A Plea for One Family in the Wilderness

I have a prayer request. I plead with you to pray for the CKB family who live in our church's community. This family has visited our fellowship in the past but it has been well over a year since they have been. I have made many visits to their home and have been lied to many times to simply get me off their porch.

Tonight at church we found our small dumpster packed full of garbage to the point that we couldn't even add anything. Digging a little deeper (literally) some of our church members found some identifying bills and prescription bottles that identified the CKB family as being the trash dumpers.

The total lack of respect for church property angers me, but a greater concern for the souls of this family runs deeper than my anger.

Please pray for this family and their children.

Context is Everything

This morning while in a sleepy stupor from having worked till 4am, I was able to catch a live broadcast of Jeremiah Wright (Barrack Obama's pastor) confronting questions at the National Press Club. I was intrigued to see what kind of questions would be asked of him surrounding all the recent controversy so I settled in to listen.

To no surprise he expounded the same facts I have heard in his sermon clips and was not shocked by anything up until one of the last questions.

This is from the transcripts from FoxNews.com:

MODERATOR: Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the father but through me.” Do you believe this? And do you think Islam is a way to salvation?

WRIGHT: Jesus also said, “Other sheep have I who are not of this fold.”

(APPLAUSE)

The (APPLAUSE) does not do justice to crowds reaction. There was much applause along with cheers, whistles and standing ovations.

Mr. Wright is an extremely intelligent man and is well studied in public speaking and in various aspects of world history, however, this "scripture quote" is far beyond out of context.

He is quoting only a portion of the gospel of John 10:16:

7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words.

Note that Jesus is speaking to a Jewish audience with the foreshadowing of outsiders (Gentiles) coming into the fold of God. Is this true for Muslims? Yes. Is it true for Buddhists? Yes. So it is true for every other religion, ----- IF ----- They forsake their false religions and turn to the one true God through His only Son.

Look at verse 14. Jesus says that HE is the Shepherd and He knows His own and they know Him. Then in verse 16 He says "I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice". Jesus MUST bring them in. He is the ONLY one able to bring them in. Muhammad can bring no one to the Father, Buddha can bring no one to the Father, inner peace can bring no one to the Father. ALL must repent and cling to Christ alone for salvation.

My heart is burdened and saddened for the many people in that room today. They sat there in a fog of happenstance without any understanding of the eternal danger they are in. Death's chilly waters are filling the lungs of followers of false religions and death and judgment will overcome them.

Lord Jesus, may we follow your example and be willing to weep and pray over the lost. Lord, I pray for each one that heard those false words today and pray that You would put people in place to share the true gospel message with each.

Osteen States that Mormons are Christians

High Treason Before God?

Is it possible that many pastors today do not understand the task of which they claim to have been called to?

Throughout congregations all across America we are seeing that the pulpit standards are being set more by our cultures latest fad as opposed to an exposition of the Word of God.

Examples?? Sermons like: "5 ways to Improve Your Marriage" or "How to live Healthy According to the Bible". These topical messages may have their place in a period of instruction to a local body, but they are hardly expositions of biblical texts.

I recently read an article by Dr. Al Mohler in which he made quite a vivid statement.

"The sacred desk has become an advice center and the pew has become the therapist's couch. Psychological and practical concerns have displaced theological exegesis and the preacher directs his sermon to the congregation's perceived needs."

Many of our pastors and preachers are more concerned with addressing the temporal needs of their congregations (financial and family peace, job advancement and healthy living) versus addressing a persons single greatest need of being regenerated by the Holy Spirit of God by repenting of their sins and placing their absolute faith in Christ.

As a called "preacher", if I am not expounding the written word of God to people, then I must equate myself to having committed high treason before God. I find no biblical evidence for many of the sermons I hear today. If I am to stay true to the word then I must understand these questions: How did Jesus preach? How did Paul preach? How did Peter preach? How did Stephen preach? How did Phillip preach? How did John preach? How did Jeremiah preach? How did Ezra preach?

A preacher must become an absolute slave to prayer and to the study of the Word. It is unfortunate that many pastors (and their congregations) are falling into the subtleness of "meeting people where they are" and have yet to realize their slow departure from preaching and hearing the true gospel of conversion.

It pains me to say that much of today's preaching is nothing more than motivational speaking with a dash of Ron Popeil's "it slices , it dices" mentality. Oh, and if you buy now we will throw in 3 free scripture references! But wait, there's more..... that's right.... sign up to be a Christian within the next ten minutes and we'll give you not 1, not 2, but an amazing 3 self help books absolutely free! And remember, there is NO obligation!! What do you have to lose?!

Hey Spurgeon, get my back - "The true ambassador for Christ feels that he himself stands before God and has to deal with souls in God's stead as God's servant, and stands in a solemn place--a place in which unfaithfulness is inhumanity to man as well as treason to God."

Good thing Bibb County is dry

New church holds service in bar to reach new people From Associated Press April 21, 2008 12:24 PM EDT


SIDNEY, Ohio - Another round and amen! Beer was on tap and a mechanical bull inspired the sermon as a new church held its inaugural service in a western Ohio bar.
The Country Rock Church drew about 100 people to Sunday night's meeting at the Pub Lounge in Sidney, 35 miles north of Dayton.
The barroom church is an offshoot of Sidney United First Methodist Church, whose head pastor says he's been looking for creative ways to reach people in unconventional places.
The church's Web site for its new branch advertises "Top regional bands, pizza, wings, rowdy fun & a short message."
The Rev. Chris Heckaman says people really seemed to enjoy themselves so he expects the Country Rock Church will meet weekly.
Heckaman's sermon compared staying on the bar's mechanical bull to learning how to get along in life.
---
On the Net:
Sidney United First Methodist: http://www.sidneyfirst.com/


Breathe Pastor J, breathe

Welcome Zion Springs to Friends of Grafted In!!

For those who actually keep up with us at Grafted In you may have noticed some outstanding and encouraging posts by Brother Adam Mixon.

Adam is the pastor of Zion Springs Baptist in the Avondale community in Birmingham, AL. We have been fortunate to be able to participate in hands on ministry with him and his congregation at the WJ Gilmore Mission in downtown Birmingham.

Adam -- Thanks for your words of encouragement and your participation in our discussions concerning the redemption of man and the enrichment of our understanding of God's Word!

Welcome to Friends of Grafted In!

Visit Zion Springs on the web.

Encouragement...

Another month is coming to a close!  Thank GOD for grace and strength!  I have not ridden a rollercoaster like I’ve ridden this week in a very long time.  Thank GOD that we do not live by what we see, otherwise we would have probably really gone off the deep end!  It’s funny that whenever we think we can’t take anymore, time just keeps on rolling and somehow we receive what we need from that invisible place so that we may go on! 

Living in faith certainly has its challenges, but it’s good to know that the GOD of our faith does not change, nor is there any shadow of turning in Him!  Situations and the people in our lives are always bound to change - but thank GOD that He remains the same!  He is immutable; He is our Rock and our Fortress!

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Hebrews 13:8 

When it seems that all is failing around you, remember that we walk by faith and not by sight.

 (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be. 

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

(Chisholm) 

Have a great day, everybody!

ihs,

adam

You Go Charles Spurgeon!

The closing points of Charles Spurgeon's sermon titled, "Sovereign Grace and Man's Responsibility", preached on August 1st, 1858.

And in your boyhood God was still stretching out his hands after you. How your Sunday-school teacher endeavoured to bring you to the Saviour! How often your youthful heart was affected; but you put all that away, and you are still untouched by it. How often did your mother speak to you, and your father warn you; and you have forgotten the prayer in that bed-room when you were sick, when your mother kissed your burning forehead, knelt down and prayed to God to spare your life, and then added that prayer, "Lord, save my boy's soul!" And you recollect the Bible she gave you, when you first went out apprentice, and the prayer she wrote on that yellow front leaf. When she gave it, you did not perhaps know, but you may now; how earnestly she longed after you, that you might be formed anew in Christ Jesus; how she followed you with her prayers, and how she entreated with her God for you. And you have not yet surely forgotten how many Sabbaths you have spent, and how many times you have been warned. Why you have had waggon-loads of sermons wasted on you. A hundred and four sermons you have heard every year, and some of you more, and yet you are still just what you were.

