"The greatest criticism of healing during the first century came from religious leaders. They had loyal followers who admired their shallow, powerless spirituality. The healing miracles of Jesus drew people away from them and turned their hearts back to God. The kingdoms these men had built crumbled. Their response was to criticize the new thing God was doing. The greatest opposition to the present work of God often comes from those used in the previous work of God. Little has changed today. Most of the criticism of healing today comes from religious leaders building their own kingdoms." ~ From my soon to be published book
"One day it will be part of a normal Christian life to be at least as spiritual as a New-Ager and not need to apologize for it. - Matt Evans
"One day it will be part of a normal Christian life to be at least as spiritual as a New-Ager and not need to apologize for it. - Matt Evans
"Renewing our mind is a greater task than we know. It doesn't just mean agreeing with God in areas we intend to operate in, but agreeing with God at every point, regardless of what we believe to be true. Some of God's truths when revealed, are terribly inconvenient."
"Whether or not a Christian group is a personality cult has little to do with doctrine. It's a matter of how the leader is perceived by the group. If the leader's teaching is accepted by all and questioned by none, the possibility of a cult exists. Such accusations deserve thoughtful consideration, not quick denial."
"Why should we raise the dead?
Ask yourself why Jesus raised the dead and why the Father raised him. "If Christ was not raised, you are dead in your sins." The gospel hinges on the resurrection. The resurrection as a sign, is unique to our faith. The rest of Christianity can be argued and explained away, but when the dead are raised, the unbeliever if he is honest, must admit there is a God in heaven who does such things. There is no other explanation." ~ From my soon to be published book
"Jesus didn't come in the manner we expected. He surprised, offended and challenged our ideas about a messiah and God. In my encounters with him, I find him still challenging my notions, ideas and religious beliefs. Never changing, yet never exactly the same. The subjects - foreign. His thoughts - perplexing. His objective - puzzling. His ways - a mystery wrapped in an enigma surrounded by a riddle. Oh, Son of man, how I love the way you wreck my religion."
"Even as a boy, his apostolic mind was evident; "I must be about my Father's business." The young apostle knew who sent him and why he was sent. It was for him as it is for us, to see the kingdom of heaven and bring it's eternal realities to earth."
"Barbecuing sacred cows can be fun. But if in the process of destroying the traditions of men, we establish a different set of traditions - we have accomplished nothing. Sacred cows come from rigid minds controlled by a spirit of pride that prevents us from considering the ideas of others and weighing them by the spirit. Sacred cows involve subjects about which scripture may support multiple views. But pride blinds us and prevents us from considering other interpretations."
"Faith that heals the sick consistently and predictably is the belief that when you are presented with an opportunity to heal someone who is willing to be healed, that God will in fact heal that person of the condition they desire to be healed of through you. Faith that heals is not general. It is specific to the individual in need, the problem at hand and the one praying." ~ From my soon to be published book
"There is only one thing that can turn the world upside down; a handful of surrendered people operating in the power of God through transformed lives."
"Theology is elitist if it exists for its own sake, or for the sake of a very few. If all theology does is attempt to prevent God from speaking into the lives of people today, then it has set itself up in place of God. If understanding God doesn’t transform our lives, bringing the hope of God to earth as it is in heaven, then theology is just an artifact or a clanging gong, useless for the communion of the church." ~ Julie Clawson
"Skepticism is not bad in itself. It is only when faced with one miracle after another and one hardens their heart against the evidence that skepticism is bad, for then it destroys one’s ability to reason." ~ From my soon to be published book
"Choose your teachers carefully, we tend to become like them. However funny, brilliant or bold they are, if they carry a chip on their shoulder, so will we. Their bitter, disillusioned heart sows seeds of bitterness and disillusionment in ours. When those seeds bear fruit, they bring forth death."
"And where the slain are, there it is” reminds me that a prophetic life is one of spiritual warfare. Prophets are sent to speak life where death holds sway, to be vessels of water in the desert, to build amidst the ruins, to bringing blessing to widows and orphans, to encourage the weak and defeated, to warn the proud and indifferent. ~ Michael Sawh
"There is coming a day, which in my opinion has already arrived for some, when the truth will be stated plainly without the need to disguise it just enough for only the hungry to discover it, and will be received widely, despite theological predisposition, denomination, or experience. The hearts of men are tired of hearing what He is not, ready to see God as He is, even if that contradicts what we have been taught for thousands of years. THIS is the reformation at hand, working even at this present moment, and this reformation will revolve around one key issue: The True Knowledge Of God." ~ Tyler Johnson
"You know the kingdom of God is flowing from you, when others expect the impossible from you."
"Fear is always a choice. For every situation we face, there is a standing, eternal promise from God that addresses it. Faith believes the promise and agrees with it. Fear is our decision not to believe the promise."
"It frustrates me when people reduce healing the sick to a theological argument. Think about this. It’s not even supposed to be a “stance” of scripture. Jesus didn't try to prove that healing was for His day. He didn't try to validate it through Scripture. He just did it. It wasn't an argument. It wasn't a formula. It was just a byproduct of who He was with His Father." ~ Brandon Lee
Theology speaks to that hope of God, a hope that is not limited to this world or confined to divine realms. For theology to convey that hope, it has to be deeply reflective and properly intelligent while at the same time have feet so to speak. Theology cannot be dismissed or exist in a vacuum apart from the very embodied body of Christ it exists to guide. So when I hear preaching against the need for theology or hear embodied theologies dismissed as profane, I can’t help but cringe. God has blessed us with the gift of coming to know Godself, why would we either throw away that opportunity or alternately claim that the gift is meaningless for human existence? ~ Julie Clawson
"I'm not seeing a different Jesus. We're seeing the same Jesus differently."
"The Bible is the written word of God, and because it is written, it is confined and limited by the necessities of ink, paper and leather. The Voice of God, however, is alive and free as the sovereign God is free. 'The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.' The life is in the speaking words. God's word in the Bible can have power only because it corresponds to God's Word in the universe. It is the present Voice which makes the written word powerful. Otherwise it would lie locked in slumber within the covers of a book." ~A. W. Tozer - The Pursuit of God
"Living outside the box has no virtue in itself. A corn flake on the table is no better off than those in the box. Its just another flake. Living and thinking outside the box is a deliberate decision to investigate possibilities few have considered and entertain discussions on unconventional views. It's not just being another flake."
"Whether or not a Christian group is a personality cult has little to do with doctrine. It's a matter of how the leader is perceived by the group. If the leader's teaching is accepted by all and questioned by none, the possibility of a cult exists. Such accusations deserve thoughtful consideration, not quick denial."
"Why should we raise the dead?
Ask yourself why Jesus raised the dead and why the Father raised him. "If Christ was not raised, you are dead in your sins." The gospel hinges on the resurrection. The resurrection as a sign, is unique to our faith. The rest of Christianity can be argued and explained away, but when the dead are raised, the unbeliever if he is honest, must admit there is a God in heaven who does such things. There is no other explanation." ~ From my soon to be published book
"Jesus didn't come in the manner we expected. He surprised, offended and challenged our ideas about a messiah and God. In my encounters with him, I find him still challenging my notions, ideas and religious beliefs. Never changing, yet never exactly the same. The subjects - foreign. His thoughts - perplexing. His objective - puzzling. His ways - a mystery wrapped in an enigma surrounded by a riddle. Oh, Son of man, how I love the way you wreck my religion."
"Even as a boy, his apostolic mind was evident; "I must be about my Father's business." The young apostle knew who sent him and why he was sent. It was for him as it is for us, to see the kingdom of heaven and bring it's eternal realities to earth."
"Barbecuing sacred cows can be fun. But if in the process of destroying the traditions of men, we establish a different set of traditions - we have accomplished nothing. Sacred cows come from rigid minds controlled by a spirit of pride that prevents us from considering the ideas of others and weighing them by the spirit. Sacred cows involve subjects about which scripture may support multiple views. But pride blinds us and prevents us from considering other interpretations."
