Tub_cawm's Revelife Site

Weblog

Thursday, October 23, 2008

“12The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.” – 1 Corinthians 12:12-14
“13Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. 14He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach” – Mark 3:13-14
The-Jesus-Effect Forum Vision and Mission Statement
The vision statement for The-Jesus-Effect forum is to unite all believers in Christ as one in the complete form of the Body of Christ. The forum shall be utilized as an outlet of communication for all believers in Christ to build a Jesus Effect community. The-Jesus-Effect is a chain reaction that begins with God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit living, interceding, and transforming the renewing of a persons mind and action to then effectively inspire one person at a time, therefore creating a multiple and continuous reaction to occur from one person to another.
The mission statement of The-Jesus-Effect forum is:
·          To love one another as Jesus loved us (1 John 4:11, Romans 12:9-10, 1 Peter 4:9)
·          To glorify, praise, and worship God in Spirit and truth (Psalm 92:1-2, John 4:23-24, John 15:8)
·          To mature and unite together in faith and Spirit (Romans 10:17, Ephesians 4:25, James 2:17)
·          To develop disciples of Jesus (Luke 14:27, John 10:27, 1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
·          To be fishers of men (Mark 1;17, Mark 3:14, Mark 1:17)
The-Jesus-Effect Proposal
Since, we are in office for a two year term. I propose:
Year One 2008-2009
We would open the forum only for SCG youth because then it would provide SCG youth with a sense of ownership, belonging, and responsibility to uphold as a SCG youth member. We would not exclude anyone from joining, but we would not be officially promoting the forum to be open to the public. In addition, it would give us one strong year to grow together as a unit.
Year Two 2009-2010
We would re-evaluate the success of the forum and open up discussions on the vision statement of whether we decide to or not to open it up to the public and not just SCG.
The-Jesus-Effect Forum Structure and Headings
1.        The-Jesus-Effect Informational Board
a.        Rules and News
b.        Questions, Comments, and Suggestions
2.        The Body of Christ
a.        SCG Ministry
b.        SCG National Youth
c.        SCG Local Youth
d.        SCG Church News
e.        Revivals, Conferences, and Events
3.        General Community
a.        Welcome and Introductions (Greet and Meet)
b.        Lifestyle and Culture
c.        Education
d.        Classified (Rummage Sale)
e.        Debates (Speak About)
f.         Random Discussions (Blurting Randomness)
g.     Employment (Real Jobbie)
4.        Spirituality
a.        Prayer Request (
b.        Christian Fellowship (The Fellowship of Christ)
c.        Testimonies (I Am Evidence)
d.        Christian Sermons (Blooming in Faith)
e.        Spiritual Warfare (Spirit in Battleship)
f.         Bible Studies (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth)
5.        Relationship
a.        Love Connection
b.        Courtship
c.        Marriage
d.        Family
6.        Entertainment
a.        Christian Music and Videos
b.        Other Music and Videos
c.        Christian TV, Movies, and Books
d.        Other TV, Movies, and Books
e.        Media Outlet
7.        Recreations
a.        Sports (Games and Activities)
b.        Fitness and Health
c.        Art, Beauty, and Fashion (Beauty and the Beast)
d.        Hobbies (Fun Time Anytime)
e.        Technology (Geeky Tech Talk)

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Genesis 6 - Bible Study - Generation One

The first thing to understand about Genesis 6 is that it's broken up into 120 years through 3 generations each generation being 40 years (Genesis 6:3). We know that 40 years equal 1 generation because of these 3 verses:

Numbers 32:13
The LORD's anger burned against Israel and he made them wander in the desert forty years, until the whole generation of those who had done evil in his sight was gone.

40 years = 1 generation.

Job 42:16
After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation.

140 years / 4 generations = 3.5 generations that Job lived through see half of his 4th generation.

Psalm 95:10
For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways."

40 years = 1 generation

Generation One (40 years)- Genesis 6:1-3

In the first generation, the 'sons of God' saw that the 'daughters of men' were beautiful. The 'sons of God' is referred to the descendants of Seth. We know this because of the descendant lineage through Luke 3:23-38. The 'sons of God' is also considered the first to call upon the name of the Lord (Genesis 4:26). In the Old Testament, the 'sons of God' is referred to as the descendants of Seth. However, in the New Testament the 'sons of God' are those who are filled with the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:14). You no longer need to be the physical descendant of Seth. It was after the death of Jesus that the 'sons of God' lineage ended because he bore no children. And so the only way to be the 'sons of God' in today's age is to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

The 'daugheters of men' are the descendants of Cain because he was hidden from the presence of the Lord (Genesis 4:13) and instead of calling upon the name of the Lord he built civilization, the secular world (Genesis 4:17).

Eventually, the 'sons of God' intermarried with the 'daughters of men'. God saw it sinful for for them to intermarry because He knew that they would they would deviate away from Him. For it is written, "Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughter for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord's anger will burn against you and will quickly destory you." - Deuteronomy 7:3.

There's a saying that says, "don't judge a book by it's cover." We know that a good book isn't about the cover, but what's inside the book that makes it good. Before we even buy the book, we look at reviews to see if it's a fitting book. We may ask someone about it. We speculate and have questions like: Does it fit our interest? What kind of book is it fiction or nonfiction? What type of genre is it? We research about the book, before we make a decision. If we believe the book has potential then we check it out. We don't immediately buy it, but a we generally tend to view the table of contents first and then we pick a good chapter and read from that chapter. If the chapter sounds intriguing and it fits our interest then we usually make the purchase.

In the same way, the sons of God should have made their decisions. It shouldn't have been, they saw and they married. They should have gotten to know what type of person she was. Does she love the Lord? Is her motives wicked or righteous? Is she a fitting person for you physically and mentally? These are the important aspects that they missed out on. If the sons of God knew more about the person they were marrying they would have known what type of person she was. Although, this was not the case and they ended up marrying non-believers and sinners. They married women accordingly to it's cover, her physical beauty. A women's look is deceptive upon her physical features: breasts, lips, hair, face, and body phsyique. They never read the book. Their motive was driven by what they saw which was pleasings to the eyes, the cover.

Scpriture continues with the 'sons of God' chose any of them, meaning that the 'sons of God' probably had multiple wives as 'daughters of men' thus creating a more sinful descendant line. The 'sons of God' became fewer and fewer as the daughters of men became more and more.

The results of one sin can cover over a multitudes of sins. If you light a tree on fire it spreads from one tree to another tree killing all the forest. But if you contain the fire, it saves the forest. You must master sin (Genesis 4:7). You don't just bring a bucket of water to take out the fire, but you strategize. Not only do you bring water, but sand. You decide to contain the fire within a certian diameter. You bring enough people to help put it out. This is how you overcome sin. It is better to save one tree then none of the trees, because then at least that one tree can produce more trees.

In the same way, it the sons of God should have dealt with intermarry. Because they didn't repent meaning turn away from it, it spread like fire. Spiritually killing the sons of God and turning them into wicked men. To the point where there wasn't a single righteous person left on earth, besides Noah and his family.

Then the Lord says, that He will give men a 120 years to repent until his Spirit is no longer with men (Genesis 6:3). This verse also tells us the way God deals with sin, he first allows us to repent before He takes any immediate action. God is slow to anger and patient with everyone because he wants to give everyone the opportunity to repent and not perish (2 Peter 3:9).

God is giving men the opportunity to contain the fire before it spreads. God wants to save mankind, not by force, but by choice. So the Lord sent out His chosen ones called to preach of repentance. To contain the fire before it's too late. To stop sin before it consuming there heart, mind, and soul.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Spiritual Phenomenon

I had an acquaintance ask me about what this spiritual phenomenon "speaking in tongues" is. Speaking in tongues is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Before the death of Jesus he told his disciples that, 'the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you' (John 14:26). When Jesus resurrected and appeared to the disciples he instructed them to, 'Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation' (Mark 16:15). As Jesus instructed us, he said, 'And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well' (Mark 16:17). The first appearence of this spiritual phenomenon of those that Jesus mentioned in Mark 16:17 was in fact speaking in tongues. That's a pretty significant fact! Of all the spiritual phenomenon signs mentioned, speaking in tongues is the first to appear followed by interpretation. This happened at the day of the Pentecost, 'All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them' (Acts 2:4).
Now that it's more transparent as to where speaking in tongues manifested from, what it's purpose for us believers? I believe there are two purposes or significant reason why people speak in tongues the first one being, 'For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his spirit' (1 Corinthians 14:2). In a sense, speaking in tongues allows us to spiritually communicate with God. It builds our intimacy and relationship with Him with one-on-one. In fact it's intentions are to speak to God not man. The second one being, 'He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself' (1 Corinthians 14:4). It allows us to spirtiual charge up our Armor of Faith and head out in the world to do God's will. There are times when we get spiritually drained from the world and obstacles presented in our daily life. God has given us a miraciously gift that allows us re-energize our spirits to battle Satan and his army.

Many believe that there needs to be an interperter to interpret speaking in tongues. Which is true, however; only when speaking in tongues to the congregation. Paul states clearly, 'Now, brothers, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to you, unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of instruction?' (1 Corinthians 14:6). He continues to say, 'For this reason anyone who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret what he says. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified' (1 Corinthians 14:13-15). Many believe that this passage means that speaking in tongues is unimportant if we are not able to interpert or edify the church. If we look more closely at the context of what Paul's message is, he clearly is continuing on from his previous passage about speaking in tongues to the congregation with the words, 'for this reason.' Paul also gives us an example of what he means, 'If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified' (1 Corinthians 16-17). I'm not saying that there isn't a need for an interpreter there is, but only when your speaking to the congregation in tongues. For when you personally pray in tongues to God you are uttering mysteries to Him and there is no need for an interpreter. Majority of the time, this is when speaking in tongues truly occur within our church when we personally pray in tongues with God. Only on rare occasions does a person speak to the congregation in tongues and usually when this does occur they are the interpeter. Even with that said Paul states, 'Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy (1 Corinthians 14:1). Regardless of whether we are speaking in tongues to the congregation or ourselves, we should eargerly desire the spirtual gifts of interpretation. There are other passages in Pauls message to the church of Corinthians that gives us more examples of what he means: 1 Corinthians 14:18.

What are unbelievers to think of this spiritual phenomenon, speaking in tongues? Paul gives us an insight full message, 'So if the whole church comes together and everyone speaks in tongues, and some who do not understandor some unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your mind? But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understandcomes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, "God is really among you!" ' (1 Corinthians 14:23-25). Don't misunderstand the context of what Paul is proposing. He's telling us the difference and usage between prophesizing and speaking in tongues. So let speaking in tongues be used for edifying yourself unless it's used to edify the church with revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of instruction and let prophecy be used to strength, encourage, and strengthen men (1 Corinthians 14:3,6).

Personally, upon my first encounter of speaking in tongues as half believer and half unbeliever speaking in tongues was more of a sign and confirmation that God does exist! I truly believe and felt that this was a supernatural phenonmenon gift and sign from God. It wasn't until my first encounter of speaking in tongues that I was able to do some research and speak with others who have the gift of speaking in tongues that brought me the truth written above.

Final question, is it really revelant that we receive this special gift 'speaking in tongues' from God? Without a doubt, yes! It's the manifestation of the Spirit! Not only should we seek and desire for speaking in tongues, but additional seek the other spirtual gifts as well, 'Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines' (1 Corinthians 12:7-11). Meaning that if you are filled with the Holy Spirit you should be given a gift just as the Spirit determines. Paul also instructs us to, 'Follow the way of love and desire spiritual gifts [...]' (1 Corinthians 14:1). We were given a command to follow the way of love for without love is the non-exisitance of God, for God is love. So we must follow the way of God and desire spiritual gifts.

What spiritual gifts do you have given by the Holy Spirit?
Transformation

I'm witnessing the beginning stages of a transformation process. My sister is going through a breakup with her current or now ex-boyfriend who's from a Christian family. In anger at her boyfriend during the breakup, my sister saw the Bible that her boyfriend left and picked it up and started reading it. Suddenly, by God's love and grace, my sister's anger slowly subsided and turned into conviction and remorse. She felt guilty and unworthy of how God can accept someone who has sinned against Him. A couple days after the event she gives me a call with a 101 questions. She asked questions like,

"How does God forgive me for my sins?"
"How do I relieve myself of this conviction?"
"Does the Bible teach me how to pray?"
"The Bible is confusing to read and what Bible should I have purchased?"
"Where should I start reading the Bible?"
"How do I know which denominations to join?
"Is it fair that I grew up in a non-Christian family vs. someone who grew up from a Christian family?"
"Is it okay for me to drink just as long as I don't get drunk?"

I mean the list goes on and on and on, but we had a great conversation and I believe I answered most of her questions. I'm planning to follow up on this and give her a call later tonight. Please, pray for her and me.

How do you handle the situation and are there any tips on how I should approach her next? Thanks in advance.