Should Christians Celebrate Christmas? [radio]

Paula White Exposed [video]

THAT’s My King! Pastor Lockridge [video]

Powerful Prayers from Children-This Will Shake You [video]

The Fear of the LORD is to Hate Evil: Pride, and Arrogancy #shorts [video]

LOTS OF PAGANISM AND LIES SURROUNDING CHRISTMAS AND YET LOTS OF GRAND OPPORTUNITY TOO, RIGHT?

Are you more busy bashing the paganism surrounding Christmas than you are intently building up the body of Christ and evangelizing the lost?

Many specialize in cursing the darkness and yet Jesus chose to come straight into the darkness and die for our sins, for all of us previous pagans.

WHAT could happen if you spent that same energy in prayer, Bible prep, and evangelism?

“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15

WHEN is the last time you personally led someone to Jesus?

“He that winneth souls is wise.” Proverbs 11:30

SANTA CLAUS IS A LIE BUT NOT THE COMING OF JESUS, THE MESSIAH.

“Thank you for posting this. Excellent biblical explanation. Last year was the first I had heard it was a sin to celebrate Christmas because according to them Jesus wasn’t born on Dec. 25th. And there was so much shaming going on! Just as they did telling people they were in sin because they voted. And I believe the same ones who say in God’s economy you are never to divorce. Somehow they have put themselves above everyone else! Hypocrites.” Karen Cochran | The sin of self-righteousness will damn the soul (Matthew 21:31).

The angels and wise men celebrated the coming of Christ. Since when would it be inappropriate to celebrate Heaven’s KING? Is is okay with you if God’s people celebrate JESUS – every aspect of Him, His life – every days except December 25th? WHERE does the Bible say that if one of God’s people celebrate Christ on December 25th, they are going to hell?

Why shouldn’t God’s people insert His truth into everything, at all times? – EVERY day of the year, including December 25! Isn’t that what Jesus meant when He said we are His light and salt in the earth? (Matthew 5:13-16) God is good and God is able! Ask Him to use you during this period of the year!

“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:13-16

Most of the Christ-mass “celebration” is poisoned with paganism. Yet, what should God’s people be doing during this season? Should they spend their time and energies protesting or should they obey the LORD by preaching His saving Gospel? May God open doors for us to preach His Gospel during this season – Shining His holy light into the sin-darkened hearts of men so they can see the glory of Christ Jesus our LORD and Savior.

From David Taylor:

“Mighty ancient angels, Wise wealthy Pagan magicians, Hebrew Shepherds poor, animals, parents and relatives, were all drawn to this Divinely orchestrated event – the birth of the Messiah into flesh. And even today His truth still sounds, ‘If I shall be lifted up I shall draw all men unto me’. Rejoice!! Our Savior and King is alive forevermore!! Serve Him. Are you and yours ready for His imminent return and judgment? May God continue to bless as you serve the Lord Jesus. In Christ’s love,” David

KINGDOM PERSPECTIVE: True disciples celebrate Jesus 24/7/365. So, why not be wise and use this season, the gatherings of friends and family for whom Jesus died, as a place to shine Christ’s light, instead of cursing the darkness. Perspective: The whole world is pagan 24/7/365. So if you’re going to protest paganism, perhaps it should be year round. Jesus came and died and rose again to save the world which was already under divine condemnation (Luke 9:56; John 3:17). He called the sinners, pagans, to repentance, to follow Him. Our LORD spent little time exposing the details of the sin of the world. When judging, Christ’s central targets were the rich and the religious.

Are lost souls going to hell because they celebrate Christmas OR because they have not yet been saved?

Perhaps we should be more careful not to jump off on someone elses anx, to join their pagan-bashing crusade. Is that what Jesus and His apostles came to do? We do well to memorize and be transformed by the words of our LORD when He stated:

“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” John 3:17

Later in this same discourse, Jesus says:

“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth (remains) on him.” John 3:36

Notice in John 3:36 (above) that divine condemnation is already upon all of the lost, the pagans. It’s ONLY when they believe on Christ that they are saved by His grace – and God sent us to communicate His glorious Gospel, Good News to them.

Didn’t Christ come to save the sinners? Were the world, the pagans, not already in darkness when Jesus came? Wasn’t that why He came? – to bring men out of darkness into His glorious light? (Acts 26:18; 1 Timothy 1:15)

WHY Did Jesus Come to the Earth?

“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

QUESTION ASKED:

“Should Christians celebrate Christmas?”

REPLY:

There is no question that Christmas is and has been paganized from the beginning. And one thing is for certain: Christians are not to lie to their children by making “santa claus” a part of this season no more than a Christian would make rabbits and eggs a part of Christ’s resurrection (pagan easter). Show chapters and verses where it’s a sin to celebrate any part of the life of Christ please ….. Those who quietly celebrate Jesus during this season don’t need others infringing on their God-given right / liberty to do such – Read Rom. 14. Rom. 14 says that infringing on another believer’s God given liberty is a sin…. This is a non-essential issue and that is exactly what Paul is addressing in Romans 14. BTW: This disciple, by Christ’s grace participates in no paganism involving this season.

Rich Brown writes: “Sadly, while everybody says that Jesus is reason for this season, I observed that santa claus is more popular than Jesus. Some parents lied and fooled their children by teaching them a fictional character who doesn’t exist. If you are a true born again believer and know your Bible, you will not teach your children such foolishness!”

YOU GOING TO WALK AROUND ALL MAD ABOUT CHRISTMAS OR ARE YOU GOING TO PREACH THE GOSPEL DURING THIS SEASON?

A common objection from novices is “Christmas is pagan!” True, yet is the birth of the eternal WORD pagan?

Should we cease cursing the darkness and instead begin to obey Jesus by shining His glorious light right in the middle of that darkness? After all, darkness abounds upon the whole earth, every day for 6,000 years. Think about that. Cursing the darkness benefits no one except satan. Perhaps we should prayerfully consider letting the light of Christ in us to begin to shine brighter and brighter into the darkened hearts of fallen men.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

Is getting mad going to help anyone get saved? If so, why not be mad 365 days a year since this whole fallen world is inundated with paganism. Is that how Jesus and His apostles lived? OR, did they simply preach the light of truth into this dark world? The whole fallen world we live in is pagan 365. Glad Jesus didn’t curse the darkness and say “heck no, let them all perish.” We must beware of self-righteousness. Jesus says the harlots will go to Heaven before the religious self-righteous (Matthew 21:31).

THE POINT IS THAT IF WE ARE GOING TO SPEND ALL OUR TIME PROTESTING THE OBVIOUS PAGANISM IN CHRISTMAS AND EASTER, THEN LET’S BE CONSISTENT AND JUST LIVE TO PROTEST EVERYTHING, YEAR ROUND, BECAUSE THIS FALLEN WORLD IS PACKED FULL OF PAGANISM EVERYWHERE WE LOOK AND GO, DAILY. IS THAT WHAT JESUS DID? IS THAT WHAT HIS APOSTLES DID? IS THAT WHAT THEY TOLD US TO DO? NO. NO. NO.

Another common objection: “But we aren’t to partake in the evil of this world!” Yet Jesus said and did a whole lot more about being the salt and light of the world than preaching against paganism, didn’t He? Are we so busy protesting the obvious paganism that we aren’t preaching/communicating the light of Christ?

The true body of Christ worships Jesus Christ 24/7/365! Amen LORD.

Jim Gilles writes:

“I love bashing anti Christmas Nazis who violate Romans 14 with their admitted arguments from silence. The anti Christmas Nazis need to learn that where there is no law there is no sin. That is why your personal opinions and convictions have no weight nor bearing upon anyone else.”

