Hi Pastor John,

I have started reading your F​ather​ ​and Son book again.  I wanted to ​find out what Muslims thought about Jesus​,​ and I read some excerpts from the Quran.

Muslims believe that Jesus existed and that Jesus was born from a Virgin, and they believe he was the Messiah or prophet for the Jews and that Jesus is coming back again to set things in order for the Jews.​ ​ But they do not believe that God had a Son or that Jesus was for them because their prophet is Muhammad, who came ​600 years ​after Jesus.  Believing that God did not have a Son is believing that Salvation DOES NOT comes through Jesus.

I was reading ​these verses in your F​ather​ ​and Son book​:​

John 17

20.  Not only do I pray for these, but also for those who believe in me through their word,

21.  That they all might be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they may also be one in us so that the world might believe that you sent me.

22.  And the glory you’ve given me, I’ve given them, that they might be one as we are one:

23a. I in them, and you in me, that they might be perfected in unity.”

At the end of verse 21, Jesus said​ that​ if we were one with ​him and ​h​is Father​,​ the whole world may believe that God sent Jesus.​ ​ I thought about all of the divisions in ​Christianity and ​had to ​​ask myself, if we ​don’t ​obey God and ​come out of that ​confused, divided ​abomination, how in the world can we expect Muslims or anyone else to ​believe the gospel and follow the Spirit​?​

Paul had an anointing ​from God through Jesus, because of his experience with Jesus. ​ ​He had ​the message of the true Messiah for ALL of mankind.  ​​If only our Brothers ​and​ Sisters in Christianity could ​believe the message that Paul had​, they would become ​one with the Father ​and​ the Son, the​n​ we would see more people leave that abomination an​d​ be​come​ example​s​ ​of God’s righteousness ​for ​all the world to see. ​ People, Muslim and otherwise,​  would see Jesus​’​ undivided love from the Father, ​and see ​true Holiness ​and worship​ of​ the Father, and happy and peaceful lives.

​Reading the book and thinking on these things ​has given me a deeper thankfulness for Paul and the love he had for God’s people.

Hope all is well there and you’re getting some good things done,

​B​illy​ M​.

Hi John,

I‘ve been thinking of the first time I felt the Spirit speak to me after I received the holy Ghost. 

While walking out on one of my favorite wilderness paths at a park on the edge of town, I saw the familiar sight of the big set of stone buildings off in the distance that make up some sort of Catholic convent.  I remember hating that thing every time I came to it and saw it sticking out of the beautiful landscape like an ugly sore.  When I saw it, I said to myself, “There is that prison!”  And as soon as I said that, the Spirit said to me, “Hate the prison, but not the prisoner.”

Thinking back on this experience reminded me of the only real difference there is between a Christian church and all of the other man-made religions of the world; that is, most of God’s people today are in bondage to those places, thinking that is where Jesus is and where he wants them.

Vince

Bro John:      

I ran across this email of a sermon your father preached from 1947 when he was going through ​a time of ​persecution​,​ and there was division among the body.  There is such authority and strength in his words, and his confidence in God is amazing​,​ considering all he endured.  The first part of his sermon, which is not included here, addressed the issue of the union that God had ​created between your mother and him.  But as you said in the story, “His nature was not to be on the defensive when he knew that God had done something for him, and so, as usual, he went on the offensive with the knowledge of an experience he knew his opponents simply did not understand.”

 From George C. Clark, Pioneer of the Faith stories:

    “What have you done to put you where you are? . . . What effect has your stand taken on you?  Do you love everyone better?  Are you humbler?  Has your tongue been made tamer?  Are you happier?  Or are you more miserable than ever before?  Has the grumbling spirit taken hold on you so you can’t be satisfied?  Has your patience been destroyed?  Where are you?

