A changed man

I have a letter from my Brother and pen-pal that he and I felt we should share with the world. Let me give a quick bit of background info. There is a program called “The Walk to Emmaus” that is a Christian program designed to take a small group of people and spend three days immersing them in the grace of God. It is a time of great Spiritual refreshment. In February of 2011 I went on the “New Ark Area” Men’s Walk #34 and sat at the table of Peter. My life has been forever changed. There is a similar program for youth and young adults called “Chrysalis”. And there is a program for inmates called “Kairos”. These are very well organized programs that I recommend to any Christian who is feeling burdened and needing a refreshing taste of the Holy Spirit. So look it up and find a program in your area and get involved.

Below is the letter my friend and Brother in the Lord wrote to share with you. Peace and blessings, Shannon.

“My Kairos experience was a well awaited life changing gift! It was a 72 hour retreat, free to be yourself for once. And ‘m now a firm believer that not one person can stand under the attention of the Holy Spirit and remain unchanged! I am forever grateful to have been chosen for the Spiritual nourishment the Kairos Brothers poured into my soul.

I believe everyone on this planet should experience the Kairos retreat, but that’s my opinion. And once you say you are a Christian, non-believers will watch everything you do. They like to see Christians stumble, so speak with respect, the lost are listening. So as you live your life for Jesus, turn your back on trying to please the crowd; face Jesus, and please Him with every fiber of your being.

Finally, a few questions: Do you live by your faith? Do you share your faith? Because one of the true highlights of being a Christian is to bring the good news of Jesus to the lost. The decision has been made, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still! My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. – J. J.”

Are we seeking God?

                The Bible teaches us that if we seek God we will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13). But notice it says that we must seek God “with all [our] heart”. When we say we are seeking God what are we really seeking? If we are seeking God to answer our questions then we are not really seeking God. We are seeking answers. If we are seeking God to solve a problem then we are not seeking God. We are seeking a solution. Are we seeking God’s provision or protection? Then we are seeking provision and protection. Jesus said that even the pagans do this. They seek food, clothing, shelter, just stuff. But Jesus said that we shouldn't seek these things because God already knows we need them. He said we should seek God. Then we will find God. And when we have found God we will find the answers, solutions and stuff we thought we needed. So concentrate on seeking God first and foremost. Then the other stuff will fall into place.

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33 NASB).

Peace and God bless,

Shannon

The Bible Corner

Just reminding everyone that we also do a podcast on soundcloud every week. And we are trying (with some expected difficulty) to get on itunes. You can hear the podcast now at The Bible Corner
Paec and God bless.
Shannon

Unconditional Love

What is Love according to God? 1 Corinthians 13 verses 1 through 7 and the first part of verse 8 gives us a description of what love is by God’s definition. It is pretty well summarized in verse 7 and into verse 8. “[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails”. In other words the true definition of love that is recognized by God is a love that is unconditional. If you love someone in God’s eyes that love cannot be based on how nice they are to you. It cannot be based on how well they behave. It cannot even be based on whether or not they love you back. It has to be unconditional. If your love for someone is based on anything other than the simple fact that you love them then in God’s eyes it isn't love. No exceptions.

Did/Does Christ love us? He said in John 15:9 “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love”. And in John 15:13 He said. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” And Romans 5:8 says that Christ’s death on the cross was God’s ultimate display of His love for us. That fact stated unquestionably in John 3:16. “For God so loved the world…” I think there should be no argument to the fact that Christ did and does love us.

Should we love one another like that? John 13:34, 15:12, and 15:17 all plainly state that it is a commandment of Christ that we love each other. And John 14:12 states pointblank that if we love each other God dwells in us. In Matthew 5:44 we are even told to love our enemies. And John 13:35 says that the mark of a true follower of Him is that we will love each other. According to 1 Peter 4:8 love will cover the multitude of sins. Why? Because if our minds are focused and conditioned to love, that love will prevent us from failing most of the tests and trials. If we have the love of the Father in us then we will desire to do good for our fellow man. Greed, envy, hatred, these would not have any place in us if we are filled with love. To love as we have been commanded will help to keep our feet on the path of righteousness.

Do we love God like that? Matthew 22:37 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind”.

It is easy to say we love God. And quite often we do love Him. When the blessings raining down we hold our hands to the sky and boldly declare our love. But what do we do in those lonely hours? Where is our heart when the world closes in? What do we do when we stumble and fall? And when the blessings seem to dry up, and the trials begin, do we still hold our hands to the sky and cry out how good and gracious our God is?  The real truth of the matter is that God deserves to be loved, not just with all are heart, soul, mind, and strength. He deserves to be loved with everything we are and have. Because all we are and have is because of Him. And if you really want to know the truth we can’t observe these other manifestations of love until we love God. And we won’t fully understand that until we come to terms with the fact that He loves us. He doesn't love us because He created us. He loves us is why He created us. And it’s why He is so patient with us. And it’s all the more reason why we should love Him.

And now I can get to the meaning behind all this. One of the ways we show God our love for Him is by doing what He says. And all of the manifestations of love listed above were commanded by Him. So when we allow ourselves to love like that we are saying to God, “I love you so much, that I’ll obey you. I love you so much that I’ll love the rest of your children too. And my love will be unconditional.”

Yes God loves you. He loves you even when you feel unlovable. So love Him. And love Him unconditionally.

Peace and blessings. Shannon

The Divine Appointment

One thing I learned on the first leg of our full-time traveling ministry (I actually learned a lot more than one thing but this one is what I'm writing about today) concerns “Divine Appointments”. I spent the first two months trying so hard to share the Gospel with anyone who would listen. I literally wore myself out mentally trying to witness. By the end of the first two months I was emotionally and spiritually drained. I was so frustrated at how many people would turn away God’s word and the confidence they had in doing so. I felt like I was at my wit’s end. I was praying for a “Divine appointment” from God, just someone to share the Gospel with. Finally, with less than seven days to go, God gave us a man to talk to, someone who wanted to hear. God answered that prayer through an unnamed, homeless, veteran. We talked a long while and my wife and I gave him tracts and a new Bible and we went away knowing God had ordained and anointed that meeting, a Divine Appointment.

I was excited! And with less than a few days to go before leaving the area I began praying for another one. And when we got down to our last day I was getting disappointed. The day before we were to pack up and move on we decided to drive down to the beach and spend a couple hours just sitting in the sun watching the waves. I watched the Pelicans for a while as they glided along the waves and then they would swoop up and turn and dive into the water. I watched them for some time and began to ponder the intricacies of God’s creation. I was relaxing for the first time in two months. I began a little conversation in my head with God. I thought about Jesus going up into the mountain alone to pray all night before announcing His chosen twelve in Luke 6:12. I thought about what it must have been like to spend all night in the wilderness talking with God. Then I heard a voice say “This is it”. I finally realized, this was my divine appointment. God just wanted to spend some quality time with me. I felt like a complete idiot. Not only had I been missing the answer to my prayer, but I had been missing the most important Divine Appointment I could ever have. I was missing a Divine Appointment with my Creator, my Savior, my friend and my God! I could sense that for two months God had been trying to get me to stop trying so hard to prove my status as a Missionary/Evangelist and just fellowship with Him for a while. No wonder I was so exhausted.

Of course all that reminds me of the story of the sisters Martha and Mary. Martha was working her rear off trying to be a good hostess and wanting everything to be just right. And all the time Mary was sitting in the living-room with the men just listening to Jesus. And I feel like His response to Martha’s frustration must be similar to His response to my “vanity of vanities”. She demanded that Mary stop sitting around and help her. Then Jesus told her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41, 42 NASB). It is a lesson we would all do well to learn. Yes, spending time serving God in whatever ministry we feel called to is an important thing. But the most important thing we can do (after we have been born-again) is to spend some quality time with our Lord. If we neglect such an important appointment we can count on our ministry not being as fruitful as we would like. And we can count on our ministry becoming more of a chore than a blessing. So take some time to just find a quiet spot and fellowship with our God. It will do you a great deal of good.

Be blessed my friends,

Rev. W. S. Caplinger C.E.

Real Ministry

I just feel the need to say how thankful I am that God led Bernie and I to a good local church congregation. We love our church. And we are excited to see God at work there. It is refreshing to walk in the doors on Sunday morning and actually sense that the Holy Spirit has been there all morning getting things ready for a great service. We love our “home” church. It does bother me just a little that God has called us to a ministry that takes us away from home for months at a time. But it’s all about His will, Amen? And it is good to know that we can look forward to the time to go home and worship with our “family” again. They are a tremendous blessing and support to us at home and on the road, probably more so than they realize. When we were on the road this summer it never failed that as I got up and into my Bible on Sunday morning, sometimes even leading chapel service, that my mind would drift back to Ohio and wonder what Brother Jim would be preaching on that morning.

There is a sad note. Before we found that church we were in another congregation not a mile away. For two years we watched them struggle. We were given the position of Youth Directors, but the youth would not take direction. And God told us plainly that Youth Director was not the job He had for us. So we stepped down. Then we had a good adult Sunday school class. People were learning and growing. The Pastor started asking me to come to committee meetings to discuss how to rebuild the church. I offered my advice about what I felt was wrong and how to fix it. Eventually the meetings were more about how to save the church. Everyone could see that it was dying. I’ll never claim to know everything. But for a year I watched it utter amazement as I told them over and over what they needed. They would smile and say thanks as they did the exact opposite. Then came the time the Pastor “retired” (I have never understood how a man could be called by God to minister and then retire from the ministry). So I offered my services as an interim Pastor because I knew the church was too far gone to afford a full-time Pastor. But they said they had it covered. I watched them slowly run out of money, resources, and congregants. It finally became too much and we left there with heavy hearts.

What were they doing wrong? Simple; it was all about them. There was no outreach. They had (and still have) no footprint in the town. Every time I suggested a mission they came up with a program. It was always a form of, “Hey. If you come to our church we can help you”. That is not ministry. And it is not the example Jesus or the first century church gave us. Then to run a business out of the church basement, at the expense of the church…I shed tears.

Today that business is closed, the programs are no longer in use, and the church is broke and clinging to a thread. But know this, I pray for them. I don’t want another church to close the doors. I pray they will find God again and find revival. The world needs more churches to experience the fire of God’s renewing. But as for me and my wife, we are just so thankful for the humble little church that is growing; the church God led us to, the local body of believers who accepted us as one of them. Thank you Lord.

Peace and blessings,

Shannon

My Place and My Position

     Let me just say it right up front: I serve God because I want to. I know full well that nothing I can ever do will save me or earn me special standing with God. Having said that now let me attempt to elaborate on that point. I am just one of those people who is so grateful to my God for what He did for me that I can’t seem to thank Him enough. I do not serve God because of some kind of guilt trip (although I know my own guilt). Nor do I serve God because someone says I have to. I don’t have to. But I can’t seem to not want to serve Him. So I guess it might be a bit of a paradox; I don’t have to but I just have to. I am a firm believer in the Biblical idea that when we are truly “saved” or “born-again” the Spirit in us brings a change in our life. It is not a Spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7) but a Spirit of love, gratitude, and devotion. That is why I want to walk with God. And I don’t mean just to walk with Him. That is an understatement. I want to walk with Him the way Enoch walked with Him; the way Moses or Samuel walked with Him; the way Peter, James and John walked with Him. That might sound impossible to some, but I believe it can be done. And I believe that the first critical step to getting there is to accept our place before God and our position before God and know the difference. 

     We are created by our God to be perfect. But because of the sin nature inherited by everyone due to the fall of man we are now born into the world in a corrupted state. According to Romans 1:28-31 (and other passages) we are not worthy of God’s love but in fact we are worthy of death. So our place before God is that of a fallen, broken and condemned, sinful creature. We really need to understand that. We are not worthy. And God has never been or ever will be obligated to show mercy on us. Until we fully recognize that, we are walking into the throne- room of the King of kings with a chip on our shoulder. 

