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Helping Families rive” focusonthefamily.com Bubba Rutherford Continues Zealous Ministries To People FREE July 2014 thewaytimes.com Bobby Rutherford Jr., af- fectionately known as Bub- ba, went to church with his family throughout child- hood. He tells people the first drug problem he ever had was when he was drug to church three times a week. Bubba admits, “I hated church and didn’t want to have anything to do with it. But I did walk the isle and got water baptized. I thought I was saved and even preached from the pulpit, but there wasn’t a difference in my life.” After becoming an adult, he didn’t set foot inside a church for years. However, he always knew God had a call on his life even when he was doing drugs. This awareness made him more determined to run further away from God and to sin. After serving in the mili- tary, he lived in Connecticut and worked for the Cad- Continued on page 7 UPCOMING EVENTS: • Quarterly Singing at Mt. Zion Baptist-- Keechi Community on July 11, 7 p.m., just east of Buffalo at Hwy. 79 and FM 832. • The Lord’s Storehouse food pantry in Teague , will be open e e 9 a.m. to noon: Tuesday, July 8 Saturday, July 12 Tuesday, July 22 • Camp His Way July 11-13 at Eighth Ave. Baptist Church. Call for more information, 254-739-2450 • Gigantic Gospel Concert 2014 at 4 4 Johnson Coliseum, Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, July 19, 4 p.m. Purchase tickets: 866-468-7621 • Davey and Goliath every Wednesday, 6:30-7:30 in July, and August, for ages 4 years through 6th grade at Teague Church of Christ. See page 3 for more details. • Free Workshop. Topic: Family Violence August 2, 9-11 a.m. at First Baptist Church in Mexia. See page 8 for more information. • Vacation Bible School “Back to School Kid’s Crusade,” August 11-13 at Eighth Avenue Baptist Church • The Great East Texas Hymn Sing” on the ” ” campus of East Texas Baptist University, Friday, Sept. 12, 2014. Plan now to bring your church family to the Fourth Annual Hymn Festival! Call 903-923- 2042 for details. • Women of Joy Conference , Sept. 12- e e 14, San Antonio. Get more info by calling 254-739-2450 and sign up at Eighth Ave. Baptist Church • Gospel Singing event at Teague First United Methodist Church , Friday, September 26, 6:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome to attend! • Virginia’s Hospice Grief and Loss Support Group , meets the second Wednesday of each month from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Virginia’s Hospice, 986 West Hwy. 84, Teague, TX 75860. • Providence Hospice Group of Mexia , Free Grief Support Training, every Tuesday, July 8 through August 5, 5:30-6:30 p.m., 107 E. Commerce, Mexia. 254-472-0779 • Mending Fences , a Christ Based Life Recovery support ministry, every Thursday night at 6 p.m., Cowboy Church, Centerville • Brotherhood Breakfast 2nd Sat. each Month. 8 a.m. For more info, contact Pastor Chad Owens, Unity Independent Baptist, 101 South 30th Street, Corsicana 903-872-2861 • Monthly Sing Night in Corsicana, 2nd Saturday, starting at 6:00 p.m. For more Continued on page 8 Continued on page 5 Redeemed Rider Don Thornton Gives Invitation to Life of Peace Don Thornton grew up in Fairfield about a block away from First Baptist Church, so he and his mom attend- ed services there frequent- ly. His dad was a Primitive Baptist Church pastor and, for a time, a circuit preach- er for five congregations, a barber for 42 years, and a motorcyclist. Elder Thornton gave Don his first ride on a motorcy- cle, which influenced Don’s life-long love for motorcy- cles, which he still enjoys today. He received his first motorcycle as a sophomore in high school, and admits he was probably the typical preacher’s kid — enjoying life. Even though Don was in church all the time, he nev- er felt moved to do anything about his salvation. One Sunday night, at about age 10, he and an old classmate, Billy Bass Daniel, were at First Baptist Church, affec- tionately called the Alamo building because of its dis- tinctive appearance. Bill asked him about his rela- tionship with the Lord. Don replied that he had not been saved, and Billy urged him to accept Christ. “Billy was the first per- son who ever talked to me about the Lord,” said Don. “So that night, I responded to the invitation and spoke with the pastor, Virgil Fielden, about being saved. We prayed together and I was later baptized, but I didn’t understand what I was doing. I responded during the invitation only because I was expected to respond—so my motiva- tion for