Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Thought - Two Options in front of a preacher of gospel


If I had to go to Babylon and start a church among the captives who came from Judah then I will have two options.

  1. Option 1 - Start a conservative Jewish church which has all God's law in its statement of faith and which follow everything law demands.  This church preaches against sin and call people to repentance and genuine spiritual life. Then I will have only four members in my church. They are Brother Daniel, Bro.Shadrach, Bro.Meshach and Bro.Abednego.
  2. Option 2 - Next option is to start a seeker friendly church  (I can name it like Babylon Jewish Community or Nebuchadnezzar Assembly or something which does not reveal what the church is all about). It only has few things in its statement of faith and it accepts everything. Mostly preaching will be about prosperity and giving people hope that captivity is going to end soon.  You will get to hear things like this often -Get ready for something amazing, unexpected, Babylonian power will break because of you, God is going to use you etc. Only condition is come once in a week. I don't care if you bow down to king and worship or what you eat and wear. Come once in week and don't forget your offering. This church may have hundreds in attendance.


Which one is better?   Starting and maintaining a Jewish church in Babylon is not easy. There will be so many challenges. Then the challenge and pressure of number of people. Today everything is measured in quantity and not quality.

If I hold Calvinistic view then I don't need to decide, whatever I choose does not matter since I will choose what was  predestined by God. If I hold Armenian view then I need to decide on one option.  Option 1 seems more aligned with Bible but Option 2 looks more aligned to and desirable in today's world. You may say Option 2 is what we need today to reach the world. What to do?

It’s a challenge which a conservative minister of gospel may faces daily in ministry!

Monday, January 9, 2012

Thought - My Past and My Attitude


There are times when it is really difficult to keep past things out of our mind. If it is about bad things others did to you and if it is something which can be compared as Reuben and other brothers roaming around free at their father's house when poor Joseph is in prison, then it gets tougher. Only revenge and wrong idea comes to your mind. You may feel helpless. If you find yourself in a similar situation then you need to remind yourself of the story of Joseph and decide that real forgiveness will allow safe passage to people even in your mind, even to those who did to you what Jacob did to Esau (deceived). 

What should I do? If I am a child of God then I need to behave and react like Joseph and not like Cain. Sometimes this will require intentional prayer and seeking God's help.

Be Alert: Do not fall into this trap!

Introduction Recently, a Pastor visited me, and I took him to the Mall of America, the biggest mall in America.  As we were walking, we met ...