Death is coming

The closer death creeps up upon me the less I am able to understand the reasons for life or living.

Yes I have experienced a close family member dying and unlike television it takes decades to handle such a thing. To think I am going to put my family through such a thing when I finally leave is more horrific to me than the thought of death itself.

My life was and is still a learning experience but when all said and done what am I to do with all this accumulated learning over my lifetime if I just die. There is no logic or reason to this.

Long ago I became aware that the God story that is sold to the majority is just a nice story to give mankind with a message of a basic layout of how nice life could be if everyone followed these ideas. Not many in life do and if one thinks about it the good and evil structures actually depend on each other. The good that can be experienced in life is only understood as good when there is it's opposite to compare it to. This is not rocket science only common sense in reality. I am not saying we need to experience bad but understanding in it is needed to appreciate the great things many of us can have in our lives. From birth to death there are many ways mankind helps his fellow man. How many ways can you help?


Tuesday, February 23, 2010

The Prophetic Functions of the Church of Christ

By Christian Wong

When talk about prophets, we may think of the weird man wearing strange clothes scolding people for their sin and warning them for the judgment of God. This impression obviously came from the Old Testament. But there is a different expression of prophets and the spirit of prophecy in the New Testament. All believers are called to operate in the spirit of prophecy.

God speaks through His servants. In the bible we see a lot of men chosen by God who spoke the will of God. This is enough for us to see that the main function of a prophetic ministry is to reveal God's own heart. An angel who appeared to John the Apostle told him that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. All prophecies are spoken to witness or to reveal testimony of Jesus Christ, His identity, His work and His heart. We must know Him and encounter Him personally before we could do that.

As a follower of Christ, by the grace of God and through faith, we are able to know God intimately. To function prophetically, we experience God's heart and reveal it according to His will. A prophetic ministry reveals the heart of God in different aspects and in different levels. God is love. He loves all man equally. He does not discriminate. He is just and true. He hates sin. He is joyful for His sons because of Jesus. We may speak of the affection and the wrath of God at the same time without contradictions.

So the essence of prophecy is to make known God's heart. Each time we prophesy we speak the heart of God. Every time He reveals His characters and attributes, we know Him more and are imparted with His life in us. When we know His affection for us, we are empowered to love Him in return.

There are some common misconceptions among the churches. Some experiencing prophetic events like dreams and visions immediately claim themselves to be prophets. Others refuse any prophetic encounters with reason that they are not called to be prophets. There are clear distinguishments between being a prophet and operating with the spirit of prophecy according to the bible. The Lord promises to pour the spirit of prophecy on all of His sons and daughters, while only a few chosen people are called to the office of prophets.

An example of a prophet who revealed the heart of God according to the will of God is John the Baptist. He was called the greatest man born of a woman by Jesus. He was the forerunner prepared for the first coming of Jesus who also symbolize a group of God's people who are being raised up in the end of the end time to prepare the second coming of the Lord. They will be revealing the heart of God, His mercy and His judgment and warn people of the coming crisis. The prophetic anointing will be operating mightily on them. Some would even call fire from heaven and beyond. Let's follow the teachings of the Bible and desire earnestly for the spirit of prophecy.

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