The Way of Cain----By Greg Laurie , Christian Post Contributor.

                           Greg Laurie, senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California and Harvest Orange County in Irvine, California, shares the Gospel with a sold-out crowd of 19,000 for Harvest America at the American Airlines Center and Victory Park in Dallas, Texas, Oct. 5, 2014.

Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. (Jude 1:11)

The Bible warns us about "the way of Cain" (see Jude 1:11). What is the way of Cain? For one thing, it is to worship God with impure motives. Cain brought his offering to the Lord, but he didn't bring it in faith. No matter how great your gift may be, if your heart is wrong, then it will mean nothing.

The way of Cain is also to have a heart and life that are filled with jealousy, envy, and hatred. There always will be people who will do better than you. There always will be someone who is better looking, more successful or more intelligent than you. So will you go through life frustrated and filled with jealousy and envy? Or, are you going to say, "God, everything I have is a gift from You anyway, and I am going to thank You for it. I don't want to destroy my life through envy and jealousy"?

Lastly, the way of Cain is to lie to God about what you have done. There is only one way to deal with sin, and that is to tell the truth because God knows anyway. God knew what Cain was about to do, and He warned him. But Cain did what he thought he should do, and sin pounced on him, consumed him, and mastered him just as God said it would.

It is the same for those of us today as well. Don't walk in the way of Cain. Instead, walk in the way of Abel. Hebrews 11:4 tells us that "by faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks." The way of Abel leads to blessing.

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Pastor Bill Owens Urges Christians to Stand Against Gay Marriage by Refusing to Obey 'Unjust Laws. By Vincent Funaro , Christian Post Reporter.

                            Rev. Bill Owens, the president and founder of the Coalition of African American Pastors.

The president of the Coalition of African American Pastors, the Rev. Bill Owens, is calling on Christians to not participate in gay marriage ceremonies by "refusing to obey unjust laws" in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage.

Owens, who held a press conference in Dallas on Tuesday where he was joined by other prominent conservative leaders who support traditional marriage, said Christians in all areas of society should stand up and defend their constitutional rights.

"We are calling on Christians and people of faith in all areas of society, especially those in leadership positions, to refuse to obey unjust laws that have legalized same-sex unions, and to join our movement [called Real Marriage] that will take back our Constitution and our rights," said Owens in a statement posted on Facebook prior to the press conference.

Among the leaders joining Ownes' movement are the president of Campaign for Texas Families, Steve Hotze, and licensed marriage and family therapist of the Children's Center for Healthy Gender and Sexuality, David Pickup.

"We, along with 20 other leaders from major churches, politicians and laypersons from around Texas and other states have joined together and just started this new movement which is called Real Marriage. One man and one woman for life," said Pickup, a counselor who specializes in reparative therapy, to The Christian Post.

Pickup told CP that the movement was created to "take back what was taken from us with the Supreme Court's decision on homosexual marriage only two weeks ago."

"We're here to say that we're going to influence over 300,000 people who are being mobilized to attend world conferences on gender, sexuality and marriage," he continued. "[These people] are going to be marching in the streets and taking back our rights, which are very close to being taken away, including religious rights and freedom of speech."

Pickup added that the movement will aim to re-establish "what it means to be secure in one's gender" and "what it means to be in marriage," according to the Judeo-Christian worldview.

During a press conference in Memphis, Tennessee, last month hosted by the CAAP, Owens threatened civil disobedience if the Supreme Court decision did not rule in favor of traditional marriage.

"If they rule for same-sex marriage, then we're going to do the same thing we did for the civil rights movement," said Owens. "We will not obey an unjust law. The politicians and courts have tried to take God out of this country. This country was founded on Godly principles. We will not stand back."

The president of the Pastor's Council in Houston, the Rev. David Welch, also spoke at the conference and explained the lengths people of faith will go to resist gay marriage.

"God created marriage between a man and woman and no Supreme Court jurisdiction can define this," said Welch. "We stand, clearly saying we will acknowledge God's law no matter what the cost, no matter what the price. If they want to fill jails with pastors across the nation of every color, denomination and every size, we will stand for the laws of God and his truths."

"If it comes down to declining to perform same-sex weddings, that we will be charged with a civil or criminal penalty, then we will accept the penalty," he explained. "But this isn't just about the wedding ceremony itself. This is a core, fundamental issue of our First Amendment freedom that the court is toying with right now. Either we have the right to freedom of conscience and religion and the freedom to practice it, or we don't."

Contact: Vincent.funaro@christianpost.com; follow me on Twitter @vinfunaro

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Understanding Jesus: “Take My yoke upon you…” by ANNA DIEHL

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Mt. 11:28-30)

The picture of two oxen above is the image that would have popped into the minds of the people Jesus was talking to when He put out this invitation. These people lived in an agricultural society and everyone was familiar with the picture of two oxen dragging a heavy plow through a field while their owner followed behind them and used their wooden yokes to guide them about.

When we hear these words, we sometimes think that Jesus is describing Himself as already wearing a yoke and that He’s offering for us to join Him under it. In this scenario, Jesus would be one ox, and we’d be the other. We’d go hauling through life as a team, with strong Jesus helping to bear most of the burden for us.

But this is not what Jesus is saying. Jesus is God, and He doesn’t wear yokes personally—He only passes them out to us. When Jesus says, “Come to Me,” He isn’t inviting people to approach Him as their Buddy, but as their Master. Jesus is speaking to the crowd as if they’re all a bunch of bovines while He is the human master. This speech is a bit of an ego bruiser.

Now once an ox allows his master to slip that heavy wooden yoke around his neck, the ox can’t get the thing off again on his own. The master is then in control, and the master now has a tool by which he can make the ox very miserable if the ox doesn’t do what he wants. To submit to being yoked is a bit nerve-wracking. Ego aside, we need reassurances that Jesus isn’t going to abuse us before we let Him dominate us in this manner. Jesus gives us those assurances.

“…for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Here Jesus likens Himself to a human owner who is humble and kind, as opposed to one who is violent and demanding. Is Jesus really humble? No, because being humble is about recognizing that you are beneath God and wanting Him to be exalted instead of yourself. As God, Jesus has no use for humility. He’s magnificent and He knows it and He has an insatiable appetite for worship and praise. Is He always gentle? No, He can be quite rough when He wants to. It’s Jesus we find in Revelation commanding the armies of Heaven, and threatening to vomit Christians out of His mouth. We need to be careful not to read too much into this passage. Jesus isn’t trying to sum up His whole personality for us here. He is using a farm metaphor to assuring us that submitting to Him will be a positive experience overall. He is not the kind of Master who is going to crush us bovines beneath impossible burdens and then beat us with whips for not moving fast enough. The yoke He’s planning to put on us is going to be one that we can easily bear—not some painful, pulling thing that hurts our anatomy. The burden He’s planning to have us haul for Him is light. In short, being owned by Jesus is going to be a pleasant, positive experience—one that actually makes our souls feel more rested than they do when we are running around yoke free.

Depending on where you are currently at in your walk with God, this metaphor will either hit you as a negative or a positive. If you’re feeling burned out and bogged down with ministry efforts, then it’s an indication that some other yoke has been slipped around your neck by human beings. Jesus isn’t going to drive you into the ground with His demands for service, but your pastor might, and so might all the heads of those various committees at church. If you’re feeling burned out, it’s time to ask the Holy Spirit to help you break free of those extra yokes so you can get back to that easy burden Jesus talked about. For help with this, see Serving God: The Glorious Dance.

If you’re currently in the midst of spiritual refinement and your life is filled with a bunch of painful trials and traumas, then this easy yoke business can quickly rile up feelings of anger. “Why is Jesus being such a hypocrite? There’s nothing gentle about the way He’s treating me!” If this is where you’re currently at, then see The Horrors of Spiritual Refinement.

Once we submit to Jesus and He gets that yoke around our necks, He’s never going to take it off again. Getting collared by God is a permanent change. And though there will be times when we worry that we’ve made the wrong choice or feel scared by the road we’re being driven down, the longer we walk with Jesus and the more learn from Him, the more we realize what a generous, kind, and loving Master He really is.

