Satan’s Snares

There is a wonder in God's word that goes far when combined with music. I'm personally thankful for songwriters who were motivated out of their love for God and His word, which helped to provide the Church with singing. Harvey Cox, professor of theology at Harvard stated in his book, Fire From Heaven that Pentecostals have always been at home singing their theology rather than writing about it. How true. Yesterday a phrase came to mind as I was thinking about church life, the challenge of reaching out to a pluralistic and post-modern culture, and the literal aging of the church. It would seem upon reflection that all churches in Western culture are in the fight of their life to stay alive. The church- going population has decreased, new generations of believers are rather ambivalent about faithful local church attendance (though in an odd way nevertheless committed to Christ), and the siren song of secular media threatens to drown out the voice of God. Except of course, we have the BEST NEWS IN THE WORLD! What's the phrase? It comes from a salvation history song entitled "O I Want to See Him"…here goes. "Satan's snares may vex my soul, turn my thoughts aside, but my Lord goes ahead, leads what ee'r be tide". Hallelujah and amen. As bleak as things look with the natural eye, God's church is marching on. In 2 Corinthians 2, the apostle Paul challenges the Corinthians to exceed expectations in terms of forgiveness. He concludes with 2 Corinthians 2:11 where he acknowledges being aware of the realities of Spiritual warfare. There is a Devil. Yet, the Church is the Bride of Christ, His glorious treasure and the apple of His eye. He has promised to build it, empower it and use it for His glory. I'm convinced that we are living in a time that has the potential to be the Church's finest hour. All we need to do is take our eyes off the negative voice of the world, face up to the enemy, and put our trust in the One who can be trusted. O! I want to See Him!

The Shack, Book Review

What a great book! As one who has had the privilege of teaching others theology, I can honestly say that I appreciate what the author was trying to do with this book, namely, to address the pervasive problem of Evil. At its core the premise and the content of this book are well-founded and Scriptural. While the author took great poetic license with the distinctive persons in the Trinity, I considered it tasteful and well done while accentuating in more than one place the same thing the early Church fathers stated at the council of Nicea in 325. That is, there is one essence "ousia", many hypostases, "persons". There is unity in the Godhead, never division. I found the description of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit to all be consistent with Scripture. While I disagreed with the blanket anger toward the institutional church made by the main character, I certainly understand that to be a foundational worldview in the narcissistic world we find ourselves in, and who I believe is the target audience. The initial trauma of the story was troubling to read, but so is Evil in our midst. The descriptions of God's grace, the evil of judging and legalism, and the hope of the future were absolutely fantastic. How a legalistic person who has issue with God can read the scene of the main character being placed as judge over God without questioning their own personal worldview, is beyond me. I am thankful for the widespread readership of this book and it's potential to reach many people who are angry at God and far from the faith. What are the major lessons learned from this book? I see several.


1. God can be trusted
2. God's purposes are perpetually too complex to understand
3. God's love is endless
4. God's enthusiasm for His plan of redemption is paramount
5. The presence of Evil in this world is predicated on the fact that the end of the ages has not yet come.
6. God is present with us.
7. People and sin are the obstacle, not God.
8. Jesus is the absolute only way to heaven.


The only troubling phrase I found theologically in the book came from "Jesus" stating that he seeks to get to people through every means (In a discussion about do all roads lead to the same God). While the book affirmed the centrality of Christ, it left open the possibility that Christ could be found within the pursuits of other world religions. An unlikely notion at best, as other traditions deny the efficacy of Christ (1 Corinthians 15) being fully God and Man, and able by his resurrection to save those that believe.
While I certainly would affirm from Scripture that God is working to reach every lost person there is with the Good News of Christ, I would never affirm participation in other world religions as a vehicle to God any more than participating in the sin nature leads to grace. I'm reminded of Paul's question to the Romans in Chapter 6:
Romans 6:1-2
1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
[1] The Holy Bible : New International Version. electronic ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996, c1984. (NIV)


While I certainly agree with the potential of Eugene Peterson's endorsement, I'm inclined to think that this will function much like C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity as an "emotional apologetic" for those struggling with God's love and power vs. their loss.


As C.S. Lewis so rightly observed,


God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains:


His voice is loud and clear in The Shack

Learning is Difficult

Learning is Difficult

I learned something new today. What it is doesn't matter. Was it beneficial? Yes. Am I glad I learned it? Of course I am. Do I want to put forth the effort to learn something else right now? NO. Why? I wonder? It's because learning is difficult. How is this the case, and in what way might one say that learning is difficult? Please let me explain. First, you have to acknowledge that you are ignorant. (Not stupid or dumb, just ignorant). Now, I don't have any problem understanding others as ignorant (without knowledge), in fact, there are times that I prefer to understand a situation resulting from the "lack of knowledge". In fact it was Hosea who said "My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). Learning starts there though….like recovery, we have to admit that we have a problem. This is difficult for most of us. Next, we have to want to find a solution. Oh yes many are stuck here. They don't want a solution. Some call it drive, others might think of it as goal-oriented. Whatever your label, you have to "want to" fix it. I don't know the song, but I remember the faculty meeting I was in where a music professor was trying to introduce a song and, since it was written at the turn of the century during the growth of the Pentecostal movement, there was a phrase he didn't understand: "Since I got my 1, 2 fixed"…..one of the other professors was amused at this and said, "that would be "Want to" ….Ohhhhhh! "That makes more sense: "Since I got my "want to" fixed. True that. Here is where learning goes to the next level. First we've admitted we're ignorant, then we get our "want to" fixed, then, well, then it's time to find the answer. Christians can get happy at this point. The biblical language about "seeking" is wonderful (Proverbs 8:17, Jeremiah 29:13, Luke 12:31, Luke 19:10, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 11:6). It's in the changing of the "want to" and the "seeking" where all the work is. Then finally there is the effort to save it, understand it, and do it. Many times that's fun when the "application" takes place. This is what Milton Gregory meant when he described the powerful tool of "association"…. "the Unknown Must be Explicable in Terms of the Known". Do I intend to learn something else soon? Yes. I'll embrace and face the fact that difficulty is often the pathway to success. In learning, in growing, in life.

A Reformation for the Next Ten Years

During the Reformation, all of society was changing thanks to theological giants like Luther, Calvin, Melanchthon, and Zwingli. Today, with the multiplication of learning, knowledge and technology, theological trends are segmented and individualized. Consider Erickson's statement here:

Theology is now being done in a period characterized by, among other things, a "knowledge explosion." The amount of information is growing so rapidly that mastery of a large area of thought is becoming increasingly difficult. While this is especially true in technological areas, biblical and theological knowledge is also much broader than it once was. The result has been a much greater degree of specialization than was previously the case. In biblical studies, for example, New Testament scholars tend to specialize in the Gospels or in the Pauline writings. Church historians tend to specialize in one period, such as the Reformation. Consequently, research and publication are often in narrower areas and in greater depth.

This means that the systematic theologian will find it increasingly difficult to cover the entire range of doctrines. Systematic theology is further complicated by the fact that it requires a knowledge of all of Scripture and of the development of thought throughout the whole history of the church. Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book House, 1998), 66.

It's come to that. We need to study our Bibles MORE not less. We need to tell the next generation, ( Psalms 78:4, Deuteronomy 6:1-9, John 14:6 ) what a privilege and blessing it is to be a Christian and a servant of God. Don't let the Devil steal your knowledge of God by making Bible study, theology, and the study of doctrines sound boring. Learn what you don't know and discover that God is a God of grace and mercy. (Romans 5:1, 1 John 1:9, Romans 10:9-10) For this generation, and the one that is to come.

Opportunities in the New Decade

I have been teaching at SAGU for 17 years. Several years back now, our Vice President of Academics, Dr. Paul Brooks, spoke at a Spring in-service where we were trained on the latest technology for use in our University. He said this: "I would like to thank all of you for the effort you have made to "learn" all the new technology over the past decade, just to keep up." Initially I thought, "It's not that much", but as I continued, I discovered how right he was. I started at SAGU on December 7, 1992. It just so happens that I didn't know in 1992 how to use a computer. I had to be shown how to save a file. To this day I am convinced that one of the greatest technological achievements is "Save As". Within months I was saving everything to either a 5 and ¼" or a 3.5" disk. "Look how much you can save on a 3.5!" Then Windows came……. The narrative on the change and implications from that point would threaten the limits of my now ancient 2GB flashdrive. Just 10 years ago, all of western culture was fearful of the unknown…Y2K. If technology has taught us anything it is the power of change and necessity of learning.

In contrast to the accelerated pace of technology, Christianity has not changed. This frustrates some. Methods of course have to, unfortunately in church, like industry and education, the change is about 15 years behind culture. The truth, however, has not changed.

So what's a Christian to do at the close of another decade? Consider these simple facts:

1. The world is larger than it has ever been. There are more Christians AND more lost persons.
   
2. The Bible is now more available than ever, in more languages than ever.
   
3. The Power of the Holy Spirit is available to every Believer for the advancement of the Gospel. (Acts 1:8, Acts2:4, Acts 10:44-46)
   
4. Jesus IS coming back. (1 Thessalonians 4:12-18, 1 Corinthians 15:1-58)
   

We are living in the greatest day yet for God's church! The opportunities are limitless. What a comfort to know this promise of Scripture:

Hebrews 13:8 (NASB95)

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

What Are You Doing in 2011?

It's that time of year again, to make plans! Last year, using my high speed Bible Software, I set up a Bible reading schedule in the ESV to read the NT, OT, Psalms and Proverbs in 1 year. I made it to July. Driving home from a Christmas event, I mentioned to my family that maybe the thought of reading the Bible in a year is too lofty of a goal that discourages people. Our oldest, Alanna, was quick with an analysis (being the 17 year old senior at Kennedale High School that she is) "You can READ the Bible in a year, but if you STUDY it, it will take longer...." "Ahh! Out of the mouths of High School Seniors the Lord has perfected praise (translation mine). That's the reason I bogged down on my schedule! I'm an underliner and a note-taker. Of course, with Logos 4 that's too easy and fun to do anyway, and their reading plans are customizable, so I simply went back and restarted my plan to read the Bible in 104 weeks instead of 52, checked off what I had already read, and started with 2 Kings 5 on Dec 22! I have been set free from reading the Bible through in a year! Now for all the type A's out there who must read the Bible in a year, may the Lord bless you as you do that.....but as for me and My house, we are going to study the Bible!

I Won a Bible!

