2020
Faith Is Based on Knowledge
“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:2-4)
These verses say that all things that pertain unto life and godliness are given unto us through the knowledge of God. Certainly, faith must be one of those things because without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). So faith must come through the knowledge of God. That’s the reason Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing the Word of God.
The amount of faith that you operate in is directly proportional to the revelation knowledge that you have of God through His Word.
Many people have found it very difficult to operate in faith. That is because they either don’t have the real knowledge of God’s Word in them, or they have let the Word slip and be choked by the knowledge of the world.
Fear comes through carnal knowledge, just as faith and all things that pertain unto life come through godly knowledge.
Most Christians today (even Spirit-filled Christians) are full of the knowledge about how to operate in Satan’s system but are really deficient in the knowledge it takes to prosper in God’s system. So, it is not really a faith problem that exists, but it is rather a Word problem.
Galatians 5:22 states that faith is a part of the fruit of the Spirit. Have you ever seen a plant struggle to bring forth fruit? Have you ever heard a vine moan and groan and complain about how hard it is to produce grapes? Of course not! It’s the nature of a vine to produce grapes. If the vine is protected and given nourishment, it will automatically produce fruit, unless it’s starved or attacked by some outside force. So it is with the Christian. Faith will automatically be the product of our abiding in the Word, which is Jesus (John 1:1, 15:1-7).
The problem has been that the knowledge of God’s Word has not been abiding in us, or the carnal knowledge of the world has choked the Word of God that was there. You cannot serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. He cannot receive anything from the Lord (James 1:7-8).
Matthew 6:22 gives us the promise that if the eye is single, we will be full of light. That means that if all your attention is focused on God through His Word, then the only thing that you will be full of is God and what His Word produces. This is a Bible law that is repeated in Romans 8:6, which says, “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” If we are experiencing anything but life and peace, it is because we are carnally minded. You cannot have life and peace without the knowledge of God. On the other hand, you cannot experience any form of death without the knowledge of the devil and his system.
The carnal knowledge that we dwell upon in our thought lives is Satan’s in-road to us. I am convinced that one of the main reasons that the first men that walked upon this earth lived to be as old as 969 years is because they didn’t know how to die. They didn’t even have a family until they were over 300 years old! They didn’t know that there was supposed to be a flu season every year. It took many years for Satan to pervert the knowledge that was in man so that he would accept defeat. Most of our battles could be avoided if we would just be wise concerning that which is good and simple concerning that which is evil (Rom. 16:19).
Hebrews 11:15 says that if Abraham had been mindful of the country that he came out of, he might have had opportunity, or might have been tempted, to have returned. But, since he refused to think on Satan’s knowledge, he could not be tempted to turn back. Praise God! If Abraham could do it, we can do it too. Second Corinthians 10:4-5 says we can bring every thought into captivity and under the obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ.
But, since our minds have already been grounded in the knowledge of this world, it is impossible to just cast that carnal mind out. You have to be thinking on something. Romans 12:2 says, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Our minds have to be renewed, and that is done by meditating on the knowledge of God as revealed in His Word.
Your mind is similar to a computer. It simply acts upon the knowledge put into it. If all you have is carnal knowledge, then all you can be is carnal. But praise God, you can reprogram yourself with the Word of God.
You are not incapable of living a life of faith. Quite the contrary, if you have been born again, you have already been given faith as a part of the fruit of the Spirit. But, you can’t function in it if you don’t know that it’s there or if you don’t have knowledge of the laws that govern it. The laws of aerodynamics have been in existence since creation, but man didn’t have knowledge of them until recently. Many people scoffed at the idea of flying, just as many people ridicule the faith message today.
They used to say, “If God meant for man to fly, He would have given man wings.” We’ve seen that assumption proven false.
It wasn’t God who was keeping us from flying, it was our ignorance of the laws that govern flight. It hasn’t been God who failed to give us faith, we have all been given the measure of faith (Rom. 12:3), but God’s people have been perishing because of a lack of knowledge of how that faith works.
Mankind didn’t learn how to fly overnight. There have been many failures, but now no one doubts that the laws of aerodynamics work. You won’t learn all the laws of faith instantly either, and you may fall flat on your face a few times before you start seeing faith produce as it should. But, the law of faith, which created everything, is a thousand times more sure than the laws of aerodynamics. The knowledge of God and how faith works is hidden for you, not from you, in the Word of God. Pray Ephesians 1:15-23 with me, as a prayer to receive the knowledge of God. Believe that you receive, and watch faith begin to be produced in your life.
“Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all.” (Eph. 1:15-23)
2020
Living in God’s Best – Don’t Settle for Less
Don’t Settle for Less
A few months ago, I dreamed all night long of preaching a message entitled How to Receive God’s Best. I’ve spent weeks meditating on this and feel like the Lord gave this to me to share with you.
Before I can share the heart of what the Lord spoke to me, I need to point out two very important things in that title.
You have to learn how to RECEIVE God’s BEST.
You have to get sick and tired of being sick and tired before you will aggressively pursue God’s best.
You have to have a holy dissatisfaction with mediocrity before you can experience all that God has for you. It doesn’t happen accidentally or automatically. If you don’t pursue it, you won’t get it.
Everything in our fallen world naturally goes from good to bad. Things don’t get better without effort. We have to seek to find, knock to get the door opened, and ask before we receive (Matt. 7:7).We must raise our sights and aim higher. Most people are shooting at nothing and hitting it every time.
Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end [hope and a future, New International Version]” (brackets mine).
When the Lord spoke to Jeremiah to write these words, Israel was devastated. The city of Jerusalem had been destroyed, and many people had been taken captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. Thoughts of peace were probably the last thing on their minds.
But Jeremiah went on to say in verses 12-13,
“Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”
I’ve had people tell me they prayed and believed God but that nothing happened. These scriptures promise otherwise. So, who’s right? I choose to believe God is true.
The key is, we have to seek with ALL our hearts. That’s the missing element.
We have to reach a point where we won’t live with anything less than God’s best.
That attitude is missing in the lives of far too many Christians. The bar of expectations, even within the church, has been lowered in regards to healing, finances, and more. There is such a fear that someone might be disappointed and, therefore, condemned that many ministers have been teaching people to settle for less and avoid the disappointment.
I am not trying to condemn anyone. We have all been raised in and influenced by an ungodly culture. And nobody learns how to receive God’s best overnight. It’s a process, but we need to begin moving in that direction. I haven’t arrived there either, but I have left and am on my way. God has far more for all of us than we are experiencing.
I have told this story before, but it is such a good illustration that I want to share it with you again. A man came forward for prayer in one of my meetings. He told me he had a terrible pain in his neck and couldn’t sleep as a result. He continued, “I’ve got a back problem, my sciatic nerve causes pain down my entire leg and into my foot, I also have neuropathy…” and on and on he continued.
Then he said, “But if God could just heal the pain in my neck, I could live with the rest.” I looked at him and said, “Well, I understand. If we asked God to heal all of those things at once, the lights in heaven might dim. I’m not sure God could pull that off.”
