I have been busy to say the least. I had no idea the hoops I would have to jump through to get things off the ground. Time has quickly flown by this month and here it is Christmas time already. If you want to have your pot stirred go over and read Cowboy's latest post. I am quite sure it is not you traditional Christmas post.
I just want to wish all of you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
The
other day my daughter got into a debate with another girl that she
corresponds with and it got me contemplating today about our
relationship with our Lord. I got to thinking and praying about it so
much it turned into a little personal worship time. Kind of amazing
how things play out through the day.
The
debate is an old and familiar one on security of the believer, but it
got me thinking about what kind of relationship we have with Him and
it just kind of floored me. The Word talks about us being adopted
son and daughters, but have you ever contemplated just what that
means? Can you even begin to comprehend the enormity of being a child
of G_d? To think that the Creator of the universe not only sent His
only begotten Son to die in our place, but in doing that He makes us
co-heirs of His kingdom. He loves us so much that He wanted to not
just redeem us to Him but to make us His children. I am sitting here
in awe and wonder right now. I know that to some people this is
probably basic thinking but it is so amazing to sit back and
contemplate just what His love means and how He shows it. Quite
frankly I do not understand how someone could even suggest that this
love, once you have felt it, could be walked away from, but I don't
want to contemplate such a thing right now. I want to just sit here
and bask in my Father's love and know I can call him Daddy if I want
to.
... that it has been a year since our youngest child was born. Wild Child as he has been dubbed has grown like a weed over the past year. Just recently he has started walking and life has not been the same. So while the world will be celebrating Halloween we will be celebrating Wild Child's first birthday.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SON!!!
On Sunday morning, May 6, 1962, at the largest Episcopal Church in Rhode Island, a sermon was preached on the text "Who Spake by The Prophets" (from the Nicene Creed).
This assistant clergyman at Grace Church, Providence, said among other things:
"In today's ministry, there are just too many men who volunteer for the priesthood while leaving the mantel of prophecy gathering dust in some neglected back closet. This is done in most cases because it is 1) much safer, and 2) much easier. Do believe me that with the one exception of counseling and / or confession, the priestly office is easy. Any borderline defective who can read and manipulate his hands could celebrate Holy Communion. This is easy even when complicated by the embellishments of liturgical acrobatics sometimes staged to impress pageant addicts by those whom one of our college chaplains refers to as 'a vast conglomeration of cassock-clutching, candle-counting, all-American altar boys.'
"But what of the present majority of churches where such is not the custom? Here often the prophetic office perishes in the real job description: calling for an emasculated pastor. What is wanted in too many churches is an amiable, dignified, machine oiling. King-of-cliches, who will keep the Holy Ghost ghostly, the preaching platitudinous and the spirit of the living Christ locked safely in the sacristy. What too many churches demand today is by no means a moral leader – but a round-collared, or plain-tied, country club manager. And I say this without the slightest intimation that there is anything intrinsically wrong with a country club – unless it and its leader are masquerading in the name of Jesus Christ and His Church. In this case, it is an abomination – as seen in the familiar doggerel:
Like a mighty country club moves the Church of God
Brothers, we are treading on the safest sod!
"This type of church certainly doesn't want a clergyman who takes Christ and his life seriously. For the final and conclusive approbation of the prophetic ministry was in the fact that our Lord himself was a prophet – and so referred to himself more than once. He never once referred to himself as a priest (only the Epistle to the Hebrews did this in a heavenly sense). He never referred to any of His followers as priests and He did not select as His Apostles any of the priests who existed in His time. Furthermore, He exercised the prophetic ministry. For one thing, He injected politics into His pulpit – only they were called Pharisees and Sadducees rather than Democrats and Republicans. He denounced respectable clergy and He denounced the government. He ran roughshod over outmoded but very seriously cherished institutions such as the Sabbath and the dietary laws. Finally, He was materially injudicious enough to upset a big business – in cleansing the temple of its moneychangers. Hence, having lived like a prophet, He died like one.
"To most of the contemporary world – at least the few in the eastern Mediterranean who even heard of Him during His lifetime – He was a material failure; who became world-famous only after many years when the various guardians and chaplains of the status quo, seeing that they could not lick the movement, joined it. This is the primary example in defining one type of conservative as a person who worships liberals who have been dead a long, long time.
"What happens when the church loses its social consciousness? Karl Marx happens. Adolph Eichmann happens. Fidel Castro happens.
"I think of few fields in the ministry more important than counseling. Yet one of our greatest needs is to know the truth about ourselves – when supposedly 'even your best friend won't tell you.' How can people be expected to receive or even seek out help from an ecclesiastical Dr. Doe who desecrates his pulpit with irrelevancy while dodging so many issues that he ought to be a mascot for one of the baseball teams in Los Angeles?"
Hello,
I have a prayer request. Pray for my brother Darryl.
I have had a long evening and night. I took Darryl to the hospital this evening with some wild symptomology. In 1989 he was in an auto accident and has a sever brain injury from the accident. He began displaying partial paralysis in his left face, neck, shoulder, arm and torso. Along with this symptomology we also added a rapid change in vision over the last three weeks, a limp and stumbling, and slurred speech. Blood work and a CT Scan revealed nothing out of the ordinary. He has not had a stroke or heart attack.
Darryl literally has the front third of his brain missing and the rear is 1/4 is damaged from the rebound of the brain during the wreck. Tonight the neurologist told us that there is nothing that they can do for him at the hospital and for us to take him to some out patient tests later this week. His original neurologist told us that one day his brain would begin to "fall apart" and that we would finally lose him to the injury. He has out lived patients who are in longitudinal studies who have had the same injury. He has lived well past when he was supposed to live.
In His Grace,
Jimmie
Update:
Hey,
Updating a prayer requestion for my brother Darryl.
I just returned from a Dr. appointment with Darryl. His neurologist
says that he would bet that Darryl had had at least 2 - 3 strokes in
the last 10 weeks. Some of the basic diagnostic tests in the office
demonstrated that Darryl has an appreciable change in this fine and
gross motor skills as well as a dramatic change in this vision. He is
also experiencing a change in his ability to differentiate signals sent
to his brain from the optic nerve telling him which of his triple to
quadruple visions is in fact the "Real" object.
I appreciate your prayers for him.
In His Grace,
Jimmie
Over the
past few weeks I have been thinking and praying about the direction
that my ministry is going to take. This has been very difficult for
me; as most people know I am not quite the same as other people. As I
have told others, I am a square peg in a round hole world. If you
tried to make me fit into the mold of the typical preacher, edges
would be rounded off and I would lose part of who and what I am. I
had a very tempting offer presented to me that fell through, at least
for now, that started this introspection. The match in this ministry
and how I have envisioned being able to work in a non-traditional
ministry seemed to fit like a glove. The fact of the matter is that
for the foreseeable future that door is closed and I am left with the
question of “what now?”. While praying and seeking, the Lord led
me to a familiar verse and sometimes those are the most comforting.
28 Do you not know? Have you not
heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of
the earth Does not become weary or tired His understanding is
inscrutable.
29 He gives strength to the weary, And to him who
lacks might He increases power.
30 Though youths grow weary and
tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who wait
for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings
like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not
become weary.Isaiah
40:26-31
Verse 31
is my favorite verse in the Word and the basis for the title of my
blog. It is also the answer to my question. I will wait upon the
Lord and in His due time my Ministry will rise up as if on wings of
eagles. If that is with the ministry my friend worked so tirelessly
to get me involved in, then G_d will open those doors. If not, then
G_d will open the doors to other opportunities. This is all I need
to know and all I need to hold on to. These things are in His hands
and He will place me where He needs me to be.
I did not like going to moderating comments when I did. My belief in free exchange of idea and all, so I am going back to my original policy of open commenting, and I will update the commenting policy to reflect that. The commenter that put me in that position to moderate has left for now. I have a very good idea of who he is and I was trying to press him into revealing himself. As he is now incapable of commenting on a blog (lack of computer access where he is) I want to open things up again.
I only ask that you keep foul language to yourself and to be respectfull of others as if you were talking to them face to face. While I am a big boy and can handle more than the ocasional cuss word without being offended my children do read this blog and I prefer them not to be expossed to crude and profane things early in life. I take this seriously and will only warn twice and I consider the commenting policy to be the first warning. If the problem persists then that person will be banned forthwith.
I do not often write reviews of books, but Summa Elvetica struck me as worthy of a review. It may come as a surprise to some but I like science fiction and fantasy novels. I really enjoy them when they have a Christian bent or worldview. So when I found out one of my favorite bloggers Vox Day was writing a new fantasy novel built around an analog of the catholic church I was excited. The book, which is now available for purchase, is published by a new publishing house called Marcher Lord Press is also available for free download from Vox's site.
Because I am cash-strapped, I downloaded his free e-book version when it came out, and I got quickly engrossed in the vibrant world of men, dwarves, and elves he was creating. Others have compared it to The Hobbit or to The Lord of the Rings, but I am not sure I am willing to go that far yet, but I can see the promise in his writing. Unlike other novels of this sort, I liked that he engaged the mind as the story line was more of a thinking man’s story than the typical slash and burn kill fests that so many fantasy novels turn out to be. The “hero” in the story is a mild mannered intellectual who aspires to be a priest. He is from the pampered upper class of a society much like the Roman empire, and has all of the advantages of being so. He could quite frankly be someone you would learn to dislike if not for his apparent innocence, humble attitude, and seeming keen insight into what is transpiring around him. This is part of the brilliance of the authors writing. He is able to take you into the world of his characters and have you see through their eyes and truly be there with them in their adventures and follies. You get the feeling you are right there with them as part of the group and actively involved as a fellow adventurer in what appears to be a well thought out complex world.
The vibrant world and engrossing characters also happen to be the problem with this book. He has built a world so engrossing so inviting and it seems the story is just really getting started and then it is over. The ending is so abrupt it is jarring, almost as if he had to hurry and finish the book before his deadline. The final battle seemed more like a skirmish, a prelude to the war to come so to speak. I really did enjoy this book right up until the end where it just seemed to go flat. All in all I would recommend reading this book and I would encourage the author to build upon this world he has created. It has the potential to become like The Hobbit if he does write more stories based upon this world, but if it is left alone as a single book then I would say the story is incomplete and leaves you wanting for more and in the end unsatisfying in fulfilling that want.
