by Ron Hocutt | Aug 21, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Know and Be Known Gal 4:9 – “…but now that ye have come to know God, or rather to be known by God…” We believe that knowing God is our goal, but this passage of scripture makes it clear that we must be known by him. When it comes to knowing someone, it’s the small things that count. You may know what they do for a job, where they live, and how many kids they have, but that does not mean you know them. To really know a person is to know them intimately, not just on the surface. Matt 7:23 – “…And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” These words from our Savior should strike terror into the heart of anyone with an eternal hope. How is it that these people could have lived in such a way as to claim Jesus as their savior only to find out he did not know them, and they clearly did not know him? I think the answer lies in what we consider to be important to God vs. what we consider to be unimportant or irrelevant to Him. We err (to our own eternal detriment) when we presume to know the difference. We disobey His Word and justify it by saying things like “…yes, well, I don’t think God cares about that.” At that point, we have ceased seeking the heart of God and have no assurance that His promises apply to us. We may claim that we “know” Him, but He does not know us. The words in...
by Walt Henrichsen | Jul 10, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
God is Sovereign and Man is Responsible “…His works were finished from the foundation of the world.” Hebrews 4:3 God reveals in His Word, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.” Ephesians 1:4-5 Again His Word says, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 These two seemingly irreconcilable truths are anchors in every believer’s life. No one understands how both can be true, but all of Christ’s followers should be grateful that both are true. The responsibility of man means that you can decide to love God and be His obedient slave. God did not make you His robot; you are free to accept or reject His offer to become His. The sovereignty of God means you can have a relationship with the Creator God of the universe and live with Him throughout eternity. Because of your depravity, without His taking the initiative and electing you, you would surely go to hell. As the hymn writer stated it: “I sought the Lord, and afterwards I knew, He moved my soul to seek Him seeking me. It was not I that sought Thee Savior true; I was sought of Thee.” For more articles by Walt...
by Micah Olson | Jun 19, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.” Deuteronomy 8:2 Throughout Scripture we are told that God tests us, and that His tests are for our good. We often associate God’s testing with trials such as ill health, financial problems, and difficult interpersonal relationships. These are all legitimate tests, but Deuteronomy 8:2 makes it clear that another important way that God tests us is through our obedience to His commandments. When Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, Paul had two questions for Him: The first: “Who are you, Lord?” The second: “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts 2:6-10) The first step you take as a Christian is to proclaim, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.” This statement should always be followed with, “What should I do about it? What does Christ want me to do?” The New Testament is full of positive and negative commandments that help us answer this question. The negative commands (“thou shalt not”) are straightforward in their application. This does not mean they are easy to obey, just that little ambiguity exists in how we should obey. The positive commands (“thou shalt” e.g. “love your neighbor as yourself,” “honor your father and mother,” and “husbands love your wives just as Christ also loved the church”) are more subjective in their application. Each of us carries out obedience to these commands in legitimately different ways, and the...
by Gayle Jackson | May 22, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
Most of us live our life with a drifting commitment to our purpose in life, i.e. Mom and Dad, school, job, wife family, self. These are not bad but God says He has a purpose for us in our lives. Most of us do not figure that out and align our life with God. This is a study we all need to go through for our life’s journey. 1 Chronicles 12:32 And from the sons of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred. And all their brothers were at their command. Rom_8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Eph_1:11 in whom also we have been chosen to an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His own will, Joh 17:4 I have glorified You upon the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do-Jesus declaration that He knew God’s purpose for Him. A key need we all have in our life is finding what our purpose for being here is. There is a booklet on Establishing your Purpose that you can get from Pikes Peak CBMC or MIMbooks.com. *Like it or not our life is adding up to something. We all need to know what we want our life to add up to and why am I investing my life in a certain way. Remember, you have a choice, either...
by Gayle Jackson | May 8, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
A problem most all of us will face is our aging Parents. When this occurred to me that my parents were older and the roles were reversing, I asked, what does it mean to honor my parents? The era of aging parent disrupted my family life and created a major struggle in my life. Mat 15:4a For God commanded, saying, “Honor your father and mother”; To totally explore this topic is an extensive, long study. There is a book “Honoring Your Parents” at Amazon or Pikes Peak, CBMC for further study. To get started on this topic, first let me note the word honor here means to “ascribe value to”. Irrespective of your childhood or the misbehavior of your parents, you are to ascribe value to them. In some cases, I have seen from some dysfunctional families that about all that is left for them to “ascribe value to” is that the parents were chosen by God. We are called and commanded to respond in accordance to our observation of them. The accuracy to the application performed in trying to honor the parent is secondary to the attitude that “they are of value”. No matter what your plan is you will probably meet resistance in your siblings, society, your church and your parents. Remember you will answer to God on your thinking and plan. Questions on your study and thinking on Honoring Your Parents are: 1. Do I have any area where I need to forgive or be forgiven by my parents? 2. Do I have any area where I need to forgive and be forgiven by...
by Gayle Jackson | Apr 24, 2017 | Articles, Mentors Corner
The Bible, the Word of God is the key to all we believe. To waffle in your thinking on the accuracy and authority of the Word, is to disrupt your relationship and walk with God. Your commitment to the Word is a key to your walk with Christ. Jos 1:8 “This book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it by day and by night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall act wisely”. 1Pe 1:23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the living Word of God, and abiding forever. Instead of a treatise on The Word, let me ask these questions: 1. Have you ever read/studied the history of the bible and how it came about? If not, when are you going to? 2. Do you know the history of the canonization? 3. Do you believe in a closed or open cannon? 4. Do you believe the bible is inerrant? 5. If you don’t a. What parts are errant to you? b. Can you trust Jesus history and teachings, i.e. His use of Jonah as a historical character? c. If you don’t embrace inerrancy are you declaring your opinion as more accurate than God’s? d. Since Jesus quoted the bible often, what are we to conclude? 6. Do you have problems of squaring the bible with the archeologist? 7. Can you accept creation account? 8. Are scripture teachings, like the following, cultural or...
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