Spirit Led Living

  I haven’t written in my blog for a while now. However, seeing as the point of this stream is to talk about Spirit-led Living, I feel that there is something that I must address. Growing up I would read the New Testament and I formed a theology based on what I read on its’ pages. I believed that it was true, and I also believed that those things were not only for then, but also for today. Through the years as I was involved with several denominations, Wesleyan, Free Methodist, Assemblies of God, and Grace Brethren among others; I never felt that I could sign on the dotted line to become a member as agreeing with all their doctrinal positions. While I agreed with a large portion of what they believed, they all had doctrinal points that I felt were not Biblical. It wasn’t until I came upon the Vineyard that I felt that I found my tribe. From the Evangelicals I took a deep reverence for the Gospel and the Word as the inspired, inerrant word of God and the litmus test for all that we beli

  Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. I am a person who loves to read and do research. These days it’s a lot harder because newspapers are disappearing and with them in-depth journalism. Nowadays what passes for journalism is people on networks news trying to tell you what to think about things. The days of Walter Cronkite are long gone. “Fair and Balanced” are just slogans. So much of what I see on social media simply makes me mad. Up is down, wrong is right, and everything can be rationalized to fit one perspective or another. In the past newspaper articles would give you both sides of the argument on any issue and it was up to the reader to decide what to think. People now get their news and form their opinions based on 40-character tweets, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and social media that is design

I can remember my freshman year at Bible College spending hours arguing over which dogma was correct, Calvinism vs. Arminianism. I grew up Wesleyan and was firmly in the Arminian camp. However, all my housemates were Baptists (rare at a Wesleyan College) and they were all Calvinists. We would go back and forth, each of us quoting Scriptures that supported our claim and there were many on both sides. I have since come to the conclusion that while an interesting intellectual exercise, neither of us could definitively prove our point. At the end of the day, we were Christians and agreed on the basic tenets of the faith. There is a quote often attributed to St. Augustine that says, “In the essentials unity, in the non-essentials diversity, and in all things charity (love).” To put it a different way, Wimber used to say that in the Vineyard we wanted to stick with “the main and the plain” of the Gospel. Things like Arminianism and Calvinism are dogmas extrapolated by men which became

This past Sunday I preached this sermon on making disciples and several people asked me to post my notes, so here they are: Matt 28:19-20 Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. A lot of people think that the Great Commission was about getting people to pray the sinner’s prayer.   If you are one of those people, then you need to rethink your philosophy and amend it, in light of Jesus’ words. There are 3 key ingredients to what He has called all of us to do.   1.     Go and make disciples The Bible doesn’t say, wait for them to come to church and hear a good sermon, or wait for someone else to guide them through the steps.   It says GO and make disciples , not converts .   A lot of people look at Billy Graham and think of him as doing more of the Great Commission that anyone else over the last 50 years.   The truth is that Bill

  Time and the Day of His Return Paul wants to convey to the believer the hope that is in Christ. We in the Vineyard have a Kingdom Theology that believes in the “here and the not yet” of the Kingdom of God. Matt 11:12-13 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. Jesus came to establish a beachhead, which we as Christians are to continue to expand His rule and reign until it is fully establish upon His return. 2 Peter 3:11-13 You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. 1 Cor 15:51-52 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye,

 As I start this new series, I want to make sure that you understand that some of the things that I will share with you are my opinions; my interpretations. Some mysteries will never be fully understood until Jesus comes back. I will attempt, with my limited understanding to shed some light on these, but I stand with the Apostle Paul who said, " For now we see through a glass, darkly" KJV Still, I pray that this will be helpful to you as you struggle to interpret the mysteries of the kingdom. Phil 2:4-11 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross!   1 - Look not to your interests. ·          We tend to look at the world through the prism of what w