Sing, O Barren

Dear Weekly Readers!

The book of Isaiah is such a wonderful and powerful book!  Many of my favorite chapters in the Bible are found in this book.  Some of these are Chapters 6, 12, 40, 53, 55, 61 to name just a few!  The entire Bible is for all ages!  It will never grow old fashioned or out of date!

 

May God Bless your week! John R.

Please enjoy the below daily writing by Charles Spurgeon. 

 

"Sing, O barren."—Isaiah 54:1.

THOUGH we have brought forth some fruit unto Christ, and have a joyful hope that we are "plants of His own right hand planting," yet there are times when we feel very barren. Prayer is lifeless, love is cold, faith is weak, each grace in the garden of our heart languishes and droops. We are like flowers in the hot sun, requiring the refreshing shower. In such a condition what are we to do? The text is addressed to us in just such a state. "Sing, O barren, break forth and cry aloud."

But what can I sing about? I cannot talk about the present, and even the past looks full of barrenness. Ah! I can sing of Jesus Christ. I can talk of visits which the Redeemer has aforetimes paid to me; or if not of these, I can magnify the great love wherewith He loved His people when He came from the heights of heaven for their redemption. I will go to the cross again. Come, my soul, heavy laden thou wast once, and thou didst lose thy burden there. Go to Calvary again.

Perhaps that very cross which gave thee life may give thee fruitfulness. What is my barrenness? It is the platform for His fruit-creating power. What is my desolation? It is the black setting for the sapphire of His everlasting love. I will go in poverty, I will go in helplessness, I will go in all my shame and backsliding, I will tell Him that I am still His child, and in confidence in His faithful heart, even I, the barren one, will sing and cry aloud.

Sing, believer, for it will cheer thine own heart, and the hearts of other desolate ones. Sing on, for now that thou art really ashamed of being barren, thou wilt be fruitful soon; now that God makes thee loath to be without fruit He will soon cover thee with clusters. The experience of our barrenness is painful, but the Lord's visitations are delightful. A sense of our own poverty drives us to Christ, and that is where we need to be, for in Him is our fruit found.

 

Tithing

Dear Weekly Readers! 

God’s Peace be with you all!  This week in our article will address and item that many churches in our age seem to focus on quite a lot.  Let us be in Prayer that Jesus would be the reason and object of our worship, letting nothing else get in the way!

May God Bless your week.  John R.

Is Christianity Dying?

No topic excites many pastors more than tithes and tithing. Waxing eloquent, pastors with fiery zeal, would teach about how if you pay tithes God would bless you. How your business would flourish, how you would find that rich husband and how all would go well in your life. Blessings would flow like the Jordan River and life would be a bed of hibiscus petals. Conversely, you are also threatened and psychologically terrorized for not paying tithes- there would be no breakthroughs in your life, God would take away from you. Nothing would go well for you. Worst of all, you would be cursed by God because you have stolen from Him. Like the mighty spear of Goliath, Malachi 3:10 is launched at your heart.

"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse - the whole nation of you - because you are robbing me." (Malachi 3:8, 9)

This verse has been used to intimidate many Christians into shelling out 10% of their income as tithes. It is probably the only verse in the Bible that many pastors quote when preaching about tithes. Other verses in Leviticus and Deuteronomy that shed more light on the issue are almost never mentioned. Church members are kept in the dark by design.

Was God rebuking the nation of Israel or the nation of Levitical priests in Malachi? Malachi 2:1, explains further, "And this commandment is for you, O priests." God was actually rebuking the Levites for abusing the trust of the people. They were not fairly using the tithes for the poor and needy. God is a spirit and does not need food but He wanted the poor to be fed. The Levites were the ones under a curse.

Who received tithes?

Tithe was God’s way of specifically taking care of the orphans, widows, strangers and poor Levites in Israel. This was the only reason God wanted food in his house. God does not need food. Deuteronomy 26:12, clearly states that when all the tithe is collected “then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger to the orphan, and to the widow, that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied.” Deuteronomy 14:28-29 (NIV) "bring all the tithes of that year’s produce and store it in your towns, so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands."

Without tithes, the message of the Gospel could not be preached

God in His infinite wisdom asked for tithes to be used for the poor and needy. God did not request tithes to be used for pastor's salary, cars, church organ or choir robes. God explicitly said use it to feed the poor Levites and the orphans, widows and strangers. Tithes were NEVER paid in money, always food.

God does not need tithes to spread His word. The apostles gave their lives to spread the gospel of Christ without taking tithes from anyone. Many churches function perfectly today without tithes. We cannot disobey God with the excuse that we are spreading the gospel.

Even if you are poor, unemployed and struggling financially, now is the time to pay your tithes.

