Feeding His Sheep

Pastor "Ron" Ely

A Ministry of Pastor Ronald R. "Ron" Ely

What's It All About?

"Feeding His Sheep Ministry" is an extension of the ministries of Ron Ely. After many years of service to our Lord, Ron has answered a call to begin a new ministry. "Feeding His Sheep" is aimed at Christians who feel they have not achieved the fullness of the Christian life.

To quote Ron, "My 47-year study of the Bible convinces me that Jesus Christ gave the instructions and made the provisions for us to live this life in joy, peace, and victory, rather than in frustration and defeat".

Ron is an accomplished teacher who is both capable and qualified to help other Christians learn how to incorporate the promises of God's word into their daily lives and enjoy the peace and contentment available to them.

If you're like me, the first thing you want to know about someone that's going to teach you something, is whether they practice what they teach and if it works for them. Again, quoting Ron, "I've learned not to worry and not to be depressed. I just don't have a bad day. I have found that it is a lot more effective to pray about a problem than to worry about it". I've known Ron for years and have witnessed this truth in his life.

L-R: Ron Ely, Pastor Ohene Kumi (Accra Ghana), and Richard Little (Equipping The Saints) in front of Equipping the Saints Headquarters in Weyers Cave, VA

Ron Ely with EBAC Children

Ron Ely with Pastor Cebien Alexis in Haiti

Pastor Ohene Kumi with Court and Sandy Wood of "In Jesus' Name Ministry"

Missionary Flights International at Cap Haitian Airport

Ron Ely with Pastor Ohene Kumi, Teaching the Word

Fellowship of Christian Safety Professionals

The Six Principles on Which the Teachings of "Feeding His Sheep" are Based

In order for a Born Again Christian to walk in all the peace, joy, and victory that Jesus Christ taught about and provided for, certain decisions need to be made, and certain actions need to be taken by the individual. The Bible clearly shows that the following decisions and actions on the part of the individual Christian will greatly enhance his walk with the Lord and his peace, joy, and victory. The mission of this ministry shall be to take advantage of every opportunity offered to "Feed His Sheep" by teaching these principles where ever and when ever possible:

1. The Christian's Relationship To God Is Through Jesus The Christ, The Only Mediator Between God And Man, And Not Through Other People Or The Church.

Other people and the church can help believers strengthen their relationship to God, but their relationship to God is not through other people. "God has no grandchildren, only children."

The success of a good Christian teacher is often determined by how much he or she stimulates a student to dig out the information for themselves, rather than feeding them the information. Too often pastors and teachers do not recognize this, and thus make the student dependent on the teacher rather than on the source of the information - The Word of God.

NAS 1 Timothy 2:4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 for there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

NAS Acts 4:12 "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved."

NAS Romans 8:15 for you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him.

2. The Christian's Relationship To God Is The Most Important Single Factor Concerning His Peace, Joy, And Victory. Therefore, it Is Wise To Give That Relationship the Attention It Deserves.

Why should we give so much time to things that benefit us little or not at all, when we could spend that time studying God's word, meditating on it, and praying; so that our relationship to God would be strengthened? Nothing else comes close to giving Christians as much benefit for the time invested. Yet we live in a society full of demands on our time and often relegate our Bible study and prayer time to such a low priority that it is woefully inadequate for our spiritual health.

NAS Matthew 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.

NAS Acts 17:10 And the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea; and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so. 12 Many of them therefore believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men.

NAS 1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, 2 like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, 3 if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

NAS 2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge; 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness; 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; 11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. 12 Therefore, I shall always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. 13 And I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, 14 knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you may be able to call these things to mind. 16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, "This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased "-- 18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. 19 And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

3. Daily, Serious Study Of The Bible Is Essential For The Christian's Strengthening Of His Relationship To God. Therefore, It Becomes Essential To Show Him The Validity Of The Scripture, Teach Him How To Study The Bible, And Thus Create A Hunger And A Thirst In His Heart For An Understanding Of The Scripture.

Many Christians never develop that hunger and thirst for God's word because they are never shown the validity of it nor taught how to study it. Starting them out with the right translation for them and showing them how to use an Exhaustive Concordance is essential. Most Bible scholars agree that the King James Version, New American Standard Bible, and New International Version are all true to the original manuscripts, and Exhaustive Concordances are available for all three. An Exhaustive Concordance is absolutely essential for an understanding of the Bible, because most translations, including these, were translated from the original Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament and Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, one word for one word. Then as well as know, many words in every language have words for which another particular language does not have a word for, so a word was often chosen by the translators that conveys only part of the original meaning. The Bible student can look up any word in the Bible in an Exhaustive Concordance and find out what the original Hebrew or Greek word was and what the original meaning was. Following are prime examples:

Saved….Sozo=to save, bring safely, cured, get well, made well, preserved, restored.

Believe…Pisteuo=believe, entrust, has faith,

Abundantly (John 10:10)…Perissos=, advantage, excessive, much more abundantly.

NAS John 8:31 Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

NAS 2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.

NAS John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him

NAS 1 John 2:27 And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him.

4. Help The Christian To Reach The Conclusion That The Bible Is True, God Cannot Lie, Jesus Is The Same Forever, And He Is No Respecter Of Persons. Therefore, The Christian Should Develop The Attitude That If He Prays For Guidance, Healing, Financial Needs, Or Whatever else, But Does Not Receive The Answer Right Away, Then He Would Assume He Has Prayed Incorrectly And Needs To Go Back To His Bible To Find The Correct Way To Pray.

NAS Numbers 23:19 "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

NAS Malachi 3:6 "For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.

