Friday, March 08, 2024

Wade Burleson at Istoria Ministries Is Now A Substack Subscription

Wade Burleson at Istoria Ministries Substack Newsletter is now the place for my writings. 

You can find me on Substack at:
wadeburleson.substack.com

Substack is a subscription service ($5.00 monthly or $48.00 annually). All proceeds go to Istoria Ministries to help meet our budget. 

There's also a free subscription option. You'll receive a couple of my writings for free every month.

But you'll need a paid subscription to Istoria Ministries for the archived posts, to read most of the new posts I write weekly, and to listen to the podcasts. 

Istoria's Board of Directors met at the end of July 2023 and urged me to use this subscription model. 

The viability of our ministry requires consistent revenue. Donations to Istoria have been our lifeblood, and we trust the LORD to raise up those who can continue to give tax-deductible donations to Istoria Ministries.

We hope the Wade Burleson at Istoria Ministries SubStack subscriptions will help Istoria Ministries continue to expand. 

For all subscribers, free or paid, the Wade Burleson at Istoria Ministries Substack newsletters will be a way that I communicate via email. 

The 70 various digital teaching sermon series can be heard through a subscription service.  They can still be accessed for free at the Sermon Series Archive on Istoria Ministries Website but in the near future, will require a subscription to substack.com@istoriaministries

It will take some time for the 2,500 posts from 2005 to 2022 to be placed in the archive of Wade Burleson Istoria Ministries Substack, but we'll get there. 

Thank you for supporting Istoria Ministries, and if you want to contact me personally, feel free to email at wade@istoriaministries.com

Monday, March 04, 2024

The Importance of Baptism as Christ's Ordinance

Benji Ramsaur, a blogger friend and frequent commenter, emailed me the other day about the views of the 18th Century Sandy Creek Association of Baptist Churches on baptism.

Wade, I don't know if you ever thought about it, but it looks to me that the Sandy Creek Associaiton Confession (1816) is in agreement with you on Baptism and the Lord's Supper being ordinances of Christ. Here is statement #8 from their confession.

8. That baptism and the Lord’s Supper are ordinances of the Lord, and to be continued by his church until his second coming. (emphasis mine)

I already knew what Benji pointed out to me. Still, he has done a favor by reminding us all of the doctrinal beliefs of some of our Southern Baptist forefathers regarding the ordinance of baptism. If the Sandy Creek Baptists were correct about this ordinance, and I believe they were, then the believer's baptism identifies him as a follower of Jesus Christ. Let me repeat what I just wrote so it can sink in Baptism identifies a believer with Jesus Christ -- not a local church.

The local church's responsibility is to ensure that, as a prerequisite to church membership, the member candidate has identified himself with Christ through baptism by immersion. When I was baptized, I was not baptized 'into membership within a local church,' but I was baptized into Christ.

In other words, when Christ died for His people at Calvary, I was included with them and in Him, and my water baptism symbolizes my union and identification with Him in His death (Colossians 2;12). When Christ was wrapped in linen and buried in the tomb for His people, I was included with them and was in Him, and my baptism is a picture of my identification with Him during His burial (Romans 6). When Christ rose from the dead, making complete satifaction and atonment for the sins of His people, I was included with them and was in Him. My water baptism is my outward confession of my eternal possession -- deliverance from the wrath to come through the person and work of Jesus Christ for me.

The Practical Application of Baptism as the Lord's Ordinance

If you can locate a copy of Pascal's text on North Carolina Baptist History, you'll find this note (page 109, Vol. 2):

The only meeting house in which the visiting Moravian ministers preached was that on Deep Creek, 30 miles from Salem, finished in 1772. Nearly always Soelle's successors (Soelle was a Moravian missionary who often helped the Baptists) preached in the houses of the friendly families found there by Soelle; uusally they were heard by large and attentive congregations, of whom some were Baptists, including preachers and exhorters. On these visits the Moravian minister often baptized (by immersion) believing children brought by parents to the preacher at the homes where he was entertained.

It's worth noting that Moravian theology is derivative of Brethren and Lutheran theology. Their theology needs to be more transparent on the doctrine of eternal security. At best, they are ambiguous. Deep Creek was part of the Sandy Creek Association until 1805. These Baptists at Deep Creek church had absolutely no problem accepting into their fellowship believers who were baptized by a visiting Moravian evangelist because the baptisms performed by the guest Moravian evangelist did not identify the believers baptized by him with the Moravian church, the Moravian doctrine, or the Moravian movement -- it identified those believers with Jesus Christ.