I love God's Word. When I graduated from Bowie High School in Arlington, my church gave all the graduates a New American Standard Bible. It was great. I read it often throughout my Bible College years at SAGU. I used it so much, the bonded leather cover began to crack and peel. Then when I graduated from college, that SAME Church gave all the College graduates a NASB....this time the leather was genuine. I carried that Bible proudly, and read it often, marked it up, all the way through Seminary. Somewhere on a guest preaching assignment in 1995, I left that Bible at a church....never to be seen again. I still have the first one, but now NIV was becoming popular so I bought a Thompson Chain Study Bible (my first of many study Bibles) at the Baptist Bookstore on campus for $10 on clearance. I was thrilled with all the helps. If you have cared enough to read this far, you're not surprised at what you've been reading. I was surprised however when I got the email last week that I had won a New American Standard Bible, calfskin, side reference, wide margin Bible in the www.logos.com Great Bible Giveaway. All I had to do was tweet, facebook, blog, put down a comment about it and add the www.bible.logos.com search engine to our Bethel Temple website. I just received it today and it is awesome! I might have never paid $150 for a Bible (although the revelation of God to man is worth that and more) I'm thrilled to have it. It's produced by the Lockman foundation and has a lifetime guaranteee. I intend to keep it and read it for a lifetime. So....you might be wondering....whither the ESV? In my humble opinion, the ESV is going to become the mainstream translation because it's the latest word-for-word translation (as opposed to the dynamic equivalence of the NIV which has been a blessing to the Evangelical/Pentecostal world for the past 25 years.) In a world where information and the Bible is available in every format available (www.logos.com) There is going to be a demand for up-to-date translations that are as close to the original wording as possible. The NASB has served with distinction still, but the ESV takes it to another level. May the Lord bless YOU as you find an understandable version that you will read and study.

Post-Thanksgiving Hallelujahs

As I sit here in the beautiful city of Porum, Oklahoma, I'm thankful for such a wonderful extended family, immediate family, and Church! This morning I had the time, and interest to read through some devotional readings in Logos and saw where Jonathan Edwards had changed church music after he began to pastor the church in Massachusetts (where he was famous for many sermons on grace, such as Romans 5:1-5 and other passages....remember he is most known for Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God) the text stated that he encouraged the singing of the more lively congregational hymns by Isaac Watts. Oh yes, Isaac Watts! I looked down in the description and saw "Joy to the World"....Praise God! Amen! and Hallelujah!!!! Joy to the WORLD! The Lord has come.

I'm not kidding my spirit leaped within me and I praised God. What a joy!, what a wonder, what a relief, when Jesus robed himself in human flesh (Philippians 2:1-11) and carried all our sin. So...black friday notwithstanding, there is JOY to the World because Jesus has come for all of us. One more thing to be thankful for this weekend, one more reason to keep on serving Him this Christmas Season.

A Grateful Heart

I found this great article on gratitude and thought I would share it with you.

Gratitude was such a vital part of Israel's religion that it pervaded most ceremonies and customs. Thank offerings acknowledged blessings from God (Lv 7:12, 13; 22:29; Ps 50:14). Shouts of joy (Ps 42:4), songs of praise (145:7; 149:1), and music and dance (150:3–5) all added to the spirit of thanksgiving in worship. Feasts and festivals were celebrated in remembrance of God's steadfast love throughout their history (Dt 16:9–15; 2 Chr 30:21, 22). King David appointed levitical priests to offer God thanks (1 Chr 16:4). This custom was carried on by the kings Solomon (2 Chr 5:12, 13) and Hezekiah (31:2), and by those who returned from the exile (Neh 11:17; 12:24, 27).

In the NT, the object of thanksgiving is the love of God expressed in the redemptive-work of Christ. The apostle Paul thanked God for that gift of grace (1 Cor 1:4; 2 Cor 9:15) and the ability to preach the gospel (2 Cor 2:14; 1 Tm 1:12). Paul thankfully participated in the spiritual gifts (1 Cor 14:18). Gratitude for love and faith among believers pervades his letters (Rom 6:17; Eph 1:15, 16; Phil 1:3–5; Col 1:3, 4; 1 Thes 1:2, 3).

Because the expression of gratitude is tied so closely to the response of faith, Paul encouraged believers to give thanks in all things (Rom 14:6; 1 Thes 5:18). He commanded Christians to pray with thanksgiving (Phil 4:6; Col 4:2) in the name of Christ, who has made all thanksgiving possible (Eph 5:20). In his teaching on how to celebrate the Lord's Supper, Paul specified that Christians should give thanks, just as the Lord "had given thanks" (1 Cor 11:24).

Elwell, Walter A. and Barry J. Beitzel. Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book House, 1988.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Search the Bible!

This is the season for giving thanks and one of the things we can thank God for is His word! If you can't get enough of God's word, You should look at this:

Verse:
John 3:16; Jn 3:16; John 3

Keyword:
Salvation, Jesus, Gospel

With Operators:
AND, OR, NOT, “ ”

Online Bible by Logos

Add this to your site!

You can add this search engine to any site or blog by copying their HTML script and pasting it in. Have fun searching!

How Do YOU Study your Bible?

Bible Study has come a LONG way. I remember when I got my first complete Bible. My pastor, Rev. Charles M. Barnes took me (I couldn't have been any older than 8) to the Woodall Bookstore in Waxahachie and bought it for me. I remember when I got my first Bible with a concordance. Iris Watson taught in Children's Church at Bethel in Arlington what a concordance was and how to use it. That Christmas, I received a Bible with a concordance. To say that it changed my life would be an understatement. You can find all the verses on a topic grouped together? Glory to God. Then I was in Bible Quiz with the Assemblies of God for several years as a teen and memorized many books (it involved competition...not spirituality) in KJV. Today I praise God for that experience. I received a New American Standard version from my church when I graduated high school....and then!....I went to SAGU and discovered the Strong's Exhaustive Concordance! Another praise went heavenward. So what? you say?
Today it has all changed. Now, thankfully you can get the word of God just about any way you want it. The Soldier's Bible, the Policeman's Bible, Baby's first Bible, a Bible for every age level and every demographic. May His Name be Praised! Lest I sound too much like an early morning infomercial.....wait....there's more!
Since the advent of the PC, everything has changed. Now concordance searches are instantaneous on every kind of word in any kind of version. Now maps, commentaries and greek and hebrew tools can be utilized instantaneously and produced in a report. Through the use of the PC, a pastor, teacher, or Christian worker can instantaneously keyword search through ALL their library of books.
The internet Bible search engines are amazing in and of themselves. http://www.bible.logos.com/ for example will enable you to concordance search ANY word in ANY version, copy to your word processor and topic search as well.
Now the good people at Logos have won in the Bible software war. I'm happy to tell today you can download Logos for the iphone for free as well as consider the benefits of Logos 4. What they are calling Bible Study, Reimagined is exactly that. No longer just the domain of religious professionals (pastors, teachers, missionaries) Logos has created a software that will literally take discipleship and personal Bible study to the next level. Take it from a person who gets excited about a concordance, you might want to give your personal Bible study habit a look, and see what you can do faster, smarter, and to a much greater depth.

