HAPPY NEW YEAR

HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Have a safe and Happy New Year's Eve and New Year's Day!!

God Bless

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry CHRISTmas!

I hope you all enjoy celebrating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

About 2000 years ago Jesus was born into very humble beginnings, starting out on his perfect and sinless journey to fulfill God's plan of redemption, and save the elect from eternal separation from our Creator.

As we go through Christmas and the New Year, lets all remember what Christmas is really about... it's not about presents and parties and lights and trees and spending money and getting things we want...

What Christmas is all about is celebrating the birth of Christ, celebrating His perfect life, which He laid down in sacrifice for us. By the grace of God, Jesus saved those who were/are called by God, from before the foundation of the world, by paying the price, satisfying our debt, and taking punishment - bearing the wrath of the Father for our sin.

This is a time to reflect on His word, His truth, and His awesome plan for us while we are here on this earth. So give more than you receive, share the Good News, and be sure to give thanks to the Lord for your blessings and your salvation... today we celebrate, and today we rejoice!

GRACE AND PEACE TO YOU, and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Keepin the CHRIST in Christmas!

NOTHING SAYS

"MERRY CHRISTMAS" LIKE... "HAPPY HOLIDAYS?"

...OR UH, SEASONS GREETINGS?

Here is my issue with all of this watered-down well-wishing that goes on every winter:

Here in America, we are afraid to wish someone a "Merry Christmas" out of fear of offending someone. We are getting so Politically Correct ("PC"), that we have changed our signs, our cards, our decorations, and our sayings. We are kicking CHRIST out of CHRISTMAS!

A few points before I continue my BLOVIATION:

- Christmas is a Christian Holiday that recognizes and celebrates the birth of Jesus

- Christmas is a recognized United States Federal Holiday (which means YOU get out of work!)

We need to remember that as Christians, we should be proud to wish each other a Merry Christmas, and resist the push by the secularists, and the PC crowd to change the way we celebrate. After all, these haters are so busy trying to kick God, Jesus, and religion out of everything (schools, pledge of allegiance, holidays, etc.) that if they had it their way, Atheism would be the official "religion" of this country.

Christmas is about celebrating the birth of our Lord and we shouldn't be afraid to say so. After all I am not offended when someone wishes me a Happy Hanukkah, even though I don't celebrate that Jewish Holiday, why would I be offended? Their well wishes may not apply to the celebrating I am about to do, but I sure wouldn't need to be offended over the fact that someone was being kind and wishing me well...

I think we need to stand up, (after all Christmas is a FEDERAL HOLIDAY in this country!) and proudly wish everyone a MERRY CHRISTMAS around the Holidays. Hang your signs, decorate with your nativity scenes, and send out your MERRY CHRISTMAS cards!

If we find anyone asking us not to wish them a Merry Christmas, we need to treat them respectfully and with compassion, but use those opportunities to start a conversation and spread the Good News! As always, we should be good ambassadors for Christ, demonstrate His love, and be kind to all people - but we can use opportunities like this to identify ourselves with our friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, etc. and let them know we are grounded in our faith, and let them see the work of the Spirit in our lives. If we can be a great witness for Christ, we can spread the gospel, fulfill our calling and commission, and most importantly bring glory and honor to God!

Grace to you, preach the gospel, and have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

GIVE THANKS!

We should remember that although we do have one national day to "give thanks" and be greatful for all of life's blessings, and the things we are fortunate enough to have been given, we should not limit our thanksgiving to ONLY one day!

We should thank God EVERY day for the blessings and fortunes that we have been blessed with. As Christians we need to realize that everything we have is a gift from God, and everything He gives us is His to give!

I hope you all have a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY, don't eat too much, and remember to give thanks to the Lord for ALL of your blessings!!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!

Veteran's Day 11/12/2007

Today we remember all of the Veteran's who served our country and answered the call of duty to defend our freedoms.

If you have any family members or friends who are serving in the military, or who are Military Veteran's, please take a moment or two out of your day to give them a call, and thank them for their sacrifice.

It is because of the honorable efforts of so many men and women that we are able to enjoy our freedoms that we are afforded in this country. They have sacrificed their time, effort, families, and in some cases laid down their lives to provide for the common defense, and promote the general welfare for the citizens of the United States.

For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement,

"YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."

