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Producer Jody Eldred Talks
About the Upcoming Release of The Passion Re-cut and His Documentary on "Miracles
of the Passion"
March 11, 2005
Aimee Herd, Reporting
Jody Eldred's life is one of those who has been greatly touched by the
portrayal of Jesus Christ's final hours in The Passion. "The Passion of the Christ
is kind of a Christian version of Saving Private Ryan," says Eldred. "There is a
whole generation of people alive in America who really didn't fully appreciate
the freedom that Americans enjoy until they saw Saving Private Ryan and the scenes
in the beginning of the film that showed the incredible sacrifice that was made
by volunteers on the beaches of Normandy. Likewise, The Passion of the Christ has
done the same thing. There were maybe generations of Christians who did not fully
appreciate the sacrifice that Jesus made, and the freedom that we have as Christians.
But after seeing that, it gives you a much greater appreciation for Jesus Himself,
and the sacrifice that He made, for our salvation . . . it's done all that for me. I've
been a Christian for a long time, but it's really impacted me quite a lot."
LINK:
http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=339
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March 11, 2005
"How
to Become Unoffendable"
by Francis Frangipane
Frangipane Ministries, Inc.
www.frangipane.org
comments@frangipane.org
The following message was
originally sent out March 21, 2002. The Holy Spirit has impressed us that the
body of Christ needs to hear this again. Thank you! - Francis Frangipane
 "I
will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the
heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." Ezekiel
36:26
God has a new heart for us that cannot be offended, an "unoffendable" heart.
Beloved, possessing an unoffendable heart is not an option or a luxury; it's not
a little thing. Consider: Jesus warns that, as we near the end of the age, a
majority of people will be offended to such a degree that they fall away from
the faith. Listen carefully to His warning:
"Then shall many be offended, and shall betray one
another, and shall hate one another . . . and because iniquity shall abound, the
love of many shall wax cold." Matthew 24:10-12, KJV
"Many" will be offended; the love of "many" will grow cold. My prayer is that we
will hear His words with holy fear.
The Dangers of Harboring
an Offense
When we allow an offense to remain in our hearts, it causes serious spiritual
consequences. In the above verse Jesus named three dangerous results: betrayal,
hatred, and cold love. When we are offended with someone, even someone we care
for, we must go to them. Otherwise, we begin to betray that relationship,
talking maliciously behind their back to others, exposing their weaknesses and
sins. We may mask our betrayal by saying we are just looking for advice or
counsel, but when we look back, we see we have spoken negatively to far too many
people. Our real goal was not to get spiritual help for ourselves but to seek
revenge toward the one who offended us. How is such action not a manifestation
of hatred? For an offended soul, cold love, betrayal, and hatred go
hand-in-hand.
People don't usually stumble over boulders, they stumble over stones --
relatively small things. It may be that the personality of someone in authority
bothers us and soon we are offended. Or, a friend or family member fails to meet
our expectations, and we take an offense into our soul. Beloved, if we will
"endure to the end," we will have to confront the things that bother us.
When Jesus warns that we need endurance, He is saying that it is easier to begin
the race than finish it. Between now and the day you die, there will be major
times of offense that you will need to overcome. You might be in such a time
right now. Do not minimize the danger of harboring an offense.
No one plans on falling away; no one ever says, "Today, I think I'll try to
develop a hardened, cold heart." Such things enter our souls through stealth and
it is only naiveté that assumes it couldn't happen to us. I know many people who
consistently become offended about one thing or another. Instead of dealing with
the offenses, these people carry them until the weight disables their walk with
God. You may be doing fine today, but I guarantee you, tomorrow something will
happen that will inevitably disappoint or wound you; some injustice will strike
you, demanding you retaliate in the flesh.
The Root Of Offense
An offense can strike at our virtues or sins, our values or our pride. It can
penetrate and wound any dimension of the soul, both good and evil. I once
brought a series of messages about gossip. Most people saw their sin and
repented, but a core group of gossips were greatly offended and ultimately left
the church. When the Holy Spirit exposes sin in someone's soul, if we refuse the
opportunity to repent, we often become offended at the person who brought the
teaching. Instead of humbling our hearts, we are outraged at the pastor or
teachers in the church. Truthfully, most of the time, I have no idea who
specifically needs to hear what I'm teaching, but God knows.
Paul told Timothy to "reprove, rebuke, exhort" (see II Timothy 4:2). He didn't
say, "exhort, exhort, exhort," but exhortation is what we receive in most
churches. Certainly, we need to be encouraged, but there are also times,
beloved, when we need to be reproved and rebuked. Today, there are preachers who
are afraid to preach truth, for fear people will react and leave the church. The
end result is a church of easily offended people who cannot grow beyond their
inability to accept correction.
People don't change by exhortation alone. There are areas in all of us that need
to be confronted and disciplined. The pastor who refuses to discipline and
correct those in sin is in disobedience to God. He is unable to lead people into
any truly transforming changes in their lives; they will not "endure to the end"
if they cannot be corrected (see Matthew 24).
We need to become a people who say, "Lord, show me what needs to change in me."
I'm talking about growing up. A wise man will receive a rebuke and he will
prosper. But a fool rejects his father's discipline (see Proverbs 15:5).
Personal Offense
An offense can wound our pride when we are not recognized for our good works or
ministry. This happened to my wife and I long ago while in California. We were
young pastors at a conference when the main leader decided to personally greet
each minister and wife. He greeted the couple on our right and then turned to
his staff to ask a question. A moment later he returned, but passed us by and
went to the couple on our left.
Everyone around us saw we were bypassed. We were embarrassed and offended. But
my wife wisely observed that we could allow this thing to hurt us or we could
see it as an investment in sensitivity toward other people's feelings. The
offense taught us how others feel when they are ignored. Do you see this? You
must make that offense become an opportunity to become more Christlike.
The occasions for taking offense are practically endless. Indeed, we are daily
given the opportunity to either be offended by something or to possess an
unoffendable heart. The Lord's promise is that He's given us a new heart: a
soft, entreatable heart that can be filled with His Spirit and abound with His
love.
Lord, forgive me for being so easily offended and for carrying offenses.
Father, my heart is foolish and weak. Grant me the unoffendable heart of Jesus
Christ. Amen.
by Francis Frangipane
Frangipane Ministries, Inc.
www.frangipane.org
comments@frangipane.org
A service of Frangipane Ministries, Inc.
Copyright (c) 2005
All rights reserved.
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