Posted on 01/01/2015 2:07:17 PM PST by Vision
Today's Scripture
“Be strong and courageous and do it. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you. He will not leave you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished.” (I Chronicles 28:20, ESV)
Today's Word from Joel and Victoria
Fear not. That is the message David had for his son, Solomon. For many years, David wanted to build a temple for the Lord. But God told Him that specific job belonged to his son, Solomon. Solomon was young and inexperienced, and even though he knew he had a mandate from God, he was intimidated by the prospect of building a great house of worship, one that would be a dwelling place for the Most High. You can probably understand his apprehension.
But his father David had some good advice for him. He told his son, “Forget your fear. God is bigger than your problems. He is bigger than the temple you are going to build. He is bigger than any adversity that you might face. So just get busy and do your part and God will do the rest.”
Perhaps as this new year approaches, you have some changes that need to be made. Maybe you need a renovation in your marriage, finances, health, or emotions. Whatever your individual needs may be, notice the words of David, “Be strong and courageous, and do it. Fear not, be not dismayed, for the Lord God, my God, is with you.”
A Prayer for Today
God, I’m excited to see what You have planned for me this year. Whatever I face, I will not be intimidated. I will begin this year by seeing myself as You do — happy, healthy, and prosperous. Thank you for the gift of another year. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Thanks.
Go back and read the other Osteen threads. They rarely got any replies because discussions were not allowed. This is a discussion site. I even suggested another devotion be chosen since there are so many out there to choose from that are Biblical. I often wondered just how many viewed the thread. It just seemed like someone was following a man instead of God’s word.
Vision is not blameless in that regard.
I guess the easily fooled ones.......can join the Catholic threads. LOL!! I just couldn’t resist.
Please know I am just kidding. But if you took out the word Osteen and put The Pope or Catholicism in its place, well, just suppose if someone did that?!?!?!?!
Like I said, just a little joke to lighten the mood...
Did you not read JR’s comments?
HE does not want the appearance of FR endorsing Osteen. (see post 7)
Posting threads that don’t allow for discussion give that impression, that FR is protecting Osteen’s teachings, therefore endorsing them.
Indeed!
Yes, I did. And I respect his decision, it is his forum.
Floodgates are opened - kind of like what happened to Bill Cosby!
I have read the other Osteen threads. I know there was no discussion allowed, it did not bother me because it was the same way on other Religious threads.
I do not think for one minute Vision was following Mr. Osteen instead of Christ.
I understand that you suggested another devotion be chosen. When that offer was not taken, you could have posted the devotional in another thread.
I don’t think these post rise to the level of attacking a fellow FReeper.
.....”False teachers and teachings need to be exposed to scrutiny!”......
Agree with that....but then those who are promoting them prefer not. Some even slither their stuff as links to the unsuspecting which Freepers usually catch them and call them out.
Ostten isn’t really a Preacher....he’s a motivational salesman giving himself the title because he then can maintain the religeous element while building his empire. Rather like the Bakers did.
Ok great, your highness.
Then self-quarantine it to the Religion Forum or whatever.
Don’t come here to the general page and expect to be unquestioned and not debated.
But worship and doctrine go together, and as Jim has affirmed "Free Republic is a pro-God site. The one and only true Judeo-Christian God as taught to us by KJV with no additional editing or books of fiction," then it can also follow that a perfectly pleasing preacher who uses the Christian name but denies key Truths, would hardly be expected to be set forth as one with a protected devotional thread.
A Spurgeon or Oswald Chambers he's not, but represents part of what it wrong with many churches today.
Joel Osteen: Barack Obama Is a Christian
Mark Andrews, 11/4/2014
Considering Joel Osteen's well-documented acceptance of just about anyone who believes almost anything, it should come as no surprise that the senior pastor of the mammoth Lakewood Church in Houston believes President Obama's assertion that he is a Christian—despite his numerous unbiblical beliefs, such as "there are many paths to the same place."
Osteen's comments came in an interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN Friday on his news program, The Situation Room.
Osteen says he has been to prayer breakfasts and other events with Barack Obama and heard him express his faith, redemption and salvation.
"I just believe in my heart that he's a Christian," Osteen said. "He says he is."
"Again, I wouldn't try and push people away," Osteen continued. "That's just the opposite of what we're supposed to do."
Obama has gone on the record with numerous comments that seem to veer sharply away from the well-known tenets of Bible-based Christianity.
In a 2004 interview with Cathleen Falsani, Obama said that he "draw(s) from (his) Christian faith," but then went on to talk about growing up with Eastern influences in Hawaii, Muslim influences in Indonesia, his father being an agnostic while his grandfather was a Muslim and finishing off claiming that he was mostly influenced by Judaism. However, he claims to be "rooted in the Christian tradition."
Oh, really? Let's test that assertion against some of his recorded comments: -- http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/46007-joel-osteen-barak-obama-is-a-christian
In "Your Best Life," Mr. Osteen counsels patience, compassion, kindness, generosity and an overall positive attitude familiar to any reader of self-help books. But he skirts the darker themes of sin, suffering and self-denial, leading some critics to deride the Osteen message as "Christianity lite."
"He's not in the soul business, he's in the self business," said James B. Twitchell, professor of English and advertising at the University of Florida and author of a forthcoming Simon & Schuster book on megachurches: "Shopping for God: How Christianity Went From in Your Heart to in Your Face." - http://www.apologeticsindex.org/232-joel-osteen-christianity-lite
Rob Bowman, president of the Center For Biblical Apologetics and a former colleague of Dr. Martin, explains in his book Orthodoxy and Heresy why this kind of bad diet of all cotton candy spiritual sweets is so harmful:
The church today is plagued, not only by heresies and aberrations, but by doctrines which I would characterize as junk-food doctrine. Junk food won't kill you, unless that's all you eat – in which case poor nutrition will eventually catch up with you (p.54).
As one looks deeper into this feel-good message of Joel Osteen, however, it becomes clear that his doctrine is actually far worse than junk-food, for it is indeed the spiritual poison of the metaphysical Mind Science cults which is the actual root of W/F.
Now consider the following examples from Joel Osteen himself:
You’ve got to speak it out. Your words have creative power. One of the primary ways we release our faith is through our words. There is a divine connection between you declaring God’s favor and seeing God’s favor manifested in your life. And some of you are doing your best to please the Lord. You are living a holy consecrated life, but you’re not really experiencing God’s supernatural favor. And it’s simply because you’re not declaring it. You’ve got to give life to your faith by speaking it out.” (Audio clip from Bible Answer-Man Broadcast, April 26, 2004). - http://moriel.org/MorielArchive/index.php/discernment/church-issues/popular-teachers/apprising-joel-osteens-word-faith-teachings
You mean the one that begins with a C? They need Osteen types to support their definition of Protestant and to distract from the criticism of a man with P as a title.
I dare those that are attacking Mr. Osteen to try that on the pope. It would NOT be allowed in the Religious Forum. That is why I think Vision’s threads should be afforded the same protection.
He's neither. He's a con man making a fortune by duping gullible people out of their money.
Where have you been?
Even the CATHOLICS are doing that these days.
You sure do not read those threads, then. People are critical of him all the time. Some Catholics are not happy with him.
“You have no idea how well anyone knows Christ.
My relationship with Christ is not contingent on your opinion of it.
That smacks of manipulation, saying that someone is not Christian or Christian enough because you’re offended at something you don’t like about them. All that is is trying to manipulating them into behavior you want out of them.
In your time off, try getting into Scripture and taking your eyes off man.”
God Bless you, God Bless you, God Bless you, you took the words right out of my heart!!!!!!!!!!!
Gee, thanks.......
Thank you JR !!!
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