There Are "Know" Problems In Churches Today... I want to make this abundantly clear, I do not know the Bible cover to cover. Matter of fact, the more of the Bible that I think I know, I somehow don't. I see something new from God's word that disputes the parts that I thought I knew in the first place. I guess that is why Isaiah 28:9-13 is in the Bible. Because when you thought you have something the way that it was supposed to be, you find in another part of the Bible it says something arbitrary to your thoughts. Thank the Lord, that is the way that it is supposed to be when you study God's word. While studying the scripture, you should not use another man-written book to find out what the word of God is saying. There are "know" problems in churches today that need to be addressed. I do believe the word of God, cold-heartedly. Saying that, will make you like a black sheep in the midst of all those white sheep, or wolves? But, I will give three things every believer needs to think about while doing anything for the Lord. First, you must know the Savior. Second, you must know some scripture. Third, you must know what to do about it. I am going to tell you what the Holy Spirit has done with me through God's word. 1 John is one of the books of the word of God that I think every new believer in Christ should read. Because, John writes to every person that knows the Lord Jesus Christ, even to them that want to know him. John takes you from being a sinner to not denying Jesus, to having Jesus manifested in your life, to knowing the Holy Spirit. To know that Christ was born of mankind, with the bloodline that made him the perfect heir of God, and Jesus gives man the Spirit of the Holy Ghost is so, amazing. That the Holy Spirit will confirm that the Lord Jesus Christ is in you is so, awesome. If he is not, it is because you're looking towards man. If it is any man that you are looking to, you are looking towards death. Know The Savior... In Genesis 3, God knew what man would do. Eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil set God's plan in motion. God knew that he would have to provide the blood for a perfect sacrifice because everything man had done and continues to do would not be enough to save them. All of the blood sacrifices that Israel, in the Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, & Deuteronomy, are for types and shadows that God would send his only begotten Son to do on the Cross. The Lord Jesus Christ would pay the ultimate cost for sin, through his perfect Blood. Jesus Christ had multiple opportunities to be killed in his 33 years of life on earth but, I know that man could not do anything to him without the divine orders from God. If Christ would have been killed in any other way, then his Blood would not have been shed from the Cross of Calvary for me. His death was the way that God had planned it to be. His death was where all could see the anguish that Jesus was in. Through the Blood that was shed, Jesus' death would be part of the plan that God started before the garden. Man is saved through the precious Blood of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 15:3, it says, "how that Christ died for our sins" like I previously said, it is only through the Blood. Jesus' blood was spilled from the Cross of Calvary to wash away the sin of the entire world. More importantly, His Blood paid the sin debt that I owed. When I came to the position, where I knew what Jesus had done for me and that there was only one thing that I could do to get my sins forgiven, I cried out for mercy from the Lord. That is when by the grace of God, he would see the Blood over my life. Because all mankind is sinners. Through the precious Savior's Blood is the only way someone can be Born-Again or, saved. That is why I love the hymn, "When I See the Blood". Because that is the only way that He will Passover you. It is sad to see that man can get into the mind of a person and tell them that they only have to believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ because that is not true. A person must know that Christ shed his perfect Blood for them, it is not Adam's, it is the Blood of Jesus! The precious Blood was shed for all mankind's sin, Hebrews 9:12, 22; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; Hebrews 13:12; 1 Peter 1:18-19. Paul, had written in Romans 7:15-25 & 8:1-8, in this flesh dwells nothing good, who can deliver a person from this fleshly death? I thank God that Paul said it was Jesus. There has to be a new spiritual birth before a person is truly a new creature in Christ. With me, the first time I thought I was saved was when I was about five years old. I knew that the only way to Heaven was through Jesus Christ. What I didn't know, was God is the judge of everything and would be the judge of me. I was somewhat like the cat following the laser light, I was not like a man following after God. I did not even like to read God's word. I did not even like to go to the house of God unless there was something in it for me. I did not even pray to the Lord, because I did not even know him. When Israel was trying to follow the LORD, they had to sacrifice animals for their blood. If they could see that the blood of the animals would hold their sin debt for another year. Why couldn't they see Jesus Christ being slain on the Cross of Calvary, bleeding out the pure blood from the Cross, as a payment for sin? I know that there was no way that I could live this life, as a man, and do anything except go to where I deserve, and that was Hell. That is when I truly cried out for the mercy of God. I knew that I had broken every one of the moral laws that he set forth in Exodus 20:1-17. I could not live anymore like a Pharisee because I was full of dead man's bones. That is what a person has to see in themselves before they can come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Because God is the final judge of everyone's sin. The life that is full of sin with or without repentance is the life of a Hell-bound sinner. A Born-Again believer's life is new and transformed, and you will only have that life if you cry out for mercy from God. Then God will show his grace to the sinner that calls on him. Because you cannot say that you are a believer and still have an underlying sin problem that did not get dealt with at salvation. If you are still sinning, God will chastise you, Hebrews 12:5-11. But, if you don't see your sin, then you are a bastard and not a son. Because it would be a disheartening thing to hear from the Lord Jesus Christ mouth, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. That is why the blood had to be spilled from the Cross of Calvary on Golgotha, the altar of the world. Know Some Scripture... While studying Scripture, I have come across certain words and phrases that I use the Strong's Concordance to decipher. I do believe it is the most critically important book that you should have in your library. If you are wondering I have been in a few churches in my life and heard many preachers, pastors, missionaries, and evangelists. Not all have broken down, either the words or the phrases. I mean, I didn't even use the Strong's Concordance until I recognized that you could get the answers to your questions from just reading the word of God. I am just saying that the Strong's Concordance is a very important companion while trying to find the meaning of different things in the word of God. Take for