Charles Thomas Studd (1960-1931) was born in 1860. He was commonly known as, “C.T. Studd.” He became an expert Cricket player in his youth, but decided to become a missionary to China later on. Charles was born-again at age 18, through faith alone in Jesus Christ. You can read his biography here if you'd like. In this blog I wanted to share some of his notable inspiring preacher quotes:
“Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” ―C.T. Studd
“Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop, within a yard of hell.” ―C.T. Studd
“If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.” ―C.T. Studd
“Let us not glide through this world and then slip quietly into heaven, without having blown the trumpet loud and long for our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Let us see to it that the devil will hold a thanksgiving service in hell, when he gets the news of our departure from the field of battle.” ―C.T. Studd
“The light that shines farthest shines brightest nearest home.” ―C.T. Studd
“The “romance” of a missionary is often made up of monotony and drudgery; there often is no glamour in it; it doesn’t stir a man’s spirit or blood. So don’t come out to be a missionary as an experiment; it is useless and dangerous. Only come if you feel you would rather die than not come. Don’t come if you want to make a great name or want to live long. Come if you feel there is no greater honor, after living for Christ, than to die for Him.” ―C.T. Studd
“God's real people have always been called fanatics.” ―C.T. Studd
“True religion is like the smallpox. If you get it, you give it to others and it spreads.” ―C.T. Studd
“WE ARE FRITTERING AWAY TIME AND MONEY IN A MULTIPLICITY OF CONVENTIONS, conferences, and retreats, when the real need is to go straight and full steam into battle, with the signal for "close action" flying.” ―C.T. Studd
“Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell, I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of Hell.” ―C.T. Studd
“I am getting desperately afraid of going to heaven for I have had the vision of the shame I shall suffer as I get my first glimpse of the Lord Jesus; His majesty, power, and marvellous love for me, who treated Him so meanly and shabbily on earth and acted as though I did Him a favour in serving Him! No wonder God shall have to wipe away the tears off all faces, for we shall be broken-hearted when we see the depth of His love and the shallowness of ours.” ―C.T. Studd
Isaiah 30:21-22, “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, Get thee hence.”
In our text passage from the Old Testament book of Isaiah, the right way was to just keep going forward, and not stray to the right or to the left. Deuteronomy 17:11, “According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.” Here are some related Scriptures:
Job 6:18, “The paths of their way are turned aside; they go to nothing, and perish.”
Isaiah 59:8, “The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.”
Hebrews 12:13, “And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.”
We are living in a crooked generation who have strayed off the straight path. In my 57 years of life, I have watched my country go from a decent place to live to being a large insane asylum. From legalized sodomite marriages to murderous abortion, from the fraudulent Federal Reserve Ponzi Scheme to greedy corporations, from corrupt Bible revisions to the demonic counterfeit gospel of Lordship Salvation, from public nudity wherever there is water to an epidemic wave of unpunished crime across the country—we are living in the “perilous times” foretold in the inspired Holy Bible in 2nd Timothy 3:1-7.
Times sure have changed in America. There was a time not too long ago that if you had a phone in your car you were considered a rich person, but today you're considered poor if you don't have a phone in your car. Interesting!
I remembered studying diligently in early 1993 to take the test in Chicago to obtain a Chauffer's License, so I could drive a taxicab. I bought a study guide to help me. Yo pass the lengthy test, you had to know where all of the tourist attractions, hotels, museums and places of key interest were located. There were no mobile phone or GPS yet. I didn't get my first computer until 1994. It used a Windows 3.1 operating system (wow, that's old), with an Intel 25sx microprocessor chip (ancient dinosaur technology by today's standards). I remember how blown away I was when Microsoft Windows 1995 first came out. It was totally revolutionary in comparison to the Windows 3.1 operating system. Times have changed.
Most young to middle-aged people today cannot remember a time when there was no internet, cell phones, credit cards or microwaves, but I do. In the 1970's we didn't have microwaves yet. All vehicles were still only rear-wheel drive; front-wheel drive didn't come out until the 1980's. When I was a kid video games didn't exist, we just had board games and pinball games. I loved the simplicity of the old days. In my youth we only had LP records, 8-tracks and cassettes. CD's didn't exist until the 1980's, and really didn't become popular until almost 1990. The MP3 wasn't invented until 1987, but didn't become popular until the 1990's.
When I was growing up everyone had a big thick phonebook. There was the Yellow Pages and then the White Pages. I lived in Chicago, so these phonebooks were very thick (about 4" thick each). I was disgusted when I went to work at the U.S. Postal Service in 1993, to see for the first time in my life that they actually publish the “Pink Pages” just for homosexuals. I am not kidding! The USPS publishes a phonebook of sodomite-friendly businesses. I thought I had seen it all, but that surprised me. The world is very different today than it was in 1974, fifty years ago.
I thank God for choosing to place my spirit in this body during this time of human history, in these amazing modern times of convenience and technology. I thank God that I wasn't born into slavery in North Korea, or as a Negro slave before the Civil War in the United States, or as a Hebrew slave during their 400 years of bondage in Egypt.
Dear reader, Lordship Salvation is a crooked path. Heretical Baptismal and Sacramental type plan of salvation are crooked paths. The Devil's plethora of modern corrupt Bible revisions are crooked paths. CHOOSE THE STRAIGHT PATH, THE OLD PATHS!!! Jeremiah 6:16, “Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.” The following Scripture describes America today...
Isaiah 30:1-2, “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin: That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!”
Instead of following the voice of God in the inspired King James Bible, Americans have obeyed the voice of self and Satan. I saw this ungodly billboard which blasphemes our holy Creator...
Judges 21:25, “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”
Ezekiel 2:4, “For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.”
Millions of rebellious, impudent, angry women today demand their selfish “right” to murder an innocent child, but that doesn't change THE TRUTH that killing in God's sight is premeditated first-degree murder. Exodus 20:13, “Thou shalt not kill.” It is a fact that 99% of abortions are not necessary to save the life of the mother, or for the other popular lame excuses that ungodly people use to justify murdering a living child.
Very few people fear God anymore. I was recently defrauded out of $619.20 by Alamo car rental and Priceline. They have no fear of God, so in their ungodly greed these wicked companies hurt and cheat people. Ecclesiastes 8:12-13, “Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.” If you decide to have, pay for or encourage an abortion, woe unto you!
All of these defiant wicked rebels today who protest in anger against the righteous who oppose their evil, they cannot escape the coming judgment of almighty God.
Psalms 2:1-5, “Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.”
I am the biggest sinner I know, so I don't condemn anybody for their sins. Albeit, I can say with all biblical authority that abortion is evil, it is wicked murder! No woman should ever consider having an abortion for any reason! Jacob's wife Rachel died in child birth while delivering Joseph's younger brother, Benjamin. God didn't choose to murder Benjamin to save Rachel's life. The Lord allowed Rachel to die.
It is never okay to do wrong in order to get a chance to do right. If a wicked law were passed, that permitted abortion clinics to perform abortions to save mother's lives, you know as well as I do that 90% of those ungodly clinics would falsely claim that the abortions were all necessary. In other words, if you give them an inch they'd take a mile. We see this evil in every profession today, where shady companies are preying upon Americans whenever they can where there is no law to protect the public. That is why Alamo car rental cheats thousands of consumers, because they can with impunity. Those crooks belong in prison!!!
God's righteous way may not usually be the popular, convenient or financially prosperous way, but it is always the straight way, the right way. Doing the right thing may mean losing some money. It could be a substantial amount of money, but if it is for the right reason, then so be it.
I once heard Attorney David Gibbs Jr. tell a beautiful story about his late grandfather. His family got involved in the cattle business. At one particular auction, the Gibb's family made a killing, buying a bunch of cattle dirt cheap (way too cheap), at the woeful expense of another local family who lost a tremendous amount of money. David Gibbs' grandfather knew that he had bought the cattle way too cheap, unfairly so; but it was all legal. The grandfather felt convicted as a child of God, and wanted to reimburse the other local family, but young David Gibbs respectfully told his grandfather that they had bought the cattle fair and square within the confines of the law. Admirably, grandfather Gibbs said, “No, we got those cattle way too cheap, and the other family has sustained a large loss. We're going to make it right!”
So, his grandfather sent him 300 miles away to the other family's home, to give them a substantial check. When David Gibbs, who was just a teenager at the time, handed the check to the man and his wife saw the amount of the check, she was so emotionally shaken that her nose began to bleed. She was crying and asked, “Who does this? Who gives money away like that?” Her husband replied, “A Christian, that's who!” I absolutely love this true story, because that is the godly way that we should all treat each other. This is The Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12). You can hear the story for yourself, if you'd like, a little after 35 minutes into the following sermon titled, “Second Mile Christianity”...
Second Mile Christianity (2011)
That is exactly the opposite of how Alamo car rental cheated me out of $619.20 in July of 2024. I had rented a car for 4-days, that I would have needed in 5 weeks. But due to a misunderstanding concerning the Banjo Camp I was planning to attend in Montana, I needed to cancel my travel reservations 36 hours after I made them. Although I was able to obtain a full refund from United and American Airlines, and the hotel in Kalispell, Montana, the greedy sharks at Alamo car rental refused to refund a single penny of my $619.20 because they have no mercy, compassion or ethics. God will hold them accountable and show no mercy toward Alamo's executives in eternity (Matthew 7:1-2). What goes around comes around!
I thank God that I can still look in the mirror at the end of each day, and see an honest man who doesn't defraud and cheat people of their hard-earned money. Like the ungodly woman who refuses to apologize to God for her abortion, so also has Alamo hardened their wicked hearts. Ezekiel 2:4, “For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.” I cannot control what other sinners do, but this repentant redeemed sinner chooses to sin as little as possible and make restitution and reconciliation (if applicable) when I do. I love Jesus and want to keep His commandments (John 14:15).
I drove by a powerful billboard message today, which read: “Abortion leaves one dead, one hurting; and a lifetime of regret and sorrow.” Truer words were never spoken. A spoiled brat in her youth may boast of having an abortion, snuffing out the precious life of another human being; but the inspired Holy Bible promises that the time will come when she will woefully regret what evil she has done. Numbers 32:23, “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.” No one ever sins with impunity! You may get away with it down here on earth for fifty years or more, but the Bible warns in Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” We must all give account to God (Romans 14:10-11; Ecclesiastes 12:14).
I stand 100% with Joshua, who boldly declared in Joshua 24:15, “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Thank you for reading my blog. Jesus is precious!!!
Luke 7:20, “When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?”
In Matthew 11:11, Jesus said that there has never been any human being born greater than John the Baptist, yet the dear Savior said he that is least in the Kingdom of God is greater than John. I often am reminded of John's humanity while in prison. John became discouraged and for a time disillusioned, even doubting if Jesus were the Christ, as we see in our text verse.
I want to share with you seven eternal truths dear reader that I settled in my soul a long, long, time ago, so that I never have to revisit or doubt these truths again. Settling these biblical principles once and for all will spare you much needless worry, grief and emotional pain...
Jesus is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Just settle it friend! No, John the Baptist, you do not need to look for another. John 20:31, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”
God cares about you. 1st Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” We all tend to wonder if God really cares about us. Yes, He sure does! I'm sure the apostle James had some doubts just before Herod beheaded him in Acts chapter 12. We just saw that John the Baptist had doubts in prison. Just settle it dear friend that God does care about you.
God is good.Psalms 145:9, “The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.”
God hears the prayers of the righteous. 1st Peter 3:12, “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.” If you are a born-again believer, you have been made righteous by the Lord's grace alone through faith in Jesus. Therefore, God the Father hears your prayers. You have every right as a saint of God to “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16b). Nearly every saint knows that God rarely seems to answer their prayers, but if we could see the things that God sees, we'd never question His wisdom again.
God will never leave nor forsake you.Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” g
God loves you.1st John 4:19, “We love him, because he first loved us.” f
Ultimately everything is going to work out for good.Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
Just settle these truths dear reader. When you feel discouraged, like God never answers your prayers, like nobody cares about you, like things will never improve in your life—God does care, and He is faithful to keep His promises in the Scripture, and He loves you very much. NEVER trust your feelings! Listen to the voice of God in the inspired King James Bible (Hebrews 1:1-2). Thank you for reading my ministry blog.
2nd Corinthians 5:14-15, “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”
I was reading Pastor Brad Strand's The Strand Study Bible today (which I love and appreciate), but I sometimes disagree with things that he teaches. No preacher is correct on everything, including me. You reader must decided for yourself what the truth is through the lens of the Scriptures (1st John 4:1; John 5:39; Acts 17:10-11).
I read Pastor Strand's commentary for 2nd Corinthians 5:14a today. 2nd Corinthians 5:14, “For the love of Christ constraineth us;” He says that it's not enough to merely serve Christ, he said you must have the proper motives or you won't receive a reward at the Judgment Seat of Christ. I humbly disagree with him. Kindly said, there's nothing about having proper motives in 2nd Corinthians 5:14.
As a side note, I see another teaching by Pastor Strand that I disagree with in his commentary for this verse. He says that we don't serve Christ because we love Him, but because Christ loves us. Brother Strand is basing his doctrine on one Bible verse, not considering the whole of Scripture. Based upon 2nd Corinthians 5:14b alone, “For the love of Christ constraineth us;,” it does seem like we serve Christ because He loves us. However, what about John 14:15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” So we see here that if we love Jesus we will obey His commandments, which includes serving Him faithfully. The truth is that we serve Christ both because He loves us and because we also love Him. They key is that Jesus loved us first. 1st John 4:19, “We love him, because he first loved us.”
Now let's get back to our original subject of motives. I agree with Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001), who taught that there's nothing in the Bible about having proper motives to receive a reward from Christ. 1st Corinthians 3:8 says, “Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.” As we just read for ourselves, the inspired Word of God promises a reward to every man according to “his own labour.” Nothing is mentioned about having the proper motives to qualify one's labor for Christ.
Jesus promised in Mark 9:41, “For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.” Again, we don't see any stipulations about having proper motives. If you give a cup of water to someone who is serving Jesus, you will be rewarded because they belong to Christ. God is very ethical, He rewards everyone who does anything to help the cause of Christ. That greatly encourages me to work longer, freely and harder. It bothers me that nearly every layman believer I know who is serving Christ begs for PayPal donations. Albeit, if they are accurately sharing the Gospel they will still be rewarded by Christ in eternity.
Brother Strand, in his commentary for 2nd Corinthians 5:14, cites Matthew 20:1-16 as evidence that we must have the proper motives to receive a reward. This passage is the parable of the household who hired many labourers to work in his vineyard, some for 12 hours, others for nine, six or just one hour. The hired men who worked all day were angry at the householder, for paying the latecomers the same wage that they had received.
I am now going to share with you Dr. John R. Rice's (1895-1980) commentary for Matthew 20:1-16, which is a brilliant exegesis presented in layman's terms. I dread the average Bible commentary, such as, The Pulpit Commentary, which is so boggled down with theological jargon that it is virtually useless to aid the common man to better understand the Scripture.
Dr. Rice states concerning The Parable Of The Workers in Matthew 20:1-16:
Several lessons are intended here by the Saviour. May the Holy Spirit help us to learn these lessens. Some of them are these:
The rewards for serving Christ will be decided by Him and not by human wisdom. "Many that are first" in men's sight will not be first in God's sight. It is not wise for us to compare ministers or Christians, Apollos, Peter, Paul, etc., judging this one to be greatest and this one least, since none of us knows the heart or the outcome and relative value of their labors. First Corinthians 4:1-7 gives clear teaching. There we are told that faithfulness is the great virtue rewarded (I Cor, 4:2), that the Lord Himself is the One who judges (I Cor, 4:4), that we are not to judge until the Lord comes, bringing to light the hidden things, the counsels of the hearts (I Cor, 4:5), that, therefore, one should not be puffed up against another (I Cor, 4:6), that whatever good things we have we get from others and are given by God , so we should not boast (I Cor. 4:7).
Men often give us credit we do not deserve. In John 4 is recounted the marvellous revival in Sychar when the woman at the well and many others were saved. Yet the disciples were warned by the Saviour that the fields so "white to harvest" had been cultivated by others, and He said, "And herein is that saying true. One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours" (John 4:37, 38). In many a great revival one man or two gets most of the credit when his ministry was primarily reaping where others had sown, and entering into the labour of others. Thus only God is able to evaluate the rewards due each workman.
In point of time, the last often come first. We are promised to reap "in due season . . . if we faint not" (Gal. 6:9). But the exact time of our reaping is not told. Often bread cast on the water will return "after many days" (Eccles. 11:1). Sometimes it returns at once. The eleventh hour labourers were paid first.
Salvation and rewards are both of grace. It is clear in this case that the labourers who only worked one hour, others who only worked only a quarter of a day, others a half day, and others three-quarters of the day, did not earn a full days' wages. Their reward then, was of grace. But from Luke 17:7-10, another parable of the servants which Jesus gave about the same time as this parable, it is clear that we never deserve all the rewards that Christ gives. We are commanded after we "shall have done all those things which are commanded" us, to say "We are unprofitable servants" (Luke 17:10). In the instruction of the twelve apostles about rewards in Matthew 19:28, 29, Jesus did not see fit to make a marked distinction between the blessings faithful workers will receive in the regenerated kingdom when He reigns on His throne, and everlasting life (Matt. 19:29). We know from many, many plain statements that salvation, everlasting life, is given freely, immediately, and eternally to those who simply believe (John 3:15, 16, 18, 36; 5:24; 6:40, 47; I John 5:11-15), that everlasting life is wholly of grace. Likewise if a man gives one dollar and gets back one hundred dollars, or loses one friend and gains one hundred more, as is promised here, that is also grace.
To be sure, salvation and rewards are two entirely separate things. Salvation comes from believing, and rewards come from service, but both properly represent the mercy of God, not really our deserts. No wonder that we are told even if our bodies are literally every day living sacrifices, with no will and way of our own, yet it is only our "reasonable service" (Rom. 12:1, 2). It is true that "He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities (Ps. 103:10). Most of the workman did not really deserve their wages, and none of us deserves all the good things God will give us. However, we must not forget that rewards will be proportionate to our labor and sacrifice as is clearly taught in Matthew 16:27, I Corinthians 3:12-15, and Revelation 22:12. Christ will not only pay every Christian for his labor, but will overpay him.
As a fourth lesson, let us beware of jealousy of Christian workers. There is a semblance of justice of the cry of these "which have borne the burden and heat of the day" (vs 12) and feel they should receive more than others who have done less. Workers who have kept the Sunday School or choir or other religious work going for years are often jealous of newcomers who get more attention, inject new life into the work and are given leadership. Older preachers are often jealous of successful young pastors or evangelists who have not spent the labor or study or sacrifice their elders have. But all such jealousy is a sin. We have no right to be thinking about our deservings. All of us have already received of the Lord manyfold more than we have ever deserved. If our hearts were really concerned about the carrying on of the work of Christ and His honor, then we should rejoice gladly when new workers come, even if at the eleventh hour of the day. "In honour preferring one another" (Rom. 12:10) is God's plan about Christian work, Here is a severe testing point. Here we need to manifest Christian grace. Here personal ambition and selfishness show themselves in most of us.
We think the immediate application of the parable was to the apostles. They must understand that many others workers would come after them who would have right to high places in the kingdom of Christ. Paul was not even converted then, yet he came to be behind those apostles in no gift, and was more abundant in labor than them all (I Cor. 15:9, 10; II Cor. 11:5, 23-28). God has a great place in the kingdom for Moody. The apostles must not think that because they would sit on the twelve thrones in Israel, others coming later might not have and deserve as great honor from God when rewards are given.
Another application given to these apostles now would involve Gentiles. Jewish Christians, even as apostles, were very slow to accept Gentile Christians on the same basis as Jewish Christians (Acts 10; 11:1-3). Jewish converts later would jealously watch young Gentile Christians, feeling that they were newcomers, so did not have the proper background of the law which Israel had. Even Jewish Christian leaders would have a tendency later to insist on the Gentiles being circumcized and really becoming Jews before they would be Christians (Acts 15:1, 2). The book of Galatians was written to answer these Judaizers. Jesus was here warning His disciples and succeeding generations not to be jealous of those who came later in the vineyard to labor. We need it now. There is a widespread distrust of Christians who profess to have been saved in old age, and many believe deathbed repentance impossible despite the case of the thief on the cross (Luke 23:39-43). Let us rejoice in God's mercy to others instead of having wickedness in our hearts to envy others their blessings.
On this point remember the sin of Jonah, angry because God forgave the Ninevites (Jonah chap. 4). Some Israelites were jealous when seventy elders were filled with the Spirit and prophesied (Num. 11:16-29). Even John forbade others to cast our devils, though they were doing it in the name of Jesus and should have been praised (Mark 9:38-40; Luke 9:49, 50). This was the sin, too, of the elder brother who was not willing that the prodigal son should be forgiven, feasted and restored by the father (Luke 15: 25-32).God forbid that our eye should be evil because God is good and deals in abundant mercy with others (as. 15).
Compare verse 16 with Matthew 22:14. Many are invited to be saved, but only those who wholeheartedly turn to Christ in faith are chosen as children of God, chosen to be saved (Mark 13:20; Rom, 16:13; II Thess. 2:13).
In this parable if the vineyard, Jesus deals a blow at socialism, Here is vindicated private ownership of property, ownership of means of production, the hiring and firing of laborers. Jesus has the owner say with divine approval, "Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?" So for a Karl Marx, Stalin, a Hughey Long, or a Roosevelt, or a social labor leader to advocate "redistribution of the wealth," whether by communist revolution or by New Deal law, taking away from an individual his right to own, to control, to give his children by inheritance, his property, is to violate a moral standard of God, and violate a precious human right.
SOURCE: Matthew, Dr. John R. Rice, pp. 304-307; Sword of the Lord Publishers
Boy, that is great Bible truth! I would just like to clarify something that Dr. Rice said, to make sure there is no confusion. When he mentioned that saints are "chosen" to salvation, carefully notice that he started by saying that God only chooses those who have of their own free will wholeheartedly put their trust in Jesus Christ. In other words, we don't believe because God chose us, God chose us because we believed. The "elect" are only chosen because they have already of their own free will chosen to believe on Jesus for their salvation. No one is ever chosen against their own free will to go to Heaven, nor does God ever decide not to choose someone so that they are incapable of coming to Christ by faith to be saved. The gift of everlasting life is freely offered by God to all humanity without prejudice.
I wanted to share this wonderful exegesis by Dr. Rice from Matthew 20:1-16, because it is so full of meat to sink your teeth into doctrinally. To me the key take away is that BOTH salvation and rewards are obtained by God's mercy and grace, not by our deservings. Yes, God will reward those of His saints who work night and day to reach others for Christ with the Gospel pf peace, but we are simply doing what we're supposed to do, which is our "reasonable service" (Romans 12: 1 2).
In all rights, God could have insisted that we serve Him diligently without any promise or expectation of rewards. I mean, after all He did sacrifice His only begotten Son to redeem us. 1st Corinthians 6:20, “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” That "price" was the precious blood of Jesus (1st Peter 1:18-19; Revelation 1:5). It is only reasonable that since Jesus sacrificed His life by dying on the cross to pay our dent of sin, that we would return the favor by living our life as a sacrifice to serve Him. Albeit, God does NOT mandate this exchange, because that would eliminate grace. Salvation cannot be free if there are any stipulations or obligations attached to it; if there are any "strings attached" so to speak. But there are none! It is only "reasonable" that we should serve God with our life, but if we selfishly choose not to, we still have 100% assurance of eternal life, which was obtained by grace alone without works (Romans 4:6).
The Lord graciously chose to reward us for our labors, even though He doesn't have to. I find nothing in the inspired Holy Bible which teaches that believers who have wrong motives won't receive their hard-earned rewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ. The Lord is not unjust not to reward those who have laborers in His vineyard to win souls. Whether you voluntarily drive a church bus, mow the church lawn, clean the ministry restrooms, repair church vehicles, prepare meals in the kitchen, help missionaries, or whatever, “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Hebrews 6:10).
So, if the only reason you serve in a church soulwinning ministry is because you like one of the ladies there, you won't lose your reward, if you are a child of God. Now I need to warn you, if you are an unbeliever (i.e., you have never been born-again by faith in Jesus Christ), then you have no expectation of anything from God except eternal damnation in the Lake of Fire. This is what I humbly believe the Bible means in Ezekiel 33:13, “When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.” The key phrase is "if he trust to his own righteousness." Self-righteousness is a guaranteed road to Hell. You need God's righteousness, which is imputed (credited) to the believer by faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 4:5-6; 10:3-4; Philippians 3:9).
Also, I believe that people who get paid to work as pastors, church secretaries, maintenance men, already have some of their rewards. I have worked night and day for over 50,000 hours over the past 22 years since 2002, without being compensated a single penny for my labors. So, I humbly believe that God is going to reward me greater than a pastor who got paid $80,000 or more per year for his time spent 40 hours a week "serving God" at his job.
Then again, in the Parable of the Workers that we just studied, everyone didn't receive the same reward. Some of the workers who did far less work were paid the same as those who had worked all day long, in the scorching heat of the day nonetheless. So, whatever rewards God gives me in Heaven, I trust that my dear Savior is fair, ethical and knows what is best. So, I won't complain whatever happens, I'll just be eternally grateful to be saved and in Heaven by God's grace, and to receive rewards by His grace too. In all my diligent ministry labors, I am just doing what I am supposed to do as a redeemed sinner, which is my "reasonable service" for my Great King, God, Lord and Savior, Jesus!!!
For the redeemed child of God who is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life, as I am, God promises to reward all of our labors. You may disagree with me, and that is fine, but please make sure that you have solid Scripture to support your claim that God won't reward wrong motives, because I cannot find that stuff in the inspired King James Bible.
Tragically, 99% of so-called "Bible" colleges today deny that we have an inspired Holy Bible in these modern times. They deny that the King James Bible is inspired. Pensacola Christian College (PCC) is a classic example, who state in their corrupt Statement of Faith that only the original auto[graphs were inspired. You can also go check the Statement of Faith at Hyles-Anderson College (HAC), Bob Jones University (BJU), Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary, Maranatha Baptist University, and nearly any other corrupt religious institution today, and you'll sadly find that none of them believe we have an inspired perfect Holy Bible in 2024.
They'll say stupid things like, “We believe the Bible has been preserved,” but they won't say it is inspired. That is ridiculous. What is the significance of God's inspired Words being “preserved” if they are no longer perfect and inspired by God? Preservation is meaningless without perpetual inspiration. Folks, if the King James Bible is not inspired by God, then it can only be inspired by men and possibly Satan. If mere mortal men translated the Bible the best that they could, but failed to preserve a perfectly inspired Holy Bible, then we cannot trust it. If any portion of the Bible might be corrupt and false, then any portion of it could be corrupt. Either we have God's inspired Words today or we don't, there is no middle ground.
Dear reader, I tell you that we DO have an inspired Holy Bible today, and it is the inspired King James Bible in the English language. All other English Bible revisions are fraudulent, corrupt and untrustworthy. Only the King James Bible is truly a literal translation. The preface to the English Standard Version (ESV), the inferior weapon of choice at Bob Jones University (BJU), claims to be a literal translation. But if you compare versus in the ESV with other modern perversions of the Scripture, against the tried and true inspired King James Bible, you will sadly find that the ESV is no different than all of the other Brooke Westcott and Fenton Hort corrupt revisions of the Bible. Westcott and Hort are considered the fathers of all modern Bible versions. The ESV is of the Devil. Shame on BJU for using, selling and promoting corruptible seed.
PCC is a disgrace today! And the churches that support them are dry and dead, all refusing to fight the good fight of faith. You'll never hear false prophets exposed in their affiliated churches. You'll never be told the truth about the evils of Lordship Salvation, or warned about Satan's fake bibles, or cautioned about other damnable toxicities threatening churches today. The PCC cult are at ease on Zion, languishing in mediocrity and money. Despite their self-proclaimed worldly success at PCC, Jesus calls them spiritually poor, naked, blind, wretched and miserable (Revelation 3:17). Shame on Pensacola Christian College!!!
This matter of Bible inspiration is important folks! It is utterly tragic that since 2008 the First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana, has changed their long held belief that the King James Bible is inspired. Today, they merely say is has been "preserved," but not inspired anymore. According to FBCH and their HAC school, we don't have a perfect inspired Holy Bible today. They are woefully mistaken!!! If I didn't believe that the King James Bible is inspired by God, I would toss it into my garbage can and never preach again!!!!!!!
Don't you dare tell me that the omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent Creator of the universe was too inept, weak and incompetent to preserve His inspired Words forever as He promised...
Psalms 12:6-8, “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.”
Not surprisingly, the Devil's crowd have corrupted this passage in all of the modern Bible perversions, thus removing God's solemn promise to preserve his PURE WORDS forever. Dear reader, the very fact that they would change this vital passage proves their ill intent. Please burn your modern Bible version if you possess any, because they are poisonous! You'd be safer playing with a venomous Rattle Snake, cyanide or nuclear waste, than to read from these contaminated modern Bible perversions!!! The Devil is a liar (John 8:44). Don't you forget that! Whenever Satan's lips move, he is lying! Whenever the Devil's ministers on unrighteousness, like Dr. John MacArthur and Evangelist Ray Comfort move their lips, they are lying. Have you believed a lie friend?
It matters if we have an inspired Holy Bible, it really does. Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) was so right, we must have a perfect inspired Bible today, because if we do not we cannot live by every Word of God. Matthew 4:4, “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” If we are commanded to LIVE BY EVERY WORD OF GOD, then we absolutely must have an EVERY WORD BIBLE. We must have a Holy Bible that contains every Word of God. That means there can only be one true Holy Bible in any particular language. Think about it.
I hope that you will join me dear reader, to contend for the Christian faith once delivered unto the saints (Jude 1:3). One voice on social media can do a lot of good for the cause of Christ. There are enough losers helping the Devil's cause. I challenge you to fight the good fight of faith, by starting to tell everyone that the King James Bible is 100% verbally inspired (every word) and plenary inspired (the entire cannon of 66 books) by God almighty.
1st Corinthians 9:16, “For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!”
There is not a more respectable, noble and important job in the universe, than that of preaching the Gospel with lost sinners. By preaching I simply mean sharing how you got saved with others, so that they can be saved too. If you can explain to someone why you are going to Heaven, then you should be able to lead someone else to the Lord.
Being President of the United States is not as great a job as soulwinning. Being a fireman, policeman, paramedic or Cost Guard rescue worker is not anywhere near as important as being a SOULWINNER!!! Sharing the Gospel with lost sinners is the greatest duty and job there is in the universe.
Sadly, 99% of Christians would rather have a high-paying job, than to go soulwinning. What saith the Scripture? Luke 8:15, “But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.” If you are not a soulwinner, you have not yet matured in the Lord. The parable of The Sower And The Seeds is about maturing in the Lord, not about salvation. Luke 8:15 teaches that an honest saint with a good heart will heed God's inspired Word and share the Gospel with others.
A believer who doesn't share the Gospel after being taught the truth is rebellious. Luke 8:14 indicts most Christians as failures, because they have allowed themselves to become choked by the cares, riches and pleasures of this world, hindering them from focusing on soulwinning. Sharing the Gospel is every believer's responsibility, not just the pastor's. Jesus gave The Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20 to all believers, not just His twelve disciples. The Great Commission involves teaching our converts to go out and preach the Gospel, and so forth. The idea is to perpetuate the Gospel from one generation to the next.
When I was a boy I wanted to grow up to become a firefighter. I wanted to help and rescue people. But I became something much better, I became a SOULWINNER, rescuing people from the everlasting fires of Hell with the saving power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16; 1st Corinthians 15:1-4). There's not a more important job I could have chosen in life.
As a boy I also wanted to become a superhero, from watching the Super Friends cartoon every Saturday morning. You can see the opening theme on YouTube. I have always wanted super powers to help people, just like every other kid who grew up with super heroes for mentors. But I have something much better, I have God almighty as my friend. God can do anything. He often doesn't answer my prayers to do what I want Him to do, but I trust the Lord that He knows what is best, and wants what is best for me as His redeemed child. Jesus told us to, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22b).
You'll never come closer to being a superhero than as a soulwinner, rescuing people from the everlasting damnation of Hell with the Gospel of peace (Romans 5:1). That is why we read the precious promise in Daniel 12:3, “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”
Psalms 1:1-5, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
I have heard countless people repeat old adages and sayings that they've heard from someone else. That is fine to an extent. However, much of the things that we hear is just plain garbage and untrue.
For example: You've probably heard that the word “fear” can be expressed by the phrase, “False Evidence Appearing Real” (F.E.A.R.). The problem with that idea is that it's not always true. If you are on a wilderness hike in Alaska and meet a raging Grizzly Bear, your fear is not false evidence that only appears to be real. You're in great danger and will likely be eaten alive and killed, and in that morbid order. Fear oftentimes is justifiably real.
My point is that if we're not careful, we may allow other people to cause us to think things that are untrue, foolish and even harmful. I humbly disagree that fear means false evidence appearing real. Perhaps paranoia or worry can be defined as false evidence appearing real, but most fear is because of things that are very real.
What saith the Scripture? 1st John 4:1, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” The Greek word for ”try” is dokimazo, which means “to approve” (to “test”). Hence, we should TEST everything that we see and hear, to ensure that it is biblical.
Another untrue adage that I hate is: “If it's meant to be, it will be.” That is a terrible saying. I know a divorce woman, who abandoned her husband to go her own selfish way. He wants to remarry her, but she doesn't want to get remarried. Yet, when he brings up the matter is remarriage, she foolishly says, “If it's meant to be, it will be.” She is a fool. How will their marriage ever be restored, if she keeps throwing the issue under the bus. Folks, if you refuse to lift a finger to make something happen, I can tell you with all certainty that it's not going to happen. If you only do what you've been doing, nothing will change. So, this is another example of a damaging saying that we ought not repeat.
Another saying that I detest is: “Good things come to those who wait.” Uh, I don't think so! I've been waiting for 18 years for a wife to come along, but nothing good has come from it. I am now realizing that if I don't go find someone, I will be alone for the rest of my life. I don't know what idiot made that statement, but good things don't come to those who wait. You need to make things happen, if you want them to happen. Life is what we make of it.
Someone else has made the untrue statement, “Follow your heart.” Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” It is not advisable dear reader to ever follow your heart, because the Holy Bible says our heart is wicked and deceitful above all things. Never trust the man who trusts himself. I'm just giving you some of the popular adages that we hear all the time in society. Due to our human nature it is very easy to start repeating (parroting) these dangerous sayings.
Psalms 1:1a, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly...” Sometimes you may walk in the counsel of the ungodly and not even realize it friend. We're all guilty of it. I have adopted foolish sayings myself in the past. Since then I have become very on guard against things that I hear. 1st John 4:1, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” Sometimes even the false prophets themselves don't realize they've been deceived. Deception is everywhere in society today.
The crafty serpent (Satan) gave Eve the worst advice possible in the Garden of Eden, convincing her to disobey God. Because she heeding the serpent's ruthless lies, Eve and her family were evicted from Paradise. You can always tell when the Devil is lying, anytime his lips move. The world is full of sinful ungodly advice. That is why it is very important for every child of God to abide in the Scriptures day and night (John 5:39).
Psalms 12:6a, “The words of the LORD are pure words...”
Satan's greatest achievement over the past 150 years has been publishing literally HUNDREDS of English Bible versions. Consequently, the inspired Words of God have been secularized, diminished, weakened, removed, altered, butchered, changed and perverted by mostly sincere people who were inspired by Satan to corrupt the very pure Words of God.
I found a website today called LearnReligions.com. On their webpage titled: “A Quick Overview Of Bible Translations,” they make the despicable statement, “Decide which versions fit you with this summary of major Bible translations.” NO SIR! That is way wrong! That is a wicked attitude! You don't decide what Bible “VERSIONS FIT YOU,” you take God's Word as it is, like it or not. The Lord didn't write His Word so that ungodly men could rewrite it into hundreds of different styles TO FIT different demographic groups of society. God's Word is supposed to be IN YOUR FACE, it is supposed to be OFFENSIVE, it is TRUTH, the Bible is HARSH AND SHOWS A MAN HIS TRUE SINFUL STATE! It is blasphemy to change the inspired Words of God to fit humanity!
One of the most corrupt, worthless, demonic and misleading perversions available today is the New Life Version (NLV), first published in 1986. Here is some information on this work of darkness...
The translation was born out of the Ledyards' missionary work in the Canadian Arctic to First Nations populations, who did not always speak English fluently. The NLV uses a limited vocabulary of about 850 words, not including proper names. This was done to make the text easier to read and understand, a goal that the Ledyards felt was not adequately met by existing English translations of the Bible. The NLV uses gender-specific language and uses no contractions. Confusing wording is avoided. Weights and measures are worded so that anyone can understand them; For example, Noah's ark is described as being: "...as long as 150 long steps, as wide as twenty-five long steps, and eight times taller than a man." The translation of the New Testament was completed in 1969, and the complete NLV Bible with Old and New Testaments was first published in 1986. The NLV Bible is published by Christian Literature International. It can be accessed online. —New Life Version, Wikipedia
According to Amazon.com's deceptive product information, the New Life Version (NLV) is:
...used around the world in mission work. It is one of the most readable versions available today. Based on a limited vocabulary of approximately 850 words, this Bible clarifies difficult words and passages for the modern reader.
The following additional information about the New Life Version (NLV) is provided by Barbour Publishing, Inc. This is very disturbing false information, which I will explain to you in a moment...
The NEW LIFE Version, available SINCE 1969 - continues to be the most readable and most understandable Bible without sacrificing accuracy. It is not a paraphrase, or man's idea of what the Bible says. Truths expressed in the original are in no way violated. Leading clergy from most denominations endorse and approve its use. This unique translation is gender-correct (same as the King James Version). All pronouns referring to Deity are capitalized. Short sentences are used with the subject usually preceding the predicate. No contractions are used. Many paragraphs are preceded with captions which summarize the content. There are no confusing foot-notes. No obscene words are used in the text. Most Old Testament quotations in the New Testament are followed by the reference. [emphasis added]
The publishers of this counterfeit Bible version very deceitfully claim the New Life Version (NLV) “TO BE THE MOST READABLE AND MOST UNDERSTANDABLE BIBLE WITHOUT SACRIFICING ACCURACY. IT IS NOT A PARAPHRASE, OR MAN'S IDEA OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS. TRUTHS EXPRESSED IN THE ORIGINAL ARE IN NO WAY VIOLATED.” Ladies and gentlemen, the translators and publishers of the New Life Version (NLV) belong in prison! They are worthy of the death penalty in God's court for corrupting the inspired Word of God!!! Let's compare some key Scripture passages in the New Life Version (NLV) with the trustworthy King James Bible, and see how accurate it is.
Jesus is Our Intercessory High Priest, Not Our Religious Leader
I couldn't believe how horribly they butchered the following passage of Scripture. Contrary to their deceitful claim that the New Life Version (NLV) is the “MOST READABLE” and “MOST UNDERSTANDABLE” Bible, which is “NOT A PARAPHRASE” nor “MAN'S IDEA OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS,” read for yourself how retarded and senseless the following translation is...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Hebrews 4:14-16, “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Hebrews 4:14-16, “We have a great Religious Leader Who has made the way for man to go to God. He is Jesus, the Son of God, Who has gone to heaven to be with God. Let us keep our trust in Jesus Christ. Our Religious Leader understands how weak we are. Christ was tempted in every way we are tempted, but He did not sin. Let us go with complete trust to the throne of God. We will receive His loving-kindness and have His loving-favor to help us whenever we need it.”
The preceding garbage from the NLV woefully lacks Bible theology. They have removed grace! They have removed Christ's important role as our heavenly High Priest (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 4:14). Religious Leader? What a joke! Folks, Jesus is not our RELIGIOUS LEADER!!! I can't believe anybody actually published this piece of trash, calling it a “Holy Bible”! Remember, the NLV publishers advertise that this is “NOT A PARAPHRASE” and not “MAN'S IDEA OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS”! The term “high priest” in Hebrews 4:14 is the Greek word archiereus, meaning, “high priest, or chief priest.” Jesus is our “GREAT HIGH PRIEST” (Hebrews 4:14), which has passed into the heavens. So where in the world did they get the term “Religious Leader”?
Instead of attributing God's mercy to His grace made possible through the intercessory work of Christ, Who is our heavenly High Priest, the ungodly translators of the NLV attribute God's loving-favor and loving-kindness merely to Christ as a Religious Leader. Do you see how rotten, corrupt, senseless and meaningless the new Bible versions are? Why doesn't Pensacola Christian College (PCC) care? PCC is eerily silent, completely A.W.O.L. from “THE BATTLE OF THE AGES!” (MP3 by Pastor Jack Hyles). Please watch THE MOVIE.
Shame on Pensacola Christian College and their gutless interns! shame on Bob Jones University and their gutless alumni! Shame on Moody Bible Institute and their shallow graduates! Shame on every dead Bible college in America that is idly SITTING ON THE PREMISES instead of STANDING ON THE PROMISES! Somebody's got to care! The inspired Word of God is under attack by the Devil. God only authored ONE SACRED BOOK, not hundreds! The man with two watches never knows what time it is! Shame on America's apostate Bible colleges who are sitting idle on the sidelines while their brethren go to war...
“God has a special rebuke, again and again and again in the Bible, toward those people who keep their neutrality in the work of God!” —SOURCE: Dr. Jack Hyles, a quote from the great MP3 sermon, “Where Were You In The Battle?”
Never Confess Your Sins To Anyone Except God
The following mistranslation always humors me. Anyone who is bold enough to “TELL YOUR SINS” to another human being is a fool. You and your sins may be on social media by sundown. Do you really think God wants you to confess your sins to me? I am dying to know your dark secrets. Ha ha ha! Yell me, please! Would you really expect a man to tell someone—“Sir, I must apologize, I have been lusting upon your lovely wife for three years. Please forgive me!” You'll probably need a good dentist and some implants after that! Evangelist Phil Kidd is right—If you knew what some of the folks around you in church are thinking toward your wife and children, you'd run out that door with your family and never come back again!!! The human soul is depraved, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - James 5:16, “Tell your sins to each other. And pray for each other so you may be healed. The prayer from the heart of a man right with God has much power.”
A “fault” is something obvious that another person is already aware of. If you tend to show up late, admit it and apologize for it. If you tend to talk over other people, admit it and apologize for it. If you tend to worry or complain, admit it to the people you've wearied with your bad attitude, apologize and ask God to help you overcome those faults. A fault may be a sin, but it is something obvious and known, not your secret Skeleton Closet. Pastor Jack Hyles use to wisely say: “Don't be reluctant to admit to others that you have feet of clay, but don't ever show them your feet.” Never confess your personal sins to anyone. It is a matter between you and God alone. Psalms 51:4, “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”
Lucifer is Missing in All Modern Perversions
Let's move on shall we. Without turning to it, the only mention of the name of “Lucifer” is missing from Isaiah 14:12 in the NLV. That is really bad! Surprisingly, the NLV actually does have the word “Calvary” in Luke 23:33, which most modern versions don't. You'll find that each of the modern Bible versions have different problems with them, but they are all corrupt nevertheless! In particular, they all attack the deity of our dear Lord Jesus Christ.
All of the Modern Bible Revisions Attack Jesus' Deity
Notice below that the NLV says that Jesus has always been “AS GOD IS,” which implies that Jesus is not actually God. Subtle word changes drastically change the intended meaning. The King James Bible makes it adamantly clear that Jesus did not consider it robbery to be EQUAL with God. Those are some beautiful bold words attesting to Christ's deity...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Philippians 2:6, “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Philippians 2:6, “Jesus has always been as God is. But He did not hold to His rights as God.”
All three mentions of the important word “godhead” are completely removed from the NLV (cf., Romans 1:20; Acts 17:29; Colossians 2:9). Although such changes may seem harmless, it obliterates the very important theological concept of the Trinity (i.e., Godhead). The NLV actually left 1st John 5:7 alone, still faithfully conveying the truth of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Who are all one God. However, the NLV horribly butchers and does injustice to the Scripture elsewhere concerning the Trinity...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Colossians 2:2, “That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery ofGod, and of the Father, and of Christ;”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Colossians 2:2 “May their hearts be given comfort. May they be brought close together in Christian love. May they be rich in understanding and know God’s secret. It is Christ Himself.”
Whoa horsey! There are two very different ideas being conveyed between these two versions. The King James Bible conveys the idea that the Godhead is a mystery, but the NLV conveys the idea that Christ is a secret. They get this passage horribly wrong! The NLV translators have irresponsibly removed God the Father and God the Holy Spirit from this Bible passage, making it only about Christ. This is junk theology and a lie!
And again, here we see another blatant attack against the Lord's deity. Instead of declaring that “GOD WAS MANIFEST IN THE FLESH” (a clear attestation of Christ's deity), the NLV merely says that “CHRIST CAME TO EARTH AS A MAN” (which says nothing to declare Jesus' deity)...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - 1st Timothy 3:16, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - 1st Timothy 3:16, “It is important to know the secret of God-like living, which is: Christ came to earth as a Man. He was pure in His Spirit. He was seen by angels. The nations heard about Him. Men everywhere put their trust in Him. He was taken up into heaven.”
As in all the modern perversions, every mention of someone “worshipping” Jesus has been diminished to a mere “knelt” or “bowed.” Well you can kneel before a king without worshipping him. ...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Matthew 8:2, “And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Matthew 8:2, “Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”
Do you see how Satan is reducing our great Savior to a mere historical figure instead of the only begotten Son of God?
You need to understand that all of the modern Bible versions haves been translated from an entirely different Greek source (Sinaiticus Vaticanus) than the inspired King James Bible. The King James Bible is based upon the Textus Receptus (or, Received Text), which the 54 King James translators accepted as being inspired by God, rejecting all others (including the Apocrypha). The Apocrypha is still valuable in its historical content, but it is not inspired by God.
By “inspired” I mean that God authored the Bible, they are His Words. The horrible idea is blasphemous that inspiration only refers to the original act of God breathing out His Words in time of old, but then those words someone became no longer inspired when translated, and despite scholarly men doing their very best to faithfully preserve God's Word, they were incapable of being as exact and perfect as God, so at best today we only have an imperfect, flawed, errant, translation. That is exactly what Bob Jones University teaches! That is exactly what Hyles-Anderson College teaches! That is exactly what every apostate religious institution today teaches! Don't you dare tell me that we only have an “at best” Bible today, but not a perfect Bible! I know good men who teach that we only have an “at best” Bible today, and I love them in the Lord, but I do not agree with them, and I must preach what I believe to be THE TRUTH!
NLV Bible Perverts God's Promise to Preserve His Inspired Words
In the following Old Testament passage, we find an atrocious error, in which the Bible-butchers have totally removed God's solemn PROMISE to “preserve” His “PURE WORDS” unto every generation. They changed it (as do ALL modern corrupt versions) to say that God protects the saints from people. Only the reliable King James Bible retains this important PROMISE to preserve God's inspired words (which means they must still be INSPIRED today)...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Psalms 12:6-7, “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Psalms 12:6-7, “The words of the Lord are pure words. They are like silver that has been made pure seven times in a stove of earth. O Lord, You will keep us. You will keep us safe forever from the people of this day.”
I could literally go on and on, mentioning hundreds of major doctrinal problems with the New Life Version (NLV). Tragically, most churches and pastors couldn't care less. Bible colleges like Pensacola Christian College in Florida are only concerned with making money. Dead theological corpses like Faith Bible Baptist College And Theological Seminary in Iowa couldn't care less. No one wants to join “THE BATTLE OF THE AGES.” They just go along to get along like the cowardly lion in the popular 1939 film, “The Wizard of Oz.”
The purity of God's Word means NOTHING to them, evidenced by their tolerance of dozens of different Bible versions. I tell you that 99% of pastors have no business standing behind any church pulpit, and they are even more dangerous working in Bible colleges where they influence the next generation of reckless apostate pantywaist pastors!!!!!! SOMEBODY'S GOT TO CARE!!! God's Word is important!
The King James Bible is verbally-inspired by God. Every word of the King James Bible is inspired by God almighty!!! God didn't just preserve the words that He long ago inspired, but God preserved those very inspired words and THEY ARE STILL INSPIRED 100% IN EVERY WAY TODAY! Hyles-Anderson College doesn't believe that! West Coast Baptist College doesn't believe that! Ambassador Bible College doesn't believe that! Moody Bible Institute doesn't believe that! The Crown College doesn't believe that!
They only believe that the “original manuscripts” were inspired by God, but today at best we only have God's “preserved words,” but not inspired. You'll never find a direct statement in any of these religious intuition's Statement of Faith where they say: “THE KING JAMES BIBLE IS VERBALLY INSPIRED!” They don't believe it!!! Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) understood this woeful evil and he also exposed it, sick and tired of shady dishonest Bible colleges who advertise that they used the King James Bible, but do not tell the truth that they don't believe it is VERBALLY-INSPIRED WORD-FOR-WORD...
“The biggest split that has ever come will come in the next ten years, if not sooner, over the King James Bible - and it couldn't come soon enough for me. I'm tired of colleges and universities advertising that they 'use' the King James Bible - tell the whole story! Tell everyone that you do not believe that it is inspired word for word.” —Pastor Jack Hyles, from the Wednesday night Bible study titled, “Revelation to Illumination” (1998)
Thank God for men of God like Pastor Al Lacy who cared about THE TRUTH of God's Word. The average shameful Bible college president, vice president and staff members are merely working a job, collecting a paycheck, trying to stay employed. The truth means little if anything to them! They typically have the pathetic rational that they are being ethical not to change what they didn't start. So they just get the good while the getting is good, milking the money cow for all they can, until they go their selfish way. I just described over 95% of religious leaders in America today! I'm talking about the Bob Jones University camp and their graduates! They don't care, evidenced by their deafening silence in the ongoing battle over the inspiration of the King James Bible.
Again, look at how the NLV perverts the Words of the Living God...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Acts 2:38, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Acts 2:38, “Peter said to them, “Be sorry for your sins and turn from them and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and your sins will be forgiven.”
Heresy! Nowhere in the inspired Word of God are we commanded to “be sorry for your sins and turn from them!” To turn away from sins for salvation is “ANOTHER GOSPEL” (Pastor Harry A. Ironside, 1876-1951) of self-righteousness!!! The Gospel is the wonderful story of God's beloved only begotten Son, Who was crucified on a cross for our iniquities! The Gospel is not a heavy burden to be placed upon the shoulders of sinners, requiring them to turn from their sins to be saved. Jesus Christ bore the full weight of our sins upon Calvary's cross, so we wouldn't have to, paying the price for our many sins with His blood.
Look at what the satanic New Life Version (NLV) teaches compared to the trustworthy King James Bible. Just as in Acts 2:38 that I just showed you, so also have they changed repentance from being “a change of mind” to meaning “turning away from sins” to be saved. The modern perversions have subtly changed the plan of salvation to include works (turning from sinful behavior), which is an accursed thing, that is, “ANOTHER GOSPEL” (2nd Corinthians 11:3-4; Galatians 1:6-9)...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Mark 1:15, “And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Mark 1:15, “He said, 'The time has come. The holy nation of God is near. Be sorry for your sins, turn from them, and believe the Good News.'”
Look how they corrupt Hebrews 6:1...
KING JAMES BIBLE (KJB) - Hebrew 6:1, “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.”
NEW LIFE VERSION (NLV) - Hebrew 6:1, “So let us leave the first things you need to know about Christ. Let us go on to the teaching that full-grown Christians should understand. We do not need to teach these first truths again. You already know that you must be sorry for your sins and turn from them. You know that you must have faith in God.”
“DEAD WORKS” include ALL WORKS, good and bad alike. Many of the Jews were stuck on the Old Testament LAW, thinking that to get to Heaven they had to perform the ritualistic ceremonial laws. It was for this reason that the apostle Paul said in Romans 10:3-4, “For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” Many of the Jews errantly thought they could obtain eternal life by keeping the law.
Paul explains to the Romans that salvation is without the works of the law. Romans 3:20, “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Effectively, when a bad preacher tells you that you must “turn from your sins” to be saved, he is telling you to keep the LAW to obtain eternal life! By “turning from your sins” they plainly mean that you cannot willfully continue in them, you must have a sincere desire to forsake them. This is exactly what Dr. John Goetsch errantly teaches at the West Coast Baptist College in Lancaster, California teaches, where Dr. Paul Chappell is the pastor. It is a shame! These are “DEAD WORKS!” Hebrews 6:1 teaches repentance from “DEAD WORKS,” not from bad works, nor to good works!
The New Life Version (NLV) uses the English dictionary meaning of repentance, which is completely different than the Biblical Greek meaning. Biblical repentance concerning salvation always means “a change of mind” (the Greek noun, metanoia). The Greek word for “repent” in Mark 1:15 is the verb form, metanoeo, which meaning “to think differently.” Pastor Bob Gray Sr. accurately explains the true meaning of Bible repentance for salvation this way:
“Repentance means to change your mind—change your mind—change your mind about how you want to get to Heaven to what God says you've got to do to get to Heaven. If you've got to repent of all your sins, you're still headed for Hell tonight.” —Pastor Bob Gray Sr., a quote from the awesome MP3 sermon, Why You Should Be A Part Of A Growing Church
Here is the best quote that I've found on repentance, by Dr. Harry A. Ironside (1876-1951):
“Which comes first, repentance or faith? In Scripture we read, 'Repent ye, and believe the gospel.' Yet we find true believers exhorted to 'repent, and do the first works.' So intimately are the two related that you cannot have one without the other. The man who believes God repents; the repentant soul puts his trust in the Lord when the Gospel is revealed to him. Theologians may wrangle over this, but the fact is, no man repents until the Holy Spirit produces repentance in his soul through the truth. No man believes the Gospel and rests in it for his own salvation until he has judged himself as a needy sinner before God. And this is repentance.” (Except Ye Repent, p. 16)
As I have showed you, what the modern Bible versions are teaching is DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT than what the inspired King James Bible reads. Either repentance means “to turn away from sins” or it means “to change your mind,” but it cannot mean both. In the Word of God, the word for “repent” is metanoia, which only means “a change of mind.” We don't know what to change our mind about, because the word itself doesn't tell us. It is an open-ended term, which requires supplemental information. God did this deliberately, so that repentance would include anything and everything which hinders a person from believing the Gospel. Hence, to “repent” means to think differently about whatever it is that has been hindering you from BELIEVING THE GOSPEL to be saved.
1st Corinthians 1:21, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” Please notice that the Bible doesn't say God “saves them that repent”; no, it says, “TO SAVE THEM THAT BELIEVE”! But don't you have to repent to be saved? Yes, but repentance is automatic. No one has ever believed the Gospel who didn't simultaneously turn away from unbelief. You obviously have to turn FROM something in order to turn TO something, but we are not saved by turning from anything, we are saved by BELIEVING on the name of Jesus. John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”
This is why we find the words “believe,” “believest” and “believeth” mentioned 87 times in the Gospel of John, which is God's Gospel tract according to John 20:31, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” Not once, NOT ONCE, is any mention made of “repentance” in the Gospel of John. The word “repent” is not mentioned even once! That is because repentance is an automatic thing. That is, the person who believes has also repented. No one can place their trust in the Gospel without first turning away from whatever was hindering them from believing the Gospel in the first place. Therefore, it is not necessary to mention repentance when sharing the Gospel with someone.
John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
“I believe any man in this world can love any other man in this world, if he thinks right! The reason you hate is because you think hate. The reason you love is because you think love.” —Dr. Jack Hyles, a quote from the excellent MP3 sermon, “What The Law Could Not Do” (July 5, 1987 - First Baptist Church of Hammond, PM service).
