It is better to be led than to be fed. He who feeds you a meal fills you for a moment, but he who leads you to green pastures where you can feed yourself gives you your life.

These essays are about the "church" and the ekklesia and they are a timely message to everyone who is seeing the shallowness, the error and the insanity of "church" life and who want to know the truth about being the body of Christ, the ekklesia.

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• Against the Night: The "Church" Paradigm (a la Colson) - Neil Girrard Chuck Colson's excellent spiritual and political analysis of a decade ago are marred by his own presupposed paradigms.
• Almost There: The "Church" Paradigm (a la Wilkerson) - Neil Girrard A comparison of messages from David Wilkerson and Watchman Nee reveals some important truths for the body of Christ today.
• The Anointed of God Bible Bullet: Matthew 24:5 - Neil Girrard Was Jesus really a false prophet or is the usual translation of this verse in error?
• Apostasy or Rapture - Neil Girrard Where do these words come from? And which comes first? Why is it important?
• Ask Not What God Can Do For You - Neil Girrard A closer look at our incessant preoccupation with "ministry."
• The Assembly - Neil Girrard More insights from the New Testament about the difference between the "church" and the ekklesia.
• Betrayal - Neil Girrard Jesus promises that so-called followers of His will betray and hate those who are His genuine followers. Are we ready for this?
• Blind Leaders - Blind Followers Bible Bullet: Matthew 15:14 - Neil Girrard Blind followers and blind leaders are both trapped in a sick, symbiotic relationship.
• The Body of Christ: A Reality by Watchman Nee. The body of Christ is not just a nice doctrine or teaching - it is a necessary reality. It is our sole option to practice the reality or to quench and ultimately abandon the Spirit who gives us new life from above. Table of Contents
• The Book - Neil Girrard A look at what the Bible is - and is not - for.
• Building the Temple - Neil Girrard This series examines the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah and how they apply to those who would build the temple of the Holy Spirit in our time.
• A Burning Fire Bible Bullet: Jeremiah 20:9 - Neil Girrard The "church's" "gospel" has little or no fire - but the word of the Lord does. Why the difference?
• But I Met God There - Neil Girrard The fact that God has met many a soul within the walls of a "church" building should not be a source of confusion as to who the real architect of the "church" is.
• But the Building Is Just a Tool - Neil Girrard Scriptural look at the deceptive practice of "church" buildings.
• Casting Out the Spirit of Human Potential; A Warning to Leadership: Let Christ be Preeminent in His Church - Anonymous. This simple pamphlet written anonymously some time ago contains a powerful word of the Lord for those who would truly be His people, His body.
• Catch 22: The American "Church's" Dilemmas - Neil Girrard A penetrating look at the numerous self-imposed dilemmas which keep the "church" from being the body of Christ.
• Church Home - Neil Girrard Modern Christianity tells us we need a "church home." What is a "church home"? Do we really need one?
• A Clever Scheme - Neil Girrard Getting us to go to "church" is perhaps the most clever way the devil has yet concocted to keep us from assembling together.
• 10. Conclusions; The Unfinished Reformation - An Analysis - Neil Girrard Morrison's book is probably best read for the conversation it leads into.
• Conferring with Flesh and Blood; The End Time Men - W.W. Fischer The few totally "dead to the flesh" Christians with Godly wisdom have too often been bypassed by religious authorities who decided to consult with Christian sources that appealed to the flesh and blood's lust for recognition and worldly acclaim and human wisdom. God be merciful.
• 2. The Consciousness of the Body of Christ; The Body of Christ: A Reality - Watchman Nee
• Conversion of a Pastor; The End Time Men - W.W. Fischer An elderly lady's (the live-in house lady of a home for unwed mothers, many of whom had come from the promiscuousness of the Pastor's flock) prayers start operating rather profoundly, as the Pastor has not just an ordinary dream, but a revelation of the God of the universe.
• The Corinthian Error; The End Time Men - W.W. Fischer These Corinthian Charismatics wanted the riches, blessings and places of honor - Paul's life was an embarrassment to them.
• 7. The Covering, Restraint, and Supply of the Body of Christ; The Body of Christ: A Reality - Watchman Nee
• Denying the Master - Neil Girrard Based on Jude's and Peter's prophecies, many people expect the end time apostates to be those who simply deny Christ's transcendency and deity - but this is a complete misunderstanding of what the apostles said.
• Destructive Divisions Bible Bullet: 2 Peter 2:1 - Neil Girrard Peter prophesied that there would be "secret destructive heresies" in the end times. Just what does that mean?
• Ekkaleo - Ekkletoi - Ekklesia - Neil Girrard Becoming the ekklesia is a process - not an automatic guarantee just because we claim to be a "Christian."
• Ekklesia - A Word Study - Neil Girrard How much damage is done by the English word "church"?
• Followers After Themselves Bible Bullet: Acts 20:30 Our spiritual ignorance, as well as our ignorance of church history, causes us to fail to see how precisely this prophetic statement was - and still is being - fulfilled.
• Foreword; The Unfinished Reformation - An Analysis - Neil Girrard This series examines Charles Clayton Morrison's book to glean its excellent insights into one of the "church's" most ongoing sins - denominationalism.
• From Our Father's Heart, prophetic words given to Jim Corbett as excerpted from his wonderful book, A White Stone
• FUBAR: Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition - Neil Girrard D-Day and Dawson Trotman, founder of the Navigators, provide illuminating lessons from history.
• A Game of Words - Neil Girrard Words are the transportation device of the enemy of our souls and most Christians don't know how successful he's been at robbing us of our heritage in Christ.
• The Gift of Prophetic Insight by A.W. Tozer, excerpted from his book Of God and Men, is a great introduction to what a prophet should be.
• History Revisited - Neil Girrard Yet again, those who refuse to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them.
• How "Eld" Must an Elder Be? - Neil Girrard A Scriptural look at the role of elders in the local assembly.
• How Far Is Too Far? - Neil Girrard The needs of the ones are more immediate than the needs of the 99. But how far should we go in rescuing these ones?
• How to Be a Local Ekklesia: or, Where the House "Church" Movement Failed - Neil Girrard The house "church" failed to attain to the three core elements of true ekklesia and has, for the most part, devolved into yet another hardened wineskin.
• Hypocrisy:The Dread Disease of Frustration - Neil Girrard A Scriptural look at the effects of believing one thing and living out another.
• The Importance of Christ - Neil Girrard Christ is the King, the Absolute Monarch, over those who claim to be His - so why isn't He obeyed?
• Important Things by Jim Baumgaertel. A short list of powerfully important ideas and issues extremely relevant to living for Christ in this time.
• In Search of the Perfect Church - Neil Girrard A Scriptural basis for understanding what the perfect church is.
• Introduction; The "Church" Paradigm (a la Tozer) - Neil Girrard A.W. Tozer, an otherwise excellent, Scripturally-based and spiritual writer, still blindly held to the "church" paradigm that keeps people from being everything Christ intends them to be.
• Joy For All? - Neil Girrard Joy is a much desired commodity in the "church" these days - but is it really the good thing we all think it is?
• Jude's Dilemma - Neil Girrard The pending spiritual danger made Jude set aside his warm, glowing sentiments regarding salvation and write a fiery letter of warning.
• The Latent Power of the Soul, Watchman Nee's book, is an addendum to his three volume set, "The Spiritual Man." Table of Contents
• Lawlessness That Abounds Bible Bullet: Matthew 24:12 - Neil Girrard The simple mistranslation of one Greek word may be responsible for much misunderstanding of our responsibilities before God.
• The Local Church in the Time of Apostasy - Neil Girrard An examination of how Watchman Nee's teachings in The Normal Christian Church Life, chapter 5, are to be viewed in the context of today's ultra-denominationalism.
• The Lone Ranger Christian Bible Bullet: Proverbs 18:1 - Neil Girrard "Lone ranger Christians" are different from what the "church" labels as such - but they are more prevalent than most realize.
• The Lost Power of Words - Neil Girrard The changing vocabulary of the body of Christ is not just passing fads and changing trends - it is a cause for alarm.
• 9. Loyalty and Freedom in a United Church; The Unfinished Reformation - An Analysis - Neil Girrard
• Luther Quit Too Soonby Gene Edwards. Another important excerpt fromThe Open Churchby James Rutz.
• Missionaries - Neil Girrard "Missionary" is not a word used in the New Testament. So why are we so insistent on sending out missionaries?
• The Necessity of Finding Fault - Neil Girrard Finding fault is not the sin some think it to be - it is an essential requirement of a godly life.
• The New Testament Pattern of Ekklesia - Neil Girrard There is a New Testament pattern of ekklesia - and modern "church" life does not match up.
• The Normal Christian Church Life by Watchman Nee. In his own words, Nee prefaces this book: "To do the book justice, the reader is asked to finish reading it before passing judgment. The book is not intended for anyone and everyone. It is for those who feel their responsibility in the Lord's service. But more than this, it is for such as honestly and truly mean business for God, for those whose hearts are open, who have no padlocked mind or prejudices. The book may test one's sincerity and honesty to no small degree, but I believe the Lord has shown something which is of importance to the whole body of Christ. One of the prayers I have offered in connection with this book is that the Lord should keep it from those who oppose and would use it as a chart for attack and also from those who agree and would use it as a manual for service. I dread the latter far more than the former." Table of Contents
• Nothing New - Neil Girrard A look at how the devil's strategies to entrap the body of Christ really haven't changed over the centuries.
• Open Letter to Pastors What will Jesus have to say to pastors on judgment day? "Well done" or "Depart"?
• On the Basis of Scripture - Neil Girrard A brief look at the many "church" notions which have no place in Scripture.
• One Anothering Commands - Neil Girrard A Bible study listing the requirements of the New Testament of what we are and are not to do and be "one to another."
• One Big Circle - Neil Girrard A look at the similar histories of Jesus, Stephen and the bride of Christ.
• Ordination - Neil Girrard Ordination, the raising up of new leaders, is a highly vaunted practice in the "church." But is it Scriptural? What do the Scriptures really say about "ordaining someone to the ministry"?
• Organization: Necessary and Dangerous; The "Church" Paradigm (a la Tozer) - Neil Girrard Examining A.W. Tozer's hidden biases brings out the truth for our time.
• Origins - Neil Girrard The history of the Jehovah's Witnesses offers us an enlightening glimpse into the danger of allowing any move of God to degenerate into a denominational institution.
• The Paradigm Shift - Neil Girrard A response to some of Steve Camp's 107 Theses addressing the issues of what it really means to be the church.
• Pastor, Bishop or Nicolaitan Overlord? - Neil Girrard Is the "pastor" a real New Testament office or a 1st century religious construct?
• Pastors - Neil Girrard What is a pastor? Why is the "pastor" so central to "church"?
• Paths of Righteousness - Neil Girrard Quotes from Philip Keller, an experienced shepherd, provide an excellent view into the role of sheep and shepherds.
• Play Actors Bible Bullet: Matthew 6:5 - Neil Girrard The hypocrites of this passage are more prevalent than most people assume.
• Pleasing Men or God Bible Bullet: 1 Thessalonians 2:4 - Neil Girrard The "church's" gospel is simply different than the one Paul preached.
• The Power of Truth - Neil Girrard Ananias and Sapphira provide much needed insights about walking in the light of truth.
• Private Interpretations Bible Bullet: 2 Peter 1:20-21 - Neil Girrard Privately interpreting the Scriptures is much more rampant than most people realize.
• Purity - Neil Girrard Can we still go to "church" after we know the truth?
• "Questions About Churchianity" and "Four Ways Christians Are Deceived" are a couple of articles by Jim Baumgaertel asking the right questions and finding the right answers.
• Questions and Answers About Churchianity. Jim Baumgaertel asks all the right questions and Neil Girrard gives the answers which God has revealed to him.
• Real Life, Real Love Bible Bullet: 1 John 3:16 - Neil Girrard Unless we lay our lives down for our brothers and sisters, meetings - even home fellowship - will devolve into just another form of "church."
• Reform Is Not an Option - Neil Girrard The "church" needs changed but will it submit to what is really needed?
• Review of The Open Church - Neil Girrard The Open Church by James Rutz is a good book to read - with the understanding that it represents some serious compromises to the vision that God tried to give.
• The Rise of the Hirelings - William Ziegler Hirelings rule over what men most commonly call church. What are we supposed to do?
• A Rural Exodus - Review - Neil Girrard "Pastors" are exiting the rural Midwest faster than the population - why? And what does it show all of us?
• Same Old Story: Montanus vs. Ignatius of Antioch - Neil Girrard "Church" splits are almost as old as church history - and they reveal a lot of the errors we still practice today.
• Second-Hand Milk Bible Bullet: Hebrews 5:13-14 - Neil Girrard God's plan is for us to be "fed" through regular sermons - or is it?
• Servants of Righteousness Bible Bullet: 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 - Neil Girrard The people who in truth serve Satan will do things that resemble the giftings of the Spirit. Don't be fooled.
• Seven / Twenty-One / Five-Twenty B.C. (Part 1); Building the Temple - Neil Girrard To build God's building, requires obedience to the Spirit of God - and His strength.
• Seven / Twenty-One / Five-Twenty B.C. (Part 2); Building the Temple - Neil Girrard God is building a building capable of withstanding the shaking that He will bring forth in the end times.
• The Shell Game - Neil Girrard The word "church" is so filled with deception and lies. What is the truth?
• Silence - Neil Girrard Why were the apostles and prophets silent when Constantine "Christianized" the Roman empire? Enlightening details from church history.
• Six / Twenty-Four / Five-Twenty B.C.; Building the Temple - Neil Girrard Obedience to the King, Christ Jesus, is not optional if we are going to co-labor with Him in building His temple, His body, His people.
• A Slippery Slope - Neil Girrard Like Francis Schaeffer's How Shall We Then Live?, Frank Viola's wonderful historical analysis in Pagan Christianity (the first edition which is now out of print) is tainted by the short-comings of the last chapter.
• Spirit and Truth - Neil Girrard
• Summary of the Origins of "Church" Practices by Frank Viola. (Based on Pagan Christianity 1st edition, now out of print) The major practices of "church" have no place in the Scriptures. So where do they come from?
• Teachers - Neil Girrard Teachers are a part of the body of Christ - and a prominent part of the apostasy. So which is which?
• Thus Says the Lord Bible Bullet: 1 Peter 4:11 - Neil Girrard Anyone who truly speaks what is on the heart of God should do so with confidence and authority.
• Told to Go - Neil Girrard
• Two Lies - Neil Girrard Differences between the New Testament and our practice of following Christ are not as unimportant as some think.
• Unity Is Not Optional - Neil Girrard The words used in the New Testament that speak of the unity of the body of Christ are infrequent and precise - and they are a necessity.
• A Very Large Picture Bible Bullet: Ephesians 3:10-11 - Neil Girrard Just what are - and have - the people of Christ demonstrated to the world?
• A Vision and Confirming Insights. This vision given to Jim Johnson by the Lord is extremely timely for the Body of Christ to hear. Neil Girrard adds confirming insights to Jim Johnson's vision for any who want more Scriptures to consider in light of his vision.
• The Vital Place of the Church; The "Church" Paradigm (a la Tozer) - Neil Girrard Tozer's teachings exposes his own "church" paradigm and opens up the truth for us today.
• War and Responsibility - Neil Girrard The responsibilities of those who are at war.
• What God Is Really Saying Now - Neil Girrard God's priorities for His remnant today.
• What's Wrong With "Church"? - Neil Girrard A broad question indeed - but a special focus on how to meet brings specific answers.
• What's Wrong With the Gospel: Section 2: The Added Parts written by Keith Green and published by Last Days Ministries - famous for their little pamphlets and writing or quoting very hard hitting messages from the heart of God. It is a must read for anyone who has experienced the rituals of modern "church" but haven't been able to pinpoint just exactly what was wrong with the whole picture.
• Where Do You Go To Church? - Neil Girrard This seemingly innocent question covers a whole lot of territory.
• Where Should I Go To Church? - Neil Girrard This important - but ignorant - question deserves to be answered.
• Why Now? - Neil Girrard Why is God revealing the differences between "church" and ekklesia now?
• Who Is Being Served? Bible Bullet: Mark 10:45 - Neil Girrard In far too many "ministries" today, the wrong people are being served.
• The Whole Counsel of God Bible Bullet: Acts 20:27 - Neil Girrard The "church" promises "the whole counsel of God" but this is a promise it cannot deliver.
• Whose House Is It? Bible Bullet: Acts 7:48-50, 17:24 - Neil Girrard The Most High God does not live in temples made by human hands. So who owns all those "church" buildings that are commonly and routinely called "the house of God"?
• Wolves: How to Spot a False Shepherd - Neil Girrard Wolves and hirelings are much more prevalent than most imagine - just visit the local "church" or turn on your TV!
• The Worst Enemy - Neil Girrard Why the institutional "church" is the worst enemy of the body of Christ.
• WWJD? (What Would Jesus Do?) - Neil Girrard "What Would Jesus Do?" is big business. But is it Christ? A look at the local media's surprisingly discerning treatment of current "church" trends.

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God bless you.