going forward to accept Christ was wrong.” Don admits he could not see any difference in his life after this event. A while later, Don re- sponded to other sermon in- vitations and was baptized once again. Still, nothing had changed in his life. He went through high school then spent four years in the Navy, 1964-1968, as an Aviation Fire-control Radar Technician on the F4 Phantom. Don was at- tached to Fighter Squadron rello’s at Cadrello Accura. Bubba was #2 Accura sales- man in the New England area, and he was number 12 nationwide in 1988. He credits his present evange- listic drive to his salesman’s spirit. “My wife, Kim, and I got married in 1989, when I was 26. In 1990, we went to a tent revival and Kim accepted Christ that night.” God be- gan dealing with Bubba as Kim was leading him to the Lord. About 3 months later, he was driving down Coun- ty Road 441 in Fairfield when he pulled his truck over to the side of the road and accepted Christ right there. He knew a change had happened in him. “Kim and I never looked back af- ter that,” indicating their fo- cus has been on Jesus since the time of their salvation. Bubba felt a burden for the city and began walking the streets at night time and prayed over the city of Fair- field sometimes until 1 or 2 o’clock in the morning. He prayed for revival. He also got a bicycle and rode from city limits sign to city lim- its sign—praying over the signs. He said, “Some peo- Continued on page 2 Bubba Rutherford ministers on Monday nights to those who seek aid from Global Heart in Fairfield; usually 200 to 400 come for groceries and other necessities. Over 30 churches of various denominations are represented by volunteers who help carry food to visitors’ automobiles then pray, asking God to meet their requested needs. Over 1000 families across Texas are assisted each week through Bubba’s ministries. ple think they are called to churches, but unless you love your city, you’ll never amount to anything. Some people are called to a church because a board votes them in. But when God calls you to a city, you’re called to a city; and I’m called to Fair- field, Texas—hands down. I love this city!” Bubba and Kim regularly went to Cornerstone Bap- tist Church. A friend began going to Fairfield Ford fre- quently where Bubba was selling cars, and he talked to Bubba about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Bubba’s response was, “Man, I’m not interested in that. I’m fine with being a good ol’ Baptist boy serving as a youth lead- er.” But soon afterwards, something inside began nudging him—repeatedly. “I knew there was some- thing to it. Kim and I went to visit his church in Buffalo, then we came back to Cor- nerstone Baptist and asked the pastor about it. He said, “I’m telling you, the Holy Spirit is real—it’s real! But you won’t find what you’re looking for here. You’ll have to go somewhere else to learn more because I can’t teach about the Holy Spirit here”—indicating the mem- bers wouldn’t stand for it. “The Cornerstone Baptist pastor and I went to a meet- ing together one night in 1993, at a little church where the food pantry is now--next door to Global Heart—and I got a taste of it. Good grief! I thought to myself, ‘I’ll never be the same!’” Bubba offered an analogy, saying one of his daughters from China used to love eating a cone by itself--without ice cream in it. She never had ice cream in a cone before— until Bubba put ice cream in a cone for her one day. Now to her, nothing is better than ice cream in a cone! She’s hooked! He says this is what it’s like for him having per- sonal knowledge of the Holy Spirit. “Kim and I had several different businesses going on at the same time, and we were so busy with car lots and automotive shops! Even with all the work we were doing, we were broke! It’s because God had been call- ing me to preach, and I was refusing. I wouldn’t give in because I just didn’t want to do it. I finally gave in to the Lord’s call to preach, and I Beware Of Deceit In Seeming Sheep The First Baptist Church of Fairfield structure fondly known as “the Alamo” was recently demolished to make way for new nursery classrooms. While it was a difficult decision to remove the local landmark, FBC is excited to move forward in accomplishing the long- term goal of a new Nursery Building! Don Thornton of Fairfield is a member of the Redeemed Riders chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA), which meets at 9:30 a.m. every second Saturday at H&W Honda in Palestine, TX. Christian and non-Christian riders alike are always invited to participate in the meetings and ride with the CMA group. As a parent you need real answers, real quick. And you’ll get them form ell-it-like-it-is Heartlight Ministries founder Mark Gregston. Having run a een residential counseling facility for more than 25 years, Gregston’s expert insight will guide you through the rough patches that are sure to come your way. Pick up Parenting Teens in a Confusing Culture today, and be ready-for anything. Enjoy exclusive discount pricing until mid-July only. Visit http://www.heartlightministries.org/resources By L.S. Oberle, Editor From time to time, I may unwittingly allow newspa- per content to get by me that I later regret publishing, but there is a purpose for every- thing. This realization made me decide recently to begin running a warning to folks who might not know the messages that Jesus speaks in Matthew 7. Many Bible passages lik- en followers of Christ to a flock of sheep. He is the Good Shepherd and He ten- derly cares for His sheep (John 10:7, 11, 14, Hebrews 13:20-21, etc). The Bible also warns some are in the flock who appear to be followers of Christ, but they are not (2 Corinthians 14-15). Jesus says in Matthew 7:15, “Be careful of false prophets. They come to you looking gentle like sheep, but they are really dangerous like wolves.” What is a prophet? Some Christians believe a proph- et, these days, speaks from a pulpit nonrevelatory mes- sages from God, which are based solely on God’s Word. This belief is the safest for the Church; we must care- 101 at Naval Air Station, Key West, Florida. “VF101 was training squadron so we never went anywhere. In my four years in the Navy, I spent 9 days aboard the Aircraft Carrier, USS Forestall. This cruise was a carrier Qualification, where the new pilots qualified on the Carrier deck landing,” Don explained. While stationed in Key West, Florida, Don met Lorraine Sanchez, the girl he would marry shortly after he was discharged from the Navy. They have been married for 47 years and have two grown sons, Deene and Jared, who have blessed them with 9 grand- children. Don’s first job after the Navy was with Lockheed Electronics at NASA in Clear Lake City, TX. He was on the team that devel- oped the guidance and nav- igation system for ‘Apollo 11’ that took the lunar land- ing module to the moon and back. Don and Lorraine moved to Fairfield in 1969, and he worked for Brown and Root, building Big Brown
Transcript of FREE Bubba Rutherford Continues Zealous Ministries To...
Helping Families� rive”
focusonthefamily.com
Bubba Rutherford Continues Zealous Ministries To People
FREE July 2014 thewaytimes.com
Bobby Rutherford Jr., af-fectionately known as Bub-ba, went to church with his family throughout child-hood. He tells people the fi rst drug problem he ever had was when he was drug to church three times a week.
Bubba admits, “I hated church and didn’t want to have anything to do with it. But I did walk the isle and got water baptized. I thought I was saved and even preached from the pulpit, but there wasn’t a difference in my life.” After becoming an adult, he didn’t set foot inside a church for years. However, he always knew God had a call on his life even when he was doing drugs. This awareness made him more determined to run further away from God and to sin.
After serving in the mili-tary, he lived in Connecticut and worked for the Cad-
Continued on page 7
UPCOMING EVENTS:
• Quarterly Singing at Mt. Zion Baptist--Keechi Community on July 11, 7 p.m., just east of Buffalo at Hwy. 79 and FM 832.
• The Lord’s Storehouse food pantry in Teague, will be openTeague, will be openTeague
9 a.m. to noon: Tuesday, July 8
Saturday, July 12 Tuesday, July 22
• Camp His Way July 11-13 at Eighth Ave. Baptist Church. Call for more information, 254-739-2450
• Gigantic Gospel Concert 2014 at Concert 2014 at Concert 2014Johnson Coliseum, Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, July 19,
4 p.m. Purchase tickets: 866-468-7621
• Davey and Goliath every Wednesday, 6:30-7:30 in July, and August, for ages 4 years through 6th grade at Teague Church of Christ. See page 3 for more details.
• Free Workshop. Topic: Family Violence August 2, 9-11 a.m. at First Baptist Church in Mexia. See page 8 for more information.
• Vacation Bible School “Back to School Kid’s Crusade,” August 11-13 at Eighth Avenue Baptist Church
• The Great East TexasHymn Sing” on the Hymn Sing” on the Hymn Sing”campus of East Texas Baptist University, Friday, Sept. 12, 2014. Plan now to bring your church family to the Fourth Annual Hymn Festival! Call 903-923-2042 for details.
• Women of Joy Conference, Sept. 12-Conference, Sept. 12-Conference14, San Antonio. Get more info by calling 254-739-2450 and sign up at Eighth Ave. Baptist Church
• Gospel Singing event at Teague First United Methodist Church, Friday, September 26, 6:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome to attend!
• Virginia’s Hospice Grief and Loss Support Group, meets the second Wednesday of each month from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Virginia’s Hospice, 986 West Hwy. 84, Teague, TX 75860.
• Providence Hospice Group of Mexia, Free Grief Support Training, every Tuesday, July 8 through August 5, 5:30-6:30 p.m., 107 E. Commerce, Mexia. 254-472-0779
• Mending Fences, a Christ Based Life Recovery support ministry, every Thursday night at 6 p.m., Cowboy Church, Centerville
• Brotherhood Breakfast 2nd Sat. each Month. 8 a.m. For more info, contact Pastor Chad Owens, Unity Independent Baptist, 101 South 30th Street, Corsicana 903-872-2861
• Monthly Sing Night in Corsicana, 2nd Saturday, starting at 6:00 p.m. For more
Continued on page 8
Continued on page 5
Redeemed Rider Don ThorntonGives Invitation to Life of PeaceDon Thornton grew up in
Fairfi eld about a block away from First Baptist Church, so he and his mom attend-ed services there frequent-ly. His dad was a Primitive Baptist Church pastor and, for a time, a circuit preach-er for fi ve congregations, a barber for 42 years, and a motorcyclist.
Elder Thornton gave Don his fi rst ride on a motorcy-cle, which infl uenced Don’s life-long love for motorcy-cles, which he still enjoys today. He received his fi rst motorcycle as a sophomore in high school, and admits he was probably the typical preacher’s kid — enjoying life.
Even though Don was in
church all the time, he nev-er felt moved to do anything about his salvation. One Sunday night, at about age 10, he and an old classmate, Billy Bass Daniel, were at First Baptist Church, affec-tionately called the Alamo building because of its dis-tinctive appearance. Bill asked him about his rela-tionship with the Lord. Don replied that he had not been saved, and Billy urged him to accept Christ.
“Billy was the fi rst per-son who ever talked to me about the Lord,” said Don. “So that night, I responded to the invitation and spoke with the pastor, Virgil Fielden, about being saved. We prayed together and
I was later baptized, but I didn’t understand what I was doing. I responded during the invitation only because I was expected to respond—so my motiva-tion for going forward to accept Christ was wrong.” Don admits he could not see any difference in his life after this event.
A while later, Don re-sponded to other sermon in-vitations and was baptized once again. Still, nothing had changed in his life.
He went through high school then spent four years in the Navy, 1964-1968, as an Aviation Fire-control Radar Technician on the F4 Phantom. Don was at-tached to Fighter Squadron
rello’s at Cadrello Accura. Bubba was #2 Accura sales-man in the New England area, and he was number 12 nationwide in 1988. He credits his present evange-listic drive to his salesman’s spirit.
“My wife, Kim, and I got married in 1989, when I was 26. In 1990, we went to a tent revival and Kim accepted Christ that night.” God be-gan dealing with Bubba as Kim was leading him to the Lord. About 3 months later, he was driving down Coun-ty Road 441 in Fairfi eld when he pulled his truck over to the side of the road and accepted Christ right there. He knew a change had happened in him. “Kim and I never looked back af-ter that,” indicating their fo-cus has been on Jesus since the time of their salvation.
Bubba felt a burden for the city and began walking the streets at night time and
prayed over the city of Fair-fi eld sometimes until 1 or 2 o’clock in the morning. He prayed for revival. He also got a bicycle and rode from city limits sign to city lim-its sign—praying over the signs. He said, “Some peo-
Continued on page 2
Bubba Rutherford ministers on Monday nights to those who seek aid from Global Heart in Fairfield; usually 200 to 400 come for groceries and other necessities. Over 30 churches of various denominations are represented by volunteers who help carry food to visitors’ automobiles then pray, asking God to meet their requested needs. Over 1000 families across Texas are assisted each week through Bubba’s ministries.
ple think they are called to churches, but unless you love your city, you’ll never amount to anything. Some people are called to a church because a board votes them in. But when God calls you to a city, you’re called to a city; and I’m called to Fair-fi eld, Texas—hands down. I love this city!”
