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This is extremely well-written and unapologetic:
Bro. John:
I was going through some papers Sunday night and found something that I had typed from one of the GCC Old Meeting CDs – 1974. It seemed to go right along with some things that were said this past weekend. I loved the soberness I felt as I read it. Preacher Clark left a world of Godly wisdom for us. I am so thankful to have known him and, because of his faithfulness to Jesus, his life continues to bless us. Whew! This is so good, I just had to share it. Here is the excerpt from that CD:
I hope that everyone here will make up your mind that you’re going to do something for God besides just go to the meeting and sit down, because you are going to be stripped of the ‘one talent’ you do have, if you do that. That’s how you ‘bury your talent’. If you want to know how a person buries his talent, [as Jesus described in his parable], if you want to know how you ‘bury it in the earth’, as the parable says – – know that YOU are the earth. You bury it in your body, and your own flesh, by keeping what you know to yourself, by keeping your testimony to yourself, and by keeping your talent to yourself, saying within yourself, ‘Let the other people do it.”
“Some say, ‘I pay the preacher to do my preaching,’ or ‘I pay the choir to do my singing,’ or ‘I let others do the testifying.’ But let me tell you something. God, not you, is going to pay them for doing their part, and some of what He pays them with will be what He has taken away from you who have done nothing with what you had.”
Preacher Clark’s words stirred my heart and, as you said this weekend, we are all going to reap what we sow. Your message and your father’s sobering words above, should cause us to examine our hearts and make up our minds to live a life that will bring honor to Jesus. He is more than worthy. After all, He has been so very good to us all, and as a sister recently said, “He is our Friend.”
I really enjoyed the Oral Roberts video. It brought back the childhood memory of when Jesus healed my eye in that tent meeting in New Bern. Sweet memories!
Sandy 🙂
Hey Pastor John!
This morning on the way to work, Julie and I were listening to a cd from 2004. On it you said, “If you love the truth you’re going to be saved and your not going to be deceived.” That was just so good and so encouraging to my soul! I felt the spirit all over.
There is so much hope in the truth and in Jesus!
Hi!
I’ve been meaning to write all week, and I still want to write you some things, but I’m watching the meeting from Wednesday night on replay, and listening to the song, (I don’t know its proper title), “The Best Thing To Me”. WOW. That is the best song I have ever heard. I can’t stop listening to it. I feel overwhelmed by it. I don’t think there has ever been a song that has impacted me as much. Well that’s the way it seems right now.
It is a powerful song. It just seems like I can feel God’s great love for mankind, and his complete goodness and desire to take care of man. He doesn’t want to destroy; he would rather be good. I can’t describe it well enough. It just felt wonderful ALL the way through.
The best parts were where it says ‘but the best thing to me’, and each thing was the best thing to me it seemed, especially “finding God’s favor”, and “love everybody”. I LOVED that – I didn’t know how much I want to love everybody that much, but singing it through so many times tonight I want to shout that part out!!! I loved how you repeated it several times.
Anyway, I’ve tried typing out the words but some parts I didn’t quite get. Do you have the words at all that might be easy to email it??
What a song!
Hope all is well.
Jenny
Hey John,
The new book about the Father and Son is like it is all New, even though we have read it several times before. The end of chapter 4 is so good!!! The Son of God is the reason for EVERY element of the Old Testament. Been reading Genesis, and this book with it. This book makes Genesis ALIVE!!! My my.
Jr. E
Good morning John,
Last night I was reading the father and son book and it referred to Psalm 110, which I read this morning. The first verse says “the Lord said unto my lord, sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.”
That word footstool stood out to me, and I looked up the many references regarding it.
In the old testament it was to be a place of worship:
Psalm 99:5 KJV
[5] “Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.”Psalm 132:7 KJV
[7] “We will go into his tabernacles: we will worship at his footstool.”
It was also the earth:
Isaiah 66:1 KJV
[1] “Thus saith the Lord , The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?”Matthew 5:35 KJV
[35] “Nor (swear) by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.”
It was the building that David had in his heart to build for the ark of the covenant:
1 Chronicles 28:2 KJV
[2] “Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said, Hear me, my brethren, and my people: As for me , I had in mine heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord , and for the footstool of our God, and had made ready for the building:”
It was a “golden” place of honor, for the feet of the king at Solomon’s throne:
2 Chronicles 9:18 KJV
[18] “And there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of the sitting place, and two lions standing by the stays:”
Which brings us back again to what Paul said and confirmed:
Hebrews 10:12 KJV
[12] “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.”
And here is the verse I really loved concerning his enemies:
Colossians 1:21-22 KJV
[21] “And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled [22] In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:”
I pray that the King will put His feet on ME!
The Father and Son book really sets the heart free to consider things John, and there is something very special about it. I have sat down twice to read it now, and both times it has left me feeling very blessed, with a desire to know more of this Jesus, who nobody knew about until His Father revealed Him.
Gary
John
In chapter 1 of the book, God Had a Son before Mary did, under the section, “Suddenly”, it says this:
“The child which Mary bore was created in her womb by God, and that being the case, he was physically the Son of God. But the Son of God through whom God “made the worlds” did not spend nine months being formed in Mary’s womb.”
Would the first “the Son” still be capital when referring to Mary’s son Jesus being physically God’s son?
Richard
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Hi Richard.
That is an issue that we have debated several times. As for capitalizing the “S”, in general, I doubt that the Son of God himself would capitalize the “S” on “Son” if he were writing the word. But most of the time, we capitalize it because Jesus told us that God wants men to honor the Son even as they honor the Father (Jn. 5:23).
Paul and James both referred to the night in Genesis 15, when God told Abraham to look up at the stars and Abraham believed God when He promised that He would multiply Abraham’s seed like the stars in the night sky (Rom. 4:21-22; Jas. 2:23). The problem is, that “Abraham” didn’t exist then. His name at that time was still “Abram”. God didn’t change Abram’s name until Genesis 17! But what we learn from this (and other, similar examples) is that it is acceptable to call the man in Genesis 15 “Abraham”, even though “Abraham” was not his name until years later.
Likewise, I believe it is acceptable to refer to Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God, even though only years later did the Son of God leave heaven and become one with him at John’s baptism. I even hear people talk about “Jesus” being at the Father’s right hand in the beginning of creation, and I do not argue with them because there is no difference now between Mary’s son and the Son whom God had with him in the beginning, “through whom He made the worlds”.
The original languages do not capitalize “son”, “father”, “spirit”, or even the word “God”. It is our choice to do that. An argument can be made that “son” should not be capitalized when Mary’s son is clearly the son being referred to, and in our translation, we have not always capitalized “son”, depending on the meaning of the verse itself. For example, we did not capitalize “son” in the following verse from John 10:36, where Jesus asked the Jews who hated him,
36. Are you telling the one whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am a son of God’?
In general, out of respect for the wondrous work of God in Jesus, I think it is acceptable to refer to Mary’s son as “Son”, but it is not a law that can be laid down. It is a matter of choice.
Thanks for the question, Rich!
jdc
Good morning 🙂I was playing the songs on my PC from the Songs of Rest website before I went to breakfast; so very good to hear it fill this little room. I left with Donna’s song playing, “Let Us Live (Like There’s No Tomorrow)”. Wonderful, song! When I returned from breakfast a little while later, Darren’s song was playing, “Rest Oh My Child”. The power of God flooded my heart and mind and reminded me when God touched me in your doorway in 2001, while Darren was playing that song on is new guitar. The curtains were opened, and I had to just praise God in front of the window. I cried, “Jesus, the whole world needs this (the power of God)!” It will cleanse, it will heal, it will give a sound mind, but all-in-all, it will keep you over time.As I was praying on my face because of what I was feeling, the Spirit reminded me the first time I heard Darren’s song and how it had an effect on my heart. Then, walking into the hotel room, how it still had an effect.I loved Damien’s email this morning. Paul was trusting in Jesus by going to Rome, even if it required his life, rather than to have to trust men. It is true, “Jesus Cares”.Off to the job site, “The Way of Grace” is playing now. I don’t know if I can work, now. 🙂Billy
Act 25:7 And when he arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around, and brought many serious charges against Paulos, which they were not able to prove.Act 25:8 In his own defense, he said, ‘Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I done anything wrong.’Act 25:9 But Festus, willing to grant the Jews a favor, answered Paulos and said, ‘Will you go up to Jerusalem, to be judged before me there concerning these things?’Act 25:10 Then Paulos said, ‘I am standing at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged. I have done the Jews no wrong, as even you yourself very well know.Act 25:11 For, if indeed I am doing wrong or have done anything worthy of death I do not seek to avoid death, but if there is nothing [in] what these men accuse me of, no one can give me up as a favor to them. I appeal to Caesar!’”
Hi there!
I have been doing a little bit of work this evening on verses from Job. Maybe one of you can explain this to me. In Job 1:21, we have these famous words of Job:
21. And he said, “Naked, I came out of my mother’s womb, and naked, I will return. the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!”
My question has to do with the next verse. Here is what the Bible says:
22. In all this, Job did not sin, or accuse God of wrong.
But here is how certain Christian versions of the Bible have translated that verse:
New Living Translation
In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.New American Standard Bible
Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.Holman Christian Standard Bible
Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything.
Now, if Job said in verse 21 that God “took away” his children and all his possessions, how is it that Job was not blaming God for doing so? If verse 21 is not Job holding God responsible for “taking away” his children and possessions, then what on earth did Job mean by saying, “the Lord has taken away”?
Thank you ahead of time for your explanations of how Job was not blaming God for anything when he said that God had taken away all that he had.
Pastor John
