The Bold Witness

Scripture reference: Ezekiel 37:1-14 Although this scripture refers directly to God restoring Old Covenant Israel, it is an allegory of God filling the born again Christian with His Holy Spirit, having brought the spiritually dead back to life through the savior Christ Jesus. It tells us clearly and plainly that, no matter how long a person has been dead in spirit, even long enough to make a person nothing more than a bag of dried bones, His Spirit can restore life to the vigor of a great army. This scripture can also been seen as a sign that God can and will raise up a wayward Church; restoring it to real Christian life, by pouring upon it His Holy Spirit. This is something that is surely needed today; and something that should give all who are concerned for the modern Church hope. For it could be said that many of the groups around the United States called churches are nothing more than collections of dried, old bones. Lifeless and motionless, they sit disconnected from one anoth...

Scripture reference: 1 Corinthians 10:31 As the apostle Paul was teaching the young church how to live the Christian life, he emphasized that worship was not a ritualistic act performed in a certain place at a certain time, but was a matter of performing all the acts of normal life in a manner which gives praise, thanks, and glory to God. This is a reflection and extension of what Jesus said to the Samaritan woman at the well when he told her, "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth." He was indicating to the woman (and us) that, even though man has been worshiping God through rituals, such as sacrifices, the day was at hand when the proper form of worship would be a state of mind which is continuously conscience of giving glory to God. Not just at a special time and place, but always in every aspect of daily life. Paul gives specific examples of living life to the glory of God throughout his epistles. Whether in speech or work (Co...

Scripture references: Judges 9, 1 Samuel 16 If you are the youngest male child in your family, or if you are male with several older brothers, you know what boys in that family position have gone through for all of man's history. Being the baby brother can mean getting a lot of attention; it can also mean getting left out at times. It can put a boy in a position of favor with adults; and it can cause a boy to be envied and resented by his older siblings. Being the youngest boy can have advantages and disadvantages. It can mean being the most favored in mom and dad's eyes, and the least favored in the eyes of the older brothers. I would like to look at two stories from the Old Testament concerning the youngest brother in a family, and how God raises up the youngest boy to demonstrate His glory. They are the story of Jotham, the youngest son of Gideon. And the story of David, the youngest son of Jesse. In each of these two lives God shows how the ways and wisdom of Man are...

Scripture reference: Exodus 20:16 The Ninth Commandment can easily be collapsed to, "Thou shalt not lie." Which can then be expanded to mean lying with speech and behavior. For everyone knows that as a picture is worth a thousand words, our actions speak louder than words. And if our actions contradict the words we speak, it is alway our actions which are believed. Therefore, we break the Ninth Commandment both when we bare false witness about ourselves with words that do not match our deeds, and bare false witness against Christ when are deeds do not match His teachings. When people accused Jesus of being a servant of the Devil, he responded by pointing to his behavior. Jesus often called people to consider his actions and the things he did as proof that he was sent by God. And when Paul responded to his critics, he always reminded them of how he and his associates conducted themselves. Both Jesus and Paul relied on their actions more than their words to prove their s...

Scripture reference: Judges 2:21-23 When the Israelites went into the land the Lord had given to them, God had commanded them to empty it of its inhabitants, so as not to be contaminated with the pagan religion and ways of the people who were living in the land. But the children of Israel did not do as God commanded them. Not only that, after the first generation of Israelites that had moved into the land died, the next generation did exactly what God did not want them to do. The began to marry with the pagans, and began to adopt their religion and their ways. As a result, God was angry with the children of Israel. And, in His wisdom, God knew that this choice of behavior would eventually result in difficulties for the children of Israel. So God decided that He would not help His people out of the difficulties they had brought upon themselves. Instead, God decided that the situation would provide the Israelites an opportunity to prove "whether they will keep the way of the ...

The American society of today is saturated with people proclaiming messages of liberation and prosperity. They can be found in the houses of God, and in the houses of the people (Legislatures). Both preachers and politicians alike pronounce their plans for liberating the masses from oppression and poverty. They present a claim that God wants all people to be free and prosperous, and use scripture as their proof. They decry a government and social structure which supposedly denies freedoms to some, and allows only a select few to become prosperous. It is interesting to view these ideas in the light of God's word. Jesus, as recorded in the Gospels, was always telling people to give away their wealth. He, in fact, said that it would be very difficult for a rich man to enter Heaven. And he spent his whole life living and teaching among the poor common folk. When Jesus did dine with the rich, he always told them to remember the poor, and not to exclude them from their parties. ...

Scripture reference: Zechariah 8:11-17 The Old Testament prophets all proclaim of how God tells His people that he will bless them if they do what He wants them to do, and how He will punish them if they do what He tells them not to do. Blessings follow obedience, and punishment follows disobedience. It is God's way of assuring us that He will always keep his word, and is always just. In this passage God declares that He is going to pour out his blessings of peace and prosperity on His people as a way of displaying to the rest of the world that He is a great God. He tells His people not to be afraid or discouraged for any reason. And He instructs them to get on with the business of re-building the temple. God promises that if they do this He will bless them. Based on the idea given to us by Paul that we are the living temple of God, what does this message mean to us? It should have a physical, mental, and spiritual meaning. For, as a complete person, we are a sort of temple ...