Laura's Thoughts on Scripture

Music With A Message -The Greatest of All Miracles

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 01:02:00 +0000

This one speaks for itself: it truly was the greatest of all miracles when Jesus saved me! Without Him, I know exactly where I'd be, and I'm so thankful to Him for rescuing me from myself.

1Co 15:51 ¶ Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Co 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
1Co 15:56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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The Greatest of All Miracles (Was That Jesus Saved Me)

words and music by Squire Parsons

I wasn't there by the shores of Galilee

When Jesus touched those blinded eyes and made them see

And though I did not see the empty tomb that day

I still believed, for I know what Jesus did for me.

Chorus:

I believe there is power in the blood of the Lamb

I believe there is healing in the touch of His hand

But the greatest of all miracles was when Jesus saved me

Yes, I know what Jesus did for me

I have seen the lowest sin-sick soul

Have life anew and be made pure, pure and whole

And I have felt Him loose the chains of sin and set my spirit free

Yes, I know what Jesus did for me.

Chorus:

I believe there is power in the blood of the Lamb

I believe there is healing in the touch of His hand

But the greatest of all miracles was when Jesus saved me

Yes, I know what Jesus did for me

They're Both Coffee

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:33:00 +0000

What's the Big Deal About the KJV?

a video by Andrew Garcia

This short but effective video illustrates the difference between the King James Bible and all other modern versions. In it, a large coffee represents one line of manuscripts, with a small coffee representing a second line of manuscripts...and it is from one of these two lines that every Bible in print originates. Watch it, and you'll see what I mean.

Do you want to drink that small coffee?

Further videos on this issue can be found here.

What's the Big Deal about the KJV? from Andrew Garcia on Vimeo.

Wicked Men Useful in Their Destruction Only - Jonathan Edwards

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 02:16:00 +0000

Ten months ago, I posted a sermon by Jonathan Edwards called Sinners In The Hands of an Angry God. I think it's time for another fire and brimstone message from him.

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Ezekiel 15:2-4 Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree? Or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest? Shall wood be taken thereof to do any work? Or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon? Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; The fire devoureth both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burnt: Is it meet for any work?

The visible church of God is here compared to the vine tree, as is evident by God's own explanation of the allegory, in verses 6, 7, and 8. "Therefore thus saith the Lord God, As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem," &c. And it may be understood of mankind in general. We find man often in scripture compared to a vine. So in chapter 32 of Deuteronomy, "Their vine is the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are grapes of gall." And Psalm lxxx. 8. "Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt;" verse 14. "Look down from heaven, behold, and visit this vine." And Canticles ii. 15. "The foxes that spoil the vines; for our vines have tender grapes." Isaiah v. at the beginning, "My beloved hath a vineyard, and he planted it with the choicest vine." Jeremiah ii. 2l. "I had planted thee a noble vine." Hosea x. 1. "Israel is an empty vine." So in chapter 15 of John, visible Christians are compared to the branches of a vine.

Man is very fitly represented by the vine. The weakness and dependence of the vine on other things which support it, well represents to us what a poor, feeble, dependent creature man is, and how, if left to himself, he must fall into mischief, and cannot help himself. The visible people of God are fitly compared to a vine, because of the care and cultivation of the husbandman, or vine dresser. The business of husbandmen in the land of Israel was very much in their vineyards, about vines; and the care they exercised to fence them, to defend them, to prune them, to prop them up, and to cultivate them, well represented that merciful care which God exercises towards his visible people; and this latter is often in scripture expressly compared to the former.

In the words now read is represented,

1. How wholly useless and unprofitable, even beyond other trees, a vine is, in case of unfruitfulness: "What is a vine tree more than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?" i.e. if it do not bear fruit. Men make much more of a vine than of other trees; they take great care of it, to wall it in, to dig about it, to prune it, and the like. It is much more highly esteemed than any one of the trees of the forest; they are despised in comparison with it. And if it bear fruit, it is indeed much preferable to other trees; for the fruit of it yields a noble liquor; as it is said in Jotham's parable, Judges ix. 13. "And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man?"

But if it bear no fruit, it is more unprofitable than the trees of the forest; for the wood of them is good for timber; but the wood of the vine is fit for no work; as in the text, "Shall wood be taken thereof to do any work? Or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon?"

2. The only thing for which a vine is useful, in case of barrenness, viz. for fuel: "Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel." It is wholly consumed; no part of it is worth a saving, to make any instrument of it, for any work.

DOCTRINE.

If men bring forth no fruit to God, they are wholly useless, unless in their destruction. For the proof of this doctrine, I shall show,

1. That it is very evident, that there can be but two ways in which man can be useful, viz. either in acting, or in being acted upon, and disposed of.
2. That man can no otherwise be useful actively than by bringing forth fruit to God.
3. That if he bring not forth fruit to God, there is no other way in which he can be passively useful, but in being destroyed.
4. In that way he may be useful without bearing fruit.

I. There are but two ways in which man can be useful, viz. either in acting or being acted upon. If man be an useful sort of creature, he must be so either actively or passively: There is no medium. If he be useful to any purpose, he must be so either in acting himself, or else in being disposed of by some other; either in doing something himself to that purpose, or else in having something done upon him by some other to that purpose. What can be more plain, than that if man do nothing himself, and nothing be done with him or upon him by any other, he cannot be any way at all useful? If man do nothing himself to promote the end of his existence, and no other being do any thing with him to promote this end, then nothing will be done to promote this end; and so man must be wholly useless. So that there are but two ways in which man can be useful to any purpose, viz. either actively or passively, either in doing something himself, or in being the subject of something done to him.