The guy just looked at me for a minute, and then he replied, “That was pretty stupid, wasn’t it?” I agreed and then went on to tell him that he didn’t have to settle for less than complete healing—God’s best. “It’s that attitude that is keeping you from receiving your healing,” I said.
Christians ought to be walking in supernatural healing. They ought to be walking in financial prosperity. Most, however, are just as sick and broke as their unsaved neighbors. You will never receive God’s best until you become completely dissatisfied with second best—mediocrity.
One of these days, we are all going to stand before God. And when we do, we will know all things even as we are known (1 Cor. 13:12). In an instant, we are going to know what we could have had while on this earth. We will understand that the same power that raised Christ from the dead was resident within us all along (Eph. 1:18-20).
We will discover that we didn’t have to be sick, that we didn’t have to live broke, and that we didn’t have to be depressed and discouraged. We will realize that love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance were living inside us the whole time (Gal. 5:22-23).
We don’t have to limp into heaven, crying, “Praise God, we made it.” We can live a life of victory now. Jesus died to deliver us from this present evil world (Gal. 1:4), not just the one to come.
Moses lived under an inferior covenant compared to ours (2 Cor. 3:7-11). Jesus said John the Baptist was greater than Moses, yet the least New Testament saint is greater than John (Matt. 11:11). Therefore, if Moses was still strong at 120 with good eyesight (Deut. 34:7), why would we settle for less?
Unless you’re willing to stand and fight the fight of faith, you will be overcome by this world.
If you don’t stir yourself up, you will settle to the bottom. The world isn’t going to encourage you toward God’s best, and most Christians aren’t either.
Sadly, religion is one of the strongest weapons Satan has to discourage people from believing for something more. Many churches believe that God doesn’t perform miracles today or, worse, that God is the one who wills for our lives to be in such a mess to break us. He sovereignly controls everything. That is not true.
We also have to recognize that it’s all about receiving what God has already done and not about getting God to do something He has yet to do. We don’t need God to heal us; by His stripes, we were healed (1 Pet. 2:24). That miraculous healing power is already IN us. We don’t need God to move; we need to believe what He has already done and learn how to receive.
I encourage you to begin receiving God’s best. In this letter, I have only touched on a small part of this message. But I have just completed a new five-part teaching series called How to Receive God’s Best. In the series, I cover in depth how to not settle for less, as well as subjects like the difference between blessings and miracles, what the blessings of God are, the power of words, and much more.
Thank You, Jesus.
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2020
Faith for Healing Is Based on Knowledge
At one of my Gospel Truth Seminars, I ministered to a man who had detached retinas. I was standing right in front of him, and he said I was just a blur. With the service about to start, I only had a moment to minister, so I told him to come forward at the end, and one of our prayer ministers would continue the process. He did and, after further ministry, gave a great testimony.
Not only could he see me clearly, but he could see the faces of the people at the back of the auditorium.
Thank You, Jesus! That’s a miracle!
In the same service, a woman came forward whose eyes were clouded with cataracts. She could barely see, but after the prayer minister prayed for her, the white glaze over her eyes was gone, and she said her eyesight was great. Another man came off the oxygen tank he had been attached to for months. Deaf ears were opened; cancers were cured; and backs were healed. Hallelujah!
The most exciting thing to me about these miracles is that I’m NOT the one who prayed for most of these people.
Not long ago, I was doing all of the ministry. Don’t misunderstand; I enjoy ministering God’s healing to people. But, as the crowds grew, it became difficult to pray for everyone. I often prayed with people till after midnight, and yet there were many more that couldn’t stay and left without their healing. Now that we have prayer ministers, hundreds of people can be ministered to each night. Many more miracles are taking place, and it’s especially satisfying to see them experience the same and even better results than I do.
I think this sends a much needed signal to all who will listen; television ministers are not the only ones who can operate in this miraculous power of God! Praise God for the true men and women of God on television, but Jesus said that believers will lay hands on the sick, and the sick will recover (Mark 16:18).
The job of the minister is to train the body of Christ so that they can do the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:11-12). The day of the one-man show in the body of Christ needs to come to an end, and we’re literally seeing that take place in our meetings.
Some of the local prayer ministers we train have never seen a miracle happen through them before. I remember one man who helped us at a seminar. He received the pre-seminar instruction and training, and on the very first night saw a person’s blind eyes open when he prayed. He told us the next day that he was so excited, he didn’t sleep all night. Not only did the blind person get healed, but I can guarantee you, that young man will never be the same. That is awesome!
Would you like to see the blind receive their sight or the lame walk when you pray? Do you desperately need healing yourself? Here’s the good news—whether you’re praying for another’s healing or receiving your own, it’s available to every true follower of Christ! Jesus gave every disciple who believes the power and authority to do the same works that He did. What a statement! But it is absolutely true.
John 14:12 says,
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
All believers will do the same works that Jesus did; it’s not limited to ministers. There’s just a shortage of believing believers.
How do you get to the place where you can see the miraculous happen in and through you? It starts with the renewing of your mind. Faith is based on knowledge, and everything we need to know to be a victorious Christian is explained in God’s Word. That’s what the Apostle Peter said in
2 Peter 1:3-4:
“According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
Knowledge of a few basics truths, when properly understood and applied, will make a huge difference in releasing His power and receiving your healing. Last month I shared one of the most important things the Lord has ever shown me:
God has already placed His healing power within us, and it is now under our authority. It isn’t up to God to determine who receives healing; it’s up to us! What a powerful statement!
It’s our failure to understand and use the authority we have that is keeping God’s healing power from flowing as it should. It’s imperative that we discover what we have and learn how to release it. If you don’t have my album entitled The Believer’s Authority, you need to get it. The message will not only affect the way you receive and minister healing, but it will change the entire way you relate to God. It’s a powerful teaching.
Here’s another indispensable basic truth you must know and understand about healing: It’s never God’s will for us to be sick; He wants every person healed every time. That’s nearly-too-good-to-be-true news, but that’s the Gospel.
Most Christians don’t know or believe that. They think the Lord makes them sick, or at the very least, He allows Satan to make them sick to either punish or correct them. That kind of thinking will get you killed; it’s not what the Bible teaches.
One of the most elementary principles in God’s Word is given in James 4:7. It says,
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
This verse clearly teaches that some things are of God, and some things are of the devil. Notice it doesn’t present a third category: from God through the devil. No! Sickness has nothing to do with God! Submit to the things of God, and resist the things of the devil. It’s that simple. To believe that God allows or approves of Satan’s actions defies the logic of James 4:7. It eliminates our responsibility to resist and places ultimate responsibility for everything back on God.
The widely-accepted doctrine that God controls everything is a deception.
If Satan can confuse and deceive you on that issue, he’s got you! Why? Because you’ll stop resisting. No one wants to resist God’s will, and if you think that God is behind your sickness, you’ll submit to it. That violates the instruction of James 4:7, it won’t get you healed, and it lets Satan have his way in your life.
You must believe God always wants you healed. It’s so simple, it takes help to misunderstand. But sadly, most Christians receive plenty of help from religion in misunderstanding this.
