Spurgeon on Believing Evolutionary Fables

"The monstrous credulity of unbelief amazes me! I meet with persons who consider themselves to be bold thinkers and philosophers, and they express their astonishment that I can really believe the things which I preach: but no sooner do I learn from them what their positive creed is, than the astonishment comes to be on my side, and is a thousand times greater than theirs could be. The faith which accepts Christ has but a small throat indeed compared with that credulity which believes for instance in the development of man from a protoplasm—that creed requires the swallow of the great fish which swallowed Jonah entire. A lie ye will believe, but because the Gospel is true ye do not believe it."

-Charles Spurgeon, A Solemn Impeachment of Unbelievers

The Story Behind the Hymn "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name"

MEET AN ABORTED CRACK BABY

WATCH YOUR WORDS!

When I was evangelizing in Centro the other day, I ran into a very kind and sincere brother in the Lord. During our conversation, I mentioned that, although I regularly proclaimed the Gospel publicly in the open air, people didn’t want to believe. He didn’t approve of that statement, however, asserting that our words have power. As evidence of this, he quoted Proverbs 18:21: “death and life are in the power of the tongue”. In a very well-meaning and tenderhearted way, he warned me to be careful to not say negative things, as fallen angels could use those negative confessions against us, and thus we could be responsible for bringing bad circumstances upon ourselves…and could therefore miss God’s blessings for our lives. He suggested that I take that negative statement that came out of my mouth and replace it with a positive one—such as the emphatic declaration, “Many people will be saved!” 

But does that line up with Scripture? Do our words really have power, and will they really create for us negative and positive circumstances?

What about the occasion when that young, zealous disciple of Jesus adamantly confessed, “Lord, I will NEVER deny you!” Peter unwaveringly declared that he would never fall away, and that he would go with Him to prison…and even to death (Mat.26:33-35; Mark 14:27-31; Luke 22:31-34). Did his positive confession reap great blessings upon his life?

What of the time when the Lord Jesus affirmed the truth that the Jewish people did not believe, that they did not have the love of God within them, and that they refused to come to Him that they may have life? (John 5:38-47). Should the King of glory have been rebuked for stating such negative words? 

And what of Paul’s confession that he left Trophimus ill at Miletus (2 Tim.4:20)? Didn’t Paul know better that to actually declare a sickness upon his own friend and brother? Shouldn’t he have instead confessed that Trophimus would recover?

In comparison with Scripture, this relatively new doctrine of our words having life and death-creating power (invented by false teacher Kenneth Copeland in the mid-20th Century) doesn’t stand. Proverbs 18:21 is not referring to some mystical, demon-influencing or hindering ability we have in our tongues. It’s simply saying that your tongue can get you and others in world of trouble—so be careful with what you say. The tongue is a fire that can set an entire forest ablaze (see James 3); out of your mouth can flow deceit, gossip, cursing, vain and haughty words, indiscretion, and many other sins. Not bridling your tongue can get you, or others, killed. Bridling your tongue, and using it wisely, can save your life, and help you to gain great favor with men. 

Notwithstanding, as I explained to the amiable brother I spoke with, there is a grain of truth in that “positive confession” doctrine. Granted, most of that teaching is false, but believers are exhorted in the Scriptures to exhort one another daily with the TRUTH (Heb.3:13)—admonishing each other with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs in all wisdom—and we are to let the Word of God dwell richly in our hearts (Eph.5:19; Col.3:16). Rather than believe the lies of Satan and the world, and the deception of sin, we are to hold fast to the truth, to the commands and promises of God found in His Word, and we are to wield those promises and commands in the face of any and all temptations and trials (Mat.4:1-11; Eph.6:17). 

So in a sense, yes, we are to “declare” those truths and promises to the Lord in prayer (Acts 4:24-30), wrestling with Him until we’ve obtained the blessing (Gen.32:24-32 ). What He has promised to do He will do (1 Thes.5:24). Of that we can be sure. Hebrews 10:23 exhorts us to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” We need to believe that He will fulfill His Word, and also that He rewards those who seek Him (Heb.11:6). 

And as it is legitimate to verbally SPEAK the truth to God, to the brethren, and even to the enemy, it is likewise legitimate to speak the truth to oneself. We are to TALK to ourselves, as David did in times of adversity. In Psalm 42:5-6 and 11, he rebukes and encourages himself:

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

It is also valid to replace a negative, ungodly thought that comes into our minds and hold it captive to the obedience of Christ—that is, to reject it and replace it with a promise or truth of Scripture (2 Cor.10:5). Philippians 4:8 tells us, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

But as a final note, allow me to add that in doing all of the above, we must be careful to not presume upon God. We are not to claim for ourselves healing, or a miracle, or a blessing, when He has not explicitly said so in the Scriptures, or revealed so by some other divine or providential means. Presumption is unfortunately the sin of many of our “charismatic” brethren. May it not be so with us.

Recent Guadalajara Slayings

Brethren, please pray for this city, and for us.

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/25/142766230/26-bodies-dumped-in-mass-slaying-in-guadalajara

http://www.news24.com/World/News/Bodies-identified-in-Mexico-slaying-20111126

The Pan American Games Meet Mary, the Pope and Death

The Pan American Games are now officially over. We preached in our usual spots in Centro throughout the whole two weeks of this event. Things were pretty much the same as usual as far as evangelism goes. Though I did see many tourists walking around with Pan American name tags/identification cards hanging around their necks, the majority of the people in the streets were Guadalajarans. The streets were crowded with them; as anticipated and hoped for by Guadalajaran authorities, the locals used the Games as an excuse to party, vacation, shop and walk around the town. There were many festivities, events and live music shows Downtown. 

