Cornerstone

Acts 19:21-29

Browsing through your local Christian bookstore you will notice many titles that explain and describe false doctrines, cults and the occult. You may pick up a book about the New Age movement, Mormonism, or the Moonies. As you leaf through the books one by one you would be struck with one central consideration. Each of them is challenging the Truth! Galatians 5:20 says that this idolatry is a work of the flesh. God made man in his own image but ever since Adam and Eve sinned, people have been trying to create God in their own image. This is idolatry! Romans 1:22-23 speaks of this when it says people just like those of our society were

22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

23 And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. (KJV)

This is terrible and we waggle our spiritual fore-finger at those who are steeped in overt idolatry. But maybe we should examine ourselves. Do our materialistic, self-sufficient, self-planned Christian lifestyles challenge the truth? Matt 6 says that we should be content to only have our needs met. Are we? Heb 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God. Are we people of faith? Maybe if we would divorce our “Christian” idolatry we would experience a real revival of holiness.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Matthew 8:28-34

Thomas was an older man who had been saved before. Each time, he went back on his faith because of the power cigarettes had over his body. He told me “A Christian can’t smoke. Until I can overcome cigarettes I can’t be a Christian.”

The church continued to pray for Thomas. Then the tragic news came. I rushed to the hospital. Just before he was to go in for open heart surgery I talked to him about his heart need. “Yes,” he said. “I want to ask God to forgive me of my sins.” We prayed and Thomas testified to victory.

During surgery the doctors nearly lost him. For the next month he hung between life and death. It was a struggle for life and for deliverance. It was pitiful to see him make hand signals as he begged for a cigarette. He pawed at his chest where he had always kept a pack of cigarettes in his shirt pocket. He went through the motions of puffing imaginary cigarettes. But God totally delivered Thomas so that he was able to live for the Lord in victory the next few years before he went to heaven. A miracle? Yes, a miracle of God’s healing power. Although slow and painfully drawn out, it was a conclusive miracle nonetheless.

Dr. Gayle Woods