The Living Truth Fellowship

About 2000 years ago today, a relative handful of Christ’s followers, those aware of his Resurrection, were still in ecstatic shock as they pondered this earthshaking event and what it meant to them. Let us remember that Jesus came to solve man’s two-fold problem of SIN and DEATH, and to regain the Paradise that the first Adam had squandered. The sin that dwells within me is my basic problem, and in this teaching I want to bare my soul to you regarding one element of that problem. It may be that you can in some way identify with my challenge.

Perhaps you’ve heard the admonition, “Get naked before the Lord.” Easier said than done, as Adam showed us after he had become dominated by a sinful nature and went into the clothing business. Like our sinful predecessor, my strong tendency is to shift the blame and hide my sins from people, and (unconsciously) from God, which is ridiculous. The key: how to work with the Lord to get to the ROOT of the sin and annihilate it within me.

Obviously the question, “Why didn’t God answer my prayer?” is one that virtually every Christian has asked at some point. We may not always be able to answer that question, but God’s Word gives us a framework for understanding certain vital truths that will help us maintain our faith/trust in Him. Perhaps the main takeaway point of this teaching is that we never abandon what we understand from the Word in the face of what we do not understand experientially.

Someone recently sent me an interview by a radio host with a very upbeat woman in her mid/late 30s who is, by all reports, dying of “incurable” colon cancer. She teaches at Duke Divinity School, and has a young son whom she can’t bear to leave. She is doing immunotherapy in order to prolong her life a little more each time. She wrote a book titled Everything Happens for a Reason, and Other Lies I’ve Loved. That’s an inviting title, and a rare one. Then she mentioned other lies people have said to her during her illness: God is writing a better story; Heaven is your true home; God needs another angel. Unfortunately, she substitutes other non-biblical ideas in their place.

In One Day With The Creator, Segment 22 (Parts 1-3) is titled Spiritual Growth: The Five Basics. According to God’s Word, those five basic habits each believer should build into his life are: prayer, reading/studying the Word, fellowship with other brethren, sharing your faith, material/financial giving.

Why does God want us excelling in these things? Because together they help us KNOW HIM and His Son—and that is the bottom line of life. The more we know them, the more we love them. The more we love them, the more we selflessly serve them. The more we serve them, the more fulfilled we are.

Interestingly, one particular Greek word ties together all these essential habits. That word is prothumos, meaning “forwardness of mind, readiness of mind, willing mind, predisposition, inclination, alacrity of mind.” Achieving this type of attitude requires effort, so that, in the face of everything from a crushed button on your shirtsleeve to a horrible tragedy, your first thought is, “I can’t wait to see how God will work for me in this situation!”

So, Happy New Year! Are you ready to “go another round” with our formidable foe. I’m talking about him whom the Word calls “the evil/wicked one,” as in 1 John 5:19: “We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” That’s why the world is in the shape it’s in, and why the Christian Church is preaching centuries-old wrong doctrine about so many critical topics. The good news is that Jesus, your trainer, is in your corner. Therefore, we should desire to maximize our fighting ability, so that we don’t get to the Bema and say, “I coulda been a contender.”

Despite the joy of hearing Jesus proclaimed during the Christmas season, we had to endure countless references to the so-called “Incarnation,” a euphemistic way of saying that GOD became a BABY, which is clearly ludicrous. The fallacy of the Incarnation obscures the glorious truth of the virgin birth and that of The Human Baby in the cradle that rocked the world. Were there more accurate teaching about The Baby in that cradle in the manger, it would rock the world all the more. Why does the Word call this teaching “anti-Christ”?

“In the beginning, God…” was alone. What His Word says that He did thereafter clearly indicates His passion for someone to love and collaborate with forever in the grand scheme of Paradise (“Garden of Delights”). This scintillating overview of what God has done so far, from creating and consulting with His Divine Council about how to renovate the original earth, all the way to creating the New Heaven and Earth, highlights the birth of His Son as the centerpiece of His relentless quest to overcome all opposition and bring to pass His original vision.

Despite rampant wrong teaching to the contrary, God decided to give us genuine free will, for love is not love unless we have a choice not to love. In so doing, He limited His control over planetary events so as to work within the framework of our choices. In Scripture, our Father bares His heart about His hopes and heartaches, His anticipation and disappointments, and He shows us His dynamic reciprocal relationship with Jesus during his earthly ministry.

Now there’s a phrase very familiar to many dear brethren, and one that always elicited great anticipation and excitement, vividly bringing to mind hot Bible, sweet fellowship with priceless saints from around the world, and great music. Sad to say, that “Rock” was shattered long ago, but that mantra is still applicable, and now should be even more meaningful to us than when we chanted it “back in the day.”

The true “Rock” is Jesus Christ, whom God raised from the dead and exalted as Lord and Head of the Ekklesia, his Body. If you have made him your Lord, you don’t just have a piece of the Rock, you are a piece of the Rock!

Because the Devil exists, and because he is who the Word says he is and does what the Word says he does, there most certainly is an ongoing 6000-year “conspiracy,” and the “persons” involved are willing pawns of God’s Adversary, who have fully committed themselves to carry out his malicious machinations. Their goal is control. In contrast, our goal is to set people free by giving them a knowledge of God’s truth.

Here in the good old USA, we have a relatively small number of people making a lot of noise protesting one thing or another. The goal of the forces of evil behind the scenes is to create as much division as possible by getting people to segregate themselves into “victimized” groups, characterized by an ersatz form of “community.”

The above title may have prompted you to sing the next line in the old song, “I shall not be moved.” In this teaching we will look at what it means to persevere in our Christian walk, that is, simply to keep going, even if our pace varies. Like the seed that landed on good soil, you can be one “who, after hearing the Word, clings to it with an honest and good heart, and bears fruit with steadfast endurance.”

To do so, we must sink our spiritual roots deep enough to tap into God’s energy. Fruitful perseverance requires us to establish and maintain godly priorities. There are many battles we can fight, and we must choose wisely where we expend our energy.

God & Son, Inc is about the relationship between God and His Son, from the time that Jesus was an eventuality in God’s foresight, through each day of his life on earth, and until the Lord takes his seat on the final throne. It is in the life of Jesus that we most vividly see the “human potential” that we also have. We will examine the unique, fourfold structure of each of the four Gospels, and debunk some prevalent myths about modern day “Israel." And we will be enlightened by how God encouraged His precious Son step by step, all the way through the agony of the Cross. The intimate relationship that God and His Son developed and enjoyed is what sustained Jesus all the way to his last breath in the first of the three bodies God gave him. Now, our Father and our Lord will encourage us moment by moment as we walk in his steps.

Remember that our Enemy, the Devil, focuses on distorting and contradicting the greatest of God’s truths, and that his very first lie (Gen. 3:4) was that there is no such thing as “death,” as that word is defined in every language on earth: “the end of life.”

Nearly all Christians, and even many non-Christians, believe that when someone dies, he goes directly to either “Heaven” or “Hell”—and stays there forever. No wonder we hear about “the living dead.” Those concepts so deeply permeate our culture that one hears them propounded nearly every day.

In this precise review of critical biblical truth, we look at the theological origins of each of the fallacious notions of “Heaven” and “Hell,” and contrast those to what God actually says in His Word. Be sure you understand these truths so that your True Hope is not distorted or diminished by Satan’s lies.

A recent Gallup poll showed that we live in a post-Christian society. Apparently, most people don’t think that Christianity is relevant to their lives. That is not surprising, given the many confusing notions that now pass for Christian doctrine. Christianity is supposed to be a vital relationship between Christ and you, but too much of it has been turned into a religious system, a bland philosophy, a collection of fables that make no sense.

But what if people could find a true hero, and one who loves them? What if they could find a genuine leader whom they could follow passionately? What about a BEST FRIEND? What about someone who is all of that and more—and who conquered DEATH? And what if that formerly dead man promised victory over man’s mortal enemy and glorious everlasting life to anyone who simply chooses to follow him? Let’s go to the Book of Acts for brief excerpts from 19 chapters and see if that is not what we find as being “The Good News.”

Jesus Christ is God’s “Last Will and Testament.” By the death of the Testator, all the promises of God have been bequeathed to you and me—including healing.

Fear is believing the word of the enemy. Faith (trust) is expecting God to do what He we know is His will. Stepping out in faith is walking on the foundations of the universe. By our obedience to His Word, we can prove that God’s promises are true.

God is diligently searching for anyone who will believe Him so that He can give to us and do for us so that we can make Him known. His time is always NOW. When it comes to the promises of God, as expressed in the person of Jesus Christ, THERE IS NO REASON WHY NOT!!!

Genesis 3:15 is the first mention of Jesus Christ in the Word of God, and it sets forth the two basic aspects of his life and ministry: SUFFERING and GLORY. “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring [seed] and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Glory is sometimes mentioned without the Suffering, but never is the Suffering mentioned without the Glory. The heart of this teaching is a verse-by-verse exposition of Psalm 22 (The Good Shepherd on earth, in death), Psalm 23 (The Great Shepherd, in heaven by Resurrection), and Psalm 24 (The Chief Shepherd, coming in his glory to earth). Join us as we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus. Psalm 22 magnificently sets forth the Messiah’s prayer and plea from the Cross as he for the last time reached out to Israel, with his dying breaths. He quoted the first and last words of this psalm, which was known by all Jews, and which vividly proclaims exactly what was happening before their eyes that terrible day. This is the psalm most often quoted in the Greek Scriptures.

Written about six months after his scathing first epistle to the Corinthian Christians, which Titus delivered in an asbestos bag, 2 Corinthians is filled with heartfelt words of encouragement from the apostle Paul to his brethren there. Please join us Wednesday, March 1 as John Lynn takes us, verse-by-verse, through Chapters 3, 4, and 5.

Some of the prevailing themes we will examine are ever-increasing glory, the treasure of truth, the life of Jesus revealed in us, our all-encompassing Hope, the ministry of reconciliation, and how we are renewed day by day en route to the Bema, the Judgment Seat of Christ. One of the facets of this teaching is to see how precisely God’s Word unfolds to us.

This overview of the history of man from God’s viewpoint one of his favorite teachings because of the impact it can have on someone. Due to erroneous theology, hardly any Christians would think of GOD as having anticipation or hope and then being thrilled when it came to pass, or disappointed when it didn’t.

When God looks down upon the earth, He sees an ocean that is not on any map—the ocean of tears shed by mankind. The suffering that our Heavenly Father has had to watch since Adam broke His heart 6000 years ago is indescribable, and He is thrilled when anyone (like you or me) desires to please Him and makes an effort to do so. We’ll see what the Word says about how we can please Him, because when we do, He is able to do for us exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think.

The title of the teaching is Are You Sick of Sickness? Statement of the problem: Every one of us is sick, in that we came from the factory with a sin nature, and thus the seeds of death planted within us, so that from the moment of our birth we have been dying. When a leper approached Jesus, the “Prince of Life,” and inquired about whether it was his will to heal him, Jesus replied, ”I WILL!” Those glorious words are still echoing through the universe—and that is exactly what he says to you today!

Jesus showed us that the posture of God is constantly that of reaching out to us with His complete provision for us, so it is basically a matter of our reaching out in faith/trust to take hold of His solution—and refusing anything less. How do we do that? What doubts can negate our faith? What is the best way to minister healing to someone? How can we best take responsibility for our own health?

Finally, no matter how sick we ever get, we are assured of the ultimate healing—a new body, and the guarantee of that promise is the basis for us to have faith/expectation for our Lord to heal us now, as he longs to do.

Scripture indicates that the root of all human sin is a faulty concept of God, which of course Satan has constantly promoted since Genesis 3 during his first conversation with a human. Even for us faithful followers of Christ, the root of all our nagging unbelief is that we do not see clearly the magnitude of our Heavenly Father and His burning love for us.

The solution: GOD’S WORD, both the Written Word and the Living Word, Jesus Christ. We MAGNIFY God by looking at Him through the lens of His Word, wherein He tells us all about Himself, and about His immeasurable love for each of us.

As we ingest some of what God’s Word says about how BIG, how GREAT, how LOVING, and how POWERFUL He really is, we’ll be reading two magnificently edifying sections in Psalms, and then going into the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and into the Lion’s Den with Daniel.

Genesis 9 shows us that civil/political government was God’s idea, so as to promote freedom, prosperity, justice, and peace. His underlying goal was that wicked people could not stop God’s people from proclaiming His Word. By definition, “civil” has to do with citizens, and today it also means “not deficient in common courtesy.” Certainly God intended government to be far more “civil” than it has been for 6000 years.

In this teaching we will look at pertinent excerpts from Jeremiah, a prophet faithful to preach God’s truth despite opposition from government authorities. Some excerpts from Isaiah will show us what the perfect government looks like, and a few brief sections of Acts 4/5 will highlight the courage of our first-century brethren to proclaim the saving grace of God’s Word whether or not it was “legal."

Are you hungry? Forget Arby’s. In this teaching, “WE HAVE THE MEAT!” If you would like to be immersed in scintillating Scripture for a few minutes, please join us this coming Wednesday evening. And no, it won’t be as long as Leo Tolstoy’s novel by the same title.

“War and Peace” must be in that order. Why? Because of the existence of Satan/evil, there cannot be peace without war. How do we know? The Bible tells us so. Jesus will eventually return to the earth and destroy all the wicked. Until then, each of us must wage war to demolish the strongholds of our sinful nature and bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Each day we can win the battle for Truth in own hearts and have internal peace.

As we will see, the Devil has conscripted many people to promote his lies. Therefore we must be “valiant for the truth,” which is the subtitle of this teaching. TRUTH MATTERS, because it sets people free, while believing error puts them in bondage. We are to follow Jesus’ example and conduct a War on Error.

Satan began his assault on man’s perspective of God in Genesis 3, but what is the history of the development of the lie that God is in control, and that He either causes or allows all the unspeakable tragedy that has engulfed humanity? Seeing God as He reveals Himself in His Word is critical to the quality of one’s spiritual life.

How could any rational person believe that God randomly determines who will be saved and who will burn in “Hell” forever and yet cruelly offers salvation to all those He knows cannot accept it? Why is Romans 8:28 such a critical verse to correctly understand? This teaching provides the answers to these questions, as well as much profound truth about a subject that very few Christians who have ever lived have understood.