They also closed down almost an entire major street, only a block from where we live. There they set up many booths with touristic information about other countries and parts of Mexico, PAG merchandise, souveniers, and food. This street meets a huge roundabout, also a block away from where we live; they closed half of it off and set up a giant stage where they had live bands play every day of the Games, from the afternoon until about 11pm. Our neighborhood was very noisy, crowded and filled with traffic (as a result of the nearby street and roundabout being closed off).

It's been about three weeks of back-to-back festivities here in Guadalajara, as five different events occurred at around the same time. First, Wednesday the 12 was the annual idolatrous celebration of the Virgen de Zapopan; then, two days later the PAG commenced; and while that was going on last week, the late Pope John Paul II's relics payed a visit to different parts of the city, attracting multitides of devoted followers; yesterday was Halloween; and finally, tomorrow is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Three weeks of idolatry (of Mary, the Pope, sports and dead loved ones), drunkenness, revelry, national pride, sensuality, death-worship, occultism and many other sins which I would rather not mention.

Please pray for Guadalajara, and for me, as Lord permitting, I will continue to preach the Gospel almost daily this week.

Above: an example of the syncretization of recent events. Skeleton mannequins adorn the streets of downtown Guadalajara (for Día de los Muertos), this year with a Pan American sports theme.

Forsake Everything and Preach Christ to the Arabic World

ONLY A WEEK UNTIL THE GAMES BEGIN!

The Pan American Games in Guadalajara will commence on October 14. It's estimated that 1.5 million spectators from all over the world will attend. Our plan is to hit the streets all throughout the two weeks of the Games, proclaiming the Good News to all the mexicans and visitors. This means that potentially hundreds of thousands of people will hear the Gospel! Brethren, please pray for us, we need the Holy Spirit to work in power through us for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ and the salvation of souls.

PLEASE Take the Time to Watch This!

180 is a powerful short film by Ray Comfort. Please spare 33 minutes of your time to watch it.

What is the Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?

Tim Conway addresses this notorious and difficult topic. A great sermon.

What You Must Do to Be a Radical Christian.... REALLY???

I first watched this video a long, long time ago, only several years after truly being converted. Admittedly, when I watched it I thought it was great, and shared it with others. But fast forward to Saturday, September 10, 2011...after years of trials, discipline from the Lord, brokenness, realizing how un-Christ-like I am, the Lord ripping away much of the fleshly zeal I used to have that literally wore me out...fast forward to that day. Though I still have a LONG way to go as far as maturity and sanctification, the Lord by His grace and providence has lifted the veil from my old ways of looking at the Christian life. And now, watching this video again after so long, I must frankly admit that, well, IT MAKES ME SICK. 

It's revolting...and unbelievable. Is this really what "radical Christianity" is about? The message of the video is essentially this: "So you want to be a radical Christian? This is what you have to do to be one..."

"You must... you must... you must..."

Everything about this video is man-centered. Everything is focused on YOU and YOUR performance as a Christian. There's absolutely no mention of the Gospel; there's no mention of the depths of the cross and the glory and majesty and beauty of the living Christ; there's no admonishment to look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, to behold and meditate on Him and as a result be transformed from glory to glory.

No, instead, this video makes you look inwardly rather than upward and outwardly. It's a recipe for condemnation. I would solemnly warn any professing believer who goes around sharing this kind of message to be careful lest they cause one of these "little ones" to stumble by casting heavy yokes upon them that they themselves cannot bear.

And, "You have to weep tears of blood". --Excuse me, but what??? Where's that in Scripture? I must have missed that essential command. The closest thing we can find in the Bible to this astonishing statement is the Lord sweating drops of blood...but apart from Him there is no record of anyone sweating blood for God, let alone weeping drops of blood. I would sincerely like to know if the maker of this video has ever wept drops of blood.

"Every thought, every breath, must be returned unto Him with gratitude and praise... Every second of every minute of every hour of every day of every week of every month of every year of your life must constantly be spent on thinking about Him."

Again, these kind of unreasonable demands go way beyond Scripture, and are a setup for a great FALL. What's going to happen when you fail to do this? What's going to happen when, many times, you find yourself not thinking about Christ?

The answer this video seems to imply is, "Well, then you're not a 'radical Christian'. You're in sin." It offers no grace, no mercy. It leaves a professing believer wallowing in condemnation. 

This is not radical Christianity. 

Radical Christianity is beholding the glorious and risen Christ and falling in love with Him. Radical Christianity is Cross-centered and not "radical Christianity"-centered. Radical Christianity passionately desires to worship and adore Jesus Christ because of such a great salvation He's given you, and fervently longs for the whole world to know about such a great Savior. Radical Christianity is desperately clinging to the Lord with all you have because you realize that you'd be utterly sinful and weak and frail apart from Him. Radical Christianity is full of joy, praise and thankfulness for what God has done for you. Radical Christianity basks and rests in the grace of God, and allows it to produce holy living your life. Radical Christianity seeks to live daily in 1 Corinthians 13. Radical Christianity seeks to be like Christ--He is our life.

There are many other things I can say about this video, but I think I'll leave it there; I don't want to keep rambling. I understand that the person who made this video was coming against the lukewarm "churchianity" of contemporary Western culture, attempting to show professing believers that radical Christianity has nothing to do with wearing Christian T-shirts, going to concerts, calling yourself a "Jesus Freak", etc. But I'm afraid the solution for this problem that he presents goes so far the other extreme that it becomes equally harmful...and just as potentially damning.

And to be honest, the video makes me tired. It makes me tired because I've been there; I used to have the same man-centered and performance-based perspective on the Christian life. I used to have the same unbiblical overemphasis on holiness, being radical, and the responsibility of man. I used to be heavily influenced by certain Arminian preachers, and by Pelagian heretics like Charles Finney, who impressed these exact ideas into my mind. And the end result was only condemnation, pride, resentment at other Christians for not being like I was, a critical spirit, and due to the heavy burdens imposed on me, physically and spiritually wearing myself out.

But glory to God, He's delivered me from all of that! I'm free from the chains and bondage of a legalistic and false Christianity. I'm accepted in the Beloved; I'm free to just live for Him. I can go one inch to the left or to the right, and He won't love me any less. My being accepted by God is not dependent on what I do or have done for the Lord, its dependent on what Jesus has already done for ME. How liberating that is! I now longer want to be some superstar for the Kingdom, I no longer want to attain the stature of one of the apostles, I don't want to be known as a great intercessor or preacher of the Word. I'm content being the least of all the saints. My only goal is to be like Christ.
 

R.I.P. Tarantula

Our pet tarantula died no too long ago. We found it in the house, "pregnant" with many little tiny babies on its back. At first I didn't know what they were; it looked like the spider with the strangest abdomen I had ever seen...until it started giving "birth" and the little spiders started coming alive, and little by little started coming off its back. It was a good thing it was found and captured before the babied hatched--the last thing we need is a swarm of tarantulas around the house. The kids and I would catch flies and moths and other bugs to feed it and its babies. They all ended up dying, though, and eventually, since I was busy and forgot to feed it, the mother tarantula died as well.

ALL I HAVE IS CHRIST

GREAT animated video I first saw a few months ago. It's been getting a lot of views lately...

Meditate on Christ!

BEWARE THE LEECHES!

They may be kind folk, they may be courteous, they may be patient—and they almost always have much time on their hands. 

They may come in packs, or by themselves. They may have sharply distinct cultural and social backgrounds. They may espouse vastly opposite religious, philosophical and spiritual points of view. But one thing can be certain: these individuals will waste your time. 

I’m referring to demonic leeches, a term I’ve coined to describe the type of people I generally encounter while preaching the Gospel on the streets. They’re demonic, quite obviously, because they come straight from the prince of this world. They’re leeches because they will suck up your time, energy, resources, patience and joy in the Lord (should you persist in trying to convince them of the truth). They may even cause you to sin.

Yes, you’ve correctly read the above assertion. Demonic leeches are extremely dangerous, and should be dealt with using the utmost caution and wisdom. 

So what exactly does a “demonic leech” do, and why the solemn warning?

A demonic leech appears to be sincere. He approaches you as you’re evangelizing, wanting to talk to you about spiritual things. Many times he will commend you for what you’re doing, claiming to also know the truth. He may additionally claim to be serving the Lord. But then he will drop you a question or a statement in such a way that, if you’re quick, you will realize that he’s not sincerely looking for any answers—he’s trying to teach you. He may dogmatically try to let you in on entirely extra-biblical truths, based on the person’s own reason, feelings and philosophies…but generally a leech will use proof-texts from the Bible to back up his points. He will take an isolated, out of context verse as proof positive of his personal convictions and/or doctrines. It may be a denial of a fundamental doctrine like the Trinity; it may be an emotional appeal like an affirmation that we are all God’s children and that therefore He can’t send us to hell; it may be an issue regarding the validity of a particular cult or false religion. Should you carefully take him through the Bible verses he uses to prove his case, showing him the context of the verses, and explaining to him how he’s wrong, one of two things will occur:

    

1. He will agree with you. That’s right; he will appear to be meditative, carefully thinking through the issue at hand, and will actually consent to your argument. Later, however, he will go back to his original belief, and present another verse as proof of his point of view. His short term memory seems to be, well, short-lived. By this time you will have been talking about a different subject, and so you will have to drop the current point you were making and once again attempt to reason with him concerning the first point. When you finish he may again agree about the first point but disagree about the second, so you will probably have to start all over with what you were saying about your second point before you were interrupted. Then, if you succeed in convincing him of your second point, he will inevitably bring up a third and a fourth issue, and while discussing these he will regress once again to trying to prove to you that his point of view on the second and first issues is correct. Picture being lost in a forest and trying to find your way out—but somehow always ending up in the same place where you started. Such is the way of these leeches. It’s an endless cycle; it’s a cross section of roads that all lead you into a dead end.
   
   
2. He will disagree with you. He will not receive anything you’re saying. He may mock the conclusion of your careful argument, claiming, foundationless, that it is incorrect and not reasonable. When you present clear biblical support for a doctrine you’re trying to defend, he will look at you with glazed eyes and a blank stare, pause for a few seconds, and simply throw another Bible verse at you to try to prove you wrong. He will ignore your argument entirely, not even address it. If you’re not prudent you will take the bait and jump all around the Bible addressing every single passage of Scripture that he gives you. If you catch him in his game, firmly demanding that he respond to the initial argument and Bible verse you gave him, his retort will likely only be (once again) a baseless dismissal of what you just said, and a quick attempt to change the subject. He may then proceed to attack your personally, or your “religion”, or he may bring up another passage or issue and try to debate you about that…beginning the cycle all over again. Another term appropriate for this type of leech is “Bible grasshopper”—they jump around from place to place, from scripture to scripture, from topic to topic, and you never succeed in getting anywhere except frustration lane.  

