THE CHURCH, THE BRIDE OF CHRIST

  The Church, the Bride of Christ                                            10.10.12                                                  
      Although  we do not  separate  the local Church  from the Church
universal,  there  is  a distinction.  When  we  receive  Christ and  are
Baptized into His Body, the Church, we become a part of the Church
 universal. We do, however; have a unique relationship and member-
ship  to  those with  whom we  meet on  a  regular basis  as  the  local
Church.  We should  never confuse these  two  distinct  relationships,
but it  is still one Church.  The next thing we must understand is,  the
building  in which the church meets is not the Church.  The building,
sanctified or set apart by a local congregation as a place  of  worship,
is merely a building and has no special  significance.  Men have set it
apart  through an actual dedication or  by  using  it  for  this purpose. 
The place is not sacred except for  it’s use and  is no  more  holy than  
anything else belonging to  those  of  us  who belong  to  the  Lord. To  
a child of God, all of life is sacred  but  even the body, “temple of  the
Holy Spirit,”  will  never inherit  the kingdom of  God.  Scripture tells
us to refrain from defiling our bodies.  So,  since the  building we use
for worship belongs in  His service,  we  do not  profane the building;  
it  belongs to God.  (To profane is  to take  something  holy and use it 
for a base or unworthy purpose.)

     Membership in the local church is a practical matter.  We will be
more  consistent  in our  lives in Christ  if  we  have  the  support  of 
like minded believers. There is also the matter of financial steward-
ship required for support of a local church and pooling of resources
for  local, regional, national and international mission efforts.  Whe-
ther membership as such  in a local body of  believers is required to
“fulfill  all righteousness,”  as in the ordinance of Baptism,  is  not a
known  fact,  but the Apostle Paul writes,  “Forsake  not  the assem-
bling of yourselves together...”   It is my  understanding  that  every
believer is a member of  the body of  Christ through the Baptism of
the Holy Spirit at the time of conversion.  Water baptism, required
for  membership  in  many  local churches and denominations, is an 
outward testimony of the inward experience of Holy Spirit Baptism
tism.   It was practiced  by the early church and has the approval of
our  Lord as even he was baptized by John the Baptist. So, Baptism
is not  required to "wash  away" sin  as  some  believe.   Christ  had
no sin.

      Another ordinance of  the church, n“The Lord’s Supper,”  called
“Holy Communion,” or “Eucharist” is  celebrated by believers,  as a
reminder that Christ died, was buried, was raised from  the dead has
ascended to the Father and will return in power and glory. It is prac-
ticed, observed, in many ways,  in varying frequency, but is required
of all believers in the Body of Christ. This is a serious matter.  Parta-
king of  the “Lord’s Supper”  in an unworthy  manner  may cause  ill-
ness,  even death.  Another  practice of  the church is the “Laying on 
of  Hands.”  This too,  may  be considered  an ordinance since we are  
instructed in Scripture as the outward sign the Lord has His hand on 
the recipient to set one apart for  ministry.   (Deacon,  Elder,  Pastor, 
etc.)

     One other informal practice for new members of  a local church is 
the "right hand of  fellowship."  When one joins with a body of  belie-
vers, that person is welcomed by having the members of the assembly
pass by and shake the hand of the new member.
     

      The officers of  the Church are  varied among the several  church
bodies, but usually are as follows:  Pastor or Bishop, (Overseer of the
local flock) Deacon.  (Men who serve the congregation physically, but 
have high degree of Spiritual qualification) These men were originally 
responsible for the distribution of necessities to widows.   In some con-
gregations,  the Elder is an informal office,  in others they  are chosen, 
but they occur in every congregation and are respected for  their  wis-
dom  and  Spiritual  leadership.  Normally  an elder would be a person 
of middle age or above.  
                                                                                                                           
     The organization of  the local church is  not specified in the New
Testament and there are many ways in which local bodies organize.
It  does not  seem to be a vital factor in the church.  It  is necessary,
 however;  that the congregation  be organized in order to  be effec-
tive and  to keep from a spirit of  confusion.  (Confusion is  a tool of
Satan.) 1 Corinthians 14:26-33

     The modes of worship in the various  congregations are highly dis-
tinctive.   Of  late,  many local congregations  have  two worship ser-
vices, dubbing one as contemporary and the other as traditional. The 
two terms refer normally to the kinds of  music used and the contem-
porary worship style is more spontaneous, the traditional more struc-
tured.  There are also variations  in traditional worship.  There is the 
High  church  and  "Low" church.  High church  refers to use of  for-
mal  hymns anthems, and chants  but the low church may use hymns, 
but normally uses gospel music, largely,  and  an occasional  anthem.   
There  are  many variations in  worship structures.   Some  regional 
while others are denominational.  Even  within denominations there 
is  a wide diversity  in all of this.  Then there is the charismatic con-
gregation which emphasize the phenomenon of "unknown tongues," 
healing services  and other  dramatic  practices.  These phenomena 
are questioned by some and may be controversial.