What Jim is getting at in the quote above is the way some get so enraged against the paganism of this season that they don’t afford liberty in the non essential of celebrating Jesus in this time of year.

“The world is dying and going to hell while ‘deep thinkers’ (street preachers) are sending them to hell over celebrating the birth of their Savior. Imagine that.” Dean Roy

What does God’s Word tell us about NON-essentials? Liberty in NON-Essentials.

Where is celebrating ANY part of Christ a sin? Chapters and verses please … also did God rebuke those who celebrated the birth – the prophesied first coming of Christ? Where does Scripture say celebrating any part of Christ is a sin? …. As a non-essential, it’s up to the individual believer and we are in sin to contest such and thereby destroy the work of Christ for a non-essential. We know it’s non-essential because He never named it as a sin. “Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:4) Birthday? nahhhh we are talking about celebrating Christ’s first coming – His prophesied, essential, all-important birth by way of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). Are Matthew 1 and Luke 1-2 in the Bible?

If you are going to protest the paganism in Christmas well you should change the names you call months and days…. right? They are all of pagan origin! Why not use this season to love people into His blessed kingdom?

Some people act as if Satan invented December 25 and that he owns it. So, they play right into his evil hands by not celebrating Jesus during this season. Instead of spreading His holy light in the darkness they are over emphasizing and acting as if Satan and paganism are greater than the light of Christ. So, they spend their time policing other Christians on this non-essential instead of praying and preaching the light of truth. No one gets saved by Christians protesting but rather by anointed born again disciples PREACHING – “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:21) So some say the Bible never says we are to celebrate Christ’s birth and yet the Bible also never shows us where Jesus, His apostles, or other Christians rebuked others for celebrating the birth of Jesus which is prophesied by Jesus long before He came – through the prophets (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7, etc.). Christ and His apostles spent little time going on and on about obvious paganism ….. go read how Paul those pagans on marrs hill in Acts 17. He spend little time or energy detailing their error. He simply moved their faith from idols to Christ! Preaching is a million times more the answer than protesting. Preaching the light of truth exposes the darkness better than any picketing. When the LORD saved this wretched soul, I never once returned to the pagan catholic church, not once. I am forever grateful for the Christians who simply preached the holy light of Christ to me. They never once mentioned the paganism and idolatry that is roman catholicism ……

Question: Is your tirade against the obvious paganism of christmas winning anyone to Jesus? 　 … the whole fallen world we live in is jammed packed full of paganism …. so should we protest all that paganism 365 day per year or just start preaching the light of truth/Christ into it all the darkness? Learning this lesson myself, continually.

The prophet Isaiah foretold Jesus the Messiah’s birth! There could be no bigger news except “It is finished.” (John 19:30) Christ could never have died for us, accomplishing redemption, had He not come to the earth. In fact, over 300 prophecies of Christ were given in the Old Testament and several dealt with His first coming, exactly where He would be born (Micah 5:2), that He’d be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), that He’d be divine – “God with us” (Matthew 1:23; Isaiah 9:6-7), etc. Did Christ not split time in half when He was born? Oh and what about the joy in Elizabeth, John the Baptist and a whole host of others in the early chapters of Matthew and Luke concerning the birth of the Messiah?

While Christmas is filled with paganism, it is not a sin to celebrate the fulfilled Bible prophecy of Jesus coming to the earth. The angels and shepherds, etc. celebrated and welcomed the coming of the prophesied Messiah without which He could not have been made flesh, dwelt among us, or died to redeem us! God is so good! John the Baptist leaped in his mother’s womb at the announcement of the birth, the coming of Jesus! (Luke 1:41-45)

QUESTION ASKED:
“But does the Bible tell us to celebrate Jesus’ birth?”

REPLY:
Well we can celebrate any and all parts of the life of our LORD Jesus. If He had not be born into the earth (of a virgin) He could never have died, been buried, and raised again for our justification, right? The wise men celebrated His birth and so did the angels, and many others.

Louise Scarborough notes: “The Wise men celebrated HIS BIRTH and brought HIM Gifts. HIS birth is a wondrous event and should be celebrated. Who would not Celebrate the birth of Our Lord and Savior when we celebrate our own! That has nothing to do with the secular world celebration the concept of Santa Claus. That is what needs to be separated and the honor and given to Christ.”

The LORD will lead each of His children in what they do during this season. Some people would have you believe that paganism and Satan are so powerful that the so called Christmas season isn’t even God’s it’s Satan’s. These people act as if Satan is more powerful than the Almighty.

Regrettably, it seems that some people seem to be identified only by what they are against.

Is someone who partakes in Christmas going to hell? Yes or no please? Doesn’t this come under the non-essentials that are addressed in places like Romans 14?

“Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.” Romans 14:4

In case you are wondering, no this disciple does not participate in Christmas other than celebrating and sharing Jesus. If we just stick to Scripture …. perhaps reading the beginning of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke ….. and celebrating the first coming of Christ as we look forward to His blessed second coming.

One man insisted that it is a sin to celebrate the birth of the very Son of God after He was born. To this I replied:

“Give one Scripture that tells us it’s a sin to celebrate the eternal, divine Word becoming flesh and for that matter, any part of the life of Christ. You sound very self-righteous friend ….. and need to humble yourself and remain teachable. There is no sin in celebrating the Son of God in any aspect of His life…. pre-incarnate, birth, life on earth, mission, death burial and resurrection, ascension, return, etc. Paul spoke of His birth Galatians 4:4… Yes He came for the ultimate purpose of dying to accomplish perfect salvation ….. yet He had to come to do such …. in the fullness of time (Gal. 4:4) … the point is that people seem to be making stuff up … there is no Scripture that forbids appreciating any part of the Son of God’s existence.

If we would receive a greater portion of God’s grace – His divine influence on our hearts – we would cease making an issue out of these type things and simply use this season and the occasions afforded to minister His Love and truth. As a born again New Testament believer we are “ambassadors for Christ” and celebrate the coming of Christ into the world – and also died on the cross, was buried, and rose again from the dead! (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20) … Matthew 1-2, Luke 1-2, etc. 1 Timothy 1:15….. Why not use this season as an opportunity to share the first coming of Christ and preach the second coming. Share the 10 Commandments to convict the sinner and then the saving Gospel (Good News) of Christ! It’s good to be aware of the pagan aspects of this season and avoid them and just use it as an opportunity to spread God’s love and truth by communicating His Word as we are brought together with friends and family. Preach! Use this as a springboard saints – YES, Jesus was born and YES He came to die to give us life! (John 3:16) Preach! Pray for open doors – open hearts to receive His Word! Ask the LORD and He will surely open up many opportunities for you to communicate His Word. Just watch. “Here I am LORD, send me!” (Isaiah 6) WHY DID JESUS COME? Let Holy Scripture answer this all important question! PREPARE: Memorize specific Bible verses and own them – until they just roll off your lips effortlessly! (Proverbs 22:17-21)

No, I do not personally partake of paganism 24/7/365 and will absolutely and prayerfully ask God to open hearts and use me to speak into the hearts of men in this dark world. I want to spend more time celebrating and communicating Jesus than cursing paganism ….. paganism is everywhere Christianity is not and the only solution is to shine Christ’s light into those dark places. Matt 5:13-16

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:” 1 Peter 3:15

Here’s the crux: So Satan has perverted the reason for which Christ was born into the earth in fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7). If in fact you are so insightful about the paganism in Christmas, why not use that for an occasion to preach the real divine reason that God sent for us His only begotten Son? (John 3:16) Why not use this occasion to show people the real reason Jesus came – to reconcile fallen mankind to our Maker?

Have you ever seen anyone get saved because some Christians protested Christmas? Heck, the Jehovah Witness cult protests Christmas and we know for sure they are hell bound.

Look, in this fallen world we are surrounded with pagan idolatry every single day of the year and yet, did God call us to make that the main issue or did He call us to communicate His holy Law to convict and Blessed Gospel to save? Is God going to judge us for how intricately we knew the work of the enemy or by how we obeyed Him to communicate His truth in love? Great Commission.

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” 1 Timothy 1:15

If we are so up tight about how pagan Christmas is and not on fire, praying to be able to communicate Jesus, perhaps this just shows how self-righteous and immature we are. Being up tight about Christmas comes from spending too much studying something other than God’s Word.

Jesus calls us to speak His light into the darkness in this fallen world and not to sit in the seat of the scornful by cursing the darkness (Psalms 1). If we are so spiritual that we see how sin and Satan have ravaged people, why not help them by giving them Jesus who is the solution?

“In Season”

Consider this…..BEWARE OF THE CHRISTMAS BASHERS, HEROES IN THEIR OWN MINDS … WHO COME OUT OF THE WOODWORKS EVERY DECEMBER. Many of these same lame novice legalists say nothing of the other obvious, blaring corruptions and yet self-congratulate themselves with their bashing of Christmas… which is pretty much a non-essential (Romans 14). CLUE: There is paganism all around us 24/7/365 – and Jesus came into this same darkness to be the SOLUTION! John 3:17 …. Instead of simply preaching JESUS in and out of season (all the time) they resort to bashing Christmas. Mark this: You won’t find one of these Christmas bashers whose led someone to Jesus in the last year! Fake Watchmen …. Discern ….. They create and sustain their identity by what they are against instead of what they are for … Paul did 2/3rds preaching and teaching and 1/3 warning. See Colossians 1:28 and beware of those who do not lovingly teaching God’s Word but rather just bash everything and everyone! There ARE things and people to be exposed … yet if that’s a person’s whole and only M.O. (mode of operation), beware.

Christians should celebrate Christ every single day they are alive on His earth.

Is this a “season”? Yes. Christmas “season” right? Then what are we instructed to do at all times – in all seasons?

“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” 2 Timothy 4:2

I wonder what God could do and who He would save if we did less condemning Christmas and more communicating Christ. Jesus commanded us to go preach everywhere and not to go protest everything.

“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15

When we are still spiritually immature, we want to make an issue out of error instead of looking past it when speaking with sinners, making sure we don’t cast a stumbling block in their path. Jesus would have us to simply communicate the Law and Good News so they can be saved before it’s too late (Isaiah 55:6-7). God wants the cross in our lives saints (Colossians 3:3; 2 Corinthians 4:10-12). Many times when we are so adamant about protesting paganism, we are being self-righteous and putting self first instead of the sinners Jesus came and died to save. He has put them in front of us in order to hear the Gospel.

Jesus taught that it is wrong to over emphasize a minor (lesser priority) and under emphasize a major.

“Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.” Matthew 23:24

STOP PROTESTING AND START PREACHING! … Some who pretend to be spiritually mature seem to develop their identity around what they are against instead of taking EVERY opportunity to obey God by “preach(ing) the word” in and out of season! for which we shall all give account (2 Timothy 4:1-4). Please share.

Is God not greater than paganism? Those who spend all their energy coming against Christmas seem to have more faith in paganism than in God Himself – who in your case and that of many others, can and does move anytime, anywhere HE so chooses!!! His Word is always His Word … For example, all that paganism that has crept in has not and never will erode from all the great songs that are Bible songs concerning the birth of the very Son of God and we hear them on even secular radio stations…. many of these songs have no paganism in them … so can God use His Word in those songs that are played during this time? Yes, whether these prudes like it or not. He never asked them either way…. Again, some see only the evil in everything … they seem to vainly imagine that THEY control God instead of vice versa ….. why not just go be the light in this dark world which is dark from Jan-Dec every year. I would ask them when is the last time they actually led someone to Jesus ….. No one gets led to Jesus by our protesting … This is a maturity issue and God is calling His people to ask Him to bless them to “grow in grace” and to let their hearts be established with His grace (2 Pet. 3:18; Heb. 13:9).

Stop Your Protesting and Start Preaching! | God-Less Grinches Busted!

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Paganism is infinitely inferior to the power of Christ’s blessed Gospel.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16

Jesus’ Gospel, when applied, brings forth salvation in those who repent and receive Him. Whether Jew or Gentile (includes all men), God saves those who believe upon Christ (John 1:12; Acts 16:31; 20:21, etc.).…. May God bless each of His children with open doors and a quickened spirit to minister His Word in this late hour. Did Jesus and His apostles spend much of their time campaigning against paganism? No, but they simply offered the Solution. The Law convicts and Christ saves. It seems to me that if we reflect upon and read over what Christ and His apostles spoke to lost sinners, there was little time wasted on exposing paganism. Acts 17 records Paul preaching to pagans and he seems to spend little time arguing with them over their practices and beliefs but rather merely points them to the true and living God through Christ. He called them to repent (v30-31).Any ex-catholics out there? I you are like myself, you got saved because you heard the original Gospel of the grace of God and were saved. No one had to tell me how pagan Catholicism is. Such was never mentioned. What would you think if you were in hospital waiting room and someone with a broken leg was carted in on a stretcher and as soon as the doctors and nurses saw him coming in they ran over and began yelling at him, proving to him he had a broken leg and about how he got the broken leg? Well, such a thought and scene are laughable at best and you will never see that happen in a hospital because the medical community is trained simply to fix people – to smile at them and go directly to solving their problems. It’s only AFTER they are all fixed up with the solution that the doctors and nurses suggest that they be careful so this doesn’t happen again, right? Do you think that we’d see more people saved if we’d simply preach the Gospel and learn biblicly how to evangelize more effectively?

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” Proverbs 11:30

Perhaps we should ask ourselves if we are actually winning lost souls to Christ or are we simply beating up on those in darkness, further sealing their darkness – all so we can feel better about ourselves? Have you ever argued a catholic into being saved? After telling a catholic the 25 greatest evils of the catholic church, did they get saved. No, correct?

“A Land Flowing with Milk and Honey” [podcast]

“Give Us a King!” [podcast]

Abiding

The Good Shepherd and His True Sheep [podcast]

“Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant …” Hebrews 13:20

“To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.” John 10:3

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” John 10:27-29

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 8 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. 9 But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.

10 But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” 2 Timothy 3:1-13

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” Luke 9:23-25

“My Sheep Hear My Voice, and I Know them, and they Follow Me" [podcast]

There are 7 portraits of Jesus in the Gospel of John. One of those seven portraits is Jesus our “the good shepherd.” (John 10) The first thing the good shepherd of the sheep did was give His life to purchase the sheep with His own blood. “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” John 10:11 Jesus who created us, then came to die to buy up back to the Father and Himself. The Bible, God’s Word, is full of illustrations of who God is, and who He is to us. He is our […]

"Feed My Sheep" [podcast]

The Paramount Divine Importance of Nourishing the Saints of Christ “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” 1 Timothy 4:16 Nourishing Christ’s Sheep “Feed the Flock of God.” 1 Peter 5:2 First, it’s God’s flock, paid for with the very blood of Jesus Christ (Acts 20:28). Jesus Christ is “that great shepherd of the sheep” (Hebrews 13:20). He instructed us to follow Him and, in doing so, to “FEED my sheep” (John 21:15-17). Tending to the sheep of Christ’s pasture involves nourishing […]

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Excerpt from the book Lie of the Ages Does John 10:27-29 Prove “Eternal Security”? WHO are Jesus’ Sheep? Defined by, in God’s Word. John 10:27-29 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” ~ John 10:27-29 Verse 27 is the condition necessary to appropriate the promises of verses 28-29. Those […]

Abiding

“He that Loveth Pureness of Heart” [podcast]

IS YOUR HEART PURE BEFORE THE ALMIGHTY BELOVED?

