Tonight

Pastor John,

I’m so thankful for tonight and the touch from Jesus. When the meeting first started and Darren was singing, I had the deepest, most desperate prayer in my heart. I was begging Jesus to let me love him and love the truth more than anything or anyone. I know he is the only one that can give me that love, and I desperately want it. Then when Donna started singing, I felt the spirit just pick me up! I felt his strength and I’m so thankful for every touch, every feeling and his sweet keeping power! I felt as if my life just flashed before me, and I saw Jesus everywhere in it.

He truly has kept me and loved me through everything.
I’m so thankful that words cannot describe.

Michelle

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Blameless?

Pastor John,

Was Paul really blameless according to the Law when he was persecuting the saints?

Wendell

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Hi Wendell.

This is what Paul said about that, from Philippians 3:

4B. If anyone else thinks he has reason to trust in the flesh, I have more:
5. circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel; of the tribe of Benjamin; a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee;
6. concerning zeal, persecuting the Assembly of God; being blameless according to the righteousness that is in the law.

So, yes, I would have to say he was blameless, as unexpected an answer that may be.

Pastor John

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What I Heard Today during Part 1 of the Jerusalem Council*

“It is sin to be unhappy when God has made you happy.”

Uzziel was out of God’s order by holding onto grief when God had extended him
life and joy.

Jerry

*The Jerusalem Council

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In My Truck

Pastor John, 

I was listening to a song called, “I Can Only Imagine”, by Mercy Me on the way home from Charleston, SC this past Friday. What will we do or what will we say in the prescience of the one who died for us.

From my soul I kept saying, “I love you Jesus”, over and over again. I was so thankful and grateful to the place where Jesus has led me to.

All of a sudden, I felt a deeper presence. I put my hand over my heart and I cried from thankfulness that I was feeling. It lasted a long while. I can’t explain it. It was more than feeling the Spirit, it was a knowing that Jesus let me feel he is on his Throne beside his Father . He is really there still doing His Father’s will.

I have felt the Spirit strongly in the past, but I have never felt that before like I did in my truck. It was more than feeling God’s spirit, it really felt like Jesus was in my truck with me.

It was very humbling. I really know he loves me too.

Billy M.

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God is….

Hey!

I was sitting on the couch today playing around with my guitar and had the thought to go to Psalm 28. I read down to verse 6, to the words: “Blessed be the Lord because He hath heard the voice of my supplication.” I started to get a little tune for this and to continue with the chorus of the song, I went on to the next verse: “The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him”. I thought, I wonder what else God is. So, I typed in “God is….” in my search program. I got some pretty good results! It felt so good, I wanted to share them. 🙂

God is:
Holy
A consuming fire
Merciful
A jealous God
God of gods
A great God
A mighty God
A terrible God
A refuge
A living God
Mighty in strength and wisdom
King of all the earth
God is our God forever and ever
Our guide, even unto death
He is Judge
Our lawgiver
Our helper
Our defense
Our salvation and glory
Our rock
Our strength
Our keeper
Our maker
Our portion
Our stronghold
God is the God of salvation
He is good
Our King
He is a sun and shield
Greatly to be feared
The rock of my refuge
He is pure
He is our salvation
Our strength and song
He is righteous in all His works
God is true
He is Faithful
He is light
He is love
Longsuffering
Gracious
Full of compassion
Slow to anger

And so much more!

Amy

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Not Victims

Good point from Jerry and your Gary.

Looking at these things from another angle John, I was thinking this morning as we were talking, that if we hold on to any grudge about how we, or our ancestors were “treated” by men, then we can’t be thankful for what God has truly done for us NOW.

For example, if (as is being promoted in the media and political circles now), people in this country should be bitter and “demand reparations” because ancestors were made slaves and mistreated by “oppressors”, then how can we ever be thankful to God for making a way for us to be rescued from the jungles, and brought here to America, where we could hear the truth of this gospel and receive the holy Ghost? How can we be angry at those God used to have His way in our lives? God did it! How can we want to make them “pay” for blessing us?

These carnal victim spirits want to turn men’s hearts from right thoughts about God – and the fact that He works ALL things for our good. Let’s not blame our issues on “dead men”. Instead, let’s become one! ha-ha.

God had it ALL worked out for us – we can have, as sister Willie says, “a mouth full of thank you!” (And besides all that, we have a “new past”…. and new “ancestors”…. And we are now “slaves of love and of Jesus”!)

I love this kind of thinking that comes from what you have taught us, as long as I have known you…. it glorifies God, and man is completely left out. We are NOT victims, we are victors (in Christ).

🙂

Gary

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Pastor John,

I was considering some of the things that generations, races, societies, and cultures have gone through before me; injustices and poor treatment in and from this world. I was thinking about how all of us have to get over whatever has befallen us in this world.

And I heard this fearful thought from the Lord:
If you can hold on to your “grudge” with someone, then the Lord can hold on to His, with you.

I believe that is all I need to know – if I thought I had a problem.

Jerry

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Preacher Clark reminded us constantly of Jesus’ commandment for us to pray, “Forgive us as we forgive others.” And he always added this warning: “That is a very dangerous prayer to pray.”

Pastor John

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UPC?

Pastor John, are you connected with the United Pentecostal Church? Is UPC unitarian?

Thank you.

Jundy Tandog

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No, Jundy, I am not associated with that or any other Christian sect. Sectarianism is contrary to the Spirit of God. I do not think the UPC is Unitarian, but to make sure, you might want to ask someone who belongs to that sect.

Thank you for writing.

Pastor John

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The Commandments

Good morning!

I loved reading the commandments yesterday! When you first started reading, I kept praying, “Jesus, please let me take this in, and if anything in me doesn’t agree with your judgments, please fix my heart and my thoughts.”

Then, the more you read, the more my heart got happy! It was more and more exciting with each commandment you read. Then the spirit fell, and my mouth got completely numb! All I kept saying was mmmmmmm… It felt sweet and warm in my mouth; then, that feeling went to my belly!

It was so good! I felt like Jesus let me eat every word, every judgment! Every time I think of it, I feel it all over!

Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful! So very thankful for our food!

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Reading Hosea 1-7

Hi Pastor John,

I came home and started reading what we read this morning in Hosea again. I loved hearing all of the history. When we were reading about the priest not teaching the people and you said most of the people could not read and lived off what the priest told them. That struck me. I thought of all of the years sitting in those pews in the Catholic Church and not learning one thing. I did not even learn what they deemed “children stories”. I knew Jonah was swallowed by a whale and spit back out, and I was then given a coloring sheet to color. I knew nothing of David and his heart for God facing Goliath, Daniel holding fast to God against hungry lions, or Jesus bringing life to Lazarus. I knew nothing of Joseph knowing it was God who sent him into slavery. I just knew nothing about my God. It was a miracle that I met a man (my husband) who made God so real to me, the man who said he cried out to God and his whole life changed. How would I ever have known to hope in God? I knew nothing.

I thought about opening Jerry’s Bible for the first time and trying to read page after page, and not being able to understand anything I read, but Jesus, our Priest, pulling on my heart to read it and seek him. Then after I finished it the first time through, I started again and began to learn little things. Small understandings came, and then Jesus sent me to Jimmy and Sue’s house for the Old Testament class.

Now I am here in NC with you, learning and being fed straight from Jesus. Now two of my children know why Jesus left heaven, came here, and died. What God has done is amazing. I love the stories God writes. I love every one of them that I hear. Nothing stirs me like hearing of God speaking to someone. It is exciting what stories of God we may learn.

I also love that Jesus is our Priest.

Beth

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