    Another practice within the “Pentecostal”  bodies and of  late the
mainline denominations, is that of using female pastors. This is also
a  controversial practice,  but seems to be  more  accepted today for
better  or  worse.   In my experience,   these are sincere and  honest
women who claim distinct call  and  ordination from  the Lord to min-
istry.   Many  women were greatly used  of  the Lord  in Bible times.
It is also true today.  It is not our  responsibility to make  judgments 
in “controversial” matters,  but  to reserve  judgment  for  the Lord 
before  whom  everyone of  us will  stand to give an  account for the 
deeds done in the flesh.  (Scripturally, judge yourself...not others)

      My experience in “church,” for a  lifetime has been with only mar-
ried,  male pastors with children.  There are as many philosophies for
church pastor as there are forms of worship, music and church polity.
The church families which have seen the most growth, however; have
pastors who are dominant figures taking  authority with strong, firmly 
held conservative beliefs. These men are also well versed in Scripture
ture and are outspoken  about their stand on the authority and infalla-
bility of  Scripture .  They apply the Word of  God to every  aspect of 
life and teach Bible doctrine as answers for all questions. There is one 
weakness I see;  some are impatient  with anyone who  does not share 
their view  to the letter and will brook little if any questioning of  their 
authority.  They tend to be inflexible and quibble,  at times, over some
matter  that  not  Biblically  based.  The pastor I favor,  has  the  same 
standards as this man,  but is more flexible when it comes to  non-doc-
trinal matters.   He is also a lover of people, holding higher standards 
for himself  than he holds for others.  I believe a man called of God to 
the ministry will  be the one who wins the lost and  disciples them  for 
service in the power of the Spirit, not his own ability. This man  is wil-
ling to work with  persons who may  have  differing views on the non-
essentials,  but tries to  show  from  the Word why  his  view  is  best,  
or listen to another's view without condemnation.  
                                                
            Since we are discussing Pastors, for better or worse, 
                 there is one that should not be countenanced:
  
The pastor who is unable to  give a straight answer to a sincere ques-
tion, is not a  pastor to  follow.   If  the man is  either unfamiliar with 
Scripture, or does not have enough faith in the Word of God to hang 
all things on it, he is not  worthy to pastor or even stand  behind the 
pulpit. The man will, at times miss quote Scripture or express doubt 
about it’s authority or credibility.  At times he has a hidden agenda 
to move a Bible believing congregation to a more liberal view. Some 
will  interpret or criticize Scripture,  raising  questions  they can  not  
answer.  They also  are apt  to try serve a people,  and hold them at 
arms length at  the same time.   Privileged  to  worked  with  pastors 
over the past 55 years on staff of a few  local  congregations, I have  
found  it  impossible to serve a people you do not love and for whom 
one  is not willing to sacrifice time,  means and self.

      The mystery of the church was concealed in the Old Testament 
and was revealed in  the New  Testament.  The  principle  revealed  
about the bride of  Christ  is as follows: Man,  created in the image 
of God, who who stated early in  Genesis that it is not good for man 
to be alone. Since man  was created  in the image of  God, the same  
must be true of  God.  
   The original intent in the heart of  God was for the church,  made 
up of mankind, his own creation, to become the bride of the Son of 
Jesus Christ. God has taken it upon  Himself to perfect  that bride,  
allowing  persecution,  deprivation and other means  brought about 
by Satan,  who works  through the world  system.  These elements 
will  succeed  and our Lord will deliver Himself a bride, the church, 
“without spot or  blemish” cleansed in the blood of the “Lamb, who
was slain, ” purified by "washing of  the water of  the Word."  The 
cause behind the process begun before the foundation of the world 
was  to  provide  God's  Son a  bride to be at  His side for eternity;  
Our hope is to be a part of the bride, by the way of  the Cross. Our
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ makes us acceptable to Him.   

"World without end, Amen." 

edited,  donporter 10.26.12,  2.06.15,  3.18.17

PS:  The term Pastor is a masculine term..  Thanks...
                                                     

   
                                             

PAUL, AN APOSTLE? 9.23,04

There is still doubt among some Bible teachers about Apostle 
status for Paul.  He is, without  doubt, one of  the most influen-
tial persons in the Church today and in history.  He is known to 
have  written 12-13 letters  included in the  canon  of  Scripture.
When you  see the facts of his story,  and the historic definition 
of an Apostle of Jesus Christ, one wonders what the controver-
sy is about. In my understanding the word Apostle means, "one 
sent."  If that were the only criteria, we would accept Paul as an 
Apostle of Jesus Christ immediately.  It  is also required  of one
to be sent personally, by the Lord Jesus and to have been seen 
of the Lord Jesus Christ in person.  Are there questions in any- 
one's mind  that the  post incarnate revelation of Jesus to Paul,  
round out  his qualifications as  an Apostle?  Then, what  is the 
issue?  Paul insisted on his Apostleship;  recorded in Scripture
and did not back away at any time. I have yet to hear anyone of
these who refuse  to accept that designation raise questions on 
the  Scripture he penned as being uninspired.  In spite of this, I 
have heard  a Southern Baptist minister state that Paul was not 
not  an Apostle and  was mistaken when he  referred to himself 
as such. I have problems with anyone calling himself a minister 
of  the  gospel  who  takes  issue  with  the plain teaching in the
Word of  God.  Do we not, as  followers of  Christ,  believe God
the Son to be the ultimate author of  Scripture?   Do we believe 
all  Scripture to be Divinely inspired?  Where  is there  room for
one to conclude that part of the record of  Scripture is not accu-
rate and a mistake in the mind of the human instrument?

     Paul's qualification as an Apostle is first recorded in the Acts 
of  the Apostles.  (If Paul were not an Apostle,  would he  be the 
central human figure in a book so entitled?)  Acts 9:1-16 records  
the first meeting of Saul of Tarsus and Christ.  Every verse in the
narrative is a testimony to Paul's Apostle status. In verses 3-4 he 
is blinded  by a bright light and hears a voice.  He obviously had
had  sight of  the post incarnate and glorified Savior that caused
his  blindness.  The men with Paul did not see the light as he did  
and were spared blindness.  They  did,  however;  hear the voice.
In vs. 6  he is given instruction (sent) to go into the city of Damas
Did he not become an "apprentice"  Apostle at that time, meeting  
the requirements? Given his claim, the testimony and experience
with the Post Incarnate Christ and his having been sent then, and
on and  further missions later, there should be no question in any 
one's mind of his status as an Apostle.

Let's look as one other narrative shedding light on this question;
Early in the Acts of the Apostles, there is an incident  that some
"scholars" seem  to overlook or misinterpret. I have never heard 
anyone address the problem created  in Chapter 1 of  the Acts of 
the Apostles when the disciples, not yet  called  Apostles, selec-
ted  one to replace  Judas, in order to fulfill Scripture in  Psalms.
(This reference is apparently to Psalms 109: 8-10 and following.)  
There is no indication in Scripture that Peter (always impetuous)
was acting  under Divine guidance when he decided they should 
choose a successor to  that fallen disciple.  He "may"  have been 
in error or premature.   It is significant that Matthias is not men-
tioned  in  Scripture after  that one  incident and  we could in no 
way compare him with the "Apostle" Paul.  These  remarks  may 
or may not convince anyone of the position I have taken. That is 
not my motive.  The reason for writing of the subject is to to cla-
rify in my mind, why I have, after much consideration am persua- 
ded the Apostle Paul was the most erudite of all Apostles.

(On 11.17.12 I had opportunity to talk with a Bible Scholar who
shed light on this question and because of this, there is further 
study  required.  He  suggested  there  is  room for the Apostle 
Paul and Matthias to be designated Apostles.  Therefore, there 
will be further attention to the subject in the next  few days. If 
one who reads this has input, please do so.  thanks, dp.)

     Considering his story, Paul makes a much more likely Apostle
than one Matthias  from which  we have heard nothing  since his 
selection by a  group of  shaken  disciples  who  were not  as yet 
embolden  and  enlightened  by the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ. I  
might  be guilty of  nit  picking,  except  for this  fact;  with  much 
less serious consideration and study, men have said of Scripture; 
"It contains error" in this instance.  That,  to  me, is  an  heretical 
position. We need fewer heretics today and more serious minded 
students of God's Word. One other word on the subject; Nowhere 
in Scripture  is Matthias  referenced as  an Apostle  and  that  one  
incident,  early in  the Acts of  the  Apostles in  any way suggests 
the Holy Spirit  of Jesus Christ was in any part of  his selection to
fill the place of Judas Iscariot.  It was not until the next chapter of
Acts that the Spirit of Jesus Christ came, on the day of  Pentecost
and baptized the twelve; note, it was Jesus Christ personally, who
hand-picked each of the original twelve.  According to the book of
the Acts,  He also hand picked Saul of Tarsus, later called Paul, as
Apostle.                              

 donporter      10.15.12

     It occurred to me just recently that there was a discrepancy in  
    one version of  Scripture and other translations with regard to
    II Timothy 3: 16.  "All Scripture is  given by  inspiration of God,
    and  is profitable for doctrine,  for  reproof,  for correction,  for 
    instruction in righteousness. (kjv)  

    The name of that translation is the American Standard, and 
    it reads, "All Scripture that is given by inspiration..."  

That small change makes an eternal difference...

If you are able to shed light on this let me know by email at
jlrsbnch@msn.com   thanks, donporter,sr  11.24.14, ed. 3.5.16

CHOSEN OF GOD...EPHESIANS 2: 1-10

Chosen of God, Ephesians 2: 1-10                                                  10.13.12

     "And you  hath he  quickened we  were dead 
   trespasses and  sins:  wherin in  time  past ye                
  walked according to the  course of  this world, 
  according to the prince of the power of the air, 
  the  spirit that now  worketh in the children of             
  disobedience:                         Ephesians 2:1-3
                                                                                          

      According to  the Scripture,  God’s  Word,  this  fragment of vs. 1  
applies to all who are born again.  There is not one who is holy, righ-
teous, worthy or acceptable to the Lord on his own, in his own merit.  
The message of Scripture is,  the Lord  God has  been in the business
of seeking out,  unworthy sinners and  awarding us son-ship.  This is 
true in spite of the fact;  man in his  natural state,  the state of  every 
man, without Christ,  is unacceptable to God.  Without Christ,  man-
kind is dead in his spirit, unable to do anything about his sorry state.   
In our natural condition we are all "children of wrath".  
                                                                                 Ephesians 2: 3-b.

Therefore, if anyone who has ever lived is to be rightly related to God 
the Father,  it  will  be on God’s  initiative.  ("The Son of Man came to 
seek  and to save  that which  was lost.)   Is it possible  for the dead to 
take initiative?   We have been awarded, without a trace of  qualifica-
tion, on our part,  in vs. 6,  the position of  “sitting in heavenly places” 
with the Lord Jesus Christ. At present, we are in Christ, remaining on 
the earth in a body of flesh.  In the mind of God we sit in heavenly pla-
ces, and it is just  a matter of God’s time when we will be there  in fact. 
Everything  has  been  given  the Child of  God  because  of  God’s  love  
toward  us which  brings to  bear  His  grace, (unmerited favor) mercy,
(disposition to  forgive, spare,  pity)  and favor.  (Kindness  shown  for  
His reasons)  God chooses to love, fogive, spare,  pity and  show  kind-
ness to us  according to  His sovereign  will.  We are his creatures and 
dare not ask why.  Verses 7-10 show this did not happen to us because 
of  any effort or merit on our part;  there is  this  statement “...lest any-
one should boast,”  indicating there is  nothing we could  have done to
deserve such  treatment and  nothing of  which we are aware  keeping 
God’s wrath from falling upon us as on others. Those who experience  
God’s wrath are  no more  deserving  of  wrath than are we,  who have 
been delivered from wrath in Christ Jesus.  He makes us worthy...


     In verse 10 we he has a  plan for our lives.  The good  works we, as
His children are to be about are  planned and  prepared ahead  for us.
It is not up to us to initiate good works unless we are “abiding in Him”
He lives in us according to  His sovereign will.  We are tools or vessels 
in the hands of  all  knowing,  all powerful  God who,  in  us, works to
do His good pleasure as we yield to his Holy Spirit and quit an agenda 
of  our  own.  Verses 11-13  show we were totally alien to God, but  He 
has made us to be near Himself through  the blood of  our  Lord Jesus 
Christ.  From there it says, He has, in His flesh, broken down any bar-
rier that  might  separate us  from  the  Almighty  God  and the enmity 
causing the separation.  This  gives us peace with our God. Those that 
were near, (Jews)  and those that were afar off,  (gentiles)  have equal 
access to the Father through the sacrifice of  Jesus Christ on the cross
by  His Spirit.

The Church is not specifically mentioned in Eph. 2:19-22; the message
is that all of God’s children are brought together under one temple and
this must refers to His church. Chapter 3, validates the hint, beginning
with the mystery of the previous dispensation  being revealed in a new
dispensation.  This  must be  His  church.  The  mystery  was;  gentiles
would be included in God’s economy on equal footing with Jews, with-
out  restrictions of  the ceremonial  or ritual  law of  the Old Covenant.
This was due to the inability of the first covenant to cleanse anyone of
sin.  All of this is true, that  Christ may be all and in all.  May all glory,
praise  and  honor  be His.  We, God's children,  the eventual  bride of  
Christ,  have no  desire to deflect any glory  from He who has done all 
for us and has  taken it  upon Himself  to purify and  keep us unto  the 
day of the Lord. There is much to do, to perfect His church.  Our Lord 
who can do all things in us, has promised to do it.

          "But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off 
            are made nigh by the blood of Christ."  Ephesians 2: 13

http://biblicalclarity-don.blogspot.com/2015/01/god-is-sovereign.html

http://biblicalclarity-don.blogspot.com/2012/10/where-is-my-citizenship-2-corinthians-5.html

                               donporter      10.13.12, ed. 2.15.15

LEGALISM ADDRESSED, ACTS 15

Legalism Addressed      (Acts 15: 1-31)                          June 17, 2011

Acts 15: 1-2, "And certain men came down from Judea and taught
the brethren, 'Unless you are circumcised according to customs of
Moses, you cannot be saved.'  Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas
had no small dissension and dispute  with them, they  determined
that  Paul and Barnabas  and certain others of  them should go up 
to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders about this question."  (vs.
10,) "Now therefore, why do you test God by putting a yoke on the 
neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to 
bear?"  vs. 11, "But we  believe that  through the grace of our Lord 
Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they." 

Verses 1 - 6, The problem brought to the attention of the Apostles;  
Certain Jewish converts were trying to convince  Believers  of  the 
gentiles  to submit to circumcision and  to keep the law of  Moses.
It not only entailed circumcision,  but other ceremonial aspects of 
the law as well.  Keeping  the Sabbath:  As  the   Church began  to 
worship on  the first  day of  the  week, Sabbath restrictions  were 
viewed  differently,  and  although  some  continued  Seventh  Day 
worship most also met on the First day of the week.  As you know,
there are some groups, to this day,  who continue to  observe Sab-
bath worship on the Seventh Day;  they  also continue to  observe
rituals of  Judaism,  but  their observance   does  not resemble the
the Jewish observance.   

http://biblicalclarity-don.blogspot.com/2013/01/there-remains-rest.html

Other ceremonial aspects and  temple sacrifice were  discarded, as 
well  as a  multitude  of  extra-Biblical rules created  by  leaders  in 
Judaism over  the years.  These  new Believers were to use as their 
rule of  practice,  the life of our Lord Jesus Christ,  but were also to 
be mindful of the conscience of Godly Jewish believers.  They were 
and  we  are  "...not under  law,  but under  grace."  Rom 6: 14.  The 
dietary restrictions applied  to Jews were not applicable to the New 
Testament  believers.  Although  there  are health benefits to eating 
Kosher, it  is  no longer a  matter of "law " and  failing to eat such a 
diet  does not  preclude one from  fellowship with fellow  believers 
nor is it  detrimental to our relationship to our Heavenly Father.            
Whatever your  diet, kosher, vegetarian, vegan, all out  meat eater, 
it does not in any way adversely affect fellowship or ones relation-
ship to our Heavenly Father.

   THE LAW; A "SCHOOLMASTER TO BRING US TO GRACE."
   Verses 7-12, The Apostles who had been involved in discipleship 
of the new gentile converts  are given an opportunity to witness to 
the fact that the Lord  God  made no difference in Jewish converts 
(Believers) and Gentile converts. The Holy Spirit had born witness 
of this in every instance.  There was apparent  great latitude given 
these new believers,  since they had no benefit of Jewish tradition 
and infrastructure.  

Verses 19 - 31,  The Apostles, along with the Council at Jerusalem 
all agreed there  should  be nothing required  of  gentile Believers 
but this: 
1. Refrain from worship of idols or traffic in them.  2.Abstain from 
fornication.  3. Abstain  from  eating  animals that were strangled.  
4. Abstain  from  the ingestion  of  blood.  Finally:  When this was 
announced  to the council there was  much  rejoicing  and  similar 
results were experienced as word was taken to gentile Believers.

Note: Jewish  leaders,  prior  to and  during the  time of Christ on   
earth,  required  adherents  of  that  religion to  follow man  made
rules and standards not required under the law. In much the same  
way, leaders  of  some  protestant  denominations  and cults have,

over  the years,  created  standards and  rules of  practice that are
inconsistent.  You and I have responsibility to "lead from the back 
of the pack," with the Scripture and refuse  to go  along  with any
teaching and requirements from our assemblies, church "leaders,"
that  conflict with the plain  teaching of Scripture.  When a Pastor 
or teacher ever inserts manmade "doctrine,"  we must inform our-
selves from  the  Scripture  and  with  the leadership of  the Spirit
raise questions about the practice.   Remember to entreat respect-
fully as a son to a father.