Bubba and Kim regularly went to Cornerstone Bap-tist Church. A friend began going to Fairfi eld Ford fre-quently where Bubba was selling cars, and he talked to Bubba about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Bubba’s response was, “Man, I’m not interested in that. I’m fi ne with being a good ol’ Baptist boy serving as a youth lead-er.” But soon afterwards, something inside began nudging him—repeatedly.
“I knew there was some-thing to it. Kim and I went to visit his church in Buffalo, then we came back to Cor-nerstone Baptist and asked the pastor about it. He said, “I’m telling you, the Holy Spirit is real—it’s real! But you won’t fi nd what you’re looking for here. You’ll have to go somewhere else to learn more because I can’t teach about the Holy Spirit
here”—indicating the mem-bers wouldn’t stand for it.
“The Cornerstone Baptist pastor and I went to a meet-ing together one night in 1993, at a little church where the food pantry is now--next door to Global Heart—and I got a taste of it. Good grief! I thought to myself, ‘I’ll never be the same!’” Bubba offered an analogy, saying one of his daughters from China used to love eating a cone by itself--without ice cream in it. She never had ice cream in a cone before—until Bubba put ice cream in a cone for her one day. Now to her, nothing is better than ice cream in a cone! She’s hooked! He says this is what it’s like for him having per-sonal knowledge of the Holy Spirit.
“Kim and I had several different businesses going on at the same time, and we were so busy with car lots and automotive shops! Even with all the work we were doing, we were broke! It’s because God had been call-ing me to preach, and I was refusing. I wouldn’t give in because I just didn’t want to do it. I fi nally gave in to the Lord’s call to preach, and I
Beware Of Deceit In Seeming Sheep
The First Baptist Church of Fairfi eld structure fondly known as “the Alamo” was recently demolished to make way for new nursery classrooms. While it was a diffi cult decision to remove the local landmark, FBC is excited to move forward in accomplishing the long-term goal of a new Nursery Building!
Don Thornton of Fairfi eld is a member of the Redeemed Riders chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA), which meets at 9:30 a.m. every second Saturday at H&W Honda in Palestine, TX. Christian and non-Christian riders alike are always invited to participate in the meetings and ride with the CMA group.
As a parent you need real answers, real quick. And you’ll get them form As a parent you need real answers, real quick. And you’ll get them form tell-it-like-it-is Heartlight Ministries founder Mark Gregston. Having run a tell-it-like-it-is Heartlight Ministries founder Mark Gregston. Having run a teen residential counseling facility for more than 25 years, Gregston’s expert teen residential counseling facility for more than 25 years, Gregston’s expert insight will guide you through the rough patches that are sure to come your insight will guide you through the rough patches that are sure to come your way. Pick up Parenting Teens in a Confusing Culture today, and be ready-for anything. Enjoy exclusive discount pricing until mid-July only.Visit http://www.heartlightministries.org/resources
By L.S. Oberle, EditorFrom time to time, I may
unwittingly allow newspa-per content to get by me that I later regret publishing, but there is a purpose for every-thing. This realization made me decide recently to begin running a warning to folks who might not know the messages that Jesus speaks in Matthew 7.
Many Bible passages lik-
en followers of Christ to a fl ock of sheep. He is the Good Shepherd and He ten-derly cares for His sheep (John 10:7, 11, 14, Hebrews 13:20-21, etc).
The Bible also warns some are in the fl ock who appear to be followers of Christ, but they are not (2 Corinthians 14-15). Jesus says in Matthew 7:15, “Be careful of false prophets.
They come to you looking gentle like sheep, but they are really dangerous like wolves.”
What is a prophet? Some Christians believe a proph-et, these days, speaks from a pulpit nonrevelatory mes-sages from God, which are based solely on God’s Word. This belief is the safest for the Church; we must care-
101 at Naval Air Station, Key West, Florida. “VF101 was training squadron so we never went anywhere. In my four years in the Navy, I spent 9 days aboard the Aircraft Carrier, USS Forestall. This cruise was a carrier Qualifi cation, where the new pilots qualifi ed on the Carrier deck landing,” Don explained.
While stationed in Key West, Florida, Don met Lorraine Sanchez, the girl he would marry shortly after he was discharged from the Navy. They have been married for 47 years
and have two grown sons, Deene and Jared, who have blessed them with 9 grand-children.
Don’s fi rst job after the Navy was with Lockheed Electronics at NASA in Clear Lake City, TX. He was on the team that devel-oped the guidance and nav-igation system for ‘Apollo 11’ that took the lunar land-ing module to the moon and back.
Don and Lorraine moved to Fairfi eld in 1969, and he worked for Brown and Root, building Big Brown
A2 July 2014 July 2014 July � e Way Times Herald www.thewaytimes.com
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By Mark MunsonOn July the 4th, we in
America remember and celebrate our Nation’s In-dependence from a tyran-nical ruler by the name of King George III, who ruled a nation that’s now our ally, England. It was on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia, Penn-sylvania, that our forefa-thers penned and adopted the Declaration of Indepen-dence, declaring a young, thirteen colony nation, to be a free and independent nation of its own. General George Washington was called by the Continental Congress to lead a rag-tagged army of soldiers to fi ght for our independence. And fi ght they did. But one of the key elements that
Are We On The Lord’s Side?made General Washington the leader he was, was his fi rm belief in the Almighty. Perhaps you may have read somewhere in your study of American history, how in the midst of Valley Forge, the roughest winter the Con-tinental Army ever faced, that Washington turned to God in prayer, seeking the divine help that only God could give.
As the story goes, a farm-er, approaching the camp, heard an earnest voice seek-ing God. As he drew nearer, he was suddenly aware that he stood in the presence of General George Washing-ton, only the General was not standing, he was on his knees in the snow, with his cheeks wet with tears.
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When the farmer returned to his home, he told his wife, “George Washing-ton will succeed! George Washington will succeed! The Americans will secure their independence!” “What makes you think so, Isaac?” asked his wife. The farmer replied, “I heard him pray, Hannah, out in the woods today, and the Lord will surely hear his prayer. He will, Hannah! Rest assured He will.”
With all that is going on in this world, and with all that is going on in our nation, the only way that America will succeed is if we, as God’s people, will humble our-selves in prayer, and turn from our wicked ways, and seek His face and His coun-sel, then will He hear from heaven and forgive our sins, and restore our land. Folks, whether you or I like it or not, whether we want to face the reality of it or not, the fact is, America is the lead-ing force of righteousness in the world today. There is a lot that we have lost, but we are not yet licked! How-ever, the moment we give up, the moment we call it quits and the moment we
seek to leave that testimony in the hands of others, is the moment that both we, and the world begins to loose. It’s time we, once again, be-gan to seek God’s face and to follow His commands.
Abraham Lincoln said at the end of his Gettysburg address, “Government of the people, by the people, and for the people, may be little more than a form of tyranny, but government of the people, for the people, and under God, is a form of government that honors God, that submits to His righteous rule, and that is exalted thereby.” Well, I think he was on to some-thing there, don’t you?
One day, when the Civil War was reaching its worst, a minister said to President Lincoln, “I surely hope the Lord is on our side.” To which Lincoln replied, “I am not at all concerned about that, for I know that the Lord is always on the side of the right; but it is my constant anxiety and prayer that I and this nation should be on the Lord’s side.” Let me ask you, are we on the Lord’s side? What should we do to get there?
FirstAssembly
ofGod
Pastor Spain& Bettye Trask
1016 N. 4th Ave.(behind Dairy Queen)
P.O. Box 597Teague, TX 75860
254-739-3867
Prophecy Fulfi lled
By Linda Kay Upton
Christ’s Incarnation Prophesied
as early as 900 B.C. PART I
Was Jesus Christ an idea, a spirit, or a literal per-son? What does “incarnate mean? If Jesus was a liter-al person, then how does that impact your life, your world, our world today? Why would that be so very important? The answer is found in prophecy written as long ago as the mid 900’s to the 680’s B.C.!
The dictionary defi nes the word “incarnate” this way: “embodied in fl esh; given a bodily, especially a human form; to put into or represent in a concrete form, as an idea; to be the embodiment of; to em-body in fl esh; invest with a bodily, especially a human, form. (www.dictionary.com) God is spirit (John 4:24). The only way man-kind can comprehend God at all is through the physical form of God. Jesus Christ took on the form of a man,
forever altering His eternal state. For anyone to believe in the truth of God’s Word and His one and only plan to save mankind from an eter-nal destiny of fi re and dying, we must believe then in the incarnation of God as re-vealed through Jesus Christ. Sometime in the 900’s B.C. David wrote, “The LORD said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’” (Psalm 110:1) This proph-ecy has dual fulfi llment, one yet future. David, the most revered and loved king of Israel for all time, received from God a prom-ise (2 Samuel 7:12) that his descendant would be king over Israel. While that was “immediately” fulfi lled by Solomon, his son, David expected a divine ruler be-cause only then could his kingdom be established forever as God promised. forever as God promised. forever
(2 Samuel 7:13 “I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”) More than 300 years later Isaiah confi rmed this prophecy as true, though in the 600’s B.C. it had not yet hap-pened. Isaiah wrote, “Of the increase of His govern-ment and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His king-dom to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward,
even forever. (Isaiah 9:7) As of yet, the “forever” part of this prophecy has yet to be fulfi lled, but as discussed in our earlier study, we ex-pect it’s fulfi llment because other events God predicted through His chosen proph-ets were fulfi lled. But here we see that God would be-come embodied in fl esh. David believed it and proph-esied it through Holy Spirit (Matthew 22:43) and Isaiah believed and prophesied it.
What did we learn in our study last month? That Je-sus Christ was born in the fl esh according to prophe-cy in Isaiah 7 and 9. And if that isn’t enough to prove God’s Word is trustworthy, true and will happen exact-ly as He says, Jesus Himself confi rmed that he is God incarnate, God in the fl esh and descended from the fa-mous king David. “While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, ‘What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?’ ‘The son of David,’ they replied. He said to them, ‘How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘LORD’?’ For he [David] says, “the LORD said my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.’” If then David calls him ‘LORD,’ how can he be his son?” (Matthew 22:41-
44). The original Hebrew word for “LORD” in this reference is “Yaweh” which is a name belonging only to God. Jesus here declared that He was not merely a descendent of David by birth and not just a man, but that He was also the son of God. Jesus is Deity! No one has ever impacted the world, religion, or life the way the Son of God, Jesus Christ has. The importance of fulfi lled prophecy that Jesus Christ is descended from David, yet also Da-vid’s LORD GOD, proph-esied in Isaiah and Psalm 110 should not escape us. It is a great mystery of God and yet demonstrates His great mercy and amaz-ing grace to us humans.The apostle Paul sums it up perfectly in 1 Timothy 3:16: “And without contro-versy great is the mystery of godliness: God was man-ifested in the fl esh, Justifi ed in the Spirit, Seen by an-gels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.”
How will the incarna-tion of Christ impact you? What will you do with the truth that God took on the form of humanity? To be-lieve or not believe will determine your eternal destiny. What will be your eternity?
Teague First United Methodist Church had a singing event on Friday, June 27. Fifteen singers stepped up to perform praises and hymns; a fellowship meal followed. Everyone participating had a great evening.
FUMC’s next singing event is scheduled for the fourth Friday of the month of September--the 26th at 6:30 p.m. Everyone is encouraged to attend.
Singin’ at FUMC-Teague
fully follow the teaching of Scripture. Others believe God speaks revelatory messages, not from the Bible, directly to His people through prophets. Even though there’s disagree-ment as to what is spoken, I believe we all understand that a prophet has always spoken before people and they, like preachers and teachers, are a gift from God to His people. But God does not give false prophets--that is one of Satan’s schemes to divide and confuse the sheep.
Romans 16:17, “I beseech you, brethren, mark them who cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which you have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ but their own body, and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the innocent.”
False prophets appear to be nice people and their lives even seem to be clean, but they subtly hide the truth about themselves. They make their listeners proud; they speak visions from their imagination; they seem to assume God exists to glorify man. When they teach or preach, their message is vague, winsome, and based on feelings or as-sumptions. They tell you want you want to hear. They look like a Christian and even talk about Jesus, the cross and heaven. They talk about how to be happy, how to receive blessings from the Lord, etc., but they don’t expound on sin, don’t expound on sin, don’tthe need for repentance in order to commune with God, hu-mility, meekness, and selfl essness, conforming to the im-age of Christ, and living solely for God’s glory. However, these points might be very briefl y touched on in passing, but the focus is off-center. The false messages are basically centered on “receive” or “satisfy my wants” while Christ’s message is basically centered on “sacrifi ce” in one way or another (Matthew 20:28) and satisfy God’s wants.
How can a person know who is teaching truth,and who is leading people into danger?
Jesus tells us in Matthew 7 how to discern who leads with truth, but He uses a different analogy: check the fruit of the tree. He says, “You will know these people by what they do. Grapes don’t come from thornbushes, and fi gs don’t come from thorny weeds. In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can-not produce good fruit. Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fi re. In the same way, you will know these false prophets by what they do.”
You might respond by saying, “Doesn’t the Bible say not to judge people?” Yes. In this same chapter of Matthew, Je-sus says, “Don’t judge others, or you will be judged…” But just as there are at least two defi nitions for “tire,” there are multiple meanings for “judge,” and different meanings of “judge” are found in this same chapter of Matthew. One defi nition for “judge” is to form an opinion or estimation of after careful consideration (check the fruit). Another defi ni-tion for “judge” is to pass sentence on or condemn. We are to form an opinion, but we are not to condemn.
What is good fruit? What is bad fruit?Fruit is character. Good fruit is produced by the Holy
Spirit and is characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-con-trol (Galatians 5:22-23).
Jesus says in John 13:35, “All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.” “Love your ene-mies. Pray for those who hurt you. If you do this, you will be true children of your Father in heaven.” Love is not merely true children of your Father in heaven.” Love is not merely true children of your Father in heaven.”a good feeling and doing anything sweet just to get along with people; it is being truthful, but in a loving manner (Ephesians 4:15) and obeying God’s word (1 John 2:4, 3:22, 3:24, 5:2-3), putting God’s desires before our own desires.
Born again Christians sin at times because of the fallen human nature; however, our focus is on Jesus Christ, and our goal is to do all things that please God through the pow-er of the Holy Spirit. We desire to be obedient to His word and want to be conformed to the image of Christ. When we sin, we repent before long at the prompting of the Holy Spirit, and get back to being obedient to His word by His enabling power.
There are also those in the fl ock who can be normally described having characteristics opposite the fruits of the Holy Spirit: pride/hate, lying (includes not keeping one’s word), critical, sowing disharmony, selfi sh, controlling, sensual, and rash. People who can normally be described by these attributes do not know or teach truth. Don’t re-main their Bible student thinking you should overlook the constant sinning and be forgiving. You are being poisoned and taken the wrong direction. Find ministers that routinely display good fruit and learn from them. Do not be fed from a tree that has bad fruit.
Jesus says in this same chapter of Matthew, “Not all those who say ‘You are our Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven. The only people who will enter the kingdom of heaven are those who do what my Father in heaven wants. On the last day many people will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, we spoke for you, and through you we forced out demons and did many miracles.’ Then I will tell them clearly, ‘Get away from me, you who do evil. I never knew you.’” Those who from me, you who do evil. I never knew you.’” Those who from me, you who do evil. I never knew you.’”have good fruit do God’s desires. God’s desires are written in the Bible. You have to read the Bible to know His will. Don’t take for granted that all preachers proclaim truth.
Now in summary, some false prophets/teachers look like the real McCoy and speak Christian language. However, it is vitally important that you pay attention to what the speak-er is not saying; and look at the focus of the message--is a human glorifying self and/or causing others to focus on self? Are the person’s messages continually focused on re-ceiving something from God? Or is the focus on Christ Jesus with the motivation to glorify God and honor others?
Don’t let your spiritual growth be stunted by deceit.
Beware of DeceitIn Seeming Sheep
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