Spiritual Identity Theft

This past Sunday at our 8:30 service I was afforded the privilege and grand opportunity to share the Word of God with our church again.

At exactly, 8:34 p.m., on Saturday evening, the 10th of October, I was sitting in a corner of Starbucks in Long Beach, CA reading required texts from my Modern Church History class, in preparation for writing a 7-page book review. The view I had was perfect. I could see everyone come in and I could watch everyone go out and I was close enough to the door, that if a robbery ensued, I could escape, virtually unscathed. Don't be so taken aback by my statement. Those indigenous to the "Westside", as it were, have difficulty admitting that there are imminent dangers here, especially in the heartland of Snoop-Doggy Dogg. Hey, I'm in self-preservation mode just like the rest of us...relax, I'm just kidding. I'M JUST KIDDING! (I know I'll get comments about that)

About 8:36 pm, I noticed my phone blinking. I didn't answer it at first because I noticed an elderly gentleman to my peripheral left fidgeting with the men's restroom door handle, not recognizing that it was obviously locked with someone in there. That was becoming rather annoying. I suppose he was waiting for that angel that rescued Paul and Silas out of jail in Acts 16 to open the door for him. Oh well, probably drunk too much coffee. By the way, the angel didn't show...sorry.

I then noticed an "out of order" sign on the women's restroom and a line of men and women begin to form close to my reading area. I then regretted the area I had chosen to sit. I noticed the phone was still blinking. Finally, I picked it up. It was my wife and she says, "Pastor just called and asked me did you know that you're supposed to preach in the morning." Immediately, I started laughing because 1) no one told me anything, and 2) my wife had sent me a text 20 minutes earlier asking me was I preaching for early morning service. I proceeded by verbally ordaining her as a New Testament prophetess!

I hung up with my wife to my daughter yelling, Daddy! Daddy! in the background. The feeling that produces cannot be contained in any vernacular, dialect, colloquialism, or otherwise. It is simply phenomenal. My next call was to my pastor and as soon as he knew it was me he proceeded to ask me would I have enough time to prepare for tomorrow and he apologized for the late notification. I told him, "You always told me to have a sermon in my head, my heart, and one in my bag, so I'm ready. He started laughing. He said, "Well, I just wanted to check."

It seemed immediately the Lord placed 2 Corinthians 11:4 on my mind. It reads, For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or [if] ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with [him].

Immediately, I noticed three (3) things; another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel. So I had to ask myself some questions, who is Jesus, what is "the Spirit" and what is the Gospel among other pertinent questions that the text presents.

After I answered these questions (I know you want to know "how" I answered them, but this post is already too long, email me and I'll mail you the CD, seriously I will), it occurred to me that spiritual identity theft was transpiring in the body of Christ. I knew another Jesus, spirit, and gospel, was being presented, I just never thought about it in terms of identity theft.

The people were blessed and that's all that matters. It was hard not to close with Calvary on this one, I even whooped a little. :) I attend a black Southern Baptist Church and that doesn't happen often! I just had to bring a little of my COGIC upbringing in on this one!