From The Pastor's Pen... - 3/19/12 - Try The Spirits

"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits, whether they be of God, for many false prophets are gone out into the world" (1 John 4:1 AKJ).

In the above verse from 1 John the 4th chapter, John is literally telling his readers to try, or check

every spirit behind a claimed revelation or truth. You see, John knew, as we should likewise, that,

rarely will we find the whole truth when dealing with Christian teachers and/or authors. But,

hopefully you've already discovered that for yourself. Simply put, it's wise to be cautious when

navigating the spiritual waters of concepts and teaching which are abundantly available today.

That said, let's take this vital Kingdom principal one step further. As believers, we need to learn

to skeptically examine, any and all, preaching, or teaching, which appears questionable even within our own church or denomination. Of course, every seeking believer may easily do so by, measuring

every purported fact or prophetic claim thru the lens of the preserved scriptures, Apostolic doctrine, and historical Christianity (see 2 Timothy 2:15). (We recommend the Authorized King James as the most accurate and authoritative translation to date). Actually, there are two tried and tested methods by which that end can be properly achieved:

#1. Point by point - Take note of the plural form of the word "spirit". Don't assume that, because part of what an individual teaches is accurate, that the entirety of it will always be equally as legitimate. Try, or

test, the spirit in each separate instance.

#2. Check all teaching and preaching by a healthy skepticism, again, comparing the entirety to the

Holy Scriptures, and knowledge of historical Christianity contained therein, by always being alert

to attempts to ignore the whole counsel of the written word (see Acts 20:27).

One final note; as serious believers, we must never fail to remember that, Jesus, the Living Word, remains the same, yesterday, today and forever (see Hebrews 13:8) and, therefore, Biblical truth is never influenced, nor can it be modified, by the secular norms of a particular time, societal opinions, or the doctrines of men. In short, the preserved scriptures must always be our final authority for faith and

practice.

"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation, for the prophecy

came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost (2 Peter 1: 20-21 AKJ).

From The Pastor's Pen... - 3/12/12 - Divine Healing

" When He was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. And behold, there

came a leper and worshiped Him saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth His hand and touched him saying, I will, be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed" (Matthew 8:1-3 AKJ).

These three verses from Matthew the 8th chapter, illustrate a paradox that continues to be present in

our day. You see, the leper in Matthew's account, knew that Jesus had the power to

heal. But he didn't know that it was God's will. Sadly, that very condition is still present today, even within the body of Christ, due most often to ignorance, unbelief, and/or a lack of scriptural knowledge in regard to the subject. The unfortunate result is, disease, chronic illness, and in extreme cases, even premature death, among far too many within the blood bought church, who believing, could minister this Good News of the gospel to others. But the most perplexing question is, why does the Church continue to suffer from this troubling dilemma, when the Word of God so clearly reveals the truth concerning God's will to heal?

To put it bluntly, the gross misinformation on the subject of divine health and the healing promises

is mostly due to the avoidance of the topic by pastors and teachers afraid to approach, or deal with, the controversy. However, an even greater amount of damage has occurred as a result of unbelief and the doctrines of men, within denominationalism. In light of those facts, I urge every confessing believer today who is unsure of the truth, to approach the matter anew, by a serious and thorough study of the scriptures and Apostolic doctrine.

Further, we need to search the examples in the life and ministry of Messiah Jesus which clearly indicate His compassionate and decisive treatment, of all among the afflicted who came to Him for help.

In fact, if we honestly pursue the truth, we will find no instance in which He refused to heal, or failed in an attempt to do so. And the gospels record that He even raised to life a number of persons who had suffered an untimely death, that He might destroy the works of Satan and the powers of darkness.

Today I challenge anyone reading this column, to diligently search the scriptures for any evidence which negates the Kingdom Principal of divine healing, as well as God's will in the matter. But let me

take that challenge a step further, and invite you to honestly present scriptural proof to the contrary.

Consider these words of Jesus;

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."