There's Something About Mary

Ok so I'll start by stating that I am well aware of the differences and issues between Catholics and Protestants. Just know that I know I am not breaking new ground here with my thoughts as I humbly take on this hot button topic. I realize this is 2000 years of the equivalent of a religious pushing contest and a battle of authority and "Says who?" With that disclaimer out of the way, here we go!

My pastor has pointed out that as much as the Roman Catholic religion puts Mary on a pedestal(read: idolatry), Protestants are guilty of overlooking her as an example of great faith. I mean which one of us wouldn't want to say like Mary in Luke 1:38, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” That's not the only example of her trust in God. Just look at Christ's first miracle. Mary knew right where to go. John 2 tells us of the famous turning of water into wine. Let's read it:

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Like I pointed out earlier, it's great that Mary knew where to turn(Christ) but I think that there are a couple other examples in this text to take notice of. 1.) Mary didn't have the power to turn the water into wine herself. The number of people who pray to Mary daily has got to be, in the words of Luke Skywalker, "well more than you can imagine!". But why? Mary shows here in the gospel of John that she had no supernatural powers or abilities. She needed Christ to perform the miracle and turn the water into wine. 2.) Jesus' response to Mary is interesting here. He doesn't run to immediately fill her request. He let's her know that even though she was asking the right person, her request was wrong. She was actually outside of God's will for asking because "His time had not yet come".

If we are to have scripture as our authority for all faith and practice on Earth, that authority doesn't stop at, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life". We have to look at every verse as an example and as instructions from God for how he desires us to live. The word Christian, first used in Antioch(Acts11), means exhibiting a spirit proper to a follower of Jesus Christ; Christlike. God's desire is for us to be conformed to the image of His Son(Romans 8:29) so it makes sense that the way to do that is to follow His example from scripture. Let's take a look at a couple compelling examples from God's Word to see what Christ's actions and words are in response to Mary.

Luke 11:27-28 reads: As he said these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!” But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

Jesus doesn't allow Mary to be elevated by this woman in the crowd. Blessed rather, He says, are those who hear the word of God and keep it. If you are in the Word and living by it, you are more blessed than Mary according to Jesus. Let's look a couple more places.

Matthew 12:46-50 tells us of this incident with Jesus' family: While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

And again in Mark 3:31-34: And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.” And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!

Lastly, Luke8:19-21: Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

Wow. Those verses have always stood out to me because of my Catholic upbringing. I always remember the importance Mary played in the religious life. But when we look at scripture, Jesus does everything He possibly can to keep us from worshiping His mother. These three passages alone are very clear that He holds her in no more esteem than anyone else who does the will of God or who hears the word of God and does it. Combined with Christ's rebuke of the woman in the crowd in Luke 11, we have a clear concise warning in scripture, the examples of Christ Himself, not to elevate Mary to a place of worship.

And that's the point. If we pray to or worship anything or anyone other than God, we are guilty of breaking God's Law against idolatry. Scripture is clear that idolators will not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. Somehow along the way, in spite of scripture's clear warning signs, Mary has become an idol or god in certain denominations of faith. She has become the 4th member of the Quadrinity. Perhaps it is because some hold to Mary's perpetual virginity. How on Earth people have come up with that idea is beyond me. We see in the above verses that Jesus' siblings were outside with Mary. Were they all immaculate conceptions? Let's look in scripture. Matthew 1:24-25 says, When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus(Emphasis added). I emphasized until because it necessarily indicates that Joseph did know Mary after she gave birth thereby eliminating her perpetual virginity.

The last thing I want to look at is Mary's song of praise in Luke chapter 1. Verses 46-47 she sings, "And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior," Like everyone else on the face of the Earth Mary was imperfect and born into sin. She denotes that in her song by indicating her need for God, her Savior. That goes a long way into showing her humility and also her helplessness in regards to her status before a holy God. Even she, by example in scripture, didn't elevate herself to a position worthy of any undue worship. She humbly praises God and admits her need for salvation! So what's the take away? What am I even trying to accomplish with this one? Sola Scriptura. If this article gets one person trapped in religious tradition to compare what they are told with what scripture actually tells us then it has done what I set out to do. There is so much freedom in Christ that is not found in the yoke of religiosity. My hope is that some would read this and be encouraged to be like the Bereans in Acts 17. The people in Berea didn't just believe Paul, but weighed everything he said in light of the Word. I pray that people would run to scripture to see if what I am saying is true here. I'm not asking anybody to just listen to me. I am nobody. Check it against God's Living Word. Do that with what you hear at church, from your priest, from your traditions. If what you are being told doesn't align with scripture, ask yourself "why am I doing this?"

The bottom line is if your focus is not on Christ and bringing glory to God then the mark has been missed already. To worship an idol, whether it is Mary or any other person or thing that takes the place of God in your heart, is a direct violation of the 1st Commandment. Mary could have been anyone...well, any female virgin, from the beginning of time until now. But Christ is eternal. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him and by Him. Jesus was the one prophesied about specifically to be born of a virgin(any virgin) and has been part of the plan from the foundation of all the universe. That's why He has to be our focus. Christ came as God in the flesh and died for the sins of the world. If we repent and trust in Him alone for salvation we will be saved.

What I Really Meant to Say

Hebrews 9:27

English Standard Version (ESV)

²⁷ And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes love,

Now it doesn't take an expert in theology or hermeneutics to recognize what is wrong in the above scripture. But for the sake of those who are young in the faith, I'll give you a few more seconds....

Got it yet? Of course you do! Judgment has been replaced by the word love. That little four letter word makes all the difference in the world in that verse. Wouldn't it be great to die and then just be loved? Unfortunately, God's Word does, in fact say judgment in Hebrews 9:27. The Greek word used here is krisis. It means: decision(subjectively or objectively, for or against);by extension, a tribunal; by implication, justice(especially divine law):-accusation, condemnation, damnation, judgment.

No love to be found in this verse no matter how much we want it to be there. R.C. Sproul has a great quote. “You are required to believe, to preach, and to teach what the Bible says is true, not what you want the Bible to say is true.” Why all the fuss you might ask? Well more and more the gospel message is being watered down with a "love only" message and a "Love Wins" mindset. This dangerous line of thinking erases words like judgment and hell from peoples thoughts, cares, and fears. Granted, many get carried away with wrath and judgment, all the while ignoring love and grace. Of course there has to be a balance. But listen, if your child is running towards a speeding bus, you will not calmly say "Stop. We love you. Come back to us." I hope that you would run, frantically screaming, warning the child about the bus and their imminent death. I would. Charles Spurgeon said, "If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for."

And that's what we have to do with lost sinners. Implore them, warn them, pray for them. There is no reason to run from love to love. There is plenty of reason to run from judgment under the Law of God into the loving arms of Jesus Christ however. Let's look at another commonly overlooked verse in the gospel of John. See how fast you can spot the error.

John 3:36

English Standard Version (ESV)

³⁶ Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the love of God remains on him.

The love of God does not remain on an unregenerate sinner no matter how much we want to believe that. The verse actually says that it is God's wrath that remains. How the church body has gotten so far away from the actual message is beyond me. We broke God's Law, Jesus paid our fine. False gospels abound in spite of the actual biblical message. Yet none of these false gospels do anyone any good for they are no gospel at all(Galatians 1:5-7). If we go around not giving people the whole story, we are no better than the cults, who by the way, are way more obedient to spreading their news than the church is of sharing the good news of Jesus.

People love themselves enough to last them a lifetime. It's part of our fallen state. To reinforce that they are loved by God in their current condition could only serve to uphold their own self-righteousness. Sinners need to be brought to conviction under God's Law so that they will be humbled and broken by their sin. They need to see their need for a Savior. They need a reason to run. Telling them that God loves them the way they are encourages them to nestle comfortably in their sin. It allows them to continue enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season. If they die in that sin, whether we want God's Word to say it or not, these sinners will end up in Hell. For an eternity they get to think about the person who told them that God loved them as they burn continually. Wow. What a thought huh? We don't have a lot of time on this Earth. For the glory of God, let's at least get the gospel right while we are here. The bus is coming. It's out of control. The child is running. Your choice. Tell him he's loved or tell him he's about to die an awful death. Think about it.

Hebrews 9:27

English Standard Version (ESV)

²⁷ And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Unknown Pursuer

Ryan Messenger took one last look out the front door of his third story New York apartment building before gently easing it closed. Not content that he hadn’t missed someone lurking behind him in the long apartment hallway, he opened the only thing between himself and the outside world one more time, as if to satisfy a case of OCD he didn’t really have, then took the time to secure the multiple locks. Such was the paranoia in New York anyhow but today Ryan couldn’t shake the feeling that he had been followed to his 45^th Street abode. The light from the kitchen made a path from the front door back to it's source but that didn’t stop Ryan from tripping over Patches, his cat, as he made his way towards the refrigerator. Ryan, on edge from the sense of being followed anyhow, screamed a couple expletives at his cat of 7 years before finally making it into the kitchen. Ryan was culinary challenged so his kitchen was really only a kitchen in the sense that it had a stove, a refrigerator, a microwave, and a set of knives given to him as a housewarming gift. In reality it was an over-sized beer storage center and he went for the central hub now. He reached past the milk that could have easily passed for cottage cheese if you saw it or maggots having a cookout if you smelled it, and started to grab the last Sam Adams Lager. Just then the phone rang cutting through the silence of the dwelling like a surgeon’s scalpel cuts skin. Ryan, startled, hastily reared his head and smacked the back of it on the bottom of the freezer. He cursed under his breath and went over to the wall to answer it. Why he still had a landline phone was beyond him. Ryan only ever used his smart phone so, unless he just wanted to call 911 and not reach the Highway Patrol, his home phone was completely unnecessary. He looked at the phone’s caller ID. “UNKOWN CALLER’. “Hello?” Ryan answered. Long silence. “Hello?”

