Dominion

The Reconciliation: Part 7 If God were to take back control of the earth then He would break His word, that Adam had complete authority. If He broke His word it would by default break the fabric that is holding the universe together. All of the created order including man would be gone. So, love constrained Him. Even though He was able and could “in His sovereignty” destroy His creation; He was not willing to lose us completely. Instead He determined to let us keep dominion as sin’s hostage, as He inacted His plan to get us back. Dominion is one of the most important doctrines to understand if you want the Bible to make sense. The fact that man was given dominion over, and was in essence the god of, this world is the reason Satan wanted to enslave us, the reason God’s Sovereignty is limited, the reason it took 2,000 years for Jesus to come, the reason Jesus had to come as a man, the reason WE must heal the sick and raise the dead. It’s the reason Jesus was able to do what he did. He had a flesh body from Adam (dominion) but not his corrupted seed (slavery). After the resurrection, “Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” He wasn’t lying. He did not previously have all authority, neither did the Father. Jesus stripped Satan of the dominion that he stole from Adam on earth and below the earth. Philipians 2:10 - "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [things] in heaven, and [things] in earth, and [things] under the earth; " When he was resurrected he appeared now with ALL authority. It is the reason Satan was able to offer it to Jesus during his temptation. All this to say God could not intervene. It was Adam’s planet and Adam let Sin and Death come in. Once they got inside they took control. So, how do we get them back out?

PART 8

Why Didn't God Stop Adam

The Reconciliation: Part 6





So why didn’t God stop this? I’m not going to take time now to clearly teach on the Sovereignty Myth. However, the simple answer is that God couldn’t. The earth was not God’s to have dominion over anymore. The door was not God’s to keep shut.



When God created the Heavens and the Earth it was chaos. It was formless and void and darkness covered the face of the deep (the abode of the dead). Then God begins to suppress chaos with creation. He makes light to subdue the existing darkness. He never gets rid of chaos and darkness He only creates order to subdue it. After He creates the entire perfect natural system He creates man and gives him authority to govern the entire planet and everything in it.



“God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”



The entire created order was made with word. If God were to make His own word void it would by default cause the integrity of the source of “word” to be void and it would no longer function. This would cause all of His creation to come apart.



Hebrews 11:3 “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”



2 Peter 3:7 “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.”



Mathew 24:23, Mark 13:31, Luke 21:23: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”



Luke 16:17 “And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.”


PART 7

The Slave of Sin

The Reconciliation: Part 5

When Adam sinned I believe what he actually did was open the door to let Sin come on earth. Once sin came in there was no getting him back out. Adam was under the control of a new master and this being opened the door for death to enter as well.

So when death came in it killed Adam’s spirit body (the body of death) in the process and severed Adam from God spiritually. When he died spiritually Adam lost that communion/connection, so God could then only deal with man through his flesh. This event changed Adam’s nature to then only have a living flesh body that interacts with the soul.

No longer having the source of Godly power from his spirit he was the slave of sin, his new master. The children born from Adam were born the same way slaves with dead spirits. We are born dead spiritually. Death then corrupts the soul and body. Eventually the body will die and then all that is left is the final death of the soul. Our slavery to Sin is something we are born into; it is our born nature.

Rom 5:12 – “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
Rom 5:15 - “through the offence of one many be dead”
Rom 5:14 – “death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned”

PART 6

The Beings Sin and Death

The Reconciliation: Part 4



I view Sin and Death as two beings. Though I understand that a sin can be viewed as an action, it is actually the fruit that a being has planted in your heart. Even though death is considered a state of being or an event in your life, I believe it should also be viewed as a being that destroys life.

The Hebrew word for sin (chatta'ath) is a noun (not a verb) and is used 296 times in the Old Testament.

Gen 4:7
“If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee [shall be] his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.”

Or in the New Testament:

John 8:34
“Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.”

I don’t believe the being called sin is more clearly illustrated than in Paul’s description.


Romans 7
“For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew [me]… But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful… Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me… O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”

The painting above is William Hogarth's version of Sin & Death. Though his depiction is not uncommon throughout art, theology, and history.

PART 5

The Spiritual Body

The Reconciliation: Part 3

I usually have a picture with my post. However, I can't find one that represents what I would like to say without also saying something else.

I view the spirit very much like the flesh. Instead of a carnal (physical/earthly) body the spirit is a spiritual body. I believe it has eyes to see and ears to hear and receives sensory knowledge from the spiritual realm.

I hesitate to use certain words trying to express how I understand things. Very quickly people think I'm referring to New Age ideas. Though I don't believe everything in New Age is incorrect (as if all of New Age could be gathered under a collective title) I believe in a tricotomy (3 part human) not a dicotamy (2 part). Most people only perceive the body and the soul so they consider their spirit and soul to be one in the same part.

The original design for man was that the spiritual sensory body (human spirit) informs the mind of man of spiritual truth. The mind tells the heart this information and the heart is affected emotionally by it. In return the heart gives motivation back to the mind to put the physical earth body into action. This was and still is the process of bringing God’s kingdom on the earth.

It is very organic. Very much like seed and soil. The heart is the womb or the soil for seed. When the spirit plants seed in the heart of a man sometimes it takes time, but if that seed is not uprooted, stolen, or choked out it will produce kingdom fruit in the physical earth.

This was the original design for Adam. If you can visualize this spiritual body and understand that it was the body that did die at the fall, then it will help you understand many verses we will discuss.

I also believe the spirit body is how we communicate with God. Not only does it receive information it converses in the spiritual realm. It is how we worship.

John 4:24
“God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [him] in spirit and in truth.”

PART 4

Human Nature

The Reconciliation: Part 2

Everything that the Father did from the moment of the fall until Jesus, was the process of getting us back. To understand the reconciliation we have to understand how we were separated.

We are all very familiar with our flesh. From birth it is the only source of sensory knowledge we have. Everything we understand is filtered through our flesh and its’ pleasure is the primary focus of our lives. Basically when I say flesh I am referring to our 5 senses.

Our soul is what we use to understand this sensory knowledge that our flesh provides. We understand I’m hungry, cold, hot, ect. The soul is the inner part that makes us who we are. I view it as the place where our mind and heart dialog. The mind is our logic, it interprets the world and prepares a reaction based simply on the facts. It also relays the information to our heart.

The heart is our source for emotion. I view it as the most center part of a human. If information does not pass through your mind it will not reach your heart. And in order for your heart to respond and command your body to act it must convince your mind to tell your body to act.

But we were not always this way. Some of us today once again have the third part of our human nature alive and well…the spirit.

PART 3

Daddy's Home!

The Reconciliation: Part 1

I work 45 hours/ 6 days a week while attending night school with my wife. The moment I most look forward to everyday is when I come home for my 52 minutes of family time. Even though my car is loud (I have no muffler) I try my best to come up to the front door as quiet as I can. I am rarely ever able to turn the key before I hear the music to my ears.

“Daddy’s home!” my boys scream from the upper part of our split level house. After hearing the stomping of little feet I see Caleb, my oldest, turn the corner to face the staircase. Jake has now popped his head up over the back of the couch and is jumping to the floor. They run to the top of the stairs as I walk up. Anxiously waiting to jump into my arms and tell me about a day in the life of two small boys. I am more than happy to listen to every detail of their days as long as they will sit on my lap and let me hold them and smell their hair. Just being with them makes everything in life good.

God had that. He would come to visit Adam and Even in the garden during the cool of the day. He listened while they told Him about their new experiences. He enjoyed every second. Haven’t you ever wondered why he didn’t just scrap everything after the fall? Why not just start over? Because He was radically and passionately in love with us, and he was about to do anything it would take to get us back.

PART 2

Eternal Life is Not Heaven

When we understand the Gospel of Grace then we will begin to understand eternal life. We will understand that the purpose of God’s ministry through Jesus was not about saving us from Hell. It was about Reconciliation. It was God’s work to get back what He lost…us.

Acts 20:24
“But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.”

The grace gospel is not only “the Power of God” but it is the “Gospel of Peace”. (Rom 10:15, Eph 6:15)
It is preached with signs and wonders not with wise words. (Rom 15:19, 1 Cor 1:7)
Any version of a gospel that is not the grace of Christ is false. (Gal 1:6)

Eternal Life is not going to Heaven, it is the Reconciliation.

John 17:3
“And this is life eternal, that they might know* thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

(*ginōskō – implies intimacy, used as the Jewish idiom for intimate knowing as in “Adam knew his wife Eve.”)

THE RECONCILIATION

The Gospel of Power?

Except out of obligation and the fear of Hell I could think of no reason a person would want to become a “Christian.” Every human is born with a sense of needing to reconcile with God. We are born with this internal knowledge that we must be better because he is not pleased. Every religion in the world is designed to help men reconcile themselves with God. Even my Atheist friends can’t avoid the human trap. They have simply created a theology that helps them deal with this internal problem by trying to remove the source. What?..I said it.

Paul says it this way.

Romans 1:16-20:
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed ... For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed [it] unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”
We know this internally so we create religion to reconcile ourselves to God.

The gospel most people proclaim is a way for men to get out of Hell and into a congregation where they can struggle the rest of their lives. Wow, if that was God’s plan for us I would probably wait until my deathbed, and take my chances on not getting in a car wreck. What a worthless and impotent message.

Paul said the Gospel is the POWER for salvation – sōtēria - deliverance, preservation, safety, salvation the deliverance from the molestation of enemies. That is not the gospel I knew. The gospel I learned taught me how to medicate and manage the symptoms as the enemy molested me. Just wait for the sweet by-and-by where there will be no more tears.

That is not Power. That is not Good News.

ETERNAL LIFE

The Gospel of Hell

All my life I believed that the Gospel was basically that Jesus died for you, and if you would ask him into your heart you get to go to heaven when you die instead of Hell. However, while you are on earth you can’t drink, smoke, cuss, go to R rated movies, or have pre (or extra) marital sex. Any of these actions (among others) will take you out from “under the blood” of Jesus and until you confess that sin you can’t be in right standing with God. That is to say if you died with an un-confessed sin you would go straight to Hell.

This caused me to spend the majority of my youth thinking about not sinning. And as my mind was focused on not eating the forbidden fruit I was reminded of how good that fruit would be. I could practically taste it as I struggled to keep from eating. Eventually, I could no longer resist the “pink elephant” and did whatever it was I struggling against. It was as if sin had power over me.

After gorging and wallowing in myself I would always come to place of fear again. I would realize that I didn’t want to go to Hell and knew I needed to get back in right standing with God. As I got older these lines became more blurry, and I thought less about Heaven & Hell. Yet, even as I became insensitive to the whole process the pattern was the same: law, effort, desire, overpowered, wallow, grovel, repent, law.

This is the mentality and cycle of religion. This is not the “good news” this is the “old news.” This is Christians trying to be Jews; trying to obey the law for their righteousness. It is people trying to save themselves, or keep themselves saved, with will power. This is the human attempt to please God. It is not the Gospel.

GOSPEL OF POWER

the Gospel According to Josh

I am going to try to cover a lot of ground with the next few series. My main focus is to show the gospel the way I understand it.

I get in many conversations with people about Grace, God-Righteousness, Works, the Purpose of the Law, and how Jesus ended it. Many debates and long conversations over coffee have helped many and alienated others.

I’m ok with that. If I have expressed the truth and a person understands what I’ve said and rejects it, I have no control over that. However, I will keep explaining and talking until I’m sure you at least understand.

If I plant the seed of the gospel and a person doesn’t understand what I’ve said the enemy can steal that word. (Mathew 13:19) Understanding is what allows the seed to take root.

Having said that, I can’t exhaustively cover everything I want to talk about. There are things I will mention, sometimes only for a paragraph sometimes for two sections, that may be contrary to your beliefs. My purpose here is not to explain every detail of my theology it is to explain my lens.

I may say something that you initially disagree with because of what you have been taught. If that happens I encourage you to keep moving with me. Don’t let that be your hang-up. You may not agree with me right away but hopefully by the end you will see the benefit of adopting my lens and the doctrines that come with it.

If you are a much disciplined person and good at being a Christian in your flesh you will find this teaching to be very difficult. The people that reject this the most are people who believe their actions are pleasing God and don’t need grace. Blind fools! Isaiah exposed your flesh:

“But we are all as unclean, and all our righteousnesses as menstruation rags;”

Jesus didn’t come to assist you in righteousness; he came to become your righteousness. If you don’t understand that then you don’t understand the gospel.

GOSPEL OF HELL

Gospel of the Hebrews: The True Gospel of Mathew

The Bible is not the Word of God Part 7



Though we only have fragments of the Gospel of the Hebrews it has some insightful things to say. We find a reference to Jesus speaking with the rich young ruler. It explains why Jesus said what he did, while most preachers only speculate on the matter.


This particular Gospel was written by a Jew for the Jews. Most believe this Gospel was actually written by Jesus disciple Mathew. If so then this is the only gospel written by a person who actually walked with Jesus in the flesh.


Papias of Hierapolis, a second century bishop and author, states, "Matthew put together the oracles [of the Lord] in the Hebrew language, and each one interpreted them as best he could." In "Against Heresies" Irenaeus says, "Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome and laying the foundations of the church."
The Gospel of Mathew was originally written in Greek not Hebrew or Aramaic. Also, Mathew is not a translation of the Hebrew Gospel because the fragments we do have are not found with the same content in the book of Mathew. I believe the Gospel of the Hebrews is the true Gospel written by the Apostle Mathew. The only portions of this text that we have are preserved through the writtings of second century saits as they quoted this Gospel.

One of my favorite verses is found in this Gospel, speaking of Jesus baptism. This verse is perfect word picture expressing my teaching on The 3 Dispensations of the Holy Spirit:

"And it came to pass when the Lord was come up out of the water, the whole fount of the Holy Spirit descended upon him and rested on him and said to him: My son, in all the prophets was I waiting for you that you should come and I might rest in you. For you are my rest; you are my first begotten son that reigns forever.”The Gospel of the Hebrews
The Gospel of the Hebrews is quoted by Church Fathers: Jerome, Origen, Clement, Eusebius, Cyril of Jerusalem.

You can read the fragments here:

http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/gospelhebrews-mrjames.html


Closing:

Allow me to clarify. I love the Bible. I use the Bible, and I am grateful that we have it. I have used it time and again to understand the truth that is in my spirit. In the same way the men of the past wrote the text that we have; if we are born again the word is in us and the Holy Spirit will guide us in ALL truth.

Text is a tool it is not the source. I hope changing people’s perspective of the Bible will increase the “relational” aspect of our relationship with the Lord and the Father through the Holy Spirit. I hope it will cause our hearts and minds to change their focus of a carnal book toward a spiritual person. Finally, I hope that removing some of the reverence for particular writings will give a person liberty to let the Holy Spirit guide instead of the men and canons of Church history or the modern day.

MY GOSPEL

the Book of Enoch

The Bible is not the Word of God: Part 6
An amazing non-canonical book is the Book of Enoch. It gets in to some pretty abstract things that require you to read between the lines.

Enoch is expressing what he witnessed to the best of his ability. We learn things through future revelation or science that explains what he saw. He basically describes our solar system as he is carried through it.

Enoch also talks about the “Son of Man” or “Elect One” who sits on a throne with the Father. This man will bring righteousness to the elect. He will cause the gentiles to repent and judge the living and the dead. Possibly up to 3,100 years prior to Jesus birth.

You may not realize it but many have already read from the book of Enoch. Not only did it shape the theology surrounding the New Testament regarding angels, demons, and the days of Noah, but it found its way into the book of Jude.


“And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard [speeches] which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”Jude 1:14-15

“And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy onesTo execute judgment upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly: And to convict all fleshOf all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed,And of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”1Enoch 1:9

There is much to glean from Enoch. And with the context of Jasher we understand who Enoch was and how he was able to affect the ancient world to the degree that he did.

http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/enoch.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6eNRC-9HN8

PART 7

Apocrypha, Empire, and the Pagan Bible

The Bible is not the Word of God Part 5

Bibliolatry Limits Our Text:

Not only does bible worship diminish the worship of the person Jesus; it greatly limits the scope of text we would use for gaining revelation. There are many non-canonical texts with tremendous revelation. When we elevate and honor one medium for truth we will camp out there and exclude others. The Apocryphal books are at times viewed as evil but these texts were widely used by the early church. The book of Enoch shaped the language of many of the gospels. Anytime you read the phrase “son of man” Jesus is declaring that he is the one mentioned by Enoch.

