A New Gay Acceptance Church Movement

A New Gay Acceptance Church Movement

Many people do not realize that there is an intentional organized movement by gay groups to obtain gay acceptance in our churches throughout the world. More shockingly, this gay acceptance church movement is happening within churches and most of their Christian members have no clue it is happening right under their noses. You must keep in mind that these groups are not targeting liberal churches that already accept gays in their church, but demand for equal acceptance in the traditional church that most Bible believing Christians attend. In the same churches that were founded by great Saints of Christ that most Bible-believing Christians love and adore!

In the United States, Matthew Vines has become the catalyst and spokesman for this movement. His “Reformation Project” teaches other gays to influence and train believers and leaders within our churches to rethink their beliefs on gays. It is their goal to influence churches into the belief that being gay in not a sin but in his own words is, “Homophobia!” This short 4 minute video below may very well may be one the scariest videos you have seen lately if you believe homosexuality is an abomination sin as I do. Please watch and judge for yourself.

If you don’t think this is possible in your church. Take a close look at the increase in gay accepting churches and their corresponding denominations from 2010 to 2011. I do not have any more recent statistics, but one could only assume that the numbers are getting worse the more movements like this catch on.

Even though I consider myself to be a non-denomination Christian. I am very proud to be a member of a Baptist church because of its -4% percentage in this table. Nevertheless, I will stay vigilant and ensure that I am keen to pick-up on any signs of this movement coming to my church. For some of you, the percentage of new gay accepting churches in your church’s denomination may suggest that you take immediate action and learn if this movement has influenced the church you currently belong to.

Just in case anyone reading this agrees that being gay is not a sin and should be accepted by all churches, let’s read some of God’s Word and you decide for yourself.

Lev. 18:22, “You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.”

Lev. 20:13, “If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them” 

1 Cor. 6:9-10, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” 

Rom. 1:26-28, “For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. 28And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.”

Call me curious, but how could anyone get this message wrong? There must be some pretty powerful stuff in Mr. Vines’ “Reformation Project” to enable gays the empowerment to influence church leaders and members that homosexuality is not a sin.

If you are a member of a church that has been affected by this movement, please stand up for Christ and make it known that you will only accept the truth that is clearly written in the Bible. It is clear that any church that freely accepts gays into its membership has been mislead by the Great Deceiver, Satan. The whole world must know how the Devil is using our own churches to gain dominion over the world!

If you agree, please help me spread this message along to as many people as possible.

I want to Develop a God Addiction

I have to admit, I have developed many addictions during my 40+ years on  this earth. During my childhood, I was addicted to sodas, ice cream, and candy. Basically, anything that contained sugar in it. During my adolescent years, I was addicted to finding my true-love and hanging out with my friends, otherwise known as “partying!” During the years of my Army career, I was addicted to adrenaline, caffeine, and nicotine. Now, during my mid-life, I have new aspirations for a different kind of addiction.

I want to Develop a God Addiction!

All my life, I had no problems with adopting addictions that are bad for me. Why is it I have such a hard time finding an addiction that is good? Once is a great while I find an addiction that is somewhat good for me, such as exercise or good eating habits. However, what can be better than an addiction than is good for my soul? Just think about it for a minute. Earthy addictions may do good for my body and mind and help keep me attached to this world for a few extra years. But, an addiction to my Lord carries a guarantee that lasts for eternity!

The first step to developing a God addiction is the realization of how vital God truly is in our daily lives. So many of us depend on our personal strengths, but we must remember that God is the creator of everything! That means that God is the author and controller of everything in our world, which includes everything in our lives. Nothing good or bad happens to us unless our God has ordained it to be so. We must remember that God’s will is not our own and when we have anything in our lives that happens that we don’t understand, it is because God either blessed us or He tests us.

Absolutely everything has a purpose. But what about those sinners that have good things happen to them? This is a great question! Even for the atheist that are blessed with fortune and fame. Their blessings are only for this earth. God is somehow using them for His glory in heaven! Their understanding of this is not important. God knows what He is doing and that is all that matters.

The same goes for when bad things happen to Christians that love God. Don’t take it as God doesn’t love me. Just remember that God is either testing your faith or he is using the situation in some way you don’t understand to His glory. We must remember, God even allowed His Son Jesus to be tested by Satan in the wilderness; why would he not allow Satan to test us as well? You may at first think that God is punishing you and maybe He is, but He may be using you in another way that brings glory to Him that you do not understand.

You see, the only way to become addicted to God is through faith. We must not allow circumstance in our lives, both good and bad to influence our belief in what we know is true. God’s will is not our will and we must stop trying to figure out things of this world that we cannot understand or were never meant to understand. We cannot understand because the only One that can understand is God the Father. God doesn’t want us to understand anyway. He only wants us to have faith and trust in Him.

Matthew 18:3 And he said “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Let us pray that we can do our best to put away the thoughts of this earth and start trusting more in God. I believe this is the first step to become addicted to God!