II. Man cannot be useful actively, any otherwise than in bringing forth fruit to God, than in serving God, and living to his glory. This is the only way wherein he can be useful in doing; and that for this reason, that the glory of God is the very thing for which man was made, and to which all other ends are subordinate. Man is not an independent being, but he derives his being from another; and therefore hath his end assigned him by that other: And he that gave him his being, made him for the end now mentioned. This was the very design and aim of the Author of man, this was the work for which he made him, viz. to serve and glorify his Maker.

Other creatures are made for inferior purposes. Inferior creatures were made for inferior purposes. But it is to be observed, that man is the creature that is highest, and nearest to God, of any in this lower world; and therefore his business is with God, although other creatures are made for lower ends. There may be observed a kind of gradation, or gradual ascent, in the order of the different kinds of creatures, from the meanest clod of earth to man, who hath a rational and immortal soul. A plant, an herb, or tree, is superior in nature to a stone or clod, because it hath a vegetable life. The brute creatures are a degree higher still; for they have sensitive life. But man, having a rational soul, is the highest of this lower creation, and is next to God; therefore his business is with God.

Things without life, as earth, water, &c. are subservient to things above them, as the grass, herbs and trees. These vegetables are subservient to that order of creatures which is next above them, the brute creation; they are for food to them. Brute creatures, again, are made for the use and service of the order above them; they are made for the service of mankind. But man being the highest of this lower creation, the next step from him is to God. He therefore is made for the service and glory of God. This is the whole work and business of man; it is his highest end, to which all other ends are subordinate.

If it had not been for this end, there never would have been any such sort of creature as man; there would have been no occasion for it. Other inferior ends may be answered as well, without any such creature as man. There would have been no sort of occasion for making so noble a creature, and endowing him with such faculties, only to enjoy earthly good, to eat, and to drink, and to enjoy sensual things. Brute creatures, without reason, are capable of these things, as well as man; Yea, if no higher end be aimed at than to enjoy sensitive good, reason is rather an hindrance than an help. It doth but render man the more capable of afflicting himself with care, and fears of death, and other future evils, and of vexing himself with many anxieties, from which brute creatures are wholly free, and therefore can gratify their senses with less molestation. Besides, reason doth but make men more capable of molesting and impeding one another in the gratification of their senses. If man have no other end to seek but to gratify his senses, reason is nothing but an impediment.

Therefore if man be not made to serve and glorify his Creator, it is wholly to no purpose that such a creature is made. Doubtless then the all wise God, who doth all things in infinite wisdom, hath made man for this end. And this is agreeable to what he hath taught us in many places in the scriptures. This is the great end for which man was made, and for which he was made such a creature as he is, having a body and soul, bodily senses, and rational powers. For this is he placed in such circumstances as he is, and the earth is given him for a possession. For this he hath dominion given him over the rest of the creatures of this world. For this the sun shines on him, and the moon and stars are for signs and seasons to him, and the rain falls on him, and the earth yields him her increase.

All other ends of man are subordinate to this. There are inferior ends for which man was made. Men were made for one another; made for their friends and neighbors, and for the good of the public. But all these inferior ends are designed to be subordinate to the higher end of glorifying God; and therefore man cannot be actively useful, or actively answer any purpose, otherwise than by actively glorifying God, or bringing forth fruit to God. Because,

1. That is not actively useful which doth not actively answer its end. That which doth not answer its end is in vain; for that is the meaning of the proposition, that any thing is in vain. So that which doth not actively answer its end, is, as to its own activity, in vain.

2. That is as to its own activity altogether useless which actively answers only subordinate ends, without answering the ultimate end; and that because the ultimate end is the end of subordinate ends. The notion of a supreme end is, that it is the end of all inferior ends. Subordinate ends are to no purpose, only as they stand related to the highest end. The very notion of a subordinate end is, that it is in order to a further end. Therefore these inferior ends are good for nothing though they be obtained, unless they also obtain their end. Inferior ends are not aimed at for their own sake, but only for the sake of the ultimate end. Therefore he that fails of his great end of all, doth as much altogether fail of his end, and is as much to no purpose, as if he did not obtain his subordinate end.

I will illustrate this by two or three examples. The subordinate end of the underpinning of an house is to support the house; and the subordinate end of the windows is to let in the light. But the ultimate end of the whole is the benefit of the inhabitants. Therefore, if the house be never inhabited, the whole is in vain. The underpinning is in vain, though it be ever so strong and support the building ever so well. The windows also are wholly in vain, though they be ever so large and clear, and though they obtain the subordinate end of letting in the light: They are as much in vain, as if they let in no light.

So the subordinate end of the husbandman in ploughing and sowing, and well manuring his field is, that it may bring forth a crop. But his more ultimate end is, that food may be provided for him and his family. Therefore though his inferior end be obtained, and his field bring forth ever so good a crop, yet if after all it be consumed by fire, or otherwise destroyed, he ploughed and sowed his field as much in vain, as if the seed had never sprung up.

So if man obtain his subordinate ends ever so fully; yet if he altogether fail of his ultimate end, he is wholly an useless creature. Thus if men be very useful in temporal things to their families, or greatly promote the temporal interest of the neighborhood, or of the public; yet if no glory be brought to God by it, they are altogether useless. If men actively bring no glory to God, they are, as to their own activity, altogether useless, how much soever they may promote the benefit of one another. How much soever one part of mankind may subserve another; yet if the end of the whole be not answered, every part is useless.

Thus if the parts of a clock subserve ever so well one to another, mutually to assist each other in their motions; one wheel moving another ever so regularly; yet if the motion never reach the hand or the hammer, it is altogether in vain, as much as if it stood still. As in a clock one wheel moves another, and that another, till at last the motion comes to the hand and hammer, which immediately respect the eye and the ear, otherwise all the motions are in vain; so it is in the world, one man was made to be useful to another, and one part of mankind to another; but the use of the whole is to bring glory to God the maker or else all is in vain; and however a man may serve among his fellow creatures, in a private or public capacity, upon the whole he is in vain.

