What I Teach is...

It appears to me that I haven't taken the time to properly convey things to some, so I am going to attempt a concise and pointed narrative.

For some reason some of you think I judge others by comparing them to me. Well... If I did that, that wouldn't be a bad thing because comparing anyone to me would ALWAYS make the other person look good. I know who I am, and I am a wretched sinner.

Here is what I teach in a nutshell (if I can be so precise).

We are ALL born into sin, and deserving of God’s holy wrath. We are born SLAVES to sin. That means sin owns us. We cannot do ANY good and our hearts are deceitful and wicked.

Psalms 51:5 NKJV

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.

Jesus came as God in the flesh around 2000 years ago and was born of a virgin mother. He lived a sinless life and was crucified for the sins of those whose names were written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, and was raised from the dead all according to Scripture. In this act Jesus became the sin of the believing ones and suffered the wrath of God in our place, and HIS righteousness is imputed to those that He died for.

2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV

For He made Him who knew no sin to  be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

When a person turns to God with ALL of their heart through the regenerative power of the Holy Spirit, such a person is born again (filled with the Holy Spirit) and made new. We are given remission of sins through faith in Jesus Christ, and sanctified through the Word of God by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Ezekiel 36:25-27 NKJV

Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

The spiritual state of a person produces FRUIT, which is the by product of what is going on in our heart. If a person is filled with the Holy Spirit, they produce like fruit in their lives. If a person is not filled with the Holy Spirit, still a slave to sin, they produce like fruit in their lives.

Galatians 5:19-21 NKJV

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who  are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

These things are manifest as a RESULT of the God/god in a person's life. If Jesus is our God, then we are in right standing before. If Jesus is not God to a person, they are guilty of idolatry and abide under the wrath of God.

The RESULT of Jesus being God to a person is that the person is free from sin, and is being sanctified (made like Christ) to the glory of the Father. The  RESULT of Jesus not being God to a person is that the person is a slave to sin, and GOD GIVES THEM OVER to the destructive behaviors of the flesh.

This is a HEART issue, NOT a "do it yourself" project. ONLY Jesus can save you and make you free. I NEVER speak about me, but ALWAYS about God, for a person must fully turn to Him with ALL of their heart. If the fruit of the flesh is evident in a person's life, they must be made aware of their idolatry that they might return to God and be healed.

Missing Parts of the Gospel

There are two very important parts of the Gospel of the Kingdom preached by Jesus Christ that that are so often entirely neglected.

1. God's Wrath
- Very rarely talked about, but what does it look like?

Joel 2:1-11 KJV

Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;  A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.  A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.  The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.  Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.  Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness.  They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:  Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.  They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.  The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:  And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

2. Repentance
- Occasionally it is spoken of, but what does it look like?

Joel 2:12-14 KJV

Therefore also now, saith the Lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:  And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.  Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?

Love vs. Law

This is a topic that God is having me meditate on quite a bit lately. A dictator lays out the law and then uses force to create fear, producing adherence to their will. This is how the world sees relationship. You see it everywhere. The powerful lord it over the less fortunate in oppression until there is finally a revolt.

This is not just seen in corporate context, but also in individual context. We have terms like "alpha male" and "alpha female" for the overbearing in each sex, and "the one who wears the pants" in a relationship. These things are praised in our culture, for we are all equally deceived as to how a relationship should function. It is in this deception that our view of God is also distorted.

Because we have a tainted view of relationships, and do not know or understand true love, we assume that God functions in this same dysfunctional manner. We view the Law of God as something laid down by a cruel dictator, and listen for the cracking of lightening being sent from Heaven to strike those who fail to bend to His will. If God were anything like us, then surely He would squash us like bugs for not bending to His will.

When Jesus came, he brought a whole new idea with Him. Those of us that belong to Him hear His Word, and we obey. We do not obey out of fear, but rather out of relationship. This is the Gospel of the Kingdom. Through KNOWING the love that God has for us, of which He FIRST loved us, we then have a desire to love Him.

When we begin to know God, understanding what He has done for us, and what He desires, we are transformed, and so is every relationship we have a part in. This is why we are a "new creation", we begin to function and be different from how the rest of the world sees things and believes. It is not because we are better rule followers, or because we are better people, but rather because we know love and relationship.

This understanding then transcends everything we do, think, say, and believe. As a parent I am no longer interested in "laying down the law", and making sure my children do what I think they should. Instead, I live out my faith and relationship with God, and I love my children. I focus on the relationship, building something that will last through whatever we may endure in life together, knowing that from that relationship they will have trust in my direction and love for them.

With our spouse, the need for our "right" dissipates, and I am not concerned about who is "wearing the pants". I can serve my wife faithfully, striving to know her and build a relationship with her, because I know that it is that relationship that will hold us together when the challenges of life are difficult.

Love Over Everything. This life is ALL about relationships, and this understanding comes from forming a working relationship with the living God. This should be our focus, and then the fruit of this relationship will pour out into our lives. This is the Gospel. This is what Jesus has done for us. He has opened the gates to Heaven, and no man can close what He has opened. Repent and turn to God that you may be healed.