Spiritual Warfare and the Christian Soldier

"The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted."
(Prov. 29:25)

Believers all over the world have become trapped in the snare of the fear on man. They are afraid to publicly show their faith; they are afraid to share the gospel with unsaved friends and coworkers; they are afraid to obey Christ when it may bring ridicule.


"Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue;
In these verses, we see some men who were ensnared by the fear of man. They would not openly express their belief in Jesus for fear of losing the privileges of their religious positions. But ultimately, this showed that they sought man's approval above that of God, and they feared man more than God.


Let's see what God has to say of the fear of man in Luke 12:4-9.
4 "I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do.
5 "But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!
6 "Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God.
7 "Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.
8 "And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God;
9 but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God."
Man only has power to harm in this life on earth. God controls eternity and has power to punish in hell and to reward in heaven.


"I, even I, am He who comforts you.
Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies
And of the son of man who is made like grass,
That you have forgotten the LORD your Maker,
Who stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth,
That you fear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor,
As he makes ready to destroy?
But where is the fury of the oppressor?"
(Is 51:12-13)

Man is powerless beside almighty God. We should live our lives with the ultimate goal of pleasing God in everything. Don't be afraid of what other people say and do--fear the Lord, who controls eternity. Let us stand up for God and be the true Christian Soldiers that He has called us to be.

Matthew 16:17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.

Mark 4:19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.

John 12:31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.

Acts 26:18 to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

1 Corinthians 9:25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

2 Corinthians 11:14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.

Ephesians 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Ephesians 1:21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Ephesians 2:2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.

Ephesians 3:10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,

Colossians 1:13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

Ephesians 6:10-17  ...Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Why Spiritual Armor?
Romans 13:12  The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

Jeremy 46:3-4  "Prepare your shields, both large and small, and march out for battle! Harness the horses, mount the steeds! Take your positions with helmets on! Polish your spears, put on your armour!"

1 Corinthians 14:8  For if a trumpet gives an uncertain sound, who will get himself ready for war?

Stand!
Luke 21:36  "Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man."

Malachil 3:2  But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears?..

1 Corinthians 10:12-13  So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

Jude 1:24  But to Him who is able to keep you safe from stumbling, and cause you to stand in the presence of His glory free from blemish and full of exultant joy...

James 4:7  Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

The Belt of Truth
Ephesians 6:14  ...fasten the belt of truth around your waist...

Isa 11:5  Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash round his waist.

Exodus 12:11  This is how you are to eat it [the passover lamb]: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand...

1 Kings 18:46  The power of the Lord came upon Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

Ephesians 4:25  Therefore, put away lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor."

Ray Stedman: "No Christian has the right to a private life. Our lives are to be lived openly before all men, transparent, a spectacle unto all the world. We have no private lives and we must not expect to have. This is basically and fundamentally wrong. Christians are to be demonstrations of the truth."

John 4:24  "God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth."

Colossians 3:8-10  But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

2 Thessalonians 2:10 ...They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

The Breastplate of Righteousness
Philipians 3:9  ...Not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith.

Isaiah 59:16-17  ...Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him. He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head...

Exodus 28:15  "Fashion a breastpiece for making decisions... Make it like the ephod..."

1Kings 3:9  So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.

Psalms 94:15 Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it.

Proverbs 2:7-8  He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair--every good path.

Standing on The Gospel
Eph 6:15  ...your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

Eph 6:15  ...as well as the shoes of the Good News of peace--a firm foundation for your feet.

Rom 10:15  ...As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"

Imagine yourself standing barefooted in a rocky climate, like in the Middle East. You could move--ever so carefully--but without shoes you would be useless in battle. The weight of the other pieces of armor would only make your feet more sensitive if you had no protection. You would be a "push-over" for the enemy, as you would have no agility and be wincing in pain every time you attempted to move. This is why it is essential to have our "feet shod with the gospel of peace".

1 Corinthians 15:1-4  But let me recall to you, brethren, the Good News [Gospel] which I brought you, which you accepted, and on which you are standing, through which also you are obtaining salvation, if you bear in mind the words in which I proclaimed it--unless indeed your faith has been unreal from the very first...-- that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; that He was buried; that He rose to life again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.

This is the gospel as we have received it. It is foolishness to many, but life and light to those who believe in it and are willing to follow and be "included in" Christ's death. In practice, the Gospel means we are dead to our self-life with all of its lusts and instincts, and alive with new life in Christ. The good news is that by considering ourselves "dead men" in Christ, we can be put at peace with God in Christ. If we have truly died to self, then over time our instincts will be "dead" to the rocks and glass and thorns of this world which used to move us. Those standing on the gospel will not react in the flesh. Instead, we will move by God's Spirit with a protected disregard for such "fleshly" considerations, being "readied" by the "shoes" of the "death, burial, and resurrection of Christ", which is the Gospel that brings peace.

1 Peter 2:11  Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.

Galatians 5:16-17  But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

Romans 8:5-13  For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. ...the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God... But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh--for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Isaiah 52:6-7  "Therefore my people will know my name; therefore in that day they will know that it is I who foretold it. Yes, it is I. How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation [Yeshua, Jesus!] who say to Zion, 'Your God reigns!'"