Since we're talking about the Scripture, consider theses Scriptures that urge us to study:

2 Timothy 2:15

Psalms 119:11

2 Peter 1:19-21

Hebrews 4:11-13

May the Lord bless you as you sharpen your saw.

The Values of Church Membership

Church membership has many advantages. Jesus told Peter upon his great confession: "I will build my Church! And the Gates of Hell will not prevail against it!" Matthew 16:18 Let me list just a few of the benefits:

First, we are the local expression of the Body of Christ. God has great plans for His church. He needs members!

Second, we need you. In the Assemblies of God, churches are autonomous, or self-governing. Church membership plays a big role in that to keep us healthy and responsible with the resources God has entrusted us with. The numbers of Church members only makes that relationship stronger.

Third, we are a tremendous support structure. I heard one preacher say, "I was dedicated to Christ in the Church, I was saved in the Church, I got the Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the Church, I met my wife and was married in the Church, I believed God for my healing when sick, at the Church. I laid all my problems down at the Church, We dedicated and taught our children in the Church, I was called to preach in the Church, and the last thing that will happen to me before they put me in the ground….. I'm going to stop one more time by the Church!

As 1 Corinthians 6:15; 1 Corinthians 12-14, and Ephesians 4:11-16 declare we are members of the body of Christ. Membership has responsibilities.

Fourth, the Church constitution and by-laws require that only members can serve as deacons, vote on church business (such as election of deacons and election of a pastor, as well as other church business).

Finally, Scriptures declare that we are being built into a spiritual house (1 Peter 2:9) which God lives by His Spirit.

If you attend Bethel Temple in Ft. Worth, we will be having a Church Membership Sunday December 6, 2009. All you need to do is attend one Sunday morning session on either November 8 and 15, or 22 and make your decision to join our church.

Who are You Bringing With You?

I noticed it first, yesterday when I picked up the book And Are We Yet Alive? This book was written with by Richard Wilkie in the late 80s about his concerns about the United Methodist Church.....one of his concerns was that the church had become to self-centered in their ministry approaches. Some call this "in-ward focused" rather than "outward focused" (one would assume to be the biblical model given John 3:16, Romans 10:9-10, and 1 Peter 1:9)

THEN...I heard the chapel speaker this morning refer to it, Rev. Alton Garrison who happens to be the Assistant General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God where he quoted a study that stated 80% of Evangelicals believe that church is about my needs and my concerns (inward focus)

FINALLY, as I was reading my daily Bible reading (don't be impressed, I'm on April 12th, and I have some catching up to do) In the grand and encouraging passage of 2 Corinthians 4:1-18, specifically in 2 Corinthians 4:13 where the apostle states the overarching objective of his ministry, and what I frankly believe ought to be the ministry of every church:

I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.

It's that last phrase that caught me...there it is! The mission of the Church! Outreach!
Here it is again:

that HE WHO RAISED THE LORD JESUS WILL RAISE US ALSO WITH JESUS...

AND....

BRING US WITH YOU INTO HIS PRESENCE!

US AND YOU

YOU AND US

Who are You Bringing With You?

Come Now, Let us Reason Together

Jesus was straight up telling the truth in the parable of the sower. Good intentions not withstanding, it is too easy to be affected by the "cares of this life". Matthew 13:22 records Jesus's instruction on sowing seed. Reception of the word is unfruitful unless it is nurtured and cared for in the heart of a person. The pitfall is obvious.... "the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches" choke the word.

So what do you do?

Turn your eyes on Jesus! Look up! Make a decision to intentionally appreciate the love and grace of God. How? With His word.

Consider these encouraging verses: Nehemiah 9:5; Isaiah 1:18; Psalm 95:1; Psalm 96:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:58. The list could go on and on.

God wants us to know there is something better than carrying the burdens and cares of this world all by ourselves. From Genesis to Revelation, the Scriptures provide hope. There is one thing more:

There is Truth in God's Word.

What a terriffic antidote to "the cares of this life"

Better than Bible Study…

Circumstances can be disappointing. God never disappoints us. Friends may fail us. Jesus never fails. Family members may hurt us, but there is a Friend that sticks closer than a brother. I am so thankful that God has given us His holy word. 1 Peter 1:18-21 captures the essence of all that God has done and IS doing for us. If we were to try to raise families, live above the negativity of this world, build a church, or reach out to others in need all on our own it would be a miserable failure. We cannot do it on our own. For thousands of years the Jewish nation put their trust in the promises of God to bring salvation. One only need to read Jeremiah, Isaiah, Hosea, Nehemiah, or Deuteronomy to see that God's promises for His people are all at the same time ancient and glorious. WE GET TO BE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE EQUATION! 2 Peter 1:19 declares that we have the word of the prophets made MORE CERTAIN. Notice how Peter says "and we would do well to pay attention to it"…He then gives the example…"as to a light shining in a dark place, until the Morning Star arises in your hearts" Wow! God is present when we read the Scripture! God is present when we study the Bible! God is present in every circumstance and situation we face. Look down at your Bible…Look up to the grace of God. He is present to help, mighty to save, and able to fix every situation you find yourself in. As you study your Bible today, consider this quote:

The Bible is the only book whose Author is always present when one reads it.-unknown

Another Great Bible Tool Online!

