Christians are called to hate. Hate evil, that is, not practice or be entertained by it.
Psalms 97:10 KJV Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
Paul (formerly Saul), a man God used to pen much of the New Testament, was partly responsible for the death of Stephen, one of the greatest preachers the world has ever known. Stephen fearlessly rebuked the men of the demonic star that still spellbinds the world and, sadly, many Christians today.
Acts 8:1 KJV And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles.
Acts 8:2 KJV And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him.
Acts 8:3 KJV As for Saul, he made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison.
If preachers aren't preaching the Word on social media, what are they doing?
Acts 8:4 KJV Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.
Acts 8:25 KJV And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.
Gospilled Minute #125
The measure of the gift of faith is bestowed upon you because you've heard the Word of God. There's no other means by which this extraordinary gift from a majestic God is transferred or received.
Romans 10:17 KJV So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Ephesians 2:8 KJV For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Notice, they received the word of God. Faith is not forced on anyone.
Acts 8:14 KJV Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:
We could use a good exorcism campaign in America. In my experience and understanding, the only way to get such a campaign started is to preach Christ. Similarly, with healing, I preach Christ and trust in Him to accomplish His will according to His purpose – not mine, nor that of the charlatans of our day, whose acting skills are, by the way, are quite horrendous.
Acts 8:5 KJV Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.
Acts 8:6 KJV And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
Acts 8:7 KJV For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.
Acts 8:8 KJV And there was great joy in that city.
Simon is a classic example of the internet spotlight preacher of our day, boasting of his greatness based on purchased social media stats – including followers, likes, and views from bots. For some reason, people are fooled, spellbound, and drawn in by these inflated numbers. This boasting and deception are merely an extension of the long-standing boasts about conversions and baptisms that are often highly coerced.
Acts 8:9 KJV But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
Acts 8:10 KJV To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
Acts 8:11 KJV And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
If this Christ First, Kingdom work called Gospilled depended on the giving of others, I would have quit a long time ago, for the majority of those who have followed my work would have left me in poverty, unable to pay my bills. Thankfully, the LORD has not abandoned this work and has graciously supported it by other means. And no, these means were and are not easy. If you think you can get materially rich from preaching the whole counsel of God, you are a fool. If people believe that I can be swayed on what to preach because of mammon strings, I say, shove your money where the SON and sun do not shine. To those who have partnered with this work over the last few years, I say thank you.
Acts 8:18 KJV And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
Acts 8:19 KJV Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
Acts 8:20 KJV But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
Acts 8:21 KJV Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
Preachers ensnared by the gall of bitterness and the lure of fame are not fans of repentance. They are consumed by arrogance and pride. At least Simon showed some humility.
Acts 8:22 KJV Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
Acts 8:23 KJV For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
Acts 8:24 KJV Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.
Dear Preacher, if you've built your fame on envy, strife, and bitterness, all I can say and hope is that, despite this, you are truly saved.
Isaiah 2:11 KJV The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
Isaiah 2:12 KJV For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
Take all commands from the Lord.
Acts 8:26 KJV And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.
Simply reading the Bible doesn't guarantee understanding, for the Lord must open our eyes to certain truths. Similarly, a preacher reading through the Bible once doesn't mean they comprehend its entirety. I've learned that some truths only become clear after decades of walking with Christ. Effective soul-winning and discipleship require us to share our faithfully earned insights with others, teaching them what we've learned, no matter how long it took us to grasp these truths ourselves.
Acts 8:27 KJV And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,
Acts 8:28 KJV Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet.
Acts 8:29 KJV Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.
Acts 8:30 KJV And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
Acts 8:31 KJV And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.
Philip didn't have a pocket New Testament when he preached the Gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch. Instead, he preached from the Old Testament, which, nonetheless, proclaims Christ just as powerfully, for it is the Word of God.
Acts 8:32 KJV The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
Acts 8:33 KJV In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
Acts 8:34 KJV And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
The requirements for and example of water baptism:
1. Believe with all your heart that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
2. Full immersion.
Note: While the phrase 'down both into the water' is unclear, historical evidence confirms that believers have traditionally been fully immersed.
Acts 8:36 KJV And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
Acts 8:37 KJV And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Acts 8:38 KJV And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
Our faith is not dependent on those whom God uses to gift us with faith. Sometimes, such men must move on as they continue to preach the Word of God.
Acts 8:39 KJV And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.
Acts 8:40 KJV But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.
Many Christians are willing to sacrifice for cars, homes, and recreation, but few are willing to make sacrifices unto the LORD.
By the way, I can be stingy at times, therefore I cannot claim to have always been the best example, even though my wife and I have been faithful to give 10% of our income before taxes, and even more, throughout our journey with the Lord. But I will say this: I've sacrificed at least $50,000 in annual employment wages over the last five years to focus fully on preaching and teaching the Bible for a relatively very small fraction of that amount. It's been the best investment I've made in my life, next to trusting in the Lord and marrying my wife.
Leviticus 7:38 KJV Which the LORD commanded Moses in mount Sinai, in the day that he commanded the children of Israel to offer their oblations unto the LORD, in the wilderness of Sinai.
I don't believe the LORD will simply dwell in the counterfeit temple built by the Antichrist. Instead, He will establish His own temple, a physical extension of the Temple of His Spiritual Body, and the Antichrist's temple will be utterly destroyed.
Isaiah 2:1 KJV The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
Isaiah 2:2 KJV And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
The world has yet to see this, but the world will.
Isaiah 2:3 KJV And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Isaiah 2:4 KJV And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
Isaiah 2:5 KJV O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
There is more Biblical Israelite DNA present in Palestine than in the modern State of Israel (prove me wrong). To understand this phenomenon, begin with researching the Synagogue of Satan, and you'll discover who the antichrist squatters are that have replenished a small portion of the land.
Isaiah 2:6 KJV Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.
Isaiah 2:7 KJV Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots:
Isaiah 2:8 KJV Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made:
Of course.
This rock is Christ.
Isaiah 2:10 KJV Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty.
MAGA and Antichrist Israel idolatry will not be tolerated by the Lord.
Isaiah 2:17 KJV And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.
Isaiah 2:18 KJV And the idols he shall utterly abolish.
Bitcoin will save no one during the day of the LORD.
Isaiah 2:20 KJV In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
Isaiah 2:21 KJV To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Father, may our hearts be pure in Your sight. In Jesus' Name, Amen.