The Glorious Presence of my Savior

The Glorious Presence of my Savior

I don’t often blog on the subject of Christian humor, but this cartoon does a pretty darn good job of depicting how I feel about someday being in the glorious presence of my Savior, Jesus Christ! Not that I believe I will be overly happy because I am astonished that I made it into heaven like the guy depicted, but because of my astonishment of Jesus wanting to be with a sinner such as me.

Going to Heaven should not be a worry for any Christian believer because of the very popular and well-known John 3:16 verse:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

While this is not an issue for me, many others say they have a hard time in believing because they need proof; they need hard evidence.

I believe that they are blind! I say to them that the evidence they are looking for is all around them, but Satan has hardened their hearts and blinding them from seeing it. The evidence is in the beautiful and marvelous world our God had created because He loves them.

Just take a look at the countless stars at night and the endless blue sky during the day. Take a look at the majestic animals on the land and the mysterious creatures of the sea God gave us for our enjoyment and to eat. Take a microscope and look at the complexities of a single cell that scientist still cannot understand somehow came to life, but believe resulted from a “Big Bang” and entirely by chance.

I submit to them that evidence of God is everywhere. Just open your eyes and for the first time in your God-given life truly SEE IT!

No, my belief in God and my Lord Jesus Christ is not an issue; thus my knowledge of being in the presence of my Savior in Heaven someday is a guarantee for me and all my brothers and sisters in Christ. Like the beautiful gospel lyrics read, “What a day of rejoicing it will be!”

What I cannot understand is how my God, the One that created this beautiful world loved sinful old me so much that He gave His only Son Jesus to suffer and die on Cavalry!

What amazes me more is Jesus actually did it!

He did not have to, He could have summoned a legion of Angels at any moment to save Him. But He did not; Why? Because He loves me and wants me to spend eternity in Heaven with Him.

Do you see how Jesus looks just as much forward to seeing us in Heaven as we do Him.

That’s why, just like the picture below, I will am astonished to be in the presence of my Savior!

You should be astonished too!

It is better to live on the floor of Heaven than to be the ruler of Hell. Why? Because the ruler of Hell is eternally separated from our Father!

Play "Victory in Jesus" at my Funeral

Play "Victory in Jesus" at my Funeral

The church I attend recently went through a revival. On the second night of the revival I came to a revelation. There is only one hymn that I want played at my funeral! That hymn is “Victory in Jesus”, written by Eugene Monroe Bartlett in 1939. My wife and children can choose other favorites that they want, but this one is mine.

Why? I have heard and sang this hymn hundreds of times and every time it never fails to move my Spirit like none other. I have read and prayed over the words of this song and I challenge anyone to find words that better speak to the soul about the love of Jesus Christ and the free gift of Salvation He gave to us. No other lyrics describes how I feel about Jesus more than this one!

If you want to be blessed, take a couple of minutes and slowly read over the words of this hymn. Let God speak to your heart like He did with me!

Victory in Jesus

I heard an old, old story,

How a Savior came from glory,

How He gave His life on Calvary

To save a wretch like me;

I heard about His groaning,

Of His precious blood’s atoning,

Then I repented of my sins

And won the victory.

Chorus

O victory in Jesus,

My Savior, forever.

He sought me and bought me

With His redeeming blood;

He loved me ere I knew Him

And all my love is due Him,

He plunged me to victory,

Beneath the cleansing flood.

I heard about His healing,

Of His cleansing pow’r revealing.

How He made the lame to walk again

And caused the blind to see;

And then I cried, “Dear Jesus,

Come and heal my broken spirit,”

And somehow Jesus came and bro’t

To me the victory.

Chorus

O victory in Jesus,

My Savior, forever.

He sought me and bought me

With His redeeming blood;

He loved me ere I knew Him

And all my love is due Him,

He plunged me to victory,

Beneath the cleansing flood.

I heard about a mansion

He has built for me in glory.

And I heard about the streets of gold

Beyond the crystal sea;

About the angels singing,

And the old redemption story,

And some sweet day I’ll sing up there

The song of victory.

Every time I read or sing this hymn, tears come to my eyes! How dare I ever forget what Jesus had done for me! If these words don’t move you, please take a moment and pray for the Holy Spirit to soften your harden heart.

Anyone that feels nothing from these powerful words means only one thing. Your heart has been snared by the Great Deceiver, Father of All Lies, the Evil One, Liar from the Beginning, the Destroyer, the Devourer, Enemy of Righteousness, Fallen Angel, Demon, Beelzebub, or more commonly known as Satan and the Devil!

There is only one cure from his eternal grasp on your soul! Only with “Victory in Jesus” can you be free!

“… thanks be to God! He gives us the VICTORY through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57 NIV

What in Life is Meaningful?

Is it fame or fortune? Is it living in a big house or driving a sporty little red car? Is it knowledge or becoming well-respected and known in your career field? Is it your relationships in life such as finding your true love and being loved by your family and friends?

While many of these things in life are great and very important to many of us. Some, such as loving and taking care of our family is also very important to God. However, all of them are meaningless when compared to your personal relationship with God. Knowing our God is the only true meaning of life because having a relationship with Him was the reason why God created us. It was true for Adam and Eve and still true today. Everything else is nothing more than gifts from God to us that come in the form of blessings.

The Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes teaches us a thing or two about this subject:

Everything is Meaningless

1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem: 2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” 3 What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? 4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. 5 The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. 6 The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. 7 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. 8 All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. 9 What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. 10 Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. 11 There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow. Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

Wisdom Is Meaningless

12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men! 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. 15 What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted. 16 I thought to myself, “Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind. 18 For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

Pleasures Are Meaningless

1 I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. 2 “Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?” 3 I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly–my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives. 4 I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. 5 I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 6 I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. 8 I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired men and women singers, and a harem as well–the delights of the heart of man. 9 I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me. 10 I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 11 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. Ecclesiastes 2:1-11

Wisdom and Folly Are Meaningless12 Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom, and also madness and folly. What more can the king’s successor do than what has already been done? 13 I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness. 14 The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both. 15 Then I thought in my heart, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said in my heart, “This too is meaningless.” 16 For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die! Ecclesiastes 2:12-16

Toil Is Meaningless
17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22 What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? 23 All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. 24 A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, 25 for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? 26 To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. Ecclesiastes 2:17-26

As we read in Ecclesiastes, everything of this earth is meaningless. All except one, God! You may say this is a contradiction, but it is not! God may be with us on this earth, but He will never be of this earth! He cannot be part of it because it is impossible for the creator to become part of the created. Think about it like this! If I build a house, am I part of the House or do I live in the house? Of course I am not part of the house. Just like God is not part of the world, He only lives in the world and in our hearts.

Everything about God is spiritual and Holy, which is a complete opposite of what earth is and especially what it has so recently become. Here is something else we should know. Just like God not being a part of this world, we have a choice to not be a part of the world also! When we are living a Christ centered life that has a personal relationship with Him, we no longer belong to this world.

John 15:19 “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”

We have found the only true meaningful thing in life. A relationship with our God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ.

Finding our meaning in life also results in finding true happiness! One cannot exist without the other. This is why a non-Christian will search all their life looking for the meaning of life and true happiness. They search high and low and spend their entire life savings on everything they can think of!

If they only knew that happiness was only one repentance prayer away and is completely free!

Join me in a prayer to pray for those that do not know HIM.

by James Apple Jr.

Please share this powerful message with others!

You Don't Look for Jesus - He is Looking for You

You Don't Look for Jesus - He is Looking for You

Today, as I was silently praying for the lost, I was laying special emphasis on a few words in my prayer that were directed toward those I know personally. I was praying over and over, "Lord, help them find you! ... Lord, help them find you!"


Then, Suddenly it hit me! What am I saying? ...This makes no sense! Why am I praying for them to find You? You haven't gone anywhere. You have always been there for all of us. These people do not need to look for Jesus. Jesus is looking for you!


In fact, Jesus makes himself more available to the lost than He does the saved!

Luke 19:10 tells us "For the Son of Man came to seek and the save what was lost."


We know this to be true from the way He lived his life. He always jumped at the opportunity to witness to the sinful and lost.


Why? Because He loves all of us and wants everyone to be with Him in Heaven. He wants all the lost to be led to righteousness.


Mark 2:17 says "... 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'"

In Luke 19:1-10 Jesus was a guest of the known sinner and tax collector, Zacchaeus.

In John 8 Jesus stopped the agry mob from stoning to death the adultress by saying, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."

Jesus was not concerned with the status quo! He always did what was necessary to bring the lost to salvation. Because He loves them! Just like He did with the calling of the Levi.

27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. 29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and 'sinners'?" Luke 5:27-30

There are other examples that I could mention, but not needed because the point is clear. There is no need for Christians to pray for the lost to find Jesus. Jesus has been there all along.

You see, Jesus is a gentleman! He is standing at the door and he is knocking. All we have to do is open the door and let Him in.

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20

I ask all Christians reading this post to pause for a moment and pray for the lost to open their hearts to Jesus. Many know that He is there and hear Him there knocking, but can't let Him in because the world has hardened their hearts. We should pray that something will break the barrier they have placed around their hearts and allow the love of Jesus to fill their Souls!

Revelation 1 - Video Bible Study

Revelation 1 - Video Bible Study

Prologue
1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he saw--that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

Greetings and Doxology
4 John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father--to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. 7Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. 8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come,the Almighty."


One Like a Son of Man
9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis,Philadelphia and Laodicea." 12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands,13 and among the lampstands was someone "like a son of man,"dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. 17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. 19 "Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right handand of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.