 Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” Ever since Genesis chapter three Satan has been on the attack of God's Word. Using the same tactics used in the garden, trying to get people to doubt God's Word by saying, did God really say that? We see the same compromise on the Word of God today in American Evangelicalism. In fact just the other day we went out to a festival in order to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ with those in attendance. As people walked by we were handing out gospel tracts to those who would take them. Some lead to conversations while some say no thank you and continue to move on. Sometimes you have those who will take them and then once they read it or realize it is about Jesus Christ they may come back to return the tract. That is what happened as a man came back, handed me the tract and said "I don't need it I am a pastor in town here", I responded with well just pass it along to someone else then fulfilling the great commission. But this pastor replied to me "I don't agree with your theology". That really stumped me, I mean it is not like I never had conversations with "pastors" who were preaching a false gospel. So I stood there for a second and after really processing what just happened there, I thought maybe I should read the back of this tract to make sure I didn't hand out a tract that was about a certain theological stance. The tracts we use are solid tracts with a true biblical message on the back and it talked about sin and the consequences of sin, along with God's judgment of sin in hell and forgiveness in Christ Jesus calling the reader to repent and believe. So later I looked up the church website where this man said he pastored to see their beliefs and it was very liberal and accepting of all beliefs. It is truly sad to see more and more churches compromising the Word of God for the acceptance of man.  What so many who profess to be Christians today do is pick and choose what they want to believe and accept from the bible and cut out or disregard the things they don't like. Thomas Jefferson did this very thing, going through the bible cutting out the parts he didn't believe were true and only keeping the parts he decided were acceptable. Is that not the very thing we see today with so many. People who shouldn't be but are standing in the pulpits throughout America compromising the very Word of God. Calling evil good and acceptable and calling good evil. Making themselves the final authority over God's Word by making the decision themselves to decide what is good and evil. God gives a warning to those who do this.
Isaiah 5:20-21 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 shrewd in their own sight! The Word of God says "You shall not murder" (Exodus 20:14), yet the murder of unborn children in the womb is passed off as a woman's right to choose, even by many who profess to be Christians. The Word of God says marriage is the union of one man and one woman (Genesis 2:23-24) while society has been trying to redefine marriage in its acceptance of homosexuality, which also the bible calls sin (Genesis 19:1-13; Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9). Jesus says in John 14:6 "I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to the father except through me" but the lie from the father of lies says that all roads lead to Rome. That all religions will get you to the same place. There is only one name under heaven by which man must be saved and it is Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). I will leave you with the warnings giving to us by God in the book of Revelation to the Church that compromises. To the Church in Pergamum Revelation 2:12-17 12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword. 13 “‘I know where you dwell, Satan's throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. 15 So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth. 17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’ To the Church in Thyatira Revelation 2:18-29 18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze. 19 “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. 20 But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. 21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, 23 and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. 24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. 25 Only hold fast what you have until I come. 26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, 27 and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. 28 And I will give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ Soli Deo Gloria Ricky Gantz
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 Years ago one of the most famous rap artists, 2Pac Shakur made the statement "Only God Can Judge Me" and many have followed in his footsteps. It has become so increasingly common for people to throw this statement around when someone disagrees with how they are living. Sometimes I think it has become more of a cliché for people to say rather than really think about what they are saying. This statement however is true, Only GOD Can Judge Me and that reality should strike fear in our hearts, because if we start being honest with ourselves, we know we have sinned against a Holy God. We know it is wrong to lie, steal, cheat, blaspheme the name of the Lord, just to name a few of God's commandments. Yet somehow so many think they will be ok with God because even though they know these sins mentioned are wrong, many still think of themselves as not really that bad. Because many people measure wrong doings based more upon their own standards rather then the standards given to us by God Himself. You see everyone has a standard by which they live, for many people their standards are based on themselves, for the Christian, the standard for which we stand upon is the Word of God. So when a Christian makes the statement that marriage is only between a man and woman or says that Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life those truths are based on the Word of God and not subjective to our opinions or feelings based upon are experiences but on the absolute truth and unchanging Word of God. For someone who doesn't follow Christ their authority is based on their own experiences and feelings which we all know, those do change. So today you may think one way to be true and tomorrow change your mind. That's not the best way to base the truth on because then you live in a world of constantly changing truth, which truth is not subjective to how we feel about it today. Truth is based on God because God is truth! Maybe you have heard this before what is true for you is true for you and what is true for me is true for me, think about that for a minute............ hopefully you see the foolishness in that statement. If not let me try to help you out, if the speed limit is posted as 25 MPH through the housing area and you do 125 MPH and a police officer pulled you over. When he comes up to the car and tells you that you are breaking the law going 100 MPH over the posted limit and that because of that he is going to arrest you, try telling him that his truth is his but for you the truth is 125 MPH is your posted speed limit. You wouldn't do that would you? Why not? If truth is subjective to the individual then why not? The reason you wouldn't do that is because even though many people may try to claim subjective truth they honestly don't really live that way, except when it comes to God. Which is inconsistent and hypocritical! Judge not is another statement thrown around at Christians for standing on the truths according to God's Word. Often quoting scripture from Matthew chapter 7 verse 1. Yet they rarely are able to tell you what the context is. And if the next couple verses are sited as well they too are commonly taken out of context or misunderstood.  Usually this picture is how many see it, that we should not judge because we have a log sticking out of our own eye, so how can you tell someone about their sin when you have your own. Well that is the purpose of Matthew 7:1-6 Jesus is speaking about hypocritical, self-righteous judgment. That's what we should never do, in fact what he is telling us to do first is to remove the log from our own eye then we are clear to see and help another out.
So the argument that so many use to tell Christians they are wrong and not suppose to judge is not really what is being said. Christians are only being messengers of the Word of God. God has said in His Word and Christians are called to share the good news of Jesus Christ with those who are not in Christ. For them to understand and appreciate the good news they must first understand the bad news that our sins separate us from God. Once we understand our sins against a Holy and Righteous God and the fact that we are cut off from fellowship with God. And that before the foundations of the earth God provided a way that we may be reconciled back to Him, through His Son Jesus Christ. Who humbled himself and took on flesh, the perfect lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. Willfully went to the cross laying down his life. He who knew no sin yet became sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God through Jesus. And the wrath of God was satisfied by the obedience of Christ on the cross, shedding his innocent blood in order that all who believe will have everlasting life. So remember next time you hear someone say only God can judge me, that is absolutely true and it should cause us to really think about it and examine ourselves. Because there will be no greater devastation then when someone stands before God on the day of judgment condemned in their sins. If you haven't put your faith in Christ know this, God commands all men to repent. So repent and believe in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. You can be made clean washed in the blood of Jesus Christ cleansed from all unrighteousness and its only through Christ. Grace and Peace Ricky Gantz G220 Ministries |