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Stick With Truth. - Post 4

3/29/2012

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1) I don’t read blogs (or many books for that matter) because: my passion and desire is to live for Christ in the purest form possible.
 
When it comes to growing in our walk with Christ, why is important  to read books and be taught by those God has gifted His church with to serve in  that manner and to avoid books and teachings by unbelievers? Or to pose the question in a more direct manner as in my last post; why can it be dangerous and  stifling to be taught (book or sermon) by anyone not Spirit led?
 
Many reasons exist but we’ll focus on two.  First, the simple answer is deception.  If we desire to know and do truth (CBC core value #1), if we really want to pursue after truth and find freedom in Christ….drum roll please…..then stick with truth.  Right?  Simple, isn’t it?
 
Listen now brothers and sisters, walking with Christ is NOT complicated.  Yes, the unreachable  and unknowable depth of God’s word is profound. And the riches found by digging deep in the Word are worth much more than silver or gold.  However, get this and get this good; The Gospel of Christ is as simple as it is deep. 
 
Here’s how we walk with God. Know truth (Christ), by grace and in faith walk in truth (Christ). Nothing more, nothing less; truth and faith, know God and believe God. Religions complicate things, God simplifies them.

And so here is why it can be dangerous and stifling to our walk to read anything not Spirit led: because the ONLY way to complicate this simplicity is with deception. Whether the deception we are exposed to is intentional as it was by Satan in the garden and as he still deceives today or unintentional as delivered to us by well-meaning teachers and authors doesn’t really matter; deception is dangerous and stifling.
 
Deception places doubt in our minds regarding the truthfulness and trustworthiness of God. The only Book ever written in which we can be absolutely certain that there isn’t a single shred of deception, intentional or otherwise, is the Bible. That is why I tend to stick to the Word, there is NO deception in the Word of Christ, it is pure truth.
 
Lord willing in my next post we’ll look at reason number 2.

In His Peace,
Pastor Fred


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God Has Given (Gifted) Us Each Other. - Post 3

3/28/2012

1 Comment

 
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1) I don’t read blogs (or many books for that matter) because: My  passion and desire is to live for Christ in the purest form  possible.
 
With our foundation set on Christ and Him alone let’s delve into  other resources outside of the Bible. First let me say that I’m not a “lone  Ranger” Christian.  Yes, I’ve read  books and have been edified by them.   And yes, I do follow one blog right now.  It is being written by a dear sister in  Christ who is sharing her heart and journey after tragically (God ordained)  losing her husband (my friend and brother in Christ) in a work accident last  year. 

So if I do read some books and I’m following a blog what gives? Well the reality of being God’s adopted son is I’m not an only child.  God has gifted His body of believers  with those who understand and teach us about Him. These brothers and sisters are enlightened by the Holy Spirit to understand the Word  of God and are  empowered by the Holy Spirit to teach and preach  it.
 
Knowing which books are from gifted brothers and sisters in  Christ is where discernment comes in. And I want to clearly qualify this next  statement by saying of course we read secular books to learn about history,  math, science and other informative subjects to live life.  However, when it comes to growing more like Christ and closer to our  Father in heaven, for most of us, it can be dangerous and stifling to our walks to read anything not of the Spirit.
 
If we desire to love God and each other deeper then we need to be  taught the Word of God in the power of God and He has given (gifted) us each  other to do it together. It’s truly that simple.
 
Lord wiling next post we’ll look at why being taught (book or sermon) anything not Spirit lead can be dangerous and stifling.  Also, how to tell the difference. 
  
In His Peace,
Pastor Fred


1 Comment

Word and Spirit...Non-negotiable. - Post 2

3/27/2012

1 Comment

 
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1) I don’t read blogs (or many books for that matter) because: My passion and desire is to live for Christ in the purest form possible.
 
As radical as the reality of the combination of God’s Word and God’s Spirit being the purest form of learning and living truth may be to some…it is TRUE. Nothing can or should be said to soften this truth AND  believing it is important in our growth in Christ.
 
The next word in this blog is important.  It is not ”however”, “but” or  “conversely”.  The next word is  “therefore”,  “consequently”, or  “building on that truth” or “with this always in mind”.  So let’s try this.
 
There is only one source of pure truth and that is Christ and His Word, and there is only one perfect teacher of His Word and that is the Holy  Spirit. (PERIOD!)  Knowing,  believing and always remembering that truth, when we read, hear, touch, taste, smell, see or feel ANYTHING in our lives, it must be authenticated by the Word  and Spirit of Christ as kingdom of God truth or it is deception. (SECOND PERIOD!)
 
Do you agree with this? For me, the previous paragraph is Non-negotiable. And quite honestly it  should be for anyone that calls themselves a Christian.  As God’s children, by grace through faith we follow the Word of Christ by the guidance and power of the Spirit of Christ for the glory of God.
 
NOW, we are ready to move on…..in the next post.
In His Peace,
Pastor Fred


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Blogs, Books and Pure Truth. - Post 1

3/26/2012

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Ah yes blogs…I personally don’t have much time or need for them.  My plea to you who are reading this is; if you haven’t read, meditated and prayed over a  passage of scripture today then turn off your computer immediately, open your Bible and spend time with your Father in His Word.  If you do that and never end up reading this I would be happy.

If blogs are something I don’t read or write then why am I writing this one?  Well let’s start with why I  don’t read them.  My passion and desire is to live for Christ in the purest form possible. Which leads to the reason for writing this one.  God has given me a deep longing for those He places in my path (blogs I suppose are another means He does) to EXPERIENCE Him in the manner He has intended for us in Christ.

OK, let me repeat the two reasons and then keep this post short and readable.  If God wills it then I’ll keep posting and explaining the two reasons over time.

1) I don’t read blogs (or many books for that matter) because: My passion and desire is to live for Christ in the purest form possible.

2) The reason for this post is because: God has given me a deep longing for those He has placed in my path to experience God in the manner He has intended for us in Christ.

Let’s begin with number one. My passion and desire is a pure relationship with God.  Books, blogs, tweets, Facebook posts and all other post Bible recorded words have been written by sin tainted men and women, and not God (including this post). There is only one source of pure truth and that is Christ and His Word, and there is only one perfect teacher of His Word and that is the Holy Spirit. (PERIOD!)

The truth I just stated is simple and real so I’m going to just let it hang there until my next post.  For all of you that go to many other sources besides the Bible…we’ll get to that.  But for now, just chew on the reality and kingdom of God truth that the combination of God’s Word and God’s Spirit is the purest form of learning and living truth.

Resting in the everlasting and ever-increasing peace of God we have in Christ,
Pastor Fred
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God, our Father

3/17/2012

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God has declared Himself to be a Father, and those redeemed by His grace are His children. 

   God wants us to know 
  the glory of that reality.  

Hopefully, this might help you:
[Picture a] little child walking hand in hand with his father—a picture of the normal Christian life. God has you by the hand. He loves you. You trust him. Things are good between you because your sins are forgiven and there has been a wonderful reconciliation. There is a smile upon his face and a firm, caring grip in his hand. His face looks kind and tender and warm, like he really enjoys this moment with his little child.

And then coming toward you on the sidewalk there appears a very scary looking man. His hair is all wild, and his eyes are glazed and piercing, and he looks terribly angry and dangerous. You squeeze your daddy's hand a little more tightly. He feels it and responds with a firmer grip. The man stops about ten feet in front of you and stares into your face and says, "Hey stupid! You still like to hold hands with your mama?" As he glares at you, you feel terrified. And as you turn your face away from this terrible threat, you look up at your daddy's face.

Now let me ask you, what do you want to see when you look up? Let me answer it for myself. I don't want to see the same face that I was enjoying one minute ago. At this moment I don't want to see mainly kindness, tenderness, warmth. I want to see strength, indignation, and confidence. And I want to feel a new kind of grip, that is so tight it would be uncomfortable in ordinary circumstances, but now says, "You won't slip even if you faint, and no one can take you out of my hand."

And as you look up, your father steps between you and the man and says, "You better cool it mister. I'm his father." And then he shields you as he walks boldly right by the man and leaves him behind.

The point of this picture is simply this: we need to see the rugged, steep, granite cliffs of God's character as well as the soft, green, clover-covered grasslands. We need to see the tough features in the face of Christ as well as the tender ones.
This comes from: "What Judas's Death Teaches Us About The Spirit" - a sermon by John Piper


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