Anesis Church...We believe, adopted from Bishop Jim Swilley

WHAT I BELIEVE NOW... By Bishop Jim Swilley

1. I BELIEVE in the living God Who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe (1 Timothy 4:10). His

salvation will ultimately reconcile all of humanity to Himself…but I believe in Him NOW !

2. I BELIEVE that Jesus Christ is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8), and I behold the

Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)…and I behold Him NOW !

3. I BELIEVE that every knee in heaven and on earth and under the earth will eventually bow, and that every tongue in

heaven and on earth and under the earth will eventually confess to the glory of God that Jesus Christ is Lord

(Philippians 2:9, 10)…but my knees bow to Him NOW …and my tongue confesses that He is Lord NOW !

4. I BELIEVE that all were condemned in Adam, but all are justified in Christ (Romans 5:17-21), for as in Adam all

die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive (1 Corinthians 15:22). I was lost in Adam, but I am found in Christ…

condemned in Adam, but justified in Christ…dead in Adam, but alive in Christ…and I am found, justified, and alive

NOW !

5. I BELIEVE that Jesus Christ was and is the atoning sacrifice for my sins, and not for my sins only, but also for the

sins of the whole world (1 John 2:22). He has removed them from me as far as the east is from the west (Psalm

103:12), and I was chosen in Him before the foundation of the world, that I should be holy and without blame before

Him in love (Ephesians 1:4). I am forgiven…and I am forgiven NOW !

6. I BELIEVE that, because Jesus was lifted up from the earth on the cross, He will ultimately draw all peoples unto

Himself (John 12:32), but I come to Him of my own free will…and I come to Him NOW !

7. I BELIEVE that the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all humanity shall see it together (Isaiah 40:5)…that He

will pour out of His Spirit on all humanity (Joel 2:28)…and that every eye shall see Him (Revelation 1:7). But I see

His glory NOW …His Spirit is poured out on me NOW …and I see Him coming to me NOW !

8. I BELIEVE that it is not His will that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), that the grace of God that brings salvation has

appeared to all people (Titus 2:11), and that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their

trespasses to them (2 Corinthians 5:19). This knowledge of His universal goodness brings me to repentance (Romans

2:4)…and His goodness is revealed in my mind NOW !

9. I BELIEVE that God has not appointed us unto wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ (1

Thessalonians 5:9), and that we shall not all sleep in death, but we shall all be changed (1 Corinthians 15:51). I will be

saved…and I am being saved NOW ; I will be changed…and I am being changed NOW !

10. I BELIEVE that all things shall be made subject to Him so that God may be all in all (1 Corinthians 15:28), and

that Christ is all and is in all (Colossians 3:11). The kingdom of God is IN me (Luke 17:21), and therefore God has

revealed His Son IN me (Galatians 1:16). Christ IN me is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27), so I acknowledge that

Christ is IN me…and He is revealed IN me NOW!

Re-post from Bishop Jim Swilley

Three times I did that, and then he told me, My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness.
(2 Corinthians 12:8, 9 - The Message)

Sometimes u just have 2 let a thing go...talking it out is generally helpful, but there r some situations that just r what they r, & all the talking n the world isn't going 2 change them...that apology u've waited 4 may not b coming...u may not ever b able 2 make that other person c ur point...u may never understand what went wrong n a relationship...maybe it's just time 2 get over it & move on...let go & let God...

"It ain't what they call you, it's what you answer to." - W.C. Fields

Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.
(1 Peter 5:7 - Amplified Bible)







RE-post from http://www.bloginthenow.blogspot.com/ -Bishop Jim Swilley

A great letter I found from an anonymous Pastor...

An Open Letter to My Former Parishioners:

Dear Ones,

I am so very sorry. I hear the pain in your hearts when you tearfully admit you have a hard time believing God could love you. I now realize I bear a good bit of the responsibility for it. Some of the things I taught and did when I was your pastor harmed you and were a great disservice to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Early on I simply didn’t know any better. I taught you what I had been taught. I was the product of a form of Christianity that has dominated for so long—an institutionalized, clergy led, power preserving perversion of what Jesus intended for his followers. It’s true I had not done the critical research for myself. But, after all, who was I to question what my instructors said was the correct way to believe and “do” church?

When life experiences and personal Bible study exposed some cracks in my rigid doctrinal foundation, I began to suspect there was more to knowing God than I knew. But I deviated little from the denominational tradition in which I was trained and continued to teach things of which I was no longer convinced. It was too important for me to preserve my good standing and keep my denominational star on the rise.

We claimed our mission was to save lost souls from hell by getting them to “make a decision for Christ” and become one of us. More candidly, we were mostly focused on growing the church. By means of sermons and programs of all sorts, I pressured you to try harder. I exhorted you to demonstrate “deeper commitment” to God and the church. I called upon you to be “faithful” and give more money. I taught you that if you wanted to please God you would have to strive to be a better church member. In a thousand different ways I made you think you were still lacking in God’s eyes.

No, I wasn’t mean about it. I usually did it with a smile. I found entertaining ways to say it. Nonetheless, speaking on behalf of God, I made it clear I expected more from you and so did He. No matter how hard you tried I had to keep you motivated and centered in the church. I needed you to fill your seat and bring someone else along to fill an empty one. The church (and I) had bills to pay.

The outcome for so many of you has been learning almost nothing about the abundant life Jesus promised. You live in constant doubt that God could ever be pleased with you. The abundant life is simply not compatible with constantly worrying we might be disappointing God. I taught you he was ready to banish to eternal torment everyone who didn’t find his or her way into his grace. Trying to measure up was why we did most things. Guilt and shame was really the glue that held us together.

Most of our time was spent striving to earn favors from God by praying more, reading the Bible more, doing more in the church and “witnessing” more. I never taught you how to live in the knowledge God unreservedly loves us because of Jesus.

Our church environment was a chronic breeding ground for hypocrisy. We played comparison games and excluded ourselves from anyone who sinned differently than we did. We were hard on each other whenever one of us failed. We thought it was our duty to keep each other in line and maintain impossible standards of “holiness”. We occupied ourselves with debates about whether Christians should dance, go to movies, use alcohol, sleep in on Sunday and miss going to church, wear certain types of clothes, or listen to certain types of music. We quarreled over Bible translations, hymnals, sound system volume and carpet colors. Conformity to group standards was a very high value, as was compliance to membership policies and the pastor’s authority. In the name of maintaining order I rebuked and “disciplined” those who did not comply.

When I began to realize the magnitude of God’s grace through Jesus Christ. I kept it to myself. Not until I was off the church payroll was I willing to declare in no uncertain terms, “that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:19 NIV). And, because of this, our mission is to go lovingly into the world around us with liberating good news rather than with preachy judgment pressure people to withdraw with us into our own little subculture.

My constant prayer for you today is that our merciful Heavenly Father will undo the damage I caused in your spiritual development. I pray that God will make himself known to you as the essence of love that he is. Should our paths cross again, think only of me as a fellow traveler—no title, no pedestal, please. And, remember, God loves us and will never give up on us. He has included all of us in his grace through Jesus Christ and never has a single condemning thought toward us, ever. Be at peace.

Repentantly yours,
(Name withheld)