What Makes Jesus Unique? No one else made the claims that He did, He is alive...............
All the great religious leaders of history have one thing in common: they are dead. Only one man has risen from a grave never again to taste death. Jesus Christ died, was buried, remained in the grave for 3 days, then was raised to life again.
Jesus is unique. He is the only one proven to be the Son of God because God validated His Kingship and accepted His payment for our sins all with one incredible stroke: He raised Jesus from the dead!
Paul opens his letter to the Romans with this evidence about who Jesus is:
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, which He had promised before by His prophets in the holy scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was made of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. Romans 1:1-4
Because Jesus Christ is very much alive, five things are true right now that wouldn’t be true if He were just another dead religious leader like Confucius, Mohammed or Buddha.
Because Jesus was raised from the dead and is alive…Prayers are answered, We can talk to Jesus 24/7
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"How Religion Deceives You About Your Incredible Future" by David Clark
God, for His own marvelous purpose at this time, has opened the truth of the gospel to a very few—and has put them into His Church. The rest of the world remains blinded. Understand this! The devil does not want human beings to enjoy what is forever denied to him—membership in the God Family.
Most will not wake up to the deception—the mass delusion—of a seduced Christianity that denies the plain truths of the Bible! God’s plan for mankind is staggering—incomparable to anything human beings have devised to replace it. The world ignores plain, clear scriptures found throughout God’s Word about the kingdom of God. This booklet explains the astonishing truth that so many ignore—and reveals what can be your future!
Strong Warning Not to Pervert;
This subject is so important that God inspired Paul to issue this warning to the Galatians then and to us now: “I marvel that you are so soon removed from Him that called you into the grace of Christ unto ANOTHER GOSPEL: which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach ANY OTHER GOSPEL unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach ANY OTHER GOSPEL unto you than that you have received, let him be accursed” (1:6-9).
This is a very strong statement! A little later, Paul stressed his hope that the “truth of the GOSPEL might continue with you” (2:5). So there is one true gospel—with all others false. You can now better understand Paul’s warning of Galatians 5:7-9, referenced earlier.
Although some assert that Paul taught a different or additional gospel, it is plain that he never did. Ironically, God used Paul to warn against ever allowing such false teaching by pronouncing a curse on man, angel or even any apostle—“But though we …preach any other gospel”—who choose to violate this command (1:8).
What a powerful scripture—and WARNING!
Paul explained that the apostles were entrusted by God to preserve the true gospel. Notice I Thessalonians 2:4: “But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which tries our hearts.” That is a responsibility not to be taken lightly. True ministers must always teach what God commands, not what pleases men (including Bible “scholars”). So any claim that Paul taught a different or second gospel (usually thought to be about Christ or of “peace”) is impossible. He would have literally been pronouncing a curse on himself!
Jesus Was Prophesied to Bring the Gospel;
Jesus came as a newscaster carrying an announcement. Everywhere He went He made the same announcement concerning a coming, world-ruling SUPERGOVERNMENT to be established at His Return.
When speaking to a group of listeners in the desert, Christ explained His purpose—His responsibility. Notice how He explained His commission: “And He said unto them, I must preach the KINGDOM OF GOD to other cities also: for therefore am I sent” (Luke 4:43).
In the Old Testament, Jesus was prophesied to come as a MESSENGER. Notice Malachi 3:1: “Behold, I will send My messenger [John the Baptist], and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the MESSENGER of the covenant, whom you delight in.” Christ was the “MESSENGER,” not the message. His message about God’s kingdom is the very core—the CENTERPIECE!—of the entire Bible.
Now compare the passage in Malachi with another: “The law and the prophets were until John [only the Old Testament scriptures had been preached before John the Baptist]: since that time the KINGDOM OF GOD is preached, and every man presses into it” (Luke 16:16). Recall that, in Mark, Christ preached the “kingdom of God” and called it the gospel.
Satan, who knew that Christ was foretold to preach the Message that he hates, sought, through King Herod, to kill Him in His infancy. This is also why the devil sought to tempt Him in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11). He knew if he could be successful in either attempt, he could thwart God’s Plan and retain power over the nations of the world.
Meaning of “Gospel”
The word “gospel” is an old English word meaning “god spell” or good news. The word “kingdom” is also an old English term, simply meaning government. We may accurately say that Christ preached “the good news of the government of God.” We will learn the who, what, where, when, why and how of this GOOD NEWS and how it relates to the Bible’s greatest prophecy.
The word gospel is found 101 times in the Bible. Sometimes it is found alone, and sometimes “of the kingdom” follows it. Other times it includes “of the kingdom of God” or the equivalent phrase “of the kingdom of heaven.” Note that it says, “of heaven,” not “in heaven.” It is heaven’s kingdom and there is a big difference. Just as kingdom of God means God’s kingdom, not the kingdom in God, the same is true of the kingdom of heaven or heaven’s kingdom. This is critical to understand.
Throughout the New Testament, the word “kingdom” is found 27 times, “kingdom of God” 75 times and “kingdom of heaven” 34 times. All are clearly one and the same.
Now grasp this point. The subject of the kingdom of God is not only the dominant theme in the New Testament, but it is also the dominant theme of the ENTIRE Bible. Yet, incredibly, most know little or nothing of it. The ministers of this world’s churches are ignorant of the true gospel and never preach about it. Therefore, virtually the whole world stands in complete ignorance of the single greatest truth in God’s Word. And ALL those who once learned it must constantly beware lest it slip away (Heb. 2:1).
The Apostles Preached the True Gospel;
Peter preached the kingdom. Notice: “For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting KINGDOM of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (II Pet. 1:11).
So did the apostle James: “Hearken, my beloved brethren, Has not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the KINGDOM which He has promised to them that love Him?” (2:5).
Matthew’s account mentions the term “gospel of the kingdom” three different times. Here is another example almost identical to 4:23, already quoted: “And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people” (9:35).
In most of His parables, Christ taught the basics of the kingdom of God. Matthew alone, mostly through parables, makes over fifty references to the coming kingdom of God.
Luke records that Christ commissioned His disciples to preach this same message. Notice: “Then He called His twelve disciples together...And He sent them to preach the KINGDOM OF GOD” (9:1-2). Soon after, He sent seventy others to preach, and they also carried the message of the “KINGDOM OF GOD” (10:1, 9).
John records Christ’s words before Pontius Pilate on the night He was betrayed. This is an important clue to comprehend. Christ said, “My KINGDOM is not of this world [this present society]” (18:36). We will discover the details later of exactly how God’s government will be established on Earth.
Recall that Philip, a deacon, preached the kingdom to the Samaritans (Acts 8:12). Notice that he preached separately the kingdom and Christ: “But when they believed Philip…concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”
Philip not only preached the gospel of the kingdom, but he also differentiated it from the teaching about Jesus Christ. Take time to read this entire account. Remember, the messenger is not the message. Christ is not the gospel. However, He does stand directly alongside it and will rule the entire Earth when the kingdom is established in Jerusalem.
So then Luke, the writer of Acts, further differentiates between preaching about the kingdom of God and preaching about Jesus Christ! While both are vitally important, they are clearly two separate subjects!
We have addressed how some claim Paul preached a “different gospel.” These are obviously unaware that it was Paul whom God used to pronounce a curse on anyone who did this (Gal. 1:8-9). We have seen that Paul preached the kingdom of God. However, you will notice two verses in Acts, which show that he did not neglect the second subject of Christ’s role in the process of salvation.
First, let’s establish that Paul preached God’s kingdom to the Gentiles. Acts 19:8 states, “And he went into the synagogue, and spoke boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the KINGDOM OF GOD.” There are many places in his epistles where Paul taught the kingdom to various Gentile churches. His message was always the same, continually preaching and referring to the kingdom of God.
Next, notice chapter 28:30-31: “And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching the KINGDOM OF GOD, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ.” Like Philip, Paul understood that the gospel and Christ were two separate subjects.
Finally, consider one more passage where Paul made a distinction between the gospel and the Person of Christ, by briefly referencing again II Corinthians 11:4:
“For if he that comes preaches another Jesus, whom we have not preached…or another gospel which you have not accepted, you might well bear with him” (the margin more correctly renders this last phrase “with me”). Paul urged the Corinthians to reject false teachers and to hold to what he had taught them. He plainly distinguished the teaching of a false Jesus and a false gospel as two separate errors.
Again ask yourself: If Christ is the gospel, then why did Paul (four times) and Philip speak of them as two separate matters?
Every Old Testament Prophet Preached the Kingdom
Many have supposed that the gospel is exclusively a New Testament message. Nothing could be further from the truth! The Bible is literally filled with places, Old and New Testament, which describe various aspects and prophecies about the kingdom of God.
Let’s consider an amazing statement by Peter found in Acts 3:19-21: “Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”
Notice that Peter refers to the Coming of Christ—“the presence of the Lord” (vs. 19), with verse 20 stating that God “shall send Jesus Christ.” Verse 21 describes God’s kingdom as the “restitution of all things.” Peter stated that this “restitution” (Christ establishing His kingdom) is something that “God has spoken by…ALL His Holy Prophets since the world began.”
This is a stunning statement! But is it true?
Could God have actually used every one of His prophets to announce His kingdom? Why do Bible scholars and religionists ignore this—or even reject it outright? Let’s briefly survey the Old Testament.
The Pre-Flood Preachers;
Jude wrote, “Enoch [Noah’s great grandfather]…prophesied…saying, Behold, the Lord COMES with ten thousands of His saints to execute judgment upon ALL” (vs. 14-15). This obviously refers to Christ coming to establish a government, ruling ALL nations, with the help of the saints.