But sinners, sermon hearing is an awful thing unless it is blessed to our souls. If God has kept on stretching out his hands every day and all the day, it will be a hard thing for you when you shall be justly condemned not only for your breaches of the law, but for your wilful rejection of the gospel. It is probable that God will keep on stretching out his hands to you until your hairs grow grey, still continually inviting you: and perhaps when you are nearing death he will still say, "Come unto me, come unto me." But if you still persist in hardening your heart, if still you reject Christ, I beseech you let nothing make you imagine that you shall go unpunished. Oh! I do tremble sometimes when I think of that class of ministers who tell sinners that they are not guilty if they do not seek the Saviour. How they shall be found innocent at God's great day I do not know. It seems to be a fearful thing that they should be lulling poor souls into sleep by telling them it is not their duty to seek Christ and repent, but that they may do as they like about that, and that when they perish they will be none the more guilty for having heard the Word. My Master did not say that. Remember how he said, "And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee." Jesus did not talk thus when he spoke to Chorazin and Bethsaida; for he said, "Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you." It was not the way Paul preached. He did not tell sinners that there was no guilt in despising the cross. Hear the apostle's words once more: "For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward, how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him." Sinner, at the great day of God thou must give an account for every warning thou hast ever had, for every time thou hast read thy Bible, ay, and for every time thou hast neglected to read it; for every Sunday when the house of God was open and thou didst neglect to avail thyself of the opportunity of hearing the Word, and for every time thou didst hear it and didst not improve it. Ye who are careless hearers, are tying faggots for your own burning for ever. Ye that hear and straightway forget, or hear with levity, are digging for yourselves a pit into which ye must be cast. Remember, no one will be responsible for your damnation but yourself, at the last great day. God will not be responsible for it. "As I live saith the Lord"—and that is a great oath—"I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth. but had rather that he should turn unto me and live." God has done much for you. He sent you his Gospel. You are not born in a heathen land; he has given you the Book of Books; he has given you an enlightened conscience; and if you perish under the sound of the ministry, you perish more fearfully and terribly, than if you had perished anywhere else.

This doctrine is as much God's Word as the other. You ask me to reconcile the two. I answer, they do not want any reconcilement; I never tried to reconcile them to myself, because I could never see a discrepancy. If you begin to put fifty or sixty quibbles to me, I cannot give any answer. Both are true; no two truths can be inconsistent with each other; and what you have to do is to believe them both. With the first one, the saint has most to do. Let him praise the free and sovereign grace of God, and bless his name. With the second, the sinner has the most to do. O sinner, humble thyself under the mighty hand of God, when thou thinkest of how often he hath shown his love to thee, by bidding thee come to himself, and yet how often thou hast spurned his Word and refused his mercy, and turned a deaf ear to every invitation, and hast gone thy way to rebel against a God of love, and violate the commands of him that loved thee.

And now, how shall I conclude? My first exhortation shall be to Christian people. My dear friends, I beseech you do not in any way give yourselves lip to any system of faith apart from the Word of God. The Bible, and the Bible alone, is the religion of Protestants; I am the successor of the great and venerated Dr. Gill, whose theology is almost universally received among the stronger Calvinistic churches; but although I venerate his memory, and believe his teachings, yet he is not my Rabbi. What you find in God's Word is for you to believe and to receive. Never be frightened at a doctrine; and above all, never be frightened at a name. Some one said to me the other day, that he thought the truth lay somewhere between the two extremes. He meant right, but I think he was wrong, I do not think the truth lies between the two extremes, but in them both. I believe the higher a man goes the better, when he is preaching the matter of salvation. The reason why a man is saved is grace, grace, grace; and you may go as high as you like there. But when you come to the question as to why men are damned, then the Arminian is far more right than the Antinomian. I care not for any denomination or party, I am as high as Huntingdon upon the matter of salvation, but question me about damnation, and you will get a very different answer. By the grace of God I ask no man's applause, I preach the Bible as I find it. Where we get wrong is where the Calvinist begins to meddle with the question of damnation, and interferes with the justice of God; or when the Arminian denies the doctrine of grace.

My second exhortation is,—Sinners, I beseech every one of you who are unconverted and ungodly, this morning to put away every form and fashion of excuse that the devil would have you make concerning your being unconverted. Remember, that all the teaching in the world can never excuse you for being enemies to God by wicked works. When we beseech you to be reconciled to him, it is because we know you will never be in your proper place until you are reconciled. God has made you; can it be right that you should disobey him? God feeds you every day: can it be right that you should still live in disobedience to him? Remember, when the heavens shall be on a blaze, when Christ shall come to judge the earth in righteousness and his people with equity, there will not be one excuse that you can make which will be valid at the last great day. If you should attempt to say, "Lord, I have never heard the word;" his answer would be, "Thou didst hear it; thou heardest it plainly." "But Lord, I had an evil will." "Out of thine own mouth will I condemn thee; thou hadst that evil will, and I condemn thee for it. This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil." "But Lord," some will say, "I was not predestinated." "What hadst thou to do with that? Thou didst; do according to thine own will when thou didst rebel. Thou wouldest not come unto me, and now I destroy thee for ever. Thou hast broken my law—on thine own head be the guilt." If a sinner could say at the great day, "Lord, I could not be saved anyhow his torment in hell would be mitigated by that thought: but this shall be the very edge of the sword, and the very burning of the fire"—Ye knew your duty and ye did it not: ye trampled on everything that was holy; ye neglected the Saviour, and how shall ye escape if ye neglect so great salvation?"

Now, with regard to myself; you may some of you go away and say, that I was Antinomian in the first part of the sermon and Arminian at the end. I care not. I beg of you to search the Bible for yourselves. To the law and to the testimony; if I speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no light in me. I am willing to come to that test. Have nothing to do with me where I have nothing to do with Christ. Where I separate from the truth, cast my words away. But if what I say be God's teaching, I charge you, by him that sent me, give these things your thoughts, and turn unto the Lord with all your hearts.

The "Oprah Denies Christ" Video

For those who haven't seen it.... here it is. This is from an episode with "New Age" junkies spewing their heresies and Oprah is proclaiming that there are millions of "ways" to get to God. Of course when one Christian in the audience asks, "What about Jesus?" Oprah proclaims that there is no way that Jesus is the only way.....

I don't know about you, but this clip instantaneously brings to mind about 20 scriptures that are directly contrary to what Oprah says and also scripture that proves her ignorance of Christianity and the One True Living God.

Standing By The Fire

Luke 22:54-55
54 Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. 55 And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them.

I don't mean to over-spiritualize things or make more of something than is there. But to me, there is more to this story than just the 3 denials of Peter. I know that Christ foretold that Peter would deny Him 3 times, and I'm not saying Jesus was wrong or incomplete in His statement.

But Peter was in the courtyard. Jesus was off in the distance, but enough where Peter (and his new associates) could see and probably hear what was going on. In John's gospel, we read that while Peter is warming himself and 'between denials', Jesus is on trial. As Peter is sitting by the fire, Jesus Christ is being lied about, mocked, and hit. It is amidst this injustice that Peter is given opportunity to verbally deny Christ.

How many times have I been sitting there and heard a word against my Lord and said nothing. How many times do I hear comments that are a mockery to my Savior who hung on a cross for my sins, and said nothing because I don't want to judge.

I know that we're not suppose to judge lost people, but are we not suppose to stand for Christ. I know that Jesus does not need me to fight His fights, but isn't loyalty more than 'being there'?

Once saved...

Okay, one of you preacher guys just help me get past this.

Hebrews 10:26-29
26For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
27but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES.
28Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?

I know I'm just an uneducated layperson, and I've read the commentaries, but can someone be sanctified that has not been born again? If so, does this passage not say that a born again believer can turn away from Christ? I'm sorry if I seem like the most biblically-illiterate person ever, but this passage has hung me up for years now. Explain it in 'laymen's terms'.

Where Have All the Minister's Gone?

Today while I was in class (New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary), I happened to overhear a conversation between several young guys (18-20yo). The majority of class time for these young minister's is spent surfing iTunes, gaming and linking up their webcam's with each other on their Apple MacBook's (Apple laptops) as opposed to paying attention and participating in the class discussion.

Anyway, the conversation started with one of the young men asking another what he was working on (evidently some sort of presentation on his laptop). The young man's reply was that the presentation was for a home school groups graduation ceremony. A second question was then asked (with a bit of disgust), "A home schooler group? Why are you working on that???". The reply from the young minister absolutely stunned me......

"Because they are paying $400, that's why!"

Here is a "minister" who has the opportunity to encourage kid's with the word of God and challenge them in their transition to life's next level and he made it explicitly clear that he was in it for the money. His pal's then jeered him on and expressed their desire to get such an "easy" task with high paying benefits.

1 John 2:15-17 (ESV)
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For all that is in the world— the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.


At this moment I feel distressed and wounded from fighting a bitter battle in a foreign land. Where is this foreign land? Bibb County, AL. The area surrounding our place of corporate worship is a land sown with the seeds of marijuana, fertilized with crystal meth and irrigated and nourished with booze and spirits from every color bottle. I have encountered children playing on garbage heaps, adults sleeping the cold hard floors of mobile homes without any tangible way of heating a can of condensed soup. I have viewed with my own eyes a 12 year old girl playing the role of a mother to three or four younger siblings. I have been cursed, mocked and even had dogs turned out on me.

What I do, I do not do for pay. What I do, I do not do for my own name recognition. I do what I do because I have no choice. I have absolutely no choice but to serve my Master. The One who's life's blood bought and purchased my very soul from the depth of an eternal hell. I pray and enslave myself to the word's and to the service of the almighty God, by the blood of the One who saved me and through the Spirit of the One who keeps me, with the eternal hope and anticipation that He may receive glory for my actions in attempting to win the lost.

Jude 17-19
17But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18They said to you, "In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions." 19It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.

Father, may I never scoff at nor take lightly the opportunity to share the greatest story of all time.

Encouragement...

just a thought i had this morning...

The Will of GOD is at work… 

Have you ever considered that it is not in spite of our circumstances but because of our circumstances that we are still here? 

Hear the voice of the Lord today… 

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
 Romans 8:28 

ihs,
adam

The Negative Aspects of the Non-Denominational Church

In our society today I see a great flood of people pursuing the free movement of non-denominationalism. People are rushing to churches with no affiliation to one particular denomination or another. Why is this?

I am sure the most common argument from those riding the wave would be the corruption or hypocrisy of most major denominations, but this argument does not hold water with me.... another post for another time. My personal thoughts on non-denominational "church" fellowships is automatically slanted to the negative quite simply because of their lack of dedication to biblical doctrine. Isn't that what they are proclaiming by being "non-denominational"? That they are not going to adhere too or force the instruction of say Baptist doctrine or the doctrines in Pentecostalism? Many find that this type of environment freeing and enjoy it because it is "self expressive" and "unhindered". This is what concerns me about the growing movement.

This is word for word from the website of one of the largest non-denominational churches in Brmingham, AL.

"What a joy it is to introduce you to our church! You'll discover that our passion is to provide a place where people just like you can have a life-changing experience with God.

At ###### ## ### ##########, our doors are wide open to people from all backgrounds, regardless of where they are on their spiritual journey. What people usually notice first about us is the life-giving nature of our ministry. Our goal is to infuse life and God's love into people and families through engaging, powerful worship services that offer biblical truth in relevant and practical ways.

But it won't take you long to discover that we're more than just a Sunday church. In fact, we're actually a network of small groups. And if you'd like to develop authentic and enduring relationships with others, you'll be glad to know there are opportunities to join a group all the time.

Together, we're striving to become the kind of church described in the Bible, where there's relevant teaching, heart-felt worship, honest friendships, constant prayer, and compassionate care for those in need. In short, we'd like to have the kind of contagious Christianity that can influence and encourage the entire community, one life at a time.

So whether you're a spiritual seeker who's just starting to ask questions about God, or a committed Christian who wants to sink the roots of your faith even deeper, you can find a home here at ###### ## ### ##########.

In our relationship with God, our family, our friends, and our world ... it's where new heights begin. We invite you to worship with us this Sunday!"

I have blotted out the name of the church because I do not want their particular fellowship to become the topic of discussion, rather I would like to point out some truths concerning their statement.

1. Since when is it our place to create or "provide" a place for a person to have a life changing experiences with God? John Newton (Author of Amazing Grace) was called out by God on a ship in the middle of the sea...... The Apostle Paul was on a dirt road..... Conversion has NOTHING to do with LOCATION.
   
2. "What people usually notice first about us is the life-giving nature of our ministry" -- What??????? Shouldn't you be promoting Jesus as the life giver and not yourselves?
3. "Contagious Christianity"???? What the snap is that? Since when does someone repent and trust in Christ because they "caught" it from someone else? What happened to being confronted with their sin before a holy God?
4. "A spiritual seeker"??
   
1. John 6:44 -- 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.
2. Romans 3:11 and also Psalm 14 -- 1 The fool has said in his heart,
   “There is no God.”
   They are corrupt,
   They have done abominable works,
   There is none who does good.
   
   2 The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
   To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
   3 They have all turned aside,
   They have together become corrupt;
   There is none who does good,
   No, not one.

The very idea of a spiritual seeker is a denial of the sovereignty of God. Any seeking we do is a result of the calling of God and of the conviction of the Holy Spirit (John 16, Romans 1:6, Romans 8:28, Romans 9:11, Romans 9:24, Romans 11:29).

This movement is of great concern to me first of all as a Christian and secondly as a pastor and teacher. My emotions, my words, my clothing, my cool music nor a created environment will EVER convict a person of their sin. Faith in Christ comes ONLY by one way, "So now faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the WORD of God" Romans 10:17.

Regardless of what you have heard on TBN or have been told from many pulpits today, you are NOT at liberty to worship God any way you please. There is but one way to worship and that is in spirit and truth. Granted spirit and truth worship may have many different forms derived from many different cultures, but the underlying doctrines MUST be the same and MUST never be billed as unimportant.

Inviting non-Christians to church is a good thing and places them in a prime positions to respond in faith by hearing the word of God preached. However, to "create an environment" is a sad attempt on our part to do the sovereign work of God. My fear is that the only environment that is being created is one that makes the sinner feel right at home in his/her wretched state. The prophet Ezekiel makes it clear to us even today:

Ezekiel 33:1-6
"1 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, 3 when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, 4 then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. 5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. 6 But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’"

Almighty Father and God, forgive me for not sounding the alarm to many of whom you have placed in my path. May I be a pastor that does not rely on my abilities to coax the lost into a false conversion but may I be one who stands strong on the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit and Your sovereign Word. Lord, I pray for more time to grow Your kingdom prior to the return of Your Son Jesus Christ, yet I also long for Your quick return so that I may be united finally with the author and finisher of my faith. He must increase, but I must decrease.

Whatever you ask in My name

I'm not a big fan of the prosperity gospel out there. Not big on the name it, claim it lie. But I, in my finite mind, am trying to digest something. Jesus says to His disciples in John 14:14:
You may ask anything in my name, and I will do it. (NIV)
He reiterates this in the next chapter (although He did not speak in chapters). So here me thinking and guide me if I seem to go astray. Jesus was talking to His disciples (11 of them at this time). He was preparing them for an enormous ministry of taking His gospel to the world after He was no longer here. For this reason, He was also encouraging them to remain in Him. We know that Jesus did many great works/miracles and that the apostles did the same (Acts 2:43). He also said that they would do even greater works the He did. I understand that this talks especially of the spreading of the gospel to many nations and tongues.
But are we to take this discourse as instruction to us as well, and if so, why aren't we performing great signs. Or are there just parts of this discourse that we are to apply to our lives (love one another) and if this is the case, how do you pick what applies and does not?

Why do you show up on Sunday's?

Why do you attend a church fellowship on Sunday's? Support your answer with scripture.