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BRINGING DOWN THE MIGHTY

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Bringing down the mighty with money and sex

Bringing down the mightyBy Ken Blue

“And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak. Numbers 22:7. “If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak?”Numbers 24:13. “A.nd Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. 2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.” Numbers 25:1-2

The story of Balaam may be one of the most mystifying in Scripture. However, his craftiness is as old as time. When the monetary reward offered could not produce the desired curse, Balaam came up with another plan that works almost every time.

We have witnessed, in our decade, the fall of some of the most powerful men in the world. Most were in politics; some were in pulpits. Many have gone to prison because of greed for money; others have been dismissed and gone away in shame; losing everything, because of their lust and greed.

[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=”16″]Money and the lust for sex never fails to bring down the mighty![/pullquote]

If money fails in bringing down the mighty, lust for sex will certainly do it. One should read the account in Numbers for the full story and it’s sad results. Balaam tried desperately to get God to curse Israel. Although he was offered unlimited wealth, God refused to allow the curse. Sidestepping that approach, he advised Balak to send beautiful women to invite Israel to a welcoming feast. The devastating results can be found in Numbers 25.

Samson was one of the greats of the Old Testament, and he did many mighty exploits for God. But, his lust for Delilah left him blind and doing the work of an ass at the mill. David, the sweet Psalmist and King of Israel, was brought to ruin because of his lust for Bathsheba. The kingdom of Israel was lost because of his sin. Reuben, Jacobs’s firstborn son, lost the birthright and all things associated with it because of his affair with his father’s Concubine, Bilhah.

The reader must understand that all Satan’s apples have worms. You cannot win in the game of sin. The Devil knows our every weakness and that is where he strikes. The only advice that will work in; “flee youthful lust” and “resist the Devil and he will flee from you.” (2 Tim. 2:22 & James 4:7). “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Psalms 119:11. “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:12.

THE 80/20 PRINCIPLE

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HOW THE 80/20 PRINCIPLE APPLIES TO THE CHURCH

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By Ken Blue

“The Pareto principle (also known as the 80-20 rule,[1] the law of the vital few, and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.[2][3] Business management thinker Joseph M. Juran suggested the principle and named it after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed in 1906 that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population.[3] It is a common rule of thumb in business; e.g., “80% of your sales come from 20% of your clients.” Wikipedia Encyclopedia.

This principle is found to be accurate in “many” endeavors. The business world has understood it for years. It is time that pastors consider it, and see if it might apply to their ministry investments and returns.

If a pastor will check the income of the church against the membership, he will discover that approximately 20% of the people are giving 80% of the income. The same rule will follow when it comes to ministry involvement. In addition, the church building will usually maintain about 80% of its seating capacity. These may vary, depending on the size of the church

Another factor that should be considered it that 80% of the financial and manpower investment, in many churches, only produce about a 20% return in souls saved and membership growth. This fact should motivate every pastor to search out which investments produce the greatest returns. Retailers know they only have one shot per year to make it big, and that time is the Christmas season. If they fail here, red ink will be the result.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]You want people in your city to think of your church when they consider attending a church.[/perfectpullquote]

Do pastors know the best seasons for harvest? It there a best place to seek for souls and one method that nets more visitors than another? The answer to the last question is yes. Again, the facts show that 80% of all visitors come to church because a friend or family members invite them! If that is true, then shouldn’t 80% of our outreach efforts be directed getting church members to bring others?

The question is, how can a pastor get his members to bring these visitors? The answer, many have discovered, is to have something going on at the church that members will want to invite their friends and family to attend. Dr. Jack Hyles and Dr. Lee Roberson built their large attendance on the “big day” philosophy. That is, they would have at least three big days each year. They pulled out all the stops and invested a major portion of the 80% to reach the community and get them to church. Some were always gleaned from those who attended.

For many years at Open Door, we invested greatly in Christmas, Easter, and the fourth of July. It was not uncommon to see the attendance increase by two or three hundred on those days. Now, I can hear the sarcasm of the critic; “how many came back?” No one knows the answer to that question, but one thing is for sure; those who came now know who we are and where we are, and seldom did a Sunday go by without visitors, or sinners making professions of faith.

Here is something to think about: It is not uncommon to see the Goodyear Blimp floating above football stadiums during the season. Thousands see it from the bleachers, and many more see it on television. Now, can the Goodyear tire company tell you how many people purchased their tires because of the blimp? They cannot, but evidently they KNOW the return is worth the investment. When people think of tires, they think Goodyear!

The same principle is true with your church. You want people in your city to think of your church when they consider attending a church. You make this happen by getting your name and exposure out before them any way you can and as often as you can.
Preachers must get over the false concept that if the members are busy, good things will happen. Good things will only happen if they are busy working on the things that will produce the 80% results or more.

GET OUT OF DEBT FREE

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YOU OWE A DEBT YOU CANNOT PAY

By Ken Blue

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”. Romans 6:23.

That most Americans are so far in debt they can’t see a way out is an understatement. However, there is a much greater debt accumulating that few know about or give much thought to. God tells us that our sins carry with them a debt. All of us are sinners, therefore all are debtors. We sin each day in word, thought, and deed. If you only committed three sins per day; at year’s end you would have 1095 sins, and you would be practically perfect if you only sinned three times per day.

Suppose you live fifty or sixty years and only commit three sins per day, you would face God with 65,700 sins against your account. You see, the wages of sin is death; sin is death to your spiritual life, to your physical life and to your eternal life. You and I owe something that we cannot pay!

[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]You can get out of debt free![/perfectpullquote]

Now, for the good news; you can get out of debt free! Notice that our text says the gift of God is eternal life. Because we sin willfully, we have accumulated a debt we cannot pay. Because Jesus Christ never sinned, He paid a debt He did not owe. In simple bookkeeping, we have a -1 in our account and He has a +1 in His account. If we could get His +1 moved to our -1, it would balance the books and we would not owe anything!

That is exactly what God does for every sinner who realizes that he cannot pay what he owes. We acknowledge our hopeless state and receive God’s gift of mercy and life in Christ. You see, death is the wage for our sins, but eternal life is God’s free gift to all who will receive it.

Notice that it is a free “gift”. You don’t work for a gift, you can’t pay for it, nor do you deserve it. Your only option is to reject it or accept it. If you want to get out of debt FREE, accept God’s gift in Jesus Christ today.

GOD’S BLESSINGS ON OPEN DOOR BAPTIST CHURCH

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By Pastor Jason Murphy

One year ago I took over as the Senior Pastor at Open Door Baptist church in Lynnwood, WA for Pastor Ken Blue who had started and pastored Open Door for 39 years. I can honestly say that I don’t believe the transition could have been any smoother. That is a testament to God’s Grace; Pastor Blue’s handling of the transition, a good staff, great people at Open Door, a supportive wife, and many of God’s people praying. Through the years at Open Door, there was rarely a Sunday that we did not see someone make a decision to accept Christ as their personal Savior. By the grace of God, that has continued this past year. Pastor Blue asked me to write an article sharing what God has done at Open Door in the last 12 months. Since Oct 12th 2008 we have seen:

196 first time visitors- These are the ones who filled out visitor cards.
71 professions of faith- These indicated that they were accepting Christ as Savior.
23 baptized-These were publically baptized.
96 people joined our church- These 96 people took the mandatory 3 hour class which covers:

Our Structure
Our Strategy
Our Doctrinal Statement
Salvation-Baptism and the Lord’s supper

At the end of this class they are required to sign the Membership Covenant of Open Door Baptist Church

I have trusted Christ as my Lord and Savior and have been baptized by immersion (or will be baptized at the next opportunity). I enthusiastically support Open Door’s purpose and strategy and I desire to become a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ.

I. I will share the responsibility of my church by:
• Praying for her health • Inviting my unchurched friends
• Warmly welcoming those who atten • Sharing my personal testimony (Romans 14:19, Romans 15: 7, John 1:41, 2 Corinthians 5:20)

II. I will support the message of my church by:
• Attending worship faithfully • Honoring Christ in my lifestyle
• Getting involved in a Small Group • Giving regularly
(Hebrews 10:25, Acts 2:42, Philippians 1:27, 1 Corinthians 16:2)

III. I will protect the unity of my church by:
• Acting in love toward other members •Following the leadership
• Refusing to gossip (1 Peter 1:22, Ephesians 4:29, Hebrews 13:17)

IV. I will serve the ministry of my church by:
• Discovering my gifts and talents • Developing a servant’s heart
• Finding a place of ministry (Romans 12:6, 1 Peter 4:10, Philippians 2:3-4,7)

As a pastor, I am honored anytime someone would make a decision to join our church and allow me to be their Pastor. So, if the Lord tarries we will continue to do what we are doing and always try to improve in every area. We are living in exciting times with a tremendous opportunity to reach people for Jesus Christ. Below is a picture of those who just joined our church in the last 3 months by taking our membership class, which we have 4 times per year.MEMB

REPENTANCE AND FAITH; A TWO SIDED COIN

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HOW SALVATION RELATES TO REPENTANCE

salvationBy Ken Blue

There is a teaching that causes great troubling of the mind for believers. That teaching is; not only must one believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation; he must also add repentance toward God to it. These are presented as two distinct acts. Thus the Believer spends the rest of his life struggling with the question; “Have I truly repented?”

This confusion comes from failure to understand that when one turns to Jesus as Savior, he simultaneously turns from his former state as an unbeliever. His acceptance of Jesus Christ is the act of “changing of his mind.” That is all that is necessary to become a child of God. “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” 1 John 5:12. In the matter of salvation; repentance and faith are simply two sides of the same coin.

However, sanctification is a process whereby we turn from the world, the flesh, and the Devil on a daily bases. Once we get saved, the struggle begins. We desire to live for the Lord and please Him, but we discover that our old nature and old habits remain. The unhappy truth is; you and I will battle these until the rapture or the day of our death.

The believer must understand that he does not lose his sinful nature when he gets saved. Christ comes in, and now he has two natures in one body. These two will never be friends. As a believer, we have daily victory as we yield to Christ.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The believer does not lose his sinful nature when he gets saved. Christ comes in, and now he has two natures in one body. These two will never be friends.[/perfectpullquote]

The following verses show the key to victory over the world, the flesh, and the Devil. “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin. 8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” Romans 6:6-14.

The above passage gives three steps to daily victory. First, one must know, or understand, that he was crucified and raised to life with Jesus! Secondly, he must make personal, and by faith count himself as dead to all that would condemn him. Finally, he is to yield to the Lord Jesus by loving and living for Him.

My wife and I have been married fifty-four years. All those years, she has had a responsibility to me and has lived for me. But, at my death, she will be completely free from laws related to our marriage. Therefore, she will be “dead” to any former obligation to me. When Jesus died on the cross, everything that could condemn you died with Him! In other words, you are now dead to all condemnation. Greater still, He is alive and you are married to Him!

You know you are married, if you are, and your marriage license will stand in any court. The only proof you have of your birth date and place is your birth certificate. It too will be accepted as authoritative. Likewise, you have God’s written Word as your marriage certificate and your birth certificate. When in doubt, just get It out, and read all those assurance verses He has given you.

Getting saved is as easy as believing and asking. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13. That is all that is required! When you believed; you repented. That is salvation and nothing must be added to it. However, now that you are saved, you are to grow in grace and the knowledge of the Lord. This comes about by reading His Word, prayer and daily experience. Do not confuse the two. Salvation and repentance are two sides of the same coin; sanctification is quite another.