It may perhaps be objected, that a wicked man may, by being serviceable to the public, be useful to many who do bring forth fruit to God, and thus glorify him.

Answer 1. If he be so, he is no further useful than he brings glory to God. It all hath an ultimate respect to that glory that is brought to God, and is useful no further; as the motion of no one wheel of a clock is any further useful, than as it finally respects the right pointing of the hand, and striking of the hammer.

Answer 2. When it is thus, wicked men are useful only accidentally, and not designedly. Although a wicked man may, by being serviceable to good men, do what will be an advantage to them to their bringing forth fruit to God; yet that serviceableness is not what he aims at; this is not his end; he doth not look so far for an ultimate end. And how ever this end be obtained, no thanks are due to him; it is as to him accidental. He is only the occasion, and not the designing cause of it. That fruit which is brought forth to the glory of God, is not brought forth by him, but by others.

The usefulness of such a man, being not designed, is not to be attributed to him as though it were his fruit. He is not useful as a man, or as a rational creature, because he is not so designedly. He is useful as things without life may be. Things without life may he useful to put the godly under advantages to bring forth fruit, as the timber and stones with which his house is built, the wool and flax with which he is clothed; but the fruit which is brought forth to God's glory, cannot be said for all that to be the fruit of these lifeless things, but of the godly man who makes use of them. So it is when wicked men put the godly under advantages to glorify God, as Cyrus, and Artaxerxes, and others have done.

III. If men bring not forth fruit to God, there is no other way in which they can be useful passively, but in being destroyed. They are fit for nothing else.

1. They are not fit to be suffered to continue always in this world. God suffers them to live for the present, but it is only for a certain season. They are here in a transitory state. It is not fit that this world should be the constant abode of those who bring forth no fruit to God. It is not fit that the barren tree should be allowed always to stand in the vineyard. The husbandman lets it stand for a while, till he digs about it, dungs it, and proves it to be incurable, or till a convenient time to cut it down come; but it is not fit that such a tree should stand here always. It is not fit that they who bring forth no fruit to God, should be suffered to live always in a world which is so full of the goodness of God, or that his goodness should be spent upon them forever.

This world, though it is fallen, and is under a curse, and is a miserable place to what it once was, yet is full of the streams of divine goodness. But it is not fit that those who bring forth no fruit to God, should always be continued in partaking of these streams. There are these three different states ; a state wherein is nothing but good, which is the state of the blessed in heaven; a state wherein is a mixture of good and evil, which is the earthly state ; and a state wherein is nothing but evil, which is the state of eternal destruction and damnation. Now they that bring forth no fruit to God, are not fit for either of the former; it is not fit that they should be continued in the enjoyment of any of the goodness of God.

It is not fit that an unprofitable, unfruitful creature, who will not glorify his Creator, should always live here to devour the fruits of the earth, and consume the fruits of divine bounty; to have the good things of this life, as God's wool and his flax, his corn, and wine, and oil, spent with him in vain. While a man lives in this world, the other creatures of the world are subjected to him. The brute creatures serve him with their labor and with their lives. The sun, moon, and stars, the clouds, fields and trees, all serve him. But it is not fit that these creatures should always be made to serve him, who brings forth no fruit to the Creator. Why should God always keep his creatures in subjection to that man, who will not be subject to him? Why should the creation be always kept in such bondage, as to be subject to wicked men? The creatures are made subject to vanity for a little time; God hath subjected them to wicked men, and given them for their use. This however he would not have done, but as it is only for a little while; and the creatures can bear it through the hope of approaching deliverance; and otherwise it would have been intolerable. Romans viii. 20. "For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope."

The creature doth, as it were, groan by reason of this subjection to wicked men, although it be but for a while. Romans viii.22. "For we know that the whole creation groaneth, and travaileth in pain together until now." Therefore surely it would be no way fit that wicked men, who do no good, and bring forth no fruit to God, should live here always, to have the various creatures subservient to them, as they are now. The earth can scarcely bear wicked men during that short time for which they stay here, but is ready to spew thee out. It is no way fit, therefore, that it should be forced to bear them always.

Men who bring forth no fruit to God are cumberers of the ground. Luke xiii. 7 "And it is not meet that they should be suffered to cumber the ground always." God cannot be glorified in this way of disposing of unfruitful persons. If such men should be suffered to live always in such a state as this, it would be so far from being to the glory of God, that it would be to the disparagement of the wisdom of God, to continue them in a state so unsuitable for them, forever spending the fruits of his bounty in vain upon them. It would also be a disparagement to his justice; for this is a world where, "all things come alike to all, and there is one event to the righteous and to the wicked." If there were no other state but this for wicked men to be in, justice could not possibly take place. It would also reflect upon the holiness of God. Forever to uphold this world for an habitation of such persons, and forever to continue the communications of his bounty and goodness to them, would appear as though he were disposed to countenance and encourage sin and wickedness.

2. If men do not bring forth fruit to God, they are not fit to be disposed of in heaven. Heaven, above all others, is the most improper place for them. Every thing appertaining to that state is unsuitable for them. The company is most unsuitable. The original inhabitants of that world are the angels. But what a disagreeable union would that be, to unite wicked men and angels in the same society? The employments of that world are unsuitable. The employments are serving and glorifying God. How unsuitable then would it be to plant barren trees in that heavenly paradise, trees that would bring forth no fruit to the divine glory? The enjoyments of heaven are unsuitable. The enjoyments are holy and spiritual enjoyments, the happiness of beholding the glory of God, and praising his name, and the like. But these enjoyments are as unsuitable as can be to the carnal earthly minds of wicked men. They would be no enjoyments to them; but on the contrary would be most disagreeable, and what they cannot relish, but entirely nauseate.