The purpose of this writing is not to dive into the history surrounding the canonization of scripture. However that could be the most convincing argument against the text that I could present; perhaps at another time.

Consider that we didn’t have a canon until 325 CE and that it was by the persuasion of a pagan emperor (baptized on his deathbed). Even after the canon the church used the non-canonical books. The canon became a list of “safe books” for common people under the Imperial Church while the other books were reserved for the “mature.” Eventually the non-canonical books were banned and/or burned all together.

Apocrypha - (ἀπόκρυφα) those having been hidden away.

Yet in many of these books we find deep and meaningful revelation that is not found in the canon. Such as...

PART 6

The Writings of Jesus?

The Bible is not the Word of God: Part 4

There are 11 canons in accepted church history excluding any Gnostic canons.
Once you have isolated a canon, next you must determine a translation or Greek source text, since there are many. Though my Father-in-law may disapprove let’s use the KJV for the sake of conversation. Here are just a few issues.

1. What is the order of creation?
Gen 1:
vs.11 - Plants, vs. 20-25 - Sea and Land animals, vs. 26-27 - Man
Gen 2:
Vs. 7 - Man, vs. 8-9 - the Garden (plants & trees), vs. 19. - Animals

2. Who motivated David to disobey God and take the census of Israel?
2 Samuel 24:1 - God
1 Chronicles 21:1 - Satan

3. Joshua 10:13 – The sun stood still.
When did it start moving?
This is about showing error not interpretation. I understand they perceived it as standing still, however the literal text is incomplete therefore not inerrant or absolute by definition.

4. In the genealogies recorded in Mathew 1:6 and Luke 3:31 which son
of David continues the lineage of Jesus' apparent father Joseph?
Mathew 1:6 – Solomon
Luke 3:31 – Nathan

In Mathew, Solomon fathers an entire lineage not found in Luke until Salathiel.
Luke says Salathiel’s father was Neri, Mathew says it was Jechonias which agrees with variant spelling of Jeconiah in 1 Chronicles 3:17. Then the lineage deviates again at Zorobabel.

There are multiple other discrepancies in the genealogies of Luke, Mathew, and Genesis.
For example Cainan is not mentioned in Gen 11:12, or Mathew as the son of Arphaxad.
In Genesis 11:12, Arphaxad lived thirty-five years, and begat Salah
However Luke inserts Cainan between Arphaxad and Sala in 3:35-36.

Some say, “The Holy Spirit will never disagree with scripture?” Unfortunately, that is just an ignorant statement of Bible Worship. The only text ever written by the hand of God was done on Mount Sinai with Moses.

If He was overly concerned with us having a perfect text then why didn’t He have Jesus write it? I believe the reason Jesus did not write a known word is that he was focused on establishing our perfect reconciled relationship with the Father. If a person is connected to the source of all truth they don’t need a book.

PART 5

the Ministry of Control

The Bible is not the Word of God: Part 3
I would never base a doctrine on one single verse; even though Jeremiah 8:8 is in itself a conclusive proof for error. Either he is right and the Bible has error, or he is wrong and the Bible has error. I still would like to see more discrepancy in scripture than that. So let’s look at just a few of the tensions.

Before we begin, I understand that people develop ways to make these tensions fit. Men speculate and conjure possibilities that might allow Biblical conflict to be in harmony. The reason they try to make this puzzle fit is both Bible worship and control. The ability to call upon text gives men the power to rule over others through their interpretations.

Men (or women) who want power must have a source for their power. If they have none of their own they must convince people of a power source (the Bible) that they can manipulate (interpret). I don’t believe most “Christian” ministers are conscious that they are doing this. They are just part of the system and have never seen a reason to question it. Yet, if a person has championed the cause of scriptural inerrancy you have ask yourself a question. Why? What’s in it for them?

PART 4

The Bible Has Error

The Bible is not the Word of God Part2

The Bible has error – Jesus does not. The Bible is a fallible vehicle for information. Just like preaching, teaching, and prophesy. When a person preaches the content of God they always contaminate it to varying degrees. Their theology shapes the way they interpret that internal spiritual truth.

It is ignorant to believe a man can’t preach perfection under the influence of the Holy Spirit yet he can write that way. Unless the perfect man Jesus was here in his flesh we can’t know the spiritual things perfectly through our flesh. We won’t be able to know or express truth and word perfectly until we receive our glorified bodies and have no conflict with our flesh. Paul disagrees with the common orthodoxy of the Church and their canon; he admits he was unable to do this.

1 Corinthians 13:12
“For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.”

But you don’t have to take my word for it. (queue chime)

PART 3

Bible Worship

The Bible is not the Word of God Part 1

Jeremiah 8:8
"How can you say, 'We are wise, And the law of the LORD is with us'? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes Has made it into a lie.”

Bib·li·ola·try: Excessive adherence to a literal interpretation of the Bible or excessive veneration of books

It is just a big word that means Bible Worship
I believe Bible Worship is detrimental for 2 reasons:
1. it diminishes the true worship of the person Jesus
2. it greatly limits the scope of text we would use for gaining revelation

It diminishes the true worship of Jesus because the Bible is not the Word of God. The perfect and infallible logos (spoken word), became flesh, dwelt among, died, was resurrected, sits at the right hand of the Father, and is now inside of us who are in him. Jesus did not become a book.

Many Christians prefer to have a relationship with text instead of the person Jesus and our Father. The written texts of Judeo-Christian history are a tool that we use to renew our mind; they are not the source of word. They are a historical writings that contain interpreted (filtered) revelation (uncoverings) of the true word himself.

Word is in our spirit if we are born again. Paul, for example, drew this word from his spirit as revelation knowledge and expressed this Pauline filtered content as text. We read what he wrote; as its truth unites with the word in our spirit our mind is renewed. Without word in our spirit (the source) we cannot have first hand revelation. Many people can read the text and get nothing from it because they have no source in their spirit.

PART 2

“gay bashing”

Drumming Out the Gays Part 5
I was recently forced to be in car with a group of “Christians” as they swapped stories and jokes about the gays. One in particular told of driving around their city. As they saw two guys walking and holding hands the driver would roll down his window to yell at them. They wanted to make sure these "homos" knew they were dirty, and needed to, “take a bath” among other things. This "gay bashing" was followed by approval, laughing, and then a fun conversation about why Obama is the end of America. I understand that these guys are ignorant and trained to be a certain way because of the church, but they still make me embarrassed to use the word Christian.

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"

But how will they hear this message over the protestors. Or even over the conversations we have behind closed doors that shape our hearts and minds. Some believe that because you don’t picket a funeral you are not part of the problem. But if you contain the life and kingdom of God but dam it up inside of yourself you are the problem. As you release words and jokes you are not only spreading your disease but you are conditioning your own heart.

Stop trying to change the fruit of a person’s nature. Just change their nature. Or maybe you don’t know that message? Unless you understand your new and born again nature, created perfect, holy, and righteous, then all you will preach is flesh management.

That is the real the problem: “Christians” who are good at performing “Christianity.”


Side Note:

My good friend Joel Grumblatt pointed out that no one may understand the phrase, “drumming out the gays.” This phrase, at least in America goes all the way back to Gen. George Washington, and possibly before. If he found a homosexual in his army he would have the drummers and pipers play as the man was forced to leave the army and never return.

David Barton and his ministry Wallbuilders (properly titled) has been on the forefront of promoting Christian agenda in politics. It seems to be a shared and common vision to suppress individual rights in America for the Christian agenda.

But I digress. This is not a political blog.

http://www.wallbuilders.com/
http://www.aim.org/aim-column/abc-confirms-father-of-our-country-opposed-gays-in-the-military/


BIBLE WORSHIP