Was talking with a former Catholic friend about his thoughts on the Roman Church with the appointment of their new political leader for life. What he said is so insightful I thought. Here we go-
The more I’ve read into Reformed theology compared to Roman Church theology the more I see the difference is that Reformed Theology properly puts the emphasis on faith alone and as scripture as the ultimate authority. We are transformed by faith in Christ and we access that via the scriptures which are the inspired word of God–perfect, complete, and never changing. But it’s not like we can understand scripture by ourselves, so that is why a church and a pastor is needed to guide faithful Christians to a correct understanding of scripture. But the emphasis is always on the believer to be transformed by scripture (guided by the Holy Spirit) through faith in Christ alone as King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the only path to salvation. It’s all pretty simple really.
Then we have the Roman Church, which looks Christian, and kind of sounds Christian, but their teachings and the things they say are suspiciously complicated. The just can’t put things simply and succinctly like I wrote of Reformed theology above. They can never actually articulate what it is they believe. But they do seem awfully keen on tithes going back to Rome. That much is clear. The Pope is some kind of first among equals on Earth and has a special line to God “ex cathedra”. Even to the extent he can just declare arbitrary doctrine like the veneration of saints or worship of Mary without any scriptural basis. In fact, scripture is sort of suspiciously kept quite guarded in the Roman Church and the laity really aren’t supposed to get into it.
Then there is the whole magical woo woo of the sacraments and sacramentals. This is another subtle but telling difference. My understanding of Reformed theology is that an individual needs to have faith in order for the gifts of the spirit to manifest. But in the Roman Church the priest has magical powers to sprinkle holy water here and there and make evil spirits disappear, or else forgive sins, or whatever, and it seems faith is never really a requirement for either party.
Frankly I think that the Roman Church is actually a Pagan institution. The laity are essentially hoping for secrets and spells to make their lives go well. Hence the focus on idols such as statues of saints, holy water, priestly vestments etc. it’s all about superstition and magic and spells and hocus pocus to make the night terrors go away. There is no emphasis on the change of the heart and rebirth through accepting Christ as Lord and savior.
Ultimately, the Roman Church is a worldly institution with political and economic clout which makes all its doctrines obedient to getting and keeping more of those two. The splendor of the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel and the Pope’s private jet and the Cardinals’ opulent living must be funded whether by the sale of indulgences, or by any other such means. The doctrine is then anything that supports that. So climate change has a lot of grift money in it and so we see the pope focusses on that. The LGBT lobby has money and power and so we see the pope saying same sex marriage must be blessed. And people want to feel reassured in a scary world, so the Roman Church sells them trinkets and statues and “holy” water and magic wafers and never so much as demands anybody even read the bible never mind believe anything that’s written in it. So Luther, I’m my opinion, was 100% correct with his criticisms and those criticisms are pretty much all still valid today.
I don’t know why my family remained in that church for so long. I found a research paper on the subject of recusancy (people refusing to convert to Protestantism) in the county in which I was born and raised. It was very high, and there were many factors behind it. People in my family tend to be quite disagreeable and don’t like being told what to do (especially not by London) so that may have had something to do with it. Maybe the priests were better pre Vatican II. But the more I read of the 17th century, the more strongly I relate to the “non conformists” (puritans), and I don’t understand why my ancestors did not go down that path. If they had been in the capital or at least in a city perhaps they would have. And maybe I’ve benefited from an age where I could read about all this history and theology from the comfort of my phone screen or computer so I could see things more clearly than they did.
It’s quite amazing to me that 400 years later the Reformation is essentially still playing out.
Mr. Smith Wigglesworth- Born 8 June 1859 – On To Glory 12 March 1947
I am not moved by what I see. I am moved only by what I believe.
Smith Wigglesworth
If you seek nothing but the will of God, He will always put you in the right place at the right time.
Smith Wigglesworth
There are four principles we need to maintain: First, read the Word of God. Second, consume the Word of God until it consumes you. Third believe the Word of God. Fourth, act on the Word.