Ready to Pounce-----BY GREG LAURIE

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
— 1 Peter 5:8

• 
  (Photo: rever Hoehne for Harvest Ministries)
  Greg Laurie, senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California and Harvest Orange County in Irvine, California, shares the Gospel with a sold-out crowd of 19,000 for Harvest America at the American Airlines Center and Victory Park in Dallas, Texas, Oct. 5, 2014.

A number of years ago I read an interesting book called Death in the Long Grass. Its author, a big-game hunter, recounts stories of not only hunting lions, but also of lions hunting people.

There was a certain group of lions that had a taste for human blood and would come into camps at night, step over people without even waking them, and find their intended prey. It was never determined why the lions chose whom they chose. But they would pick up their victims, kill them immediately, and drag them away without waking a single person. The author wrote about one large cat in particular that killed over one hundred people. The book also mentions that a charging lion can cover one hundred yards in just three seconds.

Lions are powerful and very frightening creatures. And they have the capability to take you out rapidly if they want to.

The Bible likens the Devil to a lion. First Peter 5:8 tells us, "Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour."

And in Genesis, God gave this warning to Cain: "But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master" (4:7). God was saying, "Listen, you are flirting with disaster. You had better throw on the brakes, because sin is like a wild beast, and it is ready to pounce." The Devil is always looking for trouble, pacing back and forth like a lion in his cage.

Sin was crouching at Cain's door, and it is crouching at our door too. And for some, it is already across the threshold. So we must be careful.

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/ready-to-pounce 141467/#DQBHbh5SHLUgL3p4.99

Are You Ready for Jesus' Return? by Patricia Cox

2 Peter 3: 3-4,8-9

3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Jesus is coming back. The Word of God says He is. The signs of His soon return are quite evident. Nations in the world are at war with one another. Earthquakes are increasing and getting more and more intense around the world. Pestilences and famine are wiping people out. The hatred for Christians worldwide is growing. Sin is greatly increasing. Many false prophets are appearing and leading people away from the true and living God. The gospel is being preached around the world. (Matt 24:4-14)

The world and even some in the Church scoff at this prophecy regarding His second coming (2 Peter 3:3-4). They say things are the same since the beginning of time. Yes, that is true; it has been. However, time is not the same with God as it is with people. (2 Peter 3:8) We might think He is slow about fulfilling His promise but He is not. He is long-suffering with us because it is His desire that we all come to repentance.(2 Peter 3:9)

There are many people in the world that God wants to save before He comes back. We must be about the Father's business. We must pray for them, show them the love of God, and share the good news of the gospel with them so that they might be saved.

There are many people in the Church that are saved but are living their life like they are not saved. They, too, must come to repentance. God's Word teaches that believers are to live godly or they will not be ready for His return. (2 Peter 3:11,14-15)

Jesus told His disciples what the signs of the end time were regarding His second coming (Matthew 24:4-35). He also told them what they needed to do to be ready (Luke 21:34-36).

Jesus gave the disciple some parables that told them what is required of them to be ready for His coming. (Matthew 24:45-51, 25:1-46) These parables teach that a believer must be faithful, live godly, and serve God in word and deed. Those believers who are not ready for His coming will perish.

Are you ready for Jesus' return? Are you living godly in Christ Jesus? Are you faithful to Him and His Word? Are you serving Him in word and deed?

If not, then recommit your life to Jesus, make Him Lord of your life. Pray. Study His Word. Repent. Seek His will daily and obey Him.

Are you a Christian? ------- Chris Fedorcek

Are you a Christian? This is a question that elicits a variety of responses with the most common response being, “I go to church” or “I was baptized…” Is this how our culture defines a Christian in today’s society?

Being a Christian, a follower of Christ, is more than a singular act followed by a series of irregular acts and a lack of commitment to the call. In the book of Acts Paul writes, “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers. Then fear came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude, praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:42-46 HCSB)

When I read the words Paul writes in Acts I see devotion, fellowship, gifts and love. I see a church that is fully committed to one another, to the body and to the Father. For one to be devoted to something they’re all in, they’re loyal, faithful and the commitment is constant, not simply when it’s convenient. I see a church that fellowships with one another; they do life together. They don’t simply show up once a week for a feel good message, but they’re invested in the lives of one another experiencing highs and lows, studying the Word and praying together. I see a church that uses the gifts that God has blessed them with through the Holy Spirit. We don’t see “wonders and signs being performed” because we don’t see a church that is committed, open and accepting to the awesome things the Holy Spirit has for us. Lastly, I see love. I see a church that provides for one another; a church where nobody goes without and they serve each other in humility and with joy.

As a body of believers we talk a good game of wanting to be the church and of being a Christian, but are these actions reflected in your daily walk? I understand that life happens and we all face challenges daily to challenge our commitment, but I also know that it isn’t about me and what fits my tastes and my schedule. Bonhoeffer once said, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him to come and die.” Yes, it’s harsh and yes it’s not always easy, but we were never called to live an easy life! 2 Timothy 3:12 says, “In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

You will be tested and you will be pushed to the edge of what you think you can handle, but we serve a God that is greater than all and is more than sufficient to get you through. Remember, we are not called simply to convert, but to submit our lives wholly to the will of the Father. So let me ask you this question again, are you a Christian?

Moving Shadows, Busy Nothings, and the God Who Wants Us to Stop ------- Daniella Whyte

We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth, not knowing who will spend it. (Psalm 39:6, NLT).

God has given us so much time. Time to know Him, to love Him, to serve Him, and to worship Him. Time to know others, to love others, to serve others, and to give to others. But how often we fill this divine time with busyness. Busyness is the common thread that runs throughout all of humanity. And sadly, in all of our hurrying, we rarely get anywhere.
Someone once asked writer and professor, Mark Buchanan, what was his biggest regret in life. He thought for a moment and said, "Being in a hurry".

"Being in a hurry," he said. "Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me. I cannot think of a single advantage I've ever gained from being in a hurry. But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all that rushing."

"Through all that haste," he said, "I thought I was making up time. It turns out I was throwing it away."

In our busyness and rushing, we fail to really live life. In an attempt to make time or gain time, we waste it. The busyness puts us out of touch with family, friends, and the relationships that really matter. The hurry causes us pain, unnecessary hospital visits, and stress beyond measure. We were not created to endure such stress.

While we race to obtain more, to be more, to see more, to experience more, we fill our lives with stuff --- doings and happenings and goings-on --- but somehow we come up short in the end. The trail seems longer the faster we run. The minutes keep ticking the longer we count. The more we fill, the more we leak until we ultimately run dry.

In a world with deals to make, ideas to put into action, promises to fulfill, people to take care of, and always work to do, who actually lives in the moment? Who knows how to do that or even where to begin? David says it right. We move quickly but are just shadows and all that we are doing ultimately ends in nothing. We fight for things --- money, power, prestige, recognition, pleasure, fame --- that we cannot take with us into eternity. We leave it all behind at the end of our lives.

God urges us to stop the race, to quit fighting against time, to call a time-out, to slow down, to be still, to sit quietly, and to realize that He is God. The urgency of life is really a reverse call to take the minutes we are hurrying and to stop, to listen to the music, to dance with grace, and to embrace the symphony of a peaceful, contented life. In Christ, we find time, not running out, but gaining more and more until that precious day. In ourselves, there is not enough time. But in Christ, we have all the time we need.

We can take A.W. Tozer's advice: "God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which he must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves."

We can ponder Michael Phillips' thought: "The best things are never arrived at in haste. God is in no hurry; His plans are never rushed."

So there is no need to be in a hurry or to be so busy that we don't feel the grace that carries us and guides our lives. There is more than enough time to breathe, to laugh, to love, to experience goodness, to embrace grace, and to express gratitude to God for the gift of time and the ability to use it in this very moment of life.

Lord, in the midst of our busy lives, help us to slow down, to sit down, to stop. Help us to push away from the pursuit of more stuff and to pull closer to the pursuit of Your glory. Let us never be in such a hurry or so busy that we fail to really live life the way You intended --- abundant, free, and blessed. Let our lives be reflections of Your grace and goodness working in us and through us and let it shine on our faces. In Jesus' name. Amen.