Zealousness and Christmas Religiosity

Zeal or enthusiasm are votive in our intentional pursuit of God. But where does zealousness and what does the worldly Christmas Spirit have to do with our pursuit of GOD? This is a question that many a Christian has had at Christmas time...

I have searched my bible in earnest trying to find the worldly Christmas Spirit as played out year after year since my birth into this world, my search is in vain for it is not there. No where does the bible say "and each and every year as a remembrance unto the Lord you will spend money to purchase gifts for your loved ones and go into debt to satisfy this festive and spirit of giving as a celebration of the birth of Christ". Should we not as Christians demonstrate the spirit of giving all year long in our intentional pursuit of God?

I will not bother to denounce the Christmas season here with a Bah Humbug, but simply state that rather than celebrate I participate if only to allow a time for gathering and reflecting on the previous year with my family members and close friends. I highly doubt that Jesus Christ was born on Christmas day or that all the religiosity surrounding Christmas is anything of importance to my eternal salvation. Check this website that goes into detail whether a Christian should celebrate Christmas - SHOULD A CHRISTIAN CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS

Remember back in Numbers (chapters 11-12) just before the spies are sent into Canaan how the people complained about not having any meat to eat and who would provide them meat to eat. How Moses when confronted with this constant complaining ended up complaining himself to God about why he has to put up with it after all he is not their father etc.

Well the point is that our idea of leadership within the 30,000 plus Christian denominations that exist in this world today was derived from the fact that is is God that grants us his spirit and not men that bestow that privilege upon us. When the seventy elders where called to the tabernacle of meeting two did not show up namely Eldad and Medad. However they where still granted the abilities of God's spirit and they prophesied in the camp.

Joshua immediately asked Moses to forbid them, Moses response is "Oh that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them!"

Christianity today rather than follow the ordination rites explained in Exodus chapters 28-29 in detail instead follow the model desired by Moses in chapter 11 of Numbers. This is a verifiable fact unlike the Christmas season that states that Christ was born on Christmas day and that we decorate a pine tree and have yuletide, mistletoe and the like as Christian rites for every Christian believer and unbeliever alike in the world.

So I leave you all with the priestly blessing that Moses imparted to Aaron and his sons and they imparted to the children of Israel...

May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

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Spiritual Arrogance...

Spiritual arrogance what is it?

Well the standard definition for arrogance is;

offensive display of superiority or self-importance; overbearing pride.

When you judge another believer you are exercising spiritual arrogance, the central prohibition of the Christian faith is not to judge others, that's God's job, not ours. Judging has been a problem with humanity from the very beginning all the way back to the Genesis narrative.

Genesis three holds the clues to how it all started "the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made" says the text. So the serpent asked Eve some questions which LEAD her to doubt God and then of all things judge God. The judgment that Eve rendered against God was that he was withholding something desirable by prohibiting her and Adam from eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Notice there was never a prohibition from the tree of life until after the fall!

This is, in a sense, the original sin that was committed by man and we still participate in this base sin today, whenever we try to judge another believer by their works, words, etc. Who are we to say someone is going to go to heaven or go to hell? Are we God that we possess such power as the power over who gets into heaven and who is damned to hell?

I can think of some scripture that may get us thinking that some folks are destined to heaven and some to hell or as the text puts it some for honor and some for dishonor.

Consider Romans 9:20-21 (Amplified)

But who are you, a mere man, to criticize and contradict and answer back to God? Will what is formed say to him that formed it, Why have you made me thus?

Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same mass (lump) one vessel for beauty and distinction and honorable use, and another for menial or ignoble and dishonorable use?

Scripture clearly teaches that whoever calls on the Lord will be saved we are not God and our finite thinking does not come close to the righteous plan of God the Father. So if you find yourself judging other believers than I suggest;

"Repenting of Religion" by Gregory A. Boyd

This book is based on the antithetical relationship between Love and judgment and how they cannot survive together.

Jesus calls men, not to a new religion, but to life.

DIETRICH BONHOEFFER

May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

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THE ABOMINATION OF DENOMINATION

The abomination of the denomination, with over 33,000 plus Christian denominations out there and with at least 10,000 of them thinking they are the only way I would like to remind the reader of Jesus Christ's words. Jesus said in John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

What happened in between the time Jesus spoke these words and now?

If we believe Jesus' words, which I highly recommend, then being of any other denomination then the way of Jesus would put us in danger of not following the one true God. Does that scare you? Because it should... Consider Matthew 7:21-23

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'

Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

Are denominational differences in Christendom God's will?

Or is it the will of the enemy?

Has the enemy divided and conquered Christendom?

We who call ourselves Christian need to get back to God and walk in the victory of Christ and we need to remember the central prohibition of our faith is not to judge others for we are all sinners and all fall short of the glory of God...

What denomination was Jesus?

Was he a Baptist?

Nope!

Was he a Mennonite/Anabaptist

Nope!

How about a Methodist?

Nope!

I can go on at 33,000 plus times, I am sure you get the picture. the bible teaches us to repent of our sin and denominational differences is definitely sin. Repent of religion before you stand in front of Jesus.

May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

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Clarity and Vision

Can you see your dreams?

When we can see our dreams we can achieve them! Nothing can stop a person with a vision of where they are going, because, just like a raging river so is a person with a dream...

Habakkuk 2:2 says write the vision down so others that read it may run with it.

Clarity of your vision allows for incredible staying power while waiting for God to provide all that is needed to insure success. It could be one person or a hundred, it could be one dollar or a million, it could be one step forward and three steps back because you missed something that was essential to the whole of your vision and being.

Trust and delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart so says the Psalmist in Psalm 37:3-4...


May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

Praying Your Loved Ones into the Kingdom of God...

A play by play blow by blow of an Excited Christian telling a loved one or friend about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Has this happened to you during your tenure as a Christian maybe the only Christian in your family or circle of friends?

Excited Christian
Hey (insert name) have you heard the good news?

Not so excited friend or loved one
No what news?

Excited Christian
Jesus died for your sins!

Not so excited friend or loved one
Ah that's great but we're not gonna talk about religion are we?

Excited Christian
Jesus is the truth and the life man, he died so we could have life!

Not so excited friend or loved one
That's great (insert name) but I told you I don't want to talk about religion please stop I don't want to hear it.

If your a new or salty old Christian odds are you have been through this type of conversation before and it probably made you feel fearful of ever sharing your faith again maybe even almost ashamed. Well I have good news for those of you that would like to spread the good news to others all you really need is a technique. Sort of like before you could walk you had to crawl and before you could run you had to walk.

Learning how to spread the gospel is easy as 1, 2, 3 anyone can do it, you just need to know how. I use The Way of The Master in all my gospel sharing efforts because it leaves no wiggle room for the participants and even if they don't accept Christ right there on the spot, it plants a seed of faith for future harvest by either yourself or another. Now watch as the same Excited Christian uses The Way of The Master technique an ancient biblical technique that by-passes the intellect and reaches directly into the conscious of the participant this is similar to how Jesus did it.

Excited Christian
Hey (insert name) do you consider yourself a good person?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Yes I do

Excited Christian
Have you ever heard of the Ten Commandments?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Sure I have who hasn't?

Excited Christian
Do you know any of them?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Sure - Thou shall not kill, Thou shall not steal, etc.

Excited Christian
How about this one, which is number nine thou shall not lie ever done that no matter how big or small the lie?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Sure everyone has lied!

Excited Christian
What do you call a person that lies?

Not so excited friend or loved one
I guess you would call them a liar!

Excited Christian
How about number eight thou shall not steal, ever done that no matter how little the item?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Yep guilty as charged I have stolen before

Excited Christian
What do you call a person that steals

Not so excited friend or loved one
I guess you would call them a thief

Excited Christian
Here's the one that got me it's number seven thou shall not commit adultery Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 that if we even look at a woman with lust we have already committed adultery with her in his heart, ever done that?

Not so excited friend or loved one
Yes I have but I had my fingers crossed the whole time!

Excited Christian
So what would that make you if you have done that

Not so excited friend or loved one
I guess that would make me an adulterer

Excited Christian
So by your own admission you are a lying, thieving, adulterer at heart and that's only three out of ten, if God judged us on the ten commandments would you go to heaven or hell?

Not so excited friend or loved one
I guess when you say it like that I'd be going to hell

Excited Christian
Does that concern you?

Not so excited friend or loved one
yes it does!

Now you can tell them all about Jesus and what he did for them because they are now ready to hear what you have to say. To see this technique in action in a real life situation click on The Way of The Master banner below...



May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

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Fruitful Growth

2 Peter 1:5-11

Fruitful Growth in the Faith

5. But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,

6. to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,

7. to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.

8. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

10. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;

11. for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The preceding passage assumes you already have faith which is supplied from God and confirmed in Ephesians 2:8-9.

We are to diligently pursue these things to make our faiths confession sure and solid in a world that is moving away from God. As we move toward God then we see the reason we are here and that reason is the same for all Christians we are to spread the word of God by our lives, a living testimony to and for God so that others may believe also.

Consider; Revelations 12:11, Mark 6:11, John 8;17


May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

click here ---> BIBLE QUIZ <--- click here

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

You are the Light of the world...

God has blessed us believers all, through His words and actions we are the light of the world and our position is one of authority and extreme responsibility. We are forbidden to judge others but not forbidden from an opinion that condemns evil and evil ways. We are living examples that would magnify God in our work place, our schools, our teams and our very lives. We are to condemn sin not the sinner, for it is the sinner that condemns himself if he does not turn from his sin and repent. We are to pray constantly for those God puts in our lives through work, social and otherwise.

Imagine that there is only one believer in the world and each month that believer doubled himself within thirty months that would equal a whooping 10,737,418 now imagine if that number of believers doubled itself and so on well I'm sure you get the picture that is the power of compounding Christ in your life today and every day including Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Let me ask you a compounded question;

How many people have you brought to Christ today?

How many people have you brought to Christ this week?

How many people have you brought to Christ this month?

How many people have you brought to Christ this year?

Now when I say brought I don't mean kicking and screaming against their will but through intercessory prayer and example allowing yourself to be open and approachable about the reasons you believe in Jesus Christ and why being a Christian can be so cool. If you don't know how to witness effectively then check out The Way of the Master as they teach how Jesus did it through the law of the Ten Commandments, which is meant to convict us of sin so that Jesus can free us of our sin if only we would repent and turn to God and believe that Jesus Christ defeated death and freed us from deaths grip in our lives.




May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

How much do you know about the Bible?

I came accross this cool site that had all types of tests about Bible knowledge. This is a good tool to sharpen your senses and learn more about the most historically accurate book in existence today!

Have fun and don't get discouraged if you score low, the more you practice the better you'll get...

click here ---> BIBLE QUIZ <--- click here

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Got the Spirit of Christ?

In my previous posts some folks may have felt offended by the facts presented or even the way they were presented, if this is true for you allow me to apologize my message is not one of condemnation but one of searching, seeking, knocking relentlessly in search of the door of truth as C.S. Lewis said;

It is not for us to say who, in the deepest sense, is or is not close to the spirit of Christ. We do not see into men's hearts. We cannot judge, and are indeed forbidden to judge. It would be wicked arrogance for us to say that any man is, or is not, a Christian in this refined sense….And obviously a word which we can never apply is not going to be a useful word.

…When a man who accepts the Christian doctrine lives unworthily of it, it is much clearer to say he is a bad Christian than to say he is not a Christian.

C.S. Lewis – Mere Christianity

Lewis then goes on to say then in the search we end up in a hall that leads us to a place to wait in, a place from which to try the various doors, not a place to live in. Some will wait longer than others in finding the door they must knock at. Once we enter the door that may represent our personal place of ministry we more than likely feel that the wait was of some help in finding that what we sought. Perhaps you have an inner peace at having found God’s will for you in Jesus Christ this place puts us in a position of obedience to Jesus Christ and his commandment of “Love your neighbour as you love yourself” we are required to pray for those who may still be in the hall and not to judge we are under orders to “pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18.

Now in regards to the label of “Bad Christian” I think we need to, no we must examine further the very reality of the conditions that breed “Bad Christians”. The condition of the Christian Church is the best place to start. This blog is all about the Christian church as a whole or the whole body of Christ if you will. The very URL of this blog in and of itself asks a question; http://whatisthechristianchurch.blogspot.com/ and the title “The Christian Church Blog…” are synonymous and asks that we pursue the answer diligently, whole heartedly and as we stand in the hall seeking, knocking and pursuing truth. If only to help each other find the room or rooms we belong. C.S. Lewis suggests that our denominational differences are best left to the experts and not for the laypersons to decide. Not to mention that Jesus Christ himself calls us to move past the circular argument (also called petitio principii) as to why we must be a “Good Christian” and focus and meditate on the scriptural order to; “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength”. So if you are offended by another you should use the Mathew 18:15-20 biblical principle of confrontation which is a three part process but you also must be open to being wrong yourself that is why every word must be established in truth when confronting a sinning brother.

1. Have you examined your motivations before confronting

2. Are you willing to admit that you may be wrong yourself

3. Are you doing it to help your brother in the cessation of the ban, of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good & Evil?

We must try to pursue truth and the ability to communicate with each other in truth and move away from what C.S. Lewis called the “Law of Nature” I personally am aware that some of us can spend so much time criticizing others that we are not able to hear what God may be saying through other believers to us. And I do believe God is trying to speak through each of us. And that we as believers owe it to each other the ability of attempting to hear each other in truth, patience and love without judgment.

May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

An Easter Obituary

Have we grown callous about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ during the Easter season? Are we truly aware of what Jesus gave so we could live? What does turkey and Easter bunnies have to do with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ?

I got this image in an email and it thoroughly inspired me to share it here lest we forget the reason why we believe as we do in a Saviour Jesus Christ.

FACTS ABOUT THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS:

• Historically, the first known practice of crucifixion was by the Persian Empire. Alexander the Great and his generals brought it back to the Mediterranean world through Egypt and through Carthage. Apparently The Romans learned the practice from The Carthaginians and as was the Roman way with almost everything that they did, they quickly developed a very high degree of efficiency and skill at it.
  

• The agony for Jesus began in Gethsemane with what Luke described in Chapter 22 verse 44; "And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground." There is a rare condition called 'Hematidrosis' where tiny capillaries in the sweat glands can break, thus mixing blood with sweat. Perhaps this was Jesus' condition.
  

• After Jesus' arrest at Gethsemane he was brought before the Sanhedrin where the first blow was wrought by a zealous guard he was then blindfolded and taunted and hit repeatedly by others asking him to prophesy who hit him.
  

• Pilate ordered Jesus brutally beaten, probably believing such punishment would satisfy the ugly mob, but as we know it did not. The punishment of scourging was not enough for the angry mob that day they demanded more and crucifixion the Roman way would guarantee His death.

• Already exhausted and dehydrated from the torture of the previous night and day Jesus is made to carry his cross to the place of his souls release Mount Calvary or Golgotha, the place of the skull.

• Jesus was betrayed by a trusted friend (Judas) and by of all things a kiss to mark him as the man the Sanhedrin sought. Have you ever noticed of all the names used today the name Judas is not one of them!

• Jesus rose from the dead three days later and was seen by not one or two eye witnesses but over a forty (40) day period he was seen by over five hundred (500) people.

• Jesus left us a great commission to spread the gospel but sadly 90% of Christians fail to share their faith with others.
  

1. Is it fear?
2. Is it Laziness?
3. Is it business?

• Allow me to put this into perspective for you most people will call and tell everyone about the birth of a child because they are excited about that fact. Or call people to tell of the new house or SUV purchase.
  

1. Are we as Christians not excited about what Jesus did for us?
2. Are we ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ?
3. Are we fearful of other people and what they may think of us if they knew we believed in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour?

Lets get busy spreading the good news and if you are unsure of how to do that then click on the Way of the Master to find out how to effectively witness in five (5) minutes or less to anyone, anywhere and at anytime.



May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

click here ---> BIBLE QUIZ <--- click here

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

The Blasphemy Challenge to all Christians!

Happy good Friday Jesus was betrayed on this day apparently a good day to have a holiday and maybe we can all celebrate and smile and all be of good cheer and such. I was thinking today would be as good a day as any to roll out my challenge to all who call themselves Christian and happen by my HTMLian participaction on the World Wide Web.

Check out this site HOLLYWOOD AND GOD

Sometime ago I felt lead to look at my movie collection more closely for the content of blasphemy and was I ever surprised I have around 150-200 movies in my collection. I couldn't do it myself so I got my kids involved and they loved it as soon as a movie would blaspheme God (blasphemous language, expressing disrespect for God or for something sacred) we would mark it with a dot of whiteout then red nail polish in the middle of the white and we were not allowed to watch that movie anymore. We found that almost every movie did this even some so-called kids movies. I will be creating an exhaustive list and challenge other Christians to do the same but we are not done there we are going to make a video of us destroying the movies because if it's not good enough for us it's not good for anyone.

Hollywood is treating our minds like garbage cans and throwing in whatever they want. We as Christians should stop buying movies that blaspheme God and ask for the very least a blaspheme rating that's not suitable for those that respect and fear God. It's James 2 time people time to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. Lets put our money where our mouths are and represent Jesus in our homes, our schools, our work places, our lives.


May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

click here ---> BIBLE QUIZ <--- click here

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All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar

Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is near...

Howdy folks it's been many months since I had an entry on my blog September 01/07 actually but none the less here I am back to paying attention to what was started. God calls us all to patience because thats the way love is and since God is love we need to become patient in all we do. If you lack patience or anything then learn to fear the Lord.

Psalm 34:9
Fear the LORD, you his saints,
for those who fear him lack nothing.

Fear is something that lives in this world and many times our fears are manipulated or activated to get us to act. For instance if you fear banging your head on your windshield you will use your seat belt. If you fear being bit by a dog you will avoid dogs. If you fear intimacy you will have many unsuccessful relationships because of that fear. But if you fear the LORD you will lack nothing.

I sense that God is awakening many folks in the body of Christ to revival and obedience to our faith in Jesus Christ and an new improved ability to understand God's statutes and His moral law (10 Commandments) as it relates to salvation and life in the body of Christ. Martin Luther the German priest who founded the Lutheran Church back in the 1500's said;

"The true function of the Law is to accuse and to kill;
but the function of the gospel is to make alive"

And Charles Spurgeon said;

"No man knows the brightness of the gospel
'till he understands the blackness of those
clouds which surround the Law of the Lord"

Fear of judgment can turn a sinner around and God knows this that is why we have the Law of the Ten Commandments to guide us as sinners to the cross and salvation. Without repentance there can be no salvation and that is what the Law is designed to do to convict us as sinners so that we may know we are sinners and fear the LORD. The gospel of Jesus Christ will then pardon us and forgive our sins if only we repent of them.

Next; The Blasphemy Challenge to all Christians!

May...

The Lord bless and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Try a Bible Quiz and test your knowledge

click here ---> BIBLE QUIZ <--- click here

Subscribe in a reader

All posts by M.A.C. © Bruce W. Moar