In II Peter 2:5, Noah is referred to as the “eighth…preacher of righteousness.” Jude wrote that Enoch was the “seventh from Adam.” Hence, Noah, next to follow him, is referred to as the “eighth.” Beginning with Abel, and including Enoch, there were seven other men who previously held this role. These eight men’s lives spanned the entire period between Adam and the Flood and they all preached the same message.
A careful review of Jude reveals that Enoch also preached about sin and righteousness. While much could be said about this sixteen-and-a-half-century period, suffice to say, all of these men spoke the same message. Remember, Peter said, “…since the world began.”
Who else preached God’s kingdom?
Abraham, Moses, Samuel and David
Is there evidence that the gospel was preached during the period following the Flood?
In Genesis 12:3, God said to Abraham, “In you shall all families of the earth be blessed.” This verse is also referenced in Galatians 3:8, but is phrased a little differently. There it says, “…in you shall all nations be blessed.” This same verse states that the gospel was “preached before unto Abraham.”
This is fascinating! Not only did Abraham have the gospel preached to him (almost certainly by Melchizedek—Christ), but it was also preached in Genesis, through Moses’ writings, about Abraham! Now consider. How could all of the nations of the Earth be blessed unless Christ had established His government on Earth?
While Moses was not a “preacher of righteousness” or an apostle, he was a prophet and a judge, and the first man that God raised up to lead Israel. Perhaps you have never thought of Moses as one who preached the gospel. Yet, the Bible reveals that he did, to ancient Israel, when they were in the wilderness. Like Genesis 12:3, Numbers 24:17-19 also refers to the gospel, with both recorded by Moses.
Acts 3:22 plainly states Moses foretold that God would raise up Jesus Christ as a great Prophet (Deut. 18:15) to preach to the whole world (Acts 3:23) at His Return! Most are only familiar with Moses leading Israel out of Egypt and are completely ignorant of how God used him in this way.
Hebrews 3:9 and 4:2 also demonstrate that Moses preached the gospel to ancient Israel. “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them [ancient Israel]” (4:2). These verses, with Acts 3, show that this included the period all the way up to—and through—Samuel!
Acts 3:24 references Samuel as having preached the gospel. Notice: “Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken [meaning everyone], have likewise foretold of these days [the Coming of Christ and God’s kingdom].” These are clear and powerful statements. They cannot be glossed over. Take a moment to reflect on what you have read. This verse declares, “ALL God’s prophets…as many as have spoken…foretold of these days.”
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel
The prophet Isaiah made plain statements about God’s kingdom, about how it would appear and bring peace to all nations on Earth. He also made clear that God’s kingdom involves government. Notice: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the GOVERNMENT shall be upon His shoulder: and His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His GOVERNMENT and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His KINGDOM, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever” (9:6-7).
This prophecy is so obvious that it needs no further explanation!
The prophet Jeremiah foretold, “Behold, the days come, says the LORD, that I will raise unto David a Righteous Branch , and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His Name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” (23:5-6; also read vs. 7-8).
As with Isaiah, these verses need no further explanation. Jeremiah gives a plain description of events that could only be described as the period after God’s kingdom has come to Earth. So, he preached the gospel to the House of Judah.
The book of Ezekiel describes a time when God will gather His people from coming captivity. This is the period immediately after the Great Tribulation (Matt. 24:21-22)—the prophesied time of calamity on the modern descendants of ancient Israel. Now notice: “For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land” (36:24).
The next ten verses describe a period of rebuilding and prosperity that can only happen after Christ’s Return. Take time to read them.
Daniel wrote this: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a KINGDOM, which shall never be destroyed and the KINGDOM shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever” (2:44).
Did this prophet preach the kingdom of God? The Bible answers yes—and we will see later that he did so in many other places!
All the Minor Prophets
With the possible exception of Jonah (who no doubt preached the gospel outside of his book), it can be shown that, in one way or another, all those often identified as the “Minor Prophets” preached the gospel of the kingdom of God. Remember, seeing the phrase “the gospel of the kingdom of God” is not the only way of describing the gospel! Genesis 12:3 and Galatians 3:8 have already shown this.
Review the following verses. In each case, you will find that they refer, directly or indirectly, to the kingdom of God: Hosea 2:16, 19; 3:5; Joel 2:21-27; Amos 9:11-15; Obadiah 21; Micah 4:1-3; Habakkuk 2:14; Zephaniah 3:14-20; Zechariah 14:1-3, 8-9; Malachi 3:1-3.
After reading these scriptures, it is obvious that Peter was right, and that “God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began…the restitution of all things,” which can only occur with the coming of God’s government to Earth.
I
It should be clear that it is GOD who speaks through whatever kind of servant He is using—prophet, patriarch, judge, deacon, preacher of righteousness, king, evangelist or apostle! If a man was truly His servant, God always spoke this same message through him—“since the world began”!
Is There a Separate Gospel of Jesus Christ?
As mentioned, Mark 1:1 speaks of “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” Let’s ask: Is the “gospel of Jesus Christ” a different—a second—gospel? Did Paul forget that there was another gospel besides the one about the kingdom?
The answer is an emphatic “No!” But most preachers teach that the gospel of Jesus Christ is about Christ, also claiming that He is the kingdom of God and that the gospel of the kingdom is Christ. We have seen that this is false and completely unbiblical! The gospel of Jesus Christ is His gospel—His message about the kingdom of God!
We have seen that Jesus was a Messenger sent from God with an ANNOUNCEMENT! It was not about Himself—it was about God’s kingdom coming to reign over the entire Earth. In John 12:49-50, Jesus said, “For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, so I speak.” It should now be clear that Christ functioned as a messenger—as a SPOKESMAN for the kingdom of God.
In John 14:24, Jesus said, “The word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s which sent Me.” Christ brought the Father’s message—not His own. This should now be clear. Remember, He stated in Luke 16:16 that “The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached.”
That is what this Work is doing today. Through this booklet, the truth of God’s kingdom is being preached to you and to thousands of others.
Defining a Kingdom;
Turn to Daniel 2. This chapter is actually a lengthy prophecy symbolized by a giant metallic man composed of four sections (five elements), which represents four literal kingdoms. Take time to read this entire prophecy. It contains what the Bible means by the term “kingdom.” This explanation is found at the end of verse 39, which refers to these kingdoms “which shall bear rule over all the earth.” These can only be described as real governments with real power over real people.
Some believe the kingdom of God is merely an idea in the “hearts of men.” This verse cannot be explained away as a reference to some nebulous, vague idea about a “kingdom in the hearts of men.” There is also no way to make God’s definition fit any particular church or churches. It speaks of rulership by governments with authority over literal nations on this Earth—and over literal people. Will you let someone tell you otherwise or will you believe God’s Word? Remember, the above kingdoms “bear rule over all the earth.”
Take note of two important aspects of the giant metallic image described in Daniel 2. They give insight into events prophesied to occur just before Christ’s Return. First, the metal decreases in value as we descend from the head to the legs and feet of the image. The quality of each succeeding kingdom/empire is less in value than the one preceding it. Second, the metal increases in strength as we descend the statue’s body. In other words, the power and scope of each succeeding kingdom/empire is greater than the one preceding it.
Finally, notice that the two legs of iron and the feet made of part iron part clay (vs. 32-33, 40-42) represent a kingdom that is divided. This depicts the Roman Empire, which was divided, with capitals at both Rome and Constantinople. Iron does not and cannot mix with clay, so this is a picture of final instability. When the feet break apart, the entire man will collapse.
Something amazing happens “in the days of these kings” (all the kings from Nebuchadnezzar to the seventh resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire). The coming greatest of all events removes all doubt about exactly WHAT the kingdom of God is. Also, that it happens “in the days of these kings” is God telling us WHEN it will happen. We read it earlier. Daniel 2:44 states, “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people [God will never allow people to seize control], but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”
The Woman of Revelation 17;
Before continuing, we need to consider more about whole chapters of prophecy, which amplify Daniel 2.
Comparing Daniel 7 with Revelation 13 and 17 reveals that there are seven revivals of the Holy Roman Empire, with an eighth “diverse” head to emerge at the time foretold in Revelation. Six have come and gone—and the seventh is now forming! The eighth revival will last exactly three-and-a-half years (Rev. 11:2, 3; 12:14; 13:5), with the fifth seal also involving the Tribulation and God’s Wrath.
Understand another important connection to these resurrections of the Roman system. Revelation 17 describes each as having “a woman sit upon scarlet colored BEAST, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns” (vs. 3). The seven heads are seven separate revivals, with a ten-horn final revival (composed of ten kings around a central figure—the Beast), constituting the eighth.
Of this woman, verses 5-6 state, “And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” Verse 1 calls her a “great whore that sits upon many waters…”
Let’s pause and ask: What are the “many waters”? This is a classic example of allowing the Bible to interpret itself. Fourteen verses later, the term is explained: “And he said unto me, The waters which you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues” (vs. 15). This shows that the whore’s influence encompasses the Earth.
In this case, the term was not immediately explained, but simply continuing to read on revealed what it means. The Bible interpreted itself!
Verses 5-6 are a graphic description of what is today’s great Gentile church that is a modern-day descendant of Babylon. She is a “mother” of many “harlot” daughters, who came out of her in protest because they disagreed with a few of her abominations. This is not a small church, but rather a “great” church ruling many peoples. Revelation 17 shows the return of this system but not the exact same church that of course will have disappeared long before when God’s Kingdom first arrived. Verse 2 speaks of her “fornication” with the “kings of the earth.” And verse 18 speaks of the woman as “that great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.” This is a huge system that has sought to influence nations and world events. Only one city fits this description over the last 3,000 years—Jerusalem—even though this system is today centered in another city.
This is a very different woman from the one described in Revelation 12, which is God’s Church and has been persecuted by this great false church for almost 2,000 years (17:6).
Daniel 7:19-20 sheds more light on what happens when the saints rule with Christ from Jerusalem. Their first responsibility is to replace what Daniel calls the “fourth beast” (the final world-ruling empire). The little horn is a religious kingdom and leader soon to rise to unprecedented power in our time, and of the same system that produces the woman who rides the beast of Revelation 17. This system has ruled over all of the previous resurrections, or revivals, of the Holy Roman Empire. Again, two more revivals remain—one just before God’s Kingdom and one more after.
The saints currently living across the world will soon face this “little horn”—who is the same as the “Man of Sin” in II Thessalonians 2:3-10. Some will be rewarded in an incredible way.
Revelation 17 and 18 reveal that God will destroy this whore and her harlot daughters, once and for all, by turning the beast she rides against her (17:16). But first she must “ride” the final resurrection of the Babylonian system!
Little time remains before the seventh revival of our time appears, with the wonderful kingdom of God to appear starting as a mustard seed (Matt. 13:31-32).
The Kingdom of God Is Coming
Make no mistake! With world conditions nearing the final crisis, no human could ever bring about a single, world-ruling government that would work. Jesus Christ will soon return and establish HIS kingdom.
The disciples did not understand when Christ would do this. He had to explain to them through use of a parable: “And as they heard these things, He added and spake a parable, because He was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the KINGDOM OF GOD should immediately appear” (Luke 19:11). This long parable explains that much time would pass before it came.
Before His ascension into heaven, in Acts 1, after a series of meetings with His disciples, Christ met one last time with them. Until the very end, He continued to expound the kingdom of God to them. But they remained confused about when it would be established: “Until the day in which He was taken up…[He was] speaking of the things pertaining to the KINGDOM OF GOD…When they therefore were come together, they asked of Him, saying, Lord, will You at this time restore again the KINGDOM to Israel?” (vs. 2-3, 6). Christ explained, “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons…” (vs. 7). We cannot today know exactly when it will come, but we can know that it is close.
Now notice Daniel 7:18: “But the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.” Then, verse 22 states, “Until the Ancient of Days [Christ here, and the Father in verse 13] came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.”
Finally, notice verse 27: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him.”
Daniel knew that the saints will one day reign on Earth with Christ!
Jesus’ first recorded sermon, called “The Sermon on the Mount,” states that “the meek shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5). Actually, Christ was quoting David, who recorded this in Psalm 37:11—another place where David proclaimed the gospel. The statement there is precisely the same. Other prophecies also demonstrate that David himself will one day rule over all the tribes of Israel, within the kingdom of God.
Has organized religion told you about any of these verses? Almost certainly not. Yet they have been in the Bible for thousands of years.
No wonder that when Christ was on trial for His life, He said, “My KINGDOM is not of this world: if My KINGDOM were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is My KINGDOM not from here” (John 18:36). In this exchange, Pilate had asked Him, “Are you a king then?” Christ answered, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world…” (vs. 37).
Jesus fully understood that He was born to be a King.
Christ to Be a King;
Christ’s First Coming was to be a great event. Isaiah prophesied of His birth to a virgin: “Therefore the LORD Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (7:14).
Before Jesus’ birth, an angel appeared to Mary to explain God’s purpose and what was about to happen to her: “And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin…Mary” (Luke 1:26-27).
Beginning in verse 30, Gabriel explains more about Christ and how He would eventually rule from the throne of David. Notice: “And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for you have found favor with God. And, behold, you shall conceive in your womb, and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the THRONE of his father David: And He shall REIGN over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His KINGDOM there shall be no end” (vs. 30-33).
Christ was never in doubt about His life’s mission and purpose. This is why He continually preached the kingdom of God everywhere He went.
Isaiah spoke in more detail about how God’s kingdom would spread around the Earth, eventually encompassing all nations: “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come you, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (2:2-4).
This identical prophecy is found in Micah 4:1-3. These passages foretell that God’s kingdom will spread around the world. This is why one of Christ’s parables likened the kingdom to leaven (Luke 13:20-21), which always spreads until it fills its host. The overarching purpose for your life is to participate in the future spreading of God’s GOVERNMENT.
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Jesus Christ came to be a KING who will one day REIGN on the Earth. When He returns, suffering, misery, unhappiness and all the world’s troubles and evils will disappear—and world peace will literally “break out,” along with supreme happiness, harmony, prosperity and abundance for all nations. No human government has ever been able to bring these things to even one country on Earth. This is the core of the very gospel that Jesus brought.
Do you believe it? Will you believe it?
The Kingdom of God Must Still be Preached Today
In the Matthew 24 (and 25) Olivet Prophecy, Christ was asked about those events that would be the signs of His Coming to Jerusalem and the end of the world (age). He answered that a number of different trends and conditions would occur first.
One event preceding Christ’s Return is described in verse 14: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” The true gospel was foretold to be preached until “the end come.” This plainly means that someone will be preaching it now, in our present age, because the end has not yet come. But this will actually be done in the fullest sense after Christ returns.
Some history: The knowledge of the true gospel was restored by Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986). It had not been preached to the world for almost 19 centuries until Mr. Armstrong began preaching it in January 1934. Understand! Not since the first century had the world as a whole heard this message. Throughout a 52-year ministry, until his death in 1986, God used Mr. Armstrong to reach hundreds of millions with this understanding. It was this man who taught me the true gospel and under whom I was trained to be able to take this same message to the world.
Remember, the end has not yet come. Therefore, The Restored Church of God is continuing this commission, boldly preaching this greatest of prophetic truths. The arrival of God’s kingdom is sure—it is certain! When it comes, you too can be a part of it.
7,000-year Plan;
Cut off from God by sin (Isa. 59:1-2), mankind has believed the lies of the god of this world for 6,000 years. The span of God’s plan with men encompasses 7,000 years. Few have understood this. Many have correctly understood at least some little of the verses describing Christ’s coming 1,000-year Reign, to begin at His Return to Jerusalem. But they know nothing of God allotting 6,000 years, or six millennial days of a “seven-day week,” to man’s rule, under Satan, prior to the seventh 1,000-year “day.” We are very near the end of the “sixth day.”
Let’s understand! The Bible states, “But, beloved, be not IGNORANT of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (II Pet. 3:8; Psa. 90:4). Of course, most are “ignorant” of almost EVERYTHING that the Bible teaches.
Will you comprehend?
Soon the whole world will see the fulfillment of Daniel 2:44: “In the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.” Just as there is no doubt that countries today represent real, literal, physical kingdoms (nations with governments), there can be no doubt, from this verse, that God’s coming government is also real and literal, breaking to pieces and replacing the kingdoms of man.
Jesus Christ was born to be a King who will rule all nations of the Earth forever with the help of other spirit-composed kings: “And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron…and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev. 19:15-16).
Has anyone ever told you of these passages? I never learned of them or even heard of them in the church of my youth—and yet, here they are, written with unmistakable clarity of meaning for all who will heed.
Kingdom of God Explained;
Matthew 6:33 states, “But seek you first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness…” If you seek something first in your life, you had better know what you seek. This chapter contains what many call “The Lord’s Prayer” (vs. 10). Christ instructs Christians to pray, “Thy kingdom come.” To properly do this, you must know what you are praying for.
The main purpose here is not to explain in detail the kingdom of God. It is to explain the definition of the true gospel and mankind’s incredible future. (To learn much more, read our free booklets What Is the Kingdom of God? and How God’s Kingdom Will Come – The Untold Story!)
So let’s understand. The word “kingdom” simply means government. Of course, you cannot have a government without a nation to govern. Therefore, a kingdom is at least one nation with a government.
There are four necessary components to any kingdom: (1) Land, property or territory—however large or small. In other words, one must have a specific and definite set of boundaries constituting the size of the kingdom; (2) a ruler, king, monarch or governor leading the government; (3) people or subjects living within the territory; and (4) a system of laws and rules along with a basic structure of government. No kingdom is complete without all of these fundamental elements.
But how does this apply to God’s kingdom? Most do not understand the most basic elements of the kingdom of God. Is it a literal, physical place on Earth, with people and laws, presided over by a ruler? Some believe that the kingdom is merely something in the hearts of men. Others believe that it is wherever you find a particular church. Still others believe that it is Jesus Christ Himself. Many believe that it is here now and others believe that it is yet to come, but do not understand how this will occur.
We may ask: How does one actually enter the kingdom of God?
Paul wrote that Christ is “the firstborn from the dead” (Col. 1:18), and also “the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29). When connected, these verses show that Jesus is merely the firstborn from the dead, with many others to follow. But when, and into what, will they be born?
In John 3:3, Christ said to Nicodemus, “Verily, verily [this means truly, truly], I say unto you, Except a man be BORN AGAIN, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” In verse 6, Christ continues, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Simply believe the plain meaning of this verse. One must become spirit to SEE the kingdom of God. (Read our free booklet What Does “Born Again” Mean? to learn more about this topic.)
Paul taught, “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (I Cor. 15:50). The next two verses explain that the resurrection will occur at the last Trumpet, when “the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”
Christ returns to Jerusalem when this last Trumpet blows. The remaining saints will be resurrected. (At His Return to Earth, some were already resurrected.
I found another opinion that corresponded to our earlier teaching.
Personally, I am not a believer in all of Garner Ted Armstrong's teachings
However I could not find fault with the end-time message from Armstrong, so let it stand.
I believe the end times are getting close and I like to learn all I can about it
“Praise the Lord! My name is Dolo Sono. I grew up in an area where nobody had ever heard of Jesus Christ, not even once in our lives. My fathers worshipped the spirits for countless centuries, and they encouraged me to follow them and become a priest of the Donyi-Polo (Sun-moon) religion. We didn’t know who the Creator was, so my tribe had no option but to worship His creation. We considered the sun and the moon our father and mother, giving sustenance and light to us.
My son developed a blood disease. He suffered terrible pain as his condition worsened over time. My wife and I could hardly stand to see the pain he was in. I called on the spirits to help, but he only grew worse. I visited other priests and asked them to pray for my son, but the more they prayed, the worse he became. Then, like a dagger through my heart, my precious son died. I was grief-stricken and wept uncontrollably as I stared at my little boy’s lifeless body.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but a Christian lived in a nearby village. When news spread that the Donyi-Polo priest’s son had died, the Christian came to my house and asked if he could pray for my son, who had been dead for four hours already. I didn’t see any harm in letting the followers of Jesus pray for him. He started to pray, and a short time later my boy suddenly came back to life! He sat up and was fine. We later found that he was also completely healed from the blood disease that had caused him so much suffering! As you might imagine, when news of this great miracle circulated, everyone was amazed and rushed to our home to see my son for themselves. I didn’t know anything about Jesus, but from that moment I knew that He alone was the true God, and I decided I would serve Him for the rest of my life.
The first thing I did was search for other Christians. I thought they must be really special and powerful people because they followed the true and all-powerful God who has the power to bring the dead back to life and change people’s hearts on the inside. After searching far and wide, I was shocked to discover that there was just one church in my entire region, with only eleven people in it. The eleven Christians were weak and persecuted. They met in a small, run-down building. I found this really sad. My own temple where I had served as a priest was beautifully decorated by comparison. I could scarcely believe that the followers of Jesus were so crushed and timid even though they possessed the Truth.
My forefathers had followed Satan for centuries without any light from God. Those who followed lies were much larger in number than those who followed the Truth. This was wrong, and I decided to do something about it. From that day onwards I determined to help God’s Church grow.
From the day God raised my son from the dead, I started telling people about Jesus. This was the least I could do. I thought everyone would be excited to hear about Jesus, but I soon found that it made people angry. My own parents and family threatened to disown me if I continued to follow Jesus. I told them I must follow Him because He is real and he raised my son from the dead! I started preaching everywhere I could, walking from village to village and encouraging people to abandon the false worship of our forefathers and to stop bowing down to the sun and moon. I didn’t know anything about the Bible, but I boldly testified to what had happened, and that Jesus alone was true and powerful.
A short time later someone told me there were many Christians in Nagaland, a state south of Arunachal Pradesh. This news excited me, so I caught a bus there and met with many true believers in the Lord. Almost the whole of Nagaland was Christian, and I was greatly encouraged. I returned home with more Bible knowledge, and could better explain the gospel to people.
Jesus helped me so much in those early years. Once I visited some villages for the first time and found that God had prepared the people by giving them dreams in advance of my arrival. Because of this, the people were kind to me and listened to the Good News I had come to share. I believed everything the Bible said. I read that Jesus told his disciples to only take one coat with them when they went out to preach, so I only wore one shirt until it was filthy and covered with lice.
The years went by and I was so glad that many more people in my tribe and other tribes started to follow Jesus too. In many places, I saw people healed by the Lord and delivered from demons. Hundreds of people believed in God. In each place where people decided to follow Jesus, we organized small house groups for them to meet together in.
A strange thing happened right at the time when God was moving so powerfully and saving many people. Other Christian leaders started to attack me and tried to stop my preaching. They said I was not qualified to preach, because I had never been to a seminary. I told them it was a shame I didn’t fit into their mold, but that there was no way I could stop preaching because Jesus was in my heart and He must come out!
This only seemed to make these religious people angrier and they even traveled around different villages, telling lies about me and warning people not to listen to me. People in many places turned against me and refused to welcome me. God encouraged me from the Bible, as I read how many of His children in other times had experienced similar opposition from those who claim to be His followers. Jesus was always attacked by the Pharisees, and I realized that there were many people like Pharisees operating in Arunachal Pradesh.
I wept many times because of the lies being spread and the great opposition. I became depressed. Then one night I had a dream where I heard a voice saying, "Dolo Sono, I have called you to preach. Get up and preach!" I replied, "But no churches want me anymore. The religious people have told the unbelievers not to listen to me. What is the point?" I then heard the Lord say, "God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble."
After this dream, I knew that I could no longer bow to the threats and intimidation. I read in the Bible that if God is with me, who can be against me? I obeyed the Lord and started preaching again, and God helped me and opened many doors and opportunities. In many villages, people who had worshipped the sun and moon were saved and Jesus entered their hearts.
For years now I have been traveling all over Arunachal Pradesh. People know me as the former Donyi-Polo priest who found the true Way. By the power and grace of the Living God, we now have more than 60 fellowships and more people are meeting Jesus all the time. Please pray for our state and the 60 tribes who live in it. Please pray that everyone in Arunachal Pradesh will soon love Jesus.
"Thank you and God bless you!"
Here is the life story of the notorious New York City serial killer, Son of Sam…
By David Berkowitz
My name is David Berkowitz, and I am a prison inmate who was incarcerated in 1977. I have been sentenced to prison for the rest of my life. My criminal case is well known and was called the Son of Sam Shootings.
Ten years later, in 1987, when I was living in a cold and lonely prison cell, God got a hold of my life. Here is my story of hope…
Child of Torment;
Ever since I was a small child, my life seemed to be filled with torment. I would often have seizures in which I would roll on the floor. Sometimes furniture would get knocked over. When these attacks came, it felt as if something was entering me.
My mother, who has long since passed away, had no control over me. I was like a wild and destructive animal. My father had to pin me to the floor until these attacks stopped.
When I was in public school, I was so violent and disruptive that a teacher, who had become so angry at me, grabbed me in a headlock and threw me out of his classroom.
I was getting into a lot of fights, too. Sometimes I started screaming for no reason at all. My parents were then ordered by school officials to take me to a child psychologist or else I would be expelled. I had to go to this psychologist once per week for two years. Yet the therapy sessions had no effect on my behavior.
During this period of my life, I was also plagued with bouts of severe depression. When this feeling came over me, I would hide under my bed for hours. I would also lock myself in a closet and sit in total darkness from morning until afternoon. I had a craving for the darkness, and I felt an urge to flee away from people.
A Force Was at Work;
Occasionally this same evil force would come upon me in the middle of the night. When this would happen, I felt an urge to sneak out of the house and wander the dark streets. I roamed the neighborhood like an alley cat and would creep back into the house by climbing the fire escape. My parents would never know that I was gone.
I continually worried and frightened my parents because I behaved so strangely. At times, I would go the entire day without talking to them. I would stay in my room talking to myself. My parents could not reach me, not even with all of their love. Many times I saw them break down and cry because they saw that I was such a tormented person.
Thoughts of suicide often came into my mind. Sometimes I spent time sitting on a window ledge with my legs dangling over the side. We lived on the 6th floor of an old apartment building. When my dad saw me doing this, he would yell at me to get back inside.
I also felt powerful urges to step in front of moving cars or throw myself in front of subway trains. At times, those urges were so strong that my body actually trembled. I remember that it was a tremendous struggle for me to hold on to my sanity.
I had no idea what to do, and neither did my parents. They had me talk to a rabbi, teachers, and school counselors, but nothing worked.
My Mother Was Dead;
When I was fourteen my mother was stricken with cancer, and within several months she was dead. I had no other brothers or sisters, and so it was just me and my dad. He had to work ten hours per day, six days per week. So we spent very little time together.
For the most part, my mother was my source of stability. With her now gone, however, my life quickly went downhill. I was filled with anger at the loss of my mom. I felt hopeless and my periods of depression were more intense than ever. I also became even more rebellious and began to cut out of school.
Yet my dad tried to help as best as he could. He managed to push me through high school. The day after I graduated, I went into the Army. I had just turned 18 several weeks earlier. I joined the Army, in a sense, to start a new life and get away from my problems. But even in the service I had trouble coping, though I did manage to finish my 3-year enlistment.
I got out of the service in 1974 to start life again as a civilian. All my friends that I knew before had either married or moved away. So I found myself alone and living in New York City.
In 1975, however, I met some guys at a party who were, I later found out, heavily involved in the occult. I have always been fascinated with witchcraft, satanism, and occult things since I was a child. When I was growing up, I watched countless horror and satanic movies.
Now I was age 22 and this evil force was still reaching out to me. Everywhere I went, there seemed to be a sign or a symbol pointing me to Satan. I felt as if something were trying to take control of my life. I began to read satanic literature. I began, innocently, to practice various occult rituals and incantations.
I am utterly convinced that something satanic had entered into my mind and that, looking back at all that happened, I realize that I had been slowly deceived. I did not know that bad things were going to result from all this. Yet over the months, the things that were wicked no longer seemed to be such. I was headed down the road to destruction and I did not know it. Maybe I was at a point where I just didn’t care anymore.
The Horror Begins;
Eventually, I crossed that invisible line of no return. After years of mental torment, behavioral problems, deep inner struggles, and my own rebellious ways, I became the criminal that, at the time, it seemed as if it was my destiny to become.
I became a serial killer for more than a year, hunted by New York police.
Looking back, it was all a horrible nightmare, and I would do anything if I could undo everything that happened. Six people lost their lives. Many others suffered at my hand and will continue to suffer for a lifetime. I am so sorry for that.
In 1978, I was sentenced to about 365 consecutive years, virtually burying me alive behind prison walls. When I first entered the prison system, I was placed in isolation. I was then sent to a psychiatric hospital because I was declared temporarily insane. Eventually, I was sent to other prisons, including the infamous Attica.
As with many inmates, life in prison is a struggle. I have had my share of problems, hassles, and fights. At one time, I almost lost my life when another inmate cut my throat.
Hope Was Coming;
Ten years into my prison sentence and feeling despondent and without hope, another inmate came up to me one day as I was walking the prison yard on a cold winter’s night. He introduced himself and began to tell me that Jesus Christ loved me and wanted to forgive me. Although I knew he meant well, I mocked him because I did not think that God would ever forgive me or that He would want anything to do with me.
Still this man persisted, and we became friends. His name was Rick, and we would walk the yard together. Little by little, he would share with me about his life and what he believed Jesus had done for him. He kept reminding me that no matter what a person did, Christ stood ready to forgive if that individual would be willing to turn from the bad things they were doing and would put their full faith and trust in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross by dying for our sins.
He gave me a Gideon’s Pocket Testament and asked me to read the Psalms. I did. Every night I would read from them. And it was at this time that the Lord was quietly melting my stone-cold heart.
One night, I was reading Psalm 34. I came upon the 6th verse, which says, "this poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him from all his troubles."
It was at that moment that I began to pour out my heart to God. Everything seemed to hit me at once. The guilt from what I did... the disgust at what I had become... late that night in my cold cell, I got down on my knees and I began to cry out to Jesus Christ.
I told Him that I was sick and tired of doing evil. I asked Jesus to forgive me for all my sins. I spent a good while on my knees praying to Him.
When I got up, it felt as if a very heavy but invisible chain that had been around me for so many years was broken. A peace flooded over me. I did not understand what was happening. But in my heart, I just knew that my life, somehow, was going to be different.
A Decade of Freedom;
Many years have gone by since I had that first talk with the Lord. So many good things have happened in my life since. Jesus Christ has allowed me to start an outreach ministry right here in the prison, where I have been given permission by prison officials to work in the Special Needs Unit where men who have various emotional and coping problems are housed. I can pray with them as we read our Bibles together. I get the chance to show them a lot of brotherly love and compassion.
There Is Hope for You Too;.
One of my favorite passages of Scripture is Romans 10:13. It says, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Here it is clear that God has no favorites. He rejects no one, but welcomes all who will call upon Him.
I know that God is a God of mercy who is willing to forgive. He is perfectly able to restore and heal our hurting and broken lives. I have discovered from the Bible that Jesus Christ died for our sins. Yet He was without sin. He took our place on that cross. He shed His blood as the full and complete payment God required for our wrongdoing.
The Bible also says, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."1 Furthermore, it says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."2
These passages make it clear that everyone has sinned. Yes, some like myself did so more than others. But all have done things wrong. Therefore, we must all make the decision to acknowledge our sins before God and be sorry for them. We need to turn from our lives of sin and toward a relationship with God.
Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, came to give us life. He suffered on a cross and died for our sins. He was buried, and on the third day, He physically rose again in victory, for death could not hold Him.
Ask Christ to forgive you. Declare Him as Lord of your life, and do not be ashamed to do so. To reject Jesus Christ and His work on the cross is to reject God’s perfect and only gift of salvation and eternal life. (If you need to know more about Jesus Christ, before you put your faith in him, please see this.)
Here Is Your Chance;
Friend here is your chance to get things right with God. The Bible says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, and if you believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.
Jesus welcomes anyone who comes to him. He will forgive you if you ask Him. He will give you an eternal relationship with Him. The words you use are not important. However, this might help you express the desire of your heart. Ask Him into your life. Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him….”3 Here is what you could pray:
Jesus, I’m sorry for the sins I have committed. I want a new life with you. I ask you to come into my life right now and forgive me for all my sins. Give me a new life and help me to know you better. Guide my life as you know best. Thank you for giving me this relationship with you. Amen.
And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by ME.
The Word is the way to go.
God can call a scripture to our mind or God can, by HIS Spirit, give us an instruction. Either of these is The Word from God when God calls such to our attention.
God also leads us by giving us peace. It is not that we try to have peace. We do have peace. So when we try to have peace, we are likely going the wrong direction. Pray. Ask God to help and to show you the way to go and to handle situations that trouble you. And if a person troubles you and continues to trouble you after you pray, that person is a thorn in your flesh. You really need to pray over this asking God what to do. (It is usually best to put that person away from you and don't try to work with that person. Something is wrong.)
Jesus says: Luke 21
And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting (overindulgence), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.
Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
If you have the Spirit of God in you, then the Spirit of God will bring to your mind The Word to show you what to do.
If we are troubled, we must have faith that God will help us to see what it is that is troubling us and how to deal with the issue. We must not go forward with a plan or with a person when we are troubled by that plan or person. Know there is another plan for you in this matter. So stop and pray and wait until you're sure you have God's plan and have assurance that this is the way to go.
James 3
But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
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Praise God, for He is very good. I am grateful that He chose me to be His servant. I am from a large ethnic group that is outwardly Muslim, but in reality, many people practice black magic. I was one such person, trapped in deep sin and spiritual darkness. For 30 years I kept thousands of snakes and I slept in the same room with them. I used magic charms and demonic power to prevent the snakes from biting me, and many people came to witness the spectacle of a man surrounded by thousands of poisonous snakes. I even had a small group of disciples whom I taught my magic arts. I was well known in our area of Indonesia.
One day I had a terrifying vision that I was going to die for two days but would come back to life, and I told it to my wife. A short time later I was bitten in the leg by a venomous snake and I fell unconscious. Thankfully my wife did not bury me because she remembered my vision.
While I was dead or in a coma, a man dressed in white stood in front of me. I dared not look into his face because it was so bright it would have burned my eyes out. I fell down and worshipped Him, and He said, ‘Come to me and I will make you a fisher of men.’After two days I was revived and my life was spared. I wondered who the great Man was that I had seen. I asked my wife but she didn’t understand what I meant. One day I shared my experience with a young man. He told me the person who spoke to me was the Lord Jesus Christ, and he showed me verses in the Bible about others who had met the glorified Jesus.
Over time I surrendered my life to God and became a dedicated Christian. I also brought many of my disciples to faith in Christ. Over the years I have experienced many trials, but God has always been with me. I have started three churches and now many hundreds of my people also follow the Living and True God. Hallelujah
Mongolia: How We Came to Follow the Living God;
"Greetings in the Name of Jesus! My name is Enkhsarul and I live in Mongolia. I had been a Buddhist my entire life, and I knew nothing at all about Christianity.
I first heard the Good News when a team of Christians visited our remote area. They shared about Jesus Christ and gave me a New Testament. When I discovered that Jesus had the power to deliver, I confessed my sins and received His salvation into my heart.
Sometime later my youngest son Chinbatar developed a kidney problem and was unable to go to the toilet for days. The doctors said it was hopeless and we should prepare to lose him. They told us to call on a Buddhist lama or a spirit-priest for spiritual help and comfort. Instead, I went to the hospital and I held the hand of my seven-year-old son and spent the whole night praying for him in the Name of Jesus Christ. The next morning he was much better and his body started to function normally again.
Because of this great miracle, our entire family became followers of the living God, and He brought real transformation to our lives. God has been so good to us. We all love Him, and the Holy Spirit has given us the strength to keep on believing. All glory to the true and living God!"
Brother Enkhsarul, from Mongolia, is one of the hundreds of Asian evangelists we support through the Asian Workers' Fund. We invite you to join us as we help them take the Gospel to the unreached peoples of Asia.
Ex-criminals who transformed their lives around through Christ Jesus
We have compiled a list of ex-criminals who in the early stages of their lives committed distasteful sins but later received redemption through giving their lives to Jesus Christ.
This article should hopefully encourage you that despite all the evil and shameful activities you’ve done in the past, God has not stopped his unfailing love and mercy upon your life and there is still hope for you.
The remedy for being close to God is simple, acknowledge your sins and sincerely repent from your sinful ways, this is illustrated in 2 Chronicles 7:14 “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
Be encouraged to take steps in assembling the image of Jesus Christ each day like these reformed men of God below:
Charles Colson (Born 1931 – Died 2012) – Former Political Saboteur
Chuck Colson - Christian
Charles Colson was known within the Nixon administration as the “evil genius” who served as special counsel to President Richard M Nixon, who masterminded ways to sabotage his opponent’s in his own words “I’d walk over my own grandmother to re-elect Richard Nixon.”
Mr. Colson was sentenced to prison for seven months in federal Maxwell prison for his involvement in the 1970’s Watergate scandal on the charges of obstruction of justice.
Behind bars, he became a born-again Christian and became an evangelic Christian leader, he founded several impactful non-profit organizations including Prison Fellowship Ministries, which was designed to bring Bible study to prison inmates and their families. In 1983 he set up Justice Fellowship to develop the Bible-based criminal justice and prison reform. He founded the BreakPoint radio show and Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview, which is a research and networking study center of growing Christians looking to defend the Christian worldview.
The remaining of his life, dedicated the rest of his life to spreading the gospel.
Michael Franzese (Born 1951) – Former New York Mobster and Head of the Colombo Crime Family Michael Franzese - Christian
Michael Franzese was born into a life of crime, born in Brooklyn, New York; his father was the notorious Colombo Underboss John “Sonny” Franzese. In October 1975 Franzese attended Hofstra University but soon after decided to quit his college to join the Colombo family.
Franzese grew in the ranks of his mafia peers through creating lucrative money making schemes from the mafia, including extortion, money laundering, intimidation to his most famous scheme the infamous gasoline-bootlegging racket in the mid-1980’s.
In 1984 he met Camile Garcia, an evangelical Christian on a film set who would soon become his wife. Franchzese credits his wife for introducing him to the Christian faith.
In 1985 he was indicted on 14 counts of racketeering, extortion, counterfeiting from the gasoline-bootlegging racket and was sentenced to ten years in federal prison but was released from prison after serving 43 months. In December 27, 1991 he was sent back to federal prison for his involvement in tax fraud. During his time in jail, he claimed he found Jesus when he summoned up the strength to walk away from the Colombo family which is a cardinal sin in the mafia.
In 1992 was the year of transformation; he wrote his autobiography title, “Quitting the Mob” book which he wrote as a tool to sway teenagers to stay out of a life of crime by revealing the myth of the glamorous life.
Johnny Lee Clary (Born 1959 – Died 2014) – Former Ku Klux Klan Leader
Johnny Lee Clary was born in June 1958 in Oklahoma, where he was raised in a racist home where his father who claimed to be Catholic encouraged hatred towards black people and those who are minorities.
At the age of 14 he became involved in gangs and eventually joined the Ku Klux Klan. Due to his dedication, he quickly climbed up the ranks and moved into the position as the imperial wizard of the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. In his life in the race hatred group he built respect amongst his peers for not only inciting race hate but also being responsible for audacious activities like beating people up, burning crosses outside people's homes, and eventually burning a black church.
Later in his life, Johnny felt compelled to give his life to Christ after reading Luke 15, on the story of the prodigal son, which led him to repentance. In his own words he recounts, “I finally got on my knees and said, ‘God, my life is screwed up. God, I’m in a mess. I need your help,” he recalled. “I felt like a new person, brand new creation. I felt like I had had a weight lifted off my shoulders.”
After receiving Christ in his heart grew to have love for all people regardless of their race. Soon after his repentance, he became a Pentecostal evangelist and the first elder in a predominantly African-American denomination in the Church of God in Christ. In this period of his life he made amends with those he tormented during his years in the Klan including Rev. Wade Watts who became his best friend and mentored Cary.
He spent the remainder of his life repairing his damaged past from educating the FBI on how white supremacy groups operate to converting racist to love all people.
He died in October 2014 at age 55 of a heart attack.
Joshua Milton Blahyi (Born 1971) – African War Lor
In the 1990s Joshua Blahyi, better known as General Butt Naked was known for his fatal atrocities during the first Liberian Civil War.
At the age of 11 he claimed to participate in his first human sacrifice after being initiated as a tribal priest. In his memoir, he stated how from an early age he had an encounter with the Devil who told him he would one day become a great warrior and instructed him to continuously practice cannibalism and human sacrifice to increase empowerment.
He later became appointed, high priest due to his dedication and physical prowess, which led him in a position to become the spiritual advisor of Samuel Doe, the former president of Liberia.
His nickname “General Butt Naked” was cultivated due to his reputation for leading his troops in the battle of the civil war naked except for shoes and gun; he believed this was the source that protected him from bullets. With his reputation as the top general fighter, he was able to recruit more than 20,000 children as soldiers.
From a human standpoint, it’s impossible to forgive someone with such atrocities like this, Before going out to battle his ritual was to sacrifice small children whose fresh blood satisfied the devil.
Joshua has confessed on several occasions, even publically that he has killed over 20,000 people during 14 years of civil war.
Aftermath;
In 1996 a Pastor in Liberia Bishop Kun Kun claimed he heard from God to fast for 54 days to deliver Blahyi’s rampage. After fasting Pastor Kun Kun went to his shrine in Liberia to preach to him. After Blahyi received the visit from the pastor, he claimed Jesus appeared to him in a blinding light and told him to repent for his sins or die.
Joshua then gave his life to Christ and went on a confession spree to confess his sins in churches and to the relatives of the victims he killed.
Apostle Paul – Former Christian persecutor
Apostle Paul - Christian
Paul was born as Saul in the City of Tarsus (Acts 22:3) located in the province of Cilicia, now known as modern Turkey. In his early years, he enrolled in a Pharisaic Rabbinical school in Jerusalem and soon became a Pharisee. In the Bible described as being zealous in all that he did, in Act 7 Paul witnessed the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian Martyr (watching the cloaks of those who were stoning Stephen.).
In the later stages of his life, Saul led major persecution against Christians, he did everything within his power to stop the growth of Christianity by destroying churches, and putting Christians in prison in Jerusalem.
It was when he was on the way to Damascus to persecute more Christian believers, that Jesus Christ appeared to him, which caused him to repent and become one of the greatest evangelists of his day.
Relevant Bible verses: (Redemption verses)
Hebrews 13:3 – “Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.”
John 3:17 – “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Mark 2:17 – “On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Isaiah 43:18 – “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.”
2 Corinthians 5:1 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
You’re in a conversation and someone says, “I’m a Christian, but I don’t want to force my religion on others.” What would you say?
In a pluralistic world where everyone mistakenly believes their truth (based on subjective opinion) is the truth, it’s not surprising that some of us – even Christians – fear imposing our personal opinions (including what we think about God) on others. But this hesitancy mistakes both the nature of truth and the nature of Christianity. In fact, if Christianity is objectively true (regardless of anyone’s opinion), we ought to be eager to share the truth about Jesus. So, the next time someone says, “I’m a Christian, but I don’t want to force my religion on others,” here are three things to remember:
First: The Christian Faith Cannot, by Definition, Be Forced.
Despite what you may have heard from skeptics, Christianity was never spread by force or coercion – just the opposite. Christianity grew – and continues to thrive – due to persuasive evangelism. A “forced decision” is an oxymoron. When someone decides to trust Jesus as their Savior, it’s just that: a genuine decision. True belief, the kind of trust that results in a saving faith, must be formed freely without force or coercion. That’s why our goal is to convince rather than compel. God’s not interested in coerced declarations. He’s looking for true decisions. For this reason, Christian belief cannot be forced – by definition.
Second: Christianity is a Cure, Not a Cookie;
Most of us would consider it foolish to waste energy trying to persuade others about our favorite dessert (I happen to prefer chocolate chip cookies). We recognize dessert preferences as subjective truth claims that vary from person to person. If someone you loved was dying of tuberculosis, however, I bet you’d spend some time trying to convince him or her that the cure (an antibiotic cocktail including Isoniazid) is more than simply a matter of opinion, especially if they held the personal view that aspirin was the cure. Remedies like Isoniazid are not a matter of subjective opinion – they are objectively true for everyone, whether we personally agree or not. Christianity, if true (and its veracity is the best inference from evidence), cure our spiritual death, just as Isoniazid cures tuberculosis. People may claim there are other religious remedies (just as your family member may mistakenly prefer aspirin), but the world’s religions make contradictory claims about the nature of God and salvation. They can all be wrong, but they can’t all be right. That’s just the nature of contradictory claims. So, while you might find it pointless to share your subjective opinion about cookies with the people in your life, you’d be irresponsible, cruel, and evil if you didn’t tell them about a cure, especially if you knew they were dying.
How many of your friends simply can’t wait to tell you about their favorite movie, song or sports team? Does their excitement force you to agree? Of course not. But this doesn’t mean you would prohibit them from sharing their passion. We instinctively recognize that excitement does not necessitate agreement, and all of us have the right to share our enthusiasm. C. S. Lewis once wrote: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance, the only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” If others can share their excitement about a movie, we should be allowed to share our enthusiasm for the most important truth anyone could ever know.
The Christian faith cannot, by definition, be forced.CLICK TO TWEET
So, the next time you’re sharing the truth of Christianity and someone says, “I’m a Christian, but I don’t want to force my religion on others,” remember these three things:
First: The Christian faith cannot, by definition, be forced.
Second: Christianity is a cure, not a cookie.
Third: Everyone has the right to share their passion.
This article is transcribed from the script J. Warner wrote for the What Would You Say video series.
God’s timing is a mysterious thing and it doesn’t always make sense. However, sometimes it is very clear when you reflect on situations in your life.
My husband and I first met when we were in 6th grade. We grew up in the same town and went to school together from middle school through high school graduation. His assigned seat on our school bus was the one right in front of mine. My earliest memories of our friendship are of me poking his head through the gap between the seat and the window to wake him up.
I love our story. Not because it is movie-worthy or because it is incredibly sweet (though it’s the sweetest in my very biased opinion). I love it because it points to the faithfulness and redemptive power of Jesus Christ. When I reflect on our story, it reminds me I can always trust God’s timing.
Our story has a happy ending, but a messy middle. Only by the grace of God did we end up here, and only by His strength and provision are we building a strong, joyful marriage.
God’s timing is a mysterious thing and it doesn’t always make sense. However, sometimes it is very clear when you reflect on situations in your life.
My husband and I first met when we were in 6th grade. We grew up in the same town and went to school together from middle school through high school graduation. His assigned seat on our school bus was the one right in front of mine. My earliest memories of our friendship are of me poking his head through the gap between the seat and the window to wake him up.
I love our story. Not because it is movie-worthy or because it is incredibly sweet (though it’s the sweetest in my very biased opinion). I love it because it points to the faithfulness and redemptive power of Jesus Christ. When I reflect on our story, it reminds me I can always trust God’s timing.
Our story has a happy ending, but a messy middle. Only by the grace of God did we end up here, and only by His strength and provision are we building a strong, joyful marriage.
The Early Years;
We were good friends for all of middle and high school. Looking back now, I can see we had a connection that neither of us truly understood. We gravitated toward one another like magnets. We were both too busy fighting spiritual battles that we didn’t see the significance of this.
My husband was battling to keep his faith strong despite suicidal thoughts and a pornography addiction, and I was battling abuse at home and in my relationships. My faith consisted of nothing more than a faint belief in a higher power. Friends dragged me to church left and right, but my heart was so hardened by my circumstances I couldn’t hear the truth of the Gospel.
After high school graduation, we both went off to college. We stayed in the same area but went to separate schools. I continued fighting my battles while he worked to overcome his. My identity was a mystery and my home was void of love or warmth. Believing I didn’t deserve any better, I looked for the affection I deeply desired by dating and letting myself be mistreated.
Just before my freshman year was over, I hit rock bottom and decided to move away to get a fresh start. I set myself up to transfer to another school about an hour and a half away and live with one of my best friends. It seemed like my heart would heal by changing my environment.
So, I swore off dating to focus on my mental health and started packing.
Reunited By Trees
My world was rocked one day shortly after I set those boundaries for myself. God’s timing is funny like that.
I was helping my little sister practice for softball when I heard a man’s voice saying my name. I turned around and Mark was standing behind the fence at the back of our yard. This dumbfounded us both.
I asked him what he was doing there and he told me he lived there! His backyard was the one directly behind mine and had been for about 8 years but neither of us had any idea. There used to be a long line of pine trees that separated our yards, but his dad decided to cut them down that summer.
We started catching up, completely blown away by what we had discovered. 3 hours passed before we realized it.
We began casually meeting up at the fence pretty regularly and going on runs together, as friends. He even invited me to his church and I attended with him a few times.
Eventually, during one of our long conversations at the fence, he convinced me that I needed to see the new Transformers movie and offered to take me that night. I said no, thinking it was a casual offer to see a movie I didn’t really have a lot of interest in. But he kept asking, even after we had parted ways at the fence. He texted me about 50 more times asking me to go, so I gave in and said “Yes.”
We got along so smoothly and casually, that I wasn’t even sure it was a date until the end of the movie when he held my hand.
Mark and I knew each other for many years before we ever started dating. We were close friends and unknown neighbors. We grew up in the same town; our hearts could have come together at any point during those years, but neither of us were ready yet.
We needed to grow up and work through all that we were struggling with first. I firmly believe those trees stayed up as long as they did for a reason.
I went through a lot of hurt before I reconnected with my husband. Heartbreak was my story for many years because I sought affection and love through dating and toxic friendships. I needed to turn my heart back to God before I would be ready for this relationship. My heart needed to surrender and I had to stop trying to fill the void with worldly things. Only when I gave up trying my own way did healing happen.
We were drawn to one another, but that connection was kept at bay until the time was right for us. I am fully convinced that God’s timing is completely perfect.
You will look back on your situation years from now and see that God was orchestrating something wonderful and you had no idea.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
There is a season for everything and it may be hard, but waiting on God’s timing is always worth it.
With love, Ashley
"Greetings in the Name of Jesus! My name is Enkhsarul and I live in Mongolia. I had been a Buddhist my entire life, and I knew nothing at all about Christianity.
I first heard the Good News when a team of Christians visited our remote area. They shared about Jesus Christ and gave me a New Testament. When I discovered that Jesus had the power to deliver, I confessed my sins and received His salvation into my heart.
Sometime later my youngest son Chinbatar developed a kidney problem and was unable to go to the toilet for days. The doctors said it was hopeless and we should prepare to lose him. They told us to call on a Buddhist lama or a spirit-priest for spiritual help and comfort. Instead, I went to the hospital and I held the hand of my seven-year-old son and spent the whole night praying for him in the Name of Jesus Christ. The next morning he was much better and his body started to function normally again.
Because of this great miracle, our entire family became followers of the living God, and He brought real transformation to our lives. God has been so good to us. We all love Him, and the Holy Spirit has given us the strength to keep on believing. All glory to the true and living God!"
Brother Enkhsarul, from Mongolia, is one of hundreds of Asian evangelists we support through the Asian Workers' Fund. We invite you to join us as we help them take the Gospel to the unreached peoples of Asia.
Engaging Scripture With Both Discipline and Desire,
by Paul J. Pastor 3 years ago
How I long for your precepts! In your righteousness preserve my life. May your unfailing love come to me, LORD, your salvation, according to your promise… (Psalm 119:40-41 NIV)
Psalm 119:40-41
In other blog posts, we considered how to better read the Bible with our whole selves. But many of us wrestle with a more basic problem: what if we don’t want to read the Bible in the first place?
This can be tough to even admit for some of us. For many Christians, Bible reading––especially as part of a daily devotional schedule––is one of the big “shoulds” of faith. In fact, that’s likely part of the issue. Many of us have been told that we should read the Bible, but we’ve hardly ever been told how to stick with it or why we should want to in the first place.
But there’s nothing wrong with simple honesty. Given enough years of growing faith, we simply will encounter times when the Bible feels “blah.” (Yes––that’s the technical theological term.) Such times are a chance to learn, shake things up, and move toward the reason we’re passionate about living Bible-rich lives in the first place––finding our place in the story that points to Jesus. With that in mind, I’d like to offer four things that any of us can do when (not if) we don’t want to read the Bible.
1. Ask an Honest "Why?"
We often live “the unexamined life,” so bringing thought and intention to the why beneath our feelings or choices can be powerful. At first many of us may be tempted to stick a quick shame message here, like: “I know my heart is wicked. I don’t even want to read the Bible anymore. Man, I am a terrible Christian… .”
Wait. We wouldn’t even care about caring if this was the case, right? The very fact that we are bothered when we don’t show how much we care that we do. That is a profound place to begin. Yes, our very lack of desire might reveal how deep our real desire is.
And when we ask the honest “why,” we’ll often gain rich insight into our spiritual experience. Perhaps what lies under the why is the fact that we’re exhausted from overwork, extra childcare duties, a brutal school schedule, or the stress of unemployment. Perhaps what lies under the why is grief, or a need to get outdoors and move, or a longing to socialize. In any case, probing beneath the surface often yields real insight. This helps us start with grace for ourselves and affirmation of our deep desire to be a person whose life is deeply connected to the Bible.
Just like you can (in general) trust the signals of your body for hunger, thirst, sleep, and exercise, you can (in general) trust your spiritual instincts too. This doesn't mean that we should follow our feelings without critical reflection, but sometimes when we don’t want to read, there’s some pause or practice other than Scripture reading that could be valuable to engage in.
For me, it was encouragement from a mentor to turn my daily commute (which was then six miles by bike across prairie trail in Illinois) into time spent freely with God. It was a post-seminary season where I was positively stuffed with the Bible in three different languages, and reading it felt impossible, exhausting, and discouraging. It was so freeing to consecrate those rides, and I often found that phrases and passages of Scripture would come to mind as I prayed and pedaled. In hindsight, I needed to trust my spiritual instincts, which were saying, “Enough reading! You need some time to process this!”
You might be surprised at what comes up when you give yourself permission to trust your gut while still pursuing the wisdom of God. And when you’re ready for more classic reading again, you’ll appreciate it that much more.
3. Switch Things Up;
Along these lines is the ability to proactively introduce a positive change. After all, the human mind is wired to keep itself sharp by seeking variety. “A change is as good as a rest,” the old saying goes, and it is right. A few ideas:
Try a new translation or a new layout If you read the Bible, try listening to it (free audio versions abound) If you listen to the Bible, try reading it (try one of the many artfully designed versions available today) If you’ve hung out in the same passages for while, switch to something you’ve never read or have rarely read Try reading a familiar book of the Bible from the last chapter to the first (sure it’s weird, but seriously––you’ll be surprised by the details you notice in reverse order) Choose an important theme or image and follow it carefully through a book or section (“love” in Deuteronomy is an old favorite, as is “silence” in the book of Mark Select a passage and use it as a prompt for painting, writing, prayer, or another creative response. (There’s a reason the Bible has inspired centuries of art and thought!) Watch one of BibleProject’s videos before your reading (browse the full list of videos here
The basic principle is simple: try something new, something that feels natural and engages you, and have fun with it.
4. Know It's Not Forever;
This is equally true no matter how you feel about the Bible at this moment in your life. Like the seasons of the year, each of which has important work, our times of varying response to the Bible have their purpose. But in any case, they won’t last forever. Feelings come and go, even as the roots of our desire deepen.
In a balanced life, engaging with the Bible should be both a discipline and a desire. My hope is that we can become better about encouraging each other to cultivate a rich desire to be frequently and deeply in Scripture. As well, I hope that we can help one another find practical strategies to better understand and enjoy the Bible’s rich (but complex) literature.
What’s important is to do your best to let this season do its work, remembering that engaging the Bible is meant to be done long term, over the course of a lifetime, not in the span of a few months or a year. When we truly embrace that, we’ll be able to make some peace when the times come-––as they will––when we just don’t feel like reading the Bible.
This piece is from the Becoming Better Readers series, focusing on bridging rich ideas from the Bible with the realities of spirituality today.
BY TIM ARNDT NOVEMBER 17, 2022
What you do and say on social media actually matters. While many Christians carry themselves with kindness and grace at church, once they tap that social media app they transform into some kind of snarling beast.
Christians are called to be Christ’s ambassadors: “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20).
But for some reason on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, many times, it seems like Christ is completely absent from our minds.
Here are some tips to help us better represent Christ online — by addressing common pitfalls of Christians on social media: image, attitude, discernment, distractions and nastiness.
