Pastor Joseph J. Reine's two new books.


" Unlocking The Mysteries Of Prayer"

This short ebook could change your thinking about prayer, forever!


and

"SALVATION We Are Not Afraid!"

Catholicism Versus The Word Of God.

Traditions Of Men And What Saith The Lord.

Read first hand what your Bible says, you'll be

surprised to learn The Truth!

This book was written for thousands of people

to be liberated from ecclesiastical prisons.


http://www.amazon.com


Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Self-Denial


Bible Questions Answered: 
“Pastor, I just finished reading with great interest, your blog on Greed. What gives so called Christian people such a love for money, seeing that they must be believers?”
Murray/ St. Louis, Missouri

Bible Answer:

Oh the deceitfulness of riches!

Mark 4:19 KJV
And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

Hebrews 3:13 KJV
But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through 
the deceitfulness of sin.

No, the answer is much more sinister than that.
Some where along the way, they have “not,” emulated the true life of their Teacher, Saviour and Lord.

Matthew 8:19 KJV (Penniless.)

19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whither soever thou goest.
20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head.


Exodus 20:3 KJV (Sacrifice, and Service.)
Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

Matthew 16:24 KJV 
Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

OK, be honest now, no matter what country you are in, when was the last time you heard a message on this?
??? Can't remember?

This broken down old pastor who has preached the word of the Lord since 1965, and can't remember when he has heard one preached with all sincerity of heart.

What message, and that is how easy it is to oversee it......

Matthew 16:24 KJV 
Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

Whether one has the right to amass riches is “not,” the question, the question is are we going to be an absolute “follower of the Lord Jesus Christ,” in His self-denial?

I Corinthians 6:12 KJV
All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.

I Corinthians 6:12 NLT
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything.

I Corinthians 8:9 KJV
But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience to stumble. 

I Corinthians 10:23,24 NLT
23 You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial. 
24 Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.

II Corinthians 6:3 KJV
Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:
(Not only in the area of finance, but of power and positions, whatever man may lust after.)

When a man of God, from the pulpit of the Lord Jesus Christ, openly speaks of his finances, and tells all that he knows before God, how his honesty is appreciated and himself loved. Such an honesty is met with open love from his adherents. How Christ like!
Sadly many, have gone from “its my right”, to secrecy and denial. And the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is darker for it.
How, indeed, we must again pray for honesty among brethren.

Self Denial:

Genesis 22:10-12 KJV (Isaac-a type of the LAMB of God.)
10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
11 And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
12 And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me.

Think how many decades Abraham must have prayed to have a son. And the at 100 years of age all of his prayers were answered.
It was Abraham's right to be a father. It was his right to have a son to raise, to be a leader of God's people!
And yet, God tested Abraham's faith, would he be willing to sacrifice his own son, to please God?
Would he after all those many, many years, forget even his own prayers for precious Isaac, to please the living God?
Would he deny himself?
The answer was yes.
God, having tested his faithfulness, provided a ram in the brush for the sacrifice.
Thus the name of this place was Jehovah jireh, the Lord our provision.

Is it any wonder why God does not provide for some, when they have amassed their own provisions, making God, their last means of hope.

When a man of God can honestly stand before God and men, and say with a pure heart, that God and his people are his only means of provision, such honesty, such openness will be answered from heaven itself.

Proverbs 16:32 KJV
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

Matthew 5:29,30 KJV (Christ speaking metamorphically.)
29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

Matthew 10:37-39 KJV
37 He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after Me, is not worthy of Me.
39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it.

Matthew 13:44-46 KJV
44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a Man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a Merchant Man, seeking goodly pearls:
46 Who, when He had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Matthew 16:24,25 KJV
24 Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.

Matthew 19:21-30 KJV
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow Me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
25 When His disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
27 Then answered Peter and said unto Him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have 
therefore?
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed Me, in the regeneration when the 
Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes 
of Israel.
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, 
or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

Luke 5:11,27,28 KJV
11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed Him.
27 And after these things He went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and He said unto him, Follow Me.
28 And he left all, rose up, and followed Him.

Luke 14:26,27,33 NLT
26 “If you want to be My disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and 
children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 
27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow Me, you cannot be My disciple.
33 So you cannot become My disciple without giving up everything you own.

Luke 18:27-30 KJV 
27 And He said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
29 And He said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake,
30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.

Luke 21:1-4 KJV
1 And He looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.
2 And He saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites.
3 And He said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
4 For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.

(Our God, knows all about money, hidden or otherwise.)

John 12:25,26 KJV
25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life 
eternal.
26 If any man serve me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My servant be: if any man serve Me, him will My Father honour.

Acts 20:22-24 NLT
22 “And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, 
23 except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. 
24 But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

Acts 21:13 KJV
Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.

Romans 6:6 KJV
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Romans 8:12,13,35,36 KJV
12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

Romans 13:14 KJV
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.

Romans 14:1-23 NLT
1 Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. 
2 For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive 
conscience will eat only vegetables. 
3 Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. 
4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive His approval.
5 In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. 
6 Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor Him. Those who eat any kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord and give thanks to God. 
7 For we don’t live for ourselves or die for ourselves. 
8 If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 
9 Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.
10 So why do you condemn another believer? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 
11 For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bend to Me, and every tongue will confess and give praise to God.’”
12 Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. 
13 So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.
14 I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But 
if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. 
15 And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. 
16 Then you will not be criticized for doing something you believe is good. 
17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 
18 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 
19 So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.
20 Don’t tear apart the work of God over what you eat. Remember, all foods are acceptable, but it is wrong to eat something if it makes another person stumble. 
21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble. 
22 You may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right. 
23 But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.

Romans 15:1-5 KJV
1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
2 Let every one of us please his neighbor for his good to edification.
3 For even Christ pleased not Himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on Me.
4 For whatsoever things were written afore time were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
5 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:

I Corinthians 8:9-13 NLT (Godly, Apostle Paul.)
9 But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience to stumble. 
10 For if others see you—with your “superior knowledge”—eating in the temple of an idol, won’t they be encouraged to violate their conscience by eating food that has been offered to an idol? 
11 So because of your superior knowledge, a weak believer for whom Christ died will be destroyed. 
12 And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ. 
13 So if what I eat causes another believer to sin, I will never eat meat again as long as I live—for I don’t want to cause another believer to stumble.

I Corinthians 9:12,15,18,19,23,25-27 NLT
12 If you support others who preach to you, shouldn’t we have an even greater right to be supported? But we have never used this right. We would rather put up with anything than be an obstacle to the Good News about Christ.
15 Yet I have never used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that I want to start now. In fact, I would rather die than lose my right to boast about preaching without charge. 
18 What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News.
19 Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. 
23 I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.
25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 
26 So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 
27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

Galatians 2:20 KJV
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.

Galatians 5:16,17,24 KJV
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Galatians 6:14 KJV
But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Philippians 2:4 KJV
Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

Philippians 3:7-9 KJV
7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
9 And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Colossians 3:5 NLT (Evil bedfellows with greed.)
So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

II Timothy 2:4 KJV
No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please Him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

Titus 2:12 KJV
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

I Peter 2:11-16 KJV
11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;
12 Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.
13 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;
14 Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.
15 For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:
16 As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.

I Peter 4:1,2 KJV
1 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;
2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

III John 7 KJV
Because that for His name's sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles.

Revelation 12:11 KJV
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

Salvation Prayer