Memorizing Scripture

How well I remember being enrolled in the Bible Memory Association program as a child.  I memorized verses from the Gospel of John that have stayed with me all my life.  I often cried when trying to recite to my hearer but it was worth it.  As an adult, I was challenged by Bill Gothard to memorize and meditate on longer passages.  I have done so and it helps me in my personal spiritual life as well as my teaching and preaching.  For many years, I would memorize the books of the Bible that I would be preaching on a year ahead, then write prayers based on the verses in a notebook to thoroughly meditate on the passage before beginning my study of the words in Greek or Hebrew and consulting with commentaries.  I am now putting the finishing touches on the book I am writing, “Sixteen Sessions with the Wonderful Counselor”.  I believe that the Lord wants me to include a memory verse with each lesson.  My grandmother began memorizing Bible verses when she was 80 years old and was losing her eyesight.  How does a person memorize?  Put the verse on a small card, carry it with you and take a walk while you read it over and over.  Try saying it without looking at the card.  Keep at it until you know it, then review it.  Set a goal to learn a new verse every month, week or day.  Stay with it and you will prosper in all that you do! Joshua 1:8 (NKJV)
8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Sons of God and daughters of men

Genesis 6:1-4 describes something that was so unspeakably evil that God flooded the entire planet to eradicate it.  What was it?  It happens again in the book of Numbers 13:33.  It was one of the reasons for the God-ordered killing of men women and children in Canaan by the Israelites under the leadership of Joshua.  David killed one of these giants named Goliath.  Somehow wicked people led by demons were able to produce offspring that were giants (NEPHILIM).  Could it involve what we would call “genetic manipulation”?  The end times will be like days of Noah.  Evil thoughts will produce evil deeds.  The human race will be so evil that God will destroy us by fire the next time our sin account is full.  Are you ready to face the judgment of God?  You are only ready if you are trusting in the finished work of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, on the cross.  He died for our sins and rose again to pay for the gift of eternal life which He offers freely to all who trust in Jesus.  Think about it!   

South Africa, Covenant Theology and Same Sex Marriage in Limerick, PA

Because early settlers of colonial America and South Africa believed in Covenant theology, they saw their new worlds in “Book of Joshua” terms.  They were the “New Israel” and the “heathen” were to be converted, subjugated or, if necessary, destroyed.  Theology has consequences.  Many Europeans saw themselves in similar terms and thus we had pograms, and crusades against Jews and Muslims.  Much of the roots of modern conflict are in Covenant Theology.  Dispensationalists, like myself, believe that God will keep all of His promises to Israel and that we are to live our lives in the midst of unbelievers as light and salt.  We are to suffer for Christ if necessary, but never to use the “sword” or gun for purposes of defending or maintaining Christian values in our society.  We do not believe in any kind of “state church” or state religion.  Which brings me to same-sex marriage.  A couple of ladies from Limerick, PA, have gotten “married” at the Montgomery County Courthouse.  Do I believe that marriage is defined as a man and a woman for life?  Yes.  Am I going to devote significant time and effort to fighting for heterosexual marriage?  No.  There are enough problems in Christian, heterosexual marriages to keep me busy as a pastor.  But most of all people need Jesus.  Only He can help homosexuals and heterosexual sinners to experience life with fulfillment, love, joy and peace.  Transforming this sin-cursed world is God’s job and He will do it in His time.  My responsibility is to live a life that honors God, honors my marriage, and help those who want help in knowing God and living for the Lord.  I will not perform marriages for same sex couples but the Bible does not authorize or command me to perform any marriages.  I may just give it up rather than be required to marry those who do not qualify for God’s blessing.  Marrying and burying are not part of the Biblical job description of a pastor, anyway.  Society allows us to perform marriages by law, but I would give it up rather than violate the clear definition of marriage in Scripture.  Think about it!  

Forsake All and Follow Jesus!

I met a man at a breakfast meeting yesterday who told me a great story about his dad.  This man was a home builder who wanted to sell his business, including a building along a major highway.  No one was interested.  So he took the building off he market. At his church he met a missionary who felt called to go to upstate New York to plant a church. The missionary asked the retired builder to go with him and help.  The builder decided to “put out the fleece”. He said, “If I sell my business by next Saturday, I’ll go with you.  That week, the builder was approached by a person who wanted to open a “Curves” fitness studio.  This person asked the price and wrote a check.  By the Saturday in question, the check had cleared, so the builder got in his motorhome and moved to New York. 

What would the Lord have to do for you to send you where he wants you?  Jesus said that unless we forsake all and follow Him, we CANNOT be His disciple.  Are you a disciple of Jesus or just a church member?  It doesn’t mean that you have to move, it just means that you must be willing to move if He wants you to.  When he cast the demons out of the man in the Gaderenes, Jesus told him to go home and tell his loved ones what Jesus had done for him.  You will never know that you are where God wants you to be until you are willing to go anywhere for Him.  And the most important thing is not geography.  It is obedience.  Fish for people where you are and God will show you if He wants you to move.  Are you a disciple of Jesus Christ?  If so, then you are a fisher of men and you are willing to go wherever He wants you to go.  Are you?  Think about it!      

Talking or Fishing?

There is an old story about two men going fishing on a lake in a boat way out in the middle of nowhere.  After awhile one of the men reaches into his tackle box and pulls out a stick of dynamite.  His friend, quite alarmed, asks, “Is that legal?”  The man with the dynamite lights it, hands it to his friend and says, “Are you gonna talk or are you gonna fish?”

Jesus said, “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men..”  Andy Stanley says, “If you are not fishing for men (evangelizing) you didn’t turn out alright, no matter what your mother says.”