The Helmet Of Salvation [Jesus]
Isaiah 59:16-17  And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation [Yeshua] upon his head...

1 Thesalonians 5:8  But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love; and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

Psalms 140:7  "O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation [Yeshua], You have covered my head in the day of battle."

Jesus--Yeshua in Hebrew--means "Salvation". Salvation is Jesus Christ.

Colossiansl 1:18  And He is the head of the body, the church...

1 Corinthians 2:16  "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.

Philipians 2:5  Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus...

1 Peter 4:1  Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5  Indeed, we live as human beings, but we do not wage war according to human standards; for the weapons of our warfare are not merely human, but they have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every proud obstacle raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ.

Ephesians 4:14-16  ...We should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ--from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

The Sword of The Spirit - The Word of God
Isaiah 49:2  He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, In the shadow of His hand He has concealed Me; And He has also made Me a select arrow, He has hidden Me in His quiver.

Matthew Henry: "To the Christian armed for defense in battle, the apostle recommends only one weapon of attack; but it is enough, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. It subdues and mortifies evil desires and blasphemous thoughts as they rise within; and answers unbelief and error as they assault from without. A single text, well understood, and rightly applied, at once destroys a temptation or an objection, and subdues the most formidable adversary."

Hebrews 4:12-13  For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

2 Corinthians 6:7  ...in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left...

Psalms 149:4-6  For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation. Let the saints rejoice in this honour and sing for joy on their beds. May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands.

The Shield of Faith
Ephesians 6:16  ...take the great shield of faith, on which you will be able to quench all the flaming darts of the Wicked one.

Psalms 35:1-3,9  Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me. Take up shield and buckler; arise and come to my aid. Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Say to my soul, "I am your salvation."... Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord and delight in his salvation [yes, Yeshua again].

Psalms 3:2-3  Many are saying of my soul, There is no salvation for him in God. Selah. But You, O Jehovah, are a shield around me; [you are] my glory and He who lifts up my head.

1 Peter 1:5  ...who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Psalms 33:20  We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.

1 Timothy 6:12  Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

1 John 5:4-5  For every child of God overcomes the world; and the victorious principle which has overcome the world is our faith. Who but the man that believes that Jesus is the Son of God overcomes the world?

Proverbs 30:5  "Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him."

Be Strong In The Lord, By the Power of Grace
1 Corinthians 16:13  Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.

2 Timothy 2:1  ...Be empowered by grace in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 3:7  ...I was made a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me, according to the working of His power.

2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Colossians 1:11  Since His power is so glorious, may you be strengthened with strength of every kind, and be prepared...

Philipians 4:13  I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

The Battle is The Lord's
1 Samuel 17:47 [David, speaking to Goliath] "Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you into our hands."

Deuteronomy 20:3-4  ..."Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be faint-hearted or afraid; do not be terrified or give way to panic before them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory."

Psalms 18:32-35  It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great.

Zecariah 4:6  ..."'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the Lord Almighty."
Rom 11:36  Because of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.Spiritual Warfare: The Battle for God's GloryWinning Spiritual WarfareThe Handbook for Spiritual Warfare: Revised & UpdatedEveryone's Guide to Demons & Spiritual Warfare: Simple, Powerful Tools for Outmaneuvering Satan in Your Daily Life

Wlaking Closer With Jesus

"Behold, I give you POWER over serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice that your names are written in HEAVEN" -Luke 10:19-20

Christians are no longer Christlike!
Yes, it's true! Christians are no longer following Jesus Christ! Preferring to "do their own thing," rather than follow and obey Jesus's teaching, Christians are constantly falling into lives of sin, and denying the Lordship of Jesus by their actions! As a result, churches are lukewarm, the Power of the Gospel is being replaced by programs to draw people in, and God the Father is displeased. He is quoted as having said, "I wish you were cold or hot; but since you are lukewarm, I will spue you out of My mouth."


CONTROL YOUR THOUGHTLIFE 2COR 10:5
"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God,and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ: So do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.....


Study 1st Corinthians Chapter 13...

JESUS told us to love one another; He also told us to love our enemies, and pray for those who despitefully use us.

The battle for our souls starts in our thought-life; obedience to ungodly thoughts can affect our relationship to our Savior, and keep us from walking in love with one another. 1Cor chapter 13 tells of the importance of love in our lives;
Learn it!

1John 4:7-8 tells how important it is for a Christian to have LOVE: "Beloved let us love one another;for Love is of GOD and every one that loves is born of GOD and knows GOD; He that does not love, does not know GOD for GOD is Love."
If we judge ourselves, GOD will not have to judge us.
Think about it!Satan goes about like a roaring lion, seeking who he can destroy!
Most lions are stealthy and quiet..but old toothless lions roar to scare small prey like rabbits, freezing them in place. Then they pounce and eat! DON'T BE A RABBIT! KNOW GOD'S WORD AND USE IT AGAINST SATAN - ASK FOR GOD'S HELP! Remember Satan has no power over you - You are JESUS's! He bought you with His Blood when He was crucified.
You are bought with a price, and you are not your own, you are blessed, honored by GOD, under Grace, and given authority (Luke 10:19-20). So rejoice! Your name is written in HEAVEN!

Luke 10:19-20 Says Jesus gave His diciples authority!
We have power over the power of the enemy!
We don't have to be defeated - Jesus is our General, He has already defeated Satan,& it is just up to us to fight a few battles, standing against the enemy in FAITH.

Pray for understanding as you study Gods Word!
Ephesians 6 tells us we are not wrestling with flesh and blood (people are not your problem, Satan is) but against principalities, powers and rulers of darkness in high places.
Everywhere you look, someone needs you...

So help out wherever you can! When you love someone else, you defeat the work of Satan. You are Jesus's hands and feet - walk where HE needs you, and do what HE tells you.
He has something for everyone to do - don't make excuses! Get out there and LOVE!Are you a helper, or are you just in the way?
Don't get in the way of those who are serving God!
Help by praying for them, offering suggestions, working with them, providing food, and things of that nature!
 

What God Wants From HIS Church

How many of you have ever read the magazine called “Reminisce”? Several years ago there was an article in that magazine by a woman who told of her father having returned from the war. He, like many men, wanted to buy tools for his workshop, and one of the tools he wanted was a drill press. But tools like that were scarce and expensive. He couldn’t afford to buy one, so he built his own and used some unusual parts to build it:
• an old washing machine motor,
• a Model A Ford transmission,
• a car jack,
• a motorcycle kick-starter
• and a burned out drill chuck.
She said that he used it for more than 50 years and... it still works.



Now I don’t know HOW that soldier put all of that together… but I was intrigued by the fact that this man knew WHAT he wanted and he knew how to build it. He wanted a drill press, but he didn’t build it out of parts you and I would have expected him to use. He used the materials he had on hand. He used common, unimpressive, used equipment.
Now I’m fairly certain it wasn’t pretty… but it worked.
In fact it worked so well… it’s still working.

Years ago, God knew what He wanted
He wanted to build a church.
And God (being God) could have built that church out of any materials He wanted.

I. A Good Ad agency would have told God to make sure He did it right!
They would have done a demographic study to find and target a specific age group.
They would have managed the message so that it would appeal to that target audience.

And they would have told God to make sure this new church had…
• The best music program and song leaders
• The best youth program
• The best ministries for young adults/ senior adults
Then there would be billboards to buy, flyers to pass out.
And they’d want to build an impressive gymnasium so they could have an athletic outreach to the community. And of course, there would need to be a building program so they could have a state of the art Worship Center and Sunday School space.

Now, (for the most part) most of that stuff is ok I guess. There are many good churches who do those very things are very successful for the Kingdom of Christ.
But – we all know God didn’t do it that way.

No, God didn’t follow the advice of a powerful Ad Agency or Church Consultant Group. In fact He built His church out of common, ordinary, unimpressive materials.
It shouldn’t have worked… but it did!!
And it still works!!!

But why?
Why did it work?
What was it about what took place on Pentecost that gave the church such powerful growth and success?

Well, 1st - God was in it.
Acts 2:47b tells us “…And THE LORD ADDED to the church daily such as should be saved.”

When Peter saw the crowd had gathered at Pentecost he seized that opportunity and began to preach to them. Just like Peter, we should always seize every opportunity we can to reach people for Jesus. But after having seized all those opportunities, we tend to ask ourselves…
“What more can WE do to reach the lost?”

Now that’s a legitimate question.
But it CAN overlook a more BASIC question:
“Where’s God in all this?”

When I read Acts 2:47 and it said “the Lord added to the church daily” my mind drifted back to a story in the Old Testament.

In Genesis 6:22 we’re told: “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.”
Noah did his part.
He built the ark,
He prepared stalls for the animals.
He brought in food to feed them and his family.
And as he worked, he preached to anybody who’d listen

BUT THEN we’re told:
“Pairs of clean and unclean animals, of birds and of all creatures that move along the ground, male and female, CAME TO NOAH and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah.” Genesis 7:8-9

The animals… CAME to Noah?
He didn’t go out and get them?
Well, that’s what it says.

But if Noah didn’t go out and get the animals… how did they end up coming to him???
God brought them to him.
THE LORD added to the ark… such as should be saved.
When the animals came to Noah he seized that opportunity and put them on the ark

Now this is my point!
1. Noah did his part – he prepared for the ones God would bring.
2. God did His part – He brought the ones who were ready to be saved.
3. Then Noah seized the opportunity to lead them to salvation.

In the same way, that’s how the church will grow best
1. We need to do our part – we need to prepare for those God will bring
2. BUT then we need to depend upon God to do His part… bringing others to us.

Now – that being said - the question is… what should we do to do OUR part?
The answer is found in verse 42
We find there that the first thing they did was focus on the Apostle’s teaching

Acts 2:42 tells us “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching…”
Not MY teaching.
Not the teachings of a famous author or preacher.
Not the teachings of a creed or a commentary.
Not the teachings of a prominent denomination.
Not the teachings of some Church Council or some Early Church Father.

Now a good teacher/ preacher MIGHT USE those resources as they prepare their lessons. But those resources should never be their MAJOR focus. The principal foundation for the teachings of any good teacher or preacher MUST BE the Apostolic teachings.
Now where am I going to get Apostolic teachings from?
The Bible… and specifically the New Testament.

Why would focusing on the “Apostles’ teaching” be so important?
Well, if I focus on any other authority for the foundation of what I say from this pulpit, I run the risk of leading astray the people God brings to us.

 For example, most of us have heard about the conflict between Galileo and the church of his day. The Church doctrine of that day taught that the sun revolved around the earth. But Galileo discovered that that wasn’t true - it was the earth that revolved around the sun. The Church didn’t take kindly to that discovery by Galileo, and branded him a heretic and made him renounce his findings under the threat of severe punishment.

Now – of course Galileo was right.
But ever since that day, skeptics have used that incident to accuse the church of having gotten their doctrine from their understanding of the Bible.
But they didn’t.


So the first thing we can do - to do our part in the church in preparing for those God would bring to us is to cling to the Apostle’s teachings for our authority and guidance.

The 2nd thing we can do is devote ourselves to “fellowship”
Acts 2:42 says the early church “… devoted themselves to… fellowship”.
It doesn’t matter how good a church’s programs and events may be, if the people don’t get along with each other - if we don’t create an atmosphere where people enjoy themselves & feel welcome – newcomers won’t stay.

But the early church didn’t just have “get-togethers”
Acts 2:44 says “All the believers were together and had everything in common.”
And verse 46 tells us “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts”

Church wasn’t just something they did on Sunday morning.
Being with other Christians wasn’t just something they did once in a while.
They were almost always TOGETHER.
Other Christians were the center of their lives.
In their spare time they preferred to be with their Christian friends.

But even more than that… they were there for each other.
Acts 2:45says they went so far as to “(sell) their possessions and goods, (so they could give) to anyone as he had need.”

By the time of Galileo, the church had grown used to accepting the teachings of human experts and authorities of the
past. Particularly impressive to them were the Greek philosophers and one of most prominent of those philosophers was Aristotle – who taught that it was the earth that stood still and the sun revolved around it.
Now this wasn’t the only time Galileo had clashed with Aristotle’s teachings.
Aristotle was wrong about many things.
But as opposed as he was to Aristotle, Galileo was convinced of the inerrancy of Scripture. At one point he wrote:
“The holy scriptures cannot err, and the decrees therein contained are absolutely true and inviolable…”

My point is this:
The early church misled many people - and gave ammunition to the enemies of God - because they abandoned the Bible as their sole source of authority and sought out human experts to guide their doctrine.
We must never allow that to happen to us.

So the first thing we can do - to do our part in the church in preparing for those God would bring to us is to cling to the Apostle’s teachings for our authority and guidance.

The 2nd thing we can do is devote ourselves to “fellowship”
Acts 2:42 says the early church “… devoted themselves to… fellowship”.
It doesn’t matter how good a church’s programs and events may be, if the people don’t get along with each other - if we don’t create an atmosphere where people enjoy themselves & feel welcome – newcomers won’t stay.

But the early church didn’t just have “get-togethers”
Acts 2:44 says “All the believers were together and had everything in common.”
And verse 46 tells us “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts”

Church wasn’t just something they did on Sunday morning.
Being with other Christians wasn’t just something they did once in a while.
They were almost always TOGETHER.
Other Christians were the center of their lives.
In their spare time they preferred to be with their Christian friends.

But even more than that… they were there for each other.
Acts 2:45says they went so far as to “(sell) their possessions and goods, (so they could give) to anyone as he had need.”

Donald A. Nash told the story of Robert Tinsky. Tinsky was raised a Jew. But he became dissatisfied spiritually, so he visited a Christian Church for the first time, seeking some religious truth. He was astounded by the observance of the Lord’s Supper. He didn’t understand it. He asked some young people seated near him what it meant, and they told him the gospel story as portrayed in the loaf and cup.
He was amazed that there was a God who loved mankind enough to give His Son to die for us and at the wisdom that originated such a living memorial. As a result he became a Christian and a eventually a faithful preacher of the gospel.
(Christian Standard 1/30/2000)

So the early church devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread… but it was the last item listed in verse 42 that caught my attention. And it caught my attention because I felt maybe I haven’t done enough of this.

It says “They devoted themselves… to prayer…”
Now it’s not that I don’t pray.
And it’s not that I don’t pray a great deal.
It’s just that I’m pretty sure I don’t pray enough like they prayed.

Too often Christians simply focus on praying for the sick and hurting.
We often do that during our prayer time in worship.
And that’s GOOD praying – we ought to do that!
But I’ve become convinced that it’s the BEST praying we could pray

Paul wrote: “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, WORDS MAY
BE GIVEN ME so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel” Ephesians 6:19
He wanted them to pray so that he might be given the words to seize every opportunity to bring people to Christ.

Again he wrote to the church at Colossae: “And pray for us, too, that GOD MAY OPEN A DOOR for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.” Colossians 4:3
He wanted the church to pray for him that God would open a door so he could seize every opportunity to talk to others about Jesus.

Max Lucado told of a church in Scotland back in the 1940’s that was struggling to keep the doors open. A couple of its members were two older ladies who were invalids and couldn’t get out for worship any longer. But these ladies refused to allow their infirmities to get in the way of serving their God. They became convinced that their community needed Jesus desperately and they were going to do something about it. They were going to pray.
They determined to make their house a house of prayer.

Around the clock they prayed for God do something powerful.

Then one day, one of the ladies became convinced that God wanted a revivalist by the name of Campbell to come and hold meetings at their church. They talked to their preacher and he contacted Campbell… but Campbell was unavailable. He was booked up.

The women refused to give up in their prayers however… and it wasn’t long before – oddly enough – some of Campbell’s other revivals became cancelled and he decided to accept the invitation of that small church. He arrived and held 5 weeks of meetings.

The Revival was so well received that hundreds showed up each night. And lives were so changed that many of the local taverns had to close up because they lacked patrons.

One might think it was because of the powerful preaching of a renowned revivalist. But in reality it was because of the faithfulness of two invalid older ladies who dedicated themselves to prayer.

So I want to set apart a time right now for us pray for God to open a door for us so that He might add

DAILY to our number. And it is my prayer that many of you will not stop praying that prayer… but will continue to pray throughout the week.  And it is my prayer that if you have not yet joined the Church of the Risen Son that you would take the opportunity to do so if the Holy Spirit so guides you.

God's Love is Not Unconditional

The bible is God's love letter to us.

God speaks through scripture. How are we to discern our God's character without listening / reading his word? Have you ever thought of why the bible in it's entirety is equated with His word.  He speaks to each and every one of us through the bible. It is our opportunity to have a personal relationship with our Lord.

Without it, we candy-coat Christianity, we tailor it to suit our self-seeking desires. We then wonder why our lives are in disarray. God favors those who are obedient, He provides for those who are faithful, He spits out the Luke-warm. I'll say that again - He spits out the luke warm! This is a harsh reality.
Christian T-shirt Power In The Blood Tee On BlackChristian T-shirt Power In The Blood Tee On Black



 Nowhere in scripture does it say that God's love is unconditional. God's love is described as enduring, unilateral, patient and merciful but someone tell me where it says that His love is unconditional? If love were to be unconditional then why did Jesus bother proclaiming the terms and conditions eg; 'you must be born again'. John 8:31-32 "Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him 'If you abide in my word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free'"

God's love is so great that He will not accept you as you are. Come into His presence through worship, build a relationship with Him through prayer, get to know Him through scripture and He will convert and translate your nature, and your heart.

Why would you want to dismiss the importance and relevance of scripture in our lives? Show me someone who is passionate about God without spending time in scripture.

The image of a wolf in sheep's clothing is reverberated in Matthew 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves." . Could unconditional love be Satan's latest remodeling of the "peace - make love, not war" denotation that has always been the foundation of a truth-less vocation? Could Satan really manipulate us by appealing to the intellect and distorting God's message, surely he wouldn't go that far - would he?

The concept of unconditional love is expressed so forcefully by non-Christians that it should make Christians think twice about adopting this stance so readily and whole-heartedly.

People often feel justified by reiterating that "God loves everyone infinitely no matter what". Condemning people to hell is not the most loving thing to do, is it? So, it does not matter what people think or believe or do. God's unconditional love means that we will all go to heaven." Not quite.

God's love is one-sided. He loves the unworthy and gives is glory to them. God's love is not based upon merit. It is unfailing for those in whom He delights: it is for those who receive Jesus as their Christ and Saviour. But, God's love is clearly not "unconditional"; for those who reject his gospel will be subject to wrath and eternal damnation. Do not attempt to downplay this - How would you avoid rejecting his word when you can't be bothered to read and meditate in it?

Are you sure that you have placed yourself where you will receive his love and not His judgment? Let us know and be obedient in the word so that we may find peace. The conditions set out to allow us into the Kingdom of heaven must be told, shouted across the world ... cry out. Do not conform to a worldly belief or false prophesy, or anything else that "sets itself up against the knowledge of God" (2Cor 10:5).Jer. 8:8-9 "How can you say 'We are wise, And the law of the LORD is with us? Look, the false pen of the scribe certainly works falsehood. The wise men are ashamed, They are dismayed and taken. Behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD; So what wisdom do they have?'"

Needless to say, anyone who continues to adhere to these beliefs cannot be saved. You must see yourself a sinner [Rom. 5:8], lost in sin [Luke 19:10], and without hope apart from Christ to be saved [Eph. 2:12]. You must see you have a desperate need. These deceived self-reliant kooks who are in love with themselves have no hope. How is their self-love and "coping skills" going to help them at the Great White Throne judgment?

It should be no surprise that the world would be caught up in this unconditional love/self love frenzy, but that professing Christians would promote it is another matter. However, when believers abandon the Bible as the sole source of infallible truth and fall to the pop psychology of secular humanism this is not so surprising.

Probably the classic verse on God's love is 1John 4:8 where it says, "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love, " but this passage is often abused. God is love in that He is the epitome and definition of love and His benevolence to man is a manifestation of His love, but His great love must work in unison with His other attributes, such as justice and judgment of sin. The Bible is clear, however, that every good thing that happens to man [and even many of what we consider bad things] comes about from God's love and mercy. It seems to be the primary attribute that compels Him to save believers. As another said,


"To say, 'God is love' implies that all His activity is loving activity. If He creates, He creates in love; if He rules, He rules in love; if He judges, He judges in love"

Some try to wrest the verse and claim "love is God." This is tantamount to blasphemy. One cannot find God by simply loving something.

Love as God uses it is primarily a verb; an action word. To say one loves someone is not love in its essence. That person must manifest their love. Some go around telling family and friends they love them, and they may, but the object of those words is usually not convinced unto the love is seen. The person professing the love must show forth actions that express his love. Notice the Lord does not go around saying "I love you" to anyone until He shows His love. As we saw above He told Israel He loved them AFTER He delivered them from bondage. He tells the world He loved it AFTER He sent His son to die for it. The action always comes first. Romans 5 tells us God "commendeth his love toward us...."

However [and this is the clincher], if the potential recipient of God's love [any man] refuses to come to the place where this love is manifested [the cross], then this person does not receive the love. He doesn't get in on it, so to speak. While alive he still partakes of God's mercy, but not necessarily His love. Look at probably the most well known verse in the Bible, John 3:16,

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

This verse is often used to "prove" that God loves everybody with an unconditional love, but notice the love is past tense. God loved the world enough to provide it a Savior, but those who refuse the Savior do not partake of the love. Only those who "believeth in him" get "everlasting life." In short, God's love for every sinner is found at the cross and there alone. Those who refuse the cross presently have God's wrath abiding on them as John testifies in the same chapter,


He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. [Joh 3:36]

Wrath and unconditional love don't go together very well. In fact, they are pretty much opposites. Some may think, "This is just tough love" or something similar, but the fact remains, No where in the Bible does it say God loves a lost sinner who refuses His provision in the Lord Jesus Christ. Instead they inherit wrath [Psa. 2:12; Rom. 1:18, Rom. 4:15, Rom. 5:9; Gal. 3:10; Eph. 5:6; 1Thes. 1:10, 1Thes. 5:9; Heb. 2:3; Heb. 10:29; Rev. 6:16, Rev. 6:17]. Remember, to God love is an action and until a sinner receives and accepts God's action on the cross by faith, there is no other love from God to be manifested or received. Every bit of the love God has for the world is confined to the cross.

When the Lord provided Christ as man's salvation the whole world was unredeemed. Some had been saved in the Old Testament on credit [so to speak] in view of that day, but as far as redemption was concerned all mankind was lost. It is God's immense mercy and boundless love that motivated Him to provide such evil rebels a Savior,


But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
[Rom 5:8]

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, [Eph 2:4]

In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. [1Jo 4:9-10]

And those who receive this Savior's death as their own are accepted in God's love,


To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
[Eph 1:6]

But boundless love is not unconditional love. The condition is receiving what was done at the cross as your own. Those who refuse it may enjoy God's mercy on earth for a while, but in hell they will see the full manifestation of not being "accepted in the beloved."

Again, to drive it home [some of you are probably still quivering], even though God manifested His love towards the world at Calvary, that does not mean He loves a lost man in His sin. The sinner has God's wrath abiding on him. As long as that sinner lives, however, he can access God's eternal love at the cross. A close relative of God's love, His mercy [Rom. 9:16, Rom. 11:32, Eph. 2:4, and especially Titus 3:5], allows him the opportunity. God's love motivated Him to provide mankind salvation, His mercy and grace allows man access to it

As the account of Corneilus in Acts 10 plainly shows, God will by His mercy go to great lengths to get the gospel to a sinner who knows he needs to get right with his Creator. Then once upon accepting the Christ of the cross, the Lord will love him as a son.

So much for this "God loves me just the way I am" tripe. It is a satanic deception.

God's love for us is full of mercy but it is not unconditional.
 

God is Dead???!!!!!

God is dead. God is dead in the lives of so many people. Not necessarily bad people. People who have been turned off by a God eager to cast them into eternal hellfire for failing to visit Him on Sunday, or for an act of masturbation.
God is dead in the hearts of so many. Not evil people. People disgusted by a God of "love" who encourages crusades, inquisitions, religious wars, and nuclear warfare to crush infidels, heretics, and atheists. How can you love a God like that? God is dead. And He was killed, not by His enemies, not by publicans and sinners, but by His friends, by self-righteous Pharisees and religious people.

To be sure, there are people who kill God in order to dethrone Him, to become their own gods, to decide for themselves what is good and what is bad (Gen 3:5). But often the god they are killing is no god at all, but rather a false idol. It is a grisly caricature of God created by His friends, by misguided preachers of hellfire and holy wars, and by well meaning parents who threaten: "God is going to punish you if you do that!"

