need proof that God is prospering you; that is, if you suppose that worldly gain is an indication of godliness.) I drove an old VW at the time with over 200,000 miles on it. Shortly after this I visited another church a few times when I was in a different city on business. One Sunday the pastor said, "You people that drive old junky cars with Jesus bumper stickers on them make us Christians look bad. Either get a new car or get rid of the Jesus bumper stickers." I had some Jesus bumper stickers on my old car so now I had to park real far from the church so as not to embarrass the brethren. I wanted to tell the pastor that the reason I drove an old car was because I had been milked dry so that others could drive a Cadillac, but he was a very busy man so I just parked far from church. I have heard so many messages on giving that if I didn't know better I would assume that money was the central theme of the Christian church. For many pastors it is their favorite topic. (You could say it is their bread and butter.) I am always saddened that every teaching on giving ends with the congregation being asked to give a generous offering to God by giving an offering to the preacher.
John the Baptist also taught on giving. John said, "He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise." This is the wisdom of God. Should you give a coat to a man who has a closet full of coats or to a man who has none? what if a man with a closet full of coats stands behind a pulpit and praises you before the congregation for your generosity and promises you a closet full of coats if you give to him? The man without a coat is homeless and needs a bath and can neither praise you nor promise you a hundredfold increase. Now who will you give your coat to? Do you know that there is a Biblical curse upon those who give to the rich? See Proverbs 22:16. You should never give to someone who has more than you have. If your pastor has a nicer car or home than you have, you must no longer give him offerings. Notice who John said to give to, John said to give to the poor. Didn't John need the money for his ministry? Apparently not. I guess camel hair clothes and wild honey don't cost very much. I have been to an evangelistic service where the preacher arrived in a chauffeur driven limousine. It was a wonderful meeting. Where are the John the Baptists, men who will serve the Lord and honor God with a simple lifestyle? John did not ask for offerings for his ministry. Preachers should follow John's example. God's work does not need much money. Jesus likes to hide in simplicity. The simple act of obedience to share the gospel with your neighbor or co-worker can save a soul from loss. The little things that you can do are important and they cost nothing. The "Big Ministries" that need the "Big Bucks", well, God bless them, but they won't be getting anything from me. Second Peter tells us that the Christian faith shall be evil spoken of because of preachers who make merchandise of God's people. Our beloved Savior, Jesus, has been given a bad reputation because of these milkmen peachers, but you and I can wash our Lord's feet. We can wash Jesus' feet by serving Him and ministering to others without charge. Oh, it is not wrong to give nor is it wrong for a minister to receive an offering. But we should give to those who trust God to supply their needs; ministers who do not ask for money. We should give to those who minister the word and live a simple lifestyle. By the way, please don't send any offerings my way for it is a disgusting, shameful, and disgraceful thing for a minister to teach on giving and then to receive an offering. ---Tim

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The Law of God

4/19/2015

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                                                                                                          by Tim
   I have noticed a peculiar thing about many Christians. Whenever they are faced with a verse in the Bible they do not like, they dismiss it as being an Old Testament teaching. I have heard verses from Genesis to Malachi dismissed. I have been told that the teachings of Jesus are actually Old Testament teachings because He had not yet been resurrected from the dead. And I have been told some of Paul's writings are Old Testament and should be disregarded. I am under the impression many Christians simply pick and choose whatever verses they like and then dismiss the rest. This article is written to prove the law of God is and always will be in full force.
   Jesus told us in Matthew that He did not come to destroy the law or the prophets, but rather to fulfill them. In fact, Jesus promised not even a dot of an i nor a cross of a t of the law would pass away. On Judgment Day, all people will gather before Jesus Christ and be judged. How can the world be judged if there is no law? If there is no law, there is also no sin, and no one is guilty before God. And we all go to heaven. Sorry, friends, it does not work this way. Jesus told us few people go to heaven, and most people are on the broad way that leads to destruction.
   Sin is the transgression of the law, and when a person sins, he is under the law. When a person repents and comes to Jesus Christ and is forgiven, he is set free from the law of sin and death. For Christ is the end of the law to every one that believes. Look at Romans 8:2, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”
   The whole world is under the law of God and will be judged according to the law. But when an individual repents and receives Jesus Christ, he is set free from the law of death and comes under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. Can you see this truth?
   The world is still under the law, and the law is the schoolmaster who teaches us we are sinners in need of a Savior. The gospel is preached, and sinners repent and come to Christ to enter into newness of life and freedom from the law of sin and death. Both the law of God and the grace of God will continue until the end.
   Every person is either under the law of sin and death or under the law of life in Christ Jesus. How can you tell which law you are under? Romans 6:16 tells us we are the servants to whomever we obey.
   If we obey Jesus and live a sin-free life we are above the law of sin and death, but if we are sinners, we are under the law of sin and death. This is how to tell the difference between the real Christians and the false Christians. The real Christians get the victory over sin and live a victorious life. The false Christians never get the victory over sin, but rather twist the Bible to justify their wicked lifestyle of sin. The Spirit of life in Christ Jesus will never lead a person into a sinful life; it will lead into a life of righteousness.
   The first book of John is a work devoted to comparing real Christians to false Christians. It all boils down to one issue: sin. Those who continue in sin and justify sin by twisting the scriptures are the children of the devil, and those who repent and get the victory over sin are the children of God.
   The law is good and sinners are under the law, and will be judged according to the law. The grace of God is better and is available to every person who comes to the cross of Jesus and who enters into forgiveness and the New Testament. Can you see it? The law and grace both exist at the same time. Some people are under the law, and some people are under grace can you tell which law you are under? Romans 6:16 tells us we are the servants to whomever we obey. If we obey Jesus and live a sin-free life we are above the law of sin and death, but if we are sinners, we are under the law of sin and death.

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Close to God

4/6/2015

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By Betty

I am what Jesus made me;

I am stripped of what I used to be,

Now I'm robed with His garments bright.

Jesus leads me in the way that’s right.

He tells me He's the only God

With none else beside.

In His Holy Spirit I will remain and abide.

He molds, directs, and guides me.

From sin He has set me free.

I am quickened by His very hand,

And in His presence I will stand.

All His promises I can claim,

Because Jesus knows me by name!

Close to Him I am determined to stay,

For I know He is the truth, the life and the way.

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The Death Penalty

I Shall Know Him

A Guide for Giving

The Law of God

Close to God

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