What’s your favorite way TWO read ONE?

Posted on March 1, 2018 by Steve Simms

There isn’t only one way to get and to read ONE. There are acutally THREE ways TO read ONE!

1) You can read the whole book for free on your phone or computer. Just click on this link.

2) You can get a kindle version of one and enjoy it on any devise. Simply google ONE: Unfolding God’s Eternal Purpose Amazon or go directly to http://amzn.to/2t9AKiu.

3) Or you can be old school and order a paperback copy from Amazon. That way you can underline and mark it up as you read. (I still prefer physical copies of books.) Here’s the paperback link: http://amzn.to/2GUkVyz.
.
Any way you slice it (oops, I mean read it), ONE will B a great blessing TWO U. It’s a ONEderful read!

Why not text this post to some friends? Or share it on social media? And if you have been blessed in any way by ONE, will you write a review on Amazon? Thank you.

ONE THREE ways TO read ONE

Posted in book review, books, Christian community, Christian unity, church community, community, community building, Creating Community, how to create community, praying community, selling books, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Some religious things Billy Graham didn’t do

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Steve Simms

Billy Graham didn’t go to seminary, but look how God used him. He wasn’t a pastor or an official in a church or denomination, but he sure let God him.

Too many church leaders are grasping the throat of the body of Christ and not letting the Spirit speak through the members. Authority that needs to rely on titles, hierarchies, and offices isn’t true spiritual authority. The greater a person’s spiritual authority, the less her/his need to control or manipulate others.

Billy Graham didn’t tack a tacky title to his name, but look how God used him. He had no positional power in an institutional church, but he sure let God use him. Billy rejected formality if people called him Rev. or Dr. and said, “Call me, Billy,” and look how God used him.

To rise up and obey God, like Billy Graham did, is not rebellion against a church or pastor. It’s a normal part of spiritual growth.

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.” Churches think sermons are. Listen to Jesus and do whatever He tells you. Don’t let church hold you back.

billy graham

Bonus thought:  If you’re pretending, you’re not living in the real world. Why not let go of your cover-ups and live in reality? Learn how to go beyond church as usual @ http://amzn.to/2CkW4Wb.

Posted in body of Christ, bread of life, institutional church, obedience, obedience to God, rebellion, rebellion against God, sermons, spiritual authority, spiritual formation, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What if church set people free go and serve God?

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Steve Simms

Is Jesus the controlling Head (Lord) of your church or has He been put into honored retirement? Too, often church is like a football team that always keeps their quarterback on the sidelines. Bring Jesus off the bench!

It’s one thing to conduct a church service about the Lord Jesus. It’s something different to let Jesus be the Lord of the meeting. Instead of following a program, church could meet & follow the living Jesus.

Churches tend gather people and keep them dependent on a preacher instead of sending them out to change the world. Church needs to empower and release people; not keep them entangled in outdated & ineffective programs.

Jesus is as ready to manifest His presence & power in the 21st century as He was in the first. Let Him! Jesus wants to liberate & bring light to sin-influenced minds. Christianity began as a Spirit-led Jesus movement, not as a religious organization.

It’s hard to read the New Testament and not at least wonder what happened to the passion and power, that “turned the world upside down.” When I read the New Testament, the awesome power of early Christianity stirs in my heart and I long to see it restored in our day!

Some Christians say that God stopped doing miracles when the apostles died. That seems like a rationalization for unbelief. To say miracles stopped when the apostles died, ignores many Scriptures and millions of miracles Christ has done for 2,000 years.

Some Christians say that God stopped doing miracles when the apostles died. That seems like a rationalization for unbelief.Christians say that God stopped doing miracles when the apostles died. That seems like a rationalization for unbelief.ome Christians say that God stopped doing miracles when the apostles died. That seems like a rationalization for unbelief.

Posted in early Christianity, early Christians, New Testament, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Move when the Spirit says move

Posted on February 24, 2018 by Steve Simms

To follow Jesus we need to move when the Spirit says move. God calls the body of Christ to be windmills responsive to His Spirit, not religious gatekeepers who try to control His wind.  A church that never allows God to interrupt their “services” may be captured by religion.

Hearing words about Christ should never replace, personally interacting with Christ, the living Word. Now is not the hour for words without power! It’s time to let the risen Jesus personally lead us.

The more organized a church meeting is the less need people have to depend on the working of the Spirit. The Spirit-inspired insights of ordinary Christians are a terrible thing to waste. (“Let the redeemed of the Lord say so.”) When Christians begin to obey the Bible verses that tell us to minister to one another, we experience one-anotherhood.

Jesus promised His followers an inner power flow. Learn to turn it on and let it run out of you. Religious programs may be fine but they can’t transform people’s lives the way Jesus living inside them can!

