LDS religion in light of the Bible

LDS religion in light of the Bible

The heart of Mormonism are three things.

1. Like Satan, Mormons want to ascend to be God.
2. Sex. This is a male dominated religion whereby the early church practiced Polygamy and the doctrine has always proclaimed eternal polygamy.
3. It is by works that you get into "Heaven".

Brief summary of the True Christian Gospel.

1. Salvation is through faith in Christ and repentance of Sin. Gen 15:6 Gal 2:20
2. Jesus, born of a virgin through the seed of the woman. Gen 3:15
3. Jesus Christ lived a perfect life, was crucified for our sins, and defeated death rising again. 2 Cor 5:21
   
4. Christ is the Son of God and He is God. John 10:30
5. There is only One God. Father, Son, Holy Spirit: Triune God Genesis 1:26,27 Isaiah 44:6,8 Isaiah 46:9
6. The World is Saved through Jesus. John 3:17
   
7. Only one Godly inspired text. The Bible – Old and New Testament 2 Tim 3:12-17
8. Salvation is not through Works but through faith. Eph 2:8-9 Titus 3:5

I know there are more but this is a small summary of which the LDS church is totally different.

The Mormon Gospel

1. The Law of eternal progression: As God is, man once was. As God is, man may become.
1. Men can become a God
2. Man will have their own planet to be God of.
3. Man will have sex with his many wives and give birth to spirit babies who will populate the planet.
2. Whom they believe God the Father is.
1. A man, of flesh and bone as tangible as man’s. (bible shows not true in John 4:22-24 – Numbers 23:19)
2. God evolved from mortal man.
3. That there are millions of gods. Father gods, Mother gods, Grand Father gods, Uncle gods, Aunt gods, etc.
4. Man can become a god of his own planet. [1]
3. Whom they believe Jesus Christ is.
1. God the Father had sex with Mary to conceive Jesus.
2. Brother of Satan
3. Had three wives, Mary, Martha, and Mary Magdalene. They also had many babies, to which, Joseph Smith is a descendant.
4. His death only brings general salvation where you will be resurrected and judged by your works.
5. His blood has nothing to do with salvation. They drink water for their communion.
4. “Heaven” is actually termed as “degrees of glory” [2] since there are 4 levels of heaven. (Joseph Smith will be there with Christ and GOD judging all the people)
1. Hell – Where the absolute worst sinners go.
2. Telestial - where unbelievers go
3. Terrestrial - for religious people who aren't Mormons and for Mormons who have not met the requirements of the laws. NO: Alcohol, red meat, tea, coffee, soda, smoking, tithing 10% etc.
4. Celestial - for Mormons who have kept ALL of the laws and ordinances of their church. He must be married in a Mormon temple with all its rituals. Their bishop will wash the entire body of the bride and groom.
5. Black people are descendants of Cain and will not enter heaven. [3]
6. Women must be married to make it into the upper levels of heaven. Her Mormon husband raises her to life by calling her by her temple name. [4]
5. The book of Mormon.
1. Joseph Smith, who was involved with the occult went out into the woods to pray about which religion was the true religion. As he was praying, an angel of light appeared to him and told him that all the religions were false and that he needed to start a new religion. The angel told him where he could find the true writings of God buried near by. Smith proceeded to dig up the writings which were on Golden Tablets. These were written in reformed Egyptian and he needed two rocks called seer stones to help him translate it. Smith says that the angel Morni took the tablets so he was unable to show anyone them. He then put the seer stones into a hat and looked into it. He said that the stones turned into what looked like parchment and he was able to translate the reformed Egyptian to English. He got through dictating 161 pages of the book of Lehi. The man writing all of Joseph Smith words convinced Joesph to let him take the pages home to his wife. She took them and hid them to see if Smith could duplicate it since the story seemed so unbelievable. Smith became angry that the pages were lost and left to pray. He cam back and said that he had a vision, and that an angel of the Lord told him that he was very angry with Smith and that the punishment would be that he could not read from the book of Lehi anymore. He would have to read out of the book of Nephi and that the stories would be similar but not exactly the same.

The Difference

1. Mormons will tell you that the reason they believe is that they felt a burning in their bosom or heart.

--- Bible says ---
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

2. The LDS religion is a creation of Joseph Smith. I also maintain that the religion was also created by Satan. Satan is a brilliant being. He created this religion which is the closest religion to Christianity but so far away that people follow it and go to hell because of it.

--- Bible says ---
Romans 10:3 Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness.

3. Joseph Smith describes the angel Moroni as an "Angel of Light".

2 Nephi 9:9-10; “And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself: yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents, who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder and all manner of secret works of darkness. O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster…”

Introductory page of the D&C, 3^rd paragraph says; “This took place in the early spring of 1820. In September, 1823, and at later times, Joseph Smith received visitations from Moroni, an angel of light, who revealed the resting place of the ancient record from which The Book of Mormon was afterward translated”.

--- Bible says ---

2 Cor. 11:14-5 says; “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works”.

Galatians 1:6-9 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! 9As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!

So, the Mormon doctrine is completely contrary to the bible. What makes Mormons not Christian is the fact that Mormons believe in a different Jesus than what is in the Bible. We have salvation through faith in the Jesus Christ of the Bible. If you have faith in a different Jesus than that of the bible, it is no faith at all; especially not a saving faith.

References and sitations:

[1] Times and Seasons, Volume 5 page 613 - Journal of Discourses, volume 10 page 223 – Journal of Discourse volume 1 page 121 - Mormon Doctrine page 577

2] D&C 131:1-3
“To receive this blessing of exaltation, a temple sealing is essential,” “In the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees; And in order to obtain the highest, a man must enter into this order of the priesthood [meaning the new and everlasting covenant of marriage]; And if he does not, he cannot obtain it.”

[3] Journal of Discourses 7:290

[3] "We know there is a portion of inhabitants of the earth who dwell in Asia that are Negroes, and SAID TO BE JEWS. The blood of Judah has not only mingled almost with all nations, but also WITH THE BLOOD OF CAIN, LET THIS CHURCH which is called the Kingdom of God on the earth; we will summons the first presidency, the twelve, the high counsel, the Bishoprick, and all the elders of Israel, suppose we summons them here to appear here, and here declare that it is right to mingle our seed, WITH THE BLACK RACE OF CAIN, that they shall come in with us and be partakers with us of all the blessings God has given to us. ON THAT VERY DAY, AND HOUR WE DO SO, THE PREISTHOOD IS TAKEN FROM THIS CHURCH, and kingdom and God leaves us to OUR FATE. The moment we consent to mingle with the seed of Cain THE CHURCH MUST GO TO DESTRUCTION. Perhaps I have said enough upon this subject. I have given you true principles and doctrine." (Brigham Young address, Ms. (d.1234, Box 48, folder 3, dated Feb. 5, 1852, LDS Church Historical Department, SLC, Utah)

[4] D&C 84:33-9; Goddesses are always subject to a god. Women are denied the Priesthood (meaning they are denied authority—not the same as Catholic priesthood). “In the LDS universe, theologically described as the real eternal universe, each man who achieves the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom is worth many times more than each woman, even the women who qualify at that highest Celestial level, because each man who achieves Godhood-level may have numerous God-wives, but each God-wife may have only one husband. This can only mean that each "heavenly father" is worth many times more than each "heavenly mother." And, even if the ratio were strictly one to one, the male God, not the female God, holds the priesthood authority and is the only one of the God parents to whom his earth-mortality children are allowed to pray. So Mormon women can never, NEVER achieve equality with men, no matter how outstanding or righteous the women are. That's just the way it's set up."

www.mrm.org Mormon Research Ministry

www.hotm.tv Heart of the Matter – Ex-Mormon showing the fallacy of Mormonism

Fast Facts on False Teachings – Ron Carlson & Ed Decker

Reasoning From The Scriptures with the Mormons – Ron Rhodes

Getting Permission in Evangelism

Getting Permission when you Evangelize

Permission Evangelism is a style of evangelism not the rule. Lets list some styles of evangelism.

1. Lifestyle evangelism – Displaying Christ with your life. We should all be doing this.

2. No-fear evangelism – Starting conversations with complete strangers calling them to turn to Christ.

3. Open air preaching – The person preaching to anyone who is in earshot.

4. Conversational Evangelism – A way to get someone to want to talk more about Christ through Conversation

5. Convention style “Billy Graham” – “Promise Keepers”

Key Verses
1 Peter 3:15 - ¹⁵But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Colossians 4:5-6 - ⁵Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Reflection question: What must you do to get someone to ask you about your
faith? 2-3min

In today’s culture of fast, quick, cheap, easy, and “What’s in it for me?” Christians are faced with a society the does not want God. Getting permission to share your story to anyone is a hard thing to do, but is necessary to engage people where they are.

Co-Worker Story: One day, my non-Christian co-worker came to me and asked me for help. He was struggling with issues that were weighing him down. He asked me for advise and I was able to instruct Him in the direction of the Lord. The reason why he asked me for advice was because he saw my actions and way of life and saw something different. In working with my friend, he was watching how I acted, or rather, didn’t act, and wanted to know why I was different from other people and how I could best direct him. It was because of
my bringing up key words throughout our working relationship that helped him to understand that I was a Christian and am working on being a better Christ follower.

How do you get people to ask you about your faith? How do you get them to be genuinely interested in what you have to say about your faith? Let’s look at what the bible says…

It all starts and ends with God.

John 6:44 ⁴⁴"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
- God draws us to Himself. I believe Jesus means that it is not our works, deeds, thoughts, or actions that earn us eternal life. The glory is all God’s for the drawing of the person.

Psalm 65 ³ When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave ^[b] our transgressions. ⁴ Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.

- God is the one that changes hearts for His own glory.

God does call us to accept Him even though
we have the ability to not.

Matthew 22 The Parable of the Wedding Banquet

1Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2"The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 4"Then he sent some more servants and said, 'Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.' 5"But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7The king was enraged. He sent his army and
destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8"Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.' 10So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11"But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12'Friend,' he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless. 13"Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14"For many are called, but few are chosen."

In any Evangelism you do, be sure to saturate the person and situation with prayer. Pray for the Lord to do the work, and that you will be the vessel He uses to draw people to Himself.

Reflection time: How has God used you to reach someone in your life for Christ – 8min.

Matthew 5:16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Understanding Permission

Matthew 13 – Parable of the Sower

¹That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. ²Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ³Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. ⁹He who has ears, let him hear."

¹⁸"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: ¹⁹When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is
the seed sown along the path. ²⁰The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. ²¹But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. ²²The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. ²³But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."

This is the parable of the “Sower”, not the “seed”. It is our job to bring the gospel to everyone and we need to draw wisdom from it. We as evangelists, which we are all called to be, must know when to walk and when to talk. When to talk is when the person is receptive and ready for the gospel, and when to walk is when you should leave the conversation for another time. Always be sensitive to the Holy Spirit about both cases.

1. You are building Trust first and foremost.
- Through getting permission and trust, you begin to know who they are, what they want, what their experiences are, and how best to reach them for Christ.

2. The ultimate goal is permission to explain Christ so that they make the decision to follow Him.
- Permission Evangelism is to “get them to give you more and more permission over time to share with them Christ.

3. Permission is nontransferable and it is a process, not a moment.
- Another Christian can’t come into a person’s life an pick up right where you left off. It must be gained again.

Understand about debating and arguing.

It is easy to get into a debate and try to “win” the soul by “winning” the debate/argument. I have given the best debates to non-believers and have won, hands down in our argument, even as far as to show them how ignorant and flawed their arguments are, and still lose the person. I know myself. I love to win. When I see a challenge, I take it head on and forge through it triumphantly. It can be extremely detrimental for us Christians to enter a debate since it may drive people further away from Christ. So we will get the opposite reaction that we desire.

Jesus never chased anyone down to receive Him. He called them and let them choose.

Personal discussion question: Like the parable of the Sower, How do you know when to
walk away from a conversation?

A Permission Conversation

When people ask you questions, how can you direct that question toward getting permission to talk about Christ? If someone asked you about what you do for a living, you could simply state your job title and expound on its complexities. Just after you state your job, you usually are able to instantly tell if the person really cares to know you as a person or just making chit-chat. The people that are making chit-chat don’t really care what you have to say, so it is not likely, although possible, that they will not want to hear about what you have to say about Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. You can do the same thing with any question you are asked and spin it toward spiritual things to see if they are receptive to what you are saying.

Reflection Time: What questions are you asked frequently that you could direct the answers
and the topic toward Christ and spiritual issues? How could you answer the question and bring up Christ all at the same time. All this is to gauge the person’s “spiritual temperature” in regards to their receptiveness to Christ.

Personal Reflection: What triggers can you use to start the conversation toward Christ

These words and phrases bring superficial conversations into a personal direction toward Christ without force, into the direction

Trigger Words: Church, Christ, Ministry, God, Jesus

Trigger Phrases:

1. Spiritual Experience
   

2. Work with an organization that helps people who__________

3. I used to think that way but I had an experience that changed my perspective…
   

4. Discovered I was wrong

5. Change in belief

Personal Reflection: Are people asking you about your story?

Homework – Memorize 1 Peter 3:15

Why its time for Permission in Evangelism

Why it is time for permission...

What is Evangelism: Evangelism - noun - the preaching of the gospel.

Evangelism is important for the non-Christian as well as for you. It helps you to understand and clarify what you believe. If you don't know what or why it is you believe, how can you effectively share to anyone about Christ.

Sharing the gift of God's love is not just a duty or an obligation, but is also blessing. We get to share Christ’s love with everyone.
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in^[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Types of Evangelism:

1. Evangelists: Billy Graham, Ray Comfort, and Jarod Ramirez would be that type.
   

2. Missionaries: Christen Morrow, Jeremy & Suzy Bullard, Steve & Andrea Cabrillos, etc.

3. Pastors: Sheppard’s of Christ’s flock in the Church. Reaching out to new people, while growing the believers.

4. You!: We are all called to be an evangelist. To our co-workers, Friends, Neighbors,
   Family, Children, etc.
   

Prerequisite to evangelism:
No matter which type you are, you MUST show Christ through your life.
If you don’t display Christ with your life, actions, words, deeds, you are not a good witness.

Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Why I share Christ to everyone?

1. It is a commandment.

2. Apart from Christ, everyone is going to hell.

3. Show love to our neighbor: Matthew 22:36-40

4. I grow, because it forces me to learn and study. I need to learn how to respond to answers.

5. We get blessed for evangelizing and by evangelizing.

   Table Time Questions – 1 per table: 5 min
   

1. How do you know whom you should start a conversation with about the Gospel?
2.How does a Christian relate to a non-Christian?
3. How do you communicate the work of God in your life.
4. How do you know when to talk and when to walk?

Ways to evangelize with words, deeds, actions:

1. Confrontational - blunt, forward - Simon known as Peter.
2. Intellectual – reasoning and rational explanations - Paul the Apostle
3. Testimonial – like the blind man who Jesus opened his eyes. "²⁵He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!" John 9:25
4. Interpersonal – Jesus did this often. i.e. speaking to the woman at the well one on one. John 4:1-26
5. Invitational– you can invite people to church, your home, anywhere so they see Christ.
6. Service – serving others is a great way to evangelize with your life.

***Everyone should be sensitive to the situation and the Holy Spirit when evangelizing.***
Table Time: Which style are you more drawn to? 3 min

- America and Permission -

The American culture is on of self centered, selfish, and inclusive. They want everything their way right away. The media shows celebrities getting and doing whatever they want. Businesses are exploiting this in their marketing and are perpetuating it. American’s feel like you need their permission to “invade” their personal space, possessions, and time. This is not everywhere around the world. In places like El Salvador, where we send missionaries to, people can’t wait to hear the Good News. They come running. In places like Europe/England they are so against religion, because of the Church of England, that they do not want to have anything to do with conversations about religion/Christ.

Jerry Seinfeld:

Telemarketer: Hello, I was wondering if you are interested in switching telephone companies?
Jerry: I can’t talk right now, why don't you give me your home number and I'll call you back later?
Telemarketer: Umm, we're not allowed to do that.
Jerry: Oh, I guess because you don't want strangers calling you at home.
Telemarketer: Umm, no.
Jerry: Well, now you know how I feel.

American's believe that people must earn the right to talk to them. In being all things to all men, we need to earn the right to be heard by others. They feel like you are violating their space and that you should be invited in. Same goes with evangelism. People expect you to have permission to "Invade" their life.

Conversion Cycle for Believers

Old Cycle of Conversion: Person  Church  GOD (Salvation)

New Cycle of Conversion: Person God through Salvation  Church

The New Cycle is really the old cycle which originated from Jesus Christ. We are called to go out and make disciples of all nations. The Old Cycle, I believe, came about with good intentions but did not totally follow the biblical model Christ portrayed.

(Church is the body of believers. Christ said, wherever 2 or more are gathered, There I will also be.)

Read Church Statistics on page 19 and 21 “Permission Evangelism”Of all the people who accept Christ, 80% - 90% “Backslide” after they make a confession. Example: 294,000 people accepted Christ in a denomination; only 14,000 can be accounted for in Church.

We need to look at how to evangelize like Christ did. What Did Jesus Do

Mark 10:17-22
The Rich Young Man
17As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 18"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone. 19You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.'[d]" 20"Teacher," he declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy." 21Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Jesus did:

1. Corrected the man. – “Why do you call me good? No one is good – except God alone.”

2. Instructed about the law – “You know the commandments…”
   

3. Loved the lost person – “Jesus looked at the man with love in His heart.”

4. Showed that the man broke the law. – “One thing you lack…”

5. Called for a decision – “Then come, follow me”

Think if I told you someone paid a $25,000 speeding ticket for you breaking the law, you would say, “That’s ridiculous, I haven’t broken the law! I don’t need anyone to pay for me!”

Now, imagine if I elaborated on the offense. If I told you that the law caught you driving 55mph through a 15mph school zone that was clearly marked and that offense costs $25,000. But, someone you don’t even know loved you enough to pay the fine for you and take the penalty in your place; you would say, Thank you! To that person who paid for your breaking the law.

This is how Jesus did it. We should follow his example and do what he did.

We are not all called to become Missionaries, Evangelists, or
Pastors. But we are called to make disciples of all nations.
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in^[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Where is your calling? Where does God have you right now?

Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Every Christian has all of these necessary elements already, but those that have difficulty sharing their faith are living with one or all of the following barriers:

* They don't understand how to relate to today's seeker.
* They can't articulate the work of God's grace in their own lives.
* They don't share God's passion for the lost.
* They don't know how to respect each individual's unique journey.

Homework

Answer the following:

Why do you believe the Bible?


Why do you follow Jesus?


Why do you care if anyone else does?


Why do you have hope in Christ?


What has He ever done for you?


What would your life be like without God?

If you would like to learn more about evangelism check out these Evangelism ministries:

1. Way of the Master: http://www.wayofthemaster.com

2. Evangelism Explosion: http://www.eeinternational.org

3. Christian Business Men Committee: http://www.cbmc.com

4. Exodus International: http://www.exodusinternational.org

When Marriage Hurts

When Marriage Hurts

by Dustin Heiner
dustinheiner@gmail.com

No marriage is perfect. The marriage you see may look good on the outside but may be eroding from the inside. i.e. A couple I know is going through a divorce and most people would never have known anything was wrong.

We will take up the resolve of Joseph in Genesis 50:20 What Satan meant evil, God meant it for good in order to strengthen marriages and make the more rooted in Christ.

God Hates Divorce
Malachi 2:15-17 15 Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth. 16 "I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel, "and I hate a man's covering himself with violence as well as with his garment," says the LORD Almighty. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith.
Jesus reiterates this point. Matthew 19: ⁸Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. ⁹I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."

Divorce must not be an option.

Let’s look at the very first marriage. Adam and Eve.

Adam was created in God's image. Gen 1:26 Let us make Man in our image. This image of God is complete and whole in God's image and traits, with nothing lacking. Then God saw that it was not good for man to be alone, so he created a helper, which was woman. Gen 2:18 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

When God made Eve, he took a part of Adam and created Eve with it. So, Adam was the complete picture of God before Eve and now, after Eve, is only a partial picture of God. When you put Adam and Eve together, you create the full image of God once again.

Together, Man and Woman represent the complete picture of God.

Key Point #1 - Christian marriages are under attack

The first time Satan attacked anyone was by destroying the first marriage.
He tricked Eve, to eat of the fruit of the tree of life and then Eve gave to Adam. Adam, not wanting to be separated from Eve, choose Eve over God. This is both the first instance of Satan attacking and Man choosing Idolatry over God.

Let’s see the ways that will Satan attack us in our marriage and in life.

Genesis 3 The Fall of Man
¹ Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" ² The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' " "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." ⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Matthew 4 The Temptation of Jesus

¹Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. ²After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." ⁴Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. ⁵Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ⁶"If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
" 'He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"
⁷Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" ⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹"All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." ¹⁰Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" ¹¹Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

The Three different ways that Satan will attack.

1 John 2:15-17Do Not Love the World
¹⁵Do not love the world nor the things in the world If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. ¹⁷The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

1. Lust of the flesh. Gen 3:6 - Matthew 4:3
Gen3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food...
Mat4:3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread."

So Satan will attack you with your flesh. There are many examples but here are two: For women, it might be . For men, it might be what you desire to eat. Think of whatever might be an idol in your life that will take your focus off the Lord and onto your flesh or person.

2. Lust of the eyes. Gen 3:6 - Matthew 4:8
Gen 3:6...and pleasing to the eye...
Mat4:8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹"All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."

Satan will attack you through your eyes. This could be coveting something your neighbor has. Car, House, Job, Wife, Husband. For men, Jesus says, if you look at a woman lustfully, you are committing adultery in your heart which is a sin. Matthew 5:28

3. The boastful pride of life. Genesis 3:6 - Matthew 4:6
Gen 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom...
Mat 4:6 "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
" 'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"

Satan is saying to Jesus, "prove yourself to me". Eph 2:8-10 says that it is by grace we are saved, and not of works so that no one can boast. Everything we have, and everything we are is from the Lord. The boastful pride of life would be putting yourself above God.

Key point #2 - We all need to work to change ourselves to be more like Christ.

Each spouse must work on themselves to become a better spouse and Christ follower.
Each is not good enough as they are. I am not good enough for Melissa. Melissa is not good enough for me. It is my place to say that about myself but it is not my place to say that about Melissa. We can only change ourselves.

Who can you change? Only yourself. You cannot make someone love you. You cannot make someone change. You can only encourage, instruct, and correct others but it is them who will make the change. You can only change yourself.

God's view of marriage roles is that the man is to love his wife and the wife is to respect her husband.

Men
Psalm 112 – A righteous Husband
1. We must delight in the Lord.

Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. ² But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 112:1 Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in His commandments.

2. Love our Wives as Christ loves the Church

Ephesians 5: ²⁵Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church

3. We must protect our wives as Christ protects the Church.

Ephesians 5: ²⁵Husbands love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

Psalm 112: ⁷He will not fear evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.

4. Spiritual Leader

Ephesians 5:26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, ²⁷and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
Psalm 112:1 Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in His commandments.

5. Example of Christ to our children

Psalm 112:2 His descendants will be mighty in the land. The generation of the upright will be blessed.

Ephesians 5: ⁴Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Proverbs 20:7 The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him.

6. Men are the providers.

1 Tim 5:8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Women
Proverbs 31 - A virtuous wife
Proverbs 31 is a speech from a Mom to her Son about how to find a virtuous wife.
Verses 10-31 is a list of what a virtuous wife is.
There are 22 verses from 10-31 and there are 22 characters of the Hebrew alphabet. Each verse starts with a different character of the Hebrew alphabet and goes through the entire alphabet from beginning to end. This is an easy way for young boys to memorize the character traits they need to look for when looking for a wife.

1. Wives must be trustworthy of her husband at all times.
verse 11: The heart of her husband safely trusts her; So he will have no lack of gain.
- Their husbands should be able to trust us.
- They should be able to talk to us about anything in confidence.
- They should not have to worry about us stealing from him.
- He will not have to be a "solder of fortune" to get back money which she has lost/spent.
E&A: Their husbands must be able to confide in us and know that wives can be trusted. He should be able to trust us with the check book and credit cards and know that wives will be wise with their money. Wives will also be trustworthy with the house and the care of their kids.

2. Wives should always have the best interest of her husband at heart.

verse 12: She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.
Wives also need to be wise and spiritually strong, encouraging her husband and building him up to be the best man he can be.

verse 15: She also rises while it is yet night, and provides food for her household, and a portion for her maidservants. Portions mean that she gave them their tasks to perform for today. This means that she is in charge of managing the house. She puts the household’s needs above herself.

verse 18: She perceives that her merchandise is good, and her lamp does not go out by night.

verse 25: Strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come.

verse 26: She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness.
E&A: And because wives are wise and spiritually strong in the Lord, wives must be able to confront their husband’s sin and weaknesses in a loving, kind, and respectful way.

3. Wives should never be idle. Wives should always be working hard without complaint.
verse 13: She seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands.
In the old testament, women worked long and hard doing things like seeking to buy wool and flax which they would take home, spin them into thread and then weave on a loom into fabric, which she would then cut and make garments and other household accessories out of.

verse 17: She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms.
She becomes strong from her daily tasks, and she provides for the needs of her family by keeping them warm with wool, and cool with linen/flax.

verse 19: She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hand holds the spindle. This is used in the process of making thread and then making fabric.

verse 21: She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household is clothed with scarlet. She makes her clothes properly for necessities. She died them scarlet or deep red to make the beautiful as well as functional because darker colors keep the person who wears it warm.

verse 27: She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. She is wise and knows the Lord. She guides her family and husband daily with words of wisdom from God’s law.

4. Wives are to be entrepreneurial and thrifty.
verse 14: She is like the merchant ships, she brings her food from afar.
Women used to have to walk long distances to get food for their family. Because she is walking so far, she is probably looking for the best product at the best price.

verse 16: She considers a field and buys it; from her profits she plants a vineyard.
She uses money that she earns herself and not the money her husband has made. She uses this money to buy something that will help the family. She doesn’t spend money on herself but on the best interest of her family. She makes wise investments.

verse 24: She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies sashes for the merchants.
She uses her talents to bring in extra money to help her family. She doesn't spend money on herself but on her family. This shows that even though she is a housewife, she is creative and brings in money for her family by creating jobs for herself even though she is taking care of the home.

5. Wives need to be selfless and serve others and not themselves.
verse 20: She extends her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
E&A: Wives need to seek out ways to serve the poor and the needy. Wives must show compassion, getting involved in their lives, and be an example of Christ to everyone.

6. Wives need to be modest in what they wear. Not leading other men to fall into temptation.
verse 22: She makes tapestry for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
E&A: She dresses in clothes that look good for her husband. Wives need to take care of their looks. Wives need to look good for their husbands, and be pleasing with their looks but being immodest.

verse 1Tim 2:9-10 I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.
E&A: Women need to dress modestly. Wives must not cause men to stumble, leading to problems in other peoples marriages.

When wives do not strive to be the virtuous wife that is when marriage hurts. Wives want to be like the virtuous wife so that it will be true of us in verse 28: Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:

Take Away Point:
Our priorities must be in proper order: God, Spouse, Children, Self.

1. God must come first in our lives.

   1. We must have our own communication/relationship with Christ. Our spouse cannot get us into heaven. There is no check box for affiliated with… We must put God first in our lives. Putting God first is to filter everything you do, say, think, and are, are through the Godly “Filter” for your life. Everything must be checked and rechecked through the “Filter” of you glorifying Christ. If we put anything above Christ’s spot, your life will tumble and break apart. Our spouse must not be in this #1 spot. God comes first.
      

2. Spouse must come second in our lives.

   1. With God at the first position, our spouse comes second in the list of priorities. We put our spouse above everything else. Men, love and serve your wife. Women respect and submit to your husband. If our children are put in a higher priority than our spouse, the marriage will fall apart. If we put ourselves above spouse, selfishness will destroy your marriage.
      

3. Children must come third in our lives.

   1. Like the others, if anything is placed above this, your children lives will fall apart.
      

      1. Countless Pastors Kids fall away because their father is dedicated to the Church and Christ and do “Work” for the Lord. Work, ministry, money, friends, hobbies, and everything else must not be put in the place of our children.

      2. As well, businessmen see their families fall apart when they devote their lives to work and not to their family. You may be providing for them physically, but spiritually and emotionally, you must be there for them.
         

4. Self must come fourth in the list of all priorities.

   1. We must take care of ourselves last in the list of priorities. We are to be like Christ who came to earth as a servant. We must serve God, our Spouse, and our Children.

Starting a blog

So, I never started a blog but decided to try it out.