That false god does not exist, never has, except in troubled minds. That false idea of God needs to die. First, because it is an idol, a blasphemy that turns people away from the living God. Second, because we tend to become like the God we adore. When we imagine a vindictive god righteously damning his enemies to a hell inferno, we can very easily imagine that we too are no longer bound by the command to "love your enemies." We can self-righteously condemn our enemies to the death penalty or to weapons of mass destruction. It's vitally important for us to have a correct image of God.

Re-Imaging God
If God is love (1 Jn 4:8), how can God damn sinners to hell? The answer: God doesn't! God can't damn anyone to hell. Love keeps no record of wrongs (1 Cor 13:5, Heb 8:12).

Jesus was always trying to change people's vengeful image of God. He refused to condemn the woman caught in adultery (Jn 8:1-11). He repeatedly preached about a forgiving, father-like God Who never gives up on His sinful son (Lk 15). In His death agony, Jesus forgave His enemies who were crucifying Him, and a criminal at the moment of his death (Lk 23:34, 43).

Could a loving mother forget the child of her womb? Our Judeo-Christian tradition teaches us that even if she could, our mother-like God would never forget us (Is 49:15). Would a loving family or friends leave a suicidal person to his or her worst self? Would they not do everything possible to enter into that person's hell to save him or her from self-destruction? How could the God of infinite love do any less? The Bible (1 Pet 3:19f) and the Creed teach us that not only was Jesus one with us in death, but that He even descended into hell, Peter tells us, to preach to sinners there!  God is adamantly unwilling to leave us to our own worst selves.

Some Christians find it hard to imagine a loving God permitting anyone to self-destruct forever in hell. They note all the Scriptures that reveal God's desire to ultimately save us all (Rm 5:18; 11:32; 1 Cor 15:22; 1 Tim 2:4; 4:10; Col 1:20; Tit 2:11; Rev 5:13). They see the texts which refer to eternal punishment as examples of Semitic hyperbole, not meant to be taken literally, but rather to emphasize the supreme importance of become aware of our destructive behavior.

The Greek word for punishment used in the Bible originally meant the pruning of trees to make them grow better. God cannot permit vengeful punishment, but God does allow the corrective punishment necessary to purify our capacity to grow in love. God is not a softy. God does permit some of the negative consequences of our evil actions to come back to us. We are such hardheaded creatures that oftentimes this is the only way we learn. What goes around, does come around.

Make no mistake: God is not mocked, for a person will reap only what he sows, because the one who sows for his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows for the spirit will reap eternal life from the spirit. (Gal 6:7f )
To the degree that we refuse to learn in this life, then in the next life God's just judgement will shine the brilliant light of truth upon us, stripping us of our masks and denials, exposing our true selves. We will then know, without having to be told, whether or not God's love lives within us. God will not damn anyone to hell. If people do go to hell it is only because they have knowingly and willingly chosen to separate themselves from God's love. Hell is like a room with the lock on the inside. Given our self-destructive weakness, hell is certainly a possibility for us. But given the power of God's love, heaven is a far greater probability.

Long Live God!
We need to take great care not to project our human cruelty and vindictiveness onto God. The god who damns, or who condones vengeful punishment of enemies, is dead. That god is dead.

We need to let Jesus' living God love us. Jesus' atonement on the cross, His at-one-ment with our weakness and suffering, reveals that His God's compassion has no limits, nor should ours. Long live our loving, living God!

This is today's sermon from the Chruch of the Risen Son.  Please come join us for fellowship, worship of God, and praising our precious savior, Jesus Christ.
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Seed Time and Harvest

In Malachi 3:8 "
Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings.” Many will preach on tithing, but this also talks about offerings (seed). The Lord shared this with me one day “Tithe opens the windows of heaven’s blessing, but offerings (seed) determine the size of the flow. In 2 Cor. 9:6-15 (TLB) “But remember this—if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only a small crop, but if he plants much, he will reap much. Everyone must make up his own mind as to how much he should give. Don’t force anyone to give more than he really wants to, for cheerful givers are the ones God prizes. God is able to make it up to you by giving you everything you need and more so that there will not only be enough for your own needs but plenty left over to give joyfully to others. You are not in prosperity until you are able to joyfully and generously give to those who are in need. I’m not saying anything against sacrificial giving or giving in faith believing as in “the widow’s mite”.

There must, however, come a time where you have proved diligent in good times and difficult times, where God can count on you to be a good steward. At that time your level of prosperity will grow where as the above scripture says, “God is able to make it up to you by giving you everything you need and more so that there will not only be enough for your own needs but plenty left over to give joyfully to others.”

     The principles are these; that as you love God, tithe, begin sowing seed, and believe (confess scripture over your seed and be thankful, you’ll see your household start to come out of debt. It’s about at this point in time you will see God put in you heart a seed about giving to this person or ministry, (sacrificial giving) this is to stretch your belief system to trust Him and to show you that He can trust you. As you prove diligent, in spite of your circumstances, you’ll see a continual flow of finances come into your life. You see God’s not afraid money will ruin us, but he doesn’t want anything to take us off course in our love and ministry for Him. Many believe that money will ruin us, so they choose poverty. It’s not money that ruins us; it’s using money to fill the love void in our heart where Jesus belongs.