Look at it this way: If God wanted you sick, for whatever reason, then why visit the doctor or take medication? It would seem more logical to allow the sickness to run its course so God’s purpose could be accomplished. Of course I think that’s foolish, and hopefully, so do you.
What’s the bottom line on God’s will for our healing? His Word reveals that to us in 3 John 2, which says,
“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”
John was writing a letter to believers under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He revealed that the Lord wants us healthy just as much as He wants us to prosper emotionally and mentally.
When Peter preached the Gospel to Cornelius in Acts 10:38, he summarized the ministry of Jesus by saying,
“How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”
Today some preachers are saying that healing is of the devil, but that’s not the message Peter gave. Notice what Peter said under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Not only was Jesus doing good when He healed people, but He healed all that were oppressed of the devil, not of God. That scripture clearly proves that sickness is not from God.
Isaiah 53 should end all debate. It was written prophetically about Jesus, the Messiah.
Isaiah 53:4-5 says,
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”
These verses reveal that physical healing is a part of the atonement of Christ. The Lord redeemed us from sickness just as much as He redeemed us from sin. He would no more want us to be sick than He would want us to sin. Those are radical statements to many Christians because we’ve been taught that forgiveness of sins is what salvation is all about. Well that’s certainly a vital part of salvation, but that’s not all that Jesus accomplished. We were also healed by His stripes. Sickness is not of God just as sin is not of God. Thank You, Jesus!
Just in case anyone might be thinking that the healing spoken of in Isaiah 53:4-5 is not physical but only emotional, the Bible gives a commentary on Isaiah’s prophecy. In Matthew 8:16 Jesus healed all the sick people brought to Him, and verse 17 says this was done…
Matthew 8:16
“That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”
Therefore, Scripture comments on itself and makes it very clear that the healing spoken of by Isaiah is referring to physical infirmities and sicknesses. If Jesus bore our sicknesses, then we don’t have to.
You may be asking yourself, “What about Paul’s thorn in the flesh?” I wish I had space to answer that in this article because those scriptures are not talking about a sickness of Paul’s that the Lord would not heal. However, I do have an entire teaching revealing what Paul’s thorn in the flesh was. That teaching is the second in a four-part series I have entitled God Wants You Well. The first teaching in that series deals with healing as a part of Christ’s atonement, the second deals with Paul’s thorn in the flesh, the third reveals reasons why people are not healed, and the fourth teaches that healing is governed by laws and reveals some of those laws. I encourage you to take advantage of these resources we are offering on healing.
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2020
Getting Along with People
Did you know that the greatest commandments of all are not part of the Ten Commandments?
In fact, all of the commandments and laws are an outgrowth of just two. Jesus said this in answer to the lawyer’s question in Matthew 22:36-40.
“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
Many of us are praying for healing, deliverance, and prosperity. We want joy, peace, and happiness in our homes. We want better relationships with family and friends, especially during the Christmas season.
However, the answer to seeing these needs and desires met is all wrapped up in receiving God’s love and then walking in that love toward others.
In September I wrote to you about God’s love toward you in the article, “Look Who Jesus Loves.” Once you understand just how much He loves you, it’s not hard to love Him with all your heart, soul, and mind and to love others as yourself. Yet, many claim to love God and still don’t walk in love toward others.
1 John 4:19-21 says,
“We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.”
That is a strong, strong passage of Scripture. Most of us want to interpret that some other way to take the bite out of it, but I just can’t see any way around this. If someone says they love God but harbor hate and resentment toward others, they are lying. We need to understand that this is the truth and begin to allow God’s love to flow through us to others, including those we don’t like and those who have hurt us.
In James 2:8 it is called the Royal Law:
“If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well.”
This means that it is the highest of all the laws, which is the same point that Jesus made in Matthew 22. The greatest thing any of us can do is to love God and to love people. That is the number one thing that God has given us to do. Until this becomes the focus of our lives, we are not going to benefit from His love working in us, and we will give Satan a tremendous inroad.
The Bible says that offenses will come. If you live on this earth among people, someone is going to rub you the wrong way sooner or later. And, according to 2 Timothy 3:12, just because you are a Christian and identify with Jesus, some are going to hate you:
“Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”
Most of the problems we have with people are the result of envy and strife. It might be our fault, their fault, or both, but strife is still the result.
James 3:16 states:
“For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.”
People often think of jealousy and envy as the same thing, but they are not. Jealousy desires what someone else has. But envy, according to the dictionary, is not just jealousy. It is jealousy with malice, with intent to hurt or bring another person down. Envy means you are bitter and angry; strife is when you vent that bitterness and anger.
James continues by saying that with those two things come confusion and every evil work. If God is not the author of confusion that means Satan is. So you could say that where envy and strife are found, you will also find Satan and all his evil works. Not some, but every evil work.
So, how do you deal with strife or other problems in relationships? First, evaluate the source. It is always one of four: It could be your fault, the other person’s fault, or both of you may be at fault. The fourth source occurs less often and is not the result of strife: God may want you to end a relationship that is hindering your future.
Most people do not want to accept personal responsibility. It’s much easier just to point a finger at someone else. The danger with this is that you can develop a victim mentality. You begin to believe that the reason you act the way you do is because of what other people have done to you. You don’t believe it is ever your fault. Always begin by looking at yourself first.
Often the problem is only in your mind and doesn’t actually exist. It is the result of judging the motives behind the actions of others. You jump to conclusions and take offense based on speculations. One of the qualifications of a minister is that he is sober minded. That means he is void of speculative imaginations. By assuming people’s motives are good, most offenses will never develop.
There is a time and place to discern and judge the motives of others, but it must be done properly. I don’t have the space in this letter to teach on this, so I recommend you get my new series, God’s Kind of Love Through You, which discusses speculative imaginations and godly judgment.
But, what if it’s the other person’s fault? No matter what they have done, you have a choice in your response. You have 100 percent authority over yourself. You can start walking in love toward another person anytime you decide to. Paul said, “I die daily.” And, in 2
Corinthians 4:17, he stated:
“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”
I won’t list them here, but Paul’s light afflictions weren’t exactly light. They were just light in comparison to the glory he would experience in eternity. If we compared all the hurtful things people have done to us to what Jesus suffered for our sake, our suffering becomes insignificant. It’s all a matter of perspective; Paul understood that.
Most of the time broken relationships are the fault of both the people involved. That is especially true in marriage. No man has ever loved his wife the way Christ loves the church, and no woman has ever honored her husband the way the church is to honor God. The key to resolving problems in all relationships begins with forgiveness.
“Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” (Matt. 18:21-22)
“Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.” (Luke 17:3-4)
No one is going to sin against you 490 times in one day! What Jesus is saying is that if a person humbles himself and asks for forgiveness, then forgive him.
Forgiveness is the most powerful weapon of all in ending strife and restoring relationships.
If this does not resolve the problem, God has a plan in His Word to help you. Again, I do not have space here to teach on this subject, but it is very important that you know what to do next. In my series, God’s Kind of Love Through You, one of the messages is titled, “Dealing with Offenses When All Else Fails.” In it, I talk about confronting the person with two or three witnesses present, taking the issue before the church, and turning someone over to Satan for the destruction of their flesh and the salvation of their soul.
In some instances, it might actually be God causing a relationship to break up. There are some relationships that God just doesn’t want you to have. For example, He doesn’t want you to be unequally yoked with unbelievers. He also doesn’t want you to have relationships that might keep you from your destiny. However, this should not be misused as an excuse to end a relationship because you’re unhappy (I discuss this point more in my new series).
Thank You, Jesus.
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2020
Financial Stewardship
There is an “anti-prosperity teaching” attitude in the church today,
and yet most of the people with that attitude want to prosper.
There are reasons this attitude is so prevalent. Some prosperity teachers live lifestyles that accommodate criticism. I understand that. But faith comes by hearing God’s Word (Rom. 10:17), and faith for prosperity comes by hearing teaching on prosperity. We need to know what Scripture says about prosperity.
1Chronicles 29:12 says,Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.
The Lord said those who trust in Him would not lack any good thing (Ps. 34:10). Trusting in yourself or this world’s system is a recipe for disaster. It’s not in man to direct his own steps (Jer. 10:23). There’s a better way, and that’s God’s way.
But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. Deuteronomy 8:18
God is the One who gives us power to get wealth. Notice He doesn’t give us wealth directly. He gives us the power, or ability, to get wealth. Whether you realize it or not, God is the source of your prosperity. You might say, “But I worked for this money. God didn’t give this to me. I earned it.”
Let me ask this question: What did we do to be born at this most prosperous time in history? We could have been born slaves or in a country where there aren’t economic opportunities. We didn’t give ourselves talents and abilities. We can develop our talents, but each one of us has giftings that were given to us by God. We can’t develop what God didn’t give us.
If the chemicals in your brain were just a little different, you could be stark-raving mad. If you had some debilitating handicap, you would not be able to work. So, again I say, whether you realize it or not, God is the source of your prosperity.
Financial prosperity isn’t God giving you money;
He gives you an anointing that enables you to prosper. The real asset is not the money—not the house, not the car, not the physical tangible things—it is the anointing from God to produce wealth. The real asset is the favor of God. Money isn’t prosperity; money is the byproduct of prosperity. Many Christians fall into the trap of measuring prosperity by the amount of things they have. Being prosperous is relying on God as your source.
There are people who prosper without trusting God, but it usually destroys their lives (1 Tim. 6:9). They have hardship, stress, marital problems, and on and on (1 Tim. 6:10). They might be rich, but it cost them in other areas. If you prosper God’s way, the blessing of the Lord will make you rich, and no sorrow will be added to it (Prov. 10:22).
I believe that the first step to prosperity is recognizing that you are a steward of God’s finances.
This requires a huge mindset shift from the way the world views money. The world encourages you to be an owner and not a steward. But it’s not up to you to pick and choose what you do with your finances. God has given you finances so that you’ll trust Him with them. Then He will cause you to prosper. I know that sounds too good to be true, but it is.
God has a plan for your life. Start from a position of stewardship, and let Him be the owner. You will be blessed, blessed, blessed.
When God is your source, He will supply all of your needs.
And it won’t be according to this world’s economy, with all its depressions and recessions. But your needs will be supplied according to God’s economy. That’s powerful!
Philippians 4:19 says, But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
God says He’ll supply all your need! And it’s not going to be according to this world’s system. When God is your source, you will have not only a supernatural prosperity but also a peace that people of the world don’t have.
When people tithe, many of them feel that they’re giving from what they’ve earned. After all, they’re the ones who put in the work to get a paycheck. But everything would change for them if they saw themselves as handling God’s resources.
Stewards are ones who see themselves as accountable for what God has entrusted to them.
Trusting God in the area of finances is the baby step of faith. And if you can’t trust Him with that which is least, then according to what Jesus said in Luke 16, He can’t trust you with heavenly riches:
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. [11] If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? Luke 16:10-11
Some people aren’t healed because they never develop their faith in the area of finances.
Don’t misunderstand—I’m not saying that you can buy your healing. That’s wrong.
But there are people who aren’t seeing their healing manifest because they never trusted God “in that which is least” (Luke 16:10). That may not be true in every case, but it is often the problem. This is the starting place. You can’t skip this.
If you understand financial stewardship properly, it will enable you to be a blessing to others.
And just like 2 Corinthians 9:8 says—
God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.
The reason God makes grace abound toward you is so you’ll abound—give—to every good work. The real motive behind finances shouldn’t be to get—it should be to give. This is a critical point.
Many people who reject teaching on biblical prosperity do so because they see it as selfish or greedy. They say, “I’ve got enough. I may not be rich, but I have a roof over my head and my basic needs covered. I don’t want or need anymore.”
But that is the selfish attitude.
If you have all you need, trust God for more so you can help others. The thinking that says “I’ve got enough—forget everyone else” is the truly selfish attitude. We need to prosper, not so we can have more, but so we can be a bigger blessing.
The Lord told Abram that He would bless him and make him a blessing (Gen. 12:2). You can’t give away what you don’t have. Abram couldn’t be a blessing to others until he had been blessed.
Likewise, you and I cannot fulfill God’s purposes for our lives without receiving His prosperity.
God’s kingdom cannot advance without God’s people prospering. We need this revelation. We need to know how to prosper God’s way.
I’ve been called by God to raise up Charis Bible College, which will transform the lives of tens of thousands of people who, in turn, will affect the body of Christ all over the world. This is big, and it takes a lot of money to accomplish this. I pray that you, my partners, will allow God to accomplish His pleasure toward you by prospering you unto every good work (Ps. 35:27).
Thank You, Jesus.
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2020
Recession? No Thanks—I’m Not Participating!
Our media buyer called me recently with an emphatic question:
“Andrew, what in the world are you doing over there at AWM?”
He then proceeded to tell me that most of the ministries he works with and others that he knows about are drastically cutting back or, at best, struggling just to meet their obligations. “Yet you guys are expanding and growing by leaps and bounds. What’s the deal?” he asked.
I could have answered that question in a number of ways. For example, God has given us the right message at the right time in history. That’s true. I believe the time has come when the world is longing for the message of God’s grace and unconditional love, and He has prepared us to deliver that message.
Or perhaps I could have answered that it’s our Television Department. We have some of the best and most creative people in America working in Television. Surely that could be the reason for our success. Maybe it’s marketing, the way we present the ministry to the public, or our customer care and prayer ministry provided through the Phone Center. Or maybe it’s just the result of good money management.
Business experts might tell us it’s the combination of all these things that has made this ministry prosper.
And although I have learned over the years how important it is to have great people and a well-run ministry, I don’t believe that’s the main reason we are so blessed.
Right before my mother’s death in June 2009, she asked me to tell her all the things that were happening with the ministry. I talked about all our Bible colleges worldwide, how many letters and calls we were getting, and many of the miraculous testimonies of lives that were being changed.
And then, as only a mother can do, she said, “Andy, you know that’s the Lord doing all of that.” I said, “Yes, Mother, I know it’s the Lord.” Then she said, “You aren’t smart enough to do that.”
Wow! Now you know where I got my bluntness. But that’s absolutely true. Although the Lord has given Jamie and me some of the best and most creative people in any ministry, it is not our great wisdom or talents that are causing these miraculous results.
The only thing we can really take credit for is holding on to the Lord with all we have,and He is taking us for the ride of our lives.
Some of you may remember the letter I wrote in December of 2008. It was a letter of hope at a time when many people were beginning to panic about the economic downturn. All the news was predicting a depression that would mirror the Great Depression. And, as usual, the exaggerated predictions of those in the media never materialized.
Yet many of us are still buying into the lie that they can’t prosper during these times. So, I think we all need to hear that message of hope once again during this Christmas season. THE SKY IS NOT FALLING, JESUS IS STILL ON THE THRONE, AND HIS WORD IS STILL TRUE.
In Genesis, we learn that Isaac went through hard times too. There was a famine in the land (Gen. 26:1), and remember that Isaac was a stranger in that land. He didn’t own any property. But the Philistines around him panicked. They didn’t work their fields. What was the use? There was a famine in the land, but Isaac saw it as an opportunity and took advantage of their idle fields.
Genesis 26:12 says, “Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.”
This happened during a drought! What was he doing sowing seed when they were in a drought? He was believing God! That’s what we should do.
Since there was a drought, others hadn’t planted, and food was in short supply. Isaac got premium prices for his crops. The next few verses go on to tell about how Isaac became so prosperous that Abimelech, the king of Gerar, came to him and asked him to leave because he was more prosperous than that whole nation.
“For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him…. And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we” (Gen. 26:14 and 16).
This is the news we as believers should be listening to. We have promises from the Lord that He will provide our needs according to His riches IN GLORY by Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19). We aren’t limited to this world’s economy!
Let those who only trust in money panic.
In God we trust (Ps. 91:2, 118:8-9; Is. 12:2, 26:4; and Nah. 1:7). We should be rejoicing.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t make adjustments. If you bought into this world’s philosophy of “get all you can and get it by mortgaging your future,” then come to your senses, and follow the principles of God’s Word. Even if you’ve been burned, you’ve learned a valuable lesson, and now you can go forward with a new focus on the Lord as your source.
Let me point out the obvious: This is not a time to cut back on your sowing. You will only reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7). This is a time to believe God as never before. This is our greatest hour. We can demonstrate to the world, as Isaac did, that there is a God in heaven who blesses His people even in the worst times.
In December of 2008, I countered this negative mindset by making some very bold, God-inspired predictions of my own. I didn’t know the details, the difficulties we would face, or the exact cost, but I went on record and said that we were going to build to accommodate growth. Instead of cutting back, we were going to expand, even during a time of “recession.”
We simply refused to participate in the recession.
I know many people thought I was crazy or foolish or both, but here are some stats that might make them think again:
Within a year, we had purchased the 157 acres in Woodland Park that we call The Sanctuary. The hard economic times worked to our advantage and allowed us to purchase this prime real estate for pennies on the dollar. We are now in the process of developing that property into our new Charis Bible College (CBC) campus that will allow our college to grow to at least 3,000 students.
We finally went on the Trinity Broadcasting Network with a daily program in February 2011. This has resulted in 60,000 new people contacting us for the first time this year. That’s a 40 percent increase over the previous year. Our phone calls have nearly doubled to a monthly average of over 30,000. We now have over 1 million visits to our website each month. More people are being reached with this good-news Gospel than ever before. And our ministry income has doubled since December 2008. Thank You, Jesus!
I know someone is thinking, This is just because you are a big ministry. Well, I know plenty of ministries, large and small, that haven’t had these results. And this hasn’t been limited to our ministry. Jamie and I had some money in the stock market from Jamie’s inheritance. When the stock market went down 50 percent in late 2008 to early 2009, our stocks increased 61 percent. Hallelujah! This was because of our faith in the Lord and our refusal to participate in the recession.
The Lord is not a respecter of persons (Rom. 2:11). What He has done for Jamie and me and this ministry, He wants to do for you. But you have to cooperate. You have to reach out by faith to receive the grace God has for you.
Along with the predictions I made in December 2008, I taught a short, two-part series called In God We Trust. I believe what I taught in this series expresses the heart of what caused these miraculous results, and I encourage you to get a copy of this teaching.
Listen to it in light of the testimony I’ve given in this letter. Compare what I believed with what has happened. You can’t help but come to the conclusion that faith in God’s grace works, and it will work for you too. I know this perspective will challenge you, but remember—as you think in your heart, that’s the way it’s going to be (Prov. 23:7). So, if recession comes knocking, open your door, and with a loud, faith-filled voice, say this: “No thanks—my family and I aren’t participating.”
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2020
Praise and Thanksgiving or Fear and Worry… You Choose
I’ve been waiting two years to write this letter. It was two years ago, October of 2005, that I was holding a series of meetings in Scotland.
The avian flu virus (bird flu) hit with all its force. The authorities were killing birds by the thousands in the U.K.
It dominated the news.” I watched the BBC interview of a leading medical “expert” in Britain who was hitting the public panic button. “
When asked about the possibility of this disease mutating from birds to humans, he stated emphatically that it wasn’t a matter of IF, but WHEN.
Then he said, and I quote, “It might be one or two years at the most, but one-third of the world’s population will die by this avian flu pandemic.” Two years were up last month, and to date, worldwide there have only been a dozen or two human deaths attributed to this avian, or bird, flu.
While it is sad that there has been any loss of life from this disease, it certainly hasn’t been one-third of the world’s population. This stands as yet another classic example of how we are systematically misled, or out and out lied to, on a daily basis by the all-pervasive media.
Some may think my assessment of this is a little “overboard.” After all, the “expert” was only sounding a warning about what could happen, but I suggest that it was this “expert” that was “overboard.” He didn’t say this might happen or that this would be a worst-case scenario; he said emphatically that it would happen, and he predicted over two billion deaths in two years from this pandemic.
It is the philosophy of the world to overstate everything and predict the worst possible outcome. Anyone who has had dealings with doctors has experienced this. Liability issues cause them to state worst-case scenarios. The world considers this wisdom. They don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up, but it is hope that keeps this world from imploding.
We will never know how many people became depressed or lived in fear because of this report. However, we do know that these predictions had a big impact on the poultry industry worldwide. In addition, where are the animal lovers who cry “foul” (pardon the pun) at the slaughter of poor defenseless animals? All these “experts” have been issued a pass.
Moreover, it’s not just the secular media that has all the doomsday prophets. Remember the Y2K scare? The secular press didn’t make a big deal out of this, but all the Christian media were predicting the worst. Churches were selling six-month supplies of emergency food, generators, and were urging people to move out of the cities.
One pastor I know encouraged people to buy guns and learn how to use them for protection during the panic that was predicted to come on January 1, 2000. There were many who proclaimed this as the beginning of the Tribulation period.
The dawning of the new millennium turned out to be a nonevent. Those who led the body of Christ into the Y2K panic mode responded by saying nobody was hurt but that it was wisdom to be prepared, just in case. But I personally know people who moved, losing tens of thousands of dollars on the sale of their house. Marriages fell apart under the strain. People hoarded food and other basic necessities, suffering from fear in anticipation of the terrible things to come.
You don’t spend months or years nurturing fear and panic and then just turn it off the next day.
These spiritual forces are very detrimental to our spiritual, emotional, and physical health. Our world has become addicted to fear. If there aren’t enough negative things going on, then the media will manufacture something for us to worry about.
I’ve only used two notable examples of this, but the same thing happens hundreds of times each day. We are inundated with bad news and dire predictions that affect our overall outlook and emotions.
This is the exact opposite of how the Bible tells us to live.
Philippians 4:6 says,
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”
The Greek word that was translated “careful” means, “to be anxious.” We aren’t supposed to be anxious about anything. Now let me ask you a question and please give an honest answer: Do you get anxious? The dictionary defines “anxious” as,
“Apprehensive; worried.” Do you live with apprehension and worry? Sadly, most people would have to say yes.
The next verse, Philippians 4:7, gives us the results of a person who is careful for nothing.
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
This is the scriptural test to see where you are on this issue. Is there a peace that passes all understanding keeping your heart and mind healthy? Remember, your life goes the way of your dominate thoughts (Prov. 23:7 and Rom. 12:2). If you want to control your life, control your thoughts.
This leads to the next verse in this Philippians passage. Paul said,
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8).
If we followed the instruction of this verse, our lives would be totally different. We certainly couldn’t be as dominated by the media as we are. I don’t think anyone believes that the media is honest, just, and pure, reporting the things that are lovely, of good report, have virtue, and are worthy of praise.
I know people want to be informed. So they always have the concern that if they stop listening and watching, they will miss out on something.
However, the vast majority of what would be missed is fear, confusion, and discouragement. And if something really big like a war, a terrorist attack, or a natural disaster occurs, I guarantee, they would hear about it.
The question is, how do we counter the negativism of the world, even the church world, that crowds in on us from every direction?
Isaiah 26:3 says,
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
Most of us long for peace, and Christians especially desire to live in this place of perfect peace. However, this scripture states very plainly that perfect peace comes from God, and more specifically from keeping our minds stayed on God and trusting in Him. Begin with that.
Then, I believe one of the greatest antidotes is thanksgiving and praise.
When we thank God for all His blessings, it refocuses our attention from the negative to the positive things in our lives. Sure, all of us have problems. We live in a fallen world, but God is good, and God’s goodness to us is greater than all of the Enemy’s attacks.
Every one of us has much to be thankful for and more than enough reason to be praising Him. We just need to put everything into perspective. Paul praised God after being beaten, stoned, whipped, and thrown in jail. Then he said these were but light afflictions that last for a moment, nothing to be compared to eternal things (2 Cor. 4:17-18).
Paul understood that praise coming from a thankful heart has great power. It will build you up spiritually, it is a source of strength, it is a powerful weapon against the devil, and it ministers to the Lord, just to mention a few. My series and book The Effects of Praise will help you understand more about its effects. You will learn that it is a source of peace, joy, pleasure, and contentment in every area of your life. It will change your perspective.
The benefits of praise and thankfulness are too numerous to mention in this letter, but I think it’s very appropriate to be thinking about them as we celebrate what I believe to be the most sacred holiday in America. It was set aside just to give thanks and has not been diluted with things like little rabbits and reindeer.
Thank You, Jesus.
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2020
Anger Management
Have you ever been mad at God? Certainly, everyone has had anger rise up against a person. And there are a lot of people who are angry with themselves.
Anger is a problem all of us have to deal with.
Many people come from backgrounds where strife was just normal. Our culture is so full of envy and strife that it’s become part of life. We don’t realize how deadly it is. But realize it or not, strife will kill you. Listen to what James had to say about envy and strife:
“For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.” (James 3:16)
Think about what this verse is saying for a moment. Envy and strife bring EVERY evil work. That is quite a revelation! You could be giving tithes and offerings and trusting God in the area of your finances, but if you’re living in strife, you are opening the door to poverty. You could be trying to take care of your body and meditating on healing scriptures, yet envy and strife will negate all of that and bring sickness and disease. No one who is trusting God for victory in any area of their life can ignore dealing with anger and expect to succeed. It’s that important.
This doesn’t mean we are supposed to be emotionless or totally passive people. There is a proper use of anger. If we don’t understand this and try to completely do away with anger, we will not succeed, and we will become passive in a way that allows Satan to run over us. There is a godly purpose for anger.
GODLY ANGER
Think of this: Every person on the planet has a temper. Why do you think that is? Do you think the devil created anger? No way! Satan never created anything. He doesn’t have the power to create. All he does is pervert the godly things God created.
It’s God who gave us the capacity to get angry. Anger has a godly function. But with most of us, it’s been perverted. We don’t need to get delivered of a temper; we need to learn how to manage that anger and direct it the way God intended — not toward people, but toward the devil and evil.
There is a well-known passage of Scripture that talks about a positive use of anger. Yet this passage is most often interpreted in a way that loses the true intent of what Paul was saying. Ephesians 4:26-27 says,
“Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil”.
This is usually interpreted as, “God knows you are only human, and you will sometimes get angry. That just happens. But it doesn’t become sin unless you let it persist. So make sure you confess and forsake your anger every night before you go to bed.”
There is no doubt that getting over anger quickly has great benefit. Confessing and forsaking anger before you go to bed every night is a good thing to do. But that is not what this verse is teaching. It’s nearly the opposite.
Paul is saying there is a godly anger that is not sin. God gives us a command to get angry with a righteous anger. Then he says, “Let not the sun go down on your wrath”. What happens when the sun goes down? Typically we stop working. The day winds down, and we rest and go to sleep. Paul is saying, “Don’t let this godly anger ever stop working. Keep it awake. Stir it up and keep it active!” Then verse 27 continues, “Neither give place to the devil”. If we don’t keep a godly anger active within us, we are giving place to the devil. What a revelation!
There is a righteous use of anger. Not understanding this has rendered many Christians so passive, they don’t get mad at the evil in this world. Therefore, Satan is having a free shot at everything we hold dear and holy. Our society is under attack, and our righteous anger that God has given us as a weapon is kept in its sheath and not used. This needs to change.
Look at what the Word of God has to say about a right use of anger:
“Ye that love the LORD, hate evil”. (Psalm 97:10)
“The fear of the LORD [is] to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate”. (Prov. 8:13)
“The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom”. (Psalm 111:10)
“The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of knowledge”. (Prov. 1:7)
“Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good”. (Rom. 12:9)
These are just a few of the scriptures that speak of a righteous use of hate and anger. Look again at Proverbs 8:13: “Pride and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward [literally, perverse] mouth, do I hate”. Do we really hate those things? We should, but Christians as a whole do not hate evil. We don’t like evil, but few would argue that we literally hate these things. Some Christians don’t believe that we are supposed to hate anything, but that’s not what God’s Word says.