DO I truly love “pureness of heart”?

“HE THAT LOVETH PURENESS OF HEART, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.” Proverbs 22:11

Without a pure heart, obtained from seeking, worshiping, knowing, and obey God …. no one “shall see God.” Not one.

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8

If you or I have every word of the Bible memorized and die today with a heart that is defiled with sin, we’d bust hell wide open – and be trapped there irrevocably forever.

TODAY is our day, it’s your day, to throw up those hands and that heart to the LORD who made you, and cry out to Him to grant you a pure heart, one that is innocent, clean, washed, delighting in Him.

“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Psalms 37:4

When the LORD is truly working in a man, that man is learning to love “pureness of heart.”

“He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.” Proverbs 22:11

Coming and continuing to come to the light is essential to final salvation.

“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” John 3:19-21

Choosing the Fear of the LORD

WE must surround ourselves with the Word, the people, the praises of our God! FLOOD your ear and eye gates beloved (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus is coming.

“But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” John 3:21

Coming clean: To be sanctified by Christ, one must repent and believe upon Him. As the LORD works in them, there will be the response of honesty, humble repentance and a coming to the light, continually. If not, judgment will be incurred (Isaiah 1:19-20).

“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Proverbs 28:13

Those who cover instead of bring their depraved hearts into the light to have them changed and cleansed by the LORD, “shall not prosper.” In other words, they are stifled. Those who remain humble, teachable, correctable, rebukeable, and obedient, will receive divine mercy perpetually.

“God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God.” Psalms 55:19

Those who refuse to “choose the fear of the LORD” have no changes in their lives.

“For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:” Proverbs 1:29

Psalms 73

“Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. 24 Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. 26 My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. 27 For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. 28 But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.” Psalms 73:23-28

Drawing Nigh (close) to God Afresh

“But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. 9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” James 4:6-10

Fresh Start with God

You can Have a … Jesus is the Great Shepherd of His Sheep (Heb. 13:20; Lk. 15) A FRESH START WITH GOD (First, if you are not certain that you are genuinely born again, please go here first) Let’s get something straight…. the disciple, the mere man writing this message is more in need of JESUS than anyone who ever lived! No one needs Jesus more than I do and yet, we must do things HIS way, not our own (Ephesians 3:8). “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs […]

Loving and Coming to the Light [podcast]

Recorded at a home fellowship. The first part of the audio reverberates then clears up. Father we come to You in the name of Jesus. Expose the darkness in our hearts and lives and deliver us in Jesus’ name. In Jesus’ name, Amen. May God vanquish all darkness in our own hearts, filling, flooding us with His holy light. “Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” John 1:47 “HAVING NO PART DARK” “If thy whole body therefore be full of light, HAVING NO PART DARK, the whole […]

MAKING PEACE WITH GOD [podcast]

MAKING PEACE WITH GOD Are you ready to Pass from Death to Life? God desires to pardon you – before it’s too late. Jesus beckons you to “Come unto me” — while you can (Matthew 11:28-30). “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 GOD sees all sin and will either forgive or […]

"To Wait for His Son from Heaven" [podcast]

Waiting for His Son from Heaven “For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; 10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 I wonder […]

Articles

Out of the Mouth of Babes – “What is Love?” Hilarious. Revealing [podcast]

Hilarious and heart warming: What these precious children say will have you laughing and perhaps crying.

“What a blessing this was to my heart! My favorite was the 4 year old white sat on his neighbors lap! Phew! We could learn so much from children about love. They aren’t judgmental. There arms are open wide to give and receive love.” Karen Cochran

Jesus says that we are to be “converted” and also to “become as little children.” (Matthew 18:3-4)

Our LORD Jesus, the greatest Servant says:

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13

This “greater love” of our Creator, Jesus Christ, was busy blessing each of us in our mother’s womb.

Reading 1 Corinthians 13 today will refresh your heart and mind on the divine importance placed upon LOVE. Share.

Recently it occurred to me…. That the younger the child, the less corrupted they are by this world and the closer they are to God, as in they were more recently in the womb, being fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139).

“For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. 15 My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 16 Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. 17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!” Psalms 139:13-17

“Out of the Mouth of Babes” is a Scripture and an idiom, a biblical idiom that teaches us that the young and innocent are often unexpectedly wise. This term originates in the Old and New Testaments. The Book of Psalms (8:2) has God ordaining strength out of the mouths of babes and sucklings; the Gospel of Matthew (21:16) has praise emerging from the same source.

“And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3-4

What does Love mean to 4-8 year old kids? How do they define love? (by an unknown guest)

“The problem is; We look for someone to grow old together with, While the secret is to find someone to stay a child with!” (Charles Bukowski)

What does Love mean to 4-8 year old kids?

Slow down for a few minutes to read this…💕

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, ‘What does love mean?’ The answers they got were broader, deeper, and more profound than anyone could have ever imagined!

‘When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore… So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.’ Rebecca – age 8

‘When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.’ Billy – age 4

‘Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.’ Karl – age 5

‘Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.’ Chrissy – age 6

‘Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.’ Terri – age 4

‘Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.’ Danny – age 8

‘Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and just listen.’ Bobby – age 7 (Wow!)

‘If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.’ Nikka – age 6

(we need a few million more Nikka’s on this planet)

‘Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day.’ Noelle – age 7

‘Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.’ Tommy – age 6

‘During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.

He was the only one doing that.

I wasn’t scared anymore.’ Cindy – age 8

‘My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.’ Clare – age 6

‘Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.’ Elaine – age 5

‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.’ Chris – age 7

‘Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’ Mary Ann – age 4

‘I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.’ Lauren – age 4

‘When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.’ (what an image!) Karen – age 7

‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn’t think it’s gross…’ Mark – age 6

‘You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.’ Jessica – age 8

And the final one: The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.

Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, ‘Nothing, I just helped him cry.’ (This made me cry!)

Now, take a few seconds and post this for others to inspire and spread Love like butter!

And then go be a child again today!

“It’s good to be weak in flesh and strong in the power of His might. It’s good to be vulnerable like a child and abide under the shadow of His wings.” Debbie Lord

Jacob, Joseph, and Job got Better not Bitter! [podcast]

Each of these beloved men, these patriarchs of God, suffered greatly and yet, chose to see those things as a blessing to conform them to Christ and became better instead of bitter (Romans 8:28-29). Your iniquitous tendencies must cause you to walk with a limp, a crutch of dependence upon Him for He has dealt with them, with you (Genesis 32). In the night, in the darkest hour of his life, Jacob wrestled with the angel of the LORD and was subdued, was brought down to nothing, dead and buried (Genesis 32). This was the cross that preceded and […]

Getting BETTER not BITTER! [video]

Are You Getting BETTER or BITTER? “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” Proverbs 4:23 Some get bitter rather than better as they age and perhaps experience hardships. This does not have to be. This is a choice, either way. Warning against becoming bitter: “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; 16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. 17 For ye […]

13 Times the Bible Commands Us to "Love One Another"

“Love One Another” “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye LOVE ONE ANOTHER; as I have loved you, that ye also LOVE ONE ANOTHER.” John 13:34 “This is my commandment, That ye LOVE ONE ANOTHER, as I have loved you.” John 15:12 “These things I command you, that ye LOVE ONE ANOTHER.” John 15:17 “Owe no man any thing, but to LOVE ONE ANOTHER: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” Romans 13:8 “But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to LOVE ONE […]