"We see, in many a land, the proudest dynasties and tyrannies still crushing, with their mountain weight, every free motion of the Consciences and hearts of men. We see, on the other hand, the truest heroism for the right and the greatest devotion to the Truth in hearts that God has touched. We have a work to do, as great as our forefathers and, perhaps, far greater. The enemies of Truth are more numerous and subtle than ever and the needs of the Church are greater than at any preceding time. If we are not debtors to the present, then men were never debtors to their age and their time. Brethren, we are debtors to the hour in which we live. Oh, that we might stamp it with Truth and that God might help us to impress upon its wings some proof that it has not flown by neglected and unheeded." -- C.H. Spurgeon . . . "If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:31, 32 . . . . .

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Friday, June 23, 2023

DEUTERONOMY 26: A REHEARSAL ON HOLINESS, A CALL TO FAITHFULNESS

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez, and James Fire

DEUTERONOMY 26: EVERY GOOD THING – by Sonny Islas; check out the complete teaching here!

INTRODUCTION: Today we will study DEUTERONOMY 26. This chapter marks the ending of the laws re-given by God to the people of Israel. The last two laws repeated are - the offerings of first fruits and The Third Year of Tithing (10%).

The main point of this chapter is – because Yahweh God, who is the Creator of all, owner of all, sustainer of all, the sole provider of the entire Earth and the giver of all good things (i.e. At this time - God gave them the land of Canaan/aka Israel as a gift) – we ought to respond by giving back to God with a grateful attitude AND pitch in when meeting the needs of the less fortunate.

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TTUF TOPIC # 5: What About The Gospel and How to Share it? PART 3 of 3


You might feel intimidated, ill-equipped, and unqualified to share the gospel. “That’s the kind of work for pastors, evangelists and missionaries” you might think. But again, this is something that the LORD commands of all His disciples:

MARK 16:15
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature
.

So if you’re a follower of Jesus Christ, born again of His Spirit, you’re qualified! If you’re intimidated, there is no need, because the LORD said that He is with you always (MATT 28:20), and He continually works with those who preach the Gospel.
He is your ministry partner, and your personal teacher!

MARK 16:20
And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen
. (see also EPH 4:20-21)

And if you’re feeling ill-equipped, there is help available to equip you!
From ONCE LOST ministries with Flynn Huseby and Kyle Peart, we have materials that can help (see below).
Even in such spiritually perilous, dangerous times as we may be facing here in our nation, the Spirit of the LORD will embolden and empower us to do the work that He has ordained for us (EPH 2:10):

ACTS 1:8
But ye shall receive power
[from the Greek word dunamis], after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

ONCE LOST MATERIALS -

Tools For Evangelizing

OTHER ONCE LOST MATERIALS -

So then we have the third part of this section: fundamentals of the faith. We provided a link to a TTUF article on this very subject, but if you missed it, here it is again.

These fundamentals are foundational; no foundation of any Christian is complete without these.

These are non-negotiables with absolutely no wiggle-room anywhere. Some doctrines allow for different viewpoints: the method of baptism, the timing of the rapture, whether or not the gifts of the Spirit are for today. Not so for the fundamentals which include things like: The Deity of Christ, the Trinity, the Gospel of salvation through Christ alone and His atonement on the Cross, His virgin birth, His resurrection of the dead, etc.

Got questions? Email me! KNYHTF1RE@gmail.com

Put in the subject box: “Questions about TTUF”.

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Thursday, June 22, 2023

The G.E.P.C Study – GALATIANS 2: Part One & Two

Going Through Paul’s epistles to
Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, and Colossi

INTRODUCTION: Here in this chapter, Paul continues in his defense of the apostleship granted to him, the same way that he received the Gospel: not by man, but from GOD Himself, the Word made flesh. He relates the events that transpired since he was confronted by the risen Christ and all that these events entail.

He also relates an incident where he confronted Peter, who was perceived as the leader of the apostles in his fault when he visited Antioch. This shows that Paul wasn’t subordinate to the Twelve, but one of equal standing. Who else could confront an apostle on any error except another apostle? This also demonstrates Peter’s continued heart of humility by receiving such correction.


In broader terms, any Christian is qualified to confront any pastor on an error (or perceived error) they may commit by teaching something unbiblical. The standard by which all are judged is the Word of GOD.

Being accountable in this way, beneficial things may happen:

The pastor may perceive the error when presented with the appropriate Scriptures, humble themselves and make corrections before his congregation.

The Christian approaching the pastor might themselves be misapplying the Scriptures they cite which seems to contradict (but don’t) what the pastor was teaching, and this provides the pastor the opportunity to clarify the Scriptures they are presented with for the Christian.

The Christian approaching him may learn that they misunderstood the pastor’s teaching, or perhaps the pastor didn’t present their case clearly enough and this provides him the chance to clarify the issue.


