Lord's Supper

I'm thankful that there is liberty in this subject because much of it is preference and each church is autonomous; if you belong to a church that does things differently, please don't allow what I am about to say to cause problems. Here are some particulars I have about the Lord's Supper.


It should always be administered in the setting of the local church.
Only believers walking with God should participate (one way to make sure while not policing is only invite members of the church and have it on an off night when you don't normally have service).
The Bible never says that wine is one of the elements.
Jesus did it with His disciples the week of the Jewish Passover, so one way of doing it is once a year on the Tuesday night before Jesus was crucified and resurrected.
Since the Supper was instituted during the Jewish feasts of Unleavened Bread and Passover, the bread they used was unleavened; we too use unleavened bread which may better commemorate the sinless body of Christ.
It is the Lord's Supper, not breakfast, so we do it in the evening.
Jesus said to do it in memory of Him so it is vital to meditate on the blood He shed and His body that was broken for us when He sacrificed Himself on the cross.
It should be a somber moment of self-examination.
No Christian should ever be surprised that he is partaking of the Lord's Supper.
Lord's Supper is as important as baptism; if a Christian chooses to not participate in the Lord's Supper then there is a serious problem in their life, and church discipline may be in order. Choosing not to partake should be dealt with as a serious thing.
As with all things we do in our walk with God, the Lord's Supper should never become just some ritual.

A Possible Command

Twice in the Scriptures we see the Lord Jesus Christ telling people to “sin no more” (John 5:14 & John 8:11). According to my understanding, as long as we live our lives in this present flesh, this is an impossible command to obey. In John’s first epistle he write these words inspired by the Holy Ghost, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). So we know that no matter who we are, we will battle a life-long struggle with sin until the Lord returns and changes “our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21). This, therefore, is my understanding of the Lord’s command to “sin no more”: it is a command that we will never be able to completely obey, but we are to do our very best.

There is another command in Scripture that I used to believe was similar in the sense that we will never be able to completely obey it in this lifetime, but we were supposed to give our very best effort. Mark 16:15, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” I thought, “Every creature? That’s impossible, but I’m going to try my best.”

I was wrong, though. It is not impossible.

1. Biblical example shows us it can be done.

In Paul’s ministry there was a time when he spent three years in Ephesus. There he labored and as a result every creature that dwelt in what was then called Asia heard the gospel. Acts 19:10 says, “And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.” An example of a group of believers that dwelt in Asia and who did not live in the place where Paul was would be the Colossians. They lived about 100 miles inland from Ephesus and the believers there had never seen Paul’s face (Colossians 2:1). Yet there was a church! Most likely Paul had reached Epaphras, who was himself a Colossian, trained him, and then he was sent to plant a church in Colossae (Colossians 1:7 & Colossians 4:12). The point here though is the fact that due to Paul’s ministry in Ephesus, every inhabitant of a specific region heard the gospel. Look at what it says happened during Paul’s first missionary journey with Barnabas in Acts 13:49, “And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.” How about the example of Philip the evangelist after he won and baptized the Ethiopian eunuch? It says in Acts 8:40, “But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.”

If these biblical examples are not enough to prove that getting the gospel to every creature is possible, then surely what we read in Paul’s letter to the Colossian believers seals the deal, “If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;” (Colossians 1:23; see also Colossians 1:6)

2. History shows us it can be done.

Take the example of the great Missionary Charles Cowman in the orient. Charles Cowman left the comforts of home to preach the gospel to the Japanese over one hundred years ago. The heartcry of Cowman and every great missionary has been, “The evangelization of every creature in our generation.” At the time he left for Japan there were a total of 10,376,700 homes in that country. Having led a successful ministry in Tokyo, Cowman became increasingly burdened for the rural populations of Japan. He devised a plan that developed into what he called, “The Great Village Campaign”. The goal was to systematically take the gospel to every home in Japan. Their great team was successful in that they sent personal workers to every home in the country; these workers left a portion of Scripture and preached the gospel to everyone they met. One would think this daunting task must have taken a lifetime, but that is not true. Charles Cowman and his team of workers managed to get the gospel to over ten million homes in just six years. This man proved it can be done.

God did not mean for the great commission to be done little by little over 2,000 years so that by the time He comes back the gospel would have gotten to every part of the earth. The thrust of the great commission is individuals and it is something that must be actively accomplished during every generation. Each generation of believers is responsible for the evangelization of every creature during their generation. We can’t trust the generation before us because they had a generation of their own and now they are dead. We cannot trust the generation to come because they will have their own generation to reach and ours will have died. We have a window of opportunity during our short lives to get the gospel to every creature in our generation.

How can it be done?

Every church must have a ministry that constantly works to get the gospel to every creature in their region. That church also must consistently support missionaries who are doing the same work (getting the gospel to every creature in their region) through prayers and financial support. The philosophy of every missionary should be, “To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you” (2 Corinthians 10:16). Those missionaries in turn must go to the regions beyond and start churches that will continue the cycle of evangelizing and discipling while dedicating themselves to the evangelization of every creature in their region and supporting missionaries who are doing the work in regions beyond them.

Not only is “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” something that we can do, but it is something that we must do. We will do our part in our region, and we will support those in the regions beyond us; what will you do?

[This article was originally written by myself as a guest blogger on a friend's blog: http://pastorstrother.com/]

Finances

This is a great outline that I was taught by Pastor John Wilkerson, and now I have taught it personally. Yesterday I translated it to be able to teach it here in Chile. Here it is in both languages:

Finances

I. God is the source (Job 41:11, Psalm 24:1, Psalm 50:10 & 12)

II. Giving is a must (Proverbs 3:9-10, Malachi 3:8-10, Deuteronomy 14:22-23)

A. The offering

B. Alms

C. The tithe

1. It’s His- Malachi 3:8-10

2. It’s pre-law (Abraham & Jacob)

3. It’s one-tenth of all income

a. Genesis 28:22

b. Genesis 14:20

4. Where does it go?

a. Old Testament- house of God & His ministers (Tabernacle/Levites)

i. Malachi 3:10

ii. Numbers 18:21 & 24

b. New Testament- house of God & His ministers (Church/Pastors)

i. 1 Timothy 3:15

ii. 1 Timothy 5:17-18

3. Go to work (Proverbs 6:11, Proverbs 22:29, 2 Thessalonians 3:9)

4. Guard against debt (Proverbs 22:7, Matthew 6:24)

5. Gain contentment (Philippians 4:11, 1 Timothy 6:6-8, Hebrews 13:5)

6. Get on a budget (Luke 14:28-29)

7. Generosity (Luke 6:38)

If you are in trouble, get counseling (Proverbs 11:14)

Finanzas

I. Dios es la fuente (Job 41:11, Salmo 24:1, Salmo 50:10 & 12)

II. El dar es necesario (Proverbios 3:9-10, Malaquías 3:8-10, Deuteronomio 14:22-23)

A. La ofrenda

B. La limosna

C. El diezmo

1. Es Suyo (Malaquías 3:8-10)

2. Es pre-ley (Abraham & Jacob)

3. Es un décimo de todos los ingresos

a. Génesis 28:22

b. Génesis 14:20

4. ¿A dónde va?

a. El Antiguo Testamento: la casa de Dios y Sus ministros (Tabernáculo/Levíticos)

i. Malaquías 3:10

ii. Números 18:21 & 24

b. Nuevo Testamento: la casa de Dios y Sus ministros (Iglesia/Pastores)

i. 1 Timoteo 3:15

ii. 1 Timoteo 5:17-18

III. Trabaja (Proverbios 6:11, Proverbios 22:29, 2 Tesalonicenses 3:9)

IV. Evita la deuda (Proverbios 22:7, Mateo 6:24)

V. Ten contentamiento (Filipenses 4:11, 1 Timoteo 6:6-8, Hebreos 13:5)

VI. Usa un presupuesto mensual (Lucas 14:28-29)

VII. Se generoso (Lucas 6:38)

Si estás teniendo problemas, busca consejo (Proverbios 11:14)

The Dead Sea vs. the Sea of Galilee

In his book, The Challenge of Missions, J. Oswald Chambers said, "The Dead Sea takes in and takes in, but it never gives out; hence it is stagnant. The Sea of Galilee takes in but it also gives out; hence, it is filled with life; and its water is fresh."

Oh, Lord, help my life to be a funnel and not a bucket!


Luke 6:38
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. 

God will give through you what He will not give to you.

Do you know the way to heaven?

Do you know the way to heaven?

One day Jesus was telling His disciples about the wonderful place called Heaven. It sure is wonderful! Jesus told them they knew where He was going and that they knew the way there. Thomas, one of His disciples, said they didn’t know where He was going and they didn’t know the way. Look at Jesus’ response:

John 14

4  And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

5  Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

The way to heaven is not through some religion or system of good works. The way to heaven is through a person and His finished work of redemption. Jesus Christ is the way to heaven!

The bad news is that we have all sinned against God and the punishment is eternal separation from Him in the Lake of Fire.

Romans 3:23

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death…

Revelation 20:14

And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

The good news is that God loves you and Jesus took the punishment for your sin on Himself when He died on the cross. The blood that He shed paid the price of your sin.

1 Corinthians 15

3  For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

4  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

God’s word says that anyone who believes this message, the gospel, will receive everlasting life.

This is why Jesus Christ is the way to heaven!

If you understand that you are a sinner, that you deserve to be punished for your sins, but that Jesus sacrificed Himself as your substitute, then right now you can turn to God and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved.

Acts 16:31

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…