How Shall We Then Live?

Francis Shaffer wrote a book entitled “How Shall We then Live?” This is an appropriate question for such a time as this.

Dave Hess has a unique perspective as a missionary in a Muslim country where he himself is a minority. According to Revelation 5,

From every people and tribe
Every nation and tongue
He has made us a kingdom and priests to God
To reign with the Son
Is He worthy?Is He worthy?
Of all blessing and honor and glory
Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
Is He worthy of this?
He is!

From Dave’s last message on June 5, the theme was that the solution to the problems of this world is the gospel message of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

The worldwide media thinks that the United States has been overrun with rioting, looting, and active violation of human rights by the police. They think that the US is the global center of chaos and confusion and the epicenter of the global pandemic.

The current crises in America has been precipitated by the passage in 2 Timothy 3. God will shake that which can be shaken. As the song says, “there’s a whole lot of shaking going on.” However, the world is not focused on the root cause of the shaking. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against rulers of the darkness in high places, against spiritual wickedness from on high.

Either people will voluntarily kneel in prayer or God will bring the world to its knees. Because of the trials and tribulation of this world, the world is open to a message of deliverance. Jesus said in the great commission: Go ye therefore and make disciples of all nations…..teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you and lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

In Acts 10, God has given us a key to reach out with his message of deliverance. This is the record of “houses of fire” and of “Putting new wine into new wine skins.” In this record, God called Peter to minister unto the gentiles. This was unheard of before in the Bible since the Word of God was originally given only to Israel.

Cornelius was an unbeliever who had a vision from God in answer to his prayer. He feared God with his household. He had an awe, reverence, and respect for God along with everyone in his own house. Similarly, in this time of social distancing God is interacting with his church in the homes. The question in Acts 10:1-5 is “who’s calling whom?” It’s actually the lost who are calling the Christian believers to minister to them.

In Acts 10, The “unbeliever” Cornelius who had not been saved had a one time encounter with God. He responded to God’s vision with immediate obedience. He followed God’s instruction and sent his servant to go get Peter.

Meanwhile, Peter went up on his housetop to pray. He also had a vision and in verse 16, Peter saw the vision three times. God had to remind him over and over, but Peter was inwardly perplexed about the meaning of God’s visual revelation. Then spirit said explicitly, “three men are looking for you and I have sent them.”

In the Muslim world, many who come to Christ have had a dream or an encounter with Jesus Christ via a personal revelation. The role of the supernatural is huge in the Muslim world. It’s common for Persians to have a divine vision from God. They see miraculous healings such as the encounter Dave and his wife had with a Muslim woman in Orange County this past Saturday. Even though they had just met this woman Dave’s wife prayed for her. She was miraculously delivered from chronic abdominal pain.

Peter was one of Jesus’s three personal best friends. However, he needed to see the vision from God three times and he still didn’t understand the meaning of the vision.

The Bible says, don’t put new wine into old wine skins. You have to put new wine into new wine skins otherwise the the old wine skins will burst.

The record in Acts 10:23 says that “Then (Peter) called them (Cornelius’ servants) in, and lodged them. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.”

This was unheard of for someone brought up in the Jewish religion. Jews did not associate with “heathen unbelievers.” Peter was starting a new process and a new norm, i.e., a new wine skin. The new process was ministering to non-Jews and meeting in the home instead of the temple or the synagogue.

Dave and his wife were recently invited into the house of a young Jewish woman from Yemen. One of her relatives was radically healed and had a spiritual encounter with the Lord as Dave prayed for her healing. His friend Craig mentioned that Dave should tell her about the story in Acts 10 about the house of Cornelius.

Cornelius invited Peter into his home. When you’re around people who think that you’re special because you have done things on behalf of God, Peter had to correct their theology and said, “I’m just a man like you.”

Jews did not interact with non-Jews. This old wine skin kept Peter from wanting to minister to a “heathen.” However, Peter said, “when I was called I came without objection. Verse 31 tells about how God revealed to him that he should go see Cornelius.. Actually Cornelius the unbeliever was more willing to act on God’s revelation than many Christians. Christians often think they should pray about God’s instructions rather than simply acting by believing faith on God’s revelation.

Cornelius said, “we (our whole household) have gathered together in the presence of God to hear everything that the Lord has commanded you to tell us.” They wanted to know the truth of the word of God. They weren’t afraid to understand God’s righteousness, judgement, and holiness. They wanted to be set free from everything that was imprisoning them. They did not want a watered down message of “easy believism.”

Jesus had said to his disciples, “Go into all the world….teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you.” According to Corinthians, we are not as those who water down (corrupt) the word of God.

In Acts 10: 34-43, Peter preached to Cornelius and his household the gospel message of deliverance from the bondage of this world and salvation through Jesus Christ.

According to Romans 12, the Bible says, recompense to no man evil for evil, provide all things honest in the sight of all men. Be not overcome of evil but overcome evil with good.

While Peter was preaching, the spirit fell upon Cornelius and his household and the Jews who were with Peter were all amazed. The gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on Cornelius and his Gentile household just as it had fallen Peter and the Jews who where with him.

The emphasis is to meet with people during this time of social distancing. We need to become a church of house groups. We’re living connected together despite the storms of life so that there is a healthy connection of believers within our own households. The church in the home was one of the hall marks of the first century church in the book of Acts.

The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. One of the harvest fields is in the homes of people who need to have an encounter with the risen Lord.

New means new. The new is completely different from the old normal. This is a time of renewal to change what was wrong with our lives pre-Covid19.

The devil works through distraction. Now is the time to set our affections on things above and not on the things of this world. The time is ripe for the harvest. As Christian believers, God is opening the minds of those he’s calling to receive the seed of the word of truth. We’ve been called to plant, to water, and to bring in the harvest in the mission field of the hearts he’s prepared for us.

That He alone may be glorified and that we may be to the praise of the glory of His grace.
Your brother in Christ,
Michael

Stealing Joy

In 1975 Pete travelled to the Dominican Republic, the first stop on a tour of Latin America to play baseball for a Christian exhibition team. He had never before seen a third world country. During this trip, Pete was afflicted with a painful stomach flu. Despite the tribulations, their team had a great trip. During this trip Pete was able to study the book of Philippians. God inspired him to write an outline of the book of Philippians.

Philippians is a letter of insightful and uplifting spiritual encouragement about the Joy of the Lord. According to Warren Wiersbe, in each of the four chapters of Philippians there is a thief that will steal your joy. Each chapter also has a solution to keep these thieves at bay.

The background history for Philippians is in Acts 16. Paul on his missionary journey with Silas was looking for opportunities to speak about the good news of the gospel of Christ. He found a group of women who were meeting “down by the riverside” to pray. There he met Lydia, a seller of purple who was a leader in her community. She and her household were converted to the Lord and baptized. She offered to host Paul and Silas at her house while they were in Philipppi.

Paul cast out a devil from a slave girl who told fortunes for her masters. When they realized that the source of their wealth was gone, they stirred up the crowd in the marketplace and started a riot against Paul and Silas. The magistrates arrested Paul and Silas and put them in jail for causing an uprising. While in prison, they were beaten but that night they sang praises to God. A miraculous earthquake opened the doors of the prison. The jailer was about to kill himself for allowing the prisoners to escape but Paul and Silas called out: “Do yourself no harm. We’re all here.” They witnessed to the jailer about the gospel of Christ. The jailer and his whole household were converted and came to the Lord.

The city officials released Paul and Silas and told them to leave Philippi. Paul advised them that he was a Roman citizen and that he had been unjustly accused and imprisoned. Paul exercised his right as a Roman to appeal to Cesar since he had been unjustly imprisoned in Philippi which was a Roman colony. Paul wrote this epistle to the believers at the church in Philippi from Rome while he was being held captive before his appeal to Cesar.

The epistle of Philippians is an epistle of joy. After his salutation, Paul begins this letter in chapter 1 verses 3-7:
3. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,
4. Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy,
5. For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;
6. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
7. Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.”

