prosperity gospel

In our group we come from all the various denominations. We have wonderful meetings. We do need to remember what Paul says in Galations: But even if we or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.

Here is an article that a friend from Nigeria shared with me:

How to Help Friends Escape the Prosperity Gospel 

http://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/how-to-help-friends-escape-the-prosperity-gospel

Piper: “Christians in prosperity churches are often profoundly unprepared for what life under God’s providence is going to deal them — and that is a tragedy.”

This same friend wrote to me about the problem with false teachers:

Adeyemi Peter Agboola "Another problem though, with the sort of people you mentioned, is that they have been thoroughly brainwashed through a thousand twisted scripture passages. Now they are imprisoned by mere human sophistries calculated by the Devil to belittle the humble but far reaching meaning of scripture. It is easier to reach harlots than to turn the minds of men heavily brainwashed with lies from the teachers of deceit. It is hard for them to strip away their garments of self-love, and worship God in truth. They are told that worshiping God is the end of all lack, the end of all illness, the end of all disappointment, and the end to hunger and the end to growing old. They will now experience eternal youth because their bodies will no longer cooperate with any age deteriorations. They experience perfection even BEFORE the Kingdom of God comes with our Saviour Jesus Christ. We wait for perfection, they are told they already have perfection now. They are ruled and oppressed by greedy pocket-seeking false teachers!"

Another friend sent this from John MacArthur: http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/TM13-10/the-devilish-puppet-master-of-the-wordfaith-movement-justin-peters?Term=Word

shared scripture

Today's meeting was wonderful.

We each brought a scripture in and placed them in a pile. We then drew one paper out and read it to ourselves. Then, one person at a time read the scripture out loud and told what they thought when they read the verse(s). After they spoke then the person who submitted the verse said why the chose that verse. Of course, the rest of us chimed in our own thoughts as well. Such a nice lunch hour.



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Psalm 103:4 He ransoms me from death and surrounds me with love and tender mercies.









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Gabriel speaks to Mary
Luke 1:28 The angel came to her and said, "You are honored very much. You are a favored woman. The Lord is with you. *You are chosen from among many women."

Gabriel speaks to Joseph
Matthew 1:20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit."
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Luke 10:38-42  Mary at the feet of Jesus while Martha is off somewhere else being busy.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lordʼs feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, donʼt you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”  “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.

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Matthew 3:17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Please join us for our next meeting in January of 2017. 

with Christ's love!

just stumbled across this meme

It fits for us!

after election day 2016

I came across this article that explains:  "Indeed, the children at Hidden Treasure have spent the last couple of months learning about the Old Testament prophet Daniel and what it means to have “an excellent spirit”—just like Daniel, whatever the political situation of the day."

This is exactly what we must have. Excellent spirit just like Daniel had.

https://world.wng.org/2016/11/postelection_opportunities 

 

by Jamie Dean

Photos by Second Presbyterian Church 

 

 

who is God placing on your heart

Be prepared to Give an Answer

1 Peter 3:15

God commands us in 1 Peter 3:15 to be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks us to give the reason for the hope that we have. And he says we should do this with gentleness and respect.

For the next few weeks we are going to discuss how to be prepared so that we can give an answer with gentleness and respect.

Is Jesus the only way to God?
How do you know that God really exists?
Is the Bible more than just another book?
Isn't Christianity just a crutch for weak people?
What about all those hypocritical Christians?
Why would a loving God allow suffering?
Can't I make it to Heaven just by being a good person?
Are miracles for real?
What about those who have never heard about your Jesus?
What exactly does it mean to "believe" in Jesus?

Just a few of the questions we will be addressing.

Please join us.

Daniel's prayer

John Lennox relates a quote a dying friend asked him to share at his upcoming funeral. "Encourage them to do what we did when we were students (at Cambridge). Tell them to read the Word of God together, discuss it, think about it, pray about it, and wait on God until His face appears. And then they will have something to say."

 

Daniel's Prayer: Daniel 9:1-9

Lion's Den

Paul Kirsch led the group today as he went over Daniel 6 - Daniel in the lion's den.

His handout was entitled: The Inspiration of Daniel in an Age of Relativism. (Based on book by John Lennox, professor of mathematics at Oxford University.)

L ive
E ternal
T ruth

We pray that God will warm your heart for Him.

3 words

Thank you David Wooddell from the Navigators for leading our study today.

