Category Archives: teaching

The False Gospel Produces False Faith, Hope, and Converts

Posted on by under Bible, Discipleship, Excellence, faith, LifeGiving, maturity, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, teaching, Training

Is the gift of salvation more important to you than the God who gave it to you? Any new birth that does not lead to dedicated and selfless discipleship is a still birth.

There are those who believe that once a person gets “saved” they cannot lose “their” salvation. This is foreign to Old and New Testament theology.

The church is infested with people who say. “Jesus is my Savior” but who live their life as if they are their own Lord. This is because pulpits are infected with foolish preachers telling people all they have to do is come to the altar, repeat a prayer and invite Jesus into their heart to get saved. The Bible talks about the foolishness of preaching. This is in reference to how God has chosen to communicate His heart and message concerning His salvation that He gives as a gift to people. There is a huge difference in the foolishness of preaching and foolish preachers who create their own version of what God clearly communicates.

True salvation is activated when a person “believes in their heart that God raised Jesus from the dead” and confesses with their mouth “Jesus is [my] Lord.” At the point where the person surrenders to the Lord Jesus Christ and submits to the Lordship of Jesus Christ they lose all personal rights to their life.

“19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” [1 Corinthians 6]

As the saying goes, “Jesus is Lord of all or not at all!” The Bible does not teach ‘accept Jesus as your Savior by inviting Him into your heart.’

Romans 10:9,10

“9 [That] if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

This “confession” is not a prayer. It is a solemn declaration of surrender and submission! Prayer may play a part in the surrender and submission but the declaration of surrender is where salvation is activated. A person’s deep belief in the brutal sacrifice Christ endured that culminated in His outrageous victory over death, hell and the grave through His bodily resurrection is what the confession is based on.

Do you see the connection between a person’s heart and mouth? The mouth openly declares what the heart internally believes.

The whole “God is love” crowd that believes that the love of God gives permission for promiscuity and irresponsibility has created a false sense of security in the community of the saints.

Saint means a holy person so how can a holy person continue to live unholy lives with impunity?

Hebrews 3:12-14

“12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.”

The writer of Hebrews, who I believe to be Paul the apostle to the Gentiles, throughout his letter warns Jewish believers in Jesus not to abandon Christ by returning to Judaism. You may be thinking that going back to a different form of the worship of God [Judaism] is not the same as going back into a life of sin. If that is your train of thought consider this next text carefully.’ This is not his first warning. In fact Hebrews is full of warnings such as this one, “1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, 3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” [Chapter 2]

The gospel of salvation is as old as the sin of man. In fact, it goes back into eternity past as Jesus is the Lamb [that was] slain before the foundation of the world before there was a man who sinned.

Let’s go back to the Hebrews 3 text and look at Paul’s dire warning to ‘believers’.

  • Take care, brethren – This call to take care is to ‘brethren’ which confirms Paul is talking to people he considered his brothers and sisters in Christ. Taking care means understanding by seeing the danger of deception. It also means to be mindful of your surroundings so that you can take appropriate action for your safety.
  • That there not be in any one of you – Individuals affect the corporate body positively or negatively. Obviously the concern here is the infection of Christ’s Body through individual lifestyle choices that are demonic and destructive.
  • An evil, unbelieving heart – What separates Christianity from Judaism is the heart. Going back into the Sermon of the Mount we see Jesus comparing what had been taught concerning outward appearances and actions to what He was teaching concerning what is going on in our heart. God sees and judges people’s heart! The Spirit confronted and convicted me some years back when He said this to me, “Your problem is you believe in a God you do not believe.” Ouch! Do you believe the God you say you believe in? We do not get to pick and choose what we believe out of all that God has said and continues to say. Jesus said to the Jews who believed Him, “31 If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8] Lasting freedom exists in continuing in His truth!
  • That falls away from the living God – I asked this question in the beginning of this blog – Is the gift of salvation more important to you than the God who gives it to you? According to Paul it is absolutely possible for a Christian believer to fall away from the living God who gave them life and eternal life. Therefore, if it is possible to fall away from God is it possible to hold onto ‘your’ salvation while you are falling away from God who gave it? I think not!
  • Encourage one another day after day, as long as it is called “Today” – I tell people often, “Tomorrow never comes because when the day we see as tomorrow comes it is called today.” Individual believers have the responsibility to encourage each other daily by warning them of the dangers of disconnecting from God’s heart. You don’t hear that taught in ‘today’s’ seeker sensitive church cultures. Many ‘brethren’ only receive goose bump giving encouragement. Paul does not subscribe to superficial, pseudo-spiritual seeker sensitive spin.
  • So that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin – The deceitfulness of sin hardens people, Christian or not. Paul is saying here that there is a deceitfulness attached to sin and that deceitfulness is as dangerous as the actual sin. Why? Because the author of sin is the devil who lives to deceive. The devil is a liar and has been from the beginning. If your pastor [preacher] does not warn you away from the deceitfulness of sin he is an agent of the prince of darkness, and like the prince of darkness is parading around like an angel of light. Can you say, “DECEPTION”?
  • For we have become partakers of Christ IF we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end – The proof we had a beginning of faith in Christ [faithfulness to Christ] is we live until the end faithful to Christ. There is not one ounce of truth to the “once saved always saved” or “Jesus is my savior but I am my Lord” in the Bible. “Those who endure to the end will be saved” means the saved endure to the end. There is an old saying that is, “How we finish is more important than where we start.”

The genuine gospel is not as appealing as the counterfeit gospel to those who want to say they are Christian and not live as Christ lived. I will end with these three ‘encouraging’ texts.

1 John 2

“3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”

John 14:31

“So that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded Me. Get up, let us go from here.”

Matthew 28

“18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’”

John, the beloved disciple of Jesus, wrote both of the first two clear and concise texts. It is interesting to me that John says Jesus said His Father gave Him commandments to keep. That is how Jesus is able to require His disciples to keep all of His commandments and to teach others to keep them all too. Keeping God’s commandments are for the purpose of convincing the world we love our Father. Maybe the reason we are not convincing the world is because we are resisting the conviction of the Holy Spirit.

Several key points to consider in closing – 1] We prove we abide [are] in Christ when we walk the same walk Jesus walked. We cannot claim to be in Christ living like the devil who rebelled against God. 2] Jesus commanded His disciples to move on, “let us go from here’ and then encouraged them by saying, ‘I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ 3] His being with us as we move on from where we are enables us to live the life He lived. If we do not live the life He lived we should be concerned that we probably have fallen away from Him.

Remember, God may not ever leave or forsake us but all the New Testament writers warn us not to fall away from God in their own way.

For HIS Glory!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin
His Hisstorymaker

Judgment Begins!

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, faith, LifeGiving, maturity, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, teaching, Training

Judgment begins and when it begins it may not end for quite some time!

“For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” 1 Peter 4:17

There are way too many people inside and outside of the church who see judgment as only punitive. Judgment certainly can be punitive but more times than not it represents a judicial decision that reveals divine purpose. Whether punitive or not when God issues His judgments they are always redemptive in nature and purpose.

Judgment has always been a part of keeping the church, and society in general, pure. The reason is simple, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”, and “Pursue . . .  and holiness, without which no one will see God.”  God wants every person to see Him, so they can find Him, so they can encounter Him, so they can discover who He truly is.

In April 1980 when I was 23 years old I surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Therefore I cannot speak to what transpired before that magnanimous life changing decision concerning the process of purging that is to lead to purity. In the early 1980’s we began to witness the unveiling of impurity in the church. In fact, the TV ministry [PTL Club], and the minister [Jim Baaker] who influenced me to surrender to the Lord from what was talked about on several of their morning television shows was embroiled in a sex scandal himself.

Most of the revelations in the 1980’s had to do with Protestant, Pentecostal and or Charismatic impropriety, and then after that a deluge began to develop over the rampant sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.

Now, fast forward to today and the latest religious organization to be sucked into the sewer of sexual impropriety is the Jehovah Witness’. “Jehovah’s Witnesses who allegedly suffered child abuse accused denominational leaders of telling them not to report abuse, saying it ‘would bring reproach on Jehovah.'” [From an article on http://www.dailycaller.com 11/20/17]

Reproach on Jehovah? Think of the damage that is done when children are told not to tell when they are abused because the God [god for the JW’s] they serve and trust would be negatively affected if they were to come clean. That certainly adds insult to their injury.

The problem is most of the exposure of the church has been done by the secular world [people outside the church]. Why the church doesn’t police its own purity is bewildering to me. It really shouldn’t be a surprise because the early church in Corinth refused to clean out the corruption of sexual sin, so this problem has persisted for two thousand years.

1 Corinthians 5

“1 It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father’s wife. 2 You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst. . . . 9 I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; 10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. 11 But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.”

Paul, as the apostolic founder and father of the church in the city of Corinth was appalled at how the leaders and members in Corinth were not dealing with the devilish behavior of one of its members. Paul’s unwavering wisdom maintains the standard the Savior of the Body laid out when He was setting the foundational teaching for the citizens of His kingdom. Paul went so far as to turn the man over to Satan to destroy his flesh [carnal, sinful nature and behavior] so that he might possibly be saved [forgiven, delivered and healed]. This is divine justice at its finest on display. The destruction of all that brings destruction in our lives for the purpose of us finding all that God has in store for our lives. What a deal that is!

“I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” [1 Corinthians 5:5]

I want to remind you this was a member of the church Paul did this to. Paul took to task the leaders and members for not making purity in their community a priority. Either this erring “so-called brother” was a faux Christian or Paul is clearly communicating unrepentant sinful behavior endangers our connection to Christ the Head of the Body resulting in dis-membering, or disqualification of our membership.

The same can be said of the way the church, and more specifically the Catholic Church has handled sexual predatory behavior. Reassigning pastors or priests to other churches [parishes] only enables them to prey on unknowing innocent parishoners.

Whatever happened to:

Ephesians 5

5 For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not be partakers with them; 8 for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light 9 (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), 10 trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; 12 for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. 13 But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. 14 For this reason it says, ‘Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.'”

Who is the “sleeper” Paul is talking about in verse fourteen? Some say it is those who are living in darkness while others say it is those who are not maintaining the culture of Light. Either way, God wants the atmosphere around His people to replicate the atmosphere around Him.

Paul is once again dealing with unholy behavior within the community of those who are called by God holy. “Sons of disobedience” are those within the church who live their lives replicating the behavior of the father of sin, the devil. Paul goes on to say, “Let no one deceive you.” This is fatherly love being lavished on the ones being deceived. Paul is saying you cannot live in darkness and the light at the same time. Believing you can is deception.

One advantage the early church had over the church of today is there was only one church per city or region. Today there are hundreds if not thousands in a relatively small geographical area. What happens many times when someone is “discovered” to be living like a sinner while claiming to be a saint and are confronted, they “hear from God” and leave the community they claimed as their spiritual family and find an unsuspecting one to infect with their faithlessness.

Now that at least forty years of recent judgment has been uncovering corruption in God’s church it is now moving onto the other mountains [high places] of influence that make up society’s standard bearers.

Media, politics, military, arts, sports, law enforcement, business, family and the education mountains are undergoing what the church has been facing for at least a generation. Forty years is the time of testing in Scripture, and now that the church is approaching the end of her forty year time of testing the rest of the world and its systems can expect to undergo its own season of soul searching. This is not to say the church is now exempt from continued judgment. Hopefully, we in the church will pick up the mantle of maturity and deal with this problem “in house.”

What we see happening in the world right now is nothing short of a spiritual showdown where the God who sees everything is uncovering the darkness the prince of darkness has kept in the shadows of the unholy. “There is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known” [Matthew 10:26; Luke 12:2].

Those who do not like President Donald Trump might not like what I am about to say but I will say it anyway. In the year since he was Constitutionally elected as our forty fifth president our superficial society is opening up and hidden horrors as coming into the light. The sewers in our society are no longer seeping. Now they are hemorrhaging.

I am convinced Donald Trump, with all of his personality quirks, weaknesses and past moral failures, possesses a fire that has been building in him for about as long as the house of God has been being exposed [1980’s – present]. Do your own research of his interviews that he did as far back as the 80’s, and see how he has been consistent in his open expression of love for this country and what he believes the solutions are that will bring us back to prominence on the planet God owns and loves. America, will all of her flaws, is still anointed by God to be a world leader for good.

It is interesting to me that since Donald Trump was elected our forty fifth president all sorts of sordid secret stuff is surfacing up from the sewer. And it is really interesting because his enemies sought to take him out with something he said years ago and with fake salacious smut. Many who were horrified at his crass conversation about “what certain women want” are now embroiled directly or indirectly in their own corrupt behavior. Hypocrisy on all levels are being highlighted right now.

In just over twelve months people in high places in academia, media, arts, politics and other areas of the social fabric of our society are being exposed for the hypocrisy they hid in plain sight. Now it is just in plain sight! And it is not pretty.

And the continued exposure is not the kind of exposure they desire, or are used to receiving!

“There is pleasure in sin for a season” is one reason people sin. “Be sure your sin will find you out” should be reason enough for all of us to constantly take personal inventory of what is hidden in our heads and hearts and should cause us to do due diligence in digging it up and doing away with it.

In my Book, Welcome To The Wilderness I write this as it pertains to Gomer. Gomer was a women looking for love in all of the wrong places.

Chapter 3, Page 63

“Now, what are the uninhabited areas of our lives that are uninhabitable?

That describes much of Gomer’s life. She was a mess. We don’t know why she was a mess. We don’t know why she could not be satisfied in relationships. We do not know what drove her to prostitution.

What we do know is God sent salvation to fix all of her problems!

All of us have areas in our lives that are uninhabitable. Each of us have stuff, baggage that we carry around with us, that God cannot bless. It may be ugly sin or it may be lies we believe, or places we refuse to look at, or just life in general that gets in His way.

The beauty of salvation is that those areas do not scare it. Salvation thrives in the junk rooms of people’s lives.

So God brought Gomer into those areas of her life in the wilderness.

Salvation never enters those areas to join them. Salvation enters in to reform, or transform them.

Salvation gives new life to old things that are dead.”

The fire Donald Trump possesses trumps the sanctimonious secretism of the social elite.

Isaiah chapter 45 clearly speaks of a leader God chose [anointed] for a special work that would be the precursor of a spiritual awakening in the land. Isaiah spoke concerning a man who wasn’t from the established Jewish order of leadership. God chose this man in spite of the established leadership community.

This man was named Cyrus. Cyrus means one who possesses the fire. This fire fueled his passion to find and fulfill his purpose. It drove him to heights of leadership excellence. Cyrus was the leader of Persia and Persia means pure or splendid. This man who was not considered pure or splendid by the establishment had been being established by God who does not look at the outward appearances of men like men do. God looks for what men possess that other men cannot see or refuse to see.

In spite of what you think of Donald Trump he possesses a purity and splendor that God chose to use and is using. In some ways Donald Trump is like king David. David certainly had serious lapses of judgment but God said David “was a man after My heart, who would do all My will.”

Donal Trump’s business acumen and vision enables him to see things way in advance and we might say God has graced him with a prophetic ability to see past the obvious into what is necessary.

President Trump, like Cyrus, is anointed for very specific goals. To accomplish these goals certain things must be uncovered, exposed and removed. One of the things that stands out about Cyrus is how Isaiah reports that God took Cyrus by the right hand. The right side represents authority and hand represents possession, or what we have responsibility for. In order for God to take Cyrus by the right hand God would have had to have been on his right side. This means God not only provided Cyrus His authority by being on Cyrus’ right side but he acknowledged what Cyprus possessed and anointed that for His purposes, even though Cyrus did not come from His “people.”

It appears Cyrus had a reputation as a kind, gentle and merciful conquerer. During an excavation of ancient Babylon in 1978 a cylinder was discovered containing a charter written by Cyrus. This charter promised to treat all the inhabitants of Babylon and the other kingdoms he conquered with respect. He swore that he would allow all inhabitants of his empire to practice their own religious and social customs without persecution. Cyrus also promised to punish anyone who acted cruelly to the religious and social minorities of his kingdom. Cyrus forbade the seizure of farmer’s lands and properties and made slavery of any kind illegal. Cyrus’ commitment to fair and equitable treatment of his people is exemplary by modern standards and was unique during his time period. [http://study.com/academy/lesson/cyrus-the-great-facts-accomplishments-quiz.html]

Maybe this is why God chose him to release the Jews to rebuild in the land they had been banned from.

Again, Donald Trump has many obvious flaws. We might want to be gracious because most of us have many flaws too. In being kind maybe we could agree his life is complicated. Is your life complicated with complications? What if your words were recorded and revealed to the world? Would they eliminate you from public service or ministry?

Donald Trump also has a reputation of doing extraordinary acts of kindness. He also has a great reputation with many of his past and present employees in his real estate empire.

Judgment begins, and when it begins it may not end for quite some time!

Let’s look at what Cyrus was anointed to do and view them in light of what Donald Trump is doing in our day.

  • Subdue  [conquer] nations – Now, when we think of subdue and conquer we think of destroying and or reshaping what is conquered after the image of the conquering country. That is not what Cyrus was anointed to do [I remind you of that cylinder found in 1878] and that is not what President Trump is doing. Other administrations wanted to remake conquered lands in the image of the USA. President Trump is not like the other Presidents who have failed miserably at nation building and who unleashed untold misery in the lands that have been conquered. Donald Trump believes in the sovereignty of individual nations and the national pride of those nation’s citizens. Again, this sounds like Cyrus.
  • Loose loins – Loins are the reproductive areas of our body. It is where production originates. The reproductive and creative ability resident in the organs and systems of the people are to be loosed [make wide open and set free]. Donald Trump is not forcing other nations to be molded into the image of our Constitutional Republic. He encourages the people to find their best selves and strive for excellence in their personal pursuits.
  • Of kings – The royals, or leaders in various spheres of influence and their advisors. In other words, Cyrus was, and President Trump is, anointed to expose the God-given abilities inherent in the leaders of other lands that will cause tremendous transformation with the societies they lead.
  • To open doors – This is the same word Hebrew word used for “loose”. This can be seen in light of the promise that God will open doors no man can shut [Revelation 3:8]. I believe this is the main reason why all the attacks against President Trump have failed and will continue to fail because man did not create Donald Trump, no man anointed Donald Trump, and no man opened doors for Donald Trump. Also, these doors that God opens is for the purpose of gaining access to the movers and shakers [the leaders] in the lands where the doors open.
  • So that gates will not be shut – Again, what God opens man cannot shut. Gates are access and egress points into a city, state, region or nation. There are natural and spiritual gateways into people and places. Ancient gates are now being opened.
  • I will go before you and make the rough places smooth – This speaks to how President Trump is received and honored in the different nations where he has traveled. Apparently other nations’ leaders see leadership in President Trump.
  • I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars – Bronze and iron speak to the resistance to change and those who are presenting the resistance, among other things. One has to choose not to see all of the positive change that has happened in the first year of President Trump’s administration. Have we arrived? No. But we are way farther down the road to recovery than we have in at least 10-12 years. The tide is turning toward transformation!
  • Treasures of darkness – Speaks of things in people and the people themselves that have been hidden from sight. Scripture tells us “we [Christians] have this treasure in earthen vessels.” Treasure begins in the womb and President Trump is being called the most pro-life President in our history. Protecting the unborn will release a blessing on our land that has the potential to stay the slaughter that is so prevalent in our streets. Also, this speaks of the gifts, talents, and abilities inherent inside of people that has not had an opportunity to be revealed and released. We are on the cusp of historic discoveries and demonstrations. WINNING IS FUN!
  • Hidden wealth in secret places – A nation’s wealth is not necessarily in the material possession. Jesus said, “A man’s life does not consist in what he possesses.” Rather, a nation’s wealth is her people. People no one has heard of before will begin to come out of secret places and be recognized for their great exploits.

All of this was done so that Cyrus [and Donald Trump] would know the Lord like he never knew was possible. Donald Trump is growing in the grace and knowledge of God Almighty. Has he arrived? No! Neither have you or I arrived! So we, like Donald Trump, must keep moving closer to the heart of God who loves us with all of His heart.

Isaiah prophesied it was for God’s people’s sake that God called Cyrus and gave him a place of honor. He said that was in spite of the fact Cyrus did not know God when He called and anointed him. Donald Trump has made protecting Christians worldwide a priority. Not even George W. Bush, a “born again Christian” did that. In fact, it is without question W’s policies in the middle east unleashed hell on Christians throughout the region. That hell was exacerbated under #44.

Also, now in America Christian leaders are no longer afraid of speaking into the political arena because the Johnson Act has been neutered, and we can thank President Trump for that, not #43!

God is on the move again! God is on the rise again! I believe it is because God is being honored at the highest level of our government again!

Let us pray that the Sun of Righteousness, who rose with healing in His wings, will release His healing virtue throughout our land. God is revealing His judgments and the world is in for another renassaince. Only this time it will come with spiritual revival and reformation that will result in a transformation that does not destroy the ancient foundations. That failed and is being overturned. Now foundations are being restored and new foundations are being laid.

So, let the real building begin!

That is what happens when judgment begins!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A Hisstorymaker

 

 

Apostles & Fathers

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, faith, Hard Work, LifeGiving, maturity, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, teaching, Teamwork, Training

There is much misinformation that misleads people in the area of apostles and fathers in the faith! I hope the misinformed will not continue misleading people, no matter how well intended they may be.

Just because someone is an apostle does not make them a father in the faith. There are a lot of apostles leading ministries and movements who are still children in the faith, and manifest childishness in their daily lives. If you are a genuine apostle you will genuinely grow up.

Even Paul, who was called an apostle from his mother’s womb, said he had to grow up spiritually. In fact, he said after he grew up he still had to make a decision to act grown up!

“When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.” 1 Corinthians 13:11

Paul did not say when he became an apostle he put away childish things! He said when he became as man he put away childish things. One manifestation of childishness is the need to be needed. Needing attention is a core value of someone who is immature, insecure, and suffering identity and image issues. There are an abundance of leaders who serve for what they need which proves they are still in the childish, carnal, self-centered, self-absorbed level of maturity.

Just because someone is not an apostle does not eliminate them from being a father in the faith. There are a lot of believers with no 5 fold office call on their life who have matured to fatherhood. Some have had a great impact on my life as I developed as a disciple of Christ.

Maturing into fatherhood is the call to every believer in Christ, regardless of their call, mission, office or lack there of! And at the father level of maturity the person is not interested in their personal needs. Their need is to pour their life out for and into a person who needs mature leadership and direction to help them become a mature adult.

“You are to become perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect” applies to all the disciples of Jesus of all ages! Perfect means perfect, not just mature and complete!

Fathering requires running with the person needing fathering in close enough proximity to monitor their progress, without impeding their personal creative expression. This allows the person being fathered to keep their eye on the father but not be encumbered as they run the race set before them.

The person needing fathering must be willing to enter into and embrace the process fathers put them in to develop them into a mature believer. The acceptance of that process verifies the person voluntarily accepts the person fathering them. If the person needing and or wanting fathering in their life constantly complains or resists the person and their process, they prove they are not ready for, or interested in genuine development as a disciple of Christ.

Every believer should look for and find someone who can father them without them needing to call them “father,” or the father being called their “father.”

Jesus said, “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.” Matthew 23:9

If a “father” needs to be called father to feel adequate, or accepted by the ones they are fathering, then that father has some serious father issues.

I think some who call themselves apostles need to quit worrying about who is, and where are the apostles. If God calls someone to the office of an apostle then God is handling that apostle’s progress into Their purpose! And if God wants one apostle to align with others He is perfectly willing and able to arrange that connection.

I believe there are apostles who take out of context Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 4, “14 I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. 15 For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you, imitate me.” Paul would reiterate the “imitate me” instruction later in chapter 11 of 1 Corinthians.

Paul did not say the Corinthians did not have many “apostolic” fathers. He just said they had an abundance of people teaching them, not fathering them. This tells me there is a difference in those who teach and those who father. All fathers teach but not all teachers are fathers, even to those they teach. Fatherhood is a maturity level and function, not an office or title. There is no office or title called fatherhood, except in the Catholic Church, which connects apostolic succession to fatherhood! This is, and should be rejected by all believers everywhere.

In addition, Paul, who operated both as an apostle and father to the Corinthians believers, demonstrated apostolic and fathering discipline when needed to those who chose to follow [imitate] his discipleship core value of following [emulating] the lifestyle of Christ Jesus. Purity is paramount in the development of a maturing disciple [son or daughter] of Christ. Discipling a person to Christ is the same as discipling a person to Father God. “The Father and I are one.”  Biblical fathering has everything to do with modeling Father God to the person being fathered so they will become like the Father who is perfect.

“Follow [imitate] me as [in the same way that] I follow [imitate] Christ [the ultimate leader]” should be the standard every kingdom leader lives by. Paul is saying he was following Christ so that he could lead people to Christ. All kingdom discipleship has that core value or it is not kingdom discipleship. Christ is the

Good gracious, Paul said he received, accepted, embraced, and developed his apostolic call, mission and revelatory message apart from the apostles in Jerusalem. He said it was developed on his sabbatical in Arabia.

Galatians 1

“11 For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. 12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; 14 and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions. 15 But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased 16 to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus. 18 Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days. 19 But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.” 

If Paul were alive today he would not be accepted into some apostolic brotherhoods by some of those who see themselves as the brotherhood’s gatekeepers. Paul went to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and James, not to surrender his apostolic credentials to them.

I think some modern ministers who consider themselves apostles, see themselves erroneously in that select group of original leaders who were called to the closed, select community of the apostles of the Lamb!

All the apostles, even the original 12 called personally by Jesus, volunteered their ministry connections! And the 12 did not require obedience to them as a qualification into the post apostle of the Lamb apostolic office. The nonsensical heresy called “the shepherdship movement” was debunked in the 1970’s. I am concerned some of its tenets still exist and its tentacles are still reaching out trying to entrap unsuspecting saints.

Honor and respect does not require connection or obedience! It is given and received voluntarily! And for that matter, submission is voluntary too. If someone demands submission run as fast as you can. That is called slavery!

Everyone should focus on their personal relationship, call, mission, mandate and message with the Apostle and High Priest of our confession who died, was raised, ascended, and called us into our respective relationships, call, mission, mandate and message for Him.

“Do not think more highly of yourselves than you ought” is a really good verse right now! Especially for apostolic fathers!

In conclusion, if you need a father figure in your life look for one who will look for your loyalty, not require your loyalty. Again, loyalty cannot be demanded. A father who looks for loyalty more than likely will demonstrate loyalty to you. Loyalty is discovered in disagreement just like faithfulness is discovered when there are other options to choose from. If you want and need someone to father you, you must accept the responsibility of being a child [son or daughter]. That responsibility includes but is not limited to recognizing and admitting you do not have all the answers and you volunteer to be parented.

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A Hisstorymaker

The Blood or the Boondoggle

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, faith, LifeGiving, maturity, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, teaching, Training

There is a move afoot within certain segments of Christianity that gives intellectual, emotional and material support to something that is very grievous to God. This move is a counterfeit move to genuine moves of God.

That move is the reconstitution of the Law, Levitical priesthood and the animal sacrifices associated with it.

Christians who offer support for this move on any level are in danger of trampling underfoot the blood of Jesus. Christians need to take a serious look at their loyalty to the One who shed His blood to redeem them from sin, and a senseless religious culture that has no life in it.

Hebrews 10

“1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. 2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5 Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, But a body You have prepared for Me; 6 In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have taken no pleasure. 7 “Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (In the scroll of the book it is written of Me) To do Your will, O God.’ ” 8 After saying above, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you have not desired, nor have you taken pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the Law), 9 then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second. 10 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

This text is just one of many in the New Testament that prove that the only blood that has ever counted in the court room of God’s Department of Justice is the blood of Jesus. Notice what Jesus is quoted as saying.

  • “Sacrifice and offering [of animals] You [Father] have not desired”
  • “A [human] body You [Father] have prepared for Me”
  • “You [Father] have taken no pleasure in whole burnt offerings and [animal] sacrifices for sin”
  • “You [Father] have not desired or taken pleasure in the Law’s requirement to sacrifice animals”
  • “[Father] I have come to do Your will”

The writer of Hebrews makes these stark statements:

  • “The Law was only a shadow”
  • “The Law was not the good things to come [future of when the Law was given]”
  • “The Law is not the form [image, likeness] of things [to come]”
  • “The Law can never make something or someone perfect”
    • Which infers what, or who was to come would make things perfect
  • “The Law kept the worshiper conscious of sin”
  • “The Law reminds the worshiper they are a sinner”
  • “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins”
  • “Therefore when He comes into the world”
    • Inferring a Perfect One was coming into the world
  • “He [the Perfect One coming into the world] would take away the first [lifeless Law] in order to establish [set in permanently] the second”
    • The second is the sacrifice of Jesus’s body [blood] once for all

Jesus is called the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. When He came into the world it was to bring into time that which was instituted in eternity past. The “once for all” statement is referring to the eternal aspect of His bodily sacrifice that manifested in time nearly 2,000 years ago. This truth tells us that the Law, the Levitical priesthood and all the animal sacrifices point people to an eternal past, present and future reality.

The Law, Levitical priesthood and all the animal sacrifices were a sign to a past decision that was going to manifest in a future time in the fulness of time. When the fulness of time came, as per God’s timing, Jesus entered the world as a human being to lay down His life as the life giving Lamb of God.

To reinstitute the Law, Levitical priesthood and the animal sacrifices associated with them is an affront to God the Father, the Cross and blood of Jesus, and the Holy Spirit by which Christ was sanctified to God. You cannot hold onto the resurrected Christ and hold onto a dead religious system. You must choose Christ or Judaism!

Hebrews 9

“11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; 12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

The writer of Hebrews states in this text:

  • Jesus appears as a high priest
    • In other texts this is explained in more detail
  • Jesus entered through a greater and more perfect tabernacle
    • This tabernacle was not made with human hands
      • This speaks both of the heavenly tabernacle that was the model for the tabernacle of Moses and the temple David wanted to build
      • It also speaks of the human body [temple] that God used to tabernacle with man through Jesus
        • Man did not build either of those tabernacles
    • This tabernacle is not of this [natural] creation
  • The blood of animals and the ashes of heifers are inferior to the blood of Christ
  • Those can never cleanse the conscience from dead works
  • Jesus shed His own blood to sanctify believers
  • Jesus offered Himself without blemish through the eternal Spirit
    • This qualified Him to be the Lamb slain to pay for all sin
    • Jesus’ offering is the only offering to clean a conscience from dead [worthless and lifeless] works
    • Jesus’ offering is the only offering where we can serve the living God

Why on earth are Christians supporting this failed religious system? They are either deceived or they have deserted Christ. Neither of those options are good.

With all the compassion I have I warn you to stay away from anyone who is providing support for the heresy of Jewish religious worship. There is no life in it and it will disqualify you from the life that is in Christ Jesus.

The Book of Hebrews was written to exalt Christ and dethrone Jewish worship. I encourage you to take the time to read this great Book. Read it slowly and pay attention to the warnings along with the exaltation of Jesus Christ.

Look at the early warning statements given by the writer of Hebrews.

  • 2:1 – “we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard”
  • 2:1 – “so that we do not drift away from it”
  • 2:3 – “how will we escape”
  • 2:3 – “if we neglect so great a salvation”
  • 3:6 – “whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end”
  • 3:8 – “Do not harden your hearts”
  • 3:12 – “Take care, brethren”
  • 3:12 – “that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God”

The writer of Hebrews continues throughout his epistle giving warning to his readers to remain loyal to Christ and run from those who were trying to draw them back under the boondoggle of Judaism.

And now those of you who read this blog are warned. Is it Christ or compromise?

Keep HIS Faith! Keep HIS Passion! Keep HIS Purpose!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A Hisstorymaker

 

 

 

 

The Remnant

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, faith, LifeGiving, maturity, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, teaching, Training

There is no remnant of God’s people. There is just God’s people! And it makes no difference if those people are Jewish or not! All the other people are either pretending to be God’s people or they are not God’s people.

You are either in the Body of Christ, and are part of the Bride of Christ, or you are not! There is not a remnant of either one! From heaven’s perspective the Body is whole and the Bride is holy!

There is no remnant found in the New Testament post cross of Jesus Christ, other than a remnant of natural Jews who are saved, or will be saved! Here are the only 2 references [NASB] in the New Testament that have the word remnant in them.

Romans 9

“Though the number of the sons of Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is the remnant that will be saved.”

This is a quote from the prophet Isaiah in chapter 10 verse 22. This was proven true in the 1st century and it is true in every successive century.

It is interesting Paul makes reference to one portion of God’s promise to Abraham which relates to the Jewish people being compared to the “sand of the sea.”  Only a remnant of the Jewish people will receive the gift of eternal life found in Jesus Christ.

Being born Jewish does not give a Jewish person an advantage over a non-Jewish person as it pertains to being in right relationship with God. Jesus said,:

“NO ONE [emphsis mine]  can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” [John 6:65].

And, “NO ONE [emphasis mine] can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” [John 6:44].

And, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; NO ONE [emphasis mine] comes to the Father but through Me” [John 14:6].

God remains in charge of who who comes to Him through Jesus! And by the way, Jesus was speaking directly to natural Jews in those 3 statements!

Romans 11

“In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God’s gracious choice.”

Once again, Paul writes in context of the Jewish people naturally descended from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who are being saved, are a remnant out of the entire Jewish nation that is of natural descent.

The idea of a remnant comes from the Old Testament where the Jewish people were always  considered God’s people. But only those who had faith in God, who kept the Laws of God by virtue of bringing offerings for sin when expected and how commanded, were called a remnant.

That no longer applies. The reason is because of this one statement: “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His” [2 Timothy 2:19].

This is a quote of the Septuagint version of Numbers 16:5. Moses said, “The Lord will show those who are His.” This statement was in reference to the rebellion of Korah and his followers. The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scripture, changed it to, “the Lord knows those who are His” which is the translation Paul used because it was what was meant when it was originally said.

“Having this seal” is a reference to several New Testament Scriptural references that fully explains that the sealed are the saved.

“21 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, 22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge” [2 Corinthians 1].

“1 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation —having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory” [Ephesians 1].

“Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” [Ephesians 4:30].

If you are not saved you are not sealed and if you are not sealed you are not God’s people!

In conclusion I go back to my opening statements – “There is no remnant of God’s people! There is just God’s people!”

For HIS Glory!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A Hisstorymaker