He Knocks

Why I Like This Video

2012-01-12T16:42:00.145-05:00

This is one of the most popular videos on YouTube that is getting a lot of hits lately. It is liked and disliked by many for several reasons.

I like it because it pops the self-righteous bubble that is seen in churchianity and briefly touches on the differences between the man-made religion and the gift of God through Christ Jesus.

I hope and would like to believe that the word 'hate' is not directed against a group of people that differ with his views. If it is, welcome to yet another branch of Christianity, which has close to 40,000 denominations.

I am siding with the idea that his feelings are targeted towards the religion, which to me is not an institution or a group of people, but a mindset that makes one run on a never-ending treadmill to "please God".

Old VS New

2012-01-11T18:33:00.005-05:00

Thanks to the internet, we now have access to a ton of Christian messages than our earlier generations. We no longer have to be limited by tunnel visions!

While I'm thrilled with this convenience, I'm not attracted to a message, book or an article, simply because it is tagged "Christian".

What I look for is, if the content is rooted in Jesus' perfect work on the cross.

Narrating the parables of Jesus or quoting 10 scriptures from the Gospels simply for the sake of it won't cut it, because Jesus was still living under the old covenant.

Contrary to the popular assumption, the new covenant starts only after the resurrection and not with Matthew Chapter 1.

Selah ; )

So how do we know that the messages that we listen to or the material that we read stems from the old or the new covenant?

Under the old covenant, I get to bear a nice-looking, but a heavy yoke of trying to earn the blessings. My ego gets to be the star. The blessings or curses are hinged on my performance.

Under the new covenant, Jesus did all the heavy lifting; we are freed from the yoke and are liberated, once and for all. Jesus is the star here and through His obedience, we are made righteous (not self-righteous). Grace or Unconditional Love is the oxygen that we live in. Under this covenant, we are God's masterpieces, not unworthy worms.

Are you a Parrot or a Seeker?

2012-01-05T11:10:00.001-05:00

"seek, and ye shall find" - Jesus

Parroting is easy. It's a life of staying on the surface. Someone does the thinking and interpretation for us. And we faithfully parrot "the truth", or so we think.

Seeking is hard because it requires us to leave our comfort zones. It requires us to ask hard questions. It may sometimes lead us to swallow our pride and admit our ignorance, which may not be a pretty experience for our ego which thrived on "being right". In this journey, we may be ostracized by our churchy contacts and the so-called friends.

Regardless of the challenges, the journey of the truth-seeker is worth it, if the desire is to be in union with the Truth, instead of dogmas and concepts that merely puffs up one's head.

True seeking, however, will not begin until we experience the emptiness of floating in the Parrot zone.

Happy Birthday, Who?

2011-12-25T00:03:00.001-05:00

I used to do the whole CHRISTmas thing sincerely, yet blindly, until it dawned on my bright head that we really do not have any solid proof that Jesus was born exactly on the 25th of December.

Nevertheless, I still appreciate this season because of the beautiful spirit of giving. I wish it is not just limited to Christmas.

The real reason for the season, as I see (a purely personal view), is Love and not a religious agenda.

One can, however, pretend that this is about Christ, and it is absolutely fine, but pushing that idea on someone who does not believe in Jesus is not Christ-like. Christ was never a bully.

With that as the backdrop, I wish you a very merry Christmas and happy holidays (or work days, depending your work schedule!).

How to Love Unconditionally

2011-12-02T15:09:00.001-05:00

In this post, I said about being the conduits of unconditional love.

But how do we love unconditionally?

It is easy for me to love my nice elderly neighbor or my best friend. But the rubber meets the road when the object of our love is someone who hurt us or others. How do we love this person?

The easiest way is to not equate the so-called "offender" which his actions.

But in most cases, we cannot love a person unconditionally, if we trust in our strength alone. If you have any doubts, try loving Hitler, or someone who hurt you.

Unconditional love is not something that we can manufacture. It is the fruit of the Spirit that manifests as we remain in Christ Jesus.

True, we see the fruit on the branches but notice that the branch does not strive to bear fruit. It is His Life within us that helps us bear His fruit, for we have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in us; and the life which we now live in the flesh we live by faith of the Son of God, who loves us and gave Himself for us.

There will be a fight initially in our mind, especially if we are usually prone to be driven by the dictates of the ego, which is not in alignment with the Spirit, Who is housed in our spirit. But the more we cease from our striving and emotionally rest in Him, acknowledging our inability to bear His fruit, the more we will see His rivers of living water saturating us and flow through us.

The fruit of the Spirit then will no longer be Christian-speak for us, but a living reality, which will not be dependent on others or the circumstances, no matter how grave or bright the situation is.

Freedom is a Choice

2011-11-03T11:56:00.001-04:00

Ego is the part of our mind that keeps us wanting which in turn produces pride, sadness, anger, worry, insecurity and judgementalism towards others. The source of any negativity can be traced to the ego. It literally is a heartless taskmaster that drains one’s emotional energy.

For the ego, the answer is always “out there”. We subscribe to its edicts in hopes that it will fill the void in us that we so desperately want to be filled. “Follow my prescribed path, for then, will you receive that which you seek for”, says the ego. But to our chagrin, we discover that the happiness or the freedom promised by the ego is nothing but an unreachable mirage.

The simple fact of the matter is that, the ego is a bully and bullies are epic weaklings within their core. It thrives on imprisoning the heart, but it does so by not realizing the fact that the heart has the power to rewrite the mind.

Freedom begins when we realize that the heart is infinitely more powerful than the mind. Authentic emotional freedom has nothing to do with anything that comes from without. Nothing and not one human being can grant us freedom. Freedom is experienced from within.

One way to experience that freedom is by loving unconditionally. Love is a power source that transforms our mind. It is similar to the water gushing out of a hose. Before the water hits the plant, it saturates the hose from within. When we meditate and speak negativity, no matter how justified we think we are with our assertions or how factual we think the thought is, the negativity soils our mind and binds us. But when we proactively and unconditionally love, it saturates us first and sets us free, free to be ourselves and to be effective conduits of Love.

What are we known for?

2011-10-22T23:10:00.011-04:00

The "world" that we so love to judge, condemn and criticize is not moved by our knowledge of the scriptures or the lack of it, whether we follow or reject a particular doctrine, whether we pray in tongues or flow in the gifts of the Spirit, or not, if we are churched, unchurched or home-churched, whether we fast or feast, whether we follow certain rituals or not, whether we give or not; if we cannot love unconditionally, then we are nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.

But who said we don't love?

Sure, we do love the birds of the same feather. We love those who speak in fluent Christianese, we love those who dress, look and act like us and those who think like us. But that is called conditional love. In other words, our love is towards the standards that we expect to see in others; it is not towards the actual person, which leads to the natural conclusion, that there is zero love in conditional love.

If we were to die tomorrow morning, what would we be known for? That we were self-important, hate-filled, judgmental, Bible-thumping bigots?

Or will be known as vessels of unconditional love, because that is exactly what Jesus did for us and Who He is. The only groups of people who upset Jesus, were the religious ones, not "the world".

Well, who cares how we are known for?

That may partly be true, considering the fact that no one can make everyone happy. The goal here is not to be more 'likable'. The simple truth is, God is Love. And as His ambassadors, may we be known as conduits of that Love.

To the kind souls who needs scriptural backing for what I wrote above, here are some:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." - John 3:16 NKJV

"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." - John 3:17 NKJV

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8 NKJV

"...love is the fulfillment of the law." - Romans 13:10 NKJV

1 Corinthians 13, the whole chapter.

"If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well;" - James 2:8 NKJV

"He who does not love does not know God, for God is love." - 1 John 4:8 NKJV

"Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." - 1 John 4:11 NKJV

Truth vs Interpretation

2011-10-20T12:00:00.001-04:00

The Bible is an ocean that cannot be limited by one interpretation. When we think we have the handle on the truth, what's usually happening is that we are merely backing one interpretation of the truth.

The Christian world is littered with interpretations. The last I checked, there are close to 40,000 Christian denominations. 40,000 groups saying, "I'm right". And each one of them base their positions from the same manuscript.

Interpretations are often mistaken for the truth. Yes, there may be nuggets of truth in them, but, in my view, it can never be the complete picture. God will never be contained in our favorite doctrinal bowl. We won't see the full spectrum until we cross over.

Worship and Ferrari

2011-10-19T22:03:00.004-04:00

Most of us love cars. When we see a Ferrari, our reaction is instant. We drool. We do not have to work up an emotion or need two upbeat songs to get to the joy frequency.

But when it comes to worshiping the King of kings, we need two songs just to get warmed up. And then the Worship Leader has to cajole us to raise our hands or praise Him.

Why is this so?

Simply because we haven't seen who Jesus is and what He has done for us. Yes, we are familiar with all the Bible stories and the formulas to work the Kingdom principles. We are thorough with the doctrines and have memorized a ton of scriptures. We know a lot about Him, but barely know Him.

But the more we meditate on Him, the more we get a revelation of Him, no one will have to coax us into praising Him. The reaction will be instant. True worship is a reaction, not a legalistic requirement. We worship Him, not because He is insecure, but simply because it will be a natural reaction as we behold Him. And it won't necessarily be limited to a worship session or while listening to a worship music.

On Comments

2011-10-19T20:37:00.004-04:00

I briefly experimented with the idea of open comments. That is, I do not verify the comments before approving them. I may not necessarily agree with a wide variety of Christian interpretations out there, but that does not mean that I cannot have an open discourse.

The only thing that the experiment showed me was that it was a magnet for Anonymous comments. First of all, I do not understand why someone has to to hide behind the Anonymous mask, considering the fact that I am not posting about matters on national security here. Regardless, I ignored and allowed it. As long as the content was relevant to the posts, it did not matter. But what I do not have, is the time or the inclination for plain judgmental negativity.

Case in point. This is the comment that I received from an Anonymous poster for the post on Steve Jobs:

"“I wanted my kids to know me. I wasn’t always there for them, and I wanted them to know why…” Steve Jobs

I am sad for Jobs’ children.

And I am equally sad for a nation who praises and glorifies a man simply because he achieved much in the world of business and technology. That’s a polite way to say it, I suppose. Maybe it would be more accurate, or at least more pointed, to say it this way: I am saddened that we worship a man simply because he gave us phones with touch screens.*

How I wish our society honored those men who love their families with a love that is second only to their love for God."

My response to the Anonymous commenter:

Someone once said, "Judge not, that you be not judged". He also said, "Love your enemies." I doubt Steve Jobs is your enemy, but still, love others by abiding in Him, even when they don't fit your high standards, because that is exactly what Jesus did for you and I. Without love, we are nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. And there is no love in conditional love. I wish you the very best.

And that concludes my brief experimentation with the 'open comments'.

I will no longer be accepting comments from 'Anonymous' or 'Unknown' either.

If you are a blogger, how do you handle comments?

Farewell, Steve

2011-10-05T21:53:00.001-04:00

Farewell, Steve. Thanks for the inspiration. You were an icon!

Steve Jobs: 1955 - 2011

This is a prepared text of the Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, on June 12, 2005.

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: "We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?" They said: "Of course." My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents' savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn't interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.

It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, it's likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

My second story is about love and loss.

I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.

I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.

I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.

I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.

My third story is about death.

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.

This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope it's the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Thank you all very much.

Why is Judging Bad?

2011-09-26T17:20:00.000-04:00

What exactly is wrong with judging someone? Why is this very negative activity frowned upon, when we know that the person we judge "deserves" our tongue or thought lashing?

Judging and condemning others is bad, not because it is impolite or because Jesus exploded at this venomous negativity.

When the faithful religious crowd was about to stone a woman, Jesus said, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”

Once it finally hits us, that all of us needs His Grace, then our reaction would automatically be, "how can I judge someone?".

That's My King!

2011-09-22T14:17:00.003-04:00

Narrated by Dr. S.M. Lockridge.

Chariots and Political Parties

2011-09-20T12:36:00.002-04:00

Some trust in chariots and horses, some Christians, in political parties.

The 2012 US Presidential Election is around the corner and all of us have our reasons on why we think one party is better than the other party.

Regardless of our preferences, the most ignorant thing that we could do is gather information and form our conclusions based on hate-filled chain emails or chatter from clearly biased sources. FOX leans to the right just like MSNBC leans to the left.

Politifact.com, a Pulitzer Prize winning site, dissects the statements made by our good politicians. Here is a link on how they work.

Another popular site is FactCheck.org.

I'd encourage you to bookmark and frequent these sites depending on your fascination with the political parties.

If you know of more links like these, please do share it in the comments below.

The Writer's Manifesto

2011-09-14T23:39:00.001-04:00

Several weeks ago, I downloaded Jeff Goins' The Writer's Manifesto.

If you are a writer or seriously curious about this beautiful art form, do check it out. It's short, moving and written straight from the heart. It may have been written to the writers or the potential writers, but the heart of this message applies to any creative expression.

I also subscribe to and regularly read Jeff's blog. It's a great blog to those who are passionate about writing, or to those like me, who are discovering this powerful medium of expression.

You can download the book from here.

Disobedient Jesus?

2011-09-12T19:37:00.003-04:00

Couple of weeks ago, we saw the effects of Hurricane Irene that hit the East Coast of the United States. Some have died and others have lost their homes due to flooding. And as always, some believe that God sent the storm because He was upset with the the East Coast.

Here are some reasons why that belief does not hold any water:

1. It is the goodness of God that leads to repentance, not death and destruction. It is the enemy that comes to steal, kill and destroy, not God.

2. Christ demonstrated his love for us by dying for us while we were sinners. Now all of a sudden He is upset?

3. Contrary to the popular assumption, God is not "angry" in this dispensation of Grace. In fact, "God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son ..." to be tortured and crucified for us. That's how much He is in love with the world (not just the Christians).

4. The sin issue has been taken care of on the Cross, once and for all. Love won't be insulted, but if it can, I would assume it would be insulting to God, when we say that God sends natural calamities due of sin; because in other words, what we are implying is, that Jesus' sacrifice was not enough to take care of the sin problem. Please allow this thought to sink in.

5. Lastly, the point that inspired the title of this post. If God is the author of storms, Jesus was defying His Father's will when He calmed the storm. But we know that Jesus was not being disobedient because He only did what His Father did.

Sure, it might take a storm (literally or metaphorically) or two to free ourselves from our undying dependence on the self and trust God wholeheartedly, but the implicit belief that God is the author of every storm, is baseless under the new covenant.

A quote on Pro-Life and Pro-War

2011-09-10T15:35:00.001-04:00

Only in America can you be pro-death penalty, pro-war, pro-unmanned drone bombs, pro-nuclear weapons, pro-guns, pro-torture, pro-land mines, and still call yourself ‘pro-life’.

- John Fugelsang

Enough said.

Editing to add the other side of the coin:

“And only in the mind of a progressive liberal can you be anti-death penalty, anti-war, anti-unmanned drone bomb, anti-nuclear weapons, anti-guns, anti-land mines (all in the name of loving your fellow human being) and still think it’s your right to be able to murder an unborn child.” - talkstraight.tumblr.com

Related post:
Pro-Life and Pro-War?

Kingdom and the Person

2011-09-08T11:59:00.002-04:00

This clip prompted me to place the order for the book The Unshakable Kingdom and the Unchanging Person, by E. Stanley Jones

Grace = O2

2011-09-07T07:44:00.010-04:00

Christianity is often viewed as a big buffet table with a variety of doctrinal dishes people pick and choose from. And Grace is often seen as one of those dishes, when in fact, it is the oxygen, with which the new creation in Christ lives. Without Grace, there is no new birth and the life, in Him. We are saved by grace through faith alone, not because we are fluent in Christianese and are trying (good luck with that) to keep the Law.