Smith Wigglesworth
The reason the world is not seeing Jesus is that Christian people are not filled with Jesus. They are satisfied with attending meetings weekly, reading the Bible occasionally, and praying sometimes. It is an awful thing for me to see people who profess to be Christians lifeless, powerless, and in a place where their lives are so parallel to unbelievers’ lives that it is difficult to tell which place they are in, whether in the flesh or in the Spirit.
Smith Wigglesworth
There is nothing impossible with God. All the impossibility is with us when we measure God by the limitations of our unbelief. Smith Wigglesworth
Great faith is the product of great fights. Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests. Great triumphs can only come out of great trials. Smith Wigglesworth
A man is in a great place when he has no one to turn to but God. Smith Wigglesworth
There is something about believing God that will cause Him to pass over a million people to get to you Smith Wigglesworth
Some people read their Bibles in Hebrew, some in Greek; I like to read mine in the Holy Ghost. Smith Wigglesworth
God wants us so badly that he has made the condition as simple as he possibly could: Only believe. Smith Wigglesworth
You must every day make higher ground. You must deny yourself to make progress with God. You must refuse every- thing that is not pure and holy. God wants you pure in heart. He wants you to have an intense desire after holiness… Two things will get you to leap out of yourselves into the promises of God today. One is purity, and the other is FAITH, which is kindled more and more BY PURITY. Smith Wigglesworth
The devil knows if he can capture your thought life he has won a mighty victory over you. Smith Wigglesworth
God does not call those who are equipped, He equips those whom He has called. Smith Wigglesworth
I am not moved by what I see. I am moved only by what I believe. Smith Wigglesworth
I don’t often spend more than half an hour in prayer at one time, but I never go more than half an hour without praying. Smith Wigglesworth
To hunger and thirst after righteousness is when nothing in the world can fascinate us so much as being near God. Smith Wigglesworth
God never intended His people to be ordinary or commonplace. His intentions were that they should be on fire for Him, conscious of His divine power, realizing the glory of the cross that foreshadows the crown. Smith Wigglesworth
We must be careful not to choose, but to let God’s Holy Spirit manage our lives; not to smooth down and explain away, but to stir up the gift and allow God’s Spirit to disturb us and disturb us and disturb us until we yield and yield and yield and the possibility in God’s mind for us becomes an established fact in our lives, with the rivers in evidence meeting the need of a dying world. Smith Wigglesworth
The secret of spiritual success is a hunger that persists…It is an awful condition to be satisfied with one’s spiritual attainments…God was and is looking for hungry, thirsty people. Smith Wigglesworth
Desire God, and you will have desires from God. Smith Wigglesworth
Enter into the promises of God. It is your inheritance. You will do more in one year if you are really filled with the Holy Ghost than you could do in fifty years apart from Him. Smith Wigglesworth
We must see the face of the Lord …. There are things that God says to me that I know must take place. It doesn’t matter what people say. I have been face to face with some of the most trying moments of men’s lives when it meant so much to me if I kept the vision, and if I held fast to that which God had said. A man must be in an immovable condition. The voice of God must mean to him more than what he sees, feels, or what people say. Smith Wigglesworth
God wants to purify our minds until we can bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things. God dwells in you, but you cannot have this divine power until you live and walk in the Holy Ghost, until the power of the new life is greater than the old life. Smith Wigglesworth
God’s Word never fails. He will always heal you if you dare to believe Him. Men are searching everywhere today for things with which they can heal themselves, and they ignore the fact that the Balm of Gilead (Jeremiah 8:22) is within easy reach. Smith Wigglesworth
There is a great destructive force that comes upon us when we start comparing ourselves in the flesh with what we could be spiritually. We should never compare what we are with what we could be, because we will always be down on ourselves when we do this. Just look to Jesus and what He is. As long as we look to Jesus we will go toward Him. When we look at our inferiority we will go toward it. Smith Wigglesworth