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Saturday, June 17, 2023

STUDY In The Book of NEHEMIAH TRIUMPH by TRANSFORMATION – Part SEVEN

INTRODUCTION: Paul the apostle warned the elders of the Ephesian church about attacks upon the church from “grievous wolves” attacking from without, but also from others who would rise up in the midst of the flock and cause trouble. He warned them day and night, with tears even (ACTS 20:28-31).

We must be on guard but not just for any attacks from outside; often there are subtle attacks in our midst. This is true in our fellowships. The Bible speaks of “false brethren” (2 COR 11:26) and those with bitter hearts that “defile many” (HEB 12:15). It’s also true of us as individuals. The attack sometimes isn’t something before us, sometimes it’s in our own mind. The sly and subtle serpent is desiring always to plant thoughts that will ruin us if we let them take root (see the following short video on Seeds of Fear, Seeds of Faith, or the article).

Nehemiah had many challenges in Jerusalem; the work of rebuilding was formidable. I’m quite certain that after seeing all the ruin, his first thought was, “Where do we begin??” Then he had Sanballat and crew to deal with. All of these were externals. Then he had to deal with some internal matters that had to do with all of his brother Jews; there were injustices found that must be dealt with and in doing so, there was a unity formed that would prove valuable in the days ahead!

I recall the words of King and mighty warrior, David: “Unite my heart to fear Your Name!” (PSALM 86:11).

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Friday, June 16, 2023

DEUTERONOMY 25: A REHEARSAL ON HOLINESS, A CALL TO FAITHFULNESS

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez, and James Fire

DEUTERONOMY 25: OBSERVATIONS on OFFENSES, OXEN and OBLIGATIONS – James Fire; check out the complete teaching here!

INTRODUCTION: The LORD GOD is all about justice, all about fairness and also grace, all in perfect proportion and in perfect balance. Justice where it’s required, fairness where it’s needed, and grace where such will bless the recipient. GOD is the Almighty Creator, the Sovereign LORD, the Holy Judge as well as the Blessed Redeemer. We see aspects of all of this in the following chapter.

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Sunday, June 11, 2023

ABDUCTIONS FOR PROFIT –The TERROR Of BEING TRAFFICKED: SECTION ONE

The INTRODUCTION – and SECTION ONE


When I’m out and about in public and most especially when I’m at church, I delight to see the little ones. I have no children of my own, and though I am blessed beyond measure with many spiritual sons in the faith, I never had children to raise of my own. I’m an Uncle to fourteen nephews and nieces and I used to babysit for them all when they were younger, but that’s not close to the bond of a parent with their child.

There is no way possible for me to understand the anguish of parents who stare into the empty bedroom of their child through tears of anguish. The grotesque violation of them being abducted and whisked away to strange places, seeing strange, cold, unfeeling faces who ignore these little one’s pleas to be returned home to their Mommy and Daddy. The deep despair and numbing fear that these little ones feel when they realize that they will never see them again.

I knew the LORD wanted me to write about this most dreadful subject matter, this nightmarish, horrendous ordeal that’s been active for as long as mankind has had the darkened heart to perpetrate such deeds as human trafficking, and particularly child trafficking. I knew this before I had the opportunity to attend an all day seminar on this subject at the Phoenix Dream Center in Phoenix, AZ. Finding myself there was a kind of confirmation from the LORD that He wanted this done.

After the conference I returned back to Tucson, filed away the pamphlets and materials I acquired at the seminar and pushed it all from my mind, promising myself that I would attend to this “soon”. The seminar was January 14th and now it’s June 4th, and I’ve only just begun to write about this.

This will probably be the most heart wrenching article I’ll ever write. And I’ll likely have to write this piece meal, and step away for a time to collect myself emotionally. Since this will be a series of articles I would greatly appreciate the prayers of all who read this, that the LORD will lead me, instruct me, steady me as I delve into this darkness. From the research I’ve done already, it’s darker than I could have imagined.

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Saturday, June 10, 2023

TTUF TOPIC # 5: What About The Gospel and How to Share it? PART 2 of 3


The Bible states that GOD is holy. In order to keep His holy integrity, He must judge sinners (all of us), no exceptions except One: the LORD Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh – GOD Who became a human being but was totally sinless (JOHN 1:14).


His judgment justly rendered will mean eternal punishment:

QUESTION: Why is punishment for sin eternal when a lifetime of sins committed last only 60, 70, 80 years?

ANSWER: If four people committed the same crime in one of each of these countries: USA, Germany, Japan, and Iran, they’d receive different degrees of punishment; some courts in these various lands would render a very harsh punishment; some others, more lenient.

But the highest, most righteous, and severest court of all is GOD’s court – where His Law is upheld to the greatest degree, showing absolutely no mercy: only pure holiness and justice (10 commandments, just for starters – if anyone you talk with thinks they’re a good person, run these by them and see if they obeyed these laws perfectly). See GAL 3:10,19-24).
Now, check out Ray Comfort’s videos where he shares the Gospel, and how he shares it.




Because GOD is eternal, and the holiness of His Law is eternal, therefore the punishment likewise must be eternal.

This is why it took no one less than Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of GOD (JOHN 1:1-2; 8:58; 17:5) to take on our sin (2 COR 5:21): He being purely holy and absolutely eternal, is a propitiation (“a satisfactory sacrificial substitute”) for our sins!

JESUS is the for real “scape goat” who can take the blame for us all and render GOD’s holy judgment over sinners as ‘not guilty’ if they repent and receive Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior.
Not ONLY are sins forgiven through Christ, but eternal life is given to all who by faith receive Him! They are justified by grace alone, through Christ alone, by faith alone – no works other than believing in Jesus can accomplish this work of justification (JOHN 6:29).
Born again believers of Christ are transformed from condemned sinners to commended saints: children of GOD! He becomes our heavenly Father. THAT is good news!!

Which leads us to the next part of this section: evangelism: that is preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. Declaring the Scriptures that reveal the Truth of GOD and His plan of the ages, centering around the death, burial and resurrection of Christ is what the Gospel is all about, and therefore so is evangelism.

We are commanded by our LORD to share His Gospel. Are all obligated to stand on street corners and evangelize? No, not necessarily – but whether in groups or with individuals, we are to share our Christian faith.

Evangelism takes place through lots of ways: street evangelism and gospel crusades are just two; there is mission work; publication through printed articles, and tracts, Internet sites, videos; also personal correspondence, and one on one ministry.

Got questions? Email me! KNYHTF1RE@gmail.com

Put in the subject box: “Questions about TTUF”.


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Wednesday, June 7, 2023

TTUF TOPIC # 5: What About The Gospel and How to Share it? PART 1 of 3


The foundation of every Christian, and every church is the gospel.

It’s both necessary and foundational, Why?

Because if one’s gospel is wrong at the start, then their life as a Christian based on such wrong belief will be wrong. If an archer’s aim is wrong at the start, then he won’t hit the bullseye.
Paul the apostle made the Gospel message simple:

1 CORINTHIANS 15:1-4
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,


The Gospel, Evangelism, Fundamentals

We have provided a simple, straightforward explanation of the Gospel in the previous section of Fellowship, but in case you missed it, here it is again: The True Gospel: Accept No Imitations

For a more detailed series, on this, go here.

~ The Gospel of Salvation is the foundation and central message of the Christian faith: take it away, and there is no Christian faith.
~ And the foundation and central message of the Gospel is the resurrection of Jesus Christ: take it away and there is no Gospel.

3rd      The CHRISTIAN FAITH

 

2nd     The GOSPEL of SALVATION

 

1st    The RESURRECTION of JESUS CHRIST


Before one can truly appreciate the Gospel, which means “good news” one must first understand the bad news, otherwise the good news will have no meaning.
For example: let’s say you were approached by someone that said, “Good news, your saved! Because your insurance really does cover fire damage!” – That wouldn’t mean very much to you unless you learned that your house caught on fire! It’s the same with the Gospel.”

The holy, eternal Law of GOD shows us to be hopelessly lost sinners (ROM 3:19) without a trace of any righteousness that GOD the Holy Judge can accept. The fact is our human hearts are “desperately” (meaning “incurable” JER 17:9) wicked. But let’s not talk about our sin. What about our own works to prove ourselves to be good and acceptable to GOD. How do these measure up? How GOD see them?

ISAIAH 64:6
But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

TITUS 3:4-5
4 But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,


Got questions? Email me! KNYHTF1RE@gmail.com

Put in the subject box: “Questions about TTUF”.

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TTUF TOPIC # 4: What About Church Life? PART 3 of 3

It is vital that every Christian be involved in a local church body. This cannot be replaced with social media or watching services online.

In order for fellowship (body ministry) to work, each individual Christian must be present with other Christians. As each operates in the gift(s) GOD has given to them for the mutual edification (building up) of one another, the entire body is blessed and progresses spiritually (ROM 1:12; 14:19; 1 THESS 5:11).

Christians who believe that they can “go it alone” will typically end up ‘warped’ in some way and may fall to spiritual pride, doctrinal error, a feeling of not needing or caring about fellowship with others. They will most often not receive correction, but freely give it to others.

Fellowship among believers helps us all as individuals to ‘stay on track’ in our lives as Christians.
Also, it’s extremely important during times of persecution and severe trials.

I believe that as we approach the time of the reign of the Beast, Scripture teaches that deception will increase (MATT 24:4-5,8,11,24; EPH 4:14; 5:6) as will wickedness (2 TIM 3:13; MATT 24:12), and both of these influences will cause Christians a great deal of spiritual trouble, in discouraging their faith, and causing zeal to cool off.

HEBREWS 10:24-25
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching
.

Christians in countries where persecution is severe and intense, individuals find themselves isolated, alone, apart from any available fellowship with the body of Christ. It’s of greatest importance that one’s relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ be strong and stable because persecution may very well find its way here to America. Again, this fellowship with the LORD that will carry us through difficulties is found in the WORD of GOD and in prayer.

We may not always have a pastor or elder to encourage us in such times of difficulty, so we must learn how to encourage ourselves in the LORD
 
Got questions? Email me! KNYHTF1RE@gmail.com 
Put in the subject box: “Questions about TTUF”.
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Tuesday, June 6, 2023

The G.E.P.C. Study Series – GALATIANS 1

Going Through Paul’s epistles to Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, and Colossi

As a new believer, being voracious about consuming the Word of GOD, I was a bit impatient because I wanted to “know everything now!”. But the Bible is a big book, and even learning all the names of each of its 66 books, and in the right order was something of a challenge.

I could recite the names of the Gospels, Acts, Romans and 1 and 2 Corinthians, but after that, it all got a bit jumbled.
Then someone once said to me, “Great Electric Power Company” and I was like – “What??”

They smiled and said, “Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians!” I always remembered that little bit of help, and having read and studied these small but powerful books for my entire life as a Christian, I feel like I want to dive in and exposit the truth found in them at this time, LORD willing…

I already did a study on EPHESIANS, and so, I have three more to go, starting of course with GALATIANS, and move on from there. GALATIANS has been referred to as the other epistle by Paul and considered “ROMANS-lite”. Many of the same doctrinal issues that were dealt with comprehensively in ROMANS are concisely addressed in GALATIANS. There are also parallels between GALATIANS and HEBREWS as well.

HEBREW ROOTS Movement folk and WORKS-BASED Salvationists don’t like GALATIANS too much. I love it, because it secures my salvation exactly where it should be, where it needs to be, and where it is in a doctrinal and epistemological sense: squarely on the shoulders of my LORD and Savior Who went through unimaginably extraordinary lengths to procure such for me!

So let’s delve into this four chapter epistle with a bit of background.

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Monday, June 5, 2023

DEUTERONOMY 24: A REHEARSAL ON HOLINESS, A CALL TO FAITHFULNESS –

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez, and James Fire

DEUTERONOMY 24: GOD IS PLEASED WITH A MORAL SOCIETY – Sonny Islas; check out the complete teaching here!

All of God’s Word is true, powerful, and helpful for us today. The Old Testament has so many practical insights that we can glean from. Everything we read in the Old Testament and the New Testament tells us something about our God: who God is, how God thinks, how God works and what pleases or displeases our God. The entire Bible reveals God’s power, mind, heart, and ways to us.

The whole Bible is for the whole Christian.

I say this because there are many Christians that are turned off by portions of the Old Testament, reason being, they are still spiritual babies.

2 TIMOTHY 3:16, 17
‘’ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of God
(lit. God breathed) and is profitable (beneficial) for doctrine (teaching – this truth about every spiritual subject), for reproof (scolding or disapproval), for correction (improvement), for instruction in righteousness (how to live upright in the sight of God and men), that the man of God (or women) may be complete (whole, healthy, mature, experienced, knowledgeable), thoroughly equipped (fully prepared) for every good work (for anything and everything we do in life).

With that said, in DEUTERONOMY 24, we’re going to see how God desires a moral society – even more, a godly society, a society that will reflect His good and perfect nature – through obedience to His Laws of practical love. The chapter will start with laws regarding divorce, then cover some miscellaneous laws – laws that were meant to protect His people.

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Saturday, June 3, 2023

The POWER of the WORD (a sequel to The POWERof the HOLY SPIRIT)

A sequel to The POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT

HEBREWS 4:12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

JOHN 1:1-5
 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

We as Christians when facing temptations or spiritual attacks have this idea that if we just quote a Scripture verse, that the temptation will cease, the spiritual attack will be thwarted.

Yet the Holy Scriptures are not a grimoire, that is, a book of spells where we can recite the proper incantation and then power will issue forth to bring about the desired effect. Please understand, what I am NOT saying is that there is no power in the inspired Word of GOD – there MOST ABSOLUTELY IS!! – rather, that in order to make the power of the Scriptures effective in our lives against temptations, worries and frets, spiritual attacks as well as walking in holiness and victory is something beyond mere recitation of the Word.

The Word first of all must be mixed with faith:

HEBREWS 4:2
For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it
.

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