God Is Good and Just When He Punishes People

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If He were to render our judgment, we’d all be doomed. If He faltered in His responsibility to punish us—criminals—He shouldn’t be commended for it. He would be a deficient God, one who can’t be trusted to do what is right. Even though I’d be included in His judgment, I would still have to acknowledge that to punish me would be the just and good thing to do. This is bad news. But here’s good news.

(Alan Shleman – Stand To Reason)  When my son trespasses into his sister’s room and takes something of hers, he’s violated our daughter’s trust and broken our family rules. He knows he’s done something wrong and now he’s in trouble. That’s why we punish him with some sort of discipline. Continue reading →

What do we do to become Spirit-Filled?

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13 and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. Romans 6:12-13 (NASB)

1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Romans 12:1 (NASB) 

There are many requirements for the Christian to become Spirit-filled, but there is one thing that is truly the key to that filling. We find the Greek word that exemplifies this in Romans 6:13 and Romans 12:1 (above). The NASB translates this word as “present” in both cases…. Continue reading →

Who is chosen in love?

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:3-6 (NASB)

Carefully read the passage I placed at the top of this post my brethren. In love, God predestined believers for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ. Our Creator’s great love for us moved Him to call us out of the passion we had for Satan and the kingdom of darkness…. Continue reading →

Adonai with female body parts?

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , , , , ,

John Lanagan of The Word Like Fire begins with an apology:

Reader, I sincerely apologize for the title, and for having to present the quotes from Paul Young’s novel, Eve. Young’s false teaching and mother goddess first entered the visible church through his book, The Shack.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shall be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. (Hosea 4:6) Continue reading →

Matt Chandler & Other Evangelical Leaders Rejected TED Bloggers’ Pleas to Expose Harvest in 2012

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“I’m heartened that Chandler may be changing his tune. But I am underwhelmed by his response. The failure by Chandler and his unnamed colleagues left thousands at the mercy of a vicious wolf, including Mahoney and Bryant. These leaders should be cut to the heart right now and asking these men and others hurt by Harvest for forgiveness.”

(Julie Roys)   Former celebrity pastor, James MacDonald, has been fired. His sins have been splashed on national headlines. Every elder and senior leader at Harvest Bible Chapel (HBC) has resigned. And the church is scrambling to stay afloat.

But it all could have been prevented.

That’s according Ryan Mahoney and Scott Bryant, authors of The Elephant’s Debt (TED), a blog critical of Harvest and MacDonald. Continue reading →

‘My Little Pony’ Children’s Cartoon Features Lesbian Aunts During Final Season

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“With Josh and Nicole running the final season together, it was something we all wanted to do — bring this out couple into the final season and make them ‘officially’ a part of the MLP world,”

(Heather Clark – Christian News Network)  The animated series “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” featured lesbian aunts during its final season, a writer for the show and an actress who gives voice to one of the aunts have confirmed.

“Introducing Aunt Holiday (ginger hair, voiced by me!) & Aunt Lofty, the lesbian pony couple debuting today on on ‘The Last Crusade’ episode of My Little Pony Season 9! #mylittlepony #proud,” tweeted Jackie Blackmore on June 15. Continue reading →

PCA General Assembly Approves the Nashville Statement as a Faithful Declaration on Biblical Sexuality

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In response to issues raised by Revoice and its impact in the PCA, the General Assembly approved, 803-541, the Nashville Statement; and the appointment of a study committee.

(The Aquila Report)  At its 47th General Assembly meeting in Dallas, Texas, the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) approved the Nashville Statement as being a biblically faithful declaration on the matter of biblical sexual ethics. The PCA GA was responding to questions and issues raised throughout the church arising from the Revoice Conference that was held in St. Louis, Mo., in July 2018…. Continue reading →

Progressive Sweetheart J.K. Rowling Attacked By SJWs Over Her ‘Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminism’

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Social justice warriors were able to pull back the mask this week, though, after a Twitter account called “Trans Advocate” demonstrated that Rowling followed a number of “TERFs” on Twitter — or “trans-exclusionary radical feminists.”

(Emily Zanotti – Daily Wire)  It doesn’t matter how “woke” you are, you may never be woke enough for some progressives — a lesson “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling is apparently learning the hard way. Continue reading →

This Is Not Your Grandparents’ Church

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Bethel Church in Redding CA, live worship (stage show) April 2019 – Youtube screenshot

“And here’s the sick irony: by driving off the elderly, they were driving off the people who, through their weakness, would bring a unique strength. They were driving off people who are necessary to the healthy functioning of a church.”