Nooooo!!! This is twisting and misquoting the Bible because we want to take money from the poor. The Bible says do not take tithes from the poor and needy. The poor are to benefit from the tithes. They are to be given tithes. Telling the poor to pay tithes, with promises that God would open the windows of heaven and pour blessings on them is a big con game.

The Bible says those with less than ten goats or sheep were exempted from paying tithes. God did not take tithes from the poor. Telling the poor and needy that if they don't pay tithes God has cursed them is the ultimate in greed and callousness. Some pastors tell poor church members to pay tithes before their rent or children’s school fees and expect miracles. Some tell the congregation not to worry about what the tithe is used for. They say to just pay the tithes and leave the rest to God.

Would paying tithes make you rich and prosperous?

The promise of breakthroughs and prosperity and material blessings is used as a bait to make many pour their hard-earned money into the bank accounts of some pastors. This is nothing but manipulation. If the gospel of Christ is about acquiring earthly possessions how come the apostle Paul was not rich? How come John the Baptist, Peter, John and the other apostles did not get financial breakthroughs? Many of Christ's apostles were persecuted and killed. Life was not rosy for them. Were they not blessed men of God? If you believe pastors who tell you that you would prosper financially if you pay tithes, then you need serious Bible study. People like Oprah Winfrey, Ted Turner, LeBron James etc. are very wealthy, but they do not pay tithes, they are not even Christians. If you believe paying tithes would open gates to riches for you, then you are in for great disappointment and cannot carry the cross of Christ.

Should I give to my church?

Yes, absolutely! Give to the church. Your offering helps the church a lot. Paul spoke about supporting the church. But give from your heart to God and expect nothing in return. Give because you love God. It is free-will, not a binding law like tithing. God had a special purpose for the tithes. It was to feed the poor and needy in society. It was to take care of the Levites who were poor, not wealthy pastors who have mansions, fancy cars and are far richer than most in the congregation.

Who is killing the church of Christ?

It is unlawful and unbiblical for anyone outside of the tribe of Levi to receive tithes, be they prophets, bishops, arch-bishops or reverend-doctors. Tithe has become the yoke around many Christians’ neck. When the clergy enslaves the masses and amass wealth at the expense of the poor it creates a history of resentment against the church. Many thinking people become suspicious of religion. When leaders of a faith insult the trust of their flock with misinformation and manipulation, the backlash can be unfavorable to all. The gospel of Christ suffers when boys are molested by clergy just as when money becomes their main focus.... Are our pastors robbing God, are they killing the church of Christ?

Rev. F. Frimpong

 
Note: This article is a shortened version of an article published on GhanaWeb.com. To read the full article, click here: http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=278494

The Leper

Dear Weekly Readers! 

May The Peace of God with each of you! 

If you are a reader that does not yet have such peace, may you hear the call of the Lord Jesus today!  May we all realize that we are lost and condemned without Jesus Christ.

Please see the heart of Jesus in the article below!

The Leper

For five years no one has touched me.  No one!  Not one person!  Not my wife!  Not my child! Not my friends!  No one has touched me! They saw me. They have spoken to me. I even sensed the love in their voices. I saw concern in their faces as they talked. But there was no touch. Not once! No one touched me!

What is common to you, I want. Handshakes, a warm hug. A tap on the shoulder. A kiss on the lips. Such moments have been taken from my world. No one touched me! No one bumped into me!  What I would have given to have been bumped into – to be caught in the crowd. For my shoulder to brush someone elses. But for five years it has not happened.

How could it!  I am not allowed on the streets.  I am not permitted in my own synagogue. Not even welcome in my own house. I was untouchable.  A LEPER.  And no one touched me, until today.

One year during the harvest, my grip on the scythe seemed weak. The tips of my fingers numbed. First one finger, then another.  Within a short time I could grip the tool but not feel it. By the end of the season, I felt nothing at all. I said nothing to my wife, but I knew she suspected something!  How could she not.  I carried this hand against my wounded body like a wounded bird.

One afternoon I put my hands in the wash basin to wash my face. The water turned red. My finger was bleeding. I didn’t know I was wounded. How did I cut myself?  On a knife?  Did my hand slide across the sharp edge and me not feel it? It must have, but I didn’t feel anything!  “It’s on your clothes, too,” my wife said softly. Before looking at her, I looked down and saw my clothes. BLOOD. I knew my life was forever altered.

“Shall I go with you to tell the priest?” she said.  “No, I’ll go alone.”

I turned and looked into her eyes. She had started crying. Standing next to her was our three-year-old daughter. I squatted down and touched her cheek. I stood up and with my good hand I touched my wife. It would be our final touch.

Five years have passed and no one has touched me since – until today. The priest didn’t touch me. He looked at my hand now wrapped in cloth. He looked in my face. I never faulted him for what he said. He was just doing his job. He extended his hand, palm forward and said, ‘YOU ARE UNCLEAN.”  With one sentence he made me know that I had lost everything – my family, my farm, my future, and my friends.

My wife met me at the city gates with a sack of clothing and bread and coins. She didn’t speak. My friends had gathered. What I saw in their eyes is what I have seen since – pity!  As I stepped out, they stepped back.

Oh, how I repulsed those who saw me. Five years of leprosy had left my hands gnarled and the tips of my fingers were missing as were portions of my nose and left ear. At the sight of me, people would pick up their kids and head in the other direction. Children pointed and stared.  I could not hide my sores with my clothes – they were too many. The clothes could not hide the rage in my eyes either.

Many nights I just shook my fist and yelled, “Why me, what did I do?” But never a reply. Some think that I sinned. Some think it was my parents’ sin.  I don’t know. All that I know was that I was tired of it  all.  I grew tired of the bell that I had to wear around my neck to let people know about me. As if I needed it. One look at me and it began – ‘UNCLEAN, UNCLEAN.”

Several weeks ago, I walked to my village. I could still see them working in the fields. I hoped I could see her, my wife, but she was not anywhere that I could see. I could see kids playing and... and for a moment... just a moment... I forgot about myself and watched with enjoyment. I was no longer a leper – just a farmer, a man, a father.

I was so enjoying their happiness that I stepped out from behind the tree and it happened: “LEPER, LEPER, GOOOO AWAY.” I left as quickly as I could, trying to get away rapidly.

BUT THEN I SAW HIM! When I saw Him, I was changed. I can’t explain it, but it happened. One of those mornings that I faintly remembered, it happened. It was one of those beautiful mornings. The sun was up and it was beautiful. I just can’t describe it. When I looked at His face I saw that sunrise.

Before He spoke, I knew He cared. Somehow I knew He hated this disease more than I do.  My anger became hope. I watched from behind a rock as He descended down a hill. A large crowd of people followed Him. 

I watched and then it happened. He was only a step away from the rock and I stepped out and said, “Master!” He stopped and looked at me as did all the others. A flood of fear swept across the crowd as they saw me. ‘UNCLEAN, UNCLEAN,” they said.

Everyone stepped back except Him. It just came out. “Lord, you can heal me if it is your will.” Had he healed me with a word, I would have been thrilled. Had He cured me with a prayer, I would have rejoiced. But He was not satisfied with speaking to me. He drew near. He TOUCHED ME!  Five years ago my wife had touched me – no one had touched me since... until today!  “I WILL!  BE HEALED!”

Energy flowed through my body, like water in a dry field. In a moment, I felt warmth where there had been numbness. I felt strength where there had not been any. My back straightened and my head lifted. I now stood eye level with His face – His smiling face. He cupped His hands and drew me so near, I could feel His breath on my cheek and see the wetness in His eyes, and He said: “Don’t tell anyone about this. But go and show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded for people who are made well. This will show the people what I have done.”

And so this is what I am going to do, I will show myself to the priest and embrace him. I will show myself to my wife and embrace her. I will pick up my daughter and embrace her. And I will never forget who dared to touch me!

He could have healed me with His word, but He wanted to do more.  He wanted to honor me, to christen me.

IMAGINE THAT... unworthy of the touch of man... yet worthy of the touch of God.

                                                                                                                                   (Author unknown) 

 

 

Refresh the Brethren

Dear Weekly Readers!

God’s Peace!

I want to thank you for your prayers as I have been traveling around the USA with my wife and others to inform Christians about our visits to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the many countries around the world.

I have brought them your greetings, and have said that you are praying for us here in America.  They promise to pray for you as well! 

We have just arrived home last night, after having been gone for over 5 weeks.   We pray that Jesus Christ was glorified in all that was done.

May God Bless your week.  Please enjoy the below article!     John R.

 

Refresh the Brethren

If we are walking with God there is not a day when we may not, if we wish, be a refreshment to our brethren. This is one of the greatest ministries. It may be no more than a handshake. It may be a word of encouragement almost casually spoken. It may be just the light of heaven on our faces. But if the Lord has got His way with us and we are in the state of having no cloud between ourselves and Him, we shall find that we are quietly being used. We may not know it, for it is better not to seek to know it—indeed it may be better never to know it. But whether we know it or not, we are constantly being used to refresh our brother. When he is low and in darkness, when he has a burden on his heart or a film before his eyes, when he has been tarnished and stained, then to us he will come. He may not stay long, perhaps only for a few minutes. Seek for that ministry. Find grace from God to help him. Often we think it would be good if we could give long sermons that command a wide hearing, but few have that gift, and many are not reached by those few who have. To refresh the hearts of the saints is the kind of ministry which everyone can fulfill and which can reach everywhere. In the valuation of God it is without price.

Watchman Nee

“Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11-15