Finally after another short absence of noise, the silence on the other end was broken. “LIARRRRRRRR!” “What? Who is this?” Ryan demanded. “LIARRRRRRRRRR!” This time the word was emitted in more of a shriek that caused Ryan to drop the phone and back pedal towards the dining area. He tripped over the rug in the doorway. The turquoise colored Navajo styled floor covering caused Ryan to fall and hit his back on the table. Ryan fell to the floor in pain. He scooted towards the wall and leaned against it, giving momentary relief to his lower back area. The comfort didn’t last long. The word liar was being repeated over the phone’s handset, loud enough for Ryan to still hear though the phone was eight feet away from where he now sat. His heart began to beat fast and loud. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. He couldn’t calm down. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!! Only that wasn’t his heart. It was a booming sound coming from the front door that seemed to echo his over-revved heart. As Ryan made his way to the door he flipped on all the lights along the way, revealing what could not be seen before. A mostly clean apartment, decorated in a southwestern theme that matched the rug that had seemingly grabbed him in the kitchen. For someone who would consider himself not clumsy, Ryan’s two mishaps in just minutes were a bit unnerving. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. He didn’t have time to consider his new found shortcomings. A look toward the door terrified him. Hadn’t he locked it already? There was now nothing to keep whatever was banging on the door from coming in. Perhaps it was in already. The thought nearly stopped him in his tracks. Ryan in an instant thought it better to be safe than sorry and ran to lock the door.

The third set of booming knocks came just as Ryan had finished locking the third lock. He turned, bolted away from the door and clambered over the couch. As he looked back toward his only legitimate exit, the lights in his small, overpriced New York apartment flickered then went out. Ryan had had enough. He ran to his room where he kept a 9mm pistol in the upper right corner of his closet, above where his extensive comic book collection resided. He reached up, grabbed the Px4 Storm and verified that it was ready to go. Confident that he was now prepared to take on whoever had been following him, Ryan retraced his steps back through the darkened dwelling. A light orange glow had settled in the living room from what was left of the daylight as well as some scattered outside lighting. Was his the only apartment that didn’t have power? Ryan flipped the hallway switch to be certain. Nothing. He continued into the living room and his right foot caught the corner of his computer chair. The chair swiveled and bumped the keyboard tray causing the mouse to move slightly. Ryan’s computer monitor came to life. A black background with the word “ADULTERER” in bright red was now displayed on the unpowered screen. “How in the-“? The thought only dwelled in his synapses for an instant as he caught movement out of his left eye. Ryan turned quickly and brought his Beretta pistol to bear and squeezed the trigger. The sound of the gunshot was promptly replaced by the shattering of his street facing window. Ryan’s heart skipped a beat in panic. He knew that he had to get out of this apartment. The walls seemed to be closing in all around him. He needed to regain his composure. Ryan finally settled down a bit and got control of his thoughts. Who was this that was after him? Who would be calling a good person like Ryan a liar and an adulterer? Ryan’s reassurance of his own goodness gave him new buoyancy. Whoever it was had to have the wrong guy. And with this new confidence that his pursuer had to be following the wrong trail, a fresh found courage was born. Ryan called upon this audacity and proceeded to the front door and unlocked it.

Ryan slowly lost his nerve again as he pulled the door back and extended his gun out into the pitch black hallway. If there was someone or something there, he wouldn’t have been able to see. He couldn’t even see the polymer gun in his hand for the black background. Ryan had been so flustered that he had forgotten about the tactical light that hung from the Storm’s picatinny rail. Light filled the hallway as Ryan switched it to the ON position. No immediate threat directly in front of him. Ryan came out from the relative safety that the half open door had afforded him and he entered the hallway. He swung the deadly light in both directions. There was nothing in either direction that he could see. Figuring the elevator to not be in working condition, he went to the right. He proceeded cautiously to the end of the hallway where the emergency stairs, he hoped, waited to grant his escape from whatever predator was after him. Ryan reached the door, pushed down on the handle and tried to pull it open. The door did not budge though there were no locks or restrictions to be found. Ryan ran back towards his apartment using his tactical light to ensure that he stayed in the center of the hallway to avoid tripping over a potted plant or an obligatory “Welcome” mat. Past the door of his apartment he ran and stopped in horror as he realized the elevator was open and waiting for him. A lucky coincidence on any other day but with the power out it made Ryan’s skin become like gooseflesh. Finally he stepped in and pushed the button marked “L”. He was as low as he could get, yet he made the descent to be sure.

The doors slowly opened as a slight ding sound overcame the terrible Michael Bolton cover song. Maybe it was Kenny G. Either way he was glad to be free from the barrage on his ears. At least the music had momentarily distracted him from thinking about what was actually going on. Escape. He rounded the fountain in the lobby area and strode towards the front door. He slipped on something in the darkened lobby. It was still early, a little after 6pm, but Daylight Savings time was over and there was barely a hint of light coming in to help his vision. Re-establishing his footing, he shone the light to reveal a word written in red liquid. Murderer He turned quickly as he heard a sound from behind him where the elevator was. It had slammed shut. He panned the lobby with his gun, the light revealing the same word, murderer, written multiple times on every wall, on the floor, the ceiling and even on the fountain. Ryan wasted no more time. He ran towards the front double front doors and went through them with a crash, rolling nearly all the way to the street. He lost hold of his pistol somewhere between the doors and the curb so he went back to retrieve it before finally running East. He found a taxi cab with the engine running about a block down. The driver had probably had run into the corner liquor store for smokes. Ryan didn’t care why the driver was gone or where he was. He slid into the driver’s seat and took off. He drove in circles for a bit around the confined city roads before pulling over in front of the Mid Manhattan Library at Bryant Park.

He set the Px4 storm on the passenger seat and leaned his head back. Then the terror set in again. Whatever it is that is chasing him is not human. It couldn’t be! Ryan’s now wide eyes revealed to his brain the word “THIEF” which was scratched into the smelly cab’s roof liner just above his head! He bolted from the car in sheer panic and ran up the steps to the doors of the library. He had hoped some sort of safety would be waiting behind the entrance. Ryan must have forgotten that the library, which was normally open until 8pm, closed at 6pm on Saturdays. Safety would have to be found elsewhere. He turned back around to where he had left the taxi waiting but it was gone. Stolen? Vanished? Natural? Supernatural? What was going on? Ryan took off running through the park. His footsteps could hardly keep up with the pace of his heartbeat. His chest felt as if it would explode. That’s when he heard them. The sounds of footsteps close behind him. These ones were keeping up with his racy heart. That only meant one thing. Whatever or whoever it was, was gaining on him. “O my-“He didn’t have time to finish his blasphemous expletive. Fire erupted in front of Ryan. He had to stop regardless of what pursued him. As the wall of flame died down a piercing word came in from behind him. It sounded so horrible, like a million mosquitoes hitting a high powered bug zapper at once. “Blasphemer!!” Ryan bolted away from the sound, leaping over the settled down flame. As he looked down, he realized that the word blasphemer had not only been verbalized but it was also burnt into the nicely manicured park lawn.

The footsteps behind him started again. Ryan went for his hand gun. Maybe he could keep his pursuer at bay with a few warning shots. Ryan could have done just that if the Px4 was actually on his person. He had left it in the cab that had disappeared!! All hope was lost in Ryan’s mind. He made his way to the tall building in front of him still being pursued by who or whatever was chasing him. As impossible as it seemed, Ryan had to get away from this monster. In through the front door he went, up the stairwell, all the way to the roof. This was it. He had nowhere to go. Ryan rounded the edges of the top of the building looking for any alternatives. Across the skyline you could hardly see where the buildings ended and the cool night sky began. It was almost serene. Finally a billboard caught his eye. “Idolater” was the sole word written on the illuminated sign. The door to the stair well crashed closed. Ryan looked towards the only way back out that had just been closed off to him. The door had words written it. Liar. Adulterer. Murderer. Thief. Blasphemer. Idolater. Ryan had only a couple feet between him and the edge of the building. The footsteps were coming at him now in a slow, eerie, march of doom. Ryan must have misjudged how much room he had left on the perilous rooftop because his calves hit on the small wall that lined the top of this building’s roof. As Ryan stumbled he reached back to try to brace himself but could not. He went over and, as it always has since the beginning of time, gravity worked. Ryan flew towards the concrete below, now screaming. “I’m good!!” “I’m not guilty!!” He thought he could hear a final shout from his pursuer who looked down at Ryan, reaching out a hand as if he was there to save him the whole time. “I. Bear. Witness!” The ground was coming faster now.Ryan could see the cracks in the sidewalk. Nothing could save him now. Time. For. Impact.

Ryan’s head jerked back from the pillow as it hit, and then laid itself back down in the puddle of warm drool. Ryan shook off the experience, rolled over, and sat up in his bed. Who hasn’t had the dream where you are falling? The problem was that Ryan had had that dream every night for the past week after his best friend died at age 32. The realization that someone can die at any time had haunted him over this past 7 days. He saw his friend as invincible. He thought the same of himself. He knew better now. But the dreams. Tonight was the first night that the dream of falling had been accompanied by the chase. Ryan thought about that. After a moment’s reflection, he realized exactly who that pursuer was now. The Unknown Pursuer had revealed itself. Yesterday Ryan had sat and listened to a street preacher up on a box talking. The preacher talked about the exact words from Ryan’s dream. The man, about Ryan’s age talked about God’s Holiness and about Judgment. About how if you have told a lie, you are a liar and that all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire according to the Bible. The preacher talked of how even lust was adultery and hatred was murder. No thief would inherit the Kingdom of Heaven and God will not hold anyone blameless who misuses His name. Ryan never argued that he had ever put God first in his life but he let the preacher know before heading home that he was a good person and was not guilty of breaking any Law of God though the evidence was clearly stacked against him. The pursuer in his dream was his conscience. There was no doubt about that in light of the conversation with the man on the street. The conscience is not something he could escape from because it’s inside him. Chasing him down from the inside and reminding him of his guilt. Letting Ryan know that the “all” in, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” applies to him as well as every other person in the world.

Ryan didn’t want to endure this haunting dream every night. The fall was bad enough but the chase. The chase was insufferable. It was terrifying to him. What had the preacher said Ryan needed to do? Repent and believe the Gospel? To turn from sin and trust that God sent His Son Jesus, fully God and fully man to live a perfect life and then die on the cross for Ryan’s sins. To believe that He rose again on the third day, defeating sin and death so that he could have eternal life and escape the punishment due to him in Hell. Ryan realized from the preacher’s words and through his dream that he wasn’t good enough to go to Heaven on his own merit. He had broken every one of God’s commandments and would indeed be guilty if he were to die and be judged today. His own conscience bore witness that he was guilty before a Holy God. He knew that now. Ryan turned from sin and trusted in Christ’s finished work on the cross. The dreams, nightmares really, stopped. Ryan was never chased by his conscience again. The Unknown Pursuer was still with Ryan but it was now unmasked and a welcome friend. God had taken his sin from him as far as the East is from the West. Sleep well Ryan Messenger. Sleep well.

Romans 2:15-16

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹⁵ They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them ¹⁶ on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

Faith in Practice-Start the Year Off Right

For those who read by pictures you might think that I am implying that you run off with a kid that is not yours to start the new year. Um....no. That child is supposed to be Mephibosheth and he gives us a great example in scripture of how our heart attitude should be. What do I mean? We all throw around quotes from Jesus and the Bible like, "My grace is sufficient for you" or "considering others more significant than yourselves" or even about "being heirs of God with Christ". That all sounds great but do we really do that when it comes down to it? Mephibosheth did. We are talking about a kid who's father and grandfather died in battle. He was dropped by his nurse after she hastily tried to flee with him upon hearing about their deaths rendering his legs lame. He was taken in by David only to be later betrayed and slandered by Ziba who was given all that belonged to Mephibosheth! In spite of all of this, Mephibosheth maintained the correct attitude; one that we should be mindful of. After he had cleared his name with King David, Mephibosheth was going to be restored and given back all that he had lost as a result of Ziba's lies. What did he do? He actually considered "others more significant" and let Ziba keep it all!! Can you imagine? Look at his attitude and what he says to the King in verse 28. "All my grandfather’s descendants deserved nothing but death from my lord the king, but you gave your servant a place among those who eat at your table. So what right do I have to make any more appeals to the king?” Shouldn't our attitude be the same. Aren't we also deserving of nothing but death and an eternity in hell, wretched sinners that we are? Think Ananias and Saphira(Ever told a lie?). But God has brought us in and given us a place at His table through His Son Jesus Christ. So when we go through an uncomfortable spot in life and like Paul are asking for it to be removed let's remember how bad Mephibosheth had it. Let's remember how "My grace is sufficient for you" was put into practice by someone who didn't even know the Lord Jesus. If we truly do know Jesus Christ, no "light momentary affliction" should move us to complain or feel sorry for ourselves in light of the fact that we are adopted heirs and have a place at the King of kings' table reserved for us in Heaven. So my New Years resolution and my prayer for you...Do all things without grumbling or questioning and to know nothing but Christ and Him crucified. These two things will go a long way in letting your light shine before men so that God in Heaven would be glorified. SDG!

Romans 8:16-18

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Recommended Reading December 2011

I just finished reading this book, "The Intentional Spiritual Life", that my good buddy Ben sent me. It is written by a brother in Christ by the name of Paul Yanchek. Paul, is the pastor at Lighthouse Alliance Church in Ohio and he has by the grace of God written an amazing book that should not be overlooked. Now that being said, be warned. If there is any lukewarmness in you or a lack of desire or effort to spend time with the Lord each day, The Intentional Spiritual Life WILL make you squirm in your chair. It WILL make you mad at times. It WILL make you want to throw it, rip it, trash it, or worse. This book is intended to make you yearn daily to want to grow in your relationship with Christ. It succeeds and the end result of spending more time with Jesus is surely more than enough to overcome a little discomfort while you read through these 10 chapters. If you don't think so, this book is definitely for you. Paul does an amazing job at presenting the idea of discipline in time spent with the Lord without being legalistic. He gives many scriptural references to back up his encouragements to believers who would take the challenge to read his book, all the while emphasizing the grace of God through it all. It's not a flashy title. All your friends haven't read it. It's not a New York Times bestseller. But if you, like Paul, look around and look at yourself and wonder why,"Only 15% of born-again Christians recently surveyed stated that their relationship with God is their top priority in life", then this book could be what you are looking for. I would recommend buying two so that you will have an accountability partner to help you through the challenges presented in this writing. You can get your copy by clicking here. Leave us a comment after you've read it and let us know what you think! Blessings, Virg/SaulBecomesPaul.

Hebrews 5:12-14

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹² For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, ¹³ for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. ¹⁴ But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

August/September Recommended Reading-Slave

Ben, our very own Death is Gain, sent me this book last month and I am finally getting around to reading it. To be honest I had a hard time putting it down even to write this. Slave, by John MacArthur, is an amazing look at what it truly means to have Jesus as the Master of your life. Of course if He is the Master, that necessarily makes His followers slaves. This book looks at all of that and it also takes time to look at some of the history of the Reformation. Please take the time to check out this book and find out what your true identity in Christ is today! There is also a study guide that allows slave to be used in a small group setting. If you are involved in some sort of shepherd group this would be a great book to go through together! Below are some links to where you can pick up your copy! Hope that it blesses you as it has me, Virg.


Christianbook.com

Grace to you

Berean

Romans 6:19

Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

I am using a human analogy because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you offered the parts of yourselves as slaves to moral impurity, and to greater and greater lawlessness, so now offer them as slaves to righteousness, which results in sanctification.

Tears Like Rain

The first drop hit her blue jeans. It didn't even have to time to spread out across the surrounding denim threads before the next one hit just an inch away on her right thigh. Almost simultaneously her left leg found itself in the storm of tears. I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. She reached up to stop the outpouring of sorrow in water form but two hands just weren't enough. It was like trying to put a piece of gum in the Hoover Dam to plug up an 8" hole. No one had ever seen the ten year old girl so upset before. As her parents, we tried to comfort her but the words barely seemed to help. God is sovereign. Her shoulders shook as she continued to try to be brave and hold back tears. She looked up at mom and me and gave a brave nod as we further explained the situation to our young girl. Lean not on your own understanding. Even though she had great understanding for a girl of her age, the sadness in her face began to intensify as the tears again slid down her long black eyelashes. What could incite this kind of reaction in a girl of only ten years? Was her fish found floating in the $9.99 tank from Petco? Did her favorite doll break after years of not being played with? Was she grounded from games and TV for a week? Surely those were too petty to get this upset about even for a fifth grader. Did a family member die? Once to die, then judgment. A close friend? Was someone in the hospital? As she ran to the bathroom to get some tissue, I thought that I had followed close behind to comfort. It was however, to learn. Make me know your ways, O Lord. I was amazed at the amount of tears one could emit at one time. Jesus wept. As I talked, she responded only with sobs and even more teardrops. It was then that I realized I was looking at the example. My eyes watered, my heart ached and I truly understood that I was witnessing the archetype for how every Christian should react if they had received the news that she just did. She reacted like Jesus would have. He knows the Truth, he just doesn't want to follow it. Someone she loves isn't saved.

When Great Work Goes Unsaved

Imagine working on a super important project for work, or school, or let's say even just for fun. You put hours, days, maybe perhaps years of research into this depending on what it is. It doesn't really matter whether it's a spreadsheet, a slideshow, or even just a Word document. What matters is the time and effort that has gone into your task. You feel great about the great things you have done to get this project in order. The idea has flowed from your brain to your computer screen better than you could have ever intended it to. You have found the perfect quotes, pictures, and anecdotes to go with your ideas. You hit spell check and find that, as usual, there are no squiggly red lines under any words. Everything is spelled correctly. There are no green squigglies to indicate run-on sentences or fragments. Just as you begin to pat yourself on the back and reflect on how great you are, the screen goes black. Your computer begins to smoke. The computer just died and all of your work with it. You look down at the Lexar 16gb USB flash drive with the horrible realization. "I never saved."

Now for a moment picture your life as your work. Maybe you have lived a great life. Masters degree on the wall. You don't drink. You don't swear. You've never been to jail. Never even gotten as much as a parking ticket. You go work at homeless shelters a couple times a month and even swing by church on Christmas and Easter or to light an occasional candle or two. The final "period" of your work is the Ugandan refugee boy that you adopted last year. Your self righteousness is at an all time high. The world just looks at you and says, "man, that is one great person!" If there was a "spell check" of life, yours would be devoid of any red marks. You of course pat yourself on the back in agreement. The drunk driver that just t-boned your car isn't impressed. Now your computer screen goes black. Life is over. Your good works didn't save you as indicated by the flames, anguish and screams of torment. Hell is real and you and the other people who thought good was good enough are there, wondering why.

Hell is the destiny, sadly, for many people who the world would consider "good". This fiery Eternity is also the end result for people in works based religious systems. As sad as it may seem, being good and doing good works and being religious just won't cut it on our day in Eternal Court. We are not going to be able to bribe the Judge with our righteous deeds, kind acts, and religious fulfillment of duties on Judgment Day. The only way to satisfy God's wrath is the only Way He gave us. Jesus Christ. John 14:6 tells us, "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." He makes no mention of any other "way" to the Father. There is no "auto save". You are not going to Heaven because your mom is a Christian or because you fed the homeless. You are not going to get past the pearly gates by way of infant baptism, ashes on your forehead once a year or flying a plane into a building. All of those are religious "duties" and none are sufficient. Remember what Jesus told the religious people of his day after He gave the list of righteous activities they would display for him. "Depart from me, all you workers of evil." Why is this the case? Because it doesn't matter if you like to go to Church once in a while to make yourself feel better. It won't matter if you've fed every homeless person from Los Angeles to Amarillo if you have ever told one lie. Even a lie, which is minor in human estimation, is punishable by the Lake of Fire according to the Bible. If you use your eyes to look with lust, that is adultery according to Jesus. Hatred is murder according to 1 John 3:15. These are just 3 of the 10 Commandments. We are all guilty regardless of whatever good deeds we have done or how religious we are.

Now some are going to say, "doesn't the Bible say that faith without works is dead?" Well yes, yes it does. What this means is that you should do good things if you are saved so that you will be known as a Christ follower by your fruit, not because you will be saved by doing them. So how does one get saved? Repentance and faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross as the payment for your sins. God will accept no religious filler or bribes as a substitute for His perfect sacrificial Lamb, Jesus. Ten out of every ten people die. That is the ultimate statistic. Don't get to this black screen of life without being saved at the end. Ask forgiveness. Confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead. Repent and believe the Gospel. Read your Bible daily and obey what it says.

Job 34:25

English Standard Version (ESV)

Thus, knowing their works,
he overturns them in the night, and they are crushed.(italics added)

3 Questions

Two Fridays ago, our Kindred outreach went to the Gardenwalk out here in Anaheim California. This is a great place to witness because it has a sidewalk near the street that is public property. This means that we are able to freely hand out tracts, have great one to one conversations, and even do some open air preaching without getting chased out by security. I got to speak to a man named James who had been, as he called it, "out of the game" for a while. The conversation went really well. I also got to talk with David, who believed but wasn't quite living for the Lord. That also went pretty good. There were a few others that I talked to but one person still stands out to me. A big teddy bear looking guy named Sean. As I saw him walking towards me, I handed him a million dollar bill tract. He looked at it and knew what it was. He informed me that he had rejected the message on the back of the bill some time ago and that he was in a hurry to meet a friend for dinner at a nearby restaurant. So I asked him if I could as him three questions before he ran off. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Would you consider yourself to be a good person?
Sean: Yes
Me: Have you ever told a lie?
Sean: Yes

Timeout. So at this point I realized I only had one question left. I then told him that it might be more like 6-8 questions, to which he said, "hey now you're lying!" We both started laughing and I reiterated that I would stick to my original three questions, as promised.

Me: What do you call someone who tells lies?
Sean: A liar

Me: Ok Sean, the Bible says that all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire. It also tells us that if you try to keep the Law but stumble at one point you are guilty of breaking all of it.

I proceeded to tell him what God did so that did not have to happen. That Jesus Christ lived a perfect life but took our sins on Himself and died on a cross. Three days later He rose again, defeating death so that if we repent and trust in Him we won't perish but will have everlasting life.

Sean did not start weeping over his sins but he did shake my hand, thank me, and even folded the tract and put it in his front pocket. I wanted to share this with you guys so that you will have a way to get the good news to a person who is in a hurry and even use the Law to show them their need. The conversation lasted literally no more than two minutes and Sean was able to meet his friend at the restaurant right after we talked.

Final Thought: Why does lying make me a murderer, adulterer, blasphemer, idolator, and covetous person? How is it fair that if I break one commandment, it's like breaking all of them? Well Greg Crouse, fellow team leader, said it best during his open air preaching. Imagine hanging over a pit of fire from a chain made of ten links. Your handle is hooked to the bottom link. Does it really matter which one you cut? No! Any of the ten links of the chain, if broken, will make you fall. And that is the point. We are all sinners in God's eye and apart from repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, God's wrath abides on us. Some of you are hanging over the Lake of Fire today. Which link(s) are gonna cause you to fall into it? You don't have to fall. Jesus took the sins of the world upon Himself because God doesn't want anyone to perish. He will catch you. All you have to do is ask. Repent and trust in Jesus. Get down from that chain today and fall into the hands of the loving savior.

James 2:10

English Standard Version (ESV)

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

Lunatic or Son of God?

‘I am trying to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: "I am ready to accept Jesus as the great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on a level with the man who says he is a boiled egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.’-C.S. Lewis

I love that quote by C.S. Lewis. Everyone wants to change who Jesus is. The Muslims say He was a prophet. Jehovah's Witnesses say He was the Archangel Michael. Mormons believe He is the spirit brother of Satan. The world will tolerate Him as a good teacher. Think of your favorite teacher? Mine was Mrs. Goode in 5th grade. Ever think your teacher was so good of a teacher that you should nail them to a cross? So like Mr. Lewis said there's only a couple options here. Jesus was God in flesh and took the sins of the world upon Himself or He was out of His mind. We truly aren't give a lot of choice here. You can't just change who He says He is. You can choose(with your God-given free will) not to believe Him but who are we to change someones identity for them? He even gives us warning of this in the Gospel of John. Chapter 8:24 says, "I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins." The minute Jesus claimed Deity and accepted worship, He took away our options. He could no longer be considered a good, moral person if He was lying about being God and being blasphemous by accepting worship. It just doesn't work. The underlying problem is sin and the one found in the midst of all this is idolatry. It's a matter of people wanting God on their terms and making one to fit their own needs. Jehovah's witnesses don't believe that their god will send someone to Hell. That's because that god doesn't exist. If Jesus wasn't God and was just one of the prophets, then the Muslims would have a leg to stand on with Muhammad and likewise the Mormons with Joseph Smith. But Jesus was fully God and fully Man and that being the case, no other "prophets" would be necessary would they? God sacrificing Himself should be sufficient right? These other added options are all products of the 2nd Commandment. The God of the Bible has laid out the terms in His Word, not to be added to or taken away from. He told us there would be a Messiah, born of a virgin in Bethlehem, who would be bruised and pierced for us. That's the Jesus I believe in. God in flesh, the perfect sacrifice for my sins-every lie, theft, and lustful look. Who is your Jesus? Lunatic or Son of God?

1 John 5:21 (New International Version)

²¹Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

Want Ad

Looking for people to follow Jesus. Payment is trials, tribulation, persecution, and sometimes martyrdom. However you will get to go to Heaven and escape the fires of Hell for Eternity in spite of every sin you've ever committed thanks to God's grace. We used to be able to keep this position filled because evangelists preached the full Gospel message of the Law, future Judgment, punishment, repentance, faith, love and grace. Applicants never lost sight of the fact that their sins were forgiven and they would go to Heaven upon death. These days those that make commitments to Christ fall away because of modern gospel promises of wonderful plans and gifts of the Spirit, not realizing that being a follower of Him is about righteousness and not their happiness. When the previously mentioned trials and tribulations happened they saw the wonderful plan message as a lie so they thought Jesus did not work for them. As quick as they were to accept this position, they quit just as fast. Serious applicants should evaluate themselves against God's Law, the 10 Commandments. If you see every lie, theft, and lustful look you've ever committed as exceedingly sinful and punishable by Hell like the Bible says and that concerns you, apply today by asking God for forgiveness, then repent and put your faith and trust in Jesus. Applicants should be willing to read their Bibles daily and obey what it says. This position is available freely to all who humble themselves and repent and trust in Jesus but don't wait because 10/10 people die and you don't know when it's your turn.

Luke 9:62 (New International Version)

⁶²Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Play Ball!!!

Babe Ruth is one of the most famous baseball players in history. I came across a quote of his this morning that I wanted to share with you guys. This baseball legend was quoted as saying, "Yesterday's home runs don't win today's games." Maybe you used to be in the Word every day. Maybe you spent quality time in prayer when you came to know Jesus. Perhaps you shared your faith on a regular basis. What happened? Is Jesus any less worthy of your fellowship, obedience and worship? Did Jesus change? Nope, the bible says in Hebrews 13 that 'Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.' The more likely verdict is that you changed in how you regard to Him. You don't value time reading the Living Word of God, the Bible. You don't see the point of praying anymore. You most likely don't share your faith because, being out of fellowship, you don't feel equipped or worthy to like you may have before. What's even worse is that maybe you are a stony ground hearer as found in Matthew 13. Verses 20-21 explain, 'The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.' Sticking with a baseball theme, below is a scoreboard and how this would look in Babe Ruth's world.

____________ 1__2__3__4__5__6__7__8__9____Final
Good Soil _____ 1__1___1__1___1__1___1___1__1______9
Stoney Grounds_ 8__0__0__0___0__ 0___0___0__0_____8

As you can see, the stony ground hearer described in Matthew jumps out to a great early lead but falls away and in the end and loses the game. The person who's seed fell on good soil played a solid, consistent game and come out victorious. I want you guys to think about which one you are. Did you come to Jesus because He saved you from an eternity in Hell in spite of your sins? Or did you come to Jesus for wonderful plans and promises of a better game(life) and when that didn't happen you stopped going up to bat? Have you forsaken your first love like Jesus said to the church in Revelation chapter 2? Was He ever your first love to begin with? If that's the case and you are not truly grateful to Jesus and you don't love Jesus today like the first day you believed, today I want you to think about why Jesus died. We broke God's Law and He paid our fine. Repent and Trust in Him alone for salvation today. Don't rest on a great first inning or even John 3:16 and then call it quits. Get in the game. Get back in the Word. Pray. Witness. Return to your first love so you never have to hear, "Depart from Me, I never knew you." That would be the ultimate strike out.

Revelation 2:4 (New International Version)

⁴Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.

Immediate Obedience

I was reading through the Gospel of Mark today and a verse jumped out at me. Mark chapter 5 verses 18-20 read, 'As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.' This man was saved from so much and he showed how much he appreciated his salvation from demon possession by being immediately obedient to the Lord. Are we saved from any less? Is being saved from the flames of Hell and the weeping and gnashing of teeth any less worthy of our faithful gratitude towards Jesus? Amazingly only about 2% of people saved from a terrible eternity in Hell go and tell people what Jesus has done for them. That's an amazingly low number of people who actually care enough about the lost to share the gospel with them. What's more amazing is the the 98% of "believers" who refuse to obey the 2000+ year old standing order of the Lord to go out and make disciples (Mark 16:15). It reminds me of the Songs of the Lukewarm Church listed on wayofthemaster.com and that modern gospel hit, "It's my Secret What God Can Do." Do you fear sharing because you don't know enough? Did this man in Mark 5 have time to read the Bible or take an online course before sharing? Did the woman at the well go through some extensive evangelism academy? Absolutely not! They were just so grateful to God that they just had to let people know what He had done for them. What's keeping you from doing the same? Stephen went to the grave to share the gospel in the book of Acts yet 98% of the modern day supposed Church won't even go next door to give their neighbor the Good News. I was in the lifeboat praising the Captain(Jesus) but not obeying His command to reach down and save the people drowning in the water just last year guys. It's a stagnant existence for a believer. Don't be like the pre-crucifixion Peter who followed Jesus at a distance. Be like the Peter in the book of Acts who preached the gospel and was on the front lines for the Lord. Don't be cold in this aspect of your faith. Be on fire with a passion for the unsaved. Be like our Lord and Savior who came to seek and save that which was lost. Let Him be your example. Don't wait for anything and let nothing get the way of sharing your faith with someone today. Obey Him immediately.

Revelation 3:16 (New International Version)

¹⁶So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.