Posts Tagged ‘Jesus’

Communication Strategies in Ministry

Posted: March 6, 2015 in Biblical, Books, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Covenant, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Lutheran, Ministry, Pentecostal, Preaching, Presbyterian, Protestant, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, universal
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Strategies

Communication Strategies in Ministry

I graduated from Crown College with a BS degree in Christian Ministry.  I have learned the essential skills necessary for the communication of the Gospel and biblical truths through a variety of available mediums (this one included). I am studying current mediums for communication, using the basic principles of exegesis and hermeneutics, strategies for effective communication, and preaching. I hope to be further equipped to formulate an effective communication philosophy and strategy for ministry.

Finding a mentor, to me, was like looking for the holy grail. I know what I was looking for, but the search was not uncovering my mentor. You see, I live 70 miles from the church I attend. My wife and I minister there. She plays piano for worship sometimes, teaches children’s church, and I have supplied the pulpit several times. Our pastor left to take another church, so I could not use him as my mentor resource. I visited several churches in the town where I live. I got to know two of the pastors and haven’t really been in communication with them for a while. I was afraid to ask them for their help. Who likes rejection? I did not even consider dropping this course on account of this hunt for my holy mentor. I prayed and agonized about what to do. So, I am sitting here in my office, and the Lord prompted me to send an email to both of the pastors. What have I got to lose? My grade, my GPA, all my effort! Thanks be to God! He does provide and He does supply all our needs. I found a holy mentor! We had our meeting, and he signed the agreement! So, onward, and upward. Whew.

I believe, like Luther and Calvin, that my salvation is totally monergistic. All God, and none of me! However, when I became a Christian, born again, regenerated, transformed by the Holy Spirit, my interaction with God became synergistic. God tells me what to do, and I am supposed to do it! However, even if that is the case, God’s Word tells me that “it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13 (NRSV) Even though my relationship with God is interactive, He still helps me. He doesn’t leave me without what I need to live in union and communion with Him. He enables me, He enables my will, and He enables my effort. Why? All for His good pleasure. Our wills and our actions are the very arenas where God’s own power is working. His grace still amazes me.

How does this relate to communication strategies? Well, did you get a picture while reading this story? Did you see me as one of Monty Python’s characters riding a stick pony along the wooded landscape? Did you picture me going along hill and dale until I finally came upon that glorious email sent from above saying, “sure I’d be glad to sit down and talk with you about this?” If you did, that’s awesome. If you didn’t, was my communication strategy working? Did you get another picture in your mind while reading this? Either way, the point is that there are many means to communicate – and this blog is one of the means that I use to present the Gospel to a lost and dying world. It works for me.

Application? Always trust in the Lord. Always trust Him for anything and everything. Jesus said that if we ask anything according to God’s will, our prayers will be answered. God will provide the means to accomplish the task He has assigned to you. That says a lot about the content of our prayer…. but hey, that’s another sermon!

Himself

Posted: June 25, 2014 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, life, Liturgical, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, sanctification, Scriptural, universal
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Jesus

Once it was the blessing, Now it is the Lord;
Once it was the feeling, Now it is His Word.
Once His gifts I wanted, Now the Giver own;
Once I sought for healing, Now Himself alone.

Once was painful trying, Now is perfect trust;
Once a half salvation, Now the uttermost.
Once was ceaseless holding, Now He holds me fast;
Once was constant drifting, Now my anchor’s cast.

Once was busy planning, Now is trustful prayer;
Once was anxious caring, Now He has the care.
Once was what I wanted, Now what Jesus says;
Once was constant asking, Now is ceaseless praise.

Once it was my working, His it hence shall be;
Once I tried to use Him, Now He uses me.
Once the power I wanted, Now the Mighty One;
Once for self I labored, Now for Him alone.

Once I hoped in Jesus, Now I know He’s mine;
Once my lamps were dying, Now they brightly shine.
Once for death I waited, Now His coming hail;
And my hopes are anchored, Safe within the veil.

All in all forever, Jesus will I sing!
Everything in Jesus, and Jesus everything!

