What Happened to the church?

 Please watch the video below. It is such a blessing. Wonderful inspiring and edifying message from this blessed woman of God.  She asks the question ‘What happened to the church?’.  Inspect the fruit of preachers! It is not evil to be a fruit inspector…Stop letting satan tell you it is evil and not the love of God…It absolutely is the love of God!!! Jesus paid a price to set us free from the shackles of sin, satan, and the world…We ought to fight for it instead of accept religion handed to us as ‘God’ or “Jesus” or occult spirits as ‘the Holy Spirit’…You want to be sanctified then study to show yourselves approved unto God a workman that need not be ashamed rightly dividing THE WORD OF TRUTH! It won’t come through doctrines of devils, vain philosophies, traditions of men, and the rudiments of the world and anything that is not of Christ…Paul said that he knew nothing among them except Christ and Him crucified…Paul counted all the things he had accomplished in life before Christ as dung that he may win Christ…

Philippians 3:1Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.

2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:

5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;

11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

Proverbs 28:23
He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.
Ecclesiastes 7:5
It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools.

Confronting Abusive Leaders by Chris Lawson

All I can say about this video is EXCELLENT! Simple biblical approach and to the point. I am sure there are many people who have gone through exactly what Chris Lawson describes or those who see something that is questionable going on with their church leaders but are afraid or unsure how to deal with the issue. Christ Lawson does a great job exhorting us to follow the biblical pattern in confronting abusive leaders or what to do after we have confronted them.

Link to Chris Lawsons vimeo video

http://vimeo.com/54498513

The dangers of the ‘gone viral cinnamon challenge’ on youtube.

Apparently this is an old prank that has gone viral on youtube. It’s called the cinnamon challenge. Where a person takes a spoonful of ground cinnamon and tries to swallow it without water. It is gaining popularity on youtube for people to try and post the video of them trying it on youtube for the amount of hits it gets. It seems harmless at first but these young people are not using their brains to research to see if there are dangerous affects on the body from indulging in the prank. Doctors are saying it can have very dangerous results on the lungs to the point of causing the lungs to collapse. There is just not enough saliva produced to dissolve the amount of cinnamon ingested. One girl named Deezia in the video at the link below was hospitalized because she couldn’t breath at all after doing it 3 times. She spent 4 days in the hospital. Her father says she was in and out of consciousness and was having a very difficult time breathing. A month later she is still under treatment using an inhaler for indulging in what seemed on the  surface as harmless. She nearly died from participating in such a prank. It’s not funny or harmless. Parents need to spend time teaching their children how to make wise decisions and avoid foolishness.

Proverbs 9:6 Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

Proverbs 29: 15The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.

Proverbs 19:26He that wasteth his father, and chaseth away his mother, is a son that causeth shame, and bringeth reproach.

Children and teens need to stop being persuaded by peer pressure and have the guts and boldness to say ‘No’ to their friends.

Proverbs 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Proverbs 27:9 Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.

http://moms.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/17/10721541-the-cinnamon-challenge-fun-or-foolish

J. Lee Grady on True Prophets of God

J. LEE GRADY on TRUE PROPHETS

My heart cries out for the American church to stop muddling,
muffling, cheapening, distorting and merchandising the pure
gospel. How we need to return to the simplicity of evangelism that
cuts to the heart, produces repentance and reveals the Son of God.

For several months I’ve been asking the Lord to make me his
trumpet. In my quest He’s shown me some of the qualities that
shaped biblical prophets into His mouthpieces. I pray all of us will
adopt these same characteristics.

1. A prophet is bold. True prophets have steel backbones and
foreheads of flint. They do not cower when the majority disagrees
with them. Like the apostle Paul, they are compelled to preach
because a holy restlessness churns inside them. They are
possessed by God, and they must release the fire inside. Will you
pray for this boldness and say with Isaiah, “Here am I, send me”
(Is. 6:8, NASB)—even when you know you will be opposed?

2. A prophet stays biblical. So much of what is passed off as
prophecy today resembles what you might find in a daily
horoscope. The so-called “prophetic movement” in the contemporary
church has been tainted by silly fads and charismatic witchcraft.
One prophetic e-mail list sent out a word recently saying that
dormant angels were being awakened out of the walls of our
churches. (That’s not remotely scriptural.) Another predicted that
God would begin to speak to people through the names of candy
bars and blue jeans.

So much of our prophetic verbiage sounds like warm and fuzzy
fortunetelling. This type of “imitation prophecy” can titillate and
thrill those with itching ears, but it is pablum designed for babies
who don’t want to grow up. What we need is a word we can sink
our teeth into—true meat that is the Word of God.

3. A prophet does not compromise. Nathan was willing to confront
King David’s sin, even though the prophet was on the palace
payroll. Yet today, we practice the “you scratch my back, I’ll
scratch yours” rule. We prophesy what people want to hear so we
can get an honorarium and an invitation to return. This has caused
some whole groups of prophets to collectively follow each other
into a ditch.

Beware of the herd mentality! Don’t just swallow and follow! You
cannot go along with something just because everyone else is
doing it or preaching it. Stay close to the Lord, develop keen
discernment and listen to the nagging voice of your conscience.

4. A prophet is compassionate. Some prophets today refuse to
confront because they are too nice. Others speak rashly “like the
thrusts of a sword” (see Prov. 12:18) and their words are delivered
with a bitter, vindictive spirit. Neither of these prophets will receive
his reward. We must speak the truth, and we must do it in love.

Most people think Jeremiah was angry and judgmental, but
actually he wept when he confronted Israel’s sins. It is not enough
to prophesy the Lord’s word—we should aim to speak with His
tone of voice. We must be willing to intercede for and identify with
those we confront.

