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1 Timothy 4:6 - If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed Ephesians 4:14 - we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting At New Covenant Church of Atlanta there
are often times when I feel the need to address the basics of the Gospel -
what we believe. In recent weeks and months, I continue to discover that many
churches go "off track" when it comes to the Gospel, and they want
to become so "radically inclusive" that the atonement, the
necessity for the acceptance of that by faith, and certain cornerstone
doctrines of the Kingdom are often pushed to the side. I recently heard a
former full-Gospel minister say, "Jesus is one among many ways, and we
can't expect other world religions to come to Him, but in their own way they
are by calling on Allah, 1. Salvation "You must be born-again" (John 3:7). "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13) Salvation is the starting point. Until one is "born-again" or "Saved," he/she has not even "come alive" spiritually (Ephesians 2:1). One is only saved by calling upon the Name of the Lord Jesus and accepting by faith His atoning sacrifice (Eph. 2:8 / Romans 3:19-26 / Romans 5:1 / Acts 4:12). 2. The Baptism/Overflow of the Holy Spirit "All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them" (Acts 2:4) "You shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you" (Acts 1:8). God wants His people to operate in authentic, supernatural power. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit is the "Gateway" into the supernatural power of God. If you have never received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, I have provided hyper-links at the bottom of this article that you can use to help you understand more about The Baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. 3. The Church "I will build my
church, and the gates of Hell will not overcome it" (Matthew 16:18b). " The body we're talking about is Christ's body of
chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his
body. But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn't amount to much,
would we? So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently
formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ's body" (Romans 12:5
- The Message Bible). The local church is God's way of helping you discover who you are in the plan of
the ages. God calls us to assemble with other believers, to use our gifts and
callings to benefit those believers, and to be a part of what God is doing in
the earth through His amazing group of people known as the church (Hebrews
10:25 / Ephesians 4:11-12). 4. The Kingdom "(Jesus) Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things" (Acts 3:21). "Seek first the Kingdom" (Matthew 6:33a). The Kingdom simply defined is "Where God is given Rule and Reign." Our responsibility as Christians is NOT to sit around, looking up toward the sky, wondering when Jesus is going to come back and sweep us up off our feet (or rapture us out). Our responsibility is to demonstrate the Kingdom, to occupy, and to manifest His Lordship wherever we are. Your place of employment, your school, your church, a family social, the restaurant you're sitting in, etc can all be avenues for the Kingdom, the rule and reign of God to manifest. God has called all of us to be Kingdom Vassals, to expand the tent of His authority in the earth. So, lay hands on the sick, cast out devils, worship the Lord, and let His Presence INVADE PLANET EARTH THROUGH YOU. Today, i believe these 4 points are major points in establishing Bible-based, sound doctrine. Don't be led astray by every wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14). Video - Pastor Karl Strader from "Carpenter's Home Church" Article - Pastor Randy Morgan "The Baptism in the Holy Spirit" |
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By Deacon Tonna Eidson |
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Jeremiah 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they
have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns,
broken cisterns, that can hold no water. (KJV) The prophet here talks about
two evils: "…they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters." It's an outpouring continual force--receiving from God and giving out to others.This passage is not talking about a lake, or a pond. It's not a "stored-up" body of water. No, in fact it's a continually flowing fountain. Think about it. When this passage was written there were no ice-cold water fountains to walk up to and push the button. There were only artesian well-type fountains and natural streams--they were built by God. When the writer of this word was inspired to write this what was he talking about? If we recognize that we are not the source of power (God is), we know that the fountain (power, anointing, blessing) comes from Him. How do we tap in to that power? The Bible teaches us that we "tap in" by faith. Over and over, we are instructed in His word to ask, have faith, and believe. Here's what I think is the key: the fountain (power) is not exclusively for you--it's for others in your life as well. Thus, it's a flow. As you tap into God's power and let it flow through you to others you also are blessed. According to this scripture, if I'm reading it right, it's evil not to take of the fountain of living water." Jesus taught us that we are anointed to perform signs and wonders in the earth (not by our own power). So, when we operate in our anointing, we reach out to others with God's mercy, grace, healing, deliverance, love, etc. That's all it takes to flow in the anointing that's on your life, is letting Him reach others through you! Let's look at what the Bible teaches us about this flow. An example would be God-like love (agape), I Corinthians 13:4-3 "Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." Galatians 5:13 says "…through love serve one another and later in that same chapter we read, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…." (v. 22-23). This is an outflow--a giving out--like a fountain. This has to come through faith, reaching into His flow in our lives--walking in the Spirit. And guess what? "…and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." This can mean works--works of man (dysfunctional works at that) and motivated by worldly desires (John 2:16 Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and pride of life). What are these cisterns for? Our own plans, our own power, our own storing up--it doesn't work. Therein lies the problem. Cisterns were troughs made for holding water (sometimes for animals to drink out of, or for washing things, etc.). The point is, they were made by man, man was the source. But, a broken one is no good to anyone, not you, not those you want to help, not at all. When I was praying for understanding of this scripture, I clearly heard the Lord say, "It's a sewer!" Think about it -- in our houses. water goes down the drain (or down the toilet) to the sewer. It doesn't stay with you, it drains out (just like a broken cistern). A broken cistern works like a sewer sending water (and sewage) back into the earth. Galatians 5:19-21 tells us, "Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." When we examine these, we see that this is not an outflow (actually it's quite the opposite) it's a consuming force--the opposite of I Corinthians 13--impatience, unkindness/rudeness, jealous, bragging, arrogant, acting unbecomely, self-seeking, easily provoked, always taking account of wrongs suffered, rejoicing in unrighteousness, not rejoicing in truth, not bearing anything, not believing anything, no hope, not able to endure at all. These are all consuming forces--taking in (not giving out). They exhibit concern only for self and self-goals which is evident here. Being led by the flesh and definitely not by the Spirit of God. Clearly evil. So, we have two flows shown here:1) Outflow (by faith and God's Spirit of love)2) Inflow and failed storing up (a consuming, drawing in that leaks)So, we can let God's fresh flowing "water" pass through us to others and let His anointing flow into our own lives, OR, we can try to store up your own stagnant consuming works that will seep out like a sewer. Let's all stay in the flow! The next opportunity we have, let's faith draw from the Fountain of Living Water to help others (or, flow in our anointing)! |
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The ministry in |
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Pastor’s Corner |
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Father, forgive me for
all my sins, known and unknown. Let me be aware of the words of my mouth and how they
impact those around me. May my words be filled with life today. I choose life filled
words today. Words of encouragement and pleasant to the ears. I have peace today and
it’s the peace that surpasses all understanding. I have joy today and it’s
the joy that makes me want to leap and shout for joy. I have love in my heart
today and it’s the love that wants to do something nice for someone else today.
I have a new start today,
because yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come. I live in the present.
I am more than a conqueror through Christ who gives me strength. He is my all
in all. He is my everything. In
Him do I put all my trust. |
This
is a day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad. I don’t know
what the enemy may have in store for any of us today, but whatever he might
try to unleash upon us, I declare to everyone who is reading this, he is
defeated and under our feet. The devil is busy attacking us because we are
busy doing our Father’s work. If we were not under attack, then I would be
concerned. Remember
that today is a day of victory. When the enemy approaches, “Get thee behind
me satan.” When you feel yourself weakening in the
battle, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.” Put on the full armor of God
and get ready to battle the devil out of your mind and your life. Fill your
soul with the word and let the Holy Spirit work within you, because the devil
will not remain where the spirit of the Lord is. Eph
6:14-18 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,
with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted
with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all
this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the
flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword
of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all
occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert
and always keep on praying for all the saints. |
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