OUT OF THE BOX

Areas Where Christians Should Beware    "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits and discern whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” 1 John 4: 1     Dear Friends   I posted this article a  year ago. I repeat it now because of the assault that is occurring against the Bible and the person and work of Jesus Christ in many "so called" Christian institutions. The following post deals with two areas where the enemy of our souls is crafty and works subtly to deceive. The first section deals with “feel good” experiences that cause undiscerning Christians to accept error. The second section deals with deceptive approaches to scripture that are used to lead astray the unwary and gullible soul. My purpose is to help Christians to be aware of these potential snares and pitfalls that are prevalent in our culture today.   In Christ   Billy Long       “FEEL GOOD” EXPERIENCES THAT CAN ...

One of our objectives as Christians is to be a people of godly character. It is easy in our culture for churches to grow large with a lot of sensationalism and entertainment while remaining shallow, superficial, and short on character and spiritual depth. Intelligence, competence, special talents, and gifting are desirable, but they do not necessarily denote character. We desire spiritual gifts and the power of God at work among us, but it is important for us to know that miracles do not build or indicate good character. People from one end of the maturity spectrum to the other have moved in spiritual gifts. Moral excellence is not essential for a person to move in the supernatural for a while. You can be shallow and work miracles. You can be disobedient and still be spectacular like a meteor blazing across the sky. But only for a while… until the “bottom falls out.” Your character can destroy what your gift builds. The man and the work will be tested by fire. Godly character is nece...

  The Bible contains only apparent contradictions. They are not real; they only seem to be. The Bible portrays reality, and real life is complex. The Bible is not written like a novel. In a novel every detail in every part of the book must harmonize with every detail in every other part of the book. For example, if Jane is walking down the path with Joe on page 50, she will also be strolling along with him on page 52. But if she is now walking with Frank, page 51 will have explained the switch. Reality is more complex than a novel, and the Bible does not try to explain every detail and switch. For example, Let’s say I told you in a letter that I went to Florence to visit a pastor friend of mine, and then in another letter I told my sister that I went to Columbia to visit our cousin. If someone who is not my friend should find these two letters, he might think I was lying to you or to my sister, when in reality both are true. I went to Florence to visit my pastor friend and then dro...

In our religious walk we are guilty of “legalism” when we make laws in areas where the Bible is silent, where the Bible gives no explicit command. We cannot be dogmatic where the Bible is silent. We must reverence its silence like we reverence its commands. We can have firm convictions where the Bible is explicit, where it makes commands or instructions that are clear and plain leaving no room for doubt. We can also have firm convictions for ourselves in those areas where we infer a principle where the Bible is implicit and the word is not plainly expressed. However, we cannot impose our convictions on others in these areas where the Bible is not explicit. In areas where the Bible is clear and its meaning is clear and obvious, we can speak dogmatically and firmly. But in areas where the Bible is vague or silent, we must allow others to follow their own conscience in the matter. One of my friends was addicted to surfing, and so he said, “I will not go surfing again.” This makes him boun...

  The Fierce Society By laying aside God, the Bible, and Judeo-Christian values our society is deliberately or unwittingly destroying the under-girding foundation necessary for a peaceful, stable, and prosperous society, and in turn is laying the grounds for an intellectually inferior, undisciplined, morally depraved, lawless, and fierce society. 2 Timothy 3: 1-3, and Romans 1: 28-32 describe the ultimate characteristics of a culture that rejects God and which is "given over" to itself and its sin. Paul says that the times will be “perilous.”   The Greek word is also translated “fierce” and is the same word used to describe the demoniac (Matthew 8:28) out of whom Jesus cast a legion of demons. This man was exceedingly “fierce,” living among the tombs, naked, cutting himself, breaking chains used to bind him, and producing fear in all who came near. It is quite disturbing that the word used to describe this man is also used to describe times and the people that “will ...