Vol. 37, No. 11  November, 2013

TURNING THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN
Dr. George Mills
“And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.” (Acts 17:6).

This is an amazing statement. It simply states that they “TURNED THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN,.” In a day and time without any means of modern transportation, or communication, or a printing press, without a microphone, radio, television, this band of believers literally shook the world for Jesus. They “TURNED THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN.” How did they do that? What was their secret? What caused the early church to conquer so much for the cause of Christ? Let’s search the Book of Acts for awhile and see just how they did it. May God speak to our hearts as we study.

THEY HAD A GREAT PROGRAM.
“But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”(Acts 1:8). They had a Great Commission and they obeyed it! The main difference between that Church and the Church of this age is, OBEDIENCE TO THE GREAT COMMISSION. The same Lord gave the same commission to the Church of all ages, that is, to take this Gospel as far as you can, while you can. Our obedience to the Great Commission will cause some to say of us that we “have turned the world upside down.” We do everything but obey the Great Commission. We need to “GET WITH THE PROGRAM.”

THEY HAD GREAT POWER.
Acts 1:8 says, “Ye shall receive POWER after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” 120 Believers tarried in the upper room at Jerusalem. At the right time, the Holy Spirit empowered that little band, and the rest is history. The devil has so much success in confusing the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, that I am afraid that we just stay away from any mention of the Holy Spirit. But their secret of success is THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. All of our effort is in vain until we labor in the Power and fullness of the Holy Spirit. Let each of us surrender to His fullness daily that He may use us as He used that small band of believers so many years ago. The same power is available for the Church today. I am not speaking about some emotional experience, I am not speaking about some “gibberish utterance” that nobody can understand. (By the way, every word spoken in the assembly was understood by everyone)(Acts 2:7-8). I am speaking about the power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers who are surrendered to the the will of God. We must take God at His Word and ask Him to give us His power “If ye then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.” (Lk 11:13). May each of us rise early before the cares of the world begin to wear us down, and seek that fresh anointing that we may be faithful witnesses for His Glory. Our Lord Jesus gave us the great discourse on the Holy Spirit in John 14, 15,16. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer. He is our power. Let us learn to listen to His voice, His prompting, His impulses. Let us learn to witness to others as He directs.

THEY HAD GREAT PRAYER.
Time and time again this small band of believers
came together in prayer. Remember their prayer meeting in Acts, Ch. 1. Read about their great prayer meetings as they came together. “And when they had prayed the place was shaken.(Acts 4:31). The Holy Spirit guided the disciples as they prayed to God for wisdom and strength. I am afraid that our prayer services fall far short of the great prayer meetings of the early Church. “The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (Ja. 5:16). The Power of Prayer still works today! Prayer will cause us to turn our world upside down. We cannot spend our time on our knees praying while there is so much to be done, but we can pray while we do the work God has called us to do. “Pray without ceasing.” World conditions. The unsaved and their destiny, drug addictions, SIN, all should motivate our prayer life. Our prayer list should get longer each day. Do you pray regularly for your loved ones, for your neighbors, for your co-workers, for your friends, enemies. Do you pray for our government officials, for leadership in high places. Do you pray for our president, congressional leaders, the courts??God has limited Himself to the prayers of His people! “Ye have not because ye ask not.”Elijah prayed earnestly that it might not rain and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” (Ja. 5:17-18). We serve the same God who answers the same prayer of faith today!

THEY HAD GREAT PURPOSE.
They believed that the world, apart from Christ was lost and on the road to hell. That did something in the hearts of that band of believers. In the Book of Acts, much emphasis was placed upon great numbers, or masses of people; Acts 2:41, 2:47, 4:4, 5:14, 6:7, 11:21, 11:24, 14:1. And while there is emphasis on numbers, there is also emphasis on the individual to show God’s concern for just one soul. For example much time is spent on the conversion of Paul, the Eunuch, Cornelius, the young girl and the jailer in Acts 16. We must remember that whether in a crowd or all alone, they all get saved, ONE AT A TIME. Their Great Purpose was to reach all men everywhere with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

THEY HAD GREAT PREREQUISITES.
The word “prerequisite” meaning, “All things necessary to carry out a function.”

They had UNITY. Acts 4:32 ends with the words; “But they had all things common.” A house divided against itself cannot stand. UNITY, oneness of purpose. One Gospel, one goal, to evangelize the world.

They had URGENCY. Can we not see the URGENCY in the Book of Acts as the apostles were busy from city to city, building Churches, reaching the lost with the Gospel of Christ. The Book of First Thessalonians, Ch. 1 ends with “From you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad, so that we need not to speak anything.” Romans 10:18; “Yes, verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” Paul could say, “I am pure from the blood of all men.” (Acts 20:26). There was an URGENCY not seen since those early days. Men are still lost and the Gospel still works!

They had UNCTION. Meaning “anointing.” We have covered this in the section about the Holy Spirit. This is to remind us all once again that without His anointing, we are powerless. Time and time again the apostles were warned, arrested and tried. And time and time again they came together, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, and continued in their work of evangelizing the world with the Gospel.

THEY HAD GREAT PREACHING.
They had great Bible Preaching from the Great Received Text written by the apostles at Antioch under the Inspiration of God. This latest drift away from the Word of God did not come on the scene until many years later. There has been no real revival in the land since these new “versions” waltzed on the scene in the last half of the 20th century. Anyway, let us stay with THE BOOK. The Authorized BOOK! (KJB). Read the sermons of Paul, Peter, John, and the apostles, all directed at “Repentance toward God and Faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 20:21) Our preaching must be Christ centered. He is the great focal point. We must never compromise with sound Biblical Doctrine, and at the same time we must preach Christ in His Beauty, Holiness, and His fiery indignation against sin, His wrath and judgment. Great preaching can reach America again!. “It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”(1Cor. 1:21) “And Paul, as his manner was , went unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them OUT OF THE SCRIPTURES, opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead, and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you is Christ.” (Acts 17:2-3). The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ turned the world upside down. Every lesson, every sermon, every prayer meeting, every class, every time we speak, whether to one or to a thousand, that same Gospel must be clearly presented along with an invitation to receive Christ, TODAY! Great preaching does not come from “sermon building,” it comes from Spirit led Bible study, and Fervent prayer.

THEY HAD GREAT PERSONNEL.
120 believers tarried in the upper room in obedience to Christ. There, they were filled with the Holy Spirit, and as I said, the rest is history. Few in number, but great in power. It was not quantity of believers, it was the quality of believers. There were no “super Christians” there. Everything today must be “super.” Super church, super preacher, super saints, etc. Let us remember that it does not take great numbers to do God’s work. It does not take great talent or great abilities. It takes surrendered, dedicated lives. It does not matter how small, or insignificant you may feel you are, God can use you to reach many for Christ. God uses individuals to reach the masses. He uses a handful to reach multitudes. He can use YOU and ME! He wants to use us! Today we have more means to reach people than the early church could ever imagine. Today we have radio, TV, the printed page, transportation, the internet,
Oh, there are so many ways. I pastor a small Church, a very small Church, but God has used this small band to reach many in our homeland and in many nations of the world.
Since we, today, have more than they had, can we be satisfied in doing less? Let us together, work for Christ in such a manner that one day He may say of us, “THEY TURNED THEIR WOLD UPSIDE DOWN!
Now, do you personally know Christ in forgiveness of sin? If not, why not take the Word of God for your refuge. “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name.” (Jn 1:12). Christ is there, where you are. Just tell Him in your own words that you do receive Him. That you believe what the Bible says about Him. You can begin TODAY to live Forever!

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AND THE WORLD IS A WILDERNESS..It is no friend to the Christian. But Christ is our unfailing Friend, our unfaltering High Priest, and unforgettable promiser of His soon return.

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AND THINK ABOUT THIS…The WORTHY ONE came to earth to save us worthless ones, that we, the worthless ones might become WORTHY ONES.

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IT ONLY TAKES A FEW
“The harvest is great, but the laborers are few.”
(LK 10:2).
By Pastor George Mills

It only took a few,
To turn the world around,
It was because the few,
Had love that did abound.
It was because in them,
A friend that Christ had found,
It only took a few,
To turn the world around.

It only takes a few,
To take the Gospel ’round,
It only takes a few,
To make the Gospel sound,
From every little corner,
And alley in our town.
It only takes a few,
To take the Gospel ’round.

It only takes a few,
If every heart is bound,
With love and single purpose,
And in every life is found,
Full devotion to our Lord,
And His Word to ever sound,
It only takes a few,
If every heart is bound.

So let us be that few,
That Jesus Christ has found,
The few that’s bound together,
To turn the world around,
The few with single purpose,
To make the Gospel sound,
To every little corner,
And alley in our town.

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AND THE WORLD IS A WILDERNESS…It is no friend to the Christian. While we are IN the world we are not OF the world. God has called us OUT of the world to go INTO all the world,
to represent a better world.

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THE SAVIOUR’S TOUCH
Pastor George Mills
“Jesus put forth His hand and touched him, saying, I will, be thou clean.” (Mt 8:3).

We often speak of “touching Him” or “touching the hem of his garment,” and this we all want to do. It will be worth it all when at last, our faith is sight, and we can bow before Him, and literally TOUCH HIM. What a day that will be. I am grateful for the fact that He has touched me. Yes, many times, He has touched me…Just when I needed Him most. As we wander through this WILDERNESS, His touch is ever near. In Bible times, if anyone touched a leper, he himself would be defiled and would have to go through the cleaning process. Christ touched the poor leper in our text, identifying himself with the man. Upon His cross, Christ identified Himself with our sin. Our uncleanness was passed to Him, and His Righteousness was passed to all who claim Him as Saviour.

THINK ABOUT IT…Heaven touched earth one day and earth touched Heaven one day, that day, at the Cross where I met my Saviour.

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THE HOLY SPIRIT
He illuminates Christ. Like a spotlight shining on a person on center stage without calling attention to itself, so the Holy Spirit does not call attention to Himself. He shows us Jesus Christ. I am afraid that so much of the talk about the Holy Spirit today is just that…TALK! The Holy Spirit Magnifies and Glorifies Christ. There are many “spirits” in the world today. The spirit of error, the spirit of antichrist, lying spirits, spirits of devils. Spirit of bondage, spirit of fear, spirit of disobedience, seducing spirits, bewitching spirits, just to name a few. Any “spirit” that does not Magnify and Glorify the Person and Work of Jesus Christ is NOT the Holy Spirit.
He Births us into the family of God.
He Bestows to us wonderful gifts.
He Blesses us with assurance that He is with us
and will be with us until He leads us home.

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HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY,
NOVEMBER 28, 2013.

THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT.

“In the Name of God, Amen. We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord King James by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, defender of the Faith.

Having undertaken for the Glory of God AND THE ADVANCEMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH and honor of our King and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do by these present, solemnly, and mutually in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for a better
offering and preservation and furtherance of the ends of the aforesaid, and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet
and convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience. In witness thereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape Cod on the 11 of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign Lord, King James of England, France, and Ireland the eighteenth, and of Scotland in the fifty forth. Ano. Dom. 1620.
As you read the Mayflower Compact, I pray that it will stir your heart to stand up for America.
Thank God for such a rich heritage.
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I am proud to be an American. I am not so proud of the upsets in Washington at this time. The Senate, the House of Representatives, and the President all in battle over things that should have been settled long before now. Government closings, are just mockery. Those who have sworn to protect, and defend the Constitution are making a joke out of the Constitution. I trust that some Constitutional Lawyers will take some of these issues to court and let the courts settle issues that our elected leaders cannot settle!

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THE WORD OF GOD (KJB)
“Forever O LORD Thy Word is settled.”
Pastor Mills
THE PURITY OF THE WORD. Everything about God is Pure. In Isaiah 6, the Prophet saw Seraphim circle the throne of God crying HOLY, HOLY, HOLY. These Seraphim are angelic policemen who guard the Purity and Holiness of God. Everything about God is Pure, and His Word is Pure.

THE PRESERVATION OF THE WORD.
In Psalm 12:6-7, God promised to PRESERVE His PURE Word forever. Agnostics, doubters, deniers, by the millions have tried, in vain to find some solid accusation against the Word, but cannot. Even from within, Professors in Bible colleges try to point out errors. They tried this on me, but it did not work.

THE POWER OF THE WORD.
“All things are upheld by His Word.” (Heb 1:3).
WE ARE SAVED BY HIS WORD. “Being Born again through the incorruptible seed, the Word which liveth and abideth forever.” (1Pet. 1:23).

WE ARE SECURE BY THE WORD. How do I know that I am saved? Not by my feelings, they change too often. Not by what someone else says, they cannot know my heart. The Word of God testifies countless times that we are saved. John 1:12, John 3:16, John 3:36, John 4:14, John 6:37, John 10:25-30).

WE SHOULD EAT THE WORD. “Thy Words were found and I did eat them.” “Eat” meaning that the Word should be a part of our daily diet the same as food.

WE SHOULD MEDITATE ON THE WORD. Read about the Blessed man in Psalm 1.

WE SHOULD SHARE THE WORD.“Cast thy bread upon the Waters.” Bread”, meaning, “the Word, “water” meaning “ world population.”

WE SHOULD LOVE THE WORD. We should join in praise with the Psalmist, “Oh how I LOVE Thy Word.”

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PAUL’S LAST MESSAGE AND PRAYER TO THE EPHESIAN ELDERS. (Acts 20:17-38).
Pastor Mills
This is a tender scene as the great Apostle weeps and prays with the elders of that Church at Ephesus. Paul’s heart is touched. He loved these brethren. He is concerned for their spiritual well being He weeps, he warns, he prays. Please take a few moments and read all of this text in your Bible. He reviews the things he taught by example.

HIS PURITY OF LIFE.
Paul knew that in order to reach the people there he had to live the example life. Paul said in v33, “I have coveted no man’s silver or gold, or apparel.” Paul was not like some “preachers” of today who come to town with boxes of tapes, how-to books, investment plans, “get rich schemes” etc, and leave town with pockets full of money. I certainly do not hold to this “get rich quick” lifestyle” as taught by many today.

HIS PERSONAL WITNESSING.
The very first thing in the life of the Apostle Paul was the Great Commission. He believed that the Gospel was for all men and that any man/woman who will believe the Gospel is saved by Grace. In Romans 9:1-4, 10:1-4 Paul shares his burden that men might be saved.

(A) HE WITNESSED PUBLICLY. (v20). In public worship service he preached Christ. He publicly persuaded men to come to Christ. In like manner, in every public service we must present Christ along with an invitation for men to receive Him.

(B) HE WITNESSED FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE. If you want to note this in the margin of your Bible, in the Greek, that means “from house to house.” He believed in covering the city with the Gospel.

HIS PREPARATION FOR FALSE TEACHERS. (v28-31).
“After my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you not sparing the flock.” Paul was much concerned about the two-fold attack of Satan. From without, and from within.

FROM WITHOUT are wolves. Like wolves after helpless lambs, false teachers with their doctrines will seek to devour the sheep. The Church must be prepared for them. There are more today than ever before.

FROM WITHIN are pretenders.
Pretenders on the inside speaking perverse things and drawing away disciples. These are the days of false doctrine. The airways are filled with it. Satanic influences are behind the flood of new “translations” on the market today. God cannot be in all of that confusion over His Word.

HIS PREACHING THE WHOLE COUNSEL OF GOD. (v27)
Some of these things are listed in this text.

THERE IS ONLY ONE TRUE GOD. In Ch. 19, Paul had a great battle with the silversmiths at Ephesus. These were earning their living by making and selling idols and images of Diana, the goddess of the Ephesians. Paul declares that there is only one True God. (see also Acts 17:22-34).
SALVATION IS ONLY IN CHRIST. (v21) There are not many plans, or many ways, Christ is THE WAY to God. There is no other Saviour. He alone purchased the Church with His own blood. (v28)

THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD.(v32). Paul called it“The Word Of His Grace” which is able to build you up. There is no other book to compare with the Bible.(KJB).

THE POWER OF PRAYER. (v36) In his kneeling down and praying is another example of Paul’s belief in the Power of Prayer.

THE GOSPEL OF THE GRACE OF GOD. (v24)
Thank God for the Grace of God that reaches down to fallen man. Grace can reach down to the IDOLATORS at Ephesus, to the IMMORAL at Corinth, to the EDUCATED at Athens, to the RULERS at Rome. The Same Gospel for all classes. The Gospel is for YOU! There is no other! Receive Christ, TODAY!

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FROM MY HEART
By Mildred Mills

COUNTING YOUR BLESSINGS

When you think it can’t get worse, cheer up, count your blessings and be thankful because things could get worse! We whine and carry on about things that are so small compared to the problems of others. If you look at your glass as “half empty” be thankful it is not completely empty and pray that God will fill it. We want the lawn to grow but then we whine because it has to be mowed so often. Stop whining and be thankful you have the health and strength to push the lawn mower. Remember, our strength comes from the Lord. If you are sick and tired of washing dirty dishes, stop for a minute and thank God for the food that made the dishes dirty in the first place. You are tired of making the beds every morning, well be thankful you have a nice, comfortable bed to sleep on, you could be on a park bench or side walk, or maybe in a filthy alley somewhere—but for the Grace of God.
Don’t be easily offended by loved ones that give you advise, be thankful you have someone that cares enough to be concerned about you. We need to be reminded of God’s goodness, of where He brought us from and where we would be today without Him. “Be thankful unto Him, and bless His Name.” So if you really believe you have been dealt a lemon in life, just throw some sugar on it and make yourself some lemonade, sit back under the shade tree, and count your blessings. Don’t worry about all those leaves that will be falling soon because it could get worse, THE TREE COULD FALL!

HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY! COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS! BE HAPPY!

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THINK ABOUT IT… The Christian life is not the best life, the Christ life is the ONLY LIFE!

AND Christ is not the BEST WAY to Heaven, He is the ONLY way to Heaven.

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TEEN TALKS THAT MATTER
By Ashley Stevens

BEING THANKFUL

Can you believe it? November is here, and it is time to come together as a family and reflect on things to be thankful for! As we get caught up in the world and all of it’s negativity, we tend to lose focus on the things we are blessed with. This week I would like to challenge everyone to try and think about things we as young Christian believers can be thankful for. I have thought about a few and I would like to share just four things that I am thankful for this Holiday Season.
FRIENDS AND FAMILY. These are the people closest to us. Friends and family are those that encourage, support, and offer guidance through our lives. God created family for a purpose. Parents are to guide us in life to help us grow in our Christian faith.

EDUCATION. I know your “I should be thankful for school?” Yes, you should! I know it’s hard sometimes to wake up every morning and just crave to learn more and sit through boring classes. But teens, we really need to be grateful for the teachers who taught us the ability to read and write. Without them it would be more difficult to learn God’s lessons and great stories that are found in the Bible.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.
Some people around the world would give almost anything to have the ability to express their Christian faith. We sometimes tend to forget what an amazing right and privilege it is to have religious freedom.
FREEDOM FROM SIN.
God gave the ultimate sacrifice to free us from our sinful nature. He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ to die on the cross in order to take away our sins, so that one day we can live with Him in Heaven. His death is why we strive to be more like Jesus and less like the world.
P.S. Don’t forget to count your blessings!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING
Until next time, Ashley Stevens

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“WHAT MUST I GIVE UP IN ORDER TO BE SAVED?”

Being Saved is GETTING! Salvation is RECEIVING! I know that some have the idea that in order to be saved we must first do something and then Christ will save us.. The problem with that is, Salvation would be a part of OUR WORKS, or WHAT WE DO, and that could never be. I do not have the power within me to stop, to quit, to reform to turn around, and neither do you have that power. There are sins of COMMISSION and sins of OMMISSION. Both are sin. I have no way of knowing if I have repented enough, stopped enough, or gave up enough. Salvation is not giving up. Salvation is receiving! Receiving Eternal Life, Receiving forgiveness receiving the Holy Spirit. When Christ comes into our lives He gives us power to live the victorious Christian life.

WHAT MUST I GIVE UP TO BE SAVED? You must give up any hope or trust in any other than Christ. That includes your works, or any religion, anything other than Christ, and by faith alone receive Him as your personal Saviour. He paid the price for your sin by His death on the Cross and His resurrection from the dead. How do you receive Him? The Bible says, “ask, and ye shall receive.” He is there, where you are. Call upon Him NOW. Then you will have that inner strength. He will be in you. He will give you power day by day to live for Him in a victorious life.