~ A. B. Simpson

The Best Old Story

Posted: June 24, 2014 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, Liturgical, Ministry, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, The Story, universal
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Jesus

 

ViewTheStory.com/6999

To tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love….

Jesus is reaching out to you!

God bless you!

To the secular humanist atheist…

Posted: January 22, 2014 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Church History, Evangelical, False Teaching, Heresy, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, The Story, universal
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sechumanistflower

Dear seclaris humanis atheisis:

Ok, so then what is your “idea” of Whom or what God is and how did you come to that conclusion?  You haven’t rejected God, but you call God a “hypothetical being?” You said you were a secular humanist and that you didn’t believe in God or that you even needed to. This is very confusing. Even though God created this earth, He knows about every person, everything, and even every sparrow that falls from the sky. Where is your real argument? What lies at the depth of your antagonism with the idea of God or the idea of God being creator?

I would like to pose something to you. So, you say you have not rejected God. Ok. But you say you have a problem believing in the “Christian” God. Now, I feel some of the reasons why you do not believe in the Christian God are from your presuppositions. This is because your presuppositions will not allow you to examine without bias the evidence that is presented to you for God’s existence. Your presupposition is that there is no Christian God; therefore, no matter what I might present to you to show His existence, you must interpret it in a manner consistent with your presupposition: namely, that there is no “Christian” God. If I were to have a video tape of God coming down from heaven, you’d say it was a special effect. If I had a thousand eye-witnesses saying they saw Him, you’d say it was mass-hysteria. If I had Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in the New Testament, you’d say they were forged, dated incorrectly, or not real prophecies.

So, I cannot prove anything to you since your presupposition won’t allow it. They are limited. Your presupposition cannot allow you to rightly determine God’s existence from evidence — providing that there were factual proofs of His existence. Don’t you see? If I DID have incontrovertible proof, your presupposition would force you to interpret the facts consistently with your presupposition and you would not be able to see the proof. If you truly would like to seek the answer, what kind of evidence would you accept that would prove the Christian God’s existence? I must see what your presuppositions are and work either with them or against them. What are your thoughts?

So, your answer is that Christianity is a myth. Yet, you still approach me with your presuppositions. I asked you to provide me with “the kind of evidence” you would accept. You’ve only provided me with your presupposition of “myth.”

I will pray that God reveals to me the answers you need…answers that I will not have to manufacture…but will be the evidence you need.

The first step on your quest is unconditional surrender to the absolute authority of Holy Scripture; the Bible is your only hope. It is your only hope for eternity. It is also the only hope for your scientific and philosophic endeavor in this life. God has revealed Himself through nature and history. The world’s wisdom has been made foolishness with God. It is God’s plan that is being realized in and through what man does as well as in and through man’s environment. Whatsoever comes to pass comes to pass in accordance with the one all comprehensive plan or counsel of God. All the facts that confront you as you look about yourself and as you look within yourself are therefore revelational of God. The human mind as knowing no less than the trees that are known is revelational of God. For what happens according to the plan of God happens in accordance with the nature of God’s being. Nothing could exist, either as directly made by God or as made by man, the creature of God. The subject of knowledge and the object of knowledge alike are revelational of God. The apostle Paul says in the first chapter of Romans that all men know God. They cannot help but know God. Therefore they cannot help but know that they themselves are creatures of God. Human self-consciousness involves God-consciousness. Human self-consciousness would be self-consciousness in a vacuum unless it implied consciousness of God. You have the sense of deity ineradicably impressed upon you.

Therefore your freedom is the freedom of God’s creature. It is freedom to do that which is in accord with or to do that which is against the revealed will of God, but in either case that which is in accord with the plan of God. I want to place a special emphasis upon the fact that even the evil that man does by virtue of his sinful will is still in accord with the plan of God and as such is revelatory of God. Man, not God, is the responsible author of sin. But man could not sin if his sinning were not, in spite of himself, revelatory of God. Man does not sin in a vacuum. He could not sin in a vacuum. The possibility of sin presupposes the all-comprehensive plan of God. God reveals his holiness in his wrath upon the sinner. God is angry with the wicked every day. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold down truth in unrighteousness” (Rom 1:18). Paul tells us that the sinner’s conscience excuses or accuses him according as he obeys or disobeys the revealed will of God (Rom 2:14-15). Man’s self-consciousness is moral self-consciousness. And as self-consciousness in general involves consciousness of God, so man’s moral self-consciousness involves consciousness of covenant relationship to God. To know himself at all man must know himself to be a covenant being. He knows he is either keeping or breaking the covenant.

You cannot look in any direction without seeing the face and the claims of God. You walk under the brilliant spotlight of the revelational claims of God. It is the basic revelational character of all created being that constitutes the foundation of truth for man. Man is inherently enveloped in and by truth. But truth is not an abstraction. Truth is truth about God and the universe. Thus man is naturally confronted by truth. When he speaks untruth he speaks that which he knows to be untruth. When philosophers think out systems of philosophy that are not based upon the Creator-creature distinction they know, in the depth of their hearts, that they are doing this in order to suppress the truth about themselves. Knowing God to be their Creator they do not glorify him as such. From the beginning of history, even before the entrance of sin, supernatural thought-communication on the part of God to man was added to God’s revelation to man in his own constitution and in the universe about him. There are two forms of revelation, revelation in the facts of the created universe whether within or about man and revelation by way of God’s directly speaking to man, are mutually involved in one another. Just as two rafters of a house need to support one another, so these two forms of revelation need to support one another. I don’t know how, but what you have experienced in your past up to now has determined that the God of the Bible must be limited in order to make room for the freedom of man. The attitude toward the revelation of God is determined by the assumption of human freedom as a measure of independence from God. Therefore, there is no real ground for saying that the revelation of God is really ultimately the revelation of God, the self-contained and self-sufficient God of which the Bible speaks. You cannot successfully seek for truth if first you have cut yourself off from truth. It is like today…a very sunny day, and while standing in the light of the sun, you take your eyes out, and then doubt whether the sun exists.

God will provide the shock and awe, and I really don’t think you’re going to appreciate that too much when the time comes. You already have been given overwhelming truth. You have to want to be healed….

I didn’t say God couldn’t shake you to your core….I’m saying you probably won’t like it when it occurs. Not probably…but most likely you will not like it when it occurs. God will shake things up in your life – or leave you to your own devices. Which one He decides upon, I just don’t know. I will help the human race by proclaiming the freeing Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I want to ask you, what part of your “Christian” upbringing did you in?

Hey, you know there is no proof, nor convincing, except that “Someone” rocks your world in a manner that will shake you all up inside. The statement you made is very plain about water boiling but to you, regarding faith, grace & works, you have nothing to do with it nor do you truly understand it from a Christian’s spiritual viewpoint. I say this because you do not believe or profess to be a Christian.  If you can, pray and ask God to speak to you about what I’ve shared, and then give me your thoughts.

Jesus Christ came into this world to open the eyes of the blind, quench the thirst of the weary wanderer, and give the bread of Life to those who seek to be filled. Jesus Christ can fulfill every need you have, and heal every hurt you’ve acquired over the years. Acknowledge your sinfulness, turn away from it, and place your trust in God through Jesus Christ — He will give you true enlightenment.

May God bless you with Himself!

+Gary

For God so loved the world…

Posted: May 20, 2013 in Ancient Faith, Biblical, Calling, Covenant, Covenant theology, Evangelical, Evangelism, Faith, life, Ministry, Orthodox, orthodoxy, Preaching, Protestant, Reformed, Repentance, sanctification, Scriptural, Teaching, Testimony, The Story
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John_3_16_by_Valster73

“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God. “This, then, is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who practices wicked things hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.” ~ The Gospel of John 3:16-21

Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, your Savior? Click here to learn more!

The Quality of These Times

Posted: April 8, 2013 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Evangelical, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, universal
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WordonFire

“I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; for henceforth in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three; they will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against her mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” He also said to the multitudes, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat’; and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky; but why do you not know how to interpret the present time? “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out till you have paid the very last copper.”  Luke 12:49-59

These passages from the Gospel of Luke are very important for these days and times in which we live.

 In the Gospel of Luke 12:49 Jesus says that He came to cast fire to the earth!

The word “cast” in the original Greek “balein” means “to violently or intensely throw or cast.

What does this verse mean?

Jeremiah 23:29 says, “Is not My Word like fire, and like a hammer that breaks the rock into pieces?”

I believe that the fire that Jesus casts to the earth is the fire of the Holy Spirit in the proclamation of the Gospel.

God’s Word is like fire!

Let me qualify this: The baptism Jesus mentions to His disciples in our Gospel lesson is one which begins with His blood.

Jesus bloody baptism occurs in His death, burial, then in His resurrection and ascension. All this must occur before Jesus casts the fire.

In Matthew 3:11 John the Baptist prophesied that Jesus would baptize Christians with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

This baptism of Jesus must take place before He sends the Holy Spirit – before Jesus baptizes Christians with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

When Jesus sends the Holy Spirit, the Fire, the Holy Spirit comes into Christians to enable them to proclaim the Gospel of His Kingdom.

The Holy Spirit is the higher element of our spiritual life we need; we need His holy Fire!

We need the preaching of the Gospel!

What happened when the Holy Spirit came? The Holy Spirit descended with tongues as of fire!

What happened after the Holy Spirit came on the disciples and those with them?

The Gospel message was preached and 3000 people were saved through Peter’s message!

The preaching of the Gospel will bring down God’s Fire to burn the dross off His people!

The preaching of the Gospel is going to divide people – even families!

Here are some results of Gospel preaching:

Some will oppose the Gospel – opposition

Some will persecute those who proclaim the Gospel – persecution

There is a disturbance in the world today, a shaking as it were of the things in this world and there is a shaking going on in the Church!

Why? Some are preaching the Gospel faithfully!

There is no peace in this world and in the Church!

There is no peace in the world and in the Church because the Gospel is not being proclaimed!

Do you see the paradox? The Gospel IS being preached and it is not!

The only peace we have is the peace God sheds upon our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus says where the Gospel is preached there will be division and no peace!

Jesus was to suffer a baptism and be in anguish until it was completed.

Jesus was immersed into the ultimate sacrifice; His body broken for our redemption; He suffered for our forgiveness; He suffered for the remission of our sin and to cleanse us of all our unrighteousness!

Preaching the Gospel will give occasion for discord among all humanity, even in our own families!

HEAR ME NOW!

Standing for the TRUE Gospel will also give occasion for discord to those who do not believe it within the Church!

Unbelief will be provoked by the TRUTH of the Gospel!

Now, more than even before, people will start becoming uncomfortable in their pews or chairs upon hearing the Gospel.

God is calling for our faith and obedience to the Gospel.

Now let me share something prophetic with you:

“The Holy Spirit is expressing His heart now for the Church. God desires true repentance in the hearts of the leaders of the Church; the gatekeepers, the ordained members of the clergy and board members (those who have authority within Christianity). God is primarily concerned with the sincerity and humility of the “fathers” because what they do affects their wives and children…both in the natural realm and in the spiritual realm. We must not be deceived into judging the homosexual sins of “others,” this is in the open, while hiding from our own secret sexual immorality and idolatry!

We must examine our hearts, thoughts, words, and deeds first! Taking the log out of our own eye and allowing the Holy Spirit to break our hearts over our own sin before daring to examine, correct and judge others, lest we find ourselves in the desolate graves of Pharisees and heartless hypocrites!”

People, we need to be stirred up about the Gospel!

We need to obtain the boldness of the Holy Spirit to share the Gospel with others!

The Messiah has come and He has brought His Kingdom with Him!

He has sent His power to enable us to share the Gospel of His Kingdom.

What is your interest in the Kingdom of God?

The Jews could not even see the fact plainly that God’s Kingdom had come to them in Jesus, the Son of God, the prophesied Messiah, right before their eyes!

They could not interpret or discern the signs of their own times – right in front of them…what’s happening?

Let’s look at verse 56, “You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

What does Jesus mean here? Is this verse, time – “kairos” in the original Greek means “what time brings; the state of the times; the things and events of time.”

In Greek, there are two words for time “Chronos” and “Kairos.”

Chronos marks the quantity of time while kairos marks the quality of time.

The word we are looking at “kairos” means “a season, a time, a period possessed of certain characteristics.”

This is what Jesus was trying to make these people understand.

Today, there is a “quality” to the times or season we are in right now!

This is the “quality” of our own times:

There are those who pretend or are so deluded as to think they are wise – and cannot see what’s going on in this world, or in their own churches!

They can determine how the weather will change by looking at the sky; or if the south wind will blow in a dry heat – but they cannot even determine the condition of their own hearts or the heart of the church?

Oh, pray that the Holy Spirit speaks to your hearts, and leads you to true repentance and faith toward God!

Oh, pray that you will stand for the TRUE Gospel, by the power of the Holy Spirit and shun the deluded and deceptive other “gospel” which condones unbelief and sinful behavior!

God is ready with His fire…to rain down on us…to purge and purify our hearts by His Holy Fire, as the Refiner to purge the dross off our lives, to destroy the sin that remains in our hearts!

God send Your Fire down upon us!

Come Holy Spirit; rain down your Holy Fire!

Matthew 16:2-3 says, “He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.”

Jesus says an evil and adulterous generation seeks signs! What is our present generation like?

Jesus says no sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.

What was the sign of Jonah? It was Jonah preaching repentance!

Look at the signs of the times/or season when Jesus preached the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

Now, we have been given the task in the power of the Holy Spirit to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom!

Remember what Jesus said about casting fire to the earth?

Malachi 3:2-3 says, “…For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD.”

Now look at Matthew 3:11-12, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear his threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”

You know you cannot tell the difference between wheat and tares?

The tare, or the bearded darnel, is a species of rye grass, the seeds of which are a strong soporific poison, i.e., it has the power to put you to sleep. It bears the closest resemblance to wheat only until the ear appears, and only then, the difference is discovered – in Jesus day it grew plentifully in Syria and in Palestine.

You cannot tell the difference until the ear appears…

What is Jesus telling us?

You cannot tell the difference until the fruit appears – the grain – when the truth about our lives appears – either the fruit of the Spirit or the fruit of the flesh, our sinful unregenerate self, meaning a life without Christ.

St. Paul talks about the fruit of the Spirit or the works of the flesh.

The “works” of the flesh means our effort or occupation in being sinful!

The works of the flesh are the result of sinful behavior that is our way of life.

Is your life producing the fruit of the Spirit or the works of the flesh?

Can we tell if you are the wheat or the tare?

Hear me, Christian! People HAVE to be able to tell the difference between you, the believer (the wheat), and the unbeliever, those of the world (the tares)!

If not, we are truly hypocrites!

Either you are for Jesus Christ or you are against Him.

Jesus has violently and intensely thrown fire to the earth! The Holy Spirit has come, His Kingdom is here, and we have been tasked and enabled to proclaim the Gospel to every Nation, baptizing them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Fire either purifies or destroys. The signs of the times here and now are those which bring us to the cross road of decision.

Do you choose unbelief, death, and eternal separation from God?

Do you choose Christ, His Kingdom, and eternal life?

What is your decision today?

“He Calls Us Out of Egypt”

Posted: March 21, 2013 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Evangelical, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, universal
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moses1

“For in bringing many sons to glory, it was entirely appropriate that God —all things exist for Him and through Him —should make the source of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the One who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying: I will proclaim Your name to My brothers; I will sing hymns to You in the congregation. Again, I will trust in Him. And again, Here I am with the children God gave Me. Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through His death He might destroy the one holding the power of death —that is, the Devil and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. For it is clear that He does not reach out to help angels, but to help Abraham’s offspring. Therefore, He had to be like His brothers in every way, so that He could become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tested and has suffered, He is able to help those who are tested.” Hebrews 2:10-18 (HCSB)

What Does It Mean To Be In Egypt?