The design of heaven is unsuitable to them. The design of God in making heaven was, that it might be a place of holy habitation, for the reward of the righteous, and not an habitation for wicked men. It would greatly reflect on the wisdom of God to dispose of wicked men there; for it would be the greatest confusion. But God is not the author of confusion, I Corinthians xiv. 33. It would be contrary to the holiness of God, to take wicked men so near to himself into his glorious presence, to dwell forever in that part of the creation which is, as it were, his own palace, and to sit at his table. We read in Psalm v. 4. "Thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee." Therefore it would doubtless be impossible that the end of the existence of wicked men should be in any wise answered by the placing of them in heaven.

IV. Men who bring forth no fruit to God, yet in suffering destruction may be useful. Although they be not useful actively, or by any thing which they do; yet they may be useful in what they may suffer; just as a barren tree, which is no way useful standing in the vineyard, yet may be good fuel, and be very useful in the fire. God can find use for the most wicked men; he hath his use for vessels of wrath as well as for vessels of mercy; as in an house there is use for vessels unto dishonor, as well as for vessels unto honor. 2 Timothy ii. 20. "In a great house there are not only vessels of gold, and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honor, and some to dishonor." Proverbs xvi. 4. "The Lord hath made all things for himself; yea, even the wicked for the day of evil." I shall briefly take notice of what ends God accomplishes by it.

1. Unfruitful persons are of use in their destruction for the glory of God's justice. It was the will of God to glorify his justice, as well as his mercy, on his creatures. The vindictive justice of God is a glorious attribute, as well as his mercy; and the glory of this attribute appears in the everlasting destruction and ruin of the barren and unfruitful. The glory of divine justice in the perdition of ungodly men appears wonderful and glorious in the eyes of the saints and angels in heaven. Hence we have an account, that they sing praises to God, and extol his justice at the sight of the awful judgments which he inflicts on wicked men. Revelation xvi. 5, "Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art and wast, and art to come, because thou hast judged thus; for they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy:" And Revelation xix. 1, 2: "And after these things I heard a great voice, saying, Alleluia: Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God; for true and righteous are his judgments for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand."

2. Unfruitful persons in their destruction are of use for God to glorify his majesty upon them. The awful majesty of God remarkably appears in those dreadful and amazing punishments which he inflicts on those who rise up against him, and contemn him. A sense of the majesty of an earthly prince is supported very much by a sense of its being a dreadful thing to affront him. God glorifies his own majesty in the destruction of wicked men; and herein he appears infinitely great, in that it appears to be an infinitely dreadful thing to offend him. How awful doth the majesty of God appear in the dreadfulness of his anger! This we may learn to be one end of the damnation of the wicked, from Romans ix. 22. "What if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much long suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction?"
It is often spoken of God, that he is a terrible God. It is a part of the majesty and glory of God, that he is a terrible God. God tells Pharaoh, that for this cause he raised him up, that he might show his power in him, and that his name might be declared through all the earth, in his destruction. Exodus ix. 15, 16; and again, chapter xiv. 17: "I will get me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen."

3. The destruction of the unfruitful is of use, to give the saints a greater sense of their happiness, and of God's grace to them. The wicked will be destroyed and tormented in the view of the saints, and other inhabitants of heaven. This we are taught in Revelation xiv. 10. "The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture, into the cup of his indignation ; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone, in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb." And in Isaiah lxvi. 24. "And they shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against me : For their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched, and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh."

When the saints in heaven shall look upon the damned in hell, it will serve to give them a greater sense of their own happiness, seeing how vastly different their case is from their own. The view of the doleful condition of the damned will make them the more prize their own blessedness. When they shall see how dreadful the anger of God is, it will make them the more prize his love. They will rejoice so much the more that they are not the objects of God's anger, but of his favor; that they are not the subjects of his dreadful wrath, but are treated as his children, are taken near to him, to dwell in the everlasting embraces of his love.

When they shall see the misery of the damned, it will give them a greater sense of the distinguishing grace and love of God to them, that God should from all eternity set his love on them, and make so great a difference between them and others who are of the same species with them, are no worse by nature than they, and have deserved no worse of God than they. When they shall look upon the misery of the damned, and consider how different their own state is from theirs, and that it is only free and sovereign grace that makes the difference, what a great sense will this give them of the wonderful grace of God to them! And how will it heighten their praises! With how much greater admiration and exultation of soul will they sing of the free and sovereign grace of God to them!

When they shall look upon the damned, and see their misery, how will heaven ring with the praises of God's justice towards the wicked, and his grace towards the saints! And with how much greater enlargement of heart will they praise Jesus Christ their Redeemer, that ever he was pleased to set his love upon them, his dying love! And that he should so distinguish them as to spill his blood, and make his soul an offering, to redeem them from that so great misery, and to bring them to such exceeding happiness!

With what love and ecstasy will they sing that song in Revelation v. 9. 10. "Thou art worthy: For thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every tongue, and kindred, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests." One end which the apostle mentions why God appointed vessels of wrath, is the more to make known the wonderfulness of his mercy towards the saints. In Romans ix. 22, 23. there are two ends mentioned: "What if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much long suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction?" That is one end, then another is mentioned immediately after: "And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory ?"

APPLICATION

I. Hence we may learn, how just and righteous God is in the destruction of those who bring forth no fruit to God. Seeing there is no other way in which they can be useful, or in which the end of their being can be obtained, certainly it is most just that God should thus dispose of them. Why should God be frustrated of his end through their perverseness? If men will not do the work for which he hath made and fitted them; if they, through a spirit of opposition and rebellion against God, refuse; yet why should God suffer himself to be disappointed of his end in making them? It doth not become the infinite greatness and majesty of God, to suffer himself to be disappointed and frustrated by the wickedness and perverseness of sinful worms of the dust. If God should suffer this, it would seem to argue, either a want of wisdom in God to fix upon a good end, or a want of power to accomplish it.

