John Lennon A Christian

I am willing to bet you did not know this about John Lennon the famous 'Beatle' musician.

I had mentioned John Lennon once and a pastor here took umbrage that I would mention John on this blog.

So I did my research and came up with this as my response to the pastor.

This is fascinating reading for those of the Love generation of the 60's; the hippie generation.

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John Lennon?

So you tell me that you are upset that I did a John Lennon tribute 27 years later on the day that he left this earth. My christian brother John Lennon. All depends how you look at it...

Here is something I bet you didn't know:

Two new books on John Lennon claim that the ex-Beatle experienced a brief period as a born-again Christian during the 1970s.

While living the life of a virtual recluse in New York's Dakota Building, Lennon became an avid viewer of American TV evangelists and, at some point during 1977, declared that he had been saved.

 Robert Rosen in Nowhere Man: The Final Days of John Lennon (published in June by Soft Skull Press) cites Billy Graham as the main influence, whereas Geoffrey Giuliano in Lennon in America (published in June by Cooper Square Press) mentions both Graham and Pat Robertson.

Both writers have based their information on sources close to Lennon and on the singer's personal diaries, which circulated shortly after his death and were then retrieved by his widow, Yoko Ono.

 The existence of the diaries has been known for some time, but so far no writer has divulged their contents. Because of legal problems, neither Rosen nor Giuliano has been able to quote directly from the diaries, but both have drawn on the information.

"One day [Lennon] had an epiphany—he allowed himself to be touched by the love of Jesus Christ, and it drove him to tears of joy and ecstasy," writes Rosen, a New York journalist briefly employed by Ono. "He drew a picture of a crucifix; he was born again, and the experience was such a kick that he had to share it with Yoko."

Giuliano, who has written extensively about the Beatles, pinpoints the conversion to a Palm Sunday and says that Lennon was so moved by a series about Jesus broadcast on Robertson's CBN that he broke down in tears.

In the following weeks, he attended church services and took his son, Sean, to a Christian theater performance. He even called The 700 Club help line to request prayer for his health and troubled marriage.

"He prayed for forgiveness when he stepped on insects or snapped at the maid," Giuliano writes. "He became convinced that Jesus was personally protecting Sean."

Ono, whose first husband Anthony Cox became an evangelical Christian in the 1970s, was displeased with Lennon's changed outlook. Giuliano claims that Lennon began to challenge her interest in the occult and was disappointed that she wouldn't join him in watching Graham's telecasts."This dramatic conversion worried Yoko," Giuliano writes. "She feared that John's new faith would clash with her own ideas about spiritualism and threaten her iron hold over him."

John's song "You Saved My Soul," which recounts being prevented from attempting suicide while staying in a Tokyo hotel, is known only to Beatles bootleggers.

Unlike the other Beatles, Lennon was raised as a nominal Christian and attended Sunday school at St. Peter's Church in Woolton, Liverpool. This early exposure to Christianity may explain why he always seemed to regard Jesus as a figure who had to be dealt with, whether through comparison ("The Beatles are more popular than Jesus"), identification ("They're gonna crucify me," in "Ballad of John and Yoko"), or challenge ("I don't believe in Jesus," in "God").

Where his contemporaries ignored Jesus, Lennon had to continually take him on. In his final interviews, carried out just weeks before his death in December 1980, Lennon said his beliefs could be described as "Zen Christian, Zen pagan, Zen Marxist" or nothing at all.

 Speaking to Newsweek's Barbara Graustark, however, Lennon revealed that he still reads the Bible. "Some of [Christ's parables] are only making sense to me now, after a whole life of sitting in church or school," he told her.

"It was just moany, moany, moany for years, and then I hear it again and I think, God, that's what he means."

A television addict for many years (it was his way of looking at the world since he could no longer walk around anonymously), he enjoyed watching some of America's best-known evangelists—Pat Robertson, Billy Graham, Jim Bakker, and Oral Roberts.

In 1972 he had written a desperate letter to Roberts confessing his dependence on drugs and his fear of facing up to "the problems of life." He expressed regret that he had said that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus and enclosed a gift for the Oral Roberts University. After quoting the line "money can't buy me love" from "Can't Buy Me Love" he said, "It's true. The point is this, I want happiness. I don't want to keep on with drugs. Paul told me once, 'You made fun of me for taking drugs, but you will regret it in the end.' Explain to me what Christianity can do for me. Is it phoney? Can He love me? I want out of hell."

Roberts sent him a copy of his book Miracle of Seed Faith and several letters explaining basic Christian beliefs.

In the second of his letters Roberts said:John, we saw you and the Beatles on television when you first came to America. Your talent with music was almost awesome and your popularity touched millions. Your influence became so widespread and powerful that your statement-the Beatles are more popular than Jesus- might have had some truth in it at that moment. But you know, our Lord said, I am alive for ever more. People, the Bible says, are like sheep and are often fickle, following this one day and something else the next. However, there are millions who have received Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and have been filled with the Holy Spirit. They love him. To them He is the most wonderful and popular man who ever lived because he is the Son of God and His name endures.

I thank God that you see this, John, and finally regret thinking any man or group could be more popular than Jesus. Jesus is the only reality. It is Jesus who said "I am the way, the truth, and the life." So, you see, your statement that because of your hard background you've never wanted to face reality is actually really saying you've never wanted to face our loving Lord. What I want to say, as I tried to say in my other letter, is that Jesus, the true reality, is not hard to face. He said, "Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. … For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." You said, John, that you take drugs because reality frightens you. Remember as you open your life to Jesus, He will take all the fear away and give you peace. Peace that passes all understanding.

This correspondence and his exposure to TV evangelism didn't appear to have any effect until he suddenly announced to close friends in the spring of 1977 that he'd become a born-again Christian. He had been particularly moved by the U.S. television premiere of Franco Zeffirelli's Jesus of Nazareth, starring Robert Powell as Jesus, which NBC showed in two three-hour segments on Palm Sunday, April 3, 1977. A week later, on Easter day, he took Yoko and Sean to a local church service.

Over the following months he baffled those close to him by constantly praising "the Lord," writing Christian songs with titles like "Talking with Jesus" and "Amen" (the Lord's Prayer set to music), and trying to convert nonbelievers. He also called the prayer line of The 700 Club, Pat Robertson's program.

 The change in his life perturbed Yoko, who tried to talk him out of it. She reminded him of what he'd said about his vulnerability to strong religious leaders because of his emotionally deprived background. She knew that if the press found out about it they would have a field day with another John and Jesus story. John became antagonistic toward her, blaming her for practicing the dark arts and telling her that she couldn't see the truth because her eyes had been blinded by Satan.

Those close to the couple sensed that the real reason she was concerned was that it threatened her control over John's life. If he became a follower of Jesus he would no longer depend on her and the occultists. During long, passionate arguments she attacked the key points of his fledgling faith. They met with a couple of Norwegian missionaries whom Yoko questioned fiercely about the divinity of Christ, knowing that this was the teaching that John had always found the most difficult to accept.

And of course the age old argument of "can you loose your salvation" does come into play.

Their answers didn't satisfy her, and John began to waver in his commitment.In an unpublished song, "You Saved My Soul," he spoke about "nearly falling" for a TV preacher while feeling "lonely and scared" in a Tokyo hotel. This must have referred to a trip to Japan at the end of May when he stayed at the Okura Hotel for over two months while Yoko visited relatives.

Feeling isolated because of the language barrier, he locked himself away in his room for long stretches of time. At night he suffered terrifying nightmares. According to John Green, who makes no mention of the born-again period in his book, John told him, "I'd lie in bed all day [in Tokyo], not talk, not eat, and just withdraw. And a funny thing happened. I began to see all these different parts of me. I felt like a hollow temple filled with many spirits, each one passing through me, each inhabiting me for a little time and then leaving to be replaced by another."

The image was remarkably like one suggested by Jesus and recorded in Luke 11. It's hard to imagine that John was unfamiliar with the passage. Jesus was warning of the danger of merely ridding oneself of evil spirits without taking in the good. He says that an unclean or evil spirit, finding nowhere to rest, will return. "And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first."

Whatever happened in Tokyo, it marked the end of his personal interest in Jesus. "You Saved My Soul" said that he "nearly" fell for the TV preacher, but that Yoko "saved me from that suicide." So the salvation of the title refers to being saved from God, not by God. Yoko had again become the captain of his soul, the mistress of his destiny.

Yet his life didn't improve. He sank into a depression, concerned that his creativity had deserted him and that he had no real purpose in life. The only real joy he experienced came from spending time with his son, Sean.

His life was out of his control. He worried about his health and his eyesight, about making the right investments with his money, about his personal safety. The only way out, as far as he could see, was to pay for the services of people who claimed to see into the future. But then, which ones could he trust? If the advice of the tarot card reader contradicted that of the astrologer, which should he follow? Instead of the freedom he wanted when he broke away from the Beatles, he was now completely enslaved. He couldn't travel anywhere without advice from a directionalist, do deals with anyone without knowing their star sign, or make plans for the future without consulting the I Ching.

In January 1979 he and Yoko traveled to Cairo, having heard that there was a major illicit archaeological dig taking place. Both of them believed that ancient Egyptian artifacts contained magical powers, and Yoko had dedicated one of the rooms in their apartment to Egyptian artifacts. "I love Egyptian art," she said. "I make sure I get all the Egyptian things, not for their value but for their magic power. Each piece has a certain magic power." They stayed at the Nile Hilton and toured the pyramids, but when word got out about their intentions they were prevented from visiting the dig.

By the time Frederic Seaman became John's personal assistant in February 1979, John's main interest was reading books on religion, psychic phenomena, the occult, death, history, archeology, and anthropology. Specific books Seaman can remember him asking for included Rebel in the Soul: An Ancient Egyptian Dialogue Between a Man and His Destiny, by Bika Reed; Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today, by Margot Adler; and Practical Occultism, by (Madame) H. P Blavatsky.

He also listened to a thousand dollars' worth of taped lectures by Alan Watts.

Vacationing in Florida in the spring, he again watched Jesus of Nazareth on its by now regular Easter showing, but his reaction was completely different from the one he had had two years before. He kept joking that they should just get on with it and fast-forward to the crucifixion. Seaman, who was present with John's sons, Sean and Julian, recalled, "John began working himself up into a tirade against Christianity, saying that it had virtually destroyed what was left of pagan culture and spirituality in Europe-a great loss to civilization." He then announced that he was now a "born again pagan."

Later in the year Bob Dylan recorded Slow Train Coming, a gospel album born out of personal experience. Dylan told Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times that he'd recently accepted that "Jesus was real … I had this feeling, this vision and feeling. I truly had a born-again experience, if you want to call it that. It's an over-used term. But it's something that people can relate to." Hilburn asked him what "born again" meant. "Born once," he answered, "is born from the spirit below, which is when you're born. It's the spirit you're born with. Born again is born with the Spirit from above, which is a little bit different."

Slow Train Coming was a direct and challenging album. Unlike most gospel recordings, it didn't simply praise Jesus but attacked opposition to him, whether that was religious syncretism, false saviors, or lack of commitment. It was addressed to people like John. In "Precious Angel," the first single, Dylan sang, "Ya either got faith or ya got unbelief and there ain't no neutral ground.' In the title track he sang of "Fools glorifying themselves, trying to manipulate Satan."

Dylan's transformation took John completely by surprise. After all, Dylan had been the Beatles' only peer and remained someone whom he deeply respected. What made it particularly galling was that everything Dylan sang about on the album was delivered with a confidence that had always seemed to elude John. Dylan seemed certain that his sins were forgiven, his eternal security was assured, and that God was actively involved in his life.

When asked in 1980 about his response to Dylan's conversion, John was less than honest. He said he was surprised that "old Bobby boy did go that way," but "if he needs it, let him do it." His only objection, he said, was that Dylan was presenting Christ as the only way. He disliked this because "There isn't one answer to anything."

This is why he favored Buddhism. It didn't proselytize. In what can now be seen as an allusion to his own born-again period, which hadn't yet been made public, he said, "But I understand it. I understand him completely, how he got in there, because I've been frightened enough myself to want to latch onto something."

His private feelings about the conversion were expressed in his songwriting. He was particularly incensed by the track "Gotta Serve Somebody" because it opposed his view that there was no single truth. The song said, as bluntly as possible, that whatever your station in life, you were either serving God or the devil. This wasn't an avoidable choice.

John wrote a riposte titled "Serve Yourself," arguing that no one can save you. The only person you have to serve is yourself. "He was kind of upset [about Dylan's song] and it was a dialogue," said Yoko in 1998. "He showed his anger but also … his sense of humour."

Excerpted from The Gospel According to the Beatles by Steve Turner, published by Westminster John Knox Press, 2006.

I believe that John did indeed get 'born~again,' 'saved.' I believe he had asked Christ into his life. And I also believe that he never had a chance to get good biblical teaching and discipling.

His wife was a very bad influence and hinderance to him being able to grow in Christ. She polluted his thinking and controlled him. But...does that mean he never received Christ salvation?

Commenting on the uproar over the article in America, Maureen Cleave in London said, "John was certainly not comparing the Beatles with Christ. He was simply observing that so weak was the state of Christianity that the Beatles were, to many people, better known. He was deploring, rather than approving, this."

Only Jesus knows for sure...

I am inclined to believe that I shall one day see John Lennon in heaven. Because he did not get discipled, does it mean Christ atonement for John Lennon is invalidated?

 Only Jesus knows.

John Lennon (9 October 1940 - 8 December 1980) was a singer, songwriter, guitarist, political activist, humorist, painter and writer.

"You Saved My Soul" -

When I think about how you saved my soul

I'm compelled to praise you

Like a woman out of control

So I lift up holy hands

I take advantage of this chance to say thank you

When I think about what you brought me through

I'm reminded to praise you for all that you had to do

So I lift up holy hands

I take advantage of this chance to say thank you

So from the bottom of my heart I say

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you

When I think about were you brought me from

I gotta praise you like the victories already won

And I lift my hands

I take advantage of this chance to say thank you

When I think about oh Lord yes

Why you love me so

I'm compelled to praise you because

I really don't care whose looking and who knows that I love you

And I lift up my holy hands

I take advantage of this chance to say thank you

Oh, everyday of my life I just wanna say

Thank you, (Thank you Lord)

Thank you, (I gotta thank you)

Thank you, (Because of who you been to me)

Thank you, (You been a shelter in the storm)

Oh and I Thank you

You been a rock that I can stand on Thank you Lord

And I say Thank you

You been a bridge over any kind of water

I gotta say Lord I thank you

With all my heart with all my soul

Everything within me says thank you Lord

Thank you Lord

Lord I thank you, Lord I thank you, Lord I thank you

For all you done to me

Thank you Lord

Theres no words that I can say but you been good

I can't thank you enough no no no no no

Thank you Lord (I just wanna thank you)

I wanna thank, I wanna thank you

I gotta thank you, just wanna thank you

I thank you yes, I thank you yes, I thank you yes, I thank you yes

And I say.....I wanna thank you

Said Lord I thank you yes

Thank you

Artist: JOHN LENNON

 http://www.cbn.com/entertainment/Books/carey_john_lennon.aspx

The Greeks Have A Word For It

 The original pastor of Shekinah Fellowship, Brant Baker, knew something about faith.

He would never appear out on the platform until he knew that the Holy Spirit had manifested His presence in the meeting.

Those who were there recall seeing Brant sitting in a chair back stage, with his head bowed in prayer.

