The Gift of Prophecy is elevated in the Bible as the most important of the Holy Ghost Gifts. “Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy” (I Corinthians 14:1). We serve a practical God that does everything He does for a high and holy cause. If that is not true in any place where the Holy Ghost is claimed, something is badly wrong. Crazy actions and wild emotions cannot be trusted as the wonderful ministry of the Spirit. We have had the laughter movement, angel feathers, gold dust falling, worshippers drunken in an uncontrolled state, and more. People are constantly prophesying over one another with cheap promises of blessings, wealth, and some great thing in their life. All of this lasts for a short time as all fads do and then they pass. Prophecy serves to strengthen His Church and saints and to build them up in the Spirit. “But he that prophesied speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort” (I Corinthians 14:3). It is important that the church world get ready for the coming move of God. A church that refuses to allow the Holy Ghost to do His great work will miss what our Father is going to do. The Bible is absolute and cannot fail. This is God’s promise, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams” (Acts 2:17). Many will resist this coming move, the “Kingdom Dominion” believers will reject it and be a part of the Antichrist Army during the Great Tribulation. The beauty of it is that millions will hear and repent and turn back to the holiness life. Even the young generation will be greatly moved and turn to God in multitudes. Humble your heart and get ready for a move of the Holy Ghost of God and of Christ.
Archive for May, 2010
The Holy Ghost And Prophecy
Saturday, May 29th, 2010My Sheep Know My Voice
Friday, May 28th, 2010
Jesus Christ spoke these awesome words, “. . . for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers” (John 10:4b-5). False carnal and religious voices are everywhere and multiplying. The only safe place is a relationship with Christ where we become familiar with His voice. The Bible speaks of strongholds, imaginations, high things that exalteth itself, and corrupt communications. The spiritual war is first and foremost fought in the minds of all of us. If Satan can capture our thought life, our shipwreck is right down the road.
The Antichrist spirit has succeeded in flooding the imaginations of people with a multitude of dark thoughts. Much of today’s thought life starts innocently. The physical needs of life, natural desires within our bodies, and the need for pleasures that rest the body and minds have become dominate in every culture. The Bible warns us, “And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away” (I Corinthians 7:31).
Everything of a Bible-believing Christian’s life must be under strong discipline so that even good things of life never control us. The Bible calls this a self-controlled life. The moment you lose it, there are dark places to follow.
Roots of bitterness cannot begin anywhere but in your emotions and thoughts. The sources of bitterness are an ever enduring possibility. We hear words that could wound us almost every week and, sometimes, every day. Bitter people inhabit churches, offices, and every walk of life. If you are happy, there is someone that would enjoy making you sad. Wounded people are almost continually wounding someone else. Knowing this is true puts a strong burden on those that refuse to become bitter! The Holy Ghost is our helper. Here is his warning to you, “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled” (Hebrews 12:15).
What is sad is that most bitter people think only of the source of their bitterness. Bitterness is absolutely blinding. Religious strongholds are most often the strongest bondage of all. The soul in each of us is the location of the Adamic or fallen nature. The soul is also religious because the Creator made it religious. Unless we experience and maintain a devotion to the cleansing blood of Christ, we easily revert to the religious nature of man. The cleansing blood alone can keep all of our desires and thoughts pure. David prayed regularly, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).
Apostle Paul spoke by the Holy Ghost, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Philippians 4:8). Your mind is on your head, so be its master and control what is allowed in the door. It’s your happiness and even your health that you are protecting when you keep all negative thoughts out and pure thoughts flowing like a river. Your face will tell the tale of which is your master.
There is a God-provided dynamic ready to help assure your victory. It is called “praying in the Spirit.” The voice of Christ is available to every believer by the person of His Holy Ghost. Read carefully what the voice of Christ recorded in this letter that Paul wrote to Corinth, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (II Corinthians 10:3-5). These words have the possibility of changing your entire life and, especially, your success in blessing others.
First, we must not war after this flesh. Our struggle is never to be flesh with flesh or warring with each other. Regardless of what anyone says to you, speak back with kindness. Learn to pray with the wisdom and power of the Holy Spirit. “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints” (Ephesians 6:18).