It's simply amazing to discover the tools available online and through the software at www.logos.com. They have already given us, www.bible.logos.com where you can search the word of God in several versions, copy and paste to your word processor or look up occurrences of phrases in the Bible. Then of course, who could forget the reference tagging language tool that enables you to turn all Scriptures on a web page or blog into hyperlinks like this one 1 Peter 1:3-4. Now for Twitter and other venues where you can turn a Scripture into a short hyperlink, there's ref.ly That's right, no www, no .com or .org or even .edu, just ref.ly . What does it do and why should you care? Click on it and see. When you go to http://Ref.ly and type in a Bible reference like Psalm 91 and then click "Transform" it immediately converts it to a short web address. When the user clicks the "Tweet" button it takes them to their twitter page. When the user clicks the ref.ly address, it immediately takes them to the passage in context and at www.bible.logos.com . Try it. It's fun and amazing at the same time. You can also change the version if you wish. Enjoy discovering more about the wonders of God's word.

Principles for Church Growth….From a Toyota mechanic

My father-in-law worked for Toyota for over 20 years. He is a mechanic's mechanic. The man knows automobiles inside and out. He's also been a member of his local church for well over 40 years. Most, if not all of that time he has been involved in ministry. He's been a youth leader when the church had over 200 members in a town of less than 1000 people. He's been a Sunday School superintendent, board member, and along with his faithful wife, they have supported their church with time, talent, tithe and truckloads of hard work. So what does Dan Hughey have to say about church growth? Plenty. Dan and Marie have faithfully served their church and contributed to the kingdom of God for decades. They have served under pastors who had long tenure, tenuous circumstances, and short experiences. The church has grown, declined, and grown, and declined. What's the insight that requires such an introduction? Simply this: Churches grow when the people of the church have something good to say about the church. Most of us in church know the feeling: there is the sense of emptiness, hurt, frustration and disappointment when attending a church that seems to not have its priorities straight. It may be the pastor, it may be the circumstances the pastor is working with, and it may be the people. One thing is certain…it's disappointing….leaving a church service feeling worse than when you came. No one should have to feel that way, but many do. Naturally, these people cannot speak positively of their church. It's a discussion changer. On the contrary, when things are going well….it's easy to talk about…and enthusiastically endorse what is going on in church. To my insightful father-in-law, it's a game changer. When people can talk positively about their church, the church will grow because the greatest benefit to an organization is word of mouth. For church leaders it's a new way of thinking about Acts 20:28. As James would assert in James 3:8-12, the dangers of our speech and it's inconsistency are lurking. May the challenge of James 3:17-18 be our goal.

The Glorious Church

In our service at Bethel Temple today the sermon was on The Work of the Church. This was
based on the events surrounding the conversion of Saul the Pharisee to Paul the Apostle. Throughout this chapter, we observed that the Work of the Church includes Miracles….God must be active doing what He does best…miracles. It was an absolute miracle that Saul encountered Christ on the road to Damascus and later became the apostle to the Gentiles. We also discovered that doing the work of God involves risk. God's instructions to Ananias, and then Barnabas's encouragement to the apostles in Jerusalem involved a great deal of risk-taking. Finally, we observed how in Acts 9:31, the church was blessed and MULTIPLIED. It's here that I want to make some further comments. The growth of a church is dependent on relationships and multiplication. The Book of Acts talks about how the excitement concerning the Gospel got everyone's attention. It appears today that the "church" is trying everything but the right thing. Ok, I KNOW that I'm not the expert on Church growth, but in my short time so far here on earth (soon to be 45 years)…I've observed that across denominations, churches too quickly go to a business/leadership model that is marketing driven, rather than God-centered. How so? When I worked on a Ph.D. in Administration (at a Baptist Seminary, which effectively focused on Church administration) fourteen years ago, there was this perpetual temptation to baptize (no pun intended) the secular leadership and management literature and push it on the church. There are some obvious things that fit: conflict resolution, planning, leading, organizing, and supervising. The Church, however is different! As an organism that belongs to Christ, we have One who has promised to "Build My Church" (Matt 16:18). We have gifts from God to help with the load (Ephesians 4:11-16). The growth of the church in Acts was nothing short than monumental. Consider the summary statements after 3000 confessed Christ on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:42. Then later, the church added more in Acts 4:4 and Acts 6:7. God was at work in the miraculous and the results of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4; 10:44-46). So, what's the point? Human enthusiasm and excitement can only go so far…there must be something real happening for people to want to come to your church. Lives must be changed from encountering Christ. We're thrilled at what God is doing at Bethel Temple. May the Lord bless your church too as you focus on the miraculous, make a commitment to manage risk, and see His blessings. Jesus said it best in Matthew 16:18. Let's "keep in step with the Spirit" and see God work in His church.

The Word of God…New and Living!

