Stealing From the Storehouse

Does anyone remember what happened to the communalism that resulted right after the ascendance of Jesus into heaven?  Can anyone tell me what happened to their socialist ideals?  Does anyone have a clue why Paul had to reprimand the people for their laziness and unwillingness to work for their food?  There is a news story which is is highly reminiscent of the early lazy believers.  Paul had to tell those lazy, good for nothing moochers that if they do not work, then they do not eat.  This is in total contrast to what bleeding heart, liberal democrats believe. 

if people work hard to provide for themselves and something unforeseen happens so that they need help, then the Christian community is to gather around them and minister to their needs if they are working hard to provide for themselves.  No free lunches, just good hard work to provide for your own needs.  They are not to depend on the church or the government to meet their own personal needs.  If they are not working hard and they are willing to take from the government, then they are taking from the pockets of those who actually do work hard to support their own family and friends.  If they are not working hard and they are willing to take from the church, then they are taking from those the Bible says are actually supposed to be helped by the church.

When it comes down to it, those who do not work hard and pay income taxes do not deserve to take from the bounty that the government has set aside for those who are in need of true assistance.  If a person does not pay taxes, why should he receive from what he has not supplied?  Is that not stealing?  Is that not defrauding others who have worked hard and pay taxes?

When the Ignorant “Christian Left” Speaks

I find myself at a loss for words when “Christians” speak ignorantly.  I may have to type s-l-o-w so that many on the “Christian Left” can comprehend.

 

The Bible when it is used as a basis for determining public policy for a country must be understood for what it is.  The Old Testament as it is written is a history book, poetry and prophecy, as well as laws for governing a people.   Therefore, the Old Testament can be used as a guide for laws and governance of peoples or nations, but it is not written as such.

 

The New Testament is completely opposite of the Old Testament in its ability to be used for governance.  If you try to use it as a basis for governance then you have either accidentally or intentionally misread the document.  The New Testament is solely concerned with individuals being in a right relationship with their creator.  To draw anything else from the New Testament is vile at best and heretical at worst.

 

To demand that a government must comply with the teachings of Jesus is arrogant.  Jesus did not come to have governments built on His teachings, He came to find the lost and bring them into a right relationship with His Father.  To say that Jesus came for anything political is heresy.

 

Jesus did not teach us to care for the least of those as a country; He came to teach us to do that as individuals.  He did not come to teach us to provide health care as a country; He came to teach us to care for our fellow man as individuals.  If you want to find a Biblical document that deals directly with governing a country, then go to the Old Testament.  It is replete with rules, laws, and directions for governing people. 

 

So that many of my “Christian Left” friends can come to a better understanding of their heretical views concerning the use of the Bible to govern countries:  S-t-o-p  using it to govern this country with unless you want to follow the part that is truly written as a guide to rule countries.  You look f-o-o-l-i-s-h and not very well read when you continue to use the New Testament completely out of context in this way.

Wine Tours and Southern Baptists in Alabama

In dealing with Bible thumping oafs, buffoons and morons it is important to remember one thing, they are not tolerant. They are incapable of understanding any viewpoint other than their own. They are senseless and useless when it come to the use of the pea-sized brains.

Here is my example of the day: Alcohol sales and use.

What makes my heart hurt even more is that I too am a Southern Baptist and we are just plain ignorant when it comes to the Bible and alcohol.

Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People

Have you ever asked the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” I have been asked that questions hundreds of times. Until recently, I have always answered it gently and politely with little quips that are actually fallacies based on the Biblical text. You want to comfort people and present God and life in the best philosophical setting so that their times of trial are softened somewhat by your answer. Nevertheless, in reality the honest brutal truth is more devastating that we actually care to hear.

Biblically speaking, there are none that are good, not even one. In Psalm 51 we are given great insight into the reality of our beginnings of life and where our nature is rooted. In Isaiah 53 we are told none of us are right before a holy God. We are all infected with a sin nature that alienates us from God from before birth. When we are conceived, we are already missing the mark before we are even born. When we are conceived, we are conceived with rebellion against God already programmed into our DNA at conception. The very second the ovum is fertilized, we are programmed to rebel against an almighty God. There are none of us who fail to qualify for that category.

Now when I am asked the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” I simply respond, “They do not.” I intentionally leave it there. I do not go any further than that in my answer. But, always without fail, I get drug into a deep minded philosophical and theological conversation. Many want to debate the theological implications of my answer and almost everyone wants to argue that God cannot be that calloused to the plight of mankind.

That is where I have them. They have fallen for the trap, they jumped right up on the trap and took the cheese. The lever has been sprung and now the full weight of their sin is about to collapse around them. They do not know that they have been sent for an appointment with their maker, not me, I am just the messenger. They have fallen into a philosophical and theological trap out of which there is not escape, their sin in the hands of an angry God.

The answer they do not expect is this: Who is good in the sight of a holy God? Who deserves to go to heaven without their sins being forgiven? Who places themselves higher than the Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth? Either they are better than Jesus, and Jesus died in vain or there are none that are good?

Be prepared in season and out to share that our God is a holy and just God demanding perfection to stand in His presence. When you are asked the question, do not be afraid to let God be God, maybe He plans to use you as part of His plan to bring a friend or stranger into the kingdom.

My THoughts Filtered Through Tyler Durden

Concerning being Christlike. What is actually reality?

Isn’t angst and frustration valuable? Isn’t rage against the machine not without its merits (I like getting to use double negatives in such a positive way)? Isn’t physical training of the body worth but a little (coming from a fat man, I love the irony)?

Maybe we actually love our sin too much. Maybe we do not rage against it like a mortal enemy because it is our medicating fix for the day. “Do you know why they put oxygen masks on a plane?” Great question after you understand it. “Oxygen gets you high. In a catastrophic emergency, you’re taking giant panicked breaths. Suddenly you become euphoric, docile. You accept your fate. It’s all right here. Emergency water landing – 600 miles an hour. Blank faces, calm as Hindu cows.” The right reverend Tyler Durden understands. We have stopped fighting and have accepted the sucky perverse Christianity that the hucksters have shoveled for so long that it is nothing like the reality.

The theologian again speaks, “Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who’ve ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. G__ d___ it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy s___ we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War’s a spiritual war… our Great Depression is our lives. We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.” Maybe Tyler understood exactly what Paul was saying. Maybe we have accepted the pile of manure that has been shoveled in our direction so long that we have grown to love it instead of fruits and vegetables the manure is suppose to fertilize.

What if we have completely missed the mark of Christianity and actually love that which God hates? Have we so fallen in love with ourselves and our sins that we have forgotten that we are dead men walking? Have we completely lost touch with the reality of the Biblical text and find out that we are actually at war with ourselves? Maybe it is time to cast down our idolatrous selves into the sewer where we belong. Maybe it is time to go to the fight club and rip us out of our souls.

Again from the theologian Durden, “Listen to me! You have to consider the possibility that God does not like you. He never wanted you. In all probability, he hates you. This is not the worst thing that can happen.” We are not liked, we are not loved. We are still not our own because we are owned by our father the Devil. This is in actuality, an actuality until we are converted. We have so screwed up theology with love, joy and peace that we have abandoned holiness, justice and hell. Still we cling to our love of sin as if it were our god, gently tucked away in a book for Sunday medicating meetings. The opium is ready dear friends.

The Gift Is Not The Manger, It Is The Cross

Why do we celebrate the birth of the savior? His birth is not the gift to mankind, His death and resurrection are the actual gifts to mankind from the Father.

Though His coming in and of itself was miraculous, never forget the truest meaning of the gift. Man is sinful in his nature and has no way to be accepted by the Father except for the vicarious death of Jesus and His resurrection from the dead that gives us eternal life.

Isaiah 6 HOLY

Isaiah 6
My Favorite Chapter in the Bible

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple.

The history behind Uzziah has to be as important as the fact that this also dates the book. Do not let the fact that Uzziah was one of the good kings be forgotten. He fought to drive out the Philistines and to rid the land of their presence. He was a great warrior and a good king, but will be remembered for what he did wrong. He was a political/military king and he offered incense to God in the temple, which was forbidden for anyone to do except for a priest. Because of his sin, he was struck with leprosy, sent outside the city and died miserably and lonely.

