Preachers, preach!!!

[Guest Melon]

"go into all the world, & preach the gospel to every creature". It does not say IF we think it will be well-received, or IF it feels like an appropriate time, or IF the other person's not going to think we're being pushy. It says, "preach"! We have accepted, & adopted the saying of St. Francis of Assisi: "preach, & if you have to, use words". Where is that in the Bible, I'd like to know? Is that what Jesus did? Is that what the Apostles who saw one of, if not THE most powerful time in the history of the Church do? And what are we doing listening to St. Francis, anyway? He was CATHOLIC. He wasn't even Chrisitan! If we want the same results as Jesus had, and the same results as the Apostles had, we will have to preach as they did. But we don't. Why not? Because of a plot. A very clever plot. We are afraid of being labeled. If we preach, & the person doesn't like what we are saying, then we will be labeled as "disrespectful", or "politically incorrect", or worse yet, "pushy". We have a better way to do it. We will be quiet, & wait until they INVITE us to preach to them. And of course, you know they will. They always do what they promise. They told us plainly, "wait your turn...let us speak now, & you can speak later". And later never comes. We live in vain, trying to excel in their world, by their rules, so that MAYBE we can gain their respect enough to earn an audience sometime, but that "sometime" never comes. And it never will come. Does not the Bible say "the whole world is under the sway of the wicked one"? We are essentially waiting on the Devil to invite us to preach! Yeah, right, like that's ever going to happen!

We have fallen for a lie. For a great lie. We think that if we can make them like us, that we will win them. BEEP!!!! Wrong answer. Let me ask you a question. Does everyone you know speak well of you? Jesus said, "beware when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets". We are trying to manipulate God's Word, & hoping to maybe present it in a certain way so that perhaps it won't be so offensive. Are we following in Jesus' footsteps? Is this the Jesus we see in the Bible?

Let me tell you a secret. This is NOT a free country religiously. We are basking in a false knowledge. We are being set up. We are not being penciled in for equal time, but for first censorship, then annihilation. The Devil has lied to us. He tells us "if you preach, you could lose them", when preaching is the only way to truly see someone saved. This country has come to where it is because of our silence. Do you want proof that we have been scammed? Go ahead. I dare you. Try preaching. Really! You just open your mouth to say "jesus is the only way to Heaven, & if you do not accept Him, you are going to hell", & you'll see how much they respect your right to speak. Let me ask you something. You talk about respect? Having respect for others? That is great. That is wonderful. But how much respect do you have for God? And while we are on the subject, which do you love more? The respect of men, or the respect of God?

We think we are safe here in America. We are so naive! We go about our stupid, comfortable lives, trying to tell ourselves that the goal of life is to be happy (not serve God), & that maybe if we wait long enough we'll get a chance to speak. We try to develop ourselves spiritually to be ready when that day finally comes. We try to forget our frustration at not being able to speak by filling our lives with other activities, & being patient with those who promise us our turn that will never come. And we bend over backwards with the unsaved, imitating their behaviour, & minimizing the message of the Cross to maybe help them feel a little less guilty, & we do everything possible to convince them that we really do mean well. How we have angered the Holy Spirit! For in letting them censor us, we are having to censor Him within us. He cannot speak, because we will not let him. Let's let go of our stupid lives, & our stupid well-being, & comfortableness if we can, for it will not let go of us easily, & dare to obey God. THIS IS NOT OUR HOME. Let's stop acting like it.

This is the 1st time that I can remember hearing from the pulpit, "we expect Jesus to come back soon, but of course, EVERY generation has said that". Implication, "we know He's not coming back now....it'll be awhile". And what if we're wrong?

