Deuteronomy 18:10-12 Let us discuss these verses first. What is meant by passing your son or daughter through the fire? This is human sacrifice! This was the practice of the Canaanites sacrificing their children to their gods! Modern day sacrifice would be abortion! Divination is divining a sentence on someone! A charmer casts magical spells on people. A witch is basically the same thing casting spells on people. Another word for this is a whisperer. A wizard conjures up familiar spirits. Remember King Saul asking the witch of Ender about his future? She did not tell him he was going to be beheaded? King Manesseh also inquired to witches and fortune tellers! A necromancer is one who raises spirits from the dead! They do this to make predictions about the future or in their ghostly help to make something happen. Kind of like the rabbits foot? How lucky was the rabbit? This occult practice was also called Black Magic and comes from the ancient Greek word for corpse necro or prophecy mancy. Comment: It is interesting I lived in India for 3 years and I saw these practices done in the Hindu Temples! I have a blog post on my experience inside a Hindu Temple. The Hindu Priests collect money from people to cast spells on other people. Say a husband wants to get rid of his old wife for he has found a young girl. Then he hires the Priest to cast spells on his old wife that she might die! This is a big money business in India! Funny thing is the opposing party will come to the same Priest and pay him money to cast a spell on his adversary! The Priest will ask more money from the second party! The Hindu Priest’s told me these spells do not work on Christian believers! They do work on everyone else! You might say it is Halloween everyday in India! Do I want to spoil some kids fun collecting candy? No! Did I trick or treat when I was a kid? Yes! What I want you to understand is the origin of Halloween! In Leviticus 18:3 God warned the Jews not to participate in the ordinances or statutes, decree’s, feasts and customes of the gentiles! Today here in America the orthodox Jews do not participate in Halloween but the secular Jews do! Now to the origin of Halloween. The druids were the members of the ancient Celtic culture! The words druid and Celtic mean magic! Remember the Boston Celtics? In the ancient Celtic culture they had Priests, magicians, soothsayers and fortune tellers! They were a high ranking professional class of people from Ireland, Briton, Scotland and Wales. When Rome invaded these area’s around 60 B.C., Caesar said the Celtic groups were performing human sacrifices! Not that Caesar was the Gold Standard for morality but this is what the Roman soldiers observed. Have you ever heard of the wicker man? The Celtics built large wooden idol’s in the form of a man. On top of the wooden beams they nailed wooden slats to form the image. So the center was hollow! Halloween! Then they put the human sacrifices inside and set it on fire! The hollow of your pumpkin has a fire or candle inside of it! The druid religious culture had no written communications only oral. It was a secret society! What are the rules? Criteria for sacrifice? The Romans pretty much wiped out the druids but their occult spirit lives on in culture! The immigration of the Irish to America during late 1800’s and early 1900’s brought Halloween and some of these cultural traditions even though most were Christians. In the Medieval age the remnants of druids opposed Christianity! Trick or Treat! I will hurt you unless you treat me? God says I love you even though you hate me! Let us close with Ephesians 6:12 “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the Rulers of darkness in this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” When children come to our door I put a Gospel Tract into their bags along with the candy! This is one way to wrestle against powers and spirits of darkness! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Tag: ephesians
Grace Alone! Ephesians 2 : 8-10
While the soul is in mortal sin, nothing can profit it; none of it’s good works merit an eternal reward, since they do not proceed from God as their first principle, and by Him alone is our virtue real virtue! Saint Teresa of Avila (1515-1582 A.D.) Comment: Jesus said we must be born again! Not just born once but twice! Do you celebrate your second birth? You should know the date if you have had the second birth! James and Hamsa
Stand Up! Stand Up for America!
Stand Up Stand Up for Jesus was a song written by a dying Pastor from Philadelphia in 1858! His name was Dudley Atkins Tyng. His father had also been the Pastor of the Episcopal Church of Philadelphia. His congregation members were unhappy for Dudley’s stance against slavery! In 1856 he resigned his church and started the Church of the Covenant! In 1858 he got too close to a moving machine and lost his arm! As he lay dying he told his father to “Stand Up for Jesus!” Pastor George Duffield was stirred at the funeral and preached the next Sunday from Ephesians 6 about standing firm and wrote a poem about Standing Up for Jesus which became the great American Christian Hymn! We need to stand up for America! Those that will not we need to turn our backs on! Boycott any sports team and Hollywood and any company that supports them in advertising! We have to make it clear that anyone who does not respect our Nation and Flag we cannot support! We have to make sacrifices as this Pastor did against slavery and even a stand against our own congregations if they support Anti-Christian values! Stand Up for Jesus and America! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Are You Saved? Ephesians 2:8
We looked at the word grace previously used in this passage now we will look at the word saved. So what does saved mean? Saved from what, who, when,through,by and the list goes on! Saved from your boss? They say real joy is putting your milk carton on the breakfast table in the morning and there is a picture of your boss on the milk carton listed as a missing person! Is being saved dependent on me? I can be a good driver but a reckless driver can kill me! Can i be saved from financial ruin? How about working? Still i can be fired or laid off! Saved from bad health? Stop smoking but you could still get lung cancer! Saved for what purpose? Do i need to be saved from people or for people? Saved from a terrorist or for a terrorist? To be saved using the Greek root word in this scripture means to be saved from eternal death! To be delivered from physical death! To be healed and restored to health! To be saved from danger, loss and destruction! Where is the evidence that you are saved? This is the most important question you will ever ask! Where else in the Bible do we find the two words grave and saved used together? Genesis 47:25 “The people of Egypt told Joseph thou has saved our lives let us find grace in the sight of your Lord and we will be Pharaoh’s servants!” The best evidence you are saved is you will be a servant! Jesus said he who is greatest in the Kingdom of God is servant of all. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Is Grace for Everyone? Ephesians 2:8
The word Grace used in verse 8 is connected to other words in this passage such as faith, saved and gift. The word grace does not stand by itself! However in the interest of time we will just cover the word grace here. Grace is many things! It is expressed in a person! We must remember grace is initiated by God! Grace is an act of God manifested in you and me which brings joy, peace, pleasure and gratification! It is God’s favor on your life! He bestows unmerited benefits on your life! At the end of the day grace has pardoned your sin! Grace is God doing for you what you cannot do for yourself! So is grace bestowed upon Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, agnostics and atheists? The internal grace God has given everyone is to know when we have done wrong! Then the product of sin will be guilt! Guilt is destructive unless you know what to do with it! If not you end up on drugs and other mind altering chemicals! We take our guilt to the Cross and receive more grace! Do not try to carry it yourself! I remember a lady years ago asked me if God can forgive any sin? I told her yes! She told me but i cannot forgive myself! I asked her if she was greater than God? To reject grace is to reject Jesus Christ! So then what do you have left? You create your own religious system or ideology to support a defense against grace! It might be secular or religious! It might be the evolutionist who says God has no part in creation of the world! It might be Islam or another religion justified by works that creates murder of yourself and others to get to heaven! It could be a Hindu who creates millions of gods to appease his guilt! If sin can be justified then more sin will follow! When you act in your own name or in the name of a man created god bad things happen! God gave grace to everyone by going to the Cross and being raised from the grave for our justification! God dying for your sin and guilt not by your own efforts! Grace is hard for some to receive because it removes their own efforts and places the burden of proof on God! It is the easyist thing to do but man will complicate by his own efforts! You have to be humble to receive a free gift but to reject grace borders on a idiot! Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse GodWhoisGod.com
Who is God? Daniel 12:3
A very good question! There are a lot of different answers to this question. Some people say, “There is no God.” Your answer to this question will determine how you treat other people and where you will spend eternity! Our belief about who God is will also determine whether we worship God or worship ourselves. If we love God then we will love people! We have three major religions in this world. They are opposite each other, therefore they cannot be all true! Let me explain; 1. Christianity says, “That God died for man.” 2. Islam says, “That man must die for God.” 3. Hinduism says, “That God is who you make Him to be in your mind.” 4. Christianity says, “That God made man.” Islam= Self-worship Hinduism= Self-worship Christianity= God’s grace Self-worship is you trying to do for God what God has already done for you! Grace is God doing for you what you cannot do for yourself! By grace you are saved by faith and not of yourselves! See Ephesians 2:8 We all make mistakes! My worst mistake was rejecting Jesus Christ! My best decision was accepting Jesus Christ as my Savior! Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” Who do you say Jesus Christ is? See Matthew 16:16. How you answer the most important question in your life will determine your past, present and future life! Who do you say that He is? Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
The Respectful Are Respected! 1 Timothy 5:1-4
Instructions from God for a good outcome in your life! Respect elders. Encourage elders. Treat the younger as your brothers and sisters. Care for widows. What happens inside our homes counts! Important! The Christian home is the alternative community that is opposite to the dark, broken dysfunctional world that we live in. Politicians just reflect our broken culture. Church should be different. Debt free and living for others! Live more responsible with more to give away! Problem is the world does not see us any different from them. Just reminds them of themselves and what they hate. We must reinvent a new way of living. When the Church lives most unlike the world it has it’s greatest impact of reaching the world for Christ. Honor those in front of us. The older are farther along and have met things we have not. Wisdom comes from God and through time! Remember the word time means “to honor.” Old is gold. American culture spends between 90-100 Billion dollars each year for anti-aging gimmicks. Hopeless and expensive ways to try to stay young. The Bible teaches that grey hair is a gift from God. The elderly have great opportunities to help the younger. Many of the young today do not know how to ask questions. Be responsible to help widows. Seek out widows in need. John 19:25-27. Take care of your mother. With all the suffering and pain of the Cross and near death Jesus thought about his mother. A disciple took her from the execution place to care for her in his home. Why did not James take care of her? Mary was also his mother. If you read Acts Chapter 12 you will see James was killed a short time later. Joseph her husband had already passed away. Mary was vulnerable and Jesus saw it. John was the older disciple. Take care of a widow not related to you. James 1:27. Pure religion is to take care of widows and orphans and to keep your heart pure. Be family for them. Do 3 things. Find a widow. Look for them. Find, love and serve them. If you do you will come back here one year later and be a changed person. Joy and peace will enter into you. Honor your parents. Repay your parents. Practice your religion. Look not at them as a burden. Ask them how you can help them. Problem is not all parents are honorable. You could have had dysfunctional and abusive parents. Romans 12:17-18. Repay evil for evil? No! Do not become who you hate! Live at peace with everyone. Forgive. Break the cycle of family violence. Honor parents who are not honorable. Ephesians 6:2. Honor your Father and Mother and life will go well with you. The peace of God will accompany obedience. As a parent myself I do not always get it right. Neither will you. You get one shot in life at parenting. Parents work hard and then kids are gone. When we forgive we give away what we get back. Parents do the best they can at the time. Would we do differently if we could do over again? Yes. God gives us His Grace! Source; Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Message given on Sunday, October 13, 2013. Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
New Life Church Sermon Notes. June 23, 2013
Scripture; Matthew 5; 33-35 1. Mean what you say and say what you mean – Honesty, Integrity. 2. Low Trust = Many Laws. We hear out of Washington everyday the following; “We will write another law so this never happens again!” 3. High Trust = Few Laws. 4. Build trust in our families. 5. Lack of trust causes us to withdraw from relationships. In Jesus day no one could trust the Roman government. They deceived the people with unjust taxes, excess spending, bribes, deception, ect. The religious leaders in Jesus day also wrote more laws as trust declined. 6. Jesus gave us a new way of being human. 7. God is an oath maker and a promise keeper – No double talk. 8. Satan is the accuser of the brethren. Five common lies or exaggerations told by Christians; 1. I will pray for you. 2. It is great to see you. 3. I am doing great. 4. I have read all the above and agree with the terms. 5. I love you brother. Three questions arise when we hear one or more of the five statements. 1. Is he or she hyping something? 2. Is he springing something? 3. Is he trying to sell me something? People try to exaggerate and manipulate people. Insecurity causes exaggeration. Would you love me if you saw the real me? Adam and Eve hid from God. Our vulnerabilities project a lifestyle. To manipulate is selfish. Words are used in a deceptive way to try to get a desired outcome. The Bible calls it witchcraft. The witch uses shame, guilt, fear and twists words to get people to believe something that is not true. This is demonic. Powerful but demonic. God is truth and love and not shame. Talk openly to your children about the beauty of God’s creation including sex and the purpose of it. Adolescence who are shamed about sex will have a great difficulty entering into a healthy sexual relationship when they are married. Please see Ephesians 4:14-15. Speak the truth in love. How do we speak the truth in love? Answer the following questions. 1. Have you prayed for them? 2. Do I see good and potential in them? 3. Will I be helpful to them? 4. Am I rested? God made an oath and promises to us. They are as follows; 1. I will be with you always. 2. Nothing can take you from my Father’s hand. 3. I will not leave you as orphans. 4. I will send the Holy Spirit to you. 5. I will give you rest. 6. I will build my church. Comment; What we admire about Pastor Brady Boyd is his transparency! Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
God’s Best Gift? Satan’s Best Gift?
A conclusive list of God’s Gift’s are listed in First Corinthians Chapter One and Chapter 12. Also Romans Chapter 12 and Ephesians Chapter 4. Pastor Brady Boyd at New Life Church in Colorado Springs gave us two important purposes of our spiritual gifts in his Sunday message. They are; 1. Our gifts bring others to God! 2. Our gifts help us to grow up! There was much more in his message Sunday and you can go to their web site if you want more. NewLifeChurch.Org Commentary; When I was reading First Corinthians Chapter 12, verse 31, I noticed that Paul said to covet earnestly the best gifts, and i will show unto you a more excellent way. Then i asked myself what is God’s best gift? In the next verse i got the answer! Remember in the original manuscripts there were no chapters but a continuation of thoughts. God’s Best Gift is “Love”! What is Satan’s best gift? Remember the temptations he offered Jesus? Stones into bread-food. Show-off and jump off the mountain-pride. All the kingdoms of this world-Power,Authority,Rule Jesus said that my Kingdom is not of this world! There is competition for your soul between two Kingdom’s! The Kingdom of this world and the Kingdom of God! The lust of the eyes and the pride of life is cheese on the rat trap for you and me! Satan’s gifts are death, disease, sickness, pestilence, abortion, sin, war, judgement and hell forever! God’s gifts are love, joy, peace, prosperity, long-suffering, patience, eternal life, forgiveness of sin. Choose life! Choose death? The choice is yours! Thankyou. James Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Faith in Who? Faith in What? Ephesians Chapter 3 Verses 11-12
I have translated the two verses above by going back to the original Greek and then reinserting the English translation from Greek back into the text. Verse 11 and 12 reads as follows; According to the past, present and future intension by visibly showing forth something which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord. In whom we have boldness and admission with reliance by the belief in the truth of salvation by Christ. God has given every man a measure of faith! Faith is a Gift from God! So our Faith is not really my faith or your faith but God’s Faith! This is the Faith Paul is speaking about. Not faith in yourself, wife, husband, bank account, job, father, mother, son, daughter, government, retirment, church, pastor but Faith in God! Faith in Jesus Christ alone secures our Salvation both now and forever and nothing else will! Although our family, jobs, ect, are important to us they must never be idols in worship before God! Thankyou. James Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com