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Some people have read two new sections of the in-progress Iron Kingdom book, one section on Baptism and another on Communion. I am pleased with the responses I got because they tell me that the folk who read those sections really got something out of them! There is no point in doing anything if God’s children don’t benefit from it! I am passing their replies along to you so that you can know that you can read and be blessed by these things, too. You CAN! And if you want a copy, let me know and I will send them to you. Pastor John On the Baptism Section HI, Pastor John, We think this section on Baptism is great! It is easy to read and understand. We were surprised and amazed how close Robert Barclay’s teachings were to those of Paul’s regarding baptism. The sections that described all the different/strange doctrines that men came up with was very good, like you said, it was like they were in competition to get an entry into the contest for their idea of baptism. So thankful God does not require the 40 steps to receive baptism as listed in The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus! We really liked the sentence on page 90 which stated “for Christ sent the Spirit from heaven to enter into people, not into things. Concerning page 92, Justin #1 who shared Paul’s understanding of the different nature of the two testaments, etc. This paragraph is great! Thank you for all your hard work and time in putting this together. It is wonderful and we are so thankful that God brought us out of Christianity and has allowed us to understand and believe this truth that you are working so hard to get out to others. Randell and Doris ============ Hi, Pastor John; This section on Baptism is very clear. I am thankful that you brought some sanity into the reading by using Barclay as an example, as well as your comments to bring the reader back to reality of, “by one Spirit . . .” It was so sad to me that Thelca baptised herself just before she was killed; confused and deceived. Where are they now? Where are these apostate leaders, now, who taught the many forms of baptisms and rituals? Satan has deceived the whole world; he has fooled men by the means of Christianity that he is, “like the most high God’. The same deception he used in the garden of Eden; Their eyes were opened to not be God but, “you shall be as Gods”. This slander has gone on for centuries and still must be revealed to hearts by the Spirit. I feel the Iron Kingdom book will help those who truly are honest with themselves and want Truth. The slander, lies, & deception of the work of God through Jesus, I’m afraid, will continue to go on until Rev: 18, when Babylon has fallen. Until then, we need truth such as this to remind us how pure and precious of what Jesus gave to us is. It is an honor to know these things and to understand the simplicity of the Gospel. Like the song says, “Where will I be when that last trumpet sounds?” Thank you!! Billy M. =========== Thank you, John As I was reading this section on baptism all I could think about was how thankful I am for the truth. When men “try to serve God” all they invent is mass confusion and more confusion for anyone with the desire that God puts in their heart to seek him. Anything that can be done in the flesh is wrong, thank you for teaching us and showing us how to live in the spirit!! Stuart ============ John, I think this section on baptism is good. As others have already said, it reads smoothly and easy to understand. I particularly paid attention to the section called “Adding Sugar to the Water. Just yesterday morning I was thinking about why would Catholic Christians baptize infants? Unlike many Protestants who are water baptized, infants have no choice in the matter. Therefore, the water must contain some special “power to sanctify”. I am so grateful that Jesus has opened our eyes to the truth. Thank you for all your work. Tom ============ Wow John, your hard work has certainly paid off! This section is excellent, and really puts together well the strange ideas that men have taken in, without truth, concerning baptism. The overall thought I had after reading it, was simply one of thankfulness concerning all the confusion we have been spared. May God get this work into the hands of people who want truth, somehow. We have so much to be thankful for to have been taught good things, and not be a part of the problem concerning baptism. Thanks again for your labor John. Gary ============ Whew! What a sloggy swamp that is! Your writing really shows and makes the reader feel the clear difference between Paul’s doctrine and the confusing and superstitious doctrine of the apostates. I can’t say that this section was all clear to me- because I struggled through the swampy parts! But I loved the life and simplicity and relief I felt when you told the simple truth of the gospel. Thank you, thank you, for loving, teaching, and putting into words so clearly the simplicity of Christ. Thank you! Donna N ============ This line in Darren’s song, “It’s Another One”, comes to mind when reading this: “Men will say that you must be baptized in water, but that won’t satisfy your soul! That’s not my way! It’s another one!” I love when you contrast their “theological goobledygook” with the simple truth. It’s like a breath of fresh air sprinkled throughout the confusion of all the rest. As outrageous as these invented ideas about baptism are, they felt very familiar to how I grew up in the Lutheran church where ritual and ceremony was the thing. The instead of…! Only the truth brought relief to my searching heart, and I pray someone is going to read this and feel that same relief. I think it all flowed very well. Thank you for the many hours of hard work you have put into this. I can’t even begin to imagine how you are trudging through this swamp of confusion, but it’s been very eye opening and necessary and worthwhile. Lee Ann ============ After reading these pages I feel so thankful (again) to have been able to respond to Jesus’s call to come out of the divisions of Christianity! These pages really give good examples of how through the years self-appointed men have laid out their own foundation of doctrines to be followed by the Church, declaring them to be true, and how through their own self-appointed authority, they gave their consent to deny the Truth Paul taught by the Spirit. They paved the way for subsequent Christian sects to choose whichever rituals appealed to their brand of Christianity, no matter how contradictory they were to Paul’s teachings or to each other’s. The authority these men believed they had over God’s people to keep them under subjection to their doctrines really comes through in your writing. Those invisible chains (lies) of their traditions and ceremonies bind up the hearts of God’s people, but the one Baptism Paul preached always points to Jesus who sets his people free. I love coming across quotes from Paul, Barnabas #1 and Justin #1 when they say what the Spirit is saying to believers. It is like finding safe and solid ground to stand on in the middle of that Christian confusion. The Truth brings relief and frees up the heart of anyone who longs for a real relationship with Jesus. The simplicity of Christ preached by Paul is healing and beautiful. Thank you for sending this out, Bess ============ On the Communion Section Hi, When reading through this section on Communion we found ourselves say “that is crazy how could anyone believe that”, then we remembered that we did believe and took part in the Eucharist for many years until God’s mercy opened our eyes to the truth of communion in the Spirit. Whew, now we can look back and only ask “how could we have believed those lies”. Thank you for your hard work and labor of love in writing this book. Randell and Doris ============ Just like the section on Baptism, it’s something to see, especially through centuries of examples, how foolish this is. But, anything we still do not know about God is just as dark. The difference is what we did with the Truth after it was revealed. Thank the Lord for whomever he has used to reveal Truth. Taste and see that the LORD is good. Billy ============ I really like the way you prepared the reader’s thinking with the spiritual thoughts and truths at the beginning, then proceeding with the confusing carnal minded thoughts. Keeping the reader’s mind on spiritual thoughts all along the way through the mucky confusion of the intellectual misguided leaders of Christianity, GO MAN GO! PS. Just a thought, it would have been nice if you could have added what your daddy said to the young lady in the meeting about the bread and wine and water Jesus said about it! Jimmy T ============ John, This section on communion is very good. I found it easy to read and understand for the most part. Thanks for all your work. Tom ============ Suzi here. Your work & the writings on Baptism & Communion remind me of how grateful I am that Jesus chose to show me the way out of church religion, and showed me the truth. As time goes on, I realize how that is a miracle that my life was spared of church confusion. I’m ever grateful to you for all your work for us. ============ This is a real education in Christianity. I had the similar thought as Jimmy after reading what Jesus told disciples flesh has no profit the words I speak are spirit and life the flesh profits nothing. Just Thinking>>> Do I know Christianity was never of God? I think so, but I have learned that is not the same as knowing. It does bring back memory of getting caught up in the spirit, seeing a Christian Church and thinking it was no different than a Moslem Mosque. Thanks For All The hard Work Wendell ============ Everything you are sending is almost unbelievable! I say “almost” because there are such similarities in these chapters with what I grew up practicing in the Lutheran Church! Unfortunately, the guys at the Lutheran Church must have read some of these wacky scholars and liked their ideas enough to put them into practice. The section titled “Cyril” with his instructions on the proper way to take the Eucharist made me laugh out loud! Then, I had the thought that I could be burned alive at the stakes for making fun of such a somber subject! I’m still smiling, just thinking about it. I can just hear you now, “You can’t make this stuff up!” Honestly, much of this chapter struck me as funny. My favorite section was the entire last half of page 106, that begins, “Wherever there is ceremony, there has always been, and will always be, strife.” Those last two paragraphs on p 106 are truth! I whole-heartedly agree with everyone else who has responded that they feel thankful to be out of all that confusion! It’s Jesus loving us to show us the truth about these things, and to give us a heart to believe it! Lee Ann ============ It is astonishing to read about these ceremonies that Churchmen have come up with through the centuries in the name of Jesus! What control they have held over people by labeling those who disagreed with their ceremonies as heretics when men dared hold on to what Jesus had taught them. I am so thankful for these godly men who held fast to the truth they received from Jesus, and that Jesus has let you find them so we can be encouraged by them! He still has his 7000 hidden! It is really humbling to think of what these men suffered as they held onto the gospel Jesus revealed to Paul. And it makes me grateful we live in a time (at least for now) where we can worship in Spirit and truth without fear of retribution from those in power in the church. We know things will change. Thank you for all the work you are putting into The Iron Kingdom. Maybe down the road some sincere folks will come across your writings and hear that echo in their hearts about the truth and be encouraged to hold on to what they have received from Jesus. Bess
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