In our continuation of Matthew, we find Jesus beginning His “Mission Impossible” of directing people away from their church. The “rogue nation” had turned its back on the laws of God and propagating the ceremonies, customs and rituals of church. Oh, they acknowledged the “Law of God” in their speeches, in their writings and in their ceremonies. They even had their Laws written out, hung up in their churches and wore them on their arms and foreheads. But they refused to live by them. Great show, no substance! Therefore, Jesus now had to do for the nation what the leaders refused to do, go into the churches and public areas to bring the Truth of the “Kingdom of God” to a lost people.
Another thing that the church was doing, it was lifting up man instead of God. The Pharisees, the Sadducees, the priests the lawyers and all the other leaders were lifted up in the eyes of man and became “anti” God. “Anti” meaning, “in place of”. The same is happening in our churches today. We lift up our church leaders, mega – entertainment stars, those in position of leadership and those with educational degrees. But I have not found any who are lifting up Jesus and putting Him back where He belongs: front and center.
Matthew 4:23 – Matthew 7:5
Jesus went all over Galilee, teaching in the Jewish meeting places and preaching the good news about God’s kingdom. He also healed every kind of disease and sickness. News about him spread all over Syria, and people with every kind of sickness or disease were brought to him. Some of them had a lot of demons in them, others were thought to be crazy, and still others could not walk. But Jesus healed them all.
He went all over teaching. He didn’t go to the “meeting place” to sit and listen. He didn’t go to be a “member”. He went to teach. He went to share what He knew about salvation. He commands us to follow His example and to go and teach, not go and sit in church. Are you following His example?
He didn’t care who the people were. Interesting to note that the news spread all over Syria, a pagan country. It was the “pagans” who were coming to get healed. The church people had their church, who needed an independent upstart? While the church was missing out on God’s blessings, the pagans were soaking it in. Jesus didn’t care if they belonged to a church, were sick, outcasts, crazy or looked down upon by the church. He came for them. He came to heal them. Who are you going to for your healing? The church? To Jesus? Are you healing the sin-sick people around you? Are you sacrificing yourself for the salvation of others? Or are the “weeds” in your life more important than the souls around you? Are your church duties and activities more important than the “pagans” around you? Maybe it is time, before it is too late, to sell, downsize your life without “weeds” to bother you and open your home and begin teaching the teachings of Jesus.
Large crowds followed Jesus from Galilee and the region around the ten cities known as Decapolis. They also came from Jerusalem, Judea, and from across the Jordan River. When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on the side of a mountain and sat down. Jesus’ disciples gathered around him, and he taught them:
Jesus did not invite the people to church. He knew they would never learn the gospel in church. He knew that church takes the eyes of the people off of God and onto man and church policies that are “anti” Christ. No, He took the people where they could lift their eyes to God and hear the truth. Finally, even the church leaders were unable to keep the church members away. Truth was beginning to stir the hearts and open the eyes. A hunger was beginning to develop for truth and simplicity. Church rituals, systems, ceremonies and politics were becoming a heavy burden for the members. Little by little they turned their backs on the church and came to hear what they had never heard before.
God blesses those people who depend only on him. They belong to the kingdom of heaven!
This was new. They had been taught to depend on the church, Sabbath School lessons, the system, the leaders and their many rounds of ceremonies for their physical and eternal reward. To depend only on God was a concept they had never been taught.
Who are you depending on? Do you depend on your Social Security? Do you depend on your boss and the paycheck? Do you depend on the state to provide what you need? Church, all “religion”, is great at taking our dependency. It has become the world’s greatest addiction. The devil has a thousand ways to take our dependency. But if you want to get to heaven, you must learn to depend only on God for all your needs.
God blesses those people who grieve. They will find comfort!
Grieve? This was new. Their church system was great at putting on a “show of praise” to show the pagans how great the “Jewish” religion was. You did nothing without first putting on a “face” and then trumpeting the great acts of your religion before men. They had to have the biggest, best and most outlandish church in the world. People gave lavishly to decorate the church. No, the world must not see you or the church “grieve”. That would not give the right impression for the world to see. Therefore, their religion was one big round of fun and games. Entertainment to keep the members happy and bring in new ones. And of course, those that did not measure up to this “happy” religion were not allowed in: beggars, homeless people, “sinners” and those with grievances, etc., were kept outside.
Do you grieve? Do you grieve for the sin that is in the world? Do you grieve for the fallen church that no longer teaches the teachings of Jesus to stop sinning, be perfect and to keep the Ten Commandments to get your eternal life? Do you grieve for those around you who are lost because they are living in sin? If so, comfort them with the truth that they can stop sinning, be perfect and keep the Ten Commandments for their eternal life. Comfort those who are bound by sin and show them how to stop sinning. God wants to bring comfort to all who are sick of sin and grieve for the sinful. He wants to heal us and bring us the comfort that is found in perfection of character.
God blesses those people who are humble. The earth will belong to them!
Humble! That was a word the church leaders had never encountered. From the soles of their sandals to the “tefillin” on their heads, nothing showed of “humbleness”. It was all for display, show and pride of “humbleness”.
You don’t have to covet “status in your church” or want what the world and others have. You don’t have to be prideful and work hard for the fashions of this world. If you live as humbly as Jesus lived, the earth will belong to you. God will provide everything you need, if you live in obedience to His law. Don’t hurt others. Don’t take from others. Give to those around you a life of perfect conformity to the will of God and all that is needful for this life will be given you. Be content with what you have.
God blesses those people who want to obey him more than to eat or drink. They will be given what they want!
In the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, it seems that the Jews were very involved in their eating, drinking and being “happy”. So many settings were at “feasts”. It is as if they tried to outdo each other to see who could put on a greater “feast”. It appears that what they ate and drank was far more important than obedience to the words of God.
We must hunger and thirst more for obedience to God’s law than for our daily food and drink. We must want to fill our lives with the spiritual nourishment that comes from eating of the words of God and drinking in the Spirit of His life. Our lives must revolve around the Law of God, not church, if we plan on going to Heaven. If we are spending four hours a day in eating and drinking, are we spending four hours a day in nourishing our spiritual life by reading the Word of God and obeying it? And let me make this very plain, reading, watching or listening to your church material, or holding church discussions is not reading from the Word of God. You must spend hours every day reading the Bible. Start in Genesis and no matter how painful or difficult, read and obey every word. When you have finished reading the Bible, begin again and continue until you die.
God blesses those people who are merciful. They will be treated with mercy!
Merciful. That is a word not many churches or church members are acquainted with. How we love to point the finger and snub our noses at the poor, “gross” sinners. People who end up in prison are not shown much in the way of mercy. We forget that as we treat others, any and all others, we will be treated by God. Many wonder why they are having such a hard time in their lives. Maybe it is because they are giving a hard time to others. Just love and be merciful and watch your life become full of love and mercy.
God blesses those people whose hearts are pure. They will see him!
Pure! Spotless! Perfect! Sinless! Commandment Keeping! Those whose robes are washed in the blood of the Lamb. How many ways do we need to hear it before we finally accept the fact that God cannot take into His presence sin or sinners. Only those who have stopped sinning and have become perfect by keeping the Ten Commandments will get into Heaven. They are called “saints” in the Bible. If you put your faith, belief, trust and obedience into your church and listen to their lies about “saved by grace” or the “unconditional love” of God or “just come to church and you are saved”, you are lost. Get out of your church now! There is no place on earth more calculated to corrupt the character than church. Listen to Paul, “When you gather, it is not for the better but for the worse.” Why? “For first of all, when you come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you.” 1 Corinthians 11:17, 18. How true! Are there divisions in your church?
God blesses those people who make peace. They will be called his children!
Peace? I don’t know of any church that has peace. The divisions, in-fighting, backbiting and gossiping along with finger pointing does not produce peace. The divisions among the churches of today attempt to put on a “front of peace” by separating into churches of acceptable sins. That way, all those with this acceptable sin and belief go to this church, and those with that acceptable sin and belief go to that church, etc. That way, those who don’t like your sin or belief can sit “in peace” in their own church with their own sin. Woe be to anyone who attempts to come in with a sin or belief not acceptable by that church. But let us not stop sinning and be perfect, no, that is way too much work. We will just live “peaceably” in our acceptable sinful churches.
But that is not what Jesus is saying. Peacemakers are those who live perfect without sin. It is because they can live without sin that they can love you in your sin as Jesus did. They don’t partake of sin, as Jesus did not partake of any sin while mingling with sinners, but He could love them and serve them and do everything in His loving power to help the sinner to stop the sin, as He told Mary, “Go and sin no more”. That is how you become a child of God, because, that is who God is. We become one with God. One faith, one belief, one mind. “Now may God, the source of endurance and encouragement, allow you to live in harmony with each other as you follow the Messiah Jesus, so that with one mind and one voice you might glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.” Romans 15:5,6. There can be no division when everyone is of one mind, the perfect mind of Christ. Christ’s mind is not divided. No human or church opinions are allowed.
God blesses those people who are treated badly for doing right. They belong to the kingdom of heaven.
When was the last time you were treated badly for doing right? We think we are being mistreated when we are treated badly for doing bad. But that is not what Jesus is talking about. I get treated badly all the time because I do right by teaching the teachings of Jesus to stop sinning, be perfect and to keep the Ten Commandments for your eternal life. People, especially church people, hate the teachings of Jesus. You will be treated badly if you start living and teaching what Jesus taught. Then and only then will you “belong to the kingdom of heaven”.
God will bless you when people insult you, mistreat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me. Be happy and excited! You will have a great reward in heaven. People did these same things to the prophets who lived long ago.
The gentleman who has been writing me for years, mistreats me, insults me and tells all kinds of evil lies, all because he loves his church. Like the Pharisees, he refuses to humble himself to see that he is walking as the wicked people of the Bible walked, not as Jesus walked. Nothing he does is what a Christian does. Everything he does is what a church member does. He is a very good Catholic. Remember, tithe paying, Sabbath-keeping church members put Jesus on the cross. Like Jesus, those of us who are treated as such “have a great reward in heaven”.
You are like salt for everyone on earth. But if salt no longer tastes like salt, how can it make food salty? All it is good for is to be thrown out and walked on.
Do you feel at times that you are being walked on? Maybe you have lost your saltiness. Salt is used in over 14,000 ways. But for our purposes, the simple ways for salt in Christ’s day were as a preservative, cleanser, healing and cooking. In the “old days” before refrigeration and preservatives, after an animal was killed and cut or hung up to dry, salt was applied to preserve it. If you had a bee sting, cut or wound, applying salt helped to deaden the pain, reduce the swelling and heal the wound. However, in healing wounds, it would sting. But that was good. Same with our Christian walk. The “salt” of Christianity may sting the wounded sinner, but be assured, that sting signals that healing is taking place. Today, the “salt” of church Christianity has become “good-for-nothing” since it has lost its “saltiness”. There is no “sting” left. No wounds are being healed, no Christian characters are being preserved or cleansed to perfection. The religion of the churches of today is only good to be “thrown out and walked on”.
You are like light for the whole world. A city built on top of a hill cannot be hidden, and no one would light a lamp and put it under a clay pot. A lamp is placed on a lampstand, where it can give light to everyone in the house. Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise your Father in heaven.
“And see the good that you do”. May I ask, what good are you doing that would bring praise to “your Father in heaven”? What is the difference between your “light” and the “light” of your neighbor? You both are doing the very same things in life. There is no difference. You hide what you call your “light” under the “clay pot” of your church. You do nothing that would be understood as being a “light for the whole world”. Now, if you want to “praise your Father in Heaven” and show His Light, how about asking for a case of the book, “Change Your Life Biblically” which God dictated and directed, then give them out to those in darkness. Turn on the Light for them.
Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I didn’t come to destroy them, but to fulfill them, because I tell you with certainty that until heaven and earth disappear, not one letter or one stroke of a letter will disappear from the Law until everything has been accomplished. So whoever sets aside one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom from heaven. But whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom from heaven
The Law of God is the character of God written out. God is love. The Law is love. To do away with any part of the law of God would be to do away with the character of God. To do away with love is to fulfill hate. As Jesus gave the law “their full meaning” in His life, so are we to follow His example by fulfilling them in our lives. Everything written in the law must be accomplished. It is never ending. If righteousness came to an end, then all that is left is wickedness. Therefore, no stroke or letter can ever disappear from the law. Not only the prophecies of the law, but the blessings and the curses. Those who break the law of God are under the curse of God. Those who live the law are under the blessings of God. None of that can ever be done away with, changed or substituted. Those who reject any part of the Ten Commandments will be “called” least in the kingdom from heaven. If those in heaven call you “least”, be assured, that would be the same as calling you unworthy and a failure. Unworthy people who have failed to fulfill the law in their lives will not be in heaven. If you do not fulfill the law of God better than the Pharisees, your preachers, teachers and church, you will not reach heaven.
You must obey God’s commands better than the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law obey them. If you don’t, I promise you that you will never get into the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was told those who lived long ago, ‘You must not murder,’ and ‘Whoever murders will be subject to punishment.’ But I say to you, anyone who is angry with his brother without a cause will be subject to punishment. And whoever says to his brother ‘Raka!’ will be subject to the Council. And whoever says ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hell fire.
The extreme outward manifestation of sin in the heart would be “murder”. But getting “angry with someone” is simply a prelude to “murder”. However, let us be careful in understanding what was said. We are not to be angry “without a cause”. That “cause” must be a righteous cause and not a selfish cause. There is a difference. The outcome of that “difference” will be “different” in each case. The anger of Jesus against sin led Him to lay down His life for the sinner. The selfish “anger” of the church leaders led them to murder the one they hated in order to get what they wanted. Jesus got angry at sin. Are you angry at sin in your life?
What we think is what we are. Those of you in prison, why are you in prison? Because you thought about that which put you in prison. If you didn’t think about it, you would not be in prison. Jesus got angry at sin. But He loved the sinner. He wept over Jerusalem that was about to put Him on the cross. Are you weeping over those who hurt you? Or are you planning revenge? That is why all sin will be destroyed. If sin is hanging around in your life, you will be destroyed along with it. The Pharisees hated Jesus in their heart. That hatred eventually turned to murder.
“Raka” was a term that meant, “worthless one”, someone who did not have any worth and counted as nothing. God does not look upon a single being as worthless. Our actions may produce worthless accomplishments, but God always sees the worth we could become through obedience to His law. God will never call one of His creations “worthless”. We must look at people through the eyes of the love of God. He condemns their sinful actions, but always provides a way for them to improve and become “worthy” of a new life.
“Fool” had the meaning of someone who was morally stupid, heedless and dull. Every created being has value to God. There are many causes for a person to “show” stupidity, heedlessness and dullness. (I am one of those who shows lots of foolish behavior.) But our duty is to help them to overcome and be the men and women God wants them to be. Instead of calling them names, pointing fingers and avoiding them, we need to put our arms around them and give them all the help they need to change their lives. As we do unto others, it will be done to us.
So if you are about to place your gift on the altar and remember that someone is angry with you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. Make peace with that person, then come back and offer your gift to God.
Church is so deadly. We go to church and offer our “gifts” as bribes, but our hearts are far from God. Yet, because we “go to church”, we think we are righteous and in God’s favor. After all, how could He not love us since we just “bought” His love for another week. How Catholic. How pagan. How un-Christlike. Church is such a selfish place. The only reason we go is to pretend we are of God. But nothing a church does is of God. None of it will get you into heaven. By going to church you are refusing to do the work that God requires of you, personally, to get to heaven. What a waste. Keep your gift, begin sharing the teachings of Jesus with all around you. Start by living them: perfect, sinless and commandment keeping. If you have hurt someone, or someone has hurt you, go to them and in love find out what the “hurt” is and remove it. Be willing to take responsibility for any part of your acts that may have caused the hurt.
Before you are dragged into court, make friends with the person who has accused you of doing wrong. If you don’t, you will be handed over to the judge and then to the officer who will put you in jail. I promise you that you will not get out until you have paid the last cent you owe.
Jesus tells us that it is His Words that will judge us or condemn us at the last days. In other words, the Ten Commandments are our judge. If we obey them, we are judged righteous and have eternal life. If we disobey them, we will meet them again and they will condemn us to death. I suggest we get to know those words that will accuse us in the judgment and become very friendly with them through obedience. All will stand in the judgment. I suggest you make friends with Jesus now and become acquainted with what He wants from you before it is too late. You might want to learn how to please God. Church-going does not please God.
Remember the 10 virgins? 5 had oil and 5 let theirs burn up. All were asleep. It is now time to wake up. If you don’t have the oil needed to meet the Bridegroom, I suggest you start finding Oil or you will not be let into the banquet.
You know the commandment which says, “Be faithful in marriage.” But I tell you that if you look at another woman and want her, you are already unfaithful in your thoughts.
Not only in the physical world of sex is that statement correct, but in our spiritual life it also plays a big part. Lusting after your church instead of being “faithful in marriage” to Jesus is a sin. We are called the “bride” of Christ. He gave His life for us. Giving our lives to any other entity is adultery. We become whores as we play with our churches instead of giving our lives to Jesus. Take a sheet of paper and write down every activity your church does Sabbath morning. Then open your Bible and find every text that supports that activity. If you can’t find the text that commands you go to church, why are you going to church? Church came straight out of Catholicism. Modified it may be, but it is still pagan. Touch not, taste not and have no association with pagan rituals, ceremonies and routines.
If your right eye causes you to sin, poke it out and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body, than for your whole body to end up in hell. If your right hand causes you to sin, chop it off and throw it away! It is better to lose one part of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
It may seem like chopping off a part of your body to give up church, but that is precisely what you have to do. Church is causing you to end up in hell. I don’t know how to make it any plainer. God has made it so plain, but our egos, pride, habits, position and need to be “accepted” are destroying us; keeping us from seeing clearly. We claim to be the “church” of Revelation and God’s special people for the end of times, but we close our eyes to the fact that we are the Laodicean church who will be spit out of God’s mouth. But like the Pharisees and Jews of Christ’s day, we refuse to obey and get out. For some reason our pride just can’t fathom God burning “me”.
Karl Marx was right, you know. In paraphrase he stated, “Religion is the opium of the people”. Church is the “drug of choice” for religious people. Why? Because they have not found Jesus who is the antidote for the drug of church. Church takes man out of the world and makes man listless and unproductive as he sits in church. Jesus puts man center in the world and makes him active in blessing all God’s creation. As you would ask a “druggy” to give up his drug, Jesus is asking you to give up yours. Instead of asking you to go to church, Jesus asks you to “come unto Me all you who are heavy laden.” He commands us, not to go and sit in church and listen, but to “go into all the world teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Get up, disconnect from the church of your drug and walk free in Jesus.
You have been taught that a man who divorces his wife must write out divorce papers for her. But I tell you not to divorce your wife unless she has committed some terrible sexual sin. If you divorce her, you will cause her to be unfaithful, just as any man who marries her is guilty of taking another man’s wife.
Having a relationship with any woman other than your wife is technically “adultery”. There are many “technical” sins in this world of sin. However, God “winked” at some of them because of the situation we are in. (Acts 17:30). They are not allowed in a “perfect” heaven, but in a world of sin there are some “sins” that have to be accommodated for. Therefore, Moses had given “permission” to divorce and marry another woman. Matthew 19:8. The marriage relationship should be sacred and for life. Everything possible should be done to keep the marriage pure. The same goes with killing. There is no killing in a perfect heaven. However, on a sinful earth, there is a killing that is permitted by God. The same was true with the pagan “Sunday worship” during the 1260 years of Catholic Rule. The true Sabbath had been lost and God could not hold a person responsible for that which he did not know or understand. But in the 1850’s, the light shined out from the Throne of God into a dark world of sin. The Sabbath became known and understood. Now, those who break the Sabbath are held accountable and will be destroyed. The same goes with church. God “winked” at it because the people had no idea how pagan and satanic it was. Now, with the full Bible before us and the light of God shining brightly, there is no excuse wasting our lives being chained to a church. Now we must take responsibility for our own lives, break the chains that are binding us to sin and walk in obedience to Jesus and get out.
You know that our ancestors were told, “Don’t use the Lord’s name to make a promise unless you are going to keep it.” But I tell you not to swear by anything when you make a promise! Heaven is God’s throne, so don’t swear by heaven. The earth is God’s footstool, so don’t swear by the earth. Jerusalem is the city of the great king, so don’t swear by it. Don’t swear by your own head. You cannot make one hair white or black. When you make a promise, say only “Yes” or “No.” Anything else comes from the devil.
We do not realize the holiness of God. We have never been trained or given examples of the reverence God is due. In my own life, I am searching to find that greater reverence and holiness God desires of me in His presence. His name should be used with great respect and care. But we “throw it around” and use it so commonly that we do not realize the magnitude of the wrong. Again, this is where church becomes so deadly and “anti” Christ. We have allowed the church system to sanitize our whole understanding of Christianity. It is all about selfishness and “what I want”. God does not ask us to go to church. He doesn’t ask us to sit in church. He commands us to get off our behinds, stand up and “go teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:20. Church is literally killing you.
We make “oaths” in so many ways. All of it is an attempt to “prove” how reliable we are, how sure we are, how “righteous” we are. “Yep, you can depend on me.” How many have made an “oath” to their church. No different than a Catholic. But the Bible is very plain that we have no idea what the next hour will bring, let alone the next day, week, month or year. God holds your life in His hands. Yes or No is all we need to say. Our only “oath” and loyalty are to be to Jesus and Jesus only. If you claim to be a “Christian” but are not living the perfect, sinless and Commandment keeping life that Jesus lived, you are giving a false oath to the world. You are living a lie. You are breaking the 3rd commandment.
You know that you have been taught, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I tell you not to try to get even with a person who has done something to you.
Here again, the Pharisees were taking a text out of context. They loved to give an “eye for an eye” to prove how strict they were in keeping God’s Laws. They were trying to prove how religious, how “righteous” they were. Like those who burn abortion clinics and hate gays. They couldn’t wait to find an excuse to stone someone or hang them on a cross to prove their loyalty to God. But it was all selfishness, pride and ego. It was all taken out of context. They forgot mercy.
The chapter “eye for eye” comes from (Exodus 21:24), and is simply a chapter on justice and compensation. God is a God of justice and compensation. He demands justice from us and in us. It is “revenge” we are not to take upon ourselves. As God said, “But I tell you not to try to get even”. God will do the “avenging”. But justice and compensation are works of righteousness. In Exodus 21:26 and 27 we find the practical illustration of how to put that justice to work. “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.” The person was not to turn around and take the eye or tooth of the one who took his. However, there was justice to be done. As slaves, they were to be freed. The whole chapter explains the “eye for eye” concept. But we love to take texts out of context and hold them up to prove how righteous we are, how zealous for God. This can be done with food, clothes, drink, church-going, Bible reading and prayer, etc. All done for show without a bit of God’s justice or mercy in it.
When someone slaps your right cheek, turn and let that person slap your other cheek. If someone sues you for your shirt, give up your coat as well. If a soldier forces you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two miles. When people ask you for something, give it to them. When they want to borrow money, lend it to them.
Jesus wasn’t talking some theological point or abstract concept. They slapped Jesus in the face. They hit Him in the face. They spit in His face. They took His clothes and divided them up among themselves. They beat Him and whipped Him until the blood flowed from His lacerated veins. He hung naked on the cross for most of the day in front of thousands of people. But in all of it, He did not seek revenge. With one blink of an eyelid He could have wiped them all out and went back to heaven. However, He knew that someday justice would be done. But now, He took every indignity they could hurl at Him and loved them in return. Then He looked up to Heaven and asked His Father to forgive them for they did not know what they were doing. Jesus is our example. Is your church-going producing that behavior in you? Maybe it is time to get out of church and fall at the feet of Jesus and develop His character of love and forgiveness.
You have heard people say, “Love your neighbors and hate your enemies.” But I tell you to love your enemies and pray for anyone who mistreats you. Then you will be acting like your Father in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both good and bad people. And he sends rain for the ones who do right and for the ones who do wrong.
Oh, the hate that comes this way. People who love their church, like the Jews, hate those who tell the truth about their church. It’s like putting a dagger through their hearts. Again, that is why the Pharisees and the Jews of Christ’s day hated the “Christians”. That is why they put Christ on the cross. It all had to do with their “church”. Jesus showed us how to love those who hate us. I pray for Richard and those who write such hate against me, this ministry and Jesus. Their church has become their god and anything that would show them the truth fills them with rage. If it were not for the laws of the land, they would act as the Catholics acted in putting to death those who talked against their church. But love? they have none since love comes from God. They have church, but do not know God.
This is the way I feel after Richard sends his letters to me. I am stretched, lashed, pulled apart and not loved. He can’t stand the fact that I teach obedience to Jesus and not his church. That I listen to Jesus and will not bow down to Richard and his wisdom. He gnashes his teeth at me and acts just like those in the Bible who hated Jesus. Having eyes, they do not see. Having ears, they do not hear.
If you love only those people who love you, will God reward you for that? Even tax collectors love their friends. If you greet only your friends, what’s so great about that? Don’t even unbelievers do that? But you must be perfect like your Father in heaven.
My sister will have nothing to do with me. Yet, her whole life is bound up in her church. She greets her friends and loves her church and pagan family members. She invites her friends over so they will invite her back. Each year the church gives her and others like her a special dinner for all their “work” in the church. If you pay enough, you too could have a special dinner. However, after church on Sabbath, it is time to go to the ball games. But she hates me and calls me a “cult”. Church is destroying the world.
“And those who would be workers together with God must strive for perfection of every organ of the body and quality of the mind. True education is the preparation of the physical, mental, and moral powers for the performance of every duty; it is the training of body, mind, and soul for divine service. This is the education that will endure unto eternal life.” COL 330. Going to church is not striving for perfection.
When you do good deeds, don’t try to show off. If you do, you won’t get a reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to the poor, don’t blow a loud horn. That’s what show-offs do in the meeting places and on the street corners, because they are always looking for praise. I can assure you that they already have their reward. When you give to the poor, don’t let anyone know about it. Then your gift will be given in secret. Your Father knows what is done in secret, and he will reward you.
That is another problem with “church”. nothing but a bunch of “show-offs”. The minute people begin to “group”, sin is not far behind. As the population grew before the flood, sin became rampant and was destroyed. At the time of the “Tower of Babel” the people refused to be obedient to God in dispersing around the world. They decided to congregate and “make a name” for themselves. The purpose was to control. Only God is to “control” us. No man, church or denomination is to have any control over another human being. Therefore, God destroyed their “church” and changed their language and dispersed them around the world. I believe, at the same time God changed their language, He also modified their genetic code in order to bring about the different racial configurations we have today. This was to ensure separation. This separation was not built on prejudice or “inferiority” of one race to another, but simply to keep sin from multiplying so quickly.
Abraham lived apart from the “nations” around him. He knew and understood the dangers of “grouping”. His nephew Lot did not mind “grouping” and ended up almost losing his life. However, he lost everything of this world’s goods.
The Israelites were not to group. They were given land that allowed them to live very separated lives within their clans. This was for the spiritual good of the people. When they began “grouping” and going to church, sin abounded. As each generation grew up, more and more gravitated to Jerusalem or the cities of power. After all, that was where “The Action” was. Power was there. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of “power” and action? This was not God’s plan. Eventually, the nation, centered around Jerusalem and the people, were no longer free to live for God. Ultimately God had to destroy Jerusalem and the nations of Israel and Judea.
Because of the tendency to “group” around religious facilities and organizations, the Christians were commanded not to “group” or start a “church”. They were simply commanded to “go into all the world teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:20. But again, within a hundred years of that command, “Christians” began grouping. God allowed persecution after persecution to separate the Christians in order to keep them pure, but eventually “church” won out for the majority. They adopted the pagan “church” system and “Christianity” became pagan. It is so much easier going to church than going to Jesus and live as He commands.
The same has happened with the churches of today. They have all followed the pagan-Catholic system of church grouping which makes it a hotbed of sin. They love to show off their cars, clothes, latest in electronics, education, degrees and of course their children. All of it is sin. The modern prophet of God condemns the churches of today. They have become nothing more than religious “talent shows” seeing who can “out preach” or “out entertain” each other. Today, how easy it is to “group”. Not just in the “physical” context, but we also group electronically through our media and mail activities. We can block out everything that does not agree with our point of view and we stop learning, testing and obeying Jesus. But we become more enslaved to our church “stars” and “big shots” losing all sight of Jesus.
When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the meeting places and on the street corners (church, TV, podcast, radio, etc). They do this just to look good. I can assure you that they already have their reward. When you pray, go into a room alone and close the door. Pray to your Father in private. He knows what is done in private, and he will reward you. When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask.
Everything the churches do today is sin. Nothing is of God. God hates the churches of today. Instead of going to church to hear prayers for show, stay home, pray to God in the privacy of your home and family. Lift the eyes of your family and yourself off the pagan church system and place them firmly on Jesus and His teachings. Teach your family what the churches are refusing to teach: to be perfect, to stop sinning and to keep the Ten Commandments to get your eternal life. Get all sin out of your lives and out of your homes. Probation is about to close.
You should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, help us to honor your name. Come and set up your kingdom, so that everyone on earth will obey you, as you are obeyed in heaven. Give us our food for today. Forgive us for doing wrong, as we forgive others. Keep us from being tempted and protect us from evil.
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- God’s name is not honored by going to church. It is amazing that nothing Jesus taught us to do personally for our salvation is taught in our churches. Nothing! The pagan system has so perverted our understanding that in the Bible the churches are called “perverts”. But what do we care as long as they are “our perverts”. To honor God is to obey Him. Not once does God command us to go to church. Just the opposite, He has commanded us to come out. But who is listening? We love our feelings and emotions, not God.
- To set up His kingdom in your heart, you have to obey Him as He is obeyed in Heaven. Going to church does nothing to teach you obedience to God. You are not obeying God by going to church. Nothing the churches do today is in compliance with the kingdom of Heaven. The churches don’t obey God to stop sinning, be perfect and to keep the Ten Commandments to get eternal life. How are you going to get to heaven where God is obeyed?
- Today is all we are given. We don’t know about tomorrow. Yesterday we can do nothing about. Today, today we are to spend every waking moment working on our characters so we will be ready to stand before the Judge of all the universe. Only those who have white robes, not speckled, with pure hearts, not almost clean, will stand before Him. We need to spend more time eating of God’s food, His Word. We spend way too much time feeding from the pig troughs of media that come from our churches which do nothing but make us fat and lazy on feel-good food. The churches shovel on the sugar-coated propaganda to keep our eyes off Jesus.
Today, right now, what are you doing to take this message to those around you? Please, request a case of books and begin working for Jesus. Read the book yourself and change your life. Live it and watch the blessings of God flow into your life.
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- Why, oh why do our church members hold so much hate. A wrong is committed and someone moves away so he doesn’t have to forgive or ask forgiveness. Our churches cultivate pride, arrogance and revenge. Nothing is done as Jesus has commanded. Churches are hotbeds of corruption, evil, cliques and “groups” that are at each other’s throats. Why? Because they are being taught to look to church and man instead of to Jesus. Our churches are run more like Herod’s court than a Heavenly court.
- This one is impossible for Jesus to do. Talk about a “mission impossible”, He cannot keep us from temptation. You know why? Because we love temptation. We place ourselves every day in the path of temptation since we love our sins. Once a week we head off to our pagan temples to feed our lust of ego, pride and arrogance knowing that we are sinning, but we expect God to forgive us in our sins. How Catholic. When was the last time someone stood up in your church and confessed her sins? When was the last time the congregation, in love, pointed out the sin in your life that you need to overcome? God cannot protect us from evil when we love playing with evil. When sin was pointed out, Jesus said, “Go and sin no more”.
If you forgive others for the wrongs they do to you, your Father in heaven will forgive you. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Forgiveness is unknown in the churches. Oh, we can forgive a “mistake” and simple oopses, when it is convenient or for our benefit, but when you have been raped, cheated, stolen from, abused and mistreated, no such thing as “forgiveness”. Try forgiving one who holds a different theological opinion than you. Like the Catholic Church or Islam, we are out for revenge. Let the gossip wars begin. How sad. Churches are not preparing a single person for Heaven.
When you go without eating, don’t try to look gloomy as those show-offs do when they go without eating. I can assure you that they already have their reward. Instead, comb your hair and wash your face. Then others won’t know that you are going without eating. But your Father sees what is done in private, and he will reward you.
Boy, how we like to tout our baptismal numbers, good deeds, memberships, health clinics, food seminars and on and on and on. Let me be straight. I share a bit of what God is doing to encourage inmates and donors. Inmates love to hear that it is possible to change their lives. Donors love to hear of lives being changed. That is required in the Bible. It is called “testimony”. But testimony is about overcoming, not showing off. Donors need to understand that their funds here at the ministry are not going for vacations, boats, skiing trips, big fancy buildings, etc. Churches love to “show-off” because they have salaries to pay, retirements to pay, health payments to cover and vacations. But nothing that promotes or encourages anyone to stop sinning, be perfect and to keep the Ten Commandments to get eternal life.
Don’t store up treasures on earth! Moths and rust can destroy them, and thieves can break in and steal them. Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them. Your heart will always be where your treasure is.
Our church, health and educational institutions are so wealthy they have money to throw away on very expensive statues, art works and parties. Just because it is your denomination’s idol doesn’t make it right. But how we like to defend our own sins while pointing fingers at others. Come to think about it, it has been a long time, decades, since I have heard a Sabbath-keeping denomination talk about idols. I wonder why?
I know. I used to be a part of all that. I was a “gospel ventriloquist” in the Sabbath denomination. I was on TV and entertained in front of thousands of church people across the US and Europe. None of it had anything to do with serving God or bringing people to an understanding that they had to stop sinning and to be perfect to get eternal life. I did love Jesus. He knew that. That is why I am here today. But to get here, my journey was much like Joseph’s of the Bible. I simply had no role model except the church. And how the church used and abused me for their own selfish ends. Loma Linda Medical Center, Pacific Union College, La Sierra University and all the others have nothing to do with Christianity. The dinners and shows they put on go totally against the teachings of Jesus. If you people, the members of the denomination those entities are a part of, knew what really went on behind closed doors, you would be in a very big hurry to obey Jesus and get out. But you are being hoodwinked. Their treasures are not in heaven. They put on a show to gobble up your money.
Your eyes are like a window for your body. When they are good, you have all the light you need. But when your eyes are bad, everything is dark. If the light inside you is dark, you surely are in the dark.
The “eyes” of the church are midnight dark. Not even a full moon. In all of the “sermon on the mount”, not once did Jesus suggest or recommend going to or setting up church. When whole villages wanted Him to stay, in which they would have been very happy to “set up a church” in His honor, He refused and said that He had other villages to go to. Once the gospel was taught in one place, we are not to settle down patting ourselves on our backs because we have the gospel. We are to move on to other ground and teach.
One Sabbath denomination tries really hard to convince its members that your money is helping to spread “the gospel” into the 10 – 40 window of the world. The problem is, their own General Conference has no idea what “The Gospel” is. If the “light inside you is dark, you surely are in the dark”. The blind leading the blind. Money, power and fame. That’s all it is.
You cannot be the slave of two masters! You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
How true that is. When I take the message of Jesus and give it to churches, pastors and denominations, they are not able to accept it. Why? Because “you cannot serve both God and money”. If they start teaching people to be perfect, stop sinning and to keep the Ten Commandments to get their eternal life, they would be as poor as this little ministry is; as Jesus was. So few, said Jesus, will enter heaven. Why? Not many like the truth. It hurts. Few want to give up money and pride as their master.
I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds? Can worry make you live longer? Why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes.
Worry? Within certain denominations and especially those who claim to be “the remnant” or “God’s End-Time People”, food, drink and clothing are big business. Wrapped under the guise of “religion” it is a multi-billion-dollar enterprise taking people straight to hell. That was not the intent of the original founders in the 1850’s. The institutions were to be very simple and effective for treating the poor and the people of the church in order to prepare them physically, mentally and spiritually for the rigors that would be needed to stop sinning, be perfect and to keep the Ten Commandments for eternal life.
But that wasn’t very profitable, so now they are very expensive and only the wealthy can afford any of it. I know, I can’t afford the food they propagate. I can’t afford to go to Loma Linda for medical treatments. I praise God for Medicare and Medi-Cal. The church does nothing to help its people. It only takes from them. However, God takes very good care of me. At 68 I still jog and workout, I have the health of a 30-year-old, never get sick and only once went to see a doctor on my own. That was when I turned 62 and entered Medi-Cal. I went to the doctor to lay down a base so that if anything should happen to me, they would know what my “normal” was. My health has nothing to do with what I eat, drink or wear. It is simply because of the promise Jesus made that if we are obedient to Him and serve Him, He will keep us in perfect health. However, I am not stupid with regards to eating and drinking, but my eating and drinking are very simple and very inexpensive. I am spending about $135 a month on food. The rest goes to what is necessary to feed the inmates with the “Bread of Life”.
But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn’t as well clothed as one of them. God gives such beauty to everything that grows in the fields, even though it is here today and thrown into a fire tomorrow. He will surely do even more for you! Why do you have such little faith? Don’t worry and ask yourselves, “Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these. But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well. Don’t worry about tomorrow. It will take care of itself. You have enough to worry about today.
Why is it that when Jesus says to get out of our churches, we stay in them? When Jesus says do not worry about what you eat, drink or wear, that is all we worry about? When Jesus tells us not to worry about tomorrow, why is it we have life insurance, job insurance, health insurance, house insurance and on and on and on. Tomorrow seems to be all we worry about. Why is it that the church system is totally against the teachings of Jesus? Folks, get out, stop worrying and simply be obedient to Jesus and let Him take care of the rest.
Don’t condemn others, and God won’t condemn you. God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them. You can see the speck in your friend’s eye, but you don’t notice the log in your own eye. How can you say, “My friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you don’t see the log in your own eye? You’re nothing but show-offs! First, take the log out of your own eye. Then you can see how to take the speck out of your friend’s eye.
Jesus commanded us to go into all the world teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Matthew 28:20. There is no room for condemnation in that command. Teaching people to be obedient to the teachings of Jesus is not the same as condemning people for what they are doing. We are not to “condemn others”. We are to condemn the sin. We are to hate sin. We are to hate the very clothes that touch sin. But we are to love the sinner. Do you hate the sin in your life?
We are to teach people how to stop sinning, not point out the sin and then run to gossip about it to others. We are to put our arms of love around the sinner and give him all the help he needs to become perfect, sinless and commandment keeping. But never are we to encourage, enable or condone sinful behavior. That is where church becomes so deadly. It enables sin. God will bless you as you get out of your church, go home, open your Bible and begin reading it, not like a novel or a science manual, but a workbook to be studied, memorized and put into your life and lived.