Was Jesus a Christian? Part 1

The answer to the question presented may at first seem obvious. However, upon closer scrutiny, a problem becomes apparent. There is a difference between how Jesus worshipped God and how the modern Christian church worships God. These differences in practice should cause the contemporary church to examine its methods and beliefs. If Christianity centers it faith and practice upon the teachings of Jesus Christ, should it not resemble its leader? Moreover, a consideration of the religion of the Jewish carpenter from Nazareth confronts us with a most unsettling question: Is Jesus Christ the founder of Christianity? If He isn’t, then who is? In an effort to direct the inquirer, this paper addresses five differences between the religious practices of Jesus of Nazareth and the modern church. The reader should be prepared to examine his “Christianity” in light of the principles and practices of the Jewish rabbi called Jesus.

The first difference is that while the contemporary church worships God on Sunday, Jesus went to the synagogue on the Sabbath. Luke 4:16 says: And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the Sabbath day. And he stood up to read…. (Emphasis supplied) (RSV) In fact, many if not most of the miracles performed by Jesus were done on the Sabbath. In comparison, the modern day church believes that the day of worship was changed from the Sabbath to Sunday. One online Christian resource explains:
Still others Christians would say that we no longer observe the Jewish sabbath, but worship instead on Sunday, a distinctively Christian holy day. They argue that the early church very soon began meeting on Sunday in honor of the resurrection of Jesus, which took place on the first day of the week.
It is not the purpose of this work to explore the reason for the change or the timing of the change as there are many resources available for those who seek to know the historical truth. It is sufficient to state that according to Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, the day of worship began to change around A.D. 115. The point is that Jesus did not worship on the first day of the week; He worshipped God on the Sabbath.

Spiritual Warfare 3

In part 3 of the Spiritual Warfare Series, Pastor Jenkins reviews three pieces of armor from Ephesians 6: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of peace. Learn the connection between the three pieces and how to use them in spiritual battle. A foundation is laid for the difference between logos and rhema. This message is the foundation for understanding the armor of God.

GETTING BACK to 'CLASSIC' CHRISTIANITY

-by J. Lee Grady.

We need voices from the past—like Andrew Murray, Corrie Ten
Boom and Charles Spurgeon—to help us find our way to the
future.

During a visit with my parents in Georgia, two of my daughters
asked if they could listen to a tape recording my father made in
1962 when I was only 4 years old. So my dad rummaged through
some drawers and found the old reel-to-reel tape, which was
amazingly still intact. Then he went to the garage and found the
old Realistic tape player that no one in the family had used since
the Nixon administration.

To our surprise the scratchy tape actually played without breaking,
and my girls laughed when they heard me—in a babyish Southern
drawl—describing a Florida vacation and a fishing trip with my
grandfather. After my "interview," it switched to an older recording
made in 1956. It included a conversation with my dad's mother,
who died before I was born.

It was eerie to hear her voice. I'd never heard it before yet it
sounded hauntingly familiar. After that brief segment of the tape
ended we listened to comments from my other three grandparents
—all of whom died in the 1960s or 1970s. Their voices unearthed
long-buried but fond memories.

These sounds from the past reminded me of some other distant
voices I have been listening to recently. They are the voices of
dead Christians—writers of classic books and songs that we are
close to forgetting today.

Their names are probably somewhat familiar to you. Jonathan
Edwards. John Wesley. Charles Finney. Catherine Booth.
Andrew Murray. Evans Roberts. Charles Spurgeon. Fanny
Crosby. E.M. Bounds. Watchman Nee. A.W. Tozer. William
Seymour. A.B. Simpson. Corrie Ten Boom. Leonard Ravenhill.
Fuchsia Pickett.

All of them could be labeled revivalists. All challenged the
Christians of their generation to embrace repentance and humility.
They understood a realm of spiritual maturity and a depth of
character that few of us today even aspire to obtain.

When I read their words I feel much the same way I did after
hearing my grandparents' voices on that old tape. I feel as if I am
tapping into a realm of spirituality that is on the verge of extinction.

What was the secret of these great Christians who left their
legacies buried in their books? They considered humility,
selflessness and sacrifice the crowning virtues of the Christian
journey. They called the church to die to selfishness, greed and
ambition. They knew what it means to carry a "burden" for lost
souls. They saw the glories of the kingdom and demanded total
surrender. They challenged God's people to pursue obedience—
even if obedience hurts.

Even their hymns reflected a level of consecration that is foreign in
worship today. They sang often of the cross and its wonder. Their
worship focused on the blood and its power. They sang words of
heart-piercing conviction: "My richest gain I count but loss / And
pour contempt on all my pride / Forbid it Lord that I should boast /
Save in the death of Christ, My God."

In so many churches today the cross is not mentioned. The blood
is avoided because we don't want to offend visitors. And worship
is often a canned performance that involves plenty of rhythm and
orchestration but little or no substance. We can produce noise,
but often there is no heart ... and certainly no tears.

In the books Christians buy today you will find little mention of
brokenness. We are not interested in a life that might require
suffering, patience, purging or the discipline of the Lord. We
want our blessings ... and we want them now! So we look for
the Christian brand of spiritualized self-help that is quick and
painless.

We're running on empty. We think we are sophisticated, but like
the Laodiceans we are actually poor, blind and naked. We need
to return to our first love but we don't know where to begin the
journey.

These voices from the past will help point the way. I've found
myself drawn to reading books by Ravenhill, Ten Boom, Murray
and Spurgeon in recent days. I've even pulled out an old hymnal
and rediscovered the richness of songs that I had thrown out
years ago—because I thought anything old couldn't possibly
maintain a fresh anointing.

I realize now that I must dig for this buried treasure. We will never
effectively reach our generation if we don't reclaim the humility,
the brokenness, the consecration and the travail that our spiritual
forefathers considered normal Christianity.

Where Did Michael Jackson Go When He Died?

This is an excellent video of Ray Comfort from The Way of the Masters as he takes to the streets to talk about the death of Michael Jackson.

Spiritual Warfare 2

In Part 2 of the Spiritual Warfare series, Pastor Jenkins teaches the four Greek words that reveal the true nature of redemption. Ephesians 2:6 tells us that we are seated with Christ. Learn what this seating means and how it affects Spiritual Warfare. In addition, a brief explanation of God's covenant with Abram is explained as a further basis of your authority over demons. Listen and be prepared for battle!

God Still Cares For His Children

One afternoon we were walking on Jaffa Road, the main street of modern Jerusalem, just returning from visiting the homes of some of our Arab believers. We were passing through the busiest section of the city and the street was packed with people, all Jews, when suddenly I remembered that we intended to do a bit of shopping but had already passed the particular locality. Mrs. Fried suggested that we turn back and attend to it, but I thought that the matter was of very little importance and could be taken care of next day, and so I suggested that we continue homeward, since it was close to supper time.

We walked only a few steps when I was strangely pressed to return, after all, and attend to the shopping. We turned back and had walked in the opposite direction only about a hundred feet when back of us we heard the most terrific explosion that seemed to be right beside us, but actually was about two hundred feet away. A bomb had been thrown, probably from a passing car, into the midst of the crowd. Next day we went to the scene, and, as far as we were able to calculate, had we failed to turn back at the time we did, we would have been at the very spot where the explosion took place! -- Sunday School Times

A REMARKABLE ANSWER TO PRAYER

Mr. Jay Gould once left his eastern home for a trip across the continent. In the western part of Texas the train he was traveling on was halted for a few hours at a little town to make needed repairs on the engine. Mr. Gould, to pass the time, walked up the village street, and found a sale going on, and the auctioneer calling out, "Fourteen hundred and seventy-five dollars." He inquired of a man what was being sold, and was told that it was a new church that the contracting builder had a claim on for the work. Mr. Gould, to help the sale, offered fifteen hundred dollars, which the auctioneer called a few times without a raise, and the church was sold to Mr. Gould at his bid.

Three gray-haired old men standing near watched the proceedings of the transfer and, going up to Mr. Gould, not knowing who he was asked him what he intended to do with the church he had just bought. "What is it to you what I do with it? It is mine now, to keep or to give away," said the millionaire. One of the men said: "This is what it is to us: We three men are trustees of that church house and were sent here to see and then report what disposal was made of it; and in the church, at this present moment, the entire congregation, with the presiding elders and preachers, are down on their knees before the God of Heaven, asking Him to Divinely interfere in some way to save our church, so that it may not be lost to us. That is what it is to our people."

Jay Gould gave the people their church.

The lesson is to never give up, stay in prayer, and have faith in God's care for His children.

REFORMATION - NOT Just REVIVAL by Andrew Strom

Of course, I have written on this theme before. (My first book was
"The Coming Great Reformation"). But recently I have sensed God
reminding me again that unless there is massive "shaking" and
change in the church - then any 'move' that comes will not achieve
what He desires. Some people simply want a return to repentance
preaching and holiness in the churches. They just want an old-
fashioned 'Revival'. That is a laudable aim - and one that I personally
love - but it is not enough. In fact, it is nowhere near enough.

The fact is, Reformations are far messier, more contentious and
immensely more "shaking" than Revivals. They tend to target pet
doctrines, ingrained cultures and structures that the church has
been clinging to for years. They bring massive disruption and
division. They force people to "choose sides". Those of us who
have studied history think that simple "Revivals" are bad enough.
Well, Reformations are ten times worse! And yet, without this
level of "shaking", God simply cannot achieve what He wants to achieve.

I believe God longs for a 'new' Church. I believe He will not be
satisfied until He has a bride for His son that is "without spot or
wrinkle or any such thing." And since we are in the Last Days,
I believe He wants a full restoration - back to the true original purity,
pattern and power of the early church. Nothing less will do. And
the "shaking" that is required to achieve such a thing is almost
beyond comprehension. But it is coming - in fact I believe it is now
upon us. The economic shaking we are going through is nothing
compared with what is about to hit the church. It will create a giant
"mess" - but it will be a glorious mess. And at the other end of it
lies a glorious church - truly fitting for a glorious Savior.

So what does all this require of us? -Simply that we co-operate
with God in what He is wanting to do. For many there will be a
temptation to settle for the simple restoration of holiness and
repentance - and to oppose anything that looks like causing much
of a 'shaking' beyond that. Brothers and sisters, let me warn you
that if you oppose this tidal wave of "change" that God is wanting
to bring to the church, then you will end up opposing God Himself.
And yet it will be very tempting for many. A lot of us don't like
upheaval and spiritual "revolution". But that is exactly what God is
wanting to bring. In fact, I believe that without Reformation we will
not get the Revival that we are seeking either. This time Revival
must come through "shaking" and Reformation - and no other way.

So if you want to be part of the next move of God, my friends,
set your backbone to be part of the tidal wave - not standing in
the way of it. God is coming to "clean house" - and we better be
ready to be "revolutionaries" along with Him if we want to be part
of what He is about to do.

Spiritual Warfare 1

In this first of a series, Pastor Jenkins details the 5 basic truths about Spiritual Warfare. Every believer is involved in this battle whether they realize it or not. Satan is a defeated foe, but he is also formidable. However, we fight from victory and not to obtain victory. This message provides the basics of spiritual warfare. Future messages will build on the foundation presented in this teaching. You can be guaranteed victory over the enemy by learning the truth about Spiritual Warfare.

Pastor P. Joseph Roberts of Penuel Gospel Ministries from India

Hear the anointed testimony of Pastor P. Joseph Roberts of Penuel Gospel Ministries from India. You will learn how God demonstrated His power to heal and saved his family from Hinduism. Pastor Roberts details how he left a life of the street and sin to serve the living God. Miracles of faith and healing have followed Pastor Roberts' ministry. Don't miss this exciting testimony as it brings all glory to God. For further information on the ministry of Pastor Roberts, go to http://www.penuelindia.org/.

The Funeral of Steve McNair

Steve McNair was a married man who was shot to death by his girlfriend. At his funeral, his "pastor" made the following remarks:

“Drop your stone the next time you write about Steve McNair. Drop your stone the next time you text somebody. Drop your stone the next time you twitter. Drop your stone, those of you in the barbershops, the beauty shops. Those of you walking the streets on the corner, drop your stone,” Bishop Joseph W. Walker III told thousands of people, among them family members, fans and more than 50 former teammates, gathered at Mount Zion Baptist Church.

“What I do know about this man was that he loved God though he was just like us: imperfect,” Walked said. “But he knew God.”

