[SIZE=12pt]A while ago, God had me do some research into spiritual warfare. The following articles written in book style are the results of my studies. I hope you will find some useful tools in your daily and future battles with evil and that these studies will bless and encourage you.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=16pt]Introduction[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Let’s face it, being a Christian is tough in this sin-laden world and each generation experiences temptations that the previous generations never encountered! So the question becomes: How can we reconcile our beliefs and the commission to spread the gospel and not offend anyone? The bible clearly shows us that we can’t. The very nature of salvation and the fact that there is a God we will all be accountable to is offensive to many non-[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]believers. Knowing what the bible has to say about a particular issue within the context of His whole word and then learning how to share that knowledge with unbelievers in a Christ-like manner should be the goal of every Christian. The fact that the unbelieving world hates us should not come as a surprise because Jesus told us that it would be that way in John 15:18-19 - “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” (KJV)[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Today’s church has been embarrassed by the actions of a few noteworthy leaders. We are all judged by the actions of a few and while unfair, it is the reality. How can we overcome the stereotypical worldview that is considered what and who Christians are and what we believe?[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]The Christians of today can’t define ourselves because we are all divided by denominationalism, which is an ecumenically correct way of saying division. According to the average non-believer we can’t agree on simple foundational truths like baptism, the Holy Spirit, the timing of His return, salvation, the keeping of the Sabbath and a host of other divisive topics. No wonder they hesitate to become believers - they can’t figure out what to do after they become Christians. They ask themselves: What teachers should I be listening to? What version of the bible should I read? Is sprinkling okay for baptism or is total immersion necessary? Which denomination should I join? How do I know if I’ve been baptized by the Holy Spirit?[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]These are all good questions and I’m sure there are many more decisions that confront the new believer upon salvation that I haven’t touched on. The bible really does answer all of these clearly but today’s teachers interpret all these issues in different ways. I know it’s an unrealistic aspiration but it would be nice if we could all go back to the basics, forego all our denominations and create one belief system that we all can agree on and stop sweating the small stuff that plague our denominations and create division in His body.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]I have news for you! There aren’t going to be any Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Pentecostals, Evangelicals, Congregationalists, Universalists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Church of Gods, Church of Christs, non-denominationals, inter-denominationals or any other identifying denomination that you can think of in Heaven. We will all simply be believers of The Way, sinners who have washed our robes in the blood of the Lamb, confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord and repented of our sins and acknowledge that He paid the penalty for our sins and that we tried to live our lives as His servants, seeking not that our will be done but that His will be done in our lives.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]All the other denominational stuff that divides us is just so much nonsense and egotistical baloney that tries to usurp true worthiness from each other and instead of building up and edifying each other we create conflict by waging a war of spiritual one-up-man-ship. If we truly believe we are the last generation church then we must purify ourselves of all this denominational dogma and come together as never before to overcome the evil that is going to come upon this earth. We are God’s army and His voice to this world and it is imperative that we speak as one voice and not a thousand. We, as the last generation church, have a greater responsibility to the unsaved world then the first century church did. We are humanity’s last chance to reconcile themselves to God before His wrath is spent on those that refused to hear His witnesses. Do we as a church really want to stand before God and give an account of our actions as the Body of Christ on this earth in the state of division that we are presently living in? [/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]I am a simple man, who desires to be a lover and servant of God, and a man who wants to be able to hear “Well done, My good and faithful servant, come and share your master’s happiness”. I want to be able to stand before Him with my head held high, not staring at the ground wishing I could escape from His presence. I don’t have a college degree, have never pastored a church, but neither did the disciples. You might ask, who are we to question the great church leaders of today? We are children of God who are instructed by His Word to test the spirits of those that teach us. I don’t doubt their sincerity or their desire to serve God but I find that some of them are caught up in the spirits of denominationalism and ego that fails to consider another teachers viewpoint of having merit. Many of today’s teachers when confronted with opposing viewpoints attack the opposition as heretics and do not accept the possibility that both could be right or that they could be wrong. We must realize that they are only learned men and are as prone to scriptural error as we all can be. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]How can we as ordinary men and women be effective examples of Christianity to our world today? I believe it can be done utilizing these three simple steps: Understanding Who We are in Christ, Applying the Armor of God in our daily lives and finally, Wielding our Sword which is the word of God.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]The divisions in the church of today are the result of centuries of satanic attacks. He wants to rob us of our effectiveness in leading the lost to salvation by creating confusion. Since we are under attack as Christians, we should know how to defend ourselves and spiritually counterattack using our sword, the word of God.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Is this a topic of interest to anyone and would you like me to continue[/SIZE] with 10 part study on this, with the administrators permission, of course?
