Wait for the Cloud

What areas are laying parched in your life, right now? Is your marriage in trouble? Are you sick in the body? Are you struggling financially? Are your children in trouble? No matter how dry and hopeless your situation is, don’t give up. Our God specializes in restoration and abundance. He will turn around your marriage and to read more

Not Guilty!

We have all dealt with guilty consciecnce. How can you get rid of your guilt? Medical science says, ‘You can’t. You’ve got to learn to live with it. But that's not true. Learn how to get the verdict, "Not Guilty!" read more

Daily Bread Panic

What do you need today? Energy to make it through the day? Finances? Wisdom? You have two alternatives: Read more

Reincarnation

Reincarnation can be defined as the belief that the spirit of a creature or human can enter into a different creature or human after death. Many New Age groups, Eastern Mystics and occultists believe in reincarnation.

Many in Christendom too adhere to this wrong belief system. They say that John the Baptist claimed to be Elijah reincarnated, and that being ‘born again’ refers to reincarnation.

Luke 1.17 says that the Baptist came ‘in the spirit and power of Elijah’. In the Bible the word spirit has a variety of meanings. It does not always refer to the soul of a human or a demon spirit. In this context the word spirit signifies character. So we can understand Luke 1.17 to mean that John the Baptist came in a character or a personality that was similar to Elijah. In John 1.21, the Baptist himself categorically denied being Elijah.

The born-again experience has nothing to do with reincarnation. Jesus flatly denied that people can be born a second time in a womb (Jn 3. 3-8). The born-again experience is a spiritual regeneration not a physical experience.

The Bible teaches resurrection, not reincarnation. Death is real and we die physically once. After death we are judged and sentenced to either heaven or hell for all eternity. (Heb 9.27; Jn 5.28-29; 1 Cor 15.20-26, Rev 20:4-6, 11-15)

Reincarnation is incompatible with Christianity. Reincarnation knows nothing of divine forgiveness because it presupposes the law of karma. Karma means getting what we deserve. According to karma, a murderer, even if he repents, will have to suffer being murdered in his next life. If one follows this logic, why should anyone help a drowning child or a blind beggar? Aren’t they suffering for their misdeeds in their previous life? If we help them, are we not interfering with their karma?

Instead of alleviating the problem of sin, reincarnation perpetuates it. There is no final forgiveness or final judgment, only endless recycling of karma.

Ungodly Belief Systems

Our mind work in 3 levels - Conscious level, Subconscious Level, and Unconscious level .

Our mind is a thought factory working 24/7 producing thought patterns or ideas. These lead to the building of our - belief systems and value systems.

Both our belief systems and value systems determines our World view. Our world view determines the manner in which we value others and God’s entire creation.

Our belief systems affect our entire life. Pro 23.7 - as a man thinks so is he…
Our belief systems can be compared to the software of a computer. Our body is the hardware and our belief system is the software fed into it. For eg. A poor boy grows up, receives good education. The young man decides to no longer honor his poor and illiterate parents. This change in him is due to his wrong belief systems.

How does a belief system develop within us?
A number of factors contribute to developing our belief system

1. The womb ( the psyche of a baby begins developing in the womb)
2. Upbringing
   - Parents mixed belief systems influence the child
   - Siblings contribute their bit
   - Experts like teachers and other authority figures impart their belief systems
   - Friends
   - Our own experiences
   
   Our core foundational belief systems are imparted during the period between conception and first 7 yrs. This is why the bible says to train up the child in the ways it should go.
3. Generational belief systems
   - Beliefs handed down the families
   - Our religion
   - Our culture, all these leave their mark on a person’s belief system

2 cor 10.4-6 tells us that we have a divine power to demolish mental strongholds. Strongholds are built in our minds. Wrong belief systems become a stronghold within our mind. When we have strongholds in our minds, we allow demons to hide among them.

Wrong Belief Systems
a. About God and spiritual matters
b. About life
c. About ourselves

· Pantheistic God- God is everywhere and in everything both living and non-living.
They believe in an impersonal God, a super power, but,
John 17.3 reminds us that God desires to be known personally by you and me.

· God is nature itself: Another wrong view is ‘God is the nature itself’, or ‘I am God, you too are one’.

· Cruel God: Even some believers believe that their God is a cruel God. Bible tells us that God is a merciful God. Every time something bad happens people say God is punishing them, but it is not always so. We live in an imperfect world, so believers and non-believers alike, face trouble and pain.

· Loud prayers: People quote Jesus saying not to pray loudly in public squares in support this. Jesus was and still is against praying to impress others. When we pray we pray to God. With that in mind it matters not how loudly or softly we pray. In heaven the angles constantly worship God in a loud voice. Surely God is not deaf, it is the culture of Heaven, so if we are citizens from above we too may worship God likewise. Its good practice, for afterwards! And no, God will not be irritated; neither will he want us to give him some peace of mind. He has all the peace of mind he desires within Himself! It is his desire that we should always stay connected to him thru our prayers.

· God is so Holy, he cannot be directly approached: Jesus said I am the way. Why search for other ways? Go to God, draw near to God thru Jesus. We need no other mediator between God and us, except Jesus.

· No more healing miracles: Hebrew 13.8 says Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The same Jesus who healed all who came to him continues to heal today too.

· Soul of man wanders about for 40days after death: this belief may have resulted because Jesus was seen by his disciples 40 days after resurrection. Jesus had a purpose for doing that. Every soul departs to its eternal place (heaven or hell) the moment it separates from the physical body.

· Christian life is sorrow and pain: God desires that we enjoy our life in Christ. Jesus said, “I have come that you may have life and abundant life, itself.”

· There is no actual heaven and hell: Heaven and hell are eternal realities but satan would have you think otherwise. Be not deceived. Jesus spoke of both as definite places.

· Horoscope, palm reading, numerology etc: your horoscope was written after you were born. Ps 139 says that all your days are already recorded in God’s book before you were even born. Place your trust in Him. Do not direct your life according to the lines on your hands.

· Zodiac signs: God created every thing. It is He who determines your life, not the movement of the planets he created.

· Black magic, witchcraft: Do not lead your life under the shadow of fear of black magic, and witchcraft someone may have done against you. No metal piece or cock’s head can control your life. Your life is in the hand of God. He is greater than all the magic in the world.

· Cannot conduct a business in a godly manner: most business people believe that one cannot do business in a godly manner. Bible tells us that we can be sincere and honest in our business dealings. It is possible to do so and yet a profit.

· Omens and signs: do not live life in the manner of the worldly; they see omens and signs hiding behind every bush. There is no omen in a black cat crossing a road. Cats were born to cross roads. What else can the poor thing do? Place your faith on God not on black cats, leaning ladders, or pails of water.

· Some youngsters think that everyone in the opposite gender are bad. God made man, male and female, there is nothing bad about it.

· Unlucky Tuesday and Friday: many believe that these days are not propitious and bad things happen if auspicious things like marriages are conducted on these days. God created everyday and everyday belongs to God. All things that God made are good and auspicious.

· Devil is all powerful: God is powerful than any demon and demonic power in this world or otherwise. There is no reason to fear the devil or overestimate him. There is nothing he can throw at us that we cannot defeat by the power of God within us.

· And many more ..

2 Cor 10. 3-5 speaks of spiritual weapons we have that we can use to fight every wrong thought patterns, strongholds, world views and be conformed to the image of God. The first step is to recognize the wrong ungodly beliefs systems within us and surrender them before God. Then replace such beliefs with right, godly belief systems. Read God’s word regularly, it has tremendous power to break off wrong beliefs and nurture the right ones.

Adapted from Ps Damien’s Sunday sermon

Unbridgeable Chasm

Mankind's engineering capabilities have grown so far that we are considering building bridges across oceans – once considered impossible due to the magnitude, extreme climatic variations and ocean currents. Often as technological advances are made we forget that there are limits placed that no man is allowed to cross. Read More...

Why The Son?

God created man out of Love. In creating Man God was creating Children who would relate to Him in love. Jesus says in the Gospel of John that if we claim to Love Him we will obey Him. (John14.15) When man wilfully rejected God's love and aligned himself with God's enemy, God had to allow man to go his way.

Though man rejected Him, God being the Loving parent wanted to reconcile with His Prodigal son. So the second person in Godhead (as decided before the foundations of the earth were laid down) went down to earth as the Son of God, to teach man the magnitude of God's Fatherly Love. (surely you know that Jesus was not God's son in the manner of human son, ie born of a woman by the will of her husband) For this reason, Jesus throughout his earthly ministry spoke of His relationship with the Loving Heavenly Father. (john 10.17, He wanted to create a thirst in man to have a similar father, son relationship with God. Jesus assures us that God desires a similar father - son relation with us too. (Mat 11.27, John 14.23)

TO those of us who desires to have this father - son relationship, Jesus says, "I am the way to the father. If you follow me, and me alone, I will ensure you are reconciled to your creator and true father. (John 16.27) Make sure you do not get off the road and get lost".

Purification Water into Wedding Wine

During OT time worshipers of the One True God Jehovah, could expect only to be cleansed and purified of their many sins through a number of ritualistic procedures. Most of them looked forward to an earthly Kingdom and rule.

OT Israelites’ relationship with God was limited to Temple worship and legalistic obedience. Most of them did not aspire for a personal relationship with God. In fact the majority feared the Lord so much they did not want to come face to face with God nor hear from him personally. They depended on Priests and Prophets in their dealings with God.

Mankind was God’s expression of His divine love. He desired to have an intimate relationship with man but sin corrupted this relationship. Since then man has been running away from His God and God has been reaching out to man with His divine love, in the person of Jesus.

During His earthly days, Jesus always spoke of God in terms of a relationship. God was His Father and Jesus was God’s Son. Jesus taught His disciples to relate to God as their Father too. He assured them that He would return soon and take them to God the Father.

So every disciple of Jesus eagerly awaits His return. Apostolic teaching teaches us that every believer is a part of the Body of Christ, and appointed to be the Bride of Christ. As the Bride of Christ we eagerly look forward to the coming of our Groom and our wedding.

NT believers look forward not to an earthly Kingdom but to a heavenly Kingdom. The King of this Kingdom is their Bridegroom and so they also look forward to a wedding.
So it would seem apt that Jesus would start His public ministry with a miracle that changed Purification Water into Wedding Wine symbolizing a NT believer’s destiny.

Performance Oriented

Why do believers perform good works?
1. Christian believers do not work in order to be saved. Believers work because they are saved!
2. The works of an unsaved person are grounds for self boasting. (Luke 18:11-12). The works of a saved person are cause for praise to God. (1 Corinthians 1:29-31).

To the person who says they are saved because they perform the rituals of the Law, Paul says, “No, it is by faith in Christ that one is saved as Christ fulfilled the Law by his blood”. James, on the other hand, while in agreement with Paul... Read more

Psalm 16:5-8

"LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken."

Hallelujah

In the Bible, the word Hallelujah occurs 21 times in the book of Psalms and 4 times in the book of Revelation. (See Darby translation:DBY for the actual references)

Hallelujah means ‘praise ye Jehovah’, and is frequently rendered "Praise ye the LORD". The Greek form of the word (alleluia) is found in Rev 19:1, 3, 4, 6. It is an, exclamatory expression of praise and adoration.

In the book of Revelation chapter 19, the first 3 renderings of the word Hallelujah is uttered because God judged the great prostitute.

1. Revelation 19:1 DBY - After these things I heard as a loud voice of a great multitude in the heaven, saying, Hallelujah: the salvation and the glory and the power of our God:
2. Revelation 19:3 DBY - And a second time they said, Hallelujah. And her (the great prostitute) smoke goes up to the ages of ages.
3. Revelation 19:4 DBY - And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and did homage to God who sits upon the throne, saying, Amen, Hallelujah.

The great prostitute (Rev 17.1, 19.20) mentioned here does not represent a woman, but is representative of the world religious system. All religions, including Christianity, draw man away from God and focuses on works or actions.

Religion is the discovery of man. God is not connected or affiliated to any religion. God send Jesus to prepare a way for us. He came to restore man’s lost relationship with God. Jesus always spoke about relationship with His Father, God. If he wanted to direct people to a religion he would have spoken for the Jewish religion, after all he was born a Jew.

The fourth and final time the word Hallelujah is written in the New Testament, it is in relationship with the Lamb’s wedding.

1. Revelation 19:6 DBY - And I heard as a voice of a great crowd, and as a voice of many waters, and as a voice of strong thunders, saying, Hallelujah, for [the] Lord our God the Almighty has taken to himself kingly power.

Jesus invites you to a very intimate relationship. You are invited to become his bride. Get ready.

The Bride or The Guest?

Rev 19.9 speaks of the guests invited for wedding feast of Christ. “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”

In any wedding, the bride is the center of attraction. She stands beside her groom, radient and beautiful. She considers herself to be the happiest woman on earth. It’s Her Day. No bride is ever invited to her own wedding feast. There is no need for her to be invited. There will be no wedding feast without the bride. Yet many in the Christendom have nurtured the belief that the invitees to the Lamb’s wedding feast is the Bride herself. (Rev 19.9)

Then, who are these blessed guests? In our weddings, the invitees are often the friends and relatives of the bride and groom. If that is so, we may safely assume that Jesus’ friends and relatives will be part of the invited guests in His wedding feast too.

So now the question is who are his blood relatives?

Apostle John puts it this way in John 1.11, 'He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him'. Jesus, the Messiah was born a Jew. He was from the tribe of Judah. Many biblical scholars believe that all the Old Testament Jewish saints will be the invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb. Revelation Chapters 7 and 14 also speaks of some 144,000 Jews that are sealed from all the 12 tribes of Israel. Then there are the martyrs from the great tribulation. The guest list of this wedding of the ages is very Long!

The invitees are called ‘blessed, yet it is the Bride who will take her place beside the Bridegroom. The groom is no ordinary man. He is neither an ordinary prince nor an ordinary king; he is the Kings of Kings and Lord of Lords and the only begotten Son of Almighty God. He is the sole heir to God and His Bride is co-heir with Him.

To be the Bride of Christ should be our yearning. A bride’s thoughts are centered on her betrothed. She consults him on everything and refrains from everything that displeases him. She does everything to please her beloved. We are betrothed to our bridegroom Jesus and our thoughts, words and deeds must be pleasing to Him. Our focus should be Jesus and his wishes. Speaking of His Bride, Jesus once said that she hears His voice and follows Him implicitly, wherever He leads her. John 10.27

Are we staying close to Jesus’ heart? Are we listening to Him daily and following him wholeheartedly? Let us run the race to win, to win His heart and prepare to be His Bride.

(Adapted from Ps. Damien's Sunday sermon)

Make Your Own Wedding Gown.

Bible speaks of the wedding gown the Bride (of Christ) will be given to wear at her wedding as self made. Unlike the western custom of ordering the fanciest wedding gown and trousseau, young girls in many oriental and eastern cultures painstakingly sew their own wedding gowns. The intricate embroidery works on each bride’s gown is a sure indication of her skillfulness and hard work.

Rev 19.7b – 8 speaks of the wedding of the Lamb (Christ). “For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)”

The righteousness mentioned here is not the righteousness of Christ it is the, righteous acts of the bride herself.

We became eligible to become Christ's bride because of the gift of righteousness given us by Christ. However, the fine linen gown worn by the Bride is the acts of righteousness done by her. She has prepared the gown and herself for the wedding ceremony.

Eph 2.10 says we are ‘created in Christ Jesus to do good works’. After our new birth experience we involve ourselves in various selfless good deeds like leading souls to Christ, helping the poor, etc. The Bible tells us that these good deeds become the embroidery on our wedding dress.

Now that we are washed in his Blood and given His righteousness, are we diligently at work on our wedding dress?

(adapted from Ps. Damien's sunday sermon)

Worry empties you of strength

Are you facing a situation that seems hopeless? What are your options? Worrying about it? That’s no option, for worrying does not empty tomorrow of its trouble, it empties today of its strength.

In the Bible, Abraham was in a hopeless situation. Both Abraham and His wife, Sarah, were well beyond child-bearing years and Abraham didn’t see any reason to hope. Yet He had a promise from God that He would be the father of many nations. The scripture says—even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept on hoping. He chose to have an attitude of faith and expectancy, and God was faithful to Abraham and fulfilled His promise!

Let me encourage you today, to stop worrying and put on an attitude of faith and expectancy. The God of Abraham is still the faithful one and will turn your hopelessness into rejoicing.

Church Bulletins Bloopers !

• The outreach committee has enlisted 25 visitors to make calls on people who are not "afflicted" with any church.
• The Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B.S. is done. Evening massage - 6 p.m.
• The audience is asked to remain seated until the end of the recession.
• Ushers will eat latecomers
• For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
• The Rev. Meriwether spoke briefly, much to the delight of the audience.
• Due to the Rector's illness, Wednesday's healing services will be discontinued until further notice.
• Next Sunday Mrs. Vinson will be soloist for the morning service. The pastor will then speak on "It's a Terrible Experience."
• Today's Sermon: HOW MUCH CAN A MAN DRINK? With hymns from a full choir.
• Potluck supper: prayer and medication to follow.
• Don't let worry kill you off - let the church help.
• The 2009 Spring Council Retreat will be "hell" May 2 and 3.
• Pastor is on vacation. "Massages" can be given to church secretary.
• 8 new choir robes are currently needed due to the addition of several new members and to the deterioration of some older ones.
• The pastor will preach his farewell message, after which the choir will sing, "Break Forth Into Joy."
• The third verse of Blessed Assurance will be sung without musical accomplishment

My Brother’s Keeper

"A despairing man should have the devotion of his friends, even though he forsakes the fear of the Almighty" (Job 6:14NIV).

According to Biblical standards I am my brother's keeper. I am duty bound to help bear my brother's troubles and problems. read more