Who Started Christmas???

23 Friday Dec 2011

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I thought this little story might put Christmas back into perspective for us.

 

 A young woman was out shopping with her two children a few days before Christmas. After many hours of looking at row after row of toys and everything else imaginable, and after hours of hearing both her children asking for everything they saw on those many shelves, she finally made it to the elevator with her two kids.

She felt what so many of us feel during the holiday season time of the year. It is the overwhelming pressure to go to every party, every housewarming, taste all the holiday food and treats, discover that perfect gift for every single person on the shopping list, make sure to not forget anyone on our card list, and the pressure of making sure we respond to everyone who sent a Christmas card.

Finally the elevator doors opened and there was already a crowd in the car. She pushed her way into the car and dragged her two kids with her, along with their bags of stuff. When the doors closed she couldn’t take it anymore and stated, “Whoever started this whole Christmas thing should be found, strung up and shot!”

From the back of the car everyone heard a quiet calm voice respond, “Don’t worry. We already crucified him.”

For the rest of the trip down, the elevator was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.

Don’t forget this year to keep the One who started this whole Christmas thing in your every thought, deed, purchase, and word. If we all do it, just think how different this whole world will be.

“For unto us a CHILD was born. Unto us a SON was GIVEN!”

Blessings,

Pastor

King Wenceslas: Remembered For Good Deeds

22 Thursday Dec 2011

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“‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.‘” Matthew 25:40

 

      “Good King Wenceslas,” sung about in the famous Christmas carol, was actually a duke. Born around the year 907 in what is now the Czech Republic, Wenceslas was raised by his grandmother, Ludmila, and attended a Christian school. When he was about 13 years old, his father, Ratislav, died and Wenceslas succeeded him as duke. Because he was too young to rule, his mother, Drahomira, became regent.

Vehemently opposed to Christianity, she used her new power to persecute followers of the religion. Afraid they would scheme to overthrow her, she refused to let Wenceslas see Ludmila. Not long after Ratislav’s death, Ludmila was murdered at Tetin Castle — strangled, it is said, at Drahomira’s command.   After her death, Ludmila was revered as a saint.

At the age of 18 Wenceslas overthrew his mother’s regency, just as she had feared, and began to rule for himself.  A stern but fair monarch, he stopped the persecution of priests and tamed the rebellious nobility.  He was known for his kindness to the poor, as depicted in later verses of the carol. He was especially charitable to young children, orphans and slaves and believed that his Christian faith needed to be put into action in practical ways.

The duke’s most deadly enemy proved to be his own brother, Boleslav. In 935, he, along with a group of nobles, murdered Wenceslas in the church doorway on his way to mass.  He was just 28 years old but his love for others is still commemorated more than 1,000 years later when a clergyman named John Mason Neale wrote “Good King Wenceslas” in 1853.

Our good deeds may not be celebrated in song; however, rest assured that our Lord knows all we do in His Name.

“Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” Colossians 3:17

 

Share the Blessings this Christmas Season,

Pastor

Anointing or Anti-Anointing?

20 Tuesday Dec 2011

Posted by in Our Spiritual Process

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         A few years back there was a vacuum salesman making his rounds in the back woods of Tennessee. He had his vacuum cleaner, all of the tools and attachments.  Hungry to make a sale, he approached a house where he knew someone was home.  After introducing himself to the lady of the house he said, “I’ve got the most exciting vacuum cleaner you have ever seen. It will clean your house from top to bottom……you only have to pay so much down for this machine to be yours.”

The lady said, “It sounds real good.”  The salesman quickly proceeded, “You see that big pile of dirt right there on the floor with all those fur balls and bugs and things?” He said, “My vacuum cleaner will pick up all those things…just like that and if they don’t, I’ll eat it.”

She said, “Well you might as well get your knife and fork, because we don’t have any electricity out here!”

Needless to say, you are not going to sell many vacuum cleaners without the power to operate them.  The same can be said of the believer.  We aren’t going to convince and communicate the Good News of Jesus Christ without power. 

 

       Jesus didn’t even attempt to do ministry without power.  His first order of business was to be baptized by John in the Jordan river.  His Father blessed His obedience “and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.””   (Luke 3:21-22)

“Christ” was not Jesus’ last name. The word Christ means “Anointed One” or “Messiah.”  There was a point in Jesus’ life when He wasn’t anointed and then the time came when He was anointed.  His title “Jesus Christ” points back to the experience He had at the river.

All believers need this same experience.  Yes, we do need to be baptized in water.  We also need to be anointed with power from on high.  The word anointing means “to smear.”  The Holy Spirit is the oil of God that was smeared all over Jesus at His water baptism.  The name “Jesus Christ” implies that Jesus is the One smeared with the Holy Spirit.

It was not sufficient that Jesus be sent from heaven to earth with a title. He had to receive the anointing in an experience to accomplish what the Father desired.

If the Son of God was this reliant upon the anointing, His behavior should clarify our need for the Holy Spirit’s presence upon us to do what the Father has assigned. It’s vital to understand that we must be clothed with the Holy Spirit in order to do any work of ministry.

 

BEWARE OF THE ANTI-ANOINTING

 

Because the power of God is such a threat to the forces of evil, the devil has sent another spirit out into the world to ambush the church and believers.   This power was identified by the apostle John when he said, “Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.”  (1 John 2:18)

 

       The nature of the antichrist spirit is found in its name: “anti” meaning “against“; “Christ” meaning “Anointed One.”  Evil attacks by seeking to besmear the name of “Jesus” to the world.  But within the church, trashing the name of Jesus doesn’t do any good.  Inside Christendom, the devil seeks to destroy the “anointing.”  This is why John called him the “antichrist.”  These types of spirits are always against the anointing or power.

We must understand the spirits of hell are at war against the anointing, for without the anointing mankind is no threat to their dominion.  The demonic world is not really scared of our churches and believers absent of the anointing.  But when we stand like Jesus, full of the anointing, we destroy the works of the devil.  The presence of the Lord and the presence of evil cannot coexist. 

Billy Graham is credited with saying, “Ninety-five percent of today’s church activities would continue if the Holy Spirit were removed from us. In the early Church, ninety-five percent of all her activities would have stopped if the Holy Spirit were removed.”

I encourage you today to seek “to be filled and clothed with power from on high.”  The Lord never intended for His children to operate without His presence and power.

Blessings,

Pastor

Great Billy Graham Quotes

17 Saturday Dec 2011

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“Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion – it is a daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ” – Billy Graham

 

 

“God proved His love on the Cross. When Christ hung, and bled, and died, it was God saying to the world, ”I love you.”“ – Billy Graham

 

“Believers, look up — take courage. The angels are nearer than you think.” – Billy Graham

 

“The number one problem in our world is alienation, rich versus poor, black versus white, labor versus management, conservative versus liberal, East versus West . . . But Christ came to bring about reconciliation and peace.” – Billy Graham

 

“A child who is allowed to be disrespectful to his parents will not have true respect for anyone.” – Billy Graham

 

“There is nothing wrong with men possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess men.” – Billy Graham

 

“When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.” – Billy Graham

 

“Only those who want everything done for them are bored.” – Billy Graham

 

“Nothing can bring a real sense of security into the home except true love.” – Billy Graham

 

“God has given us two hands — one to receive with, and the other to give with. We are not cisterns made for hoarding; we are channels made for sharing.” – Billy Graham

 

“I can tell you that God is alive because I talked to him this morning.” – Billy Graham

 

“I just want to lobby for God.” – Billy Graham

 

“Billions and billions of stars and planets out there, and behind them all are God.” – Billy Graham

 

 “Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.” – Billy Graham

 

“It is not the body’s posture, but the heart’s attitude that counts when we pray.” – Billy Graham

 

 

Twelve Inspirational Picture Quotes on Faith

16 Friday Dec 2011

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Here are twelve more inspirational faith quotes.  Have a blessed weekend.

Pastor

…. If you like these quotes you also might like these other posts on “faith”

http://wp.me/p1GmG0-6o

http://wp.me/p1GmG0-dR

https://eisakouo.wordpress.com/2012/03/24/journey-of-faith-picture-quotes/

Do You Ask for a Sign or Understanding?

15 Thursday Dec 2011

Posted by in Receiving Revelation

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Christmas is upon us again.  It is during this time we hear “The Christmas Story“. One of my favorite sections of the Advent Story is how God orchestrated the whole event.  The Lord initiated the event by speaking to the parents of both John the Baptist and Jesus.  One set of parents was older and the other younger.  In addition, their response to the Lord’s instructions was radically different.

     First, Zacharias was given a promise from God that was beyond his comprehension.  (Luke 1:5-24) He was told he and his wife Elizabeth were going to have a son in their old age. It was difficult for him to believe, so he asked God to give him confirmation.  Apparently an angel speaking to him inside the temple wasn’t a big enough sign! God silenced him for nine months.

At first glance this might appear to be too harsh.  We need to understand the bigger purposes of God.  When God silences the voices of unbelief, it is usually because their words could affect the outcome of a promise. Silence is not a bad alternative if you’re prone to destroying the word of God with your own mouth.

When Zacharias saw God’s promise fulfilled, he chose to name his son according to the command of the Lord.  All this stood against the wishes of his relatives.  They thought Zacharias would name the child after a member of the family.  When Zacharias chose obedience to the Lord’s initial word,  God loosed his tongue.  Obedience against popular opinion will often reintroduce someone to personal faith.   This a faith that goes against understanding.  (See Luke 1:57-66)

The Lord also gave instructions to Jesus’ parents, specifically Mary.  Like Zacharias, Mary was also given a promise beyond comprehension.  She was to give birth to the Son of God. When she couldn’t understand, she asked how it was possible since she was a virgin.  (See Luke 1:26-56)

She too was blown-away by the magnitude of the Lord’s words.  The difference here is profound.  Mary didn’t ask for a sign or confirmation.  She asked for further understanding of the Lord’s plans for her.  As Bill Johnson says, “Understanding a promise from God has never been the prerequisite to its fulfillment.”  How many of us have had to learn the hard way, we do not have to understand everything the Lord is doing in our lives in order for it to come to pass.

Ignorance asks for understanding; unbelief asks for proof. Mary stands apart from Zacharias because, while being ignorant, she surrendered to the promise. Her cry remains one of the most important expressions the Church can learn in this day—“Be it unto me according to Your word.”

So we have the choice: to stand in the shoes of Zacharias and lose our voice, or walk in the ways of Mary and invite God to restore to us the promises we cannot control.

Who do you want to be like?  It is imperative we not lose our voice due to lack of faith in what God is doing and calling us to do.  Lets be in agreement with Mary’s prayer today…”Be it unto me according to Your word.”

 

Blessings,

Pastor

Credibility Is Everything

14 Wednesday Dec 2011

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Unless I do the works of the Father, do not believe me.  John 10:37 (NKJV)

 

For hundreds of years the prophets spoke of the Messiah’s coming. They gave over 300 specific details describing the Messiah. Jesus fulfilled them all in detail!  The angels also gave witness to Jesus’ divinity when they came with a message for the shepherds: “For there is born to you this day … a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  (Luke 2:11)   Even nature itself testified to the arrival of the Messiah with the star that led the wise men. (Matthew 2:1)

 

Jesus put the credibility of the prophets, the angels, and nature on the line with one incredible statement.  “Unless I do the works of the Father, do not believe me,” (John 10:37) Wow!   Their ministries would have been in vain without one last ingredient to confirm who He really was. That ingredient was miracles.  Most try to stack the deck in their favor… Jesus did the polar opposite.  Jesus didn’t point to the past and say to His detractors, “Hey, remember those prophecies, angels and star.  They spoke about Me.  Believe in that miracle.”

Jesus gave people the right to disbelieve in Him if there was no current demonstration of power upon His ministry. He in essence was saying, “If you need more credible evidence of My authority, look for power manifestations of the Father in My ministry.”

What if the church made this same type of statement to the world?  “Hey, if we’re not doing the same types of miracles that Jesus did, you don’t have to believe us.”  What would happen?

 

 

Jesus’ ministry bore the authentic signature of His Father because He knew the Father’s heart.  Even as a twelve-year-old boy, Jesus knew God’s will for His life.  He called it “My Father’s Business.”   The first and only recorded words of Jesus in His youth were all about His purpose. Obeying the Father was His whole ambition. Later in adulthood He confessed that obeying the Father remained His priority. It actually brought Him nourishment—”My food is to do the will of Him who sent me.”  (John 4:34)

Jesus’ statements such as:

  • “I can of Myself do nothing,” (John 5:19)
  • “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father,”  (John 5:30) and
  • “I always do those things that please Him.”  (John 8:29)

All these statements testify of His utter dependence on the Father, and His one passion to please Him alone.

These same lessons must be learned by all who follow after the Lord.   Jesus was a 12-year-old with priorities that were different from everyone else. If Jesus could have learned the importance of the “Father’s Business” at the age of twelve…SO CAN WE!   The following illustration shows how.

       The year was 1930, and it was the year of the Naval Conference in London. King George was to address the opening session. Radio was in its infancy, but through this media the king’s message was to be carried around the world. Just before the king was to go on the air, Walter Vivian, a young engineer of the Columbia Broadcasting Company, discovered a broken wire in the transmitter. This was tragic! There was no time for repairs, and the world was waiting to hear the message of the king. The young engineer discovered what to do: He took a piece of broken wire in one hand, and a piece of broken wire in the other hand, and for fifteen minutes Walter Vivian took two hundred and fifty volts of electricity through his body so that the king’s message might go through. Wonderful! The world is waiting to hear the message of the King, and the one way for that message to go through is as it is carried to a needy world through us who profess to be His disciples. Can the King’s message be transmitted through you?

I encourage you to seek the Face of the Lord today and value the Presence and Business of the Father above all else.

Blessings,

Pastor

Following the Lord Off the Map!

13 Tuesday Dec 2011

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Most of us are familiar with the story of Alexander the Great.  He conquered most of the known world and then wept because there was no more lands to conquer.  It makes for good copy.  There is more to the story.

After many conquests he and his army found themselves at the foot of the Himalayas.  He of course wanted to press further.  The problem …. this was new territory and no one knew what was on the other side. His senior officers were troubled by his new vision.

Why? They had gone to the edge of their map.  There was no map for the new territory that Alexander wanted to possess. These officers had a decision to make: would they be willing to follow their leader off the map, or would they be content to live within its boundaries? They chose to follow Alexander.

 

 

Bill Johnson reminds us that following the leading of the Holy Spirit can present us with the same dilemma.

       While the Holy Spirit never contradicts His Word, He is very comfortable contradicting our understanding of it. Those who feel safe because of their intellectual grasp of Scriptures enjoy a false sense of security. None of us has a full grasp of Scripture, but we all have the Holy Spirit.

He is our common denominator who will always lead us into truth. But to follow Him, we must be willing to follow off the map—to go beyond what we know. To do so successfully we must recognize His presence above all.

There is a great difference between the way Jesus did ministry and the way it typically is done today. He followed the Holy Spirit’s leading, even when it seemed unreasonable, which it often did.

The Church has all too often lived according to an intellectual approach to the Scriptures, void of the Holy Spirit’s influence. We have programs and institutions that in no way require the Spirit of God to survive.

In fact, much of what we call ministry has no safeguard in it to ensure that He is even present. When our focus is not the presence of God, we end up doing the best we can for God. Our intentions may be noble, but they are powerless in effect.

    I am reminded of the conversation that took place between Thomas Aquinas, a prominent Catholic theologian of the past, and Pope Innocent II. The Pope was counting a large sum of money from the Vatican treasury and as he did so, he turned to Aquinas and noted that the church no longer needed to say, “Silver and gold have I none.” To which Aquinas replied, “True, Holy Father, but neither can the church any longer say, “rise up and walk.” 

I encourage you today to allow the Holy Spirit to take you off the map today and live in the Presence of the Lord.

Blessings,

Pastor

Every Saint Has a Past and Every Sinner a Future!

08 Thursday Dec 2011

Posted by in Kingdom of God

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27 After that He went out and noticed a tax collector named Levi sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow Me.” 28 And he left everything behind, and got up and began to follow Him.  Luke 5:27-28

 

It’s been said, “Every saint has a past and every sinner a future.”  Do you believe this?  The great hope is we do not have to stay in the place the Lord originally found us.

There were two simple words uttered from Jesus’ lips that changed Levi’s life forever…they were “Follow Me!”  It doesn’t get any more simple than this.  When Levi heard these words he jumped at the opportunity to follow the Lord, because he suddenly knew he had a future.

The story of Levi is not unlike many who the Lord called to follow Him.  Levi is better known by his other name Matthew.  He gained his livelihood by contracting with the Roman government to collect taxes from fellow Jews.  Like most tax collectors, he pocketed the gain for himself and was excluded from any form of community life with other Jews.  He was restricted to social life with peers within his profession and often shunned and hated by his own countrymen, neighbors, and even relatives. Even though he was wealthy, his social status was abhored.

 Levi’s transformation occurred when he met Jesus Christ one day. He later became an apostle and wrote the first book of the New Testament. When Levi excitedly gathered his colleagues for a feast with Jesus, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were extremely offended.  After Jesus’ association with Levi became known, the religious leaders posed this question to the disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

Thankful the Lord does associate with sinners!

 

Does a man’s past doom his future? Is repentance and change possible? Is salvation a momentary experience or an abiding decision?

Levi’s radical transformation proves the call of Christ changes us immediately and permanently.  The past stays in the past and our future becomes the Lord’s.

This story reminds me of a story from Tony Campolo’s life.

     Tony Campolo told how, upon arrival in Honolulu, he made his way unwittingly to a seedy part of town for a snack at 3:30 in the morning, to be surrounded by eight or nine prostitutes who had just taken the night off. He overheard the prostitute beside him saying to her girlfriend, “Tomorrow is my birthday.” Her friend rebutted, “So what do you want from me? You want me to get you a cake and sing, ’Happy Birthday?’“ The birthday girl protested, “Why do you have to be so mean? I was just telling you, that’s all. Why do you have to put me down? Why should you give me a birthday party now when I’ve never had a birthday party in my whole life?”

When the prostitutes left, Campolo decided to decorate the place the next night and give the birthday girl a surprise party with the help of the bartender, who happily chipped in the cake. The next day, the stunned girl was so taken back when the whole bar sang a birthday song to her. She first refused to cut the cake, then asked if she could keep the cake a little longer, and finally, for some unknown reason, even dashed home with the cake after promising to return with it later.

Campolo offered to say a prayer for the woman before the stunned crowd, and after prayer, the bartender remarked, “Hey! You never told me you were a preacher. What kind of church do you belong to?” Campolo replied, “I belong to a church that throws birthday parties for whores at 3:30 in the morning.” The bartender then sneered, “No you don’t. There’s no church like that. If there was, I’d join it.”

(The Kingdom of God is a Party 3-8, Tony Campolo, Dallas: Word Publishing, 1990).

Blessings,

Pastor

The Truth About Reindeer (Humor)

03 Saturday Dec 2011

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I have been busy with Thanksgiving activities and Christmas decorations these past few days and haven’t had the time to make regular posts.  All this reminded me about a little story I once read about reindeer.  I pass it along only for informational purposes.

Blessings,

Pastor

 

Male and Female Reindeer

According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid-December. Female reindeer retain their antlers til after they give birth in the spring. Therefore, according to every historical rendition depicting Santa’s reindeer, every single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen had to be a girl.

We should have known. Only women would be able to drag a fat man in a red velvet suit all around the world in one night and not get lost!