Once the presence of Almighty God showed up in His magnificent Shekinah glory, Brant would get up and go out on stage declaring God's praises and leading the people of God into deeper worship of Jesus Christ.

If you were there in those meetings you will recall Brant crying out, "Worship Him. Give Him all your praise. He loves you. To God be the glory," as the congregation sang songs of praise.

Then Brant would lead everyone in singing the song "Hallelujah, hallelujah.

And also the song, "Then sings my soul, my Savior to thee..."

The atmosphere was contagious as every heart came into unity in worship and adoration of Jesus.

Just about everyone of Brant's meetings were like this.

How did he do it?

How come his meetings were so filled with such powerful manifestations of God present in them?



   Most of us Christians will at one time or another wonder about faith and how it operates.

Do we step out in faith or do we sit passively waiting for God to command us to action?

With this on my mind I once asked the evangelist Lonnie Frisbee if he heard God telling him to do stuff or did he just step out in faith and expect God to back him up.

His brother, Stan always tells me, "I don't do anything unless God tells me to do it."

Which always seems a bit off to me when I hear him say it, where is there room for faith in action or free moral agency initiative?

Lonnie's answer to my question was a story that he told me.

Lonnie was at a hippy gathering somewhere in Northern California.

There was a small canyon where all the hippys had gathered together, smoking pot and drinking wine etc.

Lonnie was above the canyon near a rope bridge that spanned the canyon.

A young man had asked Lonnie if what he does is in direct response to God commanding him to do it or is it his own step of faith initiative?

In answer, Lonnie walked out to the middle of the rope bridge, raised his hands up and waved them while shouting loudly to those below, "Hey, hey, come to God. He loves you. Jesus died for your sins!"

Several dozen people got up, under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and came under the bridge and repented of their sins and gave their lives to God.

Lonnie then walked back over to the young man and said, "I just now stepped out in faith and you see the fruit of it."

Lonnie once told me, "The man of God dares to be wrong, he climbs out on a limb, expecting God not to cut it off behind him."

So who is right?

The man who rigidly only does stuff if he hears God command him to do stuff, or the man who takes the initiative to step out in faith believing God to back him up?

Today's lesson addresses this and more...

 ***

What is synergistic action?

It is the tremendous effect that takes place when one force, having little or no effect alone, is combined with another force.

Their combined energy is then multiplied in an outstanding way.


  The word "synergistic" comes from the Greek word sunergeo, which means "work together."

Two words make up sunergeo: sun, which means "together," and ergeo, means "work."

From sun we have the English prefix "syn," which we find in words such as synthesis, synergistic, and synchronize.

From ergeo comes the English word "erg," which is a scientific measurement of work.

Sunergeo means a combination of forces that are turned loose, one energy turned loose to work with other energies.


  Satan understands the principle of synergistic action.

That is why he and the demons, being spirits, seek to move through human channels.

 Dispossessed demons are rather helpless, but if they can add their force to human channels,
 they can turn loose something deadly in the earth.

That is also why God, with His omnipotence, is stepping up His power by choosing to turn loose His energy and to work with the energies of the believer in a synergistic action that multiplies activity without limit.

Synergistic action is the power of bringing different, distinct energies into one relationship.


  In the realm of science, two chemicals that have distinct, nonexplosive attributes individually may create an explosion when combined.

That is synergistic action.

Almost every explosive material is a combination of different chemicals that are brought together to create a very powerful explosion.

Dynamite in itself is rather harmless without a detonator.

Once the dynamite has a fuse , it can do great damage.

The combined action, the action together, is what is important.


  There must be a change in your thinking, like a shifting of gears, so that you realize that the Lord is with you.

His energy and your energy are to be combined.

Do not intercede as though you are expecting God to bring forth His will sovereignly.

Intercede as though you are lighting a fuse.

Believe that what you will and what you ask are going to spring forth.

What you set your heart to see happen, in faith believing, will come to pass because you ask in the will of God ( I John 5:14-15 ).

As God's heart and energy and your heart and energy are united, the explosive quality that results will be the difference between making it and not making it into the Kingdom.


 Whenever the disturbing lies of illusion and deception come against you, just put them aside and believe the Word of the Lord.

By faith dig a hole under the obstacles and plant the dynamite; then light the fuse.

Believe to move the world because you can.

  To help us understand the meaning of synergistic action in our relationship to the Lord, we will examine some of the Scriptures that originally used the Greek word sunergeo.

Jesus commissioned His disciples, saying, "All power in heaven and earth is given unto Me.

Go ye therefore" ( Matthew 28:18-19 ).

Mark 16:20 tells us, And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them ( they worked together- sunergeo; the feeble efforts of the disciples were combined with divine strength ), and confirmed the word by signs that followed.

This is the way the Church started out, and this is also the way the Church will reach its culmination point and see the Kingdom established.

As we speak the Word, the Lord is working together with us who believe, and He is confirming the Word by the signs that follow.

Another passage very similar to this is Romans 8:28.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Here again in this Greek word sunergeo for "work together," indicating that everything has to work together in synergistic action.

This does not mean that something happens to you just so that by itself it can contribute to the will of God in your life.

It means that everything that happens to you- every force that is turned loose, every event in your life- all dovetails together to create a combination of forces that are multiplied beyond measure.

God has ordained that every energy and force, everything that works in your life, has to come together in the explosive drive to bring about the will of God in your life.

All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.


  In Romans 16:21 we find another usage of the word sunergeo.

Timothy my fellow-worker greets you....

Paul used a form of the verb sunergeo, which by translation is best rendered "a fellow worker."

When two believers are fellow workers, they work together.

Together, their energies and God become an explosive force, and they are able to do things far beyond what either one of them could do separately.

This is synergistic action.

God is telling us, "I will combine all my energy with yours.

As you flow together and believe, I will turn loose whatever you ask in My name."

As we move into that position of unity and faith, we must be careful how we pray, because we will surely have answers on our hands.


  Paul used this same term "fellow workers" again in Colossians 4:11.

And also Jesus who is called Justus; these are the only fellow-workers for the Kingdom of God who are from the circumcision; and they have proved to be an encouragement to me.

Justus, and others who were named previously, were the only Jews who had really worked with Paul; therefore he called them fellow workers.

Their combined energies were very great.


  Sometimes people seem to work against each other.

If a husband is of one political party and his wife of another, they will cross each other out at the polls year after year.

That is not synergistic action.

There is no synergistic action unless there is an agreement.


  The prefix "sym," from the Greek sum, means "with," "along with," or "together."

This prefix relates to the Greek word sumphoneo, which is translated "agree" in the promise, "Whenever two of you agree on anything you ask, it will be done" ( Matthew 18:19 ).

It means that two or more are asking together.

The English word that comes directly from sumphoneo is "symphony."

In a symphony orchestra, a number of people all perform together in harmony.

Sumphoneo is a crying together of two or more in the symphony of prayer.

Intercession may not sound like a symphony; but God hears it, and to Him it sounds beautiful.


  This truth is very simple,but you will find a real key to your walk with God as you understand that you are linking yourself with God.

No longer let it be that you, as a person apart from God, merely ask God for something.

Determine that God is going to walk with you.

Take the initiative to move out and let God catch up with you.

This is the attitude that motivated the evangelist Lonnie Frisbee.

Someone once asked Smith Wigglesworth (an apostle of faith who lived a generation ago) if he waited for the Spirit to move him.

He said, "No, When I see a devil-possessed person, I start after him.

It is up to God to see that the anointing catches up with me."

God will see to it that the anointing is there at the right time, if you move out.

Do not wait for God to do anything anymore.

You take the initiative.

In his epistle, James wrote, "You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected" James 2:22.

This passage speaks of Abraham, telling us that faith was working with his works.

Here again is the Greek word sunergeo - a synergistic action of faith and works.

What you are doing cannot be only an expression of obedience.

It has to be an expression of faith too.

It has to be done with a faith that something will happen.

If God tells you to get a walking stick and throw it down, you can easily do that; but it does not necessarily mean that the stick will turn into a serpent, as it did for Moses.

You must have the faith to expect that something will happen when you throw it down.


  When Moses complained that he could not speak very well, God asked him, "What is in your hand?"

From that time on, through all the ten plagues in Egypt, God said many times, "Stretch out your hand over Egypt."

Each time Moses stretched out his hand, something happened.

This continued out in the wilderness.

When the Amalekites invaded and tried to destroy the Israelites, Moses stretched out his hands.

While he had his hands up, the Israelites prevailed; so Aaron and Hur held them up for him when he became tired ( Exodus 17:8-13 ).

Here is another instance of synergistic action.

Aaron and Hur held Moses' hands up for him, believing God was going to bless.

However, they still had to exercise their initiative.

The victory would not have been won if man had not cooperated with God in faith.

By faith, Moses believed God.

By faith, he raised his hands.

By faith, unspeakable miracles were performed that had never before happened in the history of the world.

All of this came about because one man raised his hands with faith.

Paul wrote to Timothy, "I want men everywhere to pray, lifting holy hands without wrath or doubting. ( I Timothy 2:8 ).

Raise your hands up to the Lord without any doubting, but with faith in your heart to believe.

God's power will be turned loose because you link your feebleness with His omnipotence and dare to believe for the explosive channeling of divine omnipotence into the world again.

Dare to believe that what you do is an expression of faith which God honors.

Believe that God is tied in with it.

Refuse to lift your hands on your own; insist that God lift His hands too.

This is the way God ordained it to work.


  The initiative of faith is required of us; then faith working with our works can create the explosion.

We have to light the fuse, because God has laid upon us the initiative of seeing His Kingdom come forth.

Again, Moses is an example for us.

But Moses said to the people, "Do not fear! 

Standby and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.

The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent."

The problems, which are very evident today and seem to be closing in on us, will disappear suddenly, never to be seen again.

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to Me?

Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.

And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land" Exodus 14:13-16.

In other words, God was saying , "You do it, Moses.

You go ahead and divide the sea."

There is a time for praying; then suddenly there is a time to move out actively in faith.


  First the Word of the Lord came, "Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord."

But shortly after that God said, "Why are you crying out to me?

Move!

Go forward."

You have to position yourself.

The moment comes when God will fulfill everything, and then you have to position yourself in it.

Many promises may seem to be hanging in abeyance, and you may not know the answer; but when God speaks to your heart to go forward, take a step of faith and move out.

