Urbi et Orbi

Wolves in Shepard's Clothing

2009-12-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

Insecurity births bondage.

When we use the pulpit or any platform to boost ourselves and make ourselves look better, we are abusing the position that God has given us and we do it at the expense of others.

Be careful that you are not submitting yourself and your family to an overly insecure leader.
It will only birth bondage in you and cause you to be spiritually immobilized.
And be sure you are not leading with any of these characteristics listed.
Let go of your feelings and rest in what God will do for you.

There is no perfect leader, but some imperfections are dangerous and should not be tolerated.
Seek God's wisdom before you decide to submit to any pastor. There are some things we can deal with, but there are other things that may be deadly to our purpose in God and those things must be avoided.

Here are some signs of an insecure leader;

1. Improper placement of gifts and callings- Whenever people are misplaced in a ministry, it's usually on purpose. People know what God has gifted them to do, but an insecure leader usually wants to placethem in areas that they are not called to so they won't do too well.This keeps people looking to the leader for direction and makes an insecure leader feel like he's still the focus of the ministry or he still has power over the people. Often times, an insecure leader will give people positions so they won't leave the church. If the church is the only place where you can be somebody, then the Pastor controls who you are.
If you leave, then you are then a nobody. But misplacement of gifts in a ministry keeps the people looking to a man for direction and never really looking to God.

2. Micro-managing - This is a sure sign of an insecure person.
They must know what's going on at all times. They have to know what each person and ministry under them is doing and always tries to direct or lead each and every aspect of the ministry. This is to ensure that noone out shines them or no one can ever get credit for what they have done. This keeps the leader number one.

3. Spies - This is a very sad, yet very sure sign of an insecure pastor or leader.
They'll put people around you to spy and tell them what you are doing.
If you have a gift or calling and people are drawn to it, they will plant a person to come around you and sniff you out for them. They don't want your gift or calling to take the attention from them so they have to watch you with a "planted" person.

4. Shifting Saints - An insecure leader will move people for no reason.
They will stop you if you are doing a good job or if you are too faithful to your department head because they fear that you will somehow lose your loyalty to them. They shift people around just when that person is settling into their position because they don't want you too successful in their church or ministry.

5. Seekeing Service - An insecure leader is an armor bearer fanatic!
They seek to be served, not to be a servant themsleves.
They will have men running around them fixing their cloths and wiping sweat from their foreheads.
They can't open their own door, carry their own Bible, or even drive themselves around without someone doing it for them. This is worship! Sure, men can be assisted with some things, but when it's excessive, it's a sign. A pastor should be the churches greatest servant, not served the greatest! This will put you in the position to have to prove how much you love a man before he will acknowledge your spiritual gifting.

6. Lack of Internal Accountability – An insecure leader is the dictator of the church who surrounds themselves with “yes men”. There are no other Elders who lead in the congregation. All decisions are made by the Pastor.
No one hears from God except the Pastor. This is not the pattern for the New Testament Church.
They misquote Old Testament scriptures about leadership and use it as the model.
No one has the authority or privilege to formally or informally question the pastor.
The insecure leader may point to someone outside of the church as the person under whose authority they submit, but that person has no idea of the internal day to day operations of the ministry.
Beware of the leader who will not allow the Biblical principle of “submitting one to another” and therefore runs the ministry like a dictator with no internal accountability.

7. Spiritual Abortions - An insecure leader does not birth other ministries outside of their own. Check the track record. How many pastors have come out of this ministry? How many outreach ministries have been birthed? How many have been encouraged to pursue outside missions and evangelism that will reach beyond the church doors? An insecure leader will never push anyone to go do anything outside of the church because they fear losing members to them. So, they keep everything inside and never father outside ministries. And God forbid you try to leave this type of leader. They will make you feel like youare going to hell for leaving and there is nothing else out there.

8. Too much church - An insecure leader will always want to be at church!
They love to call meetings, counsel everyone, and spend most of their family time and leisure time at the church. They will even require you to be there at all times. When the doors open, you should be there. This is because they feel they are missing something or losing ground with the people if they don't see them. A secure leader invests in family time and allows freedom for his people to enjoy theirlives and their outside interests.

9. No privacy - An insecure leader will almost always address your private issues from the pulpit. They will counsel with you and then preach your issues purposely to the people in the church. They will even call you up at times and embarrass you by dealing with your personal sins and issues before the whole church. A secure leader can handle your issues in private and not need to make you look bad.

10. Masks – This also includes obsession with titles.
An insecure leader has to put on a mask to seem spiritual and deep.
They cannot be common or seem common to the people because they strive to be feared by the membership. They “lead” by guilt, shame, and fear.
They depend totally on their reputation and not on the Spirit of God in them.
They have to make you feel less so they will feel bigger and better.
It's one thing to be respected because of the Spirit of God in you, but when you demand respect it's artificial.

11. No other gifts - The number one sign of an insecure leader is, they are always worried about what people think of them. They won't even allow certain gifts to operate in the ministry because it may make other's that don't flow in gifts jealous or uncomfortable. The ministry is always politically correct. And usually, there are no gifts in operations. not even in the pastor. When the pastor cannot flow in gifts, the body will not because where the head is, the body must follow.

12. Guilt, Fear, Shame – Manipulation is the key factor in this characteristic.
The insecure leader sets themselves up as the “priest” over everyone’s lives.
They are the only one who can hear from God for you.
If you thing that you have heard from God, then you are either wrong, prideful, or rebellious.
They cause you to doubt yourself, your prayer life, your relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and your knowledge of the Word of God.
If you dare to have a question, you are made to feel guilty, ashamed, and fearful that God is going to punish you for “touching God’s anointed”.

13. Lack of Education – This is a prominent sign that the leader is not prepared for ministry. While formal education is not everything, it does however speak to character.
Has the leader ever submitted to a training structure that required accountability?
An academic degree is simply proof that the leader is able to commit to and complete something.
The time spent in college to prepare oneself for ministry is proof that the leader has a reverential fear of God and the ministry to the extent that they purposely seperated themselves and dedicated several years of their life unto God as a time of preparation, not only academically, but spiritually. A pastor should be able to rightly divide the Word of truth.
Leaders who lack in this area will downplay education and ridicule those who have made academic achievements. Oppression cannot continue unless ignorance is maintained.

Be careful Saint's of God!
What God has given you is worthy of secure leadership and you must make sure you are not wasting space in a ministry. You must make sure you are following the right person.
Sure, no one is perfect, but at least we must strive for it.
Beware of leaders that cannot admit mistakes!
When they never mess up or never confess to error, then beware!
There is not a perfect man, and a secure leader can say "I was wrong"!

Walk in the Spirit

2009-12-02T08:45:00.000-08:00

Galatians 5:16: "Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh"

This is one of the most simple, yet powerful verses in the New Testament.
It gives us the THE key to victorious living!

It corrects our faulty, religious, works mentality that inclines us to think that if we go to great lengths to crucify the flesh, try to kill our desires, and make sure that we do not fulfill the lusts of the flesh that we will therefore be "in the Spirit" (as if getting in or walking in the Spirit is something to be attained or achieved through our own works.)

The verse simply tells us - Walk in the Spirit.
The result - we will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

The root of the confusion for most people is that they fail to make a distinction between having a lust which is of the flesh and fulfilling a lust of the flesh.
There is a big difference between feeling and acting.
There is a big difference between desiring and doing.

Let's define the terminology:

Walk: (Strong's # G4043) - to deport onself, to be occupied with.
Fulfill: (Strong's# G5055) - to execute or bring to completion.
Lust: (Strong's # G1939) - a longing or desire.
Flesh: (Strong's# G4561) - the human nature including it's frailties.

The Bible never teaches that we will never have temptation or never have sinful desires.
It is not a sin to be tempted or to have desires or feelings.
It is how we deal with those sinfull temptations, thoughts, feelings, and desires.

If we are "walking in the Spirit" - the first thing that is going to happen is that you will immediately recognize that lust as sinfull. After you recognize that it is sinfull, confess it to God as being sinfull, repent, and ask for forgiveness.

If you recognize, confess, repent, request and receive forgiveness -then you will not "fulfill the lust of the flesh" (i.e. execute the desires of the human nature).

We must also realize that it is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we are empowered to resist anything. We cannot change our nature, by by the power of the Spirit we can change our behavior.

We need to be more concerned with the "walking" than the "not fulfilling".
If we focus on the "walking" we will automatically "not fulfill".

Here's the JTC translation:

"If you occupy yourself with the Holy Spirit, you will not execute the desires of your human nature"

Biblical Numerology

2007-12-06T02:38:00.000-08:00

Biblical Numerology

published 12/9/06

I've already began to hear it; "2007 – the year of perfection" or "2007 – the year of Jubilee", etc. etc.

The fascination with numbers and numerology disturbs me, especially when it comes across the pulpit from educated clergy. To attribute an expected outcome based upon a number is dangerously close to numerology, divination and witchcraft.
At best it is simply an attempt to provide understanding and structure to that which is unknown.

The real problem is this – when referring to our current calendar, we need to realize that we are currently operating on a Romanized pagan calendar, not God's calendar.
Without getting into too much boring detail - (I'll leave that to those of you who would enjoy the research) - the only reliable calendar that we can even attempt to utilize in order to provide meaning to world events (past, present, and future) would be the Biblical Hebrew calendar and the feasts mentioned in the Old Testament (feasts which, by the way, God never told us to stop celebrating).

The Biblical / Hebrew calendar is the one that God has, is, and will continue to use.
So, I think it would be a good place to start if one were trying to begin forecasting.
The real year is 5767, not 2006. It has been 5767 years since the time of creation.

(Not to add confusion, but if are inclined to still use the Roman / pagan calendar – it is actually 2013 – the monk who first calculated everything for Emperor Constantine was off by 7 years – this is why you see some Biblical timelines placing the birth of Christ at 6 BC.)

To further burst your bubble, January 1st is not God's New Year.
God's New Year actually is the Jewish feast of Rosh Hashanah, which is during September on our Roman / pagan calendar.

As far as the Jubilee is concerned, Israel's Jubilee year was 5761 (or 2000 on the Roman / pagan calendar). So this year, 5767 or 2007 is not a Jubilee year either.

I realize that most of us will have "watch night" services or at least participate in one, but let us pause and think for a while before we engage in any attempt to look to a faulty pagan calendar for numbers to provide our life with meaning and direction.

Let us instead, look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

Character Crisis

2007-12-06T02:35:00.000-08:00

Character Crisis

Printed in the Philadelphia Daily News 2003

Once again our country is experiencing a national figure involved in a moral dilemma.
Kobe Bryant, a native of the Delaware Valley, is accused of rape in the State of Colorado.

Whether or not Kobe Bryant is guilty or innocent is not the issue here.
As a matter of fact, in keeping with the tradition of our justice system, Mr. Bryant is innocent until proven guilty. We are to assume innocence until demonstrated otherwise.
The reason we assume innocence is to ensure objectivity.

However, popular opinion seems to have another premise for the assumption of innocence other than the judicial principle of the preservation of objectivity.

When interviewed or asked for their opinion about whether or not they thought that Kobe Bryant was innocent or guilty, a majority of those whose opinion was that Bryant is innocent had an interesting premise for assuming so.
Their assumption of innocence was predicated upon the fact that he is such a great basketball player. Quite often the opinion of innocence was reasoned by and accompanied with phrases such as 'he's an All-Star', or ' he's so talented', or 'he's such a great athlete'.

We have a problem in this country. The problem is very simple to describe.

We confuse skill with character and we value talent rather than fortitude.

Unfortunately, this problem is in the church as well.
Pastors and preachers are graded on how well they preach, whoop, holler, and get everyone excited.
Why?
We value entertainment rather than truth. We value skill rather than character.

Deacons and Elders are chosen, appointed, and graded on how well they conduct operations in the church and how handy they are to the pastor.
Why?
We value accomplishments rather than qualification. We value skill rather than character.

People's assumption of Mr. Bryant's innocence based upon his talent is a symptom of the character crisis in this culture. The church should be the antidote for this disease, unfortunately we suffer from the same illness. We come to church to get entertained, not to worship.
We go to church to get, not to give. We value skill, not character.

The Biblical, God given mandate to the church is to make disciples who in turn transform the culture by being salt and light in their sphere of influence.
If the popular opinion as to the reason of Kobe Bryant's innocence is any indication, how effective is the church in our culture? Are we being effective or affected?
Is the church doing its job by modeling character rather than skill, talent, or ability?

Unfortunately in this case we will assume guilt on behalf of the church, rather than innocence.
God help us.

True Biblical Prosperity

2007-12-06T02:30:00.000-08:00

True Biblical Prosperity

Printed in the Philadelphia Daily News 2003

"Beloved, I pray that you prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers." III John 2 (NKJV).

An often quoted scripture, but often improperly.
The "Prosperity Gospel" as it is sometimes referred to, has used this one scripture out of context and used it as a pretext to teach an unbalanced view of the Kingdom of God and created an entire faction within Christianity that is focused on money and selfishness.

The Bible warns us that there will be those who are "…men of corrupt minds destitute of the truth who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself." I Timothy 6:5 (NKJV)

So what is true Biblical prosperity?

The answer to that question lies in the correct understanding of the word "prosperity" and the correct explanation of the phraseology of the verse.
The word "prosper" in the original Greek means to "have help along the way" or to "aid in reaching".
This of course presupposes that there is a destiny in mind and a method of getting there.

In Christianity, our destiny is godliness, not as a means of gain, but in our character.
The method by which we get there is called discipleship.

Notice the phrase in the verse "even as". This means "to the same extent" or "to the same degree". So the level of our prosperity in all areas of our life is dependent upon and directly proportionate to the degree that we prosper in our soul.

What is the soul and how do we prosper in it?
Our soul is our mind, our will, and our emotions, in other words our thoughts, desires and feelings.
We will prosper in our minds through learning the Word of God and having our mind renewed.
We will prosper in our will as we pray, praise and worship Jesus allowing Him to transform and conform our will to His.
We will prosper in our emotions as a natural result of the prospering in our mind and will.
If our thinking is right and our desires are right, we will feel right.

This must also be in conjunction with a disciplined lifestyle that includes diet and exercise (notice the scripture prosper AND be in health).
In summary, true Biblical prosperity is the result of prospering in our soul which is the direct result of the process of discipleship.

Prosperity is not just financial. It is to permeate every area of our life.
We need to remember that God "…as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…"

The goal is godliness, not money. If we commit ourselves to godliness of character through discipleship we will have everything that we need to succeed in life.

Finally, the Bible warns us "…the prosperity of fools will destroy them." Proverbs 1:32 (KJV)
So don't be fool – be a disciple – and prosper!

Sunday Morning: The Most Segregated Time of the Week

2007-12-06T02:17:00.000-08:00

Sunday Morning: The Most Segregated Time of the Week

published in the Philadelphia Daily News 1/18/03

While we spend the vast majority of our time in an integrated society, the church seems to be lagging behind the times. Our government, our jobs, and our schools are all integrated, yet come Sunday morning – we separate. We separate not only on the basis of denomination, but also by race.

Denominational separation can be explained simply based on doctrinal differences (mostly on secondary, minor issues), church government (hierarchical structure), and worship format (music style, etc.). Racial separation, however, cannot be easily summarized and demands a closer look.

Racial separation is not merely a cultural issue. To categorize it as such would imply that it is based upon the preference of the individual. The Bible does not afford the Christian such a choice. To the contrary, the New Testament instructs against seperationist mentalities and encourages unity among believers. The Bible refers to racial separation as racism. Racism is a condition of the heart - a spiritual issue; a sin which no Christian should harbor and no church should tolerate.

The Old Testament chronicles God’s reaction to racism in Numbers chapter 12 when Moses’ sister Miriam objected to him marrying an Ethiopian woman. God struck Miriam with leprosy.

God’s desire is that his church be a “house of prayer for all nations (ethnic groups)” (Isaiah 56:7) because “He has made from one blood every nation of men” (Acts 17:26).
The New Testament instructs us that there is to be “no division” among believers (1 Corinthians 1:10) because “You are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Most significant is the Great Commission given by Christ: “make disciples of all nations (ethnic groups)” (Matthew 28:19).

Despite the clear position of God regarding racial segregation and recognizing that even our secular society has rejected the notion, the Christian church still lags behind reinforcing the false perception of its irrelevance to the society that it was intended to impact. We have become our own stumbling block.

During this upcoming week we celebrate the slain civic rights leader (and Christian minister, lest we forget) Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. whose dream was that one day we would judge one another by the content of one’s character, not the color of one’s skin.
He also dreamed that children of all races would be able to one day hold hands and walk as brothers and sisters. Funny how children seem to not have a problem with racism, but us “adults” do. Racism is a learned behavior.

The rest of society seems to have begun, albeit close to 40 years later, to get the message and start to act upon it. The church on the other hand is still divided.
Philadelphia, contrary to the meaning of it’s name, has been a birthplace of racial division in the church. It was in Philadelphia that Richard Allen in response to cruel racist behavior of white Christians founded what would become known as the African Methodist Episcopal church.

Coincidentally, this upcoming week in ecumenical / interdenominational circles is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. I am currently the president of the Frankford – Oxford Circle Ministerium. My self and four other leaders are in inter racial marriages, have bi racial children, and strive for racial unity in the Body of Christ.

I encourage all Christians in Philadelphia area this week to get involved in MLK day observances and activities and to also celebrate the upcoming Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in the Spirit of Dr. King’s vision and dream for racial justice and equality – especially in the church!