I am in a family of readers. Every day you can see one of my family with a book in their hand. Personally, I start a lot of books but have trouble finishing them. I'm currently rejoicing that after 4 years of effort, I've now finished Fellowship of the Ring. There is no telling how long it will take to finish the rest of that tome. If you read this blog at all you understand the author's fascination with technology and the study of God's word. Today I'm happy to announce the addition of a new widget to this blog and also available at www.betheltemple.net . Master Media ministries' One Year Audio Bible is in the New Living Translation which is an absolutely fabulous translation of the Bible. You can buy their MP3 player from the One Year Audio Bible site, or they provide the widget for you to upload the HTML to your blog or website. From here, your user can listen to the day's reading that loads automatically with the golden voice of Tom Dooley. Why is this such a big deal? Everyone doesn't like to read. They may be too busy to read. I'm personally thankful that God inspired the biblical writers to write (See 2 Peter 1:19-21) His revelation, I also am aware that many people just don't like to read. So for them, and for us…(the busy ones)…amid the audio Bible genre, there is this widget. Simply click on this widget, copy the HTML text, and paste it into the HTML of your website or blog. Then your users will have another way to encounter the word of God that is "Living and Active" (Hebrews 4:12)

Unselfish Praying….Gets Answers

Consider it a theory if you will. As I say that I picture the opening music of the old Twilight Zone episodes. When?, How?, and Where? Does God answer prayers? Of course, if we knew that, one of life's greatest mysteries would be solved. When I first began working at SAGU, the president was Dr. Delmer Guynes, a great leader and mentor. Dr. Guynes now serves as the Chaplain at SAGU. One of his hallmark statements is that "you can get more answers to your prayers when you pray unselfishly". Perhaps that is what the author intended in James 5:16 about the prayers of a righteous man being "powerful and effective". I decided to do a search in Logos and came up with these results. I know I haven't searched every possible connection, but this simple glance adds much to the theory of results oriented unselfish praying. Place your curser over these references: Genesis 25:21; 2 Samuel 24:25; 1 Chronicles 5:20; Psalm 4:1; Psalm 17:6; Acts 10:4; 2 Corinthians 1:11;Philemon 22. The Disciple's Prayer that Jesus taught His disciples certainly has unselfish characteristics in it especially when you consider that personal requests are at the tail end of the prayer. (Luke 11:2-4). We do have the confidence that the Lord will take care of us. Christian, let's count our blessings. First, we have been forgiven our sins (Romans 10:9-10). As such, we have the resulting peace of God. (Romans 5:1) and if THAT isn't enough we have the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7). Even in times of trial, we have the assurance of God's help. (Romans 8:26-39) All these burdens have been lifted! We have little to concern ourselves with except to pray unselfishly. May God help us to do what works.

God Specializes In It

The notion that God can do anything is, in itself, amazing. Since the Fall of Man, man has been at odds against God by default. We are, as Romans 3:23 states, "sinners." We have all sinned. God is doing all He can to redeem us back. Having sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins, and not just for our sins, but for the whole world, He daily is doing miracles as men come back into communion with Him. When we read statements like "Nothing is Too Hard for God" and "Nothing is Impossible with God"….we want to believe that is true, but our fallen nature gets in the way. We argue with God. What about the times I asked Him for miracles and received nothing? What about the times I prayed and prayed and prayed, yet still God did not answer? Fair enough questions. James 4:3 suggests one answer might be that we ask from wrong motives. This is understandable considering our faulted sinful stance. It seems from Scripture that God doesn't do everything we ask and He has some kind of Divine standard for answering our prayers that is a mystery to our feeble minds. Those questions, however, should not prevent us from continuing to ask. Consider all the places that God Himself encourages us with the idea that He can do anything AND our prayers make a difference.

Matthew 19:26
Mark 10:27
Luke 1:37
Luke 18:27
Matthew 6:30
Matthew 8:10
Matthew 8:26
Matthew 9:2
Matthew 9:22
Matthew 9:29
Matthew 13:58
Matthew 14:31
Matthew 15:28
Mattew 16:8
This is not an exhaustive list. I do not know the artist but the words are so powerful from Scripture… Got any Rivers? You think are uncrossable Got any Mountains? You can't tunnel through God specializes, in things thought impossible And He can do what no other power can do God must expect us to have faith in what He can do!

The Eleventh Commandment

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus says and does things that broke with the established tradition. Does this make him a rebel? Not so, but He was intent on focusing on essential elements of faith. For instance in Matthew 12, the disciples of Jesus help themselves to grain on the Sabbath. Consider this, Exodus 20:8 clearly identifies the Sabbath as a commandment. There is little doubt that the Pharisees observation of the disciples error was on task…initially. They were breaking the Sabbath. The response of Jesus is amazing. Earlier, in Matthew 9:13, Jesus had given them instructions to "go and learn what this means"…. "I desire mercy and not sacrifice"…..now in Matthew 12:7, in response to the Pharisees rebuke of His disciples….Jesus repeats the earlier instruction….and THEN makes the profound statement of Matthew 12:8…Jesus is the LORD of the Sabbath! In effect, you are looking at the Eleventh Commandment….or perhaps more importantly, THE COMMANDMENT! Jesus changes everything. He should be the center of our universe. Most Christians don't celebrate the Sabbbath…are we in error? I don't think so. Hebrews 4:9 states it so well…now that Jesus has come…..we have our Rest, 24/7. The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath indeed!

A New Semester

My new semester at SAGU has begun. It's fun as the students are excited to begin learning about Theology and Bible. While I'm also excited for a fresh start, I had a few items I wanted to mention to keep the fire going in all of our lives. Here goes.

The Mercy of the Lord is New Every Morning. God's love is not dependent on the seasons, our attitudes, or effort. He simply loves us with the abundance of Grace and Mercy that His Scriptures declare.

Rest is essential to mental health. The break that comes between University semesters is a powerful reminder of the value of rest. One of the ten commandments is to remember the Sabbath. In our busy culture this is often the first thing to go. God created us to need rest. We need rest for our physical body as well as our mind and spirit. The Bible has a lot to say about this as well, Jesus promised to provide rest for those who labored and are heavy laden.

Knowledge is power. The sage said it well, the more I learn, the more I learn I have to learn. Reading and classifying is also powerful as we assimilate information and relate concepts one to the other, we become more fruitful and effective. This power set of tools also gives us the capacity to do more and add value to our work and relationships.

So you're not in school? Open your Bible, go read a book, check out a new web page or learn a technological skill. The enhancements will add value to your life all the while reminding you that "His mercies are new!"

The Do Gooder

When I was a child, in Church on a regular basis they would sing a song whose verses go like this:

I Get So Thrilled With Jesus
Every Moment of the Day
I Get So Thrilled With Jesus

He's the Truth, the Life, the Way
I Get So Thrilled With Jesus
He Satisfies My Longing Soul

I Get so Thrilled With Jesus
He's the One Who Made Me Whole

Now there's some fantastic Truth about our Lord and Savior. He is wonderful not just because He has to be as the Only Son of God, but His character as very God of very God enables Him to be all that we need in terms of relationship. As a child I had no problem singing that song because it had alot of things in it I liked:

Thrill. Satisfaction. Life. Every Moment, Every Day wow. When Peter was preaching to the Gentiles in Acts 10:38, he focused not on the sin of the Gentiles, but the essential goodness of Christ. He went about doing GOOD and healing ALL who were oppressed of the Devil.

The Devil seems to be quite busy all around the world. John declared in 1 John 4:4 "Greater is He that is In you"

God is able through His Son Jesus to heal and provide today. Jesus said to the disciples. Greater works than these shall you do because I go unto my Father (John 14:12)

Today, as you look over your life, your problems, the hard to answer questions...consider that as a Believer you have all the resources of Heaven and Earth available to you. God will take care of you....

I Get So Thrilled With Jesus!

What the Spirit Does to Help

I'm talking of course, about the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity. The current situation in our society, especially Evangelical Christianity appears to be ignoring the Power and Purpose of God's Spirit to help us accomplish the task of world evangelization. I'm a Pentecostal. I was raised as a Pentecostal, and now I'm ordained in a Pentecostal Church, the Assemblies of God. I'm not just a Pentecostal because of my heritage, as important as that is, I'm not just a Pentecostal because of my vocation although being Pentecostal is required for my chosen profession. I'm Pentecostal because I understand the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church is shown throughout Scripture and is necessary to do the ministry. So, to the previous question: What exactly does the Holy Spirit do to help. Romans 8:1-39 is a great chapter in God's word that describes the wonderful way the Spirit helps us. But the Spirit helps us in many other ways. I came across a chart in "The Holy Spirit: A Pentecostal Introduction" by Thomas Holdcroft, (one of the textbooks for "Person and Work of the Holy Spirit" I took as a student at SAGU in the 80s. Holdcroft captures in these simple phrases a fantastic overview of all the benefits that the Spirit provides for us. I wanted to share this with you:

The Spirit's Ministry and Work in the Believer

Regenerates or Makes Spiritually Alive

Indwells

Grants Assurance

Sanctifies or Achieves Holiness

Empowers Spiritually

Leads and Guides

Assists in Worship and Prayer

Implements Adoption

Communes and Fellowships

Anoints

Seals

Teaches and Reminds

This is why I believe that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a necessity for any believer who wants to do something for God for a lifetime of ministry. The Apostles saw the importance of it or they wouldn't have asked the Gentiles about it in Acts 10:44-46; Paul must have understood it's purpose and use for churches all across the world or he wouldn't have specified regulations for public worship as in 1 Corinthians 14:1-40.

In our day of floods of information, good and bad...we need a HELPER who can stand beside us and help us make decisions. Christians believe and understand the Holy Spirit to be that Helper. Jesus spoke that he would be the "Other Counselor" who would be with us forever. Truly...it doesn't matter what your label is: Assembly of God, Baptist, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Church of Christ, Christian, Discontented....we all need the Power of the Holy Spirit to live a successful Christian life.

Maybe you should consider today opening your heart up to God and allowing Him to direct you. Start first with Romans 8:1-39 and be encouraged that the same ONE who made the heavens is now present to work in and through us.

The Abundant Life

Life in Christ is an Abundant Life! Today I heard a well respected Pastor speaking on the radio from a prominent church. In his attempt to speak realistically about the power of God's word, he drew distinctions on Christian Experience that essentially equated Christian Experience with those of Muslims, Athiests, Hindus, and other worldviews. I do NOT think this communication was deliberate, as the context of his message was essentially biblical. As Paul the Apostle said in 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, our faith must be in Christ alone. So what of Christian Experience? Romans 8:16 states clearly that God's Spirit bears witness with our spirit. The confession of Romans 10:9-10 is a genuine experience that in no way compares with other false religions. Jesus declared that He has come that we might have life, and have it more abundantly (John 10:10). Later Jesus declared, that when He the Spirit of truth would come, He would GUIDE US into truth (John 16:13). It's a privilege to be a Christian! It's a privilege to know God! It is the Christian's responsibility to love God with our HEARTS and our MINDS. (Deuteronomy 6:1-9)

What a Deal!

Making deals is serious business. One only need to think of the last time they purchased a vehicle how difficult and complex the dealmaking process was. I remember reviewing a site called beat the car salesman over and over again, just so I could have help in not being cheated. Why? Because many people are suspicious of making deals. Trust is implicit in a deal and most of the time, those of us in the western world are suspicious and looking behind the obvious to figure out if we are getting a good deal or not. When it comes to God, however, the cards are stacked against us. We are doomed. Since the sin that entered the garden, we have been at a disadvantage. One only need to hear God's quote on sin in Genesis 4:4-7 to get an idea of how insidious and awful sin is in its effect on us. But thankfully, God has provided an answer to sin by sending His Son. You know this already? How about this fact. It's not a fair deal. We deserve to die as it says in Romans 3:23. Most of us think that we are ok and not that sinful, but according the the Scriptures, we are not able to help ourselves. Jeremiah commented on this so eloquently with his statement in Jeremiah 17:9.

