Last Wednesday I felt like I was having a pretty rough day. I felt like I was getting beat up from the feet up. But that day I was really being put to the test. It’s kind of difficult for me to explain the dynamics of everything that was going on that day without explaining the particulars of my job and the politics of the office. It wouldn’t be fair to the people I work with. Let’s just say some of my work was needlessly nitpicked and my ear was chewed off by an angry person regarding a situation that could have been easily resolved if the right information had come my way. I’ll end this paragraph by saying I’m usually a very calm easy going person. I think my interaction with folks out here on the forums and blog sights usually bear this out.

By the time I got home that night I was just beside myself. My wife could just tell right off that things weren’t well for me. I was trying to maintain my composure, but I really wanted to explode. All day I had been crying out to the Lord. I really wanted to just let these temporal things go, but I was so ramped up, it just wasn’t going to happen on my own. Well my wife suggested after dinner that we should have some Bible time. I agreed.

When the time came and we all sat down in the family room, I asked if anybody had any ideas what scripture they wanted to hear. Usually I get “I don’t know” or one person will say one thing or another so that there is no united decision. Typical right? Now my two children in unison say “read Job daddy!”. My kids are 8 & 9. A girl and a boy. How many times do two children of that age agree on anything, let alone have much interest in what scripture to read for the evening? So Job it was. At this point I was still so caught up in the events of the day I didn’t recognize that little sign that the Lord was working yet. My wife of course saw right from the get go. She had been praying for me ever since I got home.

I still didn’t know where to go in Job. We had started reading Job about three or four months ago and had long since moved on to other scripture. I couldn’t remember where we left off. So I just randomly flipped pages and settled on Chapter 33. I’ll post the whole chapter from the NIRV now and follow up afterwards.

I think it wasn’t until about the 13th verse that it began to dawn on me that the Lord was comforting me right there. He was saying look at Job. Look at the things he went through and cried out in his pain and anguish. Yet I, the Lord am still here watching over you, guiding you and loving you. These things will pass and you will be just fine.

Well, I was in tears at this point. I was praising Him and glorifying His name. He had reached down from the heavens to comfort one of His sheep. I’m not one of the best. I’m not more special than anyone else. I think He would do and has done the same for many others more worthy than this guy. The fact is I think I was being a bit prideful about some of the things that went on that day. Things I had realized and was crying out God to help me overcome. He answered those prayers exactly how it needed to be answered right when it needed to answered. I glorify His Holy name and I think my Lord for His comforting and loving hand upon me! If He did this for me, He will do this for any of His sheep.

This is an excerpted response from a conversation I am having with an Independent Fundamentalist Baptist.

I’ve been considering this for the past couple of days. I’m just trying to understand the reasoning. I do understand you want to be independent and able to separate from the denomination when it suits you. But then are you really upholding a denomination to draw people to your church or standing for Christ? If we look at Scripture there obviously were no denominations in the beginning. Denominations came about because men planted flags on certain doctrines promoted by certain men throughout history. Even Paul warned against this in his letter to the Corinthians. See Chapter 3 in the first letter. If we say we are of this denomination or that one, Paul says we are being carnal and not spiritual. If this is so, then shouldn’t we drop these things? If we are being carnal, then are we not sinning against the Lord? I say these things because far too long men have held on to these traditions, when Christ showed us in the Gospels that the traditions of men are nothing to be followed. He told the Pharisees outright that it was their traditions that were in direct conflict with the laws of God. So it is today. Not that all people in denominations are pharisees, but we have all trusted the traditions of our fathers for far too long. We are called to walk in the Spirit right? If we are walking in the Spirit, then we are not walking in worldly ways in the form and function of our assemblies. Let us consider the form and function that has been handed down to us since the Reformation began. Yes what men did to challenge the Catholic church was God’s work, but men stepped in and institutionalized what they did in to denominations. Paul tells the Corinthians how they ought to run their assemblies. We get other clues from Jesus as well. First no one lords over anyone. That includes pastors. No one is to have official titles. Consider what Jesus told the apostles, that they were not to Lord over each other as the Gentiles do or use official titles. See Matt. 23. Yes there are elders. But aren’t the elders there to teach and nurture? To raise up others who will walk and be as mature or more mature than they? But in this one pastor system we have today, there is weakness in Spirit because everyone looks to pastor, like Israel did with Moses. They are asking the pastor to be their mediator with Christ, when Christ wants to speak with us individually. He is our mediator with the Father. He said I am the Way the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except by me. Shouldn’t then the pastor be teaching that everyone can hear from the Lord. That they don’t need to depend on a man to hear from God? If there is to be unity, we must unite in the Spirit. We must look to Christ corporately, and wait for Him to speak through anyone of us. Regardless of maturity. Don’t get the idea I’m speaking directly at you, but to all believers who seek after Christ. These things have been weighing heavy on me for the past couple of weeks. I don’t think we have to be modeled after what the assembly in Jerusalem was exactly, we just have to be open to the Lord and how He would speak and command us at His pleasure, for His will. We need to drop many of our preconceived notions of what worship and service to God are and re-examine these things. Let’s not talk anymore about we think. Let us now humble ourselves before our Lord and pray. Let us wait on Him and see how He would speak. Is He not our Head, that He should direct the legs and feet to walk at the appropriate time? That He should direct the arms to yield the Sword of the Spirit. That He should direct the mouth to speak and prophecy His Gospel? This is what the Lord has been telling me. Isn’t it time?

Cities Crack Down on Homelessness

I was going to write something to accompany this article, but words escape me. Read and pray.

So many people have been conditioned to think God’s Temple today is a building full of pews for the congregation and a podium for the pastor. Would it surprise you to know that’s not what Jesus and the Apostles taught? Let’s look at the scripture.

66 Thus says the Lord:

Human barcode’ could make society more organized, but invades privacy, civil liberties

¹⁵ He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶ He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, ¹⁷ and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. (Rev. 13:15-17)

16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the bowlsof the wrath of God on the earth.” ² So the first went and poured out his bowl upon the earth, and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.  (Rev. 16:1-2)

21 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. ² Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” ⁵ Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” ⁶ And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. ⁷ He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. ⁸ But the cowardly, unbelieving,abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”(Rev. 21:1-8)

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

(Mark 1:15)

It seems all facets of this world is tailspinning more and more out of control. For recent evidence I point to this well done piece on “20 Signs that Society is Breaking Down& is Being run by Psychos”

There are many disturbing signs gleened from news stories, some of which I have read myself. Some of which we keep hearing similar stories over and over. Perhaps the end is even closer than many of us have thought.