Got a sledgehammer? I wanna break out :)

[Jullianna]

A friend from CC had 150 young people saved at his church last week. He got to share Christ with 5 of them personally. How awesome is that??????!!!

I’ve been going through an extremely difficult time this month, but I know that God has always used such times to change me in ways I never expected. I’m sick of fitting the mold. How about you?

I want to SEE something powerful! I want to DO something for the Kingdom every single day!

Unbelievers are not going to see Christ in our shiny steeples and pretty new Bibles. They aren’t going to see it in our air of superiority because of all of the scripture we may know or how cleverly we can smack them with it. They are going to see it when we DO what Jesus did. When we DO what the early church did. When we do what John the Baptist did. What did they all do? Something DIFFERENT. Something that made people think, made them curious, made them want to fill a void in their lives with the love of God. They LIVED the Word.

That’s what I want to do. I want to get in someone’s face every single day and softly ask, “Hey, so how’s your life going?”, actually CARE, and ask the Spirit to show me whether there is an actual need I can meet (not just tell them that Jesus wants to meet their needs, but actually DO something in His Name when I can), a prayer I can offer, introduce them to a love like no other, or just ….listen…and love.

 

[AsifinPassing]

http://www.google.com/url?url=http:...ptance&usg=AFQjCNFom7HhwfizKi0QgBj5abiHcu57qA

 

[Jullianna]

http://www.google.com/url?url=http:...ptance&usg=AFQjCNFom7HhwfizKi0QgBj5abiHcu57qA

I LIIIIIIIIIIIIKE it

 

[AsifinPassing]

I'm glad. I figured it fit. Anyway, It's always nice to hear from you.

 

[kayem77]

Now with these words I'm ready to go to church tonight

 

[nw2u]

A friend from CC had 150 young people saved at his church last week. He got to share Christ with 5 of them personally. How awesome is that??????!!!

I’ve been going through an extremely difficult time this month, but I know that God has always used such times to change me in ways I never expected. I’m sick of fitting the mold. How about you?

I want to SEE something powerful! I want to DO something for the Kingdom every single day!

Unbelievers are not going to see Christ in our shiny steeples and pretty new Bibles. They aren’t going to see it in our air of superiority because of all of the scripture we may know or how cleverly we can smack them with it. They are going to see it when we DO what Jesus did. When we DO what the early church did. When we do what John the Baptist did. What did they all do? Something DIFFERENT. Something that made people think, made them curious, made them want to fill a void in their lives with the love of God. They LIVED the Word.

That’s what I want to do. I want to get in someone’s face every single day and softly ask, “Hey, so how’s your life going?”, actually CARE, and ask the Spirit to show me whether there is an actual need I can meet (not just tell them that Jesus wants to meet their needs, but actually DO something in His Name when I can), a prayer I can offer, introduce them to a love like no other, or just ….listen…and love.

The parable of the good Samaritan comes to mind. I'm sure there are many examples. Prophesy is for the unbeliever. Maybe the Holy Spirit will give you that gift? Although, I personally think you are already doing what you describe. Your posts are empathetic, inspiring, uplifting and thoughtful.

 

[Tommy4Christ]

[

The early church, as well as John the Baptist, preached the baptism of repentance, Jesus diddnt ask us to confess and receive Him into our hearts, but to repent or perish!

Do you have a saving faith?

Deceiving your own self!​

Let no man suppose himself to be a Christian who does not actively obey the Word of God! Until the false notions of church attendees are laid bare by the pastors, the church will remain destitute of true holiness now and forever. As long as people are permitted to call themselves Christians who will not obey Christ, live godly lives and deny worldly lust, the efforts of the local church will be in vain. "They are hearers & not doers, deceiving themselves!" James1:22
No one can deny the church has works. But the results are shameful! Our society is devastated by sin and all the church can do is stand by making excuses, because they wallow in the same sin! The preachers are afraid to take on the responsibility of warning the righteous & the wicked, (Ezk18:26) and people go on sinning with impunity. They hide behind their theological mumbo jumbo and turn God's grace into a vast scheme of indulgence by implying that it's normal for Christians to live daily in sin!
That the Bible actually teaches otherwise is a foreign concept to most people. They insist that grace is God's way of accommodating them in their 'wretched' condition, because He loved them and sent His Son to die in their place. Christ is our righteousness, they loudly proclaim. NO ONE is expected to live without sin & lust in their heart. Salvation is a free gift, I don't have to 'work' my way into heaven. Anyone who preaches otherwise is accused of 'legalism'.
Yet Purity of heart is the principle doctrine of the Gospel! Unless your heart is made Pure by faith and subsequently followed by 'purity' of life, you have NOT received the Grace of God. Religion is not merely correct doctrines and orthodoxy, it is HEARING the Word of God and putting it into practice!(Lk11:28) People who do not live according to the Word of God are NOT Christians, no matter how much they attend church, sing in choirs, listen to preaching or come to bible study. Most people assume themselves Christians because they enjoy listening to good preaching & gospel music. They like discussing the 'abstract' notions of religion, but never seem to arrive at the understanding of how it applies to them. Suggest that holiness is something you DO, not something you talk about doing and watch them scatter.
In Scripture there's no 'middle' ground. You are either obeying Christ or not obeying Him. You are either Dead to sin or living 'in' sin. You are either serving Jesus or serving yourself. You can't have it both ways. There's no such thing as half-hearted service to God. The double minded man is unstable in ALL his ways, James1:8. No one can serve two masters, Matt6:24 (this also includes 'lust' in the heart! True faith will give you power over such things)
Why then do MOST professing Christians live as though none of these things were true? Why are people permitted to enter into a supposed relationship with Christ and still cling to selfish endeavors & sinful lusts? Jesus set the standard of Grace when He said if you 'look' at a women to lust for her in your heart you have already committed adultery with her. And if you hate your brother, you are guilty of murder.(Matt5:22-30) He completed the point by adding that if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out, if your hand, cut it off! (Matt5:29)
YET these things ignored by the majority of preachers? Too harsh? Don't apply? For another time frame? The professing church doesn't have a CLUE it applies to them! But those who refuse to heed these and the many other warnings of scripture will suffer the penalties prescribed. No matter what the 'preachers' say, it's the Word of God that matters. You can hide behind their shirt tails at present, but a time will come when there's nowhere left to hide. At Judgment you will know that His Words were true. That FEW did enter into life and MANY did not. That most will be left standing outside the kingdom wondering what happened. Matt7:13-23
"I was a Sunday school teacher, a choir director, an assistant pastor, youth director, deacon and elder...WHY am I excluded from the kingdom? My pastor TOLD me I was saved! He said the little sins didn't matter, that no one was perfect and God only expected us to believe. God loves me and sent His Son to die for my sins! I'm forgiven in Christ and NOTHING can separate me from His love! WHAT HAPPENED!!!?"
Have you ever stopped to consider your profession of faith may not be genuine? Can you produce any hard fast evidence that Christ is in you working His will, cleansing you of sin, purifying your heart by faith? Are you growing in His Grace, yielding yourself up to His Word, being weaned from the world, hating sin, keeping yourself unspotted by the flesh and grieving over the souls of others? (Each of these points is a 'command' of scripture, can you quote them? Do you have any idea where they are? Do you even care?)
Your attitude toward the things of God reveals your true state of mind. Jesus said it's what comes out of man that defiles him. (Matt15:18-19) "Out of the heart proceeds evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts,false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man!" That's why the heart MUST be made PURE by faith! 1Pet1:22
