Christian Fellowship
“That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving...” Psalm 26:7
Vol. 23 No. 7 July 2014
There are so many “lies” prevalent in our society today that it is hard to know what is “truth.” If we know truth, we will be set free to serve the Lord according to His will and favor. But in order to know truth, you will have to know God’s Word. Keep yourself in the Word of God:
Rev 3:10 “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.”
As we approach the Day of the Lord, the temptations will increase exponentially. We won’t know what to do except the Word of the Lord is in our hearts and minds.
Psa 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.”
To keep our minds on the things of the Lord requires warfare. Without it, we have no peace; and without peace we have no direction; and without direction, where in the world are we headed? I want to know the will of God in every circumstance of my life; and to do that, I need direction on a daily basis. God has a plan for each of us and His plan is good. Without Him, my plans will fail; and I will wander aimlessly throughout life.
I am not going to let the lies of today dictate my plot in life. I will live by the truth, walk in the freedom of the Holy Spirit, and be filled with the blessing and favor of God. Hallelujah.
In Christ,
Pr. Steve
Diseases of the Tongue
Pro 10:19 (KJV) “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.”
“Sin is not absent” in the multitude of words.
There are six diseases that commonly infect our lives through the misuse of our tongues. And these can be fatal if left unchecked.
The first disease is so common
that people accept it as normal when it is not.
Pro 10:19 (NASB) “When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, But he who restrains his lips is wise.”
In other words, if you say too much, you are bound to say something wrong. There is no alternative. We are warned in the Bible not to use too many words toward God Himself. We really need to hear this one:
Ecc 5:1-2 (KJV) “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. (2) Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.”
People sing songs of total consecration and surrender, but then give as little as possible when the offering is taken. If you are not going to give your life to God, don’t tell Him that you are surrendering your all; know, rather, that God is going to hold you accountable for the words you speak in His presence.
Ecc 5:6 (KJV) “Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?”
This means that angels keep a record of what we say when we are speaking. One day we are going to be confronted by those angels and the record books are going to be opened. It will be too late to say, “I really didn’t mean it,” because we are going to be held accountable for all we have said. Indeed, we will have to answer for our words if we were sincere but did not live according to them.
Ecc 5:3 (KJV) “For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.”
Speaking too many words is a mark of a fool. When you hear a person continually talking, you need no other evidence, that person is a fool: “A fool’s voice is known by a multitude of words.” What is the root problem? RESTLESSNESS!
Jas 3:8 (NIV) “but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.”
People who are always talking are restless people and our society is filled with them. Excessive talking is a sure indication of someone whose heart is not at rest.
DISEASES:
1. Excessive talking
Mat 5:37 (KJV) “But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”
If we say more than we mean, then the exaggeration of our speech comes from the evil one. Simply put: IF YOU DON’T MEAN IT, DON’T SAY IT. This principle can change your whole life, and you will become a different person.
2. Idle or Careless Words:
Mat 12:36 (KJV) “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”
One day we will have to answer for every word we have spoken – every idle and insincere word that we really did not mean.
3. GOSSIP:
Lev 19:16 (KJV) “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people…”
Going about spreading slander, idle, untrue, exaggerated, malicious talk is gossip. In the Greek the root meaning of the word Satan in the N.T. means “a slanderer.” If you gossip or tell tales, you are working for the devil. We also have a responsibility not to receive gossip -- (Proverbs 18:8). Be careful when gossip is placed in front of you that you do not swallow it. It is poison. It may taste sweet, but it is poison to our system (Proverbs 20:19). If you listen to a gossip, you become an accessory after the fact (Psalm 15:1-3). There are various requirements in order to access God’s presence and to dwell on His holy hill. We must walk in integrity, we must work righteousness, and we must speak the truth in our hearts. We must not slander with our tongues, we must not do evil to our neighbor, and we must not take up a reproach against our friends. These sins are what destroy relationships.
4. LYING:
Pro 6:16-19 (KJV) “These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: (17) A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, (18) An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, (19) A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.”
Seven things that the Lord hates: first, a lying tongue; second, a false witness; and third, one who sows discord among brothers. Three out of the seven things the Lord hates come directly from the tongue. Two are specifically connected with lying
Pro 12:22 (KJV)“Lying lips are abomination to the LORD: but they that deal truly are his delight.”
The Lord hates lying lips, but he delights in people who are truthful. If it is not truth, then it is a lie and the Lord hates it. If it is truth then the Lord delights in it. Our problem is that we have too many gray areas in our thinking. This mixture comes from the evil one. He is the father of lies. Every time we pass a lie on, it is coming from the devil. Unless we deal with the disease of lying, it becomes fatal. Rev. 21:8 says that all liars will find their place in the lake of fire.
Rev.22:15 tells us about the tree of life and specifies that all liars will have no part in it. Undeniably, lying is a deadly disease.
5. FLATTERY:
Psa 12:1-3 (KJV) “To the chief Musician upon Sheminith, A Psalm of David. Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. (2) They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. (3) The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:”
David is speaking about a state of moral decline in the human race. He says that godly men are difficult to find. The faithful have disappeared. What is the result? Everyone lies and speaks with flattering words. A judgment is pronounced upon these: They will be cut off from the Lord.
Pro 26:28 (KJV) “A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin.”
Pro 29:5 (KJV) “A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet.”
