When you stop and think about it, it is silly to think God has changed as time has gone by. Reason being, our God doesn’t reckon time like man. We are told that a thousand years is like one day to Him (II Pet. 3:8). Not only that, we are talking about a Being without beginning or end. One who knew what was going to unfold thousands of years before it even happened (Gen. 12:1-3).

This brings us to man wanting to alter worship. Throughout history, mankind was punished over and over for making even the slightest changes to worship. From Cain (Gen. 4:1-6), to Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10:1-2), all the way to those in Christ’s time (Matt. 15:7-9). Any worship  acceptable to the Lord always has to be according to His will, not man’s. Since the final message has been revealed (Jude 3; II Tim. 3:16-17), any changes to worship today, we know has come from the mind of man and not God.

In many religious circles today you find worship nothing more than an entertainment event designed to appeals to the masses. You can see how happy Satan is to see people wanting to serve the Lord by doing things Satan’s way.  It’s like the garden all over again. We know that God has said that we must worship in spirit and in truth (Jn. 4:24).  Satan says, “Not in spirit and in truth.” And just like Eve, it is believed.

You can choose to presume to know what God approves of or you can choose to know by listening to His words. Until man realizes that worship is for God, he will continue to do what man likes rather than what is divinely approved. When Jesus said, “Unless you believe that I am He you will die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24), it is implied that we listen and do what He says. The fact that people say that their worship is for the Lord, doesn’t excuse, or make up for that fact they do things that are unauthorized.

The question we close with, are you worshipping the way the word of God instructs? Don’t assume or presume, study and know for certain.

Chuck

The title of this article presents a question that might seem silly to ask. From a Christian point of view, it seems obvious that one should always tell the truth. However, telling the truth does not always require you to speak. In other words, you might find it better to say nothing than to speak the truth in certain situations.

Sometimes silence is what is needed

For a perfect example, consider when Jesus was confronted by the chief priests and elders (Matt. 21:23-27). Jesus obviously knew the truth and could have spoken. However, because they refused to answer His question, He did not answer theirs. Jesus recognized the true intent of the conversation and was not under obligation to tell the truth. Still, let’s not confuse this idea with thinking there are times when we can lie. That’s not what we are talking about in the article.

The Proverb writer stated that one should not answer a fool according to his folly (26:4). You may very well be right about something, but if you are dealing with one who is just being foolish in his thinking, your truth will fall on deaf ears. This is why our Lord told His followers that when someone does not want to hear the truth, there comes a time you have to shake the dust off your feet and move on (Luke 9:5).

There are different ways to utter the truth

We must also not forget that there are many ways to say the same thing without lying. Again, the Proverb writer stated that a soft answer can turn away wrath (Prov. 15:1). Paul spoke similarly in his when instructing saints to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). It is not the intention to speak in a way to defuse a situation by withholding truth. Rather, it means to choose our words wisely.

Let your yes be yes, and your no be no

Knowing that we all need to speak the truth, Christians need to make sure they mean what they say. If we say we are going to do something, it ought to be the truth, not just a ploy to create a temporary reprieve. During His sermon on the mount, Jesus admonished his followers “But let your ‘Yes” be “Yes” and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one,” (Matt. 5:37). God’s people do not say things like, “Well, I really did not mean it.” Or, “You are not going to hold me to that are you?” God’s people are to tell the truth always, even when they say they are going to do something.

Gossip may be truth, but still gossip

It is easy to justify gossip by saying, “Well, it was the truth!” This may be correct, but such things should not be said if our intent is to malign another instead of helping them. Our Lord pointed out that if we have a matter with a brother, we are to go to him directly (Matt. 18:15). Not everyone needs to know all the “ins and outs” of our personal lives. Telling every little detail might be truthful, but we need to make sure that we are speaking with purpose, not just to create a stir. There is far too much being uttered for a lack of understanding of this principle.

Beware of uttering “white” lies

Too often, people replace the truth with what they consider a “harmless” lie. If there is no obvious harm done by the falsehood, people become more comfortable deviating from truth. The problem is that our Lord makes no distinction between “harmless” lies and “malicious” ones. “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Rev. 21:8). May we only speak truth as God’s children.

Chuck                                                                                        

Demon possession

This past week I received a text from a man concerned about demon possession. He asked me what I knew about it. I told him that it does not exist today. His response: I wish that were true. I insisted that I could prove it Biblically. He sounded comforted but still wanted proof.

To be clear, I am not denying that demon possession existed. Jesus often cast out unclean spirits from people (Luke 4:40-41; 8:2, 26-33; 9:38-42). Beyond our Savior casting demons out of people, both the apostles and those whom they laid hands on also had the ability (Acts 5:16; 8:6-7; 16:16-18). It is one thing to know that possession existed, but it is another to understand what the Bible teaches on the subject.

Jesus, His apostles and some Christians cast out demons with purpose. This was not just done to help those suffering – it was also done to demonstrate power. Performing exorcisms showed that God was with them and confirmed that the things they were teaching were of God. Jesus made this purpose clear in Mark 16:19-20 – the gifts were given to confirm the word. Remember that in New Testament times, the scriptures were not yet complete. Once the complete revelation was given, it no longer needed to be confirmed and the gifts would go away (Jude 3).

Not just anyone could cast out demons though. As evidence, let’s consider what happened with some Jewish exorcists. In Acts 19:12-16, some religious men claimed to have the power to cast out evil spirits. These men noticed how Paul called upon Christ to rid people of evil spirits. Seeing this, they opted to do the same with a demon: “We adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches,” (verse 13).

The evil spirit then responded to the exorcists: “Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?” (verse 15). Then the demon leaped on them, overpowered them and caused them to flee the house naked and wounded (verse 16).

Movies and modern depictions of exorcisms are nothing like what we find in the Bible. The exorcisms of the Bible do not require ongoing repetition of scriptures and all-night vigils. The exorcist simply commanded the evil spirit to leave the body, and the spirit would comply. This happened via the power from above. Jesus could do it, as could His apostles. As we previously mentioned, the apostles would lay hands on Christians to give them the gifts of the Holy Spirit. One of those gifts was the ability to cast out demons (Acts 8:17-18).

James 4:7 should offer us comfort: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” The key to this verse is the part that says to submit to God. The suffering of those who “think” they are possessed by demons has more to do with rejecting God than it does with being overpowered by some evil spirit. This is why we are warned about getting caught up in black magic, sorcery and even astrology (Acts 8:9; Rev. 21:8; Gal. 5:20; Eph. 5:11).  We are to rely on the power of God and not allow ourselves to follow Satan.

Am I implying that someone who dabbles with the occult will become demon-possessed? I will only quote the exact word of God: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?” (Rom. 6:16). Demons cannot overpower anyone who is following God, and everyone has the capability to obey Him (Romans 14:11).

There is no need for exorcism today. Moreover, nobody is qualified to perform one as the apostles have not laid hands on anyone alive today. God always makes a way of escape when we are tempted (I Cor. 10:13). We do not have to fear being overpowered by demons. Trust in God and follow Him.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Chuck