Tag Archives: The Church

Discretion Holds the Church’s Virtue

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

a bride leaving

The Bible is called the “Good Book” because it reflects the will and character of a good GOD. The Bible must be interpreted with that in mind, meaning, it must always be interpreted from the perspective of that which is virtuous and good. The perversion of the gospel occurs when evil people try to justify wicked deeds by citing scriptures out of their true context. It is always destructive to the conscience of men and detracts from the integrity of the bible. It is one of the main reasons many people do not trust the bible as an authority. Many people go by what they have heard without ever verifying the facts for themselves. The deceiver, also known as Satan, uses ignorance to perpetuate lies.

An example of the misuse of scripture is how people in power have tried to use Roman 13 to get citizens to accept or submit to unjust and wicked government policies. A student of the bible would only have to recall the over throw of Egypt for the oppression of the Israelites, the deliverance of the three Hebrew men who defied the government of Babylon, or the deliverance of Daniel from the lion’s den for defying the King’s decree to commit idolatry. The author of Romans 13 himself was charged not to preach the gospel of Christ by the governing authorities of his day, yet he defied the decree and was imprisoned and beaten. After his release, Paul continued to preach the gospel, until his eventual execution. The obvious application of Romans 13 is where government policy does not conflict with the principles of GOD.

I see people conflicted and contradicted, as they call themselves Christian, and then try to reconcile their political party views with the teachings of Christ. It can’t be done. There are places where the policies of both republicans and democrats go against the teachings of Christ. If you really know Christ then you know this is true. I am not saying that a person shouldn’t exercise the responsibility to vote. Dr. Martin Luther King put it best, “laws do not change a man’s heart, but laws can govern the heartless.” That may not be Dr. King’s quote verbatim, but it captures the understanding he was relaying. I pray, preach the gospel, and I also cast a ballot, but I do not claim any political affiliation, because none of them align enough with my values as a follower of Christ. I would never adulterate myself by joining a political party, whose loyalty is to the tenants of its policies more than the word of GOD.

The teachings of GOD fortify us against the spoiling of our Christian morals and ethics, by steering us away from compromise. The word of GOD teaches us not to love the world. The world in this context does not refer to creation in general, but rather the social system of man which has orphaned him from the values established by the righteousness of love. Society today is governed by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. As children of GOD, we are called to be in this society but not a product of this society. The bible puts it this way, we are to be in this world but not of this world. As the word of GOD teaches, the only way to come out of this world is to be born again; to be born of the will of GOD, instead of the will of man. Many people say they love GOD, yet have the values of this world, they are deceived. They are deceived because the god they love is the god of their imagination, but not the true and living GOD. As the book of 1st John teaches, you can’t love the light but continually walk in darkness. You can’t abide in the Spirit of Love and actively hate your brother. You can’t be joined to the is world, and joined to GOD also, it is adulterous. In this context, the bible teaches that you can’t have to masters, you must love one and despise the other. Another way to say this is that you can’t have two governors, you should be governed by one and resist the other.

James 4:4 says it very clearly, “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

Though the call for a separation of affection is clear in scripture, you will seldom hear it taught in churches, or encouraged by people who say they follow Christ, especially not during an election year. Why….because people still love the world. People still love the world because their mind has not been renewed. Their mind has not been renewed because they spend more time focused on the things of the world than they do the things of GOD. Add to that, when most people do turn their focus to GOD, they draw from a source that has been adulterated by the values of this world, like most large churches (not all, but most). If your church leadership endorses a political party, it has been adulterated with the cares of this world. There is only one government that should have a platform in the congregation of believers, that is the Kingdom of GOD. Also, your main source should be the Spirit of GOD with in you. The congregation of believers are there to confirm and bear witness to what the Spirit is revealing to you in your own studies. I am not encouraging the forsaking the body of Christ, I am promoting uncompromised intimacy with GOD, that we each may become members of His body.

I will end with this; the Church is called the bride of Christ. As we are His bride, to stay pure, we should be joined to no other. We have been espoused to a jealous GOD so keep your heart pure. Remember the parable of the wise virgins that awaited the bridegroom in Matthew 25, how the bible says they made themselves ready and went forth to meet the bridegroom. Part of the readiness of the bride is a going forth, a separation, to be closer to Christ. Also remember the love letters sent from the Spirit to the bride in the book of Revelations chapter 2. There were key warnings for her to return to her first love, and to repent of adultery, and fornication. All of these deal with being vigilant to make sure we keep our hearts pure, and that we don’t unite ourselves with anything outside of Christ.

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Shining Light on Homosexuality

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

The holy scriptures teach us that the Creator is love. This means that true love is spiritual. True love, being spiritual, is greater than physical things. In other words, true love is not confined to the physical world nor is it defined by the physical world. Actually, the Creator made the physical world to reflect his nature and image. This means that there is a lot to be learned from nature in its pure form. Satan knows this and works to pervert and obscure the order of nature to facilitate the lies and confusions he spreads.

We are commanded to love everyone but we are not commanded to have physical relations with everyone. You can love someone without having physical relations or sex with them. You can enjoy some ones company and feel a strong connection with them and care for them deeply but that does not necessarily make sex with that individual meaningful and virtuous. Purpose is what gives things true meaning. Fulfilling purpose is what makes things virtuous. Love one for another sets a standard of consideration for the other which is the basis for sustainable relationships across the social spectrum: husband to wife, parents to children, sibling to sibling, neighbor to neighbor, and even stranger to stranger; applicable across all ages and genders. People try to justify homosexuality based on the need for freedom to love whom they will. As a spokesperson for the Church and the Kingdom of God, I can say that loving anyone and everyone is not only an encouraged privilege but it is also a requirement.

The problem is that today’s society tries to make sexuality a mandate for love. It is not. The purpose of love can be fulfilled between a man and another man without sexual involvement; the same goes for two women. Sexual relations between to people of the same gender serve no purpose in creation.  In fact, it is destructive. It is destructive because it encourages a behavior that diminishes life instead of producing and sustaining life. Homosexuality attempts to destroy the purpose for gender in creation. The Creator gave us gender differences to facilitate the perpetuation of family. Family reflects the true Glory of God.

The Creator, in order to show His foreknowledge and intentional design often shows us the end from the beginning. This is so we can know that there is purpose and design to creation. From the very first man, Yahweh showed the path of Salvation. Adam had to lie down and be put to sleep that a bride might come forth. He would then be raised again and united with his bride, Eve. Their union is what gave life to all future generations. This union between man and woman symbolized Christ giving His life for His bride, the Church; then from that union life spreads to all man. The creator gives us physical models so that we can understand spiritual things. Homosexuality is an attack on the gospel of salvation by attempting to destroy the physical model put in place by the Creator that leads to an understanding of truth. The scripture is plain when it states that marriage is a mystery that really is about Christ and the Church.  Ephesians 5:25-32,

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.

The war Satan started against Yahweh in heaven is continuing in the earth because Satan has been cast down into the earth. Satan’s objective is to kill, steal, and destroy life through deception and lies; hiding the truth. Gender is being systematically destroyed by the powers of darkness to destroy mankind because mankind was formed in the image of God. Genesis 1:26-28,

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.

Satan’s main weapon of warfare is spreading lies in order to hide the path to truth and life. Yeshua the Messiah came proclaiming the way of salvation; He declared, “I am, the way, the truth, and the life.

Grasp the truth of the big picture. Homosexuality is just another attack on divine order in a continuing effort to hide the path to Yahweh; the giver of life. Let the knowledge of truth strengthen you, through sobering your mind that you might rule over your flesh and bring your members into divine order, unto the perpetuation of life.