Ultimately, Uzziah died because he either simply forgot the rules in his desire to praise God or intentionally disregarded the rules about soldiers and politicians coming into the inner part of the temple. He was not allowed to enter in, but he did and paid dearly for it because he never entered the temple again. What should we learn from this example of leprosy and death? Have we allowed the politicians and warriors to inter into the inner part of the sanctuary? Have we not forbid their entrance? Are we not guilty before God as they are?

Now, back to Isaiah. He was a prophet and priest and was allowed into the temple. After Uzziah died, Isaiah saw the Lord. In my imagination, I see him praying in the inner part of the temple and having this vision where he is called into the throne room of God, the Holy of Holies.

Isaiah saw God seated on His throne, high and lofty, high above all others in the throne room. And God’s robe filled up the entire temple. What a majestic scene we are allowed to have a glimpse of here as the prophet describes what he sees. This throne room temple, the very inner part of heaven revealed to us and God’s robe is as big as the entirety of the location. This is where we will be one day, this is where we will bow before the Father and give the crowns that we receive back to His son. This is the place of joy and worship and thanksgiving and praise.

2 Seraphim were standing above Him; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

The seraphim, the keepers of the temple, the angels of the throne room, were standing above God, in positions of respect and honor and protection. These angels are special and they are assigned to be around God. Their wings covered their faces, and feet and flew. Take the symbolism and run if you want, but the magnificence of the scene is enough to elicit worship and praise and glory and honor.

These angels hid their faces and feet from God. In honor, these angels hid their faces from God not in fear of looking at God, but out of total honor and respect. They were not worthy to look upon God and they knew their place in heaven. They were demonstrating worship by hiding their faces. They hid their feet because of their being in the presence of God. God confronted Moses for having shoes on his feet in God’s presence.

3 And one called to another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of • Hosts; His glory fills the whole earth.

The Hebrew way of accenting a word is to have it repeated. In English we use exclamation points and sometimes two of them for extra emphasis. In Hebrew, this was accomplished by repeating the word.

The scene is one angel calling to another, with a voice so loud that it is almost destructive. One angel calls “HOLY!! is the LORD of the Hosts of Heaven, His glory fills the whole earth.” Then another angel calls out, “HOLY!! is the LORD of the Hosts of Heaven, His glory fills the whole earth.” Then another calles out, “HOLY!! is the LORD of the Hosts of Heaven, His glory fills the whole earth.” And other calls out, “HOLY!! is the LORD of the Hosts of Heaven, His glory fills the whole earth.” They continue for there is nothing else to say about God.

Of all of attributes of God that these angels can proclaim, they proclaim the most important attribute. Holiness is the attribute of God out of which all other attributes flow. Where does God’s love come from? His holiness. Where does God’s mercy and justice come from? His holiness. There is nothing that anyone or anything can do in the presence of God but to proclaim His holiness.

4The foundations of the doorways shook at the sound of their voices, and the temple was filled with smoke.

The strongest and most sturdy place within a building is the doorway. The doorways of the throne room of God is shaken to its foundations by the power of the voices of the angels proclaiming the holiness of God. “HOLY!! is the LORD of the Hosts of Heaven, His glory fills the whole earth.” This throne room is The Throne Room, the great white throne room. This is the epicenter of heaven. This must be an amazingly large and spacious room. All of the peoples of all of the worlds history will be judged in this room. Even with its vastness, the foundations of the doorways in this room will be shaken.

When the angels make this proclaimation, smoke fills the throne room. The incense from the alter fills the room and the glory of God fills the room along with His holiness.

5 Then I said: Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, [and]* The bracketed text has been added for clarity. because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.

In Isaiah 5 Woe is used in verse 8, in verse 11, in verse 18 and in verse 22. The words in Hebrew are alas and touch, strike or to smitten.

Literally, we could read this as, “alas or then strike me or touch me or smite me for I have not spoken or remained silent, because I am a man of unclean speech and lips and I live in al land of people with unclean speech and lips, and because I have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.”

This can be viewed in two different ways. First, it can be interpreted as “strike me for I did not say Holy because I am a man of unclean lips and speech and I live in a land of people with unclean lips and speech. . .” The second interpretation can be, “strike me for I was silent among my people because I am a man of unclean lips and speech and live among a people of unclean lips and speech.”

I think it is appropriate to interpret it both ways at the same time. Both are sins in the presence of a holy God.

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken from the altar with tongs.

One of the angels charged with guarding the presence of God flew to Isaiah with a burning coal taken from the altar with tongs.

7He touched my mouth [with it]* The bracketed text has been added for clarity. and said: Now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, and your sin is atoned for.

The angel touched Isaiah’s mouth, his whole mouth which was unclean, with the burning coal. Now that the coal had touched Isaiah’s mouth and lips, his wickedness was removed and his sins atoned for.

There are two different things here which are vitally important. They are so easy to overlook and they are so vital to our understanding the role of Jesus’ death. First is having wickedness removed. This is where his guilt and punishment are being removed from his life. Isaiah has had the punishment removed from him by the cleansing. Second and possibly the most important is the propitiation of his sins through atonement.

Atonement or propitiation is a completely different aspect of the concept of forgiveness. Removal of punishment is good, but forgiveness which satisfies the holiness must be a blood sacrifice which not only puts aside punishment but makes righteous.

It is this dual concept which is vitally important to us as believers. Jesus not only puts aside punishment like the “scapegoat” of the Old Testament, but becomes the sacrificial blood offering only capable of being the propitiation or atonement of sin. The atonement or propitiation is the debt owed to make for a clean title for transaction to a new owner.

Those are shouting words. Isaiah could not do anything to have propitiation and neither can we, God brings about our propitiation through the atonement of the

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: Who should I send? Who will go for Us? I said: Here I am. Send me. And He replied: Go!

Isaiah finally hears the voice of the Lord, only after he has been forgiven. God would not speak to Isaiah or even acknowledge him until he was clean. He was a prophet and priest, but God would not speak to him. He was preaching for God in the previous chapters but God would not acknowledge him. We must be clean when we come into the holy presence of God. We need both forgivenesses happening in our lives at the same time for God to speak to us.

Then when God speaks, He wants us to go. Here I am, send me. No excuses, no questions. Here I am, send me.

He Is Risen! He Is Risen Indeed!

Amen and Amen!

I see Upon His Sacred Brow

I see upon His sacred brow
A crown of thorny danger
His blood fell in drops upon the ground
The baby in the manger

The Father Crushed His only Son
God’s wrath my sin did anger
His crimson blood pulsed to the last
I am no longer a stranger

His mother crying at his side
She laid Him in a tomb
His lifeless body in a cloth
His life ended too soon

Guards guarded Jesus grave all day
Until an angel descended
He rolled that lifeless stone away
The story had not ended

Halleluiah to the Lamb of God
He conquered death forever
Glory to the Prince of Peace
I’ll live with Him forever

First in a Series of 10 Sermons on the 10 Commandments

I am begining a series on the 10 Commandments and their current application. I am actually going to encourage participation from the congregation. My goal is to have them understand that the 10 Commandments are still applical in their daily lives. I want them to take away a better understanding of the Law. We will be going into Leviticus in the near future and studying more of the laws to better understand our freedom from the Law.

Exodus Chapter 20
The Ten Commandments

1 Then God spoke all these words:

2 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.[1] Dt 5:6–21

3 Do not have other gods besides Me.

God is Jealous
Exodus 20:5 You must not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the fathers’ sin, to the third and fourth [generations]* of those who hate Me,

Exodus 34:14 You are to never bow down to another god because the LORD, being jealous by nature, is a jealous God.

Deuteronomy 4:24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.[5] Ex 20:5; 34:14; Heb 12:29

Deuteronomy 5:9 You must not bow down to them or worship them, because I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the fathers’ sin to the third and fourth [generations]* of those who hate Me,

Deuteronomy 6:15 for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God.[10] Dt 5:9 Otherwise, the LORD your God will become angry with you and wipe you off the face of the earth.

Joshua 24:19 But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship the LORD, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins.

Nahum 1:2 The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is fierce in[2] Lit is a master of wrath. The LORD takes vengeance against His foes; He is furious with His enemies.[3] Dt 6:15; Jr 46:10; Zph 1:18

God is Holy
Leviticus 11:44 For I am the LORD your God, so you must consecrate yourselves and be holy because I am holy.[31] Lv 11:45; 19:2; 20:7,26; 1 Pt 1:16 You must not defile yourselves by any swarming creature that crawls on the ground.

Leviticus 11:45 For I am the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God,[32] Lv 25:38,42; 26:13,45; Ex 20:2 so you must be holy because I am holy.

Leviticus 19:2 “Speak to the entire Israelite community and tell them: Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.[1] Lv 11:44–45; 20:7,26; 1 Pt 1:16

Leviticus 21:8 You are to consider him holy since he presents the food of your God. He will be holy to you because I, the LORD who sets you apart, am holy.

Joshua 24:19 But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship the LORD, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins.

1 Samuel 2:2 There is no one holy like the LORD. There is no one besides You! And there is no rock like our God.[2] 2 Sm 7:22; Ps 18:31

Psalm 99:1 – 9 1 The LORD reigns! Let the peoples tremble. He is enthroned above the • cherubim.[1] Ex 25:22; 1 Sm 4:4; Ezk 11:22 Let the earth quake. 2 The LORD is great in Zion; He is exalted above all the peoples. 3 Let them praise Your great and awe–inspiring name.[2] Ps 44:8; 138:2; Neh 1:5 He is holy. 4 The mighty King loves justice.[3] Ps 37:28; Isa 61:8 You have established fairness; You have administered justice and righteousness in Jacob. 5 Exalt the LORD our God; bow in worship at His footstool.[4] Ps 132:7; 1 Ch 28:2; Isa 66:1 He is holy. 6 Moses and Aaron were among His priests; Samuel also was among those calling on His name. They called to the LORD, and He answered them. 7 He spoke to them in a pillar of cloud;[5] Nm 12:5; 14:14; Dt 31:15–18 they kept His decrees and the statutes He gave them. 8 LORD our God, You answered them. You were a God who forgave them, but punished[6] Lit avenged their misdeeds.[7] Or but avenged misdeeds done against them [8] Lv 26:25; Dt 32:41 9 Exalt the LORD our God; bow in worship at His holy mountain,[9] Ps 2:6; 48:1; Ezk 20:40 for the LORD our God is holy.

Isaiah 5:16 But the LORD of Hosts is exalted by His justice, and the holy God is distinguished by righteousness.

Isaiah 48:17 This is what the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says: I am the LORD your God, who teaches you for [your]* benefit, who leads you in the way you should go.

God is Righteous
Ezra 9:15 LORD God of Israel, You are righteous, for we survive as a remnant today. Here we are before You with our guilt, though no one can stand in Your presence because of this.

Psalm 7:9 Let the evil of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous. The One who examines the thoughts and emotions[14] Lit examines hearts and kidneys is a righteous God.[15] Heb 4:12

Psalm 116:5 The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is compassionate.

Daniel 9:14 So the LORD kept the disaster in mind and brought it on us, for the LORD our God is righteous in all He has done. But we have not obeyed Him.

What are other Gods?
Nature:
People – Spouse, Rulers, Doctors, Scientists, Preachers . . .
Animals – Eagle, Raven, Lion, Cow, Dog, Cat . . .
Rocks and Metals – Diamonds, Gold, Silver, Platinum, Turquoise . . .
Trees – Redwood, Cedar, Rosewood, Dogwood . . .
Plants – Cocoa, Poppy, Marijuana, Roses . . .
Stars – Mars, Venus, Mercury, Alpha Centari . . .
Moon
Sun

Religion:
Christianity – Mary, Bible, Crucifix, Buildings, Music . . .
Geo – Earth, Ecology, Animals, Nature . . .
Humanity – Logic, Science, Politics, Self . . .

And So On and So On