Jesus – Page 11 – Resounding Shophar Ministries

What’s Keeping You from Church?

Over the years I’ve seen and heard of many who have stopped going to church for one reason or another, and sadly the trend just seems to be growing. On several occasions I have had conversations with people who have stopped going to church, and for them they feel very justified in it. Most not only shared why they’ve stopped going, but were also very transparent into their thought processes that they felt legitimized their decision. There were also some who acknowledged they had stopped going to church but couldn’t point to any particular reason except to say that life got in the way. While there are numerous reasons why people stop going to church, I believe that there two core reasons that are the basis for the countless other reasons people give, and I want to take a look a brief look at them.

Before we get into the core reasons why I believe many stop going to church, I first want to remind ourselves of what Paul tells us in Hebrews 10:24-25, and also to take a look into some of the reasons some have given for not going to church.

Paul tells us in Hebrews 10:24-25 (NKJV); 24. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25. not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Paul tells us three things in this passage; 1) to consider others by, 2) not forsaking or neglecting the gathering of “ourselves” together and, 3) especially all the more as we see that day of His return approaching. Paul is telling us that our time gathering with other believers is not just for us, but it is for others. To not go for reasons focused on self is simple selfishness. Apparently there was an issue in Paul’s day with people not being faithful to the assembling together of the brethren for him to address it, so it’s not a new issue. Paul also instructs us to make sure we are faithful more and more as we see that Day approaching, yet in the midst of so much prophecy unfolding before our very eyes alerting us to His soon return the churches are becoming more and more empty. Something is wrong with this picture, would you agree?

I want to set the record straight by saying that our attendance record in gathering with other believers at that house of God is not the determining factor to your place in eternity, but the reasons behind that attendance record could be. Some try to make an issue of one’s attendance record to church as an eternal one, and that is wrong. The issue shouldn’t be so much what our attendance record is as much as the reasons behind it. Let me explain with an example. A person may work at a hospital, a prison or even a fire department, and because of it there are times that they are required to work a shift that conflicts with getting together with fellow believers at times, and I would consider those as legitimate reasons. On the other hand, and I’ve seen this a lot, a person may ‘conveniently’ accept a job, work overtime, or even request specific shifts that will conflict with church as an excuse for not going. They have no intentions on going, and if they can ‘conveniently’ work when the two conflict then it helps their conscious and keeps others and their questions at bay.

So, what are some reasons people have given for not attending church? One of the biggest reasons given is hypocrisy. They note how some claim to be Christians but in their opinion aspects of that person’s life or character do not seem to match that claim, and they don’t want any part in it. Another reason is because they’ve been hurt in some way by others in the church, and they don’t see why they need to stay and be vulnerable to getting hurt again. Oh, and what about this one? For whatever reason they expected God to move in some way in their life but when He didn’t as they thought He should they concluded it wasn’t real and that it was just a scam of some sort to get people’s money. Even though the list of reasons could go on and on, I want to through one more out at you. Some have stopped simply because they got caught up in life, whether it was in some form of recreation and hobbies, the pursuit to make more money or further a career, business or education, to travel, to rest, or to just hang out with friends or family. No matter what the reason given is, they always seem justified in them.

I recently wrote an article called, “Yes, but God understands …”, and you can almost see the same mindset I shared in that article in these reasons to not be faithful to church. God understands each of the reasons one may give for not going to church, so whether or not God understands is not the issue or the question. The question is, however, does our view of God’s understanding of our reasons truly match up with God’s understanding of them? In other words, does our picture of God understanding accurately and truly match up with God’s understanding of them?

At the core of many of the reasons people give for not being faithful to church are one of two reasons. The first reason is found in that it is not a priority. We tend to view church and gathering with other believers as something optional if it’s convenient and we feel up to it. One of the things that gets under my skin is when people put more stock and importance on being faithful to work or school even when it’s not convenient or they’re not feeling good, but when it comes to church they have a ‘take it or leave it’ attitude. God, Jesus, the Creator of the ends of the universe, desires and instructs us to be faithful in gathering with other believers, where we can receive from Him in much greater ways than we ever could from an employer or teacher. There is something to be said when believers gather together to seek Him in a corporate setting that you won’t get in any other venue of any size. We should value time with Him, the Creator of the ends of the universe, and with fellow believers more importantly than anybody or anything else. It’s not just an issue of priorities regarding His place in our lives, because many will argue they can pray and worship Him just as well if not better at home or with a small group of people, but do we value and prioritize His instructions to us, His “followers”? Many try to separate their relationship with God apart from their interaction with fellow believers and His Word, but that can’t be done. If you value interaction with fellow believers and obeying His Word as unimportant, then your relationship with Him is lacking and not what you think it is. So, one of the core reasons many stop going to church is because they do not place a high priority, in fact the highest priority, on Him and His Word. When He’s not the top and highest priority in your life, then something or someone is an idol to you, and He strongly frowns upon idolatry.

The second core reason why many stop going to church is because their eyes are on man more than they are on Jesus. When one’s eyes are more on a man than on Jesus, they then become very vulnerable to allowing the hurts, the offenses, and the ungodly (un-Biblical) teaching of some to push them away. We will all experience hurts and at times be offended by someone, that is a given, but when our eyes are more on man than on Jesus it becomes extremely difficult to overcome and press through. When we’re hurt and offended it’s easy to start using others as an excuse for not following Him and His Word, excuses Jesus will not allow or accept when each of us stand before Him to be judged. When we allow someone to keep us from being faithful to church for whatever reason, we’ve then allowed them to be more influential to us than Jesus Himself. Yes, we could talk about those who have hurt or offended us that keep us away, but it could also be because we value other people and their opinions more highly than Gods. In either case, our eyes are more on man than on Jesus, which is also idolatry. Since my youth I have observed something that touches on this, and as I share it keep in mind that we are simply asking the question, “What is keeping you from church?”, and how that our eyes being more on man than on Jesus plays into that. It could also fall under the area of Jesus not being in His rightful place in our lives as well. As I mentioned, ever since my youth I have observed something regarding people and going to church. We’ve been mentioning some of the ‘negative’ reasons for this, but there is a reason that in itself doesn’t seem to be negative but is just as dangerous. I’ve noticed how that when people have friends or family visiting them they deal with this in either one of two ways. One way that I’ve observed people handle this is that they invite their visitors to go with them to church, citing that following Jesus is the highest priority in their life and for their family, and one way that is lived out is to be faithful as a family to church. I’ve heard how that there have been times the visitors went with them, or they chose to leave, or to wait at the house for when they returned. Sometimes the visitors were also Christians, and sometimes they were not, but the approach was the same. The second way that I’ve observed people handling this is to just not go. It didn’t matter if they were friends or family, Christians or not, they were content with staying home with them. Sometimes their rational was that they wanted more time to sit and talk or to do some activity with them, and at other times it was because they were afraid of offending them in some way. Wow, what does that tell God? Here we are ambassadors of Christ with the task of reconciling men to Him, yet we ignore or downplay opportunities to do just that because we want social time or afraid of offending someone? If they’re not Christians, wouldn’t we want to take them to church where God might reach them and they can have an opportunity to meet fellow believers? Besides, if they don’t see and believe with our lives and our priorities that God is the most important person in our life and of the highest priority, then what message are we saying to them as to how important He is, or is not, to us? And if they are Christians, how awesome would it be to go and worship God as a family especially when those opportunities may be few? What it comes down to is if our eyes are more on man than on Jesus?

So, what is keeping you from heeding Gods instructions for us to be faithful and not neglect the assembling of “ourselves” (which includes YOU) together with the brethren? Maybe you are being faithful, and that is great if you are, but if you’re not then you need to take a few steps back and re-assess what is keeping you from church and why? If Jesus were to appear before you tonight to have a chat, and he were to ask why you haven’t been faithful to church, knowing He knows your heart, what would you tell Him? If you haven’t been faithful then I would suggest that now is the time to change that. The news headlines are pointing to Jesus’ very soon return, and I don’t want you to be caught unprepared for Him.

Wedding Guest Gets The Boot.

For the longest time I have wondered about the meaning or significance of the parable of the wedding feast found in Matthew 22:1-14. More specifically, what is Jesus trying to tell us with the wedding guest that was given the boot? At face value we can merely see the significance of having the proper wedding garment on at the wedding, but there seems to be something more to this than just that. Think about it, why would Jesus be telling us about the wedding guest who didn’t have the wedding garment when we’re the bride, and more importantly how did the wedding guest even make it to the wedding to begin with? Well, I have some thoughts on this. I realize that this may be controversial to say the least, but I ask that you will take it to prayer and ask God about this before making any quick judgments on it.

To begin with, let’s establish who the Bride of Christ is. In 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 Paul tells us about the body of Christ and how it is made up of many different types of members, and then in verse 27 he plainly tells us that we are the body of Christ and members individually. Furthermore, Paul also tells us in Ephesians 5:22-33 that the relationship between Christ and the church is like that between a husband and a wife. In 2 Corinthians 11:2, Paul also tells us that we are betrothed to one husband so he can present us as a pure virgin to Christ. We, the children of God, saved by grace through faith in Jesus, are not only a part of the body of Christ, but we are also the Bride of Christ.

This is further established when we understand the marriage customs of ancient Jews during the time Jesus was here, and when we see how our relationship and future with Jesus parallels those very customs. When we accept Christ as both savior and Lord of our life, we enter into a marriage contract with Jesus. In our western culture, entering into marriage starts and is completed with the “I do’s” that both the bride and groom indicate during the marriage ceremony, leaving only the consummation later that day. This is not the process in the marriage customs of ancient Jews. When the bride and groom agree to enter marriage they enter into a marriage contract. After they’ve entered into this marriage contract with each other, the groom then leaves to go prepare a place for him and his new bride without even consummating the marriage. The bride does not know when her groom will return for her, but it is her responsibility as she waits to both prepare herself for him and to keep watching for his return. If the groom returns to find that his bride had not prepared herself for him, or that she was not watching for him or if she had her attention or affections towards another, he could return to his father’s house without her even knowing he was there and will give her a letter of divorcement. This would be final. However, if he did return and found she had prepared herself for him, and that her affections and attention was still towards him and watching for his return, she would return to his father’s house with him where they would consummate the marriage and have a wedding party that would last on an average of seven days. Can you see the parallels between these ancient marriage customs and our relationship and future with Jesus? I hope you see them.

So, who are the wedding guests at the wedding party? There are some who believe that we, the church, are the wedding guests Jesus refers to, but that doesn’t match up with scripture. We’ve already established that the church is the bride of Christ, and so it wouldn’t make sense that we are the wedding guests. Would it? I don’t think so. Based on the relationship we have with Christ, and the return we are waiting and watching for called the rapture, I think it is safe to say that the wedding guests are all who lived and died prior to Jesus that were Gods, as well as those who surrender and give their lives to Jesus after the rapture event takes place. The church is the bride of Christ and did not exist prior to Jesus’ death and resurrection, and the church will be caught up to be with Christ at the rapture.

In Matthew 25:1-13, we have Jesus telling us the parable of the ten virgins. Some people would like to say that the virgins represented in this parable are the wedding guests, but that doesn’t make sense. For one thing, the bridegroom doesn’t come to get the wedding guests, and if the virgins represented the wedding guests how come they were not allowed to enter the wedding party after the bridegroom took the wise virgins back? Based on the marriage customs of the ancient Jews, during the wedding party that would take place over several days, some of the guests would come to the party after the marriage was consummated, so it wouldn’t make sense that in this parable the guests would not be allowed to enter in. There may be some who think these are the guests because there are more than one virgin represented in this parable, but we have to remember that Paul tells us in one of the scriptures I referred to earlier that we are all a part of one body, but many members. Just as we all make up the body of Christ, even so we all make up the Bride of Christ.

So, referring back to the scripture in Matthew 22 that talks about the wedding feast and the wedding guest that gets the boot, is there any reasonable explanation as to who this guest is and how they made it to the wedding feast without the wedding garment? I believe there is an explanation, but it will be a tough one for many to swallow as it cuts against the grain of what we may have been taught in the past. Do you want to hear of one explanation of this? Are you ready to hear it even though it is controversial?

