Happy New Year 2013? I Doubt you are happy!

Happy New Year? 2013     by Kelly Durant  12-30-12

John 13:16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

All the time we have been hearing these past days Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, but how many people are really happy? Have you ever thought about that? We say that wanting to be happy but with the world as it is, with all of its problems and violence it is hard to be happy! Some people sort of smile at these Happy Holidays words, but the reality is a Christmas or a New Year does not bring many people happiness as they live with or in conditions that do not permit them much happiness. We live in a broken world!

The “unhappy” things in our lives come from outside circumstances or they originate from some people reaping their own consequences but the bottom line is “unhappiness” is the product of sin.  God wants us happy:  we have a happy God! Jesus gave us a solution to cure our unhappiness, by serving others.  But the “unhappy” things of life do provoke stress and pain.

Most of you are affected by harsh words or ugly behaviors from those in your world and this brings each of us discouragement, frustration, anger, and depression. Can you identify what prevents you from being more “happy”? These past days we have seen many new people in the Corps, or people out in the street, but not very many are very happy, don’t you think?

People that live with unpleasant conditions experience discouragement day after day and we should show mercy on them and give them support and love: we as Christian Soldiers should be the first ones in the world to try and bring happiness to others! Happiness comes back to you from doing acts of love, kind deeds, saying kind words, and encouraging! Jesus expressed this in these verses in John. New visitors, new people volunteering, people picking up toys, everyone needs our non-judgmental unconditional love! If we are not happier than them then what do we offer?

But what takes away from our happiness often is the unhappiness of others! Unhappy people often make comments that are not from God, and their words or actions reveal that they have a jealous heart, a bitter heart, or a revengeful heart.  When families get together over the holidays quite often the discord and ”unhappy” comments break loose as one is more wealthy than the other, one has more happy kids or a better relationship than the other. And here is the worst one, hatred from someone for you simply because they despise how you love and obey God more than them. This is the jealousy of Cain. This happens with relatives and it even happens within all church families no matter the denomination!

The unhappy part is we let people get away with taking away our happiness! You and I need to change that! Adults and children are the same, they both know how to get under your skin. Like the little kid we saw these past days in the store that starts screaming for a toy and crying at the top of his lungs for his mother to buy it and what usually happens? The mother should say, okay, we are going straight to the bathroom (which implies time out or a swat for bad behavior) but instead what happens? The mother gives the kid the toy just to shut him up! And we ask ourselves what is wrong with our society, why are kids turning into spoiled murderers when they grow up? We need to expose manipulation, and rude and proud behaviors that have the motive to get what they want no matter your pain!

We ended the year with Jesus and we need to start the Jesus! Amen? This world due to greed, bitterness, and all kinds of sin is very messed up and very broken right now, and like and old building, it is showing many signs of needing all kinds of repairs putting our lives in danger. We cannot fix the world and its corrupt politics, we can’t fix the unconverted, or foul mouth bad behaving proud relative, but we can make ourselves into a light of happiness and hope by shining more of Jesus through us! Amen? You can choose to be superior to them spiritually!

Here is a part of Jesus I would like to review that was present with us even before he was born.  Mary was happy for all the good that Jesus would bring her and the world and we should examine what that good includes more often.

Luke 1:46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord

47     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

48 for he has been mindful

    of the humble state of his servant.

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

49     for the Mighty One has done great things for me—

    holy is his name.

50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,

    from generation to generation.

51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;

    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.

52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones

    but has lifted up the humble.

53 He has filled the hungry with good things

    but has sent the rich away empty.

54 He has helped his servant Israel,

    remembering to be merciful

55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,

    just as he promised our ancestors.”

For several years and for most of my Christian life I have prescribed goals for the New Year and good things to aspire for God’s work, but this year I want to prescribe that you simply need more of Jesus! The humility of Jesus, what Mary’s song proclaims, is what could cure the sins and “unhappiness” today.

The problem with what makes us continually unhappy, the sin, and the pride in ourselves or others, is it almost always not noticed by those that have it! Have you ever had, or do you have, a proud boss or relative, and you can see how he or she is destroying the unity and effectiveness in the company or family by the bad way he/she is handling things? All of us always see the pride and sin in others, but here is the problem, this person usually thinks everything is just fine! They see no problem! Like the song that says, “I once was blind but now I see”; These people think they are so good that it is so unfair that you and others don’t like them and accept their opinions!?   

Proverbs 20:6 Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?

Everyone wants to believe each year will be better but the sad reality is you and other people will not change for the better on their own without more of Jesus! No matter even if a serious tragedy happens, people who are not being humble and obeying God still remain the same or even worse and more bitter!

How many of you recall 2 years ago when my wife was in the Palmetto Hospital so they could see why her heart had irregular beats? There was an elderly Cuban lady in the room next door that had a very vulgar mouth. They did surgery on her and found that she had too much cancer and they would not be able to save her so they sewed her back up. Did that lady change and say, oh I want to make it right with God since I only have a few months to live? No! She kept on being her same old vulgar self, insulting everyone even more!

This is an example of the typical human being and each of here you are no exception,  it is a fact you will keep on being how you are now until the day you die unless you decide to let God’s word break you and re-make you into a more humble obedient servant. What verse do we repeat over and over in the church?  2 Chronicles 7:14

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

This implies that in order to have God’s blessings in this coming year, in order to have a “Happy New Year”, and in order to be healed from all your sin, bitternesses, criticisms, and bad behaviors that are noticed by all (even though you may not see it) you are going to have to go so we become more like Jesus!

Never assume you are good just because you are a Christian and come to church, maybe if you ask Jesus about your inner most self He could reveal to you where you still have sin, maybe some greed, vanity, pride, jealousy, and self-evident unhappiness. You and I must desperately humble ourselves, and if not we will just keep on with more of the same behavior or even getting worse, living one more year of an “unhappy” life!? Get busy helping, serving, and loving, as Jesus taught!

So you may think well, if the Captains or pastors and others imply that some here are “unhappy” and possibly prideful then inside you may ask well, what is the purpose of being a Christian and doing anything here in the Corps church anyway if we are considered as bad, not making progress?  All I want is for you to have more of God’s goodness and holiness, and there is great hope and happiness in obeying Jesus more. A lot of progress has been made, and no matter your age, gender, or time knowing the Lord, you and I all still have room to improve!

The past weeks we read about John the Baptist being born, and what did he proclaim about the future effect of Jesus?

Luke 3:5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;

The Christmas and New Year season always comes as a reminder that there are many people that expect a lot of gifts from their family, or church but often they are not willing to be humble and show others the respect and love and give gifts to others that they deserve. God and His work is like a bank, you have to invest in it and Him in order to get a return! How is it stated? Luke1:53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. How hungry are you for God’s ways?

All of us need to start this New Year by cleaning up the sin in ourselves so God can use you in a much more glorious way! I see many of you like a rough piece of stone that could be made into a beautiful statue, but instead, year after year you are not like as in Luke 3:5 with “the rough made smooth”.

In my calculation about one in every 2 people are very unhappy by their own demise and have given up on their self and their situation thinking there is no hope! Now that is “unhappy” for real!  All you and I need is more of Jesus and his humility, to be willing to do anything at anytime for our Lord for all the good and happy things you and I aspire will come back to us!

I am happy serving God! It is a fight though! Over time some people will insult you, mock you, reject you, say you do it for personal interest and stab you in the back, but I have not let these people take away my happiness in God yet! Sure, my wife and I suffer at times, yes we even cry over seeing or experiencing cruelty done to others or ourselves, but because we have Jesus we have peace! Do you have this supernatural peace and happiness? It is a choice! Accept it from God! Happy New Year for real! Be humble and God will exalt you for serving Him!

Kings Worshiping a Baby?

Christmas: The Kings Unconventional Honoring of a Superior 

by Kelly Durant 12-2-12

Matthew 2:9-11  All of us are people surrounded by individuals who are creatures of habit. It is evident that no nation, race, or people will never drastically change past traditions, most are here to stay. As Christians we will always celebrate Jesus Christ’s birth while the people of the world will emphasize celebrating materialism. Consumerism has morphed itself into a magical man who gives out endless gifts. Santa Claus is only famous because he is used as a tool to fill the greed of many.  

It is true that some Christians do not find that Santa Claus so offensive depending on the context and status in which you respect him. He is just a fantasy and many children know that by age 3. The actual historical basis of the story of St. Nicolas giving out gifts to the poor children is a wonderful example of how we all should be!

All of us in Miami, and multi-millions, do gift giving as a tradition! Giving and sharing gifts with one another is rewarding, and especially giving to those in hard times; no one doubts that God blesses those who help the needy!

3. Just on a personal note, what if we really did abide by the list of who is naughty and who is nice in order to qualify who will get a gift and who will not? I think commerce would come to screeching halt if we did! Today some children are terrible and no one, not parents nor teachers are correcting them appropriately. Only when these ego inflated bullies grow up and end up in jail for disrespecting the wrong person and the law do they start to see the light (if they ever do!).

I wish we could grade adults on how naughty or nice they were as well. Some of you I have observed (but what I observe does not matter really, it is God that sees everything!) have been very good at loving, helping, and of humbling serving and caring for those in need.

However, we all also have seen others that when they get their pride just a bit little offended start saying all kinds of rude things. Like when you scratch a veneer surface, the cheap wood underneath shows through!

But let’s understand our tradition better: God was the first gift giver! He gave Jesus Christ to the world to be the savior so everyone would repent and radically change and by becoming as he was, humble, loving, and serving, granting the heavenly gift of eternal life. Our job is to preach the gospel and thereby share the gift of eternal life to everyone we meet.

Let’s now jump to the part of the story about the other ones that gave material gifts to Jesus. These are kings honoring Jesus as the King of Kings. There usually are the 3 kings in the manger scenes, but the 3 are the ones giving gifts. We conclude there were at least 3 but there actually could have been more.

I find it fascinating that they were kings in their lands, yet they came to recognize the authority of a baby who would grow up to be a king. Think how much faith, humility, and supernatural confidence this requires.

Also, consider that if they saw the star stop over the manager, why didn’t other people see it and come as well? Were others just not in tune with the heavenly bodies in space? Or were these men special in their spiritual ability to perceive?

Here is a real Christmas mystery: How did these KINGS from very different cultures and lands very distant from each other all interpret the same reading of the stars and prophesies of their ancient writings or religions that a KING would be found under the newly appearing strange bright star?

Kings, as we know from history, never bow to anyone. Everyone in their lands are expected to bow to them and give them gifts and taxes; never was it heard of that the kings give gifts and that they would bow to another authority, especially kneeling in front of a baby. They not only kneeled, they worshipped Him! That is honor!

Showing respect and honor will always imply sharing something of value to prove honor. All religions ask for something; some 10%, or you can give 100%, it all depends on how much you will give up for God! God is fair and blesses back.

What I hate about governments is they ask for a usual 30% and if you’re rich they want up to 90%! (in Europe) Why do you think the English keep moving to the U.S.? They are escaping the heavy burden of taxes. The burden gets heavier day by day!

Have you ever wondered how each king knew how many provisions they needed to travel 3, or 6 months to a year to reach him to give Jesus a gift? Many people here will give to the Lord a few days of their time, but would you do what they did and spend a big part of your fortune on a trip that would mean camping in extreme heat and extreme cold, crossing deserts, facing thieves, and hiring a crew to help you care for your camels and equipment? The honor of these kings required great sacrifice!

We know the kings came from the Orient, but from where precisely is still undefined by historians. Many agreed that amongst these kings were one or more of the Zoroastrian kings, which were in power in Persia at the time of Jesus’ birth.

The King Vishtapa was Ciro's father, and he had been convinced of the existence of a 3^rd and final savior that would come in the world who would battle in the end of the world and defeat evil. Zoroaster said that a great savior would arise in the world, and his name would be Soasyant, which means one who will fulfill righteousness and this goes with same description of Christ in the bible.

Contained within the writings and prophesies of these kings were the word that a savior would be born of virgin and he live and then be killed but on the third day he would be resurrected. All of this knowledge the wise kings would have shared and known.

Notice as well in Matthew Chapter 2 that king Herod asked the Jews, what the prophecy said and where would the king be born and they replied in Bethlehem. The Jews had the book of Isaiah and all ancient prophecies that co-incited to confirm the birth of the righteous Messiah, the Christ, or baby Jesus.

These were legendary tales and they confirm that Jesus was the messiah, not just for the Jews, but for everyone in the orient and for the rest of the world! What makes me angry is how the people of the world reject truth!

These kings obviously returned home to honor Jesus by telling everyone about Him. They told of all their adventures, of escaping getting killed by Herod over his jealousy, and of finding Jesus below the star but how long did people believe? Ten years? 20 years?

The news of baby Jesus fulfilling ancient prophecies did not last very long because a few hundred years later the religion of Islam was crafted in the orient and new laws were imposed. Islam spread not by gaining the awe of people as the fulfillment of prophecy, but by fear! Those who did not bow to Alla had their heads cut off. Just the other day a 15 year old girl was murdered by her own family because she did not comply with their cruel laws. Did you hear about that one?

So from today’s study we conclude that honor to our Lord and savior Jesus Christ must be done in a similar manner as it was done by the kings.  How was that honor shown?

By sacrifice: they traveled far, and they gave gifts to prove their honor.

By worship: they kneeled in front of Jesus and recognized his divine authority.

By being in tune with the divine: they acted upon seeing the star as a supernatural sign which confirmed that the king they had expected in ancient writings would appear and they honored him as the righteous savior of the world.

If kings honored Jesus, how much more we should honor him! None of us here today are a king or a queen. One day when we join the heavenly host, for sure God will compare who honored Jesus the most. Heavenly rewards will be for those who honor Him now.

Christmas: Glory to God, Peace & Goodwill to Men

Christmas: Glory to God, Peace & Goodwill to Men   Kelly Durant   Nov. 25,2012

Luke 2:14

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

2. A good Day of Thanksgiving passed and I hope you had something good to eat! If you went with me to the Shelter raise your hand, about 20 of us had enjoyed an amazing meal there!

Did you notice in the stores already?  It is time for trees, lights, and gifts! And this is all because of a baby, baby Jesus!  it will be Christmas time before you know it! It is quite a miracle that Baby Jesus actually survived as one in 3 babies would die in that time period without medical attention in those days! Let’s hear a story of a baby that died, and of a baby that lived.

Let’s go back to the O.T., I Kings 3:16-28. Do you recall that King Solomon was considered wise? God offered him riches but he chose wisdom. The Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes in the Bible are full of wisdom.

How many of you know the story of when they brought to King Solomon  a situation of 2 mothers with 2 babies about the same months old? These 2 ladies lived in the same house and in the night one of the babies died. The problem is one lady claimed the other one stole her baby so you did not know who was the mother of the living baby and who was the mother of the dead one!?

Solomon in his wisdom said split the baby in 2 parts with a sword and give each woman half. Shocked, one lady yelled, “No! Don’t do that just give it to the other woman!” The other lady in her bitterness said, go ahead kill it and give us half each. But then Solomon in his wisdom said, wait, the woman who is willing to give up her baby, this is the real mother, the baby is hers!

3. I find that one can compare this same wisdom to baby Jesus of today. There are around us in the world, God’s children, people who are kind hearted doing many things for others, willing to give up anything for the sake of life and love. This time of year these people want too see Baby Jesus honored and special.

These are true people of honor, the ones that understand God’s gift to the world, that Jesus inspired us to love everyone, no exceptions. These people are the ones who will live eternally in heaven because they chose life, they always choose to do good because they love God and Jesus!

4,But like the mother who preferred to see a baby cut in two rather than share it, there are those amongst us of this nature that are greedy, evil, and cold hearted. They do not care for life or baby Jesus at all and only care for their own selfish consumption and material appetites giving no respect for what the Holiday of Christmas means!

These carnal people would prefer to see Baby Jesus and Christianity die and go away. These are people who are bitter against God and they hate the happy people who make Christmas special. They disrespect and profane all things pure and beautiful. These kinds of people with unrepentant hearts, full of hate are in essence comparable to being murderers and thieves, and as the Bible states are as condemned dry wood ready to be placed into the fire as this is what they deserve. 

1 John 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. God is just and has hell reserved for the souls of these people who reject Jesus. People without Jesus are horrible! They cause all who live near them to go through hell due to their angry, bitter, confrontational, vulgar, lying spirit. But God has heaven reserved for those that accept baby Jesus and become innocent and pure like He is!

5. Going back to Luke 2:14, the very first message from God through the angels when Jesus was born was “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men”. This short sentence inspires me so much! There are 3 points.

What does this bold declaration mean in its totality? If the angels in heaven are worshipping a baby, then that should get our attention, right? They were glorifying God because baby Jesus would become the sacrificed one on the cross and be the savior of the world! The first lesson you and I must learn in life is that we must give glory to God for Jesus!

Giving glory to God is not just something you say, like in church when people say, praise God, we glorify you God, it is more than that; giving glory to God implies living a lifestyle of love! You glorify God by your actions and words, by imitating Him, but serving Him and others, by being as He is, full of love, holiness, and goodwill towards all men (and women)!

6. And where it says, “Glory to God in the highest”, “the highest” refers to the all-encompassing power and authority of God! The universe, and heavens high above us, and the symphony of the cycle of life that is high above our understanding, all imply that God is far beyond us!  He is perfect and all-knowing governing and preserving the stars and all chemical matter, the realms of angels, and the forces of nature and the people of earth! Psalm 113:4 The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Science proves God is infinitely vast and complex and all of this interacting order proclaims the glory of a creator!

7. Next in the phrase, “Peace on Earth”, what is peace? It is an overwhelming calm where there is safety. You have seen the bumper sticker, ‘Know Jesus, Know Peace.  No Jesus, No Peace’, what a true statement this is! For as long as I have been involved with Christians, close to 40 years now, the thousands of testimonies I have heard all confirm one thing, that the lives of the people before Jesus were a torture and chaotic mess as they lived in a hell of guilt and confusion. But after accepting to follow Jesus their circumstances totally changed, to have a life of peace and fulfillment! Peace with God and peace even with conflictive people.

8. That is true in my life too! I got away from following Jesus when I went to High School and my life went downhill as I drank and partied and smoked pot and played in a rock band, but I was shocked with myself that I was not happy! I was doing all the things that the people of the world were doing to over stimulate my body’s pleasure cells but yet I was dying inside with a restless feeling like I was really killing my soul inside and in danger, feeling far away from God.

I had all the pleasures of the world as a young man but one day I woke up to realize I was just an empty self-indulgent copy-cat want-to-be who should just die to get out of the way because I was just taking up space. I just wanted to end my misery and frustration!

But one day after I prayed the prayer to accept Jesus, my whole world changed! This is why I am here today, to tell you about it, it is true, Jesus will give you peace, a peace that you have never experienced and it is worth the investment to leave behind everything, all your own misguided beliefs, all your way of being, and worthless life!

9. And finally, the last point of Luke 2:14 stated in the Holy Scripture, it is the “goodwill toward men” that many of us fail to capture. God giving me goodness or wanting goodwill for me? How is it that God wants good for humanity. Isn’t humanity terrible as we the people seem to always make war and kill multi-millions we destroy everything with our factories and corrupt cities?

In the end we must let this undeserved goodness impact us, God loves you and me beyond our comprehension! He sacrificed His son Jesus for all humanity for us to have eternal life! God only wants to give you and me good things in life, making us happy, giving us an eternity of goodness.  Most every Christian I know lives very blessed!

But many people make a train wreck of their lives and then want to blame God or others for their mess, but it never was God who failed them and didn’t give them their dreams! It was their own cruel self! God, all the time has good plans for each of us, but we must listen to Him and convert, and become sacrificial. Sacrificial as in giving up your own baby if you have to, embracing baby Jesus and life, peace, and goodness.

To have God’s good will working in your life, you must be in His will! This time of year at Christmas time serves as a reminder that the very first principle that God wants is for everyone to let the baby live in your heart, to accept Jesus as the savior of the world and as the savior of your soul.

Baby Jesus was born in humility and poor, He lived a modest life, and then He died in great pain to rise again in order to take away the pain and emptiness in the souls of all men and women, or better said, in you and I! Let Jesus do that for you today! Give Glory to God, accept His peace, & live in the goodwill He has for you in your life! Prayer…

Thanksgiving: True Compassion and Gratitude or Else!

Thanksgiving: True Compassion and Gratitude           by Kelly Durant 11-19-12

I John 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.17 But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

How many of you have ever seen beggars? I mean hungry ones with very sad faces? There are a lot of them in South America and each day I had to have a few pesos ready to give out. If you don’t help you are going to feel very bad thinking about how you did not help someone in need! Right? But you can always observe hundreds that do not care at all and just walk on by!

The first Pilgrim Colonists in 1621 in this country were literally dying of hunger after arriving to this land from England. They arrived in the summer and did not have time to plant for the harvest and they had no provisions for the winter. Immigrants seem to always have a hard time no matter where they move to! Right?

A Cuban I shared a coffee with one time told me he was so poor when he got here to Miami that he would catch pigeons on the beach in order to be able to eat! Sometimes we are unaware of how poor some people around us actually are! Never judge, appearances deceive!

We can be thankful for Thanksgiving Day because it has shaped Americans as a culture to remember to be grateful to God and to be compassionate! Americans have historically been one of the most generous helping people on earth giving over 240 billion to individuals or charity each year! Half of that goes to churches! This is one reason why Satan has been working so hard to divide and destroy our faith and this country! “Tolerance” the past few years seems to apply for every type of religion and all types of evil but “tolerance” is not offered to Christians the ones helping ministries with 120 billion a year! But Satan controls his multi-trillions!

The Native American Indians, and historically most cultures in the world, have a tradition of celebrating the fall harvests which sustains them through winter. Even pagan European cultures knew there was a God that provided and they had festivals as well. It was Pres. Abraham Lincoln that made Thanksgiving Day an official holiday in 1863 to, as in his words, “remember Almighty God”. But it had been celebrated for over 150 years prior to that!

It is amazing how the Indians showed compassion on these new strange white immigrants. Everyone today should celebrate this act of compassion and gratitude to God and and express gratitude to our remaining noble Natives! Thanksgiving Day should be a day in which we recognize God’s mercy through others and this should prompt us to show compassion on someone less fortunate in our society.

The irony of being a Christian is that we are supposed to live out compassion and gratitude in our every action, but often we may meet others that know and practice it innately because they are spiritual. All people still have a God consciousness (as mentioned in Romans 1) and God sees all. How much more Christians must do it!

The scripture of today, of showing compassion, was in its essence being practiced by a people that at that time were considered savages. Interesting God’s humor in how He used so called “savages” to save the Christians from hunger by throwing a big party and feast! But that set the stage for how every immigrant should be compassionate ever since that day!

This nation, founded by Christians, now lives with this standard and tradition of compassion and it is established as an example for all generations so that we too must keep the tradition and always be compassionate and feed and care for others. I would like to suggest that when we show the less fortunate compassion that we not forget that this includes the widows, the homeless, and the immigrants.

But for the cold hearted and compassionless, hear this warning: Proverbs 21:13  Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.

These Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe gave an example of how all people can without any discrimination of race and class appreciate one another, love and share, and thank God that He is keeping them alive!

Think about this, God feels deep pain when he spares someone’s life and then later these same people become proud and greedy and forget Him! In other words God gets angry and judges severely people who are non-compassionate and unthankful!

Where do we find evidence of this? In the O.T., Moses freed 6 million Jews from the slavery of Egypt and how did these people respond? Did they praise Him every day? No! They complained constantly against God, they built idols to worship any god except the One who had saved them! Their punishment was to wander lost 40 years in the desert and never reach the promised land!

God has a way of judging and destroying the nations that are unthankful to Him! All the world’s super powers of the past, Egypt, Persia(Iran), Greece, and Rome, look at them today! They are still bankrupt, in turmoil, and divided! They have been cursed for several thousand years now because their people became aggressors to steal, enslave, and exploit instead of being people who were loving and giving, compassionate worshipping God!

Many Native tribes were peaceful and loving and spiritual, but others were war-like and they would invade and kill everyone in the peaceful tribes. This was the same scenario as in Europe where the white tribes of peaceful people were invaded by Vandals, Vikings, and other barbarous war like people. Today the aggressor’s identities have disappeared. And why is that?  Because it was prophesized by Jesus in Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.  But there are still not enough meek ones yet! The evidence is there, God humbles or He exalts!

Are we becoming a nation that is more overrun by greedy deceitful aggressors that will scam and rob and even kill old ladies to steal? Are we as a nation losing our protection and blessings from God because too many people have stopped being compassionate people who thank God for their lives? How have Christians gone wrong to be deceived to follow false doctrines? Psalm 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

I propose to you that as many as half of today’s so called Christians are no longer reading and following Biblical principles but rather they are following men and teachings that are filling them with bitternesses and destruction.  Many so called churches are now accepting false ideas and politics and the erroneous liberation theologies. They want justice, but in their own revengeful way and it is painful.

We believe that the despairing needs of others is solved by obeying Jesus example, and that is having a heart to God and a hand to man! We help as in I John 3:16!

Yet the modern trend is to believe that social justice, or caring for the poor, should be by force and carried out by imposing on the prosperous steep penalties, taxes and laws that permits the shifting of the wealth to themselves taking from others what they covet. This is a sign of the times. Listen to what the anti-christ will do.

Daniel 11:24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.

What it amounts to is Satan has always wanted to prove He is as good as God. Satan wants to appear compassionate! God’s way is the sacrificial way, the laying down of your life for others, the giving of your time, talent, and treasure to others giving them the gospel of salvation in compassion due to your gratitude to God.  True Christians willingly share with those in need!

But Satan’s imitation of compassion is the way of the warlike aggressors. Historically between Russia, China, and the rest 40 million or more have died under atheist Communism. Jesus exposed Satan in John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

God’s compassion is not bound by a race, religion, or place. Jesus example of the Good Samaritan points this out!  Compassion must be put into practice by those that know God or otherwise the world’s (or Satan’s) idea of compassion becomes a method of oppression and destruction!

The world can be divided into 2 types of people, the Satanic self-righteous condemning greedy destructive and imposing types who want to take from you or the sharing spirit –filled caring and loving type that thanks God for everything Which type are you?

In the end, you are either practicing compassion from God or you are not! If not, then you are comparable to the soon to disappear war-like selfish people of the past that forcibly took what they coveted to consume and destroy.

Only Jesus love can change hearts that are hell bent on stealing, invading, killing, and disrespecting other races and cultures! These atrocities still continue on today in the world in our metropolis mega cities, and in all countries everywhere.

Let us pray for a return to a thankfulness to God and a practice of real compassion! Thanksgiving today is needed more than ever!

Be A Tough Soldier of the Lord!

Be A Tough Soldier!                                   Capt. Kelly Durant  10-28-12

II Tim 2: 1Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

2. In Bolivia, in LaPaz, I had a few friends in the military and sometimes I would visit the base. On the base everyone would always be jogging. It seemed no matter where you looked the Soldiers were jogging and I asked my friend why are they in such a hurry. He explained that the rule is that if you are a new Soldier, you are required to run all the time while on the base! Only the 4^th year Soldiers were allowed to walk. Interesting training, don’t you think? Soldiers need training!

New Soldiers need preparation to learn to be tough! Spiritual warfare is a different war from what most of us know of war. Each Soldier must do his or her own training to make their selves tough, or strong in the Lord’s grace as mentioned in verse 1.

How do you get strong in grace? Personal prayer time, Bible study time, and obedience to Jesus! But are you really sacrificing and suffering as much as you should? Ask God that question and he will show you! As General Linda Bond says, God does not want mediocre servants!

3. How many of you here have served in the military or know people in the military? Our son Enmanuel, which all of you got to know, served in the Air Force and we saw the difficult training he went through. One of our own Soldiers, Wendy Pantoja, has just gone through a tough training. Isn’t that right?

Being a Soldier for any nation of the world implies doing a great sacrifice, the laying down of your life to die if need be and even people as young as age 18 must die if necessary. In the military your life is no longer yours, you are the property of the state for them to use, and abuse as they wish. A Soldier of Christ must recall that they also are giving up their life to follow Jesus as he states Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.  

Being a Soldier in the world requires hard labor, getting extremely tired, withstanding extreme temperatures, working stressfully long hours, getting blisters, bruises, and cuts, putting up with punishments, humiliations, and yelling, and learning how to dominate an enemy when he is attacking you trying to kill you!

4. I have met quite a few military vets in TSA & they usually say, “Thank God, we are not in the “killing army” anymore but in the “saving army” now! Soldiers of Jesus have hardships, and this includes mental, spiritual, and physical ones. But how do we make war, when our mission is peace and God’s love?

Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall see God.”  That simple statement was a like a double edged sword cutting down all the aggressiveness and authority of the Roman warmongers who took pleasure in mass carnage! Jesus says be a peacemaker, love your enemies? There is no pride in that!

As Christian Soldiers we need to distinguish what our war is all about, it is about living a new life of living in grace. Grace is a clean slate for our sins, and when your sins are gone and you obtain holiness and you are inspired to never sin again, to never want to feel the dirtiness of a guilty conscience. And you are so happy for discovering Jesus that you never stop sharing about Him!

It also means learning the scriptures and then teaching others to teach others about Jesus, which is discipline. Our war is not one in which we desire destruction on those that attack us as those in the world, ours is a war in which we desire the salvation of all those in the world as Jesus gave the example of.

5. Our war is a war on Satan and all the world’s evils destroying people’s bodies and souls.  We seek to save anyone living in ignorance, sin, and suffering. Christian Soldiers must be willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause! What a contradiction, how ironic, from the world, we seek to save our enemy and do good to those that abuse us!

What does the salvation we offer imply? Obviously it includes forgiveness, grace, eternal life, and heaven for the soul. But ours is a salvation that helps people out of poverty, hunger, clothing, and education needs as well. We provide for this in part, but the world’s governments claim that they provide for their people, and they do cover some things, but their help is never enough to really help as needed. The military and government’s role in the world does not eliminate the greater destructive evils of mass deaths in wars, crime, addictions, and violence.

6. A Soldier of Christ will store up their reward in heaven, but to serve the world means you will never get anything without you be charged Cesar’s pound of flesh! If you borrowed from Cesar in Rome, and you could not pay it back in money, you would pay it back in a body part in the amount of pounds you owed!

Contrasting serving Christ with the world; no government prepares the people of the world to answer to God and answer for the consequences of their sin which leads to eternal death.

Governments are sterile institutions and necessary evils set up to put the brakes on man’s abuses or the violence would be absolute as in the days of Noah with anarchy, chaos, and murder non-stop. It is the governments that need soldiers in the end for their self-preservation. Thank God for them. We do want to preserve our nation; we believe that God has Blessed America!

But no government by their programs or military might can save the soul; that mission is up to you the Christian Soldier! Consider this quote from the Salvation Army’s first street Soldier that preached a few dozens of thousands of sermons on the filthy London streets streets…Gen. William Booth   

7. “To get a man soundly saved it is not enough to put on him a pair of new breeches, to give him regular work, or even to give him a University education. These things are all outside a man, and if the inside remains unchanged you have wasted your labor. You must in some way or other graft upon the man's nature a new nature, which has in it the element of the Divine.”  (8. Sp)

In other words Soldiers, you must preach Jesus and serve others in need, but if Jesus does not change a person’s heart, it is not on your conscience. This person who got help with an unrepentant heart may just keep on going down the wrong path in life and the generosity and compassion did nothing. It basically means this person still remains on the wrong side of this war, the one of destruction by living for selfishness, and animalistic passions. Proverbs 10:16The labour of the righteous tendeth to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin.

9. But with Jesus it is black or it is white, you are on His side teaching others to save others, or you are by default dividing against Him. The world is in a spiritual war against the rulers of darkness in high places.  Matthew 12:30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. You are either fighting for Jesus as a Soldier, or by default, you will be fighting against Him by living out life in your own prideful stubborn will!

The founder of this worldwide Salvation Army had such a vision for souls, such an aggression and passion to fight for the Lord and save souls, that he started this massive movement that has kept the momentum and the fire burning ever since! I personally have seen dozens of churches start up and then after just a few years fade away but not so with TSA! The SA is still growing strong! In the past 4 years in Miami, between all Corps, we have grown by 200 new Soldiers! There are over one million around the world!

10. We should learn more from the original founding father, the General, of this worldwide dedicated army who by battling the enemy won many victories through people just like yourselves, the priceless Soldiers for Jesus Christ! God’s royal priesthood! He said:

“While women weep, as they do now, I'll fight; while little children go hungry, as they do now, I'll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I'll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I'll fight-I'll fight to the very end”! This is our war! Our mission is to fight until the end of the world! (11. SP)

12. All of us as Soldiers have the challenge to fight in all places to teach others of Jesus and the true doctrines. We recognize evil and what to battle! We must bring more Holy Ghost power in the Corps and in our own personal life, and preach a Jesus that does expect us to repent and be so sorry for our past sins being willing to do anything to live and fight for the right! Are you willing to take a bullet and be made fun of for standing up for Jesus? Don’t get so involved with the affairs of this world that you are compromised. Our fight is to save souls into heaven!

Will you suffer for Jesus? Paul did. 2 Corinthians 11:24-26 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

You are now, as Soldiers of Jesus, going out to start serving Jesus in this Corps with passion and dedication! You are expected to tell others of Jesus, to pray and grow from the study of God’s word, sort through rotten vegetables to serve those in need, visit the elderly in the homes, and do anything in the kitchen or in the community that the Lord needs! There are dozens of ministry opportunities with us. Which one will you choose? How will you show to God and all you are a good Soldier winning some victories in this war against the evils in the world?

Translation of Quotes

"Para que un hombre sea salvo, no es suficiente  poner en él un par de pantalones nuevo, darle trabajo regular, o incluso darle una educación universitaria. Estas cosas son externas, y si el interior permanece inalterado han perdido su trabajo, no vale de nada. Usted debe de alguna manera injertar sobre la naturaleza del hombre una nueva naturaleza, que tiene en ella el elemento Divino." Gen. William Booth

"Mientras las mujeres lloran, como lo hacen ahora, lucharé; mientras los niños pasan hambre, como lo hacen ahora, lucharé; mientras los hombres van a la cárcel,  adentro y afuera,  adentro y  afuera, como lo hacen ahora, lucharé; mientras hay un borracho en la esquina, mientras que hay una pobre chica perdida en las calle, mientras que sigue habiendo un alma oscura sin la luz de Dios, lucharé-lucharé hasta el final "! Esta es nuestra guerra! Nuestra misión es luchar hasta el final del mundo”!  Gen. William Booth

Relational, Doer, or Thinker: Which are you?

Relational, Doer, or Thinker: Which are you?         Kelly Durant 10-21-2012

2. Not long ago there was a piece of paper on the floor in the hallway outside, did you remember seeing it? One person came to me and said, ”We need to spy and see with the cameras who does this”. Then another told me, “You, Captain, need to put up signs and tell the people to stop throwing paper trash in the halls”! Another came to me and said, “We need to get the Corps council together to see what is happening with this situation and discuss how to deal with people who drop paper on the floor”! Another person commented, “We need analyze the situation as to why papers appear, maybe we need more trash cans”?! Another continued, “You have got to preach on people being more responsible to expound on the spiritual repercussions on the soul of undesirable behaviors done in the physical world”. Then, after all the suggestions, one person just bent over, and picked the paper up, and put the paper in the trash! Ha!

All of this is a metaphor, but very close to real life! Did you get the point how each person has a different approach, a different personality type, a different way of thinking, and a different way of resolving an ordinary task?

3. Amongst your selves there are many personality types and ways of doing, talking, being, and thinking from all your different influences of the past, and your level of commitment to God. And despite our different ways, cultures, and styles, each person here is needed! There are people who use all things happening in life as a means to connect to someone, they want just to be with other people and do things together with people, and this is good. Like, “Let’s get together and feel alright”! Some love people.

Also, generalizing, there are people who like to do stuff. These people love action & serving, fixing and doing, and they just do whatever, whenever, however to make things a better standard. These people do not wait on others, they just see a need and pick up the piece of paper! They are the ‘Lead, follow, or get out of my way’ kind of people.

Then, there are also people who use their brain power to plan and organize how to do things in a better way. They come with a plan, and even though others do not always follow through, they use brain power and share great ideas. We need all of these types of people! But, no one should ever boast of their own importance. Everyone is needed!

4. To understand these dynamics for your personal Christian growth, let’s take examples from the scriptures to observe the different ways people. First the relationship kind, and then the doer kind. People often misinterpret the point here.    Luke 10:38-42

  ³⁸Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.³⁹And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.⁴⁰But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.⁴¹And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: ⁴²But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
5. Martha in this case is the doer type person, the server, the one in action, while Mary is the relational one, wanting to spend time with Jesus, to enjoy His company. Both types are needed. The only problem was Martha was in action when she should have stopped for a while to listen to what Jesus was teaching! She was doing what she always does, doing good, but at the wrong time. This one rebuke did not mean she was a bad person, wrong, or bad all the time, Jesus just wanted everyone to know that there is a time and place for everything, a time to serve, and a time to stop and listen.
Each Christian will always need to pray and be in tune with the Holy Spirit to determine if it is time to serve, or not serve, to know when it is time to talk or a time to be quiet learn, and listen, and see if a plan needs to be made. All people are needed and appreciated. Imagine no work getting done in the building, or imagine no attention being given to the spiritual teachings? Too much of either makes a person get out of balance!
The relational one was Mary. We know about the action one, Martha, but what about the thinker? Paul was a thinker. Isn’t it curious how Paul being so intelligent, was also usually doing lots of things like, travelling, preaching, and ministering to the new followers all over Asia Minor. He loved people but he was actually a deep thinker!
6. Satan can never win. The enemy hoped to stop Paul from spreading the gospel by using evil people to arrest him. But Paul being in jail a few years allowed him time to write down all of what God needed from him to share in the way of teaching. It was from the cold, lonely, dirty, smelly prisons that Paul produced some of the greatest theological writings ever produced that have served as the foundation of the Christian faith and practice ever since! Thank God he applied his intelligence recording all of what God inspired him to write.
Imagine, he had a cultural, and educational preparation that was unique so that he could get the first Christians (and us even today) on the right path doctrinally, applying Jesus words within the context of all cultures: those of the past, and those of the future.
The Romans, the Jews, the Greeks, and the pagans were all very different from one another and Paul knew how to write words to each of them exposing their faults to win them over to Jesus. His words keep inspiring and convicting today!
Paul had a gift, a mental ability that only certain people have. Not all of us know how to think and reason and explain, and know how to win over others who have wrong ideas about God and culture and others.
7. Now the question of the day! Which type of a person do you think you are? Are you a doer, thinker, or relational person?
Ask your neighbor right now about that: Am I a relational person? Am I a doer type? Am I a thinker type? Your qualities are usually your strengths, but there are times when your qualities can become your weaknesses. Remember all things must have a balance.
Let me give you an example of how a strength works. In the verses of today, Mary was doing good where she needed to be: her relational part was in order as her priority of paying attention to Jesus which was correct at that moment. She heard him and she was blessed by His every word.
8. Now if Mary gets careless in a weak moment, she could let it go to her head and think that she was the most spiritual one of them all. What if she decided to listen to spiritual things all day and not do her normal chores? People like Mary that take it too far fit the phrase about the person who “being so heavenly minded they become of no earthly good”. Jesus gave her a compliment, but every person who learns spiritual things has to battle against pride since they quite often do have more knowledge than others.
This type of relationship oriented person can love to be with people but almost too much. They seem to have their spiritual life perfect, but they too can get out of balance. I have seen people who are always spiritual and reading, praying, and socializing, but they let the responsibilities of their home, family members, husband or wife, or children go unattended.
A man, or a woman overly spiritual can cause their partner or children to become jealous of their time with God & others and they conclude that God and their church is their enemy! Most of us can get in a 30 minute to an hour devotions of Bible reading and prayer time daily, but after that, there is work to be done. There is a balance.
9. Now let’s look at the Marthas. I am sure Martha in her self-righteousness was angry that Mary was just sitting there! Martha must have thought Mary is supposed to be helping me to wash the feet of the guests, helping me prepare the food, and serve the water. I am sure Martha was angry with Mary, she knew Mary knew what needed to be done and she was working very hard alone while Mary was just sitting there listening to Jesus.
People who are in action are very needed and we need to appreciate them! Just like the one who picked up the paper from the floor without thinking, we need people who can just see a need and just do it! The only problem is people who are doers need guidance, to know what to do and when, and be able to let another do a job when appropriate since they can’t do it all. These types of people often just need to calm down and take some time-out time with our Lord. We, as their friends, need to remind them that is okay to not be busy all the time!
Some doers do go to the extreme and feel they must always escape the spiritual. It is frustrating for a pastor or Captain to work 10 hours preparing a sermon and then right before the sermon 10 people walk out because they want to help in the kitchen, or attend a phone call, or do something else in the Corps.
When the sermon is happening on Sunday, everyone should stop and listen, not suddenly run to the restroom, kitchen, or something else. If people do not listen when the spiritual food is hot, then they will not get the blessings Jesus wants to give them.
10. How could the thinker have helped? Maybe if someone would have helped these 2 women, they would have had more analysis and better preparation for the situation, and they would have gotten together and planned ahead of time how to get it all ready before Jesus got there so they both could have had time to just sit down and enjoy the visit of their Lord together!
The main lesson of Jesus was that when it is time to listen and learn from God, you really do need to stop everything and do just that! Are you stopping daily to listen?
We need thinkers and planners like Paul as much as we need Marys and Marthas, to keep us flowing with good organization. Paul in the letters recommended how to carry out the business of the church. He also took the time to write out God’s Holy word in a way to guide each of us spiritually in the direction each person should go to correct their errors. That is what Romans, Corinthians, and all the epistles are about.
I think Regina and I may have the strong point of being like the doers. We are responsible for all that happens, and we need to make things happen or people notice the disorder. Sometimes our days are already committed to getting done a report, or attending to someone, or doing a building inspection, or the planning of the next meeting or sermon. We have to force ourselves often to be thinkers, doers and we are both sort of naturally relationship oriented as well. We love to be with people! You and I need to know our nature so we don’t overdo one and not do the other!
So what are you going to do to change your habits so you can apply these qualities and make yourself stronger for God’s service? You should already know what kind of a person you are so now how will you apply yourself better?
11. Proverbs 18:24 A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.   We need to guide one another as brothers & sisters!
In actuality everyone must strive to have a combination of these 3 qualities! We may be stronger in one, but another one may need to be more exercised to balance yourself out. For example, despite how Regina can be like Martha at times, Regina also most of the time gets in good spiritual time in with Jesus praying and reading.  
Myself, I sometimes get in a good research study time, reading books, preparing myself for future sermons and Bible studies. I love the spiritual part of my work. But I must plan where the Corps people, and Corps building will be in the future so I have to use brain power. And by what I have learned, growth and progress for Christian bodies only comes from time spent with God and from time spent in relationships with people.
12. I pray sometimes to be more a relational person, and when someone comes to the office, it usually is my pleasure is to leave aside all the business and paperwork to attend to them. I also enjoy fixing things on the building working with Ferro or Castillo to get the jobs done. I really like being with others in Bible studies too. As Christians we really must have a love for each other and we must look forward to having each other’s company. You and I alsways need to serve Jesus better by being more balanced, agreed?
Each of us need a balance of doing, thinking, and being with others or we will have an offensive testimony of our Christian faith being out of balance doing the wrong things at the wrong times. Mary gave a right example, we need more time to be alone with our Lord, and we also need time with each other. Do you not agree? How will you apply yourself better then?
If you consider yourself out-of-balance because you do too much of one thing and don’t attend to the other things or attend to people as you should, then now would be a good time to pray and ask God to make it right in your heart. Proverbs 11:1A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.   Come and pray now. 

Christians and Culture: What Mixes                                                         by Capt. Kelly Durant 10-14-12

1 Cor 10:31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 32 Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God- 33 even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

2.Ever notice what humor is? It is when you know something should be a certain way and it is noticeable different and often comical. I use to have fun in Bolivia going to the markets with Rebeca on my back in a backpack. In Bolivia it is common for the women to carry their babies wrapped in a blanket, but you would never see a man with a baby.  But I was not a Bolivian man, I was a gringo with every right to be forgiven for not following the customs. I use to have fun seeing all the ladies point and laugh at me!

Carrying my own baby was not being offensive, but what I did learn later though was that taking a picture of the “cholitas” in the market was offensive as they believed I could capture their soul by having an image of them. So I took almost no pictures of them to be respectful! You can’t preach love, pray and save souls if you are being insulting to the culture at the same time!

3. Today we will explore the different cultures and nations. What nation are you from and how Godly or anti-christ are they in their cultural practices, and beliefs? Does God see all the nations the same with their differences? Or are some better than others? Well, to answer that we must first we must observe the record of God’s dealings with the cultures in the O.T.  Genesis 22:18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

The plan of God in the O.T. was for the descendants of Abraham to be special and blessed people because they were to be a light and example to all nations obeying God’s statutes and commands living respectfully with everyone (even immigrants) honoring God and leading those nations around them into righteousness. Genesis 35:11 And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;

So the conclusion is that God in the Old Testament was principally concerned for the nation of Israel which descended from Abraham.  God did not promote the culture of the people but rather He promoted His culture of worship and sacrifice. Many of the other pagan nations that had horrible false gods, human sacrifice, and cruel destructive customs were condemned and over time many of them were subdued through those of Abraham’s seed, Moses, Joshua, David, and the other kings.

4.But today we live in the N.T. era under the inclusive love of Jesus. Jesus preached extensively about how God is raising up a new nation, a holy people to live in righteousness and peace.  John 3:16 makes it clear how God now, through Jesus will accept, “whosoever” that will choose Him, and that implies every nation, race, and person!

In the end take into account that God has his own culture of principles and He wants His Kingdom established forever and we as Christians should be in applying ourselves learning about how to live in his Holy Nation which will supersede all cultures. How does God want His holy nation of called out-of–the-world Christians to govern their selves no matter the country or culture they are from?  He wants each of us to live in love and unity, in holiness, practicing real justice, helping all to have all their needs met, enjoying freedom from suffering, sickness, and eventually freedom from death.  And as Paul says in our verses of today, 33 “For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved”, this should be our motto as well!

5.Jesus prayed for God’s will to be done “on earth as it is in heaven” and this implies that a true Christian is implementing the culture of heaven within their home, church, and wherever they go. People of the Salvation Army who have travelled around the world and visited other Corps in Russia, Africa, Asia, or wherever find the same Christian culture and uniformity in our doctrines, the only differences are in the people’s appetites for food, music, and dress.  Actually most Christian churches are very compatible with each other and this is due to the fact that Christ’s way of life is the same everywhere if practiced correctly.

I believe that Jesus established the body of believers, the church from many nations and tongues, as a test for everyone to learn like in a school, how to get along and to practice God’s love amongst their selves. Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.  We are to be one in Christ knowing we will all share heaven together!

6.Let me take this a step further. Those of you here in Hialeah, who have learned to respect and love others from other countries, customs, and languages, have made advancements way ahead of other Christians in other parts of the country and world where little or no diversity of race and culture exists. There are thousands of churches and Corps where they have only one color of skin in attendance, and everyone is from the same nation, the same customs and culture, and there are no challenges to overcome in those places.

But when some new Holy-Spirit filled Captain or pastor starts filling one of these homogeneous churches or Corps with those of another language, or of another race, culture, or color, what happens? Sadly it usually divides the church as half or more of them leave! And this is universal in all churches! The half that leaves are the half that I think really didn’t love God and others as their selves anyway! Those intolerant and incapable of respecting and loving others are simply disobedient children that God will deal with for their sin! 32 “Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God”.

7.Jesus gave us the model for the Kingdom of God and it is one that is totally inclusive and more loving and accepting than what we witnessed in the O.T. It is one in which God accepts any person from any nation, tribe, race, or tongue, and His kingdom is forever! The only condition is conversion to obey Jesus commands; so if anyone will just receive Jesus, God’s Son as the Lord of their life, God will grant them the saving of their soul to inherent eternal life. And why is it this way? John 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. The world means everyone on this earth!

8.So why do we want God’s culture to dominate us over our own customs? Let’s look at cultures and their filth as God sees them. I recall back in the 70’s there was a bumper sticker that said, “USA #1. #1 in crime, rape, CO2 emissions, prisoners, and more was on down the list. In reality God is angry with all the nations as they have not submitted to Jesus and His commands as they should. Most nations in the world are half destroyed due to their own sins! So can we promote man’s cultures as good? No! Only a few Christians that obey God from each nation honoring Him are good.

Isaiah 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. 

Search the word “anger” and see how many times In the O.T. God allowed death and punishments on the nations and even his own people for their disobedience. And in the N.T. we have the book of Revelation confirming God is not happy with the world and its destructions, cruelty, injustice, exploitations, and mockers of His Son, salvation, and love.  The Judgment of all nations and cultures will come to pass in His time!

9.The verses of today from I Cor. are from Paul, and notice that he attacks with great animosity the sins of the Romans, Greeks, and Jews. Think about what you hate the most of your own culture. Is it Biblical to hate? Yes, hate evil! Psalm 97:10 Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.

In the races, cultures, and nations it is not the music and food and dress anyone hates, instead we celebrate these things and have fun! What we hate are the sins that have caused each one of us to suffer personal loss in the past. Each nation has a different measure of the various sins but these sins exist because the nations are rebellious against God!

You and I have been affected by several of these sins: The sins of theft, government corruption demanding excessive payments, fines, and bribes, greed and excessive consumption, alcohol and drug addictions, rape, sexual abuse and exploitation of children and adults, slavery, murders, kidnappings, discrimination, laziness, pride, jealousy, gluttony, and more! But still we love the good, God is good!

10. I know immigrants that have no desire to return to live in their own cultures and countries because there at one time they suffered very cruel persecutions and injustices sometimes including imprisonment over ideologies, religious convictions, or discrimination due to their skin color or their socio/educational/genealogical class in society.  When a immigrant has no option but to adapt, they adapt or die! The nations in the world offer us cruel places to live! Only God in His wisdom can judge the world and start it all over with a fresh start in a heavenly kingdom after the end-time events.

Revelation 21:3-5  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

11.Don’t you look forward to that new nation where everyone is under the authority of Jesus, pure in heart, loving, caring, and uplifting? Revelation 14:5-7  5 And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Let’s honor God here and now and leave behind who we use to be! Cultures on earth have some beauty to offer but I want to live in the culture of heaven! And you?  We have it confirmed, God loves those of “every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people”.  Do you love all cultures as well? Prove it by making friends with someone different than yourself and tell them about Jesus! Pray to receive Jesus!