We pray that you are well and safe during the current crisis that we have all been dealing with.
Today’s video has nothing to do with the virus. It does, however, have everything to do with the bride of Christ.
In this new video, The Prodigal Bride (Part 1), we discuss some of the ways that the church has walked away from God, trading Him in for many other things.
We think you’ll find this video informative and interesting, and we hope you’ll take the time to watch it because the things we discuss are present in the global body, not just in a select few.
Seven Seas Ministries P.O. Box 272 Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
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Matthew 7:15 (NKJV) 15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
I know what it’s like to be taught something that you think it is real and right, but then eventually find out that it is a lie or a counterfeit. It can make you want to just give up.
You are crushed. You hurt. And everything you knew no longer matters. You feel empty and alone. I know this feeling.
The truth of the matter is that it’s not a bad thing, in spite of how it makes us feel. Lies need to be exposed. And even though it makes us feel terrible, it’s something that has to happen if we want our walk with God to be built on a foundation of truth.
It can be very helpful to know the truth about people and situations at times. We don’t ever want to live a lie just because it feels good or because we like the atmosphere and the people associated with it.
We were attending a church many years ago. In this church, they started off really sincere in what they were doing. But somewhere along the road, they got off track and things began to change.
The leaders began to let in a mixture of various other teachers, pastors, etc. And as that mixture spoke from the pulpit, it was given a voice. It was given authority.
This is very dangerous. It filled the congregation, and the people received it to be truth. And they got messed up by it. They were “off”, and became spiritually sick. This is how some leaders can hurt people and cause those people to fall away from God.
Have you been hit with the “mixture”? A little of this and a little of that?
Most of it sounds good, feels good and even seems good. But deep down there is this nagging little feeling saying, “something’s not quite right about this”.
Don’t ignore it. That may be Truth, the Holy Spirit, touching your heart, prompting you to take a deeper look.
Jesus says, “I am the Truth” in John 14:6. Let Him guide us in all things.
Man has a way of adding his own agenda or his own “twist” to things. Make sure we compare what we are being taught to God’s word.
There are some wolves in the pulpit, doing some weird stuff. But the eyes of our heart will spot it if we listen closely and watch.
Matthew 7:20 (NKJV) 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
We are here for you if you are experiencing this behavior. Please write or call us and we will do our best to help. You are not alone.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Luke 9:23 (NKJV) 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
Take a good look at that verse.
Now, after doing that, consider how much it says about life revolving around us. Not much, right?
In fact, the only thing it says about us is that we should deny ourselves. How does that stack up against so much of what we hear being taught today, even in churches?
It’s not pretty, is it? In fact, it’s very sad.
You see, God is not a mean God. He is not a killjoy, looking to rob us of enjoyment.
But He does want us to serve Him with our whole heart, not just a little piece of it. This means setting ourselves aside sometimes, even when it might not be convenient.
This means making sacrifices at times that might be costly in terms of pushing “self” aside and putting God first.
How does that compare to what we hear being taught today? There’s a pretty stark contrast, isn’t there?
This is why it’s important that we know God’s word and that we be careful to listen for His spirit. He is faithful to show us what’s right and what’s wrong regarding doctrines and similar things, especially when they are being promoted by Christians and churches.
Be careful. Not everything that has a Christian label attached is true to God’s word.
We live in a world that is being overrun with wolves in sheep’s clothing.
Matthew 7:15 (NKJV) 15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
2 John 1:10 (NKJV) 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him;
Have you ever had someone ring your doorbell or knock on your door, bringing you “another gospel”?
Most of us have probably had this happen at some point in time.
Over the years, I have handled this in various ways, ranging from completely ignoring them, to answering my door and spending time talking with them.
Many times I have answered the door simply because I didn’t want to be rude or discourteous.
I did this once fairly recently and it turned out that the people on the other side of the door ended up being rude and discourteous to me.
As I was studying during a recent evening, I came upon this section of 1 John that made it abundantly clear as to how to handle this in the future. The first verse I read was this one:
2 John 7 (NKJV) 7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
And then I read the one at the top of this devotional, 2 John 1:10, which spoke to me very, very clearly.
I had read all of this many times before, but this time it really hit me.
If we receive them to our home, and we let them share “their gospel” with us, we are, as God’s word says, partaking in their evil deeds.
2 John 11 (NKJV) 11 for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.
That might seem very strong, or even harsh. But consider what God’s word tells us here:
Galatians 1:8 (NKJV) 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
So, it would do us good to heed this instruction from God’s word and weigh it very carefully the next time another gospel comes knocking on our door.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Galatians 1:8 (NKJV) 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
We all like convenience. Things that are convenient make our lives easier, more pleasant.
Over the years, convenience seems to have slipped into the church, pervading the gospel of Jesus Christ, replacing the truth with “another gospel”.
So much of what we’re fed these days revolves around us, about making our lives better, not about making our lives count for God while we’re here on earth.
Think about the messages we hear over and over again; be happier, be wealthier, be more influential, make your life better, etc.
It’s important that we don’t let these fluffy messages replace the gospel of truth, the message of God’s mercy and love for humanity.
His love is about saving the lost, first and foremost. Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sins. His blood was shed as an atonement for those sins, to wash them away. It was a very high price that was paid.
Let’s not fall prey to other gospels, looking to God solely for material things, more convenient lives and everything else that humanity desires.
Instead, let’s be sure to put God first in everything we do, becoming a living sacrifice each and every day.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV) 12 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
2 Chronicles 7:14 (NKJV) 14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Praying for each other today is so crucial.
We are facing hard times as Believers. Some churches may not want to say this for fear of feeling like we have failed as a bride. But know this; there comes a time when we have to stand up and face what is in front of us. Without admitting to or acknowledging our problems, there will be no solving them.
We, for one, admit that the leadership as a whole has failed in many ways. And people have left the church and turned from God.
They lay wounded and bleeding, hurting and thinking they have nothing or no ONE to put their trust in.
We are so sorry for such a thing to have happened in the very place we would have thought would be safe from the troubles of this world. The very place where we could go and worship Him freely; the very house of God. His sanctuary, His place we could call home. We, as a church, have tainted His sanctuary with foolishness and pride.
We stand and repent to God today and ask Him for forgiveness.
Dear God,
Help us reach those that have lost their faith in you due to wrong handling of their situation; Hype, incorrect teachings, false prophetic words and anything else that the church has allowed in.
Bring healing Lord. Bring healing to your bride, we cry. Bring us together in unity and heal our land today, we ask in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Help us, Your church, to lead and guide through the truth and the principles of your Word. Amen
Ephesians 6:18 (NKJV) 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Exodus 33:19 (NKJV) 19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you.
Let’s talk today about proclaiming, confessing and declaring. We did a video recently on this topic, but we want to make sure everyone understands this, so we decided to also do a devotional on it.
Proclaiming, Confessing and Declaring have become very commonplace in churches around the world. People have made a practice of confessing and declaring things as a way of “walking in faith”.
The problem with this, though, is that the Bible has never taught us to do this. It teaches us to confess our sins, confess that Jesus is Lord and to proclaim and declare the glory of God. Nowhere does it ever tell us to speak things and believe that doing so will make them happen.
Proclaiming, Confessing and Declaring in this manner has its roots in various New Age philosophies, not in the word of God. New Age teachings such as Name it & Claim it, Visualization and The Power of Positive Thinking have been teaching this for quite some time.
Somehow it found its way into the body of Christ as part of a “faith teaching”, convincing many people that if we speak things, they will become so. They will happen because we spoke them, by Proclaiming, Confessing and Declaring them to be so.
This is absolutely false. And it’s a very dangerous teaching. It has caused many in the church to elevate themselves, whether they realize it or not, acting in a prideful way, as satan did before he rebelled against God and was cast out of heaven.
Isaiah 14:14 (NKJV) 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’
So, it’s important that we confess our sins to God and to one another, as the Word instructs us to do. And it’s important that we declare and proclaim the wonder and glory of God, as we are instructed to do.
But it’s critical that we refrain from proclaiming, confessing and declaring our personal desires “in faith’, believing that just because we have done so that it must happen.
James 5:16 (NKJV) 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Matthew 10:32 (NKJV) 32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.
If you would like to watch the video we recently published on this topic, please click here.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
As we discuss this, we share where these things really came from. And it’s not what you might think. So we hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch the video today.
Enjoy your day and stay close to God in everything.
Sincerely in Christ,
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Genesis 11:4 (NKJV) 4 And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”
These people were trying to make a name for themselves. They came together as one to build a tower as high as the heavens. They wanted to be great and known for what they had done.
God saw that this kind of behavior, mindset or movement was not good! So, He took the ONE language that they all spoke, changed it up and gave them all a different language. This made it nearly impossible for them to be able to work together or communicate any longer.
It’s not bad for us to come together as one if we have the right motives. But, if our motives are impure then it can be very damaging to us and all those involved.
Various movements throughout the body of Christ, in the church, can sometimes be contrary to what God is doing, and they can cause great damage to the work of God and His people if those that are involved are off in their motives.
What do we mean by “off”? They start to twist the word of God and make it fit within their plan or their agenda. Sometimes it may sound right, but the Holy Spirit residing in us will tell us if it’s off. Truth exposes falsehoods.
These movements come through people in leadership positions or through people with authority. They may know God’s word inside and out and can quote scripture and verses all day long, but they too can be deceived by this.
Matthew 24:24 (NKJV) 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
Be aware of false teachings in the church. They can start off as something good and innocent, but that doesn’t mean it can’t change its course or direction and end up being way off track.
As we stay close to God, and spend time in His word, He will sharpen our discernment, that we may see it for what it is and avoid it.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Galatians 1:6-7 (NKJV) 6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7 which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.
There are many things that will try to pass themselves off as being of God.
God has given us His word and His spirit to help us discern the truth from the lies.
Many of these things that come our way look and sound like God, and will walk a parallel path to His path. But when they are compared to the true Word of God, they are revealed as nothing more than false teachings and heresies.
We need to be careful about what we take in, what we believe and what we practice. This may seem tough to do when there is so much information available to us these days. But if we trust His Spirit and use His Word as a measuring stick, we can never go wrong.
So if you hear, read or see something that doesn’t seem quite right, test it. Look for it in God’s word. Compare it. Let the Holy Spirit show you what’s what.
He is faithful to show us if we’re diligent to hear Him!
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!
To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.
Greetings! 