But we're talking about a deals! Isaiah was in an interesting situation as the Southern Kingdom of Judah was the remaining country after the Northern Kingdom had been deported by the Assyrians. In Isaiah 1:1-17, he lists the activities of humans that are anything but righteous. But the DEAL is in Isaiah 1:18.

Consider the winner and the loser. God gets our sin, we get salvation. He chooses to exchange the ugly for the beautiful, the profane for the righteous, and the dirty for the clean.

Come NOW! Let us Reason to Gather! Though your sins be as scarlet, they will be as white as snow, though they are red as crimson, they shall be as wool!

What Isaiah saw some 700 years before Christmas, we get the deal some 2000 years later. Come Now! Let Us Reason to Gather!

What?, Where? or Who? Is Your Light?

Everyone has preferences on how to start their day. One sets the coffeepot to brew at the right time, another checks their facebook status, still another picks up a Bible or says a prayer. Of course devotionals are helpful tools, like prayer help us to orient our day. Some have the privilege of hitting the elliptical or the treadmill while listening to their iphone or checking the latest stock projections.

Like life, days don't always start the way that we plan and adjustments have to be made. Life can sometimes be so random that one would be tempted to follow the management philosophy of Peters and Austin, Ready: Fire!, Aim!, Fire!, Aim! In addition to all our plans it might be helpful to give some consideration not to a task, but to a Person. Psalm 18:28 points to this idea,

You, O Lord, Keep my lamp burning. My God turns my darkness into light.

What a comfort to know that the One who made the heavens and the earth, is interested in our everyday, as the Stuart Hamblin said: "He's Big Enough, to Rule the Mighty Universe, Yet Small Enough, to Live Within My Heart".

Going Through Trials? We Were Destined for Them

One of the great questions of life that individuals throw upward to heaven is..why?

Like modern day Psalmists, we believers constantly look to God in times of trial and, if our prayers were facebook posts, the status would say: Why am I going through this difficulty? In this, of course is the assumption that all should be well. It should be...but it usually isn't. I don't know anyone who likes trials. I sure don't. Yet, trials and difficulties are simply a part of life. Pastor Rick Warren recently stated in a meeting that I was in that he used to think of life as a series of hills and valleys; he continued by stating that now he views life as a railroad track, with blessings on one track and trials on the other....inferring you need both to move forward. As clever as that is, there is no illustration that is adequate to describe the questioning that often happens as we transition through the stages of life. Jesus of course had alot to say about it as in John 16:33, but I noticed in reading 1 Thessalonians 3:1-13, that in Paul's encouraging letter to the new church, he states a fact of life for believers. You might recall that in Acts 17:1-13, the new Church that Paul and his associates started in Thessalonica made alot of people angry...so angry that Paul had a very short visit and was essentially run out of town. The opponents of Paul disliked him so much they chased him to Berea, prompting Luke to make the comment comparing the character of Bereans vs. Thessalonians in Acts 17:11!


Destined for trials? Yes. Look at 1 Thessalonians 3:3. Living for Jesus is not the easiest thing....but it's better than the alternative. Paul says in 1 Thess 3:8....now we REALLY LIVE if you stand fast in the Lord....


So? What does that have to do with me? Everything! Your commitment to Christ, your Church attendance, your Christian witness that you live out everyday is encouraging someone. It encourages someone like your children who watch what you do, your pastor and fellow church members who struggle side by side in this world to live for God. YOU are making a difference, even if you don't think you are .


The Thessalonian church illustrates for us the power in the grace of God. It really was a miracle when the grace of God came to you, Christian. Trials are a part of life, but look WHO WE HAVE that has brought us LIFE!

As John 20:31 declares, Jesus came to redeem us, but following the redemption, having believed, we might have LIFE in His name!

More About the Holy Spirit

Today we talked about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit at Bethel Temple (Acts 2:1-42), You can listen to the sermon at www.betheltemple.net . For those who care, there are more Scriptures that speak to the issue of the Holy Spirit, such as Acts 4:23-31; Acts 8:9-25; and Acts 10:44-46. While across the Evangelical world, there is wide understanding and acceptance of the role of the Holy Spirit as the third Person of the Trinity, oftentimes Pentecostals/Charismatics are viewed as at best on the fringes of orthodox theology. This is unfortunate as the positions held by classical Pentecostal denominations: Assemblies of God, Church of God, and Pentecostal Church of God, Church of God in Christ, Foursquare. hold views with regard to salvation the same with orthodox Christianity. Some non-Pentecostals are quick to associate the "tongues will cease" language of I Corinthians 12:31 as a prophetic call that the manifestations of the Spirit would eventually cease, rather than look for an empowering experience that follows the explicit instructions of Jesus. They would choose to refer to Acts 2:1-42 as "The Birth of the Church", exclusively while ignoring Jesus's instruction in Acts 1:8 to wait for an enduement with Power. While it is true that the Apostle Paul regulated the expression of Spritual manifestations in I Corinthians 12:1-31 and 1 Corinthians 14:1-40, he did NOT exclude the expression of spiritual manifestations in public worship. Romans 8:1-38 is loaded with information about the activity of the Spirit in the life of the believer. There is so much more to the Christian life than just checking the block for fire insurance. John 20:31 declares that John's epistle was written so that we would believe, and having believed, have "live in His name". This abundant life is certainly been the characteristic of Classical Pentecostals who wanted more of God. As an ordained Assemblies of God minister, it's my belief that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is for ALL believers and is requisite to any kind of abundant life. That is not to say that non-Pentecostals have not had tremendous experiences with God, are doing many great things for the Kingdom of God, and faithfully represent Christ to the world. We all stand equal at the foot of the cross. But it's important, I think to ask the question that was asked of the Samaritan believers in Acts 19:1-7 "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when YOU believed?"