[SIZE=16pt]Introduction[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt] Today’s modern church does not have a good reputation among the non-believers in this country. They have been accused of making hate speeches, encouraging the murder of abortionists and of trying to create a theological society of the USA. We also have been accused of hate-mongering, intolerance, child abuse and of being harshly judgmental. Unfortunately, many of these charges are true, to one degree or another, from several of our churches and modern day church leaders. (the Westboro Baptist cult is a prime example of what non-believers think all Christians are like) Many people absolutely hate and fear Christians because they believe that we are trying to force an unwanted theocracy on them just as some Islamic terrorists are trying to do. They accuse us of using political methods to accomplish our devious purpose through legislation, politically trying to force our beliefs on them and some Christian leaders are trying to do just that! We as a church must realize that our job is not to stop people from sinning but to show them in a loving way, that if they so desire, there is a remedy for their sinful behavior. We must never forget that God gave all of us free will and they have the right to reject God’s teachings although they will pay a heavy price for doing so. The good news is that most believers are not guilty of these claims but many do not know or are not being taught the Christ-centered way of reaching today’s world. [/SIZE][SIZE=12pt]Let’s face it, being a Christian is tough in this sin-laden world and each generation experiences temptations that the previous generations never encountered! So the question becomes: How can we reconcile our beliefs and the commission to spread the gospel and not offend anyone? The bible clearly shows us that we can’t. The very nature of salvation and the fact that there is a God we will all be accountable to is offensive to many non-[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]believers. Knowing what the bible has to say about a particular issue within the context of His whole word and then learning how to share that knowledge with unbelievers in a Christ-like manner should be the goal of every Christian. The fact that the unbelieving world hates us should not come as a surprise because Jesus told us that it would be that way in John 15:18-19 - “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” (KJV)[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Today’s church has been embarrassed by the actions of a few noteworthy leaders. We are all judged by the actions of a few and while unfair, it is the reality. How can we overcome the stereotypical worldview that is considered what and who Christians are and what we believe?[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]The Christians of today can’t define ourselves because we are all divided by denominationalism, which is an ecumenically correct way of saying division. According to the average non-believer we can’t agree on simple foundational truths like baptism, the Holy Spirit, the timing of His return, salvation, the keeping of the Sabbath and a host of other divisive topics. No wonder they hesitate to become believers - they can’t figure out what to do after they become Christians. They ask themselves: What teachers should I be listening to? What version of the bible should I read? Is sprinkling okay for baptism or is total immersion necessary? Which denomination should I join? How do I know if I’ve been baptized by the Holy Spirit?[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]These are all good questions and I’m sure there are many more decisions that confront the new believer upon salvation that I haven’t touched on. The bible really does answer all of these clearly but today’s teachers interpret all these issues in different ways. I know it’s an unrealistic aspiration but it would be nice if we could all go back to the basics, forego all our denominations and create one belief system that we all can agree on and stop sweating the small stuff that plague our denominations and create division in His body.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]I have news for you! There aren’t going to be any Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Pentecostals, Evangelicals, Congregationalists, Universalists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Church of Gods, Church of Christs, non-denominationals, inter-denominationals or any other identifying denomination that you can think of in Heaven. We will all simply be believers of The Way, sinners who have washed our robes in the blood of the Lamb, confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord and repented of our sins and acknowledge that He paid the penalty for our sins and that we tried to live our lives as His servants, seeking not that our will be done but that His will be done in our lives.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]All the other denominational stuff that divides us is just so much nonsense and egotistical baloney that tries to usurp true worthiness from each other and instead of building up and edifying each other we create conflict by waging a war of spiritual one-up-man-ship. If we truly believe we are the last generation church then we must purify ourselves of all this denominational dogma and come together as never before to overcome the evil that is going to come upon this earth. We are God’s army and His voice to this world and it is imperative that we speak as one voice and not a thousand. We, as the last generation church, have a greater responsibility to the unsaved world then the first century church did. We are humanity’s last chance to reconcile themselves to God before His wrath is spent on those that refused to hear His witnesses. Do we as a church really want to stand before God and give an account of our actions as the Body of Christ on this earth in the state of division that we are presently living in? [/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]I am a simple man, who desires to be a lover and servant of God, and a man who wants to be able to hear “Well done, My good and faithful servant, come and share your master’s happiness”. I want to be able to stand before Him with my head held high, not staring at the ground wishing I could escape from His presence. I don’t have a college degree, have never pastored a church, but neither did the disciples. You might ask, who are we to question the great church leaders of today? We are children of God who are instructed by His Word to test the spirits of those that teach us. I don’t doubt their sincerity or their desire to serve God but I find that some of them are caught up in the spirits of denominationalism and ego that fails to consider another teachers viewpoint of having merit. Many of today’s teachers when confronted with opposing viewpoints attack the opposition as heretics and do not accept the possibility that both could be right or that they could be wrong. We must realize that they are only learned men and are as prone to scriptural error as we all can be. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]How can we as ordinary men and women be effective examples of Christianity to our world today? I believe it can be done utilizing these three simple steps: Understanding Who We are in Christ, Applying the Armor of God in our daily lives and finally, Wielding our Sword which is the word of God.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]The divisions in the church of today are the result of centuries of satanic attacks. He wants to rob us of our effectiveness in leading the lost to salvation by creating confusion. Since we are under attack as Christians, we should know how to defend ourselves and spiritually counterattack using our sword, the word of God.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Is this a topic of interest to anyone and would you like me to continue[/SIZE] with 10 part study on this, with the administrators permission, of course?