Something important to note about leeches is that they will rarely want to talk about salvation and the Gospel. They thrive on majoring on minors. They take non-essentials from Scripture, distort them, and turn them into essentials, and the marks that differentiate their “true” belief system from that of others. Your trying to point out the error of their ways will produce no visible change. Some of them will be friendly, appearing to have a genuine desire to converse with you and get to know you. Others will also seem friendly but their prideful arrogance and unreasonableness will eventually manifest itself. These will hardly raise their voices, though; the entire time they will seem calm, cool and collected. They will play with your emotions—some will do so intentionally. Once they have succeeded in exasperating you, they will gently reprimand you for your anger and lack of love and patience. Their methods of manipulation are effective. BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WITH THEM (Matthew 10:16). If you find yourself becoming irate at their anti-biblical folly, please do not sin (Ephesians 4:26). 

Some examples of leeches?

A demonic leech is a middle-aged “apostolic” (Oneness Pentecostal) who approached me as I was witnessing to a sincere and confused young man who had been receiving “Bible” studies by Jehovah’s Witnesses. When I had open air preached minutes before, the apostolic man had stood a few yards in front of me, listening to every word I was saying, with a pleased expression on his face. When I finished and entered into deep conversation with the young man, this gentleman approached us and tried to “help” me witness to him. He would repeatedly interrupt us, bringing up subjects we were not talking about, and trying to instruct the young man that he had to be baptized “in the name of Jesus” to be saved. I let him finish his spiel and afterward told the young man that I didn’t agree with what he had said, and tried to get the subject back to the Gospel. Thankfully, the young man didn’t for a minute buy or care to pay attention to the apostolic. After he left I spent some considerable time talking with the middle-aged man. He was friendly and claimed to be a believer, and called me “brother”. I explained to him that salvation is by faith and not of works, and he seemed to agree with me, though later he turned right around and said we need to do good works in order to be saved in the end. I explained that baptism doesn’t save and he also agreed with me, but then went around in circles trying to explain to me something unintelligible about salvation. I looked to my right and saw several interested people standing in front of our open air sign and preaching box, so I excused myself and went over to where they were. The older man then started a long conversation with Joshua, another brother who was with us, trying to adamantly prove to him that women should cover their heads and wear long skirts. Even that brother came to the realization that he had wasted a lot of time debating with a man about clothing when there were so many people around us that needed the Gospel. 

A demonic leech is a Marcos, who took brother Alex on many giant roller coaster spins while evangelizing two Saturdays ago. He outright denied the Trinity, and claimed that Jesus was not God, and then that He was, but then denied the deity of the Holy Spirit. He also claimed to simply be a sinner and not saved, though he also claimed to be saved…but then again asserted that he hadn’t attained salvation. He clearly had no understanding of biblical salvation. I saw him and Alex talking and invited myself into the conversation. I had ended a long chat with another leech only a few minutes before (a bizarre experience with a man who said he was God's messenger and had gone to heaven, among many other things), and, though my conversation with that leech did not end badly by any means, I admittedly was ready to pounce on the next heretic I came across.  And that life-sucker ended up being Marcos. It was only by God’s grace that, though I did become angry with him, I maintained self-control. By the time I approached him and Alex, my brother was already on his edge. I tried to reason with Marcos, but he reeked of pride, trying to show off his distorted Bible knowledge by means of repeatedly misquoting passages. The more intelligent he tried to appear the more foolish he sounded. When asked if he had ever lusted, he refused to give us a straight answer. He also obstinately refused to tell us what religious group he was with (my guess is none). The best words I can use to explain his condition are “utterly blind and dead.” Alex finally had it with him and told him he was a monster of pride. We both gave up and simply urged him to repent of his foolishness and believe the Gospel.

A demonic leech is also a backslidden Jehovah’s Witness who approached a sister one Saturday after hearing us preach in the open air. The sister didn’t know how to respond to the arguments he presented her so she called me over and had me talk with him. This was last year, and I hadn’t yet taken the time to formulate good responses to give Watchtowerites. I had some “stumpers” that I tried to use on him but he simply dismissed all of them as wrong, countering them with nonsensical answers that he made up on the spot. He was extremely irrational and would change the subject whenever I would try to reason with him. He also arrogantly scoffed at my pleas for him to turn from his sins and flee the wrath to come. He didn’t even believe that he could be freed from the power of sin through Christ, as I was urging him to believe, and arrogantly dismissed that as well. I have to admit that I committed a grave error with him: I was trying to “stump” him in order to win an argument, and I in my own power was trying to convince him of the Truth. When this did not work I became really angry at his complete irrationality…and, shamefully, I did sin. By my demeanor and tone of voice, he sensed that I was angry, and like the devil he was he “tenderly” began trying to teach me about the fruits of the Holy Spirit…which made me even madder. Sadly, that battle was a win for the evil one.

So how to prevent that from happening? How should we deal with demonic leeches?  

1.  Arm yourself with wisdom and discretion. If you don’t have any, ask the Lord for some (James 1:5-8). Ask for the Lord’s help and strength. If you’re like me, resist the temptation to challenge his erroneous points of view with the Bible. Before anything, stick to the Gospel. Understand that the main thing he needs is not to correct his false doctrines—his most urgent need is salvation. If he insists in bringing up other subjects, tell him that you can talk about that later, and bring the focus back to the Gospel.
   
   
2. Arm yourself with patience (2 Timothy 2:23-26). Don’t play into the hands of the enemy by becoming needlessly angry. Comprehend that you can’t convince him of the Truth anymore than you could convince a dead man to awaken. The power rests in Christ, and in the Holy Spirit’s ability to open hearts and regenerate them. As our Lord did while on this earth, just present the truth to him; he doesn’t need an answer to every objection he has. Don’t spend much time trying to reason with him, either, as he will not likely be genuinely interested in hearing the truth. Simply tell him how to be saved, excuse yourself, and go somewhere else. There are plenty of other people that will more gladly receive the Gospel (Matthew 11:25; Mark 12:37).
   
   
3.  Arm yourself with humility (1 Peter 3:15-16; 5:5-7). Remember that you yourself were once dead and blind like he is (Titus 3:3), and ask the Lord to give you compassion for the person. If he needs to be rebuked, rebuke him, but make sure that your harsh words come from love and a jealousy for Christ’s glory, and not from a fleshly anger.
    

So there are your directives for dealing with demonic leeches. May you be prepared the next time you come across one.

Jesus Thank You

FREE WILL vs. ROBOT

A good video that answers the question of whether we have a free will or not.

Gospel Assault- 7/21

Last Thursday a group of us invaded one of the squares in Downtown Guadalajara for the Gospel. Brothers Artemio, Juan and I preach regularly in this particular square, but this day we were joined by Giancarlo and Joshua (a brother visiting from the States). We had a fireteam of armed-and-ready soldiers of Christ, and we took advantage of it.

Juan began by open air preaching in one side of the square.

Then, at the same time, Josh began to preach on the opposite side.

And as Josh and Juan were preaching, Giancarlo went to a busline nearby and began preaching to them.

After Juan, Artemio stepped up to the plate. Here he is just after the amp he was using ran out of juice. He kept on proclaiming the Gospel with that booming, thunderous voice of his. I don't know why he uses an amp, I don't really notice a difference when he preaches with one and when he doesn't.

He even got so bold as to get up right in front of the statue of Pope John Paul II and preach against idolatry! The Catholic temple was only a few yards in front of this statue, and had its doors open. As soon as the people in the temple heard him, they closed the doors!

We had several great conversations that day. As the three brothers mentioned above were preaching, a lady came up to me who had been having serious problems with her drug addict/acoholic husband who claims to be a Christian and saved despite his practicing sin. She was disgusted with his hypocrisy but really open and receptive to the Gospel. 

Later, as I began to open air, Giancarlo sat down and spoke with Jose Angel, a man sitting on a bench who likewise saw his need to repent and trust in Christ. He had realized on his own that no money, material posessions or sins could ever satisfy this great emptiness and longing he had in his heart, and was looking something real and true that would. Giancarlo sat down with him and shared the Gospel. They talked for about two hours! When I finished preaching I went over to where they were and was also able to minister to him. As Giancarlo was reasoning with him, a Catholic man sitting next to them heard what they were talking about and jumped in on the conversation. He began trying to "help" Jose Angel find the truth by giving him unbiblical and contradictory advice. On the one hand, he argued that Mary was the "Mother of God" and humanity's mediatrix, and that the Catholic church is the only true church...but on the other, he encouraged Jose Angel to go with our "group" of "separated brethren" because we were okay, that he should follow what "feels" right and gives him peace, and that God is in all of us and we are all His children. I asked the Catholic if he knew where he was going when he died. After the Catholic replied that he didn't, Jose Angel retorted, "Then why should I even listen to you? You're trying to give me advice, but you're not even sure where you're going! On the other hand, these two guys right here know where they're going when they die!" By God's grace he got it! And he understood that we weren't preaching "religion" to him, we were preaching Christ!

Fortunately, the Catholic promptly left, but a little while later another man who claimed to want to hear the truth walked up to us and asked us for help. It turned out, however, that he was an addict who didn't want to let go of his sins; all he wanted was money. It seemed that the devil was throwing these people at us to distract us from talking to Jose Angel, and to confuse him. But God be thanked none of it worked. He left telling us that he was going to get right with God that very night. 

Please keep him, the lady, and everyone else that heard the Gospel that day in your prayers. 

Wierd Creatures at Home

The following are only some of the many interesting and rare specimens of God's creation that live in and outside our home. In addition to this, bats seem to like to fly outside my room (I live on the roof), and there are other strange things I haven't been able to get a picture of. There's never a dull day here...

A wierd cocoon I found in the garage...

Which turned into a big moth like this one.

They tell me these secrete some kind of liquid that stings you.

A gecko right outside the doorway of my room.

A cocoon the kids found in the backyard one day. Nothing's come out of it yet, so we don't know what it is.

An ant-looking winged insect.

One day we found this huge moth in the garage. It's twice as big as the other one.

It camouflages quite nicely.

Freed from Pornography by Being Satisfied in Christ

God's Wrath is Against the Sinner

Today Could Be Your Last.

 

It could. Today could be your last day on this earth. Today could be the last time you hear the Gospel. This moment could be the last opportunity you have to surrender before your Lord and King. This very second could be the last time the offer of mercy and eternal life  is extended to you.

Today could be your last.

It was Miguel's. Not this very day, but "today" more than a month ago when the Gospel message was proclaimed to him for the last time in his life. I remember coming down from my room and seeing him sitting at the table in the dining room. I didn't know who he was. I simply greeted him and went about my business; I was too busy with my own affairs to be getting into the Urban's affairs. After all, he was there to see them, not me. I was in the house with him and his relatives but didn't witness to them.

But Lina did. Through a series of providential circumstances, he had met Josef and Lina once before, and they had preached the Gospel to him. He was really open. This day Lina sat down with them and again shared with him the hope of salvation in Christ. He received the Word and had an apparent desire to surrender his life to Christ...whatever the cost. And there would be a cost. He was a federal police officer, and like the majority of police in this country, he was crooked. And not only that--he was also buddy-buddy with the Mafia. But he seemed willing to pay the price, to repent and do what was right as a police officer, to glorify the infinitely worthy Christ with his life. He left the house hungry for the Lord and for His Word, assuring Lina that he would get right with God.

Facing death was nothing foreign to Miguel; he had already been shot at in the past--being severely wounded--due to his Mafia ties and dealings; he had already stared at death in the face, and by God's grace he had survived.

But, tragically, only a few weeks after seeing him the Lord would have him come near the door of death again...and this time he would not emerge victorious. It was a shock for me to hear it when Lina first told me. It was all over the news, she said...two gunmen murdered him in cold blood. Walking along the sidewalk, right outside a government building in the city where he lived, he was met by the hired killers. He tried to flee, but they managed to trap him, do him in, and get away. That it was a hit job was obvious; that he was the main target was undeniable.

Reading the online news reports was utterly sad. But alas! A glimmer of hope: some of the news reports stated that he had retired from his police job only some weeks earlier! Talking with Lina, she told me that the last time they spoke he mentioned that he was going to be transfered to another city soon. He was going to continue working. There was no reason whatsoever for him to quit the force. 

UNLESS...well...here's hoping that he actually repented and trusted in the Savior, and had had enough of his life of corruption and crime. Here's hoping that he left behind what he knew didn't please the Lord. Here's hoping that he indeed did come to know the living God. 

Will we see him in heaven? I truly hope we do. I may never know, this side of eternity. I may not know many things in this life, but there is one thing I'm certain of--

Today could be your last. Are you ready?

NEW BLOG LAUNCHED!

I've just started a new blog in SPANISH, "No Me Avergüenzo" (I Am Not Ashamed). It's designed to encourage and equip believers to step out in faith and boldness and proclaim the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that it will be a helpful tool for my Spanish-speaking brethren, and as a result the Good News will be proclaimed far and wide across Spain and Latin America, especially in those areas that have never heard it before. Please pray with me that the Church would be equipped and edified by this new endeavor.

And if you speak Spanish, please SUBSCRIBE to the blog! Click on the link below to go to it.

NO ME AVERGÜENZO


Thanks and God bless,
Aaron

Saturday Night in the Summer Rain

So the rain season has commenced. In Guadalajara, it starts to pour in summer...and boy does it really POUR. The showers here are similar to that of the jungle; the climate is hot and humid, and it can suddenly and unexpectedly start to rain at any time of the day...heavy rainstorms that tend to flood the city with water. But showers only typically last a few hours at the most. They are almost always accompanied by booming thunder and stark flashes of lighting in the distance. One doesn't have to live here very long to realize that there's a good reason why a world famous Mariachi song describing this city includes in its lyrics:

"Guadalajara, Guadalajara, hueles a pura tierra mojada" ("Guadalajara, Guadalajara, you smell like pure wet dirt").


Well, we kicked off the summer rain season with some evangelism on Saturday. Just as brother Alex picked up Giancarlo and I to go to Centro a thunderstrom began. It didn't last very long.

When we got there the rain had stopped, but many people had either gone home or were still hiding under a shelter somewhere. Still, there were a few people in the area where we normally preach that did stick around to listen to us.

No...I'm not singing here. I'm just very unphotogenic.

Alex preaching while Giancarlo (red shirt, center) talks to a street photographer (on his left with the light brown hat). He turned out to be a very stubborn, unreasonable Jehovah's Witness. Giancarlo promptly called me over to help him, and I brought along my JW tracts. I offered him a brand new one I had recently printed about the Watchtower's false prophecies. He refused to take it, giving the excuse, "I don't want it, I already have that one." I couldn't help but smile and insist, "Sir, what do you mean you already have that one? This is a brand new tract!" Even an unbeliever who was listening in on us recognized the man's phoniness during the entire conversation and called his bluff. As he was unwilling to listen I didn't try to stump him or anything, I just begged him in love to please turn to Christ and leave his false organization and religion. Our earnest pleas to him to find refuge solely in Jesus apparently only hardened him more in pride...so he left.

Alex passionately explaining the Gospel to this interested gentleman. He sat through Alex's entire open air message and then through mine, and afterwards just sat there reading a tract one of us had given him. Alex then approached him. He seemed very open to Christ and His Gospel, and quietly and intently listened as Alex expounded the way of salvation to him.

Please pray for both men. The Lord can just as easily save one as the other; nothing is impossible with Him (Luke 1:37).

Paul Washer Recommends New Ravenhill Book

In Light of Eternity - The Life of Leonard Ravenhill book from HeartCry Missionary Society on Vimeo.

Trip to San Antonio, TX

A little late posting it, but last month I visited Grace Community Church. Had a great time of fellowship with the brethren there; it was a blessing to see them again, and to be able to catch some of their zeal for the Lord and His Gospel.

With the bros at Fatty's.

I hadn't eaten these incredibly good burgers in almost a year.

The Lord is opening up many doors for this church to take the Gospel to the criminal infested, sin-ridden areas of San Antonio, to establish and strengthen several church plants in nearby cities, and to support missionaries from all over the world. Please pray that the Lord continues to use them, to bless them, and to give them the strength, direction and power to labor hard for the Gospel! (And that He raises up brethren from there to come here and help us, that would be awesome!)

DON'T LOOK TO YOUR FEELINGS--LOOK TO CHRIST!

EVANGELISTIC ESCAPADES: The Watchtower Strikes Back

I don’t mean to keep playing the same one-string fiddle…but I had yet another encounter with Jehovah’s Witnesses last week. The Lord just keeps bringing them to me.

It was Monday, one day before Joe would have to return to the States, and he wanted to go for one last open air excursion in Centro. So we took the subway and headed to our usual fishing spot in Plaza Tapatía. As I was ready to get up on my box—microphone and Bible in hand—two girls in their twenties, and a young man who wasn’t at all dressed like a Watchtowerite, approached us. One of the young ladies asked me if I knew any deaf and mute people around the area, because they were looking to give assistance to any they could find, and share with them about “Jehovah’s Kingdom”. “Even if I did know any,” I thought to myself, “you would just about be the last person I would refer one to for spiritual advice.” I told her that I could not help her, but offered both of them a Gospel tract. The girl who had asked me accepted it, but the other refused. I asked the other why she didn’t want the tract—after all it was based on the Word of God. She said she already knew the Word of God and the JWs believed and taught what the Bible teaches. I told them I disagreed with that assertion, and added that we could spend the whole afternoon debating the subjects on which we disagreed—but the most important one, which I would like to discuss with them, concerned salvation. How is one saved? So I let that be the topic of debate. Though my mouth got really dry again and I had to be sipping water during our conversation, the atmosphere was not one of contention at all; it was actually very calm, and the girls even ended up listening to what I had to say. The Lord poured out His grace, wisdom and compassion on me during the entire conversation.

They basically explained to me that we are saved by our works, pointing to Matthew 24:13 as proof positive that we must persevere in good works in order to eventually be saved in the end. I shared with them Ephesians 2:8-9 about salvation by grace through faith, and asked them to please explain the passage to me, in the light of Watchtower doctrine. They could not, and began to instead point me to other passages that seemed to them to imply salvation by works. Not wanting them to use that opportunity to change the subject, I stayed on point and began teaching them how one is saved according to the Bible (particularly, the book of Romans). They surprisingly listened to me; they didn’t seem to have much knowledge of the Word and I had to correct them several times when they misquoted passages and biblical references, and took verses out of context. I then asked them if they had ever read the whole book of Romans, and if so, would they kindly give me a summary of what it was about. One of them said she read the Bible once, but could not tell me the general theme behind the epistle. However, both of them quietly allowed me to explain it to them. I shared that there is a common thread in the entire Bible—namely, salvation by faith apart from any works…faith in Jesus’ sacrifice entirely and once and for all purchased for us on the cross. I explained that Paul’s epistle to the Romans could be summed up in one word: justification. I then went on to explain this glorious doctrine to them, and even shared my testimony of how the Lord had saved me. I told them that now I do good works not to be saved, but because I am already saved and want to follow Christ. While I was explaining the nature of salvation and the new birth to them and how we can come to really know Christ in a personal, saving relationship, one of the girls objected by telling me that “John 3:16 says that ‘This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God…’” I immediately corrected her, “I think you mean John 17:3,” and showed them the difference between this verse in my version of the Bible and in theirs. I read out loud that passage from my Bible: “this is eternal life, that they may know You the only true God…” I explained that there is a world of difference between “taking in knowledge” of someone and actually knowing them: “If I’m your doctor, I can know all about your body’s anatomy and how your ears, eyes, mouth, etc. work…but that doesn’t mean that I actually know you.” To know someone is to have a personal relationship with them, I argued, explaining that one can “take in knowledge” of God and His Word all they want, but that doesn’t mean they actually know Christ in a saving way. After all, reasoned I, the devil has vast knowledge of the Scriptures, and yet we know that he will never experience salvation. They actually agreed with me, and one of the girls, contemplating my words, commended me for giving them a very good illustration. The Lord gave me more Scriptures to quote to them about assurance of salvation and the guarantee of eternal life right now to those who trust in Christ. What I said seemed to make them both think.

I pleaded with them to read the Bible for themselves to see if what I was saying was true. They insisted that they had, and that the Watchtower organization encouraged them to do so. I disagreed, and pulling out my little tract, quoted to them from their own literature the warnings and admonishments to JWs not to read the Bible for themselves, and to avoid independent thinking. As I cited the exact sources of the quotes and their dates, one of the girls asked me to repeat them and hurriedly wrote them down on a piece of paper, saying she would look them up. I told them that if anything was wrong in the tract they could come back another day and let me know. They seemed genuinely interested in verifying if those quotes were true, so I offered the girl that had initially rejected the Gospel tract my JW tract, if she wanted it. I did so hesitantly, knowing that they are discouraged from taking “apostate literature” (reading any literature that critiques the Watchtower organization is equated to looking at pornography). But she actually took it! She said she would research the quotes, and the other girl said she would read the book of Romans by herself. I encouraged her to do so all by herself without the filters of the Watchtower explaining to her what the Bible is supposedly saying. They had to leave so we ended the conversation with a friendly farewell. The Lord gave me the grace not to be contentious that day, praise the Lord. Please keep the two young ladies and the young man in prayer.

Visitor from the States

We were very blessed to have Joe, a brother from PA, visit us last Tuesday. He stayed for a week. He has a burden for Latin America and is considering serving the Lord somewhere in this part of the world in the near future. He is currently learning Spanish. We took him out for some evangelism, and also visited the Josiah and Bethany Children's Home.

Joe (center) with brother Artemio and I.

Brother Juan preached first...

And even Joe got up the courage to do so...in Spanish and without a translator. 

These are some of the kids from the orphanage. They're a wild bunch.

Working with kids is a lot of work, and leaves you dead tired at the end of the day. But I love it.

Pretty soon we're going to have a children's home of our own. Lord willing, we will be taking some of those kids. You can read more about it HERE.

EVANGELISTIC ESCAPADES: Another J-Dub Encounter

A few days ago there was a malfunction in Blogger, and unfortunately this post got deleted as a result. Here it is again. Enjoy.
_________________________________________________________

I was able to use my new Jehovah's Witnesses tract against some JWs on Easter Sunday, when a brother and I ran into a pack of them while preaching the Gospel. It was an interesting encounter, to say the least. I'll recount a little bit of what happened that day in order to demonstrate that the questions in the last Cult Chronicles post really do work.

It was Easter, and brother Giancarlo and I did our best not to squander the excellent opportunity to share the Good News with the masses of people who were going to crowd the squares in Downtown Guadalajara. We headed for Plaza Tapatía and started to open air preach. As I was standing on my stool and had just about finished preaching, I saw a group of well-dressed folk walk by me, and then approach Giancarlo, who was sitting on a bench just a couple yards in front of me, witnessing to a young man. As soon as I saw this group of people, I smelled trouble...so I got off the stool and walked up to all of them. A heavyset middle-aged man, who was the "spokesman" for the group, had interrupted Giancarlo as he was witnessing to this young Catholic man. When I found out that they were JWs I really did not desire to debate them--but for the sake of the young unbeliever who they were trying to confuse (it's just like Satan to interrupt the preaching of the Gospel), I jumped in on the fight. The old man was trying to convince us that Jesus did not die on a cross, but on a "torture stake". We didn't take the bait, however, trying to stick mainly to the topic of salvation by grace through faith. But as is standard procedure for JWs, he repeatedly kept trying to change the subject, jumping from topic to topic, so it was hard to corner him. He had a supremely arrogant air about him, and even disdainfully referred to Giancarlo and I as "little boy". The JWs surprisingly had no Bibles with them, and I had made the dumb mistake of forgetting mine, so we had to all pass around Giancarlo's Bible from person to person the whole time we were there. The old man even went as far as to angrily snatch the Bible from our hands and would refuse to give it back (!!!). Apalled at his shocking and immature behavior, we demanded Giancarlo's Bible from him and eventually gave it back. This occurred repeatedly. On one ocassion he even asked us for the Bible to allow his little son to read a verse...so we gave it to him--but he kept it and read out of it himself! The man was a malicious, conniving liar. And not only that, but he would frequently taunt us, and even call Giancarlo "stupid"! (And mind you, as far as JW doctrine goes, he was the most knowledgeable of the whole bunch, their leader). I've come across many mean-spirited Jehovah's Witnesses throughout my life...but none who even comes close to this guy.

But anyway, I pulled out my new little JW tract and started to read aloud some quotes from Watchtower literature; namely the ones about utilizing "Theocratic War Strategy" on your opponents, about avoiding independent thinking, and about not studying the Bible for yourself. I told the young Catholic that Satan is the father of lies; only children of the devil will try to justify lying. He seemed a bit shocked to hear that the Watchtower actually taught that. I didn't look at the old man's face, but Giancarlo later told me that as I read from my tract his eyes just about bulged out in anger. He of course denied those quotes and accused me of lying, so I immediately cited my sources and told him that he himself could look them up and verify that what I was saying was true. Having been discovered, he then accused me of taking those quotes out of context and not understanding what they really mean...though he didn't even attempt to explain what they "really" meant. I said that they were in their proper context, and asked him to show me from the Bible where it condones lying and hiding the truth from someone. He couldn't, of course, and as I pressed him hard for an answer, he even admitted so, but immediately tried to change the subject.

A young JW lady then started talking to me, so now the group split into two. Giancarlo kept debating with the man and trying to help the young Catholic, while I took on this girl and some of her pals. She was also beaming with arrogance, and had a prideful, demonic smile on her face that made me uneasy. We debated different subjects. She claimed to have read the Bible 12 times, but when asked to explain to me what the book of Romans was about she angrily and dismissingly told me that she knew very well what it was about and changed the subject. Like the older man she was a liar, "bending" the truth several times during our conversation. But one of the old man's sons was quietly listening in on our discussion, as was a newly indoctrinated Jehovah's Witness, so it was worth it to keep debating. Near the end of our conversation I told her that I am righteous because Christ had justified me. Upon hearing this she went into a fit and accused me of being prideful for daring to claim that I was righteous (they have a works-righteousness mentality so they don't understand grace). I tried to explain the doctrine of justification to her to no avail, she would even dismiss the Bible verses from the book of Romans that I read to her. She told me that not even Jesus claimed this about Himself when He was here--when the rich young ruler ran up to Him and asked Him, "Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus told him that none is good but God. Of course, she was completely twisting Scripture, and besides, Christ claimed to be the "good Shepherd", and even said worse things like, "I and the Father are One"...but instead of pointing this out I cornered her with the question:

"So then, was Jesus good?"

No answer, she just kept telling me how disgusted she was at my lack of humilty for claiming to be righteous.

"Answer the question. Was Jesus good?"

She continued to ignore my question and kept on rambling.

"Was Jesus good?" I asked this question many times, and she refused to give me a straight answer.

I turned to the rookie JW next to her and asked him the same question, but he had a confused look on his face and did not want to answer, either.

I said, "If Jesus wasn't good, then we're all lost, because He wasn't the perfect sacrifice for our sins. But if He IS good, then He's GOD--because only God is good."

I didn't really receive a reply...she didn't know how to respond, other than continue to accuse me of being prideful.

Suddenly, a professing Christian who I had met earlier called me over to where he was to introduce me to a friend of his. So I parted from the group and the debate ended there. The JW wolves promptly left and the young Catholic man told Giancarlo that he would read the Bible for himself, and the tracts we gave him, and contact us. It was a great spiritual battle—in the beggining of the ordeal my mouth became so dry that I could not even talk; I had to be sipping my water bottle the whole time of the debate, something that has never happened to me before. Satan must have really wanted the soul of that young man.

Well, not everything turned out the best, but at the very least we were able to scare off the Watchtowerites and prevent the young man from being deceived. Hopefully the questions in the last Cult Chronicles will prove to be useful tools for engaging Jehovah's Witnesses in meaningful debate, and getting them to actually consider the error of their false doctrine...and the claims of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.