Refuse to sit on the sidelines; instead, take a step into the mainstream of what God is doing.


  Take the initiative, and with authority loose the power of God.

Focus yourself with God on the will of God coming forth in the earth.

Refuse to be disassociated from God any longer.

Since you must take the initiative, there is no reason for you to blame God for anything.

You can either walk humbly with faith and see His will done, or blame yourself for walking apart from God.

Why not identify yourself as one with God and as one with one another to see the Kingdom come.

Jesus Money

Big Christian Leaders, Bigger Money:You can make Millions “serving Jesus”…it’s technically “legal” in many cases…but is it Moral?

 
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
Matthew 19:21

“Give your money to Jesus! Give your money to the work of the Lord!” the preacher bellows with passion and emphasis.

We’ve all been there, sat through the subtle and not-so-subtle appeals for money to fund the “ministry” of Jesus…and the particular Pastor and Church has this or that “need” and we are blessed to be giving our hard-earned money to them because that’s what Jesus wants you to do…to build his Kingdom and give to “his” work…which so happens to be that particular Pastor and his particular “non-profit” church corporation.
 
OK, fine and well…but, what happens when the Pastor is taking home over $500,000 per year of the Jesus Money?

While in many cases this may be technically “legal”…is it Moral? Is it “right” and “righteous”?

 Or, is it corrupt and evil and criminal from a Moral perspective?

According to recent studies and CNN Money, you are in the Top one percent of all American incomes if you make over $389,000 per year (averaged across the United States).

 In rich states like California and Florida that number is $433,000 and $367,000 respectively.

 Where does $500,000 per year put your household? You are in Elite air…and that doesn’t even take into consideration the tax-free nature of this income which boosts the Real Income a lot higher.

In most cases, the mega-pastors’ mega-salaries are carefully hidden from the public eye and you have to work very hard to get the information.

Where is the line folks? Is this what Jesus and ministry is all about?

When your Pastor makes more than 99.5% of the rest of the Population…and asks you for your money…should you know?

Should we care?

Visit Alex blog for the full story at:
 http://calvarychapelabuse.com/wordpress/

The Word And The Spirit

Balance of teaching the Word of God and Moving in the Holy Spirit

Do Not Move

"Sir I said Do Not Move While We are In Motion...or we will tip over and get no where at all."

THE BALANCE TRAIN

It is a very delicate activity

It has been said that a meeting where the gifts of the Holy Spirit are allowed to be freely exercised is a balancing act.

Think of it as if a circle of people are carefully passing around a tray with glasses of water upon it. They are trying very carefully not to spill the water as they pass the tray from one to another.

One speaks out in tongues, another gives an interpretation, while another sings out in an inspirational spiritual song. Another gives a word of knowledge while another gives a prophecy in song.

This is what it is like. Each and every member of the meeting being sensitive to the Holy Spirit's direction and orchestration. The meeting moves forward and accomplishes God's goals when it is conducted decently and in order. Things run along smoothly with no crash and burns.

 I have been in large meetings where everyone was singing in the Spirit (singing in tongues) altogether at the same time. 

When suddenly, without anyone other than the Holy Spirit giving direction, everyone stops singing except for one person. 

Then just as suddenly someone else joins them in a sort of a duet.

 And then the whole room full of people gently joins in a chorus. And then an absolutely amazing thing would take place.

 I would hear gentle rain pouring upon the roof when it is a very dry evening with no rain outside, and yet rain could be heard coming down on the roof. 

Angelic voices could be faintly heard singing a counter part harmony along with the whole congregation. 

And finally every voice would go silent as if a conductor had given a hand signal to taper off to silence.

It was at this point that there would be manifested the most powerful spiritual atmosphere where you felt as if you should be taking off your shoes because it was Holy ground that you were standing upon.

The Shekinah glory was being manifested.

There is a church experience beyond the stimulation of the intellect with Bible study. 

There is a church dimension that few ever get the opportunity to experience. 

True heart felt worship with Christians who are not afraid of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and know what balance is in their operation.

I have had the wonderful pleasure of being in meetings like this.

And

I have been in carnal meetings masquerading as spiritual meetings, when in reality flesh was at work pretending that the Holy Spirit was moving in their midst.

 Nothing quenches the Holy Spirit faster then flesh acting as if He were
behind their antics.

Holy reverence dictates that we be sensitive and truly worshipful to insure balance for forward momentum or we will get no where...few make it through the straight and narrow gate.

David Sloane

12,03,08

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I wanted to add some thoughts that I had while working today, 12,04,08. 

Over so many years I have noticed that teachers of the Word always like to down play and marginalize those of us who love the moving of the Holy Spirit.

Why just today my son mentioned hearing John Courson saying on the radio something about not validating those of us who desire the Spirit's moving. 

He said that if we just stay in the Word that would be enough Spirit moving for us.

I humbly beg to differ. 

Why?

I had this conversation about this topic out in the parking lot of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa in 1973 with the then assistant pastor Lavern Romaine.

 Romaine told me that there has to be 'balance.' 

His very words to me on this topic were, "David, too much of the Word and we will dry up, too much of the Spirit and we will blow up, a correct balance of both and we grow up."

I never forgot that conversation with the man of God.

 I have noted over the years that churches that marginalize any operation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit while lifting the Word of God high over everything else, (almost to the point of 'Bibliolatry,') can become some what dry in a sense for me personally.

Ok, so you never heard the term Bibliolatry. Years ago all of us who would go out to the desert to seek the Lord came up with this term on our own. Today it is in common usage. Bibliolatry is the worship of the Bible or any other text over God Himself.

I have been in churches that minimize the teaching of the Word of God and maximize the exercise of the spiritual gifts. Man what a mess! People looking like Funky chickens doing that bouncing up and down thing and others shaking their hands and others shouting like lunatics.

I have spiritual discernment and in some of those places the Holy Spirit wasn't moving at all, but they did their thing any way while insisting that the Holy Spirit was doing those strange things and goings on.

 Now that is not to say that such things can not happen, I have seen them happen where the Spirit of God is indeed moving in the midst.

When a church teaches the Word of God in it's entirety and allows the balancing exercise of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, there can be such a sweet manifested presence of God. 

The sheep need this inspiration of both activities in perfect balance to one another.

1 Corinthians 14:4He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.

The sheep need to be edified. Above we see two ways this can be accomplished. One is by speaking in tongues. The other is by being exposed to prophecy. There are many other ways.

When was the last time that you spoke in tongues? 

When was the last time that you heard someone give prophecy in a gathering of Christians?

Apostle Paul understood this all too well:

1 Timothy 4:14Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.

Prophecy is declaring the mind and heart of God.

 It is making known God's will.

 The laying on of hands is the impartation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 

Some would teach today that such things have ceased since we now have the written Word of God. 

They are in serious error and are teaching others to be impotent and powerless as witnesses for Jesus Christ by their false concepts.

2 Peter 1:19We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

They quote the above verse as if it declares the cessation of all the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Christ would have stayed upon the earth and lived out the full extent of His natural life if this were true. 

But He had to leave this earth so that the Holy Spirit could come. 

Apparently for some reason, unknown to us at this time, only one person of the trinity can be in resident here on earth at one time.

Although we see all of them present at the immersion of Jesus by John the immerser.

Luke 3:22And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

We see the Holy Spirit descending and the Father declaring and Jesus the Son in the above verse. The Holy Trinity.

 With in the one Godhead there are three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is not a force or an energy or an essence, He is a person.

We want this person of the Holy Spirit in our midst. 

Why?

Because it is He who manifest the presence of Almighty God to us.

 And anyone who has ever truly been in a service where the Holy Spirit comes and manifest Almighty God, never ever forgets that experience, never! 

Spiritual growth!

Once you taste of the 'real' of God you can never be satisfied with less then that.

 You search and search, looking for that church that 'gets it.' 

But you never can seem to find it.

 You leave disappointed until eventual you give up.

Satan steps in and tries his best to convince you that it was all a dream.

 He gets you to chalk it up to your youthful exuberance or just an emotional period of your life.

No! 

It was a genuine manifestation of Almighty God that you were ever so blessed to have experienced.

Years and years of Bible study can never do for you what just one simple touch of the Holy Spirit can do for you. 

It can change your life for the rest of your days.

The mind listening to teaching is important, but the human spirit being touched by the Holy Spirit is just as important.

John 4:24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Worship Him in your spirit!

The mind.

Ephesians 4:23And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

Philippians 2:5Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Feed your mind on the Word of God.

Ephesians 5:26That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

Titus 3:5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Washing of regeneration?

In biology, an organism is said to regenerate a lost or damaged part if the part regrows so that the original function is restored. 

Restoration. 

Regeneration.

Renewing of the Holy Spirit. 

We need this experience that comes of the Holy Spirit.

 Therefore this is why I desire the moving of the Holy Spirit as well as teaching from the Word of God!

P.S.

 John Courson is one of my favorite Bible teachers after Chuck Smith. 

David Sloane

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12/13/2013

I wanted to add a few things to update the above.

There is a very correct balance between the Word of God teaching and the moving of the Holy Spirit in a healthy Church environment. Jesus Christ was known as a "prophet, powerful in Word and deed before God and all the people"
Luke 24:19

Jesus said,"The Words I have spoken to you are Spirit and they are life."
John 6:63

God works through His Word and His Spirit in perfect balance.

Any church that only teaches the Word and any church that only operates in signs and wonders is an "Ishmael" a half son.

 Abraham acted in the flesh in an attempt to fulfill a promise of God for a son and only produced a half son of the promise.

 A son today that conflicts with the true son of the promise, "Isaac" who was the full son of Abraham. 

The fulfillment of Gods promise to Abraham.

Word only churches conflict with Spirit only churches and vise versa.

 This is an obstacle to a healthy New Testament Church.

It is an act of the flesh to only teach the Word and doctrine.

 It is an act of the flesh to only operate in signs and wonders of the Holy Spirit.

 It is an act of true spirituality to operate in both signs and wonders of the Holy Spirit and the teaching of the Word of God and doctrine together in a delicate balance.

What will it be Church?

 Ishmael, the flesh?

 Or Isaac, the promise of God fulfilled?

If the Church heeds this message it will operate in true power and purity, teaching the Word and moving in the Spirit.

Jesus said to the Sadducees, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God."
Matthew 22:29

Paul the apostle said:

"Our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction."
1 Thessalonians 1:5

Paul also said:

"My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power."
1 Corinthians 2:4

Paul combined the Scriptures with a demonstration of the power of God in perfect delicate balance!

The two together, the Bible, God's inerrant and infallible Word, the Scriptures, and the supernatural, powerful signs and wonders of the Holy Spirit. 

Balance.

Jesus said that the Sadducees were ignorant of both of these.

 In most of our modern day churches it has been one or the other and not both together. 

Recently a couple of great men of God passed away who missed this completely in their churches. 

God took these men home early because I believe the time of imbalance is over.

To only emphasize one aspect of the correct balance, like these men of God did in their churches was very wrong.

 God had to remove these influential men from the scene in order to start to correct a great wrong in the Church in the land today.

It is wrong to emphasize only one side of the equation but it is right to have a balance of both in equality.

Do you want to see God moving in your midst in power and mighty majesty?

 Do you want to see the Holy Spirit rain down in your midst in magnificent revival?

The Scriptures and the Power of Almighty God together will accomplish this.

Has the modern day church been deceived into thinking that it could operate in a lopsided fashion and accomplish anything?

 A true New Testament Church will operate in a balance of the Word and in Power of the Holy Spirit if it wants to impact this our world in this day and age.

Some Christians have been taught for years that their knowledge of the Scriptures was enough, that their emphasis of correct doctrines was enough.

 They believed sincerely that it was enough and the only way to conduct "church." 

Anything else was totally irrelevant and unnecessary to them. 

The Power of God moving in signs and wonders was only something that happens on the pages of their Bibles and not really for today.

To think like that is to be imbalanced. 

The Word and the Spirit, balance.

The New Testament Church is not complete without signs and wonders!

Jesus said to our early Church founders, "Stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high...You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you."
Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8.

The apostle Paul warned us against "having a form of godliness but denying its power."
2 Tim 3:5

Balance is the basis upon which God will grant spiritual power to His New Testament Church.

The truly emergent church of today will be a church of balance, a true restoration of a New Testament Church in the Land.

 Not a powerless, boring church but a Church in revival where souls are being saved on a daily basis in Almighty God power of the Holy Spirit and in in the doctrines and teaching of the Word of God!

BALANCE!

I have fought to bring this message to others my entire walk with God. 

Fighting to bring about balance.

 I have been asked to go away because of my message at times. 

But my prophetic calling in the Lord requires me to bring this message to others in the Body of Christ. 

You can plainly see why.

We will see the restoration of the New Testament Church! 

And then, and only then will there be the greatest out pouring of God's Holy Spirit in the land like never before in the Church.

Church are you listening?

 Are you beginning to get it? 

Do you want to walk in perfect balance?

There is coming a birthing of the promises of God, the Isaac of God.

 The Ishmael church is falling apart without their leadership that God has now removed. 

We will begin to see in the land a restoration of the New Testament Church of balance. 

This is the promised Bride of Christ, the Body of Christ represented in the land that will shine brightly before all the eyes of the earth in this our time...

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Update 3/1/2015

I discovered that there is a book by the controversial prophet Paul Cain.

Paul is a man who once ministered in a traveling tent ministry, along with pastor Chuck Smith in the days of their youth.

In this book Cain and Kendall share what I have been saying about the balance of the Word and the Spirit.

Here is a preview of the book that you can read instantly...

You can get it now on Kindle. ( I have no affiliation or monetary connection to the sale of this book, I am only sharing it because it goes into detail about what I have been teaching here.)

The Restoration of The New Testament Church is one of balance!

David Sloane

Freedom Or Subterfuge? Depends How You Look At It.

There Is A New Oblique, Invisible, Free Internet Project That Is Better Than "TOR" some believe.

This is going to upset the private contractor watchers for sure!

The coders have been at it again.

There is a new player in town called 12P. 

 All communication is end-to-end encrypted (in total there are four layers of encryption used when sending a message), and even the end points ("destinations") are cryptographic identifiers (essentially a pair of public keys), so that neither sender nor recipient of a message need to reveal their IP address to the other side or to third-party observers.

 Although both Tor and I2P are anonymity networks, there are some key differences. One of those differences is the greater degree of decentralization that I2P offers.

 If you're not using Tor, your location and activity is constantly being tracked. With Tor, the pitch goes, you're basically invisible.

 “Tor takes the directory-based approach - providing a centralized point to manage the overall 'view' of the network, as well as gather and report statistics, as opposed to I2P's distributed netwo​rk database and peer selection,” according to the I2P website. 

 Whereas Tor relies on a set of relays run by volunteers, and then people use their computer to connect to the network, I2P takes a peer-to-peer approach, and makes every user's computer a node in the network itself. “Essentially all peers participate in routing for others,” the I2P​ site reads.

 The “about” section of the I2P website reads very similarly to that of the Tor Project's.

 “I2P is used by many people who care about their privacy,” the site reads, “activists, oppressed people, journalists and whistelblowers, as well as the average person.”

This anonymous swarming is called 12P.

We don't recommend it. 

Tor has had more developers and more funding while 12P is new and has fewer developers and less funding.

And as always, nefarious types will utilize this technology to their advantage. 

So the cat and mouse syndrome continues as law enforcement has another layer to deal with in their never ending efforts to bring law and order. 

The best way to use TOR is by using "Tails."