jesus is lord

Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit. 
(1 Corinthians 12:3)

I used to believe that anyone who did not agree with my particular interpretation of the Bible was wrong and not a Christian. That is a common view of several denominations, especially those very conservative ones who do not see themselves as a denomination, but as the sole people of God.

But the apostle Paul, one who is speaking for God and through the power of the Holy Spirit says that is not true.

He says that anyone who is saying Jesus is Lord is speaking from God.

Now he may not agree with me and I may feel he is wrong on several vital points, but still. No one can say Jesus is Lord except it come from Jesus. And no one can curse Jesus or anything belonging to Jesus except he be from the devil.

I add the “anything belonging to Jesus.” Psalm 53:1 says, The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. I believe this applies to more than just an atheist. It also applies to anyone who says of something, that is not from God.

I remember a young woman, a band director who specialized in percussion saying that drums had no place on the pulpit, that they were not accepted by God. That was foolish. I hear people telling others that the Glenn Beck rally the other day was not of God when it had a definite Christian overtone. That was foolish. I have also heard people castigate others who did not agree with their interpretation of scripture that they were not Christian. That was foolish.

Any time we tell others that something has no place in the kingdom or in worship or in our lives, and God has not spoken of it in his word, it is foolish.

The key is trying to remembering that it is not up to us to pass judgment on someone else’s Christianity. Romans 14:4 says Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

We are not talking about obvious sin or going against God’s written word. That is not the point here. The point is, if someone teaches Jesus, whatever we may think about their interpretation or ideas, they are from God.

Of course, you have to remember that in the Old Testament God used Pharoah, the King of Egypt to do his will with the Israelites even though Pharoah didn’t want to. He is able to use even those who did not intend to give a lesson from God to do so.

All of the movies of Jesus, even the stupid and boring ones, had something in it that struck me as so biblical. That is because they were all dealing with one who is greater than that movie. Sometimes he will shine through even a bad movie because he is God. And that shining through is from God.

The word of God will be proclaimed whether we want it to be or not, and in ways we may not agree with. But guess what? Too bad, doodad. God is in charge. And his message is too great to be stopped by silly things like interpretation.