Just like we won't set limits on our intake of oxygen, we cannot pick and choose grace at our convenience. The Law cannot save us, it only condemns us, leaving us guilty and hopeless.

The more we renew our minds with the knowledge of His grace, the more saturated will we be in that truth. We may get some talking points from two books and three sermons on Grace, but Grace is not just a topic. It is not even a commandment. It is our life source. Our entire life is depended on Grace. Even though some of us thinks that we are qualified to receive His righteousness, the truth is that we have zero qualifications. Grace is what qualifies us to receive it.

Grace is not a spiritual concept. It is not an 'it' among the bunch of 'its' that we love to debate. It is a Person, named Jesus Christ.

Related Posts:
Law or Grace
Son Conscious vs Sin Conscious

Half Full vs Half Empty?

2011-09-06T08:10:00.001-04:00

"...In this world, you will have tribulation;..."

It is easy to get on the ever-pessimistic tribulation or the suffering bandwagon by just focusing on that portion of what Jesus was saying. But contrary to the popular assumption, that is not a stand-alone statement. He goes on to say, "... but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33 NKJV)

How can we "be of good cheer" when we go through tribulation? It is because the Overcomer lives in us.

The cup is not just half full, it is full - full of Him!

We can either focus on Him or on the tribulation. What or Who we focus on will be magnified in our lives. Common sense suggests that we choose to focus on Him, than on the upheavals either affecting or surrounding us.

Who needs Religious Freedom?

2011-08-26T22:42:00.003-04:00

Religious freedom has its obvious benefits. But in the long run, it contributes to the creation of institutionalism in various flavors as we see in countries that are open to religious freedom.

The unadulterated Gospel of Jesus Christ thrives in countries where there is absolutely no religious freedom. Christians there are not killed because of doctrinal differences. They are tortured and killed for their unwavering trust in the Name of Jesus.

It was His Name that put the early disciples in trouble. It was by that Name that they were conduits of countless miracles. It was by that Name that they turned the world upside down - all amidst the fierce opposition and persecution (for a detailed picture, read the Acts of the Apostles). To them it was all about Him.

Wherever that Name is oppressed, His Gospel (not churchianity) thrives. Perhaps we should pray that the religious freedom that we enjoy be taken away?

When Christianese Meets The Road

2011-08-25T14:43:00.003-04:00

"Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." - King Solomon

Our words have creative power. And yet, we often times release them without second thoughts.

Jesus said, "Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks."

The easiest way to find out what is in our our heart is listen to our words for a few minutes. It is easy to speak Christianese when all is going well. But when pressure hits, our words reveal what we are truly made up of.

A tube of toothpaste cannot release pineapple jam when applied pressure.

If we can decree death to a situation, we can also speak life over the situation. Speaking life over the situation is not necessarily based on our senses. "Peace, be still" does not make any sense to the natural mind in the midst of a fierce tempest, which is why it is decreed purely by faith.

In other words, we are merely making a choice (the same choice that we made to decree the negative things) to speak what God says about a particular situation.

An illustration
"The economy is going down the drains and I am going to part of it."

That the economy is going down the drain may be a fact. But an Ambassador of Christ does not have to take part in it.

Based on the Phil 4:19, she or he can say, "The economy might be going down the drain, but my God supplies all of my needs according to His riches (not according to a particular economy) in glory by Christ Jesus."

Chew
The more we meditate on that scripture, the more it settles in our soul - which is our mind, will and emotions. What is the significance of settling it in our soul? Because as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Our exterior is the reflection of our inner man. Paul says that we are to think on whatever that is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous and things that are praiseworthy.

But how can we ruminate over a scripture when a ton of negative thoughts are competing to take up our mind's space?

Words

In comes the power of the spoken word. Ever noticed that our words stops the flow of thoughts? So we speak or decree truths that is aligned to the reality of who we are in Christ Jesus. Christ has redeemed us from every curse, so no economic calamities or sickness have the legal right to dominate and enslave us.

Visuals
Words birth visuals or imaginations. When I say 'dog', you have the visual of a dog in your mind's eye in a split second. Imaginations are one of the most powerful tools that one could constructively use. Without knowing, most of us have been consistently using that tool destructively.

The word "recession" begets a visual. The more we meditate on that visual, out of the abundance of our meditation, comes the creative words, "I'm going to be affected". And for sure, it does. Just ask Job (see Job 3:25).

OR we can use our God-given power to choose to meditate and speak the God-given abundance and His promises over our lives.

The Choice

2011-08-19T00:17:00.001-04:00

The modern man who prides himself on being "self made" comes to the point where the trust in all his five senses fail, where he has no other options to bank on.

To him, Jesus says, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."

This, obviously is not a new revelation. We all know that.

Jesus also says, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."

It is easy for us to believe the first scripture. We can leave all the responsibility to God and sing "Que Sera, Sera, Whatever Will Be, Will Be". It is also easy to blame God, when bad things happen to us.

However, with the second scripture, we are given a responsible choice. The choice to trust Him and believe His promises over the circumstances that does not line up with our new-creation reality in Him.

The Abiding Anointing

2011-08-18T00:06:00.001-04:00

It was great to see Reinhard Bonnke slaughtering the sacred cows connected with the anointing and the double portion anointing.

And here is a related message by Curry Blake:

The concept of double-portion anointing is so OT. We are not int he Old Testament now. We may not realize the fullest extent of Who we are carrying, but the reality is, we are the temples of the Holy Spirit and He does not come in bits and pieces. He abides in us 24/7 whether we feel Him or not.

Read and meditate about our new-creation reality in the Paul's letters. We see that God's fullness is contained in Christ and that He dwells in us. We have the complete portion abiding in us. We merely have to renew our minds to that knowledge.

"... the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you..." - 1 John 2:17

"Christ in you, the hope of glory." - Col 1:27

Trust

2011-08-17T00:30:00.001-04:00

A story that my friend forwarded to me:

They say the story of the mountain climber who was desperate to conquer a particular mountain. After years of preparation, he started his climb on a fine weekend.

But by the time he got around to climb, it was already getting very late. Instead of camping, he continued with the climb. It got real dark very soon. Visibility was zero. Clouds enveloped the moon and the stars and the temperature was getting colder by the minute.

As he was climbing a ridge at about 100 meters from the top, the unthinkable happened! He slipped and fell. Falling rapidly, he could see nothing but darkness. Terror invaded his mind, as the gravity sucked him down at a terrifying speed. This really was the end, or so he thought.

Suddenly he felt a jolt that almost tore him in half. Yes, like any good mountain climber, he had staked himself to a long rope tied to his waist. He was now hanging in midair with nothing but pitch blackness and the frigid weather around him.

He had no choice but to shout, "Help me God, HELP!"

He suddenly heard a deep voice from the heavens, "What do you want me to do?"

"Save Me!"

"Do you really think I can help you?"

"Of course, my God!"

"Then cut the rope that is holding you up."

There was a moment of silence. And the man proceeded to clutch the rope that was holding him even tighter.

Next day, the rescue team reported that they found a frozen mountain climber with his hands clutched real tight to the rope...

and he was merely five feet off the ground.

- Author Unknown
++

Trust is a major ingredient in our walk with God. And it does not necessarily stem from our five senses. But at the same time, it is not a blind walk either. Our action will be in response to His words. Peter walked on water by trusting Jesus' words and when his eyes was focused on Jesus. But he began to sink when he trusted his senses.

We have a clear choice.

The sacred cow that Job unintentionally created

2011-08-16T00:08:00.004-04:00

"The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away" - one of the most sacred cows that has ever emerged from the Christian institution. When bad things happens to one's life, we are quick to point our collective fingers to God, based on these words by Job.

Where we miss the boat is the fact that Job was making this comment without realizing who really was the taker here. The book of Job Chapter 1 clearly shows us who the thief was. Job obviously could not read his book. He was living it.

"Ah, but God allowed it", says the follow-up response.

I respectfully beg to differ.

I do not have the slightest clue of why bad things happen to folks when it does not make any sense and my job here is not to speculate on that. But in Job's case, it was Job who allowed it.

"As a man thinks in his heart, so is he".

What happened to him was the fruit of what he dominantly meditated upon. Listen to his words in Job 3:25, "For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me."

We do the same thing today. We are surrounded by Constant Negative News and expect the sky to fall on our heads. And it does, when we give into that fear.

Faith and fear comes through one channel - by hearing. Faith comes by hearing the word of God. And let's not forget that, the word of God is not just the written text. It is the person of Jesus!

Fear comes by hearing the news media incessantly or anything that does not line up the knowledge and the reality of who we are in Christ Jesus. I'm not suggesting that we should turn the TV off and go live in a cave. I may not be able to stop the birds from flying over my head, but I certainly have the freedom to not let it build a nest on my head; unless of course, I want to believe that God allowed the bird to build the nest on my head.

The issue here is not about a doctrinal debate. This is not another theological discussion. This affects real lives. I personally have heard about the story of a man who was dying of cancer proudly saying that this particular cancer was from God and that he would not mind if God afflicted him with more severe diseases. He did not have to believe that lie when the stripes that Jesus bore on his back took care of his disease.

Obama, Michelle, Jesus and Us

2011-08-15T22:49:00.001-04:00

"Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."

This is Jesus' response to Peter when he said that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God."

It is tempting to try to intellectually figure it all out and box what I want to believe about Him. But this business of believing and trusting the Person of Jesus is not based on what I necessarily perceive with my senses. It goes beyond the sense realm.

The truth is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and not by dissecting a stack of Scriptures with my head. Unless we walk by faith and not by sight, we may know plenty about Jesus, but fail to know Him, the resurrected Jesus who said, "I am with you always". This faith is not the product of our making. It is the gift of God. All we need to have is the desire to know the One who will never leave us nor forsake us.

Most of us know plenty about President Obama from Wikipedia or from the news media. But only Michelle Obama knows him intimately. Her knowledge is not based on the facts about Obama. She has a personal bond with him.

Stones for bread

2011-08-14T23:59:00.002-04:00

I've never understood the reasoning behind the bright idea that, "God gives us sickness to teach a lesson".

What possible lesson would one glean from a deadly disease, other than the fact that it is stealing, killing and destroying their health?

If we, who are works in progress, would not give stones to our children when they ask for bread, why would we assume that God, who is Love would afflict us with sickness?

When Jesus said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." (Jn 11:4), He was not glorifying the sickness as it is sometimes perceived. There is no glory in a dead Lazarus. It was the resurrection of Lazarus that glorified Him.

Sickness is merely one of the curses that Jesus redeemed us from and we have the provision of healing by His stripes.

Instead of being led by opinions, let's go by what He said and did.

Because He Lives

2011-08-14T07:28:00.001-04:00

I look forward to the day when Igniter Media makes a full-length movie.

Husband and Wife

2011-08-13T00:58:00.002-04:00

Husband: Let's spend some time together!

Wife: I love you hun, but you do know that I've set apart Sundays for you, don't you?

Husband: Sundays are great, but why do we have to limit our communication to just Sundays? Do you know how much I long to connect with you daily?

Wife: What do you mean? Do you not know that I wake up every day, early in the morning and read about you and talk to you?

Husband: Duh, how can I forget the time when you are having that non-stop monologue with me?

I am glad you know all the data about me, but reading about me is totally different from actually spending time with me. Do you have a clue of how much I long for a personal connection?

I was not kidding when I said I love you. You, my beloved, are constantly on my mind.

When I try to reach you, you think you have to dedicate a certain time for me. While that is not necessarily a bad thing, I look forward to your responses to my text messages that I send you throughout the day. But you seem to have this notion that mere texts won't count. Mere texts? My dearest, don't you know that there is nothing "mere" about the thoughts we have for each other? It's the little things that matters. What is little to you, means the world to me!

By the way, I find it funny when you speak to me so formally in Elizabethan English. But I always hear you speak very normally with your friends. What's up with that?!

And why does your face become all serious when you talk to me?

Seriously, it pains me when you try to become someone else around me. My heart sinks when you try to connect with me.

You do not have to try. Just be yourself. I love you for who you are. I will continue to love you unconditionally, even if you choose not to communicate with me at all, because my love towards you was never based on your response or performance. Also, I am least bothered about how well your communications skills are.

It is your heart that I am after.

So, be free!

Be you!

Baklava and Faith

2011-08-12T00:31:00.002-04:00

When we go through the valley of the shadow of death, we do not often feel Him. As a result, we may have the urge to conclude that he has abandoned us.

How can he abandon us when he said, "I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" ?

But still, we like the confirmation of our senses. And I don't think it is too much to ask for. Joy cannot be theorized.

So how do we go about experiencing Him in the middle of the worst storms?

This is where believing His words with a child-like faith come into play. We have to make the decision to take "I am with you always" at face value.

Believing has nothing to do with feelings. It is a choice that we make. We might not feel a thing initially, but as we take the baby steps with him each day, we get to taste and see that He is good.

Tasting is not a theoretical concept.

I do not taste baklava by faith. I love that pastry and I long for more. My taste buds can never get enough of it. But if I were new to that pastry, I would have to choose to taste it. But now that I know (not just know about) how baklava tastes, there is no going back. It's too good.

Angels and Demons

2011-08-11T07:18:00.003-04:00

There was a phase in my teen life when I tried to be an atheist. I read plenty of books on atheism and I thought I was one. But deep down, I could not agree fully with the notion that there is no God, which is why I say that I tried to be one.

Wasn't it common sense to become an atheist or at least be an agnostic? Angels, demons, virgin birth, resurrection? For sure, it must all be part of a big religious hoax, designed to control the mass.

Or is it?

Either way, I still could not commit to the concept of there is no God.

Why could I not believe in atheism? Perhaps it was due to the fact that I had received Jesus Christ to my heart at a younger age?

It is possible. But I am not sure.

Fast forward to the present. Right now, I believe that it takes an immense amount of faith to declare that there is no God. I can see why people are allergic to religion (I know I am). And I see how the biblical stories may be perceived as fairy tales and mythologies.

But to come to the conclusion that this universe and everything that contains it popped just out of the blue... I just do not have enough faith to believe that blindly, because my next questions would be, where did the blue come from and how did the very first cell come into existence? "It just happened" violates the basic scientific principle of cause and effect. Nothing just happens. I think it's an insult to the intellect to even consider that reasoning.

Even Charles Darwin was skeptical about his theory.

His words: "To suppose that the eye, with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree."

But then, what do I know? I might be a close-minded religious nut job incapable of thinking for himself.

Heaven on Earth?

2011-08-10T00:50:00.001-04:00

"Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

Most of us know that verse by heart. It's from the prayer that Jesus taught the disciples to pray (see Matthew 6:9-13).

"Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

But often times, we do not see the power that is contained within that statement.

If we did, we would not accept the ills that we see in our lives or around us.

The media screams "economic Armageddon" and we accept that. The newscaster declares the "flu season" and we prepare for the season. Likewise, we mindlessly nod our heads to a plethora of things that is alien to our new life in Him and His Kingdom.

"Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

Let the scripture sink into our soul...

Let's Do It!

2011-08-09T10:49:00.003-04:00

Religion hurts. I am not theorizing here. Here is a real-life example.

I am part of the prison ministry team of the church organization that I attend and I have the privilege to connect with inmates in person and through letters.

Couple of weeks ago when I was at a particular correctional facility sharing the good news of the love of Christ Jesus, I met a man who came from a very churchy background. He said was raised in a church, used to be a drummer at the church and that most of his immediate family were pastors for multiple generations. But when he made some wrong choices in life, they disconnected him from their lives. Yes.

