DeaconDean said:
Dmckay, I learned a valuable lesson here on the forums. I will stand on time honored tradition. I will stand up for what I believe. I may come under fire or it, but the way I see it,
"If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me." John 15:18-21
If they persecuted Jesus for what He taught, then they'll persecute me for what I teach. I'm not a KJV only type of person, but it is the prefered version I use. And being as such, I believe that that book is God's word to the world. It's teachings are true, inspired, and will not led us astray. I will not compromise one single word in that book for in my opinion, if you compromise those words, you'll compromise Him. That's just how I see it. It may hurt some people, it may make some people mad, it may even upset some on this area of the threads, but that is what God said, that's what I believe, and as said before, I'll not compromise it for you, for the moderators, not anybody. I mean no disrespect for the moderators of this forum, please don't think I do. That is just how strongly I feel for His word.
Between you and I friend, and whoever else reads this thread, let it be said of us that we have:
"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses." -1 Tim. 6:12
I want to be able to stand up in front of the Lord and be able to say as Paul did:
"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:" 2 Tim. 4:7
And as a result:
"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." -2 Tim. 4:8
God bless you brother.
Last October I buried my best friend in the world. He and I met on our first day of Bible College in 1976. In the orientation class for all incoming students we realized that the two of us were older than all the other students. We came from completely different backgrounds in every way. He had grown up in the home of an accomplished surgeon and had never wanted for anything. I came from a very broken home and dysfunctional home and we were lucky if we ate evey day.
He flunked out of high school because he was into drugs and Satanism. He was a Vietnam war protester and practicing sorcerer. I joined the military to get away from the drugs and crime that was rampant in California in the 60s, volunteered for Ranger and Special Forces training and spent just short of two combat tours in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. We were the very last combat troops to be pulled out of Vietnam.
As different as we were, we were more like brothers than friends. Often we would be asked why we were friends when we came from such different backgrounds and interests. After many hours of discussing the question we realized that we had both come to Christ from a position of real rebellion, just different rebellion. We had also both taken to heart the teaching of Christ concerning the cost of discipleship in Luke 14:25 "Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, 26"If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life,
he cannot be My disciple. 27
"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 "For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and
calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 "Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, 30saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' 31"Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32"Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 "So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions. 34 "Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned?
35"It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
In particular, we had both taken as a life verse Luke 14:27
"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." My message for the funeral was pretty much this story with a few illustrations from our lives. Like both of us sitting in a Church history class and being the only ones in the class to take the position that the early Christians were NOT stupid for refusing to say three simple words, "Cæsar is lord." The PKs and MKs that made up the majority of the class say nothing wrong with, "all they had to do was say it and they would have lived to witness another day.
When I took my first pastorate while a sophomore, my friend and I worked together to bring revival to a church that was considered a Pastor killer. Later, he felt called to spend the rest of his life serving as the interim pastor of churches that had experienced splits or other major Spiritual problems. These were churches that were so small that he had to also work a second full-time job to support his family.
The last 3 years of his life, we knew that he was dying. He had broken a wrist while working on a car for a church member. Since he was a Baptist minister in Mormon Utah he received sub-standard care. One of the bones died, wasn't found in time and poisoned his body. It destroyed his liver, bile ducts and stomach. but it didn't destroy his resolve to serve the Lord. When he wasn't in the hospital, he was putting in 60+ hours a week at the church and calling on his flock.
After the funeral, I had dozens of people come up to me and relate the impact that my friend had had in their lives. Especially in the last week before he died. It seems that he spent the last week of his life holding a camp for the youth of his last two churches. The theme for the week was Luke 14:27
"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." In order to emphasize the message of the week my friend had a cross made out of rough-cut 4X6 wooden beams. He carried it with him everyplace that they went all week long. The last day of camp he dropped while carrying his cross, went into a coma, and died.
The results of their week of camp were the really amazing thing. All of the teens who came to camp without knowing the Lord accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. All of the kids who already walked with the Lord made commitments of their lives for full-time Christian ministry, most choosing to prepare for the Mission field. I have a picture of my friend that was taken the morning of the day that he died. He was carrying that heavy cross. He looked like one of the survivors of the Nazi death camps. His skin yellowed and translucent. I keep the picture in a frame on my desk which has the phrase Take up Thy Cross, and Follow Me.
My friend wasn't the best student. In fact, when he took the bible knowledge test on the first day of Bible College he got 3 right. The lowest score they ever had. He had to study 10 times as much as the other students just to maintain a passing grade. What he did have was a deep life commitment to his Lord, and a completely surrendered spirit to Jesus' service. The Bible Colleges and Seminaries today aren't even trying to teach their students to "Count the cost" and see if "they are willing to pay the price" of denying themselves daily, taking up their crosses and following Jesus.
.... My sons collected them; they are robots that turn into cars and other things? But of course my oldest is 17.5 just a bit younger than you are. I still remember the commercials! They are Godly? (I have to say I went through a time I would not let them watch the Mutant Ninja Turtles but I ended up liking them too)
HUGE MARVEL COMIC FANS OVER HERE! I just re-did my 16 year olds room with Spiderman on one wall, Batman on the other, Superman on the other and then of course all the "extras"(Venom, Carnage, Joker, Marvel etc..). He has collected these since 2 or 3! We have not seen Superman yet!
