new covenant – ThrivingBranch

How To Not Be Taken Captive (#5)

April 30, 2023April 26, 20231 Comment

Welcome back to part 5 of our series on How To Not Be Taken Captive, as we continue exploring dangerous captivating religious ideas. We began, This series by looking at the list of items in Colossians 2:8 of things to be wary of, things that can captivate us, and we saw the general commonality of “man-made ideas, and philosophies” — things that sound right and righteous, but lead to destruction.

Then, we began to examine what some of these man-made religious ideas are, and how when held up to the light of the finished work of Jesus Christ, these man-made ideas fall apart. Many of these ideas are very common in Christianity today, even preached from the pulpits, as many Christians just nod, and smile, and shout “Amen” to these false ideas, without giving them a second (or even first!) Thought. But as the scriptures say, there is a way that seems right but leads to death in Proverbs 14:12, so we need to be discerning about what we agree to

A baby will put anything into it’s mouth, even poison…but we should carefully see if these common ideas align with the truth of Jesus and His gospel, or not…

So join me today, as we continue exploring these commonly heard ideas, and see how to not be taken captive.

How To Not Be Taken Captive (#4)

April 16, 2023April 12, 20232 Comments

Welcome back to the fourth part of our series on how not to be taken captive. This is the segment that I believe most people have been waiting for, because today we will examine the most common captivating ideas in modern Christianity — or what I call the “Holy-Sounding Hogwash,” a term I coined in the previous part of this series.

I’ve compiled a list of the religious rubbish I’ve heard repeatedly throughout the years, and also added the ones which you all sent me via comments and emails, so it’s my wish that today’s study will benefit us all, as we see how the truth of Jesus and His finished work in the New Covenant keeps us from being taken captive by these dangerous doctrines.

How To Not Be Taken Captive (#3)

April 2, 2023April 1, 20232 Comments

In the previous two parts of this series we examined a list of items in Colossians 2:8 of things we should be wary of because they can take us captive.

We saw how the dangerous items in that list, aren’t so much physical but mental; they are deceptive thoughts, arguments, and errant beliefs. While there are many of those which are brazenly obvious today, other are more subtle, even creeping their way inside churches, and into the speech, and minds of Christians.

Today, we will dive into this particular area of subtle captivity, as we continue exploring how to not be taken captive.

Freedom Through Jesus’ Obedience

February 27, 2022February 16, 2022Leave a Comment

For the last three weeks we’ve been exploring New Covenant deliverance from strongholds. We’ve looked at what strongholds are (imaginations, thoughts, emotions, feelings, and traditions that exalt themselves above Jesus), and we also saw the foundation of the finished work of Christ and our new identity in Him upon which our freedom stems.

Today we are going to continue from where we paused last week and go deeper into how to apply the deliverance of Christ based on His sacrifice, and our new identity in Him as reborn new creation.

Breaking Strongholds (part 1)

February 6, 2022January 18, 2022Leave a Comment

Do you have a nagging thought or feeling that you just can’t seem to shake? Perhaps an addiction, or sin that seems to persist despite your best efforts? Some camps within Christianity would claim that this is a sign of demon possession or that you need a spiritual intervention, usually in the form of a special deliverance or healing.

Such rhetoric can breed a lot of fear and uncertainty, leading to thinking that there’s something wrong with you, or that you’re not even saved.

Countless Christians have lost hope or given up entirely because of these ideas; so today we will explore how to truly break strongholds, through our union with Christ.

What the Prince of Peace Means for You

January 30, 2022January 10, 2022Leave a Comment

Of the many titles given to Jesus, none are perhaps quite as striking as “the Prince of Peace.” When considering the names and titles which God describes Himself to us as, we should remember that God doesn’t need to name himself for His benefit. Whenever God gives himself a name, he does it for our benefit.

So when the God-breathed, holy Spirit inspired scriptures refers to Jesus as the Prince of Peace, what does that mean? That’s a challenging question to answer, but it’s vital to understand to appreciate the gift of divine peace that Jesus gives to us.

Holiness vs. Grace: Which One is Right?

December 12, 2021December 5, 2021Leave a Comment

There’s been an ongoing feud among Christians for a long time. A battle between the holiness camp and the grace camp. The holiness side is preoccupied with your works, the things that you do, your behavior, and a checklist of things that you must accomplish to please a perfectly holy God. And they often sound something like this:

“God is coming back one day! He’s not coming back to give you a big hug! He’s coming back to execute his wrath! You need to fear and tremble before him! The scripture says Be holy for I am holy! Tremble, fear, condemnation! Bwahahahahah!”

So, the holiness camp is completely focused on the wrath of God, and uses fear to promote human works.

Now, the grace side is on the opposite end of the spectrum. The grace camp often completely disregards the judgment and even sometimes the respect worthy of God. On the extreme, the grace side sounds like this:

“Oh, don’t worry! God loves you! The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and everything’s just fine and dandy all the time!”

So which is it? Is God suffering from multiple personality disorder?

As you might expect, neither of these positions tell the whole story, and the truth of God’s character, His nature, and the Gospel message, is far greater! Let’s talk about it!

Rest for Your Soul

October 31, 2021September 29, 2021Leave a Comment

Last week, we explored what it means to abide in Christ, and we saw some powerful truths regarding His sacrifice for us and how it changes our position from sin to righteousness, and our nature from sinner to king priest in His kingdom and family.

During that study, something caught my attention which caused me to meditate on it more— specifically in Hebrews 4:10 which refers to ceasing from our own works, as God did from His.

It’s one thing to speak about ceasing from your own work or effort, and spiritually-speaking, we know that we should cease from our effort, though we find it challenging to fully rest in what Christ has accomplished.

I know this challenge quite well, I’ve been there, I’m familiar with the struggle; and so today I want to continue from where we paused last week. As we continue to explore abiding in Christ, with the details given to us in scripture, and I believe that as we study this together today, it will release a burden that has secretly been on the hearts of many who have been finding it difficult to rest in Christ.

Did God Give You Promises or Facts?

October 17, 2021September 14, 2021Leave a Comment

If you’ve spent any time in the more charismatic sections of Christianity, you’ve likely heard about the promises of God. The promises are something that Christians often meditate on, recite, and think about. There are books and devotionals dedicated to the promises, and they can give a lot of comfort.

But what exactly is a promise in the biblical aspect? By asking this question, I’m aiming primarily at the time-frame in view. When we typically think of a promise, we envision something that is going to happen, but hasn’t happened yet. The time-frame may seem like a small detail, but it can have large implications.

Today we will explore what it means to have a biblical promise versus a biblical fact, and how a seemingly subtle difference can significantly influence our perspective of what we have in Christ.

Do You KNOW Jesus?

October 3, 2021August 12, 2021Leave a Comment

Knowing Jesus Christ is the absolute fundamental of the Gospel message. Surprisingly, something so essential as knowing Jesus, is surrounded by a lot of debate, various opinions, and confusion.

For some, knowing Jesus amounts to simply attending a church building, listening to a sermon, and performing other regular Christian rituals. For others, knowing Jesus involves extensive bible reading and study plans.

I understand each of these positions; I’ve lived them for a number of years. As good as gathering together with believers and scripture reading is though, neither captures the essence of knowing Jesus.

What I want to share with you today, is how Jesus describes knowing himself, and how we can truly grow in our relationship with him.