Fellowship means that which we “partake” in common within the body of Christ. This begins with God’s gift of grace: His Holy Spirit which is Christ in us the hope of glory. Paul said that his joy is that we participate in the fellowship of the gospel. Our collective faith is in salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

The first thief that will steal your joy in Philippians is circumstances and situations. Paul said, in verse 12, “But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;”
Paul said that whether in pain or comfort or in life or death, my joy is in the the gospel of Christ. The antidote to the circumstances of this world is to our focus on our mission: our participation in the good news of the gospel message of Jesus Christ. The defense and the confirmation of the gospel is in verse 2. The participation in the fellowship of the gospel is in verse 5. The furtherance of the gospel is in verse 12.

During these times of worldwide pandemic where everyone is facing the effects of social distancing and sheltering in place, we can still experience the joy of the fellowship of the gospel of Christ.

Paul is singularly focused on the Gospel of Christ. He said, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. In Philippians 1:22-26 Paul continues:
22. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot (know) not.
23. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
24. Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.
25. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;
26. That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.”

Life is a dress rehearsal for eternity. Paul continuing in verse 27 said that my desire is that you live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ:
27. Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
28. And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.

Upon salvation we’re given by God’s grace a new life in Christ. He is the one who is worthy of praise. Despite our circumstances and situations, our circumstances are working out for the furtherance of the gospel.

The antidote to circumstances is the focus on the gospel of Christ. When we “turn the other cheek” that’s walking in a manner worthy of the gospel. Jesus said, blessed are they when men shall revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake, for great is your reward in heaven.

Compared to his grace and mercy, every circumstance and the pain of tribulations are insignificant. Problems are inversely proportional to the power to overcome the problems. The question is, how great is your God?

When we focus on the joy of the Lord, the problems of this world fade to insignificance. Sam Parsons learned this lesson while he was ministering in nursing homes by singing to the elderly residents. He met an old lady from Japan who was paralyzed. Her face lit up when he came into her room. He asked her, “How do you remain so cheerful in your condition?” She couldn’t speak so she held a chopstick between her lips to point to the letters on a board. She spelled out the reference to a Bible verse: 1 Corinthians 1:9. This verse says, “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” Sam was so inspired that he wrote a song called “The Best is Yet to Come.”

The Apostle Paul was in a dire situation but he did not focus on his circumstances. Instead he focused on the gospel, the good news of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Through the trials and pressures of this world, we will come to an understanding of hope and the love of God. For triulation worketh patience and patience experience, and experience hope. And hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given to us.

Jesus said, These things I have spoken to you that ye might have peace. In this world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer for I have overcome the world.

Therefore Philippians 4 says “Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say rejoice!”

That we may live to the praise of the glory of His grace.
Your brother in Christ,
Michael

Our Finest Hour

God works in mysterious ways. Isaiah 55 says, as the heavens are higher than the earth, so much higher are his thoughts than our thoughts and his ways than our ways. When Pete and Suzan found out that she had a brain tumor with the diagnosis of stage four terminal brain cancer, God said to them, “Either this will be your greatest tragedy or it will be your finest hour.”

They determined that this trial would be their finest hour. Through this ordeal, God taught them four important life lessons. The first lesson is, Life is hard. Jesus said, in this world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. The second is, It’s not about you. Our purpose is that despite the tribulation, we would be to the praise of the glory of His grace. Third is, I’m not in control, He is. Therefore trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding… In all thy ways acknowledge him and he will direct thy paths. He’s called us to empty ourselves of ourselves in service to him. This is the essence of the abundant life. The fourth lesson is, we’re all going to die. To live unto him is to die unto self.

This is our finest hour. Our lives are a calling to be remarkable, uncommon, and extraordinary. We are the elect of God, a peculiar people, a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, separated from a world of darkness to spread the light of the gospel of truth.

Our finest hour is the precious occasion where we can praise and glorify God and not ourselves. Our finest hour is our opportunity to empty ourselves in service to our Lord by serving others the bread of life. According to James, count it all joy when you encounter trials. For the testing of your faith works patience. Then when patience has completed her work you will be perfect and entire wanting nothing.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed three times, Father, if there be any other way, let this cup (of pain, suffering, humiliation, and death) pass from me. Then Jesus concluded his prayer, “nevertheless, not my will but thine be done.” This is the definition of prayer: to align my heart with God’s heart.