Okay, here we go. When we accept Christ as our savior and Lord, we exchange our rags of filthiness for His robes of righteousness. That’s a pretty good deal if I may say so. We briefly touched on how many who have started a relationship with Christ will not make it into heaven. In Matthew 7:13-14 we are told that there are two gates to go through, one that is broad and leads to destruction, and one that is narrow and leads to life. Jesus tells us that many will go the way of the broad gate while just a few will go the way of the narrow gate. Later in that same chapter, in verses 21-23, Jesus makes it clear that there will be many who refer to Him as Lord, citing all that they did and accomplished in His name that will not be allowed to enter heaven. There are other scriptures that seem to indicate not only that there will be many who think that they are saved that will not enter into heaven, but also that there will be some who once walked with Jesus that will not be numbered among those in Heaven. Among these other scriptures there seems to be one that just doesn’t get much attention for some reason.

In Revelation 16:15, in the midst of the different judgments the Apostle John tells us about, Jesus makes an interesting comment. Jesus says, “Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.” In both Luke 21:34-36 and in Matthew 24:42-44, Jesus tells us to watch for His return. Many think that it isn’t important to be watching for His return, but that is in contradiction to what Jesus tells us to do. There must be a reason why Jesus made a point to tell His followers to be watching. Jesus doesn’t stop with blessing those who are watching for His return, but He continues on by narrowing things down to those who not only watch for Him but also keep their garments. This is an indication that even though someone may have entered a saving relationship with Jesus, at which time they received His robe of righteousness that it is possible to be without it. Furthermore, apparently those who were not watching or did not keep their garments will be found naked and others will see their shame. I believe it is safe to say that those who took on the name of Jesus but were not ready and prepared for His return lost their robes of righteousness when His bride was caught up to be with Him. Can you imagine the shame those who were not ready will experience when others recognize them as those who called themselves Christians yet did not go up in the rapture? I imagine it will be very overwhelming and humbling.

I know that growing up I found myself thinking if a Christian was not ready to go up in the rapture, that there was still a chance for them during the tribulation period though the price to be paid would be much higher. I also knew that there would be some during the tribulation period that would find their eternal destination in Heaven only if they were martyred for Christ. This has changed for me over the past several years. While I still believe that there will be many who will receive salvation during the tribulation period by way of giving their lives for Christ, I am no longer convinced that unprepared Christians, or ‘foolish virgins’, will have another opportunity if they miss the rapture. I think as the unprepared bride who was not watching for the grooms return missed out and was then given in finality a letter of divorce, even so the ‘foolish virgins’ and unprepared Christians will find out that they squandered any opportunity of eternity in heaven when they missed the rapture. I think this is where the wedding guest gets the boot.

You see, this particular wedding guest did not have a wedding garment on, and when questioned they were speechless, possibly thinking that they did have the proper attire on. I can’t help but wonder if this is one of the ‘foolish virgins’ or unprepared Christians who attempted to enter heaven as a wedding guest by dying a martyrs death during the tribulation, but because they already had the robe of righteousness at one time but lost it, they did not have the proper attire when they arrived at the wedding.

Now at this time I must clarify something. Not everyone who claimed to be a Christian actually entered into a saving relationship with Christ at any time, and so it is impossible for anyone to say that anyone who called themselves a Christian that missed the rapture has no hope for salvation. This can only be decided by God, Himself, and if anyone is left behind I strongly encourage them to still give themselves and their lives over to Christ.

Time is very, very short for the imminent return of Jesus for His bride. The pieces of Biblical prophecy regarding the return of Jesus for His bride and the tribulation period are rapidly coming into place. I’ve already highlighted some of these in a previous article, but to add to that list is the fact that Syria is speedily entering into a position that almost guarantees their destruction as described in Isaiah 17, an event that most scholars and prophecy ‘experts’ believe will take place either just before or just after the rapture of the church. This could possibly be the very event that brings the anti-Christ on the stage. People, this is not the time to be gambling with your eternity, but instead take all the steps you can with determination to make sure you are right with Jesus, ready and prepared for His return. This involves getting sin out of your life, which will probably require some pretty tough decisions and actions on your part. This is also the time to let go of any hurts, wounds or offenses you’ve picked up over the years, as well as any unforgiveness, resentments or bitterness. Time is short! Don’t delay! Your eternity hinges on it.

If this article ministered to you, I ask that you will consider sharing it with others to help them prepare for Christ’s soon return. While I appreciate the Facebook ‘Like’ buttons, I believe sharing it will reach many more people and have an opportunity to help others. If you’re also on Twitter, I ask that you will be sure to ‘re-tweet’ this to others as well. The more people that see this the better.

Ever ask yourself, “What is going on????”

Okay. Here in America we’ve seen Obamacare survive the examination of the United States Supreme Court. We’re also seeing very out of the ordinary weather and various types of natural disasters throughout the country.

In the world we’re seeing things heat up in the middle east as countries try to find a away to stop Syria’s internal war which involves killing civilians. Countries are hurriedly positioning significant amounts of troops and military equipment into key positions preparing for war. We also have Iran pursuing nuclear weapons with the determination to use those same weapons on both Israel and the United States.

And then there is both the European and United States economies which are both on the brink of collapse. The United States is teetering on the edge of an economic cliff, and it’s trying through counterproductive measures to avoid that. The European economy is crumbling and one wrong move in an attempt to reverse this could spell its quick demise.

Oh, and let us not forget about the recent deal between Saudi Arabia and China, a deal that guarantees China an unlimited supply of oil through 2035, no matter what happens on the world scene, in exchange for supplying Saudi Arabia with both nuclear weapons and the construction of military nuclear sites within Saudi Arabia that both countries will protect with their militaries. The interesting thing about this is that it gives China a very strong interest in the middle east, an interest that would give them all the incentive they need to send 200 million troops into the middle east to protect. Isn’t that prophesied in the Bible?

These are just a sample of the things going on in the world today, both within the United States and abroad. There is no question that things seem to be heating up in all areas of life, politically, economically, militarily, socially, technologically, and spiritually, just to name a few. The world is bracing for some pretty significant solar flares that could really mess things up for electronically dependent societies, and Israel is working hard to protect it’s right to exist as a people and as a soverign state.

What does all this mean? More specifically, what does this mean for you? It would be one thing if Christians were alone in making these observations, but that is not the case. People throughout the world, non-Christians, see clearly and comment about what is happening and have significant concerns regarding what is in store for all of us in the very near future, some even experiencing fear from them. For those of us who are followers of Jesus, and please note I did not say ‘Christians’ as many call themselves but do not truly follow Jesus, it is a time to be looking to the sky with excitement as we know our redemption draws near. The trumpet will sound and those who are followers of Jesus, both among the living and the dead, will be called away to join Jesus to forever live with Him. For those who are not followers of Christ, this is a time to be very concerned about your future and eternal destination and to enter into a saving relationship with Christ on His terms. For those who are not followers of Christ this is a time that will be filled with great fear and/or great deception of better times ahead. The great people of ‘spin’ will do their best to add their ‘spin’ to what is happening in order to get people to buy the lies they are ‘selling’ and perhaps believing themselves.

If you are one of those who are concerned about what is happening in the world, I strongly encourage you to surrender your lives to Jesus. That is your only hope in light of what is ‘coming down the pipes’ as we watch the evening news. This is not the time to be playing Russian Roulette with your eternity and gamble that the Bible is wrong and that true, pure Christianity is just a fantasy of imaginations.

John Johansson – www.resoundingshophar.com

As in the days of Noah …

I often times will take a minute and just observe people and what they are doing. As I observe them I can’t help but wonder if they even have a clue about what is coming to this earth. I see them in their cars talking to others in the vehicle, some going in and out of various establishments, and others just walking down the street seemingly without a care in the world. Well, some of the people I observe are actually carrying a lot of the cares of the world on their shoulders, and it shows. I don’t know how many of these people are followers of Christ, or for that matter mere fans of Jesus, but I believe it is safe to say that the majority of them are not. For many of them, Jesus is the farthest thing from their minds, being more concerned about the party the night before, looking for that perfect dress, checking out the sights and feeling the excitment of a relationship they’re in.

In Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus tells us that the time of His return will be as the days of Noah, a time when they were more caught up with enjoying life than they were in heeding the warnings of this man named Noah. After all, who could’ve imagined a flood of any type, much less a global one that would destroy all life as they knew it. It sounds just as absurd as the rapture, doesn’t it? Well, the flood Noah told them was going to come actually came, and only those who heeded the warnings of Noah was saved. People are so caught up now with living life that they are not heeding, or even listening to, the warnings of Jesus’ soon return. They are more concerned about living for the moment than they are in preparing their lives for eternity.

In Luke 21:34-36, Jesus tells us to be watching for His return, and I wonder how many people are heeding these words of Jesus. Sadly, the majority of people, both Christian and non-Christian, are not watching for Him. Obviously, those who are not Christians wouldn’t be looking for His return, but what about Christians? You would think that Christians would be watching, but many of them are just content with living life under the premise of ‘occupying till He comes’. Yes, we are to ‘occupy till He comes’, but Jesus made a point in telling us, no, commanding us to be watching for Him. So, why is that many Christians are just not watching?

I find myself listening, watching and reading the news only to see Biblical end-time prophesies jumping off the pages more and more. I can’t help but see that Jesus’ soon return is very soon. Who knows, perhaps He’ll come back tonight while we’re sleeping, but seeing how so few are even looking for His return I can only imagine how many will be caught off guard.

I encourage you to take another look at Luke 21:34-36, and see how clear Jesus is that we keep watching for Him. Don’t be careless with your eternity and not take His return seriously. In watching for Him, it would only make sense that we make sure we’re ready and prepared so that we won’t be left behind. I can’t help but wonder how much peoples lives would change if they were to take His return seriously and lived a life watching for Him.

Jesus is coming back, and if what is happening throughout the world is the fulfillment of Biblical end-time prophesies and the final steps in lining things up for the tribulation period, then we need to realize His return is very, very, very close.

Be watching!!!!

John Johansson

www.resoundingshophar.com

Ready or Not, Here He Comes!

For years I have been concerned about the current state of the Church in general, specifically the church in the USA. As we see Bible end time prophesy unfolding before our very eyes, we would be hardpressed to think that Jesus’ return is not immiment or even close at hand, yet the church in general seems to be more caught up with life in general, both the good and the bad. I sometimes wonder what it’s going to take before the church rises from it’s apathy and realizes the urgency of our times, but I also remember scripture that tells us the majority of those who call themselves Christians will not be ready for His return. I hear people say that things have to get a lot worse before Christ returns, but is that true? Or is that only true when it comes to Christ’s return at the end of the tribulation period? The stage is being set for His return for His bride, and we need to make sure we are ready for Him.

I also hear people talk of a great revival that supposedly takes place before Christ returns for His bride, but I would have to disagree with that line of thought. Yes, we are told that in the last days the Spirit of God will be poured out on all flesh, but I have two thoughts regarding this. The first thought is what if what the church has been experiencing the past 60+ years with the Charismatic and Pentecostal movements is a fulfillment of that prophesy? After all, if we were to take a step back and take a look at the past 60+ years we can see each of the items listed in that prophesy taking place like never before in history on all flesh. Now, before you jump and tell me it is something more than what we’ve been experiencing, I want to remind you that when Jesus came the people did not recognize Him as the messiah because they had it determined within themselves how His appearing would happen. Jesus did not fit the mold that they had conjured up in their minds, but that didn’t change the truth and the reality of things that He is who He says He is. So, in like thinking we need to be careful not to quickly discount what the church has experienced the past 60+ years simply because it doesn’t look like what we think it should. The second thought I have regarding this revival that some talk about is that it could possibly be a revival among those who get left behind after the rapture. We know that there will be martyrs for the faith during the tribulation period, and oddly enough America is supposedly not mentioned in Bible prophesy for these last days, so I can’t help but wonder if the revival many talk about is actually going to take place after the rapture. If that is the case, then it would appear to line up with other prophesy that indicate the falling away of many from the faith leading up to Christ’s return for His bride. Instead of making sure they are ready for Christ when He comes for His bride, it appears that many are banking on more time because things are either not bad enough, or because there will be a great revival to come first, and both of those mindsets are very dangerous as many will be caught and left unaware.

This is not the time to be playing Russian roulette with your eternity, thinking you have more time because things aren’t bad enough or hanging out for the great revival to come. What if He comes before these events, then what? To follow Jesus after the rapture will be much, much harder and will require each person to literally give their lives for Christ, and if you’re not willing or able to do that now then what makes you think you will be able to then?

Don’t be deceived!!!! He’s coming back as a thief while people are busy enjoying life and it’s many pleasures. When He comes He will see who it is that has their affections first and foremost on Him and His return, because if they don’t then they will get left behind. Did you know that according to ancient Jewish customs, not only did the bride not know when her groom was coming for her, but if when he did he found that her affections were not on him but on another or something else, or if she hadn’t been taking advantage of the time to prepare herself for him, then he could just as easily leave her behind and issue her a letter of divorcement? You see, our marriage to Jesus, much like the ancient Jewish marriage customs, is not final and complete until after He’s come for us and has taken us to the marriage feast which takes place during the tribulation period. We have to be watching and praying that we will be ready when He returns for His bride, otherwise we will be counted among the foolish virgins Jesus refered to in His parable of the 10 virgins.

So, I say all that to say, BE WATCHING AND GET YOURSELF READY FOR HIM!! You eternity hinges on it!

John Johansson

Putting on the Mind of Christ

We live in a time when the mind of Christ is the furthest thing from most people’s thoughts. In fact, if you were to ask people what is the mind of Christ, the majority would not be able to answer that question or would have a twisted idea of what that is. Has the understanding of what the mind of Christ is for the most part been lost to a culture that is consumed on satisfying self in one way or another?

What is the mind of Christ? There is a lot preached from America’s pulpits, among both the televised and local churches throughout the country, of what the mind of Christ is, but is what they are preaching really the mind of Christ? Let’s take a look at this and see for ourselves. In Philippians Paul tells us what the mind of Christ is, so I think that is probably the best place to start with this. Let’s take a look at it.

In Philippians 2:5, Paul tells us to have the same mind that was in Christ Jesus, so let’s see if we have the same mindset. Even though teachers and preachers of the Gospel tend to skip right past verse 6 of this same chapter, probably thinking that it doesn’t apply to us, but I believe that is the farthest thing from the truth. Why is it that verse 6 tends to get skipped over so frequently? Well, what does it say?

“who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, …” Philippians 2:6 (NKJV)

This verse talks of Jesus being in the form of God, and that He did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, so how does this apply to us? No, we are not God, nor are we equal with God, so why is it that Paul felt that it was important to mention this? After all, this should be a “no-brainer”, right? Well, not necessarily. In Romans 8:12-17, we are told that not only are we adopted into the family of God, but we are also joint-heirs with Christ. Wow. That is awesome, to think that God values us, His creation, in such high regard that He would sacrifice His son for our salvation. And, to top it off, we’re not just adopted by God, but we’ve been made joint heirs with Jesus, our creator. Who said that God doesn’t love us and have such exciting things in store for us? Well, this is where we get tripped up. We hear a lot of preachers and teachers telling us how we are to live as children of the King, and that we should focus on living under the blessings and perks of that relationship, settling for nothing less. We hear how we should claim God’s promises for us in regards to health, prosperity and promotion, because after all Jesus made those things possible for us with His sacrifice and resurrection. We see and hear of scripture in both the Old Testament and the New Testament that reinforces this mindset, but do we just focus on those scriptures? Or, are we to also include the other scriptures in the Bible?