What's good enough for the Sandy Creek Baptists in the 18th Century is good enough for my Southern Baptist church in the 21st Century. When someone petitions our church for membership, we examine their faith and baptism. Their faith is to be in Christ alone for salvation, and their baptism is to be by immersion, picturing the believer's identification with Christ. It's the Lord's ordinance, not ours.

In His Grace,


Wade

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

Jimmy Carter: A Genuine Christian Character

Jimmy Carter is a member, deacon, and Sunday School teacher at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia. He is also the 39th President of the United States. I met President Carter for the first time two years ago on a visit to the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia. Since that initial meeting some of my friends have spoken to me about Mr. Carter and have condemned him for what they call his "lack of Christian character"--as if attacking him as a person would cause me to see the true evil nature of the former President.

Allow me to set the record straight.

I am a Republican. President Carter is a Democrat. We don't see eye to eye politically. I am pastor in a church active with the Southern Baptist Convention. Though President Carter's church still gives 50% of their mission offerings to the Lottie Moon offering, Maranatha is no longer active in the SBC. We don't see eye to eye ecclesiologically. I am calvinistic in my soteriology, partial-preterist in my eschatology, open communion in my ecclesiology, conservative in my theology, inerrantist in my bibliology, and continuationist in my pneumatology. President Carter would probably agree with me in less than half of the foregoing theological positions. We don't see eye to eye theologically.

Yet, in my opinion, President Carter is a man of the highest Christian character and integrity. It should be an honor to all of us who name Christ as Lord to call Jimmy Carter a brother in Jesus Christ.

(1). He professes privately, publicly and without apology that "Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ."

(2). He serves his church as deacon, mowing the church lawn on a set rotation, fulfilling the responsiblity of being a church deacon with humility and grace.

(3). On two occasions that I have spoken privately spoken with him, not one time has he spoken a critical word about a fellow Christian in terms of their character, in spite of the fact he has been criticized, condemned and censored by several Christian leaders.

(4). He teaches Sunday School every Sunday that he is in town. Last Sunday was his 503 time to teach, and hundreds from all over the world came to hear him in a town with a population of only 600.

(5). His mission in life is to make the world a better place to live, striving to eradicate disease, educate children, and initiate peace between countries known for war.

(6). The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 to Mr. Carter for "his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democrac and human rights, and to promote economic and social development."

(7). Every year the President Carter and Rosalynn volunteer one week to help build homes for the homeless through Habitat for Humanity.

For the above seven reasons alone, not to mention what could be said about his marriage, his family, and his tireless support of Baptists worldwide, every follower of Jesus Christ with Baptist convictions should refrain from attacking the character of this man. Disagree with him? Of course. Question his Christianity? Not unless you wish to answer to His heavenly Father for your attacks.

There are four areas that Christian leaders seem prone to use as an occasion to incessantly attack Mr. Carter's Christian character. I would like to show how one may disagree with Mr. Carter with civility and respect--while upholding the dignity of his Christian character.

Israel, Palestine and the Middle East

Many evangelicals are pro-Israel because of a seemingly uniform eschatalogy (pre-tribulational pre-millenialism). As a result, some Christian leaders castigate President Carter's advocacy for a Palestinian state and his defense of the Arab people. I happen to believe the United States should protect Israel, not because of my eschatology, but because I believe Israel stands alone in her democratic principles in a region known for autocratic dictatorships, religious theocracies, and other dysfunctional forms of government. Nevertheless, all of us must deeply appreciate what President Carter has done since the 1970's to bring peace to an area that most simply believed would never experience it. Whether you agree or not with Carter's position on the Palestinian question, no fellow Christian should feel compelled to attack Carter's character as he fulfills his role as statesmen in the Middle East. In fact, that in itself would be un-Christian.

Women in Ministry

See my previous post. Whether one agrees with his position or not, it would be prudent for all to treat his views with respect and to respond with civility due the dignity of his person. I predict that within a few decades even the Southern Baptist Convention will believe Carter's views on women in minsitry to be orthodox and biblical.

Universalism

Christian universalism is the belief that all people are redeemed by Christ and will eventually be brought to faith in Christ--either here or in heaven. Mr. Carter has repeatedly stated that the only way to be delivered from God's judgment is "by grace through faith in Jesus Christ." I have asked him why some insist that he is a universalist when he is so clear about how a sinner is delivered from God's judgment. He says he believes people misunderstand his views because he is gracious, respectful and tolerant of those who disagree with him, even those from other religions. Of course, he does not change his own views, but he is uninterested in condemning people who do not agree with him. He simply shares his views and believes God will do the saving.

Homosexuality

If there is one thing that keeps some evangelicals from seeing the call of God on women, it is the fear that recognizing "women preachers" is the first step down the slippery slope of recognizing "homosexual" preachers.

I don't understand that kind of thinking--unless of course, one believes homosexuality is part of one's personhood, rather than one's choice of behavior.

Let me illustrate.

Our church views homosexuality the same way we do adultery, or sexual activity before marriage, or any other sexual act outside the confines of a husband/wife marriage. We have many people who attend our church that are involved in these particular sins. We love them, we help them, and we encourage them, but we let them know that their lives will never be holy or genuinely happy until Christ enables them overcome their sinful sexual behaviors. We don't single out any one particular "sexual activity" as worse than others. We identify them all as sin before God.

There are some Christians who believe that God makes "homosexuals" the way they are and that having sex with a same sex partner is not "sin" if the relationship is monogamous, committed, and loving. We believe that the sacred text in several places, both Old Testament and New Testament, disputes this. The essence of Christianity is repentance of sin--and same sex homosexual behavior is sin. At the same time we love the person whose heart tends toward this sin - we will simply help him or her overcome it by the power of Christ just like we help the adulterer, the pedophile, the sexually immoral, overcome their urges toward sexual sins. We no more believe a homosexual is qualified to be pastor than we do an adulterer, a pedophile, etc . . . because of abnormal and sinful sexual behavior. For those who want others to believe that homosexual or lesbian sexual behavior is normal, just remind them that it's a good thing their parents didn't homosexuality normal sexual behavior. Again, homosexuality is a behavioral choice.

But a black man who preaches the gospel can't change the color of his skin. A woman who preaches the gospel can't change the gender of her person. A homosexual who preaches the gospel can change his or her behavior. Homsexuals are not part of a minority group, they are part of a behavioral group.

President Carter is not opposed to the government recognizing "homosexual unions." All of us know that the government must designate people in various civil unions for tax purposes, census taking and other government reasons. Carter himself, however, called "homosexuality" a sin at the conference where I heard him speak this past week. What baffles me is why we Christians rail against the United States government recognizing "homosexual" unions while we are often stone quiet when it comes to the practice of our government recognizing civil unions among men and women who live together outside of the covenant of marriage--and this type of civil union has been recognized by our government for decades. Both types of sexual unions (homosexual and heterosexual), outside of the covenant of marriage, are "sin" as defined by the church. Could it be that Christians like Jimmy Carter don't believe governments should be involved in the business of the church and vice-versa? In other words, just because a Christian is not opposed to homosexual civil unions being recognized by the government doesn't mean that Christian doesn't view homosexuality as sin.

Whether one agrees or disagrees with Carter's views in the above four areas, my point in this post is to remind those of us who follow Jesus Christ that it is important that we refrain from attacking the character of our fellow Christian brothers and sisters and simply voice our disagreements with the grace of Christian love. Respect, civility and dignity should be the accompanying disciplines of all us who have been saved and are being transformed by our Lord Jesus Christ.

And I believe with all my heart that this Christian grace, civility and love should be shown toward Jimmy Carter, a man of genuine Christian character.

In His Grace,


Wade

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Bill Hicks: When the Laughter Ends, Then What?

On January 30, 2009, David Letterman apologized to a national television audience for the one and only time he ever censored a guest comedian on The Late Show

Fifteen years earlier, on October 1, 1993, 32-year-old stand-up comedian sensation Bill Hicks found his routine entirely edited out of that night's Late Show broadcast. 

The censorship, approved by Letterman himself, rankled Hicks enormously.

The show would have been his twelfth and final appearance on Letterman. 

Hicks died of pancreatic cancer four months later, on February 26, 1994. 

Letterman's apology this past January, complete with an appearance from Hick's elderly mother, made for fascinating television.

Who is Bill Hicks?

While most people have never heard of him, many professional comedians idolize him. 

In 2005, 12 years after his death, Hicks' act was ranked in the top twenty comedic acts of all time by fellow comedians.

Comedy Central ranked Hicks 19 out of the 100 top comedians in the history of the world

In a poll taken just two years ago, the people of Great Britain ranked Bill Hicks #6 on the list of the top 100 comedians of all time. 

His act was edgy, vulgar, and "so ahead of his time," Rodney Dangerfield once quipped, "his parents haven't even met yet." 

Hicks glorified drug use and incorporated most of his experiences while high on cocaine, heroin, and LSD into his routine. He mocked all things sacred, southern, and sure. 

One of his favorite acts, introduced in 1984 during his first appearance on The Late Show, revolved around a fictional character named Elmer Dinkley from Enid, Oklahoma - a character Hicks continued to develop until his last public performance.

Bill Hicks and I had in common: We both were...

(1). Born in December of 1961.
(2). Raised Southern Baptist.
(3). Given "William" as our first name.
(4). Teenagers when we began speaking in churches.
(5). Fond of telling others about Enid, Oklahoma.
(6). Censored by peers in our respective fields. 
(7). People who like to make others laugh.

But there was one massive difference between Bill and me. Bill enjoyed mocking the sacred. He once placed in his routine this little bit:

My dad would say, "I believe that the Bible is the literal word of God." And I'd say, "No, it's not, Dad. "Well, I believe that it is." And I'd say, "Well, Dad, you know, some people believe they're Napoleon. That's fine. Beliefs are neat. Cherish them, but don't share them like they're the truth."

As Bill Hicks died of pancreatic cancer, he tried to get his Southern Baptist father to inhale mushrooms.

Bill Hicks died pushing artificial highs on his father.  Bill's laughter ended on February 26, 1994.


Today, my father and I laughed together over the phone. We're having fun, sharing joy, and talking about Christ and what He's doing in our lives and in the lives of others. We get excited about showing people the joy of knowing Christ and being enjoyed by Him. 

I share Christ with others because I know Him to be the way, the truth, and the life.

As I reflected on the life and death of Bill Hicks this evening, I couldn't help but ask myself the question:

"What makes me different from Bill Hicks, a man with whom I share much in common?"

There is only one answer.

God's grace.

Nothing inherent in me makes me different from Bill Hicks - I'm not inherently more intelligent, I'm not inherently better, I'm not inherently more enlightened. 

I, too, could have found my life wasted in a haze of drug-induced imaginations and razor-sharp confident humor - but God intervened and brought me to faith in Him. 

Therefore, I can't get angry at people who love a Borat/Bruno/Hangover, an x-rated atmosphere that trivializes sin, excoriates the sacred, and embraces every poor and temporary substitute for lasting happiness that only Christ brings. 

I would love the same things were it not for God's grace. 

Christ makes me laugh, but it is the kind of laughter that springs from a heart full of gladness, not the empty laughter of irony, vulgarity, or silliness - what Paul calls "behaving unbecomingly" (I Corinthians 13).

I have compassion for the Bill Hicks of this world. 

They cannot stop laughing long enough to ask what happens when the laughter ends.

Maybe you've read this blog because you are curious about Bill Hicks, so you Googled his name for more information about Bill's life and comedy.

If so, my prayer is that by God's grace, you will awaken to your need of God and come to faith in His love for you by sending the Messiah to obtain an authentic life of joy and purpose that lasts forever. 

The laughter rooted in the profane ends one day. 

The laughter and joy that comes from God lasts forever. 


Friday, December 31, 2021

"A Revolution that Began in the Hearts and Minds of the American People" - by President John Adams

John Adams, an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father served as the second president of the United States, serving from 1797 to 1801. 
John Adams died on July 4, 1826, the same day his good friend Thomas Jefferson also died. 

Eight years before his death, John Adams wrote a personal reflection on the American Revolution

In his written analysis, Adams made an important observation on how the American Revolution began.

“But what do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American War? The Revolution was effected before the war was commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people, a change in the religious sentiments of their duties and obligations.”

Read again the last line of the quotation. John Adams states the American Revolution began “in the minds and hearts” of the American people through “a change in their religious sentiments.”

According to John Adams, this change began on January 30, 1750.

The Revolution of Hearts and Minds Begins


On that day, Jonathan Mayhew (b. 1720 – d. 1766), the pastor of West Church (Congregational) in Boston, Massachusetts, published a sermon he preached entitled “Discourse Concerning the Unlimited Submission and Non-Resistance to Higher Authorities.”

John Adams credits this sermon as the spark that lit the Revolutionary flame in the minds and hearts of the colonists. He said that this message was “read by everybody.”

There were two major points that Rev. Jonathan Mayhew made in his sermon:
1. First, in the introduction, Jonathan Mayhew traces the rise of oppressive and tyrannical governments from the days of Nebuchadnezzar in the book of Daniel (6th century BC) to the English monarchy in the mid-1700s. Mayhew then writes:

“There can be nothing great and good where tyranny’s influence reaches. For which reason it becomes every friend to truth and humankind; every lover of God and the Christian religion, to bear a part in opposing this hateful monster.”

In other words, according to Rev. Mayhew, it was the moral and religious duty for every lover of good and truth to oppose tyranny within one’s government.

2. Second, in the body of his message, Mayhew argued that mankind is bound to a Higher Law than that of government’s law. The American people, Mayhew said, are required to obey their government’s law only when it is in agreement with Higher Law. Indeed, Rev. Mayhew argued, if the government violates Higher Law, “we are bound to throw off our allegiance” and “to resist.”
But what was this Higher Law to which the American people were bound?

Richard Maybury, in the July 1987 edition of The Free Market, published by Ludwig von Misis Institute, summarizes this Higher Law with two principles:

    1. Do all you have agreed to do, and
    2. Do not encroach on other persons or their property.


These are the two common principles on which all major religions and philosophies agree.

Thus, this Higher Law is often called “Common Law.” Every political philosophy or religion may express these two principles differently, but they have a common belief in them.

Doing what you promise to do (Contractual Law) and not encroaching on other persons or their property (Common Law) is what brings about the Common Good.

The AIM of All Political Actions Is the Common Good


All political action aims at either conservation or change.

Conservatives and liberals all desire the common good. The conservative believes it is best to conserve the laws or institutions that are achieving the common good and the liberal believes in abolishing or removing the laws or institutions that are not achieving the common good.

That is why conservatism and liberalism are relative terms.

The American Revolutionaries were called liberals by the British Parliament. They wished to change the laws for the colonists’ common good. But today, Americans who desire to conserve the principles of our Founding Fathers are called conservatives.

One generation’s conservative is another generation’s liberal.

No American should fall into “party lines.” We all need a Revolution of the Higher Good in our hearts and minds.

Common law was the law to which the American colonists were dedicated, and it was the law that the politicians and bureaucrats were breaking. The government was encroaching, so the colonists overthrew their government. They committed treason.

This is what the American Revolution was all about – treason. And this treason was regarded as moral, ethical, and right in every way.

The great legal scholar Sir William Blackstone once wrote:

“This law of nature, being coeval with mankind and dictated by God himself, is of course superior in obligation to any other…no human laws are of any validity if contrary to this.”

The Americans were not fighting the British during the American Revolution. The Americans were British. But the British colonists (the Americans) had an awakening of the heart and mind to Higher Law, the basis of all human rights.

The pamphlets the colonists passed out were often subtitled “The Rights of Englishmen!” The colonists were enforcing this Higher Law. No king, no parliament, no governing body, is greater than the individual.

“All men are created equal,” wrote Thomas Jefferson.

Thus, the eternal and immutable Higher Law states that all governing authority has special rights or privileges and no governing authority may encroach on the property or persons of others.

The Reasons for the American Revolution  


In 18th century England, there existed unlimited government control and the taxation of everything and everybody. There were no free markets and no free enterprise. Unless a person had government ties, no person could “get ahead” in life.

Richard Maybury gives us the history of the Pine Tree Flag flown by American warships during the Revolution. He asks, “Why would the colonists put a pine tree on their battle flag?” Then he answers:

“The (British) government had enacted a regulation saying no colonist could cut down tall, straight trees; these trees were to be reserved for masts on Navy ships. This meant the best, most valuable trees on a person’s land had, in effect, been confiscated by the government.

When a government tree inspector would come through the forest to select and mark the best trees, colonists would follow him. These inspectors were highly trained experts, good at identifying the best trees for Navy ships – the Navy ships that were constantly pursuing smuggling ships.

When the government’s lumberjacks then came through the forest to collect the marked trees, they would find the trees had already been cut and sold – for use on the smuggling ships.

One of these ships was THE LIBERTY, owned by John Hancock. Hancock was a successful wine merchant known throughout the colonies as “The Prince of Smugglers.” His reputation eventually earned him the honor of being the first to sign the Declaration of Independence.

Unfortunately, as the story of the Pine Tree illustrates, America did not remain beyond the reach of government. As the colonists’ wealth increased, politicians began making more and more efforts to steal – “tax” – this wealth. More and more bureaucrats and troops were sent to the colonies to enforce laws and shut down down the underground economy.

The colonists’ reaction was dramatic. The infamous Stamp Tax, for instance, was greeted by armed rebellion; tax collectors were tarred and feathered, a procedure that usually resulted in death. When John Hancock was arrested, the people rioted and the government’s agents barely escaped with their lives.” (Richard Maybury, The Free Market, July 1987, published by Ludwig von Misis Institute).

May God enable a religious reformation in the hearts and minds of the American people. The Higher Good is found in the Common Law, principles coeval with man. It is the duty of all good and religious men and women to resist the laws of government that encroach on persons or their property and give rise to tyranny.

Wade Burleson

P.S - I continue to work toward the opening of a new website on 02.02.2022. Thank you for your patience.

Graced People Reap What They Have Not Sown; Lost People Reap What They Have Sown

One of the weapons used by legalists to keep people in line is the threat of standing before "the judgment seat of Christ." It is said by them that God will reveal the hidden agendas of the heart, every secret sin, and each action that transgressed the line of God's eternal law. For this reason, the legalist says, you should keep your walk holy, obey God completely, and ensure all your actions are righteous.

The only problem with this premise is that it contradicts the written word of God regarding the judgment of believers in Christ. The legalist is right, however, about the judgment for those apart from Christ. Every sinner apart from God's grace through Jesus Christ will give an account of his deeds and will be rewarded according to God's pure justice. The punishment of God's righteous wrath in hell will not be as severe for some sinners as it is for others (see Jesus' words in Matthew 10:15). The experience of righteous punishment will vary in intensity according to the depth and number of unrighteous actions of those who die without Christ. God will not be mocked. Whatever a sinner sows in life on earth, that will he reap at judgment (Galatians 6:7). In other words, Hitler will experience the wrath of God in a measure greater than a girl who dies in her teens without Christ. The sinner reaps what he sows. The Righteous Judge never errs in the meting out of His sentences for sin. Part of the wiping away of every tear in heaven very well may be the people of God saying, "Yes, Father, you are righteous in your judgments towards those of my family who have rejected Christ." There will be no complaints when all is revealed before the throne of God. For this reason, the person without faith in Christ would do well to live the most moral life possible--for he will one day reap what he has sown.

But those of us who have faith in Christ will never appear at this judgment seat. The book of life which contains our names forever decrees the sealing of the books that contains the sins of our lives (Revelation 20:11-13). The Scapegoat has removed our sins into the desert of forgetfulness (Lev. 16:22). We never answer for sin because as the brilliant Baptist theologian John Gill stated, "God sees no sin in His people." That does not mean God is not aware of our sin; it means that God has dealt judicially with our sin at the cross of Christ, and all the righteous wrath due our sins (hell) has been born by Christ. And it is our faith in God's grace in the person and work of Christ that is credited to us for righteousness (Romans 4:24-25).

But then the question comes, on what basis are we rewarded in heaven? Answer: We reap what we have not sown!

Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. (Romans 8:17).

To be a co-heir with Christ means that we receive from God the inheritance Christ has earned by His obedience during His life, death and resurrection. The perfect righteousness of our Lord and Savior Jeus Christ in the complete and perfect obedience to God's law has obtained for us the unsearchable riches of God's great grace (Ephesians 3:8). Heaven is the eternal unfolding and enjoyment of these riches fpr all the ages to come (Ephesians 2:7). In short: We reap what we have not sown.

One of the tell-tale signs of the legalist is the inability to totally rest in the knowledge that the riches of God's favor are earned by Christ's obedience, not ours. It is impossible to be a co-heir with Christ if the rewards of God's people are dependent on our performance. We are rewarded for eternity by God's grace through the person and work of Christ. The knowledge of this will keep those of us with faith in Christ always ready to admit our faults, confess our mistakes, and be transparent to people around us. Why? Because our eternal reputations, our eternal rewards, our eternal reign is not dependent on our performance on earth--it is dependent on Christ's vicarious performance on our behalf.

But hell is just the opposite of heaven. In hell, you reap what you sow. In heaven, you reap what you have not sown. Why is it that we Christians preach, teach and relate to one another as if we are citizens of hell? Our citizenship is in heaven; and for this reason we ought to be very honest and transparent about our sins here. Our eternal inheritance and reward is dependent on His grace through Christ, not our peformance through works. We live powerful lives, led by the Spirit, when we no longer question His favor on our lives in terms of our merit or works by obedience to any law, but by faith in Christ who brings us a righteousness that exceeds that of the Pharisees.

In His Grace,

Wade

Wednesday, December 01, 2021

Wade Burleson Is Now at Istoria Ministries

I have been blessed to serve as the Lead Pastor of Emmanuel Enid for the past 30 years. 

On February 2, 2022, I will begin working full-time through Istoria Ministries, a 501(c)3 non-profit ministry organization that Rachelle and I founded ten years ago. 

Rachelle thought it a good idea to write this post to let everyone know our plans for the last quarter of our ministry.

Through Istoria, I will be writing, speaking, podcasting, leading tours, conducting pastor and marriage retreats, and other special ministries. I hope to inspire people to follow Jesus and be "salt and light" in our wounded and dark world. My focus during this time will be more prophetic than pastoral. 

Istoria is a Greek word that means "to ask or inquire." We get our English words story and history from its root. The source of all knowledge is asking questions.  The moment people are prevented from asking their questions or telling their stories, liberty is lost. 

Istoria's purpose is for people to know the story of Jesus Christ so that His Story becomes central to everyone's story.

At Istoria's new website beginning on 2.2.22, there will be three essential features: 

  • The archives of my writing ministry (thousands of blog articles on hundreds of subjects). 
  • The audio archives of my teaching (40 years of sermon series).
  •  New weekly content, both written blogs, and audible podcasts.
I already have received several requests to speak at churches across the country, and I anticipate quite a bit travel on weekends. We'll keep you posted about any speaking engagements at churches in your area.

A major special project we will be working on during the next five years will be a community center and athletic facility for Pacific Island young people. Working with Yohanes Arwakon and other non-profits in the area, we hope to develop personal skills and create hope in this large ethnic minority group, sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ as we help these young people integrate into American culture while having a Christian worldview.

Rachelle will be the Director of Special Projects and help us get new books in the pipeline and coordinate travel and tours. Thanks to Lissa Roberson, Alice Isaac, Mary Burleson, and my wife Rachelle, three new books, Lord willing, will be available from Istoria Ministries in 2022.
  • Love Never Fails (A Study of I Corinthians 13)
  • The 12 Days of Christmas (An Illustrated Family Coffee Table Book)
  • The Good News According to Jonah (A Study of the Book of Jonah).
This post will be my last until the new Istoria website is launched on February 2, 2022. 

With the help of many friends who have volunteered their time, skills, and time, we will be opening Istoria's office building (801 S. Van Buren, Enid, Oklahoma 73703) in January 2022. That will give me 30 days to get the podcast studio and my office ready to go for 2.2.22.

I have refrained from raising funds for Istoria Ministries while leading Emmanuel Enid. The time has come for me to request your help. Rachelle and I own the building that houses Istoria, but the amount of equipment needed to do an online ministry is incredible (servers, cameras, computers, etc.). Thank you in advance for all your assistance. We plan to upload a Bible study every week, and as always, we will address cultural, social, and moral issues. 

My message of grace through Istoria Ministries is one I desire to be accessible to everyone. To operate Istoria's website, produce a weekly podcast, write my blog regularly, and have a home base from which we can minister, Istoria requires funding. 

A friend of Istoria Ministries has promised to match whatever contributions Istoria Ministries receives in December 2021, dollar for dollar. If you would like to contribute a tax-deductible donation to Istoria Ministries before the end of the year, go to www.istoriaministries.com and donate either via secure credit card or PayPal. Or, if you desire, you may send a check to:

Istoria Ministries
801 S. Van Buren
Enid, Oklahoma 73703

If you have a stock gift that you would like to give, Istoria Ministries has a brokerage account to receive your tax-deductible stock gift through Stride Bank or Edward Jones, whichever you'd prefer.  Details are located at www.istoriaministries.com.

Thank you for being a friend to Rachelle and me. Thank you for considering being a partner with Istoria. 

Until 2.2.22, may God's grace and mercy superabound to you and your family.

Wade Burleson, President
Rachelle Burleson, Special Projects

Saturday, November 27, 2021

2021 World's Tallest Live Christmas Tree, Enid, OK



Between 30,00 and 40,000 people gathered in the downtown square of Enid, Oklahoma, last night, Friday, November 26, for the lighting ceremonies of the world's tallest living Christmas Tree. The CHRIST TREE, as it is called, is 144-feet tall. This year's Rockefeller Center's Tree is 77-feet tall. Come to Enid from now until January 6, 2021, to enjoy the downtown festivities. We'll be hosting four Christmas Eve services at the Christ Tree on Friday, December 24, 2021, at 2:00, 4:00, 6:00, and 8:00 pm. 


