Pastor’s Blog 4.10.19

Can you still tell right from wrong?

If you can you are blessed! When the Congress of the State of New York stood in applause a couple of weeks ago, as the bill passed giving doctors the right to commit infanticide, most of us stood in unbelief. What has happened to the liberal mind? God’s word, once again, has proven itself true. He warned us that we could sear our conscience to a point of no longer knowing right and wrong and it is happening. New research has shown that the brains of conservatives and liberals are different under an MRI. Conservatives have a greater response to horror than liberals. Go figure.

Remember the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Romans 1:28-32 TPT

And because they thought it was worthless to embrace the true knowledge of God, God gave them over to a worthless mind-set, to break all rules of proper conduct. Their sinful lives became full of every kind of evil, wicked schemes, greed, and cruelty. Their hearts overflowed with jealous cravings, and with conflict and strife, which drove them into hateful arguments and murder. They are deceitful liars full of hostility. They are gossips who love to spread malicious slander. With inflated egos they hurl hateful insults at God, yet they are nothing more than arrogant boasters. They are rebels against their parents and totally immoral. They are senseless, faithless, ruthless, heartless, and completely merciless. Although they are fully aware of God’s laws and proper order, and knowing that those who do all of these things deserve to die, yet they still go headlong into darkness, encouraging others to do the same and applauding them when they do!

There it is folks, the applause for evil being comitted was foretold 2000 years ago by the Apostle Paul. To actually see it happen is to watch the end of the age happening before our very eyes.

2 Timothy 3:1-7

But you need to be aware that in the final days the culture of society will become extremely fierce and difficult for the people of God. People will be self-centered lovers of themselves and obsessed with money. They will boast of great things as they strut around in their arrogant pride and mock all that is right. They will ignore their own families. They will be ungrateful and ungodly.

They will become addicted to hateful and malicious slander. Slaves to their desires, they will be ferocious, belligerent haters of what is good and right. With brutal treachery, they will act without restraint, bigoted and wrapped in clouds of their conceit. They will find their delight in the pleasures of this world more than the pleasures of the loving God.

They may pretend to have a respect for God, but in reality they want nothing to do with God’s power. Stay away from people like these! For they are the ones who worm their way into the hearts of vulnerable women, spending the night with those who are captured by their lusts and steeped in sin. They are always learning but never discover the revelation-knowledge of truth.

Today, pastors of local churches are afraid to tell their congregations that the sins they are practicing are forbidden by God and still carry severe penalties. Why? Because people will leave and go to a church that does not convict them or cause them discomfort. The other day I heard a liberal politician say it was evil to call any human being an animal name because President Trump had referred to horrid criminals being animals. If that is the case then Jesus was evil. (Which we know he wasn’t)

Matthew 23:29-33

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,  and say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.’  “Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.  Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt.  Serpents, brood of vipers ! How can you escape the condemnation of hell?  NKJV

Matthew 7:15-16

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves .  You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?”  NKJV

Jesus called people animal names when they acted like animals. Liberals call evil good and good evil, thus fulfilling the prophetic words of the depravity of human beings without the grace of God in their hearts.

Isaiah 5:18-21

“Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of vanity, And sin as if with a cart rope; That say, “Let Him make speed and hasten His work, That we may see it; And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, That we may know it.” Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light , and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight! NKJV

In reality, the word of God says woe to the liberal politician and the party that follows them. Just imagine a child being delivered in an operating room, drawing a breath, cries, and is then laid on a table and made comfortable…then the very doctor who delivered the baby walks over unties the umbilical cord and watches the baby bleed out without any conscience of wrongdoing???? On top of this, imagine a room full of governing, duly elected officials applauding at this inhumane act! I won’t dignify that man with the title of doctor I call him a murdering animal!

The only way to keep our consciences clean and sensitive to the Lord and His word is to govern by His word. We must begin to elect officials who once again value the word of God and value LIFE. Young life, old life, pre-born life. LIFE is a gift from God and all life must be valued. When we value the principles of Jesus, found in the Holy Bible, we will once again know right from wrong and determine truth for the principles with which to govern our lives and this nation. Join me in praying for a return to truth and the word of God. First, in our churches, and then in our nation!

God’s church must lead the way!

Blessings!

• Date - April 10, 2019
• Author - David Chisholm

TAKE the Land!

All of us have wilderness seasons in our lives. The Bible says we go from glory to glory to glory…and that is true. However, it often looks like this: glory…(wilderness)…glory…(testing)…glory…(maturing)…glory! At least that is what it has looked like for me. (smiling)

Let’s face it, we don’t permanently land on/in glory until we get to Heaven. As long as we are on the earth, we will always have room to improve and grow!

Keeping this in mind, it is a lot easier when you arrive in your current promised land, (fulfilled promise) because that’s where the real work begins. Yes, you had to fight to get there and endure the wilderness, testing, etc., but the promised land is still work. It is not easy nor for the faint of heart. Even the fruit of the land takes work to harvest! It’s so BIG! (to whom much is given much is required) Think about it this way; all through the process of getting you to the promise, you sowed. You sowed, obedience, discipline, grace, whatever you had to do to get there. Everything we do is a seed…so sowing good things in the wilderness will not only bring about good fruit, it brings about GREAT fruit. (Numbers 15:23) Think about it, when we go buy grapes we don’t need an extra person and a pole in order to carry them to the car! That is some GREAT FRUIT! Great fruit grows from great seed. (hmmmmm, thinking about that one!)

There are also giants in your promise land. It’s YOUR land and you have to take them out. They don’t just leave because you showed up! The enemy has held up blessings for generations and when we take it back, he doesn’t just go quietly. He does not play by the rules. Yes, it was fear/unbelief that kept the Israelites from entering their promised land, but I also think there was some laziness in there. They had just been delivered from their captivity and saw the hand of God move on their behalf. I think some people thought “I am tired and simply do not have the strength to fight any more or to harvest that kind of fruit!” I believe they expected to walk in and simply live.

In Exodus 23:20-30 the Lord told them exactly what to do and what He would do. He also told them He wouldn’t just drive out all the (other) inhabitants right away because they (the Israelites) needed to be able to increase enough to possess the whole land. (increase in numbers, and even strength) So when they saw the Giants, they should have realized, oh – that is OUR land, so we have authority and the Lord is with us.

When we arrive at a season of our promised land, we have to take the Giants out of their place… displace them… evict them… render them harmless. Kill the giants and you can take their spoil. Some spoil will be obvious – but some you will have to dig for. I mean, do you keep your valuable stash out in the open for easy prey? Neither do they. But the treasure is there and plenty of it.

No, the promised land is not for the weak- but for those who have come too far, went through too much, to let some loud mouthed uncircumcised philistine keep them from what is rightfully theirs. When you arrive at the place of your promise, gird your loins once again, check your armor and run towards the battle! RUN towards your giant just like David did! I believe when David ran towards Goliath, it took him by surprise, so that when David slung the rock- his guard was down and he was defeated!

This is why it is called possessing your land. Possessing is an action word. If you didn’t see giants in your land, perhaps you have not made it as far as you thought? The enemy always wants what is ours. And just because we put up a No Trespassing sign, don’t think you won’t have to enforce it!

Caleb and Joshua said the giants are bread for us…. how is that? In the Strong’s concordance one of the meanings is PROVISION. Think about it, displacing the giants allows you to gain their possessions AND strengthens you spiritually, which gives you confidence for the next fight. As Rick Pino says…. we cut off the giant’s head and eat giants for your bread! (see link at bottom)

“We cut off the giant’s head, we eat giants for our bread”

Rick Pino

The wilderness is tough and leads you to your promise, but don’t make the mistake of thinking it’s all sunshine and roses. Once you make it to the land you will need to possess it!

Now, don’t get me wrong, I believe there will be much victory and celebration in this promised land too! Remember the fruit that took two men and a pole to harvest? The spoils are great! Victory will be assured if you stay with God and follow His leading. After all, it is YOUR promised land. And it is there you will defeat the enemy, eat, and grow! The battles in the promised land are not the same as the battles in the wilderness. The wilderness is dry and barren and hot and tough! The promised land has milk and honey for refreshing, and lush green fields and shade and angels to help you enforce what God has told you to do.

Possessing is a process and one designed for our success. Don’t allow what you see to cause you to turn back into the familiarity of the wilderness. Go, full, head on into your promised land with all the confidence and strength of the word of God and covered by His blood. We were meant for victory!

• Date - April 4, 2019
• Author - David Chisholm

Pastor’s Blog 3.27.19

This is part two of lasts week blog “Should a Christian judge?”

In our current Church culture, a “judgment free zone” has been declared. If a leader attempts to bring correction to a behavior the Bible condemns, people may respond, “you don’t have the right to judge me”. Thus they continue in the lifestyle of sin and live in false security based on false doctrine and confirmation. Well, didn’t Jesus tell us not to judge? Yes, in context.

Matthew 7:1-6

7:1 “Judge  not, that you be not judged. 

2 For with what judgment you judge , you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 

3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 

4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 

5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. 

6 “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces. NKJV

Now let’s read this in the Passion translation…

“Refuse to be a critic full of bias toward others, and judgment will not be passed on you. For you’ll be judged by the same standard that you’ve used to judge others. The measurement you use on them will be used on you. Why would you focus on the flaw in someone else’s life and yet fail to notice the glaring flaws of your own? How could you say to your friend, ‘Let me show you where you’re wrong,’ when you’re guilty of even more? You’re being hypercritical and a hypocrite! First acknowledge your own ‘blind spots’ and deal with them, and then you’ll be capable of dealing with the ‘blind spot’ of your friend.

“Who would hang earrings on a dog’s ear or throw pearls in front of wild pigs? They’ll only trample them under their feet and then turn around and tear you to pieces!Matthew 7:1-6 TPT

In context, in a more American English translation we get further light on the subject of judging. We all know critical people don’t we? We know those who live to pick apart everyone who does not agree with them. We know those who think they are right and everyone else is wrong, are closed minded and have no grace for others’ opinions. Jesus is warning us in these scriptures not to be hypocrites who hold others to standards we ourselves can’t conform to. We all have a temptation to do this and it seems those with the strongest personalities fall prey to this temptation often.

I have a strong temptation to become critical of other Church leaders when I see how they lead in the Church and have to continually check myself. I have to check myself when I see others who appear to be having a greater success than I am and I know the reason for the success with man – is based in compromise and man pleasing rather than preaching the truth that men don’t always want to hear. David of old had the same issue.

I have been corrected, comforted and confirmed by this Psalm many times over the last 35 years of ministry…

Psalm 73 1-28 TPT

Asaph’s psalm

No one can deny it—God is really good to Israel

and to all those with pure hearts.

But I nearly missed seeing it for myself.

Here’s my story: I came so close to missing the way.

I was stumbling over what I saw with the wicked.

For when I saw the boasters with such wealth and prosperity,

I became jealous over their smug security.

4–5 Indulging in whatever they wanted, going where they wanted,

doing what they wanted, and with no care in the world.

No pain, no problems, they seemed to have it made.

They lived as though life would never end.

They didn’t even try to hide their pride and opulence.

Cruelty and violence is part of their lifestyle.

Pampered and pompous, vice oozes from their souls;

they overflow with vanity.

They’re such snobs—looking down their noses.

They even scoff at God!

They are nothing but bullies threatening God’s people.

Loudmouths with no fear of God, pretending to know it all.

Windbags full of hot air, impressing only themselves.

Yet the people keep coming back to listen

to more of their nonsense.

They tell their cohorts, “God will never know.

See, he has no clue of what we’re doing.”

These are the wicked ones I’m talking about!

They never have to lift a finger,

living a life of ease while their riches multiply.

Have I been foolish to play by the rules and keep my life pure?

Here I am suffering under your discipline day after day.

I feel like I’m being punished all day long.

If I had given in to my pain and spoken of what I was really feeling,

it would have sounded like unfaithfulness to the next generation.

When I tried to understand it all, I just couldn’t.

It was too puzzling—too much of a riddle to me.

But then one day I was brought into the sanctuaries of God,

and in the light of glory, my distorted perspective vanished.

Then I understood that the destiny of the wicked was near!

They’re the ones who are on the slippery path,

and God will suddenly let them slide off into destruction

to be consumed with terrors forever!

It will be an instant end to all their life of ease;

a blink of the eye and they’re swept away by sudden calamity!

They’re all nothing more than momentary monarchs—

soon to disappear like a dream when one awakes.

When the rooster crows,

Lord God, you’ll despise their life of fantasies.

When I saw all of this, what turmoil filled my heart,

piercing my opinions with your truth.

I was so stupid. I was senseless and ignorant,

acting like a brute beast before you, Lord.

Yet, in spite of all this, you comfort me by your counsel;

you draw me closer to you.

You lead me with your secret wisdom.

And following you brings me into your brightness and glory!

Whom have I in heaven but you? You’re all I want!

No one on earth means as much to me as you.

Lord, so many times I fail; I fall into disgrace.

But when I trust in you, I have a strong and glorious presence

protecting and anointing me. Forever you’re all I need!

Those who abandon the worship of God will perish.

The false and unfaithful will be silenced, never heard from again.

But I’ll keep coming closer and closer to you, Lord Yahweh,

for your name is good to me. I’ll keep telling the world of

your awesome works, my faithful and glorious God!

I have lived long enough now to have watched the rebels buried. I have many minister friends who would never come under authority and always seemed to come out smelling like a rose. Well, they are dead. They died before their time so to speak, and the laws of sowing and reaping will not be mocked. Let’s keep ourselves pure, obey the truth and live a good long life of blessing!

Be blessed indeed!

• Date - March 27, 2019
• Author - David Chisholm