God made all men that they might be useful; and if they will not be useful in their conduct and actions, how just is it that God should make them useful in their sufferings! God made all men for his own glory; and if they, contrary to the revealed will of God, refuse to glorify him actively and willingly, how just is it that God should glorify himself upon them in what he doth with them!

It hath been shown, that there is no other way wherein this can be done, but by their destruction. Surely, therefore, it must be just and righteous that God should destroy them.

Men are under no natural necessity of being put to this use of glorifying God in their sufferings. God gives them opportunity of glorifying him in doing, in bringing forth fruit, puts them under advantages for it, and uses many means to bring them to it. But if they will not be useful this way, it is very just that God should make them useful in the only remaining way in which they can be useful, viz. in their destruction. God is not forward to put them to this use. He tells us, that he hath "no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way, and live;" Ezekiel xxxiii. 11. God represents the destruction of sinners as a work to which he is backward; yet it is meet that they should be destroyed, rather than that they should be suffered to frustrate God of the end of their being. Who can blame the husbandman for cutting down and burning a barren tree, after he hath digged about it, and dunged it, and used all proper means to make it fruitful?
Let those among us consider this, who have lived all their lives hitherto unprofitably, and never have brought forth any fruit to God's glory, notwithstanding all the means that have been used with them. Consider how just it would be if God should utterly destroy you, and glorify himself upon you in that way; and what a wonder of patience it is, that God hath not done it before now.

II. This subject ought to put you upon examining yourselves, whether you be not wholly useless creatures. You have now heard, that those who bring forth no fruit to God, are, as to any good they do, wholly useless. Inquire, therefore, whether you have ever in your lives brought forth any fruit to God. Have you ever done any thing from a gracious respect to God, or out of love to God? By only seeking your worldly interest, you do not bring forth fruit to God. It is not bringing forth fruit to God, for you to come to public worship on the Sabbath, to pray in your families, and other such like things, merely in compliance with the general custom. It is not to bring forth fruit to God, that you be sober, moral and religious, only to be seen of men, or out of respect to your own credit and honor. How is that for God which is only for the sake of custom, or the esteem of men?

It is not to bring forth fruit to God, for men to pray, and read, and hear, and to be strict and diligent in religious and moral duties, merely from the fear of hell. What thanks are due to you for not loving your own misery, and for being willing to take some pains to escape burning in hell to all eternity? There is ne'er a devil in hell but would gladly do the same. Hosea x. 1. "Israel is an empty vine; he bringeth forth fruit unto himself."

There is no fruit brought forth to God, where there is nothing done in any wise from love to God, or from any true respect to him. God looketh at the heart. He doth not stand in need of our services, neither is he benefited by any thing that we can do. He doth not receive any thing of us, because it benefits him, but only as a suitable testimony of our love and respect to him. This is the fruit that he seeks. Men themselves will not accept of those shows of friendship, which they think are hypocritical, and come not from the heart. How much less should God, who searcheth the hearts and trieth the reins of the children of men! John iv. 23. "God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

Inquire, therefore, whether you ever in your lives did the least thing out of love to God. Have you not done all for yourselves? Zechariah vii. 5, 6. "When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even unto me? And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did ye not eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves? "

III. Another use of this subject may be of conviction and humiliation to those who never have brought forth any fruit to God. If, upon examination, you find that you have never in all your lives done any thing out of a true respect to God, then it hath been demonstrated, that, as to any thing which you do, you are altogether useless creatures. And consider, what a shameful thing it is for such rational beings as you are, and placed under such advantages for usefulness, yet to be wholly useless, and to live in the world to no purpose!

We esteem it a very mean character in any person, that he is a worthless, insignificant person; and to be called so is taken as a great reproach. But consider seriously, whether you can clear yourselves of this character. Set reason to work; can you rationally suppose, that you do in any measure answer the end for which God gave you your being, and made you of a nature superior to the beasts? But that you may be sensible what cause you have to be ashamed of your unprofitableness, consider the following things.

1. How much God hath bestowed upon you, in the endowments of your nature. God hath made you rational, intelligent creatures, hath endowed you with noble powers, those endowments wherein the natural image of God consists. You are vastly exalted in your nature above other kinds of creatures here below. You are capable of a thousand times as much as any of the brute creatures. He hath given you a power of understanding, which is capable of vastly extending itself, of looking back to the beginning of time, and of considering what was before the world was, and of looking forward beyond the end of time. It is capable of extending beyond the utmost limits of the universe; and is a faculty whereby you are akin to angels, and are capable even of knowing God, of contemplating the divine Being, and his glorious perfections, manifested in his works and in his word. You have souls capable of being the habitation of the Holy Spirit of God, and his divine grace. You are capable of the noble employments of angels.

How lamentable and shameful it is, that such a creature should be altogether useless, and live in vain! How lamentable that such a noble and excellent piece of divine workmanship should fail of its end, and be to no purpose! Was it ever worth while for God to make you such a creature, with such a noble nature, and so much above other kinds of creatures, only to eat, and drink, and gratify your sensual appetites? How lamentable and shameful to you, that such a noble tree should be more useless than any tree of the forest; that man, whom God hath thus set in honor, should make himself more worthless than the beasts that perish!

2. How much God hath done for you in the creation of the world. He made the earth, and seas, and all the fulness of them, for the use of man, and hath given them to him. Psalm cxv. 16. "The earth hath he given to the children of men." He made the vast variety of creatures for man's use and service. Genesis i. 28. "Have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." For the same purpose he made all the plants, and herbs, and trees of the field. Genesis i. 29. "I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree, yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat." He made the sun in the heavens, that glorious luminary, that wonderful globe of light, to give light to man, and to constitute the difference between day and night. He also made the moon, and the vast multitude of stars, for the use of man, to be to him for signs and seasons.

What great provision hath God made for man! What a vast variety of good things for food, and otherwise to be for his convenience, to put him under advantages to be useful! How lamentable is it, that after all these things he should be an useless creature in the world!

3. How much is done for you in the course of God's common providence! Consider how nature is continually laboring for you. The sun is, at it were, in a ferment for mankind, unweariedly running his course from year to year, and from day to day, and spending his rays upon man, to put him under advantage to be useful; every day giving him light that he may have opportunity to behold the glorious wisdom of God, and to see and serve God. The winds and clouds are continually laboring for you, and the waters are going in a constant circulation, ascending in the air from the seas, descending in rain, gathering in streams and rivers, returning to the sea, and again ascending and descending, for you. The earth is continually laboring to bring forth her fruit for your support. The trees of the field are laboring and spending their strength for you. And how many of the poor brute creatures are continually laboring for you, and spending their strength for you! How much of the earth is spent upon you! How many of God's creatures are devoured by you! How many of the lives of the living creatures of God are destroyed for your sake, for your support and comfort!

Now, how lamentable will it be, if, after all, you be altogether useless, and live to no purpose! What mere cumberers of the ground will you be! Agreeably to Luke xiii. 7. Nature, which thus continually labors for you, will be burdened with you. This seems to be what the apostle means, Romans viii. 20, 21, 22, where he tells us, that the creation is made subject to vanity, and brought into the bondage of corruption; and that the whole creation groans, and travails in pain, under this bondage.

4. How much is done for you in the use of the means of grace. How much hath God done to provide you with suitable means and advantages for usefulness! How many prophets hath God sent into the world, in different ages, inspiring them with his Holy Spirit, and enabling them to work many miracles to confirm their word, whereby you now have the written word of God to instruct you!

How great a thing hath God done for you, to give you opportunity and advantage to be useful, in that he hath sent his own Son into the world! He who is really and truly God, united himself to the human nature, and became a man, to be a prophet an teacher to you and other sinners. Yea, he laid down his life to make atonement for sin, that you might have encouragement to serve God with hopes of acceptance.

How many ordinances have been instituted for you! How much of the labor of the ministers of God hath been spent upon you! Is not that true concerning you which is written in Isaiah v. at the beginning, concerning the vineyard planted in a very fruitful hill, and fenced and cultivated with peculiar care and pains, which yet proved unfruitful? How much hath the dresser of the vineyard digged about the barren tree, and dunged it, and yet it remains barren!

Consider what a shame it is that you should live in vain, when all the other creatures, that are inferior to you, do glorify their Creator, according to their nature. You who are so highly exalted in the world, are more useless than the brute creation; yea, than the meanest worms, or things without life, as earth and stones: For they all do answer their end, in the way in which nature hath fitted them for it; none of them fail of it. They are all useful in their places, all render their proper tribute of praise to their Creator; while you are mere nuisances in the creation, and burdens to the earth; as any tree of the forest is more useful than the vine, if it bear not fruit.

IV. Let me, in a farther application of this doctrine, exhort you by all means to bring forth fruit to God. Let it be your constant endeavor to be in this way actively useful in the world. Here consider three things.

1. What an honor it will be to such poor creatures as you are, to bring forth fruit to the divine glory. What is such a poor worm as man, that he should be enabled to bring forth any fruit to God! It is the greatest honor of the nature of man, that God hath given him a capacity of glorifying the great Creator. It is what no other creature in this lower world can do, in the same manner as man. There is no creature in the visible world that is capable of actively glorifying God, but man.

2. In bringing forth fruit to God, you will be so profitable to none as to yourselves; you cannot thereby be profitable to God. Job xxii. 2. "Can a man be profitable to God?" You may thereby be profitable to your fellow creatures; yet not so much as to yourselves. The fruit which you bring forth to God will be a greater benefit to yourselves than to any one living. You will be more useful to yourselves than to any one else.
Although you are under a natural obligation to bring forth fruit to God, yet God doth not require it of you without a reward. He will richly reward you for it. In requiring you to bring forth fruit to him, he doth but require you to bring forth fruit to your own happiness. You will taste the sweetness of your own fruit. It will be most profitable for you in this world to bring forth fruit to God; it will be exceedingly to your benefit while here. It will be pleasant to you to lead a fruitful and holy life; the pleasure will be beyond the labor. Beside this, God hath promised to such a life everlasting rewards, unspeakable, infinite benefits. So that by it you will infinitely advance your own interest.

3. If you remain thus unprofitable, and be not actively useful, surely God will obtain his end of you, in your destruction. He will say concerning the barren tree, "Cut it down, why cumbereth it the ground?" Christ, in John xv. 6, tells us, "if a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." This is spoken of the barren branches in the vine. How would you yourselves do in such a case with a barren tree in an orchard, or with weeds and tares in your fields? Doubtless, it were in your power, you would utterly destroy them.

God will have his end; he will accomplish it. Though all men and devils unite their endeavors, they cannot frustrate God in any thing; and "though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished;" Proverbs xi. 1. God hath sworn by his great name, that he will have his glory of men, whether they will actively glorify him or no. Numbers xiv. 21, 22, 23. "But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me, see it."

"The ax lieth at the root of the trees; and every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down, and cast into the fire;" Matthew iii. 10. The end of those men who bring forth nothing but briers and thorns is to be burned, as in Hebrews vi. 7, 8. "For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers, is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned." So we read of the tares, Matthew xiii. 30. "Let both grow together until the harvest ; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them;" and in verses 40, 41, 42, "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."

So it is said of the chaff, Matthew iii. 12. "Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

If you continue not to bring forth any fruit to the divine glory, as you have hitherto done, Hell will be the only fit place for you. It is a place prepared on purpose to be a receptacle of such persons. In Hell nature ceases to labor any more for sinners: The sun doth not run his course to shine upon them, the earth doth not bring forth her fruit to be consumed upon them there. There they will have no opportunity to consume the fruits of divine goodness on their lusts. In Hell they can prejudice or encumber nothing, upon which God sets any value. There the faithful servants and ministers of God will no longer spend their strength in vain upon them. When the barren tree is in the fire, the servants of the husbandman are freed from any further labor or toil in digging about it, and manuring it.

In Hell they will no more have opportunity to clog and discourage the flourishing of religion, and to destroy much good, as they often do in this world. In Hell they will no more have opportunity to corrupt others by their ill example. In Hell they will no more have it in their power to offend the godly; they may hurt and torment one another; but the godly will be out of their reach. In Hell there will be no ordinances, no Sabbaths, no sacraments, no sacred things, for them to profane and defile by their careless and hypocritical attendance.

Hell, therefore, if you remain unfruitful and cumberers of the ground, will be the fittest place for you, and there you will surely have your portion assigned you. There God will get himself honor upon you; there he will magnify himself in your ruin, in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; and will be praised upon that account by the saints, at the day of judgment; and by all the host of heaven throughout everlasting ages.

The Simple Woman's Daybook for January 12

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 22:17:00 +0000

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...it is a rainy, dreary day, but at least it's not snow! Yay!

I am thinking...that it's time I finally posted on my blogs again.

I am thankful...that the winter has been as mild as it has so far!

In the kitchen...I'm cooking a pork roast in the crock pot.

I am wearing...jeans and a fleece sweater.

I am creating...quilts! Blocks and binding.

I am going...to read when I'm done here.

I am wondering...about very little at the moment. I'm relaxed.

I am reading...more now than I have for a while.

I am hoping...my "oven fries" turn out better tonight than they did last night. I used to make them all the time, but you'd never know it now!

I am looking forward to...April!

I am learning...to add a little more structure to my day again.

Around the house...things are quiet. The cats aren't fighting at the moment.

I am pondering...the ways in which God works.

A favorite quote for today...

see 1 Corinthians 15:57-58

One of my favorite things...is Toblerone. Swiss chocolate, mmmmmmmm!

A few plans for the rest of the week: sew the binding on the quilt I want to finish, and start cutting out a new one.

A peek into my day...my love of reading has been re-ignited with this toy

If you'd like to write your own Daybook, or read other ladies', be sure to stop by

The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Do You Want a New Year?

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:36:00 +0000

This post was written by one of the Administrators at AVBBF and posted there last Dec. 31. The year has passed and it's just as relevant to another new year. It is used by permission.

It's just a few short days away: another new year.

Among the pagans, there will be hats and horns and highway fatalities; among the Christians, there will be watchnight services, and a deep sigh of relief as the "holiday" season draws to an end.

But so few people will ask the question, or even think about the question, that God might ask us:

Do you really want a new year? Most people don't.

It's one thing to say, "Whew! I'm glad 2011 is over! This has been rough!" And, for many of us, it has been rough, in different ways: health problems, job problems, legal problems, the death of loved ones, and what Shakespeare called "the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to." For others, it's been pretty smooth, although the economy is down; and January 2012 will represent no great relief, just a change in the calendar.

For some, the new year even holds promise: a promotion or raise at work, or a reunion with a loved one, or a long-awaited vacation. But those are things, events, natural developments that can be anticipated. And there's nothing wrong with anticipating them, as long as we remember James 4:15.

But there's a difference between relief at the end of the year .... and really wanting a new year, a new kind of year.

We all have hopes and aspirations for the coming year: a new job (or any job!), a new car, maybe a marriage, maybe a graduation. But what does God want 2012 to represent in our lives?

* * * * *

It's almost the end: Jesus has been crucified and has risen from the grave, and the disciples are enjoying their last days of earthly fellowship with Him, as He serves them an unexpected breakfast by the sea.

You'd think that they'd be so delighted with His company, after the agony of losing Him, that their concentration would be focused on Him. They wouldn't be concerned with each other, or with each other's business. But, of course, they were no better than we are; and if we don't always give Him first priority, neither did they.

Jesus has just had an enormously important conversation with Peter: restoring him to fellowship after his threefold denial, telling him to "feed my sheep," and even predicting the manner of his death (John 21:15-19). You'd think that Peter would be so moved, so relieved, and so overwhelmed that he couldn't think of anything but what Jesus had just said.

But not Peter! For some reason, he notices John nearby, and asks Jesus, "Well, what about him?" And Jesus doesn't hesitate to answer!

Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. (John 21:20-22)

Jesus was talking about Peter's future, giving him intimate revelations, just as He gives us revelations from His word. But Peter, like us, got sidetracked: "What's gonna happen with that guy?"

It doesn't matter, really, whether Peter was just nosey, or had a short attention span, or resented John's special closeness with the Lord. What matters is that Jesus was talking to him about the future, his future .... and Peter just wanted to know about what was going to happen with somebody else.

* * * * *

We think about 2012, and we wonder what's gonna happen in certain areas. What's going to become of that couple in the church, the ones with the shaky marriage? Will the Republicans be able to slow Obama down, with the new Congress? Will my Father completely heal from his heart bypass surgery? Who's gonna win the Super Bowl?

Jesus says to each of us, at the beginning of the year, "what is that to thee? follow thou me."

That's Jesus' priority for the new year. He wants us to follow Him more closely, to learn more of Him, to serve Him more faithfully. Our question as Christians shouldn't be, "What does the new year hold for me, or mine?" That's how we used to think, before we knew the Lord. The real question should be, "Where does God want to take me this year? What does He want me to do differently, or better, than I did in 2011?"

