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Did you know that the Earth contains 352 (352,000,000,000,000,000,000) gallon-sized milk containers of water? And yet, Isaiah 40:12 says that God can measure all of the water on the Earth in the hollow of His Hand.
Did you also know that the Earth weighs over 13 septillion (13,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) pounds? Yet Isaiah 40:12 goes on to say that God can calculate and measure all of the dust of the Earth, the mountains and hills. The universe stretches out more than 200 sextillion miles (2000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000). Yet God can measure the universe by the width of His Hand. Scientists claim that there are over 100 billion galaxies, and each galaxy has over 100 billion stars. Yet Isaiah 40:26 says that God who created the stars, can call each star by name. So, if our God can hold the ocean in the palm of His Hand, if He can consider the weight of the dust of the Earth, if He can measure the width of the universe with the span of his hand, and he can call each star by its name, then He can most assuredly handle the problems and difficulties of our lives! ““Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest”(Joshua 1:9). There is nothing that God cannot do, for with God, all things are possible! (Mark 10:27). Therefore, seek God’s Help in times of trouble through the avenue of prayer, and God will be with you, if you are obedient and faithful to Him! This is the only way that we can have the peace that passes all understanding that the apostle Paul speaks of in Philippians 4:7. The life of the faithful Christian is truly the best life we can have here on the Earth because we have God on our side no matter what happens to us in this life. May we all work every day to be more like Christ and less like ourselves so that we will be able to have wonderful lives here, and even better lives in eternity!
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On February 26, 2022, I gave a lesson on "The Home" during a Ladies'Bible Class held at Tennessee Bible College during their annual "Renew" Lectureship. Please click the "Play" button below to hear the lesson! A lesson on what God expects of the home is a much needed topic for discussion in today's day and time. I hope you enjoy this lesson and gain some knowledge from it that will help you draw closer to God and His Word!
Campaign church of Christ will be having thier annual Homecoming this Sunday, March 27, 2022 beginning at 10AM for Bible Class, 11 AM for the first worship service with a fellowship meal following the 11 o'clock worship service, and our last service will be at 1:30! All are invited, and there are classes for all ages!   In today’s time where the divorce rate in America has only slightly lowered due to the fact that more couples are choosing to just live together rather than marry and where children are raised without ever being taught about the Lord, more teaching about what makes a Christ-centered home is vitally important.
God created the home in Genesis 2:18-24. Since God created the home, He intends for every home to be a Christ-centered one. The home can only be a Christ-centered home if husband and wife have a Christ-centered marriage. This means that both husband and wife should be faithful Christians. Being faithful Christians means that both the husband and wife must work to help one another go to Heaven every day. They should also worship God together, and attend worship services together regularly. They must also show Christ-like love for one another like that mentioned in I Corinthians 13:4-7, which states, “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own,is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.” In my work as a counselor, I did various marriage counseling sessions, and the root cause of many of their problems was a lack of Christ in their marriages. When and if children come into the home, it is the husband and wife’s responsibility to raise them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). This involves making sure that their children attend worship services regularly, and that the whole family attend worship services together. There are many cases that I have seen in my work as a counselor where more than one generation of a family have never set foot in a church building, and as a result, their lives are chaos. So many children are being raised to believe that God is not real, even at the youngest of ages. How horrible that must be as a child to not have the hope of Heaven! Satan is trying his best to destroy our homes, because if he can control a home, he can keep that many more precious souls out of Heaven. That is why it is so important that whether we are married or not, we should know how to keep a Christ-centered home that will help ourselves and others go to Heaven. May we all strive to always put Christ first in our lives, for our own sakes, and for the sakes of our spouses and children. If we lean on Christ for help, we will have the Christ-centered homes that will be like a slice of Heaven here on the Earth!   If you want to start the new year right, you need to study your Bible every day! A great way to learn more about the Bible is through Bible Correspondence Courses! For years, I have used Bible Correspondence courses to teach others about the Word of God. I am currently using 2 Bible Correspondence Courses; "Studies In the Bible" Correspondence Course, which teaches basic information about the Bible and it's teachings. The second Correspondence Course I am offering is "Foundations of Faith," which focuses on lessons concerning strengthening your faith in God. Both sets of Correspondence Courses are completely free to participate in! If you are interested in participating in one of these Bible Correspondence Courses, please email me your name, mailing address, and which correspondence course you would like to participate in. Once I get your information, I will send you your first lesson to complete and send back to me for grading. After I have received and graded your work, I will send your graded work to you, along with the next lesson to complete until you have competed all 30 lessons in the course. After you have completed all 30 lessons of one course, you can begin the next correspondence course for free and complete all 30 lessons of that course. Once again, both Bible correspondence courses are free! I hope that you will make 2022 the year that you grow closer to God by digging into His Word! You life will improve greatly if you do this! "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (2 Timothy 2:15).  As Christians, we are blessed immensely. We have the best lives here on the earth, and the promise of a home in Heaven when we die, or when the Day of Judgment occurs. Although we may face many challenges during our lives, we still have the best life because we always have God’s Favor and God’s Help, if we are faithful to Him at all times. “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7).
What about the times in our lives when things have been going really good for a long period of time, and then we begin to face a challenge, or a series of challenges all at once? Does this mean that we are now fallen out of God’s Favor, or that He is punishing us for something we have done wrong? The short answer to this question is “not always,” but an examination of Scripture can help us understand this topic even more. In the book of Exodus, we see the Israelites who have been wandering in the wilderness for many years. During their time in the wilderness, the Jews complained to Moses and Aaron about being hungry, and regretting leaving Egypt. As a result, God blessed the Jews with food directly from heaven. “Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no. And it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.” (Exodus 16:4-5). This manna was a very easy blessing of which to partake. It fell out of the sky like dew in the early morning, and all the Jews had to do was pick it up off of the ground and eat it. This is an example of a blessing that was easily given and easily received. God provides many blessing to us that are easily given and easily received if we live faithfully to Him. But what if certain blessings cease to come? This happened to the Jews. By the time the Israelites had reached the borders of the “Promised Land” of Canaan, Moses was dead, and Joshua the son of Nun was their leader. The land of Canaan was the land promised to the Jews by God, and it was where the Jews would prosper for many years. But let’s read what happens just before the Jews receive this huge blessing. Joshua 5:10-12 says, “And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.” How does the manna ceasing for the Jews apply to Christians today? The manna was a blessing from God that helped the Jews get through their lives in the wilderness. God gives us many blessing to help us through our lives as well. But notice what happened right before the Jews received a huge blessing of a home in Canaan, the blessing of the manna stopped. This tells us that for those who are faithful to God, He may stop some blessings from coming, or from coming as easily as they did before, but this only means that He has something bigger and better planned for us! God will never leave us “hanging” so to speak. Whenever God closes a door in one area of our lives, He will open another door for us, as long as we cling to Him and stay faithful. “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness” (Isaiah 41:10). God knows our past, present, and future. He knows what is best for us, and He knows what blessings will benefit us the most according to what He has planned for our lives. God’s Plan for us may not be the same as our plan for ourselves, but it is the Best Plan. He always has our best interest in mind, and His Mind is so much greater than ours. Therefore we should examine ourselves frequently (2 Corinthians 13:5) and make sure that we are truly faithful to God in ALL aspects of our lives. If we do find ourselves truly faithful, trust that the challenges that we are facing are not due to being punished by God, but because God has something even greater planned for us! For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:11-13)  The life of a Christians is the best life that we can have on this earth. Not only do we have the promise of a home in Heaven, but we have the rewards that come with living a faithful life here on the earth. Being a faithful Christian causes us to have to face persecution and challenges at various times throughout our lives, but God will always see us through the storms, and help us on our journey to Heaven.
God speaks about how He helps us get through this life in the best way possible. “ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:11). However, we must do our part and be faithful to God, and He will reward us. We must make sure that our lives are free from sin in order to be able to partake in God’s Deliverance. I am reminded of those faithful people who are mentioned in the “Hall of Faith” in Hebrews 11. This chapter mentions at several points how God delivered those who are faithful out of the challenges they were facing, and due to their steadfast subjection to Him, He gave them the ultimate deliverance, which is a home in Heaven. Those who were delivered by God had faith that He would help them in their times of need. For example, in Hebrews 11, we are given the example of Abraham’s faith in God to deliver his son, Isaac from death, after being commanded to offer him as a sacrifice. “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.” (Hebrews 11:17-19). The apostle Paul speaks about God’s deliverance of those who are repentant and faithful in Romans chapter 8. At the time of the writing of the book of Romans, the Old Law, which is the law that those who are mentioned in Hebrews 11 were under, had ceased to be after the death and resurrection of Christ (Colossians 2:14). Paul mentions this fact in Romans 8:2-3;” For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:” So according to these verses, God has delivered us from having to follow the Old Law. We are now under the New Covenant, as Colossians 2:14 says. Paul goes onto to speak about how we can work to obtain God’s Deliverance. Romans 8 teaches us that we must keep our bodies and minds out of the world and focused on spiritual things in order to be able to win a home in Heaven. “That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:4-6). Having a worldly mind makes us enemies of God (Romans 8:7). We must always strive to be spiritually minded and to live as much of a spiritually clean life as we can. No one is perfect, and we all make mistakes. We are so blessed to have a God who is Merciful and Patient towards us despite our many flaws. May we work to serve Him each and every day so that we may have deliverance from an eternity in Hell. By living faithful Christian lives, we can have a home in Heaven with God for all eternity. These thoughts should motivate us to continue to “press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God “(Philippians 3:14).  As Christians, we are required to teach salvation and help to bring sinners to repentance through the Bible, which is the inspired Word of God. “All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” (II Timothy 3:16). It is a wonderful feeling to see unbelievers repent and become baptized, and to know that you helped them reach this wonderful goal.
Even the smallest of gestures can have a profound effect on someone, and make them realize that they need to become a Christian. Just recently, my husband and I delivered a fruit basket to a man who had just been diagnosed with cancer. We knew that this man was not a Christian, so we made a point to talk with him about becoming a Christian when we delivered his fruit basket. A few days later, a fellow preacher, called my husband and told him that my husband had really impressed the man that we had talked to about his salvation, and the man was asking the preacher, who worked with the man, various questions about the Bible. The following Wednesday night, this man showed up at our congregation for Bible study, and was baptized the week after that. He still attends with our congregation, and since his baptism, he has been doing so well with his chemotherapy treatments, that his doctors are amazed! This example shows that something as simple as giving a fruit basket to someone can help lead them to Christ! But what happens when that Christian falls away from God? We are to go to that person and try to get them to repent. Galatians 6:1 reads, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” Once we go to the erring Christian and teach them the reason why they need to repent, it is a joyous occasion indeed when that person turns back to God. Just like the example of the fruit basket, it sometimes does not take much for a person to repent of their sinful ways. However, this is not always the case, and we can see this in the book of Lamentations. To backtrack a little, in the book of Jeremiah, the prophet of the same name had been prophesying to the children of Israel for forty years. God came to Jeremiah with His message to the Israelites when Jeremiah was only a child (Jeremiah 1:6). [1] God tells Jeremiah about His Plan to punish Israel for their wickedness, and encourages Jeremiah to deliver this message to the Israelites, even though they will not listen. “Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. Judah. For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.” (Jeremiah 1:14 19). Jeremiah pleaded with the Israelites to turn away from idolatry and to change their wicked ways, but they would not listen. The Israelites, namely the inhabitants of Judah which consisted of the tribes of Benjamin and Judah, had been spiritually decaying for many years since the ten tribes of Israel was destroyed by Assyria in 750 B.C. Although there was a small resurgence of righteous behavior under the rule of King Josiah, this did not last. Finally, it was time for God to punish His children for their wrongdoing, which they continued to do despite Jeremiah’s warnings. In around 600 BC, God used King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, to punish the Israelites by looting the temple, stealing the gold, and putting many Israelites in captivity. Those Israelites who remained in the city were ruled by King Zedekiah who was just as wicked as Nebuchadnezzar. The Israelites who were ruled under Zedekiah faced severe famine and poverty (II Kings 24:10-20). A few years later, King Zedekiah rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, and Nebuchadnezzar came back and besieged Jerusalem for 18 months. During this time, people were murdered by the Babylonians, and the house of God was destroyed, the wall of Jerusalem was broken down, and all of the palaces were burned to the ground (II Chronicles 36:17-21). Jeremiah witnessed the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of the Israelites by the Babylonians, and the book of Lamentations is full of Jeremiah’s sorrow for the plight of the Hebrew people, as well as the sorrow that the Hebrew people felt being in captivity. When a Christian falls from grace, he or she may face punishment for their sins in this life, as well as the next life. I know from my experiences as a counselor, that many people who commit wrongdoings have many challenges in their lives that they would not be facing otherwise, and they deal with a lot of sorrow and sadness because of this. The same situation, although to a much greater extent than I have seen, happened to the Israelites in Babylonian captivity. Once a great nation of God’s People, the book of Lamentations shows the Israelites as a broken people, who now see the error of their sinful ways. “The LORD is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity. I called for my lovers, but they deceived me: my priests and mine elders gave up the ghost in the city, while they sought their meat to relieve their souls." Behold, O LORD; for I am in distress: my bowels are troubled; mine heart is turned within me; for I have grievously rebelled: abroad the sword bereaveth, at home there is as death. They have heard that I sigh: there is none to comfort me: all mine enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that thou hast done it: thou wilt bring the day that thou hast called, and they shall be like unto me. Let all their wickedness come before thee; and do unto them, as thou hast done unto me for all my transgressions: for my sighs are many, and my heart is faint.” (Lamentations 1:18-22). Jeremiah, who has remained faithful throughout his life, is also facing persecution; however, he has hope in God to deliver him. “The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him” (Lamentations 3:24). The other Israelites, however, finally see the need to repent of their ways, and finally do so in Lamentations chapter 5. “Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old” (Lamentation 5:21). Sometimes it takes a major event to “wake up” a Christian to repentance. Christians who fall astray can be dealt with more firmly than with unbelievers because Christians know better than to commit sin. Hopefully an erring Christian will repent before they have to face punishment of any sort, but it is especially important that they repent before they face eternal punishment. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). A Christian has too much to lose, even more than the Israelites lost during their captivity, to risk dying in sin or being in sin when the day of Judgment comes. We must be like the prophet Jeremiah, and continue to teach those Christians who are in sin, no matter how many times we are rejected. “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12). We must do this in hopes that they will repent before it is too late. “For God [is] not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Hebrews 6:10). By helping others reach the goal of Heaven, we are also helping ourselves reach that goal. We must be persistent like the prophet Jeremiah, and hope that our persistence pays off. If a person who is an erring Christian does not listen to your pleas for repentance the first, time, go to them again, and again when necessary. Sometimes it takes several visits with a person before they are willing to change. May we work every to help others and help ourselves be more and more like Christ each and every day! [  “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” (Philippians 4:6). We as Christians are commanded by God through the apostle Paul in such passages as Philippians 4:6 to “be careful for nothing” or to not worry. In times like these, with the Delta variant of the Covid-19 pandemic on the rise, it is a temptation for many to become worrisome about contracting this serious virus and/or spreading this virus to their loved ones and others. There are many who have already had this virus and who are dealing with the effects of having Covid-19 now. No matter what category you fall in, this past year and a half has been like nothing we have every seen in our lifetimes. That is why it is important to try to remember what Philippians 4:6 says, and not worry. For some, this is easier said than done. For those of you who are reading this and who might be struggling with worry and anxiety over the pandemic, or over any other challenge you are facing in life, here are some ways to overcome the temptation to worry.
A new episode on "Obeying God, Even in the Face of Adversity" can now be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! https://anchor.fm/brandi-gann. Click the link here, or click the "Play" button in the upper right hand corner of this blog page!  A new episode on "Staying Motivated As A Christian" can now be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! https://anchor.fm/brandi-gann. Click the link here, or click the "Play" button in the upper right hand corner of this blog page!  There is a growing trend among some churches of Christ to have what is known as “Baby Dedication Ceremonies.” In these ceremonies, a baby is brought forward before the church assembly by his or her parents, and the parents promise to raise the child in the Lord. I have heard of one congregation of the church of Christ do this in a town close to my hometown, and I wonder how many more are having these ceremonies also. No doubt the parents of these babies have very good intentions in “dedicating” their child to Christ before their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, but it is important to look at this from a Biblical standpoint.