3 words in the salvation process:

Justification
Sanctification
Glorification

 

He will finish the work He began

Our study today was over Phil 3:1-11

Paul Kirsch came in with Ron Wheeler today. Paul will be leading us for several weeks while Ron is leading a camp for budding cartoonist. After Ron read those eleven verses from chapter 3 he asked us what we drew from that - what are our first thoughts. Paul mentioned that he always thinks about the perspective that is being given.

Here are some of my notes. (Please feel free to offer your own notes. Any of us can update this blog.)

Finally brothers, rejoice in the Lord.

Beware of evil.

Worship God in Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the world.

Ron brought us to Phil 1:6 - Jesus will finish the work He begun in us!

We are to have confidence in Jesus Christ.

Paul fit the bill to open up the promise of God to the Gentiles. He was the consummate Jew/Roman.

Here are some pictures from today. (There were others in the class today but these are the ones who I was able to obtain pictures of.)

how often do you

How often do you follow up with your friends after you've prayed for them?

Just saw this question on Facebook. Excellent question. Here is the article that followed the question.

Four Ways to Be Devoted to Others in Prayer.

P.S. Don't forget to thank God after He answers . . . oh, and don't forget to thank Him for listening. :)

God is so good!

don't sit too close

We started out laughing about how far we were sitting from Ron. Just like most people do in church - head for the back pews. More people arrived and we had a couple on the phone. This was a fun meeting.

The opening prayer contained a wonderful statement asking God to bring thoughts of Him to the front and discard the thoughts that aren't of Him.

We are still in Chapter two of Philippians. We started with verse 12 as a review for a couple of people who had joined us. Ron mentioned Acts 20 about how Paul made an example of himself. He did not complain about being in jail and in chains. He shined (and sang) with his love for God.

Ron asked for examples of how this works in our workplace.

1 Cor 15:58 Stand firm. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord. The work is not in vain. The Lord can see the big picture. (You might just see the trunk of a tree but the Lord can see the entire forest - He sees what that was meant for.)

Col 3:12: As God's chosen people, dearly loved . . . bear with each other as the Lord forgives you . . . be thankful.

jotted

I am so sorry that I haven’t been updating our blog with what we’ve done in Bible Study. Our meetings are wonderful, full of information and sharing. I love how we come together to learn about Jesus. 

Some of the quick notes I jotted down from last Thursday:

Bible Study

May 12, 2016

Do you have to be a doormat? See Daniel 1

Daniel made a respectful appeal. He went up the ladder as he should. He prayed. (When he felt that he couldn’t eat the food from the King’s table.)

Phillipians 2:12 working out your salvation (isn’t what I thought it was. I love how we look at so many angles.)

Do everything without grumbling and complaining . . .

Couplets

Obey first: Understand Later - eastern philosophy as opposed to western?

We are ambassadors of Christ. Have you noticed how others will immediately be angry with you? Could this be a cover for their fear? (We were talking about the story in the Bible where the pigs went into the sea. The people asked Jesus to leave.) Non-Christians see anger and condemnation where we see freedom and eternal life . . . why is that?

We had questions about the unforgivable sin: Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Ron said that he would research further and get back with us this coming week.

Here are a few articles he discovered:

http://billygraham.org/answer/i-know-im-going-to-hell-when-i-die-because-ive-blasphemed-the-holy-spirit/

http://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/why-blasphemy-against-holy-spirit-unpardonable-sin

http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/beyond-forgiveness-blasphemy-against-the-spirit

I completely understand how you would be aggravated with my note taking. It is hard to remember to take notes when you are so engrossed in the discussion. J

 Come join us! Thursday's at 11:30 - 12:30

in tune with each other

A fellow blogger (Kris Wood) put this post together this morning and I want to share it with you.

"Sometimes you don’t know when you’re taking the first step through a door until you’re already inside.” -- Ann Voskamp

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble." Helen Keller

"Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way." Colossians 3:15-17 MSG

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other.

We so need this.

Love,
Kelly

Peace of Christ keep us in tune with each other, in step with each other.

Who am I to judge?

Just ran across this article and I have to share:

Some of the scriptures quoted in this article:

So, the Bible tells us not to judge people? Consider: “thus says the Lord: you, son of man, I have appointed watchman for the house of Israel; when you hear me say anything, you shall warn them for me if I tell the wicked, ‘oh, wicked one, you shall surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade the wicked one from his way, he shall die for his guilt, but I will hold you responsible for his death. But if you warn the wicked, trying to turn him from his way, and he refuses to turn from his way, he shall die for his guilt, but you shall save yourself (Ezekiel 33: 7 – 9).
Neither Peter nor Paul were squeamish about judging others:

Peter said to Simon the magician “Your heart is not upright before God. Repent of this wickedness of yours … for I see that you are filled with bitter gall, and you are in the bonds of iniquity” (Acts 8: 20 – 23).
Paul said to Elymas, “you son of the devil, you enemy of all that is right, full of every sort of deceit and fraud. Will you not stop twisting the straight paths of the Lord?” (Acts 13: 9 – 10).

Here are some excerpts from the epistles that illustrate judgment:

“When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he clearly was wrong” (Gal 2:11).
“Brothers, even if a person is caught in some transgression, you who are spiritual should correct that one in a gentle spirit…” (Gal 6:1).
“Take no part in the fruitless works of darkness; rather expose them…” (Gal 5: 11).
“Reprimand publicly those [presbyters] who do sin, so that the rest will also be afraid” (Tim 5:20).
“Therefore, admonish them sharply, so that they may be sound in the faith…” (Titus 1:13 – 14).
“Exhort and correct with all authority…” (Titus 2:15).
“I am convinced about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to admonish one another” (Rom 15:14).
“It is widely reported that there is immorality among you… A man living with his father’s wife.… The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst. I … have already, as if present, pronounced judgment on the one who committed this deed, in the name of our Lord Jesus…. You are to deliver this man to Satan for the distraction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord” (1 Cor 5:1 – 5).

https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/who-am-i-to-judge

prayer request

Hi,

I have a prayer request for the group.

I just sent my friend a letter to tell him about Jesus Christ and how Easter is a celebration of our hope in Him and what He did for us. He used to work in the KC office with me and he became one of my best friends. He is Muslim, so I wanted to make sure he heard the real message of Jesus. Please pray that his heart is open to the message. Even if it doesn't take root now, I want a good seed to be planted. I also sent him a Bible in the hopes that he'll get curious enough to read it (I marked the Book of John, since it's a great starting point).

He is such a kind person, which is surprising since he's been through so much. He came from South Sudan (his story is similar to the men in "The Lost Boys of Sudan"). A Baptist church in Iowa sponsored his escape to America. He was also imprisoned when he was 16 for refusing to kill innocent civilians (a soldier handed him a gun and commanded him to shoot). He truly is an amazing person.

Thank you,

Renee

froggy

Funny how life works sometimes. I have a friend who jumps from church to church and I keep telling him that he needs to find one and settle in because there is no perfect church. (Because a church is made up of people and there was only one perfect person - the rest of us are generally a hot mess.)

Well, I recently got a bit froggy when something was said in my church that shocked me. So I've been going back in forth in my pea brain about what I should do. (I use the term 'froggy' because I am considering jumping from church to church until I find the perfect one.) Yes, I quickly forget my own advice.

Today I saw a piece from Aaron Armstrong that dealt with counterfeit churches and how they 'worship' (which is not a problem with my church) but his article had a suggestions for these three things to pray and I want to share it here. Great advice and great prayers.

• Pray for yourself. First, pray that God would show you the legitimacy of your concerns, and what is simply a personal issue that you need to work through.
• Pray for your church’s leadership. The elders and pastors of our churches are not perfect people. They need Jesus just as much as you and I do. Pray that the Holy Spirit would guide them and they would be genuinely attentive to his leading, and be open to constructive feedback.
• Don’t give up trying to be a positive influence. It’s tempting to jump ship and hope that you’ll find somewhere better. But because we know there’s no such thing as a perfect church, you’re always going to run into these issues. Don’t be disheartened—use the opportunities God gives you to fulfill your role as a disciple maker. Speak with your leaders. Encourage other church members. Be a blessing to this local church for as long as God has you there.

See, excellent prayers and excellent advice. 

http://www.bloggingtheologically.com/2016/03/14/counterfeit-experience/ 

March 10, 2016

We began our study with Philippians 1:9

Ron spoke of the various Greek words for love: Agape, Eros, Philia, Storge and he brought into the discussion Hesed – which is used so many times in the Bible. David’s men had hesed love for him – loyal to death. 

3 things to pray for the Lord to do with our fellowship:

   1.       Clear the way
   2.       So that love with overflow with each other
   3.       Strengthen our hearts

So many other things were discussed including: staying in the word so that we strengthen our knowledge. Think of the scripture where Paul talks about meat instead of milk. 1 Corinthians 3:2 ESV: I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready.