A Full Course Meal for Atheists

DEAD FLIES cause the ointment of the perfumer to putrefy [and] send forth a vile odor; so does a little folly [in him who is valued for wisdom] outweigh wisdom and honor.

Ecclesiastes 10:1 [AMP]

Some of you may remember how the Watergate scandal brought down the presidency of Richard Nixon. He should have gone down in history as the man who ended the Vietnam war. The man who initiated detenté with the former Soviet Union. The man who crossed the Bamboo Curtain and opened to the door to diplomatic and economic relations with China. But when you say the name Richard Nixon, the first thing that comes to the mind of many is Watergate. Thus, the words of the writer of Ecclesiastes (commonly thought to be King Solomon) are proven to be absolutely correct.

All it takes is a little foolishness to bring much wisdom and honor to nought.

Most of you know that broadcaster Harold Camping predicted that the rapture would occur on May 22, 2001 -- accompanied by a myriad of catastrophic events. Pundits, comedians and naysayers caught hold of this and responded with a barrage of comments, basically riduculing any belief in God. This has dangerous consequences... as King David found the hard way.

Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord and given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme

2 Samuel 12:14a [AMP]

What makes false prophecies even more dangerous is if the cause you to do something contrary to the will of God for your life. There was a huge controversy over a pastor who taught a relatively famous parishioner of his that God approves of people living homosexual lifestyles. Not to open a can or worms (whoops, too late!) but anyone who questions what God has clearly said is doing the same thing that the serpent did to Eve in the Garden of Eden. There was a prophet in the Old Testament who was led astray by a false prophet and that act of disobedience came with a heavy price.

⁷ Then the king invited the holy man, "Join me for a meal; I have a gift for you."
^8-10 The holy man told the king, "Not on your life! You couldn't pay me enough to get me to sit down with you at a meal in this place. I'm here under God's orders, and he commanded, 'Don't eat a crumb, don't drink a drop, and don't go back the way you came.'" Then he left by a different road than the one on which he had walked to Bethel.
¹¹ There was an old prophet who lived in Bethel. His sons came and told him the story of what the holy man had done that day in Bethel, told him everything that had happened and what the holy man had said to the king.
¹² Their father said, "Which way did he go?" His sons pointed out the road that the holy man from Judah had taken.
^13-14 He told his sons, "Saddle my donkey." When they had saddled it, he got on and rode after the holy man. He found him sitting under an oak tree.

    He asked him, "Are you the holy man who came from Judah?"

    "Yes, I am," he said.
¹⁵ "Well, come home with me and have a meal."
^16-17 "Sorry, I can't do that," the holy man said. "I can neither go back with you nor eat with you in this country. I'm under strict orders from God: 'Don't eat a crumb; don't drink a drop; and don't come back the way you came.'"
^18-19 But he said, "I am also a prophet, just like you. And an angel came to me with a message from God: 'Bring him home with you, and give him a good meal!'" But the man was lying. So the holy man went home with him and they had a meal together.
^20-22 There they were, sitting at the table together, when the word of God came to the prophet who had brought him back. He confronted the holy man who had come from Judah: "God's word to you: You disobeyed God's command; you didn't keep the strict orders your God gave you; you came back and sat down to a good meal in the very place God told you, 'Don't eat a crumb; don't drink a drop.' For that you're going to die far from home and not be buried in your ancestral tomb."
^23-25 When the meal was over, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him. Down the road a way, a lion met him and killed him. His corpse lay crumpled on the road, the lion on one side and the donkey on the other. Some passersby saw the corpse in a heap on the road, with the lion standing guard beside it. They went to the village where the old prophet lived and told what they had seen.

1 Kings 13:7-25 [MSG]

Following the false prophecy caused the holy man to meet an untimely demise. You can read more about the holy man, the false prophet, and the full set of events in Chapter Three of our book, Five Men Who Faced the Roaring Lion.

But getting back to Camping’s obviously false prophecy, many people are using this false prediction as an occasion to blaspheme. We read in Hearst Seattle Media’s Seattle P-I web site that atheists are having rapture parties to ridicule religious belief. Adding additional fuel to the fire are other journalistic reports, including an article in The Los Angeles Times regarding seemingly foolish behavior by those who followed Camping’s false prophecy.

Too bad Camping never read our book, Please Don’t Feed the Atheists.

Unfortunately, antics such as Campings false prophecy are giving the atheists a full-course feast. Last year, comedian Ricky Gervais published a piece in the Wall Street Journal speakeasy section in which he explained why he was an atheist. We have seen similar thoughts from Bill Maher and other pundits... and like Gervais’ article, there are the streams of comments by fellow atheists blasting Christianity (primarily the target of such diatribes). Funny how atheists rarely spew hateful venom at Ba’Hai, Hinduism, Buddhism, or other belief systems). For that matter, they never use figures of those religions as curse words.

What can we do about this absolute mess? The only solution is to show the world what real Christianty is.

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love kindness and mercy, and to humble yourself and walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8 [AMP]

²⁶I anyone thinks himself to be religious (piously observant of the external duties of his faith) and does not bridle his tongue but deludes his own heart, this person's religious service is worthless (futile, barren).
²⁷External [a]religious worship [[b]religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.

James 1:26-27 [AMP]

One final note: The Powerhouse produced a CD a while ago entitled Atheists Challenge. You can listen to this message by clicking here.

A Full Course Meal for Atheists

DEAD FLIES cause the ointment of the perfumer to putrefy [and] send forth a vile odor; so does a little folly [in him who is valued for wisdom] outweigh wisdom and honor.

Ecclesiastes 10:1 [AMP]

Some of you may remember how the Watergate scandal brought down the presidency of Richard Nixon. He should have gone down in history as the man who ended the Vietnam war. The man who initiated detenté with the former Soviet Union. The man who crossed the Bamboo Curtain and opened to the door to diplomatic and economic relations with China. But when you say the name Richard Nixon, the first thing that comes to the mind of many is Watergate. Thus, the words of the writer of Ecclesiastes (commonly thought to be King Solomon) are proven to be absolutely correct.

All it takes is a little foolishness to bring much wisdom and honor to nought.

Most of you know that broadcaster Harold Camping predicted that the rapture would occur on May 22, 2001 -- accompanied by a myriad of catastrophic events. Pundits, comedians and naysayers caught hold of this and responded with a barrage of comments, basically riduculing any belief in God. This has dangerous consequences... as King David found the hard way.

Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord and given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme

2 Samuel 12:14a [AMP]

What makes false prophecies even more dangerous is if the cause you to do something contrary to the will of God for your life. There was a huge controversy over a pastor who taught a relatively famous parishioner of his that God approves of people living homosexual lifestyles. Not to open a can or worms (whoops, too late!) but anyone who questions what God has clearly said is doing the same thing that the serpent did to Eve in the Garden of Eden. There was a prophet in the Old Testament who was led astray by a false prophet and that act of disobedience came with a heavy price.

⁷ Then the king invited the holy man, "Join me for a meal; I have a gift for you."
^8-10 The holy man told the king, "Not on your life! You couldn't pay me enough to get me to sit down with you at a meal in this place. I'm here under God's orders, and he commanded, 'Don't eat a crumb, don't drink a drop, and don't go back the way you came.'" Then he left by a different road than the one on which he had walked to Bethel.
¹¹ There was an old prophet who lived in Bethel. His sons came and told him the story of what the holy man had done that day in Bethel, told him everything that had happened and what the holy man had said to the king.
¹² Their father said, "Which way did he go?" His sons pointed out the road that the holy man from Judah had taken.
^13-14 He told his sons, "Saddle my donkey." When they had saddled it, he got on and rode after the holy man. He found him sitting under an oak tree.

    He asked him, "Are you the holy man who came from Judah?"

    "Yes, I am," he said.
¹⁵ "Well, come home with me and have a meal."
^16-17 "Sorry, I can't do that," the holy man said. "I can neither go back with you nor eat with you in this country. I'm under strict orders from God: 'Don't eat a crumb; don't drink a drop; and don't come back the way you came.'"
^18-19 But he said, "I am also a prophet, just like you. And an angel came to me with a message from God: 'Bring him home with you, and give him a good meal!'" But the man was lying. So the holy man went home with him and they had a meal together.
^20-22 There they were, sitting at the table together, when the word of God came to the prophet who had brought him back. He confronted the holy man who had come from Judah: "God's word to you: You disobeyed God's command; you didn't keep the strict orders your God gave you; you came back and sat down to a good meal in the very place God told you, 'Don't eat a crumb; don't drink a drop.' For that you're going to die far from home and not be buried in your ancestral tomb."
^23-25 When the meal was over, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him. Down the road a way, a lion met him and killed him. His corpse lay crumpled on the road, the lion on one side and the donkey on the other. Some passersby saw the corpse in a heap on the road, with the lion standing guard beside it. They went to the village where the old prophet lived and told what they had seen.

1 Kings 13:7-25 [MSG]

Following the false prophecy caused the holy man to meet an untimely demise. You can read more about the holy man, the false prophet, and the full set of events in Chapter Three of our book, Five Men Who Faced the Roaring Lion.

But getting back to Camping’s obviously false prophecy, many people are using this false prediction as an occasion to blaspheme. We read in Hearst Seattle Media’s Seattle P-I web site that atheists are having rapture parties to ridicule religious belief. Adding additional fuel to the fire are other journalistic reports, including an article in The Los Angeles Times regarding seemingly foolish behavior by those who followed Camping’s false prophecy.

Too bad Camping never read our book, Please Don’t Feed the Atheists.

Unfortunately, antics such as Campings false prophecy are giving the atheists a full-course feast. Last year, comedian Ricky Gervais published a piece in the Wall Street Journal speakeasy section in which he explained why he was an atheist. We have seen similar thoughts from Bill Maher and other pundits... and like Gervais’ article, there are the streams of comments by fellow atheists blasting Christianity (primarily the target of such diatribes). Funny how atheists rarely spew hateful venom at Ba’Hai, Hinduism, Buddhism, or other belief systems). For that matter, they never use figures of those religions as curse words.

What can we do about this absolute mess? The only solution is to show the world what real Christianty is.

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love kindness and mercy, and to humble yourself and walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8 [AMP]

²⁶I anyone thinks himself to be religious (piously observant of the external duties of his faith) and does not bridle his tongue but deludes his own heart, this person's religious service is worthless (futile, barren).
²⁷External [a]religious worship [[b]religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.

James 1:26-27 [AMP]

One final note: The Powerhouse produced a CD a while ago entitled Atheists Challenge. You can listen to this message via the audio controls below:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Resurrection Day

Resurrection Day
by Brotha DC

I saw Pastor Joe at McLean Bible Church and he greeted me with “Happy Easter.” I replied in Greek, “Christós Anésti” (Christ is Risen!)... and he replied in Greek.

The Apostle Paul, instructing the believers in the Greek church at Corinth, gave some definitive teaching on the truth of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I remember discussing the death, burial and resurrection of Christ with a young man who chose atheism as his belief system.

His response to the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ was, “Why should I care?” Another replied in kind... stating that he had little concern over needing propitiation for his quote-unquote sins. But the Easter season is not just about boiled eggs, chocolates and marshmallow candy treats. It is about our ability to boldly come into the presence of a Holy God and embrace Him as our Father.

Now that we know what we have—Jesus, this great High Priest with ready access to God—let's not let it slip through our fingers. We don't have a priest who is out of touch with our reality. He's been through weakness and testing, experienced it all—all but the sin. So let's walk right up to him and get what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help.

Hebrews 4:14-16 [MESSAGE]

As a father loves and pities his children, so the Lord loves and pities those who fear Him [with reverence, worship, and awe].

Psalm 103:13 [AMP]

I suppose that if I said that somebody made it possible for you to move into Bill Gates’s house and could have unrestricted access to Bill’s bank account... that might have excited the atheistic young man. But what Jesus did through His sacrificial death on the cross was greater than giving us a bunch of money. All that God has we inherit because of the relationship created through what Jesus did on the cross.

Why couldn’t we have it without Jesus dying and rising from the dead? Because our sin separates us from God.

We Long for Light but Sink into Darkness
 ^1-8Look! Listen! God's arm is not amputated—he can still save.
   God's ears are not stopped up—he can still hear.
There's nothing wrong with God; the wrong is in you.
   Your wrongheaded lives caused the split between you and God.
   Your sins got between you so that he doesn't hear.
Your hands are drenched in blood,
   your fingers dripping with guilt,
Your lips smeared with lies,
   your tongue swollen from muttering obscenities.
No one speaks up for the right,
   no one deals fairly.
They trust in illusion, they tell lies,
   they get pregnant with mischief and have sin-babies.
They hatch snake eggs and weave spider webs.
   Eat an egg and die; break an egg and get a snake!
The spider webs are no good for shirts or shawls.
   No one can wear these weavings!
They weave wickedness,
   they hatch violence.
They compete in the race to do evil
   and run to be the first to murder.
They plan and plot evil, think and breathe evil,
   and leave a trail of wrecked lives behind them.
They know nothing about peace
   and less than nothing about justice.
They make tortuously twisted roads.
   No peace for the wretch who walks down those roads!

Isaiah 59:1-8 [MESSAGE]

It is your sin... your shortcomings... your missing the mark that separates you from God. It is the lies, the lust, the pride, the hatred... all of those works of the flesh that hide His face from you. None of us are innocent. We are all guilty.

God's Way of Accepting People
Now we see how God does make us acceptable to Him. The Law and the Prophets tell how we become acceptable, and it isn't by obeying the Law of Moses. God treats everyone alike. He accepts people only because they have faith in Jesus Christ. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. But God treats us much better than we deserve, and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our sins. God sent Christ to be our sacrifice. Christ offered His life's blood, so that by faith in Him we could come to God. And God did this to show that in the past He was right to be patient and forgive sinners. This also shows that God is right when He accepts people who have faith in Jesus.

Romans 3:21-25 [CEV]

The words Christ has risen are good news. Because He lives... we can have eternal life. And that sure beats eternal death. Right?

Resurrection
^1-2Friends, let me go over the Message with you one final time— this Message that I proclaimed and that you made your own; this Message on which you took your stand and by which your life has been saved. (I'm assuming, now, that your belief was the real thing and not a passing fancy, that you're in this for good and holding fast.)
^3-9The first thing I did was place before you what was placed so emphatically before me: that the Messiah died for our sins, exactly as Scripture tells it; that he was buried; that he was raised from death on the third day, again exactly as Scripture says; that he presented himself alive to Peter, then to his closest followers, and later to more than five hundred of his followers all at the same time, most of them still around (although a few have since died); that he then spent time with James and the rest of those he commissioned to represent him; and that he finally presented himself alive to me. It was fitting that I bring up the rear. I don't deserve to be included in that inner circle, as you well know, having spent all those early years trying my best to stamp God's church right out of existence.
^10-11But because God was so gracious, so very generous, here I am. And I'm not about to let his grace go to waste. Haven't I worked hard trying to do more than any of the others? Even then, my work didn't amount to all that much. It was God giving me the work to do, God giving me the energy to do it. So whether you heard it from me or from those others, it's all the same: We spoke God's truth and you entrusted your lives.
^12-15Now, let me ask you something profound yet troubling. If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there's no resurrection, there's no living Christ. And face it—if there's no resurrection for Christ, everything we've told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you've staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, but we would be guilty of telling a string of barefaced lies about God, all these affidavits we passed on to you verifying that God raised up Christ—sheer fabrications, if there's no resurrection.
^16-20If corpses can't be raised, then Christ wasn't, because he was indeed dead. And if Christ weren't raised, then all you're doing is wandering about in the dark, as lost as ever. It's even worse for those who died hoping in Christ and resurrection, because they're already in their graves. If all we get out of Christ is a little inspiration for a few short years, we're a pretty sorry lot. But the truth is that Christ has been raised up, the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries.
^21-28There is a nice symmetry in this: Death initially came by a man, and resurrection from death came by a man. Everybody dies in Adam; everybody comes alive in Christ. But we have to wait our turn: Christ is first, then those with him at his Coming, the grand consummation when, after crushing the opposition, he hands over his kingdom to God the Father. He won't let up until the last enemy is down—and the very last enemy is death! As the psalmist said, "He laid them low, one and all; he walked all over them." When Scripture says that "he walked all over them," it's obvious that he couldn't at the same time be walked on. When everything and everyone is finally under God's rule, the Son will step down, taking his place with everyone else, showing that God's rule is absolutely comprehensive—a perfect ending!
²⁹Why do you think people offer themselves to be baptized for those already in the grave? If there's no chance of resurrection for a corpse, if God's power stops at the cemetery gates, why do we keep doing things that suggest he's going to clean the place out someday, pulling everyone up on their feet alive?
^30-33And why do you think I keep risking my neck in this dangerous work? I look death in the face practically every day I live. Do you think I'd do this if I wasn't convinced of your resurrection and mine as guaranteed by the resurrected Messiah Jesus? Do you think I was just trying to act heroic when I fought the wild beasts at Ephesus, hoping it wouldn't be the end of me? Not on your life! It's resurrection, resurrection, always resurrection, that undergirds what I do and say, the way I live. If there's no resurrection, "We eat, we drink, the next day we die," and that's all there is to it. But don't fool yourselves. Don't let yourselves be poisoned by this anti-resurrection loose talk. "Bad company ruins good manners."
³⁴Think straight. Awaken to the holiness of life. No more playing fast and loose with resurrection facts. Ignorance of God is a luxury you can't afford in times like these. Aren't you embarrassed that you've let this kind of thing go on as long as you have?
^35-38Some skeptic is sure to ask, "Show me how resurrection works. Give me a diagram; draw me a picture. What does this 'resurrection body' look like?" If you look at this question closely, you realize how absurd it is. There are no diagrams for this kind of thing. We do have a parallel experience in gardening. You plant a "dead" seed; soon there is a flourishing plant. There is no visual likeness between seed and plant. You could never guess what a tomato would look like by looking at a tomato seed. What we plant in the soil and what grows out of it don't look anything alike. The dead body that we bury in the ground and the resurrection body that comes from it will be dramatically different.
^39-41You will notice that the variety of bodies is stunning. Just as there are different kinds of seeds, there are different kinds of bodies—humans, animals, birds, fish—each unprecedented in its form. You get a hint at the diversity of resurrection glory by looking at the diversity of bodies not only on earth but in the skies—sun, moon, stars—all these varieties of beauty and brightness. And we're only looking at pre-resurrection "seeds"—who can imagine what the resurrection "plants" will be like!
^42-44This image of planting a dead seed and raising a live plant is a mere sketch at best, but perhaps it will help in approaching the mystery of the resurrection body—but only if you keep in mind that when we're raised, we're raised for good, alive forever! The corpse that's planted is no beauty, but when it's raised, it's glorious. Put in the ground weak, it comes up powerful. The seed sown is natural; the seed grown is supernatural—same seed, same body, but what a difference from when it goes down in physical mortality to when it is raised up in spiritual immortality!
^45-49We follow this sequence in Scripture: The First Adam received life, the Last Adam is a life-giving Spirit. Physical life comes first, then spiritual—a firm base shaped from the earth, a final completion coming out of heaven. The First Man was made out of earth, and people since then are earthy; the Second Man was made out of heaven, and people now can be heavenly. In the same way that we've worked from our earthy origins, let's embrace our heavenly ends.
⁵⁰I need to emphasize, friends, that our natural, earthy lives don't in themselves lead us by their very nature into the kingdom of God. Their very "nature" is to die, so how could they "naturally" end up in the Life kingdom?
^51-57But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I'll probably never fully understand. We're not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it's over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we'll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal. Then the saying will come true:
   Death swallowed by triumphant Life!
   Who got the last word, oh, Death?
   Oh, Death, who's afraid of you now?
It was sin that made death so frightening and law-code guilt that gave sin its leverage, its destructive power. But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three—sin, guilt, death—are gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ. Thank God!
⁵⁸With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.

1 Corinthians 15 [MESSAGE]

If you have never trusted in Jesus as Savior and Lord... this is perhaps the best day to do so!

Living Like a Christian

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love kindness and mercy, and to humble yourself and walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8 [AMP]

I first heard the above scripture as a youngster in church.  Of all the theology spoken with much gravitas by our pastor, that one verse had a profound impact upon me.  Here, God is giving us a blueprint for doing what He considers to be good.  We are to practice justice... to love kindness and mercy... and to be humble and not proud and haughty.

Pastor Lon Solomon made note of the attitude of a tax collector in the Bible.  This man, unlike the self-righteous Pharisees, humbled himself before God and prayed, “Be merciful to me, a sinner.”  This man did not approach God in a proud or haughty manner... and as a result, his prayer was honored by God.  As we take on the right attitude, we can be vessels that God can use.

And how can we expect God to use us... even if we are average every day Christians?  We address this question in this week’s blog featuring articles by Pastor Francis Ng, Melody Green and Brotha DC.

---

Do What is Good
by Pastor Francis Ng

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in the power of your hand to do so.

Proverbs 3:27 [NKJV]

Dan Clark recalls when he was a teenager, he and his father once stood in line to buy tickets for the circus.  They noticed a poor family immediately in front of them.  The parents were holding hands.  They had eight children, all probably under the age of twelve.

He could tell that the circus was going to be a new adventure for them.  The attendant asked how many tickets they wanted.  The man proudly responded, “I’d like to buy eight children’s tickets and two adult tickets.”

When the attendant quoted the price, the man’s wife let go of his hand and her head drooped.
The man leaned a little closer and asked, “How much did you say?”

The attendant quoted the price again.

The man obviously didn't have the money.  He looked crushed.  Clark says his father watched all this, put his hand in his pocket, pulled out a twenty dollar bill and dropped it on the ground.  His father then reached down, picked up the note, tapped the man on the shoulder and said, “Excuse me, I think this must be yours.”

The man knew exactly what was going on.  He looked straight into Clark’s father's eyes, took his hand, shook it, and with a tear streaming down his cheek, replied, “Thank you, thank you, sir.”

“This really means a lot to me and my family.”  Clark and his father went back to their car and drove home.  They didn't have enough money to go to the circus that night, but it didn’t matter. They’d blessed a whole family, and it was something neither family would ever forget.  That is called “doing good.”

---

The Blizzard of 1985
by Brotha DC

Let us not forget to do good where we have the ability to do so.  Specifically, in reaching out and touching the lives of others. This is not specifically referring to the giving of financial blessings... although that is often needed.  Sometimes it can be as simple as taking a few moments out of our schedules to touch someone’s life in ways that may seem trival... but that often have eternal reverberations.

I was recollecting the Blizzard of 1985 with a friend who was with me in San Antonio Texas during that event.  My friend was amazed at how a normally toasty town in South Texas could be inundated with a historic amount of snow.  But I also remember what appeared to be a homeless bum sitting on the sidewalk near my new apartment, begging for cash.  He had a bottle of booze in his hands and I figured there would be no way I would give my money to support some drunk’s alcohol habit.

Imagine my surprise when the Holy Spirit spoke and directed me to give $50 (a tithe I had set aside for the following Sunday) to the guy.  I figured it had to be a mistake.  I had to be imagining things.  After all, that was God’s money.  But after much prayer, I obeyed God and went back to give the $50 bill to the guy.  Long story short... he was near the end of years of running from God.  He had in his pocket a bottle of pills and was planning on washing down the pills with the vodka and ending his life.  We prayed on that sidewalk and he recommitted his life to Christ.  He took the money to a cheap motel nearby and called his family.  That night was the blizzard that hit San Antonio.  I imagine that, under other circumstances, he would be a frozen corpse.  But thanks be to God who knows each of us and puts His blessings in our path.

One thing that I recall was that this young man had made an earlier attempt at cleaning up... and went to a church requesting help.  He was turned away.  Man, how often do we as Christians wind up dropping the ball and, worse, feeding the atheists (see our book Please Don’t Feed the Atheists (you can click the publications menu at the top of the page).

We recently heard about a divine appointment that Melody Green experienced... she was famished and ready to grab food at a deli when a young woman interrupted her train of thought.  She quickly realized that this woman had a spiritual need and chose to pray with and minister to her rather than give precedence to her growling stomach.  Sound familiar? 

Then the woman left her water jar and went away to the town. And she began telling the people, Come, see a Man Who has told me everything that I ever did! Can this be [is not this] the Christ? [Must not this be the Messiah, the Anointed One?] So the people left the town and set out to go to Him. Meanwhile, the disciples urged Him saying, Rabbi, eat something. But He assured them, I have food (nourishment) to eat of which you know nothing and have no idea. So the disciples said one to another, Has someone brought Him something to eat? Jesus said to them, My food (nourishment) is to do the will (pleasure) of Him Who sent Me and to accomplish and completely finish His work.

John 4:28-34 [AMP]

As you spend time in prayer this week, ask the Lord to show you ways that you might touch someone’s life.  Whether it is a financial blessing... a prayer... or whatever, be a vessel of the love of God manifest in this world.

---

My Most Recent Divine Appointment
by Melody Green

Last week my friend Paulette and I were running late and had not eaten anything before we left her house.  So we stopped en route to grab something quick at a small deli she liked. Just as we were about to walk in, an upbeat voice called out to us from the open window of a parked car.

“Hey, that’s a great place you’re gonna love it!” 

We nodded and gave a faint (hungry) wave back.

“I just had the little dumplings on the left side of the counter, but the salad with the nuts is great too,” the voice continued.  We paused at the deli door. “Everything is so good there… sorry for rambling, my mom just died, but you can’t go wrong at this place.  It’s the best.”

We started towards the curb as she continued recommending menu items.

“I’m in culinary school here, and this place is so…”

Stepping towards her, I interrupted, “Excuse me, did you just say your mom died?”

“Yes mam, this morning,” she said, as we inched our way to her car door and listened as her story unfolded.

Her name was Keisha and her mom, who’d recently been diagnosed with cancer, had been rushed to the hospital that morning.  They talked and prayed on the phone together and Keisha told her mom she’d be on a plane that afternoon to come see her. But another call came just a few hours later.  Her mom had slipped into a coma and died.

The sun was beating down hard on Paulette and me as we told Keisha how sorry we were for her loss.  She slipped out of her car and continued with her tragic story.  Her fiancé was just back from Iraq, mending from a gunshot wound, and they’d planned to travel to her mom’s for Thanksgiving so her mom and family could meet him.

Understanding how loss felt, I put my arm around her, and the next second she fell sobbing into both of our arms. “I believe in Jesus and go to church but the devil is trying to destroy me.  But he’s not gonna get the victory,” she declared. “I’m not going to let him win!”

Now that we were holding her, I could smell something stale, like old whisky on her t-shirt, and she was out of it with grief and whatever she’d used to numb the pain in her life.  But the Lord had us there to stand with her in her grief and comfort her breaking heart.  It seemed surreal.

We asked if we could pray for her and she said, “Yes. Yes, please.”

So there we stood, in a parking lot praying for Keisha her and her whole family.  We thanked God for sparing her fiancé’s life and identified with her great loss. We shared our faith and assured her that God totally loved her – and wanted all of her heart to be His.  It was somehow clear she’d been dabbling on the dark side and that a battle was going on for her soul, perhaps for a very long time.

It was a sensitive moment.  Not a time to preach or correct.  But her heart was soft and God gave us the words to gently remind her that Jesus wanted to be her only one – and to let everything else, not of Him, go. And she agreed and fought for herself with us in prayer.

“Something told me you ladies were safe,” she said, lifting her head. “That’s why I kept calling out to you, trying to get your attention.”  She started thanking the Lord for sending us to her.  “It’s exactly what I needed,” she said.  “Thank you Jesus!”

About 40 minutes later we said goodbye. I thought about how easy it would have been to totally ignore Keisha and plow forward into the deli.  To hear the growl of our stomachs instead of hearing those few sad words, tucked inside the cheerful-sounding voice of a stranger.  Instead of the hearing the Holy Spirit.

It’s so easy to miss the moment. To miss God.  I’ve missed Him before, more than I could ever possibly know.  But not last week.  God wanted to touch Keisha last week and we didn’t let Him down. It felt really good to know we played a small, but strategic part, in a painful part of someone else's journey.

Internationally known author, minister and songwriter Melody Green has traveled to over 30 nations to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. Her best selling book, “No Compromise. The Life Story of Keith Green” has been translated into numerous languages.  This article was reprinted by permission from Last Days Ministries’ November e-letter. For more information on Melody and her prolific ministry materials, visit http://www.MelodyGreen.com

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Spiritual Meanies
by Brotha DC

I was reading a political blog and the topic of evangelical Christians came up. The writer, who presumably was not a believer, wailed about how so many people who call themselves Christians do lots of things... but the one thing that they don’t do is follow the teachings of Jesus.

I stopped and thought about that. We do so many things in His name except the one thing that He said would be a sign of our being connected to Him.

I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves].

John 13:34-25 [AMP]

That made me think both of my lack of love... and of experiences from spiritual meanies that I have encountered over the years...

You know the type. They look as if they have been baptized in pickle juice. They frown and scowl. They never offer positive encouragement but, rather, are quick with the put-downs and condemnation.

Look at that whore on the street corner...

Why, that ugly old drunk needs to go somewhere and sober up...

Those kids with the tattoos and the BB’s through their noses oughta be ashamed, walking around looking like that.

I have experienced people wagging their finger at me to point out some (real or percieved) sin in my life. Hey pal, how about praying that we all are stronger in our walk?

Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend [to show rage or worthy purpose].

Proverbs 27:17 [AMP]

I remember as an undergrad in Washington DC, I got through college by the skin of my financial teeth. But I trusted God and He provided. Granted, I never received enough salary or stipend to maintain a bank account, so I cashed each check I received. In DC at that time, liquor stores were authorized by the District to cash checks. Granted, a lot of poor people would go in with some sort of subsistence check and come out with an arm full of booze... but some people were mostly honest in that regard.

Well, a sister in Christ confronted me after church with her finger pointed in my face.

“A-ha!” she exclaimed. “You’re supposed to be a CHRISTIAN! But I saw you go into the liquor store!”

I asked, “Did you also see me exit the store?”

“Yes,” she replied.

“Was I carrying any liquor?” I asked.

She realized that I was not. I explained that I simply cashed my ROTC stipend. And she went away sorrowful... because she didn’t have occasion to accuse her brother.

Whoa! Don’t you think maybe she might have gone to her prayer closet and said, “Father, I don’t know if my brother has sin in his life... or if there is some problem that has taken his eyes off of You and made him seek the bottle. In any instance, I just pray his strength in the name of Jesus.”

But, in reality, how often do we ever do that? Most of the time, we are quick to judge, and then thank God that we are not as bad a sinner as the other guy. Whoa! Are we so self-righteous that we don’t realize that we are all saved by grace... and were it not for God’s grace we would all be a disgrace?

Let’s not be Christian meanies. Let’s not act like self-righteous weenies. But let us be quick to intercede for each other and (most importantly) love one another with humble spirits and godly fear.

Two men went up into the temple [enclosure] to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee took his stand ostentatiously and began to pray thus before and with himself: God, I thank You that I am not like the rest of men--extortioners (robbers), swindlers [unrighteous in heart and life], adulterers--or even like this tax collector here. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I gain. But the tax collector, [merely] standing at a distance, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but kept striking his breast, saying, O God, be favorable (be gracious, be merciful) to me, the especially wicked sinner that I am! I tell you, this man went down to his home justified (forgiven and made upright and in right standing with God), rather than the other man; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Luke 18:10-14 [AMP]

Forgive and Forget

My small group read a very interesting passage of scripture this evening:

²⁵And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop.
²⁶But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your failings and shortcomings.

Mark 11:25-26 [AMP]

Forgiveness is vital to answered prayer… to having an unencumbered walk with God… and to having the right relationships with others. And, if we do not forgive others… we won’t see our sins forgiven.

The truth for many people is that forgiveness is something that never happens... the pain and anger of personal betrayal never attenuates and often grows beyond what anyone might have imagined. The reality, however, is that forgiveness is necessary. Not just for the other people involved... but for yourself.

I recall when a rift formed between a pastor and the leadership of his church.  The long drawn-out battle literally ripped the congregation in half.  One leader made the comment regarding the now ex-pastor, “I will never forgive him for what he did!”  Never is a long, long time... and the refusal to forgive is a dangerous, dangerous thing.

Not surprisingly, this is a common emotion.  And, as time has proven over and over again, is a potentially deadly emotion.

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How Many Times?
by Brotha DC

Simon Peter asked Jesus a question regarding forgiveness. Specifically, how many times should his brother get away with a sin? Peter asked if seven strikes would tbe the magic number. Jesus upped the number to 490 strikes! Then, He added a bit of expository to make the necessity of forgiveness even more profound:

²¹Then Peter came up to Him and said, Lord, how many times may my brother sin against me and I forgive him and let it go? [As many as] up to seven times?
²²Jesus answered him, I tell you, not up to seven times, but seventy times seven!
²³Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a human king who wished to settle accounts with his attendants.
²⁴When he began the accounting, one was brought to him who owed him 10,000 talents [probably about $10,000,000],
²⁵And because he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and his children and everything that he possessed, and payment to be made.
²⁶So the attendant fell on his knees, begging him, Have patience with me and I will pay you everything.
²⁷And his master’s heart was moved with compassion, and he released him and forgave him [cancelling] the debt.
²⁸But that same attendant, as he went out, found one of his fellow attendants who owed him a hundred denarii [about twenty dollars]; and he caught him by the throat and said, Pay what you owe!
²⁹So his fellow attendant fell down and begged him earnestly, Give me time, and I will pay you all !
³⁰But he was unwilling, and he went out and had him put in prison till he should pay the debt.
³¹When his fellow attendants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and told everything that had taken place to their master.
³²Then his master called him and said to him, You contemptible and wicked attendant! I forgave and cancelled all that [great] debt of yours because you begged me to.
³³And should you not have had pity and mercy on your fellow attendant, as I had pity and mercy on you?
³⁴And in wrath his master turned him over to the torturers (the jailers), till he should pay all that he owed.
³⁵So also My heavenly Father will deal with every one of you if you do not freely forgive your brother from your heart his offenses.

Matthew 18:21-35 [AMP]

Jesus told the parable about two men who owed a debt that could not be paid.  One owed an amount that would probably be ten-million dollars in our current economy.  The reckoning might have been devastating, except that he obtained mercy.

Later, when his co-worker failed pay the twenty bucks owed to him, the man failed to show the same mercy that he had received.  The end result of that guy was dismal... he was sent to Gitmo to be water-boarded until somebody came up with the $10,000,000 to bail him out.

GULP!

Jesus makes it clear that if we do not forgive others, we will be in BIG TROUBLE.  So then, how many times are we expected to forgive?

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Seventy Times Seven!
by White Heart

Mark Gershmehl wrote a wonderful song about forgiveness... stemming from a painful experience in his own life. This song spells out what Peter was asking... and delineates the response eloquently. If you would like to listen to this song, use the player below:



During the close of the song, take note of how Rick Florian provocatively emotes some of the difficulties of forgiving someone those 490 times:

• Lord, You know just how hard I have tried…
• Gotta see that I’m hurting inside…
• Don’t you know that my pride is at stake…
• So tell me how much one should take…

If we were to be honest... we would agree that those things add up to a prideful attitude. I have tried. I’m hurting inside. My pride is at stake. Get it?

It all adds up to a bad attitude. Once you lose that ‘tood, you can move closer to the state of forgiveness.

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Lose Da Tood
by Brotha DC

Now comes the $64 question. How exactly does one manage to forgive someone who dealt something so painful to us? Joyce Meyer was kind enough to help us out with the following scriptures (thanks Joyce):

Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever].

Romans 8:6 [AMP]

Or, as Lon Solomon put it… it is impossible for us to live the way that Jesus did... to forgive the way that He forgave, etc. We can only do so by allowing Christ to live in (and through ) us by His Holy Spirit. Of course, it is up to us to yield to the Spirit... since He has the right of way.

The natural mind finds it very difficult (if not impossible) to forgive. Those who have the mind of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 2:16) find it an accessible reality.

Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

Romans 12:2 [AMP]

This does not happen to us instantaneously. Would be nice, granted. Still, it is a process that will continue in us until the day that we die. But ain’t it grand when we see those incremental bits of improvement in our lives. Maybe you used to stay mad for weeks, but now you only stay angry for a few days. Keep with it until those days shrink to hours... and hours to minutes... and minutes to seconds. When you reach the nanosecond and picosecond increments, let us know!  ☺

For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One)

2^nd Corinthians 10:4-5 [AMP]

In our albums Non-Carnal Warfare and The Art of Fighting Without Fighting, we go indepth on this subject. We don’t fight the temptation to hold on to anger and unforgiveness through natural means. It is a spiritual condition that is battled via spiritual warfare. The weapons we use to win the battle are delineated in the following scriptures:

¹⁰In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].
¹¹Put on God’s whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil.
¹²For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
¹³Therefore put on God’s complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
¹⁴Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God,
¹⁵And having shod your feet in preparation [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace.
¹⁶Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].
¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.
¹⁸Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God’s consecrated people).

Ephesians 6:10-18 [AMP]

But clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), and make no provision for [indulging] the flesh [put a stop to thinking about the evil cravings of your physical nature] to [gratify its] desires (lusts).

Romans 13:14 [AMP]

The term “evil cravings of your physical nature” can also refer to the desire for revenge… the desire to have a pity party… the desire to wallow in your emotions. But putting on the Lord Jesus Christ (the Anointed One and His Anointing) gives us the ability to slough off unforgiveness, extinguish the pain of betrayal and annihilate the hurt and anger once and for all. Well, if it tries to do a Freddy Krueger and rise again to come after you, you can use that same spiritual armor to put it down as many times as is necessary. That is part of yielding to the Spirit (Who has the right of way).

Ultimately, what neutralizes the unforgiveness is the power of love. You are putting on the Son of God... and God is love (see 1 John 4:8 and 1 John 4:16).

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The Love Solution
by Brotha DC

Again, giving credit where credit is due… we must thank Joyce Meyer for help in assembling the following:

And he replied, You must love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.

Luke 10:27 [AMP]

If you have ever seen the movie Ghost of Girlfriends Past, it is amusing to see one guy’s wedding destroyed because his bride-to-be refuses to forgive him for an infraction in his past. His bride flees the altar because she doesn’t want to forgive him.

What if she had messed up and wanted forgiveness? Well, in Hollywood logic, she would have excused herself and continued to hate on her man. But in God’s logic, we need to give to others what we would want to receive for ourselves. So, since we want to receive forgiveness, we must minister forgiveness to others.

I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves].

John 13:34-35 [AMP]

To forgive is an act of love. Love is the new commandment. It not only reflects what Jesus did for us… but it is the only sure-fire method of showing people that Jesus is real. And sadly, there are too many atheists who are being fed by the failure of Christians to live up to that love commmandment.

You have heard that it was said to the men of old, You shall not kill, and whoever kills shall be liable to and unable to escape the punishment imposed by the court. But I say to you that everyone who continues to be angry with his brother or harbors malice (enmity of heart) against him shall be liable to and unable to escape the punishment imposed by the court; and whoever speaks contemptuously and insultingly to his brother shall be liable to and unable to escape the punishment imposed by the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, You cursed fool! [You empty-headed idiot!] shall be liable to and unable to escape the hell (Gehenna) of fire. So if when you are offering your gift at the altar you there remember that your brother has any [grievance] against you, leave your gift at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift.

Matthew 5:21-24 [AMP]

Whoa! Now we are getting deep! The fruit of unforgiveness leads down a rocky path that can end in the fiery pits of hell. For those of you who want to keep your eternal fire insurance policy intact... keep this in mind!

And He said to all, If any person wills to come after Me, let him deny himself [disown himself, forget, lose sight of himself and his own interests, refuse and give up himself] and take up his cross daily and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying also].

Luke 9:23 [AMP]

Jesus’ example is the one that we need to follow. And what did Jesus do? What did Jesus say?

And Jesus prayed, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Luke 23:34a [AMP]

So then, how do we become children who grow up into the paradigm of Love set by our Father in heaven and our Lord Jesus? We need to make a few trips to the gym!

The Forgiveness Workout

♫ ♪  She ain’t heavy... she’s my lover!  ♪ ♫

Let us close with a bit more emphasis on the fact that forgiveness is something that takes constant effort... like the repetitions of a weight lifter... or the laps ran around the track... or the time spent on a cardio program...

And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude]

Ephesians 4:23 [AMP]

The word constantly is key.

This is not a one-time-good-deal. This is something one has to commit to for life. A hard beach body takes continual visits to the gym. Ha hard love spirit takes continual prayer, continual Bible study, continual fellowship with God.

And, like physical workouts, they have to be done correctly.

KEEP YOUR foot [give your mind to what you are doing] when you go [as Jacob to sacred Bethel] to the house of God. For to draw near to hear and obey is better than to give the sacrifice of fools [carelessly, irreverently] too ignorant to know that they are doing evil.

Ecclesiastes 5:1 [AMP]

Don’t worry.  Our tests are open-book tests.  And the book that we open is the BIBLE... Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.  And the number one instruction that Jesus gave us was to love.

It is kinda hard to be angry and love someone at the same time.  Love, as Larry Graham sang, covers a multitude of sin.

Oooh! I’m gonna TELL !!!

Tattle Tales

The predisposition to Tell or Tattle Tale on other people seems an indigenous part of human nature.

Nobody goes to school to learn how to tell tales on others. It comes naturally... and at a young age!

How often do you hear this coming from a group of young children:  “Oooh!  I’m TELLING!”

Comedians like Eddie Murphy have made millions mimicking that very behavior that seems to form the foundation of our human psyche.

And yet, this type of behavior goes contrary to the perfect will of God.

Or, to put it bluntly, it is sin.

Or, to just get plain real with it... GOD HATES THIS (see Proverbs 6:16-19) !

One of the reasons that God hates type of behavior is that it can kill you.

A man's [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil]. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life].

Proverbs 18:20-21 [AMP]

Years ago, when somebody pulled a gun on me after I had mouthed off... I realized that I needed to listen more, speak less, and pray always.

Not very long ago , I was working with a group of people, a couple of who considered themselves very devout Christians.

One of these individuals had a number of outward expressions of his religious faith.  His style of clothing... his grooming... all he believed to be taken from the Bible and presumably would make him closer to God.  Apparently he did not seem to want to get closer to other people... but that is another story.

The other individual expressed very conservative beliefs.  No socializing.  No fraternizing.  Just keep your nose down and do your job. 

Both of these individuals worked with a group of drunken, cursing, blaspheming, fornicating heathens... yet their judgmental wrath seemed reserved for yours truly.  Granted, I believe that the true motivation for their attacks was a classic case of cronyism with a religious frosting (yum, religious frosting!). 

The reality, however, is that I have seen more such attacks from people who profess a strong Christian background than from those who say they worship the devil or some other religion. One Christian brother spent so much time trying to find something about my work to criticize that he was four days behind in his own work.  And the person who strove to shield me from his attacks happened to be perhaps the biggest heathen in the organization.  Weird.

In another situation, a manager who allowed employees to decorate their workspaces with profane, vile and pornographic materials wanted to fire me for having my Bible on my desk.  And he, I was told, was a stalwart member of his congregation.

Really?

Some of you can begin to understand why the Lord directed me to write the book, Please Don’t Feed the Atheists. Not that I am so concerned about Christians picking on me.  But what does concern me is the atheists’ reaction to behavior that goes in the extreme opposite direction of Jesus’s greatest commandment:

I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves].

John 13:34-35 [AMP]

Getting back to the topic of doing things that God is pleased with and not doing things that God hates; the scriptures  make it clear that there are behaviors that please the Lord.  For example:

But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].

Hebrews 11:6 [AMP]

So, faith (which, according to Galatians 5:6 [AMP], is activated and energized and expressed and works by way of love) is something that pleases God.  So then, if there are things that please God, then conversely, there are things that God hates.  Specifically:

These six things the Lord hates, indeed, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimate himself and underestimate others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren.

Proverbs 6:16-19 [AMP]

Proverbs 6:16-19 delineates seven things that God hates. You can listen to a full study of these things by downloading our free album, The Things That God Hates. But our specific focus is on the parts highlighted in red above:

• A proud look
• A lying tongue
• A false witness who breathes lies
• He who sows discord among his brothers in Christ

Let’s be honest... cutting others down is an act of pride.  

If you are threatened by how good Sally Ann looks in her new dress, you might say words to tear her down in the eyes of the other ladies in your fellowship.

The proud look overestimates our own value while underestimating the value of others.

It is what causes people to say, “How can you call yourself a Christian... the way that you (fill in the blank).”

The concept of a Christian being a forgiven sinner who is living on a constant supply of God’s mercy is often rejected (except, naturally, during those times when we need to apply that concept to our personal lives
.
The lying tongue and false witness who breathes lies come from the same Hebrew word, “sheqer” which is:

an untruth; by implication a sham.  It is deceitful, false, and a vain thing that has no justification or cause. 

Sowing discord, strife, or contentions between people is what drama is all about.  Not just real-life drama, but also fictional drama.  A movie or television program that does not have conflict will not have viewers.

Think about it.  You don’t watch a procedural to see police officers sitting around the station house eating doughnuts and drinking coffee, do you?  No... you watch to see a bad guy do some heinous thing and then have the detectives find that guy, beat him (or her) down, and then incarcerate them.

Hey... you think that is what God will do to those who cause this level of drama in the lives of their Christian brothers and sisters?  Stand them before His judgement seat and... hmm...

Thoraf Gilbrant and his team wrote the following about this sort of person:

This sort of person not only damages human relationships, but thereby reveals his hatred of God and His covenant, especially of the basic covenantal obligation to love one’s neighbor (Leviticus 19:18, 33f) that underlies more than half of the basic commandments (cf. Deuteronomy 5:16-21). Those who seek to destroy others are therefore not only condemned by those whose lives they attack, but by God himself (v.16), Who hates their way of life (vv. 17ff) and the attitudes that underlie it (v. 14).

After describing the arrogance that leads them to use any means, even violence, Solomon warns that the real problem is not behavior (damaging as that is), but the attitude of the heart. Their hatred grows out of self-centered arrogance that sees others as tools to be used or discarded, and cannot bear to see happiness or love in those whom it despises. A heart that seeks the misery of others will do anything at all to accomplish its ends, as those poems show.

Granted, all seven of those things that God hates (as indicated above) overlap to a degree... considering that they are the fruit of a person who is not walking in love but, rather, hates his brother (and also God).  Still, our primary emphasis this week is on taming our tongues.

Judge Mental

When I recounted those earlier experiences of mine, you might have wondered to yourself, “Now what exactly did Brotha DC do?”

Well, I did avoid the temptation to retaliate.  A little.  But when the pressure persisted... I eventually caved.  :-(

However, I did make the effort to remain  in a position of forgiveness towards those who had hurt me.

And, of course, when I got to the point where I was ready to cuss someone out... we went to 1 John 1:9 and repented, turning around from that path and continuing to walk along the path architected for us by Christ.

But why do people judge others... even to the point of making up lies?  Perhaps it could be if one doesn’t express their faith in the exact same way that they do.

I recall being attacked by a Christian who didn’t believe in handing out tracts... he felt that soul winning should be strictly personal, not printed.  Well, I respected his belief... but it was difficult convincing him I did not want to argue about it. Our time would be better spent winning souls and not arguing.

Another colleague wanted to argue with me that we should use the Hebrew name Yeshua to refer to our Lord and not the English derivation of Jesus.  Again, not something I want to waste time fighting over.  From my perspective, if you call upon Him sincerely, regardless of what language you speak... you shall be saved.
 
In the situation where I received the proud look... the lying tongue... false witness about my job performance and personal ethics... and the end result was discord that resulted in my losing an awesome job.  Granted, the most awesome job I have is loving the Lord with all my heart, soul, strength and mind.  And NOBODY can get me fired from God’s employ.  God don’t listen to your gossip.  He knows all anyway... not just the conjecture but the intricate details.  Still... I found it rather confusing when those who should have been brothers in Christ came across as my enemies.

Of course, God has his hand in every situation.  And, when opportunities came to throw my misbehaving colleagues under the bus, I followed the instructions of the Holy Spirit to keep my mouth shut (well, maybe I didn’t keep it 100% shut) and to pray for those who persecuted me, in accordance with Matthew 5:44 and Luke 6:28.  And, yes, I did repent when my lips failed to stay completely sealed.

But that incident is also a reminder for all of us to keep in mind what our religion is truly about.  Is it about spending a requisite amount of time with our butts touching a church pew?  Is it about dressing a certain way?  Is it about pronouncing your words while dipping your diphthongs?  Is it about fasting a certain number of meals, or reading a certain number of chapters of the Bible or not watching movies or not chewing gum or not dancing or...

What is religion truly about?

If anyone thinks himself to be religious (piously observant of the external duties of his faith) and does not bridle his tongue but deludes his own heart, this person's religious service is worthless (futile, barren). External religious worship [religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.

James 1:26-27 [AMP]

True religion is the practice of doing those things that Jesus did: visiting, helping and caring for those who are afflicted and in need.  AND, to stay away from the filth of this world (ref. those things that God hates).  AND, to bridle your tongue!

J’Accuse!

I was thinking about an incident that happened to me many ears ago. I was a teenager, attending university. In the town where I matriculated, there were liquor stores on just about every corner. And those stores sold more than just beer, wine and distilled spirits. They sold milk, snacks, and newspapers. It was a common thing for people to go in and out of those establishments for anything from a pack of cigarettes to a pack of chewing gum.

I was confronted by a young lady at the church I was attending at the time. She accused me of being a backslider... or worse. She saw me go into the, gasp, liquor store!


OH THE HUMANITY!

She also saw me exit that same store. And she admitted that I was not carrying any bottles, cans or containers... just a copy of that day’s newspaper.

When she realized that she had not caught me in some type of sin, she walked away sorrowful...

What that young lady forgot... and what most of us often seem to forget... is that what we perceive is not always what we are seeing.

AND, even more importantly, whether it is or whether it ain’t someone sinning... our obligation is to make prayers and supplications with intercession for them... not to spread gossip to tear down their character.

Quite often, what people see or hear is filtered by what some social researchers call paradigms.  For example:

An employee may be deep in thought about an innovation that could make the company billions.  But, all the boss sees is somebody sleeping or daydreaming at their desk.  Women in the church may see a young hussy trying to steal their husbands while in reality a young woman brought herself a new outfit trying to raise her downcast or depressed spirit... not for the purpose of catching anyone's eye.

A prime example of this is the typical automobile accident. Two cars collide... and two drivers tell differing (and, often, diametrically opposed) versions of what happened.  As Philadelphian TV personality Wally Kennedy used to say, you ask fifty people what happened and you will get fifty answers. However... those vehicles did not back up and crash into each other fifty times in fifty different ways. The danger, then, is taking one’s incomplete picture and making it into an absolute truth (when, in fact, it is not).

The Pharisees accused Jesus and His disciples of being unlawful for doing something (in their opinion) on the wrong day of the week.  Check this out:

AT THAT particular time Jesus went through the fields of standing grain on the Sabbath; and His disciples were hungry, and they began to pick off the spikes of grain and to eat. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, See there! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful and not permitted on the Sabbath. He said to them, Have you not even read what David did when he was hungry, and those who accompanied him-- How he went into the house of God and ate the loaves of the showbread--which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for the men who accompanied him, but for the priests only? Or have you never read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple violate the sanctity of the Sabbath [breaking it] and yet are guiltless? But I tell you, Something greater and more exalted and more majestic than the temple is here! And if you had only known what this saying means, I desire mercy [readiness to help, to spare, to forgive] rather than sacrifice and sacrificial victims, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is Lord [even] of the Sabbath.

Matthew 12:1-8 [AMP]

God does not want us being Judge Mental... 50% judge and 50% mental.  And if someone is judging you, check this final scripture out from the Apostle Paul:

Let not him who eats look down on or despise him who abstains, and let not him who abstains criticize and pass judgment on him who eats; for God has accepted and welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on and censure another's household servant? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he shall stand and be upheld, for the Master (the Lord) is mighty to support him and make him stand. One man esteems one day as better than another, while another man esteems all days alike [sacred]. Let everyone be fully convinced (satisfied) in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. He also who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God; while he who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. None of us lives to himself [but to the Lord], and none of us dies to himself [but to the Lord, for] If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or we die, we belong to the Lord. For Christ died and lived again for this very purpose, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. Why do you criticize and pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you look down upon or despise your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God [acknowledge Him to His honor and to His praise]. And so each of us shall give an account of himself [give an answer in reference to judgment] to God. Then let us no more criticize and blame and pass judgment on one another, but rather decide and endeavor never to put a stumbling block or an obstacle or a hindrance in the way of a brother.

Romans 14:3-13 [AMP]

This Weeks Homework

1. Let us watch our mouths... 
2. Let us exercise the process of watching our mouths... 
3. And, as God reveals things that you may of done that He hates... or things you failed to do that would please Him... REPENT!