Love your enemies?


But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you ( Matt 5:44)

Greetings. I purposely added a question mark at the end of my title message. Yes, the word of God commands us to love our enemies, but the flesh in us screams no. We all have found it hard to do at a certain point in our lives. Some people would say–You don’t know what they did to me. Others would say–I tried, but I can’t. These are strong arguments against loving your enemies, but let’s look at the following verse below—


I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (John 15:5)


Guess what? You cannot forgive, and that is a true statement. The hurts might have been profound. Maybe, you suffered significant financial loss. Another reason can be that you lost a beloved family member who got killed in cold blood. I could go on with a series of reasons why you should hate your enemy, but believe it or not, the way to forgive is to admit that you cannot do it on your own.


I worked with a dear Saint who fled Cuba due to the repressive tyranny of Communism. She had lived in the United States for years, and life was good for her. One day while conversing during a break in my job with me, she said that she could not forgive Fidel Castro. She blamed him for having lost some of her family members. Memories like these are hard to forget, much less forgive.


Whether you believe it or not, God’s love has no limits. Think of the meanest person you have ever met, and you will see that God still loves them. (Ezekiel 33:11) We all know that Fidel Castro passed away many years ago. Yes, he ruled with an iron hand, but if he had repented during the last few minutes before drawing his last breath, he would have made heaven his home. Yes, this is hard to imagine, but God’s mercy has no limits.


The secret to forgiving others is to abide in the vine. Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches. Remember his words–Without me, we can do nothing. Our abiding and identity with Christ are essential to being able to forget and forgive. God’s word says that we have the mind of Christ. Christ is not Jesus’ last name.


The word Christ is the Greek word for anointing. Isaiah 10:27 describes that anointing. It removes the burden (load) from your shoulders. We have burdens (The cares of life, stress, and anxieties). The anointing in the mind of Christ carries that power to give you peace amid the wild raging storms of life.


That anointing will also give you the power to destroy the yoke of the enemy, the world, and the flesh. There are two yokes in the Bible. One is made out of wood and the other Iron. Wood symbolizes the flesh and the world. Iron represents Demonic oppression.

An Iron yoke is meant to be destroyed, not broken. My main point for this reasoning is that Iron can be welded back. The anointing will rot that Iron, just like the effects of water rending it of no good use.


If you are a Christian, you can have the mind of Christ. It’s there for the taking. Use it for your battle of unforgiveness. Learn to abide in the vine. Then, you can do all things thru Christ, who strengthened you.


Prayer–Father, forgive me for being bitter against those who have wronged me. Heal those hurts and pains in my heart and mind. I take the mind of Christ. I will forgive by faith those who have wronged me. I have the mind of Christ. I will abide in the vine. Christ is in me, and I am in him. As of this moment in my life, I will walk in the love of Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Guess who’s coming to dinner?

Does that title sound familiar? If you were born in the fifties, it should. Back in 1967, there was a movie made with that title. It was groundbreaking because it addressed a sensitive subject—Interracial dating. It had a good plot with comedy mixed in with some drama.

It was a good plot. The story begins when Joanna “Joey” Drayton (Katharine Houghton) comes from a vacation in Hawaii to visit her parents in San Francisco. She brings along her fiance Dr. John Prentice (Sidney Poitier). There is only one problem—She is white, and he is African-American, and they are engaged to be married.

What does that have to do with our message? Simple. My question to you is–Guess who’s coming to dinner? Let’s look at the verse below–

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. (Rev 3:20)

Jesus wants to come in and sup with you on this day. Yes, many ministries have used this verse to win souls, and there is nothing wrong with that, but as you read the full content, it is talking to the church. The Lord called the church of Laodicea to the carpet due to an issue in their worship. The believers in that time were in the habit of taking communion daily. (Acts 2:46) They would take it in the temple, and other times, they would go from house to house.

We fail to understand the power of communion. Notice Acts 2:42 says that they were breaking bread and having prayers simultaneously. Communion was a powerful tool in spiritual warfare(Breaking of bread). Another factor was prayer followed by fellowship with the believers.

The Laodicean church was in the practice of taking communion, but something happened. They became Lukewarm. Why? Scripture does not tell us what factors contributed to that condition, but the enemy slipped in there with distractions and caused them to disregard the communion elements. Our Lord Jesus is a God of second chances. He was knocking at the doors of their hearts to remind them that he wanted to break bread with his people.

What about you? Have you been so distracted with the cares of life that you have forsaken your time with God? God is knocking at the door of your heart to let him in. He wants to fellowship with you and bring answers to your most pressing needs. Today, make it a habit to learn about the power of communion and what it can do for you.

Do you want to know how you can unleash the power of communion and experience God on a new level? Take some time to read and study this link. It will make a difference in your life, and you will never be the same…https://wordandgrace.blogspot.com/2022/01/in-remembrance-of-me.html

Watch and pray.


But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. (Gen 6:8)

Greetings. In this lesson, I want to direct your attention to learning how to listen to God in prayer. In order to have God speak to you, Grace has to be a factor. The Hebrew word Grace means to have favor or be pleasing to God. Noah sought the Lord’s face constantly and loved the Lord. Because of this, he found grace before the Lord, and God spoke to him.

When God spoke to Noah, he showed him his calling. He was to warn the people of impending judgment. For years, his message was to repent. People mocked and laughed at him. The only ones who listened were his family. What does that tell us? In these last days, it is very important that we take time to listen to God. When we listen to God, he shows us our calling. His direction and guidance can even save our lives and our loved ones.

Sometimes, God uses tragedies to wake us up and fulfill our calling. I saw a docudrama on the life of Sis Helen (1). She was an alcoholic. Her wake-up call came when she lost her husband and son. Her son was, brutally, stabbed in the streets, and that incident brought her to God. She became a nun, got into a run-down tenement in the Bronx, New York, and helped the drug addicts and alcoholics.

She had people from the streets who looked mean, but this little Irish Nun was not intimidated. She would show tough love and get in their faces if they got out of line. It was amazing how they respected her. To many, she was like a mother. Granted, we can be critical and say that she lived in poverty in a rat-infested home. Her methods might have been unorthodox as far as the church was concerned, but she impacted those men’s lives.

She took a negative, which was losing a son in the streets to gain some spiritual sons from the street. God can give you grace with the meanest people in your neighborhood and open the doors to saving souls. Mean people need love. When they see the glory of God on you in a real way, they will start to open their hearts. I want to encourage you to seek God and ask the Holy Spirit to help you listen to his voice. It might save your life. God bless.

(1) For a look at Sis Helen, click on this link. You can watch it on the Tubi channel network…https://youtu.be/QOPnTMCagw0

Friday night service.

We had a great time together. Brother Danny shared the message of Salvation. We know that people watching us on Facebook live got exposed to the good news. My wife, Co-Pastor Terry, shared a word of encouragement. I shared about the importance of communion for the body. God is a covenant God, and there is power when you stand on his promises.


One good example was when the children of Israel were under Egyptian bondage for 400 years. During much suffering and turmoil, some remembered their covenant with the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. (Exodus 2:24) Scripture teaches us that God delivered them with supplied them with silver and gold. We also saw that there was no feeble among them. The word feeble in the Hebrew text means sick. (Ps 105:37)


God has delivered us from spiritual Egypt. On the one hand, Egypt symbolizes the world, flesh, and the devil. The other side is that God has given us a covenant with better and greater promises. Covenant is a powerful tool to have in prayer. Taking communion is beyond remembering the death of Jesus on the cross for us. It releases the promises of God for our lives.


So, as you take time to watch our teaching on communion, your eyes will be open to new revelations of God. You will notice how this special ceremony has been perverted in the past by man’s tradition and religion. Another nugget is discovering how its power can free you from your struggles. One last thing, have your bread and juice ready. As you take this in faith, watch and see how God’s power will move in your life.

The Grace of God

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? (Romans 2:4)

While studying Rev 9, The Holy Spirit brought an exciting thing to my attention. Even during the tribulation times, he gives men the opportunity to repent. The only time when he doesn’t bother with men is when they have taken the mark of the Beast. Scripture teaches us that they have forsaken God and his gift of salvation ( Rev 13:8). They made a choice and sealed their fate.

Upon reading Rev 9:4, we see a plague of locusts that has been sent forth to torment those who have not the seal of God in their foreheads. This agony lasts five months, is very painful and death even flees from them—a sad state of affairs. After five months, some will die a painful death. Pay attention to the number five. Five is the biblical number of grace.

Habakkuk 3:2 is a prayer in which is mentioned mercy in wrath. God is giving these people a chance to repent in Rev 9:20-21. Why? I believe these are secular people who have refused to take the mark of the Beast. They live a sinful lifestyle but still have a chance to repent. Sadly, their hearts have become hardened, and they reject Jesus.

Brethren, I want to encourage you to take advantage of the goodness and grace of God. When you stumble, don’t turn from him. Run to Him and confess your sins. God can give you a fresh start and a new beginning. Let us not harden our hearts by turning away from him. He loves us and wants us to taste and see that the Lord is good.

The church of Pergamos

 

Picture of modern-day Pergamos

Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God  (Heb 6:1)

Is Doctrine important?

The meaning of the word doctrine comes there the Greek word “Logos” which means sayings of Decree, mandate, or order. In the ’80s, there was a push to unify the church. We saw a strong showing of unity in the Washington for Jesus movement.  Believers fasted and prayed unto the Lord. Things started to turn around for this country for a season.

After that season, we saw a couple of things happen. A few prominent ministers fell and false doctrines started to make their way into the movement. Ministers started saying that doctrine was not important and as a consequence of those incidents, the unity of the body took a back seat. My friend, doctrine is very important for the body of Christ if we are to stand and make an impact on society.

Doctrine of Balaam

As we study the church of Pergamos, we find two major doctrines that are the mentioned-the doctrine of Balaam and of the Nicolaitanes. We had discussed the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes some time ago, and now we will take a look at the doctrine of Balaam. What is the doctrine of Balaam? It is based on the love of money and compromise (2 Peter 2:15)

Have you heard the saying–Money talks? It does, especially within the church. Many Pastors who were once anointed, have compromised the word for the sake of money. There are others who talk about money, prosperity, and feeling good without repentance or holiness. I don’t mean to fault-find because by the grace of God stand I, but the doctrine of Christ has to be followed in order to have unity within the body.

The word commands us to be of one mind. ( Phil 1:27, Phil 2:2) One obstacle to this is that we are opinionated, so in the natural, this would be hard to follow. The good news is that God has given us the mind of Christ. If we put on Christ and his identity, being of one mind will not be hard. Revelation knowledge will come and it will cause us to walk in one mind and be unified.

So, in this day, make it a practice to put on Christ. Ask God to help you discern proper doctrine. Declare that you have the mind of Christ. Spend some time seeking his face, praying for the body and what is your part in this end-time movement. God bless.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The church of Smyrna

Greetings. It has been a while since I last wrote a post on my blog. Frankly, it feels good to be back. Thank you for your past support. Now, having said that, we will continue with our study of the book of Revelation. We are going to look at the church of Smyrna. Let’s study Rev 2:8-11 (Good news Version)—
“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
This is the message from the one who is the first and the last, who died and lived again. I know your troubles; I know that you are poor—but really you are rich! I know the evil things said against you by those who claim to be Jews but are not; they are a group that belongs to Satan! Don’t be afraid of anything you are about to suffer. Listen! The Devil will put you to the test by having some of you thrown into prison, and your troubles will last ten days. Be faithful to me, even if it means death, and I will give you life as your prize of victory. If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches! Those who win the victory will not be hurt by the second death.”

The church of Smyrna was facing intense persecution. One of the ways in which they got persecuted was by losing their material wealth. During that time, the Roman government demanded allegiance to Caesar as Lord. Christians stood firm and proclaimed Jesus as Lord. Some were put to death, while others suffered the loss of their wealth. They were dismissed from their jobs. Those who were looking for a job could not be hired. Others faced the loss of their business.

They were destitute and poor, yet Christ saw them as being rich. Two things to glean from this—

  • True riches come from serving God. There is no price for his presence and being guided by him.
  • God saw that they had the ability to get what they needed in the spirit. The word of God says to call those things that are not as though they were ( Rom 4:17) Our trust and provision come from God and not from man.

Another point to consider is that they were persecuted by the Jews. God called the Jews as belonging to the synagogue of Satan. (King James version) This type of persecution was religious in nature. The Lord saw their pain and gave them a word to comfort them. Notice, he says to listen (Rev 2:10) and gives them the details of their suffering. It was going to get worse.

He mentions 10 days. I believe it is not, literally, 10 days but it is symbolic for the 10 emperors that will put this church thru intense persecution. The Bishop of the church during that period was Polycarp. It was believed that he got captured and brought before the coliseum. He was told to renounce his faith, which he refused. His punishment was to be burned at the stake. As he was burning, it was noted that a nice fragrance was in the air and he was preserved. A soldier stabbed him, finally killing him. (1)

This should cause us to analyze our walk with him. Around the world, many Christians are dying for their faith and suffering great torture. May we be mindful to keep our brethren in our prayers. God, help us to count the cost and be faithful unto death.

Some final thoughts-the word Smyrna means Myrrh. It is symbolic of suffering and its fragrance is sweet. God sees the church of Smyrna’s suffering as a sweet smell to him. Brethren, here in America, we may not see this type of suffering, but believe me, you are going to go thru many testings and trials. It’s part of our package of Salvation. Personally, I see that when persecution comes to me thru a family member or incident, I rejoice. Doing this has brought great comfort and blessings in my life.

Always, remember that we will, always, have trials and tribulations. The good news is with the Lord on our side, he is able to give you the victory. You are destined to win because we are more than conquerors thru him that loved us. (Rom 8:37) God bless and be encouraged.

Get a free stock…https://join.robinhood.com/angels1702

Picture courtesy of Michael Burghers…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Burghers_michael_saintpolycarp.jpg

Bible verses provided courtesy of http://www.biblegateway.com

(1) https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/polycarp/

Something different…

 

Greetings. We are going to take a break in our studies of the book of Revelation. The Lord led me to post from my other blog a subject that will make you hunger for God’s word.

                                    Amazing facts from the Bible. 

Have you tried to read the Bible, only to be frustrated at not understanding it? Are you a skeptic, thinking that it is filled with fairy tales? I have news for you, friend, God’s word is real and it is alive. Let us look at this amazing fact-

” Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go and say unto thee, Here we are?”                                                         (Job 38:35)

Think about this verse and the time in which it was written. The book of Job was the oldest book of the Bible. Can you fathom what was in the mind of the reader who was alive during that time?  Lightning talking to you? It, also, gives the glory to God alone who could perform that miracle.

Now, let’s go to the present. We all know that electricity carries our voices and images throughout different ways of media and communication. Yes, from the time to Benjamin Franklin, who was thought to be the pioneer of electricity, man has come a long way in it’s development. Man discovered electricity and the laws that make them work, but God had that knowledge way back in the days of Job.

Here is another Bible nugget. Let’s read the verse below—

 “It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: ” (Isa 40:22)

This is another prophetic wonder of God and how he foresaw the future. Since the time before Christopher Columbus circled the Earth, man held to the belief that the Earth was flat. We, all, know what happened-Columbus proved that theory wrong and discovered the new world, but it doesn’t stop there—there is more in Isaiah 40:22. 

Notice the words- “…Stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain… ” Science has discovered that the universe is being stretched out by an unseen force.  If our leaders and governments would have taken God at his word, imagine all that money that our government could have saved. All it would have took is a couple of dollars to buy a bible and turn to Isaiah 40:22 and the answer could have been right under their nose instead of doing all that expensive research at taxpayer’s expense. 

                                    Final thoughts.                                

It is my prayer that this will stir up any hunger to read God’s word. If God’s word foretold these thing centuries ago, then you can rest assured that God will reveal your plan for your life. He will show you the end from the beginning and make you more than a conqueror!

Let me end my thoughts by sharing the following-” For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jer 29:11) You have a future with Jesus and it is a glorious one. God bless.

The doctrine of the Nicolaitanes.

So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate. (Rev 2:15)

                                Defining the word doctrine 

Greetings. In this Bible study, we will look into the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. As you study Rev 2, you will find that God mentions the Nicolaitanes two times. When you see a word repeated in the Bible, pay attention. Doing so will help you find out what God is trying to tell you.

First, let’s define the word doctrine. Webster’s dictionary defines it as something that is taught. Teachings or instruction. The word of God places great importance on the doctrine of Christ. (Heb 6:1) What is God trying to tell us concerning doctrine? Correct doctrine is important and failure to adhere to it can have grave consequences

Let dig in further. The word Nicolaitanes comes from two Greek words. Nikos and Laos. Combine together it means the conqueror of the people or laity. The Lord has placed Pastors as the authority of the local church. The Holy Spirit speaks to the Pastors first, and then to the church. Pastors are supposed to be hearing and guiding the church thru the Holy Spirit.

                                The root of false doctrine 

When the people override the Pastor’s authority, there is division. Respecting God’s spiritual authority in the church will bring you into a safe place. Everyone needs to know their place in the church so it can operate in peace and harmony. Miriam and Aaron got into trouble because they tried to override Moses authority. (Numbers 12:1-9)

Most theologians believe that the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes came from Nicolas, one of the first deacons of the church. (Acts 6:1-5). The Apostle Paul had warned that out of the congregation would come division and strange doctrines. (Acts 20:30-31) This message would not be received in today’s modern user-friendly church. The church needs to receive correction and warnings so that they could be watchful and not allow the enemy place.

Let’s look at the life of Nicolas and how this false doctrine came into being–

  • First, Nicolas might have been a charismatic person, finding fault with everything and everyone. Maybe, he wanted to go on his own (without being ordained) and have his own church.
  • Another possibility is mixture. Mixture could have played a role because some people in the church of Ephesus had books of curious arts (Witchcraft and sorcery–Acts 19:19).
  • Finally,  it stands to reason since they were in a sexually liberal city, they had lowered their standards.

                             Watch and pray 

It is not clear what happened, but false doctrine rose up to try to destroy the Ephesian church. God complimented them for their stand against those false teachings. What is the central message for us in this day and age? Watch! Brethren, now more than ever, we need to watch for false doctrine.

Some churches are lowering their standards. Holiness is a foreign word in some churches and grace is being perverted. It’s time to pray, stand firm in the Lord, and be vigilant. Let’s learn from this example and reject any false teachings in our lives. Pray and support your Pastor. Allow God to use him to bring about correction and order. Doing so will keep you on the right path and in a place of safety. God bless.

 

FORGIVENESS: THE ANTIBIOTIC FOR THE WOUNDED SOUL (Guest Blogger)

Tracey Moore is a minister, writer, and poet.

Since we have so many opportunities to be offended every day, and we have to forgive often to make sure we are not in a state of torment, it’s imperative that we get good at forgiveness. Not only do we need to forgive, but we need to forgive quickly. We need to refuse to give the enemy any room to shut down the anointing on our lives and steal our peace and joy. Amen?

That being said, I’d like to point out that I often see God as presenting concepts to me with three elements on which to focus. Forgiveness is another one of those concepts that I view as analogous to a three-legged stool. The three legs that keep the stool stable and balanced are three quality decisions we must make based on truths in the Word of God:

  1. We trust God to pay back the perpetrator for the wrong done to us in His way and in His time. God said in Romans 12:19, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.” He also says in Isaiah 61:8, “For, I the Lord, love justice.” Exodus 34:7 says, “He will not leave the guilty unpunished.” Therefore, you can trust God to repay the wrong that was done to you. You have His Word on it. 
  1. We trust God to pay us back double for what we have lost. Isaiah 61:7 says, “For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.” God is saying that I will pay you back more than what you lost if you will trust Me. 
  1. We take the prescribed actions that have been commanded in the Word toward our enemies.  Jesus said in Matthew 5:44, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. When you take these actions toward your enemies, THAT is the true sign of forgiveness. 

In summary, when you make these decisions and act accordingly, the power to heal flows from God. Your soul flourishes and prospers. It’s not about feelings. The bad feelings you may be experiencing are the by-product of an unhealed soul wound. Making the right DECISIONS to believe and take corresponding actions is when the healing will break forth.  As a result, anger and bitterness will subside.

Forgiveness is the antibiotic that will cleanse that soul wound and allow it to heal. Therefore, forgiveness is not simply the absence of emotions, It’s the presence of faith in God. Trusting Him at his word and executing specific behaviors that can be clearly observed. So if you are harboring any unforgiveness in your heart, why not give yourself the gift of forgiveness? Decide to let the healing begin today! When you decide and act in the manner God requires, your three-legged stool of forgiveness will remain stable and so will your life. 

If you would like to read more of Rev. Tracey Moore’s teachings, click on the link below…https://traceylmoore.com/