The power of God will take you out of your own plans and put you into the plan of God. Smith Wigglesworth
When we come to the place of impossibilities, it is the grandest place for us to see the possibilities of God. Smith Wigglesworth
Believe that when you come into the presence of God you can have all you came for. You can take it away, and you can use it, for all the power of God is at your disposal in response to your faith. Smith Wigglesworth
If you are in the same place today as you were yesterday, you are a backslider. Smith Wigglesworth
God can so fill a man with His Spirit that he can laugh and believe in the face of a thousand difficulties. Smith Wigglesworth
If I read the newspaper I come out dirtier than I went in. If I read my Bible, I come out cleaner than I went in, and I like being clean! Smith Wigglesworth
I can’t understand God by feelings. I can’t understand the Lord Jesus Christ by feelings. I can only understand God the Father and Jesus Christ by what the Word says about them. God is everything the Word says He is. We need to get acquainted with Him through the Word. Smith Wigglesworth
You must come to see how wonderful you are in God and how helpless you are in yourself. Smith Wigglesworth
I find nothing in the Bible but holiness, and nothing in the world but worldliness. Therefore, if I live in the world, I will become worldly; on the other hand, if I live in the Bible, I will become holy. Smith Wigglesworth
When things are not going right, there are satanic forces in operation. What is my solution? To rebuke the condition of sin, death, disease, or whatever it is. I can pray in the Holy Ghost, and that prayer is effectual to bring down every stronghold of the enemy. Smith Wigglesworth
God has privileged us in Christ Jesus to live above the ordinary human plane of life. Those who want to be ordinary and live on a lower plane can do so, but as for me, I will not. Smith Wigglesworth
It is one to say you have faith and another to be in a tight corner and prove it. Smith Wigglesworth
Before a man can bind the enemy, he must know there is nothing binding him. Smith Wigglesworth
God is more eager to answer than we are to ask. Smith Wigglesworth
When the saint ceases to seek after holiness, purity, righteousness, truth; when he ceases to pray, stops reading the Word and gives way to carnal appetites, then it is that Satan comes. Smith Wigglesworth
Before God could bring me to this place He has broken me a thousand times. Smith Wigglesworth
Praise is God’s sunlight in the heart. It destroys sin germs. It ripens the fruits of the Spirit. It is the oil of gladness that lubricates life’s activities. Smith Wigglesworth
There is nothing small about our God, and when we understand God we will find out that there ought not to be anything small about us. We must have an enlargement of our conception of God, then we will know that we have come to a place where all things are possible, for our God is an omnipotent God for impossible positions. Smith Wigglesworth
I can get more out of God by believing Him for one minute than by shouting at Him all night. Smith Wigglesworth
You have to bring your mind to the Word of God and not try to bring the Word of God to your mind. Smith Wigglesworth
When faith lays hold, impossibilities must yield. Smith Wigglesworth
Read the Word. Consume the Word until it consumes you. Believe the Word. Act on the Word. Smith Wigglesworth
I’d rather die believing than live doubting Smith Wigglesworth
It is better to live ready than to get ready! Smith Wigglesworth
The trouble is that we do not have the power of God in a full manifestation because of our finite thoughts, but as we go on and let God have His way, there is no limit to what our limitless God will do in response to a limitless faith. But you will never get anywhere except you are in constant pursuit of all the power of God. Smith Wigglesworth
There was never one who came into the world with such loving compassion and who entered into all the needs of the people as did the Lord Jesus. And he declares to us, ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my father.’ [Jn 14.12] God wants us all to have an audacity of faith that dares to believe for all that is set forth in the word. Smith Wigglesworth
Nothing in the world glorifies God so much as simple rest of faith in what God’s Word says. Smith Wigglesworth
If it is in the Bible, it is so. It’s not even to be prayed about. It’s to be received and acted upon. Inactivity is a robber which steals blessings. Increase comes by action, by using what we have and know. Your life must be one of going on from faith to faith. Smith Wigglesworth
Real faith has perfect peace and joy and a shout at any time. It always sees the victory. Smith Wigglesworth
There is nothing that our God cannot do. He will do everything if you will dare to believe. Smith Wigglesworth
There are two sides to this Baptism: The first is, you possess the Spirit; The second is that the Spirit possesses you. Smith Wigglesworth
Voice your position in God and you will be surrounded by all the resources of God in the time of trial. Smith Wigglesworth
I want you to promise the Lord that, from tonight, you will not think back, look back, or act back! Smith Wigglesworth
Fear looks; faith jumps. Faith never fails to obtain its object. If I leave you as I found you, I am not God’s channel. I am not here to entertain you, but to get you to the place where you can laugh at the impossible. Smith Wigglesworth
One man in a meeting, filled with unbelief, can make a place for the devil to have a seat. Smith Wigglesworth
Life comes after you have been filled with the Holy Spirit. Get down and pray for power. Smith Wigglesworth
Perfect love will never want the preeminence in everything, it will never want to take the place of another, it will always be willing to take the back seat. Smith Wigglesworth
How can one come to possess great faith? Now listen, here is the answer to that: First, the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. Faith must grow by soil, moisture, and exercise. Smith Wigglesworth
Dare to believe, and then dare to speak, and you shall have whatsoever you say if you doubt not. Smith Wigglesworth
Live in the Acts of the Apostles, and every day you will see some miracle worked by the power of the living God. Smith Wigglesworth
Without faith, you have nothing. You cannot be saved without it. You cannot be healed without it. Smith Wigglesworth
The plan of God for your life is that you should be held captive by His power, doing that which you in the natural world would never do, but that which you are forced to do by the power of the Holy Ghost moving through you. Smith Wigglesworth
To the man of faith, there is not a thing that is not opportunity. Smith Wigglesworth
I believe that God wants to put His hand upon us so that we may reach ideal definitions of humility, of human helplessness, of human insufficiency, until we will rest no more upon human plans, but have God’s thoughts, God’s voice, and the Holy Spirit to speak to us. Smith Wigglesworth
Great faith is the product of great fights. Smith Wigglesworth
You must be yielded to the Word of God. The Word will work out love in our hearts, and when practical love is in our hearts, there is no room to boast about ourselves. We see ourselves as nothing when we get lost in this divine love. Smith Wigglesworth
Whatever God has done for other men, He can do for me. Smith Wigglesworth
I never get out of bed in the morning without having communion with God in the Spirit. Smith Wigglesworth
Pentecost came with the sound of a mighty rushing wind, a violent blast from heaven! Heaven has not exhausted its blasts, but our danger is we are getting frightened of them. Smith Wigglesworth
I want to help you decide that, by the power of God, you will not be ordinary. Smith Wigglesworth
In me is working a power stronger than every other power. The life that is in me is a thousand times bigger than I am outside. Smith Wigglesworth
The moment a man falls into sin, divine life ceases to flow, and his life becomes one of helplessness. Smith Wigglesworth
Wherever the Holy Ghost has right of way, the gifts of the Spirit will be in manifestation; and where these gifts are never in manifestation, I question whether He is present. Smith Wigglesworth
It is impossible to overestimate the importance of being filled with the Spirit. Smith Wigglesworth
A prayer without faith is without accomplishment Smith Wigglesworth
The living Word is able to destroy Satanic forces. Smith Wigglesworth
God wants His people to be ablaze with Holy Ghost activity. Smith Wigglesworth
There are two kinds of faith. There is the natural faith. But the supernatural faith is the gift of God. Smith Wigglesworth
Two things will get you to leap out of yourselves into the promises of God today. One is purity, and the other is FAITH, which is kindled more and more BY PURITY. Smith Wigglesworth
God’s canopy is over you and will cover you at all times, preserving you from evil. Smith Wigglesworth
The man who is going through with God to be used in healing must be a man of longsuffering. Smith Wigglesworth
Those who carry the vessels of the Lord must be clean, must be holy (Isa. 52:11). Smith Wigglesworth
God longs intensively for unhindered communication and total response between him and the believer indwelt by the Holy Spirit Smith Wigglesworth
There are boundless possibilities for us if we dare to act in God and dare to believe! Smith Wigglesworth
To live two days in succession on the same spiritual plane is a tragedy Smith Wigglesworth
I cannot understand how God can give to any of His children glory and virtue, but it nevertheless is true that He does…. There is something about believing in God, that makes God willing to pass over a million people just to anoint you. I believe God will always turn out to meet you on a special line if you dare to believe Him. Smith Wigglesworth
If the spirit does not move me, I move the Spirit. Smith Wigglesworth
I’m a thousand times bigger on the inside than I am on the outside. Smith Wigglesworth
There is a place where God, through the power of the Holy Ghost, reigns supreme in our lives. Smith Wigglesworth
All things are possible, only believe. Smith Wigglesworth
The Lord would so cleanse the motive and desires of our hearts that we will seek but one thing only, and that is, His glory. Smith Wigglesworth
It pays to trust God with all and to make no reservation. Smith Wigglesworth
Desire toward God and you will have desires from God and He will meet you on the line of those desires when you reach out in simple faith. Smith Wigglesworth
By the grace of God I want to impart the Word, and bring you into a place where you will dare to act upon the plan of the Word, to so breathe life by the power of the Word that it is impossible for you to go on under any circumstances without his provision. The most difficult things that come to us are to our advantage from God’s side. When we come to the place of impossibilities, it is the grandest place for us to see the possibilities of God. Smith Wigglesworth
The Word of God will bring you into a wonderful place of rest in faith. Smith Wigglesworth
The Spirit reveals, unfolds, takes of the things of Christ and shows them to us, and prepares us to be more than a match for Satanic forces. Smith Wigglesworth
Great triumphs can only come out of great trials Smith Wigglesworth
God has chosen us to help one another. Smith Wigglesworth
There is a fruit of the Spirit that must accompany the gift of healing and that is longsuffering. Smith Wigglesworth
The heart is the mainspring. Smith Wigglesworth
Power from on high . . . It is God inserting into you divine activity with mightiness. Smith Wigglesworth
The devil will endeavor to fascinate through the eyes and through the mind. Smith Wigglesworth
I am never happier in the Lord than when I am in a bedroom with a sick person. Smith Wigglesworth
I am satisfied with the dissatisfaction that never rests until it is satisfied and satisfied again. Smith Wigglesworth
How great is the position of the man who is born of God, born of purity, born of faith, born of life, born of power! Smith Wigglesworth
On 9 May, the Roman church got their new political leader. Many thought it could be an African or an Asian guy this time (no girls allowed). Jorge (“Pope Francis” or Jorge Mario Bergoglio), the previous Argentinian guy was replaced by Robert, the American guy ( now “Pope Leo 14” AKA Robert Francis Prevost).
Happened to listen the tail end of his first message to the guys (religious guys called “cardinals”, no relation to the baseball team). In his message he talked about how he was the descendant of Peter. That one is really hard to follow. How is a guy from Illinois a descendant of a Jewish fisherman? Then he proceeded to be glorifying Mary as “the mother of God”. He said, “May God grant me this grace, today and always, through the loving intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church.” Sorry, but Mary is no longer around and I thought Peter was the founder of the church? Generally his message sounded Christian, but there were some areas of confusion as you see.
I will begin with a word in English, and the rest is in Italian. But I want to repeat the words from the responsorial Psalm: “I will sing a new song to the Lord, because he has done marvels.”
And indeed, not just with me but with all of us. My brother cardinals, as we celebrate this morning, I invite you to recognize the marvels that the Lord has done, the blessings that the Lord continues to pour out on all of us through the ministry of Peter.
You have called me to carry that cross, and to be blessed with that mission, and I know I can rely on each and every one of you to walk with me, as we continue as a Church, as a community of friends of Jesus, as believers to announce the good news, to announce the Gospel.
[Continuing in Italian] “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16). In these words, Peter, asked by the Master, together with the other disciples, about his faith in him, expressed the patrimony that the Church, through the apostolic succession, has preserved, deepened, and handed on for 2,000 years.
Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God: the one Savior who alone reveals the face of the Father.
In him, God, in order to make himself close and accessible to men and women, revealed himself to us in the trusting eyes of a child, in the lively mind of a young person, and in the mature features of a man (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 22), finally appearing to his disciples after the Resurrection with his glorious body. He thus showed us a model of human holiness that we can all imitate, together with the promise of an eternal destiny that transcends all our limits and abilities.
Peter, in his response, understands both of these things: the gift of God and the path to follow in order to allow himself to be changed by that gift. They are two inseparable aspects of salvation entrusted to the Church to be proclaimed for the good of the human race. Indeed, they are entrusted to us, who were chosen by him before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs (cf. Jer 1:5), reborn in the waters of Baptism and, surpassing our limitations and with no merit of our own, brought here and sent forth from here, so that the Gospel might be proclaimed to every creature (cf. Mk 16:15).
In a particular way, God has called me by your election to succeed the Prince of the Apostles, and has entrusted this treasure to me so that, with his help, I may be its faithful administrator (cf. 1 Cor 4:2) for the sake of the entire mystical Body of the Church. He has done so in order that she may be ever more fully a city set on a hill (cf. Rev 21:10), an ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history and a beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world. And this, not so much through the magnificence of her structures or the grandeur of her buildings – like the monuments among which we find ourselves – but rather through the holiness of her members. For we are the people whom God has chosen as his own, so that we may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light (cf. 1 Pet 2:9).
Peter, however, makes his profession of faith in reply to a specific question: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Mt 16:13). The question is not insignificant. It concerns an essential aspect of our ministry, namely, the world in which we live, with its limitations and its potential, its questions and its convictions.
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” If we reflect on the scene we are considering, we might find two possible answers, which characterize two different attitudes.
First, there is the world’s response. Matthew tells us that this conversation between Jesus and his disciples takes place in the beautiful town of Caesarea Philippi, filled with luxurious palaces, set in a magnificent natural landscape at the foot of Mount Hermon, but also a place of cruel power plays and the scene of betrayals and infidelity. This setting speaks to us of a world that considers Jesus a completely insignificant person, at best someone with an unusual and striking way of speaking and acting. And so, once his presence becomes irksome because of his demands for honesty and his stern moral requirements, this “world” will not hesitate to reject and eliminate him.
Then there is the other possible response to Jesus’ question: that of ordinary people. For them, the Nazarene is not a charlatan, but an upright man, one who has courage, who speaks well and says the right things, like other great prophets in the history of Israel. That is why they follow him, at least for as long as they can do so without too much risk or inconvenience. Yet to them he is only a man, and therefore, in times of danger, during his passion, they too abandon him and depart disappointed.
What is striking about these two attitudes is their relevance today. They embody notions that we could easily find on the lips of many men and women in our own time, even if, while essentially identical, they are expressed in different language.
Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent. Settings where other securities are preferred, like technology, money, success, power, or pleasure.
These are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied. Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society.
Today, too, there are many settings in which Jesus, although appreciated as a man, is reduced to a kind of charismatic leader or superman. This is true not only among non-believers but also among many baptized Christians, who thus end up living, at this level, in a state of practical atheism.
This is the world that has been entrusted to us, a world in which, as Pope Francis taught us so many times, we are called to bear witness to our joyful faith in Jesus the Savior. Therefore, it is essential that we too repeat, with Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16).
It is essential to do this, first of all, in our personal relationship with the Lord, in our commitment to a daily journey of conversion. Then, to do so as a Church, experiencing together our fidelity to the Lord and bringing the Good News to all (cf. Lumen Gentium, 1).
I say this first of all to myself, as the Successor of Peter, as I begin my mission as Bishop of Rome and, according to the well-known expression of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, am called to preside in charity over the universal Church (cf. Letter to the Romans, Prologue). Saint Ignatius, who was led in chains to this city, the place of his impending sacrifice, wrote to the Christians there: “Then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ, when the world no longer sees my body” (Letter to the Romans, IV, 1). Ignatius was speaking about being devoured by wild beasts in the arena – and so it happened – but his words apply more generally to an indispensable commitment for all those in the Church who exercise a ministry of authority. It is to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified (cf. Jn 3:30), to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.
May God grant me this grace, today and always, through the loving intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church.
Romans 14:17 (NKJV) 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. ローマ 14:17 なぜなら、神＜かみ＞の国＜くに＞は飲＜の＞み食＜く＞いのことではなく、義＜ぎ＞と平＜へい＞和＜わ＞と聖＜せい＞霊＜れい＞による喜＜よろこ＞びだからです。
James 1:2-3 (NKJV) 2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. ヤコブ 1:2 私の兄＜きょう＞弟＜だい＞たち。さまざまな試＜し＞練＜れん＞に会＜あ＞うときは、それをこの上＜うえ＞もない喜＜よろこ＞びと思＜おも＞いなさい。 ヤコブ 1:3 信＜しん＞仰＜こう＞がためされると忍＜にん＞耐＜たい＞が生＜しょう＞じるということを、あなたがたは知＜し＞っているからです。
Psalms 47:1 (NKJV) 1 Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! 詩篇 47:1 すべての国＜くに＞々＜ぐに＞の民＜たみ＞よ。手＜て＞をたたけ。喜＜よろこ＞びの声＜こえ＞をあげて神＜かみ＞に叫＜さけ＞べ。
Isaiah 9:3 (NKJV) 3 You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. イザヤ 9:3 あなたはその国＜こく＞民＜みん＞をふやし、その喜＜よろこ＞びを増＜ま＞し加＜くわ＞えられた。彼＜かれ＞らは刈＜か＞り入＜い＞れ時＜どき＞に喜＜よろこ＞ぶように、分＜ぶん＞捕＜ど＞り物＜もの＞を分＜わ＞けるときに楽＜たの＞しむように、あなたの御＜み＞前＜まえ＞で喜＜よろこ＞んだ。
1 Peter 1:8-9 (NKJV) 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. １ペテロ 1:8 あなたがたはイエス・キリストを見＜み＞たことはないけれども愛＜あい＞しており、いま見＜み＞てはいないけれども信＜しん＞じており、ことばに尽＜つ＞くすことのできない、栄＜さか＞えに満＜み＞ちた喜＜よろこ＞びにおどっています。 １ペテロ 1:9 これは、信＜しん＞仰＜こう＞の結＜けっ＞果＜か＞である、たましいの救＜すく＞いを得＜え＞ているからです。
Luke 15:7 (NKJV) 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. ルカ 15:7 あなたがたに言＜い＞いますが、それと同＜おな＞じように、ひとりの罪＜つみ＞人＜びと＞が悔＜く＞い改＜あらた＞めるなら、悔＜く＞い改＜あらた＞める必＜ひつ＞要＜よう＞のない九十九人＜にん＞の正＜ただ＞しい人＜ひと＞にまさる喜＜よろこ＞びが天＜てん＞にあるのです。
Nehemiah 8:10 (NKJV) 10 Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” ネヘミヤ 8:10 さらに、ネヘミヤは彼＜かれ＞らに言＜い＞った。「行＜い＞って、上＜じょう＞等＜とう＞な肉＜にく＞を食＜た＞べ、甘＜あま＞いぶどう酒＜しゅ＞を飲＜の＞みなさい。何＜なに＞も用＜よう＞意＜い＞できなかった者＜もの＞にはごちそうを贈＜おく＞ってやりなさい。きょうは、私たちの主＜しゅ＞のために聖＜せい＞別＜べつ＞された日＜ひ＞である。悲＜かな＞しんではならない。あなたがたの力＜ちから＞を【主＜しゅ＞】が喜＜よろこ＞ばれるからだ。」
15 Sept- The Power Of God’s Joy 930am 神の喜びの力 – スペンサー・パトリック牧師 イエスを受け入れない限り、人類は皆滅びてしまうことは疑いのない事実です。イエスなしでは、人生を全うすることは決してできません。男女を問わず、救われるためにはイエスを知らなければなりません。しかし、救われることは始まりに過ぎません。救われた後、問題や困難が訪れないわけではありません。誰かがあなたのドアをノックしたからといって、その人を家に入れなければならないわけではありません。神様と共に過ごす中で、神様は素晴らしい道具を与えてくださいます。その道具のひとつが喜びです。ビクトリー・ワード・チャーチによるこの素晴らしいビデオで、神様の喜びがあなたの人生にもたらす力を学んでください。
11am The Power Of God’s Joy- Pastor Spencer Patrick There is no doubt that without accepting Jesus that all of mankind is lost. You will never fulfill your life without Jesus. Men and women must know Jesus to be saved. But getting saved is just the beginning. After getting saved, it does not mean that trouble and hardship will not come knocking at your door. Just because someone comes to your door does not mean you have to let them in. God has given us amazing tools as we spend time with Him. One of those tools is joy. Learn about the power of God’s joy in your life in this great video from Victory Word Church.
What you have today is a result of what you did yesterday. Blaming things you don’t understand on ‘God’s Will’ is foolish. God is good. You have to choose to go after Him, with all you’ve got.
It is with great sadness we have been notified that Brother Jerry Savelle has graduated to Heaven and is now with the Almighty God. He was very special to us. After leaving our Christian denomination studies for the ministry, we went on to be licensed and later ordained by Brother Jerry in Crawley, Texas. Although, we did not talk to him frequently, Jerry Savelle was definitely a spiritual father and inspiration to us.
We will never forget all that Jerry has done for the Kingdom. From a mechanic in Louisiana fixing car bodies to a major voice for the goodness of God around the world, Brother Jerry demonstrated in His life that nothing is impossible to those who believe. His messages are uplifting and refreshing, showing that whomever you are, if you walk by faith, your life can become an adventure. Jerry called life adventures in faith.
Our favorite message was Jerry preaching Oral Roberts’ message “The Fourth Man”. You can see the video we pulled together of it here. From a guy fixing cars in Louisiana to a God-lover encouraging and building the body of Christ around the world, we would have never been the same without Jerry.
Praise God for Jerry Savelle! A job well done, good and faithful servant of the most high God! We are going to miss you!
(8 June 2023) Years ago I felt led by the Holy Spirit to make a trip to Virginia to meet Gordon Robertson and see the things that were going on in the ministries there of Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), Regent University, Operation Blessing, and all the associated ministries there on the campus of this great ministry. Although I did not talk with him personally, I was very impressed by the impact one man’s faith can have on a generation. This is the guy that my state of Washington elected as our candidate for the president of the United States. This is the guy who built a ministry to tell people about Jesus, to educate people in God’s ways as well as the ways of commerce and government. Pat Robertson is the embodiment of what God can do through anyone with a bit of faith and motivation. He impacted his generation through using ‘every available voice’ of TV, the internet, radio, print media, books, and much more.
On my visit I stayed at the Founders Inn. This was the on campus hotel for visitors. I was welcomed by Gordon Robertson and got to hear about his vision as CEO of this vast ministry his father had founded. We also talked about what God is doing in Japan. It was neat to see the ministries in animation that they have done for Japan with Superbook. This week we lost a champion of the faith, but the foundation of what Pat Robertson did has changed our world for ever. Now it’s our turn.
