Am I My Brother's Keeper?

Genesis 4:9. You are probably familiar with the story of Cain and Abel, that Cain murdered his brother and was cursed because he did it. What is interesting in that story is that everything was fine until the Lord rejected Cain's offering. Until his offering was rejected, there is no indication that Cain was an evil person, on the contrary, the very reason Cain was bringing his offering was a good indication that he was trying to please God. See what the Lord tells Him: Genesis 4:7. What does to do well mean? The answer is found in Hebrews 11:4. Abel did his offering by faith, that's why the Lord accepted it: Hebrews 11:6. I've been talking a lot about faith in this blog and this story (Cain and Abel) shows that God required faith since the beginning, actually, the very reason Adam sinned was because he didn't believe in God's words: Genesis 2:16-17. Why am i saying that Adam didn't believe? Because of what James wrote: James 2:20. John the Apostle answered the question "am I my brother's keeper?": 1 John 3:10-12. If we are children of God then we will be our brother's keepers, if we are not our brother's keepers, we are children of the devil! Is John saying that i must love christians (brothers in Christ) only? Of course not! See what Jesus Christ taught: Luke 10:25-37. So, according to the Bible we must be "our brother's keepers".

As It Was In The Days of Lot...

Luke 17:28-30. Much has been said and preached about Lot, as they say: "I heard a lot about Lot (funny or not)"! Most preachers condemn him for his mistakes and say that if he had allowed his uncle (Abraham) to choose first, things wouldn't go that bad for him. Along the years I learned with God that I have no right to condemn anyone, much less the ones who cannot defend themselves (dead people). It's easy for us to read Lot's story and condemn him for his mistakes, but in reality we all made bad choices and very few of us God considers to be righteous persons, as He considered Lot: Genesis 18:22-23. 2 Peter 2:7. I don't want to justify Lot's sins and mistakes, but as Peter writes, Lot lived a righteous life among the most wicked people of his time and a person like that deserves to be honored, so i'll try to show the "other side of the coin". We, who grew up in the church (organization) or are there for a long time, tend to become critics and judges, like the older son in the parable of the prodigal son, letting our light shine inside the church but forgetting to be a light in the darkness (world). In that regard, Lot did what Paul the Apostle told us to do: Philippians 2:15. If we think for a second, we will realize that the darker (crooked and perverse) the generation, the brighter our light will shine. Have you ever seen a firefly glowing in a shiny day? Of course not! Why can't we learn from nature? Remember how many times Jesus Christ used nature to teach us His amazing lessons? "Birds of the air", "lilies of the field", "sheep", "wolf", etc. Don't get me wrong, the church (gathering) is a good and necessary thing, Hebrews 10:25, but it is like a "gas station" (spiritually speaking), where we go to refill and then go out again. Unfortunately many people "run out of gas" because they forsake the assembling, thinking that they are some kinda "spiritual lone rangers" (there is no such thing). Lot was a witness of righteousness to the unrighteous, his light shone in a very dark environment. So, why God couldn't find ten righteous people in Sodom? Genesis 18:32. Well, the Apostle John gave us the answer: John 3:19. As it was with Jesus Christ so it was with Lot, people loved darkness rather than light, wickedness rather than righteousness, sin rather than holiness. So, if you really believe that Jesus Christ spoke the truth, better, that He is the Truth, than you have to consider His words about the time we're living (last days), this generation is becoming more and more like Sodom. Of course, if you are a pre-trib person, fear not, but if you can read (you are right now), than you should check this site: http://www.persecution.com/. It's VOM's (Voice of the Martyrs) web site, there you will see what's going on around the world, how many people are being killed, imprisoned and beaten just because they confess the Name of Jesus Christ. Of course, if you consider yourself better than anyone of those brothers and sisters, you should be fine, if not, pray because things will get really bad, besides, Lot was taken just before the destruction of Sodom (read the post From the Hamptons to the Heavens: Bewitched by Left Behind). Are you prepared to die for Jesus? Better, are you living for Him? Are you willing to abandon everything to follow Him? Can you say that you are a righteous person (like Lot)? Is your Light shinning in the darkness? Do your words match your behavior and your behavior your words? If this was your last day alive, what would be your legacy? If your're thinking that i am exaggerating because your neighborhood preacher said that according to his interpretation Jesus is pre-trib, read this: 2 Peter 1:20-21. Will the "rapture" occur before, during or after the great tribulation? That's the million dollars question. Fortunately God has the answer and one day (before, during or after) the great tribulation we will know the answer. Revelation 2:10.

Life Is A Breath! Job 7:7

James 4:13-16. Two weeks ago, my cousin's 16 years old daughter died after having more than 70% of her body and internal organs burned. For the family, it was a tragedy that will take a long time to recover from (if ever). She was a beautiful girl, loved by everyone who knew her and will be remembered forever. Until the accident, nobody would ever suspect that her life would be as short and it would end like that. I confess that I was shocked when I received the horrible news (I’m still perplex). I read this text in James many times, but it never had a profound impact in my life until this tragedy. James is completely right, life is a vapor, one day we’re here, the next we’re gone! Why do we make so many plans (most of them futile) and never even bother asking God if our plans are pleasing to Him? Proverbs 16:1. Worse than make futile plans is to think that we have the power to accomplish them, according to James is an evil arrogance. Jesus Christ made it clear that such thought is “foolishness”: Luke 12:13-20. It is sad to see how many wealthy people are “laying up for themselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19) and are closing their hearts and eyes to see how many people, especially children, are starving to death. I’m not advocating the end of poverty, equality for all human beings (financially speaking), etc, Jesus Himself said that we would always have the poor among us, Mark 14:7, but I’m advocating compassion, mercy and love for the least among us, the ones who God told that we should care for: Deuteronomy 24:17. Jeremiah 22:3. Zechariah 7:10. Think about this: How good is to have plenty here on earth and nothing in heaven (if we make it)? How many times have you given up on something to help someone else? Where is your treasure, on earth or heaven? Would you be willing to forsake everything to do what Jesus Christ tells you to do? Are you showing compassion for the “least of these”? Matthew 25:34-40. If you die today, what would be your legacy?

You Are The Man!

You probably heard the phrase "you are the man" many times before (this is a common saying among guys here in America), it means that your male friend or colleague pulls through with some unexpected success or surprises you (in a good way), but you probably never heard it like this: 2 Samuel 12:1-12. The question that comes to my mind when reading this passage is: How could a "man after God's own heart", after accomplishing so many great things (defeating Goliath for example) and having so much intimacy with God, allow his flesh to control his life? I think the best answer is found in the context: 2 Samuel 11:1-3. David's first mistake was staying home when he should be in the battlefield; the second was not fleeing from the sin called "lust of the eyes"; the third was breaking God's commandments: You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, you shall not commit adultery and you shall not steal. The saying "idle hands are the devil's tools" became true to David. Because he chose idleness, he ended up stealing another man's wife and later killing the man. If we could be honest for a second, we would realize that at least once we did the same: How many times have we coveted? How many times have we committed adultery? How many times have we stole (from God or other people)? I won't even mention the other commandments! Are we better than David? Are we people after God's own heart? I can only speak for myself and i tell you that i am not worthy to be compared to David. Unfortunately, even after being born again, we still have the sinful nature living in us, the more we feed the flesh, the more our sinful nature will control us, the more we submit ourselves to be controlled by the Holy Spirit, the more we will abstain from sin. As Paul wrote in Romans 8:6. This verse became true for David. When he (David) became carnally minded, the result was death! Uriah's and his son with Bathsheba. Besides, if you read the Psalms that David wrote when this was going on, you will see that he also lost his peace, he was tormented by his own sins. Fortunately for us, sinners, there is hope: Romans 12:2. We must follow Paul's advice and have our minds renewed by the Holy Spirit until we have Christ's mind: 1 Corinthians 2:16.

As It Was In The Days Of Noah...

Luke 17:26-27. If you read carefully Noah's story, you will see that the world was destroyed because it became extremely corrupt and lawless, the only righteous man alive was Noah and he became the preacher of righteousness: 2 Peter 2:5. What was he preaching anyways? The Bible does not tells us everything he preached, but this was the central point of his preaching: Repent, flooding is coming and the world will be destroyed! What is very interesting is that Jesus is comparing Noah's time with our time (last days). It's very easy to say that this world is extremely corrupt, but it's not so easy to say that we are becoming a lawless world, because at least here in America, we never had so many laws as we have right now, but if we pay attention, God's moral law (righteousness) is being taken away from our set of laws and before God's eyes we are, slowly but surely, becoming a lawless country. Jesus' message is more current and relevant than never, His predictions about the latter day world are unfolding before our eyes. My point is: We can only preach righteousness if we are a righteous person! Morality without the righteousness of God is a well behaved lawlessness. Isaiah 64:6. Many lukewarm believers are anxiously waiting for the rapture but are not building their ark (holiness), it means that there will be a rupture in their rapture plan and that will lead to the great apostasy. This week i heard one of those "spotless" preachers, those who appear impeccable on tv, saying "but WE who are poor..." (he meant financially poor), i confess that i felt so disgusted with that preaching (even if there was a lot of truth on it), that i can see why people are not losing their lives to follow Jesus Christ, why they are not building their arks (holiness), the best most christians are doing is trying to adapt God's life to their own, doing what Jesus spoke in Matthew 13:7,22. Mark 10:29-31. Have you ever wonder why Jesus' disciples left everything to follow Him? Because when they looked at Jesus, they saw an example, someone who left everything to follow His Father' plan: Philippians 2:5-8. As God called Noah to build an ark to save him and his family, so God is calling us to build His temple (our lives) to save us and our families, we are God's fellow workers: 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 3:9; Acts 16:31. Preaching righteousness is only the consequence of a life of righteousness, words are cheap but if we live what we believe, our testimony will be powerful: Revelation 12:11. Are you building your ark? Are seeking holiness? Are you forsaking everything to follow Jesus Christ? Leviticus 11:45.

Gideon: The Mighty Antihero.

Judges 6:12-16. It is impressive how bad things are in our "christianity" today, every day there's a new "hero", a new "star", a new "idol". From Abel to John, every "hero" in the Bible was the antithesis of today's "heroes". They were the meekest and weakest people of their time, the ones who were on top, God brought them down in order to display His glory in their lives, e.g.: Moses, Peter, Paul, etc. Jesus Christ is the biggest antihero (from glorious God to a Servant Man) in human history. This is His description: Isaiah 53:2-3. If you pay attention to the latter days "heroes" of faith, they are the opposite of Jesus Christ: They got the "look"; they are accepted everywhere; they are smiley people; they are praised and idolized, they are the best sellers, etc. If we consider the life of Gideon, he says that he was the least of all and yet God calls him to be a hero in order to be glorified (God) in and through him (Gideon). Why? Paul gives us the answer: 1 Corinthians 1:27-29. The very reason we (church) don't see the Glory of God in our midst is because we (church) are retaining the glory that supposed to be God's, therefore God himself allows us to keep "walking around in the desert" and never enter the "promise land". This is so true that God Himself said to Gideon: Judges 7:2. The fact that we keep shouting "glory to God" doesn't mean that the glory is going to God, otherwise we would be seeing His glory in our midst. My take on that is that we are lacking God's righteousness: Isaiah 58:8. Philippians 1:11. John the Baptist got it right: John 3:30. Because we are full of ourselves we are lacking Jesus Christ in us, if we (church) don't decrease, Jesus Christ will never increase in us, therefore the glory will never be fully God's. God is calling us to be "antiheroes" and never accept the glory that is His in order to display His glory in our lives. God's glory in us is directly proportional to Jesus Christ's increase in us. The bigger we are, the smaller Jesus Christ will be in us and lesser His light will shine on us. 1 Peter 5:6; Matthew 5:16; John 8:12.

Addicted Generation: What's the "Next Fix"?

If you are not familiar with the term "next fix", in the "addicted world" it means: The next drug, the next bottle, the next pill, etc. Using this term in our context (christianity), the "next fix" would be: New teaching, new book, new concert, new diet (believe you or not), etc. Unfortunately, more and more we can see people desperate to find a "quick fix" to their lifetime problems, thinking that if they just apply this revolutionary teaching they read in this best selling book, their lives will turn around and they will be a problem free people. Unfortunately, it's just the opposite, after realizing that the "quick fix" wasn't the solution they were looking for, they give up trying and succumb to their temptation or addiction. I believe the first thing we must do as christians when we have a problem or temptation, is to go before God in prayer with an open heart, open our Bible and allow God to speak to us and do whatever He says (obedience rather than sacrifice). Another "myth" we have in christianity is that once delivered from addiction or sin, we won't struggle anymore with that same "problem", that the battle is over, we are winners and nothing can defeat us. Well, this is what Paul wrote: 1 Corinthians 10:12. Unfortunately, when most people struggle again with the same issue, they fall for lack of endurance: James 1:12. After being set free we receive the power to resist temptations, the power resist temptation, the power to say NO to the addiction or sin that once enslaved us, but we must fight against it: Hebrews 12:4. If you are looking for a "quick fix" to help you fight against sin or addiction, i have bad news for you: YOU WON'T FIND IT! On the other hand, there is FREEDOM in Jesus Christ, not a partial freedom, total freedom: John 8:36. Pay attention to what Jesus said: IF the Son makes you free. Why did He make that statement conditional (if)? Because ONLY GOD can deal with the ROOT of the problem or addiction which is SIN! Let's use drug addiction as an example: I have friends who quit using drugs, they fought against it and won the battle, but, are they free indeed? NO! They are still slaves of themselves or another addictions like, pornography for example, because they are rejecting Jesus Christ's freedom. But i also have friends who Jesus Christ made them free indeed. Am i saying they don't sin? Of course not! 1 John 1:10. There's a difference between "sinning" and being "slave of sin": When you are a slave, you don't have any other option but obeying your "master" which is sin. Paul and the other apostles, when writing they call themselves bond-servants (slaves) of Jesus Christ, because they found "true" freedom by submitting themselves to Jesus Christ's authority. James 4:7. If you submit yourself to God you will receive the power to resist the devil and his temptations and you will experience a life of true freedom. My advice to you, if you are struggling with addiction and sin is that you stop running after "quick fixes" (empty promises) and start running after Jesus Christ, He will set you free indeed!

Empty Mind: The Path to Wonderland.

Many times we forget that this world is not our final destination, the final destination will be either heaven or hell, this is just our temporary residency or the "desert" we must cross to reach the "promise land" (new earth). Of course, if you don't believe in the "promise land" than you'll never live there. At one point in our lives, we will struggle either spiritually, physically or emotionally, and if we are not "grounded" in the word of God we will suffer harm. The question is: How can we be "grounded" in the Word of God? There are few steps to achieve that and they are everything but easy, they involve COMMITMENT and DISCIPLINE: 1) We must BELIEVE in God and DILIGENTLY seek Him: Hebrews 11:6; 2) we must HEAR the Word of God: Romans 10:17; 3) we must MEDITATE in His word: Psalm 1:1-2; Psalm 119:148; 4) we must have His word in our minds and hearts: Psalm 119:11; Hebrews 10:16. Our problem as believers, is that we are always running after things that don't really matter, things that will soon disappear, we are SEEKING FIRST OTHER THINGS hoping that god's KINGDOM WILL BE ADDED TO US: Matthew 6:33. If we don't fill our minds and hearts with the word of God, we will be always WONDERING why we don't hear from God, why it is so hard to live holy lives, why we don't experience the fullness of His love. It doesn't matter how full your mind is, if it's not filled with the word of God, instead of living in the Kingdom of God you will be living in the wonderland, fantasizing that you're going to heaven when you're actually already living a hellish (self-indulgent) life. Romans 12:2; Matthew 7:21.

The Sheepish Wolf: The Art of Pretending.

In this cartoon called The Sheepish Wolf 1942, in his first scene, the hungry and "Shakespearean" wolf, watching a flock of sheep, imagines them as lamb chops, steaks and other delicacies and his first words are: "To eat or not to eat? Baa, what a question"! Then he has a brilliant idea: "I shall disguise myself as a sheep and mingle with the flock". Even if this cartoon is funny, it carries a sad reality, an old trick that many false believers (pastors, prophets, teachers, etc.) have been using for centuries in christian churches: Deceitfulness. Jesus Christ warned us to beware of them: Matthew 7:15. Just like in this cartoon, the false believers (wolves) disguise themselves as sheep, they appear to be very humble and godly, but after a while they start revealing themselves (character), they start saying things people want to hear and unfortunately, most the times the leader of the church is just like the sheepdog in this cartoon, he cannot see the wolf because his eyes are "covered" (lack of discernment). The history of Israel is filled with prophets and pastors who abused the flock (God's people), who fed themselves and let the flock perish. God rebuked them through His Prophets, like in this passage: Ezekiel 34:2-3. If we bring to our context, today in most churches the believers are just "numbers" (numerically and financially speaking), they are just the means that the "owner" of the church or ministry uses to reach his (her) goal. Today, most leaders PRETEND to be SHEPHERDS (pastors), most people PRETEND to be SHEEP (christians) and the organization PRETENDS to be a SHEEPFOLD (church). Jesus Christ was a real Pastor, His disciples were real christians (Judas Iscariot was a wolf in sheep's clothing) and the early church was a real church. We believers (pastors and flock), need the Gift of the Holy Spirit called Discerning of spirits to be able to detect the wolves when they enter the sheepfold (church), 1 John 4:1, and be wise when we are among wolves, Matthew 10:16. At the end of this cartoon, all the sheep were wolves in sheep's clothing (subtle?). The probable reason the writer revealed the flock to be wolves, is because the world thinks that we are a bunch of hypocrites, we are all wolves in sheep's clothing, because we talk a lot about love and we  don't love our neighbors as ourselves; we talk a lot about godliness and our actions show how sinful we are; we talk a lot about mercy and we refuse to help the needy because we think they are lazy, etc. It's time to LIVE what we PREACH and show the world that we are Jesus Christ's disciples: John 13:35.