This pastor represents what is wrong with the church in America. He doesn't want to call sin, sin. McNair was an adulterer. What does the Bible say about adulterers? Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6:9: Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind...." This "pastor" should have been warning those in attendance what Paul said and not attempting to preach McNair into heaven. I am not trying to be cold, but the truth is that there is nothing more that can be done for Steve McNair; his eternity is fixed. However, for those still alive, the minister of God owes an obligation of truth. Sadly, he didn't give it. McNair may have "knew God," but so does the devil and he isn't saved either.

A Call to Anguish by David Wilkerson

Please watch the below video clip and be honest before God.

Do You Love the Word of God?

As a pastor, I have noticed that one of the first signs of backsliding is a loss of love for the Word of God. I have heard many excuses: "the print is too small," yet there is no difficulty reading the small print of a newspaper or television guide. "I don't have the time." However, there is time for television, movies, or other entertainments. The truth is, people do what they want to do. The following story evidences the power of desire properly placed:

A man in Kansas City was severely injured in an explosion. Evangelist Robert L. Summer tells about him in his book The Wonder of the Word of God. The victim's face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands. He was just a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible. Then he heard about a lady in England who read Braille with her lips.

Hoping to do the same, he sent for some books of the Bible in Braille. Much to his dismay, however, he discovered that the nerve endings in his lips had been destroyed by the explosion. One day, as he brought one of the Braille pages to his lips, his tongue happened to touch a few of the raised characters and he could feel them. Like a flash he thought, I can read the Bible using my tongue. At the time Robert Sumner wrote his book, the man had "read" through the entire Bible four times.

The True Meaning of Pentecost Part 6

Many are confused about what took place on the day of Pentecost. They have either built entire denominations on speaking in tongues or they have said that all believers receive the experience at salvation. The truth is that you can't understand Pentecost until you understand what took place at Mount Sinai. In Part 6, Pastor Jenkins concludes this series by explaining the simplicity of Pentecost from a Hebraic perspective.

The Need for Christian Modesty

The following was written by Owen Strachan and posted on a blog on June 15, 2009. It was entitled, "The Bride Wore White--But Why?" The excerpt below addresses modesty in dress by Christian women, a topic that is rarely discussed for fear of angering women:

"This reminds us of the tremendous opportunity every Christian woman has to offer an unmistakably clear witness to lost people. Every act of modesty, however small, is significant. A total commitment to modesty brings great glory to God, firstly, and also has incredible cultural power provided that a Christian woman knows unbelievers to witness to.

We are reminded on this matter that we Christians need to be in the world so that our witness can shine among the lost. It is great for Christian women to all be modest together–we need that. But we need them, however they can, to be modest as a mode of witness.

This does not have to mean–in most cases–something extreme. It’s fine for Christian women to look normal and even fashionable. It’s nice for a woman to feel confident about herself and her appearance. Women should not feel the need to wear huge dresses, billowing blouses, or the like to avoid keeping men from stumbling. Honestly, if a woman is being modest, the power of the Holy Spirit is sufficient for men to avoid lust."

The Necessity of Holiness

One of the major problems in the contemporary church in America is a lack of personal holiness. The following quote from Bishop Foster explains the importance of holiness to both God and us:

"In the university of heaven, whose president is God, and whose catalog is the Bible, the course of study is plainly laid down. We may say without fear of successful contradiction that God's Word has majored on holiness! It breathes in the prophecy, thunders in the law, murmurs in the narrative, whispers in the promises, supplicates in the prayers, sparkles in the poetry, resounds In the songs, speaks In the types, glows in the imagery, voices In the language, and burns In the spirit of the whole scheme, from alpha to omega, from its beginning to its end. Holiness! holiness needed, holiness required, holiness offered, holiness attainable, holiness a present duty, a present privilege, a present enjoyment, is the progress and completeness of its wondrous theme. It is the truth glowing all over, welling all through revelation, the glorious truth which sparkles and whispers and sings and shouts In all its history, and biography, and poetry, and prophecy and precept and promise and prayer, the great central truth of Christianity."

How often do you hear messages about holiness? Why do you think there is such a lack of stressing personal holiness? Who do you think is most pleased: Jesus or Satan?

Go Ahead and Laugh

We are facing many national issues, economic issues, and moral issues. Things look bad, but I have some advice for true blood washed Holy Spirit filled believers: LAUGH! Now before you think I am endorsing the "holy laughter movement" which I am not, I want you to read the following excerpt from Perfect, Yet Pressing written in the 1800's:

"Be strong and of a good courage. Fear not nor be afraid of them; for the Lord, thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee nor forsake thee." Deut. 31:6.

I might stop there, might I not? There are passages of Scripture that fill me with triumphant, holylaughter. This is one of them. There is nothing the Lord more emphatically assures his saints than that he is going before them and with them, that he is going to do all the fighting, and that all they need to do is to come along. To put that assurance in the same verse with "Be strong," etc., is what makes me laugh. If the Lord is going with me, in me, before me, behind me, above me, beneath me, and is going to fight all the battles for me, and if all that I have to do is go along with him, what have I to be afraid of?

I am not a strong man. Once in a while I drift in with a great big man, like Rev. William B. Osborne. There is a satisfaction in being with such a big man. Often Brother Osborne has said to me, "Let me get hold of that valise." It would not be a burden to him. All I had to do was just go along without bothering about the thing!

Moral cowardice! Spiritual cowardice! Faint-heartedness! Fearful-heartedness ! Always ready to run! Discouraged at every difficulty! Always seeing the walled cities and the giants! Always seeing everything and everybody but Almighty God! There is nothing so contagious as a panic. God says, "I have been with you, I have nursed and cared for you, you have never wanted for bread or for shoes, and now that you stand upon the borders of Canaan, I am with you. Be not afraid."

Talk about us being brave, when God is for us, and with us, and in us, fighting our battles, and is all in all to us! When I read passages like that, I laugh to think how safe I am -- to think how oddly those two things about God and courage sound together in the same verse! Where is the room for fear? We will not get a panic on us the next time, will we, when something turns up, or goes wrong, or that we are quite sure will go wrong? We will not get all in a tremble, because some big fellow plants himself right across our path, will we? No, we will take God, with all the infinite resources in him.

Now, you can see that one of the best things the believer can do, is laugh out loud! What does the sanctified crowd have to fear? Absolutely nothing is the answer. Get to a place where you can laugh!

An Evil Heart of Unbelief

The following excerpt is taken from the book Perfect, Yet Pressing by Rev. John Thompson and Rev. E.I.D.Pepper:

"An evil heart of unbelief." Hebrews 3:12.

Notice how the word "heart" occurs in this chapter. "Harden not your hearts;" "They do always err in their heart;" "An evil heart of unbelief."

There are many who think that faith is a purely intellectual process. Pure faith in a pure being, like an angel, must be a purely intellectual process. If men's hearts were right, the errors of their brains would be reduced to a minimum. Take a man who, five minutes before he is entirely sanctified, is full of prejudice and error, but just so soon as the divine glory strikes him, just so soon as his heart is made clean, his brain is made clear!

Some one in the Salvation Army has said, "Clean clear through, and clear clean through." To be clear clean through, you must be clean clear through. The Methodist altar is one of the grandest theological seminaries in the world. Men have gone through colleges, and have all the titles dangling after their names; yet they do not know as much about pure and undefiled religion as some poor, little unknown souls who have had no educational advantages at all. So, if you want to do some right, clear, limpid, Biblical thinking and believing, get your heart right. It is "with the heart man believeth unto salvation."

If we could only see this "evil heart of unbelief;" this heart full of prejudice and blindness; this heart that arrays itself against God; this carnal mind and nature that sets itself against the moral perfection of God himself; this "evil heart of unbelief" that sets itself against truth and right and grace and glory, we would pray, "Lord save us from an evil heart of unbelief!"

John Wesley spoke of Christian Perfection. The term created much debate; however, this was misplaced criticism. By the term "Christian Perfection," Wesley meant loving God with your entire heart, soul, and strength and your neighbor as yourself. Jesus commanded us to do so, yet some believe that they can't accomplish what Jesus has required of them. You can have a perfect heart today, if you are willing to pay the price. What is that price? It is a dying out to your desires and will and submission to His will and desires. When you do that, God will not refuse your offering and a perfect heart of love is to be expected by faith. Today, examine your heart. Is it perfect? If so, rejoice for what God has done! If it is not, ask your self, what are you refusing to give up for the Master?

Pray Clear Through for America

Today is July 4Th and no doubt Christians across our land will pray for our nation. Our problems are immense and godliness and tolerance rule the day. However, all is not lost because we can still pray. Today, take some time to pray through. This means to pray until you know you have been heard and the answer is coming. Pray for national repentance and national revival. Pray that those hypocrite money grabbing preachers would repent or get out of the way. Pray that our leaders would follow godliness. Below is a paragraph from the book Praying Clear Through to encourage you:

"God will answer prayer. He has always answered prayer. He may not answer right at the time; He may delay for His glory and our good. or, as the case may be, like it was in Daniel, tenth chapter, where the devil kept the angel of God with an answer to Daniel's prayer from getting to Daniel for twenty-one long days. But you keep praying; never let up; never let go. God will answer, He has always answered, for He is a prayer-hearing and a prayer-answering God. Dare to trust Him anywhere. He will answer prayer. If you want to walk in the beautiful, victorious, shining pathway; if you want all the gates to fly open; if you want every block swept out of your way; if you want lions' mouths locked and fiery furnaces quenched, Red Seas to open up, Jordans to give you a dry pathway through, jails to shake off the doors and liberate you from prison -- pray clear through. If you want a rich experience, a strong faith, and to do exploits for the Master -- pray clear through. If you want to outride every storm of life, to go marching from ever battlefield with victory perched upon your banner -- pray clear through. If you want the will of God concerning some work, some call, some plan about some friend -- pray clear through. If you want the leadings of the Holy Ghost on any matter that pertains to His glory and your good -- pray clear through. If you want an Isaac for a husband, a Rebekah for a wife -- pray clear through. If you would have the Holy Ghost lubricate the wheels and belts of memory, unctionize your spirit for a fruitful service -- pray clear through. If you would be more like Christ and less like the world -- pray clear through. If you would be all like Christ, and none like the world -- tray clear through. If you want to suit God, please the Holy Ghost, and glorify Jesus Christ-pray clear through. If you want His Word to open up to you, and feed your soul, and make you fat in grace -- pray clear through. If you do not want to go to Heaven empty-handed, or be a barren fig-tree -- pray clear through."

Heaven Dropped Down

The following comes from the small book, Perfect, Yet Pressing by Rev. John Thompson and Rev. E.I.D. Pepper:

"Days of heaven upon the earth." Deut. 11:21.

The eleventh chapter of Deuteronomy is a wonderful chapter. In it we find these striking and gracious words: "Your days may be...as the days of heaven upon the earth," -- as glorious, as multiplied, as enduring.

That was the Scriptural language in which life in the Canaan of the Old Testament was described. And what language, then, shall be used to depict life in the New Testament Canaan of Perfect Love?

And, in entering and occupying the Holy Land -- either or both of them -- the people of God were promised signal divine help and victory, if faithful to God and to His covenant: "For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to cleave unto Him, then will the Lord drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves. Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours." "There shall no man be able to stand before you; for the Lord your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that ye shall tread upon, as He hath said unto you." The Bible says that "the meek shall inherit the earth." We sometimes think and talk as if it were the fighting people who are to get everything. I have often wondered why it was that the strong opposers of holiness do not do us more harm than they do. Do you know the reason? It is because there is a God in heaven. "The Lord your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that ye shall tread upon." There is something beautiful yet awful in holiness. I do not care how bad people are, there is a kind of dread upon them in the presence of holiness. People are afraid of the "evil eye" and the "curse," but they are much more afraid of the prayers of God's people and of the "single eye." "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse."

Do you remember how this chapter started? It begins with, "Know ye this day: for I speak not with your children which have not known, and which have not seen the chastisement of the Lord your God, His greatness, His mighty hand," etc., etc. I do not talk to your children, who do not know how I have watched over you, and guided you, and cared for you, and delivered you from your enemies, and have saved you from all sorts of troubles and brought you here. I am not talking to your children, who do not know about, and have not seen any of these things; I am talking, to you! You who know about your wanderings in The Wilderness, and your crossing of the Red Sea and the Jordan, I am talking to you!

God wants us to be as faithful to Him as He has been to us. He wants us to remember all these things as we go in to take possession of the land, all the land promised to us. Every place upon which the soles of our feet shall tread, is ours. "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse." Which shall it be? Your will must decide. We may accept all the blessings offered in perfect love, or realize the curse accompanying the rejection of such experience.

Are you putting your feet down rapidly? Are you getting quickly over this holy ground? Do not stop to get out any measuring instrument. Be a fleet-footed surveyor. Run just as fast as you can get your feet down.

"Every place upon which the soles of your feet shall tread." Oh, if people believed that, how quicklyhow quickly they would get into Canaan and get around in Canaan! What surveyors they would be! It would be a more rapid move than in Oklahoma and in the Indian Territory. You know how they did? They just got themselves and their horses and vehicles in, moved as fast as possible, and claimed possession. That is exactly the way God wants it should be with us in our Canaan of Perfect Love.

A Religious Sinner

The following excerpt comes from the book Perfect, Yet Pressing by Rev. John Thompson. Are you a religious sinner? From the actions of the modern church, it would appear that there are many who could be placed in this category.

I Samuel 13:8-14.

Saul was a religious sinner. He was a worshipful sinner. Now mark you! I do not say that Saul was a saved sinner, a converted sinner, a regenerate sinner, but that he was a religious sinner. There in such a thing as having a great deal of religion, but not much salvation. Saul worshiped God, but he did not do the works of God. He counted sacrifice better than obedience, rather than obedience better than sacrifice. His life was a direct contradiction of the words of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was a very forgetful, impatient, religious sinner. He could not wait for Samuel, but thought that something must be done at once, and so he takes a priest's place and functions, and himself offered a burnt offering and sacrifice. Do you know that this thing is going on all the time -- all worship and no work; all words and no work? Over and over again Saul had to be taught that he must not think that because he had worshiped God he could go on and do things that God could not approve.

Oh, that we could see that consistency in our daily lives, practical holiness, every-day holiness, obedience to God, is better than sacrifice! We may go to meeting every day in the year and be religious sinners all the same. A man cannot oppress the widow and the fatherless and then worship God and think that he is all right. That is being a worshipful sinner. The two things must exactly tally. We must be full of worship and full of work. Our spirit and our creed and our conduct must exactly tally an correspond. What is the good of talking about perfect love if in the church of God or in the family there is the short, snarly, critical, censorious, easily-offended spirit? Where is the perfect love in that?

When we are filled with the Holy Ghost, there is a keen spiritual discernment as to the will of God, the worship of God and the work of God, and as to just where one links on to the other, so that a man is one and the same thing all the way through. It should not be a hard thing to get these things together. It does not require books or papers to teach us these things. Simplicity, child likeness, watching God, having the mind of the Spirit, keeping under divine guidance, moving cautiously, being careful to be obedient to everything that God says to us -- that is the safe path. Get off of that track and there is trouble somewhere there is trouble inside and trouble outside.

Oh, that the Lord would teach us this lesson! It is a very important one. I do not want anybody to stumble over me. They will, I suppose, but I want it should be because of my blunders, caused by imperfect judgment, and not because of anything that is inconsistent with pure and perfect love in me. I want worship and work to get thoroughly mixed up together in my religious life. Step cautiously. But not under strain and stress. The testimony of a pure conscience from a pure heart to a pure life. Say that I am under strain and stress. In one sense, bounding along with the simplicity of childlike freedom, yet keeping eye and ear, the eye and ear of mind and heart, open to God, in the minutest things of life. Not having a sore conscience, but a very tender conscience. Now, let us quit being religious sinners and be well-saved saints.

Why American "Christianity" Is a Disgrace

American "Christianity" is generally, speaking a disgrace. People serve self, want their senses stimulated, and make a mockery of God by how they live their lives. The problem is that the American church has forgotten God's call to be holy. We are to live holy lives because God has commanded it. Holiness is not an option. The below story illustrates one of the conditions of holiness: a complete and total consecration or surrender to God of your entire life.


The Rev. J. Alexander Clark, a Scotch missionary from Africa, told in this country a very striking story of an African who had been mauled by a lioness and was well-nigh dead. Mr. Clark cared for his wounds, and when he got well he left. After three months he came back to Mr. Clark, and said, "You know the law of the African forest, that the redeemed belongs to the redeemer. I was dead, but I am now alive. I am yours. Here are my six wives and my children and my cattle; do with me as you will." Are we willing to surrender all to Christ like that? The secret of our lack of power and service is just this we do not acknowledge that we, the redeemed, belong to the Redeemer. -- Christ Life

So, to whom do you belong? The answer is not found in what you say, but in what you do.