1 Thessalonians 5:19, 20 "Do not quench the spirit,  do not despise prophesying"...it goes on to say test things, hold fast to the good and abstain from the evil.  The Bible clearly states that it will be imperfect (in Corinthians) & subject to the person speaking it, but it is nevertheless a gift God tells us to not despise or quench.


The TRUTH about prophecy...   what it is not...it is not "fortune telling" for gosh sake - it is not of satan as some would say-it isn't even just for Biblical times!  How I know...I read the Bible, study God's word, and I see God used this for discipline before Christ at times when speaking to the prophets of the Old Testament, Paul encouraged us that all should use this gift in the new Testament, and the word teaches what the appropriate use of it is!  It is, since Christ, a gift of "encouragement" that believers exercise to build one another up in their most holy faith!  Why have so many believers failed to see this?  Partly due to the failure to study (not just read) God's word, partly due to being taught error, and partly due to the enthusiasm of those who do understand it to misuse the gift which then leads others to disbelieve the gift.  The same is true of healing, faith, and all the other gifts-if we abuse them we mislead others into doubt of the reality and power of the gifts God has bestowed upon us for our well-being.

Why should we care about prophecy?  Well, for one thing the entire Bible is a prophetic book!  The OT is rich with the prophetic and a large part of it is devoted to the prophets of God.  The book of Revelation is an exciting book of God's prophetic word to the apostle John.  The problem comes when we do not realize that the gift of prophecy is actually a gift of love and that we were instructed in it's use and value.  I cringe whenever someone extracts something from the word of God and says this part isn't meant for "today" or "I don't believe this part" - the word of God is all both to be believed and to be of value for us today.  Somehow I think that God himself must cringe when we disbelieve his word and his gifts.  I wonder how much we grieve the Holy Spirit when we fail to embrace the third person of the trinity with the same degree of belief as we do the Father and the Son?   Yet look at the absolutely weird things people believe in the world today, and yes, even Christians believe some very strange things but can't wrap their brains around the power of the creator of the universe.

My belief is that we all should look at the specific scriptures in regard to the Holy Spirit and the gifts of God and pray for personal revelation.  For me, when I first read them, it was an "aha" moment when suddenly the big picture of God's creation, salvation, and love for us came into sight!  To prophesy means simply to declare, preach, or proclaim.  1 Cor. 14:3  "...he who prophesies speaks to men for their upbuilding encouragement, and consolation."  Paul goes on to say prophecy edifies the church!  He tells us he wishes we all would...prophesy..in other words, to encourage, console, and build one another up!  It is that simple...prophecy is an act of love toward the church...and through Paul God himself told us to use it.  Many scriptures address this gift and the others and most folks believe the ones they choose to-the ones they aren't afraid to accept from God.  Have you ever been afraid to accept a gift of love from a parent?  In the OT the Holy Spirit fell upon men, but now we all have the Holy Spirit within us once we are saved.  That means quite simply that God put the comforter in us so we could avail ourselves of that power whenever we need to.  We can let it lay dormant or we can embrace it. 

Check out Amazon

Devotional on Christian accountability. ISBN 0-9745635-0-1 GOD'S CIA (God's Called into Accountability) or under spiritual growth.

Good for Bible Study, new believers, teens, devotions, etc. Includes study guide, illustrations, self-test, & lots of scriptures. Basic Christianity applied to life!

Palm Sunday

Today we recognize the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. Having gone there last July, & even celebrated my birthday walking the streets of the old city thanking the Lord for my very life, this year I see an even clearer picture of that event. Many things have changed over the years yet if one visits Jerusalem with an open heart the Holy Spirit brings revelation & a clearer picture of the events that unfolded there. Not everyone can go to Jerusalem but there are so many excellent films on TV regarding the Holy Land I would encourage those who cannot go to view them.
Today as I think of Christ entering Jerusalem what comes to mind was standing & looking at the Praetorium from where Pilate could see all that was going on. We know that it was an essential part of God's plan that his son die that we may live-what does that mean to us? It means first & foremost that we too must die - to self - before we can have eternal life, for accepting Christ as our savior requires humility in admitting our sinful nature. People often say that no one has promised our life will be easy & that is very true, but God has promised that he will give us everything we need to deal with life if we trust in him. The Father did not promise that final trip into Jerusalem would be easy, but he did give Christ what he needed to deal with it. He was able to speak intelligently with Pilate, he resisted satan's taunts, & he withstood his closest friends' failure to acknowledge knowing him. We too can speak with intelligence to our enemies, resist temptation, & tolerate the failures of those closest to us with grace if we know Christ. Knowing Christ requires not just knowing who he is & what he did for us, but engaging with him in a personal relationship. Scripture tells us he is our friend, our brother, & our savior. We should be able to talk to him just as we would talk to an earthly brother or close friend. Just as Pilate sat in his lofty headquarters and watched, so the world sits & watches us. One of the best things we can do is to act with confidence & show them the victory there is in relationship with Jesus.
Little did the world realize just how great the triumph would be as Jesus rode into town that day, as they thought an earthly king was coming, but soon they were to witness the power of God in a new way. Up until now they knew only of the Father but soon they were to see Jesus was the Son and not long after they would see the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. 2,000+ years later man has tried to water down the message of the word of God, but God...Father, Son, & Holy Spirit is the same yesterday, today, & tomorrow! If we take God at his word, we must believe his entire word. He created us, saved us, & he empowered us. He gave us gifts that many of us have failed to open thus rendering ourselves powerless. I would challenge you as you reflect on the vastness of creation & the depth of salvation to move forward to open & use God's gifts to you so that you may fight the good fight without a spirit of fear. Growth as a believer requires acceptance & understanding of the whole word.

Do we really understand Easter?

Easter is about to be here yet again & I find myself asking how much we truly grasp what we are celebrating. I have gone to Easter dramas, observed the Lenten season with fasting, and even visited the Savior's tomb in Jerusalem! What troubles me is that all too often we fail to daily celebrate our salvation by witnessing, serving, & seeking the Lord. We fuss & grumble about this circumstance or that but often we have little right or need to do so. So often we become all puffed up with service we do offer, too judgemental in the use of the scriptural knowledge we have, & fail to be true to the very verses we have quoted frequently. We can't say for example that love keeps no record of wrongs and hold grudges - we can't manipulate the scripture to mean what we want it to, to suit our wishes - and any number of other things we sometimes find ourselves doing. Christ died for us & we should celebrate the exchange of his death for our life with service every day. It may be as simple as praying for the sick or as complicated as being involved in a big ministry. Celebrate Christ! Celebrate life! Easter Blessings!

Wrestling with God beyond faith

Recently the Lord reminded me of Jacob wrestling with God & told me to read that story
again...and so I did. It seemed he was telling me I should "hang in there" on several fronts where I wan't seeing the progress I would like to. OK I thought, I will, even though there are days I really wonder what is going on there in the heavenlies. As I pondered this I felt that the Lord was speaking to me about "beyond faith", saying that the required amount is indeed very tiny-only as large as a mustard seed. However, as he has pointed out so many times, patience & obedience is also required - I have worked on those lessons for some time now. So, why is the faithful, patient, obedient believer often waiting & waiting for things? He reminded me that perfect timing (in his time) is an important aspect of these things & that we must be watchful for the lessons in the circumstances! Bingo! I remembered Job saying "though he slay me..." and I vowed to pray for God's timing & sensitivity to the lessons he teaches me as I move with his spirit and not my agenda. Interestingly in the days since three things I had been praying about seemed to have moved ahead a bit! I take this as confirmation & encouragement that he is indeed at work in my life even when I can not see it.
Often I will look back on situations and recognize God's clear orchestration of the time & way a thing has evolved. When things don't seem to be moving they way we want that is the time we need to reflect on other times we thought that & remember the Lord came through.

Amazon

The devotional I wrote several years ago - GOD'S CIA - will be available on Amazon shortly.

Devotionals

I have about 180 devotionals I would like to liquidate for $360 (plus any necessary shipping). If you are interested or know someone who is contact me at ecbcfbt@gmail.com Topic is Christian accountability.