ATTITUDE;
1) Don’t be so negative
Here’s a fact: There’s far more bad news than good news on social media.
Christians can easily tap into that and lament the growing immorality and loss of truth around us. But we have to be careful not to be in a constant state of negativity. When Christians are more well known for what they are against than what they are for, we all lose. On your social media accounts, be sure to share truth, beauty, and goodness.
Phillippians 4:8 calls believers to think in this way: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Rejoice in goodness. Share beauty. Show love;.
2) Don’t get caught in every outrage wave;
Every day the world is up in arms about something. We debate new laws, point fingers in the aftermath of tragedy and feel the need to defend or attack every presidential tweet. I know so many college and seminary educated Christians whose Twitter feeds amount to nothing more than their commentary on current hot topics.
Certainly, some battles are worth fighting, but in reality, most people don’t care about any of these controversies after a few months have passed. Christians would be better off representing their savior with dignity and charity than having a meltdown over whatever the headlines were that day.
DISTRACTIONS
3) Don’t be too partisan
Politics are important, but they are not the most important. Politics can become a serious distraction from the Gospel and the Great Commission.
Over the years I’ve spoken to many unbelievers who equated Christian beliefs with their parents’ political views. Their family was more outspoken about their political beliefs than their religious beliefs, and it’s no wonder the kids picked up that politics mattered more than the truth of God’s word.
What a shame! Let me ask you a question. If someone were to scan through your social media accounts, what would they think mattered more to you, your faith or your political party?
There’s a balance to be held for sure, but I think it’s safe to say that too many Christians seem to give too much weight to politics.
4) Don’t use crude memes
There’s no doubt about it, memes are huge in our culture. But a lot of memes feature double entendre, risqué pictures and generally crude joking.
Just like you shouldn’t say dirty jokes, don’t make dirty memes. Don’t like them. Don’t share them.
5) Don’t self-elevate
Glorifying self is the oldest sin the book. Adam & Eve fell to the serpent’s lies desiring to elevate themselves and be “like God,” and the same serpent is quietly hissing in our ears today. Avoid the temptation to use social media as an avenue to make yourself look great.
Jeremiah 9:23-24a says, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might,
Augustine Diawuo (Mmeredane TV) Published Jan 13, 2022
As Christians, we should be extremely careful what we post online, and more importantly, how we treat others. There are more, but here are 10 Things Christians Should Never Do on Social Media.
1. Thou shalt not compare yourself to others.
This one’s tough because it’s basically what Facebook is meant to do. It’s like an ever-changing slideshow of what others have that you don’t, and it can leave you feeling left out and lonely.
Before you reach for bitterness, choose to remember your blessings instead. And know that what you see on social media isn’t the nitty-gritty hard stuff—there’s a lot that even the most perfect Instagram families are walking through that you may never see.
Reasons to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
2. Thou shalt not add a smiley face to an insult.
“But wait,” you say, “the emoticon means that anything I said before was just a joke and is completely excused.”
Nope. That’s not how that works. What it means is that you wanted to get away with being unkind, and that’s not something the Bible is going to let you do. This is basically the 21st-century version of what he spoke against in Proverbs 26:18-19: “Like a maniac shooting flaming arrows of death is one who deceives their neighbor and says, ‘I was only joking.
But the point is there: say what you mean, and remember that tone of voice can’t come across on social media. When in doubt, leave sarcasm out, and you’ll avoid unnecessary hurt feelings.
3. Thou shalt not brag about yourself.
Yes, you can celebrate something—a new job, your toddler’s successful potty training, a winning March Madness bracket—without being arrogant.
That’s different from a constant feed of posts that are designed to subtly (or not-so-subtly) brag about yourself. I’m not saying all selfies are sinful, but here’s what I am saying: Affirmation on Facebook will never be enough. If you are motivated by wanting others to like you and think well of you—whether it’s your physical appearance, witty sense of humor, or list of accomplishments—you’ll always need more to be happy, and you’ll never quite get there.
So what is enough to satisfy that need? Jeremiah 9:23-24 gets to the heart of it: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me.”
Related: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Bible.
4. Thou shalt not start a discussion that should happen in person.
This one is less black and white. I can’t give you a list of topics you shouldn’t post about, or conversations better had over coffee than via Messenger. Here’s a guideline, though: If you aren’t sure whether you should say something in person or in virtual Facebook land…talk about it in person, even if it’s something hard, like a confrontation. Chances are, you’ll communicate better that way, with fewer misunderstandings.
Am I saying being passive-aggressive is a sin? Sometimes, because we usually do it out of fear. We avoid hard topics and conflict and genuine honesty with others because we’re not willing to take that risk.
5. Thou shalt not believe everything you hear.
As in life, be careful to confirm what you see with other sources… and doubly so if you choose to share it. This seems trivial when it’s something like a meme (did Abraham Lincoln really say that?), but it can be more serious when you’re reacting to a news source that distorts or misrepresents what really happened. I’ve seen Christians outraged about something that isn’t even happening, and they feel pretty sheepish when they find out that what they shared wasn’t true.
6. Thou shalt not buy into outrage culture.
I cannot say this often enough or loudly enough: We must resist the urge to join in the noise of fury and outcry. Outrage gets clicks and comments. It sells, and everyone from retailers to media to public figures is using that knowledge against us. Please, think twice before venting about a situation or an issue on social media. Shouting matches do not advance the gospel. They slowly change our minds and hearts into an “us vs. them” conflict that isn’t biblical.
Before you get pulled into an angry exchange, consider whether it will be worth it. Does the other person seem interested and willing to listen to your point of view? If not, it’s probably best not to respond, or say, “I think we’ll have to agree to disagree on this” and move on.
7. Thou shalt not put on a spiritual show.
We’re not talking here about sharing verses or thought-provoking articles about faith. That’s great! Think instead of making sure everyone knows what you’re giving up for Lent, or that you’re reading Leviticus with your morning coffee because you’re just that dedicated, adding on a #blessed to everything to spiritualize it, and feeling a constant need to impress others. All are signs that you care more about what others think of you than what God thinks.
Share what you believe… but remember that your faith is not a relationship between you and your Facebook friends. It’s a relationship between you and God.
8. Thou shalt not blur boundaries.
By this, I mean that Facebook allows us to be in contact with everyone, sometimes in ways that aren’t healthy. I’m not just talking about potential problems with staying in touch with old flames when you’re happily married (though that’s certainly included here). You may need to stop seeing some kinds of posts.
You may need to stop messaging a “friend” who encourages your bad attitude. You may even need to consider what limits you should put on your overall use of social media because it can damage real-life relationships that are significantly more important.
I could give examples, but it’s going to be different for every individual. You know what you struggle with. Pray about areas you may need to cut back with your Facebook interactions.
Related: Let’s Be Hungry For Excellence – Dr. Mensa Otabil
9. Thou shalt not gossip.
You know you’ve seen this… and probably done it. It’s easy to slip in a bit of news about others, insult them behind their backs, or intentionally exclude them.
Time to put Ephesians 4:29 into practice: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Refuse to engage with others’ gossip. Better yet, if you see those types of conversations going on, be brave and call it out, saying something like, “I don’t think Facebook is the right place for that.”
10. Thou shalt not misrepresent the gospel.
Whoa. Those stakes just got raised really, really high. But this is what our lives are about, right? We are Christians—little Christs. People are supposed to be able to look at us and see what Jesus is like. They should be able to add us on Facebook and see posts and responses that are consistent with the character of God.
That’s not always the case in my life, and I’m guessing it’s the same for you. Remember that the world is watching you and what you say. But don’t let that drive you into fear or paranoia. No, instead you should pray for what Paul hoped for the church.
Jesus is indeed a figure who stands out in history and theology for several unique attributes and claims:
Divine Claims: Jesus made remarkable claims about His divinity and relationship with God. He referred to Himself as the "Son of God" and often spoke of God as His Father. These claims set Him apart from other religious figures.
Miracles: According to the New Testament, Jesus performed numerous miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, and turning water into wine. These acts were seen as signs of His divine authority and power.
Teachings: Jesus' teachings, as recorded in the Gospels, emphasized love, forgiveness, and compassion. His Sermon on the Mount, in particular, is considered a profound ethical and moral teaching.
Resurrection: One of the most distinctive aspects of Jesus' life and belief among Christians is His resurrection. According to Christian faith, Jesus was crucified, died, and rose from the dead on the third day. This event is central to the Christian belief in salvation and eternal life.
Impact on History: Jesus' life and teachings have had a profound and enduring impact on human history. Christianity, founded on His teachings and resurrection, has become one of the world's major religions, influencing art, culture, ethics, and philosophy for centuries.
Global Following: Jesus has a unique and unparalleled following worldwide. Billions of people across different cultures and centuries have considered Him their Lord and Savior. The spread of Christianity and the devotion of its followers are remarkable.
Moral Exemplar: Many people, even those from different religious backgrounds or those who don't identify as religious, admire Jesus as a moral and ethical exemplar. His teachings on love, forgiveness, and humility continue to resonate with people seeking guidance in their lives.
Sacrificial Love: The concept of Jesus willingly sacrificing Himself for the redemption of humanity is a central theme in Christian theology. His crucifixion is seen as the ultimate act of selflessness and love.
While there have been other religious and spiritual leaders throughout history, Jesus' unique combination of divine claims, teachings, miracles, and the belief in His resurrection make Him a figure unlike any other. The belief in Jesus being alive, as affirmed by Christians, is a fundamental tenet of their faith and sets Him apart as a living presence in the lives of believers.