Luke 10:17ff

2023 – IS THAT DOOR OPEN OR CLOSED?

(December 17, 2022) Richard Winter encourages us to make right decisions in 2023.

It’s almost January 2023! A whole year has gone by so quickly and, although good things have happened to many by God’s grace, we still live in dark times and a troubled world! Already people are wondering what really lies ahead for us next year, doors of opportunity-wise.

Christians who seek God’s will regarding their future in any year will always want to know the answer to these five questions:

  • Is this door open or is this door closed?
  • Is this God’s will for me?
  • Or is there something else?
  • Am I even supposed to go this way?
  • Or is there some other way?

Is this how you are currently thinking – which way should you go… or not go in 2023? For example, are you considering whether it’s right or wrong to switch jobs?If so, how do you know when it’s the right time to move from one place to another?

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ANTI ‘CANCEL CULTURE’ CHRISTIANITY

(April 13, 2021) When folks become subscribers to this free monthly Onliner,we receive a brief intro, such as a young Asian describing himself as… ‘A Normal Person: 100% Honest and Trustful Person.’

In other words… who and what he is.

The fruit of the Spirit
Not that this young man’s a prophet, but Jesus warned his followers against untruthful, dishonest Christianity: ‘You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act’ (Matthew 7:15-16NLT).

Christianity needs to be kept simple! Jesus liked to keep things simple and here he makes recognition simple… ‘the way they act’ identifies all true Christians, let alone prophets. He went on to teach that a good tree produces good fruit whereas a bad tree, bad fruit, rapping it with ‘Thus, by their fruit you will recognise them’ (vv17-18). How simple!

F B Meyer has written ‘The worth of the gospel has been attested all down the ages by the characters which it has produced… There are many new systems of theology, many nostrums are being loudly advertised, but the one test of them all is in the fruit they bear.’

Nothing superspiritual here… ‘fruit’ is fruit, something easily recognised and desirable. For followers of Jesus, this is reaching out with our Christian characteristics to help whoever we can in some way. People see us in action, observe us! We’re the fifth gospel – The Gospel According to You. May they see the characteristics of honesty, trustworthiness, generosity, helpfulness and more.

Paul describes nine of these in Galatians 5:22-23, calling them the fruit of the Spirit –

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