Tag: crime

A SPECIAL BAPTISM

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

 

A SPECIAL BAPTISM

By Rick Mathes

Luke 3:21 (NASB77) 21 Now it came about when all the people were baptized, that Jesus also was baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened,

Let’s join for a moment and take in the wonder of why our Savior would willingly experience the outward manifestation of baptism by immersion. Jesus was sinless, so what was the significance of this unique event?

First of all it was to equip, anoint and strengthen the manhood He has clothed Himself with and secondly to demonstrate obedience, humility and prayer to all generations that would follow.

What an astounding set of circumstances that clearly brought together the visible and audible Trinity of the gospels. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit all sharing truth in a single verse. How blessed is the Word of God to us as it shares this precious and golden moment, never to repeat itself in the infinity of time.

What a wonderful seal of approval for our God-man to launch His ministry of salvation and begin His death walk to the Cross, one firm step following another. From this point forward, He never looked back. Oh, how I wish we could do the same and not ever be ashamed Him with our doubts and fears. Just to put on the armor of God, lift up the sword of the Word and firmly place my feet on holy ground is my fervent prayer!

The dove quietly settled in peacefulness, not known to mankind until that moment. The gentleness of the flight, the landing and the harmlessness of the message of affirmation: the Holy Spirit had arrived to anoint Christ the man for the timeless message of the ancients who spoke of Him in times past.

The voice rang out to a startled universe of angels and every devil shook in mortal terror. God became man on a mission that only the Triune god could ever accomplish. In an eye-blink, salvation arrived with healing and deliverance in the wings of a dove. The provision of love for His elect and eternal doom to those who would reject and murder His Son as your sin does to this very moment.

Submit to the reality that you are owned by the Father, saved by the Son and anointed by the Holy Spirit and you too will have that once in a lifetime special baptism a was demonstrated by our Lord Himself. A moment that will change a lifetime of eternities if only you will accept and savor the fullness of the Trinity of which you were made in Their likeness: body, spirit and soul.

 

A JUDAS GOAT

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

A JUDAS GOAT

By Rick Mathes

Matthew 25:45 45 “Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’

When you look carefully at the division of the sheep and the goats in chapter 25 of Matthew, you will notice that it wasn’t what the goats did that sent them to hell; it was what they didn’t do. They didn’t pursue holiness and the effects of genuine works that are not masks of self-gratification.

The evangelicals like to throw around the label “carnal Christians” to describe plastic believers that are attached to the world and measure their faith by what power, money, prestige and influence their church may have. I once preached, “Is Judas still treasurer of your church?” at a large Baptist church. Needless to say, they never invited me back!

Holiness and good works was in the air the Lord breathed. As St. Francis of Assisi once said, “All I want to do is go about the work of the Lord and not know it.” You can’t be a practical atheist for too long before true Christians take your mask off and uncover the horror of your twisted motives: a midnight of your soul in the abyss of endless shock and awe. The hell that is displayed will startle you into insanity if you look long and too hard at the truth of your depraved mind. If you really believed in Jesus, you wouldn’t embrace your favorite sin: it was the weapon that killed God’s only Son!

There was a time in Rome when the dead body was attached to the murderer, chest to chest until the corpse rotted off of him. Such is the sin you willfully acknowledge that you love more than the Savior. It would drive the Roman prisoner over the edge of rationality and you are also on your way to a chaos of mental confusion, such as you may never recover unless you’re repent.

The goat turned his life toward the wider road that led the sheep to slaughter. The Judas goat gets his name from the fact that he is trained to have the sheep follow him to the butcher block. They blindly line up behind him and he returns again for more that dutifully follow him to certain death. The Judas goat isn’t doing evil, he just isn’t doing anything but leading to a oblivion of endless torture without relief, ever!

And so it is also with you not what you are doing as much as what you have not done. No decision to repent is a vote to reject salvation. Following the goat soon transforms into being the Judas goat as others see and imitate your example by what you didn’t do.

When faced with sin, just stop, stand still, turn around and return to Him. No decision is a decision to be a Judas goat. How many souls have you sent to Hell? When is the time to stop? What or who is holding you back?

Slay the goat and line up with the sheep that the Good Shepherd has chosen for His today!

PRESS ON!

http://www.RickMathes.net

http://www.RickMathes.org

A god

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

A god

By Rick Mathes

2 Corinthians 4:4 (NASB77) 4  in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Father Lucifer fell with his angels because of his pride. This sin is the root of all evil and the devil is all deceitful false pride. He has nothing to be proud of because of his blindness to sin and all that brings in its tow. Things of this world become gods and the more of them you own, the more they own you. Eventually there is nothing more of you and you are too prideful to walk away from those that are irresistible. Like metal to the wrong magnet, the devil lures you into the bear-trap of worldly toys and then snaps it’s jaws shut.

The attractions the demons drag out for their god Satan and like decorations on a Christmas tree, they blink and glitter in a sensual manner that can pierce the self-protection unbelievers expect will protect them and it doesn’t. No matter what your occupation means to you, it can’t remain your god for too long otherwise you need to be worn down to where your resistance to more and more and more evaporates in the smoke of hell’s chimney.

The devil’s appeal is stronger than your resistance. You are a spiritual prostitute of the highest order his gang of evil hall-hounds will form an attack-pack and tear your unbelief to shreds. Apart from having the Holy Spirit within you, you are not able not to sin. You not only are hopeless with your god, you are being fed false hopes from demons in the pulpits of many churches. It’s the false god Satan and his doctrines of lies that will distort the true Christianity so bad that it becomes a confusing battle of contradictions and denominations that are hell bent on earing the Body of Christ apart.

Man makes god in his image and likeness to deflect notice of his sin by hiding it in a barrage of false teachings. It doesn’t take long to have a man become your god and bow to the wishes of this pope or senior bishop or priest. Once layered by sinful men the fear of man replaces the fear of God. This is the death knell of religion. You get a false assurance that the true faith is whatever you personally believe it to be.

PRESS ON!

http://www.RickMathes.net

http://www.RickMathes.org

POWER OR PROVISION

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

POWER OR PROVISON

By Rick Mathes

It is very heartbreaking to see the sheep fooled and they destroyed so subtly by the ravenous wolves of the faith, speak it into existence charismatic movement. The greatest proponents of this works driven nonsense begin with Kenneth Hagen and now Joel Olsteen. Both are agents and work for Satan.

The ways of deceit are so subtle but the red flags are all around.

The most likely to be taken in by these snake-oil salesmen are those that are attracted to them because of the crowd they draw. That’s no surprise because the road to hell is a wide one. They are looking for the supernatural excitement of the original signs and wonders that faded out with Apostle John’s death. Drug users are very attracted to the music, lights, and often stage productions and laser shows before the star preacher (poacher) shows up!

To a man they are seeking earthly, materialistic benefits. God is just a great big jolly Santa Claus waiting for their requests, so eager to please them. The more they are blessed the more indifferent they become to true and holy worship. Chattering in tongues, gyrating in seizures, falling in the spirit and even holy clucking replaces prostration at the feet of a Holy God.

They all seek personal prosperity and that is the weak like in man that Satan seizes upon. Their relationship to God is measured by their limos mansions, jewelry and bank accounts. Everything on the outside but hollow and empty on the inside. All they are consumed with is, “What can God do for me,” instead of, “What can I do for God.” They are selfish instead of selfless.

Do you feel fulfilled in God? When you confess Jesus AS Lord, you have made your last selfish statement. Everything is Christ only to true believers.

Please make a special note: Satan is an expert at counterfeiting feelings. I almost wish I were Dr. Spock: pure logic. Feelings lie to you. Loving Jesus is not a feeling necessarily, but rather a decision. Feelings frequently follow but don’t trust them. There are a legion of demons all over America that make us promises and make us feel good for a season. But eventually the truth will prevail!

CHOOSING A MINISTER

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

CHOSING A MINISTER

By Rick Mathes

Lucifer was an angel of light. He was the superstar of heaven until his narcissism consumed him in pride and he challenged God for heaven. Well you know what happened, he dropped like a rock to earth and began his war on Christendom

Be honest with me. When did you meet privately with your pastor and quiz him on his doctrine? Let’s go a little deeper. Do you even know what doctrine you believe and can prove from the Word that it is true? There’s two serious considerations you need to make.

Just because you park your body in a church doesn’t make you a believing Christian. And that Preacher in your pulpit might be a devil with a mask on. You don’t know and probably don’t care. As long as he’s entertaining and you get “holy ghost bumps” from the music, the rest is ok with you.

Honestly, most people choose their church like they pick out their favorite hamburger: this one has cheese, the other has catsup but this one has a sesame bun and that one didn’t have a pickle. Oh, please spare me this mindless nonsense.

If your preacher is a counterfeit you will never or very rarely hear the words: sin, death, hell, believe, repent or obey He will say those things that will sooth your checkbook into a generous donation.

The next time you sit under him and his sermon take a steno-pad with you. On the left side do a stick count every time he says: He, Him or His. On the right side do a stick count when you hear I, me or mine. Look at the bottom totals and you will know who he was lifting us to worship.

True evangelical Christianity is Bible only, Jesus only, grace only and faith only: nothing added. The true gospel according to Jesus is commonly called Calvinism. All other faiths are “doing” but the real deal in “done.” Jesus really meant it from the cross when He said, “It is finished!” So I strongly suggest that you trust your soul to the real ambassador of Jesus. You only have one soul, one life, and once chance to get it right!

BOTTOM LINE

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

BOTTOM LINE

By Rick Mathes

When you distill the gospel to its most condensed state ti will be composed entirely of faith. Faith is entirely dependent upon the power of God and His allotment to us. Faith is not a power, it is a presence. We appropriate the Holy Spirit within us when we unleash the full import of faith within us like a laser beam that convicts us of sin, cleanses us of all unrighteousness, transforms our life to conform to His, comforts our aching heart and strengthens our resolve to keep the faith and press on!

We appropriate the promise of salvation. This frees us from the bondage of sin and fear of the superstitions the evil one conjures up to destroy our resolve to conquer this worldly kingdom for our Lord and Commander-in-Chief, Jesus Christ.

Once we strep out of the boat of carnality we escape the punishment, power and presence of sin: the past, present and future. This begs a few questions tht you need to put on the table to establish your bottom line.

  • Have you been justified?
  • Have you been sanctified?
  • Do you have faith or fear?
  • Are you out of the boat and walking by faith?As a nation we need regeneration, reformation, revival and then revolution!Let me laser in once again on your own personal bottom line:
  1. You need to be assured that you have been born-again. Have you really experienced a complete regeneration or are you just the old you in a new fabricated package?
  2. Have you rehabilitated your old bad habits to bless our Lord with good habits of praise, study and prayer?
  3. Are you ashamed of the gospel or are you out front in the face of Satan making disciples for the Lord?
  4. And are you prepared to the best of your ability to be included in the rapture that final day?You can’t avoid the bottom line: the gospel truth in your heart and soul. If you doubt that you are saved, you aren’t! So wake up, take a personal inventory because tonight might be the night the grim reaper visits you and then it will be too late!

BLACK AND WHITE

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

solitary

BLACK AND WHITE

By Rick Mathes

Two years of preaching and teaching every Friday night at this prison had developed a dependable and capable fellowship of believers. A small turnout was seventy attending, out of an inmate population of several hundred prisoners. Any praise band or female volunteers would swell the chapel attendance but I resisted that because I was resolved to disciple these inmates and solidly ground them in the Gospel according to Jesus Christ, without distraction.

I have memories of many exhilarating services where the altar was frequently flooded with repenting sinners. However, one particular evening stands out above the rest.

It was a chilly nightfall and more prisoners than usual had shown up. It seemed that they were up, positive and ready to worship and praise the Lord.

We began with a thoughtful prayer, sang a few old time hymns and as usual asked for testimonies before I got into God’s Word. It was at this time in the service that a big muscular inmate with a callous expression stood straight up. He was one of those athletes who pumps iron all day long and everyone fears his strength. He got up in the center of the men and spoke is a coarse gravel voice, “Hey Mr. Preacher man! I got something to say!” I relied in humor, “Anyone your size can say anything he wants! And take your time sir.”

Everyone had a good laugh at my feigned timidity and when the clamor had died down he continued, “I’m a two time loser. If I mess up again they are going to give me a life sentence. I’ve been a violent man all my life and it’s my fists and uncontrollable anger that has put me in the joint every time. I want to thank you for leading me to Christ last week but I’ve got to tell you about this crazy thing that happened to me the day after I gave my heart to Jesus for real.”

“Remember, you said that the Holy Spirit would come upon me, that I was a new creation? Well, the very next day I was in the day-room, just killing time and this big black dude come in and gets right in my face with an attitude. He was making fun of me being a Christian. He was doing this right in front of everyone. Well, Rick, to tell you the truth, I have killed men with my bare hands for less than that!”

“He kept on and on and all of a sudden, Bam! I was knocked to the floor. He blindsided me with a great left hook sucker punch. Down I went but I jumped right back up on my feet. It was then that something real strange happened to me.”

“My arms dropped to my sides, my hands went limp and ice water flowed through my veins and my mouth said, ‘Forgive me brother if I have offended you.’ I couldn’t believe it! He couldn’t either. He was all set to go at it but this took the fight out of him. He turned around and walked off real fast.”

“About four hours later, he came to my cell and said he was sorry that he had picked a fight. We talked for a while and I told him that I was born again and that Jesus now lived through me. We got on our knees and he gave his heart to Jesus.”

At that moment, the black guy got to his feet. They both walked toward each other, hugged and wept for joy in front of everyone. A hush went over the inmates and one by one they headed for the altar. I led them all in the sinners prayer and I hadn’t even preached yet!

Jesus had become Saviour and Lord to these two brand new evangelists and the witness of their salvation was winning souls to Christ. I learned from this experience that men would rather see a sermon than hear one.

 

BARNEY THE BEAR

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

BARNEY THE BEAR

By Rick Mathes

Many years ago the City Council of a large metropolitan city was researching diverse options that would stretch out a hand of brotherhood to the impoverished shanty town across the railroad tracks. They were seeking some benevolent gesture they could make that would give them positive public relations.

One day a Councilman spoke up and suggested, “Let’s help them start a free public zoo. Everyone loves animals!” The proposal was passed unanimously and it was voted to donated a cub bear to begin it with.

A ten by thirty foot cage was constructed and a cub named “Barney” was delivered to a neighborhood that had much crime and brutality. And the people responded by being mean and heartless as their displaced aggression took focus on Barney.

They would poke fun at Barney and flick lit cigarettes at him. He growled his first mean growl, snarled his teeth and paced six steps to the right, and then six steps to the left. Months dragged by and Barney began growing larger and meaner. The town’s hoodlums had already set him on fire twice and some men kids had poked out one of his eyes. He was a prisoner in a cage. They were doing horrendous things to him. He couldn’t escape his captivity. Barney was the victim of society and totally at their mercy. He didn’t know hatred, distress or brutality until it was inflicted upon him.

So, he paced six steps to the right and then six steps to the left, growled and then paced six steps to the right, and the six steps to the left, then six steps ….. He was incarcerated with no means of escape. No future. No hope. No one who cared!

One day an anonymous phone call to the city’s news-desk alerted a reported of the atrocities big, mean and ugly Barney was suffering. Intolerable! The feature story was run front page and the public was outraged that someone had fed him meat mixed with ground glass! Unanimously they decided to rescue Barney and transport him to their multi-million dollar zoo that had acres for bears and the tender loving care of dedicated attendants.

The truck was dispatched and the cage with Barney in it was brought back to the City Zoo and lowered down into an absolute dream come true, “Bear Heaven.” It had everything and anything a bear could ever dream of. Rolling hills, cold, clear streams, spring fed lakes teaming with delicious fish and the companionship of loving, bear hugging and joyful fellow bears welcoming their new friend Barney.

All this attention had made Barney fearful and angry as he paced the only home he had ever known; six paces to the right, and six paces to the left, then six paces to the …..

Very carefully, they slid up and opened the gate to his life-long prison of bars. Open at last! His way of escape was finally staring him right in the face! He nervously stuck his head out and looked over the breathtaking beauty of the new life that was open to him. And guess what he did? You guessed it; six paces to the right, then six paces to the left, and …. He wouldn’t take that first step to freedom.

Perplexed, the attendants hurried off to prepare the most delectable and delicious bear food that money could buy and a chef could prepare. This banquet was laid out before him just outside the gate to his cage. All he had ever eaten was foul garbage. The irresistible aroma filled the air as he lifted his snout, sniffed and salivated in extreme hunger. His eyes scanned the full array of any delicacy a starving bear could ever imagine. Guess what he did? You guessed it; he paced six steps to the right, then six steps to the left, and then…. He still would not be enticed to leave his old life behind.

Freedom was staring him right in the face. The gate was wide open but he stubbornly refused to leave the life he had led. He was hardened and institutionalized; an incorrigible that just knew society would reject him. There just had to be a catch. A whole banquet of life giving food lay before him and yet he rejected even the multitude who had eaten the same food and had been nourished and saved.

Night had fallen and the City Zoo attendants knew that desperate measures had to be taken. They knew that this new home was Barney’s only salvation so they risked their relationship with him and determined that they must use a confrontational means of reaching him. So they found a torch and set it aflame! Poking it into the cage and threatening Barney with consuming fire was all it took. He felt the approaching flames and bolted through the one and only gate of salvation! Terrified but free of his prison at last!

Even though the banquet of the Word is laid before criminals, it sometimes takes fire and brimstone to bring them to the foot of the Cross.