Christian Principles

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Politics And Christianity

Politics and Christianity
by Anthony Smith

Revelation 20:1-20:10

Politics and Christianity - there has been many an article about this past election. Some, praising Christians and some condemning them. As for me being a Minister, I'm disappointed in both sides.

Politics have no place in the Church. Jesus would not have voted for neither. 2Ti 2:4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. Our war is with the spirit and not with the flesh. God ordains the Powers that be. Vote, but don't get involved in all the rhetoric, the damage has been done, its time to repair it.

Our missions as Christians:

1. Worship God.
2. Preach the Gospel.
3. Be instant in season and out of Season
4. Seek out the Lost

If the Church just did as our Lord commanded, it would not have brought this hate toward Christians. Politicians speak of peace in the Middle East, but the Christian community should know better. Look at God's prophecy for the Middle East. Rev 20:1-10

Rev 20:1-10 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were behead-ed for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Let me ask a question now that you've heard these passages from Revelations. Do you really believe that John in the Revelation of Jesus Christ to the Church is True? How many says yes? Raise your hands. Then how can we believe any politician that says that there is going to be peace in the Middle East? John said in just these few passages that â€œAnd I sawâ€, John was stating facts, a future presentation of war and destruction in the Middle East.

1.â€And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.â€ 2. â€œAnd I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.â€ 3. â€œI saw the souls of them that were be-headed for the witness of Jesus.â€ I had a brother, the other day; tell me that He doesn't read prophecy because He can't do anything about it. This is a common mistake that many Christians make.

Prophecy is as important as the rest of Scripture. Warning after warning from Christ about the impending destruction of the enemies of Israel, and still many want to ignore the facts of the Bible. Many churches will not even acknowledge that the Book of Revelations is for our time. Many clame that the Book of Revelations has been fulfilled. Paul even warned us not to be deceived by any means. 2Th 2:1-4 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. We as Christians from time to time make mistakes and as Paul states many time and even Our Lord Jesus stated, none of us are perfect only God Himself is perfect. Let us learn from our mistakes and go out into the world and proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

Time is running out and we all must be about our Fathers business. Luke 14:23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. Our Lord commands us, to seek out the Lost for Gods Kingdom, and Brothers and Sisters that is a fulltime job. 2Co 7:8 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season. Let us now all, be about our Fathers business and start repairing the damage that has been done, learn from mistakes, repent, bear the burden and go on.

James 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Lift up you eyes Children, Our Repentance Draweth nigh. Here is an arctical that was posted in a local paper, I thought it reflects the trend among Christians; Politics shouldn't be preached at church.

In response to condolences to Democrats of Nov. 5, 2004, my condolences now go out to your church, or maybe I should say lack of churches.

I have lived a rather long life as men go. I have never heard as much perverted gospel coming from pulpits. Many have taken the grace of God and turned it into a Republican campaign gathering.

When anything is preached other than the gospel from the pulpit, it becomes a cult. When anyone is preached except Jesus Christ, he becomes the anti-Christ. (The word anti in this case means instead of -- in place of.) Read I John 2:18. "To all those prophets of Baal, it will be a terrible day when you stand before the great white throne for judgment."

There is nothing wrong with voting for any candidate of your choice. More than one million American servicemen have died in combat so you could have that privilege.

Jesus Christ died for all. I Timothy 4:10 -- to suggest that God favors the rich over the poor or the whites over the blacks or any other discriminatory idea is pure blasphemy.

If you have heard politics preached from your pulpit, I would strongly advise you to change preachers or churches because that is not a church of the Living God. Read II Corinthians 11:13-15.

Here is a little update; Members of the small Baptist Church say their Pastor led an effort to kick out congregants who didn't support President Bush. Nine members were voted out at a Monday church meeting in this mountain town, about 120 miles west of Charlotte.

â€œI hate to see the church suffer like that,â€ she said. â€œGod doesn't care whether you're a Republican or a Democrat. It just hurts to see that going on.â€

Temple of Spirit & Truth Ministries
A.R.Smith Sermons International
http://www.ourchurch.com/member/a/arsmithsermons/

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article25138.html

Understanding And Walking In Line With The Gospel

Understanding and Walking in Line With the Gospel
by Brian Reed

This gospel is a familiar concept to Christians and many other who grew up in the church, but to others the word can seem quite foreign or one that is filled with misconceptions. For some, gospel is only familiar as a musical genre, complete with bad haircuts and an ancient sound. Even many Christians also have some misconceptions about the gospel. While there is general consenseous about what the gospel is, the good news that Jesus Christ came to earth to redeem sinners, many misunderstand its applications. It is common for Christians to believe that the gospel is only for non-Christians, only necessary for those who have not yet been justified by grace and the gospel.

According to Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York, “The main problem, then, in the Christian life is that we have not thought out the deep implications of the gospel, we have not “used” the gospel in and on all parts of our life. Paul says that the gospel only does its renewing work in us as we understand it in all its truth. All of us, to some degree live around the truth of the gospel but do not "get" it. So the key to continual and deeper spiritual renewal and revival is the continual re-discovery of the gospel. A stage of renewal is always the discovery of a new implication or application of the gospel--seeing more of its truth. This is true for either an individual or a church.”

The gospel is how we grow (Galatians 3:1-3), and renewed (Col 1:6). Our need for it does not stop when we become Christians. We do not move on to a mix of hard work and obedience, which is warned against by Paul in the passage from Galatians, to grow in our relationship with Christ. Instead, we examine our lives to see that they are in line with the gospel (Galatians 2:14) as Paul exhorted Peter for.

Grace & Peace is a Bowling Green Presbyterian church that constantly thinking, evaluating, and contextualizing the gospel. By doing so, they are more thoughtful and winsome in life, less about religiously conforming and more about hope and restoration. The hope is a new heart which begins to change from the inside out. For the skeptical person or the religious person, this environment gives answers and direction to have their lives restored and rebuilt in accordance with their creator. Grace & Peace a safe place for the religious and irreligious to process the good news of Christianity. For the Christian going through the motions, Grace & Peace is a thoughtful, gracious place not bogged down by religious duties, but freed from burden by a forgiving God.

Grace & Peace is made up by a group of individuals who gather weekly to have their lives restored by the gospel. They are knit together by a message tailor-made for broken people — people who find it easier to pretend than to be transformed. They welcome anyone – from the religiously tired, who need a break from the spiritual treadmill, to the unchurched, who need a safe place to process the gospel message.

Grace & Peace is one of the churches in Bowling Green, KY. It is a group of individuals who gather weekly to have their lives restored by the gospel. We are knit together by a message tailor-made for broken people — people who find it easier to pretend than to be transformed. We welcome anyone; from the religiously tired, who need a break from the spiritual treadmill; to the unchurched, who need a safe place to process the gospel message.

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article215952.html

Serving Jesus On My Job

Serving Jesus On My Job
by Eric Mulford

Several years ago, at a networking meeting, I introduced myself as a Tailgate Theologian. I got the desired effect. Many of the people who were there that day came to ask me; "exactly what is a Tailgate Theologian"?

A Biblical Concept

The Bible is filled with people who took seriously their role in the world of work. Jesus in the Great Commission was making it clear that the believer is to make disciples as he goes about doing whatever it is that he does. Making disciples is the role of every believer! Only a few can go to other lands. Only a handful will have the time to commit to outreach programs. But many will show up to work tomorrow. Let them do so with a passion to represent Christ in their work. They'll have more opportunity to make disciples than all of the rest.

We're not talking about taking your employers time to "witness" to unbelievers. We're talking about witnessing by the quality of work that you give to your employer. Too many "witnessing" efforts have been destroyed by low quality performance on the job.

"Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God." - Luke 9:60.

Those who are spiritually dead will go through the routine of burying the dead. Those who are committed to Christ will see this opportunity in the same way they view everything else...as a follower of Jesus Christ.

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, wither thou goest." - Ecclesiastes 9:10

"And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him." - Colossians 3:17

A Biblical Pattern

Tailgate Theologians understand that work is an indispensable part of God's plan for the world. They approach everyday as a calling from God to represent Christ by the work they do. They set before them biblical role models such as Joseph and Daniel who stood in the midst of wicked Kings, not as an adversary but as an ally, and represented God in all of His glory. They don't feel threatened by the world. They feel empowered by God make a transforming mark on the world.

Tailgate Theologians like Nehemiah are able to get the world to sponsor the work of God. They understand that God has the king's heart in His hand and He can move as He desires. They see the accomplishments of a man like Nehemiah not as an anomaly but as normal. They expect God to repeat the magnificent acts of the past. They don't see God in a box...they see Him high and lifted up.

The Apostle Paul, perhaps the greatest Tailgate Theologian of all, accepted the challenge of tent making knowing it could lead to the Areopagus. There before the crowd that day he had the opportunity to represent God. We should all long for those opportunities, but to do so will require labor in the marketplace.

More Information:

The Joy, Jazz and Juice of Serving Jesus can be experienced everyday on your job. For a full report on the Tailgate Theologian see http://www.ericmulford.com/TailgateTheologian/tailgate-theologian-report/

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article443950.html

The Importance And Need For Great Church Audio Systems

The Importance and Need for Great Church Audio Systems
by Jennifer Marble

unamplified voice, no matter how well the celebrant projects it, so quality church Audio systems are necessary to ensure intelligible, clear One of the most valuable investments that churches are making is in their Audio visual systems. The challenging acoustical nature of most church spaces, defines the need for amplification of the Celebrant and music through professional church sound systems. sound projection for the spoken word and the music ministry.

The worship is far too important to the congregation to miss a single word. Imagine, you go to church to attend a friend’s wedding, and when the bride and groom take their vows, their voices are not Audible. You would have missed some of the most important and beautiful words they’ll ever speak in front of their family and friends! Church sound is imperative for all church events, none more than the worship services. Inadequate sound systems disconnect Parishioners from the worship experience. The solution: keeping the congregation connected to the worship with quality Audio projection from a professional church sound system.

If the church sound systems are good, you won’t even feel that there is one fitted inside the room, and everything will sound very natural. Pro church sound systems are technologically advanced, and often come with The dynamics and size of most worship spaces renders them inadequate for projection of a peripherals including wireless "Earset" microphones that discreet rest over the celebrant’s ear and rest on their cheek, so that the voice can be heard clearly. In addition to the spoken word, worship services include the choir and music ministry, and quality church Audio systems will offer appropriate sound amplification for singing and instrumentation.

The importance of choosing and trusted Audio visual systems designer and installer is paramount. In addition to the goals of a custom sound system package is the budgetary goals for the project. Investing in a profession Audio visual system designed for the unique need of the worship will help ensure the system is reliable, effective and long lasting.

More Information:

To learn more about custom Audio visual systems for worship you can visit Power Sound

of New England’s website: http://www.powersoundne.com/worshipav/soundsystems.html.

Or, read more about church AV projects at their blog site.

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article446104.html

Prayer (Prophetic Intercession)

Prayer (Prophetic Intercession)
by Wisdom Mupudzi

We are in a living in a world that is often labelled the 'microwave' society. This is in reference to the fact that most people want things that are quick. Everyone is busy, and our lives are so hectic that people if not careful, we are on the 'treadmill' and lose sight of the small pleasures of life or forget that some key things need to take time. In other words, some things need a slower process.

There is a cry for revival among many Christians. Many remember the revivals that have gone by over the centuries and decades, Azuza street and the like. I have often found out that in order for revival to occur it must be ignited and undergirded by the power of prayer. In fact, everything in the kingdom of God is activated by prayer. This is because prayer is a covenant part of the relationship between God the Father and His children. Prayer is the chief means of communication between God and humanity. Whether its tongues or a cry from the heart or intense travail. Prayer is also key in bringing God's agenda on the earth realm. In the Lord's prayer there is a part where we say, "Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." This then tells us that God's will on the earth realm is not automatic. It has to be prayed through, this is often different from the usual mantra of many people that 'if it's God's will it will be.' That part of the Lord's prayer tells us that we have to pray about it.

We then come to the three main types of prayers when it comes to intercession. We have kingly, priestly and prophetic intercession. Incidentally the Bible says that only kings, priest and prophets were anointed in biblical times. The book of Revelations also confirms in Chapter 1 that as believers we were made kings and priest. That is our royal position, the book of Peter states we are a royal priesthood. I could go on, but essentially we have to pray from our position, knowing who we are. This prepares us to pray with authority and with accuracy, remember there is a 'war' so one doesn't fire 'bullets' for the sake of doing so, but has to do so with 'accuracy'.

Prophetic intercession as one can guess comes from the area of prophecy. There is a lot of controversy regarding the prophetic ministry, but I will not let that ruin a kingdom activity. The spirit of Prophecy is about hearing what God is saying now, and what was on God's original mind regarding something. This is one key element missing in the body of Christ today. For the most part, most people pray week after week, but they have no clue what God is saying. In other words, their prayers are one way, the majority of Christians have never been taught about discernment, they don't know how to walk in it. So people pray longer than necessary for many things because they are not hearing God. On the other side they don't pray enough to the point of breakthrough or sometimes they pray amiss. That's why tongues are important because it's not the person praying, it's the spirit praying and the spirit knows what to pray and how. So prophetic intercession is about hearing God in the midst of prayer and making the necessary adjustments to bring results. Maybe God may say while you are praying that you need to fast, or sometimes stop praying and go do a few things. Sometimes God can say take authority over the situation and declare a thing or two. That is part of prophetic intercession, hearing what God is saying now and enforcing it through kingly intercession, which is another mode of intercession. Sounds complicated, but it's not, it's simple, and it's in the Bible.

So the prophetic ministry and anointing is such a key part of the church today and also in the market place. We need to be praying for our businesses, etc., last but not least, we definitely need Prophetic Intercession.

More Information:

To fully understand and master Kingly, Prophetic and Priestly intercession, realms, mantles, Watches of the night and to take your prayer life to the next level, Get your copy of The Three Levels of Prayer and be empowered.get it here: https://ganxy.com/i/76572

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article448961.html

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

God Can See Your Heart

God Can See Your Heart
by Mary Gardner

Today is the day that I’m getting back into exercise. I sprained my ankle last week and although I’ve been swimming and rode the stationary bike, today was the day that I decided to go for a 1 hour walk.

Near the end of my walk today I got yelled at. No, SCREAMED at would be a better choice of words. I was about to cross over across the street and a car was whipping around a circle to the left of me. I hesitated as he did because I thought he was going to go around the circle and turn back around. I didn’t know that he intended to turn left, right in front of me. Still, I hesitated to see where the car went.

I was staring to the left to see what the car would do with one foot on the street. The car whizzed by and slowed down just enough for me to hear the expletives coming out of his mouth about me using the sidewalk. He said, “Jesus &^% / Christ, why don’t you use the crosswalk, I’ll fun your &*%$# over!”

Now I can pretty much guarantee that this guy wasn’t praying to Jesus Christ at that moment. He was using the Lord’s name in vain. And an interesting thing happened to me… for the first time!

I felt sorry for him! I actually felt sorry for this young guy who was driving to fast, screaming obscenities out the car window and being basically a jerk to me. I also know because I have some years on me now, that that poor guy will “get his”. He’s either got a lot of stress in his life right now and doesn’t know how to manage it, or he’ll be dealing with a lot in the future. These are the things that I actually thought about!

The reason that I’m so shocked at my own reaction is that previously, if anyone would get in my face about anything, it would take me a bit of time, but I’d get it together and then I’d LET THEM HAVE IT. I’d just tell them off or somehow get back at them with every bit of certainty that they had displayed earlier.

Once in Charlotte, I had a neighbor who I complained to at 1am that their music was on too loud. They never responded to my knocking so I rang the doorbell. The next morning, the wife reamed my husband out so bad that when he came in, he was calling her crazy! I went over to try to smooth things out and she screamed and yelled and cussed at me just as much. I cowardly walked away but got my revenge. Not only did I tell everyone what bad neighbors they were, I got the music to stop by going to the board of the neighborhood and forcing them to stop the constant pounding every night.

That ruined the relationship for the first 2 years that we lived there. I never wanted to be friends with someone with such a violent temper.

But what was really going on for her? Was she in a bad place in her life? Was there a time where someone else had pressured her or her family to do something?

I never chose to look at those things. I chose to ignore her and treat her like she didn’t exist. I can tell you from experience, it is not a good way to live! There are many awkward moments that occur, and it’d just be easier to forgive and forget.

She was actually the one who initiated the conversation again. One day she just waved and said “Hi, how are you?” I responded somewhat pleasantly and from then on, we waved whenever we saw one another.

But I can’t tell you that I liked her. No, I still felt like she was an awful woman who didn’t want to be a good neighbor.

When I compare my two reactions, I felt so much more peace just forgiving the guy and going on with things. I didn’t react at all to him but I know that his day is probably ruined. Holding a grudge is HARD. You have to avoid the person so you don’t have to be in an awkward position. You have to look the other way when they approach you to act like you don’t see them and then having to totally ignore a person takes so much creative work and effort!

Forgiveness is a whole lot easier! All you have to do is forgive the person and realize that they’re not at their best at that moment. Hopefully, they’ll regret their actions and make amends but even if you don’t, you’ll feel better just by forgiving them right away. When you don’t forgive someone, your emotions become bitter, and bitterness eats away at your insides. Literally. It can cause stress and even sickness.

I can just imagine that today, the angels that were watching today, recorded something good about me. Perhaps they all nudged each other, smiled and said. “yah, NOW she’s getting it! Now she understands what it takes to become mature”.

I know in my heart that I felt better this time about the lousy experience. I know that God saw me honestly feel sorry for that young guy. And I know that it made God happy.

Now, if he can JUST work on making that GUY happy!

Contact information: mary@marygardner.com WEB: www.marygardner.com

Mary Gardner is an Executive Communications Consultant and Coach. She works with, coaches and trains individuals, sales teams, executives, and celebrities. She enjoys seeing the best come out in people and has fun in the process. Mary is married to Sway and is mommy to Jeremy 5 and lives in Orlando, FL.

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article36321.html