Day: February 13, 2011

Sunday Stuff

SOC Sunday: Let the Light Shine

Karen

Isolation.

It’s bad.

This is what we learned in Bible Study today – that when Christians don’t mingle with other Christians, then their spiritual lights dim, or even possibly go out.

The man teaching this lesson today told us two analogies:

1. A man was upset with his pastor and wouldn’t go to church for several weeks. The Pastor, noticing the man wasn’t in church, showed up at his house one day. He found the man sitting in front of his fireplace. Without saying a word, the Pastor pulled up a chair and sat down with the man. Several moments went by and the Pastor finally got up, went to the fireplace, took a poker and separated one ember from the rest of the fire. The ember glowed brightly for a few seconds but soon began to fade. Still not saying a word, the Pastor then pushed the ember back into the fire where it soon began to glow brightly. The Pastor didn’t say anything and made preparations to leave. As the Pastor was leaving, the man said, “I get the hint, Pastor. I’ll see you in church next Sunday.”

2. The moon, Earth and Sun. When the moon is fully facing the sun, it’s a New Moon. This New Moon is bright, so bright, in fact, that the night is quite clearly illuminated on those nights. But when the moon is away from the sun, the night grows dark and it’s hard to see. Facing the Sun (Son) allows people (Christians and non-Christians) to see your inner light.

These two analogies really struck home for me today. I often prefer isolation than the company of other people. I like being by myself. I have no problem with being alone. But this made me think. Perhaps it IS better, for myself, as a human being, and as a Christian, to make more of an effort to come out of my isolation and allow other people to see my inner light.

I’m not doing God any favors by staying in the dark.

*ding* Time’s up.

#SOCsunday

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

* Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
* Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spell checking. This is writing in the raw.
* Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
* Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
* Link up your post below.
* Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Abundant Life

Teaching: Is Salvation Secure for Christians?

Karen

Every Sunday I provide videos and valuable links to the Truth or Tradition teachings. We’ve been following the Truth or Tradition teachings for many years now and they have truly blessed our family. We have found peace and happiness through our beliefs and we walk confidently for God. My hope, by passing on this information to you, is that what you find here, or on the Truth or Tradition website, will guide you to a better, more blessed and abundant life.

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

To understand the Bible, one must understand what Scripture refers to as “administrations.” We today live in the Administration of Grace, during which those people who are born again receive a guarantee of salvation.

Throughout history, for the accomplishment of His purposes and the benefit of His people, God has changed the “rules” by which He wants people to live. Many theologians call the time period covered by a given set of rules an “administration” or “dispensation.” The systematic theology that recognizes these different administrations or dispensations is referred to as “Dispensationalism.”

Examples of God changing the rules from administration to administration are plentiful. In the Garden of Eden, He told Adam and Eve to eat plants only (Gen. 1:29), but after the Flood, God changed the rules and allowed man to eat meat also (Gen. 9:3), and He still allows us to eat meat today. Another clear example concerns the Sabbath. Before the Mosaic Law, there was no specific law concerning the Sabbath. When God gave the Law to Moses, He changed the rules, and commanded that anyone who worked on the Sabbath should be put to death (Exod. 31:14). Today, in the Administration of Grace, God has changed the rules again, and it is not a sin to work on the Sabbath (Rom. 14:5; Col. 2:16 and 17). When Christians do not recognize or understand the administrations in the Bible, the Bible abounds with apparent contradictions.

We believe God’s Word shows eight administrations. Knowing exactly when they begin and end, and the rules distinctly associated with each, is vital if we are to understand the Bible. The eight administrations are: [For a chart on the Administrations in Scripture, click here.]

1. Original Paradise (Creation to the Fall)
2. Conscience (the Fall to the Flood)
3. Civil Government (the Flood to the Mosaic Law)
4. The Mosaic Law (the Mosaic Law to Pentecost)
5. The Administration of the Grace of God, also called the Administration of the Sacred Secret (Pentecost to the Rapture)
6. Tribulation (the Rapture to the end of the Battle of Armageddon)
7. Paradise, or Christ’s Millennial Kingdom (1,000 years)
8. Everlasting Kingdom (after the Millennial Kingdom it will last forever)

The Grace Administration, in which we live today, began on the Jewish holiday of Pentecost (Acts 2), when the gift of holy spirit was given via New Birth to everyone who believed. It is called the “administration of God’s grace” in Ephesians 3:2, but we usually call it “the Administration of Grace” because now, by God’s amazing grace, salvation is guaranteed to every Christian. That guarantee did not exist in the Old Testament or Gospels, so Jesus did not mention it. Jesus taught according to God’s rules for the administration in which he lived, the administration of the Law.

Today, by God’s grace each Christian has the guarantee of salvation that was given to him when he got born again, and that guarantee stands whether or not a Christian is faithful to live a godly life. [For further study on the Administrations, click here.]

You can read the entire article here.

If you have any questions, or would like to learn more about God’s wonderful message, please visit the Truth or Tradition website. You can also keep track of the ministry through their Facebook page, their YouTube Channel, or follow them on Twitter.

Thanks for reading.

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