Why Christmas?

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.  Man sinned, therefore, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  Sin is everything contrary to that which is right, God is right!  The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Jesus never sinned, but He willingly died for our sins according to the scriptures, and He was buried, and He was raised on the third day according to the scriptures; presenting Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to His disciples over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.  Jesus ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God and is presently making intercession on behalf of everyone who comes to God through faith in Him.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  Christmas is the celebration of the first coming of Christ.  Jesus came as a baby in a manger; the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  Jesus second coming will not be as a baby in a manger. He will return at a time of the Fathers choosing as King for judgment.

But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious thrown.  All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on His left.  The sheep are all those who believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; they hear His voice and follow Him as Lord and Savior.  The goats are all those who do not believe in Jesus, reject Him, and do not receive His sayings.  The goats will go away into eternal punishment, but the sheep into eternal life.

NEVER GIVE UP

This is my blog dedicated to my Lord who bought me at a high price; His own blood, therefore, I am a slave of Jesus Christ.  My former master is cruel for the wages of sin is death, but Jesus my Lord and Savior is kind, He redeemed me from the penalty of sin; and He is redeeming me from the power of sin; and He will redeem me from the presence of sin.  Therefore, all that I do belongs to Christ.

In the summer of 1992 I got out of the Army after nearly 5 years of service; I was lost and did not know what to do, I had a wife and child with no job.  At that time, I did not know the Lord and was not following Him, but I can now see the hand of God in everything.  I had signed up for the Army college fund when I joined the Army, so I decided to go to school that fall since I would receive a monthly check while attending college.

I attended the local community college that was near my boyhood home.  Richland College in Dallas, Texas.  After two years of college I received an Associates of Arts & Sciences in May of 1994.  A general studies degree received at a junior college prior to beginning junior and senior level classes at a university.  My wife was a surgical technologist, so I knew several nurses and thought that it would be a good profession.  I applied to the University of Texas at Arlington in an attempt to get a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, I was not accepted.

I was now back where I was when I got out of the Army feeling hopeless and lost.  I now had two years of college, but still no real wage-earning job.  That summer I retook a class that I had gotten a C in to raise my GPA.  I got a job at Medical City in Dallas and spent the next year as a transporter pushing patients who needed x-rays around the hospital on stretchers and wheelchairs.  During that year I applied again for admittance to the University of Texas at Arlington and also the nursing program with the Dallas County Community Colleges.  Once again, I was not accepted into the University, but I was accepted into the community college nursing program.  I graduated with an Associate Degree in Nursing in December of 1997, passed the nursing board exam and began working as a Registered Nurse.

I quickly gravitated towards Critical Care (ICU) Nursing and then Cardiovascular Intensive Care Nursing.  Once I came to know the Lord and follow Him, April 2003, my outlook on nursing began to change from income oriented to servant oriented.  My personal philosophy of nursing proceeds forth from my faith in Christ Jesus.  God is love and Jesus is the image of the invisible God making Him the personification of love.  He said to love one another even as I have loved you; God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were, yet sinners Christ died for us.  Nurses are helpers of those in need!

It had always bothered me that I was not able to obtain a bachelor’s degree, but it was difficult to justify going back to school when it would change nothing with my job, I would remain a Registered Nurse with or without a bachelor’s degree.  This came to a head in June of 2014.  I enjoy teaching but was not being allowed to teach because of my associate degree and lack of nursing certifications.  Therefore, I applied for the RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at the University that I had been turned away from 21 years prior.

To the glory of God, I graduated on December 17th from the University of Texas at Arlington with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  While sitting and taking part in the graduation ceremony I looked at the decorated caps on many of the young graduates who were just entering the profession of nursing.   Several of them had decorated their cap and some of them had the words written “NEVER GIVE UP”.  Wow!  21 years ago, I was turned away from the University that I am now graduating from.  NEVER GIVE UP! 

While attending school, I had planned to attend seminary since I would now be eligible for graduate school and had a desire to follow my Lord Jesus Christ and serve Him. But while taking part in the graduation ceremony, I saw something that changed me. The graduate students were the first to walk across the stage. There were several receiving a Master of Nursing Administration, there were a great number receiving a Master of Nursing Practice, but a very small number receiving a Master of Nursing Education. With the great majority of graduate students going into advance practice or administration who is going to teach people to be nurses?

The Lord had put me in nursing and my nursing philosophy was given to me by Him. The Lord’s great commission is to make disciples and teach them to obey all that He commanded. I realized that it would be keeping with His great commission to teach young upcoming nurses to love and help people in need. Therefore, my desire is to honor God, exalt Jesus Christ, and seek the best for my neighbor. I believe that this can be accomplished by teaching people about the Lord Jesus Christ and teaching people how to best serve others in nursing.

Josephine Dolan a nurse historian wrote as quoted “Even after nineteen hundred years it is difficult to fully comprehend the impact of the birth of Jesus Christ and His teaching on society and the care of the sick” (Hutchison, 1998).

References

Hutchison, M. (1998 October).  Nursing Yesterday and Today. Retrieved from http://www.ncfansw.org/nursing-yesterday-and-today/

Who Are You Believing In?

I have some free time this morning so I thought that I would write about an encounter that I had yesterday evening and along with that a subject that is dear to my heart.  Yesterday evening I had a young woman come up to me inside of a local store selling Sonic coupon cards for $5.  I say young, I do not know how old she was, because so many look young to me these days.  She said that she was raising money for her church to help needy children.

I asked for the name of her church. She said, "Jesus Christ Church International, we are a nondenominational church."  I then asked her to tell me the gospel.  She then paraphrased 1 Cor 15:3-4.  So I thought, “Ok that’s good.” Then I asked her, “What must I do to be saved?”  She answered, "Believe...And follow the bible."  I then asked, "Would it be correct in saying that you must repent and believe?"  She answered, "Yes."  I asked her, "What does it mean to repent?" She said, "To change."  I then gave her some money and a gospel tract.

When I got to my car I looked up her church on my phone.  I then found out that her church is Oneness Pentecostal. I was saddened that I had not spent more time with her telling her about the Son of God Christ Jesus.  I took solace however in the sovereignty of God, because I had given her a gospel tract that I had written many years ago to hand out at Christmas.  The tract clearly says who Jesus is and what His relationship is to the Father.

Here is what the tract says on the backside:

“If you have ever lied, stolen, murdered (hated), committed adultery (lusted), you have broken God’s commands which the Bible calls sin.  The penalty for sin is death in hell, eternal separation from God (all goodness).  God sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, who took our punishment on the Cross so that we might have eternal life with God in heaven.  All that God requires of you is to repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ, accept Him as Lord by Faith.”

Oneness Pentecostals are (modalist), they believe that Jesus and the Father are the same person, that the Father left heaven and became a man.  This seems to be the opposite theology of Jehovah Witness who denies the deity of Jesus the Christ.  But in all actuality they are two sides of the same unbelieving coin.

             The Lord Jesus said in His high priestly prayer to the Father, “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (Jn 17:3)  Jesus is not the Father He is the Son, the Word of the Father.  Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me.  He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me.” 

So if you worship Jesus you are worshiping God, if you obey Jesus you are obeying God, if you believe in Jesus you are believing in God, if you believe Jesus you are believing God, because Jesus is the Word of God become flesh.  Jesus is not the Father He is the Son, who has all authority in heaven and on earth.  If you disobey the Son of God who are you disobeying?  The answer is you are disobeying God.

Endings

The Lord just before He gave up His Spirit on the cross said, "Tetelestai" which means "It Is Finished".  There are many things that come to an end.  We are now in the last month of the year.  Today Jason McMurray and I spent our last day of the Fall Semester on the campus of Tyler Junior College.  I am in the last chapter of my quest to memorize the Gospel of John.  In a week Lord willing I am done with college and then a week after that I should graduate.

Many things do come to an end.  Some endings are sad and some are happy.  Some endings are seemingly sad as was the case with the Lord's death on the cross, but on the third day when He rose from the dead it turned out to actually be a glorious new beginning.  Jason McMurray and I have already made plans for telling others about Jesus during the spring semester on the campus of Tyler Junior College through the public proclamation of the Word and by striking up conversations about Him with others.

I ask you three questions not to hurt you or belittle you, but because I love you.  Are you a disciple of the Lord Jesus?  If so, are you telling others about Him?  If not then why?  The apostle Paul said,

"Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?" (2 Cor 13:5)

In Christ alone,
Mike Peek
A Slave of Jesus Christ

Let us Go Make Disciples!

There is a big difference between the way one does evangelism and the way one preaches within a body of believers.  The doctrine that I love most is justification; Propitiation or Penal Substitutionary Atonement.  When a believer understands what God did for us on the cross in Christ Jesus, it causes the believer to give thanksgiving and glory to God all the more.

These things are not for the immature, but for the mature.  They are for the spiritual man, and not for the man of flesh.  The apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:14

But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

He then tells the Corinthians in 3:1-3

And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ.  I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able,  for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?

Men who are walking in the flesh cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God, because they are spiritually appraised.   The unbeliever needs milk not solid food.

When I began preaching in open-air the message that I was preaching modeled what the apostle Paul wrote in Romans 3:9-28, sometimes I would even recite that passage.  I did this, because it is a doctrine that I love, and my understanding of it caused me to give thanksgiving and glory to God in Christ Jesus all the more.  It is the reason that I started doing and am presently doing evangelism.

I love this truth, so why wouldn't the world?  Besides that, it was the way that I had been taught to do evangelism.  Use the law to bring the knowledge of sin, warn of hell, tell of Christ Jesus propitiation on the cross, and then call the unbeliever to repent and believe in the gospel.  It never occurred to me that a carnal man could not understand this.

Through memorizing and repeatedly reciting the Gospel According to John I realized something.  The doctrine of justification is found in the gospel accounts of our Lord, but they are not explained until you read the epistles.  Jesus said to His apostles in John 14:25-26

"These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you."

It wasn't until the Spirit came that the apostles understood the cross, and then they passed that knowledge onto the church through the epistles.  Who was Paul writing to when he wrote Romans?  He was writing to the church.

Romans 1:7, to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

How then should we do evangelism?  The fleshy man understands both life and death.  He knows that men die.  People today are not as aware of death as they once were.  When men were riding on horseback, are in a covered wagon, they would come across the dead and the dying.   Today the dying are institutionalized in hospitals, hospice, and nursing homes.  Nevertheless, everyone still knows someone who has died.

With that knowledge, I plan, Lord willing, to continue to talk with men about Jesus through the eye witness account of the apostle John.   How He promised eternal life to everyone who believes in Him.  How He was crucified, dead and buried, and then on the third day rose from the dead.  Telling men that they can trust in Jesus, because He died, and rose from the dead; demonstrating that He can, and will do, what He promised to do.

Matthew 28:18-20, And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, " All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

There is an order to the great commission:

1. We first go make disciples.
2. We then the baptize the disciples in the church.
3. We then teach them to observe all things that Jesus commanded us.

Let us Go Make Disciples!

In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

Think About This

During our outreach to Tyler Junior college on 11/11/15 it appeared that no one was listening and no one was willing to stop and have conversation.  Each week while on campus at 10 minutes to the hour I preach a short gospel message.  It is a 7 minute message that you can read yourself by clicking on, What do I Preach?   I do this because the students are changing classes during the 10 minute period before the hour.  We then pass out Gospel's of John, and other tracts while availing ourselves to talk with both faculty and students.

On this day no one had stopped for the preaching or to have conversation, and we had passed out very few tracts.  At 10 minutes until 12 it was the last time that I would preach before departing for lunch. Two young ladies stopped and were listening as I preached the gospel.  They then saw my ministry partner Jason McMurray who was passing out tracts.  They began talking with him.  As it turns out they were two young christian women and they rejoiced that the gospel was being preached.  They also wanted to know what made us so fearless.

Why would an intelligent, well educated, professional man do something that makes him look and sound like a fool to other men?  I preach the gospel publicly for two reasons:

1. Out of love and thanksgiving towards God, for the grace and kindness He has demonstrated towards me in Christ Jesus my Lord.  I am a wretched sinner deserving of the eternal wrath of almighty God, but He has given me eternal life in His Son.
2. Out of love and compassion for my neighbor.  By profession I am a Critical Care Registered Nurse; which means that I help people, who, because of an illness or an injury cannot sustain life without help.  I help them until their body recovers to the point that it can sustain life without my help.  Many people do recover, but often times they do not, and I am powerless to sustain their lives.  Suffice it to say, I SEE A LOT OF DEATH.

Jesus said that He is the Christ, which means that He is the anointed One of God.  Jesus said that He is the Son of God.  The Jews understood, that by His saying, "I am the Son of God", He was making Himself equal with God.  Jesus told the Jews on several occasions, "The works that I do in My Father's name, these testify of Me."

Jesus promised eternal life to everyone who believes in Him.  He was brutally beaten, marched through the streets of Jerusalem, nailed to a cross of wood, on which He suffered and died a gruesome public death.  He was buried, and then on the third day He defeated death and rose from the dead.

            

Thank about this for a minute: Jesus claimed to be the Christ, the Son of God.  He demonstrated by His works that He is in truth who He claimed to be.  Jesus promised eternal life to everyone who believes in Him.  He demonstrated His power over death by dying and then rising from the dead.  What are you waiting for?   "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

Black Rhinoceros

There is nothing like having a rhinoceros stair at you.  What is he thinking?  I have no fear of this particular rhinoceros charging, because between he an I there is a great chasm and if that were not enough there is also a fence.  As I look at the fence I don't think that it was designed to keep the rhinoceros in, but rather to keep people out.

This picture was taken at the Caldwell Zoo in Tyler, Texas.  I have a secret place that I like to go to, I use the Caldwell Zoo like a local park to get outside to sit and read on a nice day.  My secret reading spot is off the beaten path.  It is a wooden deck with wooden benches facing this Black Rhinoceros and behind me are caged Cheetahs.  People will often come to the edge of this oasis to look at the rhinoceros, but rarely come all the way in, because it would take them off the path leading around the park.

I have been a Registered Nurse for 18 years, I graduated with an Associates Degree in nursing in December of 1997.  I started back to school with the intent of obtaining a Bachelors of Science in Nursing, Lord willing, I will graduate on December 17th.  I have pushed all the way through with very little breaks, I had this past week off from school and the weather was nice so I took the opportunity to visit my favorite reading place.

The book that I was reading on this particular occasion was (On The Incarnation, written by Athanasius of Alexandria).  You won't find this book on the NY Times best seller list.  Athanasius was Bishop of Alexandria, he was born in 296 AD in Alexandria, Egypt and departed to be with the Lord in 373 AD.

The book was very short, but I found to be fantastic.  The way that he describes the Lord and continually refers to Him as being the word causes one to see these things in the mind vividly.  I began following the Lord in May of 2003 and have been reading His word ever since.  I have read a few Christian books, but only a few, almost everything that I know about the Lord comes directly out of scripture.

I have decided that I would like to read some other books, but where to begin.  Should I read the many modern books that can be found on the shelf at Lifeway ? I have tried a few of those in the past, but something seemed to be missing, mainly a deep understanding of the Lord.  Oh they use scripture that's for sure, but something wasn't there.

Should I read someone like C. H. Spurgeon who wrote and preached in the 19th century?  Should I go back to the Reformulation period and read Luther and Calvin?  Then I thought, before doing that why not go back to the beginning of the church and read those who followed in the foot steps of the apostles.  My pastor at Sylvania Church, Phillip Dancey, just so happens to have a Doctorate in Patristics.   Patristics is the study of early Christian writers.

So post graduation, a plan, Lord willing, to begin reading what our brothers in Christ wrote down through the ages, starting in 100 AD.  I would like to begin as close to the apostolic period as possible and read primary writings rather than read about the period alone.  There were many heresies dealt with during the Patristic period.  It is excepted that the patristic period began in 100 AD and ended in 590 AD when Gregory the great became Bishop of Rome starting the Papacy.





In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

www.aslaveofjesuschrist.com

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

Twilight

I took this picture a few days ago when leaving work.  I just love the evening at twilight; you know, that moment when the sun sets and day turns into night.  The sky is still blue and filled with light, but things on the ground become dusky and obscured.  This always causes me to look up, because that's where the light is.  This time period in the cycle of a day is brief.  The light soon departs and the world is consumed by darkness.

Our Lord and Savior Jesus said, "For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes.  While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light." (Jn 12:35-36).

This past week while ministering at Tyler Junior College I did so with a broken heart.  I have a special intimacy with the Lord as He is portrayed in John's Gospel.  This week on campus, I recited the first three chapters of the Gospel According to John in open-air.  It appeared while doing so, that no one cared.  I am use to this behavior in open-air preaching, but for some reason on this occasion my heart was broken over it.  Perhaps it is the intimacy that I have with the Lord in these passages.

Here is the deal; I love the Lord Jesus Christ and all I want is for you to know Him like I do.  That is the reason that I am proclaiming Him.  If you know Jesus, you will know God, because Jesus and the Father are One. 

This amazing God who gave us all life is both love and truth.  We have all sinned and fallen short of His glory, but because He is love He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (Jn 3:16).



In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

Rejoicing and Scoffing

When I am preaching the Gospel, the good news about eternal life given to us by the grace of God through faith in His Son Jesus Christ alone, we are often met by three types of people.  The three types are those who ignore us (this is the majority), those who rejoice at the preaching of the Gospel, and those who scoff at the preaching of the Gospel.

Something has changed in recent weeks on the campus of Tyler Junior College.  While the majority continue to ignore us, the numbers of those rejoicing and scoffing have both increased.  Those who scoff have become more vociferous. 

I like to preach once each hour, from 10-15 minutes to the hour, because this is the time that the students are moving about changing classes.  During the interim we pass out Gospels According to John and talk with the students who have the period off.

This past Wednesday when I was preaching from 10:45AM-11:00AM two students were simultaneously opposing the preaching of the Gospel.  I didn't know this at the time until I would later speak with Jason McMurray on the telephone.  There was a man talking with Jason at the same time that a young lady came up to me scoffing.  There is no reason to go into detail, but as the case is the majority of time she had judged what I was doing to be unloving.

I am not the stereo typical street preacher; I do not hold up signs, nor call anyone names, I just solely talk about my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I am also not a topical preacher, nor do I explain scripture.  While I do think that there is a place for each of these.  I have only one topic; it is the Lord Jesus Christ, and my style is to proclaim Him through scripture alone.

I do this for a number of reasons:

1. I am not ashamed of the Gospel (Rom 1:16).
2. I believe that the righteous man shall live by faith (Rom 1:17).
3. I believe that Faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of Christ (Rom 10:17).
4. I believe that the sheep hear the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, and He knows them, and they follow Him; and He gives eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of His hand. (Jn 10:27).
5. I believe that it drives out the scoffer (Pr 22:10).

I do not like to argue with anyone.  I have found that when someone comes up to me scoffing; when they find out that I am reciting scripture alone it closes there mouth and they go away.  

 Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Or you will also be like him.
 Answer a fool as his folly deserves,
That he not be wise in his own eyes. (Pr 26:4-5 [NASB])

I think that this is the intent of the proverb.  The scoffer and the fool both go away, but I know that they go away thinking about the exchange.  And I hope when they go away that they consider that I did not retaliate with argumentation, but that I am seeking to follow the One whom I proclaim; the Son of God Jesus Christ.

Lord willing I will spend the remaining seven weeks of this semester going through all of the Gospel According to John.  Preaching 1 chapter at a time beginning at 10-15 minutes to the hour, 3 chapters each outing.  I have been able to hand out about 50 Gospels According to John each outing, about 450 thus far this semester.  I ask anyone willing to pray for this effort; that the sheep hear the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God and follow Him.

In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. 

A Liar and A Fool

Wednesday mornings I have set aside to purposefully go out into the world and share the gospel of Jesus Christ.  What do I mean by share the gospel?  I tell people the good news about Jesus Christ; who He is, what He has done on behalf of His sheep, what He is presently doing on behalf of His sheep, and what He will do; as witnessed and testified to by His apostles in the New Testament.  Since the end of August I and another brother, Jason McMurray of First Baptist Lindale have spent every Wednesday morning until noon on the Campus of Tyler Junior College.  We purpose to do so Lord willing until the end of the fall semester.

This past Wednesday was quite a bit different than the previous weeks.  We found ourselves in many deep conversations and even under attack a few times, which had not happened during the semester previously.  The day itself began strange, even before arriving on campus.

I like to go running every morning when I get a chance.  My normal daily run is about five miles.  While out on a run I like to talk to God and think about His word.  This past Wednesday morning while yet early a car was headed towards me and slowing.  I have seen this many times before, I run on the back roads around Lake Tyler so often someone is lost and looking for directions.

The car had two men in it wearing shirt sleeves and ties.  The driver had a pamphlet in his hand and said; "Can we give you a gospel tract?"   I thought "This is strange!" I am 4 miles into a 5 mile run, thinking about what I am about to preach and a car pulls up beside me and the driver asks can he give me a gospel tract.  So I stop and ask, "Who are you with?"  The man then answered, "We are Jehovah witnesses!"  So I thought briefly as to how I should react to this unexpected meeting.  Being aware of their cult's delusion I elected not to get in a discussion with these men; I was after all on a back road not yet done running and I had somewhere else that I needed to be.  So I followed the advice of scripture and simply said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (Jn 1:1).  I then continued on my run.  Proverbs 26:4-5 says,

"Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Or you will also be like him.
Answer a fool as his folly deserves,
That he not be wise in his own eyes."

As I continued to run I was now thinking about this meeting and a thought entered my mind.  What the man had said; "We are Jehovah witnesses!" was an out right lie.  In order to be a witness of someone you must first have seen them.  Well had these men seen Jehovah?  I think not, John 1:18 says,

"No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him."

And Jehovah Himself previously said to Moses,

 "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!" (Ex 33:20).

There is but One witness of the Father and it is the Son of God Jesus Christ.  For He alone can say,

"I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father." (Jn 8:38).

And we Christians should not say that we are witnesses for Jesus Christ.  There are two witnesses for Jesus Christ and they are not us.  Jesus said to His apostles,

"When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning." (Jn 15:26-27).

This is the reason that I like to talk about Jesus using scripture alone and by handing out Gospels of John.  Almost everything that I say is either scripture quoted or scripture summarized.  Jesus is the Father's witness; the apostles and the Holy Spirit are Jesus' witnesses.

"What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us— what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.  These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete." (1 Jn 1:1-4).

Three Hundred and One

Over 5 years ago on June 19, 2010, I wrote my first blog post titled; "Jesus the Fulfillment of God's Law".   Since then the Lord has allowed me to write 300 post, this will be my 301st post to "A Slave of Jesus Christ".  I do not know who or if anyone reads what the Lord has given me to write, but I have determined to write on this blog once a week.  I do hope that you get something out of my thoughts and reflections as I follow my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I am not a Theologian in the academic since, but I read and memorize the scriptures daily.  I am not a preacher in the since of a defined pulpit inside of an inner-sanctuary of respected persons who sit and listen to what I have to say about the Lord Jesus Christ.  I am an open-air preacher (street preacher), and even in that since I am not a very good one.  I do not like to debate or argue with people; if you listen to what the Lord has given me to say, glory be to God, and if you do not listen the Lord continues in His glory.

I started doing this in January of 2012 after reading a post about some men who had been stoned in the country of Nepal for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Then singing the song "I Surrender All to You" in church.  The Lord used this to convict me to go and tell people about Him.  The next day I wrote a blog called "Sick of Church" .  Don't let the title full you, because it is diffidently not anti-church.  In fact it is pro-church.  What I was sick of was saying that I was a follower of Jesus Christ and not actually dying to self and following Him.


 My ministry of late has been to go to Tyler Junior College and spend 2-3 hours on campus one day a week talking with the students about Jesus Christ; who He is, what He has promised, what He has done, what He is presently doing, and what He will do.  A wonderful brother in Christ by the name of Jason McMurray from First Baptist Lindale, TX, has been joining me there on Wednesday mornings.  My church home is Sylvania Church in Tyler, TX.  I could not be doing this alone!

I like to begin by preaching the message that is linked on this page; "Who is Jesus?", then over the next 2 hours recite chapters out of the Gospel of John, pass out Gospels of John, and talk with students about the Lord.  It has truly been a wonderful time serving the Lord and loving my neighbor.  I hope that the Lord allows me to continue in this ministry for many years to come.  As the apostle Paul said, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Gal 1:21 [NASB])


In Christ alone,
Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

Anathema

Using the word anathema or accursed is very harsh indeed!  The apostle Paul said in his letter to the Galatians;

"But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!  As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" (Gal 1:8-9).

Do you understand what he was saying?  He was saying that if anyone teaches a gospel contrary to what he (Paul) preached consider that man to be accursed.  I say teaching, because that is exactly what preaching is.  Preaching is teaching with authority.

The Roman Catholic church declared during the council of Trent, convened December 13, 1545 to December 14, 1563 many Anathemas  (www.thecounciloftrent.com).  I see this same judgmental attitude in much of the church today.  We are all in our flesh sinners.  Christianity is a revealed religion.  We have the Holy text, the Scriptures, inspired by the Holy Spirit and written by the hand of man.  The scriptures can be read by men, because they were written by men.  But they must be spiritually revealed, because they are Holy Spirit inspired.

So what happens?  One man studying scripture has something revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, and two other men read the same text in the flesh having two other differing views.  So which of the three views is correct?  Well, the one revealed by the Holy Spirit is the correct view since the text was after all Holy Spirit inspired.  So the three men disagree; then declare each other heretics, be it by word or thought.

I do not think that this was the apostle's intent regarding his letter to the Galatians.  Every time Paul says something to this effect, it is always in regards to false teachers.  However, I do not see him saying these same things about men and women who have been under false teachers.

Do I believe that the Roman Catholic church is preaching what Paul preached?  No, I do not, therefore, I do not direct people to the Roman Catholic Church.  On the other hand I am not going to declare the Roman Catholic people accursed.  Nor anyone else for that matter.  I do not have that right, nor does anyone else.  Judgment is God's alone!

I believe that Paul preached that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  That justification is not a result of works, it is the gift of God, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.  Where then is boosting?  It is excluded. (Romans & Ephesians).

I am not going to argue with someone about there particular beliefs, and I am not going to direct people to teachers who are preaching something different than what Paul preached. So what do I do?  My ministry is a public ministry.  I go into the highways and byways of the world preaching Jesus Christ; Him crucified for our sins and risen from the dead.  I talk with a lot of people about the Lord.  

Jesus said; "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." (Mt 5:16).

Just tell the truth in love, that is all we can do!  Always remember what love is and what love is not.

"Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,  does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,  does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;  bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." (1 Cor 13:4-7).

 In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. 

The Indicative and the Imperative

This is one of my favorite videos on YouTube.  It is a video of SalvationbyGrace.org by Pastor Jim McClarty.  Understanding the indicative and the imperative truly opens up scripture.  If you get this concept then you will understand; "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." (Jn 14:15 NASB).

In Christ alone,

Mike Peek

www.aslaveofjesuschrist.com

Salvation from the wrath of God that we all deserve for our sin is a gift, by His grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.