We as people have the tendency to grab a hold of key scriptures that we like and ‘tickle’ our ears, forgetting that there are other scriptures that we need to factor into the equation to get a balanced view of what God is saying to us? Philippians 2:6 is one of those verses that is often times, and conveniently, overlooked or passed right over. Paul tells us to have the same mindset of Christ, and to do so we need to consider this verse. Just as Christ is God and did not consider wrong to be equal with God, even so we need to have the confidence that we are children of God and joint-heirs with Jesus, but what did Jesus do with this confidence of who He is? Well, verse 7 tells us that He made Himself of no reputation, taking on the form of a bondservant, and verse 8 tells us that He humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. That puts an interesting twist to things, doesn’t it? How does this fit in with a lot of the teachings we hear these days, claiming God’s blessings and promises for us based on our ‘rights’ as children of God?

Am I saying that God doesn’t want to bless us or that He doesn’t want to fulfill the promises He’s made to us? Not at all! God does want to bless us, and He does want to fulfill His promises to us, but for us to make a lifestyle of claiming our ‘rights’ to those is wrong. There is a time when we are to claim our ‘rights’ to things, much like when Paul exercised his rights as a Roman citizen. Paul had been beaten and imprisoned on many occasions but never chose to claim his rights until he saw an opportunity to use it to further the Gospel and to take it to Rome. Just as Jesus never used His position as the Son of God to do anything for His own benefit and purposes, and just as Paul didn’t use his rights as a Roman citizen for his own benefit and purposes, even so we shouldn’t be exercising our ‘rights’ as children of God for our own benefits and purposes. We should only use what God has promised us as His children for the furtherance of the Gospel and the name of Christ, and to do that we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit as to when and how we should do so.

Many times we forget that this life we live is not our own, but is Christ’s life lived through us. We are called to be His ambassadors to a lost and dying world, reconciling men back to right relationship with Jesus. That doesn’t mean that God won’t bless us along the way, or that He won’t make good on His promises towards us this side of eternity, because He does do that, but as His bondservants we shouldn’t be claiming our rights to such things if we are truly working as His ambassadors. He is the one that determines how, where, and to whom we are to take Jesus to the lost and hurting, and because of that we need to be willing to go and do whatever He would have us to for the Gospel and the sake of Christ. Paul learned to be content in all things for the purpose of doing the will of God for him, and even so we need to learn to be content knowing that the salvation and healing of others is of greater importance than our temporal blessings and comforts of life. We have eternity to experience and enjoy ALL that God has for us, but let us not focus on storing up treasures or building empires in this life only to barely make it into heaven and have no real treasures have been stored up.

Think about these things. Are you living a life focused on living as children of the King now, with all its blessings, rights and comforts, or are you willing to go without for the purpose of doing the will of God and storing up treasures for yourself in heaven.

www.resoundingshophar.com

Forbid Them Not …

Heard someone criticize another minister recently and it bothered me. We live in a time when people think it okay to criticize ministers and ministries. When Jesus tells us to not be criticle of others why is it that we think it okay to criticize ministers just because we don’t agree with them or like the way they do things? I’m not talking about major doctrinal issues or things that are in definite conflict with the word of God.

The disciples came to Jesus once regarding someone who was casting out demons in His name, asking what they should do since that person wasn’t a part of them. Jesus didn’t say anything about whether or not this person was sent of God, or if he was even right with God. Jesus didn’t even say anything about the way the person did or did not do what he was doing, or even if he was operating in the flesh or by the Spirit of God. Jesus’ response was very simple and to the point, a response that we should embrace much more often.

Jesus simply said, “Forbid him not”. Jesus continued to say that no one who performs miracles in His name can soon after turn around and oppose Him, and that whoever is not against Him is on His side. Wow. Jesus did not justify or legitimize the person, but He wasn’t going to stop someone from promoting His name to others. How many times are we quick to stop, destroy, or even slander those who are promoting Christ and the Gospel simply because we don’t agree with their take on things or the way they do or don’t do things? I believe we should do some self re-evaluating and see if we’ve helped and aided the cause of Christ and the Gospel, or if there’s been times that by our conversation or conduct we have in some way hurt Christ and the furtherance of the Gospel to save the lost, heal the hurting, and bring deliverance to the bound.

For more on this topic follow the link to read the full article posted on our website; https://rshophar.com/forbidthemnot.html

John Johansson