Truth Inspires

If you know anything about the history of Ancient Israel, you know that all too often she forgot the Lord and syncretized her faith with that of the other surrounding nations. In short, they committed spiritual adultery against the Lord. From 740 B.C. to 721 B.C., the once thriving 10 Northern tribes of Israel (the Northern Kingdom), were incrementally defeated by the Assyrians and forced out of their homeland. In addition, from 601B.C. to 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, carried the Southern Kingdom of Judah, including Jerusalem, away into captivity to Babylon. Never again would Israel or Judah have a legitimate ruling King sitting on their throne, that is until the future return of Messiah Jesus. Isaiah the prophet trumpets before us the message of the Lord concerning their physical and spiritual state in his day and beyond that, until the final days before that heralded return. In chapter 51:21-23 he describes a transfer of the "Cup of Trembling" from the nation o...

Years ago as a pastor, I faced an issue concerning the topic of “Grace.” I had noticed some congregants who were taking Grace to the extreme and beginning to teach that since our sins were bought and paid for at the cross—all of them, past, present, and future—there was no need to strive against sin. Thanks to our Lord, this was noticed and the He quickly allowed it to be curbed. This heresy occasionally rears its head in Christian circles and indeed must be stopped before it becomes out-of-control. The good thing is that a proper understanding of Grace can arrest the heresy in its steps. Because this false perception thrives in loose living, many well-meaning Christians go completely to the opposite extreme and throw the Biblical teaching of “Grace” out altogether. That too is heresy. How should we approach it? Grace, as a doctrine, should always be presented in its entirety. By that I mean, a starting definition, followed by why it is important, and concluding with keeping it scri...

The article below, written by Dave Hunt of Berean Call ministries, references many of the false teachings that have come to the forefront of todays Christianity. It is worth the read.   http://www.raptureforums.com/FeaturedCommentary/whatshappeningtothefaith.cfm   My response, first posted on www.RaptureForums.com, is reiterated below: In reading this and in knowing of the many "other" so-called evangelical leaders (not my mentors) I have to believe that the root of all of this false teaching and disbelief and distrust of the Scripture goes back to the lie in the garden:   Genesis 3:1, Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”   The lie of course being to question God. All of the above in Bro, Hunts article, question the Scripture, thereby question God.   I just finished reading a book by a very prominent ...

The last restraint that I would like to point out is the Restraint of the Church. Truly, Jesus was right when He said, "the gates of Hell would not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). The Church is the crowning glory of the Lord Jesus. He is the Head of the body, the Church, and High Priest over it. It is unfortunate, for so many, that they profess themselves Christians but will not take part in it. It pains the heart of Jesus when they choose to ignore the greatest organism ever--one He set up for their edification. Too many people find themselves content with walking an aisle. Hence, they deny themselves the favor of God by refusing to fellowship with other believers. They seek a future and a hope but are not willing to submit their heart and life to find out what that future is. There is no one on earth that can convince me that God can use them, to the extent that he called them, if they do not attend Church.   1 John 1:1-5 states: 1 That which was from the beginnin...

Many of us have had a hard time articulating how we feel in our hearts about the Florida Pastor who wants to burn the Koran. As I read this I was moved with the love this brother has for the Lord.  I felt his message should be shared because he speaks the truth and helps us to better relate and express what we believers also feel in our hearts during these alarming days of choice.  I hope it blesses you as much as it blessed my wife and I.  I post it just as he wrote it.  Mike A Titanic Mistake A Titanic Mistake The Quran Burning Pastor ....I must confess reflects a carnal side of me I have Loved My Country, I've loved being an American ...small town born an raised.....right in the heart of America Grew up going to church ....sunday morning (sunday school and service), sunday night, wednesday night an choir practice night cause my mom was the church pianoist Grew up when you actually "hauled hay" ...The American flag wasn't something you burned but Held...

At this time I would like us to consider the Fourth Restraint in the series, Grace. God has placed what I call an umbrella of Grace upon all of mankind. In referring to those days of the end when God would unseal the words of prophecy in the Book of Daniel we find an interesting statement that bears quoting. Daniel 12:10 says: "Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand." In this passage of Scripture we have a contrast between the wicked and the wise. We are told the wicked shall do wickedly as opposed to the wise who would understand (ie. the words of the prophecy). It also states that the wicked would not understand. I see two reasons for this lack of wisdom or illumination: First I believe that a person cannot understand spiritual truth unless he is allowed to do so by the Holy Spirit. Much in the same way that a Christian is not allowed to go on past elemen...

The third Restraint we can list is that of Conviction.  Using the Holy Scriptures, the invisible attributes of God (Rom. 1:20), or the proclaimed message of the gospel the Holy Spirit will move upon the heart in His office of restrainer.  It is active restraint, in that it involves how believers act or react in any given circumstance throughout their lives.  The scriptures teach us that the Holy Spirit has a job to convict or convince of sin, righteousness, and judgment: Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged (John 16:7-11). Simply put, Jesus is sayi...

In continuing the series on Restraint, today I want to look at the Restraint of Darkness. In John 3:18-21 we read: "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God." Sin is a pseudo form of well-being. It clouds the mind and entangles a person so tightly in its cords that it literally chokes the life right of him; and oftentimes, the person does not know it is happening. I like to envision the forces of Hell as tentacles that are reaching up through the ground adorned with a candy-coated sweetness...

In the next few posts I would like for readers to consider the uses of restraint that are found in scripture. Starting with the Restraint of Vision I will work through five types of restraint that I see used in the scripture. The other four are The Restraint of Darkness, The Restraint of Conviction, The Restraint of Grace, and The Restraint of the Church. Shortly after Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and some other women, Luke 24:10 had found the tomb miraculously empty on that first resurrection Sunday another amazing miracle occurred. It happened to the two travelling companions of the Lord as they made their way toward the nearby city of Emmaus; the Bible relates this way: Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes ...