Pastor Robert M. Celeste MCAC

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The Church for the American Christian Patriot

Rev. Robert M. Celeste MCAC Pastor

A full Gospel, Non Denominational, Fundamental Christian Church Sermon for the week of September 2nd thru 8th, 2000

What must I do to be Saved???

Well, today marks the beginning of the last official week end of summer 2000, and for this weekend I had planned to do a sermon on Why bad things happen to "good" people. But, as so often happens, my plans are not God's plans and God lets me know that He would have me do a different topic.

As I was driving through Saco, Maine yesterday afternoon, I saw a sign offering an oil change, complete with filter, lubrication and a washing of the car for only $9.95. Too good a deal for me to pass up. And I guess to good a deal for many others as well, for it was a 90 minute wait. And that wait tipped me off to the fact that God had something for me to do. Biding my time, a conversation between a young 26 year old man and I began, now, it is not this man I thought God had sent me there to talk to, I really thought it was the young woman waiting for her car watching cartoons on television, but alas when she left, I was still sitting there and no opportunity had opened to discuss the gospel of God with her. But as time went on, this young man I and started talking and it turns out that he had just gotten out of the hospital. This brought up the subject of life and death and of course salvation. And in this weekends sermon we will take a closer look at John 3:1-21 and pray that the Lord will help you, me and the young man to understand, if God leads him to read this sermon.

John 3:1-21
1. There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto Him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

3. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

4. Nicodemus saith unto Him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?

5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

9. Nicodemus answered and said unto Him, How can these things be?

10. Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15. That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19. And this is the condemnation, that Light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than Light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the Light, neither cometh to the Light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the Light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

Now, without changing any meaning what so ever, let us look at those 21 verses of John 3 again. We are simply going to put names and some commentary within the lines for clarity.

1&2. There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto Him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

3. Jesus answered and said unto Nicodemus, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
(When you see the words Verily Verily together, it is the way in which the Lord is telling us this is very grave and very very important. Like saying Listen Listen. So What Jesus is saying here is Nicodemus, listen carefully, for what I am about to tell you is of the utmost importance, Unless a man is born again, he can not even see the inside of heaven. Well, if a man can not even see the inside of heaven, how could that man ever expect to spend eternity in heaven? He can't. You might bear in mind that when the Lord says man, He is referring to both men and women, for it takes both to make up mankind.)

4. Nicodemus saith unto Him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
(Here Nicodemus is sounds a bit confused and asking what is really a logical question, for Jesus has just told him that in order to get into heaven, a man must be born again, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." and this must have confused Nicodemus to no end, so he asked the Lord, how? How can a man be born again? Can a grown man climb back into his mother's womb? He is showing the Lord, respectfully I might add, that what Jesus had just said sounds impossible.)

5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
( Ah, notice the Verily verily again? Once again the Lord says, Nicodemus, listen carefully and I will explain it to you for this is very important. How important is it? Well, remember, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Unless you're Born Again, you cannot get into heaven and if you're not spending eternity in heaven, there is only one other place to go, and that place is hell, so Jesus is telling Nicodemus and us that this explanation is of the utmost importance so listen and read carefully.

"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."
(Born of water and the Spirt, well water is the earthly birth, can not very well be a man till after you are a baby and you can not be a baby till you are born and when you are born, it is in a sack of water, that is the earthly birth of water, then comes the rebirth, the birth of the Spirit and that is the Born Again birth, the birth the Lord will get into more detail about in the following verses.)

7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Here Jesus is telling Nicodemus and us, not to worry if we don't totally understand, for we hear the wind, yet we don't totally understand where it comes from or how it get's started or where it will go next exactly., the important thing is that we know it is wind. And that is the way it is with those who are Born Again of the Spirit, they may not be able to absolutely explain or totally understand it, but the know it has happened to them.

9&10. Nicodemus answered and said unto Him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

Now here, Jesus is a bit surprised it seems that Nicodemus has become so filled with the writings of religion and so ignorant of the Word of God, that he doesn't have any understanding of what the Lord is telling him and that is still the truth today, many so called religious leaders have so filled themselves with what the books written by man that they have totally lost focus on what God Himself tells us clearly and plainly in His book.
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
Look, Nicodemus. I and my Apostles and those who have been with me have told you clearly of what they have seen, heard and learned, we have witnessed to you, yet you turn a deaf ear. The Lord is not just referring to Nicodemus here, but all of the Jews who were witness to Him on earth, yet for one reason or another rationalized and ignored the obvious truth that Jesus was in fact God in the form of man on earth, that He did indeed fulfill the prophecies of what the Messiah had to do.
If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
Look, Nicodemus, if you won't believe the things that we and others have told you about the miracles that I have done on earth, how are you ever going to believe the things I would tell you about heaven?
And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Now look carefully at what Jesus is telling us here - no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
No man has gone up to heaven except that man who came down from heaven, Jesus, who while here on earth is also in heaven at the same time, Jesus is very clearly telling us that He is God, He and God the Father are one, while He, Jesus is here on earth, He is also in heaven as God the Father. Jesus often refers to Himself as the some of man, that is because He was born by a woman called Mary.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
Jesus is telling Nicodemus that He, Jesus, will be hung on a cross, just as Moses hung. the image of a snake on a cross and that as all who looked up at the snake on the cross were healed in the desert, so will all those who put their faith in the Man on the cross, Jesus, be healed of all their sins.