instance these three things in his word... 1) Parable of the Sower of the Seed... The parable of the Sower of the Seed is given in three places in the word of God. In Matthew 13:1-9, Luke 8:5-8, & Mark 4:3-9. If you are a witness for the Lord, you will understand that you are not the person that saves anyone, all you can do is plant and water, then if it is in God’s will, HE will give the increase, 1 Corinthians 3:6-7. You need to thank God for his mercy and grace for letting you be able and willing to use the precious word of God to go and be a witness for Jesus Christ. The Birds in the Parable You can see that the “bird” is a picture of Satan himself. Satan will just take the words that you give and will blind the person that you are sharing them with. Where they will not be able to see their need of God. The light that God is shining to a dark world, Matthew 5:14-16, John 1:5, & John 8:12. Because the Light of the World is Jesus Christ my Lord. Just like the hymn, "The Light of the World is Jesus". Stony Ground in the Parable The next is “stony ground” which means that the person you are witnessing to is ignoring or disregarding their need of the Savior in their life. The stony ground pictures a man who professes delight with the Word; however, his heart is not changed, and when trouble arises, his so-called faith quickly disappears. In Ezekiel 11:19-21 & Ezekiel 36:16-26, this section of scripture says what God will do to a person with a stony heart if they don’t want to submit their life and follow Jesus. But, more times than not, being in subjection to Christ is far from their heart. Even though Christ died for all, there is still hope in the name of Jesus. Thorns in the Parable The next is “the thorns that grew up”. Thorns are talked about in Matthew 7:16-23, this is the same way that you would assume thorns would be. These are people who thought that they were saved but really did not follow the necessities of the born-again believer. In Isaiah 9:13-18, Nahum 1:2-12, & Ezekiel 28:24, you can see what thorns God had put in the community of Israel and what he did with them. Throughout the Bible, what has today's believers to look at, to see how Christians should be living, Israel. But, by looking at another parable in Matthew 25:1-13, the ten virgins, you can see what God will do to the people who are just playing church. A believer must possess the oil of the Holy Ghost, Jesus in them. Because the cares of this world are powerful and can take any man from the love of God. Good Ground in the Parable The last thing is the “good ground”, these are the people that have submitted their lives to Jesus Christ and despite what tries to pull them away from him, they live their lives for Jesus, no matter what. Some will receive rewards for what they have done in this life, Jeremiah 17:10, 1 Corinthians 3:12-14, James 1:12, & Revelation 2:10. 2) He That Winneth Souls is Wise... Proverbs 11:30, in the section of the verse where it says, "...he that winneth souls is wise", notice it does not say, are wise. I believe it is talking of Jesus Christ because I am just one of the guilty sinners. He is the soul winner, all I can do is testify or, be a witness of his greatness. 1 Corinthians 3:7, is part of where I get that from in the Bible. He is the one who changes a person's heart, not me. "The fruit of the righteous", is the blood spilled from the thorns smashed down on Jesus' head, the beating that he suffered for my sin, and the spear thrust into his side, he took from my sin. The "tree of life" is the cross where Jesus was nailed where the precious Blood of my Savior was spilled for me. On the cross, Jesus did it all for me! 3) I Can Do All Things... Philippians 4:13 is a beautiful verse if used in the correct context of the chapter it is in, and it is an extremely powerful verse from Paul. If you go through the chapter and see what Paul had gone through, you will begin to see why he is saying. That’s simply just what our human nature wishes Paul meant when he wrote it. So when you use the verse don’t use it in relation to worldly gain. Because that is one thing that every person in the Bible did not like. This world is not supposed to be every Christian's home, as Paul, we are just passing through this life until we are either taken by death or, by Jesus. Because life is like a vapour, it is here for a short time and vanishes away James 4:14. Know What To Do About It... There are a lot of things you can do about each of the things that are listed above. If you are not saved or, just acting like you are, you should come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Because he shed God's perfect blood for you on the Cross of Calvary. He did that to make a way for you to spend eternity with the Father. If you cry out for mercy from God and don't harbor iniquity in your heart, God will show you his grace. It is only through the Blood of Jesus, that can take away your sin. If you do not know that God has saved you, pray earnestly and study God's word until you get a confirmation of Jesus in you. It took me from the age of 5 years until 13 before I had any confirmation from God that I was saved. So, I am just praying for anyone who needs that. For the people who are Born-Again, we all have the same calling, to glorify God in everything we do. Because, in 1 Corinthians 6:20, we are supposed to glorify God in our body & spirit. This is why we are here on earth. God tells us that we are made for His glory in Isaiah 43:7. We have instruction to do everything for the glory of God in 1 Corinthians 10:31. To glorify God is not to bestow the glory on God or, add to His glory, but to recognize and acknowledge the glory of Jesus Christ. The basic meaning of the word glory is, heavyness in weight. It is the weight of importance and shining majesty that accompany God’s presence. Thus, to glorify God is to recognize God for who He really is and to respond appropriately. But how do we give Him glory? 1. Praise Him with your lips. 3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Psalms 63:3 2. Obey His Word. 29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. Acts 5:29 3. Pray in Jesus’ name. 13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. John 14:13 4. Produce spiritual fruit. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25 5. Remain pure. 18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. 19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 6. Seek the good of others. 31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31 7. Give generously. 13 Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men; 2 Corinthians 9:13 8. Live honorably among unbelievers. 12 Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. 1 Peter 2:12 9. Be faithful when persecuted. 16 Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf. 1 Peter 4:16 10. Face death with faith. Jesus predicted Peter would die as a martyr, 19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me. John 21:19. We can show God to be great in the way we approach death because we know, 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Philippians 1:21 Please, share any points you agree or, disagree with within the comments below.
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Know some scripture, know the Savior, know what to do about it, Stony Ground in the Parable, The Bird in the Parable, Sower of the Seed,
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