NAS Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.

NAS Romans 11:29 for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

NAS John 14:11 "Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me; otherwise believe on account of the works themselves. 12 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to the Father. 13 "And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. 15 "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. 16 "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you.

NAS Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.

NAS 1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.

5. Jesus Made It Very Clear That The Baptism Of The Holy Spirit, Is A Second And Destinct Decision And Experience Following The Believer's Accepting Jesus Christ As His Lord And Savior. It Is Essential For All Believers, In Order For Them To Understand His Word And Do The Works That He Commanded Them To Do.

Jesus did no mighty works or miracles until after he was Baptized by The Holy Spirit, following His being water baptized by John the Baptist (Mark 1: 9-11). One need only to follow the life of the apostle Peter through the Gospels and into the book of Acts, to see what the difference the Baptism of The Holy Spirit makes in ones life. The Christian should ask himself if he wants to follow the example of Peter in the Gospel accounts, or Peter in the book of Acts account.

NAS Matthew 3:11 "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

NAS John 14:16 "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. 18 "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 "After a little while the world will behold Me no more; but you will behold Me; because I live, you shall live also. 20 "In that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me; and he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and will disclose Myself to him." 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us, and not to the world?" 23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him. 24 "He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me. 25 "These things I have spoken to you, while abiding with you. 26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. 27 "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.

NAS John 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. 8 "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; 11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. 12 "I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. 14 "He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you. 15 "All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said, that He takes of Mine, and will disclose it to you.

NAS Acts 1:4 And gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6 And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, "Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

NAS Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. 5 Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because they were each one hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and marveled, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 "And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? 9 "Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs-- we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God." 12 And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" 13 But others were mocking and saying, "They are full of sweet wine." 14 But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: "Men of Judea, and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give heed to my words. 15 "For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; 16 but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall be in the last days,' God says, 'That I will pour forth of My Spirit upon all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, And your young men shall see visions, And your old men shall dream dreams; 18 Even upon My bondslaves, both men and women, I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit And they shall prophesy. 19 'And I will grant wonders in the sky above, And signs on the earth beneath, Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke. 20 'The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the great and glorious day of the Lord shall come. 21 'And it shall be, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.' 22 "Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know-- 23 this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. 24 "And God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. 25 "For David says of Him, 'I was always beholding the Lord in my presence; For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. 26 'Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue exulted; Moreover my flesh also will abide in hope; 27 Because Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay. 28 'Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; Thou wilt make me full of gladness with Thy presence.' 29 "Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 "And so, because he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants upon his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. 32 "This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. 33 "Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. 34 "For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, 35 Until I make Thine enemies a footstool for Thy feet."' 36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ-- this Jesus whom you crucified." 37 Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" 38 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 "For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself." 40 And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation!" 41 So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls. 42 And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles.

NAS Mark 16:15 And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. 17 "And these signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it shall not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." 19 So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed. And they promptly reported all these instructions to Peter and his companions. And after that, Jesus Himself sent out through them from east to west the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.

NAS Acts 8:14 Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit.

6. In Order To Walk In All Of The Blessings Of God That The Bible Shows That The Believer Should Have, He Must First Know That They Are There, Believe What The Bible Says, And Act On It. God Is A Gentleman And Satan Is A Scoundrel. God Forces Nothing On His Children Without Them Asking For It, And Satan Would Conceal The Truth From Him. Believing God's Word And Endeavoring To Live Up To His Standard Is Not Enough. The Christian Must Take Positive, Appropriate Action In Order To Receive The Victory.

NAS Matthew 11:12 "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force. 13 "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 "And if you care to accept it, he himself is Elijah, who was to come. 15 "He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Satan's forces have always fought against the gospel being preached and received, so violence is needed to receive it. Complacency equals defeat.

NAS Luke 11:9 "And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. 10 "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened. 11 "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? 12 "Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? 13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

NAS John 16:23 "And in that day you will ask Me no question. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name. 24 "Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.

NAS John 16:26 "In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request the Father on your behalf; 27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from the Father.

Conclusion

When we come into an understanding of everything that is outlined in this document, we can only be possessed by a sense of awe and thankfulness for all that Jesus made available to us. When we consider the love with which he did it and the price he paid for it, how can we do anything but accept all of his precious gift and refuse none of it? How can we not appreciate his gift so much, that we feel such deep love and appreciation for what he has done for us that nothing can be more important to us than pleasing him? It also leaves us with a burning desire to share this understanding with all brethren, particularly those who are completely unaware of it and walking in defeat in some areas of their life. The mission of this ministry shall be to do everything possible to feed this message of peace, joy, and victory to his sheep, where ever they may be.

Ask Ron to Make a Presentation to Your Church or Group

Ron fulfills as many requests for teaching as he possibly can. If you're interested in having him make a presentation to your group, you can call him at (910) 259-4120 write: 3464 Murray Town Road, Burgaw, NC 28425, or email him at elytrail@bellsouth.net.

Support Ron In Ministry

Ron is dependent upon donations to operate his many ministry outreach and support programs. If you feel led to make a contribution to the ministries of Pastor Ron Ely, and receive a tax-deductible receipt for your contribution, make your check payable to In Jesus' Name Ministries. Mail the check to "In Jesus' Name Ministries" designating what ministry you are contributing to. Within days, "In Jesus' Name Ministries" will mail a check to Ron for the exact amount of your check, along with a notation of who made the contribution. At the same time, I.J.N.M. will mail you a tax-deductible receipt.

In Jesus' Name Ministries

P.O. Box 350

Strasburg, VA 22657-0350

Phone (540) 465-4755

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