RSS

Tag Archives: Christ

The Last Days – Are You a Weed?

11 Jan

WeedIn my last post I started talking about a parable found in Matthew 13:24-41.  I believe it’s talking about the times we live in right now.

In it, Jesus explains that through the centuries, the kingdom of God and the world will mature alongside of one another until the end approaches.  Then, as we get close to the return of the Lord, a weeding will take place.  What is the nature of these weeds?  That’s what I want to talk about in today’s post.

According to the parable, both kingdoms begin to sprout.  You could also say they begin coming into fruition.  The church is starting to become what God wants it to become.  The closer we get to the ministry of Christ, the closer we are to harvest time.

The parable also tells us that the weeds are the enemy’s kingdom sown right alongside of us.  The word Jesus uses for weed is a plant called darnel.  It’s a special plant that looks exactly like wheat.

The downside of having it in your field is the fact that it contains a deadly poison.  Not only that, but if it’s planted next to wheat you can’t tell them apart.  As a matter of fact, everything about them looks the same until the harvest.  At harvest time wheat starts turning that beautiful, golden color.  Darnel, however, turns black.

If you were to eat darnel, it would cause sleep, convulsions, nausea, and even death.  It’s a poison.  It’s not good for human consumption.

So what Jesus is saying is that there’s going to be a battle going on until the end of the age.  This is because two different families are going to be on the earth at the same time with two vastly different agendas.  There will be two groups of people that are becoming two different kingdoms.  One of those kingdoms is poison and one is life giving.

“The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.”
Matthew 13:41

First, He says that the angels will weed out of His kingdom everything that causes sin or literally, causes offense and stumbling.  Wow!  That’s probably half the battle right there.  If we can get rid of the things that cause stumbling and that cause offense, living for Christ would get a whole lot easier.

The second type of weed mentioned by the Lord is all who do evil.   Literally it says all without law.  He is speaking here of those who are not submitted to Christ – they are without law.  These people don’t care what the Lord wants them to do – they have their own agenda.  Too many people in this generation are “serving” God on their own terms.  That is unacceptable to Him.

If you find yourself in one of these two categories, take the time right now to repent and become a life-giving member of the body of Christ.

Question: Have you ever experienced the poison of these “weeds” in a church setting?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on January 11, 2013 in Return of Christ, The Church

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Last Days – Two Kingdoms Side by Side

09 Jan

agricultureI believe that we’re in the Last Days before the return of Christ.  Did you know about the weeding that is going to take place in the Last Days?  Christ taught about it during His earthly ministry.  Very few people talk about it because it doesn’t fit into their view of the end times.

I want to take a few posts to examine this important concept.  I think that it’s important for every believer to know what to expect on the road ahead.

The following is based upon the events and teachings found in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 13 and verses 24-41.  I encourage you to read that passage first, before continuing this post.  You will have a greater understanding of what I’m saying.

This is actually the second teaching given by Jesus concerning the last days.  He gave it to the disciples in parable form.

At this point the disciples already knew that there would be a day of resurrection sometime in the future.  They knew that on that day the graves would be opened.  Someday all believers will rise with a new resurrected body.  In this teaching, Jesus builds upon that knowledge.

In the parable, the Lord teaches about a farmer who sowed good seed in the ground.  Secretly, an enemy sowed bad seed during the night.  When asked what he would do about it, the farmer said that he would let both plants grow together until the harvest.  That way he could tell the difference between the weeds and the wheat.

The disciples had no idea what Jesus was talking about.  Later on in the day, the disciples found themselves alone with the Lord.  They took that opportunity to ask Him about it.  It’s Jesus’ explanation that I want to talk about.

According to the Lord, sons of the kingdom (that’s us), were sown into the world.  But the devil also sowed his sons into the world.  According to the parable there are two kingdoms, on earth, growing side by side.  I believe that’s where all the spiritual tension comes from that we are presently experiencing.

The kingdom of God and the world are both headed in opposite directions.  They have two different kings and vastly different goals.  As we approach the end, both kingdoms are going to start developing to the point where they’re bearing fruit.  The closer we get to the return of the Lord, the clearer we will see both the church of Jesus Christ and the world for what they truly are.

It is the overlap of the world and the church that causes the problems.  This parable addresses what God intends to do about it in the Last Days.  This is a very important subject.  If you haven’t already done so, subscribe to this blog for email delivery, so you won’t miss any of the posts.

Question: How have you experienced the tension between the kingdom of God and the world?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
2 Comments

Posted by on January 9, 2013 in Return of Christ

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lacking Love – A Sign of the Times

07 Jan

Gas TankIn my last post I talked about the work it took to love others.  Faith is the fuel, so as we love, our faith is used up.

That’s the hindrance that we face.  We’ve noticed, the more we try to love others, the more of our spiritual reserves are used up.  Anyone in ministry can tell you about this phenomenon.  The more we minister to the needs of others, the more we need to be built up ourselves.

But, instead of more time in the Word to refuel, since faith comes by hearing the Word of God, we decide to love less.  We spend less time truly fellowshipping with other believers.  Less time going to church, prayer meetings, and other events that could possible tap into our faith-fuel reserves.  That’s the condition of many Christians these days.

There is a fallacy with this kind of thinking.  You can’t just decide not to use the car because the gas gauge goes down when you drive it.  That’s simply foolish.

We wouldn’t do that in the natural.  We’d never think of telling our boss, “I’m only coming to work one day a week because my car would use too much gas if I came to work more often.”  Yet, many believers treat God this way all the time.

Jesus warned us that this would be a sign of the last days.

“However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Luke 18:8b

Jesus was asking if anyone would fuel up in the last days.  That’s a valid question based upon what we see taking place in the church today.

“Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Matthew 24:12-13

Jesus warns us that in the last days the love-generators will start shutting down for lack of fuel.  Engines begin to grow cold once they’re turned off.  In the same way, love begins to grow cold without the addition of faith.

Heed the warning of the Lord.  Don’t become a victim of this age.  Keep your spiritual engine running.  Keep your tank filled with the fuel of faith.  Use it to energize your love walk so that your spiritual voltage is always high.

This is the generation when the church needs to shine the brightest.  The world is getting darker and darker.  This makes the light of the Lord that much more powerful.

Remember, it’s the power of God that draws men to Himself.  But that power is only energized in us by our faith working through love.  It’s not faith all by itself.  Stay fueled up, and keep your love flowing.

Question: How do you keep your “faith tank” filled?

© Nick Zaccardi 2013

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on January 7, 2013 in Faith, Power of God

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Spiritual Power – What Does it Take?

28 Dec

LightningIn past posts I talked about spiritual power in physical terms.  What does it take to walk in the power of God?  Scripture gives us the answers.

The following is an event that’s recorded in Luke 7:36-50.  I encourage you to take the time and read through this section of Scripture to see the truth of what I’m describing.

A Pharisee had invited Jesus over to his home for dinner.  When Jesus arrived at the house, the Pharisee neglected a few simple courtesies that were a way of life in that region of the world.

He didn’t offer Jesus a kiss, water for His feet, or oil for His hair.  This was a slight against the Lord.

During Jesus’ visit, a woman came in and did something unique.  She knelt before Him and wept, allowing her tears to fall on His feet.  Then she wiped them with her hair.  Once His feet were cleaned, she opened an alabaster bottle of expensive perfume and began to anoint His feet.

As this was going on, the Pharisee was thinking that if Jesus were really a prophet, He would know how sinful this woman was.  According to the Pharisee’s thinking, Jesus shouldn’t let her touch Him.

Jesus, knowing his thoughts, turned to the Pharisee and told him a parable about two men who had their debts forgiven.  One had a large debt, and the other a small one.

He asked the Pharisee which had more love for the one who forgave the debts.  The Pharisee answered that the one who was forgiven more, loved more.  Jesus then applied that truth to the Pharisee and the woman, much to the Pharisee’s shame.

In doing this, Jesus said some things that are very important for us to hear in regards to the flow of the power of God.

Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Luke 7:50

We see from this verse that faith brought the woman salvation and peace.  These are two results that can only be accomplished by the power of God.  It is through the salvation and peace of God that we can live above the problems found in the world system.

But there is something else that Jesus said that causes us to question if faith was the only thing involved.

“Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – for she loved much.  But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
Luke 7:47

According to Jesus, she had something else that released the power of God into her life.  She had much love.  This is an important concept for us to grasp.  In order to truly understand the nature of power, we must come to terms with the relationship between faith and love.  In short, we must understand the faith – love connection.

Question: Do you see the connection between faith and love?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on December 28, 2012 in Faith, Power of God

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Birth of Christ…A Sign of Things to Come

24 Dec

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIt’s Christmas Eve.  Our thoughts turn to the Child born in a stable in Bethlehem.

This is the day everything changed.  Christ was born.  God made flesh.

And yet, many people miss the significance of the events that occurred that day.  Sometimes the smallest detail can make a world of difference.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:8-12

At night in Bethlehem, everyone was asleep in their beds.  Well, not everyone.  There was a group of people who couldn’t sleep.  They had a job to accomplish.  They were shepherds watching over a flock of sheep.

Suddenly the unexpected occurred.  They had a supernatural encounter.  An angel showed up with an important message for them.  The Christ was born.

But more than that – there was a sign.  That means there was a special thing they were to look for to prove they were in the right place.  A baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.

This sign to the shepherds was more than just proof for them.  It was a sign of things to come.  This baby was placed in a manger – not a crib or cradle.  A manger is a fancy way of saying a feeding trough for livestock.  It’s a place for animal food, not babies.

Yet this was the “Bread of Heaven” who came down to give us life.  So for Christ, this was an appropriate resting place for Him.  The Bread of Life lying in a feeding trough.

The strips of cloth were another sign. It wasn’t the normal kind of baby clothes of that day.  Strips of cloth were used to clothe the dead, not the living.  This baby was dressed as a corpse.  Again – it was a sign of things to come.

Here was the Lamb of God.  He has come to take our place on the cross.  Even as a baby, His calling was revealed.  Death, burial, resurrection and ascension – all for our sakes.

On this great day, amid all the activities and excitement you may find around you, don’t lose sight of the signs.  This child we celebrate is no longer a baby.  He is King of kings and Lord of lords.  He is our Life and Light.  This season is all about Him.

Have a Blessed and Wondrous Christmas!

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on December 24, 2012 in Encouragement, Worship

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Counter-Culture and the Counter-Anointing

10 Dec

Different Anointing

Did you know that the present culture of America has an anointing on it?  I have been posting about Christianity as a counter-culture.  Today I want to talk about the modern cultural anointing.

Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.  They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.
1 John 2:18-19

The word antichrist is very interesting.  When some people think antichrist, it brings images of The Beast or a world dictator.  Actually, antichrists have been around as long as the church has been in existence.

This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
1 John 4:3

What we need to understand is that there is a spirit of antichrist that is constantly at work in secular society.  Let’s stop and think about it.  Here is a spirit that is anti – opposite – Christ.

In my last post I made the point that Christ means the Anointed One.  That means we’re talking about an anti-anointing that’s operating in the world.  Whether you know it or not, there are two different anointings at work in our society.  There’s the Spirit of Christ and the spirit of antichrist.

The first verse above tells us that there are people in churches who have bought into the anti-anointing that’s in the world.  Eventually these people get offended at the Gospel of Christ – the true anointing – and they leave.

But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.  I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.  Who is the liar?  It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ.  Such a man is the antichrist — he denies the Father and the Son.
1 John 2:20-22

It is all about Jesus Christ – that’s the bottom line.  We live in such an accepting and tolerant world.  It’s okay, no matter what you want to talk about…that is until you mention Jesus Christ.  Suddenly the conversation gets shut down.

The reason is clear.  There are two competing spirits at work.  The spirit of antichrist wants no mention of the true anointing.  Christ, the Anointed One and His anointing can break the bondage of sin, sickness, depression, and a whole host of other symptoms of this age.

We need to walk in the boldness of the Holy Spirit.  Even if it means that we are ridiculed, shut down or rejected.  We must be a light for the true anointing of Christ in our generation.

Question: Have you ever noticed intolerance for the name of Jesus Christ?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
1 Comment

Posted by on December 10, 2012 in Revival, Spiritual Warfare, The Church

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Christ – The Foundation of a Counter-Culture

07 Dec

SONY DSCOur culture is our way of life.  Why, then, is modern Christianity so much like the culture of America?

It doesn’t matter what you talk about, the statistics are very close.  Divorce, drug and alcohol abuse, depression, and a host of other issues seem very much a part of church life.  I have known Christian girls who couldn’t wait to turn 18 so that they could lose their virginity legally.

Why are we so much like the world?

We would rather talk about religion than Jesus.  We try to be so careful not to offend anyone by what we believe.

I think an important word to use is counter.  Think about how we use it in society.  We have groups in counter-intelligence or counter-terrorism.  To be counter means that you are going opposite that group.

More than any other people, Christianity should be counter-culture.  We should have our own cultural lifestyle.  If you remember from my last post, that means our own way of doing things.  It should be different than how our society operates.

We need to see the Scriptural pattern.

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ.  He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22

This verse tells us that it’s God’s job to make us stand firm in Christ.  How does He do that?  The Lord accomplishes it by anointing us.

Anointing – now there’s a rich word.  The very word Christ means the Anointed One.  His anointing came from the Holy Spirit that was upon Him.  Now we are standing firm in the Anointed One.  That’s where we have the power to fulfill what we’re called to do.

This passage states that the anointing upon us is one of the things that are guaranteeing what is to come.  That tells me that I have a future in Christ.  This anointing is taking us somewhere.

In the same way, this culture we live in is headed somewhere.  It leads to addiction, divorce, depression, guilt, and, worst of all, hell.  Personally, I don’t want to go where the American culture is leading us to.

As the church of Jesus Christ, our future – our direction – should be vastly different.  Actually, the world should want what our culture leads to.  The differences should be that obvious.  We need to get back to the basics of what Christ wants to do in us.  Then we must follow it through to the end.

Question: What are some differences that should be obvious to the world?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
3 Comments

Posted by on December 7, 2012 in Revival, The Church

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Christianity: The Counter-Culture…or not?

05 Dec

DifferentIs the church called to run contrary to the world?  If so, then where are we missing it?  I want to take a few posts to deal with this issue.  I want us to think about our walk as Christians in America.

This topic actually isn’t that new.  James wrote about it long ago.

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?  Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
James 4:4

Those are some strong words he uses.  He called them an adulterous people.  What does cheating on your spouse have to do with the spiritual condition of a generation?  The answer is found in the verse just preceding this one.  It explains his choice of words.

As he talked about asking for things in prayer, he wrote…

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
James 4:3

Here’s the problem that James is describing as adultery.  They asked God for things so that they could then spend those things on their pleasures.  It literally says that their motives in seeking God, was so that they could become consumers of pleasures.

That sounds a little too familiar.

“God, please help me to get a better job.”

Then, as our blessings increase, we get more things and push God further into the background.  After all, now that I have more stuff, I have less time for “church”.

Here’s the problem from God’s perspective.  It says in verse 4, above, that trying to make friends with the world is an act of hostility toward God.  To make a friend, you need to try to please them or be like them in some way.

Remember, we’re not talking about the people, but the world system.  You can make friends with people without buying into the system.

There’s a word we use for the world’s system of order.  It’s the word culture.  Webster’s Comprehensive Dictionary defines culture as, the sum total of the attainments and activities of any…people, including their implements, handcrafts, agriculture, economics, music, arts, religious beliefs, tradition, language and story.

In other words, the American culture is our entire way of life.  It’s how we live and what we expect.  It’s what we strive for as well as what we accept as “normal”.

When I think about the mainstream of life in the United States, I get a picture of the system at work here.  Then, when I see the lifestyle we are called to as followers of Christ, I get a whole different picture.  There are some areas where the two cultures are drastically different.

How do we live in both worlds?  That’s what I want to talk about in the next few posts.  Hopefully you’ll join the conversation.

Question: Do you see areas where the church is too friendly with the world system?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
3 Comments

Posted by on December 5, 2012 in Revival, The Church

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Are You Living a Dehydrated Life?

03 Dec

Stream 2Do you find yourself feeling dry – spiritually speaking?  Do you even know what this means?  In the same way we try to keep our body healthy, we need to tend to our soul.

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When can I go and meet with God?
Psalm 42:1-2

I enjoy hiking on the Appalachian Trail.  I remember a trip I once took up Holt’s Ledge in New Hampshire.  It wasn’t very high – under 3000 feet.  But, because of poor planning on my part, I ran out of water.  To make matters worse, there were no springs ahead on the trail until I went up and over to the other side of the ledge.

It’s an awful thing when you know that you’re dehydrating.  First you start to get light-headed.  Then, every muscle in your body begins to cramp up.  Just putting one foot in front of the other becomes agony.

In that situation there was only one thing I could do.  I walked on with the realization that if I was going to survive, I must get to water.  It was tough, but I eventually made it to a water source.  I drank my fill, resupplied, and started to feel normal.  Later, I vowed never to let that happen again.

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
John 7:37-38

This is a great promise to us.  Jesus said that those who trust Him will have streams of living water on the inside.  We have access to that life-giving river all the time.  The question is, do we draw from it?

Many Christians foolishly live in spiritual “dehydration” every day of their life.  They ignore the presence of God and wonder why their spiritual life is so cramped up.  Why is every step so hard to take?

We need to keep our souls healthy.  This requires the same daily care that we give to our bodies.  Make sure that you don’t suffer from spiritual dehydration – run to the stream of the Lord each day for refreshment.

Refresh yourself right now by spending time in His presence.  Fill your soul with the living water only Christ can provide.

Question: Have you ever gone through a dry spiritual season?  What did you do to overcome it?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
3 Comments

Posted by on December 3, 2012 in Encouragement, Prayer, Revival

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Are You Truly Thankful?

22 Nov

These thoughts on Thanksgiving come from reading Luke 17:11-19.  In this section of Scripture we see an interesting event in the life of Christ.  It caused me to ask myself if I am truly thankful for all God has done for me.

This story from the life of Christ surrounds ten lepers.  These were men who had an incurable skin disease.  They came to Jesus for a miracle and were not disappointed.

In these verses, we see everything needed for obtaining the blessing of God.  There’s faith, obedience, and expectancy.  Jesus’ response to them is simple.

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.
Luke 17:14

There was no special religious display.  The Lord didn’t touch them or even pray over them.  He simply gave them a task to complete.

Then, something unexpected happened.  As they were on their way to the priests, their healing was completed.  By the time they got there, the leprosy was totally gone.

But that wasn’t the only unexpected occurrence that day.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.
Luke 17:15

On the way to the priests, one of the men sees what’s happening to him.  As he experiences his healing, he turns around.   He begins to make his way back to Jesus.

As he does so, he starts yelling.  The literal Greek uses the words mega-phone.  This was not a quiet thankfulness of the heart.  His actions must have attracted attention.  And what’s more, he didn’t even care who heard him.  He wanted to praise God because of His blessing.

What this passage taught me is that thankful people live out loud for the Lord.  This is not just a church thing, but a lifestyle of praise to God.

That’s why I believe Thanksgiving is more than just “Turkey Day” or “Football Day.”  It’s about what God has done for us.  Even the disciples of Christ caught hold of this.

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen…
Luke 19:37

This is a normal response to the hand of God at work.  It doesn’t mean you have to yell all the time.  What it does mean, is that God’s work should be abundantly evident in your life.

Question: What are you thankful to God for? Are you willing to let people know about it?

© Nick Zaccardi 2012

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on November 22, 2012 in Encouragement

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

← Older posts
Newer posts →