The man was deeply hurt. His questions were along these lines: how could his family, the supposed servants of a loving God be this nasty to him? Is God like this too?

Welcome to religion. This is a classic example of what religion does to a person. It condemns, hurts and alienates people from God's love. Religion mouths the name of Jesus, but its only god is the organization that it serves.

The truth is, those hurtful actions by his family members are alien to Jesus. Listen to Jesus' words, "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." (John 3:17). Read the Gospels closely; the only crowd that Jesus chastised was the religious crowd, not because He hated them, but because they were dependent on their self-efforts to be in right standing with God.

Condemnation is not from God, because the price for the sin of the human race was paid for by Jesus Christ, once and for all. As Paul said, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Rom 8:1).

It's the goodness of the Lord that leads a person to repentance (Gr: metanoia - which simply means a 'change of mind'). Jesus did not die for us when we had all our acts in order. He demonstrated his love towards us by dying for us while we were sinners (see Rom 8:5). Period.

So we see that God's love is unconditional towards every human being (not just the Christians. see John 3:16). And if we are His ambassadors, is not it fair to assume that we are to represent our King?

Let's look at everyone as God sees them.

Let's do it, by abiding in Him!

What the gehenna!

2011-08-03T17:38:00.010-04:00

When I first heard about the concept of universal salvation, I was elated. Who in their right minds would really want to see anyone burn in the lake of fire? I’ve never understood the Christian who relishes the thought of someone burning in the lake of fire. Often times, the person who gleefully and viciously condemns someone to hell does so from a posture of self-righteousness. He thinks he has somehow earned the credentials to be in right standing with God and as a result, he now reserves the right to judge and condemn everyone who does not agree with what he thinks is right. Based on Ephesians 2:8-9, we know that no one earns the passage to Heaven. But that is not the focus of my post.

Back to universal salvation. Even though I loved the concept of automatic salvation, I had a lot of questions. I simply cannot agree with a view based on its popularity or because it’s the new fad. Initially I ignored the questions thinking that it must be the religion that is holding me back from receiving the new revelation and that what I felt had to be right. But this is a topic that cannot be taken lightly or can be viewed as another "doctrine". This topic affects people’s destinies. In the end, if the universalists are right, all is well! But there is still a huge chance where the well-meaning universalist position may not line up with God's plan and I could not pretend to ignore that. So I asked the Lord to shed light on this matter. The clearest answer and the confirmation of what I believed (even though it is not what I would love to believe, if I had a say in the matter) came in the form of a book titled Erasing Hell, by Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle. The book dissects and explores the core scriptures that the universalists use to base their positions on. The author does not do a lot of interpretation for the reader. His views are based on clear scriptures from where we can form our conclusions inspired by the Holy Spirit. If you are curious about the topic of universal reconciliation and hell, I recommend this book. It is a short read, but to the point.

It was a very sobering read for me as well. This book stripped me off of my need to portray God solely in the light of how I thought everyone wanted to see Him. The Christian religion may need a new PR agency, but in my view, I don't think the Creator of the universe is a weakling who needs our defense so that He can reach many people. He is The Truth and Truth is capable to stand on His own. It was very small and ignorant of me to think that I had to promote and encase God in a package of my choice, even though the package was biblical. This does not mean I am joining the 'turn or burn' bandwagon. There is a middle ground between the extremes of 'turn or burn' camp and the 'feel-numb' camp, where the apostle Paul and the other writers of the New Testament stood unabashedly.

Why I like Google+

2011-07-19T15:14:00.003-04:00

Google Plus has to be the finest product from the stables of Google, as of now. Their Circles feature is a breath of relief and is a game changer. While Facebook is a robust platform, the lack of an intuitive way to connect with different people was limited and hence, I was always uncomfortable connecting with people on Facebook. Aside from inviting few members from specific groups, I had never ever asked anyone to find me on Facebook. I have a wide range of interests and friends and contacts from a wide range of backgrounds. Circles helps me categorize them and connect with the individual groups. I am looking forward to see what G+ is planning to do to cater to the business crowd.

This definitely does not mean Facebook has become obsolete by any stretch. Its 750 million membership is a formidable force and it has a robust platform for businesses and groups. Over 2.5 million websites are integrated with Facebook. This healthy competition from G+ will encourage Facebook to break new grounds. But at this point, Facebook will not be playing an important role in my life.

My G+ profile is http://gplus.to/framesmedia. Let’s connect.

Son Conscious Vs Sin Conscious

2011-07-13T11:40:00.012-04:00

I just read an article that said along the lines that the message of Grace has promoted sin and that one needs to speak more about sin. While I agree with the intent of the author, I respectfully differ with him on his solution, which is to speak more of sin.

Grace frees us from sin, not to sin. If anyone thinks that grace is a license to sin, they have not received the revelation of the message of Grace. We are saved by grace and we continue to live by grace, because breaking one command equals breaking all the laws.

What in my opinion, needed is not sin consciousness, but Son consciousness. We are brand new creations in Christ Jesus. We are masterpieces in Him. We are temples of the Holy Spirit. The more we renew our mind with our new-creation reality, we will not want to sin. Who would intentionally want to stain a dazzling white shirt? "Thou shalt not sin" begets more sin because the strength of the sin is law. Sin will not have dominion over us as long as we are under grace and not law.

Thou shalt be Free

2011-07-02T09:43:00.004-04:00

Biblically speaking, we can only live either by law or by grace. Choosing to live by the law requires that one must keep all (I cannot pick and choose from the 10 commandments and the 600 plus sub commandments) the laws with absolute perfection. There isn't a slightest margin for error (James 2:10). I cannot pull the "I'm trying my best" card.

The religion comes in with blithe ignorance and proclaims that, "all you have to do is keep the law and God will smile at you" and place the sincere believer on a never-ending treadmill, when the the fact of the matter is, not one of us can score a 100 out of 100. And this is precisely why we need a Savior!

The purpose of the law (let's not forget that it was not even given to the gentiles) then, was to reveal man's inability to reach God's perfection with his self-effort. Not one action qualifies us to be in right-standing with Him. Not one action of ours qualifies us to receive His blessings. The only route through which we can receive anything from Him is by grace through faith.

Law leaves us guilty and helpless, which in turn draws us to receive His grace and mercy. The heavy-lifting was already done by the rabbi from Nazareth. All we do is acknowledge and receive the free gift - the glorified Him. Law weighs us down while He frees us.

Qualifications for the ministry

2011-06-25T23:00:00.005-04:00

When we think of ministry and the requirements that one needs for it, we (those who have been raised in a churchy setting) automatically think that one has to be a theological giant, a prayer warrior, a devout giver and/or all things "spiritual".

However, check out this post and this post by Donald Miller to see who were amongst God choices to represent Him and to see if they met the qualifications required by churchianity.

Pagan Christianity

2011-06-20T23:44:00.008-04:00

The institutional mindset is the towering wall that stands between a person and Jesus Christ and the way He wants to connect with the church, His body. The book Pagan Christianity, authored by Frank Viola and George Barna addresses this life-sucking, yet seemingly pious mindset that is not rooted and grounded in the New Testament.

If you are a thinking Christian, I would urge you to read this book. This is not the typical Christian self-help book. Depending on how traditionally rooted you are, this book will challenge everything you thought about Christianity as it is generally perceived and promoted.

Before anyone jumps to the conclusion that the authors are pushing house churches, that is not at all the point of this book. I initially had the same feeling too, because the last thing I wanted was the old wine in a new bottle. The book cleared my doubt regarding that. By the way, I have nothing against home churches, as long as they are directed by the Holy Spirit. It's just that this book not is a debate on traditional church Vs house church. On that same note, I should also add that Pagan Christianity is not a stand-alone work. The other half is Reimagining Church.

May their warning from Chapter 1 inspire you to read the book:

"Warning: If you are unwilling to have your Christianity seriously examined, do not read beyond this page. Give this book to Goodwill immediately! Spare yourself the trouble of having your Christian life turned upside down."

Download* or order the print copy of this book from this link.

*You do not necessarily have to have a Kindle to read the electronic version. Click here for more info.

Related post by Frank Viola: 10 Myths About Pagan Christianity

Lessons from the Rapture

2011-05-25T14:37:00.010-04:00

Harold Camping’s followers were sincere, but misguided. Instead of being connected to The Shepherd (Jesus), they were blinded by Mr. Camping and his doctrine. While we take turns in poking fun at them, we tend to forget that there is a chance that we may not be that different from the Camping followers. Yes, we have our scripture guns ready with scriptures to disprove Camping’s prediction. But the fact of the matter is, all of us can be misguided, if our beliefs are based solely on what’s coming from the pulpit, television preachers, traditions or books that agree with our core head-knowledge that were formed (again) solely from the pulpit, television preachers or traditions.

Contrary to popular assumption, Christianity is not about ignorantly swallowing what’s coming from the pulpit. Unfortunately that has been happening throughout generations. And this is one reason why people hop from church to church, doctrine to doctrine or sadly in some cases, abandon the journey altogether. Christianity, to me, is about an intimate relationship with Christ Jesus and His expression through us. Genuine relationships happen only when we spend quality time with the person we want to connect with. Conferences, church, Sunday school, theological knowledge or meetings cannot replace that personal connection.

Institutions might detest questions, but God is not insecure as we assume He is. We can come boldly to His throne of grace with questions that we would not dare ask our churchy contacts for the fear of being ostracized. Although there is nothing wrong with an open discussion with friends, they cannot replace the insight from the Source Himself. The Bereans did not blindly swallow Paul’s words. They did not think it was rebellious to double check the Scriptures to see if Paul was not making things up. We now have access to the Scripture in a gazillion translations and formats, but the problem usually is, we read it through our own doctrinal spectacles. Truth will not be contained or limited by a doctrine that tickles us. This is why we need to move out of the way and actively depend on the Holy Spirit to enlighten the scriptures.

Ministers should encourage the listeners to connect with the Vine, for it is from Him, the life - His life - flows. Books should connect the readers to the person of Jesus. If not, we will continue to see blunders like the May 21 Rapture Prediction happen in various shapes or forms – no matter what camp we are in. I don’t care an iota if self-serving, mindless, man-made doctrines fail. There is no sweeter smelling aroma than that which comes from the slaughter of a sacred-cow doctrine. I am concerned about the hurt that a person goes through when he realizes that he was led by the blind all along. Churchianity is oblivious to this hurt and disillusionment. And we wonder why people are leaving organized Christianity in droves.

Unless the message connects the listeners to the Person of Jesus Christ and encourages them to depend on the Holy Spirit, they might rather be taught about cooking; for without His active presence, Christianity becomes nothing but a dead religion.

From Skepticism to Faith

2011-05-17T14:05:00.007-04:00

Filming God: A Journey from Skepticism to Faith, by Darren Wilson is one of the recent books that has impacted me.

The book is the story about a very traditional Christian professor who grew up in church knowing about God. He says that he was a devout skeptic regarding the things of the supernatural, but through a supernatural encounter he was led to making movies (Finger of God and Furious Love) documenting God's supernatural power in action today. The book narrates his thoughts throughout this journey. But this is not just a book about God's supernatural occurrences happening today.

I was not a skeptic in the first place, so it is not just the supernatural incidents that I liked about the book. Beyond the amazing testimonies and experiences listed, I really like the fact that the author trains the reader's attention to the Source of miracles, instead of idolizing the vessels that God flows through. In the entertainment centric modern Christianity, often times, it is not uncommon to get our attention lost in what's happening on the stage/screen and forget to connect with the Source. I also loved the fact that the author emphasizes that our motive in reaching out to other people should be love and nothing else. I agree; Jesus did not come to birth a bunch of churchians. God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. It was unfathomable love that motivated His actions.

Disclaimer: The book and the DVD's are linked to my Amazon affiliated store. 100% of my cut from Amazon from the sales of Christian materials are sowed to organizations that ministers the unconditional love and the grace of God in Christ Jesus.

Osama and Christians

2011-05-05T21:15:00.003-04:00

Christ Jesus loved Osama Bin Laden unconditionally and He demonstrated His love by dying for him. Many say that Osama's death was justice in action. Well, from the point of view of the Scripture, (apart from His grace) how are we different from Osama? Sure, we may not have rammed a jet into a building, but unlike we do, the Scripture does not differentiate between BIG sin and small sin. All of us have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God. Simply by breaking just one law, we break all of God's laws. In other words, a "small" lie puts us company with Osama. If that's the truth, who's going to throw the first stone at whom? None of us can play the holier-than-thou game. But when we trust in Christ Jesus by faith, we come in right standing with God. In fact, we are made righteous. It is His grace that makes us righteous; not our good works. That means, the believer's only qualification is His grace. Therefore, we cannot assume a morally superior position over Bin Laden.

That being said, the fact that Jesus loves and died for everyone does not give a person the freedom to go on a murderous rampage for whatever cause. In order to protect the its citizens from such acts, governments have established laws in place. But the law of the land does not operate by His grace; it operates by the law of sowing and reaping. Killing thousands of people gets either a lifetime in jail or death, which is what Osama just reaped. So from the point of view of the lawmakers, justice was served. However, from God's view, the price for Osama's atrocities was paid in full by the precious blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus received the punishment that Osama deserved.

Jesus said, "Love your enemies". And yet, most of us find ourselves either celebrating Osama's death or simply relieved of the fact that he is no longer in the picture. Personally, while I am not rejoicing in his death, I am not saddened by it either. And this attitude exhibited by many offends some Christians. They think we are supposed to drip with love and compassion. While I do not disagree with it at all, the issue is not simplistic as it seems. First of all, it is super easy to talk about love and compassion in a nonchalant tone when none of our loved ones were harmed by Osama's actions. If we take a moment to look at this issue through the eyes of a family member of a 9/11 victim, we would hesitate to wag that religious finger to those who do not conform to what we think is right.

Secondly, being "Christ-like" is not a show that we put on. It is impossible to live the Christian life with one's will power. We cannot, by our own strength, love our enemies. As He is, so are we (in our spirit) in this world. It is our spirits that becomes one with Him, it is in our spirits that we become new creations in Christ Jesus. Our souls - which is the mind, will and emotions - unless renewed to the knowledge of who we are in Christ Jesus, thinks and acts like the old self. This is precisely why I am not sad about Osama's death. Mind renewal does not happen overnight. But the more I renew my mind and the more I abide in the Vine, more of His abundant life will saturate and flow through me, bearing His fruit of love and compassion. We cannot create the fruit that comes from His very life. Without Him, we can do nothing. What we do without Him is religion; which talks grand on the outside, but empty within. The perfect role model is Jesus. The rest of us are justified by His grace and His grace alone.

Be inspired...

2011-05-05T14:41:00.001-04:00

I just wanted to share three soul-stirring videos that I stumbled upon the other day.

Intercession

The Spirit is Willing

Depraved Indifference

by Eric Ludy, Ellerslie.com

David Wilkerson

2011-04-28T00:14:00.012-04:00

I just learned that David Wilkerson, the founding pastor of Times Square Church in New York City, the founder of World Challenge and the author of The Cross and The Switchblade, was killed in a car accident in Texas.

While many talks about their faith, Wilkerson walked the walk. Even though I have visited the Times Square church, I first knew more about him through Nicky Cruz's book Run Baby Run. David Wilkerson was instrumental in leading Nicky Cruz to Christ.

David Wilkerson did not hide himself in an ivory tower, playing the holier/better/anointed than thou game; he risked his life to reach the gang members, the drug addicts and whoever that needed help, with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. May his family and friends be comforted with His peace.

Here is an excerpt from his last blog post, "Beloved, God has never failed to act but in goodness and love. When all means fail—his love prevails. Hold fast to your faith. Stand fast in his Word. There is no other hope in this world.”. Read the complete post here.

Disclaimer: The books are linked to my Amazon affiliated store. 100% of my cut from Amazon from the sales of Christian materials are sowed to organizations that ministers the unconditional love and the grace of God in Christ Jesus.

Resurrection Sunday

2011-04-24T17:30:00.002-04:00

"For God so loved the world (not just the Christians), that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

Charity Print Auction for Japan

2011-03-31T15:17:00.002-04:00

I am auctioning this print to help the people of Japan following the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.

Print Details: 8 x 10 inch print, Kodak Endura Metallic (Pearlescent Finish) mounted on a Single Weight Matboard. Please note that frame will not be included, but it is recommended that the print be framed.

The winner of the auction donates directly to a legitimate charitable organization. Upon seeing the proof of donation, I send the winner the print. I pay for printing and shipping.

More details here - http://tumblr.com/xvm1x3w6pi

Thank you for your interest. If inclined, please do forward the link to your friends and family.

- Daniel Alexander

Father's Love Letter

2011-03-31T14:58:00.001-04:00

Love, Father's Love, Father's Love Letter, Agape,

FathersLoveLetter.com

Japan

2011-03-11T23:30:00.004-05:00

Here are some channels through which you can help Japan.

For Japan With Love

Duh, Loving!

2011-03-10T09:29:00.003-05:00

I've never seen an entertaining train wreck. Obviously actor Charlie Sheen is going through a rough patch, but what do most of us do other than either mock him or pretend that he does not exist in our world?

Picture him as your loved one; now would you scoff at him or be indifferent?

"Prayer Warriors", pray for him. Intercessors, intercede for him. Reach out to him, if you have access to him. Let Christ Jesus in us touch and set him free. Jesus did not come so that we can play church or engage in endless and pointless theological debates. He came to set us free. Absolute freedom in one's spirit, soul and body is not an option, but a birthright.

Now I am not suggesting that we should shove religion down his throat. If religion does not make us happy, why would we assume that it will help him? Love him. That's the best religion, for God is Love.

Clean Water for Africa

2011-02-24T13:11:00.000-05:00

Clean Water for Africa

Kindle vs Nook Color vs iPad vs Galaxy Tab

2011-02-06T16:09:00.020-05:00

I had been in the market for a dedicated e-reader and I had four options to choose from - Kindle, Nook Color, iPad and Galaxy Tab. Sure, there are more options out there, but I decided to filter it down to these four.

Here are the reasons why I got the Kindle:

1. I regularly buy books from Amazon.com.

2. High Contrast with the latest E Ink Pearl Technology. Go to this page and scroll down to compare Kindle's screen with the traditional LCDs.

3. No glare while reading in bright sunlight. This ad illustrates my point.

4. US$ 139.00

Out of the reasons listed above, my prime motivator in getting Kindle over the Nook Color is that I'm a regular at the Amazon.com bookstore. I always enjoy the buying experience at Amazon.com.

The iPad and the Galaxy Tab are, without a doubt, superb multi-purpose tools; but they do not serve my need for a dedicated e-reading experience.

If you are not an avid reader, you won't have much of a use for the Kindle or Nook Color. You can easily download the free Kindle or the Nook apps for your device.

From a user-interface standpoint, the Kindle design looks dated. If your reading material has lots of color illustrations, photos or graphs; at this point, the Kindle experience is like watching a black and white TV. It also feels ancient to push buttons! But since regular reading is the primary activity that I'll be doing on this tool, I am not missing the haptic feedback, for now.

Purchase a Kindle (Amazon Affiliate* link).

*You will be purchasing directly from Amazon. Amazon is responsible for the shipping and handling.

Clarity

2011-02-05T23:49:00.007-05:00

I like clarity. Instead of blindly accepting the commonly accepted interpretations, it is nice to see what the written texts actually mean. I have several versions of the Bible, and each I time I purchased a version, it was to get a better clarity on the written text. But unless I am well versed in Hebrew and Greek (which I am not), my understanding would be limited. The other day, I "stumbled upon" the Strong's Concordance. There was a time when I used to think Strong's Concordance was for the "theologian" types. But a quick thumb through showed me that it is an invaluable tool. I repeat, a tool. The revelation comes from the Holy Spirit; not from a book, a particular version or a language.

Here is the link to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance online. I have also added the link under 'Scripture Resources' on the right column of this blog.

The New Strong's Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Red-Letter Edition) [Hardcover] can be purchased from this link (Amazon Affiliate*).

* When you use the link above, you will be purchasing the book directly from Amazon and I get a small % of the sale. Amazon is responsible for the shipping and handling of the book. 100% of the cut that I receive from Amazon from the sale of Christian materials are sowed to the organizations that ministers the unconditional Love and the Grace of God in and through Christ Jesus.

Jesus and Santa

2010-12-24T15:15:00.000-05:00

Jesus did not come for the "Christians". He came for the whole world. So, I wish everyone a very blessed and a joyful Christmas!

A Tale of Two White Shirts

2010-10-09T11:57:00.009-04:00

Imagine you were given two white shirts as gifts. Shirt 1 was soiled due to poor packaging. Shirt 2 is dazzling white. Now imagine you need a cloth to wipe the dust off of your desk. Which shirt out of the above two would you pick for the task? Obviously, you would pick the soiled shirt. Why? It’s already dirty, so you wouldn’t mind some more dirt on it. The clean shirt, which is safely kept in the closet, would not even come to your mind for the task at hand.

Acquaint with religion and pretty soon you will hear a phrase, “we’re just sinners saved by grace”. Although the phrase sounds very pious and humble, it is absolutely un-scriptural to the core.

To understand this, we need to see how a person becomes a sinner. How or when did a person become a sinner? Paul said, “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, …” (Rom 5:19). It was through Adam’s disobedience that we became sinners. We did not have to move one finger to inherit sin. In other words, it is not the sin action that makes a person a sinner, but the old self, the sin nature, which drives the person to sin.

But what happens when a person receives Jesus Christ to his or her heart by faith? Let Paul continue: “so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.” The same person who was a sinner by Adam’s disobedience, when He receives Jesus Christ by faith, is now made righteous (made in right-standing with God) by the obedience of Jesus Christ, because the old self (also known as the sin nature) of the humanity was nailed to the cross (Rom 6:6). Therefore, a person is either sinner OR righteous (not self-righteous). It is the spiritual nature that makes a person either a sinner or righteous. The newly created person in Christ Jesus has a brand new nature in His spirit and is sealed by the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:17, Eph 1:13). So the newly created person in Christ Jesus is no longer a sinner saved by grace.

The question that is often followed is, if the old self has be crucified when Christ died, why then does a born again person sin? First of all, not every church goer has heard the unadulterated Gospel. What is often preached from the pulpits is a gospel that is mixed with works, meaning you must do this and that to become righteous - when in fact, the liberating Message of the cross is about an exchange of lives - ours for His (Gal 2:20).

Secondly, this new birth happens in one’s spirit. We are made up of three parts – spirit, soul (mind, will and emotions) and body. Since the new-creation happens in the spirit, one cannot “feel” the amazing changes that happens in the spirit. We move and act on our dominant thought or belief. “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he”. So when a person’s dominant belief is that he is “just a sinner”, that is exactly what he or she will be drawn to. Add law and self-effort to the mix, the same person is turbo-charged to fall, because the strength of the sin is law (1 Corinthians 15:56).

The law was given to reveal our inability to attain and keep the righteousness of God by our strength. If righteousness comes by our frail attempts at keeping the law, then Christ died in vain (Gal 2:21). I say ‘attempts’, because we are incapable to keep all the commandments in perfection, because when you break one you break ‘em all (James 2:10). All of us needs His grace through Jesus Christ, and praise God, it is freely available to everyone who comes to the end of themselves. All we do is move out of the way and receive Him; not a doctrine, not a teaching, not a theology, not an emotional high, but Him. Sin will no longer have dominion over a person if he or she is under grace and not under law (Rom 6:14). Grace is about trusting solely in the life of Jesus in and through us, for without Him we can do nothing (John 15:5). It is His life that helps us bear fruit.

Look at it this way: prior to being saved, could any of our good works qualify us to be in right standing with God? No, because we cannot earn His righteousness. We are saved purely by grace through faith (see Eph 2:8-9) in Jesus. Likewise, one’s action does not alter the new nature in Christ Jesus. Does this mean that the message of His grace and love will be used as a “license to sin” as assumed by some? Let me answer that with another question - would anyone choose that dazzling white shirt to clean the desk? It is knowing our new identity in Christ Jesus that sets us free.

Related posts:
Law or Grace?
Purpose of the Law

Self-righteousness or His righteousness

Poor Man's Revelation

2010-09-29T23:49:00.002-04:00

by Darin Hufford, Author of The Misunderstood God and the founder of The Free Believers Network

I think one of the biggest things I’ve found myself trying to strangle out of my spirit is that dreadful, us-verses-them mentality that seems to creep to the surface of my heart when I’m in the midst of another frustrating conversation with someone who clearly hasn’t begun the “grace walk.” I’ve got a lot of Christian friends who are still in bondage to religious thinking and they all think I’m off my rocker because of the things I write about. For the most part I try not to get into any meaningful “God conversations” with these people because it’s like banging my head against a brick wall. Every now and then I’ll think I saw a twinkle of something flickering in one of their eyes like they may be about to get this, and I’ll jump up on their lap and start explaining the grace message at a hundred miles an hour. Before long I realize that, that twinkle I thought I saw, wasn’t a twinkle at all. It was just the lighting in the room coupled with wishful thinking on my part. I usually end up walking away feeling embarrassed, frustrated, unheard, judged, hopeless, and misunderstood.

One of these people flat out told me he thought I was arrogant and that I acted like I had come to a “more significant revelation of God than he had.” He insinuated that I was boasting in what I had received from God and was patronizing him because he didn’t see the things I saw. He thought I was purposefully trying to point out his lack of revelation and compare it to my abundance. Truthfully, that was the furthest thing from my mind. I wanted this guy to get this and I did everything I could to help him understand it, but in the process of doing so, it became increasingly obvious that his eyes were not going to open to this and in that process he became understandably insecure.

I remember leaving that confrontation many years ago feeling like I shouldn’t be comparing my revelation to his in any way, and the very fact that I could see a difference at all was proof that I had crossed some invisible line of “spiritual correctness.” I remember trying to convince myself in some kind of politically correct sort of way that in the future I shouldn’t acknowledge anyone’s lack of revelation as a “lack of revelation.” If I were truly spiritual I would be as blind as a bat to things like that. It brought me back to the whole politically correct racism conversation where somehow we’re not supposed to notice that Asian people are smart or Irish people have red hair.

There is clearly a powerful move of God that is taking place across the world where our understanding of who He really is, is being expanded in ways we’ve only dreamed about. This current revelation of God so life-changing and significant that I can tell who “gets it” and who doesn’t from a helicopter hovering two miles above the earth. I’ve come to the conclusion that, like it or not, there is an obvious difference between people who have received this and people who are blind to it. I will no longer beat myself up for being able to detect this difference. This isn’t to say that I think I am more spiritual than people who don’t get this message, but I will say that I’m more free than I was before I opened my eyes to this.

Having said all of this, I think it raises a significant question that must be answered. Why do some people get this immediately and others can’t see it to save their lives?

What does it take to “get this” revelation?

Is this a matter of God giving it to each of us or did our eyes open because of something we did?

I understand that it’s become very popular for people to say things like, “God just hasn’t revealed this to them right now,” or “They just haven’t come to this in their journey yet.” I’m not dismissing the idea that there might be a timing issue connected to this, but I think my biggest question is whether or not the “timing” has to do with “God’s timing” or ours. Is this something that God opens our eyes to, or is it something that WE open our eyes to? THAT is precisely where I want to park for a moment.

I believe that most modern day Christians would say without hesitation that this understanding we possess concerning the heart of God is something that only God Himself can open people's eyes to. The problem with believing this way is that many people end up with that overly spiritual glassy-eyed look on their faces, bumping and tripping over things right in front of them because they’re trying to focus their eyes on the unseen realm. The “revelation from God” mentality sometimes causes people to start looking for signs on cereal boxes and produce stickers in a desperate attempt to hear from an inaudible God so they can get the divine password their friends have gotten, and be in the club. I’m not denying that God gives us revelation, but I think He does that in the course of life. When we set out to specifically GET revelation from God in the spiritual realm I think we often go spiritually overboard and do some pretty whacky stuff in the process.

Let’s face it; it’s hip to get something straight up from God Himself. When you actually get the thing that you claim you got from God, it feels TOTALLY cool because you’re the onewho got it. For one thing, it appears to everyone including yourself that He’s not mad at you. You feel good about yourself, confident and strong. Claiming divine revelation rocks the house when you’re the one who received it. When you’re not that person however, it sucks big time. You walk around feeling as insecure as you did in junior high, wondering if you said or did the right thing, worrying you might be in trouble with God, or if you just missed Him altogether.

It’s not surprising that when we start talking about a new revelation and understanding of God, some people get defensive and close down. I think the reason why most people who don’t “get this” are intimidated and insecure when it’s presented to them is because they don’t think they have what it takes to get to the “spiritual level” they think they need to get to in order to receive something like this from God. I think that this “get it from God” way of thinking is the primary problem.

Most people have tried to be that deep supernatural person they’ve dreamed about, but for some reason the heavens didn’t open up to them like they seemed to for the traveling evangelist or the famous author who gave them the “three steps to reaching God.” They can’t even imagine what kind of “pressing into God” it would take to get what we have, so they just give up. The climb is just too intimidating. The fact that they don’t understand it NOW is proof to them that God has rejected them and has hidden this away on the grounds of their own spiritual incompetence. When they see that someone clearly has something they don’t have, they automatically assume it’s because they didn’t jump through the same spiritual hoops as that person did.

I think the majority of Protestant Christians have been taught specific steps they must take in the spiritual realm in order to obtain revelation from God. They’ve been drilled with a lifetime of three-point sermons that outline step by step what supernatural calisthenics they must perform in order to hear and know His heart. In addition to this, they’ve also been given a lengthy list of things they must NEVER do, and another list of personal commitments they must make and master before God will open their eyes and ears to revelation of Him. Some have been taught that real revelation requires the pulling out of the supernatural “big dogs” like fasting, praying in tongues, a Greek and Hebrew dictionary and an olympic sized swimming pool of anointing oil. Amazingly, even after all that, I have found that people who diligently subscribe to all these religious practices are the least likely to get this message. Though these practices have their place in the Christian life, they are not the avenue through which this particular revelation comes.

So what does it take to get this message?

When a person isn’t getting this, it’s not because they haven’t spent enough time in the Bible. It’s not because they haven’t prayed or fasted enough, and it’s not because they harbor some secret unconfessed sin in their life. In fact, it has nothing to do with any of these things. The revelation of the grace and love of God is plain as day to some and yet completely confounding to others. God actually made it this way and He takes great pleasure in it being this way. The deciding factor which determines whose eyes pop open and whose eyes don’t is NOT based on spirituality; It’s based on HONESTY.

I learned almost ten years ago when I first started preaching this message that if I could get people to a point of absolute honesty with themselves, they’d get it. Almost every sermon I preached back in the beginning, started out with about twenty minutes of me trying everything in my power to prep the people so they would willingly put their guard down and JUST BE HONEST for once in their lives. I knew then, that if someone was willing to let go of all their religious obligations and be completely sincere with themselves about what was working and what wasn’t, they would receive this.

I call this revelation, “A Poor Man’s Revelation.” I love it. I love the fact that ANYONE can get this. The playing field has been leveled. You don’t have to be a Greek or Hebrew Scholar. You don’t have to be an eloquent “prayer warrior” or a super spiritual Guru. It doesn’t take any special gifting, commitments, or theological training. All it takes is good old-fashioned honesty with yourself. I believe that this fact is what separates the “getters” from the “non-getters.”

It absolutely rocks my world to see how rarely the “spiritually wise” people in the church get this. All their years of study and dedication to the system mean nothing because they refuse to tell the truth to their own heart. On the same note, it’s a total gas to see the number of folks who would be considered spiritual failures by today’s religious standards because of their fumbling prayers, their lack of bible knowledge and their shoddy attendance record, yet they get this message with almost no effort. It’s simple for them because they’ve got nothing to lose by being honest.

I believe that this is the primary difference and reason why those who are in positions of spiritual authority in the church are usually the least likely to get this revelation. They don’t because they won’t. They won’t because it’s offensively simple. Getting it would mean they’d have to admit that all their knowledge and accomplishments don’t mean jack. They’ve spent a lifetime climbing the religious-social ladder, memorizing, supporting and proclaiming church doctrines. They’ve put their belief in a system rather than in an actual person. Many times their entire identity is wrapped up in that system. It’s wrapped up in “being right.” I have found that most Christian leaders will stand there and lie till their dying day rather than come clean about what’s really in their heart. They’ve become so programmed to be dedicated and so dedicated to the program that being honest isn’t even an option anymore. When you spend a lifetime building a kingdom on the foundation of religion, the last thing you will ever do is be honest and risk losing everything in a moment.

I think that in many ways, the Christian “religion” has effectively disqualified thousands of people from simple sincerity. People have been trained to not trust themselves. Over the years I have found that a staggering number of people have been evicted from their own hearts. They’ve been taught to despise themselves so much that many are afraid to even take a peek into themselves to find out what they really think.

Modern day churches have basically evicted people from their own hearts and have taught them to follow a script instead. Surviving in Christianity today is about memorizing the answers and reading the lines. Very little is authentic anymore.

It always amazes me when I am confronted with the one or two people in the crowd who don’t get the message when I preach somewhere. Every one of their comebacks when they debate with me has a scripted sound to it. They literally sound like they’re reading a screenplay that was written by a pastor. I can’t get a personal opinion out of them to save their life. I think people have learned to trust the script over what’s actually on their heart. The religious script is a safety blanket for thousands of people today, and it’s astonishing to watch how quickly a person will go from speaking authentically from their heart to running back to the script the moment they feel intimidated or uncomfortable.

I no longer suggest to people that they should pray to God and ask Him to give this revelation to them. I simply tell people who can’t see this, that they’re not being honest with themselves. They’re believing in a script that they’ve read for years and they’ve never stopped to ask themselves whether it’s working or not. Even though they know damn well it’s NOT working, they will act as if it is, because their social standing and reputation is what really matters to them. I think for many people, getting this message is about coming to the end of their rope. It’s about finally getting to the point where they’ve got nothing more to lose by just flat out being honest. I’ve never believed that this revelation is a deep spiritual one. In fact, that’s what I love so much about it. It’s obvious to little children and impossible for the wise and learned.

The Sudafed Anointing

2010-09-28T10:26:00.000-04:00

by Curry Blake

Christians and Politics

2010-09-02T11:22:00.002-04:00

Two recent articles on Christianity and politics:

Should Glenn Beck speak for Christians? - by Dr. Russell D. Moore

Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" Rally and the Birth of a New National Religion - by Jonathan D. Fitzgerald

PS: I'm least concerned about Glenn Beck's Mormon background.

Spiritual Neurosurgery

2010-08-08T22:02:00.054-04:00

When we purchase a brand new car, we do not expect to drive out an incomplete vehicle from the showroom. We do not assume that the manufacturer will add the tires 6 months after the date of purchase, engine, after 12 months, the seats, after 17 months. Wherever the car is made from, it comes complete, along with the new car smell.

Our new-creation in Christ is no different. We are complete in Him. We are brand new creations and are made righteous when we receive Jesus Christ to our hearts. Our old identity is gone and Christ Jesus becomes our new identity. Since we could not manufacture righteousness, sanctification, redemption or wisdom with our effort, Jesus became all of that for us. We cannot create love, joy, peace and all the attributes of His nature with our self-effort either. It is His life in us that enables us to bear fruit.

This new creation happens in the spirit. This regenerated spirit of ours is fused with the Spirit of Jesus and is seated at the right hand of the Father in the heavenly places. What is implanted on the inside of the believer is the very Life of Christ Jesus. We have been redeemed from all the spiritual, physical and financial curses and do not have to be helpless victims of the negative circumstances surrounding us. As He is (present tense: the glorified Christ), so are we in this world. I'd direct you to the Apostle Paul's letters to know who we already are in Christ.

But since the un-renewed mind (which is often a slave to emotions and circumstances) fails to grasp these amazing truths, it dominates and sucks the life out of one’s life. So the hindering element in the picture is the un-renewed mindset, which is shaped by upbringing, personal experiences, media, movies, friends, religious doctrines, collectively accepted opinions, collectively accepted religious sounding views, books; or in other words, by what we have been exposed to over the years.

Thankfully, we do not need the services of a neurosurgeon to renew the mind. Thinking patterns or mindsets are formed simply by believing what we are consistently exposed to – whether it is true or not. We can alter the old mindset simply by re-aligning our focus. Unless the mind is focused on to the person of Jesus Christ, His finished work on the cross (I don't have to and even even if I wanted to, it is ignorance to assume that I can add to it by my works) and renewed to the knowledge of who we are already in Him - we will let the negative circumstances dominate us, try to put our trust in self-effort or hop from miracle to miracle.

I’m all for miracles, signs and wonders as they become a lifeline to us, when we exhaust our trust in our five senses. However, there is a difference between expecting miracles from without and allowing ourselves to be the living conduits of His abundant Zoe life, from within. The latter is more fun and comes as a result of the revelation of our new-creation reality in Christ.

One of my favorite scriptures in the Amplified Bible is the second portion of 1 Thess 2:13 – “… the Word of God, which is effectually at work in you who believe [exercising its superhuman power in those who adhere to and trust in and rely on it].” The Word of God exercises its superhuman power when we wholeheartedly depend on it. It is not just about quoting or memorizing scriptures, but internalizing or being one with it. 'It' becomes a 'He' when we realize that Christ Jesus Himself is the Word of God. The reality of our new creation has to move from one's spirit (where we are newly created) to the head.

Just because I have redeemed my credit card points for an Amazon or a Barnes & Noble Gift Card, does not mean I have the books from either stores with me. I need to exchange the gift card for the books in order to experience what has already been redeemed for. Likewise, since Christ Jesus redeemed us from all the curses, it does not mean we will automatically enjoy the freedom in all the areas of our life. We experience freedom to the proportion we renew our minds (believe with our heart) with Jesus’ finished work on the cross.

The exterior is merely the reflection of the what we deeply believe. The supernatural gift of salvation that we received by faith, is not just about a free ticket to heaven. Sozo (the greek term from which 'saved' comes from) is about full restoration; it has the potential to make a person whole. When Jesus taught the disciples to how to pray, He prayed, "Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven". I assume we know that there aren't any kinds of ailments or recessions in heaven. If that is the case, why do we love to theologize and let simple truths go over our heads? Instead of over-analyzing and over-spiritualizing, let's be like little children and receive what Abba has to freely offer. We can do nothing to earn the blessings. The child of God is already blessed, in Christ Jesus. The moment we try to earn our blessings, we sever ourselves from the help of Christ, who is the answer. Lasting and abundant freedom becomes a reality as we continue to behold, revel and abide in the unconditional Love, which was expressed in the person of Jesus Christ.

God is not a white Man

2010-07-21T10:52:00.003-04:00

by Gungor Music

It Is Time To Expose My Father Publicly...

2010-07-12T20:37:00.008-04:00

By Samuel Mathew, http://gracewalkgroupnj.blogspot.com/

It is time to expose my father publicly, for who he really is. This is my father, who gave life to me.

As far as my memory goes back, my father was always interested in changing my behavior. He would always nitpick on every little thing I would do. He would constantly ‘convict’ me of everything that I did wrong. He would always keep nagging at me to do the things that he thought I should be doing. He used to have a big rod, just itching to use it, every time I fell out of line. At other times, he would hang over my head, the fear of throwing me into the ‘fire’ in bonfire pit in our backyard. Thus he would scare me into obeying his rules and commands.

As the years went by, the constant threatening and terror of my father kept me in line. This had such an effect on me that before I did anything ‘fun’ in life, I would consider how far I could go without crossing the line drawn by my father. I would indulge in those things to the point that I would be very close to violating his rules, yet not violating them. Once in a while he used to remind me that it was all out of love for me. Fear and torment kept me obeying his rules.

After my father had given me his list of rules, he would often test me by orchestrating some circumstances or situations (he called them “trials”), to display my ‘true nature’ and to see ‘what was in my heart’. He said that these “trials” were to ‘humble’ me or in other words ‘humiliate’ me. At other times, when he saw that there were ‘unsanctified natures’ in me, and despite his repeated admonishments there was no change in me, he would go to the extreme of inflicting severe physical pain. Once he broke my bones by throwing me in front of a speeding car. At another time he brought an illness on me by poisoning my food. At other times he would break things that were dear to me like my bicycle. To make it worse, he often used my idol worshipper neighbor (agent of satan) as his accomplice or agent to bring these ‘trials’ and ‘temptations’ to prove me and build my character.

Talking about gifts, on the very rare occasions that I got something from him, they were not really gifts, because I had to ‘earn’ them. In the midst of my ‘wilderness’ like life, some of these so called ‘gifts’ were like ‘salvation’ for me. But such ‘salvation’ like gifts were given to me on the condition that I behave and keep his rules, if not, he would take these saving gifts from me. I would lose them for eternity. Vacations brought me rapturous joy and it was like heaven for me. But he also threatened me that if I did not live up to his rules and measured up to his standards, I would be ‘left behind’ home alone on our next vacation trip to suffer torture from our demon-possessed neighbor.

This was my greatest fear of all. I couldn’t even imagine being ‘left behind’ in a house haunted by my demonic neighbor. So I would try my best to keep all the “I’s” dotted and the “t’s” crossed. If I messed up, I had to keep an account of those things and at the end of the day with great guilt and shame I approached my father with the list. I had to beg, wail and plead with him to forgive all my misdeeds. Sometimes he would tell me that I had to forgo my meals, in other words ‘fast’, and do a thorough job of searching my life for every rotten thing I had done and every command that I had disobeyed. I had to make a commitment that I would turn from my ways or ‘repent’ and after much begging and pleading I was allowed to sup at the table.

This was the same modus operandi for even getting him to provide for me, protect me and getting my needs met. I used to wake up in the middle of the nights and cry out to him in my heart to grant my requests. I made sure that I had done everything I could have possibly done to obtain his favor. I used to have set appointed times in the day, usually once in the morning and once before going to bed, to make my requests known to him. I would butter him up by heaping praises on him. I would say such things to him that I thought would press his right buttons. Sometimes he would act deaf, so I had to raise my voice and cry out to him. I had to use the right salutations when I addressed him like, “loving, most adorable, precious, your majesty, and highly exalted father.” At other times, I had to get 50 other people to join me and convince him to grant my request.

Such was my relationship with my father, or lack of thereof. Can you imagine having such a life? Everything that I have described above is pure fiction. But yet, this is exactly how religion has portrayed and misrepresented our loving heavenly father to be. We attribute to Him, characteristics that match that of an evil, proud, impatient, angry, rude, narcissistic, masochistic person, which is nothing but the nature of the devil. Some people attribute a split personality or schizophrenia to Him. That is not how my heavenly papa is!

Our heavenly father is love. He is primarily interested in having a relationship with you, not how he can change you or not even in what you can do for Him. He is after your heart, not after your service. Once that connection happens between His heart and your heart, the Christian life will flow effortlessly. Everything you do will be the fruit of a loving relationship with him, not because of fear of going to hell or not making it in the rapture. It won’t be about mindless religious duties and following rules out of fear, but out of love for our daddy. Religion will use fear to control and manipulate you. I challenge you to meditate on these things and be honest with yourselves – is it a religion that you are following or is it a relationship based on love with our heavenly father?

Moving Forward

2010-06-28T11:50:00.004-04:00

Moving Forward, by Free Chapel

Moving Forward, by Israel Houghton

Think Different

2010-05-28T23:18:00.002-04:00

An ad by Apple Inc.

The Gift

2010-05-26T11:04:00.027-04:00

Jesus loves you so much that He decided to die for you so that you can be friends with Him.

He is the greatest force of Love on earth. In fact, He is Love. He loves you just the way you are. He longs to have a blast with you on earth, just as it is in Heaven. If you think there are sins obstructing you from meeting Jesus, know that the penalty for your sins have already been taken care of by Jesus through His crucifixion. Yes, He was brutally tortured and crucified. But because He was resurrected on the third day, you now have the privilege of receiving the Gift of eternal life in and with Him. There is nothing you can do to earn this gift. If you want to be connected to this Person throughout eternity, all you do is believe (put your trust in) in Jesus by inviting Him to your heart and make Him your Lord and Savior.

I'd encourage you to pray using your own words. If you do not know how to pray, please use this prayer as a model. This is nothing "magical" about this prayer. This is about what comes from your heart:

“Dear God, I come to you in the Name of Jesus. I realize that I am a sinner and no matter how hard I try, I cannot save myself. All my good deeds do not measure up in comparison with your holiness. So God, I come to you on the basis of what Jesus has done for me. Please forgive me of all my sins. I receive Your forgiveness for all of my sins and your gift of everlasting life. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that Jesus died for me and rose again. Lord Jesus, come into my life. Thank you for paying the price for my sins on the cross. I turn away from trusting in myself or my good works. I put my trust in Jesus Christ as my Lord (Master) and Savior. Thank you, for living inside of me and guiding me from this moment on. Jesus, I belong to You now. Thank you for the gift of salvation. In Jesus' Name, Amen.”

If you have put your trust in Jesus, the Bible says: You are now God's child! You are the temple of the Holy Spirit. You are the carrier of the Living God. You have been made righteous. In fact, Jesus became your righteousness, sanctification, wisdom and redemption. You are a brand new creation in Christ Jesus. The old you have been crucified with Christ Jesus and now it is Christ who lives in you. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. Your spirit has been fused with the Spirit of Jesus and is seated in the heavenly places in Him. Greater is He Who is in you than He that is in the world. The old self or the sin nature that drove you to sin is no longer part of you. Sin will not have dominion over you as long as you stay under grace (a wholehearted dependence on Jesus) and not under law (self-effort). You are the channel through which God can love, heal, deliver others. Sickness, poverty or emotional distress does not have dominion over you. Jesus' one sacrifice has put away your sin forever. Jesus' blood has provided forgiveness for your sins. His blood has cleansed your conscience. You have been sanctified, once for all. You have been perfected forever. God has removed your transgression as far as east is from the west. God does not remember your sins anymore.

You may not necessarily "feel" any of these great truths right now. For these to be manifested in your life, all you do is renew your mind, simply by believing them. It is your choice to believe. Know that God is for you and not against you and that there is absolutely no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.

If you have a Bible and have not read it yet, I'd suggest that you start reading with the Gospel written by John and proceed to start from the Gospel written by Matthew. The epistles (letters) written by Paul vividly shows what spiritually happened at the Jesus' death, burial, resurrection and how it affects you; it also shows who you are right now, in Christ Jesus. If you do not have a Bible, email me at danielalexanderny [at] gmail [dot] com to mail you a Bible at no cost to you. If you read the Bible to expand your head knowledge, you won't get much out of it. This is about knowing Jesus; not knowing about Him. Heart connection. Ask the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of your heart as you read the scriptures. It is the Holy Spirit, the great Teacher, Who brings the scriptures alive to you. It is the Holy Spirit who connects you to the Person of Jesus. A lot of what I wrote above may have not made any sense to you, but do not worry; the Holy Spirit in you will guide you into all the truth.

Jesus is not on a mountain top, in a cave or a church building. Jesus is in and with you 24/7. He promised to never leave you nor forsake you. Get to know Him. You will love Him, a lot. He's the best. He is the Gift!

Friendship with God

2010-05-10T23:15:00.001-04:00

by Bill Johnson

Jesus & The Kingdom

2010-05-08T13:28:00.002-04:00

Being aware of His Presence

2010-04-14T16:26:00.002-04:00

by Bill Johnson

'Faith Muscles'

2010-04-09T19:25:00.027-04:00

Note: This article will primarily speak to the believers who are familiar with the Word of Faith teachings.

Much is written and taught on the subject of faith to the point that faith is made into a nearly impossible goal to achieve. But is that the case? Is it really reserved only for the tenacious few?

'FAITH MUSCLES'
The Roman centurion had great faith for his servant's healing (Matt 8:5-13). The Syro-Phoenician woman was another person that Jesus referred to as having great faith (Matt 15:21-28).

Observing their great faith, we run around to build our 'faith muscles'. We learn about the 'authority' the centurion wielded. But we scratch our heads when we realize that the Syro-Phoenician woman was not part of an army. She did not possibly know about authority. Nevertheless, we move on to the next formula.

Quick question: What formula did we work to put our trust in Jesus? If salvation is an unearned gift, which it is (Ephe 2:8-9), why then would we assume that we have to earn the blessings that we already have in Christ Jesus (Ephe 1:3)? If one's 'tenacity' is the secret to deliverance, what is the answer to the person on the deathbed who cannot even think properly? How many scriptures should he confess to be healed? And no, I am not at all against confessing (agreeing with) the scriptures, which exercises its superhuman power when we believe. But I cringe when it is perceived as a technique to "move God".

ZERO FAITH
The epileptic boy, his father and Jesus' disciples whom Jesus gave the authority to heal, had no faith (Matt 17:14-18). And yet, Jesus cured the boy.

Peter walked on water effortlessly when His eyes were fastened on Jesus. But when he was distracted by the storm, he began to sink. But notice that Jesus did not let him drown because of his lack of faith. When Peter called upon the name of Jesus, he was instantly rescued by Jesus (Matt 14:25-31). Today's religion would have condemned him to death for his lack of faith!

Therefore, isn't it common sense to conclude that, our high and mighty faith level is not the answer? It does not matter if we have great faith, mid-level faith, low faith or no faith - Jesus is the answer; it has always been the case. All things are possible to him who believes. it is easy to quote, preach or write that scripture when we are comfortably dependent on our five senses. When the storm hits, it is not really easy to believe (I did not say pretend) for the impossible. Jesus is the only person who can believe in all things. He is not fazed by the storms. The elements are subject to Him. All negative circumstances have no other choice, but to bow at His Name - if we believe in Him. Right now, He is in us. So instead of looking at our faith level, let us look unto Jesus, who is the author and perfector of faith (Heb 12:2 NASB).

HIS FAITH
Faith is not a mysterious thing that is often made out to be. We do not need to be ultra "spiritual" to understand faith. We do not need to learn Greek and Hebrew to have great faith. The Roman centurion and the Syro-Phoenician woman did not know that they had 'great faith'. Notice both of them were gentiles. In other words, they did not have a list of do's and dont's. They did not come to Jesus based on what they did. What they knew for sure was that their answer was in the person of Jesus. That, is faith.

24/7 FAITH
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom 10:17). The 'word of God' is not merely a bunch of scriptures that we use to 'stand on'. Jesus is the Word of God (John 1:1, 14). So then, faith comes through Him. The lame man at the Temple Beautiful was healed by this faith. "And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all." (Acts 3:16, NKJV). The disciples did not run after faith-building techniques. Their secret was that they were with Jesus (Acts 4:13). Are we connected with Jesus who is with us 24/7 (Matt 28:20) or are we practicing the latest faith principle?

ALL AUTHORITY
The believer's authority is the presence of Jesus and His authority in us. I did not say we are powerless and unworthy worms. Our authority and power is the person of Jesus and not something we muster up with our performance.

Jesus said: "...All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." (Matt 28:18, NKJV). "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mark 16:17-18, NKJV).

After His ascension, Jesus confirmed the word with accompanying signs - "And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen." (Mark 16:20, NKJV)

The disciples were aware that they were yielded conduits of the real person who did the miracles. Listen to their prayer in Acts 4, "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

CHILD-LIKE TRUST
The only thing that is required of us is a child-like trust. Jesus said, "...Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:3, NKJV). A baby is helpless to do anything on his own. He has to depend on his parents for every little thing. Jesus said, "...without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5, NKJV). There are great many things we can do apart from depending on the life of Jesus, but in order to manifest His life, His deliverance and His fruit, we have to move out of the way (Phil 2:13). When we cast our cares to the Lord (1 Pet 5:7), He does the work exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think according to His power that works in us (Ephe 3:20). And that is not a life of idleness. We will do all things through Christ who strengthens us (Phil 4:13).

It really is all about Jesus.

It's Not Over

2010-04-04T12:32:00.001-04:00

by IgniterMedia.com

It is Finished

2010-04-02T02:18:00.002-04:00

JesusPainter.com

Jesus Quotes (Paraphrased)

2010-03-15T23:17:00.005-04:00

"Follow me; not the theologies" - Jesus

"I died in vain if you think righteousness comes through your works" - Jesus (Gal 2:21, Ephe 2:8-9)

"My sacrifice was perfect. Be free from the religious mindset that tries to make you earn what you freely have, in me." - Jesus

"I died in vain when you trust in your prayer/fasting for your healing. You are already healed in me." - Jesus (1 Pet 2:24)

"Believe in me and love everyone. When you are grafted in me, my Life in you will enable you to love." - Jesus (1 John 3:23, John 15:5)

"It is easy to love your friend, but my Life in you will help you love your enemies." - Jesus (Matthew 5:43-44, John 15:5)

"Look unto me for answers; not the neo-legalistic principles." - Jesus

"I was not kidding when I said 'I am The Way, The Truth and The Life.'" - Jesus

"Bring me your so-called "impossibilities". I specialize in solving them. Your job is to trust me." - Jesus (Matt 19:26, Mark 9:23)

"The New Testament "works" is to believe in me." - Jesus (John 6:28-29)

"You do not need "more faith" than you already have. What you need is a revelation of my finished work on the cross." - Jesus

"It is not about what you "do", but what I DID on the cross. What you do is merely respond to what I did, by believing." - Jesus

"I do not need your rituals; I am after your heart." - Jesus

"If a message/writing makes you feel inadequate, then it is not my Gospel. You, my child, are complete in me." - Jesus

"I don't say 'Yes', 'No', 'Maybe'. All the promises in me are YES and Amen!" - Jesus (2 Cori 1:20)

"Eternal life starts right here, right now." - Jesus (John 17:3)

"If you are a "Word" preacher, you will preach me, for I am the Word." - Jesus (John 1:1, 14)

"I give you sickness to 'teach you a lesson'? What is it that you are smoking?" - Jesus (Acts 10:38)

"I did not place that brain in your head to fill the space. Think. Ask questions. Allow my Spirit to enlighten you." - Jesus

"'The Blessing' is me." - Jesus

"I AM the abundant Life." - Jesus

"Break that full length mirror that is attached to yourself and turn your attention to me." - Jesus

"The demented religion makes you jump hoops to reach me, but you, my precious, are in the palm of my hand. Know that." - Jesus

"I am just a thought or a breath away." - Jesus

"I am the treasure in you." - Jesus

"Please leave Elijah and Moses alone. Don't you remember what my Father said on the mount of transfiguration?" - Jesus

"Quit thinking that you do not have enough faith. I AM the author and finisher of your faith and I am in you." - Jesus (Heb 12:2)

"The centurion had "great faith", the epileptic boy's Dad and my disciples had no faith. Your faith level is not your answer; I AM." - Jesus

"I will build My church. Now if you could please move out of the way, that would be awesome!" - Jesus

A Jesus Manifesto

2010-03-07T12:35:00.005-05:00

If you could read only ONE post in this weblog, let it be this.
A Jesus Manifesto for the 21st Century Church

Dan Mohler - Power Evangelism

2010-03-01T11:34:00.006-05:00

Parts 1 to 9

http://www.NeckMinistries.com

Preach the Vine

2010-02-23T14:25:00.027-05:00

A Plea:

With all due respect, I am happy that you are a "grace" preacher, "faith" preacher, "feel-good" preacher, or that you can levitate while preaching. But unless and until the people are connected to the person of Jesus, what they hear are mere "doctrines" that will feed their head and not The Gospel, which will set them FREE - free from condemnation, free from the futile self-effort, free from every imaginable physical or emotional bondage, free to be themselves in Christ Jesus, free to fulfill their destinies in Christ.

The supernatural changes happen as we behold the Son, not the preacher or his/her "10 principles" or the labels. Gospel is a person and His name is Jesus. Eternal life begins right here, right now. Listen to Jesus' definition of eternal life - "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." (John 17:3 NKJV). It is about an intimate walk with God. It is about plugging into The Life, for we can do nothing apart from depending on Him (John 15:5). There is no life for the branch apart from the Vine. Preach the Vine and not how the branch can survive on its own. It can't. Self-effort may appease one's ego, but the branch will soon wither and die. We were created to live from the Tree of Life (Jesus) alone.

Please, bring the Son and His finished work back to the center, for He is the embodiment of grace, faith, love, joy, wisdom, righteousness, healing, prosperity, miracles, deliverance, sanctification, redemption, peace and whatever it is that we are looking for in Him.

One milli ounce of poison

2010-02-22T16:28:00.024-05:00

Religion stifles the very life within a person. Religion imposes what it think is right, when we are liberated, in Christ and we have the Spirit (The Teacher) to guide us. Imposition (no matter how subtle its nature is) and condemnation is never from God. It is the hallmark of a religion.

In Jeremiah 31:33-34, we see - "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

I just have this feeling that God is much smarter than all of us put together. He died for a person, He removed the old nature and chose to forget his iniquities. Now it is Him who draws the person to Him. His Spirit convicts him of the peril of not trusting in Him. When yielded, He changes the soul of the person. When the person is connected with the person of Jesus, new life flows from him. It is that intimate walk with Jesus that brings about changes on the outside, not the personalized doctrines.

Is it "rebellion" to speak against the message (not a person or an organization) when it tries to put me under the curse because of the mixture of law and grace (see Gal 3:10)? Look at it this way; if someone harms your family members, would you stand idle "in the name of love"? I would hope not. Yes, you love the invader with your whole heart because Jesus loves him unconditionally and His love is flowing through you, but you will not allow his negative actions to affect you or your loved ones.

Read it in context; legalism is the thief that comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) and I refuse to let that happen to me or my family anymore. All it takes is one milli ounce of poison to spoil a big container of soup. One milli ounce of legalism is more than sufficient to nullify the finished work on the Cross. Paul calls it foolishness when we try to mix God's gift with our weakly little efforts. I would urge you to please read the letter that Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians in five different versions, until the mighty truth sinks in. Ask the Holy Spirit to quicken you with the revelation of the finished work on the Cross.

The Church That Christ Built

2010-02-22T13:06:00.005-05:00

The Church That Christ Built
by Darin Hufford - The Free Believers Network

Related articles:
What I Think of Church
What I Think of Church - Part 2

My Papa

2010-02-21T01:04:00.015-05:00

When people get the realization that Christian life is about an intimate, playful and an informal relationship with the Papa all the doctrinal talk will vanish.

The phrase "child of God" is thrown around a lot without realizing the depth of it. If President Obama's children were to visit our home, imagine how respectful we will be, because they are the President's kids! My Papa, however, knows the exact number of cells on Obama's body. That's how powerful and big my Papa is. And He loved me before I received Him. He continues to love me in spite of me. Jesus went through all of that so that our Papa can hold us so tight in His arms. He is love.

I have not even scratched the surface of what my Papa has done for me. Most of the info I have is head knowledge. A real person died for me! The more we know that this is about sitting in Papa's lap and playing with Him and that He is not angry, the more we enjoy Him. When I play with my son, He enjoys each moment. There are times I become stern. But stern is not equal to terror. If a child is fearful in his heart, he will not go to Papa; never mind enjoying His presence. That is religion. Text based. Cold. It look at the Bible as a rulebook. Bible, actually is a love letter of our Papa, a story of what He did so that we could enjoy His company, not fear Him. There is no fear in perfect love and He is love. How much would it hurt Him, when His precious children, that He gave His life up for, are afraid of Him and do things as an obligation!

Golf Balls

2010-02-20T17:13:00.009-05:00

He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a golf ball at Tiger.

He that has been made righteous (not self-righteous), let him know that it is purely by grace (unmerited, unearned, undeserved Gift of God) that you have been saved and made righteous, before you decide to condemn the man.

Remove grace from the picture; all of us are in the same boat. I realize it is a tough pill to swallow, especially for the religious crowd, but if you doubt my statement, read James 2:10.

None of us can judge him (or anyone), because, often times people judge others based on the presumed notion that they are somehow "better" (self-righteous) than the other for whatever reasons. James 2:10 proves that one little lie keeps me in the company of the "worst" criminals without me lifting one finger. This is why there is none righteous by their own merits and all of us needs the gift of grace, which is freely available.

We Are the World 25 for Haiti

2010-02-13T13:06:00.007-05:00

Download the song from iTunes to Donate

You can also make additional donations at - http://WeAreTheWorldFoundation.org/

Mahima

2010-02-11T11:46:00.005-05:00

Mahima (Glory), by Kontagious

...
Mahimaa... Mahimaa....Mahimaa....Mahimaa.
Glory. x 4

Mahimaa....Mahimaa ho theri x 4
Glory.......May You be glorified x 4

Pavithra......Shakthimaan
Holy...........Powerful / Almighty

Ithna Mahaan......Theraa Pyaar
How Great is Your Love

Ishvar Puthr.....Theri Karuna apaar
Son of God...Great is your mercy

Pavithra...Thera Naam
Holy is your name

Utthar say Dakshin thak.....Purab say paschim thak
From the north to south .....East to West

Thera hee naam goonjay
Let your name alone resound

Aasmaan ki chaayi thak.....saagar ki dheh thak
To the heights of the heavens .....To the depths of the sea

Thera hee naam goonjay
Let your name alone resound

Mahimaa....Mahimaa ho theri x 4
Glory.......May You be glorified x 4

Saari srushti....karay theri.....stuthee x 2
Let all creation Praise you x 2

Mahimaa....Mahimaa ho theri x 4
Glory.......May You be glorified x 4

Thanks to Sam Mathew for the help with the translation.

Pro-Life and Pro-War?

2010-01-21T11:11:00.019-05:00

If I zealously scream pro-life, but do not blink at the word war (or even condone it), then I do not really believe in the word life. And we wonder why the organized Christianity in general is scoffed at by the whole world.

