Daily Devotion …

megaphone-2

Advisory: Be careful of what you read on social media. The algorithms used by these platforms have no regard for Biblical truth. They target your emotions to keep you engaged on their site so their advertisers can drop more ads. These platforms exist to enrich their stockholders. Consider God’s promise to Believers in James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

Featured Story

god-b

Matthew 18:15-17 (NIV) 15“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. 16But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

 This is the only passage in the New Testament that tells how to practically go about resolving a conflict between brothers in Christ. If we would follow it carefully, we would resolve many conflicts before they got to the point of being irreparable. Step one: The one who is offended goes to the one that offended him, one on one. 90% of issues will be resolved there. Usually it is a misunderstanding or something that was done unintentionally. Do it quickly before bitterness takes root. Once you become embittered, no response will be sufficient to restore the relationship.

Step two: If there is no resolution, the offending brother refuses to listen, then take along two or three witnesses. Ideally there should only be five people at the most that know about the problem. We get into trouble when we start telling others and forming groups to support one another’s perception of what happened. Everyone wants support and sympathy, but the godly way is to keep those that know limited in an attempt to resolve the issue.

Finally, if the brother refuses to listen, then take it to the church. Some interpret this to mean the elders of the congregation you attend. Others believe this means to bring it before the entire church body for resolution. If the brother refuses to listen to the church, (this assumes the church will be of one mind) treat him as a pagan or tax collector. This is one of Jesus’ few teachings about the church. Jesus is referring to believers that gather to worship. It really did not exist at the time, so Jesus is looking into the future and specifically addressing a future need for His followers in a corporate setting.

Then the question is how to treat a pagan or tax collector. Is Jesus saying how the Jews treated them or how He and His disciples did? One of them was a tax collector. Treat them as those in need of salvation, loving them, but not considering them a part of the body of the local church. That would still offer hope that things could be restored if they would repent.

Remember: Commit yourself to follow Jesus’ conflict resolution pattern.

Wayside Chapel

Hate (2)

Two Christian street preachers were fined what amounts to thousands of U.S. dollars for allegedly engaging in an “abusive” and “criminal” activity by quoting verses from the King James (KJV) Bible – an argument presented by a public prosecutor in the United Kingdom.

Last summer, Michael Overd and Michael Stockwell were arrested while they were preaching in the U.K.’s Bristol city center, and they were later charged with a Public Order Offense for  quoting and speaking about the Bible to pedestrians.

Ever since July of last year, the two men have been caught in in a legal battle over what they describe as merely preaching the Gospel and answering questions posed by a crowd about the difference between Islam and Christianity, according to The Christian Institute.

Baseless argument, baseless ruling…

Michael Phillips, the attorney representing Overd and Stockwell, proclaimed before the court that the prosecutor’s allegations are completely out-of-line.

“[The prosecution was a] modern-day heresy trial – dressed up under the Public Order Act,” Phillips told the Bristol Magistrates Court.

In defense of the Christian men, their counsel argued that the two were legally exercising their democratic right to preach and quote from the KJV Bible in a public venue – a matter of free speech.

Reciting the Bible criminal behavior?

However, Ian Jackson, the public prosecutor in the case, claimed that the concepts and material uttered from Scripture that was translated into the King James Version of the Bible more than 400 years ago should not be allowed to be publicly spoken in contemporary time in the U.K.

“Whilst it is right that if things are said in the Bible, they can be said to be an expression of religious belief – to use words translated in 1611 in a very different context, in the context of modern British society, must be considered to be abusive, and is a criminal matter,” Jackson contended before the court.

At a later time, the prosecutor insisted that the Word of God recorded in the Bible is false teaching.

“To say to someone that Jesus is the only God is not a matter of truth,” Jackson expressed in a recorded statement. “To the extent that they are saying that the only way to God is through Jesus, that cannot be a truth.”

Setting the law straight

Christian Institute Director Colin Hart addressed Jackson’s response, insisting that his argument is not based in British law.

“We must not forget that strong protections for free speech still remain in our country,” Hart asserted. “There has been no change in the law in this area since 2014, when the word ‘insulting’ was removed from Section 5 of the Public Order Act.”

He went on to contend that the unfavorable ruling against the Christian men in the lower court was a grave mistake – one that should rectified through their appeal to a judge of greater stature.

“It would be completely wrong for Christians to conclude that reading the KJV in public has suddenly become a criminal offence,” the Christian legal expert maintained. “Of course, the law is not always correctly applied, and the verdict in this case can be fully examined by a higher court.”

Christian Concern Chief Executive Andrea Williams, whose organization is supporting the street preachers in the case, was amazed at the reckless and flagrant argument presented by the prosecuting attorney.

“The Bible and its teachings are the foundation of our society and provided many of the freedoms and protections that we still enjoy today,” Williams proclaimed. “So, it is extraordinary that the prosecution – speaking on behalf of the state – could say that the Bible contains abusive words which, when spoken in public, constitute a criminal offence. In today’s democracy, we need the freedom to debate, challenge and disagree”.

Both men are appealing the decision that ordered each to pay fines and court costs amounting to £2,016 (British pounds) – nearly $2,500 (U.S.) each. It is reported that a lawsuit was dismissed against a third man for sharing the Gospel after the court found that there was no case to answer

goodgopher-300x90-1

 Original Content Copyright ©2017  hnewswire.com All Rights Reserved

watchman-on-wall

Tagged In

Newsletter

Must Read

Long-Journey-Home-1
One-Thing
Mark-Cahill-Ministries-1
One-Blinding-Vision

Other Sources

USSANews

Latest News

U.S. wins appeal in England’s High Court for Extradition of Julian Assange.

By Bryce Abbott | January 22, 2022

The U.S. government won an appeal in a British court over the extradition of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, with the ruling representing a major setback in his fight…

Read More

Government Force: Deploy Federal Teams In Door-To-Door COVID Vaccine

By StevieRay Hansen | January 22, 2022

Campaign… God Has Taken Note of the People’s Inability to Control Our Ungodly Politicians That Have Intentionally Turn This Nation Into a Godless Hell on…

Read More

Satan Four Star General Biden: ‘Vaccine Passport’

By StevieRay Hansen | January 22, 2022

Are On The Way And Will Be Required to Engage in Commerce… According to The Washington Post, the Biden regime “and private companies are working…

Read More

Sweden: Be Smitten by Your Vaccine Passports in a Chip in Your Hand or Elsewhere Under the Skin. ‘ Mark of the Beast Is Here, Ready for Your Approval

By StevieRay Hansen | January 22, 2022

“Unless God Has Established You for This Very Information. You Will Be Worn Out by the Enemies of Men and Devils”. Doom for Eternity As…

Read More

What The MSM Didn’t Tell You About FDA’s Pfizer Vaccine Approval — The FDA is

By StevieRay Hansen | January 22, 2022

Playing Bait and Switch With the American Public — but We Don’t Have to Play Along. if It Doesn’t Say Comirnaty, You Have Not Been…

Read More
Focused-Protection-1
Place Your Ad Here

We make every effort to acknowledge sources used in our news articles. In a few cases, the sources were lost due to a technological glitch. If you believe we have not given sufficient credit for your source material, please contact us, and we will be more than happy to link to your article.

StevieRay Hansen

In his riveting memoir, "A Long Journey Home", StevieRay Hansen will lead you through his incredible journey from homeless kid to multimillionaire oilman willing to give a helping hand to other throwaway kids. Available on Amazon.

Leave a Comment