Thoughts on Christ and His Word

Have you ever quit something? I quit my little league baseball team as a kid years ago. I couldn't see well and I feared getting hit with the ball. So I quit, showing that I was not a baseball person. The Apostle John tells us that not everyone who is among us and looks like a good Christian is really a born again belieliever. They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. 1 John 2:19 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 2 John 9 The fact that they would leave us (and/or all Christian churches) and reject "the teaching of Christ " -His deity, humanity, payment for sins on the cross, and His ressurection - reveal that they do "not have God " nor ever "belonged " to Christ's body (us). It's not

"I always feel like somebody's watching me" was a big hit in the 80's. It was about a paranoid young man who felt he was being watched and stalked all the time. The Bible discourages us from living a fearful and paranoid life, but it does encourage us to be "watchful". Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. Colossians 4:2 Being watchful for what? Two things pop into my mind --- danger and opportunity. Peter tells us to watch out because the devil is prowling around to see who he can devour. I think Paul's admonition to be watchful follows this line of thinking - to be careful of all the deceitful and harmful doctrine he had written to them about. Additionally, I think Paul meant for them to pray being watchful for opportunities to share Christ with others. In the very next sentence Paul asks the church to pray for him - for an "open door" to share Christ. Then he tells the church to be wise in how they deal with unbelievers