Posts by Ken Fleeman (Page 18)

The Poor in Spirit The Beatitudes are divine blessings pronounced on those of godly character.  These attributes are required for those who wish to enter the kingdom of heaven. The first of these blessings is prescribed for the “poor in spirit”. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 5:3 NKJV) What does it mean to be poor in spirit? Poor means to be lacking, beggarly, destitute. We are familiar with poverty in the…

The Beatitudes Jesus gained a little distance from the multitudes by going into a mountain where His disciples gathered around Him. He enumerated a series of beatitudes which mark the opening of what we know as The Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5). Each beatitude is a divine blessing pronounced on those possessing certain qualities. Each blessing is followed by a reason for the blessing. The beatitudes do not describe different types of individuals. Rather, they are a composite of…

Laying on of Hands Ken Fleeman (2019-01-20)

Discipline The idea of discipline brings up negative emotions. We instantly think of punishment for wrong doing. However, discipline is better understood as a training process. Discipline is defined as “the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience” (Google Dictionary). When it comes to our spiritual training, the teacher is to “Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:2 NKJV). Note that this requires patience. Punishment should…

Purpose Life can seem mundane. Life is in fact mundane. The sun rises and sets. Generations come and go. The winds run in their circuit. The rivers run continuously into the seas, but the seas never fill. Man’s work is never done. Man is never satisfied with his work. Solomon set out to understand everything done under heaven and concluded that all is vanity. He pursued wisdom, madness and folly and might as well have tried to grasp the wind.…

Revival David describes God as his “strong refuge”, his “rock” and his “fortress”. God upheld David from his birth and David gladly praised God. As an old man, David found even greater reason to worship God despite oppression by his enemies. “But I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And Your salvation all the day, For I do not know their limits” (Ps 71:14, 15 NKJV). Compelled to…

Signs and Wonders Miracles played a significant role in the expression of God’s will. The purpose was specifically to confirm the truthfulness of the message. Moses was concerned that the children of Israel would not believe that God had sent him to deliver them from the clutches of Pharaoh. God instructed Moses to throw down the rod in his hand. It became a serpent which terrified Moses. God instructed him to pick it up by the tail. When Moses did…

Sons of Encouragement Few things are accomplished in life without help. The larger and more complex the task, the larger the team required. A project manager assembles workers with the skills required, sets budgets and schedules and assigns supervisors, inspectors and record keepers. Expeditors prod vendors and contractors who fall behind. Each successive task is choreographed then executed until the whole project is complete. Even when we undertake projects alone, the example, teaching and influence of others dictates how we…