The Bishop's Corner (Unchained)

It has been a while since I’ve written on this page of my blog.

I mostly end up writing articles that are published as posts and shared on my FaceBook wall and other blog sites. But today, I want to muse just a little about the potential for a massive salvation experience.

I realize that what I am about to say is almost unimaginable to the average believer but I must believe that it is possible because God has revealed it to me.

If we can just get those surreptitious pastors and preachers who are currently heading churches and ministries to confess and admit that they have the education but not divine revelation; they have intellectual knowledge but not divine wisdom; they know how to preach about God but they don’t really know God; if we can just get those pastors to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and indwelt with the Holy Spirit of God, then they could actually help lead thousands and possibly millions to genuine salvation.

It can be done. However, they would have to practice the humility that they preach about so vehemently. They would have to become submissive and obedient to God’s commandments in the same manner that they teach others to be toward them. They will have to renounce their denominational loyalties and profess unwavering loyalty to Christ and the Kingdom of God. They may have to sell their riches and give it to the poor in order to have riches in heaven. They may even have to live in relative poverty for the sake of the Kingdom of God. But I wonder how many, if any, would actually do what is commanded by God to do in order to save themselves and others?

God so loved the sinner that He gave all that He had to bring the sinner out of darkness into His marvelous light.

The question that God is asking us today is “Can you love like God? Do you have the love of God dwelling within you? What will you give up for the sake of the salvation of others? If you are already struggling with these questions, you may need to revisit how you were saved and just spirit is directing your life.

God has said through His actions that nothing is too much of a sacrifice for the saving of lost souls. Jesus said,“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (John 10:11)

And finally, the Word of God admonishes us by saying:
“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:5)

REPENT!

Bishop’s Special Offer for May 2012

We know that phony prophets are not the only ones who are fronting. We have way more phony Christians than phony prophets but that is an ongoing assignment. There are countless so-called Christians who want be seen and respected as a Christian while hiding their practice of whoredom, fornication, drunkenness and other unspeakable acts of immorality against God’s Holy Commandments. There are worldly entities disguised as Christian ministries encouraging the social trends of lewdness, vulgarity and the tolerance of homosexuality while ignoring and rebelling against God’s admonitions to be “Holy as He is Holy.” Addressing these ills is an ongoing work and I’ll come back to them later.

However, today I would like to offer my friends, followers and Bible Scholars an opportunity to receive my latest CD entitled “Why Ask Why.” Due to the support of some of my partners, I am now able to offer you this CD for the price of Shipping & Handling – less than the price of a “Happy Meal” – ($5.00). This offer is limited to the supplies of CDs that we have on hand. You must have this CD if you are truly interested in genuine, authentic, biblical salvation.

It will…

• Help you identify false preachers and teachers.
• Equip you with the Bible knowledge necessary to make an intelligent decision about who you should listen to regarding the saving of your soul
• It will provide you questions to ask any church that you are considering joining.
• It will reveal the original plan of salvation of Christ and His Apostles purely from the Holy Scriptures and not from intellectual theology or denominational religion.
• It is an awesome, Power Packed, 21 minute, evangelical tool to help you witness to others.

The Bible says:

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I also will forget thy children. (Hosea 4:6)

God acknowledges that His people will be destroyed due to the lack of His Truth. The Word of God also indicates that the cause of this lack of knowledge is not just rebellious people but pastors who have forgotten God’s Eternal Moral Law – not teaching God’s Truth but the gospels of men. They have been rejected by God.

You should want to know how to identify those who have been rejected by God so as not to be ensnared by their smooth hypnotic rhetoric and inherit the wages of their sins.

Get Your Power Packed CD Today!

Order Now by Writing:

O.W. Prince Ministries

P.O. Box 3253

Sumter, SC 29151

Enclose your check or money order for $5.00 (Additional donations are appreciated) And make sure you request the CD entitled “Why Ask Why.”

Thank You For Your Kind Support & Keep Looking Up!

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Today’s Sabbath Message For April 28, 2012 / TESTS OF A TRUE PROPHET – “Prophets” Part 2

“Prophets” Part 2

TESTS OF A TRUE PROPHET

Throughout history, God has spoken to His people through prophets. As we draw closer to the end of time, it should come as no surprise that there are many individuals in Christendom claiming to be prophets of God. However, nearly all of these fail to meet the scriptural requirements for a true prophet. I would like to offer a lists of ten biblical requirements for a true prophet. They are:

1) A true prophet does not lie. His predictions will be fulfilled. (Jer. 28:9) “But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the LORD only if his prediction comes true.”

2) A true prophet prophesies in the name of the Lord, not in his own name or according to his own will. (2 Pet. 1:21) “For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

3) A true prophet does not give his own private interpretation of prophecy. (2 Pet. 1:20) “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation.”

4) A true prophet points out the sins and transgressions of the people against God. (Isa. 58:1) “Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins.”

5) A true prophet is to warn the people of God’s coming judgment. Here are some examples of judgment such as portrayed in Isa. 24:20, “The earth reels like a drunkard, it sways like a hut in the wind; so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion that it falls — never to rise again.” and Rev. 14:6, 7, “Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth — to every nation, tribe, language and people. He said in a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.’”

6) A true prophet edifies the church – counsels and advises it in spiritual ad doctrinal matters. (1 Cor. 14:3, 4 ) “But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort. He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.”

7) A true prophet’s words will be in absolute harmony with the words of the prophets that have preceded him. (Isa. 8:20) “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn.”

8) A true prophet recognizes the incarnation of Jesus Christ. (1 John 4:1-3) “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”

9) A true prophet can be recognized by the results of his work. (Matt. 7:16-20) “By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”

10) A true prophet speaks and acts in accordance with the Word, will and approval of God. (Deut. 18:19) “If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.”

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“Eat at Red Lobster but pay at McDonald’s”

It has been my observation and experience that there are many believers who are members of an organized church or assembly and who have a local shepherd but who are actively feeding on the revelations of another shepherd. They partake freely of the offerings of those outside of their church walls – the ones whom God has gifted to minister to them. However, they restrict their financial support to the one that their church has hired or denomination assigned them. They have mistakenly allowed an organization to determine who their pastor should be instead of allowing God to send them a pastor. They are practicing a sort of “Eat at Apple Bees but pay at McDonald’s” mentality. I don’t think that this is righteous, especially if you are not being nourished in the Truth and cared for in the Spirit by the one you financially support. Do you go to the doctor and receive treatment for a deadly disease then ignore the doctor bill put pay the parking attendant? That is exactly what a lot of church folks are doing. They receive the Saving Word of God from God’s True Pastors and pay the ones who are only housing them in a religious parking garage.

The preacher who you financially support should minister to your needs, visit you in your home and in the hospital, accompany you to surgery if need be, perform weddings and funeral services, counsel you when you are in crisis, provide referral services to you when your circumstances warrant them, pray for you and your family constantly, attend you children’s graduations and or school functions from time to time, watch for your spiritual growth and moral wellbeing and help develop your overall Christian life through the taught and preached Word of God as the Holy Spirit empowers Him. However, it is unfair to expect these services from a person whom you have never supported or given aid to although they faithfully shared the Word of Salvation without price and supplied your spiritual needs.

Parenthetically, according to the Holy Scriptures, financial support for a preacher is not limited to those who serve in your particular denomination or religious affiliation but is an obligation that every believer has to those who watch for their souls on a regular and consistent basis, whether they are your local pastor or someone providing godly guidance and service outside the walls of your church’s organization.

1 Corinthians 9:14
In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. (NLT)

REPENT!

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Today’s Sabbath Message for April 21, 2012 – “Prophets” Part 1

The Prophet as One Who Admonishes the Church of its Sin in Order to compel it unto Repentance

1 Samuel 10:6

⁶ The Spirit of the LORD will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person.

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Prophecy is reserved for those whom the Lord chooses to endow with His prophetic Spirit and presence. It is not an office that can be acquired through academia or political process. Prophecy is not an office that can be conferred upon one through ecclesiastical ceremony or denominational jurisprudence. It is not meant to be served but to serve. It is not meant to be a vehicle for financial growth but spiritual reconciliation. It is not exempted from obeying all of God’s Commandments nor is it excused from God’s moral code of holiness. Prophecy does not seek its own will but God’s divine purpose. It does not speak from it own mind or imagination but it communicates the mind of God. (Ezekiel 13:1-7 vs. Romans 12:2) It is only given by God for His unique purposes and goals and adheres to God’s divine order, commands and protocols. (1 Corinthians 14:40, 1 Corinthians 11:3, 1 Timothy 2:12) The Spirit of prophecy does not seek to change God’s Law but people’s lives.

The Spirit of prophecy changes an individual into a different person or a new creation. A timid person may become bold and outspoken. A cowardly person may become brave and fearless. A quick-tempered person may become patient and longsuffering. A violent person may become peaceful and reconciling. Whatever the case may be, they are changed into new creatures. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

The prophetic utterances of a man of God who has the Spirit of Prophecy are to be received and believed as if they came from God Himself. (2 Peter 1:21) Belief and obedience to a godly prophecy will bring God’s will to bear upon those to whom it is directed. Godly prophecy will radically alter and bless you in accordance with the Word and Will of God – changing you and your circumstance for the better.