Jesus was sinless, but He had hate and anger. In John 2:14-17, which took place at the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry, and then in Mark 11:15-17, which took place the last week of Jesus’ earthly ministry, Jesus drove the money changers out of the temple.
He didn’t approach them meekly and say, “Guys, I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt any of you, but I have to do this to obey my Father.” NO! He made a whip and beat the people and animals and turned over their tables. He was mad.
Where were the temple guards? I’m sure they were there, but Jesus was in a holy rage that paralyzed them from action. It’s certain that Jesus never sinned, but it’s also certain that He got very angry to the point of action. Therefore, there is a righteous anger. We need to discover the righteous use of anger and channel all of our aggression in the proper way. So, there is a right place for anger. But what about the wrong use of anger? All of us have to deal with getting mad at people. How do we overcome our unforgiveness and anger toward people?
UNGODLY ANGER
Have you ever prayed that the Lord would remove someone from your life who makes you angry? Have you ever prayed that your circumstances would change so that you would be delivered from those things that make you mad? If you have, you are not alone. But it’s not what others do to you that makes you angry. You will never be able to remove all aggravating things and people from your path. That’s unrealistic. Satan has more than enough people under his control to keep an endless parade of annoying people coming across your path.
You can’t always change circumstances, and you don’t have the authority to change others. But you can change what’s on the inside of you that makes you angry. That’s right. Our anger comes from the inside, not the outside. I know most people don’t like that. At first, it’s comforting to think that it’s what someone else did that made you angry, but that’s not true.
If what other people do makes you angry, then you will always be angry because there will always be someone that treats you wrong. That makes you a victim and not a victor.
Accepting responsibility for your ungodly anger puts you in the driver’s seat. You only have total authority over yourself. You are the only one that you can really change. If you are trying to remove all the people and things that make you mad from your path, you will never win. But if you deal with the things inside you that cause your anger, you will never lose, regardless of what others do. That’s the example that Jesus gave us. He was able to look at the very ones who crucified and mocked Him and say,
“Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do”. (Luke 23:34)
Jesus not only suffered more than any of us ever have, He suffered more unjustly than we have. As God, He could have come off the cross at any time and wiped all of His accusers out. Yet He humbled Himself and even forgave His enemies. Some people think, “Well that was Jesus. I’m certainly not Jesus.” But Jesus wasn’t the only one who forgave those who wronged him. Stephen acted just like Jesus in Acts 7:60. As he was being stoned to death, he knelt down and cried with a loud voice,
“Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep”.
Paul commanded us to do the same thing in Ephesians 4:32:
“And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you”.
Not only are we supposed to resist anger, but we are commanded to forgive those who trespass against us. We can’t control others, but we can control what’s inside of us that makes us angry. The key is found in Proverbs 13:10:
“Only by pride cometh contention”.
It’s not what others do to us that makes us angry; it’s the pride inside of us that causes us to get mad.
I know that’s not what most people believe, but that’s what God’s Word says. This verse doesn’t say that pride is one of the major reasons for anger — it’s the only reason. What a statement!
I ministered this in Pueblo, Colorado, many years ago, and a man came up to me after the meeting and said, “I’ve got a lot of problems, but pride isn’t one of them. If anything, I have such low self-esteem that I hate myself. Yet I have a lot of anger. I just don’t understand how my pride is the source of my anger.” What this man was missing was a proper definition of pride.
Many people think of pride only as arrogance. But that’s only one manifestation of pride. Timidity and shyness are extreme manifestations of pride. Pride, at it’s core, is simply self-centeredness or selfishness. Timid and shy people are extremely self-centered people. I know this to be true because I was an introvert. I couldn’t look at people in the face and talk to them. I was so consumed with me that I was always thinking, “What are they going to think of me? Am I going to make a mistake and look foolish?” That self-centeredness made me shy.
If you have a testimony about what the Lord has done for you that could help someone, yet you would be timid about getting on radio or television and sharing it because everyone would be looking at you, then you have some pride issues that haven’t been settled.
You may not be called to broadcast on radio or television the way I am, but we are all called to, “be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” (1 Pet. 3:15)
So, pride is not only thinking we are better than others; pride can be thinking we are worse than others or just being self-conscious. It doesn’t matter if self is always exalting itself or if it’s debasing itself. It’s all self-centeredness, which is pride. Like it or not, understand it or not, pride is the source of all of our anger. As we deal with our own self-love, anger toward others will be defused.
The only reason we are so easily offended is because we love ourselves so much.
As we die to ourselves, we will be able to love others the way that Jesus did.
I have a lot more to share on this than what I was able to put into this article. I have a teaching entitled Anger Management. This is a three-part album that deals with truths I’ve never heard anyone else teach. I’m sure others teach this, but it’s certainly not common. The first teaching, entitled “Godly Anger,” will show you the proper use of anger. This is necessary in resisting Satan and his evil. The second teaching, entitled “Ungodly Anger’s Source,” will explain how self-love is the root of all of our ungodly anger. This is a must for anyone who struggles with a temper (all of us). The third teaching is entitled “Anger Toward God, Others, and Self.”
Thank You, Jesus.
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2020
Give Where You’re Going
What are you believing God for in your life? Is it to own your own home? To get married? To have children? Maybe you know what God has called you to do, but it’s a matter of…well…getting there. While there is a place for waiting on God and His timing and direction, there is something you can do. One way you can see doors open for you is by giving where you want to go. Opened doors are one of the many benefits of becoming a financial partner with a ministry that you trust. You can exercise your faith for direction and open doors through the giving of your finances. Matthew 9:29 says, “According to your faith be it unto you.”
In Andrew’s teaching series Financial Stewardship, one of his messages, “Your Partnership in the Kingdom,” speaks directly to this:
“If you really want to prosper, here’s one way to do it: Find a ministry that is doing something big…bigger than [you]. They’re reaching out. They’re touching other people. This could be a church. It could be a television ministry. It could be a missionary. It could be anything. But [find] somebody who has a big vision that’s going to take a lot of money, and you become a partner with them. And you know how God gets that money to that minister? He sends it to his partners. He sends it to people. So, if you want to prosper, find a ministry that needs a lot of money [and] become a partner with them. God will send that money to you to get it through you to them, and He will prosper you supernaturally.”
What if it’s hard for you to trust God with your finances? I get it! It’s your time and effort wrapped up in a single paycheck. But Luke 16:10 says, “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.” So, what this means is that your finances are actually considered a small thing—”that which is least“ (emphasis mine). If you’re not where you want to be, don’t stop until you get to God’s perfect will. Jesus has a knack for increasing what you give to Him.
“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”
Luke 6:38
In a way, you’re actually giving yourself to God when you give financially, and this makes a way for Him to multiply you.
So, prayerfully consider becoming a financial partner with a ministry, mission, or person going in the direction you feel a pull toward. Also, if you want to hear more about your partnership in the kingdom, get Andrew’s Financial Stewardship series.