Prechurch Christians met to allow Christ’s supernatural power to freely operate among them. The Bible tells Christians to avoid “a form of godliness” that doesn’t have the power of the Holy Spirit. (See 2 Timothy 3:5) Without the real presence of Christ’s supernatural power manifesting in a meeting, the number of people present matters little.

Persecution delays or disassembles the institutionalism that hinders the Holy Spirit. We want to manage our image; but Jesus wants to manage our thoughts, words, and deeds.

God offers many apps you can download into your spirit. God’s instant messenger sometimes pops up on the screen of your heart. Listen to your conscience.

Too often church is like a potluck where only one person is allowed to share what he/she brought and all the rest have to take it or leave it. Church (like David putting on Saul’s armor) tends to replace the Spirit with programs and human control.

To rediscover prechurch Christianity; read the New Testament, listen to Jesus, and do what He says. Christianity is all about a humble, loving, and obedient relationship with the living Jesus — not about a church or a creed or a religious program. Jesus without theology is much better than theology without the living Jesus.

Listening to God and hearing Jesus speak to you is mental health, not mental illness.

Posted in apps, church services, flow of the Spirit, God sightings, Let the redeemed of the Lord, organized religion, persecution, religion, religious apps, religious persecution, theology, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Billy Graham focused on unity among Christians, not on divisions.

Posted on February 22, 2018 by Steve Simms

Many Christian evangelists have worked within one Christian denomination or doctrinal system. However Billy Graham crossed lines and courageously worked together with Christians of various backgrounds, doctrines, races, and churches. (In the racially segregated South, he even broke local laws and made his crusades open for anyone to sit wherever they wanted.)

Billy Graham Crusades were an amazing thing to see: tens of thousands of people of various backgrounds and persuasions coming together to hear a humble and unassuming man talk about Jesus and His love for all people. Billy Graham cut through the sectarianism and divisions among Christians and brought them together to reach their city for Christ.

Billy Graham Crusades were amazing demonstrations of the power of unity in the body of Christ. Every one of them was a cooperative effort of many local Christians and churches (of various doctrines & denominations) who set aside their differences and worked together for many months to share the good news about the living Jesus. They were held in more than 250 cities around the world.

The results of Billy’s embracing all who loved Jesus was incredible. I attended 5 different Billy Graham Crusades in 4 cities. When I entered the stadium or venue, I could feel excitement and anticipation surging through the crowd. The massive choir (filled with Christians from many denominations and groups) stirred my soul. There was a sense of awe through out the whole event and a holy hush as Billy preached. When he gave the altar call, the Spirit moved hundreds and thousands to come forward and publicly surrender their lives to Christ.

So what was the secret to the power that flowed into those giant arenas? Billy Graham would tell people that it wasn’t him. I believe it was the risen Jesus Christ moving freely among Christians who put aside their divisions to stand together in unity.

Billy Graham put it this way: “Jesus prayed for unity among believers. God, who wills man’s unity in Christ, is a God of variety. So often we want everyone to be the same—to think and speak and believe as we do. Many Scripture passages could be called to witness that love is the real key to Christian unity.”

“Billy Graham’s influence on Christian unity is still felt. Graham’s legacy left a model of how to focus on unity over strife.” –Jeff Brumley

“Billy Graham was able to reach across denominational lines. He worked with Presbyterians, Catholics, Methodists, Episcopalians. He was very happy to work with them.” –Calvin Thielman

“The act of faith, which separates us from all men, unites us for the first time in real brotherhood; and they who, one by one, come to Jesus and meet Him alone, next find that they are come to the city of God and to an innumerable company.” –Alexander MacLaren

“To a true child of God, the invisible bond that unites all believers to Christ is far more tender, and lasting, and precious; and, as we come to recognize and realize that we are all dwelling in one sphere of life in Him, we learn to look on every believer as our brother, in a sense that is infinitely higher than all human relationships. This is the one and only way to bring disciples permanently together. All other plans for promoting the unity of the Church have failed.” –A.T. Pierson

Thank God for the way He used Billy Graham to bring believers together. Now that Billy has gone to be with Jesus, it’s a good time for the body of Christ to make a decision to love one another. ONE: Unfolding God’s Eternal Purpose From House To House is a powerful handbook on how to do that, click on this link.

Posted in Christ-centered community, Christian community, Christian unity, evangelism, evangelistic meetings, mass evangelism, outreach, outreach ministry, televangelists, TV evangelists, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Can we be inspired by funny church names?

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Steve Simms

Religion has sawn the body of Christ into tens of thousands of different Christian churches, denominations, and organizations with many different names. However, Jesus prayed in John 17 that His body be one, even as He and the Father are one. He also wants believers to meet in His name.

There are so many organized churches that many of their names are funny. I googled “humorous church names” and found these: Angel On Fire Chapel Of Peace, Church Of The First Born, Halfway Baptist Church, Cowboy Church, Original Church Of God, Hell Hole Swamp Baptist Church, Fire Baptized Holiness Church Of God Of The Americas, Old German Baptist Brethren New Conference, and Affirming Pentecostal Church International.

Babylon Bee even got in on the action by posting some pretty funny fictional names for churches: Holy Grounds (a coffee house church), Jiffy Church, Any Greek Word + Church, and The Church That’s All About You.

Perhaps those humorous church names can inspire us to get back to Jesus’ vision for His body. Instead of identifying ourselves as a part of a fraction of the body of Christ, let’s just be part of the eternal body of Christ that is not divided into religious organizations. Let’s recognize our oneness with every Christ-bearer around the world. Let’s receive anyone who has Jesus living in her/him as our Christian sister or brother!

How can we do that? The book ONE: Unfolding God’s Eternal Purpose From House To House can give much light on that subject. Check it out at http://amzn.to/2BCvqHf.

ONE sawn apart

Posted in Christian Denominations, denominations, funny thought, joy, joy of the Lord, Laughter, rejoice, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dormant Christians don’t do much for God.

Posted on February 18, 2018 by Steve Simms

Pastor-dependency makes Christians drift into dormancy as they decide to “let the pastor do it.” It’s dangerous to delegate your spirituality to a pastor, because Jesus wants a direct relationship with you.

Let Christ take the lead in your relationship with Him–not vice versa. If you are dependent on a pastor on Sunday morning, how will you stand for Christ without that person, the rest of the week? However, if a group of people meets and engages in Holy-Spirit-prompted dialogue, God’s light begins to dissipate our spiritual smog.

The highest place a Christian can be on earth isn’t high in a pulpit above other Christians, but low at Jesus’ feet! Knowing about Jesus is fine; but letting your life be about surrender to Jesus is spectacular! A mind informed about Christ can answer Bible questions; but a heart in love with Him blazes with His glory! It’s much easier to learn facts than it is to live truth!

A Christian (like all people) has the right to listen to Jesus and read the Bible for herself and not just accept a leader’s ideas. God can and does use sermons. However, He also wants to use the testimonies the insights of ordinary people, if church will just let them speak. Pastors would be truly amazed at the anointed things Christ has shown the people they preach to, if only they would let them speak up.

Unfortunately, church members are encouraged to be seen in church services, but they usually aren’t allowed to be heard there. You can’t interact with Jesus if you’re unaware of His presence. (But you can listen to a sermon about Him.)

The most dangerous fake news is to be told that you are right with God, when you aren’t. Only the Holy Spirit can confirm that you are right with God. What does the Spirit say about you? Don’t let anyone else give you assurance that you are right with God. Only God, Himself, can do that! “Flesh & blood” can’t reveal it. God’s holy nation (1 Peter 2:9) is not built on a human oration, but on supernatural revelation (Matthew 16:17).

People love to get caught up in things; events, politics, sports, work, etc. I love to be caught up in Jesus! If unbelievers hear Christ calling them to repent and follow Him (and they do), surely believers can hear Christ talking to them.

People who claim to preach Christianity should be held accountable to the Bible. We must have both biblical and spiritual discernment. It’s easy to replace common sense with nonsense.

Don’t be dormant. This link can help you come alive! http://amzn.to/2CrvHcP

dormant Christians

 

 

Posted in Christian spirituality, Christianity, church, church leadership, delegation, false assurance, following Christ, hierarchy, lifestyle Christianity, membership, normal Christianity, pastor dependency, repentance, spirituality, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

#Makechurchekklesiaagain

Posted on February 18, 2018 by Steve Simms

Theologian Emil Brunner taught that Christianity drifted away from ekklesia & into church.

“A hashtag does not change anything. It’s a hashtag.” –Shonda Rhimes

Here’s a fresh, new hashtag for those who want to go beyond church as usual:  #Makechurchekklesiaagain

To read some quotes from Brunner click this link: https://stevesimms.wordpress.com/2017/05/19/emil-brunner-quotes-about-ekklesia/

Posted in alternative church, alternative to church, Beyond Church, change in church, Christian church, church experiment, ecclesia, ecclesiastical, ecclesiological, ecclesiologist, ekklesias, hashtags, house church, make church ekklesia again, organic church, organic church blogs, quotation, Quotations, quote, simple church, theologians, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Twitter lets anybody tweet. Could church do that?