If it is NOT made Pure in reality, sin will defile your soul, harden your heart and deceive you into hell! THIS is what scripture says: Heb3:12-14, 12:15-17, 2Pet3:17, to name a few. The Purpose of Grace is to Deliver you from the corrupting influence of sin! 2Pet1:4, Titus2:11-14 Your heart is made PURE by Obedience to the faith! 1Pet1:22, Acts15:9
Let NO One call themselves Christian who has NOT received Deliverance from sin. If you have been 'Crucified' with Christ, Gal2:20, SIN no longer has dominion over you, Rom6:14, You are DEAD to sin, Alive to God. Rom6:6, Walking in Newness of life! Rom6:4, Gal2:19-21
To Continue in sin would be a mockery of God's Grace! Rom6:1, 15 It would make Christ a minister of sin! Gal2:17 and it will ruin your soul. Heb6:1-6 (Can you see the simplicity in all this? It's satan's own deception to beguile you from the simple message of salvation by the exact same means he used on Eve, 2Cor11:3, lying to her that one act of 'sinful' disobedience WON'T result in spiritual death!)
Most people who call themselves Christians have no idea what the Bible really teaches about Repentance, salvation and faith. They are content to have their ears tickled by some local preacher who will assure them that God is love and they are forgiven in Christ no matter what they do. The 'little' things don't matter, God understands how imperfect you are and feels sorry for your wretched condition. That's why grace is a free gift, because NO ONE could possibly do anything to earn it! "Not of works, lest any man should boast!" the preachers say. "Don't let anyone tell you differently."
The problem with this point of view is it's a PERVERSION of God's grace and it leaves people with the impression that they can get 'saved' and continue in their sins. (as long as they ask forgiveness and realize God would rather have them obey) But if they don't, it's of no eternal consequence. After all, their sins are forgiven, they believe and that's the Gospel!
BUT THAT'S NOT THE GOSPEL! The Gospel of Christ is Redemption FROM SIN!
The "More Excellent Way!" 1Cor12:31, is the WAY of Newness of Life! Rom6:4, The New Creation, old things passed, New things have come! 2Cor5:17, is: I have been Crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith. I DO NOT set aside the grace of God!" Gal2:20-21, Thereby making Christ a minister of sin! Gal2:17
The "Abundant Life" in Christ, John10:10, is the Life Free from the corrupting influence of sin! 2Pet1:4, 1John5:4, Freedom in Christ, John8:31-32, is release from the bondage of sin. Walking in the Light as He is in the Light, 1John1:7, is being turned from the Power of satan to the Power of God! Acts26:18. If you are Called out of darkness into His Marvelous Light, 1Pet2:9, and Translated into the Kingdom of His love, Col1:13, Thereby YOU are Dead to sin and Alive to God! Rom6:4,6,8 AND SIN no longer has Dominion over you! Rom6:14
THIS IS THE GOSPEL MESSAGE!
The Narrow Way, Christ spoke of, Matt7:13-14, The Difficult path constrained by false prophets, Matt7:15-16, that you are to Make EVERY effort to enter thereby, Luke13:24. This is the Road only a FEW will find and the warning that MOST will be 'self-deceived!' Matt7:17-18. The ROCK is Christ, the foundation, the Chief Corner Stone, ONLY those who have wholly dedicated their lives to His service and show forth the Obedient Walk of Faith working by love, will enter His Kingdom.
You can Take His Yoke, Matt11:29-30, or carry your own. Deny yourself, Matt16:24, or LOSE your own life trying to find it. Matt16:25 You can Take up Your Cross daily, or be ashamed at the Judgment, Luke9:23-26 And You can Fear Him now. Luke12:4-5, or face Him later. Heb10:31 There is no middle ground. You either count the cost or suffer the loss! Luke14:28
Understand that YOU ARE NOT a Christian if these things are NOT evident in your life. You may call yourself one or be told by some preacher you are forgiven in Christ. BUT unless the Bible itself is in error, you have not one ounce of the Spirit of God in you unless:
1) Your heart is made PURE by faith
2) You are Walking in the Light
3) You are Obedient to His Word & active in His service
4) You have overcome the World
5) And your number one concern in this life is to introduce others to the Redemptive Power of God's Grace.
(Do you really need scripture to verify these things are true? Study for yourself and then maybe you'll really find Christ!" 2Tim2:15)
If after all this, you STILL think it's normal for a Christian to sin everyday and walk under the influence of worldly lust, you are in DEEP spiritual delusion and no matter how 'good' it feels now or how 'secure' you 'think' you are under grace, YOU WILL be thrown into the lake of fire at the Judgment unless you repent. (Rev21:8)
Heed the warning while there's still time! Find the Redemptive Power of God's Grace in Christ and be truly saved from your sins! www.standingthegap.org

 

[Jullianna]

The parable of the good Samaritan comes to mind. I'm sure there are many examples. Prophesy is for the unbeliever. Maybe the Holy Spirit will give you that gift? Although, I personally think you are already doing what you describe. Your posts are empathetic, inspiring, uplifting and thoughtful.

Thank you. That means alot, Sir.

I regret some of them...

 

[Shaije]

A friend from CC had 150 young people saved at his church last week. He got to share Christ with 5 of them personally. How awesome is that??????!!!

I’ve been going through an extremely difficult time this month, but I know that God has always used such times to change me in ways I never expected. I’m sick of fitting the mold. How about you?

I want to SEE something powerful! I want to DO something for the Kingdom every single day!

Unbelievers are not going to see Christ in our shiny steeples and pretty new Bibles. They aren’t going to see it in our air of superiority because of all of the scripture we may know or how cleverly we can smack them with it. They are going to see it when we DO what Jesus did. When we DO what the early church did. When we do what John the Baptist did. What did they all do? Something DIFFERENT. Something that made people think, made them curious, made them want to fill a void in their lives with the love of God. They LIVED the Word.

That’s what I want to do. I want to get in someone’s face every single day and softly ask, “Hey, so how’s your life going?”, actually CARE, and ask the Spirit to show me whether there is an actual need I can meet (not just tell them that Jesus wants to meet their needs, but actually DO something in His Name when I can), a prayer I can offer, introduce them to a love like no other, or just ….listen…and love.

YES!YES!YES! Amen Sister, this is EXACTLY how I feel. Gods speed in "OUR Jesus Walk!" only HE, has Already saved US.......AMEN

 

[PopClick]

I wish more people felt this way. Complacency really grinds my gears.

 

[niceguyJ]

Unbelievers are not going to see Christ in our shiny steeples and pretty new Bibles. They aren’t going to see it in our air of superiority

Amen to that.

I think people, ultimately, are looking for something real. A lot of Christians, and churches don't paint a realistic picture. They're not willing to admit that life is messy and hard. They prefer a facade which doesn't really do anyone any good.

The rest of what I want to say can be said with this:
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaH8D4xnJfM[/video]

 

[Jullianna]

I agree, niceguyj. We need to get REAL with people.

 

[1still_waters]

This whole thing is such a mixed bag.

We desire to reach out.
We desire to be genuine.
We desire to be real.

Thinking that will be the magic bullet that gets them in and gets them saved.

We think people are sick of the fake gimmicks, fake schemes, fake everything.

We think our raw realness is the antidote to their sickness.

And for some, this is true.

On the other hand.

It's a mixed bag.

Which churches do people seem to swarm to?

The big ones.

The one with the shiny faced pastor.

With the perfect wife and kids.

The ones with the comfy stadium seating.


The ones with the tidy beautifully lit stage.

Yes, the ones that put up the perfect facade.

The ones that are anything but raw, genuine and real.

It's a mixed bag....


But if...

We want to TRULY help those TRULY seeking mending.

If.....

Want to help those TRULY seeking TRUTH.

Then we DO NEED to be

RAW

REAL

TRUTHFUL.

But not as an excuse for remaining in our sins.

Not as an excuse for being a cry baby.

There is a fine line between being REAL..

..and just being a REAL whiner.

Those seeking REAL help...

Need help from those MENDING their REAL wounds.

NOT from those keeping their wounds OPEN...

as they put salt on the wound...

Creating more pain.

All in the name of being REAL.


We must mend our wounds.

and NEVER act like the scars aren't there.

On the other hand.

Don't go opening up the scars.

The wounded need to see that wounds can heal.

So keep it real.

 

[simplyme_bekah]

I know exactly how you feel. I have felt my whole soul reaching up to God with a heart filled with complete yearning to be used as a vessel to do something heavenly for him. I think that is the important part right there. I think that if we keep ourselves in a place where our hearts are willing and ready that the Holy Spirit takes over and uses us. Ok I don't think it, I know it to be fact from it happening to me so many times. I actually pray on a daily basis that God uses me to bring glory to his Kingdom today. That feeling and yearning you have to LIVE for him is totally amazing huh. I am so happy for you that you got to lead 5 lost to the light of our Gods salvation. Praise you my God. Enjoy the fire of God inside of you. I can see it so very clearly with this post. That is neat and a blessing to witness.

 

[iwant2serve]

Jillianna, i have come to the place in my life that there is no mold except that which Jesus did while on earth and that was not popular with the religious world. I have made a choice to believe the word for what it says and stop making excuses for failures. We say things like if god will or if it is his will to justify why something does not happen. However if we walk according to the Spirit of God we will not have to wonder if it is his will because that is the job of theHoly Spirit to bring us the will of God. Therefore my suggestion is to walk in the Spirit and we will not fulfill the lust of the flesh which means there will be no more excuses. Then and only then will we see the power of god in action as we read in the Bible.

 

[Jullianna]

Stilly: Excellent


Pastor AJ, thank you, Sir Great to see you in the forum!