Page 36 - July 2015 Catalyst

BREAKING THE CHAINS
By Luella Redfern | Continued from pg 35
to self destruction. In Matthew 15 Jesus speaks to the scribes and Pharisees...
1 THEN FROM Jerusalem came scribes and Pharisees and said,
2 Why do Your disciples transgress and violate the rules handed down by the el- ders of the past? For they do not practice [ceremonially] washing their hands before they eat.
3 He replied to them, And why also do you transgress and violate the command- ment of God for the sake of the rules handed down to you by your forefathers (the elders)?
4 For God commanded, Honor your father and your mother, and, He who curses or reviles or speaks evil of or abuses or treats improperly his father or mother, let him surely come to his end by death. [Exod. 20:12; 21:17; Lev. 20:9; Deut. 5:16.]
5 But you say, If anyone tells his father or mother, What you would have gained from me [that is, the money and whatever I have that might be used for helping you] is already dedicated as a gift to God, then he is exempt and no longer under obliga- tion to honor and help his father or his mother.
6 So for the sake of your tradition (the rules handed down by your forefathers), you have set aside the Word of God [de- priving it of force and authority and mak- ing it of no effect].
How many times have you changed churches because you didn’t like the style of music or dress code? These things are also an example of a conflict in tradition.
And let us not forget generational chains passed down from our ancestors that bind us. We don’t know where they come from or who started them, but we know that you will have bad luck if you don’t take down
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your Christmas tree before New Years Day. It’s unlucky to wash cloths on New Years Day because you will wash someone out of the family to death within the next 12 months. Those are just minor things. Neg- ative influences passed down through your family such as racism, bitterness, alcohol- ism, verbal or physical abuse, pornography, sexual abuse or fear that has held you in bondage for years. Ezekiel 18 assures us that God doesn’t punish children for their parents’ sins. In verse 30 God clearly says, “I will judge you, each one according to his ways. Whatever your chain may be, God wants to rebuild, restore, and renew all ar- eas of devastation and break every chain the binds you. Will you work on Sunday?
I attended the Issachar training session held in Charleston SC. The training was sponsored by the American Renewal Project. Many in my community said this event was not for me because it had political connotations and supported a certain political party. The leaders of this event had an agenda. However, everything they taught was biblical and supported by scripture. There was a discussion on the impact of Christians allowing the doc- trine of separation of church and state to prevent them from being involved with politics. I came away from that discussion assured that Christians have a responsibil- ity to be involved in every aspects of life,
July 2015