5. A prophet stays pure. When Moses made the tabernacle, God
told him to make silver trumpets that were “hammered work” (Num.
10:2). If we want to speak for Him, we must be willing to endure
the smelting process. (In other words, prepare to be hammered!)
Before Isaiah could be an effective prophet to his nation, his lips
had to touch burning coals from God’s altar (see Is. 6:6-8). We
must be willing to visit the uncomfortable furnace of sanctification.

God is not so much interested in the booming voice, the rousing
delivery, the charisma or the technological savvy that we expect
today from celebrity preachers. What matters most is pure content,
and that can only flow through a pure vessel.

6. A prophet faithfully embraces the call. Jonah tried to flee as far
as possible from Nineveh, but the God of the second chance used
a strange vessel to get the prophet back on course. It involved a
visit to a fish’s stomach, where Jonah spent three days in
darkness, stewing in digestive juices. When the fish vomited him
on land, he was better prepared to speak heaven’s words.

~From “Becoming a Trumpet of the Lord” – http://fireinmybones.com

Who is of Christ? How can you know?

I know there has been alot of confusion out there among the body of Christ as to those who are of God and those who are false teachers, prophets, apostles, decietful workers, and false christs…We either get conditioned to the teachings of men who stray from the context of the word of God by His Holy Spirit of Truth that instruct out of their own understanding portraying it as the truth….or if something is spoken of as true it gets criticized for not being true by those who are preaching another gospel not of Christ or HIs Spirit….So I just wanted to take the time to point out who Jesus identifies as those who are of God from His own words in the bible…

John 8:28 So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am {He,} and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.
John 8:29 “And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.”
John 8:30 As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.
John 8:31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, {then} you are truly disciples of Mine;
John 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
John 8:33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”
John 8:34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.
John 8:35 “The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever.
John 8:36 “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.
John 8:37 “I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.
John 8:38 “I speak the things which I have seen with {My} Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from {your} father.”
John 8:39 They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus *said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham.
John 8:40 “But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do.
John 8:41 “You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.”
John 8:42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.
John 8:43 “Why do you not understand what I am saying? {It is} because you cannot hear My word.
John 8:44 “You are of {your} father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own {nature,} for he is a liar and the father of lies.
John 8:45 “But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.
John 8:46 “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?
John 8:47 “He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear {them,} because you are not of God.”
John 8:48 The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?”
John 8:49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.
John 8:50 “But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges.
John 8:51 “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.”
John 8:52 The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets {also;} and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’
John 8:53 “Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out {to be?}”
John 8:54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’;
John 8:55 and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word.

So from this discourse between Jesus and the Jews we see that the Jews were believing that because they were actual descendents of Abraham that made them of God because of the promise God gave Abraham concerning his descendents…But because these Jews didn’t believe the words of Jesus that put them diametrically opposed to Him…Jesus said that because His words had no place in them that they were liars and their father was the devil and that the devils deeds they do.. which gives us indication that we can know those who are of God just by this short discourse…

Those who are of God and are His true disciples
1. Those who continue in the words of Christ letting His word have place in us and keeping His word above all others.
2. Not doing things from our own initiative (our own will)
3. Doing what pleases the Father
4. Loving Jesus by our obedience to His word
5. Hearing, Recognizing, and believing the truth when it is spoken.
6. Speaking what is true only.
7. Only giving glory to God and not self.

But the main thing that stuck out to me in this whole discourse for those who are of God was THOSE WHO KEEP HIS WORD…Keeping His word is not the act of performing miracles, signs and wonders though these very things do happen as a result of preaching Christ… keeping His word is not claiming something is of God just because a person says so no matter who they are…Those who continue in Christ’s Word and keep His word not departing from it or mixing it with our own ideas or sayings to the death of self…it is found in those who will risk dying and and being portrayed as false or extreme because they forsake all this world has to offer to gain Christ and become a person who upholds His word at all costs. Even denying yourself of recognition for anything or any attainments we achieve to give Him ALL recognition, praise, honor, and glory. Not seeking wealth or fame in the eyes of men or material possessions as a standard of being “blessed” by God. But to suffer ourselves in order to be a reflection of His word even if it kills us. This is, I believe, the ultimate call of the elect of God.

Gossip, Slander, Accusations, and Lies: How do Christians Respond

Prov 6:16 There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him:
Prov 6:17 Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood,
Prov 6:18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil,
Gossiping and helping spread things about others without factual evidence just for the sake of “being concerned” is participating in the works of darkness. Even accusing others in the body of Christ for things you don’t absolutely know with factual evidence to back up your claims is participating in the fruitless deeds of darkness. To listen to those who are gossiping against other believers without factual evidence of these claims without rebuking them of sowing division among the body of Christ is participating in the works of darkness. To even repeat such ungodly things back to the person who was talked about without being willing to make a righteous stand against the evil accusations of our brothers and sisters in the Lord to those who are spreading it is still participating in the works of darkness…You will never see Jesus Christ the Lord doing any such things as what I just described above…He is TRUTH…He is Righteous…He IS LIGHT and there is NO DARKNESS in Him…One should repent unto the Father for having ever been a participater of any kind of fabrication without supporting evidence and knowledge of what is the actual truth on the situation and person(s) involved…If we have ever repeated a matter without knowing if it was true but is based on suspicion or speculation we ought to repent for participating in the works of darkness and helping the enemy to do his will against those Jesus died for and loves dearly…In the future we ought to rebuke anyone who tells us of anything that is not true but based on hear say without fear of their reactions or fear of being rejected by the accusers…If we love the truth and we love God then we will imitate Him in righteousness…Because we are fighting the good fight of faith in upholding God’s righteous standard and protecting the unity of the Spirit…