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End Times Part 3
2 Peter 3:3-9
New International Version
3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.
8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
I believe and can clearly see Jesus will soon come. Thank goodness God is long suffering not wanting any perish. He is so patient, and all His judgements are to bring us to repentance. Men have become so arrogant in these last days, questioning whether God exists and where is He if He does, but remember after 430 years of bondage HE calls Himself the I AM. He said I am to be remembered by this name forever. He is the I AM and forever will be. God is and on this point, we should never doubt He exists. God will see that His word will not return void but accomplish all He said. If only we could interview those who were destroyed in Sodom or the flood. These were examples of what is to come and yet with all the evidence that they did indeed take place men still doubt.
Pastor Jeff Lane
End Times Part 2
Acts 1:6-8
New International Version
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We are not given times or dates of Christ’s return, but we are told to be witnesses till He returns.
Pastor Jeffery Lane
End Times Part 1
Daniel 9:27
New International Version
27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”
When the anti-Christ and Israel sign this covenant the tribulation starts. Some seem to think it starts when the rapture happens but that could be in the middle of the tribulation or even long before the Tribulation starts. We simply are not told.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians? Part 8
1 Corinthians 6:9
New International Version
9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men
Homosexuals will not go to heaven for they cannot inherit the kingdom of God unless they repent and turn from their sin.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians? Part 7
1 Timothy 1:8-11
New International Version
8 We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9 We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11 that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
Homosexuality is contrary to sound doctrine. It is a sin and like all sin is punishable by Hell.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians? Part 6
1 Corinthians 6:9
King James Version
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
Cambridge Dictionary
effeminate
adjective
disapproving
UK
/ɪˈfem.ɪ.nət/ US
/əˈfem.ə.nət/
Add to word list
An effeminate man behaves or looks similar to a woman:
He's got a very effeminate manner/voice.
Transgender a sin also? Well according to scripture (God’s word) it clearly is. An effeminate is sin. I have heard lesbians say that it is ok for them because this does not apply to women. Please refer to Romans Chapter one and you can see it applies to both men and women.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians Part 5
Romans 1:18-32
New International Version
God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
How in the world these LGBTQ groups can say that they are Christians and that God condones their actions is beyond my understanding except God gives them over to a depraved mind. I have said all my life that sin makes us stupid. Who are we to think we can decide what is right and wrong? God put it in black and white. It is clear even from creation that this is a sin deserving death and it leads to death according to God and His scripture. To ignore this is simply ignoring the truth.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ Wrong for Christians Part 4
Judges 19:16-30
New International Version
16 That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the inhabitants of the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields. 17 When he looked and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, “Where are you going? Where did you come from?”
18 He answered, “We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim where I live. I have been to Bethlehem in Judah and now I am going to the house of the Lord.[a] No one has taken me in for the night. 19 We have both straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves your servants—me, the woman and the young man with us. We don’t need anything.”
20 “You are welcome at my house,” the old man said. “Let me supply whatever you need. Only don’t spend the night in the square.” 21 So he took him into his house and fed his donkeys. After they had washed their feet, they had something to eat and drink.
22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.”
23 The owner of the house went outside and said to them, “No, my friends, don’t be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don’t do this outrageous thing. 24 Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But as for this man, don’t do such an outrageous thing.”
25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. 26 At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
27 When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28 He said to her, “Get up; let’s go.” But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
29 When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel. 30 Everyone who saw it was saying to one another, “Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Just imagine! We must do something! So speak up!”
Read Judges chapter 20. God poured out His judgment on all of the tribe of Benjamin for this sin but God destroyed those who try to defend these homosexuals and well as them. He considered all equally culpable in the sin. They did not have a right of choice as so many today believe.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians Part 3
Leviticus 18:22
New International Version
22 “‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.
Is that clear enough or do I have to explain it?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians Part 2
Genesis 19:1-17
New International Version
Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed
19 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”
“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”
3 But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”
6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”
9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.
10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.
12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”
14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry[a] his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”
16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”
God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for their homosexuality and sexual perversion. God never changes. He Is the same yesterday, today and forever. His judgements are just and true.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Why is the LGBTQ wrong for Christians? Part 1
Genesis 9:18-27
New International Version
The Sons of Noah
18 The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) 19 These were the three sons of Noah, and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth.
20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. 23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.
24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said,
“Cursed be Canaan!
The lowest of slaves
will he be to his brothers.”
26 He also said,
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem.
27 May God extend Japheth’s territory;
may Japheth live in the tents of Shem,
and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”
Ham did more than look at his father’s nakedness, he committed a homosexual act to him. The Hebrew is much clearer on this. Our English Bibles water this down. As a result of this he was under a curse. God made one man for one woman not man for man or woman for woman. All through the Bible we see this behavior is an abomination to God and brings on those who do it desolation or God’s judgment.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Abomination that causes desolation Part 5
Joe Biden signed his signature to the below document that was copied from the US government site and in doing so has placed his name on an abomination to God. He also did this and declared this transgender day on the holiest of Christian days setting up an Abomination that causes desolation in a Holy place. I fear for his soul and all who have any part in this including our country. Those who agree with this or continue to promote this man and his administration are as evil and liable to destruction as he is. May God have mercy for him and their souls for our God does not change and He can not be mocked. He is a consuming fire.
Pastor Jeff Lane
A Proclamation on Transgender Day of Visibility, 2024
On Transgender Day of Visibility, we honor the extraordinary courage and contributions of transgender Americans and reaffirm our Nation’s commitment to forming a more perfect Union — where all people are created equal and treated equally throughout their lives.
I am proud that my Administration has stood for justice from the start, working to ensure that the LGBTQI+ community can live openly, in safety, with dignity and respect. I am proud to have appointed transgender leaders to my Administration and to have ended the ban on transgender Americans serving openly in our military. I am proud to have signed historic Executive Orders that strengthen civil rights protections in housing, employment, health care, education, the justice system, and more. I am proud to have signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law, ensuring that every American can marry the person they love.
Transgender Americans are part of the fabric of our Nation. Whether serving their communities or in the military, raising families or running businesses, they help America thrive. They deserve, and are entitled to, the same rights and freedoms as every other American, including the most fundamental freedom to be their true selves. But extremists are proposing hundreds of hateful laws that target and terrify transgender kids and their families — silencing teachers; banning books; and even threatening parents, doctors, and nurses with prison for helping parents get care for their children. These bills attack our most basic American values: the freedom to be yourself, the freedom to make your own health care decisions, and even the right to raise your own child. It is no surprise that the bullying and discrimination that transgender Americans face is worsening our Nation’s mental health crisis, leading half of transgender youth to consider suicide in the past year. At the same time, an epidemic of violence against transgender women and girls, especially women and girls of color, continues to take too many lives. Let me be clear: All of these attacks are un-American and must end. No one should have to be brave just to be themselves.
At the same time, my Administration is working to stop the bullying and harassment of transgender children and their families. The Department of Justice has taken action to push back against extreme and un-American State laws targeting transgender youth and their families and the Department of Justice is partnering with law enforcement and community groups to combat hate and violence. My Administration is also providing dedicated emergency mental health support through our nationwide suicide and crisis lifeline — any LGBTQI+ young person in need can call “988” and press “3” to speak with a counselor trained to support them. We are making public services more accessible for transgender Americans, including with more inclusive passports and easier access to Social Security benefits. There is much more to do. I continue to call on the Congress to pass the Equality Act, to codify civil rights protections for all LGBTQI+ Americans.
Today, we send a message to all transgender Americans: You are loved. You are heard. You are understood. You belong. You are America, and my entire Administration and I have your back.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 31, 2024, as Transgender Day of Visibility. I call upon all Americans to join us in lifting up the lives and voices of transgender people throughout our Nation and to work toward eliminating violence and discrimination based on gender identity.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-eighth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
Abomination that causes desolation Part 4
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
New International Version
9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
Once again it is very clear the homosexual is a wrongdoer and will not go to heaven.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Abomination that causes desolation Part 3
1 Timothy 1:3-11
New International Version
Timothy Charged to Oppose False Teachers
3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer 4 or to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. Such things promote controversial speculations rather than advancing God’s work—which is by faith. 5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6 Some have departed from these and have turned to meaningless talk. 7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
8 We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9 We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11 that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
There are those who have perverted the Bible saying that it is ok to be a homosexual, but the word teaches otherwise. These people are under the law and as law breakers only have Hell’s flames to look forward to. Furthermore when they take over churches and bring this sin into the church it is an abomination that will bring desolation. Matthew 24:15
New International Version
15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
We cannot bring that which is an abomination to God Almighty and set it up in a holy place and not expect to bring destruction.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Abomination that causes desolation Part 2
Romans 1:18-2:11
New International Version
God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
God’s Righteous Judgment
2 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism.
God’s word is clear on this matter; it is a sin and an abomination to God. Those who participate in this sin or condone it have the same fate awaiting them. They will be destroyed for God is the same yesterday today and forever. He does not change. These people are “God haters” and want to destroy everything that is pure and holy. They indulge in all sorts of sin with a continual lust to sin more. God compares these days to the days of Sodom and Gomorrah and also Noah when he destroyed the earth for its lust and violence. Will this generation be any different than then?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Abomination That Causes Desolation Part 1
Matthew 24:15
New International Version
15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
Daniel spoke of the Abomination that causes desolation in the tribulation, were there abominations that caused desolation in the past? The Answer is yes Sodom and Gomorrah are perfect examples. Scripture is provided below. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for their sexual perversion, especially homosexuality. They even preferred men over women sexually. It was because of this God rained down on them fire and sulfur until they were burned up. Homosexuality is an abomination to God. We will look at this in the word. The Pope says it is now ok for priests to bless these homosexual unions but how can a man bless what God curses? The Bible says God is the same yesterday, today and forever. When we see an abomination in a Holy place or office it is cause for God bringing desolation. The pope has endangered the Catholic church, himself and his office and made them liable to destruction.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Deception in the Church Part 5
2 Timothy 3:10-17
New International Version
A Final Charge to Timothy
10 You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11 persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
I heard a person talking about how things will get better this morning, but they are deceived. Jesus says it will get worse till the end of this age. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. Don’t be deceived by staying and walking in His word. Sure we will be persecuted for righteousness sake but what does it matter for soon Jesus will return and set up His kingdom. As for those deceivers they will continue in their deception and will continue being deceived themselves. They are so convincing to many because they believe the deception they teach.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Deception in the Church Part 4
Matthew 24:9-14
New International Version
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Friends, many false prophets will arise to deceive the church. They will call good evil and evil good. We will be persecuted till the end. See to it you don’t falter in your walk. Wickedness will increase as we can well see. The world talks of love all the time, but their love grows cold. Their families are divided, and they divorce at the least of things. They love themselves more than their children. Don’t be deceived by the world’s wisdom but stand firm in your faith to the end. Preach the word till we reach the ends of the earth.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Deception in the Church Part 3
Jude 3-16
New International Version
The Sin and Doom of Ungodly People
3 Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. 4 For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.
5 Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord at one time delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. 7 In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
8 In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. 9 But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” 10 Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.
11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error; they have been destroyed in Korah’s rebellion.
12 These people are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted—twice dead. 13 They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.
14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16 These people are grumblers and fault finders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.
These deceivers have slipped in among us even eating with us and acting like they are part of the flock when all they do is bring down the weak willed to participate in their sin. Unlike the deceivers in part two who want you to live by their rules and regulations, these deceivers claim to embrace grace but use it as a license to sin. They live like animals with no thought of righteousness. They practice sexual immorality and encourage others to do the same. Their end will be what their actions deserve. Do not follow them; they follow the rebellious and serve Satan.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Deception in the Church Part 2
Titus 1:10-16
New International Version
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
2 Corinthians 11:12-15
New International Version
12 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.
Notice those who try to deceive, as Paul put it are of the circumcised group or religious group. They are among us trying to deceive us into walking away from the grace Jesus has provided for us to be saved. Satan comes as one of our own to deceive us into eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil again so we try to determine what is right and wrong instead of living into the grace God has given us. Making us a slave again to the law of sacrifice, rules and regulations to be saved instead of Christ.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Deception in the Church Part 1
Matthew 24:4-5
New International Version
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.
Jesus warns about deception coming into the church. We are to watch for those who claim to be the messiah or a messiah. They come in amongst us and as Jude says eat with us all the time being used by Satan. They are concerned only for their wellbeing. Using the church for their gain. Let no one deceive you, stay in the word and the Spirit. Jesus is the word and to know the word is to know Him and to know Him is to know the Father.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Things That Bother Me in the Church Part 3
1 Samuel 15:23
New International Version
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
he has rejected you as king.”
Proverbs 17:11
New International Version
11 Evildoers foster rebellion against God;
the messenger of death will be sent against them.
Jeremiah 5:6
New International Version
6 Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them,
a wolf from the desert will ravage them,
a leopard will lie in wait near their towns
to tear to pieces any who venture out,
for their rebellion is great
and their backslidings many.
Jeremiah 28:16
New International Version
16 Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth. This very year you are going to die, because you have preached rebellion against the Lord.’”
I hate rebellion and apparently the Father does too. Death waits to take the rebellious from this life. God compares it to divination and backsliding. It will not go unpunished. It is a tool of Satan and those who walk in it are enemies of God. It is the opposite of God’s will and work. It is to raise one’s self above God and make an idol of themselves. Rebellion destroys homes, marriages, and churches. A rebellious spirit is a demon and is serving Satan.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Things that Bother Me in the Church Part 2
Romans 12:1-8
New International Version
A Living Sacrifice
12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Humble Service in the Body of Christ
3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Verse three stands out to me: (Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought). People who self-importance consume them. They think because of their position they are above others and treat them with disdain and disrespect. We are given a position in the body to serve others not to be served. Serve as God has gifted you to serve and as an act of worship to the Father. Remember as you serve others you serve God. Serve them with all your heart and soul. Love them above yourself for they too have been made in the image of God. If you are anything in Christ it is because God made you that way, not of your own doing. Stay humble.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Things That Bother Me in the Church Part 1
James 3:13-16
New International Version
Two Kinds of Wisdom
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
Humility goes a long way with God. I have seen so much selfish ambition and bitter envy in the church it saddens me. It always leads to disorder, chaos, and evil practices. It’s not a competition. We all have our place in the body. Politics has no place in the church. I have seen so many hurt by politics and so many overlooked. Unfortunately it can lead to bitterness and the one who is hurt becomes the one who hurts others. God does not always choose the wisest or the strongest, but He chooses the lowly things of this world to confound the wise. He chooses those who listen to Him to do His work not the most qualified. Humble yourself before God and He will lift you up. Read the story in Matthew 20:20-28 and see how it leads to fighting. God knows the heart and He choses what is best in the body of Christ.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 7
1 Peter 4:7-10
New International Version
7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
The time is short so be about the Father’s business not your own. Use what He has given you for others so you will be welcome in heavenly places. Long to hear well done thou good and faithful servant. God doesn't care how much you accumulated in this life but how much you gave.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 6
Luke 16:14-15
New International Version
14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
Pharisees justify themselves, God’s servants are justified by faith and obey God. What do you value highly, the opinion of man or the Father?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 5
Luke 16:13
New International Version
13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
This seems very clear to me. Are you a steward of the things of God and serve Him or do you serve money and are devoted to it?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 4
Luke 16:10-12
New International Version
10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?
If you want true riches or eternal riches you must be trustworthy with worldly wealth. Tithe and take care of the poor. It is all God's, you are just a steward of it. No one can take it with them. If you are dishonest in one area of your life you are dishonest in all. Stop kidding yourself and come back to reality. God can not be mocked; you reap what you sow. So be generous.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 3
Luke 12:35-48
New International Version
Watchfulness
35 “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. 39 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
41 Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”
42 The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? 43 It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. 44 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 45 But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. 46 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47 “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. 48 But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
You are not self-made. Some have been given much and some little. Just be a good steward of what you have been given and God will lift you up. We will all have to give an account of what we do with what God has given us. Are you waiting for the master’s return or are you living for yourself?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 2
Genesis 39:1-10
New International Version
Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife
39 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
2 The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, 4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. 6 So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.
Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7 and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”
8 But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” 10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.
Joseph was one of the greatest stewards of all times and as a result God made him ruler of the world. He understood that as a steward did not mean he could partake of all things. He refused to touch his master’s wife and as a result he was temporarily put in jail. We will suffer for a season oftentimes for doing the right thing but will overcome in the end. God will promote us.
God gives us this life but asks us to give back to Him one day a week, ten percent, or a tithe of our income He gives us so much we don’t deserve and yet people refuse to give it back to Him. It is all His and He will get it all back, but He asks you to be a steward of it and in return you can enjoy it. Men come up with all kinds of ways to hold it back. They don’t believe God will bless them even more when they obey Him. They don’t understand the principles of stewardship. They think God is holding back on them and so they partake of the things for pleasure not realizing that these are not theirs to enjoy and that they will only bring death and destruction to them.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Devoted to God Part 1
Genesis 2:15-17
New International Version
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
Merrium Webster defines steward as follows: one employed in a large household or estate to manage domestic concerns (such as the supervision of servants, collection of rents, and keeping of accounts)
God made the garden of Eden and made man a steward of it. It was all under His control and he could eat of it, enjoy it and do as he wished with any of it as he chose to do except he was not allowed to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Everything else was His to control. He was even given Eve as a wife and helpmate to love and be loved by. Man was not satisfied; he wanted it all and had to eat of that tree. It was no better to eat than any other tree but man just had to have that fruit so he ate of it and lost his position of being a steward in the garden. God was still gracious and let him be a steward of his life and use the rest of the world but now he had to work for his food.
God gave us this life and we are only stewards of it. We can do anything we want but we will have to give an account for it. Will we use it for good or evil, self or others or maybe to serve rather than be served? Let’s see what God has to say about this. Some people are so arrogant they think they are self-made. What fools they are.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Power in the Blood Part 5
Luke 22:7-23
New International Version
The Last Supper
7 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8 Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”
9 “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.
10 He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, 11 and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 12 He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”
13 They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.
14 When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15 And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
17 After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. 18 For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
19 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. 21 But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. 22 The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!” 23 They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
Today we still celebrate the Passover every time we take communion. It represents the body and the blood of Jesus. Jesus became the curse, sin and shame for us and His blood died so we might live with Him forever. It is a wall about us. We should wear it daily. We are to always put our sins under the blood. Satan is always looking for a way into our lives to kill and destroy us. It is the blood of Jesus that is a hedge about us. Nothing but the blood of Jesus can save and protect us. It is our power over sin and the grave and sets us free from the power of Satan. It also gives us authority over Satan and the powers of darkness.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Power in the Blood Part 4
Exodus 12:1-32
New International Version
The Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread
12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, 2 “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. 3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. 4 If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. 5 The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. 6 Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. 7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. 8 That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs. 10 Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover.
12 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.
14 “This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance. 15 For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast. On the first day remove the yeast from your houses, for whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day. Do no work at all on these days, except to prepare food for everyone to eat; that is all you may do.
17 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. 18 In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. 19 For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And anyone, whether foreigner or native-born, who eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel. 20 Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread.”
21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning. 23 When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.
24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 27 then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped. 28 The Israelites did just what the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron.
29 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.
31 During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship the Lord as you have requested. 32 Take your flocks and herds, as you have said, and go. And also bless me.”
Sometimes we just see the fullness of what God does for us. We, like Israel, are slaves to sin. They needed a redeemer. They were no better than the Egyptians, but God in His grace provided them both a way out of their sin by faith. Anyone who believed and obeyed by covering their doors and windows with the blood of a lamb God would pass by and not bring the punishment for their sin by killing their first born. It was not Satan that killed the first born but God. You see Satan is not the one we must be reconciled to but God the Father is. If God is for you who can be against you, but if God is against you who can be for you. It was the blood that put a hedge of protection around them and the blood that set them free. They were to be ready to leave and run from their former life. Run from your sin and dwell there no longer. Yeast represents sin and the were to have not even a little sin so that it would not spread and expand in their lives. It was the blood that freed them from slavery of sin and the blood that brought them under the protection of God. Read Romans 8 John 3:16-18. Plead the blood of Jesus over your life and sin so that Satan can find no place to get in and also so you will not be an enemy of God.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Power in the Blood Part 3
Genesis 3:17
New International Version
17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.
Genesis 4:10-12
New International Version
10 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”
Genesis 5:29
New International Version
29 He named him Noah[a] and said, “He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the Lord has cursed.”
Genesis 8:20-21
New International Version
20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though[a] every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.
The first blood sacrifice was in Gen 3:21 {Genesis 3:21
New International Version
21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.} God killed and skinned animals to make a proper covering for Adam and Eves sin. He covered their sin, shame, and curse for them. Oh the boundless grace and love of God! He came to us before we went to Him. Then He provided a way we could be in His presence. The ground was cursed because of man's sin and violence but God accepted Noah’s blood offering and said he would not curse the ground on account of us again. Nothing but blood can take away our sin and curse. Nothing but the blood can put us back into God’s presence and cover our sins. These clothes made of animal’s skins were a reminder of that.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Power in the Blood Part 2
Genesis 4:6-12
New International Version
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[a] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”
“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
10 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”
WE see in the life of Abel how God says Abel’s blood cries to Him from Abel’s blood. I can only assume that our spirit dwells in our blood. God has breathed life into us and when we sin scripture tells us dying spiritually we die physically. When we sin we put ourselves under a curse. Cain’s curse was inability to easily grow or gather food. The ground was cursed as a result of his sin. The thing that gives us food to sustain life now is cursed so it takes life from us. Cain had to work harder and longer to just live. It would help to keep him out of trouble until man started wars to take what others had so they could have an easier life. Man was in a mess, his sin needed to be atone for to remove the curse.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Power In the Blood Part 1
Leviticus 17:10-12
New International Version
10 “‘I will set my face against any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who eats blood, and I will cut them off from the people. 11 For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life. 12 Therefore I say to the Israelites, “None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner residing among you eat blood.”
The Bible clearly states the life of all creatures is in its blood. The only atonement for sin is the blood or life. Blood because life is in it is sacred and we are to hold it sacred by not eating it. God did this so our sin could be atone for.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 15
Satanists, witches, or those with a Jezebel spirit try to stop all accurate teaching about Satan, the occult, demons, spiritual warfare, etc. They love to act as though you are crazy to talk about such things, because they don’t exist or they have no power. They want the body to remain ignorant and clueless as possible so they can do their work. They try to make people think there is no Satan or hell. God is a good God and would never let people go to hell or let Satan attack them. They don’t want the church to realize the power they have so they can do their dirty work. They do this by teaching things like we have the Baptism of the Holy Spirit when we get saved or don’t need to speak in tongues. You’re a good person so God won’t send you or your loved ones to hell. They also want the church to believe whoever will be saved will be saved so we don’t have to fight for their souls. Wake up church this is war.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of A Church Part 14
Satanists, witches, or those with a Jezebel spirit try to separate the family unit. They like to have a group for everyone. The elderly, parents, singles, teens, grade school, toddlers, babies etc. By doing this they divide and conquer. There is one body, not many. There is a worldly wisdom to this and seems to be right to man but it is not the way of the Lord. When we all learn together it is harder for demons to teach their worldly doctrine. We can keep an eye on what is going on in the church. The family unit is the building block of the church. Children must learn to sit still and listen next to mom and dad. We must stay unified. Separating couples leads to discontent and breakdown of the marriage. Singles groups become meat markets. Teen groups become breeding places for trouble. Wake up church this is not how God designed the Church and is a recent trend. We grow, learn, and protect each other. It has led to parents believing that they don’t know what is best for their kids and being unable to communicate with them. God gave you them and He will give you the wisdom to raise them better than the internet, school system, government, or any other established entity.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 13
Satanists, witches, or those with a Jezebel spirit try to change church doctrine, they aim to confuse the people. They love to get into teaching positions, especially with children. Pastors know your teachers and what they teach. Ever wonder why we have lost our young people. Wake up and know who is in the church.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 12
Witches and Satanists can be your best attenders. They will try to get to know everybody and also to know who is sold out to God and who is not. They will give to the church and often in large amounts to build credibility and make the church dependent on them. Money talks and they can use this leverage to control. Be wary of anyone who gives but with strings attached to their giving. Whether they are Satanist or not they are definitely being used by Satan. Anyone who gives with strings attached, the Pastor should simply tell them to keep their money God does not need it. This is a Jezebel spirit and does not belong in the church. These people will give to good causes but not God causes. They will try to tell you what you can preach and what you cannot. Rebellion is unto Divination and witchcraft. Pastors be aware when you refuse their money there will be many in the church who will attack you because they think you are foolish or unreasonable. These givers will act hurt and play the people against you. Are you there to please people or God? Try not to let them get the upper hand. Seek the Lord on this and pray, pray, pray.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 11
Witches and Satanists go to church. I have had them show up at my own church but be careful exposing them without a witness. They will come in and will act like they are saved and can even speak in tongues but of the devil. They will volunteer and try to build credibility with church people even to the point that they can make you look like a fool if you confront them. Be on your guard and be as wise as a snake but innocent as a dove. They are there to destroy the church but by seeming to help they get in positions of power. They come as angels of light. Above all pray, pray, pray.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 10
Proverbs 16:28
New International Version
28 A perverse person stirs up conflict,
and a gossip separates close friends.
Romans 1:28-32
New International Version
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
There is a lot being said here but I want to concentrate on two things that destroy the church. Gossip and slander. Many forget they are deserving of death because they can kill a church ministry, person, marriage, family etc. They are grouped with homosexuality, murder, deceit, God-haters and so much more evil. I have been a victim of these instruments of Satan and have seen churches and ministries fall to them. Those who participate in them seem to be deceived into thinking they are doing a go service. They sneak into prayer groups, coffee breaks, and all sorts of conversations. Whether you are doing it or listening to it you are guilty of this heinous sin and God says you deserve death. In the churches we pastored if somebody tried to Gossip or slander another to me I would say let’s go to them and ask them about this and they would always stop and say no. DO NOT be a part of this for God hates gossip.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 9
1 Thessalonians 5:21-23
King James Version
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Leviticus 19:2
New International Version
2 “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.
Hebrews 12:14
New International Version
Warning and Encouragement
14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
Ephesians 5:26-27
King James Version
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Titus 2:12
New International Version
12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,
God is coming back for a Holy church. Holiness is separating from sin and the world to God. We are to use the word to cleanse ourselves of these things not as a way to participate in them. We are to be Holy as God is Holy so we might see Him. We are not to have a worldly passion for the things of this world but keep a pure love for the things of God and His righteousness. We must avoid even the very appearance of anything that is evil, always upholding the honor of God and His church. Hating sin with all our heart because it separates us from God and is why Jesus suffered and died for us. Not wanting to do anything that may look to be hypocritical so some may not be saved. If we walk in darkness, we cannot see God. We are to always be looking to live a righteous life that is pleasing to God trying to see how close we can live to Him not from Him.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 8
1 Thessalonians 5:19-21
King James Version
19 Quench not the Spirit.
20 Despise not prophesyings.
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
This is an area of the church that disturbs me. It is a lack of sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. The church quenches the Spirit by not knowing when to be quiet in service and let Him move. This is a time for many that is uncomfortable because they think they always need to run their mouth. They plan don’t know how to let the Spirit take control of the service. It is in these quiet times that He can move, heal, or take us to a deeper level of worship. Many a preacher are afraid to let go of control of the service to the Holy Spirit and so Quench His work as though they know better.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 7
Ephesians 6:18
New International Version
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
King James Version
16 Rejoice evermore.
17 Pray without ceasing.
18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
We are to pray all the time. The church has less and less prayer. It is our communication with God. We are to worship Him in all situations even as the Apostles worshiped Him in prison. We are also to stay alert to the Devil’s schemes. He is always marching around the walls of the church looking for a gap to sneak in. It is in prayer God reveals areas of our life that need to be cleaned up. Prayer is our strength and power to overcome the enemy.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of A Church Part 6
Jude 4
New International Version
4 For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.
There are many in the church today who use the grace of Jesus as a license to sin. They like using sayings like “You’re under the law” “That was done away with in the New Covenant” or That’s the Old Testament.” They deceive the body of Christ into sinning so become an enemy of God. The Moabites did this to Israel when they enticed them to sin sexually. Satan’s tactics have not changed and why, because they work. These people love to pervert the word which they themselves know very little about. They are always justifying their sin trying to see how far they can live from God instead of how close. They love to brag about their wine and mixed drinks not even knowing God abhors such things. They are Apostles of darkness leading their prey to hell while parading as angels of light while they themselves can’t see they are on their way there too. God, have mercy on their souls and open their eyes to truth. They are destroying the church for without Holiness we cannot see God.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 5
2 Corinthians 11:12-14
New International Version
12 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
I have learned a long time ago to be cautious of those who boast about their great knowledge or learning. They are false prophets. Many times, I have had people come into the church to inform me they are a prophet, evangelist, or apostle. Your calling will make you known if you must announce your calling I doubt you have one and will watch you closely. Always be on your guard as to these workers of deceitfulness who Like Satan masquerade as an angel of light. The church is all too quick to accept them into the fold without making sure they are of God.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 4
Jude 4
New International Version
4 For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.
Though Satan is becoming more blatant and careless as He sees the Day of the Lord approaching. He still tries to slip into the church secretly and pervert the word of God. They teach that once we are saved we can do as we please and have a license to sin in any way with no fear of reproach. They deny Jesus came in the flesh and that He died and rose from the dead. They have lost their way once having been saved but now deceived they try to take others into Hell with them. They are always trying to justify their sin by twisting the word of God to drag others into their deception to make themselves feel better about themselves as they are on a road that leads to destruction.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 3
2 Corinthians 11:13-15
New International Version
13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.
These deceivers come in amongst us, even eating with us. They masquerade as apostles and prophets. Saying they have a word from God, but they are liars and cheats. They only come to steal, Kill and destroy the believers. Like Satan their master they come like angels of light but are full of darkness and lies. They put on a mask like a wolf among the sheep to lead us astray away from the flock and the shepherd. Their condemnation is upon them but be wary not to join in their folly.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 2
Acts 20:25-31
New International Version
25 “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. 26 Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27 For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28 Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
Here we see Paul warning the church even after He taught the truth for so long. Satan will go after the weak minded of the flock. (Do not think more highly of yourself than you ought.) He is a deceiver and will deceive even the elect if possible. He tries to divide us and draw off the flock to destroy both them and the flock. We are always to be on our guard, for Paul warns them continually night and day with tears. He was ever mindful of this, and we are to be so also.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Death of a Church Part 1
Luke 21:8
New International Version
8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.
This series is on Satan's methods of destroying churches. Satan is a deceiver and he loves using deception to destroy the church. He claims to be something he is not. He claims to be a redeemer, teacher, pastor, prophet etc., but he is a deceiver and tries to deceive the believers into a lie. He comes in the name of Jesus but he is a liar. It is for everyone in the church to judge as to whether it is Jesus or an imposter. Remember he is a con artist and if you think he can’t fool you, you have lost already.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Baptism in the Holy Spirit; The Evidence Part 5
Acts 11:1-18
New International Version
Peter Explains His Actions
11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
4 Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6 I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. 7 Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’
8 “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
9 “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’ 10 This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.
11 “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12 The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14 He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’
15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”
18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
The first church clearly saw speaking in tongues as the initial evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. They did not debate that this was God accepting the gentile believers. It was the end of the argument, so why do church people argue it today? Satan is the author of arguments, chaos, and discord. The Holy Spirit came to bring order and peace. God put an end to this then but many don’t want to humble themselves to the Spirit of God. They are filled with discord and resist the Holy Spirit to this day. The love of God is not in them. Like Saul they are zealous but for the wrong side. Blinded by their own sin and rebellion. They need a road to Damascus humbling.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Baptism in the Holy Spirit; The Evidence Part 4
Acts 10
New International Version
Cornelius Calls for Peter
10 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. 2 He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. 3 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked.
The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6 He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.”
7 When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. 8 He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.
Peter’s Vision
9 About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10 He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. 12 It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. 13 Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”
14 “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”
15 The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”
16 This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.
17 While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon’s house was and stopped at the gate. 18 They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.
19 While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Simon, three[a] men are looking for you. 20 So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.”
21 Peter went down and said to the men, “I’m the one you’re looking for. Why have you come?”
22 The men replied, “We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.” 23 Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.
Peter at Cornelius’s House
The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the believers from Joppa went along. 24 The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. 26 But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”
27 While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. 28 He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. 29 So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?”
30 Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me 31 and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. 32 Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”
34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues[b] and praising God.
Then Peter said, 47 “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” 48 So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.
We have three early church doctrines or truths established in the story. One God made all foods clean or Good, two gentiles or non-Jews can be saved and filled with the Holy Spirit, and finally the sign of the infilling of the Holy Spirit for Peter was they spoke in tongues. All these things were established on the FACT they spoke in tongues. Now I ask you why would Satan want to fight tongues? More importantly, why would gentiles fight it? It was our seal of approval that we could be saved.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Baptism in the Holy Spirit; The Evidence Part 3
Acts 9:10-19
New International Version
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.
1 Corinthians 14:18
New International Version
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.
Saul who became Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit to start his ministry. We know he spoke in tongues because of 1 Corinthians 14:18.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Baptism in the Holy Spirit How do I know if I got it Part 2
Acts 8:9-23
New International Version
Simon the Sorcerer
9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” 11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
Simon clearly saw or heard something when Peter laid hands on the believers, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They were all saved but had not yet received the Holy Spirit. What was it that Simon coveted so much? I think it is clear he saw them speaking in tongues. He wanted to be able to lay hands on people and be able to impart the Holy Spirit and Peter did so he could bring glory to himself.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Baptism in the Holy Spirit; The Evidence
Acts 2:1-4
New International Version
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
We see three things happen on the day of Pentecost when the disciples are filled. There were 125 disciples there including the Apostles. There was a violent wind in the room, tongues of fire that came to rest on all of them, and they spoke in tongues as the Spirit enabled them to. We only hear and see the speaking in tongues repeatedly associated with the infilling of the Holy Spirit. It always amazes me how church people will resist the speaking in tongues part of the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Why? Maybe this is the power of God that is being released and why Satan hates it so? God gave tongues at Pentecost so why is it so hard to accept now. Man’s pride is the obvious reason. People who fight the tongues can get angry or even violent about it. Why? I have to say it takes total surrender to the Holy Spirit to give Him your tongue. Total humility. It is one of the most humbling experiences in one’s life. Let’s take a look at what the first church says about this initial evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 14
Acts 3:1-10
New International Version
Peter Heals a Lame Beggar
3 One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. 2 Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. 3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. 9 When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Though we call it the Acts of the Apostle, it should be called Acts of the Holy Spirit. One of the first Acts is to heal and get the attention of the people by bringing glory to God through signs and wonders.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 13
Acts 2:1-41
New International Version
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them.
5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,[b] 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”
13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 “‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’[c]
22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men,[d] put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him:
“‘I saw the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest in hope,
27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
you will not let your holy one see decay.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.’[e]
29 “Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
35 until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet.”’[f]
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
From the beginning the Holy Spirit always brings glory to the Father and the Son not himself. You see people saved also. The work of the Holy Spirit is to bring glory to the Father and the Son. If this is not the case then we must examine what spirit or spirits we are dealing with.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 12
1 Corinthians 12:12-31
New International Version
Unity and Diversity in the Body
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by[a] one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31 Now eagerly desire the greater gifts.
1 Corinthians 12:29-31
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
29 Are all apostles (special messengers)? Are all prophets (inspired interpreters of the will and purposes of God)? Are all teachers? Do all have the power of performing miracles?
30 Do all possess extraordinary powers of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?
31 But earnestly desire and zealously cultivate the greatest and best gifts and graces (the higher gifts and the choicest graces). And yet I will show you a still more excellent way [one that is better by far and the highest of them all—love].
I threw the amplified version of the Bible in, because I like how it tells us to seek. I just want to point out that in seeking the gifts or office you may desire, don’t neglect the office or gifts God gave you. The greatest way to be promoted is to be faithful in the calling you have. He who is trustworthy with little will be given much.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 11
1 Corinthians 12:1-14
New International Version
Concerning Spiritual Gifts
12 Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues.[b] 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.
Unity and Diversity in the Body
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by[c] one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
We are to seek the gifts but always remember the Spirit give those gifts though us according to God’s will. Seeking these gifts can not be because of selfish ambition but for the love and good of the body. Our love for God should be such that we seek them for the good of others not for the promotion of self. The Holy Spirit is not going to use you with something that will destroy you. All gifts come through the Holy Spirit and according to God’s will for the Spirit is God and can do nothing outside of the Father or its very character. You cannot change the character of God.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 10
Hebrews 5:1-4
New International Version
5 Every high priest is selected from among the people and is appointed to represent the people in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. 3 This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people. 4 And no one takes this honor on himself, but he receives it when called by God, just as Aaron was.
The Holy Spirit chooses you for an office, position, or commission in the body of Christ. We cannot choose for ourselves. This causes chaos in the church. God is the potter and He makes us into what He sees fit for service. Who are we to talk back to God?
Pastor Jeff Lane
No Longer Foreigners and Strangers
Ephesians 2:19-22
New International Version
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with
God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the
whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in
him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his
Spirit.
We are no longer consider outsiders of the family of God, but His children. We
are nit two peoples but one. All apart of the body of Christ by His blood. We are holy
as the Father is holy. We are His temple not built by human hand but chosen by the
Father. The Father dwells in us. How could it possibly be better?
Pastor Jeff Lane
Listening; It Could Change Your Life
Proverbs 1:5, New International Version (NIV)
Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.
Jesus often told the crowds to listen to His words. He got their attention and poured out wisdom to them, but for Jesus listening was so much more than hearing His words. Listening meant to hear, chew on, decipher, meditate on, and put into practice. When my dad used to say, "listen to me son", I knew it meant to hear what he said and do it. Hearing is not enough. Jesus in Revelation said "hear what the Spirit says to the church." Do you think He meant just hear it or do it?
Listening is more than paying attention. It should become a way of life. It is humbling oneself to receive wisdom and knowledge. When I was a young man my father would humble or plow the soil to plant seed in it. It you drop seed on hard ground it will never grow. It must go down into the soil to come to life. It will grow, and then produce fruit. The heart is like the soil. It will grow whatever you put in it. We must humble our hearts to receive the word or seed to produce.
We still need to be careful what we listen to and plant in our hearts. Some people have humble hearts, but listen to the wrong things. Jesus is the word, and faith comes by hearing. Be oh so careful what you plant. You may not like the harvest. Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Be careful that the fruit or seed of your lips will be planted and produce a good crop.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Receive Or Give
Acts 19:11-12, New International Version (NIV)
God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
Philippians 1:12-14, New International Version (NIV)
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
I rarely have the chance to watch ministers on TV, but while on vacation I got a glimpse at a popular TV evangelist. The auditorium was packed and very ornate. He was charismatic and well dressed. His audience sat on the edge of their seats as he spoke words of prosperity and receiving the extraordinary miracles of God. I was very uneasy as I listened and watched him smile and mesmerize his audience. They clapped and cheered him on like jet fuel in a car. He seemed to smile even more holding them in the palm of his hand. His words were so smooth and sweet no one could dare doubt his love for his listener or his sincerity.
As he spoke my stomach turned. His words did not sooth my spirit, but warning signs arose and red flags. The word says the very elect would be fooled if that were possible. I found myself questioning why I felt the way I did. It sounded so good. This good God giving all of us extraordinary miracles, prosperity, and wealth in our lives. I mean, after all, look around them - they were in a beautiful place beyond words. This man was as wealthy as he preached. He used scripture from the Bible to back himself up. Then why was I so uneasy?
I kept praying about it and started getting answers. First, He used a scripture of a man crippled from birth. A man Jesus passed by many times, but did not heal. The timing of this miracle was amazing. There were many disabled beggars siting outside the temple, but this one got healed. It started a revival. It stirred up all of Jerusalem, the Jewish rulers, and the church. It was not just about this man; it was about all the world. God did an extraordinary miracle, but now this disabled man had to work for a living, not live on public aid. God's grace gave him an opportunity to better himself. God told the Israelites He gave them the promised land, but they had to put on armor, pick up a sword, and fight for it. God will bless your crops, but you have to plant them.
The problem with what I heard was it was motivating people with greed. It was about receiving not giving. It was about the big sugar daddy God just dropping blessing from heaven instead of a heavenly Father teaching us to be fathers ourselves - dying to self, loving our children, raising them to be men who do the same. It was not motivating people to die to themselves to be a blessing, but to take a blessing.
Paul did extraordinary miracles, but it put him in chains and led to his death like Jesus, not to living in a palatial palace with planes, Rolexes, fancy cars, and banks full of money. Jesus turned his back on the things satan offered Him to die for us. What is the church turning into? Have we swallowed satan's bait? Be careful little ears what you hear.
- Pastor Jeff Lane
Be Able To Defend Your Faith
Galatians 6:6, New International Version (NIV)
Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.
2 Timothy 3:10-4:5, New International Version (NIV)
You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11 persecutions, sufferings-what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
I have people from time to time disagree with what they call my interpretation of God's word. It never ceases to amaze me when they announce that they disagree with something, but never say what it was or why. If God has given them a revelation of His word, they owe it to their teacher to explain why they disagree and what God has shown them. Anything else leads to arguments and dissension. Just because someone disagrees does not make them right. We must be able to defend the Gospel and what God has given us.
I have listened to a great many teachers and preachers in my life. It is the ones who know God's word that have my attention. They bring both Old and New Testaments together to show that this is another of God's unchanging truths. It is not enough to just disagree; you need to know why you disagree. Prove through scripture why you disagree. The danger in this you must keep an open mind to accept that you may be wrong and discover God's truth.
There have been many things I have discovered in scripture that took a while for me to accept. Look, there are many types of food in the world that are very healthy and good for me, but sometimes I don't like them or sometimes I think I don't like them. When I met Becky, she wanted me to try a new food. I said I didn't like it. She asked have you tried it, and I said no. Well then how do you know you don't like it? I don't like the way it looks. Well she talked me into trying it, and I had to admit I loved it. From then on, I have kept an open mind to trying new foods. Some have been great and some not so much, but I would have missed out on so many things that are great.
Open your heart to the Holy Spirit and quit trusting in man. Just because the presentation makes the dish look palatable does not make it good or the other way around. Know what's in it and that it a timeless truth of God.
- Pastor Jeff Lane
Love Your Neighbor
Luke 10:25-37 New International Version (NIV)
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Actually, the priests and the Levites had good reason to avoid the Samaritan according to the law. The problem is they missed the spirit of the law and this was Jesus' point. Love and compassion trump the literal law. If they had taken care of the man they would have been excluded from their duties as a priest and a Levite temporarily, but Jesus implies that love is the reason why they are called to what they do and they are to love first for this is the fulfillment of the law.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 9
Matthew 3:11
New International Version
11 “I baptize you with[a] water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
The Holy Spirit also comes to cleanse us by fire to burn the desire to sin out of us. The word said about Jesus Zeal for His house will consume Him and we are that house. Do you think God is concerned for man made structures? He is concerned for you and you are His house, and He disciplines the son He delights in. He sent the fire of the Holy Spirit to make you Holy as He is Holy.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 8
1 Corinthians 12:1-13
New International Version
Concerning Spiritual Gifts
12 Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues.[b] 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.
Unity and Diversity in the Body
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by[c] one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
Many men try to mimic the work of the Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit that enabled them to speak in tongues on the day of Pentecost. He also preached through Peter. Men try to do the work of the Holy Spirit but it is the Holy Spirit who enables us to do the works of God. We can teach about the gifts, but we cannot teach others to do the gifts. This is man playing God. It is no different than what Nadab and Abihu did when they offered up strange fire to the Lord or what Jannes and Jambres did when they tried to mimic Moses by throwing down their staff and they became snakes. They are a brood of vipers with a form of Godliness by denying the power (Holy Spirit) God. Leviticus 10:1-3
New International Version
The Death of Nadab and Abihu
10 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, contrary to his command. 2 So fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. 3 Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said:
“‘Among those who approach me
I will be proved holy;
in the sight of all the people
I will be honored.’”
Aaron remained silent.
2 Timothy 3:8-9
New International Version
8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9 But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 7
Matthew 28:16-20
New International Version
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
We are commissioned by the Holy Spirit He goes with us and enables us to disciple and commission others.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 6
Mark 16:15-20
New International Version
15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. 20 Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
When we are commissioned by the Holy Spirit we are enabled and given authority.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 5
Acts 9:1-19
New International Version
Saul’s Conversion
9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Another work of the Holy Spirit is to send you on assignment. As we see with Ananias and Saul. They were both commissioned for different work assignments. The Holy Spirit heals Saul as well.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 4
Mark 13:9-11
New International Version
9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit will speak though you not just to defend you but to be a witness to the world of the truth and the Father.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 3
2 Corinthians 13:1
New International Version
Final Warnings
13 This will be my third visit to you. “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”
1 John 5:6-9
King James Version
6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
Every matter must be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses. We can see the Holy Spirit is our third witness.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 2
Zechariah 4
King James Version
4 And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep.
2 And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:
3 And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
4 So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
5 Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.
7 Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.
8 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you.
10 For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?
13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.
Revelation 11:3-4
New International Version
3 And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” 4 They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”
Zechariah four is the foundation or beginning of the church that God is telling us was to come. The Holy Spirit will be a witness to this great work of God’s salvation through Jesus Christ and His Word. This is the oil of anointing given us to know the living God and also so the world might know Him.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Works of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit Part 1
Acts 1:8
New International Version
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
This was given to be witnesses that Jesus is alive and still doing the work of the Father. Faith comes by hearing the word, the Holy Spirit confirms the word through signs and wonders.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Evidence of The Gift Part 5
Acts 19:1-7
New International Version
Paul in Ephesus
19 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?”
“John’s baptism,” they replied.
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7 There were about twelve men in all.
These men were saved, but were ignorant of the faith. When they heard the news of Jesus and the Holy Spirit they acted upon it. They received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues as in the beginning. This is the last of the five incidences of believers receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. The conclusions we can come to are as follows. The Baptism was for the Apostles, Jews and gentiles. We must be saved to receive it. All of them received the gift of tongues as a result. They also had many other gifts or proofs such as the gift of healing, the gift of preaching, the gift of foreign languages, and so on. Next we will look at what the gifts are for.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Evidence of The Gift Part 4
Acts 11:1-18
New International Version
Peter Explains His Actions
11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
4 Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6 I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. 7 Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’
8 “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
9 “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’ 10 This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.
11 “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12 The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14 He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’
15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”
18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
Acts 10:44-46
New International Version
44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
As you can see in verses Acts 11:15-18 that the church accepted that because the gentiles received the Baptism as they had and that was because they spoke in tongues, this was the initial evidence of the infilling of the Holy Spirit. We also see they knew that they were saved because they spoke in tongues. Though you don’t have to speak in tongues to be saved.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Evidence of The Gift Part 3
Acts 9:1-20
New International Version
Saul’s Conversion
9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.
1 Corinthians 14:18
New International Version
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.
We see Paul received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit; it does not say he spoke in tongues at this time. Now given the narrative we are not privileged to all the information at the time of the event. The point was Paul was converted, called into ministry and the Baptism was a secondary part of this event. Yet we see Paul did indeed speak in tongue and a lot, so it is safer to say this was a part of the infilling.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Evidence of The Gift Part 2
Acts 8:9-25
New International Version
Simon the Sorcerer
9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” 11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19 and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
20 Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23 For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”
24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
25 After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.
Simon saw something that was evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit which after looking at all the other instances it seems clear that he saw them speaking in tongues. Because this will be the evidence that the church accepts as the sign of the infilling. We will see this when we get to Acts 11.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Evidence of The Gift 1
Acts 2:1-4
New International Version
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
The initial evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is being able to speak in other “tongues” as the Spirit enables us. We have five instances of the baptism of the Holy Spirit in scripture. They said out right that they spoke in tongues and two allude to it.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 8
2 John 4-6
New International Version
4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
God commands us to love one another. How? By walking in obedience to His commands. God is love and to love as God loves we must obey and seek His Holy Spirit.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 7
1 John 3:22-24
New International Version
22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 24 The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
We know God’s love and will if we are Baptized in His Spirit. It is a command. It is by the Holy Spirit we can love others as ourselves. Notice! 24 The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. I want God to live in me and me in Him.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 6
1 John 2:3-6
New International Version
Love and Hatred for Fellow Believers
3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.
It is simple if we want our love for God to be complete, we do what He Commands and seeking the Gift of the Holy Spirit is a command not a suggestion.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 5
Acts 7:48-53
King James Version
48 Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,
49 Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?
50 Hath not my hand made all these things?
51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
52 Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.
God created us to be His house!
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 4
Acts 4:18-20
King James Version
18 And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19 But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.
20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.
Many modern-day preachers tell us that the baptism of the Holy Spirit was for the Apostles, but seeking it is still a command. Which is right to obey the Bible or man?
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 3
Matthew 28:16-20
New International Version
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
The apostles were commanded to make disciples and teach to obey everything that Jesus commanded them, which is included to tarry for the Holy Spirit.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command Part 2
Acts 1:4-8
King James Version
4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
One again we see the apostles are COMMANDED to seek the gift of the Holy Spirit till they received it.
Pastor Jeff Lane
The Command
Luke 24:49
King James Version
49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Jesus told or (Commanded) the apostles to go and receive the Holy Spirit before going to the world. They were to tarry or which means to glue yourself down till you get it. Don’t move or do anything else till you get it.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Direction Part 5
1 Kings 19:1-18
New International Version
Elijah Flees to Horeb
19 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”
3 Elijah was afraid[a] and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.
All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.
The Lord Appears to Elijah
And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”
God never told Elijah to leave the battlefield. God was very compassionate with Elijah but told him to go back the way you came. Friends it’s not about results it’s about obeying the call. If God didn’t say leave, what are you doing? You have left the presence of God. He is in the battle. That is the safest place for you to be.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Direction Part 4
Judges 16:18-22
New International Version
18 When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, “Come back once more; he has told me everything.” So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands. 19 After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called for someone to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him.[a] And his strength left him.
20 Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!”
He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.
21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison. 22 But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
Don’t fall asleep in the world’s lap. God will move on, and you won’t know it. Too many Christians are asleep in the church pews and God has moved on. They have become fodder for Satan. Sadly, many will wake up and not realize God has left them.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Direction Part 3
Exodus 13:20-22
New International Version
20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.
God will always go before you. If you lose sight of His calling you either quit following or past God up. Keep Him in front of you and you won’t lose your way.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Direction Part 2
Exodus 33:15
New International Version
15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.
God has taken the Israelites out of Egypt and is telling Moses the next move to make. God is angry with Israel and their sinning. He tells Moses what to do but says He will not go with Him. Moses is wiser now and tells God If you’re not with us don’t send us. Never move until God does.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Direction Part 1
Exodus 3:1-12
New International Version
Moses and the Burning Bush
3 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
And Moses said, “Here I am.”
5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”
11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”
I think it is safe to say there are times in our lives when we need direction. We are not sure where we should go from here because things are not going as we think they should. Moses was no exception. He ran from Egypt because things went bad for him. He killed an Egyptian thinking that is how God would deliver the Israelites. God was not there to kill Egyptians but to deliver the Israelites. Anyway He found himself wanted for murder and so he ran. God humbled him and watched over him the next forty years. Now at eighty God decided he was ready to fulfill the call of deliverer. God simply said go back to Egypt and I will go with you. What made the difference? Moses was not the deliverer, but God was. This time He was with God. Sometimes it’s timing, location, or training but it is always to have God’s presence on you. You can have it all right but not have God with you. Wait upon the Lord and He will lift you up.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 15
Acts 9:20-21
New International Version
20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?”
Notice what a great job the church had been doing with the message. They all knew that Paul was sent to destroy anyone who called on the name. Not christians in name only but those who use the Name. Oh, that the church would call on the Name again and not just be Christians in name only.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 14
Acts 9:17-20
New International Version
17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.
After Paul was prayed for, he received the Holy Spirit and began to preach. Notice he began to preach immediately. God got ahold of his tongue. He almost as fast became public enemy number one.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 13
Acts 9:10-16
New International Version
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
The persecutor has become the persecuted. God had mercy on Paul but now Paul was to be called and sent to preach the name. God told Ananias to tell Paul how much he must suffer for that name he once despised. There is a price to pay for using the sword of the mouth. You might say live by the sword, die by the sword. Unfortunately too many preachers fail to tell people when they come to Jesus they will suffer and be persecuted in this life leaving them off guard and ignorant of what is to come. Many leave this new life because they are not willing to pay the price. We must help them to count the cost and hold them up when paying it. If you use the name you will suffer for it, but it will be worth it all.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 12
Acts 9:10-14
New International Version
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
Perhaps I got ahead of myself in devotional 11 but we must understand there is a price to be paid if you are to use the Name. Remember you are in spiritual warfare not on a picnic. The church was being persecuted for using the name of Jesus. Paul was fighting for the wrong side and we too must be careful not to fight on the wrong side also. Our hearts can be in the right place, but our head can think in the flesh even yet we can be sincerely wrong. Such was the life of Paul at this time. He was trying to destroy the church in the name of God. He didn’t know Him, because if he did, he would have known Jesus, nevertheless Jesus had mercy on him.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 11
Acts 19:11-16
New International Version
11 God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” 14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” 16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
Only those who walk with Jesus have the right to use His name.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 10
Acts 4:5-13
New International Version
5 The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. 7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 Jesus is
“‘the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the cornerstone.’
12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
The rulers knew they did this by the name of Jesus. It is that name that gives us authority. They also noted that these men walked with Jesus. You must walk with Him to have the right to use the Name.
Pastor Jeff Lane
Sword of our Mouth Part 9
Acts 3:11-16
New International Version
Peter Speaks to the Onlookers
11 While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. 12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.
Peter and John freely admit it was not them that healed the man but Jesus. They simply spoke the name of Jesus over the man, and He was healed. It is by faith in the name of Jesus and that faith come from Him that made that man well. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
Pastor Jeff Lane