What does this passage of  Scripture have to say to us?
1. Follow Christ.
2. Don't get caught up in anything not Scriptural.
3.Ceremonial and dietary laws of the "Old" Testament do not apply.
  Eating a Kosher diet and other aspects of the ceremonial law have
   benefits and make sense.
4.If we attempt to return to the keeping of the Law of Moses for our 
   Salvation we are no longer under Grace and are required to keep 
   the whole law.
5.Expecting one to adhere to moral principle as taught in the New
  Testament is not legalism...
6. No one was ever made righteous by keeping the law.
                            It was always grace...
               "...God's unmerited favor."

                                                                                   donporter  10.6.12

WORKING WITH TEENS

WORKING WITH TEENS:     Ecclesiastes 21: 1              June 10, 2004

                "Remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth..."

TEENS ARE BRIGHT AND ALERT: Youth in a given setting can learn 
and do anything worthy of them, if well motivated.  Proper motivation 
is leadership appealing to their best nature, show them a good reason, 
give a  clear  vision or  direction to  stated goals.  If  there  is a stated 
goal it will be reached.  If there is no goal they will reach that.

GENERALLY, TEENS WILL DO MUCH AS EXPECTED:  In order 
to appeal to a younger generation,  we  must always hold the standard 
high, expecting them to achieve.  There is absolutely no reason for lea-
dership to believe any teen would get excited about business as usual  
or  mundane, trivial activities.

DO WE EXPECT ANY GROUP TO EXCEED GOALS OF LEADERS?
One killer of motivation in teenagers is when those in charge fail to 
hold high personal standards or inferior leadership is assigned the 
group. The Persons working  with our  teens must be  the brightest 
and most Spiritual among us.  Do not turn our teens over to leader-
ship near their same age and/or level of maturity.

PERSPECTIVE;  IMMATURITY WILL SURFACE:
     We  must never  be surprised when teenagers act like kids. We  
must expect this, honor it and  never punish one for simply acting 
immaturely.  After  all,  they are works  in progress, as are we all.   
A leader must not let these episodes, and they are just that, side-
track the group from the achieving of a goal.  Teens are not minia-
ture adults and should not be expected to act as such.  A wise lea-
der will be prepared for such events.  (Most adults are not all that 
mature in beharior.)   If  there is one who is constantly disruptive, 
this  can,  usually be  handled by firm,  discrete,   private sessions 
outside of  group activities.  We  must always  remember our own
years as immature, disruptive pranksters.    

TEENS LOVE TO SHOCK US:
It is unusual in a group of any size for there not to be one who says 
things in the group or to leadership for shock value.  The statement 
may or may not be true and is rarely 100% accurate.  We  can take 
such  incidents  in stride,  handling them  discretely with the indivi-
dual.  Make a  rule of  thumb to never  embarrass anyone,  except 
yourself.  They love that.

BALANCING THE RELATIONSHIP OF TEENS AND PARENTS: 
Never  let those in our charge get the impression that persons in lea-
dership reveal everything that happens within the circle of youth acti-
vities to their parents.  There will be times when youth workers have  
frank  discussions with  parents.  Teens need not feel  threatened by 
such hanging over  their  heads as a threat and do  not need  to know  
when  parents  are consulted.

WE MUST NOT BREAK  FAITH WITH OUR CHARGES:  Leaders 
working with youth must have judgment sound enough to know how 
to  handle  confidences  teens share.   Most of   these  must  be kept 
strictly confidential.   If there are legal questions, hazardous or risky 
behavior,  each  incident must  be handled  with discretion  and love.   
Always begin by attempts to persuade  the youth to  confide in  their 
parents  before taking unilateral  action.  Since confidentiality is not 
legally protected;  you must take wise action with love.

FAST PACED, MEANINGFUL ACTIVITY:  Nothing can  take the 
place of  planning and  preparation for a meaningful activity.  Moving  
from one one activity to another must be done in an organized fashion 
and “down time” brief. Teenagers do  not mark time very well, as this
will probably cause  one of  those lapses into  immature behavior and
there  is  no one to hold responsible but poorly organized leadership.

CONCLUSION:   Love all  your charges  equally,  but be prepared  to
respond  to each as an individual.  There are no two alike in any pre-
dictable  sense.   Try not to act too shocked no  matter what one says,  
and remember,  these  principles probably apply in  a large degree to  
adults as well; they are largely  responsible  for the behavior of  their
 kids.

donporter 10.03.12, edited 11.14.14, 8.15.16, 5.29.17

PRAYER, HEART TO HEART WITH GOD

Prayer, Heart to Heart with God                                                 Luke 11
        
       Why is prayer so difficult?  It seems prayer ought to be the most 
enjoyable time of our lives. .  Why do we pray so infrequently?  Why 
do we  not favor  prayer over mundane wastes of time?  Why does it 
seem like work?  The dictionary definition of  prayer just might be a 
clue to such  perplexing questions.  Webster gives the following defi-
nition of  “pray:”   “to ask  earnestly;   address or  petition;  ask with 
humility or  reverence;   supplicate.”   One  synonym  is  “plead.”  In 
order to pray we must  submit our wills to the will of another,  subor-
dinate ourselves to Him and admit we are unable to handle the situa-
tion at hand.  For mankind  this is quite a difficult posture to assume.  
It  is a fact of  life that most do  not pray when  life is  going  well  and 
pray infrequently unless life hands us a difficult situation or catastro-
phe. To be honest, we do not exercise the privilege of communication 
with our creator  unless there  is no other way of solving the problem 
besetting us.  There are two more  considerations  here.   As we come 
to the "end of our rope," we are ashamed to enlist the aid of the crea-
tor.  He has been there for us at all times,  but we have failed to exer-
cise this option we know He desires  for  us.  Finally,  the  biggie;  "In 
order to pray we feel we must be able to present  ourselves before the 
Lord in a  pristine, or  guiltless  state,  calling  on our Lord with clean 
hands and pure hearts." Nothing could be further from the truth.  In 
God’s word we find;  in order to receive cleansing from guilt, we must 
“call  on the name of  the Lord.”   What  is calling on  the name of  the 
Lord, but prayer?  (Romans 5: 1-2, 10: 8-13, 1 John 1:9)

     When should the child of God pray?  There is some light on this 
question  in  the First  Epistle  to  Thessalonians 5: 14-22  where in 
verse 17, contained in a list of  things to  do,  it  states, “Pray  with-
out ceasing.”  I  disagree with  those who  would  tell me and have, 
that this means we should be in  an attitude of  prayer at  all times.  
This may  be a possibility, but it  reads  like, “do  not stop praying” 
as  you  would  tell  one  who  is  exercising  regularly,  not  to quit.  
When do  we  pray?  Daniel,  in  the  Old Testament,  prayed three 
times a day, at morning, noon and evening.  Jesus  prayed early in
 the morning and  at evening.   There is  no way to  go wrong when 
we follow the example of Christ and begin the day with prayer and 
end the day with prayer with  interludes of  this  discipline at other 
times as needed.  The more we pray,  or  communicate soul to soul 
with our maker, the more we are apt to pray.  Prayer is a living and
 breathing thing that not only petitions the Father,  but changes the 
heart of the one praying, and as we intercede for other needy souls, 
it changes the hearts and minds of those for whom we pray.

       How do we  learn to pray?  The  book  of  Luke, Chapter 11:1-4 
gives the prototype prayer.  When one of  Christ’s  disciples asked, 
“Lord, teach us to pray...”  He responded with the “Model Prayer,”
 also recorded in Matthew 6.  This  is  a  simple example of  prayer, 
not words for us to repeat, but a template on which to construct our 
own prayers under the leadership of  the Spirit of God.   We  do not
know how to pray unless we are familiar with God’s will as revealed 
in the Word of  God.  The outline for prayer goes like this:  First, we 
address the Father of all creation with due reverence, acknowledging 
Him as “Our Father.”  We go from there with our desire for Kingdom
prosperity, His will being done and petition for daily needed provision.
We acknowledge our need of cleansing of sin and our need to forgive 
those who  have wronged us.  Finally,  we ask for divine direction for
 life, deliverance  from the evil one  and offer God glory and praise, 
acknowledging Him to be eternal.  Although this is a short and plain 
outline,  it has all the elements we need  in prayer.  We then learn to 
pray with much, consistent practice, pouring out our souls to our God.

     What is the posture of prayer?  The  patriarchs of  the Old 
Testament, the prophets and the saints in the New Testament 
all prayed prone, standing, hiding in closets and on their beds.  
There is no set physical posture.  There is,  however;  the pos-
ture of the soul as  one prays and  that is  standing,  kneeling, 
prostrate, etc. before the “Mercy Seat,” with the attitude of a 
disciple.  A disciple, as we know,  is one asking  direction and 
assistance from one who  is superior,  able and  willing to give 
that direction and assistance.  The petitioner  also comes with 
expectation or hope in His Lord. (Hope is, confident  expecta-
tion of future good.)  In  prayer we  acknowledg e He is  all of 
the hope we  need.  As in  every  element of  a  believer's  life, 
"without faith, it is impossible to please Him..."  
                                                                                Hebrews 11:6a      

       If we look into the epistle of James 1: 5-8,  we find the key to a 
successful prayer life.    It is faith, not in prayer,  but in the person 
we petition.  If we have absolute faith in our God and know His will 
as recorded in His Word, we will have the petition we raised to Him.  
Of course we have to reckon on His timing and wait on the Lord.  If 
we ask with  doubt we have lost our integrity, are wavering and can-
not expect our Lord to honor the request.  This agrees with 1 John 5: 
14-15 where it is clear we can know God’s will if we seek it  and that 
God answers the prayers of an  earnest, informed seeker who  prays  
according to His will. "Now this is the confidence that we have in him,
that if we ask anything according to His will,  He hears  us,  and  if we
know that He hears us,  whatever we ask,  we know that  we  have the
petitions that we have asked of Him."

     Finally,  pray with fervency, knowledge and  hope.  As  often as  is
possible, follow the injunction of closet prayer and pray aloud as able. 
If you must pray in  public  keep it simple, without  colorful  phrasing 
and never  pray in public considering  just how it  might “play” to  the 
human audience.  The final thing to remember in prayer is,  that God 
does not hear or answer selfish prayer.  He knows our personal needs 
before  we ask.  He will  meet them  according to  His  riches  in  Glory.
We  are to  be  like  the  Savior who is  continually  before  the  Father,
making  intercession  for  us,  His  adopted  brothers  and  sisters.  We 
must adopt, as our own, the lost,  hopeless and misguided children of  
this world; without  condemnation  bring  them to  the Savior through 
every avenue  open to us, just as He did when he was seeking us.

     So,  what is prayer?  Prayer is the way we  become one  with Christ, 
have the mind of Christ and after working out our own salvation with 
fear and trembling, intercede for  the children of this world who have 
yet  to come to  the savior.  Years  ago  it was  stated  as one  of  *“Four 
Spiritual  Laws;”  "God  has  a plan  for  each life."  In  order  to  learn 
that plan and get about it, we must  bring our petitions before the One 
with the plan and receive our marching orders.        
                                 (*Dr. Bill Bright, Campus Crusade for Christ)

{This discipline of Prayer is something requiring a  lifetime of effort,
 practice and study to get right.  This author does not  claim to even
 approach the hem of the garment of effectual, fervent prayer.  This 
 is an ongoing process.  This effort to show  the importance  and pro-
 cess of prayer has been derived from the study of God's Word.                            
             donporter  10.02.12       edited 3.20.17

SOME KNOWN TRUTHS FROM GOD'S WORD

SOME KNOWN TRUTHS FROM GOD'S WORD

1. God has spoken to man, and the Bible is His word, given to 
    make us wise unto salvation.  II Timothy 3: 15-17, Hebrews 
    4: 12, II Peter 1: 20-21

2. God is Lord and King over His world; He rules all  things for His 
     glory, displaying His perfections in all that He does in order that 
     men and angels may worship and adore Him.   Isaiah 60: 21,
     Psalms 50: 1-3,  Deut. 32: 1-4...
    http://biblicalclarity-don.blogspot.com/2015/01/god-is-sovereign.html

3. God  is Savior,  active  in sovereign   love through  the Lord Jesus 
    Christ to rescue believers from the guilt and power of sin, to adopt 
    them as his children and bless them accordingly.  1 John 3: 1-2

4. God is triune; there are within the  Godhead, three persons,  the 
    Father, the Son and the Spirit;   and the work of  salvation is one 
    in which three act together, the Father purposing redemption, the 
    Son securing it and the Spirit applying it. I John 3: 23-24, I John 4: 
    1-4,13

5.  Godliness means responding to God’s revelation in trust and obe-
     dience, faith and worship, prayer and praise, sub-mission and ser-
     vice.  Life is seen and lived in  the light of God’s word.  This  and
     nothing else is true religion.  1 John 3: 2-3, click on link...
http://biblicalclarity-don.blogspot.com/2012/09/religion-gets-bad-rap.html

6.  God created the heavens and the earth and all that dwell on the 
     earth.  By the power of  His  Word He spoke all about which we 
     know and the things about which we do not know into existence .   
     Genesis 1

donporter,sr edited 11.24.14, 3.29.17