    Is your God keeping you happy? (There may be many gods).  How do we feel now?  Are we calm?  Are we feeling so peaceful that everyone feels freedom in our presence?  Or are we nervous?  Are our faces covered with hatred, condemnation for the other fellow, or sadness that keeps us from perfect peace?  Would we be satisfied to live forever just like this?  Is this the fruits of the Spirit of God?  Or is this the effect of coming in contact with the truth and finding ourselves on the wrong side?

     Let’s be honest, how many of [you] have the same spirit towards me now that others held toward you when you first started into this truth?  I am receiving the same condemnation now from some of you that I received then, and listen, I am using the same weapons that I used then (they are not carnal).  As you have seen others fall and dry on the stalk, so shall it be with you.  I am no more anxious for you to change now than I was then for those who kept on fight[ing the truth] to change.  I only give thanks to God for all, regardless of the part they play.  You can play no part other than your own, as others have played theirs.  I want no part other than mine.  I am what I have been and expect to remain; yet I realize not many have known me or know me now.  There is not one who has stood by me and known me who will not stand now.  Those who have stood but can’t stand now have been deceived and are deceived and if we can be deceived in one person we can be deceived in another.

    We have never been in the strait that we are in now.  This is life or death.  I want you to know the truth.  The things that you believe, I wish you only knew, your freedom lies there.  Death or life may be there for you.” 

It really blessed me to read this again today.  So thankful for the old saints who stood strong and faithful.  I want to see them again one day.  Because of their faithfulness we are the recipients of glorious blessings in the truth.  As Preacher Clark said, “This is life or death.  I want you to know the truth.  The things that you believe, I wish you only knew, your freedom lies there.  Death or life may be there for you.” 

~ Sandy

​PS   ​“If you are sincerely thankful, then the ones whom God has used to bring His blessings into your life will feel that you are thankful, not just for your blessings but for them personally.”  JDC  6-20-2006

John,

There are some wonderful songs that have been written in Christianity about Jesus, but I am feeling more an more alienated from the mainstream ​Christian music ​of today​.  A lot of it is for show​, and it has a feeling of ​”yuk​” in it.

​Billy M.

=========

Hi Billy.

The spirit of the religious system called “Christianity” infects to one degree or another everything and everybody that is a part of it.  Yes, there have been some good songs, and some other good fruit, that have been produced within Christianity, but that is only because there have been sincere souls who kept themselves pure in spite of the wicked Institution they were a part of, not because of it.  May God persuade all His children to “come out of her and touch not the unclean thing”.

Pastor John

John,

This ​article below ​brings to mind the experience I had about 23 years ago.​​  I was walking down the street parallel to main street  in Henderson after a good meeting.  I looked over at the large Baptist Church and in a moment of time​,​ I felt no respect for the place or its religion.  I had no idea how to express what I had experienced.

Later​,​ when you told of the same kind of experience​,​ you used the words​, “There is no difference between ​a​ Christian ​church and  a Muslim ​mosque.​”​

Now​, the example of what you said ​then ​is here.

Wendell

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/11/14/heckler-disrupts-iconic-christian-churchs-first-ever-muslim-prayer-service-to-deliver-her-message/

================

Yes, Wendell, after Jesus called us out of Christianity, what amazing feelings and thoughts came to us from heaven!  I remember my experience very well.  I was driving along Hwy. 52, when I turned to the right and saw a Christian church far off the road, and I was stunned at how completely foreign it felt to me.  That was an entirely new and unexpected experience!  What a surprise to feel no more kinship with a Christian church building than I felt with a Muslim mosque!

Of course, I am thankful for anywhere that the Lord Jesus is spoken well of, but speaking well of Jesus, as we have learned, is a long way from belonging to him and from being acceptable to him and his Father.  May God help us all to stand before Him blameless in His Son!

Pastor John

Hi Pastor John! 

Sure miss y’all. Yesterday while driving home listening to the radio, I heard someone testifying about God having them help a stranger. It really touched me. Then my daughter called (same drive home) and told me about an experience my mom had. She had folded a $20 bill and put it in her pocket. She was at Kroger and lost the bill. She then went to Walmart and a woman approached her. The woman said ” excuse me ma’am. God told me to do this and I always do what God says to do”. She then handed my mom a $20 bill folded exactly like the lost bill. This really moved my mom. 

Well I loved this. I asked Jesus to let me help someone. This morning I was at McDonalds in Lexington and a gentleman approached me. He was old and worn looking. He had tattoos on his hands. He looked a little scary really. He had a beautiful carved staff with him.

He asked me if there was anyway I could get him something to eat. I instantly thought of earlier when I asked Jesus to let me help someone. I bought him breakfast. The man then asked if he could pray with me. We took hands and prayed at the counter. I know some would say, “Be careful doing this” and I will, but it felt wonderful.

I just wanted to share.

Beth

http://pjhphotooftheday.blogspot.com/

Pastor John,

I read this today wh​ile working on ​the Photos of the ​D​ay.  Jesus knows.  No matter what we ​think about it, he is going to reward us according to what we do, not what we say.

Proverbs 24​:12:

If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not, doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?​”​

​Amy B.

Good evening Pastor John, 

This morning on the way to work I thought of the song “Who Am I?”:

“Who am I that a king would bleed and die for? Who am I that he would say, ‘Not   my will thine, Lord’?
The answer I may never know,  why he ever loved me so, but to an old rugged  cross he would go, for who am I?”

After singing these words a couple of times I had to stop. A question came to my mind when I got to “why he ever loved me so but to an old rugged cross he would go for who am I” The question was: Is Jesus happy that he went to the cross for me and would he want to go back to the cross if it was only for me?  It made me ask “who am I?”  Am I making Jesus happy?  Am I pleasing him? 

To make Jesus happy will be worth it all.

Jim G

http://www.goingtojesus.com/site/php/thoughts.php?tname=tfe11-10

Pastor John:

This is from the Thoughts for the Evening 11-10.

“In an Instant”

“Pay attention now. I will tell you a secret. We shall not sleep, but we

shall all be changed, in an instant, at the twinkling of an eye” 1Cor. 15:51.

“Because God does everything with a whole heart, and because of His mighty power, when He determines to do anything, it doesn’t take Him long to do it.  I think this shows us that if we are like our heavenly Father and whole-heartedly set our minds to the task of living a godly life, we will quickly overcome the world.  Not only is there no power that can stop us; there is no power that can even delay our victory over the world and everything in it.”

I love this!!!! God quickly changes the things that need to be changed in us when we are whole-hearted about changing our ways!!!!

Diane

Hey John,

I listened to an old sermon of yours recently.  The title was  “Your Choices Determine Your Future”.   I felt as though it was going to be good.  It was!  Here are some things that really touched me that you preached.

(1) Our lives, right now, are the result of the decisions we have made in the past.

(2)  After Adam made his decision, after the deed was done, he had no more choice. He could only reap what he had sown.  You are going to reap what you have sown!

(3)  Whether we want it this way or not, our choices determine our future.  Adam lost his happy life.  He ate sorrow the rest of his time on earth.  He had no choice about that because he had made the wrong choice.

You then asked a question John, you asked, “Do you have any good thing in your life that you want to keep?”  Do you really want to keep your blessings?  The key is to live like you want to keep them.  You have to have thankfulness for what God has giving you – health, wealth, the people in your life – treat those people land things like you value them because things can change, and will change.

(4) God had told Adam, “In the day you eat thereof, you will die.”  But Adam didn’t believe it, and he didn’t value his happy life, so God gave him another one.  And in time, he died.

(5) Don’t play around with your blessings.  You may wake up one day to find them gone, and there may not be a way to get them back.  Value them!

(6) God has blessed us with the freedom to make choices, but once our choice has been made and the deed done, the results are entirely up to God.  You have no say-so in that.  We have to take advantage of the opportunity to make the right choices!

This was just the first four tracks of the cd.  It made me consider the times, today.  God is so good!  Let’s choose God first.

Thanks,

Paul