And we know that the Word and Will of God is Jesus Christ. (John 1:1-3) Thus, the purpose of prophecy is not to predict the future or to inflame our emotions. The purpose of prophecy is to reveal who God is through Jesus Christ – to bring human beings into an awareness of God’s saving plan for us all. 

In the Book of Revelation, John wrote that the entire purpose of Prophecy is to reveal Jesus, i.e. the Word and Will of God.

Revelation 19:10… “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

And this is God’s testimony to us…

“…God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.…and the Jews in Jerusalem killed him by hanging him on a tree. But God raised Him up on the third day, and showed Him openly…after He arose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes (Trusts and Obeys) Him will receive remission of sins.” (Act 10:38-43)

And His prophetic Word says, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)

Repent!

(Coming Soon – The Test of a True Prophet)

"Faith"

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God’s New breed of Cyber-pastors

This article has been edited for posting by Bishop O.W. Prince and is borrowed from the original writings of Evangelist Paul B. Thomas.

Here are some Characteristics of God’s New breed of Cyber-pastors.

 

·         Cyber-pastors speak in another tongue and see in another dimension and cross boundaries of all sorts.

·         Status as a pastor does not qualify one to pastor online, your call must be from God and your investment must be unselfishly given into others lives.

·         The call to pastor online is transgenerational and cross cultural, you can be a nobody offline and pastor online, if you’ve heard from God and can work with passion and integrity with all peoples from all tribes and tongues.

·         The New Cyber-pastors are multi faceted in their message, balanced in doctrine, yet boldly declares the Doctrine of Christ and His Apostles.  This gives them authenticity in a world of globality.

·          The New online Pastors are not those who have celebrity,  fame or marketability but those who have the Holy Spirit of God directing their message and impacting the lives of believers everywhere.

·         Offline you had to have someone’s approval to pastor and hold their certificate in your hand.   But today’s Cyber-pastors have torn down the walls of denominational divisions and opened the gates to Biblical Apostolic Truth –not caring about self glorification but about genuine soul salvation.

·         The genuine apostolic online pastors attach themselves to the single cause of Christ, whereas the old pastors expect you to fit into their denominational causes and beliefs.

·         Cyber-pastors build people who become the Church of Jesus Christ.  Offline pastors traditionally build buildings to house people in a church.

This is only an attempt to give definition and distinction to the phenomenon of the Cyber-pastor. 

There is no substitute for the true, hands-on local pastor who genuinely pastors the flock and preaches the genuine message of Christ and His Apostles as it was first delivered to the saints.

-----------------------------This is a publication of the O.W. Prince Ministries ------------------------

Licensed To Kill/ You or Your Child May Be Next

WARNING: This is a very personal article based upon recent events effecting the Black community in America and may not be consistent with other Christian commentaries usually associated with this blog. Most of the content of this article were ripped from the pages of Charleston City Paper. Not everyone is expected to relate of the plight expressed in this article. However, you are still welcomed to leave a comment and share your opinion.
The Stand Your Ground law in Florida has come under renewed scrutiny since the Feb. 26 shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla. According to news reports, Martin, 17, was walking home in a gated community when he crossed paths with self-appointed neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, who started following Martin through the neighborhood in his car. Eyewitness accounts vary, with some saying Martin tried to escape and others saying Martin attacked Zimmerman, but in the end, Zimmerman was seen standing over Martin’s dead body with a pistol in hand. Martin, who was unarmed, died of a single gunshot wound to the chest. When police arrived, Zimmerman claimed protection under the Stand Your Ground laws, and he was not arrested.

South Carolina’s Stand Your Ground law (Title 16, Article 6) is similar to Florida’s in that it allows people to use deadly force in self-defense in their home or vehicle (a special provision even guarantees the same right for people sleeping in tents). But whereas the Florida law includes the blanket provision for “any other place where he or she has a right to be,” South Carolina’s phrasing is slightly different: The castle defender can be “in another place where he has a right to be, including, but not limited to, his place of business.”

In the wake of Martin’s shooting, Florida’s broad Stand Your Ground law is being put to the test. Now that the 9-1-1 tapes has revealed that Zimmerman got out to confront Martin, against the advice of a 9-1-1 operator, some are questioning the intent of the law. When people are allowed to carry concealed weapons in a state with Stand Your Ground laws, exactly how far does the license to kill extend and to whom is it targeted to kill?

