Acting Out Acts — Sound Bites From The First Christians . . .

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Steve Simms

“Filled with awe . . .”

“Filled with wonder and amazement . . .”

“As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

“Performing  many signs and wonders among the people.”

“We must obey God rather than human beings.”

“Preached the word wherever they went.”

“Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit.”

“The Lord’s hand was with them and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.”

“Earnestly praying . . .”

“These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here.”

“Openly confessed what they had done.”

“Knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept . . .”

You have just read a series of sound bites taken from a detailed history book about the first Christians.  It was written by a medical doctor, Dr. Luke, who personally knew many of the first followers of Christ.  It is known as the Book of Acts.  It shows how normal Christians act.

I want to act like an Acts Christian, don’t you!  I meet regularly with a group of people who want to see Acts acted out in the 21st Century.  If that is your desire, come and see our support group style meetings as we seek to recover the Acts lifestyle.

We meet on Sundays at 10:45 am. and Thursdays at 6:30 pm. at 225 Berry St., Nashville, TN, 37207 (corner of Berry & Meridian Streets).

Posted in Acts, Acts 5:29, alternative lifestyle, awe, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christianity, church, church history, disciple making, early church, history, house church, Music City, Nashville, normal Christianity, organic church, Quotes, repent, simple church, spiritual growth | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

I Disagree! — Dissent On Super Bowl Sunday

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Steve Simms

In contemporary America dissent has been defined as hatred and hushed.  On this Super Bowl Sunday, 2012, I lovingly disagree!  (If two people agree, or pretend to agree, on everything; at least one of them is intentionally being politically correct.)

American culture constantly brainwashes us with many misleading, false, and/or harmful ideas.  Here are some of them and a brief reason why I disagree with each one.

The Super Bowl is considered to be one of the greatest events of the year.  I disagree!  (The birth of even one child, wanted or unwanted, is a much greater event than the Super Bowl game.)

Marriage vows are meaningless; it’s normal to break them; and they can be broken without fault or harm.  I lovingly disagree!  (Divorce devastates and crushes almost everybody who does it, even if they pretend to be okay.  Children are especially hurt by it.)

Drugs are the primary answer to our health problems.  I pleasantly disagree!  (A healthy diet, self-control, exercise, safety, wholesome thinking, and moral living are much better ways to deal with health problems than drugs.)

We don’t need to be concerned about the very poor because they have a “safety net.”  (Thanks to Mitt Romney for reminding me of this one.)  I kindly disagree!  (The very poor desperately need us to be personal role models for them.  They need friendships with people who are better off than they are, to help them overcome the tremendous mental, emotional, and societal obstacles in their path.)

Judeo-Christian morality is wrong (and hateful) and should be ignored.  I lovingly disagree!  (Ignoring Judeo-Christian morality is a sure-fire way to experience self-destruction, emotional chaos, and depression.  So why does my spell check not even recognize Judeo-Christian as a word?)

Living together without commitment is love.  I logically disagree!  (Commitment is part of the very definition of love.)

Evolution effectively explains our existence.  I thoughtfully disagree!  (I just can’t buy the idea that a pre-existing blob of matter, plus lots of time, single-handedly produced all the precision and complexity that surround us.)

Casual sex is good and harmless.  I kindly disagree!  (Broken hearts, unwanted children, fatherless children, guilt,  poverty, abortions, abuse, and disease disprove that claim.)

Watching violence is harmless entertainment.  I disagree!  (Regular exposure to images of violence feeds dysfunction, stirs up anxiety and fear, breeds depression, and hardens the human conscience.)

Prenatal killing is okay.  I kindly disagree!  (A person’s a person no matter how small.)

A person’s desires and/or compulsions define who he is and he should be true to who he is by proudly obeying his cravings.  I pleasantly disagree!  (Surrender to compulsions is abandoning self-control and turning your life over to destructive forces.)

War is a legitimate way of dealing with international conflict.  I sadly disagree!  (A famous general said:  “War is hell!”  Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. and others have shown that nonviolent direct action can be much more effective than war, if we only have the courage to use it.)

A person’s faith in God should be kept quiet and have no effect on how he lives his life in public.  I disagree.  (Thanks to Tim Tebow for showing the positive and powerful impact that even one person’s faith can have.)

I originally entitled this blog post:  I Disagree!  Descent On Super Bowl Sunday.  Fortunately someone dissented with me and told me that I had misspelled the word dissent.  So I corrected my mistake.

I really appreciate the dissent this person voiced toward me.  It enabled me to see my mistake and correct it. That shows how important it is for us not to oppose open dissent.

