EVANGELIST PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, WYOMING: RULE OUR ANGER

This world is being torn apart by anger.  The media contains story after story of murder, deaths, police conflicts, race baiting, child abuse, bullying and terrorism.  Our society is driven by anger.  Walking down city streets, people don’t make much eye contact and smiles are rare.  More often a scowl and harsh words exchanged by couples are seen than kindness or soft gestures.  The kindness that Jesus taught so long ago is lost in simple every day contacts. We are a world that has no compassion or caring.  It doesn’t take so much to sit down and talk to someone who is obviously struggling.  In coming to know that person, even for a little while, we can give compassion in simply caring about what they have to say.  It doesn’t take the time consuming decisions of a committee or the actions of a community group to provide compassion.  Anger and pain can be lifted simple by sitting down and talking to someone, one to one, listening, and if it’s possible, helping in some way.  Showing that we care about each other has got to start with one person at a time, one Christian at a time giving a hand up, an ear, a few minutes that it takes to lift someone’s spirits.  It only takes a minute to say “God bless you, thank you”.  It could be the nicest thing someone hears all day and it does make a difference. These are words that are preached and taught by Pastor John Collins, evangelist, of Love that Cross Ministries and Revival.

Evangelist Pastor John Collins began a revival of awakening in Wyoming.  That awakening stirs the spirit of those who hear him.  From a pulpit or behind the microphone of a recording studio, his words are Biblically correct.  Anger that is of resentment, jealousy and hate is keeping us from the love of God, and angry words meant to hurt and sting are not Christ-like.  Anger and the repercussions of it have been part of the human process ever since Adam and Eve were evicted from the Garden of Eden.  They had two sons, Cain and Abel.  Cain worked the fields and Abel kept flocks.  Through their faith in God, they gave an offering to God of their efforts.  God looked favorably on Abel’s but Cain’s God did not.  Cain became jealous of Abel and angry.  God taught Cain that if he would do right, his would be accepted, but if he didn’t do right, sin would take over, that Cain needed to rule over sin…that of jealousy and anger.

“Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.” Genesis 4:8-10.  Cain murdered his brother out of jealousy, envy, and anger and in turn lied to God.

Evangelist Pastor John Collins puts it this way: “Cain killed Abel. Esau sold his birthright and Jacob stole Esau’s blessing which resulted in hatred and animosity that grew between Edom and Israel.  The sons of Jacob, brothers of Joseph, sold Joseph into slavery out of jealousy. The Benjamites, a tribe of Israel, were nearly destroyed by their brethren, all the other tribes of Israel.  The house of Saul and the house of David were at war a long time, Judah and Israel fought against each other.  These are only a few examples within the family of God’s chosen people. The Gentiles have their history of fighting and wars against themselves just the same as the Jews. We have our reality of wars around the world within countries that are not our own. In our country we have gangs, murders, and families at war with children fighting, parents fighting and friends fighting too.

Just because something has been done since the beginning of time does not make it okay for it to continue. What is driving the anger and lack of compassion and kindness in our time? When will we learn that the smallest seeds of bitterness and resentment as well as jealousy and envy will grow to become hatred and hurt if watered? Why do we not realize that the ground is screaming from the blood that has been shed? Why do we not stop and realize that our Lord is not served in our anger and vengeance? God has said that vengeance is His and so it is. It is not for us to take out our anger on another. It is not for us to engage in bickering and arguing that just leads to more and more anger. It is not for us to hold on to these hateful feelings and be consumed by them.

We can do better. We can become peaceful people, if we choose. We each choose our own actions and reactions and that is where our faith will lead us to choose the right and righteous path if we rely on Jesus Christ to guide us. You see, it may not be for you to solve the world’s problems but you can definitely solve your own with the help of the Lord. You can pray for those that are caught up in civil wars and you can make sure that your world is one of peace. You can encourage love and kindness in others by living a life that serves Christ.”

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3-10

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS: LOVE ALL, SERVE ALL

We don’t follow directions well.  God sent His Son Jesus to us so that He could teach us and show us firsthand how to be godly, how to be Christ-like.  God knew we can’t do it on our own.  He loves us so much that He sent Jesus to teach us, show us, then sacrifice Himself for us to take away the sins of the world so that we can live a Christ-like life.  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. KJV.  This verse is probably the most singularly memorized verse in the Holy Bible.   

God put Adam and Eve in Eden and instructed them how to act, giving them one very important rule to not eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  They disobeyed, got evicted from the garden.  Man lived without written rules from God for centuries until Moses was anointed to lead God’s people, Israel out of Egypt.  God spoke to Moses who wrote His commandments on stone tablets so that man would have the needed guidelines so that we could properly worship and serve God.  There were many other directions that were given to Moses that went along with the commandments, how to live safely in the desert, how to come humbly before God, through priests.  We still couldn’t get it right.  We needed an example to help us see and understand. God did that for us through Jesus, as stated very clearly in the gospel of John.  All we have to do now, instead of lists of directions in the Old Testament with old blood sacrifices and priest intervention, is believe.  Simply believe.  And in believing then change ourselves to be godly, not sinners.  Jesus led by example so that we would SEE how we are supposed to act and behave.  He taught the disciples who became His apostles who went out into the world and showed all who would listen how to turn toward God through Jesus.

Evangelist Pastor John Collins of Love That Cross Ministry and Revival that began in Wheatland, Wyoming was called by God over 10 years ago to serve Him.  Pastor Collins was not a godly man, he will tell you he didn’t believe in God and had very little experience with God and Jesus in his life.  That has changed for him because he accepted Jesus into his heart as his Lord and Savior.  Now he clings to the Cross that is everyone’s salvation with all his strength and all his might.  Why?  Because he knows that Jesus is the only Hope that this sad, lost, and seemingly hopeless world has.  Wyoming was a turning point in Pastor John’s career as an Evangelist.  He had his first revival there through Love That Cross, and he has been leading more people to Christ ever since.

An evangelist is someone who is set apart by God to teach the ways of God.  God knows that people are visual and hands on learners, merely reading and hearing the words in the Bible isn’t enough, even though it should be.  We need to see how to act, too.  Evangelists are in the public eye because they are outspoken and profess their faith so plainly that it is hard to ignore them.  They make you uncomfortable because they cause you to take a look at what you are doing in your life, or at least that is what an evangelist is supposed to do. 

Pastor John Collins shows us that in order to get to God, we have to believe in Jesus.  We have to act like Jesus Christ.  We have to act like Christians.  There is where we fail horribly, to ACT like Christians.  Christians are supposed to help the poor, Christians are supposed to treat others as they would like to be treated.  The two commandments Jesus taught were to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength….to Jews this is part of the Shema and is the foundation of their faith in God…and the other commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself.  Pastor John Collins not only teaches these commandments in each and every one of his sermons, he acts them so that people can see how Christians are supposed to act.  Christians aren’t supposed to show up in a church pew on a Sunday and act Christ-like for that hour or so of worship.  Christians are supposed to act Christ-like every minute of every day.  We fall far short of that.  Pastor John teaches and walks the walk.  He lives humbly.  So many evangelists who are in the public eye have multi-million dollar homes, expensive new cars, designer clothing and pristine mega churches that they launch their ministry from.  Pastor John lives in a middle class home, drives used vehicles and preaches from pulpits of moderate to small churches all over the country.  He is quick to help the little girl who walks into a church in her pajamas and carrying a doll, not only in feeding her, but helping the family find a way to manage the reality of latchkey children left on their own.  A conversation with a diabetic woman reveals that she has no food and is unable to get out to a store because she is ill.  A phone call to an area food bank and senior center from Pastor John helps the woman get through.  An addict who needed to get into rehab couldn’t find an open bed was assisted into a rehab center that hadn’t had any beds open.  Waiting in line at a fast food drive through, Pastor John has been known to pay for the meals of the car behind him.  Taking people in off the street to allow them a meal and place to stay, opening one of his churches up on frigid nights as a shelter to those who have nowhere else to go…all are examples of being Christ-like in the life of Pastor John Collins.

It isn’t only the acts toward people in need, it is living the fruits of the spirit, every day, in everyday life:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  It is being truthful, having integrity, standing in faith of God in the face of the world and not caring what the world says about him.  Pastor John says frequently “Being Christian isn’t about going to church on Sunday.  Sure, it is good to go to church to worship Jesus, but it is what you get out of the sermon, what you do in your everyday life that matters as a Christian.  It’s what you do from Sunday to Sunday that counts, not showing up and putting your time in.  Just because you go into a garage doesn’t make you a car, and just because you go to church doesn’t make you a Christian.  It’s what you do that matters.”  Pastor John takes his faith seriously.  He takes his relationship with God seriously, he takes the salvation offered by Jesus seriously.  He walks that walk every day, every minute.  He admits he is a sinner, he knows that he isn’t perfect, but he also knows that people are watching and need an example to live by, just like 2000 years ago when God sent Jesus to show mankind how to act.  Pastor John strives to show how we are to act as humans, as Christians.  At the end of the day, he asks for forgiveness and repents of the sins and gets up the next day to try and try and try to be the best that he can be, for God and for Jesus. 

He means it when he says “God is never secondary in my life, He is always Primary”- Pastor John Collins

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS: REVIVE OUR FAITH

 Evangelist Pastor John Collins began Love That Cross Ministries with a focus on revival.  It began in Wheatland, Wyoming and spread across the country.  Revival of faith, revival of Christianity, not religion, but the revival of the HOPE that comes from acknowledging Jesus as a savior of mankind, ALL of us, is the central purpose of Love That Cross Ministry and Revival.  Without Jesus, there is no Hope.  The sorrow, the sadness, the pain, the anger, the violence that comes with living in the world today seems unbearable.  Pastor John preaches that it IS possible to have HOPE.  That hope is submitting all to the love that is Jesus and God.  Pastor John Collins has based the ministry Love That Cross on Hope. 

This country needs HOPE.  The epidemic of violence, continuing issues of racism, younger and younger people becoming addicted to drugs, domestic violence, fear, child kidnappings…..all of this is drowning the United States in a wave of hopelessness.  That hopelessness is coming from the deliberate choice of the society of the United States in general turning its back on God and His Son Jesus. Those who are Christians and were once addicts and alcoholics who have turned their lives around will flat out attest to the HOPE that can be found in giving it all up to Jesus.  Jesus IS Hope.  His death on the Cross gave us the Hope for eternal life, and He gave us Hope to be able to endure the day to day pain and struggle that we deal with here that is life as a human being.

Who took our hope away? To some degree, we have willingly given it away through political correctness, fear, trends of society.  We as Christians allowed men to “interject their will upon the people and Christianity has suffered. Religion will get you nowhere if you are complying with the traditions of men while ignoring the commandments of God, “says Pastor John. Knowing Jesus, allowing Him into your heart, having faith in Him to help carry us through a day has been twisted into canned sermons and litanies, false doctrines meant to sell a product rather than to save souls, or even lukewarm “God loves everyone, so be happy” attitudes:  all meant to keep people sitting in a pew on a Sunday, but not meant to stir the heart or the soul into repentance.  Pastor John Collins calls a spade a spade. Faith is meant to save souls, to guide lives toward righteousness and to keep hope alive. Faith is meant to carry you through the tough times and to help you get to heaven. Churches continue with their traditions and doctrines that man has implemented; people continue attending them because they are comforted by the familiar.  That comfort is not providing a growing population in heaven. It is time to step out of that comfort zone and wake up.

People have got to wake up and see that Christianity is broken and needs truth and healing. People need to turn away from the glitter and the traditions that have them going through the motions of worship only to leave them without the tools to apply the gospel to their lives in any real way.  When was the last time you could recall details about a sermon given on a Sunday all the way through a week until the next service, or even a month or more after it was spoken?  THOSE sermons are the ones that have touched a heart, sparked a soul, moved someone to think about and reconsider what they are doing in their lives.  THOSE sermons make us, all sinners, wonder about whether we really are heading to heaven by saying we are Christian, or if we have work to do.  Looking at the society in which we live, it’s a pretty good indication that we all have work to do.  Not enough people know that there is a God or that Jesus even exists, not to mention those of us who profess to be Christian on Sunday but walk past the woman on the sidewalk on Tuesday who simply needs a meal or help off of the street into safety. There is a lot of work to be done.  Pastor John calls it as it is:  we HAVE turned from God as a nation and slapped Him away from our homes, families, children, our hearts. The time is NOW, and God WILL help us REVIVE our faith, IF we turn to Him and His Son Jesus.

God is waiting and willing to help us come to learn the truth and to embrace that truth. People must be willing to want that honest relationship that genuine faith provides.  We can’t continue to lie to ourselves that we can wait for another day.  We are NOT guaranteed tomorrow.  Only God knows just how long we have to work on our souls and our redemption.  We CAN’T wait.  It will be too late when we die, get there, and then go “Oops” because we didn’t do anything to help ourselves, even though help was available.  We no longer believe that God is paying attention nor do we believe whole-heartedly that He will intervene in our lives directly. Oh, we say we do, but it is obvious in our lack of obedience that we do not fear any real repercussions from God. We do NOT respect or revere God.  We do not fear Him.

Jesus does offer salvation to us for free. Yet, He Himself has demanded that we repent, sin no more, and that we obey God’s commandments. He also said for us to fear Him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. Do we take Him seriously and adjust our behavior accordingly or are we just banking on that price being paid and going about our lives with evil hearts and evil minds acting in evil ways and speaking evil words? Think about the standard that is set by Jesus. Think about the requirements of our faith. We cannot just say that we believe. We must believe so strongly that we are moved to change our ways. Remember the young man who was obedient to the law and yet was told by Jesus to sell all and give to the poor and follow when he asked what must he do to have eternal life? We cannot do some. We must do all. If you are not doing all that the Lord has commanded you cannot be assured of claiming the salvation He offers.

Begin again by coming to truly fear God. Renew your faith by refocusing your priorities in life. Claim your salvation by a belief that is so strong you know that nothing else in your life matters in comparison. That is saving faith. Know that no matter what amount of faith and obedience you have today, you can always and should always seek more.  That is the faith that will give us HOPE.

“God is never secondary in my life, He is always Primary”- Pastor John Collins.