Persecution is about to come upon even the Christians in America. We believe that things have always been ok here, & that they will continue that way, but the End Times are upon us, & our country will not be exempt from the New World Order, which will hate Christians officially for "NOT WANTING TO COOPERATE". Yet this is what we are so adamantly trying to convince them we ARE doing. Let's stop playing games. They know it's about Jesus, & we know it's about Jesus. Let's come out of the dark, & be brave enough to face the consequences for what we believe. Let's pray God gives us the courage to not betray Him (any longer). For some information on what's REALLY happening in America, try http://exodus2006.com/3code.htm, and to clearly see the trap that is being systematically set for us, you might be interested in seeing http://www.crossroad.to/index.html.

[Guest yod]

And what are we doing listening to St. Francis, anyway? He was CATHOLIC. He wasn't even Chrisitan!

Shalom Melon,

Welcome to the WB.

While I admire your passion for souls this post could have been written in a much wiser way. That one statement guarantees that anyone who is Catholic will never listen to you.

Neither Yeshua or the Apostles ever started a "salvation conversation" by being rude. The cross is definitely a rock of offense...but we shouldn't make it any harder by being offensive of ourselves, ya know?

So speak the truth...but do it in love. Be wise as serpents while also being as gentle as a dove. OK?

:il: :hug:

[gypc]

Melon, this is a good word and a timely message.

In his love,

Brain

[Guest Christwin]

Melon, Great post! I am in full agreement with you. The Holy Word of GOD tells us that we are not going to be liked if preach Jesus Christ, and Him crucified; and that He is "the only way to GOD, and if you don't believe that you are on your way to hell. That kind of preaching is not politically correct; but it is true. Our very own president said that we, and the muslim worship the same GOD. This is a false statement. I don't know if he was just speaking out of ignorance; or if he was just trying to cover up a pile of cow manure with tasty meringue so we would swallow it all. We are under a very mild judgement from GOD right now; but unless we as a nation repent, and ask GOD for forgiveness; there is a lot worse coming. This nation was founded on "Christian" principles, and we better crawl out from under cover and stand up for those principles.

With the love Jesus gave me :il:

With the love of God the Father,

With the love of God the Son,

With the love of God the Holy Spirit,

All three make one.

irwin

[georgesbluegirl]

And what are we doing listening to St. Francis, anyway? He was CATHOLIC. He wasn't even Chrisitan!

Um...wanna run that by me again, chief?

We Catholics may not be "Chrisitans," but we are certainly Christians.

Edited September 16, 2004 by georgesbluegirl

[Kabowd]

And what are we doing listening to St. Francis, anyway? He was CATHOLIC. He wasn't even Chrisitan!

Shalom Melon,

Welcome to the WB.

While I admire your passion for souls this post could have been written in a much wiser way. That one statement guarantees that anyone who is Catholic will never listen to you.

Neither Yeshua or the Apostles ever started a "salvation conversation" by being rude. The cross is definitely a rock of offense...but we shouldn't make it any harder by being offensive of ourselves, ya know?

So speak the truth...but do it in love. Be wise as serpents while also being as gentle as a dove. OK?

:il: :hug:

Bingo. Let's not forget that Jesus was also known as Friend of Sinners...and that it's kindness that leads to repentance.

[georgesbluegirl]

Wait, I'm confused...repentance for being Catholic?

I understood the good intentions behind the post in general, but still - there's no need to dis your brothers and sisters in Christ, Melon. Love, remember?

[Trinity]

Being catholic does not make you a Christian. that was the point, and that is the truth.

[Kabowd]

Wait....what? I wasn't saying that Catholics aren't Christians. I was agreeing with yod that Melon was coming across very harsh and judgmental and that if we want our message to be heard to the world, we need to approach ALL ppl with kindness. Not try to force them to hear what we have to say.

[georgesbluegirl]

Sorry Tess, I jumped...it's just people have been knocking Catholicism a lot and I tend to get defensive. Apologies! I agree with your point, by the way.

Trinity: you're right in the sense that calling yourself any denomination doesn't make you a Christian - you have to actually believe in Christ. But if you're saying that Catholicism isn't a Christian religion...I'm going to have to disagree. A bunch.