15-18. That whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Whoever believes in Jesus will not go to hell, but to heaven, for God so loved the world and man that He sent Himself to earth to be hung on a cross to be the perfect blood sacrifice for our sins, so that any and all who trust in Him and give themselves to Him will not go to hell, but to heaven. God gave us free will and the ability to use it, He came to earth in the form of a man to fulfill all the things that he thorough His prophets of old times told us would have to be done by the one called the Christ. He has now left it up to us, we either choose Him or we go to hell. We must all make that choice for the default is hell. Look,
He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
He that believes on Jesus shall not be condemned, but any that reject the Lord, by not believing on Him are condemned, because the have not believed on and trusted in the only begotten son of God, JESUS!

19. And this is the condemnation, that Light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than Light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the Light, neither cometh to the Light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the Light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
The Light is Jesus, And this is the condemnation, that Jesus, God in the form of a man, has come into the world, but men loved darkness, satan , evil, war, adultery, lying, drugs, cheating, etc, instead of God, because mens deeds are evil. For every one that does evil hates the Light, and rejects the Light, for fear of having of having to realize that his sins are evil and offensive to God.
But he that doeth truth cometh to the Light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
But, he that seeks God will come to the Lord by praying and telling the Lord that he understands that he is a sinner, and that he is sorry for his sins and his life and ask the Lord to forgive him and take control of his life. How exactly must you do it, well, I'll not go into more detail, I will tell you who will though, God the Son, through His Holy Spirit. How do you reach Him? Find a quiet place, a place where you will not be disturbed, close the door, kneel down and truthfully search your heart, are you ready to ask your Creator to fix you? To repair your soul? To take control of the mess you call your life? If you are, just close your eyes, and respectfully and honestly ask the Lord to show you the way, tell Him that you know you have sinned, and that you know you need help and ask Him if He will forgive you and help you, the rest. If you are serious, will come through the Holy Spirit.

The Lord Jesus be with you all this week end and on Monday, labor day, the question, can a Christian be an anti-Semite? Will be answered.
God bless you and yours, Amen.

For the week beginning Sunday March 12th, in the year of our Lord 2000.

One dreams another interprets.

Something falls out of the sky and starts a fire in Arkansas, and nobody seems to know what it was or where it came from. Tornadoes now rage all year long in these United States, the weather service seems just about as confused about this as those in the path. Two nights ago, March 9th, 2000, right here in Maine, we had one of the fiercest thunder and lighting storm I have ever seen. This is Maine, this is winter, we don't have thunder and lightning storm in the winter in Maine, yet we did. And no one seems to know why.

So, what's going on?

I don't know, but one thing I do know is this, if these things are warnings from God Almighty, you can bet He made his intentions clear to someone some where in a dream. For God Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, always warns before He strikes, we just sometimes miss the dream and the interpretation. For one dreams and another interprets.

Genesis 41:1-32

And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the river. And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow. And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshed; and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river. And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke.

So, with the things going on today, where is he who dreamed and where is he with the interpretation from God above? I don't know, but this I do know, we had best get our act together for thunderstorms in Maine in the winter should be a warning to all.

Now stop for a minute and go here and read the some of the news from around the world and then come back by hitting your back button.

Now, let's look at one more dream, ask God to help you with this and you'll see that we are approaching the time of clay and iron feet if we are not already there. For clay and iron do not mix, they work with each other as the UN and the US work together, as Russia and the European Union do. While they work together, they want to pull apart, a time of government upheaval, unrest and distrust.

Daniel 2:1-46

And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him. Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream. Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation. The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill. But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof. Oh, that God would cause Bill Clinton to have a dream and that Clinton would give the same option to the astrologers of today.

They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it. The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me. But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.

For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain.

Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king's guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon: He answered and said to Arioch the king's captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel. Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.

Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Now we know that when your back is to the wall and you have exhausted all other means, you can do some very serious praying, I like to call it praying in desperation. You can bet that that is exactly what Daniel and his friends were doing, praying in abject desperation. First they had been taken captive and brought to Babylon in chains, then they were castrated and now their about to loose their heads.

Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are His: And He changeth the times and the seasons: He removeth kings, and setteth up kings: He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with Him. I thank Thee, and praise Thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter. One man, one dream. Another man, one interpretation. And a whole bunch of desperation prayer. And then deep thanks and praise to God the Almighty.

As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass. But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure. The stone cut from the mountain is the Messiah, the second coming of the Lord Jesus.

Get right with God my friends, if you're not Born Again, get that way. For, while I do not know what's going on now, and I don't know for sure who is having the dreams and who it is that can interpret them, I do know that it does not thunder and lightning in Maine in the winter! The Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, God Himself be with you.
Amen

The Lord be with you and for those who doubt, sorry you can't see this, but if you wish to, just read John 3:1-18 till you understand and comply and then you too will see that thunderstorms do not happen in Maine in winter.

And may the one true God, Yahweh/ Bless you and yours in the name of His son, our Messiah Yeshua
amen

For the week starting Sunday March 5th, 2000

Once Saved, always Saved?

I don't think so, oh how often I hear folks saying "once saved always saved". And I wonder to myself where they get that idea. For there is no indication in the Word of God, the Holy Bible that that is the case. For it is Once truly Saved, always Saved.

When Jesus, accepted someone's repentance and forgave them, He didn't say, "Thy sins are forgiven go and do as you want, the Messiah said:

John 8:11

She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Look, salvation is by grace, no man can work his way into heaven, but salvation is only for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour, those who have fallen down on their knees, broken and begging for the Lord to take over their lives, to come and dwell within them, those who have placed their ear against the door frame, waiting for the Lord, their Master, to come and put His awl through their ear, those who have given themselves to the Lord, not as friends, but as bond servants, as slaves, as creations willing to do whatever it is that He would have them do. Folks who by their very works you know to be Born Again. Not those who simply claim to be Born Again, but those who do all they can to emulate the Lord, while understanding that they are but human creation a million miles yet only a fraction of an inch from being perfect.

Turn with me to:

2 Corinthians 11:1-16

Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles. But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been throughly made manifest among you in all things. Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely? I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service.

And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself. As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia. Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth.

But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

I say again, Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me, that I may boast myself a little. Paul is warning the Corinthians about false prophets, teachers and preachers, in verse 15 he tells us that they will be rewarded, sent to hell, for their works. Before that Paul tells us what to look for in those who preach false doctrines. Why does he do that? He does it so that we will be able to judge men by their works, for as Jesus tells us;

Matthew 7:17-21

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Fruits are works.

Ephesians 2:10

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

We are the creation of Jesus, He created us to do good, not bad for God has ordained that we should walk in the steps of Jesus. Look at what the Lord says:

Matthew 12:50

For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. If one does not do the work of the Father, whose work is he doing? Judge men by the works that they do, are they doing the work of the Father or of satan? How about you, whose work are you doing?

Ephesians 5:9-11

(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

Colossians 1:20-23

And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;

Paul is telling us that before being Saved by and through Jesus, we did bad works, afterwards, we will no longer do bad works.

1 Timothy 2:9-13

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. Here Paul is telling Timothy to teach women that they are to lead husbands, family and friends to Christ not by preaching or by being the most attractive woman on the block, but by her good works.

1 Timothy 6:17-19

Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

Here Paul is reminding and teaching Timothy that the good works one does here on earth will mount up to treasures in heaven, but remember, those good works must be for the glory of God, not oneself.

Titus 1:16

They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Titus 2:7

In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,

Titus 3:5-8

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good. Titus is one of the clearest of Paul's writings on the subject of works, for here Paul is very clearly stating that there are those that claim to be saved, but by looking at their works, you can tell that they are not. The Scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees and jews thought they were holy, they thought they were saved, but were they? They by there works, crucified Jesus. Not good works!

Hebrews 10:23-25

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

James 2:14-17

What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

James 2:18-22

Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? Keep in mind, James is the half brother of Jesus. And he very clearly tells us that if we are Saved, we will do good works. Look at what James is saying in verses 18-22. So, you think that just by claiming to believe in Jesus is enough, so do the devils and they are not going to heaven, claimed faith without works to back it up are dead.

1 Peter 2:12

Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. Now, look at this, as spoken by Peter. For there will be times within your Christian walk when you will be witnessing to another or preaching perhaps when a liberal will start watering down the gospels, they will accuse you of all kinds of things, but as Peter tells us, because of your good works that glorify not yourself, but God, men will know you are of God and are Saved, for it is by your works that they can tell you from the followers of satan.

Friends and brothers, if your works do not prove your salvation, you are not truly Saved and if not truly Saved, you are on your way to hell! Don't buy the garbage about once saved always saved, there is no Scripture to prove that. Many claim to be saved, but are not, those who are, you and the Lord Jesus knows them by their works. A doctor who is Saved will not do abortions or research using the bodies of little innocent babies that were slaughtered and harvested out of their mothers wombs.

Liken a Saved person to two men eating fish. One man picks through the fish looking for bones, the other eats with relish while savoring the deliciousness of the fish and if he comes across a bone, he sets it aside to use for some purpose when he understands the purpose it can be used for.

The unsaved one is the man looking for bones, for he will not read the word of God to be filled, but to rationalize his own sin by his own private interpretation, he is the man who sits and listens to the pastor only to find fault. While the second man reads to be filled by the Spirit of God when he understands not, he asks the help of the Lord his God and waits for the Lord's timing to reveal that verse's meaning to him, he listens to the Pastor for the word of God, not looking to nitpick, but to be feed, knowing that the Pastor is human and is libel to say something that may be misunderstood by him

Remember, salvation is not by works, but by what Jesus did on the cross, there is no salvation without the Lord, but you will know who is and who isn't Saved, by their works.

The Lord Jesus be with you all, may He help you to understand and abide by His Word.

Let no man deceive you, test every word by that which is written in the Holy Word of God, the Bible, for all men are human and not infallible, Only God is infallible, trust God not man.

May the Blood of the Holy Son of God, Jesus, cleanse you, may you so wish to be His and to serve Him that all men will know you by your behavior, your speech and your works. May the Messiah bless you and keep you may he be with you and keep you safe from evil, the evil one, his minions and his ilk.

