Rev 2:13a [Jesus says] I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even
where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied
my faith...
"Holdest fast my name and Hast not denied my faith..." Keep these
powerful words in mind when reading the following article.
"I have a personal relationship with God..."
So many people mouth the words but what are they truly saying? One Christian
can say, "I have a personal relationship with God" and the unsaved person says,
"So do I" and another may ask, "Which God?" and another may say, "There
are many gods...which one are you referring to?"
The World is Not Without Religion
There are so many religions out there to suit one's taste and we all have to
respect one another but that does not mean that all these religions are true or
that people are searching for God in the realm of truth. The world is becoming
a very religious place that tolerates anything and everything BUT the name of
Jesus spoken within the context of the Holy Scriptures. One can preach to the
rooftops about Christian Science or New Age and no one blinks an eye but
when a Christian starts preaching about Jesus as being the Son of God, born
of a virgin, the only exclusive way to Heaven, some people have a HUGE
problem with that. So what is wrong with the Christian saying, "I have a
personal relationship with God"? Well, many things for the very reason that
the people of this world have many gods. All do not believe in the God of
Abraham-- The Great I AM. So the Christian's Savior has a name-- the proper
way to describe your faith is by saying "The Lord Jesus is my Savior-- I have a
personal relationship with Jesus Christ".
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one
of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
"GOD TALK"
A popular female evangelist was on Larry King the other night and we happened
to catch a few minutes of the program. She mentioned "God" a lot but one has
to wonder if the unsaved person watching, as much as we did, could come to
Christ Jesus by her "God" talk. Putting aside for the moment that we strongly
disagree with her on matters of doctrine, mentioning God is not enough. If one is
on national television and claims to be a Christian and is asked about their faith,
they better say WHO their Savior is. Lift up the name of Jesus. Say who your
"Lord" is. Christians love throwing around "The Lord" without any mention of
His name.
Phil 2:9-10 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a
name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the
earth;
A PRAYER
Franklin Graham has taken much heat for saying the name of Jesus in the
inaugural prayers and other public prayers. Oh yes, the name of Jesus clearly
defines that you are a Christian and the name of Jesus is an offense to many
who oppose Christianity. The world wants to curse the name, mock the name
but they do not want to hear prayers in the name of Jesus. That is most
offensive to them.
Consider the following newspaper excerpts and see for yourself how serious the
name of Jesus really is:
Bill Broadway
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, January 27, 2001, Page B9
God's Place on the Dais
Use of 'Jesus' in Inaugural Prayers Breeds Some Worry
"President Bush made history by being the first president to use the word
"mosque" in an inaugural address. But some who watched last weekend's
swearing-in ceremony thought the preachers who joined him on the platform
spoiled this interfaith leap.
They did so, critics said, by concluding their prayers in the name of "Jesus,
the Christ" rather than making a universal reference to God. "We pray this in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the Holy
Spirit," the Rev. Franklin Graham, a nondenominational evangelist, said in
closing his invocation. "We respectfully submit this humble prayer in the name
that's above all other names, Jesus, the Christ," the Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell, a
United Methodist, said in concluding the ceremony. "Let all who agree say,
'Amen.'"...
...The Rev. Barry Lynn, a United Church of Christ minister and executive
director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, called
the inaugural prayers "inappropriate and insensitive."
Caldwell, in an interview this week from his office in Houston, said it was not
his "intent or desire to exclude or offend anyone" and apologized if he had
done so. "I was invited by a Christian to offer a prayer," he said. "And as a
Christian who revels in the right to express his religious freedom, I chose to
pray in that name I always pray in. "If I had to do it over again, I probably
would not say, 'All who agree, say Amen,' " he said. "Additionally, I probably
would not say 'Jesus, the name that's above all other names.' That truly could
be interpreted as inflammatory or offensive."
....Samuel Karff, a rabbi from Houston who gave the benediction at Bush's
second inauguration as governor of Texas, believes that clergy invited to pray
at public events have to "be true to their conscience."
But there are ways for people of different faiths to "affirm what we share and
limit ourselves to what we share" so that no one feels left out, said Karff, who
helped lead the National Prayer Service at Washington National Cathedral on
Sunday. He suggested the use of "language that means different things to those
who hear it," such as "in Your name we pray" or "in the Lord's name we
pray." ...
online source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A53414-2001Jan26¬Found=true
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice from the above clip that one is now expected to pray in a generic
way so that each one can think of his/her own god. Here in a predominantly
Christian nation, one is expected to just pray "in your name...". The name of
Jesus is deemed as offensive. "Let's soften everything and pray in a way that
doesn't offend anyone...God forbid one prays in the name of Jesus in front of a
Christian majority...."
In many Arab nations, Christians are imprisoned or killed for their faith in the
Lord Jesus but people in this country are free to worship as they please. Some,
however, become offended if a Christian exercises his freedom and prays "in the
name of Jesus". It is politically correct to pray in any other name as long as it is
not the name that is above every name-- Christ Jesus.
Back in 1991, I happened to be at a public meeting at a secular university and
the man after his speech wanted to say a prayer. He was an African American
man, a professor, who prayed a lengthy prayer only to end it in the name of
allah. No one had any idea this man was Muslim and it was a huge shock to
hear him pray like this. Oh, there were gasps in the audience for back then, the
majority were professing Christian-- at least in name only. Reacting to the shock
of the audience, he said, “You have your God and I have mine.� He was
bold and did not care who was offended. Yet the Christian, who KNOWS THE
TRUTH keeps His Savior hidden among "friendly" phrases when asked about
their faith. "I have a personal relationship with God...God is my Savior..." is
what they say.
How many times have you heard, "I pray to my god and you pray to yours"?
Folks, as these Last Days are coming upon us, and while it is yet day, if
someone asks you about your faith, should you not make a stand for what you
believe in?? Do not compromise your faith by saying "God" to the unsaved.
Say what you believe and speak about WHOM you believe in-- for the
time will come when you might not be able to say the name of Jesus to
anyone.
Matthew 12:21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become
the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
John 20:31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his
name.
Do you believe that Jesus is the only Savior? Then say His name when asked
about your faith!
There Is Only One Way To End A Prayer
The late Dr. E.V. Hill was invited to give the Inaugural prayer for Richard
Nixon in January 1973. One of the directors of the event wanted to see his
prayer ahead of time to approve it. Pastor Hill sent him the prayer and the
office spoke with E.V. Hill over the phone and told him, "you can't end the
prayer in the name of Jesus". Pastor Hill said, "Well, then you are going to
have to find someone else because there is only one way I end a prayer and
that is in the name of Jesus." If you know the rest of the story, they permitted
the prayer, “in the name of Jesus�.
Yes, for the True Christian, there is ONLY one way to end a prayer.
John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it
you.
There is only ONE NAME whereby a man can be saved.
Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other
name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
There is only one God who hears prayer. There is only One Mediator
between God and man-- the man, Christ Jesus! He is the Lord of Glory!
He is seated at the Right Hand of the Heavenly Father, interceding as Great
High Priest. Read the following text and notice that one must "believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ" in order to be saved.
Act 16:30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be
saved?
Act 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt
be saved, and thy house.
The Disciples Spoke and Preached About Jesus
Acts 5:42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to
teach and preach Jesus Christ.
Jesus is not some mere figure from history. Jesus is the Only Savior. He is God
and He is Lord. There is the absolute truth—exclusive truth!
Luke 9:26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of
him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own
glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.
DON'T BE ASHAMED
Dear Christian friends, Stop candy coating the Gospel by throwing "God"
around as if everyone believes in the same God as you. State who are referring
to. Stop compromising your faith to "soften the blow" and start standing up for
the LORD JESUS CHRIST with boldness. If you are a Christian, then you
bear the name of Jesus in word and in deed.
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the
power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first,
and also to the Greek.
The Lord Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no
man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Copyright ©2005 Cobblestone Road Ministries
All Rights Reserved
FURTHER READING:
Jesus Died For Us
Unbiblical Things...Female Angels, Little Cherubs and "Jesus" Pictures and Films
What Is The Gospel? by H.A. Ironside
Church Apostasy...Living in The Last Days
Beware of False Preachers
where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied
my faith...
"Holdest fast my name and Hast not denied my faith..." Keep these
powerful words in mind when reading the following article.
"I have a personal relationship with God..."
So many people mouth the words but what are they truly saying? One Christian
can say, "I have a personal relationship with God" and the unsaved person says,
"So do I" and another may ask, "Which God?" and another may say, "There
are many gods...which one are you referring to?"
The World is Not Without Religion
There are so many religions out there to suit one's taste and we all have to
respect one another but that does not mean that all these religions are true or
that people are searching for God in the realm of truth. The world is becoming
a very religious place that tolerates anything and everything BUT the name of
Jesus spoken within the context of the Holy Scriptures. One can preach to the
rooftops about Christian Science or New Age and no one blinks an eye but
when a Christian starts preaching about Jesus as being the Son of God, born
of a virgin, the only exclusive way to Heaven, some people have a HUGE
problem with that. So what is wrong with the Christian saying, "I have a
personal relationship with God"? Well, many things for the very reason that
the people of this world have many gods. All do not believe in the God of
Abraham-- The Great I AM. So the Christian's Savior has a name-- the proper
way to describe your faith is by saying "The Lord Jesus is my Savior-- I have a
personal relationship with Jesus Christ".
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one
of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
"GOD TALK"
A popular female evangelist was on Larry King the other night and we happened
to catch a few minutes of the program. She mentioned "God" a lot but one has
to wonder if the unsaved person watching, as much as we did, could come to
Christ Jesus by her "God" talk. Putting aside for the moment that we strongly
disagree with her on matters of doctrine, mentioning God is not enough. If one is
on national television and claims to be a Christian and is asked about their faith,
they better say WHO their Savior is. Lift up the name of Jesus. Say who your
"Lord" is. Christians love throwing around "The Lord" without any mention of
His name.
Phil 2:9-10 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a
name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the
earth;
A PRAYER
Franklin Graham has taken much heat for saying the name of Jesus in the
inaugural prayers and other public prayers. Oh yes, the name of Jesus clearly
defines that you are a Christian and the name of Jesus is an offense to many
who oppose Christianity. The world wants to curse the name, mock the name
but they do not want to hear prayers in the name of Jesus. That is most
offensive to them.
Consider the following newspaper excerpts and see for yourself how serious the
name of Jesus really is:
Bill Broadway
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, January 27, 2001, Page B9
God's Place on the Dais
Use of 'Jesus' in Inaugural Prayers Breeds Some Worry
"President Bush made history by being the first president to use the word
"mosque" in an inaugural address. But some who watched last weekend's
swearing-in ceremony thought the preachers who joined him on the platform
spoiled this interfaith leap.
They did so, critics said, by concluding their prayers in the name of "Jesus,
the Christ" rather than making a universal reference to God. "We pray this in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the Holy
Spirit," the Rev. Franklin Graham, a nondenominational evangelist, said in
closing his invocation. "We respectfully submit this humble prayer in the name
that's above all other names, Jesus, the Christ," the Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell, a
United Methodist, said in concluding the ceremony. "Let all who agree say,
'Amen.'"...
...The Rev. Barry Lynn, a United Church of Christ minister and executive
director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, called
the inaugural prayers "inappropriate and insensitive."
Caldwell, in an interview this week from his office in Houston, said it was not
his "intent or desire to exclude or offend anyone" and apologized if he had
done so. "I was invited by a Christian to offer a prayer," he said. "And as a
Christian who revels in the right to express his religious freedom, I chose to
pray in that name I always pray in. "If I had to do it over again, I probably
would not say, 'All who agree, say Amen,' " he said. "Additionally, I probably
would not say 'Jesus, the name that's above all other names.' That truly could
be interpreted as inflammatory or offensive."
....Samuel Karff, a rabbi from Houston who gave the benediction at Bush's
second inauguration as governor of Texas, believes that clergy invited to pray
at public events have to "be true to their conscience."
But there are ways for people of different faiths to "affirm what we share and
limit ourselves to what we share" so that no one feels left out, said Karff, who
helped lead the National Prayer Service at Washington National Cathedral on
Sunday. He suggested the use of "language that means different things to those
who hear it," such as "in Your name we pray" or "in the Lord's name we
pray." ...
online source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A53414-2001Jan26¬Found=true
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice from the above clip that one is now expected to pray in a generic
way so that each one can think of his/her own god. Here in a predominantly
Christian nation, one is expected to just pray "in your name...". The name of
Jesus is deemed as offensive. "Let's soften everything and pray in a way that
doesn't offend anyone...God forbid one prays in the name of Jesus in front of a
Christian majority...."
In many Arab nations, Christians are imprisoned or killed for their faith in the
Lord Jesus but people in this country are free to worship as they please. Some,
however, become offended if a Christian exercises his freedom and prays "in the
name of Jesus". It is politically correct to pray in any other name as long as it is
not the name that is above every name-- Christ Jesus.
Back in 1991, I happened to be at a public meeting at a secular university and
the man after his speech wanted to say a prayer. He was an African American
man, a professor, who prayed a lengthy prayer only to end it in the name of
allah. No one had any idea this man was Muslim and it was a huge shock to
hear him pray like this. Oh, there were gasps in the audience for back then, the
majority were professing Christian-- at least in name only. Reacting to the shock
of the audience, he said, “You have your God and I have mine.� He was
bold and did not care who was offended. Yet the Christian, who KNOWS THE
TRUTH keeps His Savior hidden among "friendly" phrases when asked about
their faith. "I have a personal relationship with God...God is my Savior..." is
what they say.
How many times have you heard, "I pray to my god and you pray to yours"?
Folks, as these Last Days are coming upon us, and while it is yet day, if
someone asks you about your faith, should you not make a stand for what you
believe in?? Do not compromise your faith by saying "God" to the unsaved.
Say what you believe and speak about WHOM you believe in-- for the
time will come when you might not be able to say the name of Jesus to
anyone.
Matthew 12:21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become
the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
John 20:31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his
name.
Do you believe that Jesus is the only Savior? Then say His name when asked
about your faith!
There Is Only One Way To End A Prayer
The late Dr. E.V. Hill was invited to give the Inaugural prayer for Richard
Nixon in January 1973. One of the directors of the event wanted to see his
prayer ahead of time to approve it. Pastor Hill sent him the prayer and the
office spoke with E.V. Hill over the phone and told him, "you can't end the
prayer in the name of Jesus". Pastor Hill said, "Well, then you are going to
have to find someone else because there is only one way I end a prayer and
that is in the name of Jesus." If you know the rest of the story, they permitted
the prayer, “in the name of Jesus�.
Yes, for the True Christian, there is ONLY one way to end a prayer.
John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it
you.
There is only ONE NAME whereby a man can be saved.
Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other
name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
There is only one God who hears prayer. There is only One Mediator
between God and man-- the man, Christ Jesus! He is the Lord of Glory!
He is seated at the Right Hand of the Heavenly Father, interceding as Great
High Priest. Read the following text and notice that one must "believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ" in order to be saved.
Act 16:30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be
saved?
Act 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt
be saved, and thy house.
The Disciples Spoke and Preached About Jesus
Acts 5:42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to
teach and preach Jesus Christ.
Jesus is not some mere figure from history. Jesus is the Only Savior. He is God
and He is Lord. There is the absolute truth—exclusive truth!
Luke 9:26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of
him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own
glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.
DON'T BE ASHAMED
Dear Christian friends, Stop candy coating the Gospel by throwing "God"
around as if everyone believes in the same God as you. State who are referring
to. Stop compromising your faith to "soften the blow" and start standing up for
the LORD JESUS CHRIST with boldness. If you are a Christian, then you
bear the name of Jesus in word and in deed.
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the
power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first,
and also to the Greek.
The Lord Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no
man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Copyright ©2005 Cobblestone Road Ministries
All Rights Reserved
FURTHER READING:
Jesus Died For Us
Unbiblical Things...Female Angels, Little Cherubs and "Jesus" Pictures and Films
What Is The Gospel? by H.A. Ironside
Church Apostasy...Living in The Last Days
Beware of False Preachers
| "I Have A Personal Relationship With God..." |
