Ministers of Jesus Christ
Assemblies of The Apostolic Faith
Atlanta, Georgia - USA
Apostle Dennis G. Smith, Pastor and Spiritual Overseer
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Ministers of Jesus Christ Assemblies of The Apostolic Faith Atlanta, Georgia - USA Apostle Dennis G. Smith, Pastor and Spiritual Overseer |
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To all the Saints
of God,
Grace and peace
be unto all the Saints of God around the World. As this Coronavirus
Pandemic continues, we are continually reminding the Saints of God that we are
obeying the magistrates and following the guideline of the health and
governmental authorities for the safety of all people.
Health authorities and
governmental officials continue to strongly encourage people to wear face
coverings in public and use social distancing, wash your hands, and get tested
to help stop the spread of the Covid-19 virus. In
some places wearing face mask is mandatory in all indoor and outdoor public
spaces.
Health
authorities are indicating that the covid-19 infection data for the City of
Atlanta, Georgia is improving. At
this present time the city remains under phase 1. When the City moves to
phase 2, we are planning to restart limited in-person services to assist us with
virtue online service at different locations wearing face covering and using
social distancing which limits small gathering of no more than 10 people with
mask and social distancing. The medically fragile are advised to continue to
shelter in place.
As we obey the Magistrates, we have complete faith that God will continue
to hear our prayers and provide a way for us through these uncertain times.
Romans 13:2-4 Let
every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God:
the powers that be are ordained of God.
TITUS 3:1-2 Put
them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to
be ready to every good work, To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but
gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
This week’s
encouraging words of growth focuses on:
VICTORY THROUGH OUR
LORD JESUS CHRIST
The central goal of all followers and believers in Jesus
Christ is to receive eternal life with Christ. We have been
forgiven for our sins through our believing in his sacrificial death on the
cross and obedience to his commandments therefore we will not suffer eternal
punishment.
The concept of dying like all other flesh and blood animals
must now be seen in a different way. Since we will rise again, we will never
cease to exist after our natural body dies but we will live on. This
is the reason why the death of the human body is described as sleeping. When
we sleep, our natural body may be unconscious as to the natural surroundings,
but our mind, spirit, or soul enters the dream state or a consciousness on
another plane. On this dream plane, we can suffer or experience
life and enjoyment which resembles the life we live when fully awake while the
dream state is in progress. We can experience enjoyment or
nightmares while our body is asleep. From this experience all
human being know something about eternal life or eternal punishment.
John 11:25 - 27 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he
that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And
whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She
saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God,
which should come into the world.
The nature of the resurrection of the dead and the translation
of the living then becomes the issue. That in the Last Judgement
the dead will be raised, and both the living and the dead shall be transformed
into "spiritual bodies”. It is through the power of Jesus Christ
that Death is swallowed up in victory. Apostle Paul asks: "O death where is thy
sting? O grave where is thy victory?" Thus, when we live a
victorious righteous life in Christ also called Victorious Christian living, the
natural process of the flesh and blood body dying is no longer equated with sin
and death because the Law of sin has now been conquered and superseded by the
victory of Jesus Christ. We now know that this natural body
whether living or dead will have to be changed to inherit eternal life. So
that dying become equated with the process of change by the Saints of God.
1Corinthians 15:49 - 58 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall
also bear the image of the heavenly. Now
this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God;
neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a
mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet
shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be
changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this
mortal must put on immortality. So, when this corruptible shall
have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then
shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death
is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy
sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin;
and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which
giveth us the victory through
our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren,
be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch
as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
When we speak
that the wages of sin is death, we are referring to eternal punishment in the
lake of fire. We can suffer and die because of sin and lift up our
eyes in hell eventually cast into the lake of fire when we enter a Christless
grave or state of death having never believed and obeyed the words of God. Or
we can die in a peaceful manner looking forward to the resurrection and
translation of the Saints of God into everlasting life in the presence of God.
Genesis 2:16 - 17 And the LORD God
commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
But of the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die.
The tree of the
knowledge of good and evil clearly presents opposite choices to man leading to
his disobeying God and establishes moral and immoral choices. When
God forbids the man to eat from the tree of knowledge, he says that if he does
so, he shall surely die. The indication is that the punishment for
this disobedient act is a death sentence of separation from the life that God
had given them in the garden and a return to dust before the translation of the
Body. Since the punishment for disobedience to God was death in the garden, you
should now see that the wage for Sin or disobedience to God is a death sentence
of separation from the Holiness and Righteousness of God. This
is probably the simplest way to understand disobedience to God.
There are differing viewpoints about death, heaven, and hell among so-called Christians Believers. Most Apostolic Oneness and Trinitarian Pentecostals hold to the Pretribulation rapture viewpoint also called Pretribulationism which is the most widely held view in America today, which may include the midtribulational viewpoint and various other disputes among evangelicalism. Evangelicalism or evangelical Christianity is a worldwide movement within Protestant Christianity that maintains the belief that the essence of the Gospel consists of the doctrine of salvation by grace alone, solely through faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ. Evangelicals believe that all people must be “born again" in conversion experience to received salvation, in the authority of the Bible as word of God to measure all truth, and in spreading the Christian message.
Those who
believe that one must be born again as stated in John 3:5 can be found in nearly
every Protestant denomination and tradition, particularly within the Reformed,
Baptist, Wesleyan, Apostolic Pentecostal, and charismatic churches. There
are also differing views among Christians regarding the rapture or aerial
gathering of the Saints of God. For this reason, you must learn
to speak of Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ when comforting all believers
until we come to the unity of the Faith.
1Thessalonians 4:15 - 18 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that
we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them
which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven
with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and
the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so
shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with
these words.
The majority of
other so-called Christian and mainline churches do not subscribe to
pretribulational views. Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Episcopalians,
Lutherans, Presbyterians, United Methodists, the United Church of Christ, and
most Reformed Christians do not generally use rapture as a specific theological
term, nor do they generally subscribe to the premillennial dispensational views
associated with its use. Instead these groups typically interpret rapture in the
sense of the elect gathering with Christ in Heaven after His second coming and
reject the idea that a large segment of humanity will be left behind on earth
for an extended tribulation period after the events of 1 Thessalonians 4:17. But
the thing that most, if not all believers see and understand is
victory through our Lord Jesus Christ concluding in eternal life.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Life
is actually quite pleasant when we function in a Godly order. The
taste of food, the warmth of the sunshine, the breeze of a gentle wind, the
chirping of the morning birds, the singing of the nightly crickets brings a
comforting feeling and the joy of living. But the seasons must
change and the warmth of the summer must change into the cool breeze of the
autumn and fall weather and with the change come storms, lightning, and strong
winds and yet in the midst of the stormy weather life is still lived with the
knowledge that the storm will pass over and the sweet sounds of the natural
order will return so that we can go through the hard times with the expectation
or hope of better days to come. Notice the pleasant thoughts we
have in the natural order of God.
But
then cometh sin…. False Gods made by men seeking to control and own other men. Disrespect
to parents, the jealousy and envying of other people leading to murder in many
cases. Lustful use of the Body for pleasure and riches. All
of these and other sins disrupts the order of God, produces pain and suffering
and separation from God the creator of all things. When we sin, we
move from comfort to trouble, from peace to war, from reward to punishment, and
from life to death. We find that there are some who take pleasure
in causing the pain of others, causing troubles and war, for Satan walks about
as a hungry roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. You should
begin to recognize the contrary, slanderous, accusing and devilish spirit in
evil people who are seeking to cause trouble and to inject drama and turmoil in
the peaceful life of those who function in love.
1Peter 5:8 - 9 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a
roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist
stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in
your brethren that are in the world.
I
can remember the times when I was a child and the wild berries grew throughout
the open forest. There were fruit trees, nut trees, honey suckers,
wild sugar cane and even tasty flowering plants on the ground for sampling. And
all you had to do was walk into the open woods and learn what to eat and what
not too. In most cases you could watch the insects, the squirrels
and the birds and follow their pattern. The food kept growing back each week and
the seasonal plants kept producing each season. But then the
commercialization of land and food continued to increase, and they cut down the
natural gardens of God in favor of manmade development and the once childhood
delights were taken away. They passed laws that prohibited the
raising of chickens and ducks in the back yards of homes and the fresh eggs that
my grandfather raised in his hen house were taken away. As a
result, people began to lose their reliance on God and look to the
commercialization of man. This is also what happen to us in the
order of the natural flesh and blood body we try to make it extend beyond what
the creator intended and began relying on man.
Preaching
should be for the deliverance of the words of God because Holy Prophets spoke as
they were moved by the Holy Ghost, not because they were trying to sound
impressive to other people.
2Peter 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy
men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
They did not
speak to gain the crowds for recognition or to lead captive lustful sensual
women using their bodies for wealth and pleasure. But they spoke
as moved by God almighty for the health and wellbeing of all mankind to lead
them to the everlasting love and joy of God almighty. And when we
stop the sins that cause the pains and suffering of death, we can see our
eternal victory in the Joy of the Lord Jesus Christ who is God almighty.
Isaiah 25:8 - 9 He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe
away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away
from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall
be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will
save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice
in his salvation.
We can see the
Healing of our minds and bodies from sickness and wounds. We can
see how-to do-good deeds any day of the year including so- called religious days
of celebration. We can see the natural aging of our bodies
according to calendar and cycle of life looking forward to eternal life with
God.
Matthew 12:11 - 22 And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you,
that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he
not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a
sheep? Wherefore Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he
stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other. Then the
Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him. But
when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes
followed him, and he healed them all; And charged them that they should
not make him known: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken
by Esaias the prophet, saying, Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my
beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he
shall shew judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not strive, nor cry;
neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets. A bruised
reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send
forth judgment unto victory. And
in his name shall the Gentiles trust. Then was brought unto him
one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that
the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
We can see the
victory over fleshly desires and learn to love our fellowman. We
can love and gives enemies the grace of God to overcome sin.
Psalms 98:1 - 3 O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous
things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. The LORD
hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the
sight of the heathen. He hath remembered his mercy and his truth
toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of
our God.
We can now
live in hope of eternal reward again when we are restored to Godly order the
Holy state that we lost in the garden of eden.
Revelations 7:16 - 17 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither
shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is
in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living
fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Revelations 21:4 - 5 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and
there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be
any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that
sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me,
Write: for these words are true and faithful.
We continue
with a message from Apostle Shelton………………The Storm is Passing Over………...
THE STORM IS PASSING OVER
By: Bishop S.
McDowell Shelton
Preached: Monday night July 5, 1965
Many of you who are in the services tonight have been up since early yesterday morning. You have been out on our estate in Marlton, New Jersey (Cherry Hill Township) where I believe we had a wonderful time, in spite of the rain and with the rain. We can truly say that God was in our midst and brave soldiers stayed there even though some had to sit in their cars and wait until the storm passed over. Some came in the tabernacle and lined up along the sides. They continued in the services until the storm passed over. Just as I was about to leave the sun began to shine.
My, this gave me such a beautiful thought: If you will just wait until the storm passes over, the sun will come out by and by. And so, if you wait, just be patient—even though you are weary. Perhaps you are weary in body and in spirit, troubled by some personal problem. This, I say to you, tonight: Wait until the storm passes over.
As I was riding through our estate in Marlton, New Jersey, a song came to me that my grandfather used to sing. At that time, there was a hard-blinding rain. Yet, something inside was singing: The storm is passing over. Halleluiah! The storm is passing over. Halleluiah! Have you noticed when a storm is extremely bad? You look around and cannot see a butterfly most of the time. The birds that were singing seem to go someplace and hide. Even the animals in the forest find some kind of hiding place.
Someone said, "Lead me to that that rock that is higher than I, because He is going to be a shelter in the time of storm. He is going to hide me in His pavilion until the storm has passed. He is going to keep me in safety until everything passes over." After while the darkness disappears, and the sun begins to shine. You see the pretty butterflies coming; the birds are singing; the animals are coming out of their hiding places. Life is coming to the world again! Someone remarked: How good it is for the to behold the sun! Even if you have pain in your body, rheumatism, when that sun comes out, you begin to feel good in your limbs; good in your mind and it makes you feel young again.
And so, it is when the Lord has come and has taken away your reproach, your
problem, your pain and sorrow. There is joy in His presence. Keep looking and
keep waiting because the storm is passing over. God has directed
our path. We thank God, that as we look ahead, we see the path shining brighter
and brighter, until we reach that perfect day.
Here Apostle Shelton tells the testimony of a Saint dying a Victorious death
during his early Ministry……...
Precious in the sight Of the Lord is the death of saints.
(Psalms 116:15)
Usually when someone dies, I feel a kind of grief, but not as
overwhelming as I have in this case. If I did not know God, I would not know the
word. I would certainly say that it would seem more practical for someone to die
who was older with no small children to leave behind. You see, our
thoughts are not His thoughts; neither are our His ways.
This was a very heart rendering experience. This particular sister had been
asking for me to come and I had been so busy and unable to come. One night, I
decided to just take off and went where she was. She felt that
when Bishop would come, everything would be all right. When I entered the room,
she was in pain. She grabbed my hand and said, "Bishop, you're here! I am so
glad you came. I'll be all right, now." When I prayed, I tried to say, "Lord,
heal her". But all I could say was: "Lord, deliver her. Blot out all of her
transgressions and count her worthy to escape." When I Would again try to say,
"Lord, heal her", out would come the words: "Lord, ease her pain and give her
joy." As I was there in the room, I felt a kind of resignation or satisfaction
that now she was ready to give up the ghost. I do not feel that
way often about people. One particular thing that was very touching about the
situation: I like to see a husband or wife—regardless of the differences that
have existed between them —when they really need each other in the hour of sore
and dire need,—they are there at that crucial moment. There he was by her
bedside. He took care of her laundry, the children sat by her while she was ill.
She sent for her husband before she fell asleep. He was at the farm and I called
there to tell them to release him and let the other engineer take over. He
made it before she said her last "Peace Be. And so, at the end:
united and at peace. Not only with her spouse, but with the Lord.
Who could ask for anything more?
"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the
death of his saints. (Psalms 116:15)
People
wonder about us and think of us as barbarians. They remark, "Why, those people
don't even have funerals We don't need funerals because the most precious thing
has already taken place. If we only had hope in this life, then there could be
weeping and wailing. But the Psalmist said, "Precious, in the sight of the
Lord…." If the Psalmist says "Precious", what do you say? You
know, this scripture began to work on me when I was praying a prayer. Something
came to me saying, "Precious….”, No matter what step you might take, if you are
right, the Lord will remind you of His words.
The scripture points out by exclamation, "I love the Lord because he hath heard
my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear
unto me, therefore will call upon him as long as I live." (Psalms 116:1, 2)
Whenever someone is baptized, and they are honest in heart;
they tarry for the Holy Ghost and give up as far as their knowledge is
concerned. You know, he that knoweth little, little is required of him. Even
though they may not come up with the bride—if they were sincere in their heart,
God will count them worthy with the righteous. Those of you who know much and do
not have the Holy Ghost: I would not advise you to depend on that. You had
better get the Holy Ghost. Some of you have been baptized for over ten and
fifteen years. God is going to require from you the water and spirit or tarrying
without ceasing, that is, every time you have an opportunity to tarry.
Then when the Lord comes, He will say, "Blessed are those servants, whom the
Lord when he cometh shall find watching." (Luke 12:37)
I would like to say that Sis. Dorothy Knox is not the only one
that is going. There will not be too long before others will be going, also.
They will not be very old, either.
“The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I
found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I
beseech thee, deliver my soul. Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God
is merciful”. (Psalms 116:3-5)
God will be merciful unto you if you will come and be baptized
in water in the name of Jesus Christ; if you will receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost speaking in other tongues as the spirit gives you utterance. He will be
merciful unto you if you will lay aside your pernicious ways, leaving the
principles of the doctrine and earnestly contend for perfection.
The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me." (Psalms
116:6)
When we get down to the last notch, the bottom of the barrel;
when it seems that all hope is going, His long arms seems to reach down and lift
us up. He stretches out on a high place and prepares a table for us in the
presence of our enemy and causes our cups to run over. When they try to prophesy
failure for The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, instead of failure, we begin to
increase. So much so, until we begin to be even more recognized by the country.
When God saw our helpless estate, when no one else could help, but the Lord, He
delivered and lifted us up out of the dung hill. He kept our feet on a solid
rock. Rain came and winds blew, but tonight still finds us standing. We are
still on that high and lofty summit. We are high up in the
mountain of the Lord's house where all nations are flowing.
"Return unto thy rest, O my soul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.
For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet
from falling." (Psalms 116:7, 8)
Do you know that the steps of a good man are ordered by the
Lord? That is why you cannot catch me in your booby traps, you set
for me, but you will find yourself falling therein. It is
impossible for me to lose. "Lose" is something I have taken out of my personal
vocabulary. I consciously think of nothing, but winning. Not a "bag of wind"
like you false prophets. Failure
has given place to victory; capture has given place to conquer. My
beloved children you can always win. I have no better sense than to believe,
that whatever situation I find myself in, therewith be content. I am content
when I cannot do any better. But, as soon as I see that I can do better . . .
some people take that scripture the wrong way by letting the forces of evil keep
them not reaching out and upward.
Philippians 4:11- 13 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in
whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to
be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things, I am
instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I
can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
While
you are down in the crevices, while you are laying in the bowels of the earth;
while you are in the pit, look up! Lay there while you cannot do any better, but
as soon as you figure a way to crawl out, then come on out. After you get out,
you might be in another situation. Then, therewith be content. Each time let the
situation find you climbing higher and higher. Never be satisfied with the
success you have made today. Be thankful, but do better tomorrow. That is why I
keep going up and keep pulling you with me. I cannot sit down and depend on last
year's testimony because time is marching on. I have the "Alpha";
now I am reaching out for that "Omega". Do you know what I am talking about? What
was and what is, is all right. But the thing you have to worry
about is what is to come.
"l will walk before the Lord in the land of the living. I
believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted." (Psalms 116:9, 10)
Some people just run their mouths with a lot of conversation
on faith and when it comes times for "works", you cannot find them. Whenever you
testify, stick to it. It might cause some embarrassment sometime or some
discomfort, but stick to it. This one thing I would like to get
into your minds. If you are ever going to have victory with God, you will have
to learn to take low, even when you could take high. You have to learn how to be
humiliated, even when you could be the star. Humiliation
is a part of your salvation. You see, God was led as a
lamb to the slaughter. Some people will never achieve victory because they do
not know how to be humble. Any great leader will have to learn this. A
little saying the children used to have was: "You can dish it out, but you:
cannot take it." Anything I dish out, when it comes back, l can take it. I
set myself for this. Every
day I set myself for the worst, but I look for the best. Believe
me, the best is going to come. Not one day, but every day. When
I walk out on the street, I look at the world and say to myself: This is a
wicked and horrible place! Who can be in a worst place than this earth, except
it be hell? This actually is the beginning of hell because this is
where hell is going to be.
Here Apostle Shelton speak of the Earth passing away with a fervent heat or
fire…
But with all that, there is something else which says to me:
the next hour will be better. Tonight, or tomorrow will be
better. All of these and small minded faithless human beings who
think everything is getting worse (perhaps the world is, but you are in the
world not of the world), let me inform you that things are getting better for
me. I happen only to be a stranger and a pilgrim here. Since
I am not entangled with the affairs of this world, its degradation, and its
corruption, it does not bother me, I am looking for a better country, and a
better home—After this one is dissolved—eternally
in the heavens.
2Peter 3:10 - 13 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in
the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be
burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved,
what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens
being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth,
wherein dwelleth righteousness.
"I said in my haste, All men are liars." (Psalms 116:11) It
appears so, sometimes, doesn't it? "What
shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me." (Psalms
116:12) You
might think everyone is against you, but remember that God has an elect here.
Otherwise, if He did not, He would not. have anything to return for. After this
man came to his self, he said, "What
shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me." (Psalms 116:12)
Disillusioned, saddened, disappointed, lost faith in humanity, but he collected himself in the next verse and comes to the conclusion, how wonderful God has been to him and he wants to do something for this wonderful God. He goes back to his original testimony when he says, "I love the Lord ... He reverts back to that thought saying, "What shall Then he I render unto the Lord… he answers himself, saying, "I will take the cup of salvation, and all the name of the Lord." (Psalms 116:13) . . .And that is a strong "cup". If you can drink of the cup that He drank, you are good one. There is sufferings, sickness, sorrow, loneliness, and all manner of deprivation in that cup. Who can hold it and who can drink thereof?
Aren't you glad tonight that you know the name of the Lord? Because everyone
does not know it. The Lord
answered Paul, saying, "I am Jesus.” Acts 9:5) This
man (in returning to our thought in Psalms 116) did not forget what he had
promised the Lord. You know of all the things you promise the Lord when you are
going through a test? After things got better, you forgot about
them; all the things you promised him when you were scared, and suffering and
you felt condemned. You said, "Bishop, you'll never have any more trouble out of
me. I will surrender and do whatever you want me to do." Then when
things go well with you, your testimony changes. My, my, my!
Psalms 116:14 – 17 “I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all
his people. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his
saints. “O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the
son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds. I will offer to
thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD.
He
is not going to be unthankful, but will offer unto the Lord the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, Again he brings the calling the name of the Lord into his
testimony. Then he promises, “I
will pay my vows unto the Lord now in the presence of all his people" (Psalms
116:18)
I am going to catch up on my tithes, my Apostolic Faith Day Fund. That
is what you say. But you will end up catching up with your lies! You are lying
to God by making promises and not keeping them.
"In the courts of the Lord's house, in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise ye
the Lord." (Psalms 116:19)
Let all the saints say: "Praise the Lord!" When a real saint vows unto the Lord,
they do everything to keep that vow. If they cannot keep that vow, they will get
up in the presence of the saints and let them know: "Pray for me, because I
vowed to do something for the Lord and I was not able to do it."
Your false preacher in the false church makes vow by saying: "I will therefore
baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost"
and never does it..
Write, blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yeah, saith
the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow
them." (Revelations 14:13)
You have your opportunity to eternal life or damnation; to pay your vows or lie
before the Lord; to be weighed and found wanting. In the sorrows
and troubles this psalmist came across, he did not lose his integrity. And so,
he leaves us with this comforting thought:
PRECIOUS IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD IS
THE DEATH OF HIS SAINTS. The
Ultimate Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!!!!!
May the Lord
Bless you and Keep you and eternally hold you in the center of his will, may he
open your understanding that you will come to know that you must repent of your
sins and be baptized by immersion in water in the Name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of your sins, then continue in prayer, tarrying until you receive the
gift of the Holy Ghost with the sign following speaking with other tongues as
the spirit gives you utterances. Then you must leave the principles of the
doctrine and go on to perfection overcoming the love of the world, the lust of
the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life and continue steadfastly
in the Apostle’s Doctrine remembering always that he that endures until the End,
the same shall be saved. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ who is God
Almighty. Amen
With perfect love,
Apostle Dennis G. Smith
Coronavirus outbreak in Churches from health reports: August 30,
2020
· One
of the essential workers from our local Church has tested positive for Covid-19
which he acquired on the job, but since we have continually practiced the
recommendations of the health authorities no one else has been affected thus
far. Many Churches may find it difficult to monitor this spreading virus if the
people around them are not obeying the recommendations and getting a test to
assure of their status. This may become much more difficult with the confusing
information coming from some governmental officials about when to get tested.
· The
new church outbreaks come several weeks after a large outbreak at the Andrew
Wommack Ministries bible conference in Woodland Park.
Present Guidelines for Individuals and Businesses in Phase 1:
Social
Distancing guidelines:
When to Wear a
Mask:
Those who are
staying home and have no close contact with people who are infected with
COIVID-19 do not need a mask most of the time. However, wearing a nonmedical or
homemade mask may be helpful in certain situations or for certain populations.
Wear a Mask when:
Because homemade
masks protect everyone else from the droplets created by the wearer, it is
important that as many people as possible wear these masks when leaving their
homes. This helps prevent those who may be infectious but are only mildly
symptomatic or not symptomatic from spreading the virus to others in the
community.
Everyone should
remember the phrase: “My mask protects you; your mask protects me.” By
increasing the overall number of people who are containing their coughs,
sneezes, and other droplets, it will help us control the overall spread of the
virus.
Present
Guidelines for Individuals and Businesses in Phase 2:
· Small,
private gatherings of no more than 10 people, with social distancing