God's blessings upon all.

Proclaim to all the world that JESUS is the Messiah, the Saviour, the Christ, the one and only way to eternal salvation.

For the week starting Sunday February 27th, 2000

When God comes into your life, do you wag your tail?

Mac and I were talking one day, we were talking about how when you see a dog waiting in a car or truck for his master or mistress, you can tell when they're coming by the way the dog goes spastic with joy as his master approaches. That got us to thinking and I asked him to write a thought about it, after a bit of hemming and hawing, I simply said, "Mac write the thought". At times, it is nice having members of your team who had spent the lions share of their lives in the Army, and below is a thought that should cause you to wonder about your own relationship with the Father above.

"Many of you do not really know me and that is the way I really wish it could remain. The fact is that I've been Pastor Bob's editor and proofreader since he began his cyber ministry. He has often referred to me as a "member of the pastoral team." My pastor has asked me to write a Christian Thought for the day. I protested long and loud that I am a lay person and not qualified to write such things.

This is being done through tears and I'll leave it to pastor Bob to add the word. Yours in the Lord."

God the Father has commanded us to think about Him day and night, to be ready and waiting for Him at all times:

Deuteronomy 11:19
And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

God the Son, Jesus, the Messiah, has told us to be always thinking of Him and waiting for Him, to not push Him to the back of our minds nor put other thoughts or actions ahead of Him:

Matthew 24:36-42
But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

Paul warns us to be constantly right with the Lord:

1 Thessalonians 5:2-3
For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

Peter put it this way:

2 Peter 3:9-10
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Bottom line? Be like that puppy in the car, waiting for his master to return, always be waiting for the Lord, your Master, your Creator and always be excited about His coming and your going to be with Him.

So, are you and Auburn? Are you a puppy waiting for your master to return?

I thank you my friend for this thought and I ask God's blessings upon all those who read it. I thank You Lord for letting me post these thought here daily. May the Lord thy God bless you all. You and yours, may He keep you safe from the evil one, his minions. His ilk and those who serve him knowingly and unknowingly. May He help you to understand His word by putting the Holy Spirit within you.
Amen.

The Lord JESUS, the Messiah, the Christ be with you and within you, amen.

For the week starting Sunday February 20th, 2000

How do we know the earth is only six thousand three hundred and eighteen years old? or, So you always wanted to know what the begats were for.

But, first let us pray. Oh Lord God above, Creator of all things in heaven above and on and in the earth, please forgive us, forgive us for those things we have said, done and thought that have been sin. Help us Father to do what is right in Your eyes, help us to understand Your word in Your book the Holy Bible. Be with us as we read and study Your word and let the Holy Spirit be our guide and our teacher. Oh Father in heaven, thank You for all You have done for us, thank You for being patient with us and coming to earth in the form of Jesus to be the sacrifice necessary for us to find redemption and forgiveness and for giving us the ability and the way to join You and spend eternity with You in heaven for all eternity.
We pray Father that you will bless us and ours this week, that You will keep us safe, deliver us from evil and give us our daily bread, both the bread of our food and the Bread of Thy Word.
Amen.

Turn to Genesis Chapter Five:

Genesis 5:1-32 1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
2 Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3 And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
4 And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
5 And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6 And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
7 And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8 And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9 And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
10 And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
11 And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died. 12 And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel:
13 And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
14 And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
15 And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
16 And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
17 And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
18 And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch:
19 And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
20 And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
21 And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
22 And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
23 And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
26 And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters:
27 And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
28 And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
30 And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
31 And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
32 And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

As you read chapter five, you'll find that, according to God's Word, the Holy Bible, that all the years between Adam's creation and the birth of Noah's son Shem there were 1561 years.

Now turn to chapter 11.

Genesis 11:10-27 10 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood:

11 And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
12 And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah:
13 And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.
14 And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber:
15 And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.
16 And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg:
17 And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters.
18 And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu:
19 And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters.
20 And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug:
21 And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters.
22 And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor:
23 And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
24 And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah:
25 And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters.
26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot.

Now as you add the years between births of sons here, you come to find that from the time of Shem's birth to the birth of Abram, who was to become Abraham was 390 years, bringing Abrams birth to what I refer to as 1951 AC or 1951 years after creation. Or to be more accurate, 1951 years and six days after the day the Lord God above started creating the heavens and the earth and all that are in them and on them.

Genesis 21:1-5

1 And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.
2 For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
3 And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
5 And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

So, Isaac was born in 2051AC.

Genesis 25:19-26 19 And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begat Isaac:
20 And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padan-aram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to inquire of the LORD.
23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.
24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

So, Isaac was 60 years old when Esua and Jacob were born, that would make the year 2111AC.

Genesis 47:1-9 1 Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen.
2 And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh.
3 And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers.
4 They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen.
5 And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee:
6 The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.
7 And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
8 And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou?
9 And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my father's in the days of their pilgrimage.

Now, when Jacob, who is also called Israel, was 130 years old, he and all his went to live in Egypt. And the year was 2241 AC!