Where do you want to go?
( Written by Aria Fischer )
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2020
Why, When, and Where to Give
The Word of God has more to say about finances than it does about heaven and hell.
Jesus said trusting Him with our money was the least use of our faith (Luke 16:9-11). If we can’t do that which is least, then we can’t do the greater things. This is very important.
Before I get into teaching on finances, let me say that this week, I watched a fundraiser held by a Christian network, and I was appalled. I saw manipulation that makes con men look honest, and it was all done in the name of the Lord with tears and lots of hype. It really grieved me, as I know it would many of you.
But do you know what upset me the most? It wasn’t the minister misrepresenting the Lord. That always has and always will happen. What’s the chaff to the wheat (Jer. 23:28)? We keep our eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:1-2). What really upset me was that these tactics work. The body of Christ responds to this type of appeal with big bucks, and that’s why ministers do this: It works. There are organizations receiving hundreds of millions of dollars per year through gimmicks, lies, and manipulation.
That says volumes about the immaturity in the body of Christ.
As I prayed about this, I felt like the Lord said to me, “How can My people mature in this area without teaching, because ‘faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God’ [Rom. 10:17]? So, if you want to see the body mature in this area, teach them.” That’s what I’m doing.
As I said in my opening paragraph, there is a lot of information in the Bible on this. So, I encourage you to get my six-CD album Financial Stewardship, which I began teaching on television at the end of April. It’s free on our website, or you can order the CDs or DVDs for a gift of any amount. It will give a good foundation from God’s Word on prosperity.
But in this letter, I want to focus specifically on what the Bible has to say about why, when, and where to give. A biblical perspective in these three areas would stop this silliness.
First, the motivation behind your gift is more important than your gift. This is the point being made in 1 Corinthians 13:3, which says,
“And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.”
The reason you give is more important than what or how much you give.
Any presentation that says you can buy God’s blessing or the salvation of a loved one or some other positive result with your financial gift is using the wrong motive to get you to give. It is true that the widow gave Elijah all she had and that her needs were supernaturally supplied for the next three years as a result. But 1 Kings 17:9 says, “I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.” The Lord had commanded her to sustain Elijah. This wasn’t about getting her needs met, although that did happen; she was giving to help the man of God.
It’s also true that Cornelius’ gifts came up before God as a memorial (Acts 10:4), but it was his faith that pleased God (Heb. 11:6). His giving was just a manifest token of his faith and trust in the Lord. God’s blessings cannot be bought (Acts 8:18-20).
It is true that when we give, the Lord will give back to us a hundredfold in this lifetime (Mark 10:30), but giving only to get is the wrong motivation. God prospers us so we can establish His kingdom (Deut. 8:18), give to those in need (Eph. 4:28), and abound unto every good work (2 Cor. 9:8). We do need to expect to receive when we give, primarily so we will be resupplied and able to give more. However, the emphasis should be on giving, not receiving. It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). We should live to give and not give to live.
Second, there has been a lot of misunderstanding about when we should give. Many Christians only give after all their needs have been met. But the Scriptures teach that our gifts are first fruits (Prov. 3:9). That means the first thing we do when we receive money is to honor the Lord by giving a portion of it to His work. Anything less is not honoring the Lord.
Also, some of us are taught only to give at the specific command of the Lord. Of course, God’s Word is His instruction, and we shouldn’t have to have an audible voice to give us further direction. There are times when the Lord will specifically direct our giving, but it’s not all the time.
The Scripture says,
“As he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7).
What if the only time our children ever told us they loved us was when we told them to tell us? It is true that we have to teach our children to say things like “Thank you” and “I love you.” We do lead them into things like that, and the Lord does lead us to give at times. But all parents long for the day when those responses come out of their children’s hearts spontaneously. Likewise, the Lord wants us to give as we desire to give, not under pressure.
So, when we are condemned into giving or made to feel guilty if we don’t give, that’s the wrong time to give.
I had a friend who once gave $1,000 to a minister just so he and everyone else could leave. The minister said he wouldn’t let anyone go until their goal was reached. After three offerings, they were still $1,000 short, so my friend gave the $1,000 just to get out of there.
I would never give in a situation like that. That’s rewarding negative behavior. It’s like casting a vote and saying, “I like it. Do it again even more.” Every time we give to a minister who is manipulating us, it’s like casting a vote for that type of treatment. We have no right to murmur and complain when we voted for the thing we are upset about.
Third, concerning where we should give, that’s the easiest one of all. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:7-11, Galatians 6:6, 1 Timothy 5:17-18, and many other scriptures, that you are to give where you are fed. You don’t eat at McDonald’s but go over to Wendy’s to pay. You pay where you eat. Likewise, you are to give where you are fed.
Malachi 3:10 reads,
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”
I’ve heard many ministers use that verse to teach that your tithes belong to your local church, and offerings above your tithes go to other ministries and benevolence work. I agree with that if your church is truly a storehouse. A storehouse is where you keep your food or go to get food.
The local church is the backbone of God’s work here on earth. There are ways that a local church can feed you that no other ministry can. You can’t call me in the middle of the night or have me perform your child’s wedding or help counsel them. You need the fellowship of other believers. I can’t offer you that, but the local church can.
But, how many of us realize we don’t live in a perfect world where every church is meeting the needs of the people who attend? There are people who go to church every week and never get fed. In fact, I have many people tell me they are starving or being poisoned in their local churches, and they are living off my teaching.
It’s wrong to get fed in one place and give your tithes and offerings to another place. If you aren’t in a local church that truly feeds you, then get out of there and find a good one. Then give your tithes to that church and your offerings to other ministries. But if you can’t find a good church or, for other reasons, are staying put in a dead church, don’t give your money there. You are subsidizing them.
I can guarantee you that those who use gimmicks and condemnation to manipulate are not truly feeding God’s people. Mainstream religion is not feeding people. If the body of Christ was to purify their motives in giving, give only when they can do it cheerfully and not out of guilt, and give where they are truly fed, then those who aren’t feeding God’s flock would have to repent or go out of business. Also, true ministers and churches that are actually feeding the body of Christ would have more money than they needed.
For instance, our Gospel Truth television broadcasts are available to three billion people on the planet. If only 1 percent of them actually watched our programs, that would be thirty million people. If only 10 percent of them actually received, that would be three million people per day who are blessed. A one-dollar-per-month gift would nearly double our income. It’s that simple.
Every ministry that is truly reaching people would have similar results. The only exception I can think of is the ministries that minister to those who can’t give, such as missionaries or those helping the poor. Those are what I call benevolence ministries, and they need gifts from those who aren’t fed directly by them.
I used my chapel hour in Charis Bible College this week to teach on this very subject, “Why, When, and Where to Give.” It really blessed the students. I think this teaching would bless you and help you be more discerning in this area. Also, I’m sure you know some people who have bad attitudes about giving because of the abuses they’ve seen. I think this would be a great way to get them past these hurts and help them to begin receiving God’s best in this area of finances.
Thank You, Jesus.
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