What is a 'Zealot'? and Do You Happen to be One?

Are you a Zealot for Christ or a Zealot for the World?

Zealots of the World versus Zealots of the Gospel


by Barbara Henderson

It is a pleasant thing when someone has a calling, a profession, or hobby that they enjoy or believe in enough to pursue it with zeal. People who pursue something with zeal may fall into the following areas:
Naturalist – a person interested in biology or zoology.

Environmentalists – advocates or works toward protecting from pollution .

Climatologists – deals with climate and how it works.

Animalists - animal behavior specialist or one believing man lacks a spiritual nature.

Evolutionists – biological evolution instead of creation.

Humanists – emphasize human advancement above human reconciliation with God.

Earth religions – new age umbrella term used to cover religions that worship and seek guidance from the earth, nature, fertility gods and goddesses.

Human rights champions – believing all men are created equal and should be allowed equal rights.

Materialists – more concerned with material things than spiritual or cultural things.

However, there are those who follow their calling, profession, or hobby to the extreme become Zealots. Some examples of zealots in the modern day are:

Naturalist Zealot – a person whose interest in biology /zoology has led them to adoration/worship of the things they study, and gives them cause to ridicule and persecute those who do not also worship as they do.

Environmentalist Zealot – one whose zeal in protecting the environment has led to rabid and irrational over protectionism.

Climatologists Zealot – one who sees the climate as the key to saving the planet, and sees his/her self as the savior of the world through efforts to limit the impact and number of human beings.

Evolutionist Zealot – one who sees evolution itself as a form of god.

Humanists Zealot – one who sees man as being able to advance through social manipulation until man becomes god.

Earth Religion Zealot – varies greatly, but earth centered in thinking and actions – opposes any restriction to doing what seems right to them at the moment.

Animal rights Zealot – go beyond animal welfare to animal rights – working toward giving animals legal standing.

Materialist Zealot – goes to any means, even illegal, to amass goods. Luke 12:16-21 tells a sad story of a Material Zealot. Material Zealots probably don’t want you to have anything. Their goal is to get it ‘all’.

Some commonalities of these Zealots are:

They have a presupposed unprovable ideology which may be changed to better suit the social and political climate of the day.

They spout their theories as though they were absolute facts and unalterable truth.

They intend to convert everyone to their viewpoint – even by oppression and/or force.

Political and social tyranny are their weapons of the day.

They are aided and abetted by all aspects of the news and entertainment media.

And, worldly Zealots of any sort will accept and promote any celebrity as an ‘expert’ who happens to think like they do. That is why we have the simple minded Hollywood crowd testifying before congress as experts. I guess they ‘feel’ like they are experts, so that makes them experts.

The common denominator among all these ideologies is salvation by works. Each one puts mankind at the center of an undetermined future. If mankind steps up to the plate and sacrifices and works toward saving the environment, the earth, the climate, and nature then the earth will be saved. Or, if mankind just realizes its potential and begins to think like a god, then the earth will benefit and human beings will take a quantum leap forward in evolution. Men and women will be like gods. Regardless of the specific goal, each religion under the guidance of its zealous adherents, requires sacrificial work on the part of the novice adherent in order to make the desired outcome possible.

Many of these zealots fit into more than one category, as they all overlap at some point into a mass of collective humanity.

All these zealots are servants of the collective. The foundations of all these works based religions and their followers all have their foundation on shifting sand. Whatever whim seems useful or good at the moment is a tenant of their faith. The path to ‘salvation’ today is obsolete and useless tomorrow. The only things that consistently stay the same are:

• Mankind must save himself

• Jesus Christ is NOT the way

• The God of the Bible is ineffective, unhelpful, and should not be considered when making government rules or social standards.

Because of the ‘reasonableness’ of their vision for the future of the planet and mankind, they ‘feel’ justified in implementing their vision for the future through whatever means necessary. Manipulation, deception, lies, and outright force against the ‘unconvinced’ are all justified in their thoughts. Those not influenced down the ‘right path’ by the social and political tyranny inflicted on dissenters are labeled as ignorant and singled out for ridicule and marginalization.

One thing that is often very noticeable about Zealots of the world is that they demand behavior modification from the human collective (you, me, and everybody but them), but they don’t actually live by the standard which they preach. Look at any Climate Zealot, or Environmental Zealot. The more prominent they are, the more outspoken they are, the less they follow their own preaching. Al Gore for instance, has made a fortune promoting climate change. He wants us to all conserve everything while he only uses more and more. He justifies himself by the ‘carbon footprint offsets’ that he sells. His increasingly lavish lifestyle gives no hint of his care for the climate. He has no intention of lifting a finger to save the earth. He just grows rich while scaring children. He is a Climate/Materialist Zealot. And – who was that moron who suggested we save the planet by ‘using only one sheet of toilet paper’? She should have been laughed off the planet for that remark – and if she only uses one sheet of toilet paper – well – I hope she washes her hands well and changes her underwear often. Of course, excessive hand washing and laundry will use more water and put a strain on the environment that way. She probably needs to rethink that. The truth is of course that she isn’t planning to do anything she suggests you do.

Zealots are not all bad. In fact, Zealots can be divided into two groups.

• Those who believe they are right in converting others to their view point through deception, coercion, aggression, force, and ultimately the choice between life and death.

• And, those who believe that in order to be a true follower of anything, the individual must have free choice. No one can be forced or scared into believing anything in the depths of his or her heart.

All Zealots are religious in their thinking and in their actions. ‘Religion’ is defined as ‘something one believes in and follows devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience: (example – to make a religion of fighting prejudice. http://www.dictionary.com ) Worldly Zealots place their particular ‘religion’ above anything else in importance. They proselytize for their religion. They condemn those who don’t jump on their band wagons.

For all the fanfare and hype, people are ultimately left with the same two options that were given to Adam and Eve in the beginning. The individual must chose to either believe God or believe His adversary the devil. There are no other real choices.

I mentioned that to the first type of Zealot, deception is an acceptable tool to be used to his or her advantage. One very evil thing wicked Zealots do is to take the only two real options given to mankind, and make it appear that there are many options available. If one is not happy with the environmentalist movement, then pick the humanist ideology and get on board their agenda train. If one does not like the socialist movement, or the animal rights movement, then get on board the climatologist or naturalist train. It doesn’t matter. The seeker is able to try many ideologies until they find a cause which stirs their souls. It appears that the seeker has many options from which to choose. This gives the father of lies many different soap boxes from which to broadcast various options. Every itching ear is a potential new zealot for the same old lie. It is the goal of all zealots to make zealots of all who join their ideology group.

The real unalterable truth is that the seeker still has the same two options. The seeker must either believe God, or believe the serpent.

The second type of zealot, a zealot for the Truth, is prohibited from coercion, deception, force, or any other type of persuasion except simply telling the truth. That is the truth according to the Holy Bible. If a Christian steps into any form of conversion outside the bounds of truth and love, then they have strayed from the teachings of Christ. And, it is unnecessary to use any of the worldly tactics to convert others to Christ. The power of Christ is in His gospel. It only requires that the truth be told repeatedly.

An example of a worldly sales tactic is that when someone wants to sell a product, the exact same product is presented in many different ways. The goal is to come up with something that interests one group of buyers, and something else that appeals to a different age bracket or demographic . That is a worldly tactic, and not worthy of those who present the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

A Zealot for the Gospel must act according to the example of Jesus and the instructions given to us in the Bible. There is no hint of Jesus or anyone in the Bible doing anything to make the Gospel more appealing to the unsaved. No one in the Bible becomes ‘like the world’ in order to get a more receptive audience or a bigger audience.

If you desire to be a Zealot for the Gospel:

Do the things Jesus says to do.

Don’t ask other people to live by Biblical standards unless you live by them yourselves.

Be kind, tender hearted, and forgiving.

Love one another as Christ loves you.

Remember, everything boils down to the same two choices.
Chose to follow God, or chose to reject Him.

A natural course that follows your decision is that you are made again in the image of the God/god you serve.

If you are a Christian, the more zealously you serve Christ, the more you conform to His image.

If you are a zealot of the world, the more your image conforms to the things of this world.

I would like to add one more thing.  If you are a Christian - but not zealous for the things of the Lord, then you are a lukewarm Christian.  Remember what Jesus had to say about lukewarm Christians  in  Revelation 3:16.  He said, 'So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.'

Self-definition - Collectivists, Individualists, and Christians

Collectivists, Individualists, and Christians

Barbara Henderson

There is a giant battle raging in the United States between the Collectivists and the Individualists.  The opponents call themselves different things, but none of them really call themselves Collectivist or even Individualist.  Never the less, that is what they are. 

There isn’t a short definition of either Collectivist or Individualist.  In a nut shell, Collectivists collect EVERYTHING they can get away with.  They collect people, property, the wealth other people have worked for (common good you know), and anything they can get on a hook and reel in.  They see the government as the ‘keeper’ of all things.  Actually, on some level, they are trying to force humanity to mutate or evolve into a something like a giant ant colony, with most of the population functioning sort of like blood veins, muscles, and organs in one giant body.  Government will be the brain, keeping everything running smoothly.  In the dream world of the Collectivist the working class has no more right to determine their own future than the red blood cell has to determine its future.  It is an absolutely disgusting ideology, denying even the basics of human dignity to the individual.  That is just a few of the high points of Collectivism.

An Individualist on the other hand is one who wants to take responsibility for his or her own life.  They want the government to provide a safe environment in which they can live and work, but government must always be limited to the least level of power required to provide a safe structure in which to live.  An Individualist believes in self-reliance, self-determination, and independent living. 

There are extreme Individualists who are Anarchists.  They disregard all rules of government and civilized society. 

A society is always moving in one direction or another.  They are traveling toward a more Collectivist society, or a more Individualist society.  Either side usually makes very small gains that eventually add up to big gains.  It is a real war constantly being fought.  Sometimes it is fought in the political arena.  Eventually, when the Collectivists are strong enough, the war will be fought with armies who simply take over.  (Russia 1917)

The United States House of Representatives is currently controlled by those calling their selves Republicans.  Some Republicans truly are Individualists to some degree.  Others are out and out Collectivists who have simply joined the Republican party to further their goals.  They have no scruples about lying to the citizens.  It is the duty of the citizens to figure out who the liars are and vote them out of office .  The enemy of the Individualist is the ideology of the Collectivist mindset. Most of the Democrats are Collectivists to a large degree.  Some are extreme Collectivists.  They are constantly pushing for ‘social reforms’ that take from the Individuals and give to the Collective.

It is so irritating to hear politicians and the news media chastising Congress because they ‘aren’t getting anything done.’   That is so ridiculous.  First of all, every day that Individualists in Congress stop the Collectivists from gaining more ground is a successful day.  Those favoring the Individualist way of life need to stand up and cheer.  Conservatives in Congress are taking a pounding from every direction.  How can the Collectivist agenda of the Democrats be stopped if the goal is changed to ‘just to all get along? 

Don’t the collectivist strategy of  ‘changing the public’s perception of the problem’ fool you. 

The problem is what does or does not get done.  The problem is not getting along.

In any society, there are going to be elements of both Collectivism and Individualism.  Families form small Collectives.  People are born into specific Cultures.  Cultures in themselves are somewhat collective in nature.  People naturally tend to stay within the culture in which they were born and raised.  Certainly the family as formed by God is good.  God also established government.  Government is necessary to provide a level of civilized society and safety for people.

But a line has to be drawn regarding what controls the government is allowed to place on the individuals of any society.   I mean if you believe all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, then you have to draw a line somewhere on what a government can actually do. 

Bigger government is virtually always evil. 

The bigger government becomes, the more insane it becomes.  It has no thought for the good of the individual.

Big government becomes like an evil entity, drunk with its own power and importance.

It is vampire-ish in nature – sucking the life’s blood out of the economy.

It is incapable of seeing what is actually for the good of society, seeing only what is good for the Collectivists themselves.

It creates both addicts and worshippers in the same person.  Big government creates addicts through entitlement programs.  People are given a stipend on which they are to live, and given no way to escape.  The entitlement addicts see the government as their provider.  They go the government for their needs and never consider God Almighty who has unlimited resources and knows them by name.  Powerful Collectivists like those in congress begin to see themselves as almost deity.  Today they are the ‘champions’ of the poor and needy today.  Tomorrow, they see themselves as the savior of the poor and needy.  They are drunk with the wine of self-importance.

Collectivism is eventually a forced form of government.  People are forced to give up their individual rights for the ‘good of something or other’.  Individuals, given the choice, will very often make great sacrifices for the good of others, beginning with their families, their God, and their country.  But when sacrifices are forced by the government, personal rights always suffer.

Christians should be Individualists who cling to God as their helper, obey the commandments, and are bonded to first God, then family, then country. 

So, there is a constant war going on between the Collectivists and the Individualists. 

Collectivists in general are not Christians.  They may profess Christianity, but their works show their claim to be false.  Some probably are Christians, but the majority of them are not.

Many Individualists are not Christians either.  So they don’t have the light of God in them either.

THEN there are Christians.  The Christian, no matter how dedicated, is facing the war between their sin nature and the new nature. 

So you have the Collectivists who are mostly not born again into the family of God through Jesus Christ.  You have the individualists who include many non-Christians.  And you have the Christians who are mostly Individualists, believing each will answer for their actions, and ultimately each will receive the rewards of their own work.  But, they are facing a constant war with the old nature and with the worldly elements embodied in the Collectivist mindset.  It appears our goose is cooked!  Fortunately, we have an advocate which is Jesus Christ.  By leaning on Him, we have the ultimate victory. 

One of the things that is very hard to grasp is that the clash between Individualists and Collectivists, cultures, nations, religions, and all powers of this earth are only temporary.  The devil is out to claim as many people as possible in the time that he has. 

Our goal is not really to transform cultures or governments. 

It isn’t to raise the poor out of poverty or to pull the wealthy down into poverty. 

 Our goal is to grow closer to Jesus Christ personally, and to tell others about the way to eternal peace with God Almighty.  It is totally true that you get into heaven through Christ alone.  It is also true that when you become a true believer it will show up in your actions.  The fruit you bear will be in yourself.  You will become more conformed to the image of Christ.  Don't confuse your works with your salvation.  Works are evidence of salvation, but they are not part of salvation itself.  (By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourself.  It is a gift of God.)

We are to do the things Christ says to do.  We are to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the entire world.  That is more easily done when the government is in the hands of the righteous.  Perhaps the lost are more receptive to the Gospel message when the government is persecuting the citizens of the land.  Regardless of the situation, the job description of the Christian is still the same.  Live like you mean it when you say you are a Christian, realizing that your actions are representing the true God of creation and salvation  to those around you.  And, tell the world that while they are separated from God by their imperfections, Jesus died to make one way for the individual to be reconciled to God Almighty.  Tell them they can gain heaven and escape hell.

Today, we are seeing an unimaginable trend in the US government to call Christians terrorists and make them equal with the murderous radical Islamist terrorists. ( Please make a note here that I did not lump all Moslems into  a group of evil terrorists).  I don’t know if this is more insane or more intentionally maligning a group with whom many in Washington disagrees.

The collectivist holding office in Washington DC and throughout the USA are all enemies of freedom, but Christians are going to bear the brunt of their fury if the leftist politicians in Washington are not stopped.  There are at least two things Christians can do to counter this insanity in the government.  (Stop a minute and thank God for those in office who are fighting against the leftists and their collectivist agenda.)

First, the most important step is to live like a Christian.  Do not do even the small things that are outside the boundaries set by God.  Make the difference in your Christian life obvious to the world.  I don’t mean that you wear certain clothes that stand out.  Just wear modest clothing.  I don’t mean do or don’t wear makeup, do or don’t cut your hair in a specific way, or things that draw attention to you by appearance.  Don’t do things that align you with the world.  Stay out of ungodly places.  That does mean that Christians have no place in honkey-tonks slurping down alcohol.  At the very least this gives non-Christians a reason to see you as a hypocrite. It is true that the Bible does not condemn the use of alcohol.  It does condemn drunkenness.  The Bible also says not to do things that might cause a young Christian to falter.  You will not win the world to Christ by joining ranks with the world.  It shouldn’t even be an issue considering what the people wear who go to those places.  It is very hard for a godly man to keep his eyes from staring if he happens to be in a Hooters restaurant.  (I have never been to one - the commercials are enough to make me sick.  And they advertise as being a family restaurant.)

In a nut shell:

Your conduct as a professing Christian should give people cause to consider the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Your conduct should NOT give people a reason to reject Christianity.

Do go where you should go.  You should go to church.  You should go to visit those in need.  You should support full time missionaries, and part time missionaries.

Do the things you are supposed to do.  Be kind to each other.  Treat others the way you want to be treated.  We are not told to treat other kindly who treat us kindly, but rather treat even our enemies well.  Your actions can make obvious liars of those trying to put Christians in the same category as Islamic terrorists.

Do not go to places that will cause people to see Christianity in a bad way.  

The second thing you can do is to make an effort to complain every time you hear something about the right-wing Christians – or Bible thumpers – or those clinging to their guns and Bibles – or anything that trashes Christians.

Also, when a so-called Christian  is guilty of a crime, you have a chance to shout that whatever they did – it is not condoned by the teachings of God.  Do your best to tell the world that wicked behavior is forbidden.  Demand a retraction when a criminal is falsely labeled Christian.   Of course there will be incidents when a Christian does something wrong, but it is ridiculous to label someone a Christian just because there are Christians somewhere in their family tree.  An example of such blatant lies and intentional distortion of the facts was the case in Norway.  A dreadful man (Anders Breivik) murdered more than 80 people.  He was called a Christian fundamentalist out to prove something.  The truth is he was NOT a professing Christian at all and never had been.

He was NOT a Christian.

He never professed to be a Christians.

Do liberals think it will somehow lessen the guilt of Islamic terrorists by inventing an equal number of Christian terrorists? Actually they do.  Their mindset is that of 'equitable'.  The goal is to put everyone in exactly the same position regarding guilt, innocence, abilities, income, and every single thing that would make anyone standout as an individual.

Make it clear that Christianity is a choice.  It is not an accident of birth.

Make it clear that while salvation is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, the actions of a true Christian should make their faith obvious.

Make it clear that Christians are going to speak out.
When speaking out as Christians one of the things that needs to be made clear is that following Jesus Christ is not an easy path to take!  Ask the first Christians just exactly how that worked out for them.  Truthfully the early believers saw the reward and found that to be worth the trials and tribulations they went through while they lived on the earth.  It is true that following Jesus is NOT the easiest path to take sometimes.  However, it is always the BEST path to take because it is the path that leads to eternal life.  

And be sure to make it clear to yourself that you will not be pulled into a social gospel.  You have a right to speak out.  Use it.  But, don’t let it replace living a life pleasing to Christ or telling the world God’s plan for salvation.

Matthew 5:16 says, ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’

The more we follow the examples of Jesus, the more our light will shine.

Footprints of Jesus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocLnLjzXygs

Sweetly, Lord, have we heard Thee calling,

 Come, follow Me!

 And we see where Thy footprints falling

 Lead us to Thee.

Refrain

Footprints of Jesus,

 That make the pathway glow;

 We will follow the steps of Jesus

 Where’er they go.

Though they lead o’er the cold, dark mountains,

 Seeking His sheep;

 Or along by Siloam’s fountains,

 Helping the weak.

Refrain

If they lead through the temple holy,

 Preaching the Word;

 Or in homes of the poor and lowly,

 Serving the Lord.

Refrain

Though, dear Lord, in Thy pathway keeping,

 We follow Thee;

 Through the gloom of that place of weeping,

 Gethsemane!

Refrain

If Thy way and its sorrows bearing,

 We go again,

 Up the slope of the hillside, bearing

 Our cross of pain.

Refrain

By and by, through the shining portals,

 Turning our feet,

 We shall walk, with the glad immortals,

 Heav’n’s golden street.

Refrain

Then at last when on high He sees us,

 Our journey done,

 We will rest where the steps of Jesus

 End at His throne.

Refrain

Can You Tell the Difference in Spiritual Needs and Physical Needs?

Spiritual versus Physical and Discernment to Tell the Difference

Barbara Henderson

Can you fill a spiritual need with physical substance or material?
Can you fill a physical need with spiritual substance or material?

The real question for a lot of Christians is, ‘Can you tell the difference? Do you have the ability to discern between a physical and a spiritual need? Do you have the guts to fill a spiritual need with spiritual food, or do you find it easier to fill spiritual needs with more physical stuff? Which doesn’t really fill either a spiritual or a physical need. It just makes you miserable.

Let’s draw some imaginary lines in the sand to determine where we stand. Imagine a few things as well.

Here is a line in the sand. On the one side are those who believe the Bible is completely true, without error, all sufficient in that it needs no additional revelation, and the relevant guide to living. On the other side of the line are those who do not believe this. Period. They may believe a host of other things and follow a particular belief system, or they may make up a belief system that suits their own idea of right. Pretend you personally are walking that line right down the middle. You say you are on the Lord’s side, but it has never really cost you anything, However, on this particular day, you are put to the test. If you step off the line and fully and completely onto the Lord’s side, it is going to cost you something today. It will cost you something that is very noticeable. It might be a job promotion, or a job in the first place. It might be the person you want to marry. It might be the good will of family and/or friends. But it will cost you something significant today. Which way will you step?

IF you have been spending time studying the God’s Word as given to us in the Bible, then you probably have:
A consistent prayer life
A correct and right view of God’s ability to have His Word written down correctly in the Bible
A growing understanding of God’s authority to set the boundaries between right and wrong
A strong and growing loyalty to the God of your salvation
and
A growing faith.

These things will strengthen and enable you to step over the line and onto the Lord’s side. If you are calling yourself a Christian, but are not doing the things Christ says to do, then you may find it seems a much better path to step over the line onto the easy side, onto the side that will give you whatever it is that you want at the moment. One reason Christians and Christians-so-called step off the line and onto the side of the world is they don’t have the discernment to actually tell which side is the Lord’s side. They have a general knowledge of God’s love and the way of salvation; but, their ignorance of God’s righteousness, holiness, and truth allows them to be fooled by ‘gray areas’. Honestly, there are no real gray areas. There may be a lot of circumstances that make for confusion, but the right and the wrong of an issue is there.

For instance, consider abortion.. Either an unborn child is a human being or it is not. That is the real issue. The world is working hard to change everyone’s perception of the problem They throw in all sorts of questions designed to muddy the water, to put abortion into a ‘gray area’ where a lot of things are considered that actually have no real bearing on the issue. We are supposed to agonize over the woman’s right to her own body, rape, incest, and mental and physical handicaps. All these things cannot answer the first question. Is a preborn child a human being or not? Sonograms available today prove beyond any reasonable doubt that a preborn child is a very real human being. That is why those in favor of abortion would rather talk about other questions like rape, incest, and women’s’ rights. Those issues do matter, but they have nothing to do with the right of a child to be allowed to live. It is never right that a child should die for the crimes of its father or the inconvenience of its mother.

We can take it down a notch now. Let’s suppose that you are neglecting Bible study, and that learning to think Biblically seems more trouble than its worth. If you neglect Bible theology and doctrine, then you are stepping over the line into continual ignorance. That makes you someone very easily fooled by liberal theologians, preachers, teachers, and actual wolves in sheep’s clothing. While you may personally be saved, it becomes much harder for you to lead others to Christ. And that lack of leadership will show up in your own home. Your own heart is going to be the one broken.

Bible study is necessary for your own health and well-being. Bible study is often avoided because of other commitments to things like work, church work, a little family time, family chores, and just a few minutes to relax. Most of those things do need to be done. However, doing them to the exclusion of studying and learning the teachings of the Bible will hurt your Christian life. When life throws one of those dreadful pop quizzes at you, you will fail, flunk, blow it, and all together make a mess of things. Too many failures and you may drop out of the Christian walk completely. I know there are very real problems associated with time management and physical fatigue. However, the problems associated with finding time and energy for Bible study do not change the fact that learning about Jesus is very necessary to your discernment. If you don’t know the things Christ says to do, how can you actually do them? And, how can you recognize error and explain theological error to others if you have no discernment yourself? Be selfish in this matter. Put Bible study first. Make the time for it. It is not that you should go looking for error in the church. You just should be able to recognize it when it pops up.

Lack of discernment in individual Christians leads to lack of discernment in the church congregation as a whole.
Church members were too ignorant to actually recognize error when it reared its head
Church members see disagreeing on doctrinal issues as making unnecessary trouble – or they don’t see it as their place to point out the errors
Church members do not see the importance of small errors
Church members see some level of error as acceptable providing it just ‘gets people into church’
Church members have a mental picture of the church as a bigger and better building that requires more members to financially support the lovely building
Church members see inclusiveness as more important than doctrinal purity.
Church members do not know the difference between real doctrinal error and personality
clashes.
Church members do not WANT to be different from the world, and certainly not separated from the world
Church members LIKE some errors – especially if those errors paint them as broadminded, inclusive, progressives
And so on…..

Christians, instead of being encouraged to learn yoga and all get along, should be encouraged to learn how to rightly divide the truth. That comes from Bible study, with the goal of learning the truth and applying that truth to how we live. In everything we do, there is a way that is pleasing to God and a way that displeases Him. There is no ‘make everyone happy’ ground in the middle. Pay attention to spiritual things.

A couple of hints regarding getting a firm grasp on sound doctrine are:
Prayerfully ask the Lord to help you understand. I knew a preacher who was a native of India. When he began his Christian life he said there was basically no one to help him get started. He did have the Bible. So, he would get on his knees, read a passage, and they pray for understanding. The Lord answered his prayers.

We have options that were not available to my friend from India. We have churches to attend that do preach the Gospel. We have Bible helps available to us with centuries of sound Bible principles explained in written word. Many are available free on the internet.

To help with individual Bible study, read old Bible commentaries like Matthew Henry. Read a passage of scripture and look and see how it was interpreted in the past. http://chistnotes.org is a fantastic resource that is entirely free.

Check to see if Spurgeon did a sermon or expository notes on a particular passage.
Look for similar passages and commentaries and sermons on those passage.

Like Brother John from India, pray constantly for understanding and discernment.
Remember, the scripture that we have in the Bible is sufficient and relevant to whatever dilemma you are facing. The reason for reading commentaries and sermons is to see how church leaders of the past have interpreted scripture in general and certain passages in particular. You are still studying the Bible without looking for additional revelations. By the way, Brother John prayed on his knees. That was what he felt called to do. I read about a man who prayed best standing on his head. He said the best prayer he ever prayed was when he fell head first into a well. While hanging by his toes from the bucket rope, he prayed a really good prayer for help. If you have arthritic knees, don’t worry about praying on your knees. Just try to stay awake and focused.

The need for the Christian to fill their own spiritual needs has at least two parts.
First, the individual Christian needs to be filled with the knowledge of God. There is a hunger inside the Christian that can only be filled by learning and living according to what the Bible says.
Second, the teachings of the Bible need to spill out to those around.
I am not speaking in the abstract when I say that a greater knowledge and understanding of the truth of the Bible is the only way to fill the need for spiritual things. I am not speaking of some emotional experience. I definitely mean concrete study and a growing understanding of Christian principles. Christians need to learn to think Biblically. Every thought, every decision, every action, should revolve around what the Bible says and what the Bible allows and disallows.

You know, Christians have a spiritual need to give. That’s right. There is a longing in the heart to give to the work of God. This is most often done through your church. Through your church giving, the church staff and buildings are maintained. Missionaries are supported. Your heart wants to be part of that, so you give money. And, you will be blessed for you gifts. I don’t know what your blessings will be, but blessings you will have. Job was a ‘giver’. And what he got, at least in part, was a better understanding of God’s authority over creation. He was also eventually given material wealth, but he certainly suffered mightily before he got to what we would call the easy part of his life. The reason for mentioning Job is to remind us all that the ritual giving of the health and wealth gospel is not doctrinally sound. If Ichabod Jones puts a nickel in the offering plate believing that the Lord must give him two dollars in return, he is trying to fill a material desire through what he thinks is a spiritual means. Enough nickels given from people like Ichabod Jones will make the so called preacher rich, but it won’t do much for Ichabod. Ichabod has reduced God Almighty down to a mental image of a slot machine that pays off big after enough nickels have been dropped into the slot.

A sincere desire to do what is good for our own souls and the souls of our families is the best and surest way to provide for our material needs. God says to seek first HIS kingdom and all the things we need will be added to us. In seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, the Christian gains an increasing knowledge of who God is, His characteristics, His righteousness, His worthiness to be worshipped, and His great love for His children. The more a Christian seeks God, the more he finds Him. The Christian digging into God’s word begins to understand that crying after the things of the world is not necessary because God is going to care of His own child. The means by which He cares for His children is most often through the work of their own hands, but nevertheless, the provision comes from God. The outcome is in His hands.

Matthew 6:24-30 is very often quoted, but how often is it taken to heart by the hearer?

24No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
25Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
34Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

It appears that the entire world is traveling deeper and deeper into perilous times. We should be as prepared as possible, doing the physical things that we can do to try to make our lives safe and comfortable. But our first thoughts should be on the spiritual needs of ourselves and our families. Seeking to fulfill our spiritual needs first will lead us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. The Bible is very clear that seeking God first will lead to having our material needs met.

Seek ye first the kingdom of God. This is seeking to fill our spiritual needs.
God Himself clearly states that if we seek to fill our spiritual needs our material needs will be met. (I know – I just said that in the previous paragraph – but it is so important that it needs repeating)

Whatever the perilous times bring to the individual Christian, Christians families, and Christian churches, God is able to handle the situation. Our job is to seek God. His job is to care for His children.   When Christians spend time filling material needs before spiritual needs, they become unhappy and put themselves and their families in danger.  Of course you have to work to get material needs met, but there is a line between needs and wants that is not difficult to discern.  When someone’s passion becomes more ‘stuff’ instead of ‘more Jesus’ they are in trouble.  Drawing closer to God is the way to provide the help you will need in both the good times and the times of tribulation.

Psalm 34:19
Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.

He is Able to Deliver Thee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmuwY6gr9QY


’Tis the grandest theme through the ages rung;
’Tis the grandest theme for a mortal tongue;
’Tis the grandest theme that the world e’er sung,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Refrain

He is able to deliver thee,
He is able to deliver thee;
Though by sin oppressed, go to Him for rest;
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

’Tis the grandest theme in the earth or main;
’Tis the grandest theme for a mortal strain;
’Tis the grandest theme, tell the world again,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Refrain

’Tis the grandest theme, let the tidings roll,
To the guilty heart, to the sinful soul;
Look to God in faith, He will make thee whole,
“Our God is able to deliver thee.”

Refrain

Remember to pray for:
The lost
Israel
Persecuted Christians
Church growth
My family
Your family
The sick
The sad
The hungry
Those worshipping false gods
Mercy
Christians to love one another as Christ loves us

Barbara Henderson
http://tobarbara.blogspot.com – become a follower.

Watch our web site for new kitten announcements at http://trulysiberians.com

We raise hypoallergenic  Siberian cats in Olympia, WA.