A Truer Gentleman I've Not Known

Words cannot adequately express the immense sadness I feel at the passing of our dear Brother Vincent Grillo. Born in Alife, Italy on May 7th, 1935, he was a man of passion and vigorous devotion.

He met his beloved wife Maria when he was 12 years old and she was five. Some unruly boys at the schoolyard in the village were pulling Maria's hair, and she had gone off to the garden to wipe her tears. Unbeknownst to her, the ink on her fingertips was smearing across her face as she wiped her eyes. Vincent came along, noticed her emotional state and began to wipe the tears from her face with his shirt tail. He was her knight in shining armor. And so began a fairy tale love that would last 60 years.

Brother Vincent Grillo and his beloved wife Maria
Photo by Laura Garrett, taken at the BCF Couples Banquet 2009

Brother Vincent was called to glory on July 12, 2009 in Lima, Ohio, following a short illness. He was preceded in death by his daughter Tonina Grillo, and is survived by his beloved wife Maria, son Franco (wife Amy), and his daughter Vittoria.

Brother Vincent impacted my life from the moment I met him. I'd just arrived home from the war in Iraq, and had not even begun to adjust to normal life. After my first Church service, Vincent made a beeline for me and wrapped his large, calloused hands around mine. He had been a soldier for his native Italy, and although he had not seen combat, there is a brotherhood amongst soldiers that spans borders and generations.

That day I made a soul to soul connection with Vincent that will forever impact me. I was incredibly wounded in my spirit from the dark face of war and he was instrumental in my healing. To my great regret our friendship would not include enough times of fellowship. Oftentimes we simply hugged each other in passing, and he would smile that dazzling grin, saying in that thick Italian accent, "God bless you Brother John."

He was a man who exhibted an incredible depth of sincerity, genuine humility, and incredible innocence. I marveled at the love of Christ which shined through him, and could only hope that he felt that same love reflected in me. He was nothing short of amazing. A tremendous man, whose passing from this world will be long lamented by those whose lives he touched. I simply cannot recall sorrowing over another persons death as I have Brother Vincents. The tears threaten to overwhelm me whenever I think of his glorious victory.

As we laid his body to rest just a few short hours ago, I could not help but think of the joy he is experiencing in that other dimension. Meeting his precious daughter Tonina, the prophet, and the Saints. I imagine that he has already turned his gaze back towards the river looking for his beloved Maria and the rest of us.

We're coming my brother.

From Such Turn Away Part 1

I TIMOTHY 6:3 - 5 If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, [even] the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

Consenting to wholesome words is a defining characteristic of a godly man. Let's take a second to break this Scripture down into two parts: the uniter and the divider.

A godly man loves the truth. As we have been taught, truth, by definition, is exclusive. Truth is immutable, immovable, and irrevocable. God's Word is Truth. By telling us who to withdraw ourselves from the Scripture is telling us who we should gravitate towards. The wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and His doctrine unite His disciples. They bring Life, and Life more abundantly.

Proverbs 16:27 - 28 An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips [there is] as a burning fire. A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.

The Divider is always present to destroy our fellowship with one another, and with Christ. Scripture warns us that these men do not understand the Word and as a result form theory instead of receiving revelation. Then they gather people around them to support their theories and endlessly attack those who do not agree.

I wonder... you brothers who preach against big Message Churches, while you mostly have smaller congregations; you say they must not be preaching the Word because the Word is too straight, and will cause people to leave; Scripture tells us here that the Word will unite people too; what about those African Churches with thousands of congregants? Are they off too? Or does your jealousy only extend to the borders of North America?

He Spoke, and It Was

Psalms 33:6 By the Word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.

"I hear Him say, "Let there be light." And when He did, an atom broke yonder, and the sun come into existence. I watch that sun burn for millions of years. The first thing you know, went a clinker. He stood and watched it. And it flew, fell for a few million years; He stopped it. Then another one flew, and He stopped it. What? He was putting the solar system. He was writing His first Bible.1"

God's Word is creative. It never stops creating until He tells It to stop. The evidence of that is found by scientists who can use technology to measure the expansion of the galaxy. When those clinkers flew off into space they just keep right on going until He commands them to stand fast. 

You know, God sometimes does things in an instant, and sometimes He takes His time accomplishing it. Some people experience miraculous, instantaneous healings which defy medical explanations. In these past few years, the deaf have heard again, the blind have received their sight, and the dead have been raised back to life... all in an instant. God has instantly delivered people from addictions and sinful conditions, and if you ask around, I'm sure it won't be long before you find someone who'll testify of the miraculous in their life.

But most of the time God will allow time to come into the equation. And here's the true paradox friend, because in Gods mind, it's already done and time is not a factor in the finished work. When He speaks His Word, It Is Finished. That's one reason why I disagree with Christians who believe the whole work of creation lasted seven literal days. Science testifies to the power of God. Don't put God in a box and think you have Him figured out. His ways are past knowing, they are not our ways.

Here is the equation: He Spoke + He Believed His Own Word = It Happens  (time is not a factor)

1. Show Us the Father It'll Satisfy, William Branham, June 10, 1953 MP3

Words of Forgiveness

Mark 11:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

 

Luke 17:3 - 4 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.

 

And after Jesus Christ spoke these words, the disciples said "Lord, increase our faith!" Let's face it, forgiving isn't easy! And, it's easy to see from these two Scriptures, that forgiveness is a requirement set by the Messiah for His children. I believe the wording "thou shalt" to be fairly important words to listen to when Christ is speaking to us. I believe that Christ requires two types of forgiveness. I call them heart forgiveness and verbal forgiveness. 

Heart Forgiveness must be given unconditionally, while verbal forgiveness is often conditional.  
Heart forgiveness is a battle, verbal forgiveness is a response.  
Heart Forgiveness is a battle in your spirit to subdue the reaction of your flesh to the injury.

Greg Wright says the following, "Verbal Forgiveness is the response of the forgiving heart to the repentence of the offender. Generally, Christians who only recognize one kind of forgiveness--verbal forgiveness--still would agree that bitterness must be overcome in the heart, but they would not refer to this heart-work as forgiveness. However, I maintain that not only is this heart-work appropriately called forgiveness, but this is the kind of forgiveness that is always demanded by Christ. Even when offenders do not repent, Christians are still required by the Bible to forgive personal offenses from the heart. 

These two methods of forgiveness differ from each other in many ways. 
They differ in direction:

• Heart Forgiveness is godward and vertical. With the help of God the victim seeks to set aside bitterness, hatred, and revenge.
• Verbal Forgiveness is manward and horizontal. The victim responds to the repentance of the offender by telling him that he is forgiven.

They differ in what is accomplished:

• Heart Forgiveness restores the victim. It removes the evil thoughts that undermine communion and fellowship with God.
• Verbal Forgiveness restores the offender. It renews fellowship and makes full reconciliation possible.

They differ in what is required:

• Heart forgiveness is the required response to all personal offenses.
• Verbal forgiveness is required only when the offender repents.

They differ in location:

• Heart forgiveness can be done alone before God in prayer.
• Verbal forgiveness must be communicated to the offender.

They differ in possibility:

• Heart forgiveness is the response of the offended party, so it is always doable. The victim does not need the cooperation of the offender.
• Verbal forgiveness requires the repentance of the offender, so it is not always doable.

They differ in finality:

• Heart forgiveness must be done continually. Man might sooner tame the wind than still the recurring bad memories that ignite bitterness. Yet as often as he remembers he must forgive.
• Verbal forgiveness is required only once. Yet the victim may need to reassure the offender of forgiveness, just as Joseph had to reassure his brothers after Jacob died.

They differ in dependency:

• Heart forgiveness may be done without verbal forgiveness.
• Verbal forgiveness means nothing without heart forgiveness. The man who verbally forgives yet nurses a grudge has not truly forgiven

 

The Freedom of Forgiveness

John Garrett

Believers Christian Fellowship, Lima, OH May 20th, 2009

Click below the picture to hear a message I delivered at my home church on the Freedom of Forgiveness.  I'm not trying to promote myself by posting this, but I think that this will speak to people who are dealing with bitterness and pain from the past. It's obviously more in depth than what we can get into a blog post. As always, we give God the glory!

This message is available for download on iTunes as well as at www.bcfellowship.org. You will need Realplayer (available for free download) or Realplayer Aternative (available for free download) to watch the sermon.  

She Said the Right Thing

It was a day unlike any seen since Jesus of Nazareth walked the earth. Amongst a little gathering of friends speaking about the Bible, a little widow woman received one of the greatest gifts God has ever given as a reward for saying the right thing. This is the story of that little widow woman.

The widow's life was not an easy one. When the widows husband had passed on, he had left her with two teenage boys to care for, and a farm to run. That would have been a task for any person; and on top of this burden, she cared for her mother and handicapped sister. To say her life was a hard row to hoe would not be an exageration. In those days, there were no government welfare programs to help the poor and the widow made her living running the little farm her husband had left her. It was a hard life, filled with back breaking labor from sunrise to sunset. What little cash money there was quickly spent for food and supplies, there were no credit cards in the widows purse.

One day the widow determined in her heart to give God an offering of what she had. She knew she didn't have much to give, but she loved God and was grateful for what she did have. Out of the abundance of her heart she saved for many months to give God the offering. She must have looked at her growing pile of coins each week and thought how much her sons could use a pair of shoes, or how badly her disabled sister needed medical care. Finally, the day came when a man of God crossed her path, and she quickly ran to him to give him her offering. The man of God could hardly accept the poor widows offering. It wasn't a great sum, only twenty dollars, but the man of God knew that the little widow needed every penny she could pinch. He began to tell her to keep her money when he felt God tell him that he should accept the offering. Not completely understanding, but knowing that God had something in store for the widow, he accepted her offering with gratitude.

Not longafter, the man of God went to visit the widows home. He had pondered the great sacrifice the widow had made and in his heart, he wanted to give her the money back. While he was visiting the widows family, they began to discuss the Word of God, particularly how that God had provided a sacrifice to spare the son of Abraham. God had placed a ram in a thicket so that Isaac would not be slain. While the man of God was teaching the widow how God would provide for His children, the widow replied in agreement, "That ain't nothing but the truth."

Suddenly the man of God felt the Spirit of God move upon him. Through numb lips he said, "THUS SAITH THE LORD," like the syrophonecian woman you have said the right thing! That you may know that I am God's servant, ask what you will, and I will speak it behind you, if it doesn't fall in your lap, then I am a false prophet!

The conversations in the room died until all that could be heard was the scoffing of the widows sons who hated the cause of Christ. The bewildered widow was distraught! She didn't know what to ask for! The man of God pointed out her destitute condition, she could ask for money. Her sister was crippled, she could ask for her to be miraculously healed. She widow paused and looked over to where her sons were still laughing at the man of God. She said, "My greatest desire is for the salvation of my two sons." 

No sooner than the words had left her mouth, the man of God cried out, "I give them to you in the Name of Jesus Christ!" The power of God fell instantly, and the room began to shake! A friend sitting at the table fell into his dinner plate! A roaring noise filled the air! The widow screamed as the Spirit of God fell, her two boys began to scream the blessings of God. They fell into their mothers lap and were gloriously saved.

Because she said the right thing. 

Angry Words

James 1:19 - 20 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

You can take a lot of things back, but words simply aren't one of them. Words, good or bad, (and the perceived intent behind them) will always be stored in the hearers heart. You'll notice that James links hearing, speaking, and the anger of man together. I believe that is because listening will help us to understand what is truly being said, even when the words we hear don't say it all. The Scripture could be translated to say, "Be a good listener, don't say the first thing that pops in your mind, and don't use your words to punish or hurt people."

A pretty smart guy by the name of Josh Billings once said, "The best time for you to hold your tongue is when you feel like you must say something or bust." So my advice is: take a breath, swallow the words you want to say and choose to rise above the situation. I know you'll be better off in the  long run. Now, I'm not saying you can't get angry or upset with someone or about a situation, but Ephesians 4:26 says "be angry and sin not." As human beings, we're going to get angry, our goal as Christians is to take care to "sin not."