(Tim Challies)  One of the ugliest boasts of so many of the churches created during the era of the Church Growth Movement was this: This is not your grandparents’ church. This was a slogan they proudly broadcast on signs outside their churches multi-function ministry centers, a motto they printed on postcards and mailed to nearby homes. Just about every upper middle class neighborhood in North America got at least a few of these in the late 90s and early aughts. Continue reading →

God is the knower of hearts

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

8 And the knower of hearts, God, bore witness to them having given to them the Holy Spirit just as to us, 9 and He differentiated nothing between them, and us having cleansed their hearts by faith. Acts 15:8-9 (translated from the NA28 Greek text)

God is omniscient, which mean that He knows all things. What is puzzling to me at times is that so many who profess to be Christians either do not understand what this really means or, their hearts are so hard in their unbelief that the “god” of their “faith” is one of their own making, hence, they live and “do their religion” in ways that are “of the world” and in no way could be called Biblical Christianity…. Continue reading →

NBC News analysis declares Donald Trump the winner of first Democratic debate

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New York Post columnist John Podhoretz saw things similarly, taking particular issue with the candidates’ far-left push on immigration. He said the candidates “spent far more time talking about how they would help illegal immigrants than about how they would help the voters they most need to win over” and that will benefit Trump.

(Fox News) An NBC News analyst declared President Trump the winner of the first Democratic presidential debate of the 2020 election cycle.

Author and reporter Jonathan Allen expressed surprise that Trump emerged “largely unscathed” as the field of 10 candidates mostly avoided direct attacks on him. Continue reading →

Joel Osteen Celebrates LGBTQ Pride at Lady Gaga Event

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Joel & Victoria Osteen attended this Lady Gaga event – Youtube screenshot

“Interestingly, Osteen asserted a few years ago that he believes that the Scriptures are clear that homosexuality is a sin. Yet, he has continuously softened his tone and downplayed the significance toward homosexuality since then.”

(Jeff Maples – Reformation Charlotte)  “Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you…” 2 Corinthians 6:17

This is not satire, this really happened. Joel Osteen, one of the modern-day princes of the Word of Faith prosperity gospel movement, was seen at Lady Gaga’s pride celebration at Apollo Theater on Monday night. The New York Daily News reports, Continue reading →

Hillsong ‘Worship’ Concert Includes Women on Stage, Writhing in Towels

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“This is a video from Hillsong NYC (pastored by Carl Lentz) singing, “Praise the name of the Lord our God.” Hillsong NYC is the church whose worship team was lead by two famous celebrity gay boyfriends, which was at first denied by Lentz until Pulpit & Pen found a video of Hillsong guru Brian Houston admitting the NYC campus had homosexual worship leaders.”  

(Pulpit & Pen)  Video and freeze-frames from a recent Hillsong music conference reveal a dance number that includes women writhing about sexily in the near-nude, only covered by bath towels. This isn’t the first time that Hillsong has confused worship with flesh-peddling. Continue reading →

Simeon and his prophecy

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

25 And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Luke 2:25-32 (NASB)  (Read verses 27-32 on the site)

Genuine (saving) faith is not well understood by most professing Christians.  I have learned that God saved me. I was not saved because I decided anything. Those whom God saves are given the faith to believe. When He does this they believe and are saved. Jesus said in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Who is saved? Only those who believe are saved. How are they saved? Continue reading →

Demise of LifeWay: Changing times or because they peddled heresy?

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“[A] movement was launched against LifeWay by comments construed as elitist towards its customers in 2014 by Ed Stezter in response to concerns over John Piper’s cozy comments to the Pope.”

(Ray Fava – NOQ Report)  It’s not the best of times to be a book store in 2019. Amazon crushed much of the competition. Still, LifeWay remained the retail branch of the Southern Baptist Convention until its announced closure of all of its stores back in March. The brand will continue to operate online…. Continue reading →

Bethel Redding singer Amanda Lindsey Cook’s Jesus as ‘Enlightened Master’?

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“Bill Johnson believes the miracles Jesus performed came about because He, as a man, and only as a man, had access to the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, Johnson teaches that Christians should be capable of wondrous feats of healing and miracles due to our own relationship with the Holy Spirit.”

(John Lanagan – The Word Like Fire)  “Happy Good Friday everyone. I never know how to greet people on this day….a day we mark as a moment in time when the Enlightened Master seemed to descend into shadows.”[1] — Amanda Lindsey Cook

Enlightened Master? Continue reading →

Evangelical Leader Testifies for CA Resolution Pressuring Pastors to Affirm LGBT identities

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Author, speaker and ordained pastoral counselor Joe Dallas expressed frustration with Mannoia’s endorsement on his Facebook page. “It’s very discouraging to hear that Dr. Kevin Mannoia, Chaplain of Azusa Pacific University, has testified in support of ACR 99, a California assembly resolution which essentially tells California pastors what they should or should not say about homosexuality,” Dallas wrote. “We expect Christian leaders to be about the business of saving, not caving.”

(Greg Burt – California Family)  Azusa Pacific University Chaplain and the former head of the National Association of Evangelicals, Dr. Kevin Mannoia, shocked Christian leaders last week when he testified in favor of a California resolution directing pastors and counselors to affirm LGBT identities and behavior…. Continue reading →

The Lamb of God and the Atonement

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

29 The next day he *saw Jesus coming to him and *said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!  John 1:29 (NASB) 

In my Nave’s Topical Bible there is a subsection under “Atonement” titled “Atonement – Made by Jesus.” It covers half of page 85 and runs through half of page 88. I find it interesting that men such as leaders Brian McLaren focus so much of his energies on trying to deny that the Lord Jesus’ substitutionary sacrifice on the Cross to atone for the sins of His people was the primary mission of His incarnation. Instead, he and those like him point their followers to follow a man-made Jesus whose purpose in His incarnation was to show people how best to live and make the world a better place…. Continue reading →

Teen ‘Pride’ Event Includes ‘Chest Binder’ Giveaway, Info on How to Use Condoms, Drag Show

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“How many 14-year-olds are sexually active? More than their parents know about. Allowing someone to have access to free condoms and to be taught how to properly use them so they are being safe is so much better than them being denied knowledge and a form of birth control, which then makes them susceptible to an STD, HIV, or an unwanted pregnancy,”

(Heather Clark – Christian News Network)  A pride event for teenagers that was promoted as “[t]he most rainbow-filled fun you can imagine” and featured a drag show, a presentation on safe sex and how to use a condom, and a giveaway for “chest binders” for girls who identify as boys was held at a public library in Washington on Saturday. Continue reading →

Beth Moore Refuses to Denounce Homosexuality as Sinful

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“It appears that Moore has made a half-witted, half-hearted attempt to divert the focus of the question by giving the impression that she was answering the question without actually addressing the issue at hand. In her response, she refuses to directly answer the question, “is homosexuality a sin?” and instead, quotes a Scripture that does no mention homosexuality.”

(Jeff Maples – Reformation Charlotte)  Beth Moore has been under scrutiny for the last several weeks due to her outspoken advocacy for feminism and egalitarianism in the Southern Baptist Convention…. Continue reading →

The young are regarded as the most tolerant generation. That’s why results of this LGBTQ survey are ‘alarming’

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , , , ,

“Ellis is confident the younger generation can rise again as beacons of unbiased values. When numbers dipped a year ago for young males, GLAAD went to where male audiences consume content: video games. The advocacy group worked with the industry to introduce diverse characters and help shape attitudes.”

(Susan Miller – USA Today)  Young people are growing less tolerant of LGBTQ individuals, a jarring turn for a generation traditionally considered embracing and open, a survey released Monday shows. Continue reading →

Life’s Hardest Trial

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching ∙

[Abraham] said to his servants, Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you. Genesis 22:5  (Read Genesis 22:1-14)

The word is silent about the emotional reaction of Abraham here, but we have only to put ourselves in his place to sense what he felt, how his heart was torn, how he avoids telling Isaac the fearful truth until the very last possible moment, how he perhaps trembles within when Isaac asks the question, Where is the lamb? We know there is no real answer to Isaac’s question until we run through intervening centuries and listen in the New Testament to John the Baptist standing before the people of Israel saying, Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Continue reading →

We Remember: The Charismatic Day of Infamy, June 23rd, 2008

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“ALL of these “Super Apostles” claim to hear directly from God and claim to have special “powers” and “anointings.” They claim that they are part of a new and better church-not like the old, stuffy Bible-focused churches. They claim to “move in the prophetic” and some even claim to be “seers” who can predict the future. Rick Joyner claims to go to heaven on a regular basis-he evens claims to talk to the original (real) apostles, and he claims they wish they were him! Why didn’t God tell any of these people the truth about Todd Bentley?”

(Steven Kozar – Messed Up Church)  It’s the eleventh year anniversary of June 23, 2008: “The Charismatic Day of Infamy,” but you are NOT supposed to know about it (or even talk about it). Continue reading →

Elizabeth Warren Comes Out For ‘Gay Reparations’

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“In February, Warren came out in favor of reparations for black Americans “economically affected” by slavery, Reuters reported. That same month, she co-sponsored Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s patently insane Green New Deal resolution, which would cost up to $93 trillion over 10-years, according to the American Action Forum, Bloomberg News reported.” 

(Amanda Prestigiacomo – Daily Wire)   On Thursday, presidential hopeful Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) came out in favor of legislation that has been equated to “gay reparations.” Under the Refund Equality Act, same-sex couples would be able to amend their past taxes, readjusting with jointly-filed tax returns and accepting refunds from the IRS. Continue reading →