"Faith that heals the sick consistently and predictably is the belief that when you are presented with an opportunity to heal someone who is willing to be healed, that God will in fact heal that person of the condition they desire to be healed of through you. Faith that heals is not general. It is specific to the individual in need, the problem at hand and the one praying." ~ From my soon to be published book
"There is only one thing that can turn the world upside down; a handful of surrendered people operating in the power of God through transformed lives."
"Theology is elitist if it exists for its own sake, or for the sake of a very few. If all theology does is attempt to prevent God from speaking into the lives of people today, then it has set itself up in place of God. If understanding God doesn’t transform our lives, bringing the hope of God to earth as it is in heaven, then theology is just an artifact or a clanging gong, useless for the communion of the church." ~ Julie Clawson
"Skepticism is not bad in itself. It is only when faced with one miracle after another and one hardens their heart against the evidence that skepticism is bad, for then it destroys one’s ability to reason." ~ From my soon to be published book
"Choose your teachers carefully, we tend to become like them. However funny, brilliant or bold they are, if they carry a chip on their shoulder, so will we. Their bitter, disillusioned heart sows seeds of bitterness and disillusionment in ours. When those seeds bear fruit, they bring forth death."
"And where the slain are, there it is” reminds me that a prophetic life is one of spiritual warfare. Prophets are sent to speak life where death holds sway, to be vessels of water in the desert, to build amidst the ruins, to bringing blessing to widows and orphans, to encourage the weak and defeated, to warn the proud and indifferent. ~ Michael Sawh
"There is coming a day, which in my opinion has already arrived for some, when the truth will be stated plainly without the need to disguise it just enough for only the hungry to discover it, and will be received widely, despite theological predisposition, denomination, or experience. The hearts of men are tired of hearing what He is not, ready to see God as He is, even if that contradicts what we have been taught for thousands of years. THIS is the reformation at hand, working even at this present moment, and this reformation will revolve around one key issue: The True Knowledge Of God." ~ Tyler Johnson
"You know the kingdom of God is flowing from you, when others expect the impossible from you."
"Fear is always a choice. For every situation we face, there is a standing, eternal promise from God that addresses it. Faith believes the promise and agrees with it. Fear is our decision not to believe the promise."
"It frustrates me when people reduce healing the sick to a theological argument. Think about this. It’s not even supposed to be a “stance” of scripture. Jesus didn't try to prove that healing was for His day. He didn't try to validate it through Scripture. He just did it. It wasn't an argument. It wasn't a formula. It was just a byproduct of who He was with His Father." ~ Brandon Lee
Theology speaks to that hope of God, a hope that is not limited to this world or confined to divine realms. For theology to convey that hope, it has to be deeply reflective and properly intelligent while at the same time have feet so to speak. Theology cannot be dismissed or exist in a vacuum apart from the very embodied body of Christ it exists to guide. So when I hear preaching against the need for theology or hear embodied theologies dismissed as profane, I can’t help but cringe. God has blessed us with the gift of coming to know Godself, why would we either throw away that opportunity or alternately claim that the gift is meaningless for human existence? ~ Julie Clawson
"I'm not seeing a different Jesus. We're seeing the same Jesus differently."
"The Bible is the written word of God, and because it is written, it is confined and limited by the necessities of ink, paper and leather. The Voice of God, however, is alive and free as the sovereign God is free. 'The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.' The life is in the speaking words. God's word in the Bible can have power only because it corresponds to God's Word in the universe. It is the present Voice which makes the written word powerful. Otherwise it would lie locked in slumber within the covers of a book." ~A. W. Tozer - The Pursuit of God
"Living outside the box has no virtue in itself. A corn flake on the table is no better off than those in the box. Its just another flake. Living and thinking outside the box is a deliberate decision to investigate possibilities few have considered and entertain discussions on unconventional views. It's not just being another flake."
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