The Holy Ghost was given to us to be the voice of Jesus Christ within us, but you must learn to pray and then listen. I don’t mean just hearing silly imaginations but growing and being led by the Holy Ghost in and through the Holy Scripture. “And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17).
Nothing will so alter your life as learning the true voice of your Lord and Master. A humble and broken spirit is the real beginning of this new and powerful walk with Christ. “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us” (II Corinthians 4:7).
You are helpless in your flesh, but you can be powerful when the flesh is hung on the cross with Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is our High Priest of the Heavenly Temple. He is there to be your voice to the Father and by the Holy Spirit to be the Father’s voice to and in you.
The Sounds Of Abundance Of Rain
Tuesday, May 25th, 2010This message from Holy Scripture is clearly prophetic. Godly saints are fasting and praying, and the best ministers of God that I know are believing and hearing from the Spirit. Our Heavenly Father is going to come down and show our world that He is God. Here is a prophetic word from Isaiah, the Statesman Prophet. No one can speak clearer in the time of political crisis than Isaiah. He declared, “Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence” (Isaiah 64:1). The only hope for our nation and the rest of the nations is for the true and Holy God of the Bible to step into the fray. He has done exactly that throughout history and He will do it again. The title of this sermon is “THE SOUNDS OF ABUNDANCE OF RAIN.” The hour is certainly at hand when God Himself promised an outpouring of His Holy Ghost. I believe we can expect it to begin anyday. I go to church every Sunday believing it will be the Sunday it starts. “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams” (Acts 2:17). Every great revival came in the time of desperate saints that would not give up. Also, it was a crisis similar to our world condition. The wicked get bold and arrogant and think they can eliminate God from their schemes. That’s where we are and I’m excited to see their boldness. It means God is also looking and the great saints of God will be avenged.
The Holy Ghost And “Slain In The Spirit?”
Saturday, May 22nd, 2010Discerning between the fake and the real has become an absolute necessity. The Bible records many occasions where someone fell to the ground before the Lord. When it was pure worship or reverence they fell on their face; but, when it was judgment they fell on their back. The fact that someone may fall before the Mighty God should not be the question. What is questionable is the mass hysteria that follows many well-known ministers of our day. Benny Hinn is notorious for calling fire on those that come before him and sending them flying backward. To watch him in action is to question his powers and their source. Todd Bentley takes this phenomenon to a higher level. His appearance is of a guru filled with demonic powers. This strange phenomenon is reported to have begun with Kathleen Kuhlman. She was very excited when Catholic priests and nuns came to her meeting. They were often the first to fall at her prayers. There is absolutely no record in the Bible of anyone falling in the Spirit before the greatest men of God. When these servants prayed for their converts, they did receive the Baptism of the Holy Ghost and they did speak in tongues. When Peter preached to the house of Cornelius, they received the Baptism while he was speaking, “While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word” (Acts 10:44). They also spoke in tongues, “And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning” (Acts 11:15). Everything Satan does is an imitation. Good people have fallen before the Lord because the Bible records it; so, Satan must produce a false to fake it.
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This Earth is the Lord’s
Friday, May 21st, 2010
If you do not know the Bible, watching the present grab for Government control of our lives is scary. Every action of the developing One World Order is a timetable to the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. The Millennium Kingdom has been on God’s calendar from eternity. It’s thrilling to look over the shoulder of President Obama and see the future. The hatred for Biblical Christianity is a perfect sign of Satan’s misjudgment.
Read carefully what the Spirit spoke through the pen of King David, “The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands (truths) asunder and cast away their cords (restraints) from us” (Psalm 2:2-3). Every great idea of Biblical truth must be destroyed in the minds of our world leaders. They are perfectly ready to use religion, as long as it is not restrictive religion. It must be void of absolutes and willing to play by their rules. This kind of apostasy already dominates the church world.
The prevailing mindset of world leaders is a level of control on everyone that seems utterly foolish. Why would government leaders want to decide our health issues and control a system of medical care that cannot fail to bankrupt our economy? Why would they put microchips in garbage containers to keep tabs on our commitment to their recycling agenda? Recently, a thief broke into my home and set it on fire. Then, a government employee came to find out if my house was being repaired properly. Because I ran him off, they sent me a summons to appear before a board to answer for my actions. I refused to appear and, finally, they disappeared after I called a former city councilman that they did not like. Control is the coming order of the Antichrist.
But, our sights are set on what follows. After making the above statement, King David continued, “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure” (Psalm 2:4-5). In this prophetic picture the Spirit continues to show the Lord Jesus exalted in the heavens and awaiting His ordained time to possess this earth. The Spirit said, “Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee” (Psalm 2:6-7). This picture of His exaltation after His resurrection is breathtaking. He is now reigning over His church and, behind the scenes, over the kings and rulers of this world. He is soon to appear and set up His kingdom.
Then, the Father speaks of His promise to His exalted Son, “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psalm 2:8-9). The hour is near, although no one can set the date, when the final events will occur to prepare for His one thousand years of peace! The earth is the Lord’s and He will not need a recycling program to restore all things.
After the Rapture, the War of Gog and Magog, and the seven years of the Great Tribulation; this earth will have returned to its pristine beauty. The exact timetable of the cleansing of the earth is not clear. But, we know that, between the Rapture and His return to Jerusalem to reign, everything will be put in order. By the Spirit Apostle Peter wrote, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat” (II Peter 3:10-12).
Wickedness is on a short leash. All the plans and schemes of our Christ-rejecting world is nothing but insanity. Never has the stage been so perfectly set for the final dramas. Human egos are on a path to their own destruction. This earth is the Lord’s. He has a perfect plan that includes His saints. When the Rapture occurs, we that walk with Him on this earth will move right up into the stratosphere and enter the Celestial City of Heavenly Jerusalem. David spoke of ivory palaces that line the streets. The greatest sight will be the Temple of God of which Solomon’s temple was but a shadow.
Then, when God’s reclaiming plan is finished, we will return with Christ to share the Lordship of His perfect universe. “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies (the raptured saints) which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Revelation 19:11-14, 16). Our future is star-studded!!
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The Omnipresence Of The Holy Ghost
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010In his Psalm 139, King David settled the beauty of God’s Holy Spirit. This Divine Person of the Godhead is the Omnipresent member that makes His Spirit, the universe embracing manifestation. There is no where that He is not. We cannot escape this manifestation of God. He hears everything we speak, He knows everywhere we are or go, and every good deed or evil action of which we are part. The GPS of modern tracking systems is not so new after all. Read what David wrote as He spoke by the Holy Spirit, “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me” (Psalm 139: 7-11). This Divine Person is the sum of life in our world. The Lord Jesus prayed to the Father and the Father sent the Spirit to indwell the Church and make His earthly Body invincible. The wicked can resist and run and even ignore this Great Person, but they cannot escape. A God-fearing believer has great comfort in knowing that nothing can separate us from the love of God unless you simply walk away. Even then, He will follow and call to your heart to return. Every sinner should tremble knowing that this Holy Spirit is the Master of the Heavenly archives and keeps a perfect record of all our deeds.
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Allah Is Not Jehovah God
Tuesday, May 18th, 2010There is a dangerous and unfounded effort by many church leaders to equate Jehovah God of Holy Scripture with Allah, the god of the Islamic religion. Such extreme ecumenicalism is not just plain wrong; it is totally unfair to Bible-believing Christians around the world. It is also unfair to millions of Arab Christians who know Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. This is not a matter of treating Muslim people wrong or persecuting them for their religious belief. Nothing is below the action of any genuine Christian more than to be unkind to a fellow citizen of our America or of another nation. We are all Americans and citizens of the world, and trying to blur the differences of our religious faith does nothing to stop prejudice. The fact: When you try to rob people of the distinction of what they believe, it only tends to enflame prejudice.
It is clear that Muhammad had an extremely good understanding of the Jewish and Christian beliefs but he clearly distorted them throughout his writing. Even his revelations were not revelations that had any semblance of Biblical unity. They were clearly the work of spirits, mental imbalance, or disease-induced fever. The very foundations of Muhammad’s early days were filled with raids on caravans of merchants and nearby communities, terrorist activities that included brutal slaughter of the male population, plus selling the women and children as slaves. He and his early converts were in every detail of their activity, terrorists, just as brutal as those that commandeered those planes over our Northeastern states. This certainly does not suggest that every Muslim has the same mindset.
I want to establish the sheer facts of the religion called Islam. My primary information is from the The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 15, Volumes 22 & 25. This set of encyclopedias was chosen to make sure my information was unbiased. I have no desire to present a false picture of this religion. The Arab people, as a distinct part of the world’s population, must not be treated unfairly. They are creatures of creation by the Heavenly Father. They are in every sense of the word endowed by the Creator with inalienable rights and to choose their religion is one of the choices they must make. We must not persecute or war against them because of their choices. Neither should we try to blend the religions together as though there is no difference. Bible believers in America will not be a part of such a mindless blurring of our faith.
Foundational Facts of Islamic History
The foundations of Islam are dark indeed. The term Muslim means someone that submits himself or herself to Allah. The followers of the Islamic religion are Muslims. Muhammad was the founder of Islam. Actually, the Islam religion was a breakaway from an existing religion with a pantheon of gods and the Kab’ah (shrine) at Mecca had many idols worshipped by the locals and visitors. A description of this shrine and its deities can be researched from many sources. Here is a description from my chosen source. “Thus Mecca became an attractive site for large trade fairs that coincided with pilgrimage (hajj) to a local shrine, the Kab’ah. The Ka’bah housed the deities of visitors as well as the Meccans’ supra-tribal creator and covenant-guaranteeing deity, called Allah. Most Arabs probably viewed this deity as one among many, possessing powers not specific to a particular tribe; others may have identified this figure with the God of the Jews and Christians.” (The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 15, Volume 22, p. 104.)
It is clear that Allah was a part of the large pantheon of gods and the idea of making Allah a monotheistic god was apparently Muhammad’s decision. There is nothing to suggest that Allah had a relationship to Jehovah God of the Bible. In fact, Allah had previously been worshipped as having three daughters that were gods themselves known as “Allah’s Trinity.” Notice this description. “Where more complex settlement patterns had developed, however, widely shared deities had already emerged, such as the ‘trinity’ of Allah’s ‘daughters’ known as al-Lat, Manat, and al-Uzzah.” (Ibid., p. 105.)
When Muhammad first suggested that Allah was the one and only god, he faced incredible resistance and this was one of the first schisms that caused the Meccans to break with him. He was also a threat to their authority because of his visions and the respect of most citizens in those times for superstitious activities.
Muhammad’s Revelations
Muhammad is said to have had visions and revelations almost all of his adult life from about AD 610 until his death. At first he was disturbed by the experiences he had. His first wife, much older than Muhammad, is said to have encouraged him and her cousin began to help him write down the revelations. This cousin, named Waraguh, is reported to having been a Christian. The general condition of Muhammad during these visions plainly shows from a Biblical point that they were demonic instead of Christian. The first rule for a vision or revelation in the Christian community is absolute harmony with the Bible. While there are some ideas in Muhammad’s revelation that have principles of Bible truth the majority of his thoughts fail miserably.
First, let’s look at his physical conditions when receiving his revelations. “In his later experiences of receiving messages there was normally no vision. (Occasionally there were physical concomitants, such as perspiring on a cold day, and these gave rise to the suggestion, now agreed to be unwarranted, that he was an epileptic.) Sometimes he heard a noise like a bell but apparently never a voice. The essence of such an experience was that he found a verbal message in his heart – that is, in his conscious mind.” (Ibid., p. 2.)
As the traditions of the Islamic religion are described, there was a very clear explanation of Muhammad’s revelations. Nothing in these revelations has a Biblical precedence. While Gabriel is credited, the explanation shows nothing but a spirit of some nature. “The angel Gabriel brought the Qur’an down to the Prophet’s ‘heart.’ Gabriel is represented by the Qur’an as a spirit, but the Prophet could sometimes see and hear him. According to early traditions, the Prophet’s revelations occurred in a state of trance when his normal consciousness was in abeyance. This state was accompanied by heavy sweating. The Qur’an itself makes it clear that the revelations brought with them a sense of extraordinary weight: ‘If we were to send this Quar’an down on a mountain, you would see it split asunder out of fear of God.’” (Ibid., p. 7.)
All of this is described as coming from a “Mother’s Book.” This laid the foundation for the Islamic people to believe that the revelations of Muhammad are infallible. “This phenomenon at the same time was accompanied by an unshakable conviction that the message was from God, and the Qur’an describes itself as the transcript of a heavenly ‘Mother Book’ written on a ‘Preserved Tablet.’ The conviction was of such an intensity that the Qur’an categorically denies that it is from any earthly source, for in that case it would be liable to ‘manifold doubts and oscillations.’” (Ibid., p. 7.) The presence of sweating, a state of trance where normal consciousness is absent, heaviness upon the body, all suggest a spirit indeed, but not a spirit or angel from Jehovah God. These are the kinds of activity always associated with evil and false demons operating for Satan to deceive and destroy the true faith of Holy Scripture.
Jesus Christ: Not The Divine Son of God
This point would create no problem for Orthodox Jews because we are all aware that they reject Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah. Yet, for the Christian, it clearly reveals the impossibility of Allah being Jehovah God. Here is a plain statement, eliminating the trinity of Jehovah God and denying the Sonship of Christ. “The doctrine about God in the Qur’an is rigorously monotheistic: God is one and unique; he has no partner and no equal. Trinitarianism, the Christian belief that God is three persons in one substance, is vigorously repudiated. Muslims believe that there are no intermediaries between God and the creation that he brought into being by his sheer command: ‘Be.’” (Ibid., p. 6.)
They do teach that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, but was saved from crucifixion from the Jews by God. “Not only was Jesus born from the Virgin Mary, but God also saved him from crucifixion at the hands of the Jews.” (Ibid., p. 7.) They believed that Jesus was a prophet, but that “All prophets are human and never part of divinity; they are simply recipients of revelation from God.” (Ibid., p. 7.)
Muhammad Was A Terrorist
No one can follow Muhammad to the letter without becoming a terrorist. From the very beginning, monies to fund his activities were gathered by raids on merchants and communities. In describing Muhammad’s followers at the very beginning of his development at Medina, we see this description. “A few emigrants carried on trade in the local market run by a Jewish clan. Others, with the approval of Muhammad, set out in normal Arab fashion on razzias (ghazawat, ‘raids’) in the hope of intercepting Meccan caravans passing near Medina on their way to Syria. Muhammad himself led three such razzias in 623. They all failed, probably because traitors betrayed the Muslim movements to the enemy. At last, in January 624, a small band of men was sent eastward with sealed orders telling them to proceed to Nakhlah, near Mecca, and attack a caravan from Yemen. This they did successfully, and in doing so they violated pagan ideas of sanctity – thereby making the Meccans aware of the seriousness of the threat from Muhammad.” (Ibid., p. 3.)
Further description is as following, “In March 624 he was able to lead about 315 men on a razzia to attack a wealthy Meccan caravan returning from Syria. The caravan, led by Abu Sufyan, the head of the Umayyah clan, eluded the Muslims by devious routes and forced marches. Abu Jahl, the head of the Makhzum clan, however, leading a supporting force of perhaps 800 men, wanted to teach Muhammad a lesson and did not withdraw. On March 15, 624, near a place called Badr, the two forces found themselves in a situation, perhaps contrived by Muhammad, from which neither could withdraw without disgrace. In the ensuing battle at least 45 Meccans were killed, including Abu Jahl and other leading men, and nearly 70 taken prisoner, while only 14 Muslims died. To Muhammad this appeared to be a divine vindication of his prophethood, and he and all the Muslims were greatly elated.” (Ibid., p. 3.)
We can hardly comprehend a great prophet receiving direct revelation from God, who at the same time must fund his new religion by stealing and robbing innocent people. The terrorist activities did not end with just robbing and stealing but also unwarranted slaughter and the selling of slaves resulting from his raids. Once Muhammad had secured his control of Medina he proceeded to reign terror on the citizens that refused his religion. “After the siege of Medina, Muhammad attacked the Jewish clan of Qurayzah, which had probably been intriguing against him. When they surrendered, the men were all executed and the women and children sold as slaves.” (Ibid., p. 4.)
Please note that he killed the men after they surrendered and then sold their wives and children as slaves. Over and over you find these kind of terrorist tactics characterizing his lifestyle and methods. The Jews could not accept Muhammad’s new religion so they were seen as enemies almost from the first day. Soon to follow were the Christians and their communities. While he had made some friends among Christians, that soon turned to hostility. “Some of the tribes near Syria were Christian and adhered to the Byzantines; chiefly as a result of this, Muhammad’s earlier friendship for the Christians, notably those of Ethiopia, changed to hostility.” (Ibid., p. 4.)
Holy Warfare (Jihad) From The Beginning
Deny it as we may try, “Holy War” or “Jihad” is a fundamental concept in the Islamic religion. Certainly, there are Islamic people that reject that idea. National leaders among the Islamic nations vary in how they see this issue and none of us will know the final purpose of one and all. Yet, the idea is fundamental to this faith if words mean anything as history verifies. Look at this expression again from the Encyclopedia Britannica. “However much the concept and practice of holy warfare is repugnant to many minds today, in the context of Islam it implies a sensitivity to evil and a conviction that evil has to be resisted and overcome in a total dedication.” (The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 15, Volume 25, p. 701.)
The facts are clear. “Although greatly maligned by medieval European scholars – whose opinions still retain some influence – Muhammad came to be viewed more objectively in the 19th century. Some of the evidence against him, such as his connivance at assassinations and his approval of the execution of the men of a Jewish clan, are historical matters that cannot be denied.” (The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 15, Volume 22, p. 4.)
The idea of “jihad” comes clearly to the front row in the Islamic theology because of this “community concept.” Listen to this intellectual description of the Islamic concept. “With this socioeconomic doctrine cementing the bond of faith, the idea of a closely knit community of the faithful who are declared to be ‘brothers unto each other’ emerges. Muslims are described as ‘the middle community bearing witness on mankind,’ ‘the best community produced for mankind,’ whose function it is ‘to enjoin good and forbid evil’ (Qur’an). Cooperation and ‘good advice’ within the community are emphasized, and a person who deliberately tries to harm the interests of the community is to be given exemplary punishment. Opponents from within the community are to be fought and reduced with armed force, if issues cannot be settled by persuasion and arbitration.
“Because the mission of the community is to ‘enjoin good and forbid evil’ so that ‘there is no mischief and corruption’ on earth, the doctrine of jihad, in view of the constitution of the community as the power base, is the logical outcome. For the early community it was a basic religious concept. Jihad, or holy war, means an active struggle using armed force whenever necessary. The object of jihad is not the conversion of individuals to Islam but rather the gaining of political control over the collective affairs of societies to run them in accordance with the principles of Islam. Individual conversions occur as a by-product of this process when the power structure passes into the hands of the Muslim community.” (Ibid., p. 8.) This entire idea is scary indeed.
Humankind: Some More Human Than Others
There is no other major religion in the world that sees certain races of humans as of less value than their own kind. Yet, this is very true within the Islamic theology. One of the big points in the Encyclopedia Britannica was concerning the Islamic view of man. It stated, “According to the Qur’an, God created two apparently parallel species of creatures, man and jinn, the one from clay and the other from fire. About the jinn, however, the Qur’an says little, although it is implied that the jinn are endowed with reason and responsibility but are more prone to evil than man. It is with man that the Qur’an, which describes itself as a guide for the human race, is centrally concerned. The Judeo-Christian story of the Fall of Adam (the first man) is accepted, but the Qur’an states that God forgave Adam his act of disobedience, which is not viewed in the Qur’an (in contradistinction to its understanding in the Christian doctrine) as original sin. ” (Ibid., p. 7.)
This view that there is a class of “Jinns” (other humans, not Islamic) can lay the foundation for calling Jews, monkeys and pigs as we have been hearing in Israel. How far this prejudice reaches in the Muslim communities no one really knows that I have found. You cannot look at the world’s situation without wondering how much of this attitude is affecting the way men think.
Conclusion
Our purpose in this article is not to create dark emotions toward Arab people. In fact, this article has nothing to do with Arab people, but only with the Islamic religion. Millions of Arabs are American citizens, as well as many spread around the world. A tremendous number are friends of Israel, flag waving Americans, Bible-believing Christians, and indeed wonderful citizens of the world communities.
As already stated, there must not be ill treatments of those who believe in Allah. It is wrong to use your faith to try and impose it on someone against his or her will. The citizens of Islamic countries should be absolutely free to choose the Christian faith, while citizens of any country should be free in the religion of their choice. The Word of God offers no hope of salvation to anyone that does not make his or her own personal choice to receive Jesus Christ. Conversion by cohesion is not possible. You would not have a convert; you would have a slave.
If you are a Bible-believing Christian, it is your responsibility to defend the truth of one God, our Heavenly Father, and one Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. If you compromise this point, there is nothing left worth believing in.
The Holy Ghost And Strange Fire
Saturday, May 15th, 2010The greatest imitation of church history is literally flooding the world. The church world is under attack by spirits, dark fallen spirits that are better understood as voodoo spirits. I just returned from Haiti and saw a women in our revival service on Wednesday evening fall under a voodoo attack. She began to gyrate like some strange force had taken her captive and she pulsated on the floor. Thank God for the anointing that breaks that kind of evil spirits. After the spirit or spirits were cast out, she stood at my instruction in Jesus’ name and began to praise the Lord. She started singing the same song as the singers in a beautiful voice. Her face lit up in the joy of the Lord. It is amazing that the same Voodoo spirit is falling on people all over the church world and they are calling it the Holy Ghost. All that is needed is to study the Bible, discern those things that are contrary to Scripture, and call them what they are. I have been a Pentecostal for fifty-eight years and have seen the real so often that this false manifestation is sickening. Through the years, great people of God called it what it was. Then, they would cast the devil out. Satan’s greatest delight is when he can produce a masquerade and convince the people that it’s real. That’s where the majority of the church is today. Why has this happened? Because the ministers do not pray before God until they hear from Him. Often, the new idea is “the means justifies the end.” Too many ministers will do almost anything today to get a crowd. Growth is more important then truth.
Attached Files:
The Invincible Power of Prayer
Thursday, May 13th, 2010
Our Heavenly Father does nothing in the church or His Kingdom that is not first wrought in travailing prayer. Prayer – interceding, travailing prayer — is God’s first line of spiritual operation. When God is ready to do some marvelous work of eternal consequence, He first prepares human channels of travailing prayer to lay the foundation. Powerful prayer can no more be the work of flesh alone than can preaching, miracles of healing, or the breaking of demon powers. Effective prayer is a work of the Holy Ghost in willing and released human lives.
Prayer that has no divine element and anointing is like the dead letter of the law without the unction of the Holy Ghost. It kills instead of resurrects. Fleshly prayer creates false assurance, deadens those exercised therein and causes the individuals to substitute activity for Spirit. The more a church or an individual is involved in fleshly praying, the more they become centered on soulical and fleshly support for their religious programs. Gimmicks, entertainment, emotionally titillating methods, and all kinds of fleshly operations become master. The church becomes nothing better than the fleshpots of Egypt. Any religion in the world can accomplish everything that this kind of prayer and action can affect in a “Christian” church.
Everything changes when men/women begin to pray in a Spirit-directed fashion. Prayer becomes fellowship and communion with God in the deepest sense. Our entire mindset becomes one of total dependency on God. We learn to hate religious activity and empty speech. Religious sight, sound, and sensation become as annoying to the praying believer as it already is to the Lord Jesus Christ. The soul that becomes inclined to God because of Holy Ghost anointed travail takes on His nature and glory but in a totally dependent fashion. Worldly religion becomes even more obnoxious than worldliness itself. In fact, what most people label as worldliness is less annoying (though certainly to be rejected) than religious self-righteousness, carnal speech and the self-empowered praying that has only human form.
Biblical Promises are Dependent on Prayer
Every promise that God has made to His Saints are yea and amen. Those promises — and there are thousands of them — are always available to every Saint of God but will not be experienced until believing prayer is present. There is not one of those promises that our God will not honor. But, He cannot do it until His Saints take hold of the promise in Spirit-filled prayer. The church world lives like paupers on the outskirts of His kingdom. In our souls we carry the divinely authorized sonship of the Kingdom, but we live like children of poverty. We have royal blood from the kingly line of the eternal God, but we go about life as though our relationship is meaningless. How pathetic this cold world appears to our hurting generation.
As a whole, the church world offers the sick and suffering the same antidote as the secular world. Churches have twelve-step programs, psychologist couches, and a quick prayer. Can you imagine how the devil howls when the modern preacher walks in the hospital room, gives his compassionate gestures, “sometimes” says a prayer, and leaves the patient to the care of a mostly skeptical medical profession? Certainly, many of these men of the cloth and doctors are kind and well-meaning, but helpless to do anything more than console the suffering and prescribe a few pills. Is this the only way a “man of God” can bring the mighty power of the Creator into His world? Absolutely not!
Travailing prayer will bring all of us into a realm where supernatural powers are as natural as God is supernatural. The promises of God cannot be viewed honestly in any different fashion. They are either His promises, absolutely and infallibly available, or God is a big lie. You and I both know better. Isaiah did not mince words when he spoke by the Holy Ghost of why Jesus Christ would come into our world. Listen carefully!
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3-5). Argue all day with the truth of God’s Word, but you will only cheat yourself and those who listen to you. The Word of God stands sure and God has not changed.
Healing powers in the church are absent in exactly the same degree that travailing prayer is absent. Jesus has paid the redemptive price for both spiritual and bodily healing and the virtues of His redemptive act is locked away awaiting the unfailing key of importunate prayer. Somebody that knows God and can pray must be the link between the power to heal and the person awaiting the miracle. Many of the present day sicknesses and strange diseases are nothing less than the work of Satan. Satan is the destroyer and comes to mankind “to steal, kill and destroy” (John 10:10a). Jesus gave us this warning, but clearly concluded by promise, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10b). Only travailing prayer can bring us out of our morass of helplessness.
Attached Files:
The Holy Spirit And Discernment By Holy Scripture
Saturday, May 8th, 2010The true and living God is perfectly revealed in the Holy Bible. Every idea and every action of the Holy Spirit to be manifest in His Church can be seen in the Four Gospels. Jesus Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit without measure, and He is our example in ministry. The Book of Acts is the model of the Church and in its pages we see His disciples mightily used of the Holy Ghost. There was always perfect order and beautiful demonstration of the Spirit. The sick were healed, demons were cast out, and souls were converted. To help us futher, Apostle Paul wrote I Corinthians, Chapters 12 and 14 in order to give us strong instructions on the ministry and order of the Gifts of Holy Ghost. Watch the average minister on television or in the big time and you will see multiple things never seen in the Bible. When did Jesus Christ waved His coat and cause hundreds to fall back in the floor or on top of others? When did the Son of God call fire down on people and send them tumbling? Better still, when did He beg big offerings in order to live the life of a millionaire? The doctrines of Jesus Christ were simple and pure. He never preached some strange idea but often quoted the great prophets of the First Testament. The Bible is infallible and literal. Believers are being led like dumb sheep because they do not try what they hear by the Holy Word. Go to the YouTube link, listen and watch a clip of a Rick Joyner meeting. It’s insane to hear and see how far from the Bible they have departed. If you follow this deception, it is because there is no light in you. I pray for His light to shine again in the church world.