Posted on February 17, 2018 by Steve Simms

Somehow the New Testament concept of the priesthood of all believers was turned into a religious audience of passive receivers. However, when a preacher does all the church talking, he is eventually surrounded by people who have nothing to say.

Think how boring Twitter would be if only one person was allowed to tweet. Church reminds me of that.

Church has trained people to believe that Christianity is passive–sit and believe
a little bit. But Jesus said: “Follow Me!” House churches can be just as controlled as institutional churches. Let’s all let the living Jesus, Himself, lead us!

Church is like a box of chocolates where one piece gets unwrapped but the rest go stale in the box. Church calls people “laymen” & treats them like they’re not “qualified” to speak about God. All a one-man talk and no interaction makes church passive, restrictive, and contrived

Church is a weekly showcase of the same person’s speaking ability, while everyone else is required to just sit & silently listen. Jesus said “Make disciples.” So why does church make an audience full of spectators? Christians are called to be disciples of Jesus, not of a man, organization, or denomination.

Church says come, sit, and listen. Jesus says “Come and follow Me!” (How can we follow Jesus when we aren’t allowed free expression?) Church considers “the pastor” to be the only member suited to preach, thus missing out on the spiritual insights of the many.

Church is built on religious explanation. Ekklesia is built on spiritual insight and inner revelation. To keep doing church the way you’ve always seen it done is kind of like the movie Groundhog Day. Following Jesus is not being a weekly spectator at a religious routine. It’s daily pursuing a rigorous relationship with Him.

When people meet to unveil their hearts and gaze at the resurrected Jesus, ekklesia happens!  When someone is present, he can speak for himself. When Christians gather, Christ is present. Let’s allow Jesus to speak in and through whosoever He choses to.

Ekklesia is like a handbell choir where Jesus prompts each person when to play her/his part. Christianity isn’t about one-man religious explanations. It’s about powerful and ongoing Jesus demonstrations

Breathe in, breathe out, be kind. It’s amazing how we humans complicate the simplicity of life! When you’re in the dark, you can’t see what is around you. (Same with spiritual darkness.) You’re heart is a green house. What ya got growin’ there?

Hey, if you would like a handbook about how to #Makechurchekklesiaagain, click on this link: http://amzn.to/2BAdTiT

Twitter's not boring

 

Posted in cost of discipleship, demonstration of the Spirit, disciple making, disciples, discipleship, ekklesia, God demonstrations, how to be a disciple, inner Light, make church ekklesia again, making disciples, simplicity, spiritual darkness, spiritual discernment, Uncategorized, who can preach | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Do you have the sanity to hear & obey Jesus & your conscience?

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Steve Simms

Joy Behar said on The View that hearing Jesus is a sign of mental illness. However, the Christian saints demonstrate that hearing Jesus is the greatest sanity on earth! Today the world desperately needs the sanity of people who will listen to and obey their conscience; listen to and obey the risen Jesus; and listen to and obey the moral principles of the Bible!

The ongoing mass shootings in the United States have people continually asking why? Those horrendous acts of evil and cruelty are breaking our hearts and we want something to done to stop them, but what?

For someone to plan and then to randomly murder as many people as they can, demonstrates a complete disconnection from of any sense of conscience. People with any connection with conscience couldn’t do that.

However, in the 21st century, people’s conscience is under constant attack through incessant moral relativism; a constant barrage of evil words, sounds, and images; and an almost deification of pleasure and self-satisfaction at any cost. We need a restoration of conscience in our culture!

It’s time for some common sense about conscience. The wisdom in these quotes from the book ONE, used to be common sense in Western culture. If we don’t return to that wisdom, horror-filled evils will only expand.

“A person’s conscience will object and accuse when an action may be harmful to themselves or others. It sounds an inner alarm to keep them from going further.”

“The conscience leads a person away from that which is harmful, and toward what is beneficial. Nerve endings in a person’s fingers help prevent their fingers from getting seared; however, if those endings are damaged and a person has no sensitivity to heat, their fingers could catch on fire without the person being aware. In the same way a person’s conscience can be seared so that it has no more sensitivity.”

“When a person denies his conscience for too long, it can become seared. That person becomes susceptible to receiving and accepting all sorts of harmful and evil things. A seared conscience will open a person up to demonic spirits and activities.”

To learn some powerful ways to activate the human conscience, google: ONE: Unfolding God’s Eternal Purpose From House To House.

 

Posted in called to be saints, causes of violence, clear conscience, communion of the saints, dull conscience, gun violence, Henry Hon, human conscience, ONE: Unfolding God's Eternal Purpose From House To House, saints, stop the violence, Uncategorized, violating conscience, violence, violence epidemic, violence in society, voice of conscience, what is conscience | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments