Benny Hinn calls out Joel Osteen

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-ej7n7Nhns]

A few days back I posted this video and received a slew of comments quickly:

“His error is lumping all “seeker-friendly” churches in with Joel Osteen. WFC is seeker-friendly, and also very clearly and openly declares Jesus as the way, and the Gospel as the true Word of God. (Not to mention that there are plenty of videos and recordings of Mr. Hinn making false prophecy and committing heresy, so…)”
“I got a kick out of the strategic organ playing whenever he would get to those high points. It just drew me in… next thing I knew my hands were lifted and waving on their own and I was speaking in some heavenly language that no one else could understand. Just playing of course… a bit of sarcasm.”
“I don’t listen or read anything Benny Hinn says. He disgusts me.”
“You know I went to India and stayed with Prakash Yesudian He is the Billy Graham of India. He told me had more respect for Benny Hinn than for Mother Teresa. He said it was because Benny Hinn gave the gospel and brought people to the saving knowledge of Christ. Mother Teresa, however, told Prakash when he visited her told him that she and her people did not introduce the dying and sick to Christ because their job was to pray for them and help them not bring them to Jesus. That was God’s job. This made me stop and think about how we really see people.”

and my favorite (and personal reminder)….

“Strong comments my friends, before his master Benny will stand or fall, but for the record i do not agree with much of his theology concerning the kingdom. In private discussion i think these kinds of intense fellowships are better facilitated, before others it appears to be a house divided and we know what happens to that house. Lets major on the majors and minor on the minors.”

After viewing the video what do you think? Joel has since apologized for his comments does this change anything? Please comment below (and don’t be shy)……

Do you call you call yourself a Christian?

Every week I read multiple Blogs and Bloggers opinions and I can tell you that there are some very interesting ones out there. This week I ran across an old blog from man named named John Smulo. He wrote a post entitled “Five Reasons I Hate Telling People I’m Christian”. As I read this simple post I was struck with this thought, I usually agree with most of his post this one I did not. So I wanted to spend some time giving my “Six Reasons I Love Telling People I’m Christian”.

It is conversation stopper, instead of a conversation starter.	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not shouting “I’ve been saved!” I’m whispering, “I was lost. That’s why I chose this way”
It communicates something other than what I mean.	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I don’t speak with human pride I’m confessing that I stumble, and need Christ to be my guide.
I’ll lose out on potential friendships because of the stereotypes this word conveys.	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not bragging of success I’m admitting that I’ve failed and cannot ever pay the debt.
‘Christian’ is associated with a lot of things, but almost none of them have anything to do with Jesus Christ.	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I don’t think I know it all I submit to my confusion asking humbly to be taught.
It provokes hurt, anger, and angst for people who’ve had painful experiences with Christians.	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not claiming to be perfect My flaws are far too visible.
	When I say, “I am a Christian,” I still feel the sting of pain I have my share of heartache which is why I seek His name.

Despite the all of the preconceived notions that coincide with the word “Christian” I truly believe that it is my job to represent the one who saved us. The first known usage of the term can be found in the New Testament, in Acts 11:26: “the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” The term was thus first used to denote those known or perceived to be disciples of Jesus Christ. In the two other New Testament uses of the word (Acts 26:28 and 1 Peter 4:16) it refers to the public identity of those who follow Jesus. I think that the word should be redefined and fought for by those of us who follow Christ. Because of my skin color many people have presuppositions on who I am and what I do/ sound like. It may not be fair but I refuse to accept those false assumptions as true, neither should we do that with Christ name. This is just my opinion I could be wrong!

What do you think? Do you agree or disagree? With whom? Please comment below…..

Christless, expounding on nothing…

I love that a whole crop of young men and women that are passionate about the Gospel of Christ and sharing it everywhere. I have wanted to share this for awhile and hope that you enjoy this short clip of Pastor Matt Chandler and check yourself as your lead and teach others towards Christ

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5YzI7b92L8]

This was an excerpt from a sermon called “A Shepherd and His Unregenerate Sheep”
from the 2009 Desiring God Conference for Pastors please download and watch the rest of the sermon @ http://www.desiringgod.org/…

Right Theology

Everyday on thousands upon thousands of people tune into Dave Ramsey and listen to him say his tagline almost every time he answers a phone call by answering the now famous phrase “Better than I deserve”. I adopted a variation of this response, much to my wives chagrin, and use it almost everyday. Most people when they first hear this response are surprised, then they will respond with something like “No, you do deserve what you have.” A young lady who says that she is a believer in Christ, by far, uttered the most annoying retort. While at work I said my usual response to the everyday pleasantries, she stopped me and asked if I was a Christian I answered yes. She answered by saying since I was a “child of the King I deserve” So I wanted to spend a quick minute defining some terms.

De·serve: to have earned or be worthy of something, in other words merited favor

Vs.

Grace: the infinite love, mercy, favor, and goodwill shown to humankind by God, in other words unmerited favor.

C. J. Mahaney (who first made this a popular term) is famous for making it a habit to answer, “Better than I deserve.” As I think about my life, I am more and more convinced that is true of me. It’s strange how often we allow ourselves to compare our situations with some imaginary perfect one and get dissatisfied. But when I stop and think about it, I am very fortunate.

My job is far better than I deserve—allowing me to spend time with the family God has given me—that is in itself much better than I deserve. I earn enough to pay the bills, and yet like so many of us, I sometimes fall into the trap of thinking “just a little more would be enough . . .” My wife truly is my best friend, and is more understanding towards me than my treatment of her warrants. Most of the time my child is obedient and a delight to have around.

I live in a far better home than most, even in this country, let alone in the rest of the world—it, too, is better than I deserve. Of course, the next breath that I am going to take is not something that is mine by right, any more than the pulsing of my heart is anything that I have done something to earn. So being allowed to live—let alone being saved by the sacrifice of Jesus—is much, much, more than I deserve.

So given all these things for which I have to be grateful, why is it that the quality and extent of my worship of Jesus remains so much less than He deserves from me? To be honest I’m not sure but I do know that my worship of Christ, in my life, emanates from right theology about Him and knowing my place within His Kingdom. I pray that we begin to try and grasp at His grace on our lives and that we truly deserve nothing that He grants us.

“Total depravity is the only doctrine that we have thousands of years of history to support it.” – G.K. Chesterton

Our God Reigns!

Every once in a while God reminds me of His power and the praise that He deserves. Last night, while at work, I was asked by a coworker to visit her table who claimed to know me. I said that I would when I had time but I forgot. Later, an assistant server (dub) ask me to do the same thing but at that time I was swamped and the show began. During the intermission a guest came over to my section and said my name. When I looked up it was a young man that I had worked with during my time at the Cheesecake Factory. This young man, like so many in the restaurant industry, wasn’t exactly receptive to the message of Christ. After the show I dropped by his table and we began to talk, reconnect, and I soon realize that this encounter was not by chance. After almost 5 years since I first presented the Gospel to him, he was now receptive. Are you kidding? What are the chances that I would run into someone 5 yrs after presenting the Gospel and they would actively want to ask questions about Christ and His glory? Man, I love the God that I serve and last night as I drove home I rolled down the window of my car and scream His praises. So I would ask you this, are you starting to doubt the power of our God and His sovereign will? If, so please spend time repenting and worshipping Him [in song] where ever you read this (that was what I had to do last night). He is worthy, He alone is worthy, He REIGNS!!!!!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMLfcx9zN0c]

The Reason for God @ Google

In this video Pastor Tim Keller is explaining the main ideas of his book, “The Reason for God” at the Google campus in Mountain View, California. Tim is someone who can calmly and knowledgeably share the Gospel with even the smartest most skeptical people.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxup3OS5ZhQ&feature=player_embedded]

I was inspired to share this with you because of an ongoing conversation I have been participating with some very intelligent non-Christian men about God. They ask me about my Bible while I’m at work and it set off an hour long conversation about why Jesus is the world’s only hope. Thankfully from listening and reading the teaching of wise Christian men, like Keller and Francis Schaeffer, I have been able to answer most of their questions about God. Listen to this talk and read his book—it will be worth it.