9.01.2010

Dollars and Do Nots

9/2/10 - 5th Day. Morning. Greetings y'all. Yesterday was our monthly First Wednesday Work Day. We, as a community, worked on the community smokehouse. We hope to have it finished (or usable) sometime before Ranchfest in a few weeks. It was an awesome day of work and fellowship. I cannot tell you how much joy there is in these times when we all come together to work together - you will never understand it unless you get to do it regularly in Christian community like we believe God has ordained.

This is not a new picture of the smokehouse. A lot has been done since this pic. But I did want any new folks to see what I am talking about. I'll do my best to post some new pics either tomorrow or early next week. The smokehouse should be 95% done and usable by Ranchfest (Lord Willing).
Do not forget to order your Central Texas Mesquite Coffee while it is still available.
Here is my latest Michael Bunker Radio Podcast. Do not miss it:

Download The Dangers of the 08-31-2010 (45.59 MB)

Duration: 66:24 m - Filetype: mp3 - Bitrate: 96 KBPS - Frequency: 44100 HZ

Peek in as Michael talks with the home fellowship in Santa Anna about the "dollar economy" and how it can endanger true Christian community.
As I said on Facebook (to very little avail), comments and discussion on the podcasts prime the pump for more podcasts. When they float like a dead balloon, they make me want to discontinue them again. All power is in your hands.
I am your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker

8.30.2010

Adios Augusto: Scattershooting



8/30/10 - 2nd Day. Morning. Greetings y'all. August is steaming to an end, and we are rolling towards Fall Ranchfest which is coming quickly (Sept. 24 - Oct. 1). Our First Wednesday work day is coming up the day after tomorrow, so we will be in full Ranchfest preparations starting then. As you can see from the donations thermometer, we are a bit over 10% of the way towards the goal that I set in my mind, then "mind-doubled" just to make a point. I am very hopeful that donations will start rolling in this week, because very few people on my usual friendslist have contacted me or pledged any specific amounts. We'll see how it goes. The donation process is a Texas Two-Step process. First, email me to tell me how much you are sending (so I can adjust the thermometer), and Second, send it ASAP to:
M. Bunker
1251 CR 132
Santa Anna, Texas 76878
Remember that Ranchfest is free for all visitors, and we try to include some practical experience and training in many different areas of off-grid Agrarian life and living. We will be doing some construction, some butchering, and a lot of talking/teaching/fellowshipping. If you are planning on attending and you have not told me so, you need to email me TODAY and let me know about your plans.
This following is interesting, considering that we are in the midst of a dramatic recovery and all:



We spent a day in Mason, Texas this past week and it was great fun. In an antique/junk store I found a book by one of my favorite authors - Eric Sloane. Sloane (who is now passed on) wrote and illustrated books about our common heritage. In addition to his ability to rightly identify what made a people successful and strong, He drew incredible pencil drawings of hand tools, covered bridges, etc. Look up his books and you will not be disappointed. Anyway, I found the book "Spirit of '76" which had individual chapters on the "spirit" of something that created or defined America. One of the chapters was "The Spirit of Agronomy" and in that chapter (which I only quickly glanced through) Sloane makes the point that early American farmers were NOT in the business of raising crops to sell. They might sell their excess, or they might grow a separate cash crop, but the fundamental purpose of the family farm (most everyone was a farmer back then) was to raise and produce the means of survival for the family. The "Spirit of Agronomy" was the spirit of a people who believed it was their own responsibility to provide for most of their own needs. Specialization is for insects. Very few people were specialists, and even then they recognized that over-specialization would mean that they would be unable to provide for themselves and they would automatically become dependent on some other "system" to provide for their needs. I find it interesting that worldlings today teach their children to "go to college and get a job so you can 'provide for yourself'", when in fact they are saying, "go to college so you can specialize so that you cannot 'provide for yourself' but so that you will fit as a widget into a corporate/economic system that will provide for you so long as the system remains working and afloat". I still have people who live and work in the world as some cog in the great society machine who write to me to tell me that they cannot "go Agrarian" or move towards a more sustainable life because "they have to provide for themselves and their families". This is a huge lie. There was a viable system that existed wherein people "provided for themselves". This system was destroyed purposely and with forethought in order to replace it with a system where individuals became cogs in a machine that, so long as it remains intact, provides for the basic needs of the people. This replacement system is unsustainable, unsafe, immoral, toxic, and so deceptive that almost everyone who ever enters it will never, ever escape it. One way leads to life, the other to death. One way is the way of God and of husbanding and managing His creation for His glory; the other way is the way of exploitation, destruction, and covetous living.
But most people will never see it in those terms. The human mind is capable of rationalizing any behavior.
While we were in Mason at the motel, we watched a segment on CNBC entitled "American Greed". The segment was about a scumbag Pentacostal preacher (is there any other kind?) who had scammed OTHER covetous, lying, Pentacostal preachers out of about 9 million dollars in a Ponzi scheme. The modern black Pentacostal movement is one of the most evident symbols of covetousness run rampant in the history of the world, and this story was really the poster story that proved the theory. This black preacher (Abraham Kennard) told a bunch of other black preachers that he had received 28 million in donations and wanted to "spread it around". He asked each preacher to give him $3000 and for each $3000 donated, he would return $500,000... eventually. He also offered a $500 bonus for each new preacher another preacher brought in. When the preachers wanted their money back, he would dribble it out in small amounts, usually offering the preacher a large check (literally one of those big checks they give to golf tournament winners) that would say "$200,000" on it. He would make a big deal of giving them the big check in person on his show with new recruits watching. When the person went to him later to get a real check he would make some excuse and give them some paltry amount of money "in good faith". Eventually, people started to realize they weren't going to have millions of dollars and "bling" jangling in their pockets and they got righteously indignant. How dare he "steal from the Lord's work"! Every one of these covetous wolves became a sobbing victim, crying about how they were only trying to do good for the people. Kennard was eventually arrested and charged with bilking over 9 million dollars while he was living the high life of limos, vacations in the islands, gold rings, etc.
So what is the moral of the story? There are several:
a.) You can't con an honest man, or a true Christian who seeks God's will and way and not his own.
b.) Scam artists (like these so-called "victim" preachers) who use the tithe and other similar Ponzi schemes to maintain their own standard of living, get very, very upset when they fall for the same con they are using on their own people.
c.) Greed is not a one way street.
d.) If you lie, cheat, steal, play to your audience's vanity and greed, twist the scriptures, and promise comfort and security... you can make a lot of money in this preaching game.
e.) If you tell the truth, do your best to support yourself in a simple way, preach the law and the testimony, command people to search the scriptures and examine themselves, and eschew worldly wisdom... you won't starve, but that is about it. Note the thermometer at the top of the page. People like Kennard can raise $20,000 to spend on their own lusts and they can do it in minutes. Try to raise money to offer people a free place to go and learn skills, ask questions, and learn about a better life, and they'll smile at you, give you a golf-clap, and say "go, be warmed, be filled".
Just be glad you weren't with us in the motel when this was going on. I don't know who I hated more, the scumbag, lying, con-man, or the scumbag, covetous, lying preachers. Ok, I hated them all equally. But when I get to yelling at the TV, I think I might be more entertaining to the family than whatever is going on on the TV. (Again, my apologies to bags full of scum for comparing them to Pentacostal preachers)
I remain your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker

8.23.2010

My Fire-Back Fundraising Plan

8/23/10 - 2nd Day. Morning. 2nd post of the day. Greetings y'all. I was planning on writing a Fall Ranchfest 2010 article wherein I raise money for Ranchfest and invite all you nice folks out to attend (it's free!), but then, with the recent attacks that I talked about in the previous post today I came up with a brilliant idea that will allow me to double the fictional amount of money that I usually ask for and do not receive. It is brilliant. I figure, why ask for $1 and not get it when you can... get this... ask for $2 and not get it! I figured I would use the sentiment and sadness you all feel for my being brutally attacked in order to double the potential income for Ranchfest. So here goes...First, go read the baseless and spineless attacks on me that led to me spending an hour with our fine Sheriff on Friday.
Second, allow the righteous indignation and holy anger to build in you, to the point that you want to show these lying yahoos exactly what their attacks engender.
Third, Sit down and write a letter to the jerk who reported me to Obama, and tell him that: a) you are grateful to him for linking to LazarusUnbound.com where you found multitudes of good and solid Biblical teaching to benefit you and your family... all for free, and all a great blessing to you by the Grace of God, and b) tell him how much you are now going to donate to Ranchfest in order to help build a model Biblical homestead and community that can be used perpetually to teach visitors and readers the tenets of Biblical Agrarianism. Do not be a jerk to the guy and do not attack him. Just let him know that he is responsible for helping you find the truth, and that you are going to support the preaching and teaching of that truth thanks to him. Then, Bless him exorbitantly and tell him you are going to pray for his conversion.
Then, and here is the good part, send your overwhelmingly generous donation for our Ranchfest building projects!
Ok, in my private letter to my private email list, I at first stated that my pie-in-the sky dream was to raise $10,000 for Ranchfest. After this baseless attack and my time with the Sheriff, I thought, "Why not DOUBLE it?" That'd teach the world a lesson, wouldn't it? And I'm the one putting up with all the grief. So I doubled it in my mind, and immediately I felt better. So here is my new $20,000 fundraising thermometer:

I will continue to update it over the next month. We have a long way to go, and only about 3o days to get there.
Send your donations to:
M. Bunker
1251 CR 132
Santa Anna, Texas 76878
Please do not send your donations to the hater who reported me to the Presodent. Thanks for that.
Your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker

Welcome to My Life

8/23/10 - 2nd Day. Morning. Greetings y'all. Here is my post wherein I meet the Sheriff, marry my own daughters and add them to my stable of wives, abuse and re-submissify women I do not know and have never met, hate blacks and muslims and even the presodent, write my own Bible, and otherwise do evil for the sake of all the massive amounts of money and power I get from it...


"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad:
for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you." (Matt. 5:10-12)
Danielle and I spent over an hour on Friday with the Coleman County Sheriff after it was reported to him by some "man" (I use the term "man" very loosely) in Florida that I was a racist, polygamist, misogynistic, yiddish/amish, anti-muslim terrorist living in a polygamy cult compound. I have to report that Sheriff Wade Turner of Coleman County, Texas is a gentleman (and by that I mean an honorable, gentle, man) and a credit to his profession. I have never been so pleased and honored to spend time with a law man, and we are ever so blessed to live in a place where we can trust our law-enforcement officers to believe in and uphold the law and the constitution.
I have had every manner of lie told against me without cause, and I have had the law called on me and I have been called a terrorist and even worse, but I have never even conceived of the idea that someone would send the local sheriff a picture of me WITH MY WIFE AND THREE DAUGHTERS and report that they are my "women" (in the context of me being a polygamist!). There was also a completely unrelated picture of some other women, I think they were some from the FLDS (Mormon) cult in San Angelo (or they may just be some Amish women that this
pervert found on the net) that were reported to be my women as well.
Again, my purpose in posting this was mainly to point out how blessed we are to live in a county with honorable law-enforcement. My thanks again to Sheriff Turner and may the Lord bless him.
Ok, so here are the two letters (one written to our Sheriff, the other written to Barack Obama). You will notice that the letters contain different allegations based on what he thinks about the reader and what he thinks will work with that person. Also, this is really some of the most poorly written, uneducated, ignorant tripe you have ever read. The problem with ignorant haters, is they do not know how ignorant they are. I have left in all the spelling/grammar, etc. errors:
Sheriff Wade Turner
100 West Liveoak St.
Suite #101
Coleman, Texas
Zip # 76834
Coleman County, Texas
Dear Mr. Wade, we are the parents of XXXX and she is being made to join this cult operation of the Bunker Compound and we would just like to ask if you could keep an eye on her and make sure there isn't any Waco stuff going on there...
Of course in our estimation they are radical_Prophecy Club wont sell Bunkers books...
They have rewritten the Bible according to Bunkers Yiddish-Amish belief, they are women bashers to the highest degree...
They encourage if the women fail to meet their dress code or code of demoralized rules three times that the men have the right to remarry,,,
So if you have a daughter you will understand our concern, Thank you sincerely The Myers family from Tampa Florida...
This is a picture of the False Prophet in question...

Regrettably we have read their beliefs and mode of conduct and brutish feminine submissive tactics, If you would care to check them out they are listed online at lazarusunbound.com
Michael Bunker
1251 CR 132
Santa Anna, Texas 76878
(also enclosed was a picture of some Amish looking women that have nothing to do with me or this group. The Sheriff surmised that this was mere "guilt by association" and that this wicked "Mr. Myers" was trying to make it look like we were related in some way to the FLDS (Mormon) cult that was on in San Angelo, Texas
Ok, here is the second letter - this one is to Barack Obama. Notice there are radically different charges against me:
Attention Mr. Barak Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NN
Washington, DC
Zip # 20500
Dear Mr. President,
I am concerned over a Religious Cult run by a man named:
Michael Bunker
1251 CR 132
Santa Anna, Texas
Zip # 76878 Located in Coleman County, Texas
We are the parents {65 Years Old} of XXXX
She XXXX is being made to join this cult by the religious operation of the Bunker Compound and we were wondering if their is anything you could do to help us to be able to keep Mr. XXXX & Larry Keffer (Street-Preachers) from taking her out there?
They are a hate oriented group against Black People & Muslims, forgetting how our Savior commanded us to love our neighbor and to pray for the authority's put over us.
XXXX having stated that you are not his neighbor and Mr. Bunker has some sermons out against Muslims, a couple of them being called_I AM A TERRORIST and THE GREAT AMERICAN TALIBAN SCAM_ Of course in our estimation they are a radical Religious Hierarchy. They have rewritten the Bible to suit their infamous doctrines.
For instance they advocate polygamy and remarriage if the women don't line up with their religious views.
The Prophecy Club wont sell Bunkers books. We love all peoples and are mostly concerned that they are not another Waco that hates their Country and their President. XXXX is a very Co-Dependant and on quite a bit of medication, which we heard they don't accept neither.
XXXX and Larry Keffer operate an ice cream vendor and several businesses without paying Income Taxes, plus XXXX lives in the above address being under Mortgage Foreclosure and hasn't paid payments in quite a while_2 Years-?
If you want to see what they believe against their fellowmen and their racial hatred you can find them and their sermons on Internet at lazarusunbound.com
This is a picture of Michael and his family and his women of the compound:
(Again there is enclosed a picture of some plain women who could be Amish but who have nothing to do with us at all)
Tom Myers
6522 Travis Blvd.
Tampa, Florida 33610
Note that in the first letter, he doesn't allege that my daughters are my wives - but in the letter to Obama he does.
Anyway, whatever you do, do NOT email me or post a comment in the comment section innocently asking "where did he get this stuff". He got it from the depths of his evil heart. Seriously, any man (or in this case a married couple) who would write these letters with this many out-and-out lies, is what the Bible calls PONEROS evil - which is the manifestation of the devil's evil. From the word "Poneros" we get our word "Pornography". This man is seriously deranged and he is dangerous. I have never once met his daughter and wouldn't know her if I saw her. However, I would now advise that his husband get her away from her sick parents, unless of course she is as sick as her parents, in which case he should just save himself. I have in-laws EXACTLY like this, and they are truly dangerous and will forever remain unrepentant.
Now, there are so many lies in these letters (lies that cannot be supported by any of the MILLIONS of words I have written and published) that they ought to be self-evident, but who wants to bet me that this "Christian" man never, ever, ever apologizes or repents for such outright slanders?
So what I am saying is, if you send in a comment or email me and ask me what I did to entice my rapist, I will ignore and delete your comment.
Welcome to my life. Just another day as a gentle, Christian/Agrarian Separatist. How was your day?
Your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker

PS... I determined that the photo of the un-named women who I don't know was stolen from a Southern Maryland photo site. It is of some nice Amish young girls, who now have the unsavory and unsatisfying experience of being accused of being my wives.

8.16.2010

Tick, Tock

8/16/10 - 2nd Day. Morning. Greetings y'all. The heat continues. It didn't get hot here until August, but August continues to be a brutal onslaught day after day. The prognosticators are not calling for a break to near normal temps (mid-90's) for another 8 or 9 days. Last night it was near 93 at 9:30 pm. But the good news is that by the time Fall Ranchfest gets here on Sept. 24th, we should be down in the mid-80's during the day, and right around 60 at night, which will be nice.
I am in the midst of a busy spell. We're still trying to get all of our packages mailed out, and we are still behind, but y'all be patient and we'll have 'em all out soon. Then my parents and my sister are coming to visit on Wednesday and will be staying until Friday. Then I have other company coming over the weekend, followed by other company on Monday or Tuesday of next week. All this while we are trying to get as many beans as possible picked and processed.
The clock at the top represents how fast time is going, and that Fall Ranchfest is coming quickly. As of today there are only 39 days until Ranchfest starts. By the way, if you are coming to Ranchfest, please let me know. Even if you have said you are coming, but haven't kept me informed for a few weeks, I need to know if you are coming. Those of you who are on my private email friendslist will be getting an email today to keep you updated on what is planned, etc.
We are looking forward to a great time of fellowship. The Ranchfest this past spring was one of the better ones we ever had, and if the people who have preliminarily told me they are coming for Fall Ranchfest do indeed come, we should have a great showing and an opportunity to work on many interesting projects. We're also going to kill and process a pig, so... there is that.
Ok, y'all. I have to run,
Michael Bunker

8.13.2010

Article: The Prophet

Posted by Michael Bunker

editor@lazarusunbound.com

So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness” (Rom 12:5-8).

December 26, 2005 – I want to expand upon the teaching I have done previously concerning Prophets in my commentary on the book of Isaiah.

The true body of Christ is one body made up of diverse members with diverse functions (called gifts); each of these functions are to be performed diligently according to the faith given and according to the purpose for which God has placed each elect individual within the body. Let us quickly examine our study verses. As an amplification and explanation of what has been said before concerning our different and varied purposes within the functioning body, there are ways in which each part of the body is to engage their specific functions. These functions are not to be confused or confounded, nor should they be haphazardly handled without a clear understanding of the means and methods, prescribed by God, for the performance of them. If one is called as a prophet he should prophecy according to (and only according to) that which has been given to him by God. Likewise, if one is called to minister to the needs of the poor or to widows on behalf of the Church, that person should focus his attention on diligently doing that which he is called to do. Next the Apostle speaks to those who are called to teach or to exhort, which duties are here divided to show that they are often, but not always, held by different people in the body (see Pastors and Teachers in Eph. 4:11); one is called to teach principles precept upon precept, while another may be called to exhort, implore, encourage, scold, rebuke or challenge. Paul next speaks to “he that giveth”, addressing those within the body who are entrusted to disseminate aid, helps, or information to the Body of Christ; this person should do so with sincerity and singleness of mind. Next, “he that ruleth”speaks of those who “go before” or those who lead by example. These should do so diligently with an understanding of the responsibility entrusted to them. He who “sheweth mercy”, or who is sent by the Church to visit the afflicted on behalf of those who cannot go, should do so cheerfully and not as if he is performing a despised duty.

Now we see in these verses that God has distributed to his true Body diverse gifts and that each gift is different and necessary and should be handled according to the Word of God. Notice that in these verses, and in the verses in the 4th Chapter of Ephesians, that the duties and callings of “prophets” and “teachers” are quite different. While it is true that there are prophets who teach and there are teachers who often prophesy, we should not confound the duties just because God may have occasionally performed His will in both areas through a single man. My purpose in this article is to describe the differences between the responsibilities and duties of the prophet and of the teacher; to help Christians rightly identify these personalities and ministries; and then to extrapolate out an understanding of what our purpose is as a ministry and as a Church to the world today.

The Prophet

It is very difficult in this apostate age to try to clarify something that has been so misunderstood and so erroneously taught as has the position of the prophet. Modern charismatic “prophets” (ignorant of the Bible, Bible Doctrine, Christian History, or true Christianity) are presently running to and fro, spewing fictional fantasies and calling themselves “prophets” of God. Ironically, this phenomena has been promised concerning the age in which we live. I cannot tell you how many “prophets” and “apostles” have contacted me with their visions, dreams, fantastical prognostications, etc. These men (as a whole) have one glaring thing in common... They are virtually NEVER right. If they do get something right, it is usually something a teenager with a laptop, a sense of history, some light knowledge of the times and a Bible could have figured out. Almost every one of these “prophets” fall into two categories:

  1. They never really say anything at all. They try to speak King James English, and they go on and on about something or other “pouring out” and something or other coming to pass... but they never really say anything you can put your finger on. They speak very generally about the “Lord's Spirit” doing something or other (generally a “new thing”) and they mumble on about ambiguous things coming to pass. They then tell you how pitiful it is that no one ever listens to them or understands them... but then, they are like the prophets of old and no one understood them either... right?

  2. They say some very specific things which never come to pass. They put out tapes and emails, recordings and newspapers that list what they say absolutely must happen based on their latest “figurings”; but those things never happen. Then they explain how it is not necessary that they be right, and that really, really they were right if you just look at it from a different angle, and besides... once they fix the little problem they had with their math, then they'll be right back with some more figurings.

Neither of these types of people are “prophets” (they are false prophets though). The thing these false prophets usually have in common is that they either a) don't know their Bibles, or b) have read their Bibles with some huge, false presuppositions that have tainted their understanding of what they have read. Let us look at what a Prophet is, and then it will help us steer clear of the false ones.

The word “prophet” is made up of two root words:

pro” - which means “forth”

phemi” - which means “to show”

So a prophet is primarily one who shows forth the divine will of God. Only secondarily did the term signify someone who might occasionally foretell future events by the power of the Spirit of God.

The great Bible commentator John Gill had said that true prophets are:

...not private members of churches, who may all prophesy or teach in a private way; nor ordinary ministers of the word; but extraordinary ones, who had a peculiar gift of interpreting the Scriptures, the prophecies of the Old Testament, and of foretelling things to come; such were Agabus and others in the church of Antioch, Act_11:27” (John Gill Commentary)

Foretelling things to come was not to be understood as the kind of “christian” soothsaying and false prognosticating that goes on today in the name of prophecy. Rather, true Prophets were gifted and sent to declare the divine will of God and to show forth the divine purposes in events. The prophet is sent to declare the moral law of God, to frame a proper foundational worldview, to insist upon the performance of all spiritual duties, and to declare plainly the penalties of God upon those who disregard truly Biblical warnings. Remember that the Prophet differed greatly from the Priest, and can best be understood by contrasting their duties. The Priest stood before God (facing God) as a representative of the people. The people were literally IN the Priest since the Priest was the representative of the people. We see this most beautifully fulfilled in Jesus Christ who “became us” and stood in our stead before the throne of the Father. The Prophet, in contrast, stood before the people as a representative of God. Where the Priest spoke to God on behalf of the people; the Prophet spoke to the people on behalf of God. The Prophet was to make known the truth of God, regardless of whether the people listened or actually learned anything (This is a stark contrast to the duty of the teacher). The Prophet issued instructions and/or exhortations, interpreting God's divine will and threatening God's retribution for those who ignored the warning. The Prophet was quite often a teacher... (think of the most perfect prophet - Jesus Christ). God sent men based on His own will, and only when they were necessary to fulfill His purposes in the Creation.

The Teacher

The teacher is tasked to teach the fundamentals and doctrines of Scripture to the people. His duty is to engage students, help them grow in grace, instill principles that can help the student to rightly determine God's declared will; and to guide students wisely and in a familial way towards some degree of spiritual maturity. The teacher must struggle along with the student, study extensively, and be prepared to teach complicated concepts, each one “precept upon precept”. The teacher was to form a familial relationship with the student, giving of himself for the care of those for whom he would give an account. In response, the teacher's needs are provided for in the law. The Bible commands all students to provide for the needs of their teacher. Those who learn from a teacher are commanded to “communicate” with them which means that they were to carry their burdens and provide their necessities (Galatians 6:6...*read closely because it is followed by a threat). Those who labor and toil in teaching the “word and doctrine” are commanded to receive “double honour”, which means they were to be provided for more abundantly. Now, these things are not true of the prophet. This is an important distinction. The teacher is provided for by law, and all those who partake of true Bible teaching and who do not communicate with the teacher are lawbreakers. Every professing believer who learns from a teacher, regardless of how they are personally motivated one way or another, is commanded to carry the burdens of the teacher. The prophet, however, is generally a castaway of the people. He is hated by the world, and most especially by religious people. For this reason the prophet is divinely (even if minimally) provided for by God. God has one way of providing for the teacher... his plain, written command that their needs be met by those who learn from them. This is so very important to understand, because the prophet, historically and Biblically, relied totally on God to make provision for him. He didn't receive a salary, and was generally not accepted by “professing” religiousites. Now, generally the prophet was going about alienating the people (by telling them the truth), most of whom were immature and were busy too busy rejecting what he was saying to conceive that the might be responsible to provide for his needs. God, then, miraculously motivated those who He sovereignly would use to feed and provide for the prophet. You can see this in the lives of most of the prophets, and most clearly in the life of Elijah who was fed by ravens and by widows. The point to remember here is that the teacher is provided for in the law, while the prophet is provided for by the Spirit. Some men in the New Testament Church were also, at times, church leaders or elders; though they evidently (by their writings and life) were prophets of the Most High God. We find this to be true most specifically during times of Reformation, or when the professing Church is entering into a time of apostasy. This is all to say that one of the identifiers of a prophet is that he comes to speak to the people on behalf of God; to declare His divine will to them whether they like it or not and despite the fact that he was not being supported by the apostate “church” he was sent to rebuke. Remember that God killed priests, but the people killed the prophets. If you will remember this, it will help you to understand what the Church is to be doing in our day according to Jesus.

So we have explained the differences between priests, teachers and prophets. Other confusions might arise from the fact that often many people who were not prophets prophesied (think of King Saul in 1st Sam. 10, the High Priest Caiphas in John 11:51 and Phillip's four daughters in Acts 21:9). As we read earlier in the John Gill quote, God may, at any time, utilize any person to bring forth a point of Biblical truth that might have been overlooked by the Church. However, everyone who prophesies is not a prophet.

There is a grave danger in having a wrong view and understanding of prophecy today. The Bible teaches that God has, in the past, spoken to us at sundry times and in various ways through the prophets, but that in these last days he has spoken to us through his Son (Hebrews 1:1-2). This does not say that God does not speak to us any more by prophets (if we rightly look at what a prophet is), but that that which God has to say to us has been revealed to us through His Son Jesus Christ, who is made known and revealed to us in the Bible. So no prophecy by any prophet is to be taken as a “new” revelation by God to man, since God has given us all that He intends us to have in His Word (which is the written revelation of Jesus Christ). It is an evil tendency in man to assume that God has supernaturally spoken to him (outside of what plainly is taught to us in scripture) based on whatever bizarre imaginations or personal experiences convince him that this is true. Multitudes of people now order their affairs according to the word of self-professed prophets, because they believe that that “prophet” has a supernatural communication with God that they themselves do not have. But the test of true prophecy is the plain and contextual declarations made in the Bible.

These modern “prophets” continue to prophesy because they have no fear of a just and holy God. If you say God told you something (or showed you something, or gave you some “truth” - and it turns out that He did not speak to you at all, then you have not only deceived yourself, but you have likely deceived others (2 Tim. 3:13). The Bible calls these “prophets” evil men and seducers. According to the Old Testament law, this false prophet was to be killed!

So I am dealing here in this article with the concept of the “prophet” as one who declares the divine will of God (including those threats and/or promises made relating to spiritual duties) to a people who likely are not made willing to hear it.

Just what is the duty of the Church?

So we have shown that the duty of teaching takes place within the Body of Christ by those who are called and prepared to teach the precepts of God to those who are made willing to learn. So why has the modern “church” taken the position that the Church itself is tasked with being a teacher to the world? This is one of the reasons I found this article necessary. Some people constantly criticize and attack this ministry (and me in particular) because they believe I should shut up about responsibility, separatism, judgment, etc. and just teach. “How are we going to 'leaven' the world if we are always condemning it”?

Let us look at what Jesus said about the relationship between the world and the true “Church”, and keep in mind what I wrote earlier about the way that prophets are treated by the people:

Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets” (Luk 6:21-23).

Jesus compares His people to the prophets who were killed by the fathers of those who persecute them.

If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me” (John 15:19-21).

Again Jesus compared the work of His people to that of the prophets, claiming that the world would hate them because it hates Him. Jesus chose out His people (in Him) that they might be sent out to show forth His righteousness to a world that He promises will hate them. God's true church is accounted as sheep sent out to the slaughter (Romans 8:36), and this because they experience “tribulation”, “distress”, “persecution”, “famine”, “nakedness”, “peril”, and the “sword” (verse 35). Now, are these things true of a teacher? Of course not. Are they true of the prophet? Absolutely. It is the prophet who is thusly treated by the world. The problem with “christians” today is that they expect the Church to be a passive, kind, peaceful, teacher... surviving off the kindnesses of a world that hates God and is supposed to hate them. The modern “church” is paid by the world (their students) according to the law. For the most part, the result of this has not been more (or better) Christians, but rampant apostasy.

The Church today is supposed to be a prophet to a dead and dying world, declaring the ways of God and His divine will. But instead the Church has decided to become priests and teachers, missionaries and monks – preying on a world that doesn't hate them at all. In fact, the world loves the “church” today and would hardly hate it, since that same “church” is in the business of soothing consciences. The professing “church” and the world today share an identical culture and worldview, the only competition we see is over who is going to sit on the throne of this world. Many professing “christians” cannot wait until the world loves them enough to put them more overtly in power.

This should not be true of people who carry around Christ's name.

I am your servant in Christ Jesus,

Michael Bunker

8.12.2010

Something Different

8/12/10 - 5th Day. Afternoon. Greetings y'all. And now for something really different:

video

I am sure you don't see that every day.
Ok, so this is turning out to be a dynamite mesquite pod year. Central Texas Mesquite Coffee is officially available in bulk quantity, and I expect you people (<- not racist) who already received coffee in your GALOCT packages to comment on here to tell me what you thought about the coffee. I am sending 1 lb. of Central Texas Mesquite Coffee to everyone who donates $25 or more AND who asks for the coffee. As for me, I drink it every day and love it.
I am still putting together a GALOCT2 package to make available for you.
No one bid on the Sibbes books. They are still available through tomorrow.
I gotta run.
Your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker

8.08.2010

The Worse Sermon I Ever Heard


8/8/10 - The Lord's Day. Greetings y'all. This morning, after community singing, I had to run to Santa Anna to get some ice and gas for the generator. I took Robert with me and we decided to listen to a Sunday sermon on the way. Now, I haven't listened to a sermon in many, many years. I read sermons all the time. I deliver sermons on rare occasions. I am constantly reading sermons of the Puritans, Reformers, and other spiritual giants, but I haven't actually listened to a modern day sermon in a great while. I've visited at a few churches in the past 7 or 8 years and I always left thinking that the preaching was shallow, ignorant, unlearned, and mostly a waste of time - of course I am comparing the sermons with real Christian sermons delivered by truly diligent Christian servants throughout history. Anyway, Robert and I tuned into a local Coleman radio station and we caught a sermon given by the Seventh Day Adventist preacher in Santa Anna (Yes, I appreciate the irony that a SDA preacher is having to deliver his sermons via radio on Sunday). The preacher was named Pastor Jerry Chastain. Maybe you all listen to sermons today, and maybe you are shocked that I am shocked at how poor they are. I don't know, maybe you like to listen to them? Who knows? This sermon, however, was quite possibly the worse sermon ever in the history of the world. Sure, I exaggerate, but not by much. As a way to vent my frustration and sadness, I share it here with you.
First, the background. This guy either weighs 300 lbs., or he is in horrible physical condition, because he wheezed through his nose and was out of breath the whole time. He also mispronounced words, the worst being "stewart" (for steward). He said "stewardship" correctly, but whenever he meant "steward" he said "stewart" (my apologies to my friend Stewart, who is a good steward).
Intro: IF YOU HAVE YOUR BIBLES, turn with me to Chapter 16 of Luke. He then reads the story of the unjust stewart who wasted his master's goods. He explains what a "stewart" is (apparently he is like the CEO of a corporation), and what the responsibilities of a stewart are. He then tells us how this stewart was cheating his master. Pastor Chastain then explains that when the master comes back, he is very unhappy to learn that people are saying bad things about his stewart. "If these things are true", he says to the stewart, "you will be fired". The stewart is ordered to bring in all the accountants and the books, but instead he goes and "stabs the master in the back one more time" by telling everyone who owes the master money, to change the bill so they will be obligated to the unjust stewart. He did this because he only minded earthly things and had failed to "plan ahead" while he was still in the good graces of the master. He wants the people to receive him into their houses when he is fired as stewart. He was a jerk and a cheater, but now, seeing he would be fired, he was planning ahead and doing his best to provide for himself.
When the master finds out what is going on, he compliments the stewart for planning for his future. This, according to Pastor Chastain, is the moral of the story, and it is a good thing. It has to be good, or why would the master compliment him? The master found nothing praiseworthy about the stewart except that he had finally planned for the future. Of course, the stewart is fired, which shows how wise the unjust stewart had been.
Now, Pastor Chastain completely neglects the actual theme and moral of the story. He rejects the context of the verses which was a condemnation of the Pharisees and the leaders of the Jews for their unjust stewardship of the Lord's heritage and people (His goods). He completely misses the fact that the "compliment" the master pays the steward is actually a sarcastic slam on the fact that SINCE HE WAS GOING TO HELL, he was wise to make himself comfortable in this world, since he would be in eternal torment in the next world. Pastor Chastain blows off all the true lessons of this story, and actually begins to teach that the one good thing the "stewart" did, was plan for the future, which was the moral of the story. You see (according to Pastor Chastain) Jesus is saying that we SHOULD use our unrighteous mammon to make friends of this world. What Jesus means is that we should make friends of non-Christians and of the wicked so that maybe, someday, we can give them spiritual truth, and when they go to heaven, they will receive us into everlasting habitations! According to Chastain we SHOULD do the one thing the unjust stewart was commended for. That is what Jesus is saying. Take the master's goods (those things God has given you) and spend some of it on becoming friends with worldlings. That way they can be saved someday and they will receive us into heaven.
Pithy anecdote #1 (A "pithy anecdote" in this case is a lie. It is a made-up story that perfectly and conveniently fits the "moral". Jesus used a parable to tell the story, so in order to make the story even MORE clear for idiots or for the seriously impaired, you are to take the parable, and further parablize it with a more modern made up story): There was a man who found out he had 1000 days to live, so he went and bought 1000 marbles and put them in a jar. Every day, he took out a marble to remind himself to be a good friend to Jesus and to use his time wisely. How good is it to know how much time we have left so we can plan ahead and use the time well! After he ran out of marbles, he realized that every day after that was a gift! The moral? Make plans to make good use of the master's gifts while you still have all your marbles (Pastor laughs wheezingly at his own joke).
Pithy anecdote #2: A rich ship owner is asked for a donation by a Christian missionary. He is very wealthy, and owns ships laden with riches traveling all over the world. He writes a check for $250 in modern money. Just as he is about to give the check to the missionary, he receives a letter that he reads immediately. It is a message alerting him that one of his ships has sunk. The lost ship had been loaded with riches. The man tells the missionary, "wait a minute, I have to re-write the check". He gives the check to the missionary who says, "This has to be an error". The man says, "No, it is correct". You see, the check was for 6 TIMES (!!!) what he had originally planned to give. The missionary says, "this is a lot of money!". The man says, "Well you see, that letter was from God, it said, 'lay up your treasure in heaven'".
Pithy anecdote #3: A man is about to die, so he writes a letter to his family. In it he totals up the number of cigars he has smoked in his life (60,000 or so), of which he only paid for about 20%, which still adds up to a tidy sum of money (we are told the dollar amount). He had imbibed some many thousands of beers (he names the exact number) and also many thousands of other strong alcoholic beverages. He totals up the many thousands of dollars he had spent on these obviously wicked and evil pleasures. At the end of the letter, this lost man is uncharacteristically honest... he says, "I experienced everything, I enjoyed much, but I accomplished nothing." The moral of this pithy anecdote? Your body is a temple (another horrible, twisted interpretation of scripture, which, I am sure, is the thesis of another horrible sermon by Pastor Chastain), and you shouldn't spend your master's goods messing up your temple, unless it is by means of the potluck supper at the "church" every Saturday after really enlightening sermons like this one, because that is different.
And now it came time for Pithy Anecdote #4 (this one is called 'personal pithy anecdote' and calls for a story, just as fake, but more personal so that the audience knows that the Pastor is a real person and knows what of he speaks): This story is about Pastor Chastain and how he worked in construction for a little while. While he was working in construction, the "boss" called him "lightning". After a long while (because who would question being called "lightning" immediately?), Pastor Chastain asked his boss "why do you call me lightning?" The boss replied, "Because I have seen you use a hammer, and you never hit the same place twice". (badumpump). The moral of the Personal Pithy Anecdote is that God gives everyone talents, some more than others. Whatever talent you have (and Pastor Chastain would have you know that swinging a hammer was NOT his talent - and I have to wonder what exactly is) it is a gift from God, and you are a "stewart" over that talent, and whatever money you make from that talent belongs to God. You should spend it helping people, and supporting the ministry, and being a friend to Jesus, and did I say "supporting the ministry?" If you don't, then you are wasting God's goods, which, by the way, is only acceptable if you are doing it to become friends with the world so you can save them and then they can receive you into heaven. By the way, anything you ever do to any other person, you do to Jesus... so STOP IT! (And by the way, with the number of new babies running around the church, some of you married men have been doing some pretty naughty things with Jesus).
After an hour of this, the sermon closed with an exhortation to get to know how you stand with Jesus.
Herein ends the worse sermon I ever heard.
Now, in all seriousness, I am saddened and horrified that this nonsense is what passes for Christianity today in one of the most conservative areas of the country. I don't know if this guy went to seminary, but if he did, that seminary should be burned to the ground. I know you all know that I talk often about how dark it is out there, and how bereft we as a people are of true and spiritual Christian teaching. But I had no idea it was this bad. I mourn for this people.
As a service to those of you who made your way through this rant, I have included a link to a real sermon, preached at a time when men who were called "preachers" have had some prior contact with the God of Creation, and worked hard to educate themselves and to be used of the Holy Spirit in a manner pleasing to a Righteous God:
At the risk of seeming immodest in attaching my own sermon to one so renowned and famous, I also attach a sermon which was part 1 of a series I did entitled "What is the Gospel". I enclose this sermon because in it there is a good "framework" or outline for what a Gospel sermon ought to include:
I appreciate your patience, and I pray that God has mercy on those to whom He intends mercy.
Your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker