Some Will, Some Won't!

Have you ever wondered why some Christians won't attempt anything remotely substantial for God? After reading the parable of the two sons in Matthew 21 v28-32. The only conclusion I came to is that "some will, and some wont!"

Jesus tells the parable of two sons who were given clear instructions by their father to go work in his vineyard. 

The first son was reluctant to work, but afterwards came to his senses and did as his father had asked him "I will not: but afterward he repented, and went"

The second son initially showed promise! But decided not to go work in the vineyard "And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not"

Jesus Christ finishes this parable by asking the listeners "Whether of them twain did the will of his father" - the answer clearly being the first son. The parable was spoken to contrast how the scribes and pharisees rejected the teachings of John Baptist un-repentantly, but the publicans and harlots gladly received the teachings are were saved

"For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him"

The parable itself can be interpreted though for Christians who have been given clear instructions to go "work" in the vineyard of our heavenly father. Let's say the command is the great commission "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature"

This command is clear, but the response by all Christians will be one of two things! Some will obey and do, and some won't obey. There could be a plethora of reasons behind their decision but it will always be that some will and some wont.

I have come to two conclusions from this simple truth; and they are these.

1) Thank God that we are not saved by our "works" but rather by the blood of Jesus Christ. Reason being if we were justified by our works, then we all would fall short, even if we were to obey every command of God, we will fall short of perfection every single time. Jesus Christ on the other hand did all that was required of him, and died as the perfect sacrifice for our sins. The works we do show our love for our father, but do not justify us in is sight and they never will. Only Jesus Christ can justify us through faith.

2) Don't be downcast when you see Christians around you not wanting to do anything for God, but you yourself are trying to live a righteous life or trying to preach the gospel to others. God know's and see's the everything and someday we all individually as believers will have to stand before God. This will not be for judgment of our sins, since we have been declared righteous already, but rather it will be to give an account of how we lived our lives here on earth. Whether we spent out time laying up treasures in heaven or spent our time building up wood hay and stubble here on earth.

Women & Soul-Winning

It’s rather easy to get the impression that soul-winning is a male endeavor! A casual reader of the Bible or a nominal Christian today might think that going out there and winning the lost is a task placed solely upon the shoulders of men.

The task of reaching the lost with the gospel though is a God given role to every single born again believer, male and female without exception. Allow me to expand!


The original great commission given by Jesus Christ was to his disciples which were his church when he was on Earth! Christ was the head of that church, he taught them the Word, they prayed together, sang psalms, he sent them out two by two soul-winning, he reproved rebuked and exhorted them…all the hallmarks of what a great new testament church should be was present in Jesus Christ’s ministry to the disciples.


Some of his last parting words to his disciples, before he ascended up to the Father is what we commonly know today as the great commission.


“Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.” ~ Mark 16 v15


Now we know that Christ is the head of every single scriptural church today.


This truth is made crystal clear in the beautiful picture of marriage.


“……..Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church; and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject into Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing………..” ~ Ephesians 5 v22-24


Much like how every good marriage is a picture of Christ and the church, the same with every scriptural church....Christ is the head of that church and the pastor is known as the under-shepherd to the one Great Shepherd Jesus Christ.


So the command to preach the Gospel to every creature is to every single scriptural church standing today and ever will stand.


Churches are made up of mixed multitudes of people both male and female, if ever a church hopes to reach as many people as they can with the Gospel then it’s going to take the combined efforts of all believers not just men.


We read in the book of Acts 1 how there were gathered about 120 believers! Many who were women and it states so within the context.


These are the same believers who were filled with the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 who went out and got about 3000 people saved.


This was a fulfilment of the prophet Joel’s words when he said “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out my of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants hand handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy” explained by Peter in the Acts 2 narrative


3000 people could only be saved with the combined efforts of all the believers working together being filled with the Holy Spirit. God is no respecter of persons he will use both men or women to save the lost, all he needs is a willing vessel.


Remember the Samaritan woman in John 4? When she was saved by Christ, she went out with the good news and got other people saved.


I believe in women preachers (not behind the pulpit preaching! God forbid) but out there in the harvest where the labourers are so few! In the highways and hedges and door to door with the news of glad tidings.


We read many times in Paul’s writings how he wanted the women that laboured with him in the Gospel to be looked after, he praised the efforts of god fearing women like Phebe, Priscilla, Mary, Julia, Chloe, Euodias, Syntyche, Eunice and Lois etc who helped him and who were bold enough to open their mouths and give people the Gospel.


God is not restricted by numbers or whether your male or female, he is though restricted when believers make excuses and are not willing to put in the work or the time for the Gospel.

 The magnitude of winning the lost is a lifetimes work, a work that is so important, that it should be impressed on every believers heart.

Tracts - Some Amazing Numbers!

How important is it to distribute Gospel tracts as we go about our daily tasks around town? Many people are unsure if the results are worth the effort. We seldom hear of someone being saved from a tract we hand out and rarely hear of someone coming to church because a Gospel tract was given to them. Maybe we should take a closer look at what happens when we regularly and faithfully hand out tracts.

When we give someone a Gospel tract, we never know what they are going through or how God will use it in their life. Several years ago, I was flying from Atlanta to Detroit and seated beside me was a former football star for the University of Connecticut. We began talking, and I gave him a Gospel tract. He was going to Detroit to attend his grandmother’s funeral. He was thinking about eternity, and I had the opportunity to lead him to Christ. When you give someone a Gospel tract, it may be just the answer to a troubled heart or soul. We must keep that in mind when we go through our daily routines around town.

Distributing tracts, especially with your church information on them, makes your church better known. Dr. Bobby Roberson said, “Don’t just be the pastor of your church, but be the pastor of your community.” When an unchurched person has a spiritual problem and needs a pastor, the pastor of your church should be the first name that comes to his mind. This is more likely to happen if your church members pass out tracts everywhere they go.

If each of your church members consistently distributed tracts, your town could be completely saturated very quickly. If 100 people distributed only 5 Gospel tracts each day, then 182,500 Gospel tracts would be distributed in one year! All we need to do is consistently give a person a Gospel tract each time we pull out our wallet to pay for something.

The problem isn’t that we have no opportunities; the problem is that we are not making a conscious effort to distribute tracts on a regular basis. May we all make a commitment to this simple task as we live for Christ each day.

By Earl Jessup (published by permission)

IFBKJV.com has these resources listed where you can obtain free tracts: Free Resources

What is "The Cloud"?

I came across a great YouTube on "the cloud". I have heard a lot about it lately, and went looking for info, and this you tuber has a lot of good info on his many videos. I can see how this could be beneficial in a lot of ways ie: my files at church and my files at home, so I thot I'd share it here for anyone who cares.



On a side note, at the Spiritual Leadership Conference in Lancaster, CA, they released a new app for the iPhone or Android. It's a app for soulwinning contacts! It looks really nice, and they have been testing it for a year. They just got it approved at iTunes, and you can get it there for 99 cents. It's called "Outreach", and here is a link that tells more about it: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/outreach/id447923900?mt=8 "Once installed you can track the progress of each of your soulwinning prospects— you can quickly view a map to their home, make a phone call, and record each contact and spiritual decision. You can also view and organize your prospects into custom lists."

I don't have either phone yet :( but it anyone has used it, please post on it! I'd love to hear about how it works and what it can do!

The Mission Field!

The mission field is a synonym often used to describe the areas where the Gospel has had little exposure. Our thoughts immedietly go to the far east of China or Israel, or to the many areas of Africa. No doubt these places need diligent missionaries and evangelists. In fact I hope to God that godly men and women with a heart for these places rise up and go take the Gospel to those people.


The Gospel is for everyone, because in the sight of God all men are without excuse. they shall go to hell if they die in their sins. God is no respector of persons, the Jew or the Greek. The only people He favours are those who are washed in the blood of Christ. For everyone else, there are these chilling words.


He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. ~ John 3 v36


So the burden of reaching the lost far and wide is prevalent indeed and should occupy our hearts, as God's people, because we know the truth. The Bible says "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; "


What I wanted to say though is this. The mission field needn't necessarily be hundreds of miles away though. Right where we live wherever we are, there are lost people all around us.


