Mark H. Stevens, Th.D's Blog – April 2009 Archive (68)

What did Jesus come to do?

To reveal the Father (Matt. 11:27)

"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."

To be a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28)

"just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

To serve (Matt. 20:28)

"just as the Son of Man did not come to… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 30, 2009 at 9:52pm — 1 Comment

Understanding The Ministry Gifts

The Prophet and the Teacher are similar in this regard; Prophets focus on the inspired word (Rhema) and the Teacher more on the written (Logos). But if you look at Acts 17:11 the Bereans understood the importance of both, but they confirmed the Rhema by studying the Logos! Usually God places Prophets and Teachers as friends and companions for this reason.

Teachers build the foundations of the church. They minister in the Word of God and remind us… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 30, 2009 at 6:30pm — No Comments

WARNING

Once you get saved, the devil will try to make sure that you encounter false doctrine. Your faith is tender and you will be prone to believe anything people tell you about the Bible (that's why you need to read it for yourself everyday). If you have any questions, please write me and I will direct you to the appropriate scriptures. Please heed these warnings:

1. Don't let anybody tell you that you have to "speak in tongues" to show that you are… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 29, 2009 at 9:13pm — No Comments

The Heresy of Seed Faith Giving

2 Peter 2:1

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

What do you think it means to deny the Lord? Many would say that any person or group that doesn’t believe that Jesus was the Son of God would be denying the Lord and that would be true enough. False… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 29, 2009 at 1:07pm — No Comments

God is ALWAYS in Charge.....You just THINK you have "Free Will"

First of all let me say that nothing in life happens by accident. There are no big bang theories at work in our lives. The Lord is an intelligent being that not only has a plan for mankind but plans for each individual. We are God’s creation and we are not cosmic accidents that go through life depending on luck and chance. God touches every aspect of our life. He is a God of reconciliation. The Lord’s number one concern is moving us into a loving… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 29, 2009 at 1:00pm — 9 Comments

The Law Cannot Save Us

Rom 3:20 (NIV) Therefore no-one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

Rom 3:28 (Wey) For we maintain that it is as the result of faith that a man is held to be righteous, apart from actions done in obedience to law.

Gal 2:16 (Wey) ...It is not through obedience to Law that a man can be declared free from guilt, but only through faith in Jesus Christ. We have therefore believed in Christ Jesus, for… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 28, 2009 at 9:28pm — 1 Comment

Justification and Sanctification...in THAT order!

Understanding the difference between justification and sanctification can be as important as understanding the difference between salvation and damnation. Rightly dividing between the two is of crucial importance. When you understand what they are, you can then draw a line in the sand and say, "This is what saves. This is not what saves."

Justification is the work of God where the righteousness of Jesus is reckoned to the sinner so the sinner is declared by God as being righteous… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 28, 2009 at 1:04pm — 10 Comments

Nothing But The Blood

This is a powerful and liberating teaching that we must understand in order to experience true freedom from guilt and shame of our past. It is absolutely essential for us to realize the forgiving power of the Blood of Jesus! Nothing we can do will ever add to or take away from the work that Christ did on the cross. As the song sings, "What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the Blood of Jesus!"

I think one of the reasons why it is so hard to… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 27, 2009 at 8:13pm — No Comments

If Your Church Does This...You May Be Getting PIMPED!

1. Manipulating people into financial giving by quoting un-Biblical formulas i.e. if you give a certain amount of money, you will receive

a 100 fold (highest possible) blessing.

2. Money lines i.e. people are placed into lines in front of the

church based on the amount of money they gave ($25, $50, $100) and

certain blessings are pronounced on these individuals with of course

the highest monetary givers receiving the largest… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 27, 2009 at 8:32am — No Comments

When Volunteering at a Hospital

Volunteering at a hospital plays an important role in the healing of patients and assisting their families. Serving others is a special gift and hospitals are searching for those who will serve patients in all areas. Volunteering provides the meaningful and rewarding sense of serving others and the community.All hospitals and institutions have rules and regulations primarily to protect the patients and the staff. HIPAA The Health Portability and Accountability Act was enacted by Congress in… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 27, 2009 at 6:43am — No Comments

SOMETIMES DEVILS HAVE TO BE CAST OUT

Preparing somebody to receive and maintain their deliverance is very important. This is a basic list of things that you might explain to somebody before you walk them through deliverance. I always like to make sure they understand what is going on, and not feel confused or in darkness over the process of deliverance.

Deliverance is often a process

While deliverance can be a one-time event, it can also be a process. If you don't receive… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 26, 2009 at 9:31pm — No Comments

Ministry Training

Ministry Training at Cooper!

Every Friday @ 6pm to 7pm I will having Bible training sessions dealing with ministry, we will cover a wide range of topics dealing with ministry such as PRAYER, HEALING, SERVANTHOOD, MINISTRY GIFTS, LISTENING SKILLS, GRIEF, MENTAL ILLNESS etc. etc. Don't miss out on this divine opportunity!

All are welcome to attend, if you would like to volunteer as a member of the Pastoral Care… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 26, 2009 at 7:04pm — No Comments

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is the central figure of Christianity. He said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me," (John 14:6). Also, Jesus claimed to be God in flesh. If you compare what God said to Moses in Exodus 3:14 ("And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”) with what Jesus said in John 8:58 (Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am,"), then you quickly see that Jesus was claiming… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 26, 2009 at 6:34pm — No Comments

Demons and Our Sex Drive

6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. (Gen. Chapter 3)

28 But I say unto you, that… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 25, 2009 at 9:13pm — 3 Comments

Jesus Came to Set Us Free

Certainly Jesus came to set us free. This is explicit in Jesus' commission that he read from Isaiah 61:1-2:

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,

because he has anointed me

to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners

and recovery of sight for the blind,

to release the oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4:18-19)

Setting people free from… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 25, 2009 at 9:10pm — No Comments

What is the Gospel?

It is clearly the gospel that saves us. But what exactly is the gospel? That too is revealed to us in the Bible. It is found in 1 Cor. 15:1-4: "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 25, 2009 at 7:24pm — 1 Comment

Essential Doctrines of Christianity

The Bible itself reveals those doctrines that are essential to the Christian faith. They are 1) the Deity of Christ, 2) Salvation by Grace, and 3) the Resurrection of Christ. These are the doctrines the Bible says are necessary. Though there are many other important doctrines, these three are the only ones that are declared by Scripture to be essential. The truly regenerate may be ignorant to some extent of one or more of them at the beginning of… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 25, 2009 at 4:23pm — 11 Comments

Churches have to do more than PREACH!

If you hand a tract to a man that hasn’t eaten in over 24 hours without a sandwich, chances are you won’t reach that man for Jesus Christ! Jesus fed the 5,000 not so He could show off and impress people! He realized that sending them away in the middle of nowhere without food could be hazardous to their health. He was not just concerned with them hearing the Word; He was concerned about their well being also. Too many of us go to church in our big… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 25, 2009 at 2:54pm — No Comments

The Light

Gen 1:3 (NIV) And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

Gen 3:8 (NIV) Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

Dallas Willard states: "Almost all evil deeds and intents are begun with the thought that they can be hidden by deceit." The kingdom of evil is built on lies, secrets, and darkness. It requires the absence of light… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 23, 2009 at 8:30pm — No Comments

Tests & Trials

1 Thes 3:3 (TEB) ... None of you should turn back because of these persecutions. You yourselves know that such persecutions are part of God's will for us.

Acts 14:22 (Jer) ... "We all have to experience many hardships," they said, "before we enter the kingdom of God."

When Bad Things Happen

The Scriptures speak of three types of "trouble" for the believer: 1) Discipline, judgment, or rebuke from the Lord; 2) tests, trials, persecutions, suffering; and 3)… Continue

Added by Mark H. Stevens, Th.D on April 23, 2009 at 8:21pm — No Comments