Many scriptures are quoted to protest the issue of murdering precious unborn babies, but when it comes to war, we turn a blind eye to life. We think that the "bad guys" deserve to die.

Bad guys?

The Bible says that, "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" (Rom 3:20). "There is none righteous, no, not one" (Rom 3:10). There goeth the self-righteousness out of the window.

The story does not stop there. Jesus paid the price for everyone's sins. He did not die for "Christians", but for the whole world. Jesus paid the price for Hitler's and Osama Bin Laden's atrocities on the cross. There is no "big" sin that can stop anyone from approaching God right this moment. The sin issue has been taken care of on the Cross, once and for all. The gate is wide open to everyone to receive the gift of eternal life. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." - Jesus (John 3:16 NKJV).

All of us are saved purely by grace. No one is born a Christian. And when we received the unimaginable gift by faith, we were made righteous; not self righteous. And when we learn about our origin, how can we not grant the same mercy and grace to everyone who disagree with us, no matter how "wrong" we think "they" are? Why are we known to be judgmental and hateful?

We have been crucified with Christ Jesus and now it is He who lives in us. Jesus in us is not a hater. When we read the Gospels, we find that the only group that he was upset with was the religious self-righteous crowd. Jesus is the personification of love, mercy and compassion. Let us be conduits of His love, the Love that demonstrated His depth by dying for us while we were sinners.

"Spirit-led"

2010-01-19T12:20:00.025-05:00

I had used the phrase 'Spirit-led' in my post titled 'Guilt Vs Love' and I feel I should clarify a point.

This phrase has become a cliché among some circles. People are waiting to be "led" always. We do not have to wait for the glory cloud to envelope us or for a booming voice from the Heaven, when a situation that needs Jesus' touch presents itself. Jesus said, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." (Matt 10:8 NKJV). "Go into all the world and preach the gospel...And these signs will follow those who believe..." (see Mark 16:15-20 NKJV). The directives are straightforward and it is for the believer, not just a select few.

The person who has His power, which He freely gives, is equipped for the task. The authority is His; we are merely yielding ourselves so that He can flow through us. This does not necessarily have anything to do with our senses. Sometimes we may have to step out in faith and when we do that, the Holy Spirit will give us specific words of knowledge or a vision regarding the situation at hand. This is what I meant by 'Spirit-led' in this context. But often times, we like to wait for that 'great anointed minister' to pass through our city, while forgetting that the believer has The Anointing (Jesus) in him. 'Heal the sick' does not have a different or a deeper meaning in Greek. Gospel is powerful. But I can sound "spiritual" and mask the timidity that I have (which is simply a product of unbelief/unrenewed mind) with a statement like, "I do not feel led to go and empty a hospital".

Suppose a person who is gifted with the spiritual gift of prophesy stumbles upon a sick person. Should he say, "well, I'm a prophet and therefore I do not heal the sick"? No, Jesus wants to see the manifestation of the stripes that He bore for everyone. "Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven". Jesus healed and delivered those who were oppressed by the devil. Now that He is Spirit, He flows through us to touch others. Although we would have the urge to call it "our ministry", the ministry is really His.

However, each one of us have distinct* assignments (Eph 2:10) in Him. Not everyone is called to occupy the office of a pastor, evangelist, teacher etc. If my calling is to clean the bathroom at church (if you think that it does not need a calling, volunteer to clean your church bathroom for 8 weeks, and see if you can do that cheerfully), I should not try to become a teacher. This "trying" only leads to a flesh-driven activity, which will bear no fruit from Him. But when we are connected with and gently guided by the Holy Spirit, we will have great joy in whatever task that we are involved with and above all, He can do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think.

*Lest it be misread, distinct does not mean that one person is "better" because he or she has a "flashy" assignment than the other. They are not. They are not lesser either. As a matter of fact, 'I' or 'They' no longer exists. "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Gal 2:20 NKJV).

I could be 5 seconds or 50 years in Christ Jesus - the resurrection power (Rom 8:11) that houses me is the same in either cases. Jesus Christ or His Power is not the variable here. What changes is my understanding of Who I am carrying, as I renew my mind to the knowledge of my new-creation reality.

Guilt vs Love

2010-01-18T10:07:00.027-05:00

Fear/condemnation/guilt-driven preaching begets converts or the churchians, who subscribes to a religious doctrine.

Love (God Himself) begets children.

Little children do not strive to please their parents. They are intuitively aware of their parents' love towards them. They take their parents for granted, not in a negative way, but because they know that their parents are for them and not against them. They cannot comprehend the thought that their parents would desire to give them a cancer so that they would be bright kids in school; the very thought is ludicrous! They are secure in who they are. They are content with what they currently have. If given a gift, of course they would gladly grab it, instead of acting "spiritual" and pretending that they do not need more toys. They neither worry about the future nor do they give thought to past hurts. They live in the present moment and give their full attention to the task at hand. They don't know how to define love or grace, but they are in love and it is the dominant force that automatically emanates from them.

The fear-filled convert on the other hand, is driven by the a deep sense of insecurity. It is this insecurity that leads him to the treadmill of trying to pleasing God. What if He gets mad? Did I pray, fast, give, evangelize, stand in the gap, volunteer enough? The churchian has a full length mirror affixed to his whole body, at all times. His outer part, his performance is what he sees daily and for sure, he sees nothing, but flaws. He can't be blamed for jumping on the treadmill. Little does he realize that, change is something that happens within and not the behavior modification that he is so sincerely trying to accomplish, with zero success. This change within has a name - Jesus. He became wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption for us. He is love. This change is not dependent on one's works. The change is instantaneous when one says Yes to Jesus. We are made righteous. This is why grace is known as nearly too good to be true news. Grace is not a doctrine to debate with the non-conformists. Grace is love. Love is what Jesus did for us. Love is Jesus.

Evangelism is not something we do. It was God who went through the torture and died for all of us and it is God who does not want any one person to perish and therefore evangelism should be a Spirit-led activity and not a formula based one. Only the Holy Spirit knows why a particular person is hardened. Only the Holy Spirit can reach the root of the problem. The Holy Spirit does that through the gifts of the Spirit, through the yielded vessel. Only the Holy Spirit can give us the divine guidance. God just needs our body and mind. Even though on the outside it might seem like 'we' are doing it, it is His life in and through us that does His fruit-bearing (for sure, one can do a lot of things from his or her flesh, but that only glorifies the self) work - whether it is reaching 1 million or just 1 person.

Some people know that they need a Savior. To them, a condemning message would only hurt them deeply and scare them away. They might already be living a living hell; and the last thing they need is the "good news" of hell. They'll flee like Lot did, without turning back. However, this crowd will be thrilled at the invitation of Jesus, just like Zacchaeus, the tax collector was. He was ostracized by his own community, because he worked for the Romans. But when the Gospel invited Himself to Zacchaeus' home, he could hardly believe his ears (which is exactly what grace does, because it is an unmerited, unearned, undeserved gift of God). And change happened in an instant.

Contrast that with the self-righteous rich young ruler who thought he could earn eternal life with his effort. "What shall I do" was his query. To this dude, Jesus (lovingly) gave the righteous standard - the law. When he boasted that he has kept all the commandments, Jesus said (paraphrased), "Bravo, that's cute! Now go sell and distribute your wealth amongst the poor". As a side note, I should add that, this was not a lesson on charitable giving (Zacchaeus was very wealthy too, but Jesus did not ask him to go distribute his wealth or even to follow Him), but to prove that the rich young ruler broke the very first commandment by putting his trust in his wealth than God who gave it to him. As we know, he went away dejected. There are many who thinks they are perfect because they put their trust in their good works, instead of Jesus Christ. Only the Law can show them that their so called good works cannot match the perfection that God requires (because you have to keep 'em all or you break 'em all) and lead them to put their trust in the Savior, who fulfilled the law and paid the price for their sins.

Jesus gives mercy to the 'sinner' and His righteous standard to the wannabe perfectionist. He spoke regarding hellfire to the religionists, who trusted in their law-keeping, but dined with the 'sinners' that the religionists looked down on.

Lord I Lift Your Name on High

2010-01-12T15:14:00.004-05:00

http://www.iCoffey.com/

The Do-Do Christianity - Part III

2010-01-12T11:40:00.026-05:00

Read Part I and Part II of this series.

In The Beginning
Now, where did this mindset of self-effort come from? Meet Lucifer, the architect behind this. Before becoming the bad guy (Satan), Lucifer held a top position in Heaven. Here is a description of who he was before his fall:

“You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes Was prepared for you on the day you were created. – (Eze 28:12-13 NKJV)

He was the granddaddy of bling!

Now look at his position:
“ You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you. – (Eze 28:14-16 NKJV)

But look at what led to his lightning fast exit (Luke 10:18) from Heaven:
For you have said in your heart: ‘ I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ – (Is 14:13-14 NKJV)

He was the anointed cherub who guarded the glory throne. It was God who placed him (Eze 28:14) there. Yet, he had the nerve to say in his heart, that he “will be”, when he “already was”. This is the root of the “I don’t have it or regardless of what I have in Jesus, I am going to earn it with my effort” mindset.

Garden Of Eden
Fast forward to the temptation at the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were already made in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26-27) and God gave them dominion power over all the His creation (Gen 1:28). Satan played his ‘independence from God’ card with Eve. ‘Eat this and you shall be like gods’. It never was God’s desire for the man to live by knowing good and evil or right and wrong (in other words, law) - which is why He gave the only command to not eat from the tree of good and evil. But man’s free will overrode God’s command.

Jesus Tempted
Jump over to the where he tempted Jesus (see Luke 4:1-13). “If You are the Son of God…” (Luke 4:3). The very thing that Jesus knew while growing up (Luke 2:49) and heard crystal clear during His baptism (Luke 3:21-22). But no, the devil wanted Jesus to prove what He already was by doing something. The Creator of the universe (Col 1:16-17) could turn those stones into a ten-course meal in a nanosecond, but that was not the point. He knew who He was, even though He was in the wilderness and was hungry. Note that the Satan used the scriptures to tempt him.

Today
Those who put their sole trust in Jesus is saved, healed, prosperous and holy, in Jesus. He cannot add an iota to Jesus’ perfection. But what is the typical believer bombarded with? - “If you want to be healed, fast for 21 days!”, “If you want to be financially prosperous, sow a seed”, “If you want to be holy, fast for 40 days”; and/or variations of this. And thus begins the never-ending journey of self-effort. Always active like the Energizer bunny, but the engine that drives these actions is insecurity, which is birthed from the ignorance of what happened to them (2 Cori 5:17, Gal 2:20, Rom 5:19), when they put their trust in Christ Jesus. I am not at all against activity, but the question is, what is the driving force? Is it God (Phil 2:13), or the insecurity birthed from the lack of knowledge of what has been freely (Rom 8:32) provided at the Cross? A person who puts his trust in Jesus Christ is righteous, saved, forgiven, sanctified, prospered and healed in Jesus; period! There is nothing he or she can do about it. The negative circumstances can neither dictate nor alter one's identity in Christ Jesus. The fact that Jesus was in the wilderness and that He hungered did not change His identity. He knew Who His Daddy was. Do we? If you have a hint of doubt, read John 1:12-13.

The defeated Satan has only one trick in his book. And it is very effective. Why must he improvise when the weapon is effective? His ploy is to get people from trusting God as a child would and trust in their effort of keeping the laws and high-sounding principles in order to be blessed when they already are blessed in Jesus. He uses the scriptures to lure people to adopt his mindset, just like he used scriptures to tempt Jesus. He does not have to invent new un-biblical doctrines for this purpose. If he did, then it would be easy to identify the deception. But a deception is called deception because we fail to see it’s true color and as a result, we unknowingly walk in to its trap.

No matter how hard a person tries, he falls short of the perfection that God requires. There isn’t a margin for error in God’s book. We either keep ‘em all or we break ‘em all (Jam 2:10). If we were bright enough to keep the commands, then there was not a need for Christ Jesus (Gal 2:21). The only person that fulfilled all the commandments is JESUS. I have to be foolish to not trust in that Savior, the only person who can save me from my predicament of never-ending treadmill of self-effort.

In Conclusion
“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 11:3

The Gospel is powerful beyond our wildest imaginations. It is simple. We could do nothing to earn our salvation or other blessings. The last Adam, Jesus came and did it for us. He did not stop there. He still does it through us (John 15:5). Therefore, let us get off of the futile Do-Do mindset and renew our minds with who we already are, in Christ Jesus. Trust in Him and guided by His Holy Spirit, we will do what He wants us to do according to His good pleasure (Phil 2:13).

Perfection

2009-12-24T11:34:00.056-05:00

A question that I received recently:

In the world as it is today, is it really possible to live that "perfect" life? For example... Matthew 5:39 - "But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." Is it possible to do this all the time? Should we feel guilty if we sometimes get back at others for personal reasons or for the benefit of others? How far are we allowed to transgress the word of the Lord?

Transgressing the law has nothing to do with the era we are living in. People have broken the commands, starting with Adam and Eve. How far are we allowed to transgress? Just one lie is more than enough to break all the commandments. One lie or a "harmless" gossip (which is often packaged in the form of a concern, or even spicier - a 'prayer request') will keep us in company with Osama Bin Laden (OBL). Religious people likes to think they are "better" than OBL because they have not murdered anyone. The Bible, however, equates hatred to murder. It is only the grace of God, which is simply received by faith, that separates a believer from OBL. And this gift of salvation is freely available to OBL; all he has to do is receive it. Are you listening, Osama?

It is impossible to live a perfect life with our high and mighty will power. Our quest or desire is not how well we can keep the law. We cannot. The law was not designed to make us righteous, but to make us guilty and to shut our proud mouths. Not one person will be justified by the deeds of the law. It was given to show our inability to trust in ourselves to reach the perfection that God requires. As I mentioned above, we broke all the laws when we said that first small lie. We sin when we pretend that we did not see that stranded person on the road. We sin when we worry, because whatsoever is not of faith is sin. Do you see how impossible it is to live a 'perfect' life with our own effort? All of us have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.

This is why we have to put our trust in a Savior - someone who can save us from this predicament. Law is the tutor that brings us to the foot of the cross so that we would be justified by faith. Jesus fulfilled all the laws on our behalf. He also redeemed us from the punishments (curse) of not keeping the laws. His perfect sacrifice took care of our sin problem, once and for all (see Hebrews 9 and 10). He made us righteous. The only thing we do is receive (put our trust in/believe) Jesus as our personal Savior to receive this free gift.

His grace and mercy does not stop there. Religion tells us that we are saved by grace and then from that point on, we are to live by works. We will do good works because we have a new nature, His nature in us; not to earn or maintain the gift of salvation. We can do nothing apart from proactively depending on Jesus. We bear fruit as a result of His life flowing in and through us.

So we not only receive Jesus Christ; we also anchor our lives in Him. Jesus is our perfection, even when we fall at times (note that I did not say if). There is absolutely no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. I am not saying this to imply that we are sinners saved by grace. No, we were sinners, but now saved by grace. Our old sin nature was crucified and sin will not have dominion over us, if we remain under grace and not under the Law. This is why we look at Him and not us; in other words, we have to be Son conscious and not sin/self conscious, for we have been crucified with Christ Jesus and it is no longer we who live.

Related posts:
Law or Grace
Purpose of the Law

The War is Over

2009-12-17T12:30:00.006-05:00

Article by Andrew Wommack
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The Will of God

2009-12-12T14:50:00.003-05:00

Bill Johnson
Bethel Church - Redding, California

Bringing Heaven to Earth

2009-12-12T11:26:00.017-05:00

Bill Johnson
Bethel Church - Redding, California

Featured Books:
When Heaven Invades Earth
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Maintain Your Confession: I Am the Righteousness of God in Christ

2009-12-12T10:32:00.006-05:00

by Paul White
More messeges on YouTube

Salvation - Maintenance and Security

2009-12-09T19:33:00.015-05:00

This is why we do not "maintain" our salvation:

Jesus' one sacrifice has put away sin forever (Hebrews 9:12,26; 10:12).
Jesus' blood has provided remission or forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22).
His blood has cleansed our conscience (Hebrews 9:14; 10:22).
We have been sanctified once for all (Hebrews 10:10).
We have been perfected forever (Hebrews 10:14; 12:23).
Since sins have been remitted, there is no need for another sacrifice (Hebrews 10:18).
He has obtained eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12).
We have been washed, sanctified and justified in the Name of Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:11)
Our old sin nature has been crucified with Jesus and since we are no longer under law but grace, we no longer are slaves to sin (Romans 6:6; 6:14).
God has removed our transgression as far as east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
He does not even remember our sins anymore (Hebrews 10:17).

As a result of Jesus' sacrifice, our past, present and future sins have been forgiven. For those of you who chocked on the previous statement, Jesus died for the sins of the whole world, only once (Hebrews 9:12, 26; 10:10-12,14). And we were in His future when it happened.

Does that mean we can go ahead and sin? Our sin nature that drove us to sin has been crucified and now that we are under grace and not under law, sin does not have dominion over us (Romans 6:6; 6:14). It is the knowing and renewing our mind (Romans 12:2) with this truth that sets us free (John 8:32).

This brings us to the next point - SECURITY. This is why our salvation is the most secure thing in the world:
"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” - Jesus (John 10:27-30)

Highlight/underline the "they follow Me (Jesus)" part in your Bible. Our security rests only in Jesus; not in a doctrine, principles, religion, tradition, good works, etc. People doubt the security of their salvation because they trust in their efforts to become righteous than in the finished work of Jesus. "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV

Gospel is really simple and liberating. It is the religion that makes it complicated and burdensome.

The Great Christian Cliché

2009-12-08T18:57:00.009-05:00

By Samuel Mathew

Luke 7:48 ……Your sins are forgiven

What is the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ? The good news is that “Your sins are forgiven!”

This statement has become a cliché in the church. To understand this statement, it is necessary to take a fresh look at the cross. What happened at the cross?

Sin separated man from God by the disobedience of one man, Adam. Hebrews 10:1-4, 11 says that the old covenant, which was a type and shadow of the real thing, had a sacrificial system for the atonement of sins. Since the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins, it could not make anyone perfect. If perfection could be achieved by that system, then there would be no need to offer the same sacrifice again and again. So the people were constantly conscious of their sins. They could never have a perfect or sinless conscience (Heb 9:9; 10:2). The priest had to offer sacrifices for himself and the congregation continually.

Now contrast that with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, which is the real thing. He was offered ONCE for the sins of many (Heb 9:28). He entered the most holy place with His own blood. How does the ONE sacrifice of Jesus and His blood compare with that of the sacrifices of the old covenant? (Please pause and think about each of the following points):

1. His ONE sacrifice has PUT AWAY SIN FOREVER (Heb 9:26; 10:12)
2. His blood has provided remission or forgiveness of sins (Heb 9:22)
3. His blood has cleansed our conscience (Heb 9:14; 10:22)
4. We HAVE BEEN sanctified ONCE FOR ALL (Heb 10:10)
5. We HAVE BEEN perfected FOREVER (Heb 10:14; 12:23)
6. Because sins have been remitted, there is no need for another sacrifice (Heb 10:18).
7. Because sins have been taken away by His one sacrifice, He is now SEATED and not standing anymore to offer more sacrifices (Heb 10:11-12).
8. He has obtained ETERNAL REDEMPTION (Heb 9:12)

We have received eternal, not momentary redemption (Heb. 9:12). One sacrifice was made for all sin forever, and we have been perfected forever. Isn’t that awesome news?

So does that mean Christ forgave all our sins (past, present, future sins)? You better believe that Christ has forgiven all your future sins too, because he died for our sins once; 2000 years ago, before we were born or committed any sin. All our sins were future sins when he died. God is not bound by time as we are. When we believe in Jesus and His finished work, we receive the forgiveness for all our sins that He has already provided 2000 years ago.

He did this purely by His grace, not because of any of our good deeds, confessions, sin consciousness or introspection. Rather, based on Heb 10:2, we should have no more sin consciousness, because of his perfect sacrifice, which has done a perfect work in the area of sin. We have eternal redemption, which is eternal forgiveness of our sins (Eph 1:7 and Col 1:14). 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that, He was made sin so that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Beloved, righteousness is a free gift that He has given us - not by our own works. Forgiveness of sins and the free gift of righteousness (apart from law/works) is the gospel that Paul preached, that was given to him by direct revelation by Jesus Himself (Acts 13:38; Gal 1:12).

Jesus has taken away not only our sins, but the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2; John 1:29). This is the good news that needs to be shouted from the roof tops. The sin barrier has been removed once for all. God has reconciled the whole world to himself through Christ and is not imputing anyone’s trespasses anymore (2 Cor 5:19). Christ took the punishment for the sins of the entire humanity.

Beloved, are you willing to see yourself as God sees you today - forgiven, holy, righteous, sanctified, and perfected because of the PERFECT sacrifice of Jesus? Quit trying to add anything more to his finished work by your religious works. It is an insult to His finished work. He doesn’t even remember your sins anymore (Heb 10:17; Ps 103:12). Jesus said, “It is FINISHED”. Do you believe?

Your sins are forgiven!

The Do-Do Christianity - Part II

2009-12-08T14:12:00.013-05:00

If you were born and raised in a legalistic church, the question that you might have after reading Part I of this series might be, “what about Eph 2:10; aren’t we created to do good works?”

Nowhere in this series am I suggesting a life of passivity. The crux of the matter is our motive behind our well-meant actions. Are we ‘working the principles’ or are we yielding ourselves so that He can work through us (Phil 2:13)?

Suppose Tim (a fictitious character) is suffering from a certain illness. If Tim is trusting in his prayer and fasting for the purpose of getting healed, then he is excusing him from depending on the healing provision that he already has in Christ Jesus (assuming he is a believer). Why? In his mind, Tim thinks he is not healed and therefore to be healed, he is sincerely following a bunch of godly sounding principles prescribed, probably by his church or a ‘Christian’ book. The truth is, Tim does not know that he is biblically already healed, in Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus bore Tim’s sickness two thousand years ago by His stripes (1 Pet 2:24) so that Tim, the child of God (John 1:12), can live in abundant health. But the manifestation of the healing comes only when - a) he knows the truth b) he receives that truth, by faith.

We can see plenty of Tims in the body of Christ - trying to be healed, trying to be prosperous, trying to be righteous, when they already are healed, prospered and righteous in Christ Jesus, regardless of the circumstances – by putting trust in their actions over resting in what Jesus did. The Bible calls it disobedience when we do not rest in His works (Heb 4:10-11).

There is no delicate way to put it but another word for this mindset of “I don’t have it OR regardless of what I have in Jesus, I am going to earn it with my effort”, is pride. [I am not sitting on a high throne and pointing my finger at you. I was in this very same trap of self-effort, which stems from the ignorance of knowing who I already am in Christ Jesus and I dearly paid for it.] The prominent voice here is the ‘self’. This is why the legalists were offended by the teachings of Jesus - ‘how dare he questions our traditional beliefs?’ Legalists today get offended when the message of 'grace through faith' is preached, for it is hard for the legalistic mind to acknowledge the truth that we cannot ‘move’ God with our actions. Jesus Christ, made us (who believe) righteous (Rom 5:19). We do not or cannot earn our righteousness. It would be called self-righteousness if righteousness came as a result of our effort. It is impossible to earn and maintain our right standing with God with our effort. This is why the Gospel is ‘Good News’.

We will look into the origin of the mindset of self-effort in Part III of this series.

'Illegal' products

2009-12-06T21:03:00.007-05:00

'Illegal' Bible Cover

'Illegal' T shirts

from VOMBooks.com, a division of The Voice of the Martyrs

The Good-O-Meter

2009-11-26T10:50:00.000-05:00

An Encounter with Jesus

2009-11-23T10:45:00.014-05:00

You might be a professing Christian with several years or decades of experience, a Pastor, a famous preacher, a church leader, a theologian, a theology student, a new believer or a skeptic - but are you sure that you have heard the pure Gospel (Good News) yet? Listen to these messages with an open heart and receive Jesus Christ (not your traditions/principles/works) as your only anchor, for only in the person Jesus (not in a religion that loves to put people in bondage and condemnation), in His perfectly completed works, will you find true literal liberty.

An Encounter with Jesus: Message by Bertie Brits. Translated to Malayalam by George Varghese.

Click here for more of Bertie Brits' messages, which can be downloaded free of charge.

The Do-Do Christianity - Part I

2009-11-16T19:32:00.020-05:00

Edited to add - Nov 18, 2009

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. – James 1:22

We have interpreted this scripture as “be ye doers of the law”. And in an effort to “please God” and/or be justified by God, we zealously jump on the treadmill of law keeping; either Mosaic, traditional or a mixture of both and hope that God would be pleased with our tenacity and sincerity. Just a minor problem – the Mosaic law is not a multiple-choice questionnaire. We have to keep it all or we break all the laws; there is no middle ground (James 2:10, Gal 3:10-11). And the laws formulated by the traditions vary from culture to culture. Which law must we adhere to?

The bigger question is, will we be justified by our attempts at keeping the law? The Holy Bible is crystal clear on this topic. We are not justified by the works of the law (Gal 3:11, 2:16). When people asked what they should “do” to do the works of God, Jesus answered, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him (Jesus) whom he hath sent.” (John 6:28-29). Jesus fulfilled the law on our behalf (Matt 5:17) and through the crucifixion, He redeemed us from the curses that stood against us, of not keeping the law (Gal 3:13). Therefore, to assume that we can be justified with our futile attempts (James 2:10, Gal 3:10-11) to keep the law, is foolishness. The Galatians thought they could mix the law with the grace of God. Listen to how Paul responded, “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you,… Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" (Gal 3:1-3). It is foolishness because we are voluntarily inviting curses (Gal 3:10) to our lives when we trust in the law, for it is impossible for us to keep all the laws. We fall from grace [the very gift that saved us from the curse of not keeping the law] when we have the audacity to think that we can be justified by our own works (Gal 5:4).

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to give the revelation knowledge of who we already are in Christ Jesus. Let us believe that we have been made righteous (right standing with God) apart from our works. Just like we were made sinners without our effort, we have been made righteous by Jesus, without our effort (Rom 5:19). Read the previous statement, again and again and allow the truth to sink in to your soul. Let us believe that we are financially prosperous, not because we sow or tithe, but because Jesus became poor for us (2 Cori 8:9). Let us believe that we are healthy, not because we pray, fast, work out and eat organic food, but by His stripes (1 Pet 2:24). Our new-creation reality (2 Cori 5:17) is based on what the Word of God says; not the current circumstances, which we perceive by carnal senses. We access this grace through faith. By faith we receive what is freely available to us through Christ Jesus. Faith is not something we manufacture. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Rom 10:17). Faith is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22 KJV). Let us rightly divide the scriptures and meditate on the scriptures which reveals what Jesus Christ has already done for us and who we already are in Him; and get ready to be exploded with the revelation that we do not have to earn our blessings. The Blessing (JESUS) in all His glory is in the believer and and the believer in Him, right now.

Does this mean we are to stay idle? Paul says he labored more abundantly than everyone else, but he did not give credit to his effort; the glory went to the grace of God (1 Cori 15:10). We can do nothing according to His perfect will, apart from His life flowing in and through us (John 15:5). God can do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think according to His power that is in us (Ephe 3:20) – if we let Him. All that we need to be is an yielded vessel who is sensitive to the promptings and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Let us be free from the Do-Do mindset and allow God to do His perfect will in and through us (Phil 2:13). It's all about Jesus.

Read Part II and Part III of this series.

That's My King!

2009-11-12T10:51:00.000-05:00

Let's not keep the common sense aside

2009-11-01T20:13:00.004-05:00

by Bino Manjasseril, Branch of Vine - A journey from religion to Christ...

I have been listening to the 'growing in grace' podcasts a lot lately. In more than one episodes, I heard Mike Kapler saying, "let's not keep the common sense aside". He says that especially when it comes to obedience and keeping the law.I think, being honest to ourselves is all it takes to come to the conclusion that religion doesn't work. It doesn't matter which religion it is. Each has its own 'ways' to please their god. For some, their god is pleased when they follow certain set of rules, laws, regulations or a list of do's and don'ts. Some gods are pleased when we gather at particular place at a particular time of a week. Some are pleased when we chant some prayers or starve through fasting. Some are pleased when we put some dollar bills into an offering plate. Some are pleased when we confess all our sins.

I am not excluding Christian religion from this. Christians says their god is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. He is a perfectly holy god. He is self-sufficient. That being the case, isn't it a futile act attempting to please that god through our puny works? Who in their right mind can logically come to a conclusion that they can somehow please god through all these? Not just that, some people think that they can make god angry! As though god has an emotional imbalance or something- easily angered, easily provoked but somehow hard to please.

I feel stupid for believing such a lie for a long time in my life. I thought my god would be pleased when I achieve sinless perfection. I thought I was pleasing him when I did the works of evangelism. I thought, the more I studied the Bible, he is more pleased. The more I set apart a 'quiet time', I thought I can somehow tap into his presence. I thought I could manipulate god through 'effective' prayer (by quoting scriptures, for example). I thought god was a genie who comes out and bless me when I give my money. I kept doing all these for years and years even though I never felt contented nor reached a satisfying point in my life to boldly say that I pleased him. I tried to do all the right things and tried not to do any wrong things to keep god from getting angry at me. But I always felt that I fall short. So, I successfully hid my burned out heart from others.

For a long time in my life, I lived an illogical spiritual life. I kept my common sense aside and listened and followed other illogical spiritual leaders out there. I wasn't even honest to myself. I pretended as if my spirituality was working.

Then there came a time in my life that I had to take a step back and look at the foolishness of my belief system. Trying to achieve sinless perfection? Trying to earn forgiveness through confessing all my sins on a daily basis? Trying to keep the law? Trying to love my neighbors as myself? Trying to love the enemies? Are you kidding?

I didn't know that James said, "whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it." Will I ever be accepted by this god? Will I ever be able to say that I confessed all my sins that I am now fully forgiven? Will I ever feel the security of god's love? Will I ever feel any kind of security, contentment or peace?

If you don't cheat in answering those questions, if you can be honest to yourself, the only thing you can do is - give up! That’s true - just give up!

That’s where my journey started. I first gave up, then God took over…

The Practice Of The Presence Of God

2009-10-30T14:27:00.005-04:00

Brother Lawrence, a monk, who was part of the Carmelite monastry, lived in the early 1600's. He was known to have a deep, personal and an intimate fellowship with God. He wasn't a "famous" minister. He wasn't the head priest. His assignment was in the monastery's kitchen, to wash the dishes. But in that kitchen, Br. Lawrence communed with the Father. Did he have knowledge (spiritual and/or intellectual) like we think we have today. No, but who cares? What can replace the personal connection with the GOD of the Universe, our Father?

His close relationship was recorded in this classic:
The Practice Of The Presence Of God - Brother Lawrence's Conversations and Letters