MISCONCEPTION OF A “GOOD PERSON”

It is not enough to be what we term “a good person.” We must have an intimate, on-going relationship with the Lord Jesus.

   This is brought out in the testimony of another Colombian youth taken by the Lord into hell (recorded by the international ministry, Light for the Nations):

    We continued with Jesus, holding His hand even tighter. We came to a section that really made an impression on me. We saw a young man, 23 years old, suspended waist-high in the middle of a fire. We couldn’t see exactly what his torment was, but the number 666 was engraved on him. He also had a metal plate on his chest that read, “I am here for being normal.” When he saw Jesus, he extended his hand towards Jesus begging for mercy. The Word of God says in Prov. 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way of death.” When we read the plate that said, “I am here for being normal,” we asked the Lord, “Lord, how come? Is this possible that a person can come to this place for this reason?” So Jesus asked him, “Andrew, why are you here in this place?” He answered, “Jesus, when I was on earth, I thought that just killing and stealing were sins, and that is why I never tried to get close to you.” In Psalm 9:17 it says, “The wicked shall be turned into Hell, all the nations that forget God.”

   In hell, as we have seen, there are all kinds of people. There are philanthropists who think that they will change the world by good works. There was a Filipino doctor, who was kind, compassionate, and competent. He loved his profession and his patients, but was unable to believe in life after death. Then the time came for him to on his own deathbed. An uncertainty came over his soul, and he became troubled. What if his Christian friends were right, and he was totally unprepared for eternity? He sank lower and lower, and eventually slipped away, surrounded by loving friends and relatives. Then suddenly he came back, and he revived. A look of terror distorted his face and he said, “ I have been to hell and I don’t want to go.”  He then proceeded to describe some of the terrible agonies and sufferings of those in that place of doom. Loving friends led him to accept Christ as his Saviour and Friend. After a time, he was able to give them the assurance that he was truly saved, and that he had that joy and peace of Jesus in his heart. With a face enlightened by heaven’s glory, he then went to be forever with the Lord. Being a kind, compassionate, and loving doctor was not the door to heaven. It was his acceptance of Christ as his Saviour that was his assurance.

  

Another unbelieving doctor was attending to a patient who was in the throes of death. The patient kept fading in and out of consciousness. But every time he was resuscitated, his face contorted with terror and he would scream, “Get me out! I am in hell. Help me! Get me out!” The doctor could not save his life, but his patient left such a great impression upon him that he went to find friends who could lead him to accept Christ as his own personal Saviour. He remarked that no one would had witnessed the screams of his patient could be left in doubt in hell, and its horrendous torments very, very real.

  In a November 1995 interview on PBS with David Frost, Bill Gates (one of the richest men in the world) was asked if he believed in the Sermon on the Mount. “I’m not somebody who goes to church on a regular basis,” he said. “The specific elements of Christianity are not something I’m a huge believer in. There’s a lot of merit in the moral aspects of religion. I think it can have a very, very positive impact…In terms of doing things I take a fairly scientific approach to why things happen and how they happen. I don’t know if there’s a god or not, but I think religious principles are quite valid.”

  In a cover story for the January 13, 1996 issue of Time magazine with Bill Gates:  Gates was asked if there isn’t something divine about the human soul. He replied tonelessly, “I don’t have any evidence on that…I don’t have any evidence of that.” He later added, “Just in terms of allocation of time resources, religion is not very efficient. There’s a lot more I could be doing on a Sunday morning.”

   So the wealthiest man in the world (at the time of going to press) has no witness of eternity. This supports the words of Christ in Luke 18:24-25, “…How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eyes, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”

(excerpt from Heaven's Glories and The Untold Horrors of Hell by Dr. Brian Bailey). 

ARMANDO P. MARIANO

WHO'S WHO IN HELL

Differentiations in Hell

The eternity of those who have known the truth and turned aside is far worse than that of those who did not know the truth. This fact is borne out by the testimony of another Colombian youth who was taken by the Lord into hell (recorded by the International ministry, Light for the nations):

"We came to the most terrible section of hell, where the worse torments happen--the centre of hell. There we saw the most concentrated forms of torment; such torments that a human being could never express them. The only people here were those who knew Jesus and had known the Word of God. There were pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and all type of people who had once accepted Jesus and knew the truth, but had lived a double life."

   There were also backsliders; their suffering was a thousand times worse than any one else. They were shouting and begging the Lord for mercy, but the Word of the Lord says in the book of Heb. 10:26-27, "For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses."

Those souls were there because they had preached, fasted, sung, and lifted their hands in the church, but in the streets and at home they committing adultery, fornication, lying , or robbery. We cannot lie to God. The Bible say that to whom much has been given much also will be required (Lk. 12:48). 

   God then allowed us to see women who had once been Christian sisters while on the arth, but they didn't live a righteous life before the Lord. One said to the other, 'You cursed wretch! It's your fault that I am in this place! You didn't preach to me a holy gospel! And because you didn't tell me about the truth, I am now here in hell.' They would say these things to each other in the midst of the flames; and they hated each other because there is no love, mercy or forgiveness in hell. 

   There were thousands of souls who had known the Word of God, but their lives weren't clean before the holy presence of the Lord. The Lord said, 'You cannot play with God or with the flames of hell either!' He also told us, 'My sons, all the suffering on the earth concentrated in just one another is nothing, NOTHING compared with the suffering that a person has in the best parts of hell.' If it is that terrible for those who suffer least in hell, how much worse must it be for those in the centre of hell, who once knew the Word of the Lord and walked away from it."

    The Lord makes that very clear in Luke 12:47-48, "...And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.48 But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more."

    We need to understand that all have sinned, and the wages of sin is death, and by the consequence, is an eternity to be spent in the terrors of hell. Whilst there are degrees of suffering in hell, any aspect of hell has been said to be 1,000 times more painful than any pain experienced here on earth. 


(excerpt from Heaven's Glories and The Untold Horrors of Hell by Dr. Brian Bailey). 

The Correct and Balance Ministry of the Apostles

By:

Kenneth E. Hagin

 By not rightly dividing the Word of God, some people have misinterpreted the office of the apostle and taken it to the extreme. Anything taken into extreme is in error.

  People need to interpret Scripture in the light of other Scripture on the same subject. Therefore, in order to rightly divide the Word of truth on any subject, people need to take all the scriptures on a given subject and study them in the light of all the Bible has to say on that subject.

  By assuming the apostle is listed first because it is preeminent over all the ministry gifts, some people are going from church to church in a dictatorial attitude declaring that they are apostles and demanding that people and churches submit to them.

   Obviously, in the establishing of the universal Church following the resurrection of Jesus, the apostles and prophets were of primary importance because they brought forth the revelation of the New Testament that is the foundation upon which the Church in all generations is to be established.

   However, in terms of the operation of the local church today, First Corinthians 12:28 could not be referring to the offices of the apostles and prophets as the most important offices or the the governing offices with the local church, because Paul listed governments as an entirely separate category.

   Therefore, Paul couldn’t be listing ministry gifts in their order of importance within the local church because in the passage in First Corinthians 12:28, Paul lists teachers third. However, in Ephesians 4:11 he lists the office of the teacher last. That’s not consistent.

   Also, assuming that the “governments” is the pastoral office, in First Corinthians 12:28 Paul lists the ministry of helps before the pastoral office. If he were listing them by importance in the local church today, then the teacher and helps ministry would have authority over the pastor in the local assembly.

   That’s not scriptural. And according to the list in Ephesians 4:11, that means the evangelist would be in authority over the pastor in the local body! That isn’t biblical, particularly because the evangelist’s ministry is usually not a stationary ministry in the local church; it is usually more of a roving ministry to the unsaved outside of the church.

   So we can readily see that Paul does not list the ministry gifts in their order of importance in the local church today. Neither was he establishing the hierarchy for local church government by the order in which the ministry gifts were listed. No, the office of the apostle was not listed first because it is the most important office in the local body and is supposed to rule over all the other ministry gifts.

 Actually, in Ephesians 4:11 and First Corinthians 12:28, it would seem logical that Paul listed these offices in that order by the way God "set" or developed the ministry gifts in the Early Church. The Early Church didn't have the five fold ministry to begin with because it takes time for God to develop ministries and ministers. And God doesn't put novices in positions of authority or in ministry offices because He won't violate His own Word (1 Tim. 3:6). So for a time, the apostolic ministry was the only ministry in operation in the Early Church.

Therefore, the apostolic office was the first ministry gift that was initially evident in the Early Church. The twelve Apostles of the Lamb were the only ministers in the beginning days of the Early Church. These men had acompanied with Jesus in His earthly ministry (Acts 1:21). They were chosen by God, and the Holy Spirit had equipped and qualified them as ministers of the gospel.

The apostles seemed to have the ability to operate in all the ministry gifts to some degree. And, really, they needed that ability because the Church was in its infancy stages and no other ministry gift had developed in the Church yet. It would also be safe to say that they ministered prophetically to some degree, and they did minister evangelistically as well. There was also an element of pastoral oversight, and we know for certain that they taught the Word.

Apostles, however, did not remain as the only ministry gift in the Church. As time progressed, those who ministered as prophets also began to appear. The prophets spoke by inspired utterance. The scriptures don't give us much detail on this subject, but we do know that the ministry of the prophet was well established by the time the account in Acts 13:1 occurred:

"Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain PROPHETS _______ "

Similarly, the Scriptures don't give us the exact beginning of the evangelist's ministry. However, we see the office of the evangelist first mentioned in Acts 8 in Philip's ministry. By then the Church had already been in existence for many years, and there had been time for the Holy Spirit to develop the ministry of the evangelist in the Church.

Pastors or shepherds were raised up as the Church grew and believers matured spiritually (Acts 14:23; 15:2; 20:28). And the ministry of the teacher was developed in the Early Church as believers were trained and instructed in doctrine (Acts 2:42; 13:1).

Another reason it is erroneous to exalt the apostle's office above all others is that even in the Early Church, the apostles didn't govern all the churches — even churches they had helped to establish. Paul only had spiritual oversight of churches while he was establishing them. But he had no oversight in the church at Jerusalem or any other church whatsoever. Once he left a church he had established, he delegated oversight to others (Acts 20:28).

After leaving, Paul did respond to questions the Church asked, and he offered godly input to them. But he did not control or govern them.

I don't really like to use the words "spiritual authority," in reference to the apostolic office because that gives the idea that apostles rule and govern people and churches, and they don't.

But the point is that in First Corinthians 12:28 when Paul said, . . God hath SET some in the church . . . he was probably referring to the order in which God "set" or developed ministry gifts in the Early Church. Another error in this doctrine is a teaching which says that all the ministry gifts make up the "government" of the local church, and each church, regardless of its size, is to be ruled by the five fold ministry.

Again, people haven't rightly divided the Word. They haven't distinguished between the Church as a whole — the universal Body of Christ — and the local church. In the Church as a whole, we will find all five ministry gifts in operation. But every local church will not have all five ministry gifts operating in its assembly.

These misconceptions really put the Body of Christ into bondage instead of liberating believers. The Bible says that the Word of God will set us free (John 8:32), not bring us into bondage.

You see, if we aren't careful, we can have misconceptions on both sides of this issue. We can get in the ditch on one side and deny the true office and function of the apostle. Or we can get in a ditch on the other side and give the apostolic office unlimited preeminence and authority.  Those who give the apostolic office too much pre-eminence and claim to stand in that office, seem to take the attitude, "I'm an apostle! You've got to do what I say because in order to have correct New Testament government, the local church has to be governed by apostles."

Actually, I can't find anywhere in the New Testament that there is any higher office in the local church than the pastoral office. I don't see anywhere in the New Testament where apostles ruled over pastors and other ministry gifts. These unscriptural teachings that apostles and prophets are to rule and govern people and churches are not new. I've been in the ministry more than fifty-seven years, and I've seen these same unscriptural teachings in the Body of Christ before. These errors run in cycles. They crop up in every generation in the Church and have to be dealt with.

You see, another generation will come up that hasn't been taught the truth of God's Word on a particular subject, and they'll get off in a ditch in an area and get off-balance scripturally.

In every generation God has to raise up someone in church leadership to deal with these issues. God raised up Donald Gee in the 1930s to deal with this same extreme teaching on apostles in his book, The Ministry-Gifts of Christ, which is now out of print. Donald Gee was one of the pioneers and great teachers of the Pentecostal Movement.

Then we had the same problem surface again in the Body of Christ in the 1950s. Gordon Lindsay addressed it again in his book, Apostles, Prophets and Governments, and the problem died down. Lindsay was the founder of the Bible school, Christ For The Nations, and he published the magazine, The Voice of Healing. Almost all the leading healing evangelists of the day published their articles in this magazine.

Because Donald Gee and Gordon Lindsay were respected leaders in the Church, and their books were scripturally balanced, they stopped much of the wrong doctrine that had surfaced back then. There was a real revival in those days, and that's usually when the devil starts all of these spiritual tangents to try to stop the move of God. He diverts believers by getting them off in spiritual error, trying to abort the real move of God's Spirit.

In our day, a new generation has grown up in the Church.  And this same controversy has resurfaced in the Body of Christ, so it has to be addressed again. I tried to get God to have someone else do it, but He said, "No, you do it." That's the reason for this book.

I will quote from Gordon Lindsay's book, Apostles, Prophets and Governments from time to time in this book, because it amplifies what I believe and his insights help explain some of the things the Lord said to me in that visitation. But one reason these errors have occurred again in our day is that people try to give the apostolic office of today the same status as the second or third class of apostle in the days of the Early Church. But it simply does not have the same status. 

Now there is no doubt at all that some folks in our day could rightly be called apostles in the fourth class. (We will discuss the fourth class of apostle in the next chapter.) But a fellow who goes around broadcasting to everyone that he is an apostle, probably isn't one. If you are a minister, I would encourage you to let others call you what they will based on the spiritual endowments or equipment and fruit they see manifested in your life and ministry. Let's just rejoice to see the ministry gifts in manifestation and glory in the work the Lord is doing in the Body of Christ without being concerned about titles.

February 05, 2019
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Providing excellent motivation and inspiration to unleash potentials in everyone and mentoring life's journey through life's experiences for us to become better persons that God want us to be, overcomers, victorious and conquerors for the glory of God.

YOUR TRUE CALLING

Have you ever considered why the Lord called you to be a child of God? Was it to become a powerful preacher of the gospel, to be a missionary in a far-off country or to be a good husband and father or wife and mother? Is your calling to be a successful business person or an efficient administrator? While these may be valid pursuits in life in obedience to the calling of God, we need to look more closely into the Scriptures to identify our true calling.

In my study of the Scriptures, I have discovered at least 41 calls that apply to the lives of believers. Consider, for example, that we are called out of darkness into His marvelous light (see 1 Pet. 2:9) or that we are called to be saints (see Rom. 1:7).

But not one of these 41 calls is our primary call. When God created Adam there were no churches to pastor, no heathen to preach the gospel to and no businesses or offices to manage. The primary reason God created Adam was to fulfill His desire for a family with whom He could enjoy sweet communion. His first priority is the same today as then: to enjoy His children in a love relationship.

Jesus declared, “’If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him’” (John 14:23, NKJV).

Our primary calling is our destiny to enjoy relationship with God, not to work for Him. The work God gave Adam to do was to have dominion over the earth. He was in charge of taking care of the place where he would live with his descendants and where God would come to walk with him and commune with him.

God’s desire for believers is to cultivate a love relationship with each of us. In the context of that relationship He will then give us specific tasks to do. Yet the tasks should never diminish the priority of relationship with Him.

Of course, God has ordained that the church, the body of Christ in the earth, serve one another as we serve God. But we must be careful to prioritize our calling the way God does and not according to man’s perspective. God intends that our service to the body of Christ and to lost humanity proceed out of relationship with Himself. That relationship of worship – the creature to the Creator, the redeemed to the Redeemer – will motivate us to serve out of a heart of love for God.

I am convinced that whatever God does to advance His purpose on the earth is born out of a worshiping people. When the woman at the well asked Jesus questions about worship, He responded, “’The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him’” (John 4:23).

It was the woman’s question and Jesus’ answer that led me to seek God and search the Scriptures in order to understand what Jesus meant by worship in “spirit and truth.” God seeks worshipers who will cultivate a love relationship with Him. He values our relationship with Him more than anything we can or will ever do for Him. We can show Him that we value it as well by laying hold of our primary calling to enjoy and worship Him.

BY: Dr. Fuchsia Pickett

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Healing Before Ministry

"And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed." - Joshua 5:8

Before the nation of Israel could go into the Promised Land they had to be circumcised. Circumcision is painful, bloody, and personal. God requires each of us to be circumcised in the heart before we are allowed to enter and receive the blessings that await each believer in the Promised Land.

This circumcision can often be very painful. Circumcision requires losing our old way of life. The process of spiritual circumcision may mean a loss in areas that have been a part of our lives in order to draw us to the Savior. God understands this. Consequently, like the people of Israel, we must wait until we are healed before we begin to be effective in our calling. If we launch out too early, we will be ineffective and may risk infection and disease and will not be at our full capacity. God wants each of us to walk in His healing grace.

The people of Israel fought only two battles when they were coming out of Egypt. In the Promised Land they fought 39 battles. Each of us must be prepared to enjoy the benefits of living in the Promised Land. However, we must also be prepared to wage war against the enemy of our souls. Make sure the Lord has provided the needed healing to your circumcision experience before you enter the Promised Land.

by Os Hillman

_______________________________

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YOUR TRUE CALLING

Have you ever considered why the Lord called you to be a child of God? Was it to become a powerful preacher of the gospel, to be a missionary in a far-off country or to be a good husband and father or wife and mother? Is your calling to be a successful business person or an efficient administrator? While these may be valid pursuits in life in obedience to the calling of God, we need to look more closely into the Scriptures to identify our true calling.

In my study of the Scriptures, I have discovered at least 41 calls that apply to the lives of believers. Consider, for example, that we are called out of darkness into His marvelous light (see 1 Pet. 2:9) or that we are called to be saints (see Rom. 1:7).

But not one of these 41 calls is our primary call. When God created Adam there were no churches to pastor, no heathen to preach the gospel to and no businesses or offices to manage. The primary reason God created Adam was to fulfill His desire for a family with whom He could enjoy sweet communion. His first priority is the same today as then: to enjoy His children in a love relationship.

Jesus declared, “’If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him’” (John 14:23, NKJV).

Our primary calling is our destiny to enjoy relationship with God, not to work for Him. The work God gave Adam to do was to have dominion over the earth. He was in charge of taking care of the place where he would live with his descendants and where God would come to walk with him and commune with him.

God’s desire for believers is to cultivate a love relationship with each of us. In the context of that relationship He will then give us specific tasks to do. Yet the tasks should never diminish the priority of relationship with Him.

Of course, God has ordained that the church, the body of Christ in the earth, serve one another as we serve God. But we must be careful to prioritize our calling the way God does and not according to man’s perspective. God intends that our service to the body of Christ and to lost humanity proceed out of relationship with Himself. That relationship of worship – the creature to the Creator, the redeemed to the Redeemer – will motivate us to serve out of a heart of love for God.

I am convinced that whatever God does to advance His purpose on the earth is born out of a worshiping people. When the woman at the well asked Jesus questions about worship, He responded, “’The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him’” (John 4:23).

It was the woman’s question and Jesus’ answer that led me to seek God and search the Scriptures in order to understand what Jesus meant by worship in “spirit and truth.” God seeks worshipers who will cultivate a love relationship with Him. He values our relationship with Him more than anything we can or will ever do for Him. We can show Him that we value it as well by laying hold of our primary calling to enjoy and worship Him.

BY: Dr. Fuchsia Pickett

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 About me:

                                   

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Servant of God/Discipler

Preparing the Way of the Lord

  for His soon 2nd Coming!

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Are We Saved by Faith Alone or by Faith that is Not Alone?

MORAL LAW

 Another group, the Antinomians, void of the law.  Antinomian is a compound word from the Greek roots “antinomian” meaning “without law.” The sect originated in the days of the Apostles, Its followers suppose that the gospel was designed to release Christians from their obligation to obey the moral law. Their doctrine grew out of a perversion of the doctrine of justification by faith.

The Jewish scholars had taught that men would be saved only by perfect outward conformity to the moral and ceremonial laws. In opposition to this, Paul taught that by the works of the law no flesh can be justified; first, because all men had broken the law already, and second because no obedience however perfect could make restitution for past disobedience.  Therefore, all people are already condemned by the law because of their pardon and acceptance. The atonement of Christ is, therefore, the only ground for pardon. Those who are saved are justified solely by faith in Christ irrespective of any legal righteousness of their own.

     The Biblical view of justification by faith was perverted by the Antinomians. They maintained that if people were justified by faith alone, then good works are unnecessary. They believed that faith in Christ is substituted for obedience to the law of God. They overlooked the fact without personal holiness no one shall see the Lord.

Holiness of Heart Is Part of the Gospel

    Varieties of the Antinomian sect have existed throughout history and in almost every part of the Church. They have not always been known by this name, but thousands have and still do manifest their belief and practices. They may generally be recognized; when holiness of heart and life are demanded, they complain that this is legal preaching, that the gospel has been exchanged for the law. They think that the gospel is designed to repeal the moral law; not only to set aside the penalties for believers in Christ, but also to discharge them from any obligation to the moral government of God, render it impossible for either law or gospel to sanctify them and “utterly perish in their own corruption.”

    Obviously, a person professing faith in Christ must live a holy life, as holy as if he expected to be saved by his works. If he indulges in sin, abandoning all regard for the law, he is the minister of sin. He is perverting and abusing the gospel. He becomes, in heart, an Antinomian. The gospel becomes a license to sin and Christ the apologist for sin.

PRINCIPLES OF REVIVAL p. 98

Charles Finney

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 About me:

                                   

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Preparing the Way of the Lord

  for His soon 2nd Coming!