     Continuing with 2 Cor.9:6-15, (vs. 6) “A
s the Scriptures say: ‘the godly man gives generously to the poor'. His good deeds will be an honor to him forever’. For God, who gives seed to the farmer to plant, and later on good crops to harvest and eat, will give you more and more seed to plant and will make it grow so that you can give away more and more fruit from your harvest. Yes, God will give you much so that you can give away much, and when you take your gifts to those who need them they will break out into thanksgiving and praise to God for your help. So two good things happen as a result of your gifts—those in need are helped, and they overflow with thanks to God. Those you help will be glad not only because of your generous gifts to themselves and to others, but they will praise God for this proof that your deeds are as good as your doctrine. And they will pray for you with deep fervor and feeling because of the wonderful grace of God shown through you. Thank God for his Son—his Gift too wonderful for words”. This scripture is so full of principles for God’s prosperity to us who believe. It says that you will receive according to your seed size. Now, as it says above “ Everyone must make up his own mind as to how much he should give. Don’t force anyone to give more than he really wants to, for cheerful givers are the ones God prizes”.

     Scripture shows if you believe; for each seed you sow, there is a time of harvest.
"While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest…shall not cease." (Genesis 8:22). Does the earth still remain? Then seedtime and harvest shall not cease (stop). Some will say “well, I don’t believe that when we give we will get back anything”. Yet scripture teaches.” Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." (Luke 6:38). Also in Gal. 6: 7 “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap”. The Church of the Living God is now beginning to understand God’s financial plans of “Seedtime and Harvest” for them. You may not, in the beginning understand it all, but what’s important is that once you get the “ABC’s” of this teaching, walk by faith in it; not by sight.


     “And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come". (Mark 4:26-29)



     Now the question may arise “where do I give my seed?” Wherever the Lord tells you. What do I mean by this? First, if you don’t hear anything give to the place that feeds you most. Your church maybe the place you go, but you may get fed from a TBN, or a ministry elsewhere. Remember that tithe always goes to your home church, always! But seed goes first to ministries that believe in helping you produce a harvest. If the place you’re seeding to or giving extra offerings to doesn’t believe in Seedtime and Harvest, change where you give offerings. Get in line with the Word of God

"While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest…shall not cease." Genesis 8:22. Give into ministries that will put and anointing on that seed to get you Debt free. God’s people need to get out of debt, so they can start pouring out financial blessings to those who have need. Glory to God!
     Another principle is that the seed is always much smaller than the harvest. An illustration is that a stalk of wheat has alot of seed in it, but it only takes one seed to grow one stalk which has a lot of seed in it. It’s the same as with corn, it takes only one kernel of corn to grow a stalk that has many ears of corn and each ear has multiple kernels of corn. So what determines the amount of harvest? In farming it’s having well soil (not tired soil), good seed, rain, and good equipment to harvest it. For us as God’s children it’s first to honor God with the tithe or first 10%. Next you need to seed; in 2 Cor. 9:6 (TLB) “

But remember this—if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only a small crop, but if he plants much, he will reap much.” This is simply saying, if you give just a little seed you’ll get a smaller harvest. You know what I like about even this? It says, no matter what I give, I’LL GET A HARVEST! Amen! But the principle here is true, if you are believing big you will need to sow big.

     As you confess scripture over your need or situation then believe and don’t doubt; you’ll see what Jesus said come to pass for you.

“So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God (or the God-kind of faith). For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them”. (Mark 11:22-24 NKJ) You see it’s not good enough for it to only happen to Jesus, Scripture says, “let it be done on earth as it is in heaven”. Jesus said many times “the Kingdom of Heaven is in us”. Scripture isn’t of much value if God’s Word principles don’t happen to you and I. Look back at Mark 11:22-24; who is a “whoever”? Are you a “whoever” or whosoever”? I hope you are, as it means anyone who does this. So if you do what a particular says, shouldn’t you be able to see its results, if God is truly no respecter of persons?

 (Genesis 8:22).

From The National Association of Christian Ministers

Congratulations Rob Cunningham,

The National Association of Christian Ministers (N.A.C.M.), LC acknowledges that:

You have demonstrated a devout belief in the Christian faith, a call to ministry, and have passed the scrutiny of the Council of Elders. Therefore, on the authority of Matthew 28:19-20 this religious organization deems you an Independent Ordained Minister with all of the obligations and rites that are associated with this title.

Father, in the name of Jesus we set apart your servant this day requesting that you make use of them in the ministry of your Kingdom.  We ask that you give them wisdom to know your ways, strength to resist sin, courage to face adversity, and a love for people that fulfills your law.  We thank you for your purpose and calling on their life.

By the blood of Jesus and the power of His Spirit –AMEN.

Congratulations on your acceptance and recognition into the Christian ministry of Jesus Christ. The N.A.C.M. has enlisted you in its Minister Verification Database (MVD) so that government and civil agencies may confirm your good standing with our organization.