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  • Diane – the weekend

    Pastor John:

    This weekend was wonderful. Trying to still take it all in. 🙂 It is very humbling, and I know He is patient, but I am praying for Him to fix what He needs to in me, and to take all the lingering effects of christianity out of me. I remember Jim asking a question at a “Newcomers” class in this church in Charlotte. The ass’t pastor put down Jim’s question. (I realize now the pastor probably did not know the answer) But the pastor made the one asking the question very uncomfortable. And we could go on and on telling about our experiences in christianity.

    I especially wanted to mention, I loved it when we were sitting around after we had lunch, just talking. Those are very precious times to me. Sister Willie calls those, “Fireside Chats.” (I believe a past president called them that also. :))

    Thanks again for lunch. We did not want to leave either. 🙂

    Love,
    Diane
    ========

    I really meant it when I said, “I don’t want you all to leave!” Ha! The love of God is overwhelming!

    This is the most wonderful family in the world. I am so thankful for you all. It was humbling to have you all stay and spend more time here, together, and it touched me that so many even wanted to! Oh my, I pray that I am thankful enough for the family God has created here. There is just something very special about it.

    jdc

  • Satan’s Merciless Judgment

    “For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment” (Jas. 2:13 ESV).

    I always thought that God won’t let Satan repent because he had committed some act of sin too bad to go backwards (like Judas). Not sure where i got that idea. This verse seems to add another layer to it; God doesn’t have mercy on Satan because he shows no mercy to others.

    Bekah

    ==========

    It’s probably some of both. We know that “to whom much is given, much is required” (Lk. 12:48), and those who sin after having a certain amount of knowledge and experience may find themselves in a position of having no further means of obtaining forgiveness (Heb. 10:26). Any sin can be an “unpardonable sin” if it is committed by someone so close to God, as Satan once was, that he knew, or should have known better. But it is always God’s call as to when that happens because only God really knows everything in the heart.

    But Satan’s merciless judgment and prosecution of others certainly played a huge role in the merciless judgment he had received from God.

    Good point!

    Daddy

  • Melchizedek

    Pastor John,

    Actually who was Melchizedek? What did GOD mean when HE said Melchizedek was the image of the Holy Ghost?

    Lona Faye
    ============

    God never said that, Lona Faye. At least, it isn’t in the Bible. Melchizedek was just a man who served as a priest to God in very
    ancient time.

    jdc
    ===================

    Pastor John

    I feel you didn’t understand my question. Please help me understand. I will try to explain myself better.

    In Hebrews 7:3, Paul says that Melchizedek was without father or mother. The Most High God is the Father of Jesus (Luke 1:32). But, God WAS NOT the father of Melchizedek. Paul is clearly saying that Melchizedek, like the Most High God, was without parents. Neither of them had beginning of days nor end of life. The two of them had always lived and there had never been a time that each of them had not lived. Melchizedek had always possessed life inherent. Life was not given to Him, He was not anyone’s son.

    “’You are My Son, today I have begotten You.’ As He also says in another place: ‘You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek . . . ‘ ” (Hebrews 5:5-6, NKJV)

    “Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead?’ ” (Luke 24:1-5, NKJV). Melchizedek is He who lives.

    What is this saying? Jesus was Melchizedek in the beginning, and when he was born of Mary he became the Son of God in the order of Melchizedek who had to be preeminent in righteousness. He had to be the “king” of righteousness.

    Malachi said that the Sun of Righteousness would arise with healing in His wings (Malachi 4:2). Malachi was precluded from using the word “son” because that would have implied that the One who became Jesus was someone other than Melchizedek. The term “Son” would have suggested that Jesus was in some way a son or a descendant of Melchizedek. Actually, the prophetic Sun of Righteousness and the King of Righteousness is the same person, Jesus Christ. Malachi said the Sun of Righteous would arise, and he meant that in a literal sense. Christ will descend from the sky, but before He descends, He will have to ascend (see Psalm 82:8).

    Am I even more confused? Please help me understand!

    Lona Faye

    ===========

    Hi Lona Faye!

    Thank you for writing back.

    Jesus was not Melchizedek. Melchizedek was just a man, possibly the greatest character who ever lived before Jesus, according to Hebrews 7:6-7. He was probably a Canaanite, but at any rate, he was human. He had both a father and a mother; there was just no historical record of them. The author of Hebrews was not saying Melchizedek was non-human. He was simply using the priesthood of Melchizedek as a pattern for the priesthood of Jesus. As far as the priesthood was concerned, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary and (it was believed) of Joseph, was “without father or mother”, too. One’s genealogical record was of extreme importance under the law; if a priest lost the record of his genealogy so that he could no longer prove on paper that he descended from Aaron, he was kicked out of the priesthood. This happened to a family of priests. During the Babylonian captivity, they had lost the record of their ancestry, and “these sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but it was not found: therefore were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood” (Ezra 2:62; Neh, 7:64).

    In pointing out that there is no historical record of Melchizedek’s birth or death, the author of Hebrews is simply using the lack of historical records to make another point. Melchizedek was born, and he did die. We just don’t have any record of when or where. But Melchizedek was born, and he did die. He is, in a figure, like the Son of God, in that there is no historical record of when he came into existence, but his human birth did take place.

    Melchizedek is not the one being referred to, in the phrase “he who lives”, in Hebrews 7:8. “He who lives” is Jesus Christ. He receives the tithes that God’s children bring to men on earth if they bring God’s tithes to a man anointed by God to minister heavenly things to them and to receive those tithes.

    For centuries, from every theological direction, there has been mountains made out of the simple mole hill that we find in Hebrews 7 concerning Melchizedek. He was a very great man, but he was human. He was not an angel; nor was he the Son of God. You can forget what you have been previously taught about Melchizedek, and you need not fear that you will displease the Lord by doing so.

    I hope my explanation helps. Although there were many holy men in ancient history used as figures of the Son by the writers of the New Testament, no one is like the Son of God to the extent that you have been taught that Melchizedek was.

    Thanks again for writing. God bless.

    Pastor John

  • Who we are in Christ

    Pastor John,

    I know you’re quite busy writing lately but I wanted to run this by you.
    Over the past few weeks or so I feel like “living in the Spirit” means
    “not letting anything compromise the peace and joy the Spirit gives.” It’s
    hard to word, but I’ve felt a kind of peace when something — the flesh, a
    spirit, whatever — tries to creep in and I decide, “I’d rather have
    feelings of peace right now instead.” It feels like the right thing to do.
    A moment ago the “whatever” that was trying to creep was along the lines
    of, “I feel this way about things sometimes because as a child…” but
    each time it crept I felt like, “That’s not my peace! When I was a child,
    before I had the holy spirit, doesn’t matter.” That felt like the right
    thing to do… the result of that felt peaceful.

    My question is: When we say things like, “It’s been so hard for me to get
    over this because when I was growing up…” it seems like giving ourselves
    a reason to not just get over it and have peace. I know things from
    childhood can affect us, but it seems like it’s not who we are in Christ
    so we don’t have to think about it. Is that right?

    Thanks,
    Beverly
    =========

    That’s right, Beverly. As Jesus told Sister Sandy a few years back, in reference to old, ungodly family traits, “You’re not a product of THAT union any more.” And as he told Sister Sandy again in 2001, when we are “grafted in” to the family of God, we are given a NEW PAST. Those of faith in the scriptures are our ancestors now, and in Christ, all that matters is the kind of spirit our parents in the faith passed on to us.

    jdc

  • Last Night

    Good morning, Pastor John:

    I thank God for every time you couldn’t sleep, stayed up all hours of the night and morning, or had your brain fried studying and writing, and all the many hours of translations that the crew has spent to gather the material for the “God Had a Son” book. It was very satisfying looking on livestream and seeing the anticipation for chapter 6. I wonder what God thinks when we feel excited to hear from Him. I think He’s excited that we are excited, because he knows it is going to bring life to His body.

    This book is meat and not milk. I thank God, for whatever reason, that He has found us worthy to be able to take this in–it is a great honor, and very humbling. If one has a heart to truly want to seek and serve the real God and the real Jesus, then I know God will lead them to this truth. It is for hungry souls and it is the Truth of the whole matter concerning God’s son.

    I am still excited for this morning–there are more pages to read, more songs to be sung, and more praises to honor God with–He is, “WORTHY!”

    I love, I love it, I love it.
    billy m.

    ps: we still have Part Three to look forward to!

  • Chapter 6. . . Whew!

    John. . . . all I could do after you closed tonight’s meeting was to drop to my knees , lean against my chair, and weep. . . .

    I thanked the Lord for giving this “hidden” information to you. . . to us. . . so that we may further serve Him , with greater joy, and delight, and reverence too.

    It’s just wonderful. . . and with this wonderful knowledge comes more fear AND love of God. . . for to whom much is given, much is required. It makes me want to subdue everything to His will, and get to work…. for His people. . . our brothers and sisters who are in the dark.

    The least I can do is to pray for them, more earnestly than ever.

    I thank Jesus for loving us enough to give us this new, deeper understanding.

    Brad

  • My Experience this Past Week

    Hey there,

    I just wanted to say I love chapter 6 of your Father and Son book. It makes so much sense to me and it opened my eyes to a lot. I really meant what I said in the text – without having experiences from God, you are no better than the devil, because he was “by the book” and missed the point, which is the love and mercy of God, which you can only understand and receive through experiences from God. So with that being said, I want to tell you about some experiences I have had this past week.

    It started with a conversation I had with Jason, just talking about different things and towards the end of the conversation, I feel like God spoke through me and told me and Jason what we need to be. The three things he spoke through me and said was to be honest, upfront, and to keep a good attitude. It felt wonderful when those things came out of my mouth. The spirit fell, and I knew at that point those things were from God. Little did I know God wasn’t done with me!!!

    That was Friday or Saturday when that happened, and on Monday something else happened. My dog Bennie (I have two dogs) somehow got out of my backyard and ran away. My other dog Jacie came back but Bennie was still missing. When Brittany got home we went looking some more for him, and she found him on the side of the road dead. He had been hit by a car. Britt came back to the house and told me, and my heart was crushed. I cried deep, and I had not cried like that for a while. It hurt so bad. I was responsible for the dogs that day, and one got out and got killed. Anyway, I ended up going over dad’s that night to help him with a grill, and you know dad he made me feel better about the situation, but I was still hurting.

    The next morning on the way to work, I was talking to God about it and said, “God, why did you take my favorite dog from me?” and before I could even finish, the spirit spoke back and said, “to teach you humility.” God’s response blew me away. I didn’t even really know what it meant until I looked it up. Humility means the quality or condition of being humble, lack of false pride etc. All I could think of is, “Man………….God is real, and more real than I ever knew. He really wants to fix us. He cares about me enough to show me something to fix and to work on. It’s amazing!” and it still is, typing it out now.

    I want to know more about God and have more of a relationship with him than just what I read or hear about or hear other people talk about. I feel like my experiences with God is what is going to take me all the way home. It is just wonderful. I have been putting these things into practice and can see the difference. Staying honest with m self. Being upfront with those around me, my wife and everyone, and keeping a good attitude. That’s how to obtain humility or to stay humble. It is really great what the Lord is showing me. Ohhhh, and I can’t wait to get another piece of the Father and Son book it is really doing something for me.

    Jeremy

    ===========
    Hey John,

    Jeremy’s email about his experience with his two dogs reminded me of the time when Goldie our golden retriever got hit by a car or truck one morning as we were getting ready for work, and how God used that to teach me about Him.

    That morning we heard Goldie yelping and we just knew she had been hit by a car. We figured she was chancing after a squirrel or one of our cats crossing the road. As we ran to the front door to see if we could help her, she came crouching real low having a hard time breathing and with blood dripping from her mouth.

    I immediately picked her up and carried her to Bess’ van to take her to the Veterinarian. I could tell she was hurting badly and needed help. I had an appointment scheduled in town that morning so Bess said she would take Goldie to the Vet. As Bess pulled away from the driveway, I began to question myself about letting Goldie out that morning because she was still a puppy. Usually I would go outside with her and she would stay close by. But this morning it just didn’t work out that way.

    When Bess arrived at the Veterinarian’s office the staff workers noticed Goldie was going into shock. They started an IV immediately and told Bess the Veterinarian was about 35 minutes from the office. When he did arrive and examined Goldie, he said not to expect her to live through this because, he thought she would be broken up inside and bleeding internally. And usually when he sees a dog in shock like Goldie, they do not make it. He told Bess to just go home and he would do an x-ray to see what kind of damage was done and then let us know.

    Bess called me right before my appointment to let me know what the Veterinarian told her about Goldie. She sounded very sad over the phone, and said not to expect her to live. Dr. Allen did not give her much hope.

    After my appointment, I begin to drive and think about what Bess had told me. Then I pulled my truck over to the side of the road. I just sat there quietly and began to cry and pray. I said Lord, “I know Goldie is just a dog, I know that. But she is our dog.” Then I started praying in tongues. After a while things got real quiet inside and out. As I started to drive away I heard a voice on the inside make this statement to me. “If I can fix Goldie, I can fix anything!” Wow, did I just hear what I thought I heard? I was not expecting that. So, the rest of the day I was thinking about what I had heard in my spirit.

    Later on that afternoon I got a call from Bess. She said, “You will not guess what I’m about to tell you. “She then told me that the Vet called and said Goldie didn’t have any broken bones, but they had to draw a lot of air from her chest cavity which was an indication that she had taken a very hard blow to her side. They also put about 8 staples to close a split to the front of her mouth. We could come pick her up that afternoon. God was making a statement to me. I CAN FIX ANYTHING! TRUST ME! I DIED FOR YOU SO YOU CAN LIVE!

    This last Wednesday night I was reminded again through you of what the Spirit is saying: Some of you have things you can not fix. They are too big for you, but Jesus is saying to you if you are born again, He is 100% for you. Just lay your burdens down and let Him fix you.

    A burden I have carried around all year is that my work has slowed down from where it was two years ago. But I know that God’s economy is not of this world, and I know if I keep a good attitude and work with all my heart and trust Him, that all things are possible to him that believes. He will provide for our family. After Wednesday night hearing all that was said through you, Jesus has lightened my load. Thank you Jesus! John, thank you for speaking what Jesus tells you. That is our comfort and our hope.

    God can use anything to teach us how great He is. I thank Him for every time He has spoken to me and used others to say what I needed to hear. And yes, even using Goldie.

    Tim

  • TFT 🙂

    Good morning, Bro. John!

    I love what the Spirit woke me with this a.m.!

    “Somebody’s going to be wrong. And somebody’s going to be right. And when it comes to God, He is always right!”

    I love the way God keeps us humble. 🙂

    Have a good day,
    Sandy

    ===========

    Yes, and we can say, “Somebody’s going to be good. And somebody’s going to be evil. And when it comes to God, He is always good!”

    Hows that? 🙂

    jdc

  • Livestream

    Hello,
    This is indeed a wonderful chapter….. How does the verse I’m thinking of go? “It is the glory of God to hide a thing and the glory of kings to search it out.” And we are “a peculiar people, a holy nation, kings and priests…” We are to search and ask, seek and knock. And we are in this world but not of it. And He will and does give us these hidden riches and treasures…and there is exceedingly, abundantly more that He wants to give to us. Halleluyah! Great is our God.

    I understand how it is for Him to say, “stop and go to sleep.” Glad He did say and you did heed.

    Brother John, tonight was exceptionally awesome in His Presence. I am so grateful to be able to be a part of the gatherings and fellowship at your house. Living waters flowed to the point that even through the speakers on my pc the sound was that of gushing waters. Glory.

    I went from listening and into His Presence so quickly. From tears of joy, to being plastered to my seat and unable to move, to basking and floating in His Presence, to belly laughing, to lifting my hands in praise, to dancing and smiling and praising Him all the while. Thank You, Lord.

    Thank you, again, Brother John, for letting me be present by livestreaming.

    Rita

    ==========

    We are very happy you can join us, Sister Rita! I feel so full and blessed! God is good.

    jdc

  • Recent Email

    Hey John,

    I was thinking today about last night and how it was said that we don’t know how many things God has saved us from. Well, I have a story about something that I know God saved me from when we were living in Washington.

    One morning, Julie took the girls shopping and I was going to go some where by myself. As I was leaving, I had the feeling that I was forgetting something, so I just walked around the house for several minutes trying to remember what it was. After four or five minutes, I decided that it must not have been all that important after all. I got in my car and headed toward the interstate. On the way to the interstate from our house was a long hill. As I started up that hill, two police cars were in front of me with their lights and sirens on. When I got to the top of the hill I could see them stopping off in the distance.

    As I got closer, I could see several cars that had been in an accident. It had happened only moments before I got there. They didn’t even have the vehicles blocked yet to hide the bodies. There were two cars facing me that had been hit by someone else. One person was dead, and the other was badly hurt. A police officer flagged me by. I passed by a van with an older man slumped against the steering wheel, dead. I found out later that he had a heart attack while driving. I knew immediately that God had saved me from being involved in that accident by letting me feel like I was forgetting something at home, and I am very thankful to be able to tell that story of God saving me again today.

    Darren

    ==========

    Sometimes, Jesus lets us know what He has saved us from, but most of the time, I believe, he does not. No matter what he chooses to reveal to us, however, it is his nature to save us, and I am sure that is what he is doing all the time. He is, after all, the “Savior”!

    jdc

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