11/03/25 WHOLE SALVATION FOR THE WHOLE MAN

11/03/25 WHOLE SALVATION FOR THE WHOLE MAN

On my Fitness group I post my work out three times a week. For each week I take a photo. This is the picture for the weekly report. It includes my rowing and pressing machine. (YOU can also see my weight bench, lat machine, assorted weights and another portable bench, which I use in a variety of exercises.

I also use the rowing machine to create a stand-up desk. I put a laptop or study books on it so that I can watch informational videos or research while I do my "stepping." This allows me to do more study, while getting physical exercise at the same time. (This really helps, since I step or walk a minimum of 4.5 miles a day).

My workout area and my office (study and library) are in the same room. It is important to take care of your body, primarily because it is the temple of the Holy Spirit. And remember, Jesus died for the whole man; body, soul and spirit. The human body is part of our real self, and it is our responsibility to take care of it, regardless of its condition. We were born with a body, soul and spirit; Christ redeems us body, soul and spirit; and when we are raised from the dead and glorified, we will be body, soul and spirit. Adam was body soul and spirit, and Jesus was (and is) body, soul and spirit. Our body is the vessel through which the Holy Spirit works. Our body is the physical manifestation of the presence of God in our lives.

2 Corinthians 4:7
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

The greatness is not our bodies or our soul or our spirit, but the greatness we have is His indwelling Spirit, as it says in Colossians, He is our, "hope of glory."

We should recognize the specialness of our physical being, and we should yield our bodies in obedient service to God, we should present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God.

On my Fitness group I posted this passage to go with the photo.
1 Timothy 4:8 KJV
8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

Godliness is the plan of God for our lives. Godliness is the proof, the evidence that we believe on Christ. Godliness is the intention of God in salvation and standard of the Christian life. If our doctrines or spiritual experiences do not lead us to godliness, then we are misled.

Godliness is profitable for all things, in this life and in the life to come.

Godliness has value.

Godliness is eternal.

Godliness is God likeness.

We do not become God but as we trust and follow Jesus, we will become like God, we will be conformed to the image of God's Son. We are to experience and live a life of godliness, not simply a form of godliness. True godliness enjoys the power of God.

What a great verse!

11/01/25 COME OUT FROM THE DECEPTION

11/01/25 COME OUT FROM THE DECEPTION

Just to show you how deception has run rampant in the Church, consider how many people who call themselves Bible believing Christians deny that God wants to and can and will cleanse and has cleansed believers from all sin, and they deny that Christians can obey God, keep His commandments, and do that which is pleasing in His sight.
The Bible clearly teaches that God desires all Christians to be cleansed from all sin, and the Bible clearly teaches that God can and He will cleanse His people from all sin, and God has purified believers from all sin in the past.

The Bible clearly teaches that God enables, empowers believers to obey Him and keep His commandments and do that which is pleasing in His sight.

This is not to say that we become absolutely perfect or that we will be forced to move into heart purity or that we are not able to go back into sin or that we might not sin after we have been saved.

It is to say that God's will, grace, salvation through the Blood of Christ, the Power of the Holy Spirit, and the Truth of the Word of God is able to save to the uttermost, cleanse us from all sin, always lead us in triumph in Christ, deliver us from all temptation, purify us even as Christ is pure, make us more than conquerors, as long as we walk in the light, continue in the faith, continue in grace, continue in Christ and continue in His love.

Sinning religion is the norm for the average professed "Christian" because people have been deceived into easy believism rather than actually trusting Christ for salvation from sin (that is, salvation from the penalty, the power, the pollution of sin). Sinning religion is Satan's religion, and it is man's form of godliness, which denies the power of God.

According to the Bible:
God desires His people to be holy, pure, and righteous.
God commands His people be holy, pure, and righteous.
God provides for His people to be holy, pure, and righteous.
God enables His people to be holy, pure, and righteous.
Christ is coming back for a bride that is holy, pure and righteous.
God requires His people to be holy, pure, righteous.

Being saved, being Christian, being acceptable to God, being pleasing to God is not a human achievement, but rather it is a Divine work (accomplishment) manifested in those who trust the Lord for deliverance from sin.

The saints of God (holy ones because of God's active redemptive work) enjoy the life of walking in the Spirit and not fulfilling the lusts of the flesh because salvation is a Divine and miraculous work of God, received by faith in the ongoing and active grace of God.

Holiness is not a set of rules or a list of external observations; it is loving the Lord with your whole being, it is being conformed to the image of Christ, it is dying to the world, the flesh and the devil, it is Christ in me, the hope of glory, it is love from a pure heart, it is walking in the light as He is in the light. It is a definite work of saving grace, just as justification and regeneration are instantaneous, Divine works of God, received by faith in the atoning work of Christ.

If your doctrines (beliefs) do not lead you out of sin and into holiness of heart AND life, then your doctrine is not from God or found in His Bible. If your holiness fills you with pride and arrogance, you do not have the holiness of God. If your holiness ends your growth in grace and knowledge, then your holiness is a deception.

11/01/25 WIDE OPEN DOOR OF OPPORTUNITY

11/01/25 WIDE OPEN DOOR OF OPPORTUNITY

Martha and I went to "The Island" to get propane for The Net House. While there I asked a man where he was from originally, and he told me, "here" (Harkers Island). When he told me he is a Guthrie, I told him we are probably related, since I had a grandmother with the same name. I pointed out that her family moved from Diamond City to "The Path" (Salter Path) and "Promiseland" (in Morehead). Diamond City was a village on The Banks (Shackleford Banks), located near "The Lighthouse" on The Cape (Cape Lookout). The devastating hurricanes in the 1890s eventually wiped out that fishing village of "Bankers" (many of whom were of Scottish decent), and some were whalers. When I asked this man where his "crowd" (family) came from, he told me Diamond City also.

We talked some more and then I asked him where he goes to church. He pointed and said he goes to the church on Ferry Dock (Road), indicating Free Grace Wesleyan. I love that church and Pastor Clint. (I know Pastor Clint preaches a solid message and they have really good music). I told him that I have had the privilege to preach there a few times. I asked him if he was following Jesus and encouraged him to follow as closely as he could.

Yesterday I also talked with another man (younger) from The Island. He actually lives there, but he comes from "off" (outside of the area). However, when he told me his last name I reacted with surprise, since his last name was a prominent name in the community. He laughed and told me that someone had done a genealogy search and found out that he had Scottish ancestors who moved to Portsmouth Island (not far from Okracoke), while some of that family moved to Diamond City and The Island, his ancestors moved further inland, so it was like coming home.

I told him about my family ties to The Banks and also told him that I had been a pastor on Cape Hatteras. While at Kinnakeet (Avon) I took a youth group camping on Portsmouth Island, which had been longtime abandoned by early villagers. I asked my new acquaintance where he attends church services. He told me he goes to H. I. Methodist Ch. (This is a Global Methodist Church, no longer affiliated with the U.M.C., which is a good thing). I asked him about his relationship with the Lord, encouraged him in his walk and gave him a card, inviting him to contact me if he ever wanted to talk or had Bible questions. He was very responsive.

Just before we left the bridge we talked to a CHIP (California Highway Patrolman) who was visiting the area. He moved to California years ago, but plans on moving back to the area in the near future. I asked him where he goes to church. He told me it was an Independent Church, where he lives in California. His answers and behavior seemed to indicate that he might be a believer, and as usual I asked if he is a believer. He said yes, very emphatically. I asked him if he was following Jesus, and again he gave a very definite yes. We talked a little more and I encouraged him to follow

11/01/25 SOW THE SEED

11/01/25 SOW THE SEED

Martha and I went to west Morehead last week. I engaged a young man in a conversation (since I am 78, most people are young to me), which resulted in a witnessing opportunity. It was another one of those situations where the Lord led us to someone who was open and responsive to our outreach. He has a Christian background but was actually moved when I talked about following Jesus closely. He stated (with visible emotion) that he appreciated what I said to him and it was an encouragement.

Most of the people I meet while out-and-about witnessing live at a distance from my home and my in-person ministry location. This is partially true because I see a lot of people who are vacationing in our area, or they live even further west than Newport. This means that I may invite them to contact me for a follow-up meeting (to answer questions) or an invite to our online ministry (in-person, ZOOM, Facebook, or my Blog.

I encourage them to find a local church in their community that preaches the Bible (salvation through Christ) and where the pastor and parishioners live a Christlike life and love one another).

I want folks to come to The Net House Ministry, but if they can't come and see what we have to offer, I want them to seek the Lord with their whole heart and follow Him fully. Maybe our brief meeting will encourage someone in their walk with Christ or prepare the way for them to open their heart to the Lord.

Sometimes we harvest, but a lot of the time we are sowing seed, hoping someone else will follow up with their witness. I hope you are following fully, and I hope you are witnessing. You too may tell someone about Christ (even someone who has never heard the good news before), or you may help someone who is searching.

10/31/25 ONE CURE FOR SIN "SICKNESS"

10/31/25 ONE CURE FOR SIN "SICKNESS"

While brother Wade and I were talking (witnessing) earlier today I said, "the world has gone crazy." The other man agreed with me and mentioned a heinous crime that recently happened in the New Bern area. We reflected on other crimes.

I said, "I can tell you why the world has gone so crazy."
Then I made fun of myself being so "smart" by saying, "I know you were hoping I would tell you why the world has gone crazy."
He responded by asking me what the reason is.
I told him, "The further this world gets from Jesus, the crazier it gets."
Our new friend was all onboard with that.
We continued to share with him and then with four other men.

Later today I was thinking about the crime in our area, the crime in our country and around the world. I get so tired of people blaming the stealing, the violence, the murder, the burning and destroying of our homes and businesses on people being "sick," mentally unbalanced, under pressure, oppressed. Most of what people call, "mental illness' does not even exist. It is meanness, it is selfishness, it is anger and hatred, it is pride, it is greed, it is laziness, IT IS SIN. IT IS SIN SICKNESS, and there is only one cure.

Most of what society calls insanity is actually SINsanity, and it does not matter whether you are rich or poor, black or white, male or female, young or old, educated or ignorant, Republican or Democrat, or any other "brand" you can put on a person. SIN (disobedience to God) is the problem, the reason for the spreading SINsanity in our community and across our land. In fact, a lot of the SINsanity in our society is bred and marketed by the SINtelligencia through the mind bending and corrupting academic SINstitutions

The number of those who could even be called "mentally ill" is so low that it is not even a legitimate part of the discussion. There is, "Hatred SINdrome," there is Narcissism, there is Greed, there Racisim, all of which get referred to as "sickness," or "mental illness." The actual problem is sin and the sin is private and personal, but it becomes corporate, collective, racial, political, class oriented, religious, commercial, academic, national.

With that being true, I can honestly say that no person, who is actually a Christian, will be guilty of killing, stealing, lying, raping, violating, oppressing another person. NO, NOT ONE.

This is because an actual Christian is a new creature, old things are passed away. The true Christian has turned from sin, which includes killing, stealing, lying, raping and sexual misbehavior, hating, coveting, deceiving, lusting, and anything else that is contrary to godliness. Salvation is deliverance from sin and sinning, as well as from guilt and eternal death.

Salvation is not only the best solution to sin, man's inhumanity to man, corruption, destruction, oppression, greed, violence, deception, abuse, but salvation, in and through Christ, is the only deliverance from wickedness, crime and upheaval.

It is not the outward form of "Christian" religion, but an actual life changing encounter with Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, which will save a person from being, doing and speaking in a way that is destructive to our fellow man.

No Christian murders, steals, lies, sexually violates or exercises violence against anyone else. Gambling, drugs, pornography, prurient behavior of every kind would end if everyone was a Christian.

Being a Christian is not one person doing the best he can. Being a Christian is being transformed into a new person and empowered by God to keep God's commandments and to do that which is pleasing in God's sight. We are then created in righteousness and true righteousness, walking in Christ's steps and doing that which is good.

Religion may reform a person, but only the Divine work of regeneration can transform a person, and only the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit can conform a person to the image of God holy Son.

10/28/25 DISTURBING VERSE

10/28/25 DISTURBING VERSE

Proverbs 29:1 is a very disturbing verse.

Not only does it point out that a man may willfully disobey God, at the peril of losing his soul, but it goes on to say that the offender may do it and SUDDENLY be cut off from God, WITHOUT REMEDY.

Proverbs 29:1
(1) He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.

10/28/25 WE ARE LED AND ENLIGHTENED, NOT INFALLIBLE

10/28/25 WE ARE LED AND ENLIGHTENED, NOT INFALLIBLE

God's word was written and presented to specific people at specific times. There are some truths in the Bible which are "time sensitive." However, even in those situations, there are Divine principles which apply to Christians throughout the Christian era. In fact, Christians can learn from all of God's dealings with His people, whether in the Old Testament or the New Testament.

I take the Bible writings personally. I expect to find truths in all parts of the Bible which will inform me, guide me, reprove and correct and instruct me in righteousness. I look for the historical significance and the immediate application of the revelation, but I also look for the transcending lessons I can practice in my walk with God.

God not only gives me information and knowledge, but He gives me enlightenment, wisdom and direction. God the Holy Spirit, did not dictate a dead letter to be viewed only as a Divine revelation for people in the past, but it is to be received as light, life and leading, which produces Christ likeness and good works in the reader.

I don't just learn about what God did for someone, or in someone in the past, I grow in grace and knowledge as I walk in His word and by His indwelling Spirit.

This is a major difference between those who see the word of God only as a record of Divine actions from the past, rather than opening our heart to the present witness of the Spirit of God, leading us into all truth and filling us with light. The word of God is not a dead letter box, revealing the past as static. The word of God is living and active in the lives of His people today.

On the other hand, it is sadly true that some other people fail to "rightly divide" the word of God in a different way. They don't understand that the Bible is "Divine revelation" given to chosen men of God in the past. They think that God is still "inspiring" people with new revelation. We are not "Divinely inspired; we are "enlightened" by the word of God, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit concerning the truths of the revealed word. We are led by the Holy Spirit. There are not any "prophets" or "apostles" today with the same insight, knowledge, understanding and wisdom as those whom God anointed and chose for Bible writing. Contrary to popular "name it, claim it" teaching, we are not gods, and we do not have the same inherent and unrestricted power and authority of God. We are chosen vessels, and we are the temple of God, but we are restricted to act according to His will. We are His ambassadors, doing His bidding, in His way, and we are His witnesses, telling His message.

Don't overstep your calling, your position, and don't come short of your calling, your position. Know God. Know God's word. Know God's will for your life. Humble yourself, do not lift yourself up, allow God to lift you up and send you in the power of His Spirit, to do His work, in His way, as it aligns with His word.

We can walk this tightrope of life when we submit to the Spirit, when we walk in the Spirit, live in the Spirit. This requires humility, faith, courage, submission, obedience through prayer and study of God's word and meditating on God's word day and night.