“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Matthew 6:14-15

Forgiveness can be a hard thing to offer when we feel that an injustice or offense has been committed. Yet not only does God command us to, He says that if we fail to forgive, He will not forgive us. This is a terrifying statement.

The one thing that stands in the way of forgiveness every time is pride. Forgiving and asking for forgiveness requires us to lay aside our selves, our positions, our rights, our causes, and even our pains. This cannot be done in man’s strength alone, for man’s natural instinct is to defend himself. Yet through the power of the cross, the love of God can be manifest in us, even towards those who we believe to be wrong.

“Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”" Luke 17:3-4

• Offering/Requesting forgiveness does not mean you were wrong and the other person was right.
• Offering/Requesting forgiveness does not mean your hurts or views are not valid.
• Offering/Requesting forgiveness does not mean you have compromised on the truth.

Offering/Requesting forgiveness means that you have decided to obey the Father by taking up your cross and following Jesus so that Christ may live through you….even at the expense of yourself.

“Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.

The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.

So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’

And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”" Matthew 18:21-35

Unforgiveness is not just about what it offers to the other person. Forgiving is for our OWN benefit too, so that hatred, anger, malice, pride, or hurt does not rage down in our own souls.

Festering anger and unforgiveness is a tormentor! It is like walking around with a gaping, seeping, wound that is extremely sensitive to the slightest touch. It robs you of peace in God and shuts you up within yourself away from others.

BUT, there is a balm in Gilead! If you could but pray to be given the strength, God will intervene. He will remove the heavy weights which crush your soul and spirit. He will apply the balm of forgiveness so that you may be made whole and can release those who have caused offense. He will restore you in His love.

We are called to stand for that which is true. We are also called to forgive those who offend us. By the grace of God and through His love and mercy alone, we are equipped to do each of those things to the glory of God.

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“From People Standing Up 1 “

ELDER: NATHANIEL E. WILLIAMS
ezra.ministries@hotmail.com
(OHIO)

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The Celebration of life Praise and Worship Service for Minister Nathaniel E. Williams will be on Friday February 26, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. est.  The Celebration will be held at Lee Memorial AME Church on 10512 Bryant Avenue, Cleveland, Oh 44108.  Flowers can be sent directly to the church to be delivered the day of the service.  Cards can be brought to the service or mailed to Tanya Williams 708 East 92 Street, Cleveland, OH. 44108.

Nate loved the Lord and served him with gladness and that is what we will be doing on Friday.  Our Pastor Rev. Dwayne M. Simmons will be officiating and there will be a repast in Lee’s fellowship hall immediately after the service.

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Friendship with the World IS Enmity Against God

Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. Isaiah 58:1

There have been several “Gospel” awards shows recently, and they all have one thing in common: a love of the world. People mistakenly believe that if you slap the name of Jesus on anything, it becomes Christian. This is not so.

The following video engages in a discussion of the recent “Celebration of Gospel” awards show which was featured on BET. The theme was “10 Years, Faithfully Yours.” I have no doubt these shows have been faithful; the question is to whom have they been faithful?

If you cannot see the video below please CLICK HERE to see it.

According to Steve Harvey, the “celebration of Gospel” has always been about merging the church with the world.

He says, “We have always brought in people from the secular world into this [church] world. But what you find out is the people who just make their living in the secular world have never really left this [church] world. It is just that they have found a means out there…When they hit the stage, they are going to give praise to the one who has taken them to the top of the charts.” They did proceed to the stage and gave praise to the one who has taken them to the top of the secular charts; his name is Satan.
Is this why Jesus came? Is this what the Gospel is about? Joining with the world and proclaiming that we ALL serve God in spite of how we live? Is the world supposed to be the light unto the church or is the church a light unto the world? Is the world in darkness or is the church?

“And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.” I John 5:19

Why are people sitting up under the world, letting the world teach them and preach to them about what it is to serve Christ? Because this is not the church.

WHAT?! That’s right! All the shouting, all the Amen-ing, all the arms upraised, all the Hallelujah-ing is all for naught. This is the world entertaining the world by playing religion. It is a show of flesh and an exaltation of all that is carnal under a cover of a false Christianity that Scripture calls the WHORE of Babylon. It looks like a whore, talks like a whore, dresses like a whore, and behaves like a whore. God’s word is surely true.

“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is NOT of the Father, but is of the world.” I John 2:16

How do you have a “Gospel celebration” while forgetting the very nature of the Gospel?? When did the “Gospel” become about worldly talent and acceptance instead of sanctification unto Jesus Christ?? Are those who are of the world, promoting the world, living after the world really just Christians at heart who are simply doing what they “got to do” to be successful?

“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” I Corinthians 2:12

The BET Gospel Awards, the Stellar Awards, the Dove Awards…these events are becoming showcases for the degeneration of the church. We are witnessing the great apostasy happen right before our eyes as women prance half-naked and men sashay on the way to Hell, while pretending to serve JEEEEEEESUS! The spirit of the world has walked into and merged into the fabric of what is called church, and now some cannot even tell the different between the spirit of a sodomite and the Holy Spirit of God.

“And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” II Corinthians 6:15-18

We are not even received by the Father until we have come out from amongst that which is unclean and separated from it…in our hearts. That is what repentance is, a turning away from that which is sinful and defiled. What makes these people think that they can embrace that which is unclean and call themselves Christians? A false, perverted Gospel.
STOP playing with God, for HE is not playing! Several have told me that God has given them a message saying this year He will make a separation between the wheat and the tares. Where will you wind up standing? The things these “stars” and “churchfolk” are doing in the name of Christ is beyond shameful…and yet who will stand against it and represent the true Gospel?

“For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” II Corinthians 11:4

Which “Jesus” do YOU serve? If you can enjoy, promote, or defend the type of FILTH featured in these videos, then have no doubt that the “Jesus” you serve is not the True & Living God.

“If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” John 15:18-19

Do we believe Jesus’ words? He does not say the world will hate you sometimes, nor does He say that some of the world will hate you. The world WILL hate you. Why? Because you have been chosen OUT of the world. According to Jesus, if you are still “of the world” – and loved by the world – it is a testimony to the fact that you are NOT in Christ.
If you claim to love the Lord, and have been involved in or supporting this pseudo-religious nonsense, then you must repent…and quick, for time is short. Stop trying to be accepted, be famous, be adored, be applauded, be liked by the world. CAST DOWN these idols you have erected, repent, deny your “self”, and follow Christ.
When you promote a false Gospel like the one featured in the earlier Steve Harvey video, you will only attract false converts. Only the true Gospel message is the power to save…out from the world.

Every now and then when we have a hot topic on our main blog we’ll bring it here to Essence.com. This piece, written by BMWK contributor Harriet Hairston received a lot of comments on our site. Check it out.

Please allow me to caveat this article with the following disclaimer: this is not an attack on churches. It is a real discussion about how some individuals VIEW church, and thus cause what God created as beautiful to turn into a monstrosity. I love the Lord and His people. This article is not designed to discourage anyone from attending and serving in church.

That said:

Sometimes I wonder if church is all it’s cracked up to be. Don’t get me wrong: I was raised in the church. Both my husband and I are in love with Jesus Christ, and our marriage is centered around Him. Yet there was a skewed balance for a time that almost tore our marriage apart. The “church” was the other woman that disrupted my time with my husband. It was the sugar daddy that fed into my need for attention and affection. We were both heavily involved in ministry, from music to teaching; small groups to street ministry…we did it all.

But home was a mess! We could barely stand one another’s company because of the twisted mindset we had towards ministry:

• We felt like above our tithe, most of our money was supposed to go to the needs of the church.
• If we had a date or family time planned out, and a last minute, poorly planned church project came up, we would drop everything to attend so as to be thought of as “faithful.”
• We were more devoted to our relationships with our pastors and leaders than we were to growth in our relationship with one another.

And like sands through the hourglass, these were the days of our lives. It all sounds so sick and twisted. How could such a pure and holy thing be so misconstrued and maligned? I can tell you first hand that it has nothing to do with the four walls of a building, or the teaching and preaching of pastors across the nation. It has everything to do with the mindsets within each person choosing to attend church.

We were associate leaders in the church, but this kind of skewed thinking goes from the pulpit to the back pew. It’s all over the news these days: traveling MARRIED musicians getting their choir members pregnant, money laundering, abusive husbands and wives, pimping and pedophilia…you name it, it has been done by leaders who are supposed to be reflecting the love of Christ!

There is a real heaviness that comes over me when I hear about marriages in the church falling apart at such an alarming rate. Whether they are prominent couples in the spotlight or normal couples in the pew, there is an epidemic of divorce within the church-especially the black church. Addiction to the praises of other men, fame, money, prestige, position can truly wreak havoc on a marital relationship.

I can’t begin to pinpoint the root of the problem, but I’m sure that disorder about priorities plays a large role in Christian marital failure. Before God created Adam, He created a purpose for Adam. Then He created Eve to SHARE in that purpose. Otherwise, there would have been no need for a woman to ever enter the picture.

To keep this from turning into a Bible study, let me translate that statement. For those married couples that attend church, the order God created was to love:

1. GOD;
2. SPOUSE;
3. FAMILY, THEN
4. CHURCH.

In fact, marriage was the first institution created by God, long before churches and building projects ever existed!

Yet it remains that there are churches and denominations out there who will say it is OK for a minister to leave his or her spouse for the work of the Lord. How backwards is that? What sense does it make to love the work of God more than the God of the work?

This is for those of you who serve in church, who are leaders of ministry, who go to church every Sunday, or even C.M.E. (Christmas, Mother’s Day and Easter) members. Please let the record show that MARRIAGE comes before MINISTRY. Even deeper than that, marriage IS ministry! There is no joy to be had in being a public success but private failure. There is a way to balance it all in God’s will, but like anything else, it takes work and commitment.

So, BMWK, how many of you actually go to church and noticed such a vicious pattern? For those of you who do not, have these patterns prevented you from going? What can we do to line our priorities back up in God’s original will?

God bless!

~ Harriet

Read more from Harriet Hairston on http://www.BlackandMarriedWithKids.com

Check out The MalaniKai Show is a syndicated radio program which appears on many Christian radio stations across the country. Hear how our sister in Christ talks about the Laodicean church today. IMHO this is one of her best shows yet concerning the church.

I made an intro (6 mins) and the second video is the rest of the show (38:13) to watch at your own leisure.

Scripture Emphasis: Revelation 3:14 – 22 (NIV)

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Check out Malanikai at these following sites:

http://www.malanikai.com

http://www.youtube.com/user/MalaniKai

http://malanikai.podbean.com

http://www.myspace.com/malanikai

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/malanikai

If you cannot see the video here please follow the following link: http://www.youtube.com/v/CAuvFsLbKBg

2 Corinthians 6:14-18 (NIV)

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

“Therefore come out from them
and be separate, says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing,
and I will receive you.”
“I will be a Father to you,
and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Do you hear preaching like this in your fellowship?

Mat 7:13-14 (NIV)

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Mat 7:21-23 (NIV)

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Hebrews 12:14 (NIV)

Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

A lying tongue:one who articulates two contradictory viewpoints in an effort to garner support from two totally different groups of people.

Rick Warren is now considered “America’s Pastor.” I find that statement ironically truthful for many reasons, but however, I will let Warren’s actions speak for themselves concerning the state of our country.

Recently in 2008, Proposition 8 was passed in California which simply defined marriage as being between one man and one woman. Rick Warren shows his forked tongue concerning Prop 8 in the video below.

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Oh that is not all….

At the end of 2009 Warren put out an SOS on his WEB BLOG asking for donations of his congregation and partners for $900,000 – THAT’S RIGHT – Nine Hundred THOUSAND DOLLARS… CLOSE TO ONE MILLION DOLLARS because of budget shortfalls at Saddleback Church located in Southern California.

Warren said the amount raised after the appeal was posted online Wednesday (12/30/09) included only money parishioners brought in person to Saddleback Church by New Year’s Eve. More was arriving by hand and by mail, he said.

$2.4 Million Dollars, with more to come. I cannot help but think what that money could really be used for if it were faithfully and properly stewarded.

More info can be found in this article CLICK HERE.

Being that he is in cahoots with the Council on Foreign Relations, it already appears to this blog writer that Warren is in bed with the inclusive religious plans which point straight to ecumenicism —> or APOSTASY for those who don’t hold their tongue… like me

2 Peter 2:1-3 (NIV)

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

http://setfree0408.blogspot.com

Ungodly, controlling pastors have hurt many people. The phrase “ungodly pastors” seems to be an oxymoron. These two words shouldn’t go together in the same sentence, but the sad truth is there are pastors and leaders who are only in the position for their own lustful desires. These dictating leaders can be described by many words – controllers, manipulators, narcissists, psychopaths, cult leaders, false pastors, and dictators, to name a few.

There are varying degrees of this type of leadership and some are more damaging than others, but I have seen the negative effects these type of leaders can have on people. Some pastors are just strong leaders, while others are narcissistic psychopaths. If you haven’t ever been around a person like this it may be hard for you to imagine that there are people who go to these extreme measures. But for those who have suffered under this type of heartless leadership, you know all too well how deep the wounds go.

Here are some signs and characteristics of a narcissist, unscriptural leader…..

• Resembles the same attitude Diotrephes had in III John verse 9. He is proud, carnal, demanding, overbearing, impatient, uncompassionate, “loving” only toward those who submit to him, but mean-spirited toward those who do not agree with him.

• He develops doctrines from pet verses that appear to support his view.

• He makes people feel that they cannot make important decisions and know God’s will without him.

• He exalts himself before the people.

• He ridicules his associates, making them look small in the eyes of the church members, thus increasing his own prestige and authority and decreasing theirs.

• He treats men who leave as fools and evil men. All kindness and friendship is withdrawn by the leaders. People are only treated kindly when they submit to his doctrines and “authority.”

• He contradicts himself a lot.

• He is accountable to no one.

• He provokes and intimidates people to get what he wants.

• He demands respect instead of trying to earn respect.

• He wears a phony grin and acts like everything is all right even when things are falling apart in his church.

• He acts as if he knows everything, but he really doesn’t know how to handle problems he has caused.

• He is a captive storyteller and exaggerates the truth all the time. He is able to spin a web that intrigues others and pulls them into his life.

• He has the capacity to destroy his critics verbally and disarm them emotionally.

• He does not recognize the individuality or rights of others.

• He is extremely self-serving and thinks he deserves royal treatment.

• He has no checks on his behavior – anything goes.

• He has tremendous feelings of entitlement. He believes everything is owed to him as a right.

• He presents himself as a genius.

• He has an insatiable need for adoration. When others aren’t praising him, he will praise himself.

• He gives the perception that he lives a grandiose life, but paranoia rules him. He creates an us vs. them mentality because of his perceived hostile environment.

• He lies coolly and easily, even when it is obvious he is being untruthful. It is almost impossible for him to be consistently truthful about either a major or minor issue.

• He is a plagiarist and a thief. He seldom gives credit to the true originators of ideas.

• He is extremely convincing and could more than likely pass a lie detector test.

• He does not have friends.

• He doesn’t not have feelings of remorse, shame, or guilt. He feels justified in all his actions because he considers himself the ultimate moral arbiter. Nothing gets in his way.

• He is unmoved by things that would unset the normal person, while outraged by insignificant matters.

• He is cold, with shallow emotions, living in a dark world of his own.

• He can witness or order acts of utter brutality without experiencing a shred of emotion.

• He casts himself in a role of total control, which he plays to the hilt.

• He is tragically flawed in being able to either give or receive love.

• He despises community and emotional intimacy, and so he is profoundly lonely. On the one hand, though, there is something about his loneliness that he likes; for he can attribute it to his unique and superior nature.

• He constantly tests the beliefs of his followers, often with bizarre behaviors.

• He readily takes advantage of others, expressing utter contempt for anyone else’s feelings. Someone in distress is not important to him. Although intelligent, perceptive, and quite good at sizing people up, he makes no real connections with others. He uses his “people skills” to exploit, abuse, and wield power.

• He will favor and offer help to people who are down as long as he thinks they will be useful to him later on down the road. Such favors might include offering employment, loaning money, or offering personal counseling. He may call in his favor if he sees you slipping away. Also, such opportunities help the narcissist persuade himself that he is good, despite the gnawing awareness of the dark cellar at heart.

• He has an inflated sense of superiority which propels him to recklessness; for he is subject to fantasies of omnipotence and unequalled brilliance, and he feels that he is above the law. And it is this sense of superiority that allows him to underestimate the intelligence and determination of his adversaries.

• He is indifferent to injustice and it’s victims, but he rages against the person who is a threat to his charade and/or who refuses to cooperate with his underhanded schemes.

(I have taken a few of these statements from an article I have been reading, entitled Narcissism and the Dynamics of Evil. I decided just to add the link instead of continuing to add to my post. It’s a very informative article.)

This is a clear example of the “Blind” leading “The Blind” !!!

Some people will do anything the preacher says without questions.

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