Category Archives: Christian thought

Works equals work for Christ (servant ministry)

I can not count how many times I have heard that works won’t get you to heaven. I question then why did Jesus put so much effort into telling you to do works? To cause us to walk in righteous living while in this world! I’ll write about this from time to time because I am sick and tired of hearing that works have no value. I firmly believe that we are called to DO works as a RESPONSE to our Salvation. Failure to respond to God’s Love by not doing works is to me a failure to love God.

[esvignore]Luke 3:7-14[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Matthew 5:3-12[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Matthew 25:31-46[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Luke 10:30-37[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Eph 4:16, 31-32[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Acts 6:1-3, 3[/esvignore]

[esvignore]John 5-8, 10-11[/esvignore]

[esvignore]James 2:14-24[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Matthew 11:4-6,18-19[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Deut. 10:17-19[/esvignore]

[esvignore]Isa 58:5-8[/esvignore]

Mary and Zechariah

MARY

Once again Christmastide comes on the scene, and once again Mary’s great speech will be overlooked by many churches. I see it as Mary being prophetic.

Luke 1:46-55, “The Magnificat of Mary”, starts with her Praising God, her rejoicing in her savior. God took notice in her, a lowly village teenager, a nobody in a nowhere town, a place nothing more than a suburb of the great Capitol of Israel, a place we would call in today’s terms, the hicks, or the skids. God took notice of her and chose her to be the mother of Grace Incarnate. She knew that her son was the Son of the Most High, the Mighty One. She gives one line to her being blessed and being called blessed and that was in response to her cousin, Elizabeth’s greeting to her.

Revere The Lord

I lost my Father and my Brother-in-Law John in the same year. The one thing I miss is the great way these two fine men loved God. My dad was a mathematician and a chemical engineer, while John was a biologist. Both of them had I.Q.s off the charts. They could talk circles around me. Yet, when we discussed theology and church, we were equals. They could defend science and religion in the same breath.

My dad could not understand how anyone who believed in the Messiah God, Jesus, could willingly and willfully sin against Him or even try to justify wrong behavior. John on the other hand, felt that to much effort was being put into a “touchy-freely” God and not enough revering the Awesome God.

Sharing your Bible

Arcshrk introduced me to the ESV Bible. It is his favorite translation and if you hit the verse text as you read my stuff, you can read that word for word translation. When I wrote most of my stuff originally, that translation was not available. As far as I am concerned, I don’t like the Amplified Bible or its like, but many do. I am glad for most of the translations and use as many as I can. If you are not sure of how the scripture reads as I used them, look them up in whatever bible you prefer. I’m just glad that you read the bible.

The Sanctification Train

Sanctification is like train: God the Father is the station master, he has our ticket to Salvation ready for us. Jesus purchased the tickets by His blood. But to get on the salvation train, we have to accept the ticket. It does us no good to say Jesus has my ticket to heaven and then not to receive it from Him. After we take the ticket of Salvation, we have to GET ON THE TRAIN! The Holy Spirit is the conductor of the train and He will take us where we need to go so that we can do what God wants us to do on earth.

If you want to go to heaven, take the ticket from Jesus and get on the train to Sanctification! Ride the Salvation Train to Glory. Jesus has paid your way with His Blood! God has offered you His best seats but you must agree to accept the ride.

This is where I differ from both the Calvinists and the Wesleyans. I want to ride the train, I accept the challenge from Jesus and will go where the Spirit Of God calls me. And may the ride be a long and wondrous trip!

Quotable

Phil. 2:5-8. Your attitude should the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who being in the very nature of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself NOTHING, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in the appearance as a man, humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross. (NIV)

“It is only when we realize our nothingness, our emptiness, that god can fill us with Himself. When we become full of God, then we can give God to others, for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.” – Teresa of Calcutta

Malachian observation

While reading Malachi this week I made a couple observations I want to share. Although they are not directly connected with the message of the prophet, they do reflect on my views of Wholeness Witnessing.

Malachi 1:10, 11. “I wish that some among you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not at all pleased with you.” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will not accept your offerings. But My name is honored by people of other nations from morning to night. All around the world they offer me sweet incense and pure offerings in honor of My Name,” says the Lord Almighty. (NLT)

Extra-demoninational works

While I was with the United Methodist Church, I took part in many outreach programs. Most of these programs where started by the UMC but not limited to their church. This gave me the opportunity to see the work of God through others. While I left that church because I was not pleased with the direction they where going and I needed to expand my faith, I never forgot that it was there that Christ Jesus and I were joined.

I worked with the Salvation Army, Walk to Emmaus, Lay Witness Mission and Kairos Prison Ministries. While there I came to Christ (or He came to me) at United Christian Ashram Camp. I learned how to use the gifts of the Holy Spirit and lost my desire to dominate others by Scripture but learned to serve others instead.

Share Christ in Commomality

I was born and raised in a Roman Catholic family, but as I reached adulthood I was torn by the knowledge that throughout history, christians constantly warred against each other. Because of this I felt that Jesus had failed in His call and therefore could not be the savior that we sought.

It took me sixteen years and much soul searching to finally come to the understanding that Jesus did not fail, we did. We are still failing today. We still condemn and reject Christians that do not see the scriptures as we do, and the ones who do the most condemning are those who speak from the pulpits and stages of our churches.

It is my contention that God has called me to be a voice against this. When I searched for the true God, it was not a church or a dogma that brought me an understanding of God, but Christ working though my life. When I accepted that Jesus was the answer that I had sought, I then searched for a church to fellowship with. I started with the church I had left, Roman Catholic but did not stay. I tried Calvinist, but also was not in agreement with them in many areas. Next it was Baptist, then Methodist and here was where my personal relationship with Christ took fruit. Yet I was not complete by any means. So I explored Pentecostalism and non denominational teachings.

From each of these Christian backgrounds, I gleamed knowledge. From each understanding, I grew in my faith, trust and most importantly, my Love in Jesus. Although I will never say that I am completed, I am well onto my way of perfected Love.

I lean heavily on Holiness Sanctification but still hold onto teaching from Calvin, Fox and other reformers. I read many pre-reformation works of the early Church and am influenced by Thomas a’Kempis, Augustine, Francis and many others. From all this I see the work of God. Most of all, I have Heard God calling me to reconcile those who Love Him to quit the infighting. His words to me were: “Stop My children from hurting each other for they are hurting Me!”

There may never be a “One Church” because as each child is different from its siblings we will always have different personalities. What we are is “One Family” under Christ God. My mission then is to help all those who know that Jesus is God and have accepted that They are chosen to Love, Serve and Obey God in all aspects of their lives, respect all others who also believe. Is this to much to ask?

Introduction

This site is for those who believe in living wholy for Christ and are NOT locked in criteria of dogma set down by others. While being involved in the structure of common belief as accepted by believers, they are open to hear and even share Christian understandings expressed by other churches.