Jesus often slipped away from the crowd and separated himself to pray in the wilderness with his inner circle of Peter, James, and John. William Wilburforce said, “there are seasons where we need to get away and join our hearts with the Lord. These precious moments of prayer are the golden bonds that transcend this earth and unite us with heaven’s purpose.”

When Jesus walked out of the garden of Gethsemane in John 18:4 he was ready to do his father’s will. He said to Peter in verse 11, “shall I not drink the cup that my Father has given me?”

Jesus experienced all things like ordinary men yet without sin. His actions proved his words, “I always do my father’s will.” Jesus gladly submitted to do his father’s will. He was convinced of his Father’s loving kindness and tender mercy. Jesus knew by experience God’s answer to Paul’s prayer in 2 Corinthians 12 “My strength is made perfect in thy weakness. My grace is sufficient for thee.”

According to Romans 12:1-2, “I BESEECH you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

Oswald Chambers’ devotional for November 1 says, “If God’s plan for my life is to break my heart to accomplish his will, then thank him for breaking my heart.” He’ll pick up the threads of our broken hearts and weave them together again according to his plan and his purpose: that we would be vessels fit for the master’s use.

Disciples of Christ are disciplined to follow in their master’s footsteps. After his prayer in John 19, Jesus taught by his example three essentials of godly servant-leadership:
1. He stood in the face of danger.
2. He bore up under suffering
3. He sacrificed himself for the good of others.

Jesus stood in the face of danger. When he walked out of Gesthemane, He knew all things that were coming against him. He said to the Romon cohort of 600 soldiers that came to arrest him, “whom do you seek?” He asked them twice. When they said, “Jesus the Nazarene”, he said, “I am he.” They all fell backwards at his words.

Jesus bore up under suffering. While he was being tortured and hanging on the cross, Jesus prayed for the soldiers who drove the nails through his hands and his feet, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Trough the pain and suffering Jesus taught us the meaning of Romans 5: Tribulation worketh patience and patience experience and experience hope. And hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given to us.

A godly leader sacrifices himself for the good of others. Jesus Christ who was without sin was made the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we would be made the righteousness of God in him.

The Lord asked Pete and Suzan, “can I trust you with a brain tumor.” They purposed in their heart, regardless of the outcome of this situation, we’ll glorify God through the trial and trough the tribulation.

In John 19:26, Jesus had the presence of mind to take care of his own family. He ordained John, “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” to look after his mother.

Jesus saw men not as they were but as they would be. Hebrews 12:2 is God’s answer to Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. This is Jesus’s example as the culmination of Hebrews chapter 11, God’s “hall of faith.”

According to Hebrews 12:1-3:
1. WHEREFORE seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses (of the faith of believing believers,) let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”

Jesus endured the cross for the joy that was set before him. His joy was your redemption and mine. The purpose for which he was called was to become the perfect payment for sin on our behalf that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. His ultimate purpose was to sacrifice his innocent life in exchange for our guilty lives that we could be saved, set free, redeemed, and made righteous. That we would be holy and without blame before him in love, to the praise of the glory of God’s grace!

Through the trials and tribulations, Suzan came to understand her life’s motto: Joy is not the absence of pain, rather joy is the presence of the Lord.

Therefore rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael

Dave is a missionary to the Middle East and has a unique perspective on the spread of the Gospel of salvation around the world. The whole world is hunkered down for fear of spreading the Corona Virus. However as Christians, we have not been called as disease vectors, but as vectors to spread God’s healing wholeness of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

Many world leaders have proposed solutions to the global pandemic. However, the solution from God’s perspective is Jesus Christ and the gospel of salvation. Sometimes God allows that which can be shaken to be shaken. We have the choice either to voluntarily go to our knees in prayer or he will allow circumstances to bring us to our knees.

Despite the darkness of our times, The gospel of salvation is exploding in the Middle East. Many Muslims are being converted to Christianity during this pandemic. On Line messages, conference calls, and video meetings have proliferated throughout the Arab world. The light of the word of truth is a stark contrast to the darkness of the pandemic of this moment in world history.

God is a God of deliverance. There can be no victory without a battle. Greater is he that is in you than he that is in this world. Jesus said, “In this world ye will have tribulation. Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

In World War II, President Roosevelt said, “We have nothing to fear except… fear itself.” According to to 2 Timothy 1:7, God has not given us a spirt of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Isaiah 41:10 says, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee, yea I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

As able ministers of the New Testament, in this world that is seemingly on fire with pestilence and pandemic, God has not called us to be fire extinguishers, but “fear extinguishers.” For there is no fear in love but perfect love casteth out fear for fear has torment. He who feareth is not made perfect in love.

God works in mysterious ways. As high as the heavens are higher than the earth, so much higher his thoughts above our thoughts and his ways above our ways. We don’t know the end from the beginning, but he does.

From God’s perspective, this “invisible enemy” of Covid-19 has an underlying cause. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual wickedness from on high.

According to Romans 1:29 and following:
29. “Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30. Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31. Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
32. Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.”

Christians are called to stand against the darkness of this world. There’s a stark contrast between the works fo the flesh and the fruit of the spirit. Those whom God has called and are born again of his spirit have been given spiritual enablements. One of the manifestations of the Holy Spirit is discerning of spirits. The invisible enemy underlying the pandemic is the spiritual realm: the prince of the power of the air who now worketh in the children of disobedience.

Dave ministers to people from diverse ethnicities. Some members of his congregation still experience slavery in their countries of origin. The gospel of salvation is the only hope for true freedom. Jesus said, If you continue in my word, ye shall be my disciples indeed. And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.

Things are far worse around the world than in the United States. Dave has witnessed atrocities in the Middle East where “ethnic cleansing” practices have resulted in innocent populations being raped, pillaged, plundered, and killed in the name of so-called ethnic purity. These are symptoms of the acute spiritual warfare of our times.

However, the weapons or our warfare are not carnal, but spiritual to the pulling down of spiritual strongholds. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against spiritual wickedness from on high. According to Ephesians 6:14-18, To stand against the schemes of the devil we must put on the whole armor of God:

14. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15. And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit…

In the spiritual battle, the offensive weapons are the sword of the spirit which is the word of God and prayer.

We have nothing to fear, for if God be for us who can be against us? The question is not whether God is on our side, but whether we are on God’s side. On God’s side, be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good….

According to 2 Corinthians 2:14, Now thanks be to God who always causeth us to triumph in Christ Jesus, and maketh manifest the savor of his knowledge by us in every place.

…That we may ever live to the praise of the glory of His grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael

Reconciliation

At the age of fifteen, Pete was traveling with his baseball team by train from Birmingham to Lynchburg, Virginia. He happened to be the last guy on his team to enter the dining car for lunch. There was only one empty seat in the galley so Pete sat down and noticed that the person beside him was a person of color. He knew that his team mates would make fun of him for violating the South’s strict unwritten code of segregation. Pete’s heart told him that he should do the right thing and make a new friend of this black man. However, embarrassed, he got up and walked away.

Even though Pete had been taught in his church about the unconditional love of God, he was too embarrassed to do the right thing and stand up for the truth of scripture.

Reconciliation means to restore to harmony and unity. It means to regenerate and to be made new, rejoined together in the spirit of unity. Reconciliation is to bring back together that which has been separated.

According to II Timothy 3:1-5:
1. THIS know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3. Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent (without self control,) fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4. Traitors, heady, highminded (prideful,) lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5. Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

To listen to the news of this world’s current events, is to separate our hearts from the truth of the word of God. However 1 John 1:7 says, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

According to 2 Corinthians 5:17-21:
17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God
21. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

There can be no lasting reconciliation without repentance. Repentance means to turn around. It means to turn from myself and my selfish nature and unto God through his son Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

The first step to repentance is meekness and humility. Jesus said, blessed are the meek for they shall inherit I the earth. We must give up the throne of our hearts to the Lord Jesus Christ. If any man is in Christ he is a new creation. Old things are passed away. All things are become new.

The devil’s job is to divide and conquer. There are irreconcilable differences between genders, political parties, races, and denominations. Where there is strife and contention there is confusion and every evil work. However, the solution to division is the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Reconciliation resulting in peace is only available through Jesus Christ.

Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you. My Peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled. Neither let it be afraid.” We have peace with God through Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice on our behalf. Reconciliation and atonement are the same word in Greek. Atonement means at-one-meant. This is the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

The apostle Paul said, In my flesh dwelleth no good thing. However through salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone we have been given a new spiritual nature. The new nature is Christ in you the hope of glory. Jesus said, If I abide in you and you abide in me you shall bear much fruit.

God hasn’t called us to keep the rules of the Old Testament law. He has called us unto salvation…. wholeness by confessing Jesus as Lord and believing that God has raised him from the dead. Because He lives, we have been made a new creation in Christ… Old things (of the sin nature) are passed away. All (spiritual) things are made new.

At the cross of Christ, God has made us acceptable in the beloved. For he who was without sin was made the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in him. The solution to reconcile irreconcilable differences is to meet each other at the foot of the cross where Jesus paid the price for our sins as our atoning sacrifice.

Our witness for the Lord is in the power of His Holy Spirit. We’ve been called as peacemakers to reconcile God’s people back to him through the super natural power his Spirit.

Our purpose and our calling is to be ambassadors for Christ. The country of our new birth is heaven….for our citizenship is in heaven. Not only are we citizens of heaven but we are called as ambassadors, the highest ranking representatives sent from our home in heaven to represent our Sovreign Lord in a foreign country. He has given us the ministry of reconciliation and committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Therefore we pray you in Christ’s stead be ye reconciled unto God.

As ambassadors, our commission is to introduce others to our Lord. When Andrew introduced his brother Simon Peter to Jesus, he simply said, “come and see.” Similarly when the people asked John the Baptist if he were the Messiah, he said, “I’m not the bridegroom. I’m here to introduce the bride (Israel) to her groom Jesus Christ. I must decrease that he might increase.”

The great commission is the ministry of reconciliation. Jesus said to his disciples before his ascension, “Go ye therefore and make disciples of all nations…..teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always even unto the end of the age.”

In other words our mission and our commission is this: Go give ‘em heaven!

….that we may ever live to the praise of the glory of His grace.
Your brother in Christ,
MIchael

Doug’s Testimony

For many men, Father’s Day brings back painful memories. However, regardless of the examples of our earthly fathers, our Heavenly Father’s legacy is what really matters in life.

As a young boy, Doug Hall idolized his dad. Doug’s father was a fighter pilot in the Air Force who left for Vietnam when he was only five. The death and destruction his father witnessed in Vietnam changed his life. When his dad returned from active duty, his heart had changed and he had became angry, bitter, confrontational, vindictive and verbally abusive. At the age of twelve, Doug’s father moved out of the house.

Doug grew up without a dad from the age of 13 to 37. Without a father’s guidance, Doug was broken, empty and lacked self confidence. He needed a father to give him affirmation him as a son and a young man. Even after Doug graduated from college and attained a good job with rewards that the world values, his life was still empty. His met a neighbor in Corona Del Mar where he had bought a house. She kept inviting him to church.

When he finally found the courage to accept her invitation to go to church with her, Doug doesn’t remember what the preacher said, but he remembers that in the depth of his soul, he heard the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ. When the preacher read “Thou art fearfully and wonderfully made,” the heavens opened as if God himself were speaking.

Later he heard God’s voice that said, “Doug, you need to forgive your father.” Doug argued with the Lord, “I think he needs to apologize to me.” His dad had been a womanizer, and an alcoholic, filled with bitterness and pain.

Doug remembers that he wrote a twelve page letter of forgiveness to his dad. God reminded him that unforgivness is drinking poison and hoping that it will kill the object of your unforgivness..

As the days and years progressed, there was reconciliation between Doug and his father. When Doug finally had children of his own, he began to realize what it means to model the love of God. Gary Leachman reminded him that you can fake many things but you can’t fake showing up. Doug made it a priority to spend time with his wife and children. He keeps a framed needlepoint on his wall to remind him, “to have a child is to know the beauty of life.”

Throughout this life, Doug has discovered that the trials he endured with his dad were not wasted. He continues to learn that tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope maketh not ashamed because the one of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given to us.

God has redeemed the years that “the locust has eaten.” When Doug’s father passed away a few years ago he was blessed to pray with him before hi died. Doug keeps alive the hope that his dad was born again and that they will see each other again in heaven.

The story of Joseph reminds him that “what men meant for evil, God meant for good.” According to Romans 8:28, all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.

Forgiving his Dad was the most cathartic thing that Doug had done in his life. As the quote says, “I forgave and set the prisoner free only to find that the prisoner was me.”

Pete’s Message: Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Doug’s testimony reminds us that God reconciles us to Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation and has committed unto us the Word of reconciliation.

The beatitudes says that blessed are the peace makers, for they shall be called the children of God. Peace is the result of reconciliation, of bringing together that which has been separated. There is no peace without the prince of peace. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Everything that Jesus taught was remarkable. He was outside of the norm of the world’s standards. Jesus said, “my peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Paul said, “to live is Christ and to die is gain.” The gain is in living for the fourtharance of the gospel….to be ministers of the New Testament fulfilling our charge as ambassadors for Christ. Therefore we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to Christ. Our mission is to offer a peace treaty from the kingdom of heaven. The terms of the peace treaty are acceptance of God’s gift of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

The holy spirit points away from ourselves and unto Christ and the gospel message of salvation. The evil one will point us to ourselves and away from Christ. When we focus on ourselves, it makes us think that our so-called rights have been violated. The voice of the enemy will appeal to the old nature that is insidiously preoccupied with self.

However, we are a new creation in Christ. Old things are passed away, behold all things are become new. God through his son gives us the power to live for him….to live the remarkable life of forgetting those things which are behind and pressing forward to the things that are before….in the newness of life.

1 Peter 1:23-24 says,
23. (Jesus Christ) Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:
24. Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

Righteousness is not in seeking retribution, but in forgiving. Jesus said while he was being nailed to the cross said, “father forgive them for they know know what they do.”

The mark of the high calling is to be Christ centered, grace driven, and faith based.

A critical spirit will break up any relationship. According to James….the tongue is an all consuming fire, the very world of iniquity, set among our members on fire by hell…full of deadly poison.

Like the song says, “It’s only words, and words are all I have to take your heart away.” We’re called to deliver words of peace, reconciliation, love and forgiveness in light of eternity. God has committed unto us the word of reconciliation. To reconcile is to make peace in the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

Therefore guard your tongue. God dwells in the prayers and praises of the saints. Keep thy heart with all diligence for out of the heart are flow the issues of life.

Pete recalls the story about DL Moody who was preaching at a revival in England. As Moody preached, he noticed an older man sitting on the front pew whose ruddy face was radiant with joy. After the service DL Moody approached him and asked him why his face reflected the joy of the Lord.

The man said that he had been an officer in India for the British army. He ruled his troops with an iron fist. He was a tough officer who took pride in being a hard charging hard drinking womanizing task master. One night he had been drinking in the officers’ club. He stumbled into the barracks filled with rage in a drunken stupor. Looking for someone to vent his rage, he saw a soldier asleep who was a Christian.

He dragged the soldier from his bunk and started kicking him. He beat him and kicked him until he was lying in a pool of his own blood. The last thing the officer remembered was collapsing into his own bed and passing out.

When the officer awoke the next morning, the first thing he noticed was his boots beside his bed. His boots were so shiny that he could see his reflection. Then he realized that the soldier he had beaten had crawled though his own blood to spit shine his boots. That’s when he uttered a silent prayer, “whatever that man has, I want.”

According to Romans 12…… Recompense to no man evil for evil; be not overcome with evil, but overcome evil with good. Only when we give up the rights to ourselves can we be ambassadors for Christ.

The question is “will the real you please stand up?” The real you is Christ in you the hope of glory….his hands behind our hands, his feet behind our feet, his eyes behind our eyes and his ears behind our ears…..it is his heart behind our heart. Therefore work out your own salvation, your own healing wholeness with fear and trembling….with awe, respect, reverence and love. For it is God who worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure.

There is power in the Word of reconciliation. It is his tongue behind our tongue. Therefore, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable unto thee, O Lord my strength and my redeemer….

…That we may ever live to the praise of the glory of His grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael