Fighting the Four Evils

I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). Many in the modern Church would say that they agree that it is more blessed to give than to receive because the Bible says so. But yet, so many think that a person is more blessed when he or she has more earthly things such as more money, yearly holidays, higher income, a satisfying job, stable and steady career, good marriage, good children, prestigious education, and the like.  Some of these things are good gifts from God, but that is NOT the question or the issue.  The issue is whether a person having more earthly things, including good gifts from God is more blessed than those who do not. Many in the modern Church think so, that one is more blessed when one has received more, rather than whether one has given more. Such is a false doctrine of demons which will take many ...

 Ecclesiastes opens with the words: The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? (Ecclesiastes 1:1-3) Why? How can even gifts given by God be meaningless as the preacher says? They are meaningless because their meaning or value is not found in those gifts themselves, but rather in how they are used in worshiping God. They only have meaning when used to worship God, in fearing God. Such gifts are empty vessels or cisterns which can only be filled when truly dedicated to serving God. All works in relation to such gifts will be judged by God. As Ecclesiastes sums up: Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Eccle...

Usury is clearly prohibited by God both under the Old Covenant and under the New Covenant which we are now under. How do I know? First, the Old Testament makes it clear that usury is an abomination (Ezekiel 18:13). Ezekiel 18:12-13 lists usury as among several abominations: Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination, Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations ; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him. Whenever the Bible refers to something as an abomination, it is referring to something that God absolutely detests to the core because of what that act is . It is also to be noted that in Ezekiel 18:12-13 is a list of sins that were against the Moral Law of God, rather than ceremonial laws or civil laws. Usury is that which concerns the heart itself, and not outward act...

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7). Many in the modern Church think that they give freely and cheerfully because they give much money to their church, and sacrifice much time there. It is all too easy for people to think they give freely and cheerfully.  However, what makes a person truly give freely and cheerfully is not whether he thinks it righteous and good, but whether his heart rejoices in giving. He finds joy in giving, not because of anything he can get, but because he loves to give to other. Such a person who loves to give to others is a cheerful giver, giving not only without expecting anything in return. He gives because he loves. 2 Corinthians 9:7 explains what a cheerful giver is: " Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver ". He gives not grudgingly, or e...

And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,  and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites.  So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all;   for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had." (Luke 21:1-4). This story not only indicates that a person does not give more by give more material things to others. No! It also says that it is not an excuse to not give because one is poor or has less. This is because Jesus was not praising her for giving despite being poor, applying a lower set of standards of generosity to her. God is no respecter of persons (Romans 2:11). He does not apply a lower standard of generosity to anyone, just because they have less, or a higher standard just because they have more. Rather, he was saying that she was doing the right thing, what one should be doing in the first place, to ful...

  Then He also said to him who invited Him, “ When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid.   But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.   And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you ; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just (Luke 14:12-14). The Bible has much to say about giving. It commands us to give generously.  Jesus spoke on giving very often. In Luke 14:12-13, He teaches people to not seek a return for what they give: Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid.   But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.   In Luke 6:32-36, He says: “But if you love those who love y...

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth (Psalm 37:21). The Bible makes it absolutely clear that the wicked borrow and do not repay. This is contrasted with the righteous, who show mercy and give, as indicated by the word 'but' in Psalm 37:21.  Borrowing money and no repaying is a manifestation of pride and self-seeking, using that which was given to one for one's own interests. It is to assume that what one has in one's hands belongs to oneself, such that one can do as one chooses with it. This indeed is the spirit behind the doctrine of private property, a doctrine of demons, which panders to the flesh which thinks that the good things it receives are deserved by it, rather than that it is the precise opposite of what it deserves. It is a manifestation of envy, s elfish a mbiti on and hatred of righteousness, which a re of the flesh (G alatians 5:19-21).  This is contrasted with the righteous person who shows mercy ...

Many in the modern world, as well as many in the modern Church, think that giving itself is an act of love. They think that there more one gives, the more righteous, generous, kind, or moral one is. This is indeed what the flesh thinks because the flesh thinks itself entitled to everything it wants. It expects what is given to it, which explains why people in general, including many Christians, think that the more one gives the more generous one is. This is why people tend to respect and fear those who can give more, and think that only those who are rich can be generous.  However, Jesus said that the widow with two mites in Luke 21:1-4 gave more than the rich who gave much more: And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offer...

  Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:   That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly (Matthew 6:1-4). Giving out of one's riches is diametrically opposed to giving all of oneself, which is true giving. To give out of one's riches is to be not only a miser, but a hypocrite. Proverbs 23:6-8 warns of the miser who: Do not eat the bread of a miser, Nor desire his delicacies; For as he thinks in his heart,...

The Bible consistently commands the follower of Christ, not suggests or advises the follower of Christ to give what he has, but commands . Owing to the pride of the flesh, it is against the flesh to give selflessly in a genuine manner of love. Many in the modern Church find it very hard to accept. When confronted with such claim, they are quick to retort with all kinds of false doctrines of giving that are not worthy of discussion, even arguing that such a claim is one that implicitly justifies theft. You may think that you are so righteous and holy because you give. The world also gives. It is full of so-called 'charities' that pride itself on its "good works" which are filthy rags on the eyes of God (Isaiah 64:6). Without the love of God in oneself, one cannot be truly charitable. One may be generous, but only in self-seeking, self-centred, and self-glorying way. You blaspheme God by even the thought that you are righteous and holy because you give freely, that is...

 The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender (Proverbs 22:7). The modern world is a debt-enslaved, debt-loving, God-hating one. One distinct characteristic of the modern world is the modern State. As society moved from an agrarian one where family was government, to one which the modern State is government, there were many societal, economic, political and cultural changes.  However, the most marked change concerned the use of money, in particular, the use of debt to finance a nation. Indeed, the modern State rose to deal with the need for a nation to finance other stronger, creditor nations. Indeed, mammon rules the whole world. One may ask, who wants to be a debt slave? No one does. One may still ask, why would one be a debtor for it only brings slavery.  That is true. However, people do not realise that being in debt is slavery. Rather, they think it is a matter of simply paying off one's expenses to get what one wants. They think it i...

So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:33).  When Jesus told the rich young ruler to give up all He had, He was not only specifically saying that only the rich young ruler needs to give up everything. He was saying anyone who wants to follow Him must give up all that he has.  Jesus said " So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple" to explain what it costs to follow Him:   Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “ If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple .   “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?   For if yo...

We as Christians are all shocked at sexual immorality, hatred and murder. Rightly so. They are vile sins. What about envy, covetousness, pride and unforgiveness? Are they not vile sins? Humans in general tend to think that hatred, murder and adultery are vile, but yet not envy and unforgiveness. Why? Selfishness. Plain and simple. You don't want people hating you, killing you or stealing your spouse. That is why most of you out there single out only these sins are vile, or tolerate those who do so.  However, when it comes to sins that do not negatively affect one personally, or ones of which the consequence can be circumvented, such as unforgiveness, usury and homosexuality, most people turn a blind eye. Most people, including the vast majority of professing Christians, are hostile or disdainful against those who speak out against usury. They are hostile for not wanting to be associated with such people, thinking they are very gracious and kind, as opposed to anti-usury warriors ...