Posted in alternative lifestyle, big bang, boundaries, brain chemistry, casual sex, censorship, challenges, Christianity, Civil Rights, conscience, creation, Creator, criticism, dishonesty, drug commercials, drugs, education, ethics, evidence for God, evil, evolution, fear, feelings, guilt, habit, hate, hate speech, hope, human rights, Judaism, lies, lifestyles, marriage, Mitt Romney, morality, morals, NFL, nonviolence, origin of life, Playoffs, political correctness, recovery, religion, repent, sin, social justice, spiritual warfare, tebow, tebowing, tebowing.com, Tim Tebow, tolerance, TV, Uncategorized, values, war | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

I Bought A Book Of Strong, Shocking Statements At Dollar Tree

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Steve Simms

I bought a book of strong, shocking statements at Dollar Tree (not Chick-Fil-A).   It was written by David Kupelian.  Here are some quotes from the book:

“Having turned our backs on Judeo-Christian morality and the inner conscience that testifies to it, many of us rely on emotional feelings alone to guide our way through life.”

If we just keep going along with whatever compulsions and drives we see rising up in us, and wallow in them, and justify them, and condemn anybody who dares ask the tough questions, we’re living as animals, not humans.”

“Our life goes badly — and is supposed to go badly — if we defy God’s laws, which besides being written in the Bible are also written in clearly inside each of us.”

“It’s very common for human beings, in and out of government, to lack strong moral principles — leaving them free to lie, manipulate, and steal in a multitude of obvious and subtle ways.”

“In unmarried sex there is nothing but exploitation — using the other person in an attempt to fulfill ourselves.  Without commitment, it’s impossible for there to be love.”

“When we are in rebellion against the true God, we need lies and deception to maintain our illusions.”

“Whenever we build our pride, we’re growing in conflict with God.”

“If we assume that what feels good is good, and what feels bad is bad, we have a huge problem, because lies often make us feel good — and so does cocaine, and so does sex with a stranger.  And then of course we also have a big problem with truth, because truth often hurts.”

Quotations are from How Evil Works by David Kupelian, best selling author of The Marketing of Evil.

Posted in casual sex, challenges, Christianity, criticism, David Kupelian, dishonesty, ethics, evil, guilt, How Evil Works, lies, life, lifestyles, marriage, morality, morals, popular culture, Quotations, quote, Quotes, reading, sex, sex in marriage, sin, spiritual warfare, Uncategorized, values | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

What The Church Can Learn From Romney’s “Not Concerned About The Very Poor” Goof

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Steve Simms

Is there a lesson that the church can learn from Mitt Romney’s statement:  “I’m not concerned about the very poor,”?  Perhaps.

*  The outrage that has been demonstrated by Romney’s words shows that there is a belief that the living God, the Creator of all that exists in the Universe, has put in human hearts, that it is wrong not to be concerned about the very poor.  Most people will at least say that they believe that people have a responsibility to help other people in poverty.

* Words often don’t mean much.  While many people voice concern for the very poor, often they actually do very little to help poor people.    Our words say that we are concerned, but our actions may say that we aren’t.

* Poor people need more than words (and more than a hand-out).  They need equal, personal relationships with people who are better off than they are.  (It is very difficult to improve your life if all the people you know are in the same boat you are in.)  In America, most people who the government considers to be in poverty, live in neighborhoods segregated from the middle class and from the rich.

Perhaps the best thing the church can do for the poor is to go beyond words and to economically desegregate their congregations — to bring people of all economic levels together in close Christian community within individual churches.  Perhaps the church should build close, mutual friendships that cross the gaps between those who aren’t poor and those who are poor.  When people who are considered to be poor have caring personal friends who are better off financially, amazing changes begin to happen.

If you would like to see this in action, a church in an East Nashville urban neighborhood (considered by many to be poor) has crossed economic boundaries and is building caring Christian community that bridges financial gaps.  Come and see for yourself what God is doing:  The Salvation Army Berry Street Worship Center, 225 Berry St., Nashville, 37207, Sundays @ 10:45 am. & Thursdays @ 6:30 pm.

Posted in Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christianity, church, church structure, concerned about the very poor, Creator, East Nashville, God, house church, kingdom of God, Mitt Romney, Music City, Nashville, organic church, religion, simple church, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, The Salvation Army, Uncategorized, What is church? | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Overcoming Boredom In Church

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Steve Simms

Church is considered to be boring by many millions of people.

Meanwhile, the Super Bowl is considered to be one of the most exciting annual events in the USA.

Why? Let’s think about it . . .

What if every play of the Super Bowl was preplanned and published in a program? That way the fans could know what to expect as the game goes along. Good idea or bad one?

Of course, programming the Super Bowl in advance would kill all the excitement. Few people would want to sit through a game when they not only knew the outcome, but also knew every step toward that outcome ahead of time. I sure wouldn’t!

Isn’t that what we do to church meetings — kill any excitement by planning every step of the service ahead of time and giving people a program that tells them almost everything that is going to happen? No wonder so many people look away, yawn, and nod off.

But what if we made the church like the Super Bowl — what if we kicked it off and then allowed it to spontaneously flow? Church would become exciting because we wouldn’t know what is going to happen next. Wow!

Would you like to experience an exciting, unprogrammed church meeting in Nashville? It will thrill you — honestly!

Anyway, why not give Nashville’s unplanned, participatory church a shot? You have nothing to lose but your boredom. Come on down . . .

Sundays @ 10:45 am. and/or Thursdays @ 6:30 pm.,
The Salvation Army Berry Street Worship Center
225 Berry Street,
Nashville, 37207

Posted in awe, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christ, Christianity, church, church structure, East Nashville, evidence for God, glory, God, hearing God, hearing Jesus, house church, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus Movement, lifestyles, Music City, mystery, mysticism, NFL, normal Christianity, organic church, Playoffs, popular culture, proof of God, religion, simple church, spiritual, spiritual growth, spiritual warfare, Super Bowl, The Salvation Army, tradition, voice of God, What is church? | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Spiritual Gusher Or Spiritual Stopper

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Steve Simms

Are you a spiritual gusher or a Spirit stopper?  Perhaps these thoughts, based on the words of an ancient prophet, can help you answer that question.  (See Isaiah, chapter 35.)

When God gushes forth from the depths of the human heart, life bursts into bloom.  spiritually blind eyes see the splendor of the Lord; deaf ears hear God’s voice.  People celebrate greatly and shout for joy!

Be strong.  Don’t be afraid.  God’s gushing glory, gladness, and joy will overtake us, if we but remove the Spirit quenching stoppers from our heart, from our life, and from our church meetings.

How do you know if there is a Spirit stopper in place?  If God is not actively gushing through your life . . . stoppers are in place.  Pull them out and let God gush!

Posted in Bible, evidence for God, Isaiah, spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual skills, spiritual warfare, supernatural, voice of God | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

What The Church Can Learn From The Super Bowl

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Steve Simms

It is Super Bowl Week.  I just read an article about what people would give up to watch the Super Bowl.  Here’s an excerpt:

“What exactly would you be willing to miss to be able to attend the big game if your favorite team was playing?  According to a couponcabin.com survey, 23% said they were willing to give up a vacation in order to watch the game in person.  The survey showed that participants were also willing to miss major life events.  20% would skip seeing a close friend get married and 15% say they would miss the birth of their child.”

Now that’s commitment!  Meanwhile most people, in the Western world, will give up very little to follow and obey Jesus.  So, what can the church learn from the Super Bowl?

1)  If it is okay to sacrifice, celebrate, and be passionately consumed by a desire to watch a game of football, then surely it is important to sacrifice, celebrate, and be passionately consumed, in order to follow and obey the living, resurrected Jesus Christ.  What exactly would you be willing to miss to obey a prompting from the Holy Spirit?

2)  If advertisers can give their best shot (purchasing many millions of dollars on Superbowl commercials) to persuade people to spend their money on meaningless stuff and hyped-up services, surely we believers (who are the church) can give it our very best shot to persuade people to actively follow and obey Jesus.

3)  People are looking for something that excites them, something that is not prearranged to the point of boredom.  When you watch the Super Bowl you can feel the excitement in the air — you don’t know what is going to happen, so you are on the edge of your seat ready to jump up and give a demonstrative shout-out.

However, when you go to church, you already know the routine.  You (at least many people) are nodding off, watching the time, and thinking about what you are going to do when it is finally over.

So is church boring and the Super Bowl exciting?  Unfortunately, at least in many cases, you have to admit that is true.  However, if you look at the First Century church as portrayed in the New Testament Book of Acts, you will see a different kind of church — a church filled with passion, power, and excitement.

4)  The Super Bowl honors its past traditions, but it keeps them fresh and exciting.  The Super Bowl doesn’t let its tradition get routine.  Rather than merely looking back to past Super Bowl games and trying to program the present game to conform to the past Super Bowls, it allows the present game to freely flow and develop on its own.

Meanwhile the church is too often trapped in the trappings of the past, unable and/or unwilling to allow its meetings to freely flow and develop.  And, nowadays, lots of people are showing their weariness of ruthless repetition by leaving the traditional church.

The Super Bowl demonstrates that millions of people are looking for something to passionately follow.  The church has so much more to offer than a football game does.  So why should we, the church, remain willing to settle for little or no influence in the day to day life of our society?  Shouldn’t we follow the example of the Super Bowl and find a way, like the First Century Church did, to “turn the world upside down”?

Experience Superbowl excitement in the New Testament concept of church — ekklesia. Check out Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible–Ekklesia.

beyond church kindle 3 me

Posted in Berry Street, Christianity, church, early church, football, house church, Jesus, Jesus Christ, lifestyles, NFL, Playoffs, religion, simple church, spiritual, Super Bowl, tradition, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Experiencing Some Direct Acts Of God Today

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Steve Simms

So far it has been an amazing day today.  I’ve seen God do several incredible things.

God first amazed me when I first got up today.  I randomly opened a Bible and it opened to Moses at the burning bush.  As I read the words, “Take off your shoes, for you are on holy ground,” I suddenly remembered a dream from last night.

I was in a small auditorium and walked over to an aisle and put something I was holding on the floor.  Then I felt prompted to take off my shoes and leave them on the floor.  so I did and walked away.  When I looked back, people were coming from all over and putting their shoes on top of mine.  There was a large pile of shoes.

Later today I passed by a used bookstore that I had never seen before and decided to go in.  (All this month I have been reading the Book of Acts [I’m on my third time through it] and asking myself why the early Christians were so different and so much more powerful than us 21st Christians.]  In the bookstore I picked up a book called  Black Box.  There was a big question on the back cover that read something like this:  “Why is the church depicted during the past 1900 years of history so different than the one pictured in the Book of Acts?”

Finally, during the night last night, these words kept going through my mind:

“The fire of

desire set ablaze

without confining boundaries

burns up

your soul.”

Our culture of glorifying and fulfilling our desires is destroying our souls.  Perhaps it is time for us to repent!

 

 

Posted in acts of God, evidence for God, God, hearing God, hearing Jesus, Oh my God, proof of God, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, thoughts, voice of God | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nature — It Ain’t All Natural

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Steve Simms

There is something about nature that’s not natural — something out of this world in our planet’s operating system.  It is invisible, like the wind, but you can see its results everywhere.

It is a mystery, a great oxymoron — this unnatural part of nature.  No one can really explain it or create it in a laboratory.

It can do the impossible.  It can take dirt and water and turn them into an immense variety of unique objects — from almonds to bananas to corn to zucchini.

So here’s a dirty little secret that our generation has mostly forgotten:  “Poems (and blogs) are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree.”

Now if, as human pride and runaway intellect supposes, the creation of plants and their fruits and vegetables and nuts is a mere natural process, why can’t anyone find a way to take a big bucket of dirt and a tub of water and make (or develop a machine to make) a kiwi?  Or a watermelon or a turnip?  Cause they ain’t natural!

Fruits and veggies are produced by life, and life, although it works through nature, isn’t a part of nature.  Life is supernatural — the breath of God animating His creation.

Posted in creation, evidence for God, God, nature, non-material reality, proof of God, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

What Western Religion And Atheism Have In Common

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Steve Simms

There is a popular video on youtube called:  Why I Hate Religion But Love Jesus.  In its first two weeks, it has been viewed more than 17 million times.  So why would a lover of Jesus hate religion?  Perhaps it is because of some of the things that Western religion shares in common with atheism.

* Self-proclaimed atheist Richard Dawkins wrote a book attacking Western religion for its historic use of force against those who don’t agree with it.  However, both atheism and Western religion have persecuted, tortured, and killed millions of sincere Christians (insincere Christians turn away when there is persecution).  Western religion has traditionally called many genuine spiritual movements heretical and has used its own Inquisition and/or its influence over governments to persecute them.  Atheism has persecuted millions of genuine Christians by using the authority of communistic governments.

* Both Western religion and atheism tend to think that their view of God is right and that everybody else’s is wrong.

* Both Western religion and atheism tend to base their opinions about God on their intellectual analysis rather than on heart experience — on the logic of their doctrine rather than on love.

* Both Western religion and atheism have eagerly supported and participated in extreme brutality.  Western religion sponsored and led Crusades against people of other religions; supported modern slavery and the horrific trans-Atlantic slave trade; engaged in many religious wars and atrocities in Europe; and most of the denominations in Germany even supported the Nazis.  Meanwhile atheism unleashed extreme brutality world-wide, through the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, and other cruel atheistic governments.

So what is the answer, atheism or Western religion?  Fortunately there is a better choice — a submissive, heart-felt, obedient relationship with the living, resurrected Jesus Christ.

Posted in alternative lifestyle, anti-war, atheism, Atheists, China, Christ, Christian history, Christianity, church history, communism, Crusades, Cuba, Europe, evil, hate, hate speech, hearing Jesus, history, human rights, Inquisition, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus Movement, lifestyles, morals, Nazis, political correctness, religion, religious wars, Richard Dawkins, Soviet Union, Uncategorized, values, war, Western religion | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments