THE OFFENCE OF GOD

One of the greatest central truths I have learned in my life is there seems to always be some type of offence in me. The longer I go with God the more I see and feel these offences in me that well up in my flesh to take control of my heart, mind, and of course whatsoever is in our heart will come out our mouth. I am amazed just when I think I am over getting offended someone says or does something that touches an offence buried in my heart and I say or do something (usually dumber than what the other person said or did) and I am exposed for the carnal, fleshly man I am at times. Did you know we cannot be offended if there is no offense in us. What happens when we get offended is a word or action from someone reaches out to us and touches the offence laying dormant in our heart and when it comes alive all hell breaks loose in our spirit. Now there is some good news and bad news here. The bad news is our words usually alienate our friends and strengthen our enemies hand in our lives (at times like this we usually do not pray for them as Jesus asked us to) not to mention the hatred and wrath that begins to move in our heart, but the good news is this offence has given God an opportunity to work in our lives by showing us what wicked and ugly thoughts and feelings are buried deep in our heart. Believe it or not the continual sin and immaturity of the Church at Corinth was the very thing God used to bring repentance and restoration. God allowed these things to go on so that something was moving in the Church which allowed correction the opportunity to work in their lives. We can then either agree with God what He is saying about us is true (the Biblical definition of the word – confess) or call God a liar and reject His work in our lives. Yes I said God’s work in our lives. God will even use an offence in us to reveal our heart condition and show us how WE ARE NOT like His precious Son Jesus Christ. My teacher Charles Haun would always say God does not play fair; He will use everything in our lives as we allow Him to reveal our nasty attitudes and ungodly character. Did you know God is more concerned about our character than He is about our ability (even to be used as a vessel to do miracles) or our faithful dedicated service to the church or Him. God is very concerned about our character, He would rather have a child that knows how to move with Him in righteousness than one He can count on to get the job done. Both are needed in God’s economics, but the one who can move in righteousness knows His heart and this my friend is what God is after with His children, just as earthly parents are after with their children. When we get offended again and again it is a sign we have refused to allow God to deal and judge in areas of our lives. When we get offended there is no peace in us, our home, or any relationship we touch, but that is not God’s intention for us oh no, God’s intention for us is, “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” (Psalms 119:165) In our personal lives and in the relationships with others in the world we are to live our lives by, “Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed: 4But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, 5In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; 6By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, 7By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; 9As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; 10As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich ; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” (2 Corinthians 6:3-10) Here Paul lays out our guide to daily living with Christians and non-Christians alike in the world in verse 3-10, please reread them again and examine your life here. I know I fall extremely short in many areas here, but still the standard is before me to measure up to. I am amazed when I read verses 9 and 10, “As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; 10As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” What truth, how do we measure up to these words? Can we ever measure up to these words? In this life I think not, but still that does not excuse us from not meeting God’s expectation. Oh how far we are from what God expects of us. Lord please help us to want to be like You.

Now there is another side of offence in the Bible that many people do not know about because it is not taught in most churches today. Most sermons (not messages from God) teach about a good moral meaning in how to live our lives in a good and decent way, but that never get down to the heart of God whereby we become the work of God. Not what we do for Him, but our very lives is the workmanship (Ephesians 2:10) of God. Now I really enjoy speaking to Bible School students especially third year students they think they know everything. When I start I tell them I have a goal and a target in mind; the target is their heart and the goal of my words is to strike their heart and see how low I can get them in their thinking and in their heart condition, because the way up in God is down and the lower we can go in God with our self-worth, self-seeking, and selfishness the higher we can go in God no more no less. At the same measure we can go down we can learn and go up. In Constanta, Romania I had a Bible school Students tell me at first he rejected my words and thought I was crazy, but as he listened and saw my method (and madness) before too long my words and heart condition for him captured him for the Gospel. There is a spiritual principle moving here; the preaching of the Word of God is to offend us. When I minister the word of God (as He gives it to me) my intention is not to make someone happy, feel good in their heart, or cause them to jump to their feet and bobble their head back and forth, oh no my intention is to bring them down in their eyes, to stick them in their heart with the word of God and bring them to a place of silent retrospection and reflection. As with the Bible School students my goal is to see how low I can get them to come down in their eyes so that Jesus can be lifted up. The word of God is to prick our heart, it is to cut us to the quick, it is to open the eyes of our understanding so that we will be able to see the Lord high and lifted up so that His train can fill the temple of our heart. The word of God is to be a rock on which we are to stumble and fall to our knees. Peter tells us, “Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed (Jesus the word), the same is made the head of the corner, 8And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. 9But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:” (1 Peter 2:7-9) If we are going to be “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people” something will have to be used to cleanse our lives from the filth of this world so that we can be chosen by God and become the “royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people” He so desires we become. It is the word of God; the Gospel message that offends us as it exposes the sin in our lives. And as we see our sinful heart condition as compared to the word of God coming to us God is able to draw us unto Himself. This offence is not until death like us getting offended at our brothers and sisters, but is an offence unto life. Remember Paul words in 2 Corinthians, “By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; 9As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;” (2 Corinthians 6:8-9) The offence of the preaching of the word of God kills us, but it makes us alive at the same time. The more you look at these verses the more you have to scratch your head and wonder. Paul told the Church in Rome, “Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; 33As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” (Romans 9:32-33) The Christians at this time in Rome were into a works salvation as most Churches in America and the world are today. They stumbled over the words of Paul when he said, “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? 2This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? 4Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain. 5He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” (Galatians 3:1-5) and when he said, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,” (Hebrews 6:1) or when James said, “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. 18Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:17-18) All of these words caused the people who were seriously listening to stumble at them, but for the ones who were serious about their walk with the Lord got up from their knees with a new sense of purpose, commitment, and new calling, “Be ye holy for I am holy.” What else in our lives can God use (of His own) to hone and refine our character? Not suffering this is ours for the softening of our heart. Certainly not God’s blessings these are ours to give away so that others may receive. How about troubles and persecution? No, these are ours to work righteousness and Godliness in us. There are two ways for our soul to be cleansed. The first is through affliction, anguish, distress, and inward torment. And the second is through the fire of a burning love, a love impatient and hungry. Make no mistake my friend if you are serious about walking with God He will get us one way or the other.

GOD'S WORD SAYS

I think (if you have any Bible teaching) you would have to be as dumb as a red brick not to be able to see we are living in the day and hour that Jesus Christ could return from heaven as the men in the crowd promised when Jesus ascended on high. In Acts (the only history book of the Bible) we read, “And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; 11Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:10-11) Now it does not say Angel, it says “two men stood by them in white apparel.” When Jesus was born heaven’s angels heralded His humble birth and when He went away, “two men stood by them in white apparel” gave the world the blessed news of some day He would return. During Jesus’ time on earth He told the disciples and the crowd that followed Him He was going away, but they never really understood. But, we would have to be almost blind not to be able to understand how close the return of Christ is. I would think there is nothing to be added to the wicked, evil heart condition of this world for these words of Jesus to come to pass in our life time, “Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 36But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24:34) The wickedness and perversion of man ever increases, yet I do not believe (today) man needs to do any more to equal the debauchery of the people of Noah’s (Noe) day. Jesus could make His return at any second of the day. The last few years I believe (in my spirit) the second hand on God’s clock has moved closer to His return. I cannot explain it or define it, but I feel in my spirit Jesus’ return could happen (come Lord Jesus) at any time. In verse 39, the Lord confirmed a thought to me that I have been saying for years. I do not believe the people in the world today will really know when Jesus comes back for the third time, as the men in white apparel said in Acts. It will be His third coming not His second. I do not know why we call it His second coming. Jesus came as a child (first), was put to death, went to hell and preached, came back to life, was seen of the disciples and others, ascended to heaven (Acts 1:10-11) (second), and will come back a third time to receive His bride unto Himself, a time no man knows the day or hour. In verse 39, in Noe’s day it says the people “knew not until the flood came” so too in our day. I believe a very very small number of people will be caught away to be with the Lord when He returns and the world will not even miss us. The world will go on living life as it did in the days of Noe, “so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” today. May we be ready when the Lord comes calling. I have thought what will be the qualifications for those who will be taken when Jesus returns? I feel sure it will be more than just being a Christian because the Christians in the Book of Hebrews endured, “Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. 35Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: 36And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. 39And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:” (Hebrews 11:34-39) Did you get that they “received not the promise.” These dedicated and faithful, highly exalted by God Christians thought they were going to see Christ return as the two men in white promised. All they went through in suffering, in tribulation, in sorrow, in death, and in spite of “obtaining a good report” yet they did not receive the promise. And we think we will sing and dance our way into heaven, oh no my friend we are woefully mistaken God will require more of us to be able to be raised with Him when He returns.

So far in this article all that I have shared has been background, but what I feel the Lord wants me to talk about is how we must not use the Bible (God’s written word to man) as a way to validate what we believe the future holds for the world and even the church, but we must have His word settled in our heart and mind. The Bible is a Spiritual book and can only be understood and interpreted by the Spirit of God any attempt without the Holy Spirit is presumption, thinking they are right, but in reality they are wrong. Today we find “end-time Bible teachers” (you know their names I am not going to mention any just watch TBN) who take events happening in the world today and pick Scripture after Scripture to lay over the events happening in the world to see if they kind of fit, to be able to say this day prophesy has been fulfilled, then throw it all against the wall to see if it sticks in the hearts and minds of Christians who do not know really know better. These bad actors (hypocrites) are the false teachers (as Jesus promised us) unskilled in the word of God, who have pedaled and sold the word of God for favor, influence, and financial gain. Let us be honest no man knows the future if they did they would be God at the very best these liars are guessing as they change their words as events change in the world. Brethren be not deceived by the “end-time Bible teachers” they are thieves and charlatans. The Bible is the standard and means to be used to define what the future holds. How foolish we are to think we can guess the future with events of the world. If God is not telling us something then we do not need to know about it. Man always wants to know; well wanting to know got Eve and us in a lot of trouble. If God is not telling us then we need to go along for the ride in faith (and not guess) and let God be God to handle the future. Our guessing and false teaching is wrapped up in greed and arrogance this will never do. The written word of God is always the predictor of the future and it is our responsibility to study it and discover what the Spirit is telling us not the 6 o’clock news, CNN, or FOX. It is no wonder the folks in the world want little to do with the nominal church. We must get serious souls are at stake. All throughout the Old Testament the birth and coming of Christ was foretold and the spoken and written words were manifested in the New Testament. The Bible foretold (in detail) what was going to happen and it did. This is still the method God intends for us to use today. The Bible means what it says and not what we want it to say, even if we think it makes God more powerful and mighty in the eyes of the world. We often think by embellishing the word of God we can make God look bigger and better, but not so. The Bible is written to complement line upon line, verse upon verse, precept upon precept, and concept upon concept. If we change the order or add to the thought God has intentioned (in any line, verse, precept or concept) then we have changed God’s word to man, a crime punishable by death. This is a critical point we must understand when studying the Bible, yet daily many make a fortune in misrepresenting the Bible and worse use the Bible to convey an idea or understanding that are not laid out in the Bible, but are used to support lies to win hearts, minds, and money.

Now it is true Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father (because the Bible tells us so), but it is not true Jesus left us. Please let me say that again, Jesus has never left us. In John we read about Jesus departing and the coming of the precious Holy Spirit, but even in this Jesus never left us, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. 8And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 16:7-13) WOW what sure help in present troubles. WOW what a truth, “he will shew you things to come” not the guessing we call end-time prophesy. What will the Holy Spirit use to shew us all things? That’s right the word of God. But, even though Jesus departed earth that does not mean Jesus has left us. Later on we will look at verses where Jesus says He will never leave or forsake us. While on the cross Jesus cried out to His Father, “why have thou forsaken Me?” Did the Father forsake Jesus? I think not the Father raised Jesus from the dead.

Karen and I have four wonderful kids who we love very much and are proud of; they were born in two groups: Dave 1980 + Dan 1981 and Connie 1986 + Joshua 1987. When Dave and Dan were babies I would take them to the park to play on the swings. They were about three or four year old babies. I would put Dave in one swing and Dan in another. I would push Dave and then Dan faster and higher they would go you should have seen the look on their face what joy and pleasure, total happiness. They would look over at each other with shouts of glee and say, dad really loves us we are so lucky to have such a loving father. Is this not the way we felt when we first gave our hearts to the Lord? But after a while I would not push every stroke, maybe every other stroke, then every three strokes and when they realized I was not pushing them their faces really changed. As the swing got slower and almost stopped I would jump behind a tree and hide so I could listen to them cry. Dan where is dad? Dad? Dad where are you? Dave dad does not love us. Is this not the way we act when things do not go our way? You should have heard them cry and seen their faces as tears streaming were down, it was a sight to see. Suddenly I would jump out from behind the tree and say Dave! Dan! They would go Dad! And I would push them again and all would be well again in their little world. A question, did I leave my boys? No of course not I was right there with them all the time. It was not I left them, but they could not see me. Did Jesus leave us? No of course not He has been here with us all the time it is just at times we cannot see Him. Jesus said, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway (Strong’s #3956 individually), even unto the end of the world. Amen.” (Matthew 28:18-19) Now Jesus was not saying He would be with everyone at the same time, His words were not directed to many people His words were directed to the heart of one person, individually, who believed His words. In a congregation of people the preached word will only take root in the hearts of the people who believe. Jesus was not speaking to the masses here, but to the one who needs Him to speak words of strength and comfort. Jesus was giving to the one who believes a personal promise “lo, I am with you.”

In the First Chapter of Genesis 10 times in the 29 verses it is recorded, “And God said.” These my friend are more than words they are a life-long revelation we must possess deep within our heart and mind of God speaking a word to us and we know it will happen not because we believe or have faith, but because God spoke and in obedience we believe. Do you see the difference? Without this critical revelation the best we will be able to do is guess what God wants us to do and this my friend will never bring us to the end and purpose God has planned for us. The question today is do we really believe what God’s word says or will we believe a liar of the world who would deceive you and rob you of your very soul. Jesus warns us time and time again to take heed to ourselves in this area, yet again these liars increase daily. We do not need to have someone try to convince us of their spiritual ability to understand the Scriptures oh no, what we need to do is study the Scriptures for ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us into all truths. We need to believe Jesus when He says “lo, I am with you” my friend He means it. If it is written in the Bible then it will happen no matter what people say or what the news reports. If God’s word says it then it must be settled in our heart and mind. Written by David Stahl

OUR HEART CONDITION

There are spiritual laws in our lives that God operates through. Just like how God works through His physical laws God must work through His spiritual laws. For example God can only minister to the glory of God in us that we have allowed Him to develop in us. Many Christians pray and even beg God to minister His power and touch in their lives, but He will not because He is a God of order and operation. It is our place to allow God to develop His glory in our lives as we “grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.“ (2 Peter 3:18) He then can minister to the work of God in our lives. There is another spiritual law that I would like for us to look at in this article and that is God deals with us according to our heart condition. God is to us what we are to Him. His heart condition towards us is always for the intentions that He has planned and purposed for our lives and He will do (short of directly twisting our arm into submission) whatever it takes to bring them to pass. Everything in our lives is fair game for God to use. And if God cannot get through to us with His mercy, longsuffering, and love then He will have to use wrath, punishment, strong discipline. Now it is important to know God has nothing really to do with developing our heart condition. Our heart condition is our responsibility and reasonable service before God; it is a culmination of many spiritual and non-spiritual ingredients in our lives: our personal understanding of God and His word, our experiences in God, our moral characteristics; honesty, attitudes, perceptions, faithfulness, integrity, our social life, our work ethics, even our friends and places we go. Did you know there are some people you cannot hang around and some places you cannot go and still walk with the Lord? All of these spiritual and non-spiritual ingredients are poured into our heart and our heart condition is now formed. I see this process play out every day of my life when I compare my wife Karen (my Sweetheart) and my self. Karen has such a soft heart condition where it is not so in my life. She has such an air of naiveté about her where I am educated at the Masters level. Karen almost always finds the simplicity in matters where I look for the more sophisticated. Karen is brutally honest now I am honest too, but I seem to lean towards the gray areas more often. In Karen’s case her heart condition has been developed (I believe) from her early Catholic beginnings (she still talks about Sister Theophane Marie) and her sense of always wanting to do the right thing from her parents, especially from her grandfather William Kreiss (we called him “Poppy Seeds”) who always told her: pray every day, read your Bible, and go to church. Now it is also important to know our heart condition can change according to the different ingredients we pour into our heart. In Proverbs we read, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: . . . ” (Proverbs 23:7) In the Greek this verse is translated, “as a man opens the gate of his heart, so is he.” As we open our heart to different things (good and bad) in our lives they are poured into our heart and our heart condition is changed from once it was. If we open our heart to wrath, bitterness, and the things of this world then we will pour wrath, bitterness, and the things of this world into our heart. But if we open our heart to things that are of a good report and the things of God then we will pour things that are of a good report and the things of God in our heart. The choice is ours not God’s to what we swing wide the gate of our heart. The word “heart” here in this verse is “gate.” All throughout the Bible the word gate is always a metaphor for a place of decision. So too with our heart condition, what we decide to open our heart to, we will be that.

Sadly today often we (I have used the pronoun “we” which includes me) the Body of Christ have opened our heart to the things of the world and not the things of God. Thus, our heart condition towards the Lord is hard-hearted and our relationship with God is strained at best. Before we can overcome Satan we first must be able, in God, to overcome our fleshly desires and our lusts for the world. Unless we allow God to deal with “our lust” for the things of the world we will never be able to discover the victory (overcome) God has for our lives. This is God’s intention for us to lead us into victory, but first we must allow God to deal with “our lust” through His dealings and judgments in our lives. In James we read, “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (James 1:14-15) This death that we take behind the gate of our heart will taint our heart condition and produce death in us. It is not Satan causing this death in us, but our choices not to do what God has told us to do. Remember, at the heart of the issue it is an issue of our heart. And the choices we make develop our heart condition either towards God or away from God.

Our choices also impact on what we believe which helps to develop our heart condition. Either we will have a soft, supple heart for God to work His words and ways into or a hard, stony heart that rejects His words and ways. True belief has a manifestation – obedience and submission. But sadly as I travel the world (especially in America) I find most Christians (as high as 70 to 80%) do not really know what they believe they are confused with what God says (both written and oral) and what denominations teach. My friend attending a new Believer’s or new member class will never develop obedience and submission in our lives. These types of classes only teach what the church (denomination) believes. What is developed in us is the denominational church rules and regulations we must memorize, recite, and follow to be able to participate with a local body of Believers and this my friend will never do. The only way we will be able to come to the understanding of what God says and wants for our lives is when we crack open the word of God and allow Him to speak to us; then His words will become our words and we will take on an understanding of what God wants and how He wants things to be done. In doing so we are developing our heart condition to be more like the Son of God, Jesus Christ. You know everyone believing the same thing does not make it right. We have many denominations in the world with millions of followers all believing the same mistruths and unless they come out of this deception they will lose any work of God in their lives (God forbid) end up in spiritual places God has no intention for them. Ultimately their final destination (God forbid), unless they allow God to open the eyes of their understanding and work in their lives, will be Hell led by religious leaders with a hard, stony heart conditions.

One of God’s great tools to help develop our heart condition and prevent us from ending in Hell is conviction. What a precious blessing in our lives. Conviction is God telling us we are going the wrong way and we need to repent (about face) and go the other direction. James tells us, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. 7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist (flow in the opposite direction) the devil (slander, sin, evil), and he will flee from you. 8Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” (James 4:6-8) In other words, if the devil (and all he is) is going in one direction we must go in the other direction and then we will be able to “draw nigh to God.” We do not stand and say, “I resist you, I resist you in the name of Jesus,” oh no, we take the initiative and move in the opposite direction, the direction God is going. Please remember, true conviction has few words it is a work of the Holy Spirit, where condemnation (what many Christians heap on the heads of their brothers and sisters) is a work of man with many words. At times I am amazed at the length of an alter call. Jesus never had an alter call, why do we? If someone is really under the convicting power of the Holy Spirit you will not need to hold an alter call they will run at break neck speed to get to a place (may not be an alter at a church) where they can get free of the burden that sin has saddled upon them. Conviction is a burden on the soul that enlightens our conscience and pricks our heart to the critical need to be reconciled back to God. This is the message of the Gospel and it should be the only message of the church, our eternal need to be reconciled back to God then we can have correct fellowship with Him and man. But many words and much speaking just heaps condemnation on someone, twisting their arm to do something they need to do, but do not have the weakness nor the strength of God in them to submit to God. Often it is the words from others that support our self-life to reject the draw and prick of the Holy Spirit. Let us keep quiet and let the Holy Spirit do the work He desires to do in our lives. Let us be aware of the most blessed conviction in our lives. In doing so we are developing a soft heart condition that will be open to the moving of the Spirit of God and His touch.

I often hear someone say, “let us give God glory” or “give God a hand clap praise,” how foolish. Why do we think talent and ability can glorify God? This is a selfish and self-seeking thought on our part. These examples do not glorify God one bit. My friend God does not care how well we sing, dance, or clap, how high we can jump, or how fast we can run. These are humanistic expressions of fleshly ability. It is our obedience and submission alone that glorifies God. Why are we told we need to come to church to get refreshed or cleansed from the world. Going to church will not do this my friend yet countless millions of Christians today believe this. Only God can refresh our soul, mend a broken heart, or give joy when our lives have been decimated and destroyed before our very eyes. No need to go to church to receive God’s spiritual works in our lives God has picked out a wilderness of blessings for us. But now we are to go to church to be equipped by the teaching of the word of God and to edify the local body by blessing someone. I wonder what our churches today would look like if people picked out someone in the church (before they come to church) who they wanted to bless in some way? I guess there would not be time for other things in church that do not bless or edify people. Why do we spend so much time singing and giving announcements about church activities in the service? I wonder what songs we will sing in heaven? I seriously doubt we will sing any Christian rock and roll or contemporary music, well then why do we spend so much time singing these types of songs in church? Do we seriously think we will play electric guitars and key boards in heaven? If not, then why do we play them in church today? Music is very persuasive. Please take a good look at how cultures; especially groups like the Nazi party, the communist Chinese, the Former Soviet Union, or any group that has manipulated people to do heinous things to other people used music to get people to follow them. Everyone likes a good marching song with a quick beat and the church has capitalized on the power music has on our emotions. We think all of these fore mentioned things gives God glory, no my friend they all are only distractions to God’s desire for obedience and submission to Him.

Our heart condition will manifest our usefulness and future in God. For those who have allowed God to develop in them a soft, delightful (pliable, malleable) (Psalms 37:4) heart condition their future in God is bright, but for those who have not allowed God to develop a soft heart condition in them the way ahead will be rugged, only hope (and God’s longsuffering and grace) to make a change in the right direction stands between God’s will and His best and spiritual loss and destruction. Let us choose today who we shall serve with the right heart condition. Written by David Stahl