I have never been real happy with my profile under Eaglewood Ministries. To that end I have rewrote it and I am much happier with it. I am posting it here as well. Let me know what you think.
I am a home
schooling father and a dedicated follower of Yeshua whom most people know as
Jesus Christ. Several years ago I had an amazing encounter with the Holy One of
Israel. In that encounter he called upon me to be one of His prophets for this
age. His desire is for His children to come to fuller understanding of who He
is and how deep His love is for us.
I am probably the least
likely person anyone would think G_d would call upon to be one of His prophets
for this age. I am a father of 6 children one of whom is with Yeshua now. I
have no formal ministerial training, and I know Jehovah is requiring me to go
through unconventional means to obtain the knowledge I need to know to fulfill
His calling upon my life. Primarily I am to lean upon the Holy Spirit for
guidance and direction. I have never seen myself in a “typical” ministry such
as preaching in the typical church setting. I have always seen it as some kind
of teaching along the “wayside”. Reaching one person at a time and letting the
fire spread. I want to introduce people to a love of Yeshua that they never
dreamed possible, to go outside of the “box” and find where He is moving and
join Him. I can’t do that in a “typical” church setting before a crowd of people
in pews. If I am teaching outside of the box why would I want to stay confined
to the box? To that end I have always envisioned a ministry where I could let
people explore His majesty and wonder in the greatest cathedral ever created. Until
the time my physical ministry can come to fruition I am using this blog in the
hopes that there will be some who listen and hear His message of love,
reconciliation, and power. To learn to truly know what it means to fly on wings of
eagles.
Sometimes music says it better than words.
Yesterday I heard Your voice
Whispering through all the noise
I pretended I couldn’t hear You
But You kept on pursuing me
And You began to move in me
And I just couldn’t hide any more
I won’t fight You
Go ahead!
Take what You want to
Take what You need to
Don’t let me hold You back
Go ahead!
Do what You have to
Cuz I want to know You
Don’t let me hold You back
I’ll my wear heart out on my sleeve
If it brings You close to me
Help me leave the life I knew before You
Come inside, erase the shame
Call me by different name
I won’t be the same anymore
God, I trust You
Go ahead!
Take what You want to
Take what You need to
Don’t let me hold You back
Go ahead!
Do what You have to
Cuz I want to know You
Don’t let me hold You back
God, I was so wrong
To stay away so long
Oh, how I need You!
Go ahead!
Take what You want to
Take what You need to
Don’t let me hold You back
Go ahead!
Do what You have to
Cuz I want to know You
Don’t let me hold You back
By Fireflight
Mikey, I am glad you came back it
helps establish that you are not a troll. It seems to me you
have quite a few misconceptions of what the Christian faith really is
as it is based upon a skewed vision of corrupt and legalistic people.
I would love to show you a view of the Christian faith that you
apparently have not seen.
“Like I
said, there are many people on both sides of the issue. I would ask,
though who gave you the authority and who anointed you. And don’t
just say god did, because we both know that is not and never was the
way it was done. Prophets were called by god but usually there was
someone who god used to talk to them or anoint them - someone who had
been called in the same way. I guess I am just so tired of people
appointing themselves. From the churches of today to the anti-western
“christians” like you, there are so many men who just appoint
themselves and decide god called them. IF god called you, how did
that happen - and HOW do you know he called YOU?”
I have gone back and read your
previous comment to make sure but you did not say anything about
people being on both sides. You did come out and say I am a false
teacher without getting to know me or what I teach though. Again you
are wrong about how people are called of G_d, especially prophets.
Moses who is considered the greatest of the Hebrew prophets was never
“anointed” by another prophet. He had a singular encounter with
the Creator of the universe when he met Him at the burning bush.
Samuel heard the voice of G_d calling him. Daniel was not anointed of
a man either. I could go on and on with this but I hope you get the
point. The one who does the true anointing is Jehovah Himself not one
of His people. Yes, I do agree there are people out there who are
just appointing themselves as prophets and such, but there is a
difference. People like that are about themselves and what they can
gain by claiming prophet status. I have no desires of that kind, and
have simply accepted what Jehovah Himself has asked of me. In fact I
denied my calling for years and ran from it. I had no desire to be one of his messengers as I was
comfortable in my own little world with my wife and children. The one thing I learned
in all of that is that no matter how hard you try you cannot run from
G_d.
You ask me how I know Jehovah
called me, well I will tell you that I had a one-on-one encounter
with the Holy one of Israel. To try and explain it in words does it an
injustice, but the encounter did not leave any ambiguities as to whom
I was dealing with. His holy presence is unmistakable and unforgettable. I know I have
talked about it before here on my blog but I am not sure what post it
was. Feel free to explore the archives.
I am curious as to how you have
derived the idea that I am anti-western because I assure you I am not. I do
use the Hebrew names for my Lord as the origins of our knowledge of
The Great I AM comes from that culture and it is through the Hebrew
people that Yeshua came to us. It is a matter of personal choice and
respect for my Lord. It has nothing to do with being anti-western.
“P.S. It
has nothing to do with my personal religious beliefs or denomination
I have never been a part of a denomination and still am not. I don’t
even “go to church”.And as to me
not respecting christians, tell me why I should? Abused and beaten as
a child by a pastor and “prophet”, abused as a teenager by
prophets, abused as an adult by a “prophet”, destroyed and hated
as an adult because I had pain from my childhood when I tried to
reach out to a church. Why should I have any respect for them?”
Mike it is obvious you have had a
horrendous experience in the church and at the hands of evil men
claiming to be prophets. Rest assured these men will be dealt with by
Yeshua. It is equally grievous to me that you were hated as an adult
by others in the church. These are people who have missed out on a
true understanding of His love and compassion. Yeshua is not like
these people. In fact all people will let you down at some point even
devoted followers of Yeshua. We are all sinners and capable of great
harm to our fellow man so I am not going to ask you to respect
Christians I will not even ask you to respect me. I will ask you to
take a good hard look at the Source of our faith. Is Yeshua Himself
worthy of respect? Is He worthy of our love as pitiful as that might
be? I would say that if you took your eyes of
the creatures and put them on the Creator you would see a far
different picture. His love is pure and He accepts you for who you
are. The question is are you ready to experience that love in it's
totality? I would consider it an honor to show you.
As of yesterday Birdie and I were married for what is known as forever and an eternity. For those that do not know it is 18 glorious years I would not trade for anything.
Thanks my love for all the joy you have given me and I truly look forward to growing old with you.
Why am I still dealing with this? I gave serious thoughts to just deleting mikey for the troll he is, but I think that it is important that I once an for all quash this mentality that somehow prophets are not called anymore. If mikey had left out his last part about not respecting Christians I would have simply treated him as the uninformed person that he obviously is and not a troll. Lets start with the verses people use to state that prophets are no longer called and I will show you where you are wrong mikey.
1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways,
2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.
3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power When He had
made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,4 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.
5 For to which of the angels did He ever say, "YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU"? And again, "I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME"?
Hebrews 1:1-5 NASB
1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:
4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?
Hebrews 1:1-5 KJV
1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he
had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father"? Or again,"I will be his Father, and he will be my Son"?
Hebrews 1:1-5 NIV
I had heard in many places that Hebrews 1:1-2 shows that the office of Prophet has ended and if you look at the NIV version the “but” in verse two would imply such but a real study of the verses in the Greek show that it is not the case, and the “but” is not even there in the Greek. I will let Jimmie's words to me on the subject stand in that regard.
NONE OF THE ABOVE
Not to often I get to use that one. There is not a but anywhere in the Greek. The transition into verse is more of a transition of from OT to NT and not saying that the prophets time had come to an end. When you go to verse 3 and 4 you see where the transition is going. It has nothing to do with the prophets speaking or Jesus speaking. It has everything to do with setting Jesus alone as the Son of God, the speaker for God.
Anyone who would proof text verse 1 and 2 do not know how to do hermeneutical Bible study nor exegetical Bible study. Here is how it reads in the Greek:
1. In many parts, and many ways, God of old having spoken to the fathers in the prophets,
2. these last days did speak to us in a Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He did make the ages;
3. who being the brightness of the glory, and the impress of His subsistence, bearing up also the all things by the saying of his might -- through himself having made a cleansing of our sins, sat down at the right hand of the greatness in the highest,
4. having become so much better than the messengers, as he did inherit a
more excellent name than they.
5. or to which of the messengers said He ever, 'My Son thou art -- I to-day have begotten thee?' and again, 'I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to
Me for a son?'
Look at the punctuation, it is the key to understanding Greek. Also word order is very important as well. The writer is basically saying: God spoke through the prophets, but there is one greater than the prophets who is the Son of God who has been appointed above everything because He created everything.
Anyone who would argue that this is saying that the age of the prophets is over before Jesus. They are basically saying that Jesus is not a
prophet and the the OT lied when it proclaims the Messiah to be a Prophet and Priest and King. People have to be careful when they make the Bible say things it does not say. It does not say the age of the prophets is over, it just says that in times past God spoke through the prophets and Jesus has come as being greater than the prophets because He is the Messiah.
Being careful on my end as well, I had to go back in the Greek and make sure I read the entire paragraph before I could answer the question. That is always a good rule of thumb, read the entire paragraph before trying to comment, it makes you look more intelligent when you can say _____ because in the following 2 verses he said this or that.
It is a good study, but remember this is also written to people who are Jews and have to be understood from a Jewish perspective. Jews only knew the prophets
and the writer of Hebrews is making the grand case that this Jesus is greater than even Moses, the greatest of the prophets.
I hope my ramblings helped some. But there is not a precedent here for claiming the ending of the prophetic ministry. What is even more concrete is the NT use in the Spiritual gifts of the word prophet. Paul was consistent with this one gift being prophecy (the one who goes and proclaims, "thus says the Lord.")
In
His Grace,
Jimmie W. Kersh
Mikey, please come tell me just what I have gotten wrong. Where have I said something in Jehovah's name and been wrong? I am extremely careful in what I say that Jehovah has told me to say as they are His words not mine. Mikey, even your admonition that prophets are NEVER wrong is wrong. One of the tests of a true prophet was that none of his prophecies (those things said in the name of Jehovah) were wrong. Mikey, I would dare say that I am more biblical in my teachings than many pastors people look up to today as “spiritual” leaders. I do not portray myself as the authority because I am not, Jehovah is. If you wish to show me a specific point in the Word that says the time of the prophets has ended then bring it on, but I am quite certain you won't find it because I already looked and it is not there.
26 If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
27 "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
Luke 14: 26-24 NASB
24"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
25"He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.
26"If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
John 12: 24-26 NASB
I started to write a long drawn-out dissection of Anon's last comment but I am not sure it would be productive. He appears to have a serious lack of reading comprehension and a lack of understanding of logical fallacies. There are a couple of things that he said that are quite disturbing but they are the evidence of his lack reading comprehension. I wrote one anyways
He seems overly focused on the erroneous idea that I want the church destroyed. That somehow I am like Saul of Tarsus. I am not sure how much clearer I can be. I have absolutely no desire to see the church destroyed. Quite the opposite I desire to see the church restored. Heretical teachings have been allowed to creep in over the last few decades. I want people to wake up and see what those teachings are. If we do not wake up and see the path we are going down, Jehovah will see to it that His church is cleansed. What is so hard to understand about that?
He also made the obvious logical fallacy (known as the "no true Scotsman fallacy") when he made the comments about how true Christians act in the face of persecution. How people act in the face of persecution will vary from person to person and from instance to instance. In fact the source of that persecution will even affect the response. In fact if the persecution is from the outside it is much easier to stand in its face than it is to stand in the face of persecution when you do not realize it for what it is because it is disguised in the cloak of religious authority. Even Peter acted in "non Christian" manner when faced with possible persecution yet the faith that Peter showed was the faith that Yeshua said He would build His church. The statement was a bunch of self righteous religious garbage meant to create a guilt response. The kind of sanctimonious response that often drives people out of the church, and ironic considering his statements on the love we are to show each other.
He seems to think I have some kind of beef with the Baptist church, but I do not. A bad experience in an individual congregation does not make the whole corrupt. Baptists for the most part have resisted the heretical teachings that have pervaded some of the other mainline denominations. Yet even a good portion of them have been deceived by a true wolf in shepherd's clothing. Accepting a clever marketing scheme designed to fill church pews but forgetting that is not what we are to be about. It is not about putting warm bodies in a pew it is about reaching a lost and dying world with the Truth of our Savior's love. He also seems to lack understanding of the fact that there is a governing body in the Southern Baptist Church that sets doctrine and sets the agenda for teaching programs and such. While it is true that the Baptists are not as rigidly controlled as other denominations make no mistake that they are quick to remove a congregation if they do not toe the line. I have seen it before I am sure it will happen again.
I am digressing from my point though. He has missed my message and my point entirely. The message I was given is simple. Study the word, specifically what Israel went through when they strayed from Him and went their own way. I am told by Jehovah that He has seen the unrighteousness throughout HIS church and He will respond if we do not turn from our sin in the same way that He responded to Israel when they did not return to their one true Love. Why is it that this message creates such fear? Why would you think I want to see the church go through the purifying fire of Jehovah's wrath? Why would you think He wants to do it? Is it not better to send messengers to the Church to call them unto repentance so that those in the Church have to opportunity to return to their first Love without going through judgment?
Now let's address my views on politics and fighting the evils in our world. I have in the past been very politically active. I learned a lot in those years. The biggest lesson being that if politics is the avenue you are putting your faith in to fight the evils of our world then you will lead a life of bitter disappointment. The fact of the matter that we are ultimately in a spiritual war for the hearts and minds of men and if we lose sight of that battle we will lose. The only effective way to fight evil is to reach the lost and dying in our world for Yeshua and as Christians is our one true calling. Now that does not mean that I am saying people should not be politically active. If you are lead that way, by all means do so, but never forget where the true battle is. Personally I believe that political activity on my part is a distraction to my calling so I have chosen to abstain, but that does not mean that I have quit fighting evil.
Now as far as the disrespectful manner in which Anon has acted. He has shown that he has a problem with hypocrisy. He makes a statement about the love we are to show each other and then goes on to show an extreme lack of it by lumping myself and others of like mind with the likes of Jim Jones or Joseph Smith. What is your beef? Is it the fact that you are uncomfortable with the idea that Jehovah still uses prophets, can't look outside of your own preconceived notions of what the church is, can't open your mind far enough to question what you have been taught by the man up front, or are you afraid of what will be required of you if you do break out of your box and follow Yeshua with all abandon and truly give Him your life.
Ultimately my friends that is what is required of us all. Give Him everything without qualification. Diving deep into His love and living our lives for Him without reservation. It does not matter how we parse the Word or what denomination we belong to, our doctrinal philosophy does not mater if we cannot die unto ourselves and give ourselves wholeheartedly to Him so that He can give us LIFE and give it to us in a measure we could never fathom. What Yeshua desires more than anything is our unending and unwavering devotion to Him, and it is the least we could give Him.
Have you ever wondered how we look to the rest of the world? Can the world see a difference in us or are we just another person in the crowd? My friends we have a peculiar faith. Just think about it.
We believe that a loving and benevolent Creator created us perfect. In our perfection he gave us a free will so that we could truly love Him back. With our free will we decided do the one thing he commanded us not to do and sin entered His perfect world. The penalty for sin that imperfection He cannot tolerate is death. In His perfect wisdom and love He set forth a plan to bring us back and cover our sin in a perfect way and restore in His sight our perfection.
Does this not just sound like the stuff straight out of a children's story? Yet it is the simple explanation of our faith, the basic understanding of what he did and why. I see in my minds eye the crucifixion of Yeshua and start to recoil at the absolute horror our Lord went through yet at the same time I am comforted by the extreme act of love He did for me in staying on that cross when the easiest thing for Him to do would be to get off of it and walk away. He could have decided it was not worth it and walked away, destroyed His creation and started over. It is within his power to do so, but He chose not to. There is also comfort in knowing that through this act of self-sacrifice He conquered death and the permanent expulsion from His presence we are due because of our rebellion.
The paradox is that it is for the most part it is so simple a child can understand it and realize that it just takes a simple faith; yet we as adults try to make it complex. We add rules; guidelines, doctrines, and anything else that makes the gift look more complex than it is in reality. Why do we do this? It does not add to the message, it dilutes it in ways we could not begin to understand. The answer lies in our sin nature. It rejects the simple because we know our nature is complex and out of hand tends to reject the simple solution to what seems like a complex problem.
Oh, how I praise Yeshua for what He did, and that He made the way to our salvation and eternity with Him so simple. Will you join me there?
4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;
7 Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;
8 Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.
Romans 12: 4-8
4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
1 Corinthians 12: 4-11
27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
1 Corinthians 12: 27-28
There are many more verses in the New Testament where prophecy is spoken of but not once have I found where Jehovah has revoked the gift. Verses 27 and 28 in 1 Corinthians 12 specifically mention one of the offices of the church as being prophet, I cannot even say that the office of apostle is gone as we still have those who teach the teachers and plant churches. The thing is; quite frankly, I was somewhat predisposed to the idea even before I was called because I did believe what the Word said over what people said. I could not reconcile scripture with the Baptist doctrine concerning prophets I was being taught and even castigated over when I questioned why it was that it seemed to contradict scripture. It was over things like this that set me at odds with church leaders. This is when I learned all about local power bases in a church and how they do not like their predisposed ideas challenged. That a lot of them play lip service to the idea of testing their teachings against scripture, but when they are challenged or even asked to answer why they circle the wagons and act with hostility.
To put things plain and simple I believe the scriptures when He said that we would do greater things than He did and that He has not changed nor will He. If someone could show me where I am wrong then I would be willing to listen, but you need to come with your "A" game as I have studied this and a plain simple reading of the scriptures backs me up.
Anon thank you for commenting again. This does confirm that you are not a troll as some would suppose. To that end I would ask that you please identify yourself in the future it does not have to be your name just some moniker that would allow you to be identified in the future. In reading your comment I am seeing quite a bit of misunderstanding about my calling and what I believe. Rather than make this a long post I will try and chop it up into many posts that cover specific topics. The funny thing is that a few years ago I would have been in lock step with you and Dr. Webb had I run into someone like my self in the past. Lets start with what I am not.
“Jesus, himself, in Matthew 13 said
that the angels, or you or I, were not to purge the church. Instead
He said that the tares and wheat were to grow up together and He
would separate them, purge the church, at harvest. If in any other
scenario, the tares were to be removed the wheat would most assuredly
be damaged. For anyone to say that they were call for this duty
automatically put themselves in conflict with Scripture.”
24Jesus presented another parable to
them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.25"But while his men were
sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went
away.26"But when the wheat sprouted
and bore grain, then the tares became evident also.27"The slaves of the landowner
came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?
How then does it have tares?'28"And he said to them, 'An enemy
has done this!' The slaves said to him, 'Do you want us, then, to go
and gather them up?'29"But he said, 'No; for while
you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.30'Allow both to grow together until
the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the
reapers, "First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to
burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn."'"Matthew 13:24-30
First off I am simply a messenger. To use the wheat and tares metaphor I am not one of the reapers. It is not my place to reap the harvest. I have never said I was Jehovah's instrument for the purge. What I am saying is the I and others are called to call the elect back to the Word and a deeper relationship with Him. To quit perverting our faith in order to please a world that Yeshua Himself said would despise us. The more I grow in Him the more I realize it is not even my duty to point out where the tares are but to point to the truth so that people can see for themselves where the enemy has planted the tares.
“Oh my, how very astute of you. I read this and can not help but think of the number of outsiders from the religious orders of the day are in the Word. You do realize that the Pharisees and Sadducees were the accepted leaders of the “church” in the time of Yeshua and John. Each of them challenged the status quo. Please do not preach to me about the “dangers” of challenging our preconceived notions of what the church is. The scriptures teach that the church is Yeshua’s bride which consists of those whom have accepted His divine gift and made Him their Lord. There is no one way in which it is prescribed that believers are to meet and fellowship be it a mega church or a humble home congregation.”
I
checked my blog this evening to find a most perplexing comment. I am
not sure who this anonymous commenter is, but he has gotten who I am
and my message ALL wrong.
“I am
both interested and distressed by your stance on scripture. You seem
to want your readers to think you stand on it, yet you seem to have
your own revelations, which is a violation of the sufficiency of
scripture. You seem to borrow from the NT but you tend to base your
stance on the OT.”
First
and foremost I stand on the in-errancy of the Scriptures. They are
sufficient for all things be it instruction, doctrine, reproof, or
correction. I have found that in order to understand the scriptures
you must study them as a whole. The New Testament has no foundational
meaning without the Old Testament.
16 All
scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction
in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect,
thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
2
Timothy 3:16-17
You seem
to think that somehow I believe Jehovah has given me some revelation
not in scripture. I would tell you that you are reading something
that is not there. Tell me do you truly believe that Jehovah quit
talking to His Children after the Bible was finished? I would tell
you that He does not. I know too many people that He has talked to
for you to tell me that, aside from my own experiences. You seem to
take some kind of umbrage with my status as a prophet. How is it
wrong to take what Yeshua has shown to me and others (I know I am not
the only one)and tell others before it is too late? I was simply told
to study what happened when the Hebrews strayed. Each time, Jehovah
sent them through a time of tribulation that ultimately brought them
back to Him. I am learn how to apply those lessons to our current
situation. Would it not be better if we did not have to go through
the fire?
This is
the part that got me really scratching my head.
“You
say that the first members of the Church were the Scribes and
Pharisees. This is a gross misreading of the Scriptures. Saul of
Tarsus was a Pharisee of the highest honor and yet he was out to
stamp out any and all evidence of the Church and eventually the
Pharisees called for, and secured, the cruel death of their Messiah.”
Seriously
I am quite perplexed. How can anyone even begin to think that
anything I have written even suggests this? I am not even sure what
the second sentence is trying to say. I know that Saul was a Pharisee
but he became Paul after his life changing encounter with Yeshua on
the road to Damascus. The church has nothing to do with the
Pharisees. I think that the book of Acts clearly shows the formation
of the early church, and for me to go through the entire book of Acts would be a bit much for this post.
“Your
banner seems to be that you are suffering from Asperger’s Syndrome,
unable to show love, and are otherwise insufficient for your calling
whereas a true minister of God does so under the banner of the
perfect Omnipotence of The Lord God. When I received Christ as my
Savior, my life immediately began to change and the Holy Spirit began
to transform me into the image of Christ by renewing my mind and my
ability to express Love was in His court. Insufficiency has it’s
place but as a banner shows an arrogance on your part to rob God of
His Glory, as does your use of the terms “Yeshua and G_d”, which
is extremely synthetic.”
How is
it that one comment about my personal struggle with an Asperger's
symptom and how it relates to the fact that Jehovah calls the most
unlikely people to do His work becomes a banner? I have a personal
difficulty in empathizing with the emotions of others. This in no way means that I am incapable of showing love. This personal difficulty makes me
realize that I have to lean on the Holy Spirit more to overcome all of my
difficulties. You have no realization the transformations in my life
that have happened since accepting Yeshua as my savior. Which brings
me to your synthetic statement. I have said this again and again.
This probably will not be the last. Jesus is the Greek form of the
Hebrew name Yeshua, it is simply my way of honoring Him as He was
Hebrew, or have we forgotten that salient point. To me names are important and how a name is said carries a certain amount of honor and respect. If you have some
problem with a personal means of honor then I am not sure what to
say. It makes no difference to me what name you use.
“You
say that you are called to encourage individuals to grow in Him, but
at the same time, you seem to be generally disgruntled with the
Church for which He laid down His Life. You say that you are in the
wilderness.”“After
reading your mission statement and the last few weeks of your blog, I
wonder if there is a church of which you approve or do you completely
stand alone. If you do stand alone then why would you accept any
particular writings as scripture. I suppose your self indulgence of
your high level of intelligence would lead you in such a direction,
“Thinking themselves wise they became fools”. For the love of
Christ, make Him you Savior and the strength of you ministry. Lead
others to worship Him and Him alone.”
While
these statements came from different parts of his comment the answer
for each is the same because they dovetail. The answer is predicated
upon the understanding of what the church is. There are several basic
definitions of the church. When we are discussing the Church for
which He laid his life down we are discussing the Bride. This is the
church inclusive, it encompasses all believers. There is a second
definition and that is the local congregation of believers. The third
is a more modern one and that it covers the different denominations
such as the Southern Baptist Church. It identifies a basic core set
of beliefs or doctrines. My being in the “wilderness” comes from
a number of successive abusive local congregations I have been
involved in. It has been a time of healing for myself and my family.
My problems do not stem from the Bride, so to say I am generally
disgruntled with the Church is inaccurate at best, disingenuous at
worst. A question, how does my stance on certain congregations or the
doctrines of apostate denominations have any bearing on my
relationship with my Creator and Lord?
Your
last two sentences put the icing on the cake though. Yeshua (Jesus if
it really bothers you that much) is my Love, and my Lord. My ministry
is based upon calling those of faith to a deeper relationship with
Him so that we will avoid the purge that will assuredly come if we do
not return to our First Love. You have no right to make the claim
that He is not my Savior and Lord and it is the height of arrogance for
you to say that I would lead anyone to worship anyone other than the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit.
25 And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul;
26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch And for an entire year they met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.
27 Now at this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.
28 One of them named Agabus stood up and began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world And this took place in the reign of Claudius.
29 And in the proportion that any of the disciples had means, each of them determined to send a contribution for the relief of the brethren living in Judea.
30 And this they did, sending it in charge of Barnabas and Saul to the elders.
Acts 11: 25 – 30
30 So when they were sent away, they went down to Antioch; and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.
31 When they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.
32 Judas and Silas, also being prophets themselves, encouraged and strengthened the brethren with a lengthy message.
33 After they had spent time there, they were sent away from the brethren in peace to those who had sent them out.
Acts 15: 30 – 33
Mr Webb,
I think
it would behoove you to find out more about someone before you
attempt to slam them in their own home. So lets start with just who
I am and what my calling is.
To put
it simply I am one of the redeemed. My life was bought with the shed
blood of Yeshua and as such is not mine anymore. My life is to do as
He wills ,and as such, Jehovah has called me to be one of many
prophets called forth for this time. We are called to exhort our
fellow brethren to a more righteous life in Him. To return to the
love that we have forgotten in favor of social networking and a
country club atmosphere. To realize that the great commission says to
GO out into our communities showing His love to the world, not
huddled inside our church buildings hoping that the lost and dying
will bother to grace us with their presence so that we can show them
our westernized, feminized, powerless god. I am called to point
people back to our Redeemer, Yeshua the Messiah, The only begotten
Son of of the Most High. To point them to His love nothing less
nothing more. I am simply a guidepost He is the message.
This is
not a calling I am comfortable with for it is not in my nature. I am
an extreme introvert with some possible aspergers symptoms. I am not
some kind of megalomaniac such as the self proclaimed “prophets”
you mentioned, but I do take my calling VERY seriously. I have felt
the weight of His presence and heard His voice. It is an experience
I will never forget and one I wish others could understand. I use
this blog in some regards as a sounding board to lay out my thoughts
and in some ways just maybe some soul will take them and run with
them. The very fact that I have been given this charge is humbling
because I understand the gravity of my calling.
Lets
address some of your comment.
First
lets get something straight. I do believe you took something I said
out of context.
This is
what you quoted me as saying.
“Our
churches have lost sight of this simple principal. We have become
believers looking for the quick fix to our own little problem.
Looking to shake the great piggy bank in the sky and get our “due”.
After all we are children of the Lord.”
Here is
the quote in context.
“So
where does that leave us? What if you believe that the decline of our
nation is ultimately part of His plan? I think the answer is there in
the scriptures. Be faithful to what Jehovah has called you to do. I
know that it sounds simplistic, but often truth is simple. If we are
faithful then we can expect that great things will happen. Our
churches have lost sight of this simple principal. We have become
believers looking for the quick fix to our own little problem.
Looking to shake the great piggy bank in the sky and get our “due”.
After all we are children of the Lord. “
What
was written was done quickly in a comment on another blog as such my
grammar was not the best. After I said “Our churches have lost
sight of this simple principal.” I had moved onto a new thought
ending in some sarcasm. Please reread it in that light and you will
see that I was deriding the tendency toward materialism that has
crept into our local church bodies.
On
the subject of the “church”, can you explain what you mean by the
church? What defines what a church is? Your comments about the
“universal church” are quite perplexing. If I was called for a
time such as this what is the point of bringing up the past or the
future. When Jehovah called His prophets in the past they were for
that time. While some of what those prophets said were canonized and
told prophecies, they were also called to exhort those in their time
to be faithful. That is my calling. What about my calling could
possibly impact the past and my impact upon the future will only be
what He wills.
“Then,
does this mean that what we call churches today are sanctioned by
God. If you believe the scriptures, specifically the Book of Acts of
the Apostles, this is our only choice. Anyone that gives the
impression that they are called by God to slam His Church and to tear
it down anyway they can have enthroned and worship themselves. Christ
told His disciples that they would be known by their love for Him and
for each other. Criticism from the inside can be good, even
wonderful, and can redirect it back to its roots and thus back to its
Master. Criticism from the outside is especially dangerous to the one
or ones doing the criticizing.You
must be humbled to a place of follow ship before you can be trusted
with a place of leadership. Get yourself involved in a Bible
Believing Church, and get involved in its theology, doctrine and
history. Then and only then will you become a viable member of the
Church.”
Oh
my, how very astute of you. I read this and can not help but think of
the number of outsiders from the religious orders of the day are in
the Word. You do realize that the Pharisees and Sadducees were the
accepted leaders of the “church” in the time of Yeshua and John.
Each of them challenged the status quo. Please do not preach to me
about the “dangers” of challenging our preconceived notions of
what the church is. The scriptures teach that the church is Yeshua's
bride which consists of those whom have accepted His divine gift and
made Him their Lord. There is no one way in which it is prescribed
that believers are to meet and fellowship be it a mega church or a
humble home congregation. What is important is that we learn and
grow in Him. Something I have been doing for over 25 years regardless
of my current church affiliation. I have been in the “humbling
fellowship” as you call it for 23 of those years. Ten of them in a
very controlling abusive setting. I learned quickly that if I wanted
to continue in a ministry position I had to toe the line, not make
waves, and most importantly not challenge the elders in the church.
When I did I quickly found myself on the outside. Your comment on
becoming a viable member of the church smacks of the same kind of
mentality. I spent the last 3 years in the “wilderness” as Heidi
said. I have been learning just what it means to be a prophet. It
does not mean that I have not had fellowship with other believers,
just that I am not currently a member of a specific “church body”.
If you want to make that out to be some kind of apostasy, I challenge
you to truly study the Word and open your eyes to see that our
western idea of what the body is in fact a man made convention.