Fishing for fish in the Sea of Galilee consisted of going out in a boat between 20 and 30 feet long with big nets at night with torches.  The light brought the fish to the top and then the nets gathered them in.  But on the night before Luke 5:1-11, Peter and his fellow fishermen worked all night and caught nothing.  But when Jesus told Peter to launch out into the deep water and fish some more, Peter obeyed.  He caught so many fish that his almost net broke.  It took two boats to bring all those fish in.  Peter knew that Jesus had done a miracle.  His response was to fall down and confess that he was a sinful man.  With a resume like that, Peter was ready to forsake all and follow Jesus on a three year training cycle that resulted in a sermon on the day of Pentecost that brought 3,000 people into the “Jesus Net”.

How about you?  Are you going to talk or fish?  Think about it!       

Soul-Winning

Proverbs 11:30 says that “he who wins souls is wise”. In the original language of this text, the Hebrew, the meaning is even more vivid: the word “wins” is translated “rescue” in Proverbs 24:11. This word can also be translated as “to lead”. When God uses us to lead someone to faith in Christ, we are winning them to forgiveness and eternal life. We are also rescuing them from death and hell. Are you wise? “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life” (Proverbs 11:30) Jesus said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men”. When you go out to witness for Christ with a burdened heart, depending on the Lord, you will return rejoicing, bringing lost souls to Christ. God will use you in soul-winning if you tell Him you can’t do it in yourself and ask and trust Him to do it through you. You will be amazed at the opportunities God will open for you if you are ready to give an answer for the hope that is in you. So put on the preparation of the gospel of peace and share the gospel with someone today. Do it in faith and God will give you joy. He is with us as we live our lives evangelistically.

Good Job! David Cameron

The Prime Minister of Great Britain has decided to crack down on internet pornography. He had decided to protect children and women by requiring internet providers to filter out violent pornography. While not getting into the details, I want to commend him for doing something about a secret plague that is robbing our youngest children of the innocence to which they are entitled. Those who seek to abuse children and women should not be encouraged to do so without consequences. Laws already on the books should be enforced by those entrusted with that task: Attorneys General and Public Prosecutors. Depictions of anything harmful and violent should be prosecuted. Pornography has been allowed to become a multi-billion dollar industry because our elected officials, both Democrats and Republicans, refuse to enforce existing laws. Before the next election of a judge or County District Attorney or State Attorney General, find out what they intend to do about violent pornography on the internet. Our children and our women should be protected from those who are being educated in how to do them harm for their own sick pleasure. Good job, David Cameron!!! May God bless you for it!!

Doctrines of Demons

1 Timothy 4:1–3 “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, ² speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, ³ forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.”

There are two things that make humans feel guilty: sex and food. Unaided by divine revelation, people seeking to become more holy and closer to God are moved to abandon sex and food in their quest for a feeling of holiness. And as far as feelings of holiness, there is nothing like celibacy and fasting to make you feel less sinful and more godly. But this approach to religion and spirituality doesn’t address the underlying evil in human nature going back to the original sin of our first parents. And it misses the point in regard to God’s view of sex and food. God, not the Devil created sex and food for our good and His glory. He designed food to be enjoyed and to give us strength and health. He designed sex to bond husbands and wives and to procreate the human race pleasurably. There should be guilt for sex outside of marriage and for the abuse of food through gluttony. But the doctrine of demons leads to demoting marriage to a lesser state. Commanding to abstain from certain kinds of food at certain times leads to a prideful religious arrogance. Some can be eunuchs but most people serve God better when they are married. Most people do better when they eat healthy food in healthy amounts and are thankful to God for it.

 

Be careful of any religion that makes you feel more holy by abstaining from sex or food. God created both for our good and His glory. He enjoys seeing us take pleasure in what He has designed for us when we use these things rightly and give Him praise for His love and care for us. Think about it!

 

Attending Church

Jesus went to the synagogue in Nazareth regularly for 18 years, from age twelve to thirty. What bad sermons he must have heard. What hypocrites there must have been. Yet he had the custom of attending worship in the little building in his hometown of Nazareth. He did not forsake assembling together with believers even though it must have been difficult. I have observed that the wisest Christians always get a lot out of any service. The most carnal ones are distracted by a crying baby or a pastor with his necktie slightly askew. When you are going through stuff is the time when you need your brothers and sisters the most. Go to Church, even if there are some hypocrites there. What is one more? Maybe you will learn there to be a person of integrity. Think about it!

God, My Wonderful Counselor

 Psalm 16:7 “I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;”  Where do you go for good advice?  Why not go to God Himself?  How do you hear the voice of God?  God has spoken in His Word, the Bible.  It is His LOGOS – the objective spoken words of God Himself.  “But I need advice about my particular problem today”.  That is where the Holy Spirit comes into the picture.  He will give you a RHEMA – individually applied truth.  The Holy Spirit lives inside every believer in Christ.  He will bring just the right verse of Scripture to your mind as you read, study, memorize and meditate on the verses of the Bible.  “But that sounds like a lot of work!”  It is!  But it is so worth it.  When we allow God’s Word to abide in us and we abide in it, our lives become fruitful for God’s glory.  We are then led by the Spirit, empowered and encouraged by the Spirit.  Then we live out our sonship in the experiences of our lives.  God has written the “script” of your life in His Word.  The Holy Spirit is the one who takes that basic script and applies it to your situation right now.  Don’t walk in the counsel of the ungodly.  Instead, get your counsel from the “WONDEFUL COUNSELOR”.  Think about it and do it!