Everything we do must be done with all authority from God. These baby dedication ceremonies where parents come forward and “dedicate” their children to the Lord have many similarities to the practice of “infant baptism” that the Roman Catholic Church performs. The practice of infant baptism is unscriptural because babies are completely innocent and without sin. They do not inherit “original sin” which is the false doctrine that the Roman Catholics have that we are all born with sin, since that time that Adam and Even sinned against God. This is simply not true. Babies have no capability to follow the Plan of Salvation which would lead to a scriptural baptism. Babies cannot hear and believe the Word of God (Romans 10:17;Mark 16:16), and they cannot repent of their sins, because they do not have any (Acts 2:38). Also, they are not able to talk and confess that Jesus is the Son of God, which is another step to the Plan of Salvation (Matthew 10:32). Since babies cannot follow the first four steps to the Plan of Salvation, then they are certainly not qualified to be baptized (Acts 22:16; I Peter 3:17-22). Of course, “baby dedication ceremonies’ do not require the infant to be sprinkled with water like the Catholic ceremony, which is not actually baptism at all, however, both ceremonies require that the parents come forward with their babies and profess their belief in Christ and “dedicate” them to the Lord. In an article from Simply Catholic called “Why Baptize Babies,” John Salza says, “Parents bring their babies to the waters of baptism by professing a belief in Christ on behalf of the child, and promising to raise him or her in the faith.” Besides the actual act of sprinkling the baby with water, both the church of Christ ceremony and the Catholic ceremony are identical. Not only that, but various Baptist churches have baby dedication ceremonies which are identical to the ones that some churches of Christ are having. According to an essay written by R. Scott Clark called “A Contemporary Reformed Defense of Infant Baptism,” the author talks about these “baby dedication ceremonies” held in the Baptist church. Regarding these ceremonies, Clark says; “Many Baptistic churches also allow the practice of baby dedication. It would appear that this rite substitutes for baptism of the children of believers. Why? Because believers instinctively know that they need to present their children to God. Like the altar call this is a human substitute for divinely instituted covenant signs and seals of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the sign of entrance or initiation into the visible Covenant assembly (church). Baby dedication fulfills this function.” If members of the church of Christ still want to set themselves apart from the denominational world, then participating in baby dedication ceremonies is a step in the wrong direction! But a person might say “If the baby isn’t baptized, then what is wrong with having the dedication ceremony.” One thing we must consider is why are churches of Christ having “baby dedication ceremonies” in the first place? Everyone who becomes a Christian is required to raise their current or future children in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). No ceremony is needed for parents to raise their children in the Lord, it is a commandment from God. Secondly, a person cannot “dedicate” any other person to the Lord, especially babies who are completely innocent. “And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3).” Baby dedication ceremonies are just one tiny step away from the infant baptism ceremonies of the Roman Catholic Church, and that is a step too close! If we want the youth in our congregations to be raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, parents, and all members of the church of Christ can pray for the youth to be trained as they should and become faithful Christians. This can be done in private, and it can also be done during the worship services of the church. Our youth are the future of the church, and we need as many faithful members of the church as we can to carry on the service of the Lord’s church! By looking at these points, it appears that “baby dedication ceremonies” are foreign to the New Testament, and they show how some congregations of the church of Christ want to infiltrate some denominational ideas into the church while still wanting to appear separate and apart from denominations at the same time. Fellow Christians, we cannot do both! “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). We have to either stand with God and only do what the Bible commands us to do, or we stand with mammon (the world) and follow any “popular” trend that some brethren in the church try to implement without Biblical authority. In cases like these we need to make sure that we are studying our Bibles enough to know when wrong is being done, and have the courage to stand against it! A new episode on "Attributes of God" can now be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! God to https://anchor.fm/brandi-gann, or clicke the "Play" button in the upper right-hand corner of this page!  One of my great grandfathers on my father’s side was a very poor man. He worked cutting timber most of his life, and he and his wife and children lived in what my grandmother would call a “tar paper shack.” The shack did not even have a door when my grandmother was small, just some tar paper and quilts placed over the entrance. Later on, when my father was a child, my great grandparents lived in a house owned by the company my great grandfather worked for, and it was located in the middle of a lumber yard. In his later life, my great grandfather managed to gather enough money together to buy a few burial plots for his family at a local cemetery in our town. After he had bought these plots, a very wealthy business owner came to my great grandfather saying that he was going to move all of my great grandfather’s burial plots to another part of the cemetery because the section in which my great grandfather chose to buy plots “wasn’t meant for poor people.” Obviously this made my great grandfather very angry, and to this day, that side of my family does not patronize that man’s business, even though both he and my great grandfather have been dead for many years. We, as human beings, cannot imagine what it would be like to exist outside of this physical body and this physical world. That is why it is so easy for some people to focus too much on the money and material possessions that they have. This can be at the expense of their souls. “For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:25). This verse does not say that it is impossible for a rich person to go to Heaven, but it can be more challenging, because the more money a person has, the more that he or she is focused on making money rather than on God. Money can also change how some people treat others, such as in the example I gave in the beginning of this article. We are to treat everyone with love and respect, no matter what their social status is in life. “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12). God is the One who gives us what we have, and it is only through Him that the rich acquire their riches. “The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up” (I Samuel 2:7). Being poor also does not mean that a person is automatically going to Heaven. Sometimes those who are poor are so focused on improving their financial situation that they forget God. Too much focus on making money and acquiring luxuries in this life at the expense of spiritual salvation can cause anyone from any economic status to be lost. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Timothy 6:10). God does not care how much money we have. Thankfully, God only sees us for who we really are rather than what we have. He is not going to treat some people who have more money better than those who have little money, as some people are prone to do. We must avoid making earthly possessions our idols before God. We can do this by focusing more on spiritual matters than the temporary cares of this world.“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”. (Matthew 6:19-21). By the way, the story that I told at the beginning of this article has a happy ending. It turned out that my great grandfather was able to keep the burial plots that he had already purchased, and he, my great grandmother, and other members of their family are buried there today.   When I was a teenager, I remember always enjoying watching the self-proclaimed “psychic,” Sylvia Browne, when she would make frequent appearances on The Montel Williams Show. I did not watch The Montel Williams Show, but whenever I would flip through the T.V. channels and see Sylvia sitting there, I just had to see what she was up to!
On these shows, there would be several people from the audience who would ask Sylvia questions about their future. Some would ask about who they would marry, others would ask about possible career paths in the future. The saddest situations would be when guests would ask about whether their missing loved ones were still alive or not. Sylvia Browne would give these guests her thoughts about what their future would look like, and where their missing loved ones might be. I remember one episode in particular, where two parents from the audience were asking Sylvia to give them the identity of the person who murdered their teenage daughter. The parents did not reveal how their daughter died. Instead of giving them an exact description of the perpetrator, Browne began talking about how she believed their daughter had been murdered. She began talking about how the young girl who was murdered was drowned by the perpetrator and how she could see water in the young girl’s lungs. After hearing this, the mother began shaking her head. The father then revealed that their daughter did not die by drowning, but from a gunshot wound to the head. Browne has also been reported to have told parents that their abducted children were dead, only to find out later that these children were alive. Cases like this show how fraudulent so-called “psychics” really are. God condemns anyone who practices this form of witchcraft. Witchcraft is spoken against in the Old Testament in such verses as Exodus 22:18; “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live,” and Deuteronomy 18:10-12; “There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.” Clearly, professing psychic abilities is a sin. There are so-called “psychics” out there who claim to “talk to the dead.” I remember a famous man by the name of John Edwards who claimed to do this, and even had his own show Crossing Over with John Edwards. Souls of those who have died do not connect with those who are living. “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6). Another example of how talking to the dead is really not possible is in I Samuel chapter 28. When asked by King Saul to bring up the spirit of Samuel (v. 11), the witch of Endor, who claimed to be able to conjure up the dead, “cried with a loud voice” when she saw the spirit of Samuel before her (v. 12). If the witch of Endor really could bring up souls of the dead before her paying customers, then she would not have cried out in fear when the spirit of Samuel really did show up! That is because it was only through the Power of God that Samuel appeared and not by the witch of Endor. These verses show that “talking to the dead” cannot be done, so anyone who claims to do this in exchange for money is a fraud! What about astrology, numerology, and the like? These things can be classified as witchcraft as well because they have to do with foretelling of the future. No one knows the future except God. By basing our daily living on what our horoscopes say, we are trusting in something else besides God, thus making these things our idols. “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matthew 6:19-21). We are to seek God First in all aspects of our lives. We are to trust Him to take care of us today, tomorrow, and every day. If we do this, we will not feel the need to seek reassurance about our future from mortal men and women who have no control over it. We should seek the assurance and peace that only God can give us, because, just as the spiritual hymn says, He Holds the future in His Hands! Check out the new episode on "Pride" that is now available to listen on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! Go to https://anchor.fm/brandi-gann to listen, or click the "Play" button in the upper right hand corner of this page. Hope you all enjoy! The 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast is BACK!!! New episodes will begin this Friday, June 25th at 6 A.M. I have spent the past 10 week focusing on other spiritual works, and I am now ready to continue teaching the Bible through this podcast! Thanks to all of you who have reached out to me with your encouragement and kind words! As always, this podcast is for the ladies, so please share this podcast with any female friend or loved one that you know. See you all Friday!!!  In the book of Micah, God shows His Anger towards those Jews who have sinned against Him. These Jews have sinned against God by marrying into neighboring pagan nations, and practicing idolatry themselves. “
“For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem? Therefore I will make Samaria as an heap of the field, and as plantings of a vineyard: and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will discover the foundations thereof. And all the graven images thereof shall be beaten to pieces, and all the hires thereof shall be burned with the fire, and all the idols thereof will I lay desolate: for she gathered it of the hire of an harlot, and they shall return to the hire of an harlot. Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the dragons, and mourning as the owls. For her wound is incurable; for it is come unto Judah; he is come unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem” (Micah 1:5-9). Some people in the world today would think that God was being “too harsh” on the Jews in His Punishment. This is certainly not the case. God is exacting what is known as righteous judgment against the Jews. This means that the Jews who sin are getting what they deserve through God’s Anger because God has a right to be angry! Just like our earthly fathers, God is angered by our wrongdoing and has the right to punish us when we commit sin. “Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?” (Hebrews 12:9). It is OK for us to feel anger, so long as it is “righteous” anger. Righteous anger occurs when we become angry at sin. Jesus showed righteous anger when He came into the temple and saw the moneychangers selling items to use in animal sacrifices. “And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves; And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.” (Mark 11:15-17). Jesus showed righteous anger because He became angry with sin. It is acceptable by God to show righteous anger as long as we do it in a way that we do not sin ourselves. For instance, we cannot become angry at sin and use profanity or mistreat the person who is committing the sin. On the contrary, we must treat everyone with respect and love, even when we are rebuking them regarding their sins. “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.” (Leviticus 19:17). We commit sin when we have unrighteous anger. Unrighteous anger occurs when we become angry over matters of opinion rather than matters of biblical right and wrong. Responding to matters of opinion with unrighteous anger is a sin, and it can become a habit that can be a challenge for some to break. For example, when I was a practicing mental health counselor, I saw many clients who were required to attend “anger management” therapy sessions. These sessions were often ineffective because the person who was under state probation often did not want to really change his or her pattern of behavior. The person merely wanted to attend the required number of therapy sessions necessary to please the probation officer and let that be it. These types of people do not really want to change. If a person wants to stop having unrighteous anger, he or she must want to change their behavior first. This is imperative to living a faithful Christian life! The book of Micah shows God’s righteous anger against the Jews. We are God’s Children, and He has every right to punish and correct us when we do wrong, so that we will repent and turn from our sinful ways. Our very souls are at stake if we refuse to repent of sins. We are all sinners, so it is important to remember to follow God’s Word and pray daily, many times a day for our own forgiveness of sins! “Pray without ceasing” ( I Thessalonians 5:17). We must all examine ourselves daily to make sure that we are staying on the straight and narrow path to Heaven! We cannot let the temporary cares of this world distract us from our main duty in life, which is to obey God (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Let us all be sure to do as the apostle Paul did and “press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).  The book of Zephaniah is a continuation of the story of Babylonian captivity for the Jews. In this book, the prophet Zephaniah, like Isaiah, Micah, and others like them, are warning the Jews of their impending punishment from God if they do not turn away from worshipping false gods. Zephaniah brings out the point that the Jews are unwilling to repent, and they act as if they do not know God. Zephaniah 3:1-2 shows this by saying; “Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the LORD; she drew not near to her God." Due to their stubbornness, God is punishing the Israelites for their sins. Before this time, the Jews were faithful unto God and His Chosen People. However, they were being punished due to their sins.
This is similar today for Christians, who are now the chosen people of God under the New Covenant. What happens to a Christian who was once a faithful child of God, but has fallen into sin? Some very prominent members of the church believe that a Christian who is trying their best to be faithful but who stumbles from time to time will not have their sins held against them. Is this true? Or, is this a case of a false doctrine similar to the Baptist false doctrine of “once saved, always saved? Those in the church who believe that a Christiancannot fall from grace, after baptism use 1 John 1:7 as their source. “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” Those who use this verse to prove their point against Christians having their sins held against them believe that God cleanses Christians of their sins continuously without them having to do anything to obtain that cleansing, such as repentance. Those who believe this false doctrine believe that it is wrong to believe, for example, that a Christian can wake up one morning in a saved state, but then have a bad thought and be lost, then pray for repentance and be saved, then do something else inappropriate and be lost, and so on and so forth. These people say that those who believe that a Christian can be saved/lost over and over in one day believe that whether a person goes to Heaven or Hell is really a “luck of the draw,” depending on which state they happen to die in. These people, who basically believe in a “once baptized, always saved” false doctrine, believe that a Christian cannot have the joy and peace that passeth all understanding (Philippians 4:7) if they are constantly worried about whether they are saved or lost every moment of the day. When looking at how to live the best Christian life possible, we cannot follow the words of men. Instead we have to follow the Word of God. In I John 1:7, “walking in the light” refers to living the faithful Christian life. In order for a person to live as a faithful Christian, he or she cannot commit sin, or else that person will be spiritually lost. Also, the “continual cleansing” referred to in this verse comes from a Christian repenting and asking forgiveness for the sin committed. “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10). . We have already seen from the book of Zephaniah and other Old Testament books, how those who were once faithful to God can fall away and be punished. Today, the Jews are no longer the chosen people of God, because the Old Testament has been nailed to the Cross (Colossians 2:14), and we are now under a New Covenant. What does God say about Christians who commit sin? The Bible has many examples of faithful Christians who fell due to their sins. The church at Ephesus was once faithful, but had fallen away from God. “Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”(Revelation 2:1-5) The apostle Paul, who was one of the most faithful men to ever walk the face of the earth after his conversion, spoke about the need of watching ourselves lest we fall away from God. He also speaks about the importance of using the Old Testament as an example of what to do/not to do in our own lives. "Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (I Corinthians 10:11-12). If a Christian’s sins are not held against him, then why would Paul be so concerned about telling the church at Corinth to “take heed” lest they fall? The apostle Peter also talk about the ability for Christians to fall away from God. “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (II Peter 1:5-11). Another example from the Bible to consider comes from Revelation 2:10; “Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” Notice that this verse does not say “be thou faithful unto baptism.” A person enters into a faithful state upon baptism (I Peter 3:21), but a person must remain faithful unto death. If we cannot have our sins held against us after we are baptized, then why would this verse say “be thou faithful unto death?” It says this because the “once baptized, always saved” doctrine that some members of the church of Christ believe, is false! We have to repent of our sins in order to be forgiven them. “Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee” (Acts 8:22). I John 1:9 teaches that sins committed by faithful Christians must be confessed, also. This verse says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We also have to show the “fruits meet for repentance”(Matthew 3:8). I remember that a preacher who teaches this false doctrine said in his sermon that he used to drive from one state to another when he worked in a certain location, and before he would start his drive, he would be concerned about whether he would be saved or lost if something happened to him on the way. He said that now that he believes that a Christian cannot fall away from Christ due to the “continual cleansing,” he does not have those worries anymore. This false doctrine makes him feel good, just like the “once saved, always saved” doctrine no doubt makes a lot of Baptists feel good, too. It is all a doctrine of convenience. We have to study the Bible and learn for ourselves about all of the things we have to do in order to remain faithful throughout our lives. We certainly cannot follow the words of men, no matter how nice they are or how well-esteemed they are in the brotherhood. I hope that this lesson has shed some more light on the false doctrine of “Once baptized, always saved,” so that we may not fall into the trap of believing that baptism is all that we need to do in order to go to Heaven.  Since the Prom is coming up soon, I thought I would dedicate this article to what the Bible says about such events as this and other social dances. I know that the Prom is a very popular event to attend for high school seniors, however, a Christian teen and any other young Christian must first think about what is most important to God, rather than what is important to the world.
I am glad to say that I did not attend the Prom or any other social dance growing up, even though I had opportunity to do so. I was asked twice by a young man who was also a senior in high school,to attend the Prom with him, but I declined the invitation both times. I did not want to hurt my influence in front of others by causing them to think that I danced at an event such as this. I am also glad that my husband did not attend the Prom as well. We can teach our children from our example about not attending the Prom, and we do not intend on allowing our children to attend these events. The main issue with the Prom and other social dances is just that, dancing. Dancing in and of itself is not wrong, as long as it is done in the privacy of your own home between those who are married. The issue of dancing in public, especially dancing between members of the opposite sex, however, is that activities such as this may tempt a person to lust. Dancing usually involves either making sensuous movements or touching of some sort between males and females, and these actions could cause lustful thoughts. I John 2:16 speaks against lust by saying: “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” Even dancing on your own in front of others can cause others to have lustful thoughts toward you. Even though we cannot control what others do or think, we, as Christians, should never be a stumbling block to others, and we must show ourselves to be in the world but not of the world in front of others. This is shown in Galatians 5:16-21; "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." "Lasciviousness" involves indecent physical movements and unchaste handling of males and females. Clearly, the prom fits under the definition of the word lasciviousness. Knowing the meaning of lasciviousness and knowing for a fact that such occurs at the prom, I am very thankful that there are congregations and families that determine to have prom-alternative trips. We should never participate in activities that can cause ourselves or others to sin. I know that there are many at the prom who dance without the intent of inciting lust in themselves or others, but there is always a risk that this may happen. Another issue with the Prom and other social dances is immodesty. Usually on the night of the Prom, I see many pictures on Facebook of teens in their prom attire. Many of the dresses that the ladies wear are either too low or too short. What is modest is exemplified by how God clothed Adam and Eve after they realized they were naked. Genesis 3:21 says, “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.” He clothed them in coats of skins that covered them from their shoulders to their knees, according to the Hebrew word for “coat” as used here, which means “tunic.” A tunic in the Bible was a garment that reached from the shoulders to at least the knees. Since this is the ONLY example given in the Bible of how God wants us to dress, then wearing anything less today would be immodest. The Bible speaks against exposing our chest, loins, and thighs, and showing any of these body parts is considered “naked” in the Bible. We would be considered naked if we exposed any of these parts while either standing or sitting. Since the Prom promotes lustful actions such as dancing, it is no wonder that there is such a prevalence of young ladies who are also dressing in a lustful manner. It all seems to tie together. What about younger Christians who are too young for the Prom? Should they be able to attend school formals, and dances in middle school and high school? Would these events teach them that it is acceptable to dance in public and dress immodestly? Do these events teach young Christians that it is acceptable to attend the Prom? A dance in middle school or high school is the same as a Prom. Anywhere that dancing is taking place can cause a Christian young person to place a stumbling block before themselves or before others. Therefore it is best that parents teach their children that being a good influence to others is more important than following the crowd. I John 2:15 says, “Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” What if a Christian attends a social dance but doesn’t dress immodestly or dance? It is good that a Christian young person chooses to dress modestly and chooses not to dance at such an event. However, attending an event that involves dancing can harm a Christian’s influence in front of others. We must always guard our influence in front of others, because it is our job as Christians to lead others to Christ. I Timothy 4:12 says, “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” How can we lead others to Christ if we do not show ourselves to be Christ-like? Would Jesus go to the Prom or any other social dance? If He did, He would speak against the activities taking place. It would be acceptable if a Christian youth went to the Prom or any other social dance to teach against these activities, but how many young Christians do this? Our goal should be achieving the gift of Heaven, and not being pleasing to men. Matthew 5:13 says, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” A new episode called "Lack of Knowledge" can be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast!! Click the "Play" button in the upper right corner of this page to listen!!   Being impulsive is something that many people have a problem with today. The word “impulsive” comes from the word “impulse” which means “a sudden spontaneous inclination or incitement to some usually unpremeditated action” according to Merriam-Webster Dictionary.[1] The practice of speaking or doing things “before we think” is a common thing among some people. They choose to say or do certain things without thinking of the consequences of their actions. This habit is not viewed favorably by God, and it can cause us a lot of problems if we go through life acting on impulse. In this article, I would like to discuss some ways that a Christian can act on impulse, and the dangers that an impulsive mindset can provide.
First of all, some Christians can have the negative habit of saying hurtful things to others before they think through all of the possible outcomes and consequences that their words will have on themselves and others. James 1:19 is a handy verse to have memorized in such a situation where a person may be tempted to speak negatively on impulse. “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:” It is often in times of anger that a person will “spout off at the mouth” so to speak and say things he or she will most likely regret later. The tongue is the one part of the body that cannot be tamed. “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:8). We can cause a lot of hurt and permanent damage to relationships when we impulsively use our tongue to hurt others. We can also hurt our influence by using our tongues to curse and to take God’s Name in vain. “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. “(Exodus 20:7).[2] We should also not use our tongues to speak about perverted things. “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” (James 3:6). God tells us to use our tongue wisely, and to not be impulsive in our speech. “For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:” (I Peter 3:10). We are to think about what we are going to say before we say them. Anything that we say is a thought before we say it, so we must be sure to guard our thoughts as well. “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8). We must guard our thoughts and guard our tongues against any corrupt or evil thing in order to be faithful Christians. “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” (Ephesians 4:29). If we fail to do so, we will have to answer for our sinful words one day. “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” (Matthew 12:36). Unrighteous anger is another way that some people can act on impulse and commit sin. Just as we should monitor our speech, we can also learn from James 1:19 that we should be “slow to wrath.” By being “slow to wrath” we must make sure that we do not have unrighteous anger. We can, however, have righteous anger and not sin. What is the difference between righteous and unrighteous anger? Righteous anger occurs when we become angry at sin. Jesus showed righteous anger when He came into the temple and saw the moneychangers selling items to use in animal sacrifices. “And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.” (Mark 11:15-17). Jesus showed righteous anger because He became angry with sin. It is acceptable by God to show righteous anger as long as we do it in a way that we do not sin ourselves. For instance, we cannot become angry at sin and use profanity or mistreat the person who is committing the sin. On the contrary, we must treat everyone with respect and love, even when we are rebuking them regarding their sins. “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.” (Leviticus 19:17). We commit sin when we have unrighteous anger. Unrighteous anger occurs when we become angry over matters of opinion rather than matters of biblical right and wrong in which we become angry about sinful things. For example, when I was a practicing mental health counselor, I saw many clients who were required to attend “anger management” therapy sessions. These sessions were often ineffective because the person who was under state probation often did not want to really change his or her pattern of behavior. The person merely wanted to attend the required number of therapy sessions necessary to please the probation officer and let that be it. Anyways, I remember one client in particular who was already on state probation for offences that I cannot remember at the moment. He came to me for a certain number of therapy sessions that were centered on “anger management.” His probation officer made attending anger management therapy sessions with me a requirement in order to continue to be on probation and to not have to finish his sentence in jail. Why did this client have to see me for anger management? Because he had thrown an empty, plastic soda bottle at his girlfriend while they were arguing over something to do with the girlfriend’s dog, and she called the police. As you can imagine, the girlfriend was unharmed by the plastic soda bottle, but this client could have avoided the 5 or 6 sessions with me if he had just learned to control his anger. At first, I thought the story could have been made up by the client to cover up what he actually did to his girlfriend, but he brought me a copy of the police report to prove that his story was true. I tried to teach him ways to cope with his anger without doing something wrong, but he was one of those people who did not think he had a problem. This client would have done well to read Ephesians 4:26; “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:” Finally, some people can do things on impulse that are wrong, when they actually meant to do something good. They mean to do something good, but they do not fully think through the process by which they will do the good as they should, and they end up doing wrong. For instance, I had a client that I had one therapy session with which was comprised of taking down information about him to give to the Nurse Practitioner that would be handling his medications. He was an elderly gentleman who was a member of the church of Christ. He was happy to see me because I was one of two therapists there that was a member of the church of Christ. Prior to seeing me, he had spent a couple of days in jail for breaking into cars that he found parked in the street near the apartment in which he lived. This man did not talk much, so I had to get most of my information from his son-in-law who was present during this session. The son-in-law told me that the reason the elderly man was breaking into cars was because he wanted to leave religious tracts which taught about the churches of Christ on the car’s windshield in hopes of converting the owner, but since it was windy and raining on that particular day, the man was breaking the driver side window and leaving the tracts in the seats on the inside of each of the vehicles. This example shows a person who meant to do something good, but went about it the wrong way We should always think things through before we say or do anything. We should always work to be more like Christ and less like the world in which we live every day. We can do this by praying every day, many times a day, and studying our Bibles every day. With a good knowledge of the Bible, we can help ourselves be faithful Christians, as well as teach others to do the same. We can use the Bible to rebuke others as well, in a loving manner. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” (II Timothy 3:16). Saying sinful things and having unrighteous anger will cause us to suffer punishment for eternity if we do not repent of these sins before we either die, or the Day of Judgment comes. Acting in an impulsive manner, no matter the motive, is not worth losing our souls over. “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.” (Colossians 3:8). If Christ would not say or do it, then we should not say or do it as well. “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:” (Ephesians 4:31). I hope that this lesson shows the importance of thinking things through and not acting out impulsively. We must all be sure to take time to think before we speak or act, so that we can let our Christian light shine before the world. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16). A new episode on "The Seed Principle" can now be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! Go to the Podcast page here to listen! https://anchor.fm/brandi-gann, OR click the "Play" button in the upper right hand corner of this blog page to listen!  It is wonderful to hear a little child talk about God. A few days ago, my family and I were riding home from Wednesday night Bible study. On the way, my 6 year old daughter began talking about how wonderful God is. “God is Humble, and God is Love,” she would say. After she had said a few more complimentary things about God, she finished what I call her “Bible lesson” by saying that not only do all lives matter, but God matters the most of all.
This statement really hit home with me because that is exactly what more people in this world need to realize; that God matters most of all. There are many people out there who are so focused on acquiring worldly possessions, worldly praise, fame, fortune, and so forth, that they forget Who matters most: God! “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” (Matthew 22:37). If we seek God First in our lives, then everything else will fall into place (Matthew 6:33). Here are some ways that we can show that God matters most in our lives;
A new episode on "How Do You Want to Be Remembered"" can be heard on the 5 Minutes of Faith on Friday Podcast! Click the "Play" button in the upper right hand corner of this page to listen!!  |