Are you starting to see why, we who believe that the Bible is the word of God, are so confident that the earth is but six thousand years old?

Exodus 12:40-43

40 Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.
41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.
42 It is a night to be much observed unto the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the LORD to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.
43 And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof:

Ah, the first Passover. The year, 2671AC.

I Kings 6:1-14 1 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.
2 And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.
3 And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house.
4 And for the house he made windows of narrow lights.
5 And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle: and he made chambers round about:
6 The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.
7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.
8 The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house: and they went up with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third.
9 So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.
10 And then he built chambers against all the house, five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.
11 And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,
12 Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:
13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

Verse one tells us that Solomon built what was to be the first Temple built, 480 years after the exodus from Egypt. That would make the year no later than, 3331 AC. The date of the building of this temple is also set in secular history as being the year 967 BC. Meaning that Jesus was born in what would be the year 4318 AC, add two thousand years onto that any you have six thousand three hundred and eighteen years, so the earth is in the year 6318AC.

Just about every answer you need is in the handbook that God has given us the book we call the Bible. Jesus has told us that we can not serve two masters,

Matthew 6:24 24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

You can believe what God says in His book or you can believe what the evolutionists say, you can not believe both nor can you worship God while calling Him a liar and if you accept anything that contradicts the word of God as the truth, you are calling God a liar!

God's book tells us that the earth is no older than 6318 years old, accept it or reject it, your choice, but do not call yourself a follower of Christ while at the same time denying the truth of His word in His book the Holy Bible.

The Lord be with you all, may He bless you and help you to find the time to study His word each day, may He protect you and yours from those who would twist his word and lead you astray, may He bless those that bless you and may He curse those who curse you, In Jesus name I pray. Amen

For the week starting Sunday February 13th, 2000

Don't pray if you're not serious.

How often we hear people singing songs like "I'll surrender all" or praying to God above for a return to the morals and beliefs of yesterday. But do they mean it? When you look up to heaven ans sing or say "I'll surrender all", do you mean it? What if God replied fine, "If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me." Matthew 19:21

Would you sell everything you own, take the money and donate it to the poor? Not for a tax donation, but just to obey Jesus? What if God heard your prayer when you cried out to Him to end abortion, corruption, pornography, homosexuality and the rest of the sins of our day? What if He took you on your word and destroyed the things that cause modern idiolatry like computers, cars, fancy homes and cable tv? He could do that you know, He could do it with a drought of world wide proportions, an oil crisis of global proportions or just raise up a world leader in the ilk of clinton and blair.

Are you sure you want to lie to God in your prayers? For when you tell Him you'll surrender all, when what you really mean is less than 100%, that is a lie and the one you are lying to is not the people around you that hear your cry to heaven, it is to He who sits in heaven, God.

When you cry out asking for a more moral time, yet, support pro abortion candidates, watch and buy the things advertised by corrupt companies using sexually explicit ads, while you continue to support companies that are openly hostile to Christ through their policies, products, advertisements and causes that they support, companies like Levis, ATT&T, Quaker Oats, Gateway, Hewlet Packard, Ford and the list goes on and on. Are you not once again lying to God. For on the one hand you are asking Him to rescue you from the things of the world yet you go shell out 30 bucks for a pair of Levi's knowing that they support the murder of the baby in the womb and are openly supportive of homosexuality and other things that fly in the face of God and His teachings.

When we write laws here on earth, we word them so that certain individuals or groups can find loop holes, such as the laws dealing with lying here in the USA, we call it perjury, yet to the president, it isn't perjury or lying unless, you can first find some agreement with him on the definition of ‘is'. To the congress of the USA perjury isn't a big thing. Now why doesn't that surprise anyone.

But, God doesn't make rules like that , God is very clear and leaves no room for corrupt interpretation by corrupt evil humans looking for a loophole. God says:

Exodus 20:13-17

13 Thou shalt not kill!
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery!
15 Thou shalt not steal!
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour!
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's!

No ambiguities, no loop holes, no two sets of rules, one for the rulers and one for the ruled, one set fits all.

And you should be very clear and very honest in your prayers, it is better to say, Lord help me to prepare myself to surrender all, than to imply that you are willing before you are. For what if He were to call you to serve in Africa, amongst the Sundanese Christians that are being persecuted with rape, torture and death? What would you then say to Him? "No no no, I won't go?" Remember what happened to Jonah who, when tried said that.

First we must pray that God will prepare us to do His will and serve Him and then we can pray that He will change this nation and this world, that he will rescue us from the corruption of the UN and restore to us a leader who will do what is right in the sight of the Lord.

For if you lie to God in your prayers concerning the above, how will He know you're weren't lying when you called out to Him in repentance to accept Him as Lord and Saviour?

My the Lord, thy God, Jesus be with you all, amen.

How serious is our relationship with the Lord? I received this email as a forward this very morning, Now, I should tell you, I don't read or even open emails that have Forward in the subject line. The reason is simple, I get on average, over fifty emails a day, I just do not have time to read the Forwards. But this one came as a Forward and for some reason I opened it and read it. It illustrates the power of prayer and God's hand covering you.

For the week starting Sunday February 6th, 2000

Let your faith and dependence on Jesus grow.

After you have received Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour, after you have prayed the sinners prayer and been Born Again, you need to let you faith and dependence on the Lord grow and grow and grow. To do that you need to do three things more than anything else and at least once a day for each.

Read your Bible, pray and know that Jesus is Lord and that while you may not always understand, Jesus is always in control.

To know that all things are done only by and with the consent of the Lord, reading just a few verses will give you all the proof you'll ever need..

Genesis 1:1
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

God created the heavens and the earth and He did it in 144 hours or less. My friends have you ever watched the guys with the big machines preparing a house lot? They use bulldozers and chain saws and front end loaders and back hoes, dump trucks and excavators and it still takes the more than six days. And that's just for one little house Lot. God built the entire earth, the heavens everything in and on them both in under a week, and just for good measure, He throw us in to take care of the place for Him. All in under 144 hours.

Even satan must go to God and get permission to do his evil thing;

Job 1:6-12
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and satan came also among them.
7 And the LORD said unto satan, Whence comest thou? Then satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
8 And the LORD said unto satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
9 Then satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12 And the LORD said unto satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.

And as you read further in Job, you'll find that satan, while doing so horrible things, never overstepped what the Lord thy God had allowed Him to do. Satan didn't try to play games with God by using technicalities in the language, he simply stayed within the guidelines that Jesus had given him.

So it is important for you to always keep in mind that Jesus is in control of the world, there will not be a world destroying nuclear war, until and unless He allows satan to start one.

How important is prayer? How important is it for you to spend deep serious time with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit in prayer?

Prayer is so important that the entire book of Psalms is one prayer after another. Jesus, interrupted His sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes to teach His disciples how to pray, at their request.

Luke 11:1
1 And it came to pass, that, as Jesus was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, one of His disciples said unto Him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

What was Jesus doing? Praying! What did this disciple ask Him to teach them how to do? Pray!

Matthew 5:43-48
43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

What does JESUS tell us we are to do when faced with enemies? Pray! Read psalm 109, read the book of Psalms, the Psalmist prayed for everything, water, snow, crops, vengeance, health, everything.

Matthew 6:5-10
5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him.
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. ...

What are we to do to avoid trouble? Pray! While describing the end times, Jesus tells them to pray.

Matthew 24:19-21
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

What about Jesus, what did He do while He was on earth when He found Himself troubled?

Luke 22:37-44
37 For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end.
38 And they said, Lord, behold, here are two swords. And Jesus said unto them, It is enough.
39 And He came out, and went, as He was wont, to the mount of Olives; and His disciples also followed Him.
40 And when He was at the place, He said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
41 And Jesus was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
43 And there appeared an angel unto Him from heaven, strengthening Him.
44 And being in an agony Jesus prayed more earnestly: and His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Great drops of blood! Jesus prayed so diligently and so intensely that He was sweating great drops of blood.

Yes, to overcome enemies, sickness, stress, hunger, and the rest of the problems of the world, just pray and pray and pray. Pray for your family, pray for your friends, pray for your pastor and yes, pray for your enemies.

How do you learn to pray? Where can you see examples of prayer? Read your Bible. For in your Bible is the Bread of Life.

Matthew 4:1-4
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungred.

3 And when the tempter came to Him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But Jesus answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

As you move forward in your Christian life, satan will try to discourage you, he will do this by twisting Scripture or by trying to shake your faith in the exactness of God's Word. Satan will try to make you think that the Bible is not to be believed and that it is not to be taken literally. Notice the way the serpent tried to twist Scripture with Jesus. Notice how the Lord came back with the correct Scripture for the moment. That is why you must read your Bible on a daily basis. It is so that satan, his minions, his ilk and those who serve him knowingly and unknowingly can not pull the ‘phony scripture wool' over your eyes.

2 Timothy 4:1-6
1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom;
2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.

Paul's warning to Timothy is just as valid today as it was then, maybe even more so today. When someone claims to justify their sin, by telling you that parts of the Bible are only nice stories or that all of the old testament law is put to rest with the first coming of the Lord, run from them, for they are evil and are doing to you what satan did to Eve and tried to do to Jesus.

So, trust in the Lord, for all is in His control, pray daily and read your Bible daily.

2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: the Bible isn't a collection of nice stories that you can pick and choose from, the bible is God's open letter to you, it is His handbook for you to operate by as His creation. And He dictated it so;
17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. Man of God, that is you, the Born Again Christian. And let no man deceive you, if you are not Born Again, you are not a Christian and if you are not a Born Again Christian, you will not go to heaven you will go to and spend eternity in hell! And if you believe anything else, you are calling God the Creator a liar!

May the Lord be with you all as we end one week and start another, may He bless you and yours, may He protect you and yours and may He let the Holy Spirit both dwell within you and help you to understand His words in His book.

God be with you all, amen.

All Scripture is quoted, in both sermons and daily thoughts, is from the authorized 1611 King James Version. The words in red are those of the God the Son, the Lord Jesus and the words in purple are those spoken directly by God the Father.

For the week starting Sunday January 30th, 2000

And Jesus Said in Matthew 24:9 "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake." (KJV)

No, RICK, JIM, AND TODD. YOU DON'T HAVE TO PAINT THE CHURCH!

