Chip Brogden CHURCH WITHOUT WALLS

Hi Elaine,

Last week we discussed how religion injected itself into the King James Version.

Instead of imagining that believers in the New Testament were wrapped up in a false religious system like the one we created, we found an alternative explanation:

"The Body of Christ is the Family of God."

As a family, you naturally have those who are "older" - these are the elders.

And those elders are supposed to watch over, protect, and help the ones who are "younger" in the Lord.

This is how normal-functioning families behave.

It's also a great way for thinking about how spiritual truth is handed down.

Yes, there is a place is this Family of God for both men and women to teach and to pass on lessons learned to those coming along after them.

(Unlike the male-dominated Institutional Church corporation, God's Family has both elder men and elder women - and only one Head of the House!)

We'll explore this in depth this week:

SOUND DOCTRINE (Titus 2)
Thursday, April 18, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching.


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com


PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Spiritual Leadership: Who Needs It?
by Chip Brogden
All around us, institutions are failing and losing influence. Governments are in turmoil. Our schools are a mess. The Institutional Church is compromised and has lost its moral and spiritual authority. Our communities are in crisis. Marriage is being re-defined and the Biblical idea of “family” is becoming more and more of a rarity.
 
As people lose faith in these institutions and the people who lead them they are tempted to dismiss the idea of leadership altogether – particularly when the only leadership they have ever experienced has been an autocratic, dictatorial kind of leadership. When it comes to spiritual leadership, this causes many believers to say, “Who needs leaders? We all have the Holy Spirit. Let’s just be led of the Lord!”

This sounds perfectly acceptable in theory; but in actual practice, we see that God still raises up and uses spiritual leadership to bring His people where He wants them to be...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/spiritual-leadership-who-needs-it/

Hi Elaine,

We'll discuss some "hard truths" tonight, expose the traditions of men, and even discuss how religion has infected the Bible with its nonsense, leading many people astray from the simplicity of Christ.


If you haven't registered for tonight's online Bible study, there is still time:

WHO ARE THE ELDERS? (Titus 1)
Thursday, April 11, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible


Joining us online gives you access to the presentation graphics and the interactive Q & A with me personally.

Don't miss out!


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com


PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

It is a great mistake to read what the New Testament says about "church" and think the religious system we created is somehow described in Scripture.

It's like shooting an arrow and painting a target around wherever it happens to land.

Those who talk about "church government" especially love the pastoral epistles of Paul, where he talks about bishops and deacons and elders and such.

But all these things have been corrupted by the spirit of religion into something Paul never imagined.

Even the devil can quote Scripture to defend his distortions of reality!

Let's strip all our modern-day notions of "church" and look at what believers in Jesus experienced long before there was a church building on every corner.

A great place to start is with the elders.

Who are the elders?

Why does the KJV call them "bishops"?

(A classic example of taking a religious title and injecting it into Scripture to give it a semblance of Scriptural authority.)

Do we still need elders?

If not, why not?

If so, what are their qualifications?

I hope you can join us this week as we kickoff a new series of studies:

WHO ARE THE ELDERS? (Titus 1)
Thursday, April 11, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

It's free to register, but your gift (of any amount) helps us to make it freely available.


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

To Him That Overcomes
by Chip Brogden
“And they overcame [the dragon] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their Testimony, and they loved not their own lives unto the death” (Revelation 12:11).
 
Who is an Overcomer? If the Overcomers are not earthly conquerors or crusaders, what are they? Overcomers are simply Christians who live the normal Christian life. That is, the normal Christian life, as God intends, is a life that overcomes. It is not a life that is defeated. So what is the “normal” Christian life? It is a life which demonstrates the preeminence of Jesus Christ over all things.

How do we measure victory or defeat? What characterizes one Christian as an Overcomer, and another Christian as defeated? In Revelation 12:11 we see exactly what an Overcomer is – someone who defeats the dragon. Obviously the dragon symbolizes the devil. We see three arenas of conflict in which Overcomers are made. There is the blood of the Lamb, the word of their Testimony, and “loving not” their lives...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/to-him-that-overcomes/
   
 
PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

If you haven't registered yet, we still have room for you at tonight's online Bible study...

LIVING BY GOD'S POWER (2 Cor. 13)
Thursday, April 4, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Looking forward to it!


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

Paul has revealed some very practical lessons in how God's strength is perfected in our weakness.

You see, God does not always take away the weakness, but He gives more grace.

And His grace is sufficient!

This is the work of the Cross - not to avoid death, but the bring life out of death.

That is Paul's point in this week's chapter:

"Christ was crucified in weakness, but He lives by God's power."

Now, the same spirit that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you.

Have you embraced the Cross?

Have you accepted that weakness?

Only then can you live by God's power.

We'll discuss these things in the concluding message this week:

LIVING BY GOD'S POWER (2 Cor. 13)
Thursday, April 4, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

These classes are free. Your donation (of any amount) is appreciated but not required.

I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Lonely, But Never Alone
by Chip Brogden
Let us press into Christ with all our heart, and not be discouraged if we find ourselves temporarily without the fellowship and comfort of our brothers and sisters. 
 
The more in tune with the Lord we become, the more dissatisfied and uncomfortable we become with what is being said and done in His Name. Yet, there is an uncomfortable pause between where we used to be and where we are called to be. It is a lonely time in which we will be misunderstood by many that have not seen what we have seen.

What God is impressing upon many of us who are in-between the church as a building and the church as a lifestyle is how to walk ALONE. We must not forsake the assembling of ourselves together when we are able to do so; yet God would have us learn to fellowship with Christ, even it means to take the lonely path...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/lonely-but-never-alone/

Hi Elaine,

Last chance to register for tonight's online Bible study:

STRENGTH PERFECTED IN WEAKNESS (2 Cor. 12)
Thursday, March 28, 2019
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Hope to "see" you there!


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

The Prisoners of the Lord
by Chip Brogden
There is a liberty that is really not liberty at all, it is a kind of disguised bondage. 
 
Many will proclaim themselves to be “free” when it should be clear that true freedom is not the ability to do as I please, but to be free from doing as I please; for when I do as I please, when I follow my own will and my own way, it just leads to more bondage.

On the other hand, there is a bondage that is really not bondage at all, it is a kind of disguised liberty. The prisoners of the Lord know something of this “disguised liberty”. By stretching forth their arms to be dressed and led about by Another, they seem to be throwing away all their “rights”. How strange, we think, that the Lord often puts His greatest ambassadors in chains – literally and figuratively. But the prisoners of the Lord have more liberty in their “bondage” than most people have in their “liberty”...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/the-prisoners-of-the-lord/

Hi Elaine,

Right after Paul reminds us of our spiritual warfare, he reveals the primary purpose of the war being waged against us.

It is: to corrupt our minds and lead us astray from the simplicity of Christ (2 Cor. 11).

See?

The enemy can't touch your spirit (if you belong to God).

But your own head can get in the way of your heart.

And the primary way satan leverages this is to use religion to complicate our walk with God.

If we would just sit at His feet and hear His Word, all would be well.

Instead we are so full of thoughts, questions, concerns, doubts, fears.

We are so full of opinions, attitudes, beliefs, ideas of what is correct and incorrect.

Before you know it things "about" the Lord become more important than the Lord Himself.

Legalism replaces Love.

Religion replaces Relationship.

You can't let that happen.

To win this war requires a new way of thinking.


Join us for this week's online Bible study to explore this further...

THE SIMPLICITY OF CHRIST (2 Cor. 11)
Thursday, March 21, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Your optional gift (small or large) makes these classes possible.

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!


I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA  

Hi Elaine,

If you haven't registered for tonight's online Bible study, we still have room for you!

THE SIMPLICITY OF CHRIST (2 Cor. 11)
Thursday, March 21, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible


Among other things, I'll explain why religion is the crowning achievement of satan.

Let in the Light and expose the lie!


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

The Abundant Life
by Chip Brogden
The measure of Christ in a person will increase in exact proportion to the measure that their Self-Life is decreased.
 
Well, how does that happen? It happens quite naturally, as we keep hitting our head against the same impossible situations, the same besetting sins, the same difficulties and disappointments over and over again – and eventually we come to the place of saying, along with Paul, “I know that in me – that is, in my flesh, in my Self – dwells no good thing. I no longer have confidence in my flesh.I have learned that the Branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the Vine. So I cast myself upon the Lord, and I trust in His Life to raise me up, to work a miracle, to do what I cannot do myself.”
 
That is spiritual maturity. Now Jesus can do something, and He takes up right where we leave off...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/the-abundant-life/

Hi Elaine,

A lot of "weirdness" happens when Christians talk about spiritual warfare.

We're going to keep it simple.

The battle is not "out there" but "in here."

Join us tonight to see what I mean...

THE WEAPONS OF OUR WARFARE (2 Cor. 10)
Thursday, March 14, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

We'll pray and study Scripture together!

I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com


P.S. If you cannot join us at the date and time above, register anyway and you'll be notified when the audio replay is available.

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

Did you know that you are in a spiritual war?

Of course you know it.

Do you know who your biggest enemy is?

No, it's not the devil.

Take a look at yourself in the mirror.

THAT'S your biggest enemy, staring back and you.

The stuff going on IN YOUR OWN HEAD is where the battle is.

Emotions... feelings... thoughts... arguments... biases... opinions... excuses... traditions...

These are the "high things" that exalt themselves against God.

When Jesus tells us to pray, "Deliver us from evil" I always find myself praying, "Yes Lord... Deliver us from OURSELVES!"

Because YOU are your own worst enemy.

You can say "Amen!" or say "Oh me!" but you know it's the truth :-)

This week we'll explore what the Bible has to say about all this.

Will you join us?

THE WEAPONS OF OUR WARFARE (2 Cor. 10)
Thursday, March 14, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!


I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Make a Fresh Start With God

by Chip Brogden
 
It really is not a matter of accepting Him. He is Lord whether you accept Him or not; to be His disciple, He must accept you. 
 
The Good News is that He will accept all who come to Him and submit to Him as Savior and Lord.
 
Peter did not “accept the Lord Jesus as his personal Savior.” When Peter saw Him, “He fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord'” (Lk. 5:8). This does not sound like much of an invitation, but it contains all the elements of a true conversion...

READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/make-a-fresh-start-with-god/

Hi Elaine,

I find it interesting that Scripture actually talks about giving.

It turns out that money is kind of a big deal in life!

People are born takers, not givers.

There are only two ways to get people to do something that doesn't come naturally to them:

1. Make a law and threaten them (tithe or be cursed!)

2. Change their heart.

Both work to some extent.

In the O.T., giving was legislated into tithes and offerings.

In the N.T. (thankfully) all those laws were dropped in favor of the Law of Love.

With the Law of Love, God changes our hearts and turns us into cheerful givers.

At least, in theory...

***Because some believers have not had an actual change of heart when it comes to money.***

Why?

One reason is because the religious system has hammered at them to TITHE.

So, when people leave the religious system, they are so relieved at not having to tithe that they stop giving altogether.

It's a common problem that I've seen this happen consistently over more than 20 years.


We need to distinguish between forced giving (O.T.) and cheerful giving (N.T.).

The Bible says that your attitude towards giving and receiving is more about your heart than your bank account.

We'll dive into this during this week's online Bible study:

GIVING AND RECEIVING IN THE NEW COVENANT, PART 2 (2 Cor. 9)
Thursday, March 7, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!


I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

P.S. If you come to the study you'll learn why we CANNOT charge you to attend, but why we CAN ask you to give! :-)

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

The Cure for "Prophetic Pains"
by Chip Brogden
I can’t easily think of a single genuine prophetic experience I’ve received from others in the last ten years. But...
 
I can quickly relate a dozen experiences I’ve had with flaky people (both men and women) who thought they were “prophetic.” They always show up at my meetings and want to pray for me. Then they always think they “see” something wrong with me, or they want to give me a “word.” And they are always off the mark.

This used to bother and upset me – now, I try to have a little fun with it.
One lady gave me the great revelation that there was something “wrong with my heart.”
 
“Really? What is it?” I asked.
 
She looked around and leaned in close to me…
 
“Bitterness!” she whispered gravely, crossing her arms and leaning back in a triumphant stance, satisfied that she had prophetically diagnosed my hidden condition and exposed Chip Brogden as a bitter, hurt, angry young man....
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/the-cure-for-prophetic-pains/

Hi Elaine,

There's still room for you at tonight's online Bible study if you have not registered yet:

GIVING AND RECEIVING IN THE NEW COVENANT, PART 1 (2 Cor. 8)
Thursday, February 28, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

We'll look at the BIGGEST difference between tithing in the OT and giving in the NT.

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com




PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

Hard to believe February is almost over!

And we are making excellent progress through Second Corinthians.

This week we come to a big section where Paul gives us some of the best teaching you'll find in the New Testament on giving and receiving.

Why is that important?

Because so many people have been beat up in the religious system over TITHING for so many years.

And a lot of them have a negative reaction to anyone talking about giving and receiving.

"Freely you have received, freely give!" they love to quote Jesus as saying.

But they don't quote the whole thing.

The reason Jesus said the disciples could "freely give" and take nothing with them is because He said the people they ministered to would support them! "The worker is worthy of his wages."

So the negative reaction to giving and receiving is yet another piece of baggage leftover from the religious system that we need to let go of.

Giving and receiving should be a joyful thing, not a burdensome thing.

Certainly not a manipulative or fearful thing.

This week, let's open our hearts and minds and see what else the New Testament has to say about your money and what you do with it!

GIVING AND RECEIVING IN THE NEW COVENANT, PART 1 (2 Cor. 8)
Thursday, February 28, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!

I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Do We Look for Another?
by Chip Brogden
We expected His Kingdom to be thus and so, we expected Him to be thus and so, and nothing is as we expected it would be. 
 
Now we can continue believing in this One Who frustrates us so, this One Who seems to be moving so slowly, or we can look for another, someone who can be depended upon, someone who makes sense, someone who always answers us according to our own thoughts, desires, needs, and schedule. Someone who does not require us to be decreased in order for him to be increased, someone who does not talk about denying ourselves and taking up a cross, but will just love us the way we are and let us be who we are. Are you the One, Jesus? Will you allow us to make You into what we want you to be, or do we look for another?

This “looking for another” is the entire object of our adversary, that spirit of Antichrist that is forever trying to corrupt us “from the simplicity of Christ” (II Corinthians 11:3), always trying to get us to leave “Him that called you” to follow after “another Gospel” (Galatians 1:6), which really is no other, Paul says, only the appearance of Another, Something Else, or Someone Else... 
                READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/do-we-look-for-another/

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

Repentance is not "one and done" - it is a wonderful way of walking with Jesus and growing spiritually.

And it's not all about "sins" (although that's one part of it).


Join us for tonight's online Bible study to learn more, including something very surprising about repentance!

THE WONDERFUL WAY OF REPENTANCE (2 Cor. 7)
Thursday, February 21, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com


PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

Repentance is such a fascinating thing.

We typically associate repentance with sinners who need to repent of their sins to be saved.

Repentance is so much more than that.

Repentance is a process of adjusting my beliefs and aligning my behavior with God.

Repentance is not a once-and-for-all event, but is a process of spiritual growth and maturity.

God is constantly revealing something of His Will and His Ways to us, and we are constantly adjusting ourselves to Him.

I don't know of anyone that is perfectly aligned and adjusted to God in all areas.

Except One!

And this One frequently calls upon us to repent: to change our minds, change our hearts, and change our behavior.

I'm calling this process "The Wonderful Way of Repentance."

It implies that we are constantly growing and learning, and that the more we learn of Him, the more repentance we experience as we willingly stop resisting Him and embrace a Higher Purpose.

As I say, this process is at work in everyone - transforming sinners into saints, spiritual babes into spiritual adults.

Join us this week as we study how this spiritual process is working in YOU!

THE WONDERFUL WAY OF REPENTANCE (2 Cor. 7)
Thursday, February 21, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Thank you for supporting Christ-centered teaching!

I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

John: The Apostle of Testimony
by Chip Brogden
If you read John’s Gospel you will find that it is harmonious with Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but it is also quite apart from them. There is a profoundness there that is not present in the others.
 
As the Church increasingly came under the influence of Antichrist, both from within and from without, John wrote his Gospel long after the other three. If you read John’s Gospel you will find that it is harmonious with Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but it is also quite apart from them. There is a profoundness there that is not present in the others. We are not suggesting one Gospel is more inspired that the other, we simply say that the Gospel of John has a certain fragrance not found anywhere else. This is because it was written for a specific purpose during a specific time, and the circumstances surrounding its writing is different from the circumstances surrounding the writing of the other three...
READ MORE https://www.chipbrogden.com/john-the-apostle-of-testimony/

Hi Elaine,

We still have room for you on tonight's Bible study:

CO-LABORING WITH GOD (2 Cor. 6)
Thursday, February 14, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

Hope to "see" you there!


I am your brother,


Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com



PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA

Hi Elaine,

I think we make things too complicated.

Take ministry, for example.

The idea that some have a special calling and ministry puts a lot of pressure on a person to perform, trying to live up to some impossible standard of what we have decided "ministry" is supposed to be.

Miserable, melancholy ministers don't really express the freedom and joy of a Christ-centered faith, do they?

Besides... lifting up some as "special" makes the rest feel left out, or worse, makes them feel like they can just sit back and be entertained by the professional clergy.

I think we need to redefine what ministry is.

Once we do, we'll see that all of us are called to a ministry of loving God and loving others.

Certainly, how we go about doing that is different, depending on our particular gifts, place and function.

But now matter what we call it or how we go about it, the motivation for ministry should be the same:

"THE LOVE OF GOD COMPELS US..."

Yes!

(We learned that last week.)

And with LOVE as the proper motivation for ministry, we discover that the Good News is really wonderful and worth sharing.

We are not building our own little ministry or doing our own little thing.

Instead, we enter into this great co-laboring with God - meaning, we are working in harmony with what HE wants to accomplish.

Instead of trying to get God to do what WE want Him to do, we simply find out what God is already doing, and we flow in that.

With LOVE as the motivation, the message is pure, and we can endure anything.

You don't need permission, prophecy, a vision, a dream, or even a Board.

You don't even need people to pray for you and support you - it's nice when they do, but LOVE compels you to do what you do, whether people support you or not.

Radical concept, to be sure.

So let's dig into the Scriptures and explore this is greater depth this week:

CO-LABORING WITH GOD (2 Cor. 6)
Thursday, February 14, 2018
7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (New York)

Go here to register for free:
--> http://chipbrogden.com/bible

These classes are free - we freely provide them, and you freely support them - as the Lord enables.


I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://ChipBrogden.com

PO Box 282
Bunn NC 27508
USA