The world we live in happens to be a culturally diverse place, speaking of my home town of London, you do not have to travel far to reach people from every walk of life. I believe in the notion of "six degrees of separation" in that between you and another person in the world there is a gap of six people. You want to reach the world? why not reach the people around you and right where you are.

Rob Bell Exposed!!

I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. ~ 2Timothy 4 v1-4

Error Exposed In The King James Bible!

Well, who knew that it would come to this, but I've stumbled across multiple errors throughout scripture; I share this information with you guys because I want all of you to know the errors as well. 

I've listed the scriptures below along with the reference to the errors I've found

Door Knocking Doesn't Work Anymore

Do you remember when preachers all preached about going on door-to-door visitation? By that, I mean cold calls, city surveys, house to house. You walk up to a door picked randomly, knock on it, introduce your church, and inquire about the spiritual state of the soul who lives there. Then, based on the reply, give the gospel and invite that person to accept Jesus as Savior. You leave a little while later with a smile, a hearty handshake, and a promise from them to come visit your church soon.

Does this ever happen anymore? Or are you more likely to have the dogs set on you? Maybe have someone pull a gun in your face? Is this a familiar scenario instead: you knock on the door and all the lights go off. You wait. And wait. And wait. You leave a church tract or information booklet that you know is going to get thrown away in a few minutes, unread.

In the past few years, I have sat across the table from nameless independent, fundamental pastors who have told me, personally, that door knocking doesn't work anymore. Sure, they have a door to door campaign sometime during the nicest weather of the year, when it's not too uncomfortable for their church members. Maybe in conjunction with VBS, which has become the largest evangelical outreach program of the year in many churches!

Does it sadden you when you hear of a pastor who "just doesn't visit anymore"? Maybe he's too old, maybe it's too risky, or maybe his wife tells you, "No one comes when he visits them. He goes to visit newcomers and they stop coming." Soon it's not just contacts he's not visiting, it's cold calls as well. I have recently heard a pastor say that when he is in the hospital with one of his church members awaiting serious surgery, he is often the only preacher in town who shows up for his people, and that he would estimate that three out of four pastors don't even visit their congregation when hospitalized. Does a pastor who does not visit excuse a congregation that does not visit? Of course not, yet we all know the old truism, "You never rise higher than your leadership".

I don't mean for this article to be a critical article. I do want to point out what I am beginning to see as a growing problem and cancer in independent, fundamental baptist churches. I also want to confess my own faithlessness. My pastor started a new campaign at the beginning of this year. "Instead of trying to get a certain number here on Big Day in March, " he said,"I am going to set a goal we need to reach every week. A goal we can make sure we reach, and is dependent on us going out, not on them coming in. The Lord has led me to set 500 doors a week as our goal."

"500 doors a week! Is he insane?! That's crazy! That's unreachable! This is going to be more discouraging when we don't reach it!" my brain said. I didn't openly criticize his leading, but I sure did question it in my head! I didn't say a word to anyone, and I tried to keep my face neutral, but for the next few weeks, every time I heard the goal, I shook my head, mentally.

The Importance of Leading Children to Jesus

The Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to help with the four, five and six year old Junior Church each Sunday morning. We sing songs, watch puppets with the "big kids," review our lesson and play games. As I watch Kelli teach them and my heart is so full.

I was just four years old when I accepted the Lord Jesus as my Savior. My Sunday school teacher brought up a little boy in our class that day, and told us that Davy had asked Jesus into his heart that week. Though many would argue that we were too young, she gave us the Gospel that day. I already knew that I was a sinner. I already knew that Jesus had died for sinners. I already knew that my parent's relationship with God could not get me to Heaven.

That day, the teacher asked us to all bow our heads and raise our hands if we wanted to accept Jesus as our Savior. I remember thinking, "I've never done that. I need to do that." I prayed along with her and accepted Jesus as my personal Savior.

Children must be carefully dealt with so that they are not pressured or led along without making their own decision to trust Christ. Yet it is not our place to judge whether a child "meant it" or not. We are merely to lead them to Christ.

We cannot neglect to give children the opportunity to receive Jesus as Savior because they are young and we are fearful of our own failings; or because we believe that they are too young to understand at all; or because we believe that they will have another chance when they are older; or because we want to labor in fields that reap visible results (baptism and public profession).

It may be years before we see the visible results of our labors. I did not have assurance of my salvation until a few years after I first prayed, and I was not baptized until I was in second grade. My teacher never knew which children had really prayed with her on that day, or which children had really understood and meant the prayer. She left that with God.

Many of the children in our Junior Church may be hearing the Gospel for the first time, and we will never know if it may be their last. We must be faithful to clearly present the Gospel and give them opportunity to accept salvation. The results are up to God.

And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, "Behold, a sower went forth to sow;
And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
Some fell upon stony places where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up because they had no deepness of earth:
And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:
But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundred fold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
~Matthew 13:3-9

~picture from Reusable Art

Have You Tried To Win Them??

Your family and friends will die and go to the lake of fire forever if they are not saved before they die or before the Lord Jesus comes. You can meet a need that no other person can perform if you will do it.

Winning souls to Christ is of more value than gaining the whole world.


There are many ways to reach your family and friends.


First, go to them with God’s plan for being saved by believing His Word.


Second, give them the plan of Salvation in a gospel tract form.


Third, take them with your to Church where the Word of God is preached and souls are saved.


Fourth, write out the plan of Salvation in a letter. They will read it.


Fifth, tell them how and when you were saved.


Sixth, spend much time in prayer for each one. Give them such scriptures as --



Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;


Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.


Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:


Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.


Romans 10: 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Romans 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.



These verse are very effective if you will write them out and give them to your family and friends.


Remember, you will lead none to Christ if you do not try.

Get started today.

Sharing the Gospel

That wonderful Thursday evening, our church’s Bible Class came up with a good compact sharing “tool” to help us, Christians, share the gospel to anybody who would listen. This can also be used as a basic tool for Bible studies.

I took note of the categorized verses, present it in tabular form, and share it with you in the hope that you might get some important ideas from it as you share the gospel to others.

We are not all good in memory and these hinder us a lot in sharing the gospel to others. Therefore, one suggestion offered is for you to print a copy of the verses below, and keep it in your wallets or bags so that anytime you will need a reference, you can use it. From the five categories, you can start anywhere and connect the others as you go along. Friends, happy sharing!

SOME IMPORTANT VERSES TO SHARE

1) ABOUT ETERNAL LIFE

John 3:16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 3:36 - He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

John 5:24 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 John 5:13 - These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

2) THE ONLY WAY OF SALVATION

Acts 16:31 - And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Acts 4:12 - Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

3) HOW TO GO TO HEAVEN

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 3:5,6 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

John 1:12,13 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

4) HOW TO BE ASSURED

1 John 5:13 - These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 5:24 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Ephesians 1:13,14 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

John 3:16,36 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

John 10:27,28 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [man] pluck them out of my hand.

5) HOW TO BECOME RIGHTEOUS

Galatians 2:16 - Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Isaiah 1:18 - Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

(c) August 2009, Luisa Mercado/www.mikenluisa1.blogspot.com

A Generation of Mules

“The church today is raising a whole generation of mules. They know how to sweat and to work hard but they don’t know how to reproduce themselves.”

It’s not known who said that, but it is a statement of incredible insight. Mules are hard workers. They have carried supplies, plowed fields, pulled wagons and transported people. The only problem is that they are almost always sterile and thus cannot reproduce. They are hard workers, but they are the end of the line. They do not produce more like themselves.

The church is full of hard workers. They teach classes, serve the physical needs of others, clean up and mow the grass, cook, move tables, organize social activities, visit and even write letters and cards, and do a host of other things.

There is just one problem. They don’t “reproduce.” They don’t teach the gospel to the lost so others can become hard workers. They are the end of the line. The real job the Lord gave us is to go into the world and reproduce ourselves by making disciples of others (Matt. 28:18–20). It is a tough lesson to realize that you may have worked hard and yet still haven’t gotten the job done. Let us say it plainly. If we are not evangelizing, we are not doing the job completely. If we are nothing more than a generation of mules, we are on the road to extinction. Hup, Mule! Gee-Haw!!!

Have a great weekend,

Bro. Harry Shomaker