Thursday, November 25, 2021

Be My Thou Thanksgiving Vision: A Prayer for All

BE THOU MY THANKSGIVING VISION

The Bible says, “In everything give thanks,”
but this seems difficult if we are frank.
In our lives, there is so much tension,
for it to happen, “Lord, Be Thou My Vision.”

Luther cried “this world with devils filled,”
a truth that seems to take away our will
of accepting this “giving thanks” mission.
So we ask, “Lord, Be Thou My Vision.”

When darkness hides Your smiling face.
Pressing on requires "Amazing Grace."
We cannot see good with any precision,
So we pray, “Lord, Be Thou My Vision.”

Your power and love to us please show,
and grant that we'll be able to know,
if we make this “giving thanks” decision
we'll experience “Lord, Be Thou My Vision.”

So we choose to give You thanks today,
and join with family and friends to say,
“We all trust Your grace and provision.
You, O LORD, are our Thanksgiving vision.”

- Wade Burleson


Tuesday, November 23, 2021

Chasa Boudin and San Francisco's Crime Wave

If you haven't seen the brazen crime wave video from November 22, 2021, of the extraordinary "smash and grab" heist at a high-end mall in San Francisco, you need to watch

It's sickening. 

When over 100 people coordinate with one another to rob a mall store in broad daylight, Americans who love their country must ask the question "How?" or "Why?" 

The answer is the same.

A Marxist named Chasa Boudin is the Chief Law Enforcement Officer for San Franciso. Wikipedia does a great job cataloging the radicalism of San Francisco's District Attorney Chasa Boudin. 

Boudin was born in New York City to Jewish parents. His parents, Kathy Boudin and David Gilbert, were Weather Underground members. When Boudin was 14 months old, both were arrested and convicted of murder for their role as getaway car drivers in the Brink's robbery of 1981 in Rockland County, New York. His mother was sentenced to 20 years to life and his father to 75 years to life for the felony murders of two police officers and a security guard.

After his parents were incarcerated, Boudin was raised in Chicago by adoptive parents Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, who, like his parents, had been members of the Weather Underground. Boudin reports that he did not learn to read until age 9. Kathy Boudin was released under parole supervision in 2003.

Boudin descends from a long left-wing lineage. His great-grand-uncle, Louis B. Boudin, was a Marxist theoretician and author of a two-volume history of the Supreme Court's influence on American government, and his grandfather Leonard Boudin was an attorney who represented controversial clients such as Fidel Castro and Paul Robeson. His uncle Michael Boudin is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and Michael Boudin's uncle Isidor Feinstein Stone was an independent journalist.

Boudin entered St Antony's College, Oxford, on a Rhodes Scholarship in 2003. At Oxford, he earned two master's degrees, one in forced migration and the other in public policy in Latin America. He earned his Juris Doctor from Yale Law School in 2011 and began work for the San Francisco Public Defender's Office as a post-doctoral fellow in 2012.

Before law school, Boudin traveled to Venezuela and served as a translator in the Venezuelan Presidential Palace during the administration of Hugo Chavez.

After law school, from 2011 to 2012, Boudin served as a law clerk to M. Margaret McKeown on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He was a 2012–2013 Liman Fellow at the San Francisco Public Defender's Office, and in 2013 and 2014, he served as a clerk to Charles Breyer on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. In 2015, Boudin began working full-time at the San Francisco Public Defender's Office as a deputy public defender. While there, he argued on behalf of the office's clients that California's bail system is unconstitutional, leading to the published case In re Kenneth Humphrey, in which the state's First District Court of Appeals held that judges must give consideration to a defendant's ability to pay before setting bail.

Boudin also serves on the board of the Civil Rights Corps, a national non-profit organization, and is on the board of Restore Justice, a non-profit based in California.

Boudin translated Understanding the Bolivarian Revolution: by Hugo Chávez  He works with Marta Harnecker, translating into English, Letters from Young Activists: Today's Young Rebels Speak Out, Boudin co-wrote The Venezuelan Revolution: 100 Questions – 100 Answers. His latest book, Gringo: A Coming of Age in Latin America, was released in April 2009 by Charles Scribner's Sons.

The District Attorney in San Francisco is a communist. The American voters put him in office. It is time for Americans to stand up to tyranny, Critical Race Theory, and any political theory contrary to American values.

The communists are taking over the United States of America. 

It's time real Americans said, "Enough!"