Don’t look now, but South Carolina along with other States have empowered the gun carrying racist to hunt African-Americans as prey under the disguise of a perceived threat—justifying their use of deadly force on unarmed and unsuspecting blacks.

I fear that this Stand Your Ground legislation has created further instability and distrust in a society that is only generations away from legalized slavery, hangings and human cruelties upon blacks. But maybe that is the clandestine purpose of this law.

Wake up people. We are under attack and our enemy has been licensed to kill us under protection of the law –without any fear of reprisals.

It is obvious that this law may backfire upon it creators. People like Zimmerman, who are known to carry guns and have a propensity to shot blacks, may readily become targets themselves since they have already proven themselves to be a threat. Wouldn’t that be interesting — to have the Stand Your Ground laws protect a black person for shooting and killing a perceived and verifiable threat to their person who happened to be white? Umm? However I don’t advocate for violence or revenge.

We need to revert back to the methods of self-preservation that our forefathers used in order to navigate in a world that they knew was hostile toward them while yet exercising our civil liberties,defining and expanding the boundaries of civil rights and fighting for moral and judicial integrity. We need to recapture the wisdom, insight and unity of the past.

I advise you to protect yourselves and families at all times.

Watch as well as pray my people. Watch as well as pray.

Don’t become the prey!

Watch as well as pray!

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"Christ Our Passover Lamb"

Remarkably, the celebration of Easter, one of the most holy of Christian holidays, cannot be found anywhere in the Bible. In 1949 the Encyclopedia Britannica in its article on Easter stated the following regarding this day: “There is no indication of the observance of the Easter festival in the New Testament, or in the writings of the apostolic fathers.”

Is it strange that this important Christian observance is not mentioned in the Bible?
If you find the word Easter in your Bible, it’s actually a mistranslation that is noted in your Bible’s margin. Most recent translations of the Bible make the correction. The correct translations use the word Passover instead of Easter.
The early Christian church, established in 31 A.D., followed Christ’s example and observed the Passover. Again, the Encyclopedia Britannica states: “The sanctity of special times was an idea absent from the minds of the first Christians who continued to observe the Jewish festivals, though in a new spirit…” (See Leviticus 23 for an explanation of those festivals).

 
Even if the early Church and the Apostles never observed Easter, many will argue that it is rooted in the Bible because they believe Christ was resurrected on “Easter Sunday”. A close examination of the biblical account, however, shows that this was not the case. In John 19:13 and 31 the Apostle John sets the record straight as to the timing of Christ’s death by telling us that Christ died and was buried at the end of the preparation day preceding the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The preparation day fell on a Wednesday that year. (Note: The reference to Passover in verse 14 above is to the oncoming festival of Unleavened Bread, which the Jews incorporated into the “Passover period”.) Christ’s body was taken down and placed in a tomb before Thursday–the festival’s High Day. [All Jewish festivals were called Sabbaths and they occurred independent of the weekly Seventh-day Sabbath]. For all of the next three days, Christ was in the grave Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Then, just after sunset (the time when days end and begin according to God’s creation in Genesis 1:5) and at the close of the weekly Sabbath (Saturday), Christ came out of his grave, His mission accomplished, having spent three days and three nights in the “heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40), just as He had foretold (Mark 9:31 and John 2:19-21).

The Easter myth of a “Good Friday” crucifixion and a Sunday morning resurrection collapses in the light of this Truth.

Jesus is our Passover Lamb.
 
Repent!
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For more information about the early Christian Church, the Apostles of Christ and the true Christian Holy Days and festivals, please write us and request a free copy of our Bible Study–The Passover. Write us at anointed@sc.rr.com.
This is a ministry of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, Inc.

Martin Luther King's Last Speech: "I Have Been To The Mountaintop"

44 years ago today on April 4, 1968, a cowardly assassin committed the heinous murder of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

"May we never forget the hate that this country has for its African American Citizens and may we never forget the legacy of love for our enemy that marks our race as a peculiar people." (Bishop O.W. Prince)

Remember the past and those who were murdered for human decency and civil rights. Remember the vision that lives on in the heart of every true Christian citizen.  Remember that the fight continues as our African American males are being incarcerated with disparity and murdered with virtual impunity under the guise of social policy, state law and politics.  Remember that the system of prejudice and racism that exists in America has long deep roots that reach into every facet of American life and have impeded the progress of a people for generations -- psychologically and financially devastating a race of people for generations without reformations or apology.

Remember the past or be doomed to succumb to the devices and conspiracies of the enemy.

Remember...




Martin Luther King's Last Speech: "I Have Been ..., posted with vodpod