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Hello everyone, I try to keep this as compact as possible. I attend our church for 2 years now. It is a small church with 30~40 believers only. It is a bit different than usual, because we don't have our own pastors. Every week, another pastor from a different church comes and preaches the word of God. The good thing is that we get to hear the word through different pastors. We have clear guidelines for them to preach. For example this period we will do Romans. Starting with Romans 1, next week Romans 2, and so on. The teachings are biblical. The way church members treat each other is sincere and true. But there is one big problem in our church, somehow there is only 1 person in charge. He is the one who started to church 23years ago. But his ways are not the ways belonging to a true christian. (lack of sympathy, pride, focussing on rules, unforgiving) A total lack of fruit of the spirit. This has been bothering me for months now. Because of my opinion, he is openly attacking me for not obeying certain rules in Church. - wearing wrong clothes - arriving late, disturbing the preaching. (Note that I arrived late because the moment before I was standing on the streets sharing the Gospel to passerby) - disagreeing with him In the beginning, I was quite angry at his loveless ways, which made me vulnerable to temptation. So, I was annoyed and wasn't able to focus on the main points and I did let my frustration disturb my way of speaking to him. I tried to let it rest and focus on the log in my own eye. Now, last week he was poking again with his rules. Brothers and sisters in the church saw clearly that his actions were directed towards me. It is not easy to choose to leave the church. As there are fellow brothers and sisters who are in christ. Others, they had already given up on him, and they are actually ignoring him. But, the way I see it, he seems to be walking on the wide path throught the wide gate. Jesus told us to love, even our enemies. How could I pretend I don't see him? (thinking of the parable of the Samaritan) And the fact that he is the only elder making decisions in church, it affects the whole church. We had a one on one meeting before. We had a meeting before including other church members. Now that he is still the same (and maybe worse) , I decided to write an open letter to him substantiated by scripture. Addressed to him, to be viewed by all members of the church. Advising him to turn back to Christ and that he should focus on our faith in Christ instead of us following his rules exactly. God told us to obey authority and elders. His rules are not the problem, his rules are correct. But he forgot the most important of them all, love God and love one another. At this moment, I have to wait untill next weekend to see his reactions. I do hope someday God will turn him back, that would be quite a testimony. How do you see this situation? How should a biblical leadership structure be within such a small congregation?

Daily Reading 23 If you prefer, you can look up the following verses in your own Bible, of by whatever means and in whatever version you choose. Luke 18:1-17 Genesis 29:31-30:43 Psalm 23 Audio 5:27 Audio 9:~ Audio 0:53 The above addresses are linked to Bible Gateway. That is an easy way to read (or listen to) the Bible verses, and choose your version. Personally, I prefer written, that way I can go at my own pace, on think about it, before moving on. Nothing wrong with doing either or both. The Bible says faith comes by hearing. See the picture below to get an idea of what to expect if you follow the above links. Thank you Lord for making the your word so accessible for us in these times. Amen

No one wants to be a pharisee (in the spiritual sense), and many people do not know what a pharisee really is. Some think they are just those who seeks their own righteousness through law (i.e. not by faith). "Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”" - Galatians 3:12 But what a pharisee really is in the spiritual sense?! Pharisees are those who walk according to the flesh, and their main fruits are: hypocrisy, and pride. "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy." - Luke 12:1 Sincerity and humility is very important in our walk with the Lord Jesus. Sincerity, to recognize we are a sinner in need of help and forgiveness. "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick" - Luke 5:31 And humility, to walk in repentance and obtain His grace, through faith. "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." - Luke 5:32 "But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”" - James 4:6 By nature, all humans are prone to a pharisee behavior and to live according to the flesh. And when pride enters things just get worse, because they will start to pose as righteous before people while themselves are full of iniquity. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness." - Matthew 23:27 Now you are starting to see that being a pharisee is far more than just "law". Actually, in the spiritual sense it has nothing to do with law. The pharisees have some common traits, common to all who live according to the flesh: Have no love, no compassion. They are Spiritless. Do not understand the things of the Spirit, and do not produce good fruit. They are prideful and arrogant, and trust in themselves rather than God. They are resistant to the Holy Spirit. They do not walk by faith. But what a pharisee would look like today?! All those who resist the Holy Spirit. Who trust in themselves, and boast in their own abilities and knowledge. "But “he who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”" - 2 Corinthians 10:17 Their pride blind them and they cannot see the truth, because God resist the proud but give grace to the humble. They do not show humility nor repentance from their wicked ways, they prefer to stay in them and give an excuse to justify themselves. They show no love for others, they just insult people and do not care about them. They judge others according to flesh, appearance, country, avatar, they have no discernment at all. As it happened here, the pharisee just thought he was fine before God because he did what the law asked Him to do while his life was full of iniquity but he could not see that as his pride blind him, this is what happens when we walk according to the flesh: "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men - extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess." - Luke 18:12 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone." - Matthew 23:23 While the humble tax collector just accepted he was a sinner in need of forgiveness, repentance, and grace: "And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'" - Luke 18:13 "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." - Luke 18:14 Just like happens with the modern pharisees, they just follow rules on paper, go to church, and they think they are following Jesus. The pharisees have no compromise with the Spirit, and this is exactly the problem, they just want to pose as righteous and lovers of God while at the same time living according to their flesh. "So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God." - Romans 8:8 Their bad fruits reveals them, they have no love for others, and much less for God. They are blind, they are in darkness. "These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me." - Matthew 15:8 Nowadays, the pharisees can also be likened to those who sin willfully by going after the flesh and does not seek repentance. They often justify themselves by saying: "It is OK, is by grace. No need to repent" While, in fact, they have just rejected His grace by doing so. "Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also." - Matthew 23:26 And it is in that pride that will lead many to hell, as to love sin is to hate God. And by doing so, they despise His grace and mercy. "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." - 1 John 2:15 "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life." - Galatians 6:7-8 It is no wonder why the Lord Jesus warned us that blessed are the poor in spirit. Pride definitely blinds, kills, and leads to hell. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven." - Matthew 5:3 As a result, they cannot hear nor see the truth. When a pharisee is convicted of his sins, he simply ignores and boast. This shows their resistance to the Holy Spirit. "For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward repent and believe him." - Matthew 21:32 "Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit." - 1 Thessalonians 4:8 Then it is very serious, I admit that I used to be a pharisee in the past. But thanks to God and His infinite mercy and grace my eyes were opened to the truth. "Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise." - 1 Corinthians 3:18 It is time to surrender to the only true Lord and Savior: The Lord Jesus Christ. And throw all your pride in the garbage. Do you believe you are something?! I tell you: You are nothing. I am nothing. We are nothing without Him. "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God," - 2 Corinthians 3:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." - John 15:5 "For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”" - Romans 10:11 It is time to walk by faith in Christ. "For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh" - Philippians 3:3 Glory to God! Amen.

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. - Proverbs 11:2 Pride and the Devil When we speak of pride we also often times think of the devil. He was the beautiful angel who through transgression and pride fell from his place with God to a fallen state. Lucifer, an anointed cherub of God became the devil, the father of lies (John 8:44). He was soiled and became filthy and the enemy wants to defile all those who are unsoiled also. When we are free from pride the enemy of our souls desires to sow prideful thoughts into our life. Pride is a preoccupation with self, it is to say that I am more important then all others. Pride says "I" am always right. Pride is when at all costs we need to revenge ourselves of our abusers. Pride says that we are more important then others and when sinned against our rights are more important. Personal glory and importance leads to a proud heart and opposition to God (1 Peter 5:5). Pride and Selflessness Pride is in some ways the opposite of selflessness. When we are humble we seek the good of others even when we have been hurt by someone. Disgrace and shame comes with pride because God diminishes the proud one under his own displeasure. Just like Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar, we can be blinded by Pride and a sense of self-importance thinking we are able to control situations and even people. This is a profound thought that God himself shows everyone grace, mercy, and gives constant help. And when we see others in the body of Christ fail, or cause abuse, if we become proud, judge them overly and do not do it all in love, we can have God's grace lifted from our lives. And the sad result can be the brother who fails, when we judge him we can become worse then that brother. When we have pride against others in the body of Christ we have insulted the Creator Himself. We should never look down on others, never think we are better especially when we see another of our brothers and sisters fail. The Publican and Pharisee In Luke 18:9-14, we see the famous story of the Publican and Pharisee. It is a great contrast between pride and humility, self-assuredness and humility. The first error of the religious leader Jesus pointed out was of being "confident." It was a self-reliant attitude that I am in a better place with God then most and therefore can speak down to others and also not need God's grace as much. It is a subtle deception on the road towards knowing God we can start to trust on our past experiences of grace and not rely on the grace of God daily. And what happened? The religious leader, "looked down on everyone else" (Luke 18:9). He did not take the humble role of a being below others as a servant but rather assumed priority over others. In such a contrast we see the Publican come to our Lord and simply say in humility, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." (Luke 18:13). This one humbled himself before God, no matter how holy or progressed in our Christian lives when we humble ourselves we keep our position of walking with God in His presence. But once we exalt ourselves then we are cast away. In a famous drawing of this scene, we see the Publican bowing and humble, and the Pharise exalted and with one hand judging the other and the other praising God. Then in the picture we notice the hand of God blessing with grace and mercy the Publican only. Let this be a reminder that when we judge others we cannot praise God with the same breath and miss God's blessing in the process. Serving Others In the Body When we have pride in our own accomplishments and skills we are taking the credit for these things to ourselves. The reality is all giftings given to brethren in the body of Christ is to serve and help others, not ourselves. To follow the way of pride is to follow the way of the devil. The follow the way of humility is to follow in the way of the Lord.

Hey Brethren, I have a question. I have never this question asked before, I have seen the questions like 'is everything a sin', 'is entertainment a sin' and 'is having fun a sin' but never have I seen the question asked in the context of 1 John 2:15-17. Does 1 John 2:15-17 (the verses about not loving the world and the things of the world) teach that everything that involves fun, pleasure and entertainment is sinful? Obviously there is bad and immoral entertainment out there and the Bible does talk about the pleasures of sin for a season (Hebrews 11:25), but is EVERYTHING that involves fun, pleasure and entertainment is sinful? things like non-hymnal music, hobbies, sports (I'm not a fan there but I know others are), video games, etc. I saw one YouTube video where a Christian named Jefferson Bethke said that God made pleasurable things and they should produce thankfulness and a comment involved quotation of 1 John 2:15 as a rebuttal. Another example from the otherside is from Steven Anderson, the YouTube description (The description was written by a Christian named Matthew Stucky but it was for Steven Anderson's video) of one of his videos against television reads the following: "They will preach against some television shows but shows like the Andy Griffith Show will be praised behind the pulpit. LINE BREAK. 1 John 2:15-16 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. LINE BREAK. The Bible tells us not to love the world. The television and movies are of the world. " To be fair, he went into more detail about why he didn't approve of the show further in the description talking about how the show made a mockery of being a drunk and other things, but I just wanted to give you an idea of how the verses are used. 1 John 2:15-17 is part of the Bible and I'm not going to ignore it, Revelation 22:19 sends a severe warning against adding or taking away from the Bible, but I will be honest, I get nervous when hear the verses quoted because almost everytime I hear them quoted, the person quoting them is saying that EVERYTHING that involves fun, pleasure and entertainment is sinful. I find it interesting that the Love of God is to keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome (1 John 5:3), and the commandments to love God with all my heart, soul and mind and to love my neighbor as myself are anything but burdensome, but the commandment to 'thou shalt not have fun' certainly is burdensome, and it's not that I am not willing to sacrifice pleasurable things for the cause of Christ, I certainly am, but I am burdened by the idea that pleasure on earth is evil within itself. I also keep what I hope is the correct interpretation of 1 John 2:15-17, which is to know that this earth is not our home and to have an focus on the everlasting life to come, to not follow ungodly desires (lusts of the flesh and lusts of the eyes) and not be prideful (ths pride of life). What are your thoughts? God Bless you all.