Whatever God Says To You, Do It!

The phrase "whatever He says to you, do it", is part of Jesus' ministry, even if it is not explicit in the text, it is always implicit. In His first miracle, turning water into wine, we see His mother literally telling that to the servants: John 2:5. When He rebuked the winds and the sea, they "obeyed" Him (did whatever He said): Matthew 8:26-27. When He commanded the fig tree to wither, it obeyed Him: Matthew 21:18-19. Everyone who was healed by Jesus, was healed because he, she or someone else did whatever was necessary for the person to receive the healing: The cleansing of a leper in Mathew 8:1-4; the Centurion's servant in Matthew 8:5-13; the woman with a flow of blood in Luke 8:43-48; the man born blind in John 9; the Gentile Woman's Daughter in Matthew 15:21-28; the paralytic who was let down through the roof to be healed by Jesus in Mark 2:1-12, etc. The demons and the nature had no other option but obeying Jesus, but for the healings (physical, spiritual and emotional) to occur, someone had to exercise faith and obedience (works). Have you ever wondered why we don't see miracles, signs and wonders as they saw in the early church? Isn't it because we don't have faith as they did? If that is the reason, why we don't have that kind of faith? Isn't it because our "faith" is a "hypothetical" assurance filled with religious concepts? If our faith is genuine, why we don't see the results (healings for example)? Is Jesus still the same? Hebrews 13:8. If Jesus didn't change and we are the body of Christ, as the Casting Crowns use to sing, if we are the body why aren't His (Jesus) hands healing? What's wrong with "the body" (church)? The first thing we can see is that the church is not functioning as a body (organism) but as an organization (business); the second is that when the church is trying to be a body, it's a "dysfunctional" body, meaning, there are HANDS talking, EYES walking, EARS seeing, etc. This is what i mean by that: 1 Corinthians 12:27-31. Be honest with yourself, where did you see a church functioning like that? I never saw any like that! Why? Because in our churches, if we believe in the calling and gifts of the Holy Spirit we don't have them working properly (dysfunctional body) or we don't even believe that they are essential. In either case, we read the Bible and choose what we think is more "appropriate" for our church, if we are pentecostal we choose prophets, miracles, gifts of healings, varieties of tongues, if we are traditional we choose apostles, teachers, administrations and if we are liberal we choose administrations and helps. The reason we don't see Glory of God IN and AMONG us today is: WE DON'T DO WHATEVER GOD SAYS TO US!

The Demanding Faith and the Will of God.

Luke 22:41-42. How many times have we prayed or heard someone else praying this type of prayer: God, You said in Your word... and You are not a man that you can lie... so, do it? I confess that i did it before and i am ashamed of doing that. How could i be so ARROGANT? How could i be so PROUD? Today i know the reason: I was extremely influenced by the "christian culture" i was living in. Because i was hearing that type a prayer constantly, i became influenced by it to the point that it became natural to me, i didn't know the difference between BOLDNESS and ARROGANCE. BOLDNESS is praying ACCORDING to the will of God; ARROGANCE is telling God to do something NOT KNOWING His will, taking bible verses out of context and "commanding" God to be faithful to His Words. In human history, there wasn't and there won't be any person BOLDER than Jesus Christ, yet every time He prayed, He displayed His HUMBLENESS. He NEVER demanded the Father to do anything, He always ASKED the Father what was His will and submitted Himself to the Father's will. How HORRIBLE is this thing that we have in our "christianity" today, that we are following satan's footsteps, being PRIDEFUL, ARROGANT and DEMANDING God to do what we want? There are many teachings out there, like "the prayer of Jabez" for example, that lead us to DEMAND God to EXPAND OUR TERRITORY and we forget that Jesus Christ taught us to ask the Father to EXPAND HIS KINGDOM. Galatians 3:1. Doesn't it sound familiar? FOOLISH CHRISTIANS! WHO BEWITCHED YOU THAT YOU SHOULD DEMAND GOD TO... We are lacking many things in this post-modern christianism, but i believe the biggest one is Jesus Christ being clearly portrayed among us as crucified! Answer this question: Didn't Jesus Christ know that He was going to die on the cross? Revelation 13:8. Of course He did, He agreed with the Father to become a Man and die on the cross before the foundation of the earth. So why Jesus didn't DEMAND the Father to take the cup (cross) away from Him? John 6:38. It is horrible to see how far we are walking from the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE, JESUS CHRIST. We mistake FAITH with SELFISH DESIRE. The context of Jesus life and ministry, including teachings like FAITH AND THE MUSTARD SEED, revolved around the Will of the Father. When Jesus COMMANDED the fig tree to wither, the will of the Father was to teach Jesus' disciples about faith and authority. When Jesus healed a man born blind, the objective was to show the Father's glory and compassion. When He talks with the adulterous woman He was showing the Father's forgiveness, etc. The church today adapted Nike's motto: Just do it! It doesn't matter if it is God's will to do it, if it is God's time to do it, if it is God's way to do it, just do it! Are you a disciple of Jesus Christ? No? It doesn't matter, just go and make disciples, after all that's the greatest commandment, the great commission. Matthew 22:37-40. Do you love the Lord and your neighbor like that? No? Don't worry about it, just go and make disciples, fulfill the great commission and you go to heaven (what heaven?). Pay attention to what Jesus said: John 13:35. What GOOD NEWS are we spreading if we don't love like Jesus commanded us? 1 Corinthians 13:13; 1 Corinthians 13:1-2. Do you exercise a demanding faith? Is your faith based on the will of God? Paul just confirmed what Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-40, if we don't love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind and our neighbor as ourselves, WE ARE NOTHING!

Renouncing the Parasite Mentality.

Proverbs 30:15-16. Why is it so hard to be satisfied with what we have? Is it because we are born with a "parasite" (sin) called selfishness? Is it because we live in a world that is self-centered and we developed a worldly mentality? If you stop and search your heart (i did it), you will realize how many times you will acted selfishly. Why? Because it's a SIN that we don't pay much attention to it, many times we are not even aware that we are been selfish. E.g.: How many times we fought for our rights not caring for the other person's rights? I'm not saying that we have to agree with injustice, but look what Paul says: 1 Corinthians 6:6-7. See what God says: Hebrews 10:30-31. Why is it so hard to allow ourselves to be cheated (wronged) and trust the Lord to repay? It's because of our sense of pride and revenge. As they say: "I don't get mad, i get even". Selfishness tells us that we are "VIP" and we deserve the best treatment. As a leech, the selfish needs to "drain" other peoples resources (be served). If you are married, you know how hard it is to SERVE our spouse, we are always trying to ENFORCE our rights. As christians, we are called to SERVE one another, to LOOSE in order to GAIN, to DIE in order to LIVE. John 8:36. JESUS SET US FREE TO BE SERVANTS, NOT DESPOTS! The more we serve, the more God will give us the means to serve. The less we serve, the more we will be slave of our selfishness. I know it is hard, but it is a discipline, the more we practice, the better servants we will become. Matthew 20:25-28. How can we go from SELFISH to SERVANT? Romans 12:2. The only way to renounce the parasite mentality is learning with Jesus Christ how to serve on another. 1 Corinthians 2:16.

Spiritual Battle: The Empire Strikes Back.

Much has been written about spiritual battle, some people claim to be "experts" when dealing with the devil, others give step-by-step instructions on how to defeat him. I believe this is the "formula" God gave us to defeat the devil: James 4:7. If you read the gospels, you'll see that Jesus Christ applied that "formula" in His life. He perfectly submitted Himself to the Father and always resisted the devil and the enemy had no choice but fleeing from Him. The issue with spiritual battle is not creating new strategies, applying new teachings, screaming louder so the devil will be afraid of us, the issue is been submitted to God in order to receive from Him the authority to defeat the enemy. Only after submitting ourselves to God we will be able to defeat the devil. Unfortunately, we (with few exceptions) misunderstand the very concept of authority, e.g.: When the President wants to talk to his subordinates, he doesn't need to ask for permission or beg to talk with them, he just tells them and they become available. Why? Because he is the President and they recognize and submit themselves to his authority. Why the demons (satan included) always obeyed Jesus Christ's orders? Because they recognized Jesus Christ as the Son of God and His authority over them: Mark 3:11. When satan tempted Jesus, Matthew 4:3, the temptation was not about Jesus' identity (satan knew Jesus was the Son of God), but to lead Jesus to disobey His Father. Couldn't Jesus tell the stones to become bread? Of course He could! Why He didn't do it? Because that was not the will of His Father. Have you ever asked yourself why Jesus didn't turn the stones into bread to feed the five thousand? JESUS IS A MIRACLE MAKER (Truth), satan is a magician (lie). The Father gave Jesus full authority over everyone and everything and Jesus understood the "boundaries" of this authority: THE WILL OF HIS FATHER! Matthew 28:18. When we were born again (water and Spirit), God delivered us from the power of satan: Colossians 1:13. Unfortunately, we fail to understand that we are no longer slaves of the devil or sin, we are free in Christ, and satan takes advantage on that by telling us that we have no option but sinning, since we are sinners! The empire of darkness grows through FEAR and LIES and the Kingdom of God grows through LOVE and TRUTH. 1 John 4:18. THE MORE WE LOVE THE LORD THE LESS WE WILL FEAR THE devil. I remember after been delivered from the power of darkness (satan), that he came against me with all kinds of weapons, such as fear, doubt, discouragement, pride, etc, and the reason i didn't quit fighting was because God in His mercy showed me the power of submission and because i decided to submit myself to Him, i was able to resist the devil. Unfortunately, we misunderstand (misinterpret) the Word of God and because of that we engage in many battles that are not worth fighting for, because those are not the battles God called us to fight, for example: The separation of church and state. If that was one of God's battle, Jesus Christ had to fight that battle, but He didn't: Acts 1:6-8. Unfortunately, here in America, many christians believe that "THY KINGDOM COME" means: From Republic to Theocracy, from Capitalism to Socialism, from Democracy to Plutocracy. This is what God says about the world we live in: 1 John 5:19. That's why Jesus didn't worry about the government system (world) he lived in, in fact He told us to obey the authorities, to pay taxes, etc. We are ALIENS (citizens of heaven) in this world: 1 Peter 2:11; John 15:19. I'm not saying that we shouldn't vote or stand for what we believe, but many times we are fighting the wrong fight, being a missionary with a wrong mission, trying to transform a world that will be soon destroyed. This is Jesus Christ's Mission and we are called to be His Missionaries: Isaiah 61:1-2. Jesus waited (30 years) until He was anointed (filled with the Holy Spirit and Power) and told His disciples that they had to wait in Jerusalem to be filled with the Holy Spirit and Power and then they would be able to carry on His Mission. MISSION WITHOUT POWER IS OMISSION! We must learn with Paul what is the good fight, 2 Timothy 4:7, and stop fighting against people and ideologies and storm the gates of hell to rescue the ones who are prisoners of the devil: Ephesians 6:12; Matthew 16:16-18; Matthew 7:24; Luke 6:48. AUTHORITY: WE EITHER HAVE IT OR WE DON'T!

Because God Said So: Why Faith is Not a Theory!

Another day, i was listening to the radio and for my surprise, a very prominent christian apologetic (christian apologetics is a field of Christian theology that aims to present a rational basis for the Christian faith) was saying that because he was not satisfied with the "because God said so" approach, as Peter says in 1 Peter 3:15, he set his heart to find the necessary answers to "explain" his faith. In the context, Peter is talking about suffering for the righteousness' sake and for that matter being ready to tell people why do you believe what you say you believe, he is not talking about proving God's existence or that He is the creator of the universe, because you will never be able to prove it, the person has to believe it, as it says in Hebrews 11:6. To counterattack the "evolution theory", christian scientists created the "theory of intelligent design" (the theory of intelligent design holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection), but how can you believe (Hebrews 11:1) in a "theory"? What is a "theory" anyways? Theory: 1. a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena; 2. a tentative theory about the natural world; a concept that is not yet verified but that if true would explain certain facts or phenomena; 3. a belief that can guide behavior; 4. hypothesis, possibility. Can you present a rational basis for Abraham's faith? How about Noah's faith? Why did God keep His promise to Abraham and Noah? Because He said so! If you read Hebrews 11, you'll find people who, as it says in Revelation 12:11. If you try to rationalize God's promise for you, you will never obey Him and receive His promise, because God's logic is different from ours. You'll never be able to convince atheists that God created heavens and earth because they don't believe that God IS (Exodus 3:14). Debating atheists is doing what Jesus told us not to do: Matthew 7:6. I'm not calling atheists dogs or pigs, i'm saying that it is a waste of time and resources trying to convince them to believe in God if they don't want to. On the other hand, you'll become a "great debater", famous and respected, but at the end you'll be like Jabez (enlarging your territory), not like Jesus (enlarging God's kingdom), because as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4:20, you will be filled with words but lacking God's power. Of course if you consider "power" the ability to persuade others to thing like you do, then fame and fortune will be your destiny. So, why did the heroes of faith pleased God? Because they lived by faith! Why did Jesus Christ became a servant man and died on a cross to save us? Because God the Father said so! John 6:38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. The day is coming and it is near, when the children of God will fully understand the meaning of Revelation 12:11, they will fully understand what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4:20. If God promises something, why should we trust He will do what He promised to do? BECAUSE HE SAID SO! Numbers 23:19. Why do you believe (if you do) in the Word of God? The reason i'm so emphatic when i speak about FAITH and UNCONDITIONAL OBEDIENCE TO GOD, is because i've been living it and seeing the results! The reason i have a son called David (read post: Personal Testimony: My Son) is because God promised him 5 years before he was born and when he was born even the doctor said David's birth was a miracle. If your god is small you'll see no miracles, if your GOD IS THE GREAT I AM, you can trust Him, the LORD will keep His promises. Jeremiah 32:27.

The IF Factor: IF You change the Formula THEN You Change the Result.

This Phrase is attributed to Albert Einstein: Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. I confess that before i was insane (even if i didn't look like), because i did, as Einstein said, the same things over and over again expecting different results. For example: I was addicted to pornography but i honestly believed and hoped that God would deliver me from it even if i continued to deal with pornographic materials (movies, magazines, etc.). In the Bible, we can see that every promise that God made (even if it is not explicit), is conditioned to obedience. For example: 2 Chronicles 7:14. It is sad to hear many people talking about "revival" here in America and seeing different formulas being applied to get the result (healing) that can only be achieved if we apply God's formula, which is 2 Chronicles 7:14. Our nation will never be healed by "moral correctness" or "social justice", it will only be healed IF we apply God's formula for Healing. If you consider Jesus' Parable of the Sower, OUR HEART is the land and if we aplly that formula in our lives we WILL BE HEALED. I can testify before God that His formula works because when i applied His formula (with His help) i was completely healed (read the Post: Personal Testimony: New Life). Are you a slave of sin right now? Have you been trying to leave the sinful lifestyle without success? Do you really think that there is no hope for you anymore? Are you feeling like you are in a desert? Deuteronomy 8:2. All start with HUMBLENESS: Matthew 23:12. If you are not willing to HUMBLE YOURSELF God will not be willing to take you out of the desert! That's the FIRST STEP. The SECOND STEP is to PRAY and SEEK GOD'S FACE: Proverbs 8:17; Jeremiah 29:13. If you don't seek God with ALL your heart you will never find Him. The THIRD STEP is TURNING FROM YOUR WICKED WAYS (SINS): Hebrews 12:4. There will be a battle to abandon your sin, because even when we are been set free, we still are used to do those things (sin in this case) and we must fight against it, that's what they call the "habitual sin". Just like Joshua and the Israelites had to fight to possess the land, you will have to fight to possess your new life (promise land), but the same promise God made to Joshua is yours: Joshua 1:9.

A Divided House Will Not Stand!

I'd like to start this post with a few questions: 1) Are you a house (temple) of God? 1 Corinthians 6:19. 2) Are you divided between God and anything or anyone else (yourself included)? Matthew 12:25. 3) How much do you love the LORD your God? Deuteronomy 6:5. 4) Do you show favoritism? Deuteronomy 10:17; Acts 10:34. Do you remember the Parable of the Sower, when Jesus talks about the seeds that fell among thorns? Luke 8:7; Luke 8:14. If you are the house of God, how can you be a divided house? In Luke 8:7 you see that the seed fell on the ground and sprang up, but in Luke 8:14 you see that it never produced "mature fruit" because there were "thorns" that grew along with it (in this parable the seed is the word of God and the ground is the heart). Let's talk about one of the things spoken by Jesus that will not allow you, the believer, to produce the Fruit of the Holy Spirit described in Galatians 5:22-23: Riches. Jesus says this in Luke 16:13. So, who was mammon? Mammon is the name of an ancient deity worshiped by the Sumerians. He is the god of wealth and his name translates as "property". Mammon was an Aramaic loan word in Hebrew meaning wealth although it may also have meant 'that in which one trusts'. Why do we have printed in our dollar bills "in God we trust"? To what God is it referring to? The LORD God (Father of Jesus Christ) or mammon (god of wealth, that in which one trusts)? According to Jesus, whenever a person is driven to get rich, that person already chose mammon as a master. Of course there are those who are rich because God made them rich, like Abraham and Job for example. So, if your heart is divided between serving God and pursuing anything that is not God's will for your life, you already chose another master other then Jesus Christ and one day, when you stand before Jesus Christ for judgement you will regret it. Today you have the chance to choose Jesus Christ as your Master (Lord) and savior, you have the chance to choose eternal life: Hebrews 3:7-8; Deuteronomy 30:19. Ask the LORD to search your heart and show you if there's anything that is  dividing you heart:  Psalm 139:23-24.