Most flattering words are not sincere – they bring ruin to people’s lives.
6. HASTINESS OF SPEECH
Pro 29:20 (KJV) “Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him.”
If we are hasty in our words, our condition is worse than that of a fool. Remember Moses. Just once he was hasty with his words. When he couldn’t stand the murmuring of the people any longer, he struck the rock to bring forth water; but God had told him simply to speak to the rock, not to strike it (Numbers 20:7-12). Moses’ act of disobedience, an expression of hasty words, prevented him from leading the children of Israel into the Promised Land. This account is described in Psa 106:32-33 (KJV): “They angered him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes: (33) Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.”
The diagnosis: A provoked spirit can pressure us to speak unadvisedly with our lips and can thus cost us many privileges and blessings. If Moses had to pay that price for one hasty statement, we need to be mindful of all the blessings we are missing because of our hasty words, no matter what form they take:
1. Excessive talking
2. Idle or careless words
3. Gossip
4. Lying
5. Flattery
6. Hastiness in speech
-Pr. Steve
I am going to be sharing with you thoughts from my journal over the past few years. This is to show you how the Lord has brought about His Word in my life to minister to you and to show you how real this walk can be. Please read and understand by the Spirit about ...
. . . My calling as a pastor
Pastor’s Journal 2013
July 1: I will keep my mind stayed on You because I trust in You and peace shall be my portion.
July 6: Holiness brings healing. Walk in the truth and holiness will follow. Be strong and take courage.
July 9: I will glory in the cross and not be ashamed.
July 12: My soul waits only on God; for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, He is my defense; I shall not be moved. (Psm 63:5-6)
July 15: I will learn from You, Lord, for You are meek and lowly. I take Your yoke upon me. (Matt 11:39)
July 26: Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth. Keep the door of my lips. (Psm 191:3)
July 27: In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust, let me never be ashamed, deliver me in Thy righteousness. (Psm 31:1)
July 28: God promises; I believe; God fulfills. That is the secret of the new life.
July 29: Oh, how great is Your goodness which You have laid up for those who fear, revere, and worship You. (Psm 31:19)
Do Not Faint
Gal 6:7-9 (KJV) “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. (8) For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (9) And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
My fellow Christians, it is important to take notice that the “Name it and Claim it” attitude of many Christians has caused countless cases of disappointment and has left many out in the cold, barraged with feelings of failure. We must not be presumptuous. We must seek to walk with a mindset of obedience to the Holy Spirit of God and obedience to His Holy Scriptures. There are so many things that people want in life, but our desires were not created with the intent that we should go after everything that tickles our fancies. It sometimes seems that mankind is trying to replace the God who created them with man-made technological advancements and inventions. But the truth is that try though we may to make one, there is no greater life to be found than the life that is lived in and for Jesus Christ.
Ecc 1:1-6 (KJV) “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. (2) Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. (3) What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? (4) One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.”
God did not make us to serve the earth, nor to serve the sky, nor to serve anything that He created. God created us for His good pleasure. He loves us and He created us in His image, as sons and daughters of the most High God. He did not make us to be like robots, but He gave us freedom to choose to be among His chosen. Too many times, just because things don’t seem to turn out the way they had planned, Christians feel like throwing in the towel when it comes to fighting the good fight of faith. But we must always keep in mind that God’s ways are so incredibly higher than our ways, and that the way we think and feel about situations is not always the way things really turn out to be. For example, when you read or hear the lyrics of Laura Story’s song called “Blessings,” you will find that she has discovered God’s providence in ways she could never have realized without staying with Him through the hard times.
“’Cause what if Your blessings come through rain drops / What if Your healing comes through tears / and what if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near / What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise.”
Jas 1:8 (KJV) “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
Like Laura, we need to make up our minds so that we will be ready and able to do or to go through anything the Lord has planned for our lives.
Quotes:
"It has often been said that prayer is the greatest force in the universe. This is no exaggeration. It will bear constant repetition. In this atomic age when forces are being released that stagger the thought and imagination of man, it is well to remember that prayer transcends all other forces."
- F. J. Huegel
"They who pray not, know nothing of God, and know nothing of the state of their own souls."
- Adam Clarke
"The Bible was written in tears, and to tears it yields its best treasures."
- A.W. Tozer
"Have you noticed how much praying for revival has been going on of late - and how little revival has resulted? I believe the problem is that we have been trying to substitute praying for obeying, and it simply will not work. To pray for revival while ignoring the plain precept laid down in Scripture is to waste a lot of words and get nothing for our trouble. Prayer will become effective when we stop using it as a substitute for obedience."
- A.W. Tozer
Kidz Korner
The Fourth of July weekend was approaching, and Miss Pelham, the nursery school teacher, took the opportunity to tell her class about patriotism. 'We live in a great country,' she announced. 'One of the things we should be happy is that, in this country, we are all free.'
Trevor, who was a little boy in her class, came walking up to her from the back of the room. He stood with his hands on his hips and said loudly, 'I'm not free. I'm four.'
-Author Unknown
Next course from Christian Life Educators Network - Richmond Center:
Receiving Divine Revelation by: Dr. Fuchsia Pickett
This course teaches students to invite the Holy Spirit to teach and guide them through Scripture. Topics include the basis of true revelation, the process of revelation, hearing God’s voice, hindrances and helps to receiving revelation.
August 7-9, 2014
-Kurt Thurston
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