Holy Kool-Aid?

Getting a comment like this one…

“I’m so glad I stopped drinking the holy kool-aid otherwise my brain would be fried on religion like yours is.”

…would be comical, if it wasn’t so sad.

 

It was left in the queue at my previous post:  The Lies and Viciousness of Leftists.

Someone like that isn’t here for the purpose of discussion.  They are here just to insult.  Perhaps he doesn’t even know where such an expression began?  It’s truly sad, evil, and despicable:

 

It appears that he claims that he once was “drinking the holy kool aid.” Good thing it wasn’t from Jim Jones, the cult leader!  Therefore, it is likely that he was one of those fallen-by-the-wayside former believers that Jesus mentioned in His Parable of the Sower.

The disciples asked Jesus:

Mat 13:10
¶
And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

See, there is nothing wrong with asking questions, and Jesus saw the concern that the disciples had that some listeners “would not get it.”

Mat 13:11
¶
He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

Mat 13:12

“For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.

Mat 13:13

“Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

So, we see that the pretenders will be found out.  They will not see the truth, will refuse to hear the truth, and ultimately because of such rejections, will not understand the truth.

It may be considered a harsh reality.  However, Scripture informs us as to why this is so. Understanding the truth requires faith.

Heb 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

It is also interesting to read the prophecy in Isaiah, which predicted that when the Messiah (that the Old Testament prophets, in faith, were waiting for) appears, there would be many who would refuse to believe:

Mat 13:14

“And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:

‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not perceive;

Mat 13:15

For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should[fn] heal them.’[fn]

The people of Isaiah’s day yearned deeply to see, hear, and understand the coming Messiah!  They were saved by believing He would come, one day, even if they were not alive at the time of His appearing.  Their FAITH that He would one day come into the world was enough for their salvation at that time.

Jesus told His disciples how fortunate they were to see, hear, and understand Him – the promised Messiah!

Mat 13:16

“But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear;

Jesus then explains why some refuse to see, hear, and understand; as He explains further:

Mat 13:18
¶
“Therefore hear the parable of the sower:

Mat 13:19

“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.

Mat 13:20

“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;

Mat 13:21

“yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

Mat 13:22

“Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

So…Adam…if you happen to come back here and read this, which one of these apply to you?

Jesus describes those who received the seed on good ground:

Mat 13:23

“But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

Compromise

Yes.  There are times in life where we can compromise.  Simple choices like which restaurant to choose for tomorrow’s dinner, which hotel is best to stay at, and even whether or not to get into an argument about something petty are just a few examples.  As the graphic above states, “There are things that are okay to compromise.  There are things that are not okay to compromise.  Life is about learning the difference.”

However, God’s written Word, the Bible, and His Living Word, Jesus Christ, is NOT included in the “okay to compromise list.”

 

I was reminded of the dangers when compromises of true Christian faith invade the Christian churches when I received an email containing a little parable about pastoral care.

First, a little background on the subject.  Sometimes I get emailed comments when people visit and post at my former Talk Wisdom blog.  Over the years since I had chosen to abandon that particular blog, I usually only get spam comments.

[FYI, the reason that I abandoned that blog was because I did not agree with the new rules that G00gle imposed upon blog owners.  If I signed into that blog to alert readers of my move over to WordPress, then I would have automatically been forced into the agreement.  That is why I could not post a message when I left that blog in order to lead former readers to this blog.]

The post where I received the legitimate comment (although the screen name said “Unknown,”) was written in response to my post entitled, “Compromise + Enabling = Heresy” posted on September 18, 2008.

Excerpt:

There have been so many great posts at many blogs on my Christian Blog List that have touched on the subjects of compromise, enabling and heresy. I think that this is a subject that is one of the most important issues that Christianity faces today.

Does compromise plus enabling equal heresy?

I truly believe that all three are actively at work in today’s postmodern Christian church culture. In years past, those churches that obviously compromised the truth of the Bible and true Gospel (regarding sin, pride of self, ignoring and/or allowing unrepentant rebellion against God and His Word, and the re-making of Jesus Christ in their own image) were typically labeled as the “liberal” wing of Christianity.

However, compromise, enabling and heresy is creeping into Evangelical church circles at an increasingly alarming rate. Those of us (called the elect in God’s Word) who see this are attempting to sound the alarm bells to warn those who may be caught up in such movements.  The call to return back to the Bible and what Jesus said was needed to inherit the kingdom of God, (namely – our need to repent of sin, follow the Law [Jesus said, “if you love me, keep my commandments] and the Prophets;  and abide by the true gospel of Christ is what points us towards righteousness and holiness.

Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Mar 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if [it were] possible, even the elect.

The “elect” are the truly saved in Jesus Christ. Notice that Jesus himself acknowledges that the “false Christs and false prophets” [s]hall deceive the very elect. But notice what Jesus said just before those words – “if [it were] possible!! This means that it isn’t going to happen! There will always be a remnant of the faithful who will not be deceived by powerful “signs and wonders” that will deceive those not genuinely born again in Christ.

Human nature (especially the nature of the unsaved) is likely to deem such terminology as elitist, bragging, or much worse. What they are missing is the fact that it is the humbling of the heart, confession of sin, repentance of all our sin, asking for mercy and grace at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ that enables us to be His (Jesus Christ’s). There is no pride allowed in such an act. We know from whence we came (sinners, desperately in need of the Savior) and that if it weren’t for Christ’s sacrificial, substitutionary death on the cross, WE WOULD ALSO BE LOST FOR ALL ETERNITY. We can’t boast in anything – but the cross of Christ.

Gal 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Look at Paul’s instruction for the elect:

Col 3:12 ¶ Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;

Col 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also [do] ye.

Col 3:14 And above all these things [put on] charity, which is the bond of perfectness.

Col 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Col 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, [do] all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Also, look at Jude’s admonition to seek out the lost and if necessary, pull them out of the fire:

Jud 1:23 And others save with fear, pulling [them] out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

How are we to balance all of this?

Some choose to use compromise so as not to offend anyone.

Others, choose to utilize a certain level of enabling – so as to appear loving, kind, tolerant, and non-judgmental.

Still others, go all the way towards heresy – willingly or unwittingly – and may THINK they are saved but because of following false doctrine, are not.

Read the rest of the post HERE.

*******

The following is a copy of the comment left by “Unknown” yesterday:

The Parable of the Train Traveler [in England]
by Rollin Grams

His disciples asked him, “Teacher, tell us: What is good pastoral care?”
He replied, ‘A certain man wanted to take a train from Cardiff to St. David. Three priests were standing on the platform with him. The man, who was terrified of train travel, asked the, ‘is this train safe?’
The first priest, who believed that all train travel was safe, assured the man that it mattered not which train he took or where he traveled. ‘You shall be safe,’ he stated firmly, ‘and know of a certainty that the Church has blessed this train.’ Then he gave the man and encouraging smile.

The second priest, who had planned to go to Oxford, said, ‘I shall change my ticket, travel with you, sit beside you to encourage you along the way, and have shared conversations.’ With that, he climbed onto the train with the man, helping him with his baggage.

The third priest, who moments earlier had checked the train news on his Smartphone, yelled, ‘Get off the train! The bridge is out and you shall surely perish, all of you!’

Then, turning to Peter, the teacher asked, ‘Which of the priests gave good pastoral care?’
“I suppose,’ answered Peter, ‘the second one, who stayed off his cell phone and gave the man his full attention and good company.’

Moral to the story:  (my own take)

Peter blew it.  Warning the people, as did the old time prophets (and as both John the Baptist and Jesus did), is a vital part of pastoral care, and sometimes it is the best thing we can do for our congregations, even if they do not want to hear it.

[Posted by Unknown to Talk Wisdom at September 27, 2016 at 10:41:00 AM PDT.]

Speak the Things Which We Have Seen and Heard

 

The title of this post comes from a verse in Acts 4.  With the upcoming TV series about the Book of Acts and Dr. David Jeremiah’s 12 week Turning Point Ministry sharing the Scripture behind the story, I began thinking about how the Apostles in the Book of Acts were received during their missionary journeys.  They encountered both joy from those who believed, and threats to shut them up from the establishment authorities who wanted to shut down the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Before I post the verses leading up to that particular Bible verse in Acts 4, I wanted to first share some quotes regarding religious liberty from the late Dr. D. James Kennedy. Dr. Kennedy truly knew what our Founders meant regarding the Establishment Clause in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.  He knew how vitally important the free exercise of religion was to our Founders, and how such rights would be threatened and attacked in our day.

Does the First Amendment declare the “separation of church and state”?  Probably 99 percent of the people in America today have been brainwashed into saying “yes.”  But it does not!  We must understand what the First Amendment says, because the relationship between these two “kingdoms” – church and state – has been long and difficult.  The founding fathers resolved that question in a marvelous way, but their solution is being completely disregarded in our time–and most people are not aware of it.

The First Amendment states:  “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”  What does this say about what the church can or cannot do?  What does it say about what a Christian citizen should or should not do?  Absolutely nothing!  It says, “Congress shall make no law respecting and establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

The First Amendment forbids the federal government from restricting religion in any manner.  The Establishment Clause was only intended to stop the formation of a national church; and so it must be seen as merely a further limitation on government from restricting people from freely exercising their faith.

– Dr. D. James Kennedy

The founders of our nation wanted to avoid what was happening in Britain – the imposition of a national church upon the people. But the First Amendment and Establishment Clause were NOT meant to squelch the speech, worship, and associations of people and various denominations of churches from having the ability to freely exercise their faith.

Today, government is setting down a strong hand in order to restrict people from freely exercising their faith.  Most often these restrictions are being pushed upon those who hold to the Christian faith. Please read some of the previous posts here at Talk Wisdom for evidence of this fact!

As Christians, we know that God has called us to preach the Gospel of Christ – “in season as well as out of season.”  In today’s vernacular, we might say “when it’s popular as well as when it isn’t popular” to do so.

2Ti 4:2

Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.

However, being an honest book, the Bible has already told us that there would be those who would fight hard against the spread of Christianity!  Such goals were evident when the Apostles started preaching about Christ in the book of Acts.

Note these verses:

Act 4:15

But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,

Act 4:16

saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

Act 4:17

“But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

Act 4:18

So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

Act 4:19

But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.

Act 4:20

“For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

Why did the council not want the miracle that was done through the Apostles and the teachings of Jesus Christ to spread? Because it interfered with their authority. They could not have this Jesus spoken of as the crucified, risen Savior of the world! It would threaten their religious authority.

Today, the name of Jesus Christ is often blocked from graduation speeches, but it’s OK to use His name as a curse word in any movie or TV show.

Read the previous verses to understand what they were objecting to:

Act 4:1

Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them,

Act 4:2

being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

Act 4:3

And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

Act 4:4

However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

Act 4:5

And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes,

Act 4:6

as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.

Act 4:7

And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”

Act 4:8

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel:

Act 4:9

“If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well,

Act 4:10

“let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.

Act 4:11

“This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’ [fn]

Act 4:12

“Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Act 4:13

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.

Act 4:14

And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

Note that the people who realized that Peter and John had “been with Jesus” and saw the man who was healed standing right in front of them – they could not say anything against it! But those Sadducee leaders saw it as a threat against their power, so they wanted this preaching to “spread no further among the people.” Thus they can up with a plan to “let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

Today, those who disagree with or blatantly hate the name of Jesus Christ continue to try to “command them [us] not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.”

But the Apostles were not hindered by their threats:

Act 4:21

So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done.

Act 4:22

For the man was over forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.

Act 4:23

And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

Act 4:24

So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them,

Act 4:25

“who by the mouth of Your servant David [fn] have said:

‘Why did the nations rage,
And the people plot vain things?

Act 4:26

The kings of the earth took their stand,
And the rulers were gathered together
Against the LORD and against His Christ.’ [fn]

Act 4:27

“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together

Act 4:28

“to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.

Act 4:29

“Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,

Act 4:30

“by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

Act 4:31

And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Neither should we, my dear fellow Christian brothers and sisters, be shaken or hindered from speaking with all boldness the Word of God and His Christ – Jesus!

Paul reiterates that we should put on the armor of God, despite those who would want our speech and even our lives “to be in chains” in Ephesians 6; and thus “speak boldly, as I [we] ought to speak.”

Eph 6:20

for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.