For Israel it was for a good reason; it was for their survival to stay in Egypt for food, grazing for their animals and safety. Joseph, as the Pharaoh’s governor, took care of his family, even after his brothers had betrayed him.
For Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus, it was for safety, because King Herod was out to kill the King of Kings! Jesus was born roughly around 5BC, Herod died around 4BC, and Herod’s son, Archelaus, took over the throne.

A not so good reason to be in Egypt is that Egypt can be described as captivity. Egypt can be described as slavery, as it was for Israel after Joseph died. A new Pharaoh, Raamses II, came into power, who never knew about Joseph and his relationship with the previous Pharaoh. He feared Israel and decided to deal treacherously with Israel by holding them captive and making them his slaves because they were prosperous, fruitful and had grown to a large population.

Egypt can be described as captivity or slavery to unbelief, disobedience, sin and idolatry.

How do we know we are in Egypt? We know we’re in Egypt because:

We are slaves to sin – SIN rules over us

We are enemies of God – REBELLION dominates our life

We do not believe in God through Jesus Christ – UNBELIEF casts its shadow upon us

We acknowledge created things as gods instead of the One and Only True God – IDOLATRY says there is no god but that which I create

We continue in Egypt as slaves to sin because there is no repentance of our sins and faith in God through Jesus Christ.

Sometimes we think we have left the captivity and slavery of Egypt, and have yet to get the Egypt out of us!

Listen to what God told the prophet Hosea when He saw that even though Israel was “out of Egypt,” Egypt remained in them still. “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols.” Hosea 11:1-2 (ESV)

“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” Romans 8:15 (ESV)

How then am I released from this captivity and freed from slavery?

Jesus was the means to the atonement for our sin. Because of Jesus shed blood and death on the Cross at Calvary, we are freed from slavery to sin and released from the bondage of sin and its penalty, which is death. Through Jesus Christ, we have been reconciled to God. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice acceptable unto God to take upon Himself the punishment for sin on our behalf.

God calls us out of Egypt through the finished work of Jesus Christ

Romans 3:21-26 declares “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in His divine forbearance He had passed over former sins. It was to show His righteousness at the present time, so that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

This brings me to the next question:

Why Was Jesus Born?

The Incarnation

The Incarnation, God becoming a human being, is the assumption of human nature into the Person of the Son of God, Who is the Word of God, and depicts God humiliating Himself to procure our salvation.

The humiliation connected with the Incarnation consists in the mode, or manner, of the Incarnation. The Son of God did not become man by uniting with Himself a fully developed human nature, by an immediate creative act, as, for example, Adam was a mature and perfect man in the beginning. The Scriptures, both of the Old and New Testament, rather point out very emphatically the peculiar mode, or manner, of the Word’s Incarnation, by which the Son of God became a partaker of the flesh and blood of the children of men. He was “made of a woman” (Gal. 4:4) and so, as the “fruit of the womb of Mary” (Luke 1:42), He took upon Himself human lowliness and weakness. Jesus’ conception and birth belong to His humiliation, inasmuch as they constitute a lowly mode of becoming man. Jesus said of Himself in Matthew 11:29, “I am meek and lowly in heart.”

This lowly mode is characteristic of the official work that the Son of God was to perform as the Redeemer of humanity. Let me explain what this lowly mode means. The word “lowly” in the Greek means humiliated, base, cast down, humble, of low degree or estate. God humiliated Himself to become a human being; He became one of His own creations.

Early in His life, our Lord had to begin His redemptive work as our Savior. The goal to be attained was the substitutional presentation to God of a human life that was perfect from the very beginning. Even though Jesus took upon Himself human lowliness and weakness, He did not commit a single sin. For this reason, the Mediator between God and man had to share our common human development. This causal relation of Christ’s lowly Incarnation to the redemption of humanity is clearly attested to by Scripture, which tells us that God sent forth His Son into the world by having Him born of a woman and made under the Law to redeem sinful humanity, which was under the Law (Gal. 4:4-5).

Therefore, in His human nature He must be the pattern of all humility, of all creaturely dependence, of having nothing, and it is only as a man that Jesus thus claims to be lowly; His human life was a constant living on the fullness of the Father’s love; He evermore, as man, took the place which beseemed the creature in the presence of its Creator. (W. R. Vincent)

To become a merciful and faithful High Priest

Hebrews 2:17-18 says, “Therefore, he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

To destroy the power of sin, death, and the devil

1 John 3:8 tells us “Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

Hebrews 2:14-15 explains, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.”

The Gospel of John 1:29 says, “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

To Make Propitiation for the sins of humanity

For your understanding, I wish to give the biblical definition for the words “propitiation” and “atonement.” The word “propitiation” in the Greek is “hilaskomai” which means to atone for sin, to be merciful, make reconciliation for, therefore propitiation conveys the sense of an atoning sacrifice that puts away sin and satisfies God’s wrath.

The word “atonement” is not used anywhere in the New Testament of the Holy Scriptures. Atonement is used only in the Old Testament. The word in the Hebrew is “kapar” which means to cover, cancel, cleanse, forgive, pardon, and purge concerning sin.

There awaits certain judgment for those who continue in rebellion and sin

For Jude 1:4-7 says “For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, He has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day— just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.”

God calls us out of Egypt unto salvation!

Romans 10:9-13 promises, “…if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Hebrews 3:7-8 says, “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness…”

Today, Jesus is calling you out of Egypt. Luke 19:9 says, “Today salvation has come to this house…for the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Answer His call, now. Do not wait another moment. Do not put God off. Repent of your sin, place your faith, and trust in Jesus Christ the Lord!

If you are yet unsaved…

Posted: March 13, 2013 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Evangelical, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, universal
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“If you are yet unsaved, our heart yearns over you: and we would fain say a word which may be blessed to you. Open your Bible, and read the story of the lepers, and mark their position, which was much the same as yours. If you remain where you are you must perish; if you go to Jesus you can but die. “Nothing venture, nothing win,” is the old proverb, and in your case the venture is no great one. If you sit still in sullen despair, no one can pity you when your ruin comes; but if you die with mercy sought, if such a thing were possible, you would be the object of universal sympathy. None escape who refuse to look to Jesus; but you know that, at any rate, some are saved who believe in Him, for certain of your own acquaintances have received mercy: then why not you? The Ninevites said, “Who can tell?” Act upon the same hope, and try the Lord’s mercy. To perish is so awful, that if there were but a straw to catch at, the instinct of self-preservation should lead you to stretch out your hand. We have thus been talking to you on your own unbelieving ground, we would now assure you, as from the Lord, that if you seek Him He will be found of you. Jesus casts out none who come unto Him. You shall not perish if you trust Him; on the contrary, you shall find treasure far richer than the poor lepers gathered in Syria’s deserted camp. May the Holy Spirit embolden you to go at once, and you shall not believe in vain. When you are saved yourself, publish the good news to others. Hold not your peace; tell the King’s household first, and unite with them in fellowship; let the porter of the city, the minister, be informed of your discovery, and then proclaim the good news in every place. The Lord save thee ere the sun goes down this day.”  ~ C. H. Spurgeon

What If I’m Wrong?

Posted: February 26, 2013 in Biblical, catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Evangelical, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Scriptural, universal
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doubtingGod

For those who question the existence of God, or scoff at Christianity, or faith in God.

The House That Grace Built

Posted: December 10, 2012 in catholic, Charismatic, Christian, Church, Evangelical, Liturgical, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Renaissance, Repentance, Sacramental, Uncategorized, universal
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byGraceFaith

“Salvation is like a house built beside a broad and busy highway. Like everyone else, I was born on that highway and was spending my life following it to its destination. At first the trip had been exciting and almost effortless, the constant flow of the crowd carrying me along. However, the farther down the road I got, the more difficult things became; my original joy had dissipated and I noticed that my fellow travelers rarely laughed anymore and their occasional smiles seemed forced. The backpack I had been issued at the beginning of my journey had grown heavier every day, and I was now permanently stooped from its weight. Worst of all, I had been overtaken lately by an unexplainable fear of reaching the end of the highway’.

‘One day my attention was drawn suddenly to the side of the highway to a magnificently constructed house. Over its narrow front doors a sign silently announced in bold red letters: ‘Whosoever Will May Enter and Find Rest’. I do not know how I knew it, but I realized that if I could reach the inside of this beautiful house I would be saved from the highway and its destination. Pushing my way through the mass of indifferent travelers, I broke clear of the crowd and ran up the steps to the front door. But, it was locked. Perhaps it’s only stuck, I thought, and tried again. It refused to open. I was confused. Why would someone put up a sign inviting people in and then lock the door to keep them out? Not knowing what else to do (I refused to return to the highway), I pounded on the door, and shouted for someone on the inside to open it, and tried to pick the lock – but it was useless’.

‘Suddenly a voice spoke my name, and I spun around. It was the Builder of the House. He placed in my hand a key with one word carved on it: FAITH. Turning back to the door, I inserted the key in the lock, twisted it, and heard a reassuring click. The door swung open, and I stepped across the threshold. Immediately the backpack fell from off my shoulders, my back began to straighten like a wilting flower reaching for the sunlight, and from deep within me my soul breathed a sigh of relief as an extraordinary sense of peace and well-being wrapped itself around me. The Builder of the House welcomed me to my new home, explaining that everything in the house was now mine to enjoy. This was the house that grace had built, and faith was the key’.

‘Surveying my new surroundings, I saw that the House of Salvation was a house with many rooms and I was only in the foyer. Across the way was a door marked Answered Prayer. Next to it was another Daily Victory, and next to it, Every Need Supplied. The row of doors, each promising some spiritual blessing, stretched endlessly throughout the house. The discovery of these other rooms puzzled me, for I failed to mention that the foyer in which I stood was jammed with people. It seemed that everyone who entered the house stopped in the foyer, never advancing beyond it, as though the foyer were the entire building’ – remember that as well.

‘This was little better than the highway. Couldn’t they see that there was more to the House of Salvation than the foyer? Surely, the Builder intended every room to be occupied. Hadn’t he said that everything in the house was ours to enjoy? I, for one, had no desire to spend my life standing in a foyer. This was my Father’s house; I was his child, and all he possessed was mine. I went to the door marked Answered Prayer, grabbed the knob, and twisted. It was locked. I went to the next door, the next, and the next. All were locked. Nevertheless, this time I didn’t try to pick the lock or knock the door down. I remembered my encounter with the front door and knew I had a key for that. Although I had been in the house only a short time, I had somehow managed to accumulate a large number of other keys. Rummaging through my collection, I selected one tagged Doing Your Best, and tried it. It did not fit. Nor did the one tagged Religious Activity. The key of Sincerity proved useless. Next I tried the key of Tithing (I was getting desperate); but it was as powerless as the others. I was beginning to understand why the foyer was so crowded’.

‘And then I heard a familiar voice. It was the Builder of the House. ‘Child’, he said, ‘do you remember the key I gave you to enter my house?’. ‘Yes, I remember’. ‘What was it?’. ‘Why, it was the key of Faith’, I answered’. Now listen, the Builder said: ‘The key of Faith is the master key that unlocks every door in the house’. Faith is the master key of the Christian life. From start to finish, salvation is ‘by grace through faith’. Everything we get in the Christian life we get by grace through faith. Grace makes it available and faith accepts it. Grace is God’s hand giving; faith is man’s hand receiving. Faith possesses what grace provides. Grace is God’s part; faith is man’s part. It is our positive response to God’s gracious offer. Everything God demands of man can be summed up in one word: faith.”

~ by Ronald Dunn

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