Galatians 5:13-14

HOW TO DEFEND YOUR FAITH

Watch this video, tell me what you think...

CHECK OUT THE VIDEO (video for discussion purposes only) the n8tive christian blog does not necessarily agree with this rugged style of "winning" arguments and calling it evangelism, or endorse break.com

So, two Mormon guys who seem totally unprepared for this type of "conversation", apparently are getting "handled" by a guy who simply knows a few lines of scripture.

Wouldn't you expect a religion with so much money and so many members (such as the LDS) to better equip their kids for evangelism and instill a greater knowledge of their book of Mormon before they sent them out to preach their message? I mean for the few years that these teens are on their missions, they are basically professional evangelists who are out to preach the Mormon Jesus, and try to increase the number of "Latter Day Saints." The intent of this post is not to simply blast the Mormon religion, but to learn from their example in this video.

Although the video may be fun to watch (until the end), it should make us think...

As Christians, when we speak with others (believers and non-believers alike), are we prepared to defend the Bible? Can we accurately and intelligently defend the Christian faith when confronted by adversaries? What about when we are speaking to Christians who say something that is unbiblical? We need to be equipped to defend the Gospel of Jesus Christ and give intelligent, Biblical responses to those people who we encounter, and recognize other peoples errors when they do not add up or match up with what the Bible says.

Some of these who we meet will have been mislead by one of the many cults (like the two Mormons on the video), others will be atheists/agnostics as well as others, maybe belligerent people who are looking to "win an argument."

However, I feel we need to be most prepared to deal with those people who simply don't know what they don't know! The people who are unsure of what they believe, those who may be uncomfortable talking about the things of God, but are also very inquisitive and need to hear the truth.

It is only by God's grace, by His divine election that any of us will be called to salvation, but as His ambassadors here on Earth we need to be prepared to speak and defend His word. We need to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ and fulfill the Great Commission. For it is only by using the word of God, that we are going to change any hearts.

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

(Hebrews 4:12 NASB)

It is not by our own cleverness, or brilliance of speech (or boldness or brutality) that we will change any persons heart, or speak any truth, but only by Gods word, which is LIVING, ACTIVE, and SHARPER than any two-edged sword!

Equip yourselves to go out and PREACH IT! From your mouth will proceed that which lies within your heart!

Homosexualizing California

In a recent article, Frank Pastore discusses issues with the special election which granted Arnold Schwarzenegger the office of Govenor of California. Pastore challenges that by electing Arnold, (because he could win, and was "better than the liberal Cruz Bustamante") we were forced to sacrifice many traditional conservative values that we would normally demand from a conservative (usually Republican) candidate. Pastore is now warning we are in the same predicament with the presidential race which is currently under way for the 2008 election. Pastore claims that we are going to again sacrifice our conservative values in favor of Rudy, because he is "better than the liberal Hillary."

While Pastore enjoys discussing the politics and candidates, I am more concerned with how Schwarzenegger's decisions will affect California schools, and the text books which our children are taught out of. Here is an excerpt from the article:

"...Starting January 1, 2008, California will implement SB-777, a bill that goes far beyond the old standard of public schools not being able to do anything that would “reflect adversely” on homosexuality. Now, the new standard is you can’t do anything that would show either a “discriminatory bias” against homosexuality or anything that would favor heterosexuality.

Let me put this in simple terms. Textbooks that now refer to “mother and father” or “mom and dad” or “King and Queen” will soon have to also include—with equal emphasis—“mom and mom,” “dad and dad” and “king and king.” There shall be no preference of any kind shown to heterosexuality.

Kids, K-12, will learn that every form of family is just as “normal” as every other form. The textbooks that comply will no longer elevate as the ideal that children have both a loving mom and a loving dad, all they’ll need is “a nurturing caregiver”—or maybe a village. They’ll be taught “male” and “female” are mere social constructs that have nothing to do with sexuality or “plumbing.” Increasingly, children will be encouraged to explore their own “gender,” which means they’ll be encouraged to experiment with all forms of sexuality since nothing is “abnormal.” We’ll throw them condoms, pass out Plan B in the health center, and even put 6th grade middle school girls on the pill to ensure that we make sex “safe.” And when some get pregnant, and others get the inevitable diseases, we’ll just take them for an abortion or for treatments under HillaryCare—all during school hours, and all without their parents having a clue... "

Read the entire article

All Hallow's Eve (Halloween) - Christian Perspective

Recently pumpkin patches have been sprouting up on every corner, candy is piled high on local store shelves. Costumes fill the racks, and images of ghouls and goblins are painted on store windows and advertisements. October 31st is right around the corner...

Amidst the mystery and controversy over this "holiday" (holy-day) some argue that it is little more than an obsolete Pagan ritual, that has been commercialized, Americanized, and rendered harmless for our kids; Others however refuse to participate, and consider Halloween to be a Satanic and evil occasion, which has nothing "holy" about it. As the festivities of All Hallows Eve (better known as Halloween) quickly approach, we ask ourselves as Christians - what should my response be to Halloween?

Here is an excerpt from John MacArthur on the Christian response to Halloween...


The Christian Response to Halloween
Today Halloween is almost exclusively an American secular holiday, but many who celebrate have no concept of its religious origins or pagan heritage. That’s not to say Halloween has become more wholesome. Children dress up in entertaining costumes, wander the neighborhood in search of candy, and tell each other scary ghost stories; but adults often engage in shameful acts of drunkenness and debauchery.

So, how should Christians respond?

First, Christians should not respond to Halloween like superstitious pagans. Pagans are superstitious; Christians are enlightened by the truth of God’s Word. Evil spirits are no more active and sinister on Halloween than they are on any other day of the year; in fact, any day is a good day for Satan to prowl about seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). But “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). God has forever “disarmed principalities and powers” through the cross Christ and “made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them through [Christ]” (Colossians 2:15).

Second, Christians should respond to Halloween with cautionary wisdom. Some people fear the activity of Satanists or pagan witches, but the actual incidents of satanic-associated crime are very low. The real threat on Halloween is from the social problems that attend sinful behavior—drunk driving, pranksters and vandals, and unsupervised children.

Like any other day of the year, Christians should exercise caution as wise stewards of their possessions and protectors of their families. Christian young people should stay away from secular Halloween parties since those are breeding grounds for trouble. Christian parents can protect their children by keeping them well-supervised and restricting treat consumption to those goodies received from trusted sources.

Third, Christians should respond to Halloween with gospel compassion. The unbelieving, Christ-rejecting world lives in perpetual fear of death. It isn’t just the experience of death, but rather what the Bible calls “a certain terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume [God’s] adversaries” (Hebrews 10:27). Witches, ghosts, and evil spirits are not terrifying; God’s wrath unleashed on the unforgiven sinner—now that is truly terrifying.

Christians should use Halloween and all that it brings to the imagination—death imagery, superstition, expressions of debauched revelry—as an opportunity to engage the unbelieving world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. God has given everyone a conscience that responds to His truth (Romans 2:14-16), and the conscience is the Christian’s ally in the evangelistic enterprise. Christians should take time to inform the consciences of friends and family with biblical truth regarding God, the Bible, sin, Christ, future judgment, and the hope of eternal life in Jesus Christ for the repentant sinner.

Copyright 2006 Grace to You, http://www.gty.org/


READ THE WHOLE SERMON
@ BIBLE BULLETIN BOARD

The Emergent Church

Sadly the "emerging chruch" movement has continued their attempt to erode meaning and truth from scriptures, and promote thier "conversation" which allows no room for objectivity. Instead these people want to act like there is no such thing as certainty or real solid (objective) truth, because then they can throw the Bible out the window, and start from scratch.

In a recent article from AIG, they take a look at this movement and discuss the implications of their brand of "mystery."

While Martin Luther called the church back to the truth of Scripture and the simplicity of the gospel, modern movements like the Emerging Church uphold “mystery” and question the traditional understanding of the gospel...

Read more on the State of the Church @




Still Interested to hear more?

Joel Osteen and the "feel good" gospel

I think Joel Osteen is rediculous.

Watch these videos, and let me know what you think... :)







Sounds like Larry knows more about the Christian Faith than Joel! Actually, it doesn't sound like Joel knows what Joel knows!! Either way, I say "BOOOOOO!" to Joel Osteen!

BUSH GOES BEEZERK!

HE IS RIDICULOUS!

Sadly the President is making a fool of himself by his recent comments, (much like he did in 2003), saying that "...Muslim, Christian or any other religion prays to the same God."

These two beliefs couldn't be more different! And God, couldn't’t be more different [NOT THE SAME!] as Allah, the god of Islam.

-We know what the President said is not true, because as Christians, we pray to the ONE (true) God who is a Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (the three co-equal and co-eternal persons) [Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; 2Cor 13:14].

-Who Jesus Christ claimed to be (God) [John 10:30 – see also Matthew 1:23], who He is (God) [Hebrews 1:8], and what He did (die on a cross for our sins) [Matthew 27; and 20:28] are all essential to Christianity.

-Not to mention the Bible, and the Christian view of man and his relationship to God (totally depraved sinners, DEAD in our sins and trespasses - separated from God - until we are called to salvation by God’s grace through faith [Ephesians 2:8-9]. WE ARE SAVED BY THE UNEARNED, UNDESERVED GRACE OF GOD THROUGH OUR GOD GIVEN FAITH… NOT OF WORKS.

Compare those points with Islam:

-Muslim’s view of Allah: Allah can have no son and no partner, such a view is blasphemous, and Allah is not viewed as “the Father” [Surahs 19:88-92; 112:3].

-Muslims say that Jesus is nothing more than a prophet (a lesser prophet than Mohamed), although a sinless man, and that he did not die on a cross – Judas was supposedly crucified in his place.

-Finally, THE MOST OUTRAGEOUS DIFFERENCE - According to the Quran [Surah 23:102-103] “Those whose balance (of good deeds) is heavy – they will attain salvation: but those, whose balance is light, will be those who have lost their souls; in hell will they abide.”

CATCH THAT!? According to Islam… if you are GOOD ENOUGH, you will be saved and go to Heaven…. !

So, respectfully I say “Mr. President: GIVE ME A BREAK! IF YOU INSIST ON CALLING YOURSELF A CHRISTIAN, YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER!”

If you are interested and want to know more about the differences between Christianity and Islam, here is a link to a good quick reference guide:

ISLAM: What you need to know, by: Ron Rhodes

MacArthur vs. Barry Lynn

John MacArthur takes on "pastor" Barry Lynn and explains why without the understanding and belief that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant Word of God, one cannot be legitimately called a Christian.

Do I believe in God?

I am asking this question, because many people often have opinions and make statements that do not coincide with Creation (that God created everything) yet they claim to believe in God.

A recent example of this "rediculosity" is Presidential Candidate John Edwards. Now I don't want to make any political statements about this, I simply cannot understand how he claims to be a Christian, and at the same time claims to believe in evolution!?

"CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien, joined by prominent religious leaders, questioned presidential hopefuls Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), former Sen. John Edwards and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) at the forum on “Faith Guiding Our Votes: Faith, Values and Poverty,” hosted by the progressive Christian social justice ministry Sojourners.

One of the first questions asked was on evolution and whether Edwards, who grew up in a Southern Baptist Church, believed in it despite arguments by some that the Bible’s creation narrative and evolution cannot co-exist. The question was asked amid revived creation-evolution debates spurred by the recently opened Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky.

Edwards, in response, said he believes in evolution and does not think his Christian faith is challenged by scientific evidence of evolution: “I think a belief in God and a belief in Christ, in my case, is not in any way inconsistent with that,” he said, “Because the hand of God was in every step of what's happened with man. The hand of God today is in every step of what happens with me and every human being that exists on this planet.”"
http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070605/cnn-questions-democrats-on-evolution-gay-marriage-and-abortion.htm

NOW... this makes absolutely no sense, to say that in no way is a belief in Christ inconsistent with (the theory of) Evolution. If you believe that Jesus Christ created the world (John 1), and created man (Gen 1) then why would you subscribe to a theory that says we all evolved from bacteria, and eventually we have evolved from Apes!? It is just stupid to say that.

So... I ask you - Do you believe in God? Really? I mean really deep down with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul and all your strength, you believe that God created you, created all things, and that apart from Him nothing came into existence? If so, let's not make thoughtless, mindless, people-pleasing statements like our friend John Edwards who somehow thinks he can play both sides.

If after reading this, you still aren't sure whether or not you believe in God (agnostic), or if you believe to know for certain that there is no God (atheist), or particularly if you are into the "science" aspect of how the world and the human realm came into existence, here are some good resources:


"The Case for a Creator" by Lee Strobel
available in Hardback, Paperback, DVD, and MP3
http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=41449&netp_id=315935&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW

"I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist" by Norman L. Geisler and Frank Turek
http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=45619&netp_id=322144&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW

Check out my book list for other great resources on this issue and other similar ones!

THE BATTLE FOR TRUTH!

John MacArthur explains why there is a BATTLE taking place over the Bible...

Are you a "Good" person? Pt. 1

This link is a quick "look in the mirror" - that is, examining your life against the Word of God (specifically the 10 commandments) to find out what the Bible says about you being "a good person." Check it out...

Are you a "NATIVE Christian?" Pt. 2

NATIVE CHRISTIANS...

HEY YOU! Yes YOU...Are you Christian?

Are you "Christian because your parents are Christians?" Are you a "Christian" because "you were raised in a Christian house?" If someone asked people who know you, what would they say about you?

Do you KNOW if you are really a Christian?

How can you really know if you are a Christian?

To be "Christ-ian" literally means to be "Christ - like" - "one who is like " [-ian] Christ [Christ. ]

Much like this picture illustrates, we can be raised to love Christ, but we need to actually KNOW HIM and LIVE FOR HIM in order to actually BE LIKE HIM. Further, we can believe in Him/accept Him as our SAVIOR, we can "accept" who He is - (as also the demons know who He is and tremble at His name) - and be "Christian" by title, but by not living for Him, and not bowing our knee to him as our LORD, in no way are we Christians by function or purpose.

Are you simply "Christian" by name... perhaps because that is what your parents believe? I hear a lot of people saying they are Christians because they "believe in God", because they are "good people," or because they "go to church." But none of these things actually make you Christian.

A lot of people believe in God (Christians, Jews, Muslims, Mormons, and others), but what "god" or in some cases what "gods" do they believe in? A lot of people think that they are "good" by/of themselves (because they are self-righteous), but the Bible says "There is no one who does good, not even one." (Psalm 14:3 NASB). There is also many non-believers, and non-Christians who attend church, whether it is because they are appeasing someone else (spouse, parent, boyfriend/girlfriend), still "checking it out", or looking for "more evidence" - or they may be a false convert... either way, these things DO NOT make you a Christian. [[By the way, in Romans 1:19 (because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them) we see that you DONT NEED ANY MORE EVIDENCE!!)

The next several posts on this blog will be dedicated to finding out the following from a Biblical perspective:

-Do I believe in God?

-Am I a "good" person?

-Am I a Native Christian or Regenerated Sinner?

Please check back soon to hear more...

Are you a NATIVE Christian? Pt. 1

Are you a NATIVE CHRISTIAN?


Native Christian is a funny name that came up during a Bible study earlier this year. We used the term to define people who don't really know why they are "Christians" - - and quite frankly, they most likely are not. These are the people who don't act in a manner that is honoring or pleasing to God, they don't have any apparent relationship with Jesus Christ, and they certainly don't appear to have any knowledge of what Christianity is all about. They are simply identified with Christianity because of their parents, because they go to church on the weekend for social activity, because they want to be the same as others...

Are YOU a Christian simply because you were born into a Christian household? Have you ever considered what it means to actually be like Christ? It is a huge undertaking that should never be spoken of or taken lightly.

I have seen a lot of people claiming to be Christians because they go to church, or because they were born into a Christian home, or what about "because I was born in America?" None of these things make you a Christian... WHAT ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP?! Being a Christian is all about having a relationship with Jesus Christ, not "being religious" not wearing a T-Shirt, not listening to a certain band, or "going to church." These are things that Christians may do, however these things are not what makes you a Christian.

Claiming the name of Christ is something that should not be taken lightly. Either you are for Him, or you are against Him. If you are for Him, and indeed a Christian (one who is Christ-like), then we should all be acting in a manner that is worthy of Him saying to you "well done." If we don't even know what being a Christian is all about, we don't know our Savior, we don't have a relationship with Him, we don't fulfill the Great Commission, then ultimately we don't honor God, and aren't giving him any glory.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't raise our kids to know the Lord, and I'm not saying that I wasn't guilty of this same thing when I was younger. I'm just saying, lets take a look at what a Christian is, what it means, and let's not call ourselves something that we are not. If we are going to bear His name, let's try to demonstrate His love, extend his mercy and grace to others, and (without being "too perfect") let's try to be more like Him!