     But before we let that knowledge back us into a corner and cause us to fall into some legalistic guilt trip we need to understand point two; our position before God. As unrepentant sinners we are stuck with our place before God. However, if we have received Christ by faith (Ephesians 3:17) and are born again by His Spirit (John 3:3) then we are adopted into the family of God (Romans 8:15). So if that applies to you then you are a child of the Living God (John 1:12 & 1 John 3:1-2). This is a beautiful thing. Because God is patient and full of mercy He has offered to us salvation that equates to changing from a worthless fallen creature into His child. Our place before God may be as a fallen creature, but now our position before God is as His own child. And that is why, according to Hebrews 4:16 we can “come boldly unto the throne of grace”. Now that, to me, is a great encouragement to walk with my God. Because He moved me from my place to my position I will always want to walk with Him.

Be blessed my friends,

Rev. W. S. Caplinger C.E.

Revival on the Court Square

     Well we held the Second Annual (and last) Citywide Fall Revival on the Court Square on the 12^th of September. The turnout was less than last year, the Coshocton Rotary Club didn’t change the sign in front of the gazebo like they said they would (the playhouse was too important), and the guy organizing the first annual bacon festival was there blocking parking spaces for his event for the next day. His reservation didn't start until 9AM the next day but he was closing the streets as our event was starting and businesses were still open! So I do see a pattern. The rotary club put their priority on the playhouse. The business owners and the bacon man had bacon as their priority. But my wife and I, and a few faithful friends from our home church, and a brother from my Monday morning men’s prayer group had God as our priority. And ya know what? God showed up! Yep. Our little worship service of about a dozen people was blessed with God’s presence. He spoke to us, challenged us, and embraced us. Do I think revival is coming to Coshocton? Yes actually, it did. And we enjoyed it. Now we are back to work trying to share the Gospel of Jesus with the ones who will listen. Why was it our last “organized” citywide…? Well because my wife and I don’t expect to be there in September at least for the next couple years. And besides that, we did what God said to do. The city in general is rejecting God. We offered and they declined. That probably is connected to why the only Christian book store went out of business in August. Am I discouraged? No. I did what God said and His will was accomplished. Will I continue to pray for Coshocton? Of course! “Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you” (1 Samuel 12:23 NASB). This is just a picture of the world condition. People for the most part don’t want God. But that is not my responsibility. The responsibility God placed on me was to offer them Jesus. And that is what I will continue to do as we travel the country seeking those who want to find Him.

Be blessed my friends,

Rev. W. S. Caplinger C.E.

Turn back the battle at the gate

    Isaiah 28:5-6, “In that day the LORD of hosts will be For a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty To the remnant of His people,  For a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,  And for strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate” (NKJV).

This verse speaks directly to the people of Judah. God is going to bring judgment against them for their pride and idolatry. But with God justice is followed by protection and blessing. God’s justice is total. Isaiah is telling the people that God has spoken. Amidst the just punishment of the wicked there will be a remnant. There will be people who will repent turning to Yahweh and they will cling to Him. God’s promise here is that although He is going to orchestrate divine judgment, once that judgment has run its course, He will turn and deliver His remnant. Those who hold fast to Him will turn back the adversary and chase them right out the city gate. This is God’s total justice; chastisement for the wicked and salvation for the faithful.

We live in a world today where the wickedness of world leaders is clearly evident. And we see in too many churches a “falling away” from the truth of God’s word. This is a form of surrender. Even the religious leaders are too concerned with their own status, their own reputation, to stand for the truth. It is a combination of pride and a fear of offending the wicked that has led to this apostasy. And the adversary is taking full advantage of these holes in the wall. But we also see hope. We see a few who are standing up for Jesus and proclaiming the truth. We may not be popular with the world, but we are God’s chosen. And we have the responsibility of chasing the adversary back out the gates of our city. There is no time for apathy. This is not a time to sit back and watch the battle as it escalates and gains precious ground. We are to stand and fight.

But we must remember that unlike the day of the above prophecy, we are not in a military conflict with flesh and blood. We are in the midst of an intense Spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:12). If we turn our attitude from self-pity to optimism we will see the pockets of resistance being held by our brethren. We see the victories in the Name of The Lord showing up here and there. God has not forsaken us (Hebrews 13:5). We must come to the aid of our fighting brethren as members of the family of God. Our first response must be an act of repentance immediately followed by intentional and expectant prayer. Through prayer we will gain the strength and direction to boldly proclaim the Name of The Lord. Although this prophecy speaks to Judah just over 700 years before Christ, God is still God and He never changes (Hebrews 13:8). So this leaves us a principle character trait of our God. And in this way it still applies to us today. The resistance will grow. We will reclaim precious ground. And we will “turn back the battle at the gate”.

Be blessed my friends. Re. W.S. Caplinger C.E.

Discouraged yet Encouraged

I guess things are going well enough. Since going full-time we have been plagued with mechanical problems. Thanks be to God that they have all been relatively minor and not involved the drivetrain. And I get discouraged that the people we try to talk to who aren’t already Christians don’t want to talk about it. But Bernie continues to point out that an Evangelist is also responsible for encouraging The Church. And we do seem to be having success in that area. I know some talk about how “easy” it is to lead someone to Christ. But I will not push the issue. Jesus did teach us not to cast pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6). And I refuse to give out some easy believing, watered down, “just let Jesus be your savior and the rest will come later” kind of message. I do not want to be responsible for making “false converts”. My God deserves better than that. People cannot and will not come to Christ for salvation until they understand they are lost and in need of The Savior. And I will not teach salvation without repentance. Yes our God loves us and wants to save us. He paid the ultimate price to offer us this salvation. But He is Holy, Righteous, Sovereign, and Just. He deserves a bit of reverence. And if people can’t accept that God then then they are rejecting the True and Living God. And I will not be responsible for their folly. So we continue to do all we can and let the Spirit guide us. God will open doors where and when it is time. And they will be doors “no man can shut”. Peace and blessings, Rev. W.S. Caplinger C.E.

The Battle Cry of Victory

Psalm 66:1 “Shout joyfully to God, all the earth.” (NASB)

“Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands.” (KJV)

“Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!” (NKJV)

These three verses are essentially saying the same thing. David is calling all the earth, or every nation, to shout a joyful shout to the Lord. It might seem like the usual praise we would expect from David. But what really stands out to me is the Hebrew word for “shout”. “hari'u” is a military phrase. It means to give a battle cry. But this is not just any battle cry. This word is often used to signify a specific battle cry. It is the joyful shout given by the soldiers in the thick of the battle when the battle has ended and the enemy has been defeated. Here we see David knows that his God, our God, the Lord has won the battle. The victory is His. And as His children, as His soldiers in His army of Spiritual warfare we are being called to sound the victory. There is no longer any reason to allow the adversary to cause us to “feel” defeated. The victory belongs to God. He has beaten our enemy. And now we must proclaim this victory. And we are to live in it.

Be blessed, Shannon.

Are we Two or One?

    Well I've been thinking again. Yeah…scary sometimes. But it seems to me that we miss the point on a lot of Scripture. And what comes to my mind now is one that will probably be met with a bit of controversy mixed with offense. In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, Jesus quotes Genesis 2:24 saying, “and the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh” (Mark 10:8 NASB) (Also see Matthew 19:5). Well the legalists use this to say that it is a sin for a couple to get a divorce. First let me say that I agree that marriage is a serious matter that should not be entered into lightly. And divorce should be considered carefully and never be used as a casual exit to a relationship just because we get bored with each other. God takes marriage seriously. But this leads me to another point. Who said that just because two people get married and have sex God must automatically consider them “one flesh”? That term is not a term for the consummation of vows. Nor is it a term for the physical act of sex (contrary to what some teach). It is a description of something that God causes to happen in the Spiritual realm. Now, being that we know God takes marriage seriously, and knowing also that we are in no position to tell God what to do, how do we know God joined the two and made them one flesh? Isn't this a decision for God to make in His sovereignty? So just because a couple gets married and has sex does not automatically mean that they are joined together by God, even if the priest says they are! (Want to argue with that? Then tell me your fundamental view on gay marriage.) So isn't it a possibility that there may be married people whom God has not joined together? If so, and one is willing to put his/her relationship with God first, and the other is not…then could a divorce be an option for the believer to protect his/her relationship with God? That’s a stretch maybe…but worth thinking about.

