Are you wearing a Mask In Life?

Pastor Moe says you are safe to take off your mask at Epic Life

1. Read The Bible
2. Go To Church
3. Reach The World
4. Make Converts
5. Get People Into Heaven
6. Make Church Members
7. Jesus is Our Example

However, none of that is in the Bible…
THE BIBLE SAYS To:

1. STUDY God’s Word
2. BE the Church
3. TEACH the World
4. Make DISCIPLES
5. Get People Into RELATIONSHIP
6. Make KINGDOM CITIZENS
7. Jesus is our LORD

Subtle differences with HUGE IMPACTS on how we Live A Life of Faith.

have you heard these?  Does this change anything for you? how do you feel about this?

A little bit too different from you when my skin is a different hue.

You will accept me on your own terms, as long as I don’t do anything to make you squirm.

So I learn to deny, suppress, and sometimes, even hate, the differences of culture that God did create.

But the Spirit within me says, “No, there must be a new way through to the “new man”

I have formed in you.

A place where cultures are celebrated, not assimilated, to show the reconciling power of God,

bought with His blood.

This path to unity will be hard, but it comes from the hand of God.

So what do we do when this path becomes a road to hard to trod,

and when Jesus’ call to “oneness” seems a far off thought?

We consider each other as better than ourselves. And just as God has given me grace,

I extend it to you as well.

The world is watching. What message will we tell?

Copyright TC Warren

Recently, the Lord inspired me to do a study on his books.

Books in His heavenly library; books neither found on earth, nor written by human hands, and except for a few pages here and there, have never been viewed by human eyes.

We know of the more commonly referenced book like “The Lambs Book of Life”, which records the names of those of us who are servants of the Master.  I found approximately 20 of these books referenced in scripture.

This article is just a brief exploration of one such book mentioned in Psalms.

It is:

The Book Of Tears

As humans, especially singles, we tend to have times of sorrow in our lives. This may be due to our own self-pity, sickness within us or loved ones, loss of a life, disappointments, hurts, habits or even hang-ups about ourselves.

Often, these times are so deep, and so personal, no one else is aware of them because we are too afraid, too ashamed, too embarrassed or too untrusting to share with anyone.  This generally has a tendency to cause our times of feeling down worse because we endure them all alone – or so we think.

The enemy would have us believe that no one understands and no one cares and that we are bearing this burden of sorrow alone.

This simply is not true.

According to Psalm 56:8, every tear that falls from our eyes are kept in the Lord’s Bottle and then recorded in His book.

WOW! Think about that for a moment.

First of all, how close would someone have to be to catch every tear that came from your eyes?

This means, no matter where you are, even if you are having a hysterical crying fit and running around the room, then swan dive into burying your head in your pillow and then after sitting up, finally rolling about on the floor crying – God is right there.

He is there with you catching every single drop that falls from your eyes.

Not only that, but those tears are so precious to Him; he stores them in a bottle and logs the moments down in his book.

No one writes anything down, much less keeps it in a BOOK unless it’s very important.

Why does God care about our tears?

I believe it’s not really the tears He cares about. It is the person who shed them that He cares about. It is the person so precious to Him that makes the tears themselves worth keeping and recording.

The bible says that we are the apple of God’s eye (Psalms 17:8, Zechariah 2:8).

Have you ever been so close to a person’s face that you could see a reflection of yourself in their eyes?  You have to be pretty close. Actually, you have to be nose to nose to truly see yourself clearly in the eyes of another.

Being the apple of God’s eyes, we can see ourselves reflected in the loving eyes of Jesus. This is because He is nose to nose with us. He is right in our faces, especially during the times when it seems to be the darkest moments of our lives.

Jesus cares for us so much more than we can even imagine. We should take confidence in the fact that since the time of our birth, Jesus has kept a book and a bottle for every time we have cried. Before you even knew the Lord, before you were in a relationship with him, He loved you…deeply.

Whether the cry is out to Him or just in general, He knows, He cares, and the each of those hurtful moments have special eternal value to him. Jesus saves. Not just our souls, but everything related to it.

Thank God, for the Loving Kindness of our King Jesus; who is there for us always, even when we don’t realize it.

About God’s Books

And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.-Rev 20:12 (AV, emphasis mine)

© 2005 Maurice Evans. All rights reserved.

Here are 3 Reasons I have found Why Many Homosexuals Don’t Like Christians

1) Identity

The bible is designed to help us gain a sense of identity.  That is to understand our position as a Child of the Most High God.  Homosexuals have placed their complete sense of person, value and worth in the act of homosexuality.  While it sounds vulgar for many to even consider, this argument is no different than a polygamist, rapist, pedophile or adulterer placing their entire identity in the related activities.  We would consider them silly…or would we.  History shows many societies devolve to a place of sexual free-for-all right before the culture collapses.  There are many that justify their actions because they say “it is who I am”.  They then go so far as to say they are a protected people group who deserve the same “rights” as others.

TRUTH IS, humans will use anything to find a sense of identity; jobs, gangs, education, fraternities, other people, drugs and yes, even sexual behavior.  God wants us to find our Identity in Christ and in Him alone.  When we as Christians disapprove of homosexuality, the person who has chosen to use that as a source of identity takes personal offense.  In their mind we are attacking them directly.  We are not, but that is how it is perceived.

2) Sex

Well, that’s what it really is all about right?  It is the preferred method of identification for many.  Whether Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Trans etc., it is all relating to sexual anatomy and practices. A human is so much more than their sexual anatomy.  A human is so much more than sexual activities.  Yet, this is what the big fight is over.  When sex is the most important thing in an individual’s mind, they assume any talk of sex is directly regarding them.  In the mind of the person who sees sex as most important, and justifies their particular favorite flavor of it, Christians are merely “homophobic”.  That’s a moniker used to vilify people and is just code for “I say you hate a certain type of people, so I can now justifiably attack you”.

TRUTH IS, God’s word does not so much condemn “homo” sexuality as much as it commands “HOLY” sexuality.  There is a long list of “deviations” in the Bible asserting what God says is inappropriate in the bedroom.  This forbidden list explicitly includes sex with: a sibling, step-parents, spouses not your own, people of the same gender and even animals.  The fact God has to tell us NOT to have sex with an animal shows just how quick and how far we will deviate from HOLY SEXUALITY.  Christians are not “homophobic”, nor are they “against gay’s”…not real Christians anyway.  But they do take a stand against anything that is not HOLY sexuality.  Be it adultery or pedophilia or fornication, or yes, even homosexuality – Christians must promote God’s version of sex.  When someone does not understand or accept Holy Sexuality, they assume any talk of deviant behavior is a direct personal attack. It is not, but that is how it is perceived.

3) Love

Ahhh, love.  If it is done in the name of “love” it must be good right? Who can control love?  How can we prevent someone from loving?  How can we help who we “fall” in love with?  How can anyone deny lovers? Surely anyone who speaks AGAINST love is evil right?

While Hollywood promotes those concepts to us from the time we watch a Disney movie all the way up to the News, none of it is based on Biblical truth.  This also is a great way to justify wrong doing.  In the end, it is just another trick of the enemy to vilify someone who speaks of Holiness. If you speak against someone’s so-called love, in their mind, you justify an attack by them, the “accused”.

The problem is most people have more of Pepe Le Pew’s version of love in their mind than the Bible’s actual descriptions.  First let me say what love is NOT.  In the Bible, Love is NOT associated with: a feeling, an emotion, physical affection, sex, infatuation, butterflies in the stomach, beating hearts, lust or desire. Though love can trigger and influence any of those things, none are part of love’s DNA.

Love is spiritual, not emotional.  We know this because God is Love and God is a Spirit and the Fruit of His Spirit is Love (and other stuff). And despite what Oprah teaches, the Bible reveals to us that nothing emotionally or feelings-based is spiritual or related to love.  God is not a feeling and our relationship with him is not feeling based.  Though for some, that is the extent of their relationship with God, and therefore they mistake love and every other element of the spiritual for some emotion.

Most importantly Love is a choice.  We know this because God commands us WHO and WHAT to love, and who and what NOT to love.  If somehow, love were this uncontrollable thing, He would not tell us to control it. But it is controllable, so he does command us to do so.

Still, “love” is the excuse for homosexuality. Ironically it is also the excuse for couples living together, for adulterers, for pedophiles and even for some rapists. The claim of something done in the name of “love” is the last resort of the rebel. It is the closest they can say to it being done in the “name of God” without treading into blasphemy.  Deep down, they know they are wrong, but don’t want anyone to challenge it.  Who can challenge the person who says “God told me to”?  Well, only a fool uses that loosely (and there are many fools around).  But the realist knows that is a dangerous game, so, let’s just say “LOVE” told me it was OK (with heavy emphasis that God is Love).

Did God tell you to do this? “God didn’t tell me NOT TO! (Wink, wink.)  I mean if God didn’t want me with this person, He would step in…right?”  Anyone who believes that can just go ask Samson that Question. Judges 13-16 (spoiler alert –God doesn’t step in and Samson dies and misses his destiny.)

“IT’S FOR LOVE!” they cry. We all know that is not true, but it is the excuse they use anyway.  It is the excuse they use to revile, hate and attack anyone speaking of God’s true love which CAN NOT be separated from His Truth and Holiness.

Love that does not face or admit the truth is not really love at all.  God disallows homosexual activity in the Bible, plain and simple.  However, we must respect our friends and relatives who choose to live such a lifestyle.  In the same way we respect anyone who sins.  However, homosexuals (and Christians) must not confuse love and support for approving, condoning or encouraging sinful behavior.

You do not have to agree with a person’s actions to be supportive of them. Choose to love homosexuals, just as we choose to love anyone who chooses to sin.  Never endorse the sin in the process, though. For those who redefine love and sex or place their identity in such false beliefs, odds are they will get totally offended and decide to no longer associate with you.

If they are Christians, you have to disassociate with them.

But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one.  For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church?  But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.

– 1 Corinthians 5:11-13

Still we must thank God for His great love for them and wish them peace in Christ.  It’s ok, should they decide to leave. Hopefully they come back. Either way, keep praying that at some point they see the light of the truth before it’s too late.

If you are dealing with homosexuality, or know someone who is, a good book for you to read would be a book by my friend Christopher & Angely Yuan called OUT OF A FAR COUNTRY.

You can get a copy from our bookstore:

http://epiclifecommunity.com/church/share/store/

As I would say in seminars and coaching sessions there are only TWO Kinds of people in the biz; Amateurs and Professionals.  The pros ALWAYS immediately know the difference between the two and amateurs often mistake other amateurs for professionals.   A lot of this has to do with access, but that’s not what I want to talk about in this posting.

In the music business, many independent artists have a goal of “getting signed”, which is slang for receiving a record deal.  They have a lottery mentality, and want a company to basically take them from nothing and invest its own resources to help them make their career dreams come true.  Because there are SO MANY looking for such a deal, this concept becomes the end all be all for an artist.  Especially once they get a “deal”, they immediately notice all the others who do not have one yet. In their minds, this is the “ultimate” achievement so to speak, complete with bragging rights.

That sad truth is, it is neither difficult to get a “deal”, nor is it considered a major accomplishment to have one by those within the industry. Sort of like a pilot saying he has a “Pilot’s License”.  That’s pretty much a given. In fact, just like a Pilot’s License, a record deal is JUST the beginning; it is only after they get one that the REAL work in the music business starts.

So many people spend SO MUCH time, energy and resources for so long to get to the starting point, they confuse it for a finish line once they finally get there.  This is why you hear of artists being “one hit wonders” or working at a restaurant even after getting a major deal, or simply just imploding at some point in their career.  Because they feel they have “arrived”, they enter blindly into a brand new world they are unprepared for, and get distracted.  Majority of artists who GET record deals never live to their fullest potential.

New artists, naturally, rarely want to hear such things.  They do not like to take any advice because they feel they have “one goal” and once they get that “one goal” they no longer need to learn anything more.   They will accuse others in the industry of being negative and if you talk to them about improving their craft, learning about the business side of things, creating and executing a plan, etc. You see this phenomenon on American Idol auditions, when the judges suggest they wait a little bit of time, or get vocal training or other suggestion and the prideful artist arrogantly advises the judges, who do for a living what the auditioner HOPES  to ONE day do, “they will see”.

See what? That doing things the wrong way will somehow work out for them by sheer will power?

Funny how a person who is “trying to make it” would actually think a person who has already made it, actually does it for a living, and helps others every day, somehow would be “jealous” of someone who has yet to realize they have wings, much less spread them.

The problem is, too many artists have worked as amateurs for so long, they cannot transition to the higher level of mentality and action required to operate as a professional.  So instead they cry not fair, or everyone is against them.  They focus on their talent, and constantly fuss about how much more “talent” they have then the highly successful artists.  Almost like a Pilot saying He knows how to fly…again, this is a given. They don’t realize success is about what you do, not what you have.

As a Leadership trainer, I teach that successful people do not “have what it takes”, they simply DO what it takes.

As a Pastor, I find the same ironic event in discipleship.  The three phases of a Christian only begins after a person first gives their life to Jesus.

(Check out the 3 phases here: http://epiclifecommunity.com/church/246/3-phases-of-a-believers-maturity/)

Most of the world is trying to find some sort of purpose.  Few realize God has the same purpose for everyone.  (Romans 8:29).  When people get “saved”, some think that’s the end all be all.  But that is the equivalent to discovering you can sing or play an instrument.  Discovery of the truth that has always been there is a major realization, but it’s not the end.  God wants ALL humans to be saved and to be conformed to the image of His Son and to Marry Him and Spend Eternity in the Royal Heavenly Family.  So when one finds out they are a part of that family, well, good for you, so is everyone else!

Not that salvation is not important, it’s just it is not the best part.  Just like being an artist is not the “best part”.  Being used as an artist is the best part. It’s merely a precursor.  A precursor to what, you say?  Well, to the 3 phases a Christian goes through in moving towards Destiny.

So it is the same with understanding God’s plan for your life.  That multi-part thing my wife and I teach about all the time called Destiny. Simply discovering what God’s plan for you is like getting a record deal.  Yes it is a major deal, and yes, most other Christians haven’t even made it to this step yet.  However, keep in mind it is but the first step, the mere beginning of the journey.

If you have discovered Gods special plan for your life, then now more than ever is when you need the help and assistance of the insiders who have walked the path before you. You still don’t know much about this new dimension of life.  What you choose to do with what God shows and gives you is much more important than anything He has given or shown to you. Discipleship is the key to you not becoming a spiritual “no-hit” or “one-hit” wonder.

Baby Christians have a hard time adapting to a new life in Christ in General.  But to actually adapt to a Life of Destiny, well, sadly often times it is more than many can take.  This is why Jesus says 3 out of 4 people exposed to Christian Destiny never produce any fruit, but the ones who do, produce tons of it.

He began to teach again by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat in the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land.  And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching,  “Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow;  as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up.  “Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of soil.  “And after the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.  “Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  “Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.” And He was saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

As soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve, began asking Him about the parables.  And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables,  so that WHILE SEEING, THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND WHILE HEARING, THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND, OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT RETURN AND BE FORGIVEN.”

–Mark 4:1-12

Unless you come from an agricultural background, making sense of that parable can be difficult.  But even then, as you can tell from the disciples’ questions, it still wasn’t “clicking”.

Jesus proceeds to explain the parable.  If you look at it, it ties exactly with the 3 phases of a Christian.

And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all the parables?  “The sower sows the word.  “These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them.  “In a similar way these are the ones on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy;  and they have no firm root in themselves, but are only temporary; then, when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they fall away.  “And others are the ones on whom seed was sown among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word,  but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.  “And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”

–Mark 4:13-20

So let’s break it down real quickly. Everything remains consistent here except the “soil”, which represents a person’s heart.  In the end the level of fruit we attain is based on our heart’s response to the Light of Jesus.

The first group is the ones with Hearts of Stone.  They don’t even get saved. Satan comes and forcibly steals any hope God’s word has of bearing fruit.  Easy pickings for the thief, they had a wall up against God’s word in the first place. Not much to say about them.

The second group, whose heart is rocky, makes it to the first phase of a Christian’s Maturity.  They get saved and discover there is such a thing as a Destiny and even discover what it is.  However, it doesn’t take long for them to realize there is a cost to being a Disciple of Jesus.  That you have to hate everything and everyone except Him, that He has to be first.  That friends, family and the world won’t be too happy with your choice to be a Holy Follower of the King of the Universe. No longer can they live like they used to or make the choices they once did.  Sex, drugs and rock n roll are no longer the way.  It’s not about MY way but His way.  No more ME, ME, ME, I, I, I but Him, Him, Him. They know their sins are forgiven, they know about grace, but that’s about it.  It doesn’t take long before the pressure of being a Christian is unbearable, and they throw away Jesus and their Destiny because it’s just easier to live how you want to.  This is why Jesus tells us to be sure we can handle how much it “costs” to be a Christian.  (Luke 14:25-35)

The third group is those whose heart has soil, but still full of thorns.  They actually begin to mature and make it to the 2^nd phase of a believer in Christ.  The problem is they are still caught up in what they have known all their life.  Their money, friends, career, education, money, possessions, romantic relationships, did I say money? All, some or one of these things take priority over their Destiny and slowly but surely choke it out.  These guys were so close; they actually endured for a length of time with God.  In the end they backslide…until they are totally gone from the kingdom.  Sadly they actually discovered their destiny, began to live an abundant life with God, but throw it all away because they cannot resist the pull of “things” and “people”. Their own desires and their own deceitful heart tricks them into forfeiting the only thing that will truly provide any fulfillment.  They sell the car for some gas money and realize too late what has happened. This is a result of a lack of discipleship and work on their part.

Then there is the last group.  These are the ones who have a good soil heart (as a result of their own efforts of cultivation alongside of the assembly of God’s congregation) and make it to the final phase of spiritual maturity.  And not only do they produce fruit, but they produce a lot of it, a whole LOT of it.  And fruit makes more trees.  Good fruit makes good trees, so they produce fruit also.

Yup, 3 out of 4 people who COULD live their destiny…never will.  Not my words, Jesus’.

The interesting thing is, God gives each of us the choice to determine whether we will be a fruit bearer or not.  We can never blame anyone but ourselves, because it is our very own deceitful heart that will make the final determination.

Will we control it? Or will we let ourselves be led and controlled by it?

Want to be counted in the number of fruit bearers?  Then it’s simple, really.

Give up.

That’s right, just give up…everything.

We have to totally give up EVERY SINGLE right we think we have in order to truly pursue our Destiny.

While for those who are still earthly minded think this is an utterly ridiculous concept, those who are heavenly minded understand the concept fully.

The heavenly minded do it with the confidence, that our reward both here and hereafter will exceed whatever our small minds may be considering as desirable.

God built us, so surely He knows what will fulfill our deepest desires, no?  He can provide it for us even more than we ever could for ourselves, right?

Just like the earthly rich young business owner that came to Jesus, yet could not turn away His riches for Destiny.  Many walk away from Jesus, never realizing their full potential.  Exchanging God’s ultimate plan for their short sighted “now” plan.

But Jesus promises the Heavenly minded:

And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times as much at this time and in the age to come, eternal life.”

–Luke 18:29-30

How awesome to know that doing it our way may be ok for now, but Gods way is GREAT forever!

Too often we are simply impatient.  We don’t want to wait for God’s fruit.  We want to eat the seed.  But seeds must first sprout, then grow into a sapling, then become a tree.  Even then, takes time for fruit to first appear, then the fruit itself has to grow and mature.  But it DOES happen, just all in due season.

God warns us:

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.

Galatians 6:7-9

Let’s not miss our destiny. Let’s not allow others to miss theirs. It is easy to fool ourselves.  We think we can do things OUR way and still be “OK”.  We can’t.  However, in addition to warning us not to try and do things “our” way, He promises that if we do things His way, the rewards will be plentiful.

Many like to say the cutesy Christianese catch phrase: “let go, and let God”, but few actually do that with 100% of their life.  I mean every single area of your life.  Yeah, that part too. Many just refuse to do it.

You might be thinking you can.  If you think so, read the contract below, print it, sign it and put it on your bathroom mirror so you see it every day.

http://www.epiclifecommunity.com/docs/surrendercontract.pdf

Recite it daily for 30 days.  (Is it not a prayer.) Then call me and tell me what happens.

P.S. And if you are not being disciple, find someone who can and will, the bible says it is impossible to grow to spiritual maturity without submitting to this process.

You definitely won’t be able to live your Destiny without it.

If you are in Tampa Bay Florida, we are happy to walk alongside you and help you cultivate your heart to begin bearing fruit.

The Bible refers to Christians based on one of 3 phases of their Christian Life.

It is important to know each of these phases for several reasons.

The first is to know where you are and to know the point you should strive to grow to.

The second is so that you can understand where those you are discipling fall.

The third is so that you can train leaders at varying levels and teach them to do the same.

The diagram and descriptions below are only meant to be an OUTLINE of characteristics. It is not so much a “checklist” as it is an evaluation.  I believe a person will generally exhibit a majority of the characteristics (although never flawlessly) on the list during each phase.

Naturally, this is not a comprehensive list but instead some easy to identify virtues.  Each phase definitely has many more characteristics. Consider these to be some basic truths that tend to come with maturity in Christ.

Also, certain elements that should be a given in any Christian’s life are not listed like: prayer, worship and reading the bible.

While there are many scriptures on the subject, the ones listed below are the foundation references I often use while discipling, when training leadership, teaching the congregation or leading a Bible Study on these related matters.

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“I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.

I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning.

I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one.

I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.

I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning.

I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one. “

–1 John 2:12-14

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Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.

But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,

Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.  And this will we do, if God permit.”

–Heb 5:11-14;6:1-3

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And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ.  I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able,  for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?

–1 Corinthians 3:1-3

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So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.  He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.  He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

–John 21:15-17

Below are the 3 phases of a believer’s maturity.

(Click image to enlarge)

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CLASSIFICATION:            New/Child/Baby Christian

Characteristic:                        Receives

Comprehension:                      The Cross and Forgiveness

Activity:                                   Looks to God for what He has done and can give

1. a. Places faith in God
2. b. Discovers the person of Jesus as the “Christ”
3. c. Understands Jesus is actually God manifest in the Flesh
4. d. Looks to Jesus as the ONLY way to have a relationship with the Creator
5. e. Begins a real daily relationship with Jesus
6. f. Begins studying the Word Of God & starts to know it
7. g. Is a regular attendee at a local church
8. h. Learns to turn away (repent) from sin
9. i. Learns to Confess sins
10. j. Receives and accepts forgiveness for sin (nature) but still struggles with sins (practice)
11. k. Experiences multiple baptisms (1 water & many fillings of Holy Spirit)
12. l. Recognizes they have Gifts and seeks to identify them
13. m. Experiences Spiritual Gifts, miracles and answered prayer from God
14. n. Understands they have a destiny and seeks to identify God’s plan for their life
15. o. Knows Jesus is coming back for them
16. p. Leads people of the world to a new life following Jesus
17. q. Seeks Being Fed (milk)

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CLASSIFICATION:            MATURING Christian

Characteristic:                        Walks in Power

Comprehension:                      Resurrection and an Eternity in heaven

Activity:                                   Looks to God for what He is doing and can empower to do

1. a. Is actively being trained and discipled by a more mature believer(s)
2. b. Is steadily maturing in Christ
3. c. Relates to God on a daily basis (study, prayer & worship)
4. d. Knows the word of God AND how to apply it in real life
5. e. Able to resist temptations as well as Satan and his tricks
6. f. Stays pure from purposeful sins (rebellion)
7. g. Keeps faith in God during tough times (need) and good times (abundance)
8. h. Considered a “strong” Christian by others (believers and non-believers)
9. i. Not only reads God’s word, but LIVES it, adjusting their life to line up with the Bible
10. j. Faith has become a lifestyle
11. k. Gets deep into God’s word
12. l. Enjoys “meat” in study and teachings
13. m. Is an actual MEMBER of a local body
14. n. SERVES in a local body
15. o. Recognizes/Operates in all of the Spiritual Gifts which are each differently given by The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit.
16. p. Is a regular, consistent tither and overall giver
17. q. Has confidence in their spiritual identity (Righteousness of God in Christ)
18. r. Can discern God’s will in individual life circumstances based on God’s word
19. s. Knows God’s plan for their life and is pursuing their destiny
20. t. Understands the Rapture, 2^nd coming and millennial reign
21. u. Disciples Others
22. v. Feeds Themselves (meat)

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CLASSIFICATION:            DESTINY Christian

Characteristic:                        Duplicates & Multiplies

Comprehension:                      The Son’s Eternality and Our Destiny

Activity:                                   Looks to God for who He Is (and always has been)

1. a. Knows Jesus was purposed to come to earth even if there was no fall (Christ/Emmanuel)
2. b. Knows we were purposed to marry God’s Son to annex the Trinity via Marriage
3. c. Understands Jesus as the firstborn of many brethren with man created to become like Him as an extension of the Trinity (Foreordained)
4. d. Realizes God had a plan for them as an individual even before the earth was formed (Predestination)
5. e. Knows Their personal Callings, Gifts & Destiny and is Living It
6. f. Realizes Their Life on Earth determines their Destiny in Heaven
7. g. Realizes Destiny starts on Earth and continues into the Millennial Reign and then Heaven
8. h. Works toward personally maturing to the full stature of Christ
9. i. Equips, Encourages & Empowers Disciples to Disciple others
10. j. Feeds Others (milk & meat)

Pastor Maurice “Moe” Evans
Epic Life Comminity

Do you Know Who You Are?

For whatever reason, since I am now doing these Facebook and blog notes, He brought this to my attention while walking my dog tonight.  That of course, has nothing to do with the message, but I know some of you are curious about such things, so, well, there you have it. lol

WOMEN, THE “WEAKER” VESSEL

I thank God that he has emboldened me to never allow myself to be afraid to speak His word, even if it’s not a popular subject.

So here I am, on dangerous ground publicly calling today’s “Independent Woman”…weak.  I can see the manicures being filed into sharp points already, and I haven’t even gotten started yet. Hehe

Seriously though, iIf you read this whole thing though, you might be surprised at how important an insight this is to understand. I pray you take the time to read this “whole” note and seek God about it.

I have watched pastor’s fumble over this or try to read through this portion of the word really fast and sadly, even SKIP this scripture altogether, for fear of offending or “upsetting” someone.

This is a disservice to the body of Christ, as we need to understand God’s full will in our lives in order to truly walk the path of our Destiny.  If God is not afraid to address an issue, neither should His people be timid in regards to a matter.

The scripture in question is:

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  “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.”

–1Peter 3:7 (KJV)

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7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. – 1 Peter 3:7 (NIV)

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Now I often use this verse to explain to married couples the importance of agreement in the relationship.  The Bible is clear that when husband and wife are on two different pages, their prayers can go unanswered.

This is largely due in part to the fact that God sees the “couple” as one person, and therefore will not answer the prayer of a double minded individual. (Genesis 2:24, James 1:5-8)

However, that’s not what we are talking about today.  I want to focus in on the “weaker” vessel portion, in a brief attempt to bring some clarity (and peace) to the body of Christ on this subject.

Non-believers and religious Christians have done a good job of furthering the incorrect propaganda that God is sexist and is all about putting “women down”.  This is not even close to the truth; it is actually the opposite of God’s heart.

Scriptures like this one are often taken out of context to further that misconception, and sadly, those that WANT to trust and agree with God’s word, don’t truly understand this verse and/or are scared of its possible implications.

I won’t sit here and try to smooth over God’s word with you. It says what it means and means what it says. However, let us be clear on what it is actually saying and meaning in the full context it was written in.

First off, this verse is not a barb or attack on women. In fact, it is a commission for men to be the best husbands they possibly can be.   This is clearly seen when read in the context of the entire chapter and not simply the verse in isolation. As you know, Pastor Moe’s Rules of Bible Study state that the MOST important thing to remember is CONTEXT.

Looking at the context of this section of scripture, it is speaking directly to married couples, first directly to the wife (especially those with an unbelieving or a non-obedient to God’s word husband.) Then it speaks directly to the husband, on how to treat his wife.

Notice it says “as unto the weaker vessel”.  In other words, to: “take care of in the way you would a weaker vessel”.

In America, we’ve got things twisted.  We think “strong” means “aggressive”. It does not.

We also think “meek” is equal to weak. It is not.

We think that weak means wimpy.  It does not.

Again, none of those popular so-called definitions is true.  They are just common misconceptions.

The woman who “doesn’t take any junk” from anyone, is in your face, quick to tell you about yourself, and will give you a piece of her mind (opinion) is not really strong. She is simply brash, aggressive and actually the real definition of a weak woman without even realizing it. 

She is weak because she can not even control her own emotions.

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  “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”

–Proverbs 25:28

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We see from the wisdom of proverbs, that one who can’t control their own spirit, is like a broken down and defenseless city.  So while she tries to come off as “strong”, she is in reality very weak. 

In fact, she is so weak; she is actually MORE vulnerable to be controlled than normal.  She is so feisty as to “not let anyone tell her what to do” she has fallen into a trap of Satan. She has created the opposite effect she was going for. 

I have found such “strong” women to be more susceptible to abusive relationships, emotional instability, divorce, substance abuse and depression.

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  “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.”

–James 3:6

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You ever experience someone whose tongue seemed to be on-fire from hell? (lol.) I know I have.

If you have not, maybe it’s because it was your tongue! (wink.)

So to clarify, a “strong” woman is not, someone who rants like Wendy Williams or Roseanne or Whoopi Goldberg, who have a whole lot to say, but do not often say much of value.  A strong woman would be more like Mother Theresa, who silently endured, and consistently loved.

The woman, who is truly strong, exudes the virtues of a Christian that can only come from God’s Spirit.  Love, joy, peace, patience (that’s “long-suffering”), meekness (gentleness or the power to control their strength), self control, etc. (You can find them all at Galatians 5:22, 23).

A good picture of spiritual strength would be something like this: 

That is a picture of a mother tiger carrying a cub.

A full grown tiger’s jaws and teeth can snap bone in half, crush bodies and pierce through any thickness of living flesh in one bite.  Caught between the jaws of a female tiger is not the place any living thing normally wants to find itself.

If the TIGRESS, were indoctrinated by today’s American culture, she would arbitrarily run around snapping tree trunks, crushing the skulls of other females and constantly bragging about how strong her jaws are to anyone who would care to listen (and even those who do NOT care to hear it.)

How silly would such a tigress be, to be so overtly and unnecessarily aggressive, even to her own young, just to prove a point and hide her insecurities? 

But instead we see here, in the God-given instincts we find in nature, a picture of meekness.  Meekness is simply gentleness. It is purposeful tenderness, despite the potentially awesomely devastating power available. 

How easily would a slight shaking of her mouth break the neck, or a little pressure from the tigress jaws instantly crush and kill the baby tiger cub? But instead, because of love, she exercises self-control and makes the purposeful decision to be gentle. She made a conscious decision to be soft; to be meek; to be weak. Even though she could quickly show she is really strong and “could” exercise that strength, she does not.

If you think a tiger is weak for not showing how strong she is, simply go into her cage and challenge her to an arm wrestling match.

In fact, I will personally pay to fly you to the zoo or safari of your choice to display your strength to such a “weak” mother tiger. You just have to allow me to videotape and post your folly on youtube and facebook for the world to see (your demise).  

OK, OK I won’t really pay for you to do that, and please, do not go into a tiger cage on your own challenging them.  If you do, don’t say I told you to do it, because now I am telling you not to do it.  That was called sarcasm.  The point is: it is foolishly dangerous, even deadly, for a human to challenge a tiger.

Are tigers weak? Of course not, yet we know and can clearly see from the picture they are meek when appropriate.  Tigresses are strong females.  They attack, when necessary, just not solely to prove they are strong.  They don’t fight and argue and war, just for the sake of doing it, or just because they want everyone to know they are strong or just because they are afraid someone will think they are no longer a “real tiger”.

The truly strong Christian female, likewise, is the one whom the so-called strong women of today laugh at and she can still stay silent.

The “strong” women, ridicule her for being so “weak”, and letting people talk any kind of way to her.  When in reality, she smiles inwardly, because she has the confidence of knowing she is the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. The accusations of others do not define who she truly is and who she belongs to.

She is not concerned with the TRULY weak women who put on a false air of strength.  She knows they are so silly and busy bodied, they don’t even realize they HAVE a destiny, much less actually WALKING it.  The strong woman silently prays for such women, that they would come into their Identity in Christ, and not one modeled after Jackie Kennedy, Maya Angelou, Beyonce, Oprah, Barbara Walters, Nancy Pelosi or Hillary Clinton.  Not that there is anything wrong with any of these women per se, it’s just they are not Jesus, who is to be our primary role-model.

The last laugh is had by this virtuous woman, who is accused of being weak but has a godly husband who is proud of her, and brags about her. Unlike the so-called “strong” women who have frustrated husbands who can’t get a word in edgewise, if they even have a husband.

Some women are already offended, at what they have read thus far.  However, think about this.  Would you get offended if the shoe did not fit?  So, if it does, then wear it, girl and simply work on letting Jesus fit you into a new pair.  If it not fit, simply pray for those you know who are wearing them.

I hope you see the difference.

Honestly though, in a way, I wanted to scare off some people with the above part, in the hopes they would stop reading the rest of this.  That they would go ahead and call me all kinds of names; a chauvinist, sexist, or whatever else and continue on in their ignorant folly. Ironically, by doing so, they actually prove the point of this article. Those are people the bible calls scoffers, and they do not ever really learn anything. It is best not to spend too much time trying to grow with them.

The reason I wanted to be as raw and real as possible in this writing, is so that real people would appreciate it. I know the truly real men and women will still be with me and see the next part, which is the most important part. I find what I discuss next, is the true beauty of this whole scripture.  Yes, I said beauty.  I saved this for after because aggressive people only attempt to attack and destroy beauty due to jealously. 

WHAT THE BIBLE MEANS BY A WEAKER VESSEL.

Here is a quick story that may help to illustrate the point before I explain it.

My mother used to sell something called Princess House when I was a kid. It’s a party-based sales plan like Mary Kay or Avon etc for a company that sells lead crystal items. 

Princess House sells all kinds of nice things like decanters, punch bowls, ash trays, dishes, vases etc made of real lead crystal. 

My mother would regularly throw parties, and invite women over, and sell them the items made of crystal. 

One of the biggest items was glassware.  Every kind of glass you could image: wine glasses, shot glasses, drinking glasses, champagne glasses, formal glasses, etc.  She still has many to this day.

I can remember anytime we had to move, a whole day was dedicated to carefully wrapping each piece in newspaper, and then stuffing them into boxes, also full of newspaper, and then marking FRAGILE in big letters all over the box in sharpie.

One day, when I was about 8 years old, at one of her parties I heard it told to the ladies that lead crystal glasses have a very unique property.  If you wet the rim, and rub your finger around it, a pure audible tone is created.  The size and shape of the glass, and the amount of liquid in the glass determines the actual tone or note heard.

This was an irresistible characteristic to a child like me that comes from a musical family.

Question:  What do you get if you take around, I don’t know, say 30 or 40 different glasses, and filled each with varying levels of water around 2am and put them all on the kitchen table…

Your first thought is probably a spanking…that’s true too, but…

Well, let’s just say if you are an only child like myself, you’ve got several hours of party time before the spanking!

You see, all you have to do is dip your fingers in the water, then run them around the rim, and you get a beautiful tone.  The more glasses you have, the more tones you can make! Ultimately, you could have a mini orchestra going.

Go ahead, mark your place here and go pull a glass or two out of your cabinet and try it.  I will wait.

…

Cool, huh?

Ok, now that your back, (I know you stopped to try it!) let’s continue.

OK so, needless to say, I got into a lot of trouble for that.  First of all, imagine the mess of water I got EVERYWHERE. 

But what was the real issue that I got in trouble for?  Water on the floor? 

Not really.

Princess house is EXPENSIVE.

One of the reasons is because it is considered “fine” glassware.  Just like fine china.  That word “fine” means delicate or fragile or…weak.

Starting to get it?

In other words, if I had taken out the plastic Tupperware, which is less expensive because they are more durable and “Stronger”, it would not have been AS big a deal. (I would still have gotten in trouble though for dirtying up EVERY single piece of Tupperware at once, while simultaneously getting water over the entire kitchen. I am sure of it.)

You can take a Tupperware bowl, toss it out the door, skip it over a puddle, and let it get run over by a car. No problem! Simply, throw it in the dishwasher, and use it like normal.  They are Tonka Toy tough!

Now, similarly take a lead crystal plate, and simply let it accidentally hit the side of the cabinet a little too hard while grabbing it and you just cracked or chipped it.  Not only is it now unsafe to use in its specified function and worth less than before, but it is also damaged in its aesthetic beauty.

You have to be very careful with fine china and crystal. It is weaker than other items that are made of similar shape and have similar function. 

The punishment fits the crime. Play with all the Tupperware, small spanking.  Play with all the china and crystal, bigger spanking.

Princess house is not only a fragile crystal, it is also made with more care, often with elaborate decorations on them (and you can engrave them too).  I can remember my mom taking hours to simply put one initial on someone’s glass with her engraver.  This extra care made them worth even more.

If you go back to the original Hebrew in Genesis, we see God “formed” man out of dust (molded, like a potter), but he “fashioned” woman.  This “fashioning” implies he took more time and care, like an artist does with an elaborate tapestry. 

Women are more complex physically, spiritually and emotionally than men.  It’s a fact. 

It is this complexity that makes females more fragile.  My wife will cry over other people’s problems much quicker than I do, even if it is the woe of a stranger or fictional character.  Emotionally she is more sensitive to changes and trauma.  She is fine crystal.  Me, on the other hand, you can beat me with a baseball bat, and I might not cry.  I’m tough durable Tupperware.

I am good for the everyday rough-and-tumble, take-a-beating type situation.  When you need something strong, and its ok if it already has some nicks and bruises, and can take a few more and still work, I’m your guy.  Just throw me in the dishwasher when done, store me in the back of the top cabinet or under the sink and wait till you need me again.

However, when you want elegance, class, sophistication and something sensitive to the environment – you know the kind of thing used on special occasions, you want my wife. She is “weaker” like that. 

As a husband, I have to remember that simply saying the wrong words, or saying them too loud, can hurt my wife. She is weaker.  Just like when you eat on crystal, you can’t let your fork hit it too hard, else you damage it.

Want to make a toast?  You don’t smash two crystal champagne glasses together yelling “Cheers!” as if they are plastic beer mugs.  Instead, you lightly and carefully tilt them towards one another and softly say “cheers”.

For some people that concept is silly.  Tupperware probably laughs at the crystal for not even being strong enough to withstand being put in a dishwasher.  At the same time, the Tupperware rarely finds out the pleasure of being washed, rinsed and dried by hand, and then put on display in a prominent place for all to see.

In the home I grew up in, we totally treated Tupperware different than Princess House. The different ways we would put food onto them, carry them around, served from them and even ate with, were totally opposite. Even the names conjure up different images and pictures in your mind before ever seeing the product.

We kept Tupperware at the bottom of the sink and in the back of dark cabinets. We never served guests on Tupperware.   Tupperware was quick and dirty, to store things, to use in a hurry or rush and especially for utility purposes.

We had a special china cabinet for our Princess House crystal where they were regularly polished and put on display for all to see.  It was a stopping point for any tour of the house.  A dinner guest always got these “good dishes” during a meal. It was an honor to be crystal in our house.  Not so much for Tupperware.

In this verse, the word of God says to be mindful that women are more fragile, and also HONOR them as co-heirs to grace. Somehow the gist of the entire verse saying to HONOR women gets lost and drowned out by a hypersensitivity to that word “weaker”.

This verse simply means women are on equal terms to Gods grace as men, but require a special, more sensitive handling. 

So, are women weaker than men?

Definitely, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

It is what makes them special, unique, fragile, special princesses of the house…and as the bible says; they are more precious than rubies.

Brothers, treat women as fine, delicate crystal.

Sisters, do NOT be afraid to be weak, meek, gentle and loving.  God fashioned you to be such a way.   Also do not let any man ever forget you are that way. Demand them to put you on display and handle you with care.

Pastor Moe discusses the problem of and cause of the so-called 80/20 rule and why ALL people should be EMPOWERED in church to excercise their gifts rather then be held back. 

He tells why Epic Life Community wants to see Church Done Differently.