Notes from Peter and Paul

Notes from Peter and Paul

"But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  

Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  

In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping"2 Peter 2:1-3

          Here Peter warns about false teachers arising. Introducing heresies and denying Jesus.

The apostle Paul writes,

“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  

  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.

This is happening today and sometimes it is hard to tell what is true from what is not. The only way to tell what is right and wrong is to pray and study the Bible. Use a good Bible commentary. Join a reliable church and listen carefully to what the preacher or evangelist is saying. If you have a question ask them to explain what you don’t understand. A good honest minister of the word of God will be glad to help you.

Above all things pray, pray, and pray for God to show you right from wrong.

Please don’t just think about it.

Do it.

Use Wisdom

Use Wisdom

In the book of Colossians we read, 

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:3-6.

Jesus said,

“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” Matthew 10:16.

When I look at these two portions of scripture I see a cautionary note. We are called to proclaim the Gospel. While at the same time we are called to be cautious. 

There are people out there that don’t want anything to do with Christians or God. Some are outrightly hostile to the gospel message, as such we need to be cautious around them.

When we present the gospel we need to be respectful. We need to respectfully listen to them and answer their questions. Pointing them to the saving grace of God through Christ Jesus.

If you consider yourself a Christian is this how you proclaim the gospel message?

Please think about it.

Beware of False Teachers

Beware of False teachers
The Apostle Peter writing to believers in Christ Jesus writes,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 2:1-3.
Peter here issues a waring about false prophets. He echoes the words of Jesus who said,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.  
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?  
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  
  Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Matthew 7:15-23
Many in the world today are calling themselves Christians who are not. They as Peter states,
“They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.”
As believers in Christ Jesus we need to watch carefully for such teachers. We need to know what we believe and why we believe what we believe.
As believers in Christ Jesus we have the right to judge the teachings of anyone claiming to be Christians.
As a result we need to listen carefully to what evangelist, pastors, priests, and even people just calling themselves Christians are saying.  We need to, within our churches stand up to false teaching.
The apostle Paul wrote,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
As believers in Christ Jesus we must alway remember to present to those around us the pure unadulterated word of God. It is the only way we will truly win souls for Christ.
Please think about it.

Christian?

Christian?
Jesus said,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Not everyone who says they are Christian is a follower of Christ Jesus. Just because someone goes to church does not make them a true follower of Christ. Just because someone is a minister or speaks from the pulpit be it in a church or in the media does not make them a true follower of Christ.
As I quoted Jesus saying,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Living in North America I see many people in the media and in church, who call themselves Christians but are not. A quick look at what they teach shows they are not true followers. A quick look at their lives shows they are far from Christ.
They may claim they are prophesying, driving out demons and performing miracles but are they really?
It’s hard to tell if such things are truly happening especially through the lense of the media. The media be it the internet, television or radio can hid the truth.
I always say while the media is a good way to proclaim the message of Christ Jesus one should always be careful. There are a lot of false teachers out there.
I believe it is imperative that first of all, all believers in Christ pray and read the Bible for themselves. To ask God for guidance and show them the truth.
I believe also it is equally imperative that all believers in Christ Jesus should be a part of a church congregation near where they live. This way you get to know who the pastor and teachers within the congregation are. You see their lives and see if they are truly following the teachings of Christ Jesus in word as well as in deed.
Please think about it.

For a time will come

For the time will come
The apostle Peter states,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.”2 Peter 2:1-3.
Sadly as in the day’s of the disciples there are many today who proclaim to be followers of Christ Jesus who misrepresent him.
That’s why we must study the Bible for ourselves and even question those who teach us as to why they believe what they believe. That is especially true if we believe what they say is contrary or seems to be contrary to what the Bible says.
The purpose in the writing of the New Testament is to steer true believers away from false teachers. The purpose of the scriptures is,
1/ to proclaim God’s saving grace that comes through Christ Jesus.
2/ to teach new converts how to live their life for Christ Jesus.
3/ to rebuke and correct wrong teaching.
God knew there would be false teachers arising, that I believe is one of the many reasons He inspired the writing of the Bible.
In writing to Timothy the apostle Paul writes,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.
As believers in Christ Jesus we need to pray and ask God to show us His truths. To study the Bible for ourselves and with others. To find a good church congregation that believes the Bible is the inspired word of God and presents it correctly.
We need to always remember that when there is a difference of opinion between the teachings in the Bible and the teachings of men, the Bible is the ultimate authority.
Please think about it.

Watch Out

Watch out
Jesus said,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” Matthew 1:15.
Never has such a warning been necessary as in this century.
We live in a multimedia world. Where anyone with a smart phone can post there views on anything. This is especially true it seems when it comes to speaking about God. There are many people claiming to be Christians that are not.
They may seem to be. They may string a few scriptures together that makes them sound good but a closer look will see that they are not teaching the truth about Jesus.
The apostle Paul warned,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”  2 Timothy 4:3,4
The apostle Peter warned,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. 
Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” 2 Peter 2:1-3.
  Such teachers were around in the time of the apostles and are very much around today.
Now I know within the Christian world there are differences of opinion on minor things.
However in order to be a follower of Christ Jesus we must agree on the basics.
The apostle creed while not written by an apostle of Christ is the baseline as to what I believe you need to believe in order to be a follower of Christ Jesus. It reads,
1.I believe in God the Father the almighty maker of heaven and earth
2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.
3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary
4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.
5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.
6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost
9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,
10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.
11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.
12. I believe in life everlasting.
What do you believe?
Please think about it.

Message from Miletus

Message from Miletus
The book of Acts records a meeting between the apostle Paul and the elders of the Ephesian church at Miletus. While the meeting is recording Paul’s last visit with the elders from Ephesus, there is within it a warning we in the twenty-first century church need to heed.
The book of Acts states,
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.  
Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men.  For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.  
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.  
I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.  
Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.  
So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. 
“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” Acts 20:25-32.
Here Paul notes that he will never see the elders at Ephesus again. At the same time he points out that,
“Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men.  For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.”
In other words Paul states he has done his duty to God by proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ whenever he has had to opportunity.
As believers in Christ this something we should be able to say. That we have not hesitated to present the Gospel of Christ, the salvation message whenever we have had the opportunity to do so.
Paul however goes on to give a warning to the elders of Ephesus and through them to us, who are believers in the twenty-first century. He states, 
“I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.  
Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.  
So be on your guard!”
Matthew’s gospel quotes Jesus as saying,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. Matthew 7:15
It has been over two thousand years since Paul and Jesus gave us those warnings it however is a warning we today need to heed.
We live in a media filled world. A world where the truth can easily be twisted. It is very easy to string several scripture verses together and make them say something that is not true.
There are many men and women who use scripture for their own ill-gotten gains. To swindle people or lead them astray spiritually. Men and women who say they are of God but are not. That is why we must be on guard.
The Berean’s set the example for what we today need to do. The Book of Acts states that when Paul preached there,
“They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Acts 17:11.
Question:
If you claim to be a follower of Christ, when you hear an evangelist, preacher or other teacher of scripture are you examining the Scriptures to see if what they are saying is true?
Please think about it.

Watch Out

Watch out
Jesus said,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.  
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?  
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.” Matthew 7:15-18
He went on to say,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew7:22,23
The Apostle Paul states,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4
As Christians we need to be educated in our faith. We need to study the word or God. We need to know what we believe in and why we believe it. Sadly many Christians do not know why they believe what they believe.
Many Christians take a pastor or evangelist at face value believing him or her simply because they have a Bible in hand and are saying things that sound good.
We should not be doing that. Everyone who claims to be a minister, a priest, and evangelist needs to be checked out.
My life as a follower of Jesus spans forty plus years now. In that time I have seen many false teachers arise. I have seen many evangelist, priests, bishops, and pastors fall into disrepute. Yet sadly especially it seems in the evangelical community there are still people taking advantage of Christians by stringing a few scriptures together that sound good.
I for one cannot emphasise enough the need for individual Christians to study the Bible. To not be afraid to check out what a minister or evangelist says.
Yes there are going to be differences of opinion on some points within the Christian community. However the major points cannot be compromised.
The apostles creed while not written by an apostle of Jesus presents to all what true Christians believe it states,
1.I believe in God the Father the almighty maker of heaven and earth
2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.
3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary
4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.
5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.
6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost
9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,
10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.
11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.
12. I believe in life everlasting.   
These are biblical based beliefs that all Christians agree to. I believe you must believe what is said here in order to be a true Christian.
Still beware. Even if a preacher says they believe in this one still has to be careful. It’s easy to give lip service to any belief.
What one needs to do is check what the preacher is saying against the Bible. Look at their ministry is it truly giving glory to God? Especially if money is involved is he and his ministry correctly handling any donations given to it?
Is the person living a life in line with the teaching of Jesus.
Both we as individuals and the ministers we support should be taking to heart the words of the apostle Paul to Timothy that states,
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 2Timothy 2:15.
Please think about it. 

Warning!

Warning!
The apostle Peter warns,
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.  
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.  
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping. 2 Peter 2:1-3.
The apostle Paul echoes these words saying,
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.  
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,  treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—  having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Later in the same letter to Timothy Paul writes,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.
This is happening today in the twenty-first century. Living here in North America I see evidence of people frequently claiming to be Christians who are not. They misquote scripture. They twist the holy scriptures to conform to what they believe. They choose to teach only what they want people to here.
They are as the apostle Paul puts it,
 “lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,  treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”
Sadly it can be hard to tell who these people are when we see them in the media. We have no personal contact with them. Thus it’s hard to tell if they are living life the way they claim to be.
What Christians can however do is check every word they say from the scriptures. Find out for ones self if the way they are presenting scriptures is correct and not taken out of context.
One of the big things in North America is with evangelist and others in the media asking for money. Making the statements that if you give to God (usually meaning their ministry) God will give you back ten, a hundred or even a thousand times what you give. This is utter garbage. God is not a banker that gives super interest on your giving.
We should give to God’s work because we want to give. Not because we expect anything in return.
One pastor told me if you want to give to a specific Christian ministry ask to see where the money is going to. He even went as far as saying ask how much the evangelist salary is.
The purpose of giving to a ministry is to further the kingdom of God. To reach the lost and to help the poor. As a result a minister, or evangelist should get a good salary, but the bulk of the money given to any ministry should go directly to spreading the gospel.
Giving aside we should also be very careful about any teaching. We need to study the New Testament and indeed the whole bible for ourselves.
We need to become familiar with the scriptures for ourselves. We need to pray and ask God to show us the truths there in.
Remember the New Testament was written to ordinary people. Thus we can if we read carefully, understand them.
What I am trying to say here is what the apostles Peter and Paul are saying. Be careful. We are in a time when there is a lot being preached in the media and in some churches that are not of God.
You however as an individual are called to do as the apostle Paul told timothy,

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved,

 a workman who does not need to be ashamed 

and who correctly handles the word of truth.” 

2 Timothy 2:15.

Please think about it.

A Note to non-Christians

A Note to non-Christians
Jesus said,
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” 
                                                                                                                    Matthew 7:21-23.
I as a Christian love to tell people about Christ and the eternal life with God he offers for free. I do my best to present to people the truths that are in the Bible.
I however realize there are many people claiming to be Christians who are not and they are turning many away from Christ.
The Apostle Peter states,
“Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.”
                                                                                                                                       2 Peter 3:2.
The apostle Paul writing to Christians states,
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.  
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,  treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—  having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” 
                                                                                                                           2 Timothy 3:1-5.
Sadly there are many men and women out there who would exploit people in the name of Jesus. They may say they are believers but they are not. Christianity like every walk of life has its share of frauds.
The truth of God however is out there for anyone who is truly looking for it. All one has to do is read the Bible.
I encourage non-Christians to read the New Testament and pray and ask God to show you the truth. I suggest people find a church. I usually suggest a Baptist church because they have sound teaching generally.
And don’t just take someone’s word about what the bible says ask questions. Ask a lot of questions. A true Christian will give you honest answers. They will show you where there answers can be found in the Bible. They will show you the scriptures in context that support their answers.
I know it can be hard for a non-Christian to tell the difference between a true Christian and a fraud it can be for a believer in Christ. Still it is not impossible.
I firmly believe that if you are truly seeking God he will show himself to you as you read the Bible and pray to Him.
What I believe in can be stated like this,

1. I believe in God the Father, The Almighty maker of heaven and earth

2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.

3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary

4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.

5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.

6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.

7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.

8. I believe in the Holy Ghost

9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,

10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.

11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.

12. I believe in life everlasting.

The list is based on what is referred to as the Apostles Creed. That while not written by an apostle are several fundamental points that are the basis of Christian teaching. To teach other than that is to be teaching wrong Christian principles.
What I wold ask non-believes reading this is that if you are truly serious about leaning about Jesus please read the New Testament. Then find a church, like I say a Baptist church is a usually a good choice. Ask the pastor of the church to tell you what he believes and why.
Remember also that there are different if you will flavours of church congregations from the very traditional full of symbolism and ritual to the very contemporary that use modern music and lively forms of worship.
So don’t turn away from a church congregation simply because you don’t like the worship. Look around, pray and ask God to show you a place that is right for you. A place that is teaching the truth from the Bible. A place that glorifies God.
Please think about visiting a Church this week.