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Showing posts from July, 2010

"Their Synagogue"

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Still in Matthew 12. Jesus left the Pharisees (it's the only logical thing to do) and went to "their synagogue." I think Matthew emphasized here that it was not Jesus' but it was their  synagogue, so to say. As if Jesus were saying, "Okay, let's see what you have in your church!" ha! That's how God's Flesh on earth speaks. You know what they had in  their synagogue? A man with a shriveled hand. The man had been like that a long time and no one could help him, not even the famed and biblical Pharisees. There was even a time when Jesus went to their synagogue to find a demon possessed synagogue member. All those years of solid bible-believing synagoguery didn't do anything to remedy demon possession or even a simple shriveled hand. Such a useless bible-believing religion and church. I wonder if churches today remedy simple problems like this? Or do they look the other way and instead indulge in theological discussions? So Jesus w

Interesting Details about the Jesus Ministry

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God often makes me dwell on a single chapter for weeks or even months to see important details of Scriptures which are often overlooked in ordinary bible studies. Like the first part of Matthew 12. It’s quite revealing how Jesus operated his ministry. It’s rather different from the kind of ministry that the church today admires. A Poor Ministry First, Jesus and his disciples went through the grainfields . That says a lot about the finances of the ministry. In those times, poor people and foreigners alone went through the fields after harvest to collect leftovers intended for the poor (Lev.19.10 and 23.22). God made it into a law to support those who were marginalized. If you did that, it didn’t mean you were begging from the field owner. It was God’s provision. God provided the field and the harvest from it, so he owned them all. Thus, he had the right to command field owners to spare a small part of the harvest as some kind of God’s return investment designed for the indigent.

Connect!!

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www.mytripout.com Funny, but it's possible to be always around Jesus and yet fail to connect with him. You can be right there in the midst of what Jesus is doing--the fascinating Word revelation plus astounding signs and wonders--and yet miss the point altogether. "Anyone who is not with me is against me," he declared in Matt.12.30. When he said, "Anyone who is not with me," he was referring to the Pharisees and Law teachers who were there but were unable to connect. They were there and yet not there. That's what the context says. Jesus freed a demon-possessed synagogue member right in their midst, and they failed to get the point. Oh, don't think, how could these Pharisees not see the obvious? Because many Christians and churches and pastors today likewise have the inability to connect. Even some of those in our HISgroup discipleship. And like their Pharisee and Law teacher counterparts, disconnected "believers" today are solidly bible-b

Rejected Authority at Work

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How does a God-rejected authority still work today? Can it still work? Can it still be successful? You're in for a big surprise--churches or ministries can still work and be successful even if they are already rejected by God! Success in people's eyes is not a measure of true success. Jesus' ministry looked doomed by every human standard--he was executed, was deserted by his disciples, scorned by the crowds, scorned by spiritual and bible-based leaders of his time, thought insane by his own family, and ended up dead. Later, all his disciples were executed, and the Acts church was wiped out, replaced by a Babylon church. Yet, in God's eyes, there was no man more successful than Jesus. Saul had been rejected by God. Samuel said, "You acted foolishly...now your kingdom will not endure. If you had obeyed, God would've established your kingship forever!" (1 Sam.13).  Did Saul's kingship collapse there and then? It didn't. In fact, they had lots

Genuine Born Again (Part 2)

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A genuine born again church always points people to Jesus. You want to grow strong in your spiritual life? Be deep in Jesus and His Word—be God’s flesh on earth. Church activities and programs are zero, pffft! Any achievements you have with your church programs or denomination is garbage. It’s always the Word, Word, Word! The Holy Spirit does not show up without the Word, particularly the rhema Word.  Church (especially going to a church building on Sundays) as it is done today, is never a LIFE source. Again, it is nothing but trash. You cannot say church fellowship, as done today, will make you stronger and better Christians. More entertained perhaps. Or more showbiz-like. What they say about not attending church regularly makes you weak spiritually is a big LIE! Among the weakest of weak and immature Christians I've seen are faithful church goers. And sometimes, even their pastors, too. Getting inside that building they call church won't make you strong spiritually.