     But don't get hung up yet. None of that was my point. Forgive me for taking you down that little side road. But that is the train of thought that led to this one: If we truly are one flesh (person) in the eyes of God, then we should act just as unified in the way we let others see us. Now I’m stepping on some different toes. I know couples who insist on keeping everything separate. They have separate bank accounts, separate vacations, even separate churches! How healthy can such a relationship truly be? Well now I have to get even more picky. What about separate social media accounts? I know…My wife and I have them too. And to be honest, I kinda wish we didn’t. How many times have you ever had that little suspicious, jealous voice in the back of your head find its way to your mouth and ask your spouse, “So who is that friend?” “When did you meet that person?” “Who are you chatting with?” All are innocent questions in and of themselves. But can you see what kind of trouble it can lead to? Can you read those and see the beginning of an argument?

     And what about being “one”? If we are no longer two individuals in God’s eyes then why are we two individuals in the world’s eyes? And you know what makes it even worse? We are two individuals in each other’s eyes! I’m not just picking on social media. This mindset creeps over to other areas of our lives as well. But the illustration of social networking sites just makes the picture seem much more clear to me the more I think about it. So what am I going to do? Well…I think the first thing is get rid of some of those accounts I don’t need. I should also sort through my “friends” list. But it seems another good idea is to talk to my wife. We actually have a joint account we don’t use. Maybe we should open it back up? Maybe we should invite our actual friends to that account and get rid of the individual ones? I’m not sure myself at this point. But this much I do know; it needs to be bathed in prayer. What do you think? I hope this was good food for thought. I got some praying to do.

     

     Peace and blessings, Shannon

A lesson from Job

In my daily reading I have been studying the book of Job. It’s a difficult book for a lot of people. And in my younger days I used to try not to think about it because it would cause me to question God. But as I have grown in the Faith I am able to accept it a lot easier now. One thing about the book itself is that there has always been a lot of debate as to the origin and timeframe of the events of Job. Some will go so far as to say that it is a story but not an actual historical account of a real person. On that note I will disagree. The book of Job is written in the form of Hebrew poetry. But it is a historical account of a man named Job.

Anyway…As I was reading this morning something struck me. The story is about the faith of Job while he was suffering. No, I have never suffered like Job did. Few of us have had to suffer that much. But his faith, it was indeed strong. But even in faith he questioned God. He didn’t question God in a sinful way but he did question God. He felt like God had abandoned him, or was allowing him to suffer without just cause. That part I can relate to. How many times in our Christian life does it seem like God is far away? How many times have you wished you could sit down with God and ask Him your questions to His face and listen to Him answer you directly? For me I have to admit I feel this way often. Actually I have been feeling this way for a few days now. Look at what Job said to his would-be comforters Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.

Job 23:8-12 (NASB) “Behold, I go forward but He is not there, And backward, but I cannot perceive Him; When He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him; He turns on the right, I cannot see Him. But He knows the way I take; When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held fast to His path; I have kept His way and not turned aside. I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.”

                Yep. I have felt that way a lot for the last few days. And it just so happens that there is nothing wrong with that. It would be a sin to lose faith in God, or to ask such a thing sarcastically against God, but not to want to be able to speak directly to God in the place of people who can only give us the same old clichéd answers. That would make so many situations so much simpler, wouldn’t it?

                But there is another interesting thing Job said. Job makes more than a few references to wanting to dispute his suffering and to proclaim his faithfulness directly to God. He uses legal terms as if he wants to go to God’s courtroom and prove his innocence.  In Job 9:32-33 Job wishes he had a mediator to negotiate between him and God.  That is another “aha” moment for me. We do have a mediator with God. 1 Timothy 2:5 tells us that Jesus is our mediator. Jesus sits on the throne, “at the right hand of the Father” and speaks for us just as a defense attorney would.

                So what does this mean for us? It means that when we feel lonely, abandoned, or forgotten by our Heavenly Father we can go to our mediator, Jesus, in prayer, and talk to Him. And we know that He will hear our prayers and that He will plead our case and in due time we will be blessed. But the story about Job also teaches us to remain faithful to God no matter how we “feel” and no matter what others are saying. I find all that to be very comforting. I pray you do to.

Peace and blessings to you all.

Shannon

Will there be “Christians” in hell?

The Lord has given me a burden for the lost. And I have been becoming increasingly aware of a need for real repentance by many of those who call themselves “Christians”. Now please do not misunderstand my intentions. I am by no means trying to “judge” anyone or say that I am better than the next. Lord knows I make more than my share of mistakes! But in looking more deeply at the Scriptures I have to question what it is that some people really believe. And what is even more disconcerting is that I have to question what some leaders are teaching.

I guess it comes down to how you define “Christian”. Some would say that a “Christian is someone who believes in God”, or “believes in Jesus”. I disagree. A true “Christian” is someone who is following Christ to become more Christ-like. I will say that I am totally against the legalistic teachings that say our salvation is dependent on or determined by our own actions. No. We are “saved by grace through faith” alone (Ephesians 2:8). But too many people have a weak and watered-down definition of “faith”. Saving faith is not the casual acknowledgement of the Biblical truth. It is not a creed where you hear it and say, “Ok, I believe that”. It is to trust in, to cling to, to rely on, and depend on the Biblical truth. It is so much more than a one-time decision to “believe” in Jesus.

You see, when one truly believes in, or has faith in Jesus, then (and only then) the Holy Spirit dwells within that believer. That is being “born again”, or “born of the Spirit”. That means God lives inside the believer. If God lives inside you then you will absolutely not be able to live in an ongoing life of continual rebellion against the standards of God. Yes you will make mistakes. Yes being like Jesus is a process of Spiritual growth. No you will not be “perfect” (at least not on the outside) all the time. But your life will display a trend of change going in God’s direction.

Look at it this way: In John 3:16 we read where Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (NASB). That’s great. And it is the truth. So why then did Jesus also say, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter”? It is because we misunderstand and incorrectly define “believe”. In John 3:16 (and many verses throughout the Gospels) the Greek word “believe” is not a noun or an adverb but it is an active verb. It indicates an ongoing act. It means if you truly believe then you will continue to believe and grow stronger in that belief.

If you are a Christian, you will grow in the things of God. You will grow in your prayer life. You will grow in your worship of the Lord. You will grow in your interest in His word, the Bible. You will grow in your distaste for sin and you will grow in your thirst for His righteousness. This Western Worldview that says you pray a prayer and ask Jesus into your heart and then you are saved and you can then live anyway you want because God has forgiven you is false doctrine. That is not taught or implied anywhere in Scripture. Jesus also said, “Repent and believe…” (Mark 1:15). Repent means you turn away from your old life and change your direction toward a new life in Christ. If you are still living the same old life you lived when you were lost and in sin, then you are still lost and in sin regardless of what you said you “believe”.

So will there be Christians in hell? No. But there will be vast multitudes there who called themselves Christians.

Peace and blessings,

Shannon

Discipleship 1 – Training believers in the Way

     I’m just thinking this morning about the wonderful ways God works in our lives. My wife and I have prayed for quite some time about our ministry and our future life as traveling evangelist. But we also pray about our work at home. We don’t want to be looking to the future work so much that we neglect the present work. We remember the words of Jesus in Acts 1:8. He said “beginning at Jerusalem…” We can understand this to mean that the spreading of the Gospel begins at home. And our ministry begins at home. Yes, as the ministry grows it will spread throughout the land wherever God leads us. But we can’t just wait for time to leave. We must be faithful while we are waiting at home. We do have some plans to continue working in our community until time to go on the road. But Discipleship is not limited to telling unbelievers about Jesus. It includes things like working with our church, learning and growing ourselves, promoting unity in the Body, and…helping new believers grow in understanding and becoming firmly rooted in the Faith.

     In this area we have been particularly blessed. We teach a Sunday morning class that though it may be small, the attendees are hungry for God. And we have a new Christian of less than a year who has befriended us. She comes to us with questions. She comes to us seeking Godly advice and Biblical counsel. And she puts her trust in us for honest answers to some tough questions. It is a blessing to know that God has trusted us with guiding her. And it is a blessing to see how she continues to grow in the image of Christ. As she grows we see her sharing her faith. We see her compassion for the lost. We see her sincere desire to do anything to serve God. This is an important part of evangelism. In Acts 14:22 we are told to exhort (to urge or encourage) disciples to continue in the Faith. This is where evangelism often falls short. We don’t just lead them to Christ and then leave them to figure the rest out for themselves. We must follow up. We must take new Christians under our arm and help them along as they start their new journey. Bernie and I have been greatly blessed by this whole process. Yes we look forward to the near future and all the things it holds. But we praise our Maker for this present ministry. What a blessing it is to serve the Living God.

     Peace and blessings to you all,

          Shannon

Unity

     In one of our training lessons for VOM we watched a video with several testimonies of people helped by Voice of the Martyrs. One particular video that grabbed me was on Vietnam. The Hmong Christians are a small village in Vietnam where Christianity seems strong and spreads rapidly. Many of the villagers are often arrested, beaten, and threatened. The authorities constantly hound them and try in vain to stop the spread of Christianity. The police will try to force them to worship pagan gods but the Christians refuse. They cling to their faith in Christ. Some are killed. The authorities’ only reason for persecuting the Hmong is because Christianity is considered a “foreign” religion. I asked myself, “Why are they so afraid of Christians”? Then the answer came. The rulers are afraid of the Christians because of their deep unity. If they continue to spread Christianity and unity they could become a real threat to the government. But the Christians want only to worship God in peace.

     It hit me. We in America and other parts of the “free” world are so divided. We segregate ourselves by any division imaginable. And what is really sad is that as Christians we do no better. We divide denominationally within the body of Christ. This church doesn’t believe in Liturgy.  That church says Baptism is supposed to be poured. These churches disagree over the Trinity; is it one in three or three in one? And too many churches resent other denominations to the point that we don’t work together for the good of the community or the body. That is not how Christ intended it to be. And it gets worse. Within a given church we too often find the congregation divided from within. This group sits on this side and they want this style of worship. That group sits to the back and they want this translation. Another group sits in the front corner and their concern is whether they should sing the Doxology or just stand as the music plays.

This is not the New Testament Church. We are called to unity as ONE body of believers. The TRUE Christians Stand together with their brothers and sisters regardless of denominational affiliation (this means Christian denominations and not religious sects). And one must also realize that the True Body of Christ exists world-wide. So Australian Christians are my brothers and sisters. German Christians are my brothers and sisters. Vietnamese Christians are my brothers and sisters. And American Christians are my brothers and sisters.

Check out some Scriptures:

Psalm 133:1 “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!”

Ephesians 4:1-3 “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

And remember the theme verse of Voice of the Martyrs, Hebrews 13:3 “Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourselves also are in the body.”

Oh how beautiful a place this would be if those who proclaim the Name of Jesus would truly love their brothers and sisters as Jesus Himself commanded. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35

May you be blessed as you reflect on these things.

Here is a link to the video of the Hmong Christians, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQVeaFVOUbY

The Ministry Grows

I haven’t updated the blog lately. But there has been a lot going on. I have returned to my studies at Liberty University. My wife and I are getting ready to roll out in June and, Lord willing, that will begin our full-time missionary work here in the U.S. We are also in training as Representatives for Voice of the Martyrs. So as we spread the Gospel we will also be helping to spread the word about our brothers and sisters in Christ who are being persecuted for the Faith. The objective of VOM in general is to help those who face “real” persecution for the name of Jesus. We in America are so far blessed not to be persecuted. But as members of the body of Christ we must help those members who suffer for their faith. The theme verse for VOM is Hebrews 13:3, “Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body”. We are all a part of God’s family. And as members of the same family we have to stand up for each other. We can do much to help the persecuted members. And the first thing we can do is to pray for them. They don’t ask for the persecution to end. They ask for strength to endure, love to forgive and faith to continue to witness to and pray for their persecutors. What great faith we see when faith is given a real test. Pray for us. Pray for them. And if you are interested in learning more go to their website at http://www.persecution.com/

Thanks and may the Lord bless you much.

EV. William Shannon Caplinger