First let us pray: Oh Lord Jesus above, please forgive us for those things we have done, said and thought that have offended Thee, forgive us Lord and help us to forgive those who have offended us. For we know Lord that to be forgiven, we must forgive. Lord help us to understand just what Your death did for us.

Lord help us to understand that You and the Father so love us that You came to earth to die for us and that through Your death, we are Saved. Oh Lord Jesus, thank you. Thank you for so loving us that You did this for us. And please Lord, raise up leaders for us who will lead us to You and will do what is right in your sight. Lord God above, please rescue us from those who are now leading us and this great nation of our towards damnation. Amen

Ok, Rick, Jim, and Todd, let's look at scripture. First get your copy of the King James Version of the Bible. Now turn to Romans 16:24 and read with me. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

Now, change the words ‘you all' to ‘us', so we pray "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us. Amen." Lord Jesus, please help us to understand the words and scripture we are to read. Amen

Let'. start. You ask, what must I do to be Saved? Turn to the book of Acts.

Acts 16:30-31
30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Verse 30, ...what must I do to be Saved? Verse 31 ...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ!
That's it, that's all you have to do. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. You don't have to paint the church, you don't have to tithe, although your sending a dollar a week to this ministry would go a long way and be greatly appreciated, you don't even have to go to church. The only requirement to be Saved, is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The other things come as a result of your desire to fellowship with other Christians and to thank Jesus for what He did on the cross for you.

Church buildings are like fellowship halls, where a pastor or teacher is located. But even then, you do not have to attend to be Saved and once you are Saved, that's it, you are Saved. The only way you can lose your salvation is by blaspheming God. How do I know that? Simply, Jesus Christ, the Son of God the Father said so!

Turn to:

Mark 3:29 But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: (KJV)

But you say, that's too easy.

Well, maybe, but look at it like this, if salvation took anything more than simply believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, how would the Vietnam vet that got his spine blown away in 65, be able to get Saved? This guy can't even wiggle his fingers, never mind paint the church. And he's in a VA hospital, not exactly a place where the doctors and nurses are going to suggest he take a portion of his disability check and tithe with it. Oh they might dole out some of it to the PX for cigarettes, but not for tithing. So, how would this guy get into heaven? How about the kid born mentally lacking?
How would he or she get into heaven?
No, Jesus had to be the perfect way into heaven and through His death the way had to be simple enough for all - the body builder, the genius, the house painter, the paraplegic, the mentally disabled, everyone. But it had to be something that was cut and dry also. Something absolute and not ambiguous. And that, Rick, Jim, and Todd, is exactly what it is. Follow along with me.

John 3:1-3
1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto Jesus, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with Him.
3 Jesus answered and said to Nicodemus, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (KJV)

Now, what is the Lord talking about when He says born of water and born of Spirit? Ok, born of water, born of the flesh, born a human, born of a woman. When you are born, you are delivered out of a sack of water. That is born of water. Pretty simple, right? Right, but what about that born of the Spirit? Well, in the word of God, you will notice that the terms Holy Spirit and Holy Ghost are interchangeable. Both the Holy Spirit and the Holy Ghost are one in the same. They are one of God's three persons, God the Father, God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Ghost or Spirit. Ok, let's get back to born of the Sprit.

Turn to:

Acts 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (KJV)
Do you see the Holy Ghost and the Spirit being used as one and the same? Look, "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost" and then " and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." Look at it like this, let's say a sentence went like this, And their stepfather gave them each 25 cents, and Joe told them not to buy candy with it. Do you see where stepfather and Joe are one and the same? Well, so is Holy Ghost and Spirit in Acts 2:4.
So, what we have is that Jesus has told Nicodemus that to get into heaven, to see God, he must be Born Again, Born of the Spirit. Now how does one become Born Again and Born of the Spirit? Let's go back to Acts.

Ok, now this is going to be quite a bit of scripture for you to read, but you must read it all to get the exact content of the point of Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved and that no, guys, you do not have to paint the church or anything else. Ready?
Ok, turn to
Acts 10:1-48

ACTS CHAPTER 10
1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,

Let us pray:

Oh heavenly Father thank you, thank you for giving me this earth, the air to breathe and the water to drink, thank you for the beauty you have supplied me with, the flowers, the birds and friends and family. Oh please Father, forgive me my sins, let me serve. You help me Father to accept, if not understand the Trinity. Help me, Lord, to come to you for help, protection and guidance. Help me, Lord, to understand that I am but a visitor on this planet. Help me Lord to understand that those who hated You and crucified You will hate me as well, but be with me, strengthen me and help me to be half as strong as the little girl who died for you in Littleton, Colorado. Help me Lord to serve You and to be found faithful and acceptable in Your sight. Oh Lord let me hear You say "welcome good and faithful servant" when my time on earth has ended. I pray this to the God the Father in the name of God the Son and through the God the Holy Spirit. Amen

Please note, reading and relying upon the King James Version of the Bible can result in your being accused of being a right wing fundamentalist Christian by the Clinton administration, the media and the majority of congressman and senators. That in itself is an excellent reason to both read and rely on the KJV!

For remember what Jesus said:

Luke 16:13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. (KJV)

Todd, you Rick and Jim can serve the Lord Jesus Christ or you can serve satan and his slaves in government. You can not serve both. Rick, Jim, and Todd, must either pledge your loyalty to Christ and deny Clinton, satan and this government or you must deny the Lord and join with those who kill babies while they sleep in the supposed safety of their mothers' wombs. But remember this, Jesus also said this:

Matthew 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. (KJV)

John 12:44-50
44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.
45 And he that seeth me seeth Him that sent me.
46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. Do you see where Jesus is telling us that He is not judging us, that is because we judge ourselves.
48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. You judge yourself by your either accepting Jesus or by your rejuecting Him, accept send yourself to heaven, reject or do nothing, judge yourself guilty and send yourself to hell!
49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.(KJV)

for the week starting Sunday January 23rd, 2000

Sifting through the preachers

Way too often it seems, folks get the idea that some really weird things are permissible within the Body of Christ.

Just how does one decide if his or her preacher is preaching the truth? How about the guy on the radio or television?

The guy on the Internet is pretty easy to check, after all, his are in writing, you can take and easily cross check in your own bible. But the guy on the pulpit, the guy on the radio or the guy on tv may be a bit more difficult to double check, since some go mighty fast. And I have to at times include myself in that mighty fast group.

So how does one know? Well, first of all you need to understand this, you and only you are responsible for your soul and salvation. I'm not, your pastor is not, nor is the guy down the street. Jesus did all the work, all you have to do is comply with what is written in the New Testament and you'll easily find your way to salvation and an eternity in peace in heaven with the Lord. That said, let's look at what Paul tells us about sifting through the preachers.

Titus 1:1-4
1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness--
2 a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time,
3 and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. (NIV)

Titus 1:6-2:15

6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly. He should have only one wife, children that are good kids, not hoodlums, drug users or sleeping around.

7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; the preacher should be not guilty of criminal behavior, not in it for his own glory, not one to loose his temper easily, nor one who has a couple of drinks a night. He shouldn't be one to beat his wife nor overly harsh with his children, but remember, it is the duty of a parent to spank his children, do not judge by man's rules, but God's. He should not be one who needs a lot of money, new cars, the best computers or in it for the money.

8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; Your preacher should love to make hospital and house calls, he should love visiting the sick and holding the little ones in the congregation up to the Lord. He should be a man who associates with solid Christian men, he should be sober, just and fair. He should be a man who not only preaches Christ, but does all he can to emulate Him. And he should be temperate (patient), a man not prone to judge quickly nor harshly without first and foremost going to the Word of God and then to the Lord on his knees. For Christianity should not just be a religion with him, it should be his and his families life style.

9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. He should preach from the word of God, not the words of petey jennings, bill clinton and planned parenthood.

Till this point Paul has told you what to look for in a preacher, notice something, he has never said "she". In addition to all above, your preacher must be a man of God, a man. If your pastor is a woman, you need to be extra careful, do not judge by personality, judge by the Word of God. Now, Paul warns about false preachers, politically correct preachers, men and women trying to take you to hell with them, some unknowingly serving satan, but serving satan just the same. In His prophecy, the Book of Revelation, Jesus refers to them as the synagogue of satan and the church of Laodicea.

10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: unruly, vain talkers, deceivers they are those who tell you what God really meant, they twist scripture to be politically correct. Those of the circumcision, these are the men and women who tell you or lead you to believe that you must work your way into heave, to preach that is to deny the very essence of the Lord Jesus who is GOD, it is to accuse the Gospels of lying.

11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake. These false preachers are in it for the money and the glory, they give council and preach not to glorify God, but themselves and to fatten their wallets, "Put ten bucks in the collection plate and God will forgive..." If your preacher preaches tithing more than he does hells fires, your preacher is in it for the money and not your salvation.

12 One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are always liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; even they themselves tell you they are false, by their very words, for if you check their words against the words of God in your Bible, you will find them to be false. Therefore rebuke them, stand up to them, ask them in the church during or after the sermon, to explain their position using Scripture. Challenge them before they take some of your friends to hell with them and in hopes that they may, in trying to justify their positions, have their eyes opened and come to the Lord.

14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth. Forget the garbage men preach and the works they claim are needed to be Saved, for they have turned from the truth.

15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. Think about what Paul is saying here, he isn't telling us that a preacher can preach the truth one day and a lie the next, he's telling us that a defiled preacher is always defiled for even their thinking process is defiled. Now, notice that while telling you what a preacher should be, Paul always used "he", but here, he is using ‘their", implying men and women and those who can not decide which they are (homosexuals and lesbians).

16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. They claim to now God, they claim to be Christians, but they deny Him by their preaching by not preaching His word, but by being disobedient to His word and as such they are an abomination and are just the opposite of what a preacher should be.

CHAPTER 2

1 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: Preach the Gospel.

2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. Paul is telling preachers to preach that men should be sober, serious, solid as a rock in the faith and believe in Jesus as Lord and Saviour, love the brothers and sister, and to do all patiently regardless of the responses they receive.

3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; preachers should preach that women should not be gossips, that women should teach good things to other women, not how o be equal to men, but to be the best mother and homemaker they can be.

4 Tha