But so many of us, like the people in the world, don't really want a new year. We want a continuation of the old: minus the heartaches, and with more of the blessings, but basically the same. For most of us, life is pretty good; even if we have chronic problems, we've gotten used to them. We just put on our brave face and say, "Life goes on!"

A new year, a really new year, might be scary. It might involve things we don't like. It will certainly involve things we don't expect; and, really, people don't like surprises!

But, as servants of Jesus Christ, where did we get the idea that it matters what we "like?"

Jesus has aspirations for us, plans for us, challenges for us, and, sadly, only a few of us will fully realize them or experience them. Because we're content - - - not in the sense of Phil. 4:11, but in the sense of complacency and comfort.

But what did Jesus say? Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2 Cor. 5:17) He said, and will say, Behold, I make all things new (Rev. 21:5). When our loving, powerful, forgiving Lord looks at our lives, there's one thing that doesn't concern Him at all: the past. When we live with Jesus, it's all about the future!

I hope that I was closer to the Lord in 2011 than in 2010. It's hard to judge ourselves. But really, that's not important. What's important is this: Will I be closer to Him in the coming year, than in the last? Do I really want a new year, a new level of intimacy and fellowship and service .... or am I content with the old?

Most Christians are content with the old. Most Christians, frankly, are content to be saved, period.

Paul understood, by the grace of God. And he never spent five seconds saying "Happy New Year!" If he thought about the changing of the year at all, he thought of it this way: Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 3:12-14)

That's what every day should be all about. That's certainly what a new year should be about.

But, really: do you want a new year? Or was the old one good enough?

Bells Across the Snow

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:09:00 +0000

Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

*******

Bells Across the Snow

Frances Havergal

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
Is it really come again,
With its memories and greetings,
With its joy and with its pain?
There's a minor in the carol,
And a shadow in the light,
And a spray of cypress twining
With the holly wreath to-night.
And the hush is never broken
By laughter light and low,
As we listen in the starlight
To the bells across the snow.

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
'Tis not so very long
Since other voices blended
With the carol and the song!
If we could but hear them singing
As they are singing now,
If we could but see the radiance
Of the crown on each dear brow;
There would be no sigh to smother,
No hidden tear to flow,
As we listen in the starlight
To the bells across the snow.

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
This never more can be;
We cannot bring again the days
Of our unshadowed glee.
But Christmas, happy Christmas,
Sweet herald of good-will,
With holy songs of glory
Brings holy gladness still.
For peace and hope may brighten,
And patient love may glow,
As we listen in the starlight
To the bells across the snow.

Favourite verses about Hope

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 22:55:00 +0000

For the Christian who has been born again according to John 1:12, hope is an integral part of life. For a real blessing, read all of 1 Corinthians 15. To me, the apostle Paul said it best when he said:

1Co 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

It's interesting to note in "the love chapter" that charity is the greatest because it endures throughout eternity. Our faith will give way to sight and our hope will be fulfilled.

1Co 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Ro 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
Ro 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Heb 6:19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;

1Pe 1:3 ¶ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1Pe 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

Ro 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
Ro 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
Ro 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Ro 12:12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

Ro 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Ro 15:5 ¶ Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
Ro 15:6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Job 27:8 For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?
Job 27:9 Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?

Ps 31:24 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD.

Ps 42:11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

Ps 71:5 For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.

Ps 130:5 ¶ I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.

Jer 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

La 3:21 ¶ This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
La 3:22 It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
La 3:23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
La 3:24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.

Php 1:20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.
Php 1:21 ¶ For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

The Gospel in One Verse

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:12:00 +0000

Many thanks to William from Outside the Camp: Reflections of a renegade Christian for contributing a guest post today! I appreciate your thoughts and teaching, brother, and I'm sure the readers will too!

Almost everyone in the English speaking world has heard reference to the Christian gospel. And there are a lot of people with a lot of different ideas about what the Christian Gospel is. In fact, there are so many interpretations of the gospel that the term itself (like the word "Christian") has become almost meaningless: without substance, without content. It even creeps into our slang: "I saw the accident myself, officer! That's the gospel truth!" As Francis Schaeffer would say, "gospel" has become a "connotation word," which is a fancy way of saying that it means whatever you want it to mean, instead of a "denotation word," which has a clear, unchanging definition.

But the fact that there are so many versions and interpretations of the Christian gospel doesn't mean that the real thing doesn't exist. It exists, and although it would take (and has taken) thousands of volumes to even approach a full understanding of it, the gospel is still so basically simple that it can be explained in a single verse of scripture.

Of course, different people calling themselves Christians might choose different verses! One group says that "the gospel" is Acts 2:38: Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. That's a great verse, but it's no more "the gospel" than today's baseball standings. Most Christians would automatically (and somewhat thoughtlessly) say that the gospel is contained in John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Well, that's a lot closer, but it's still not the complete gospel.

There have been all sorts of attempts to reduce the gospel to a simple presentation: brief sermons, booklets, and tracts. Some of these are very good; some of them are unimaginably bad. But really, the gospel isn't terribly complicated. Like any part of the Bible, it might be hard for some people to believe; but it's not hard to understand.

Here's how the Apostle Paul described it: Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). There's more historical information in the following verses, referring to the people who saw Jesus after the Resurrection; but that's the guts of the gospel: Jesus died, He died for our sins, and he arose from the grave, physically, with the scars showing, according to the scriptures. None of this "spiritual resurrection" nonsense: that's just religious doubletalk.

But that's not all of it: that's just the guts. Because that passage doesn't explain how we can avail ourselves of His great work. He said, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3). And John said, in the first chapter of His Gospel, But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God (John 1:12, 13).

John 3:16 is a great verse. But it doesn't say anything about how Christ's death helps us. It doesn't even mention the Resurrection. We need a verse that gives us the whole story: and, by the grace of God, we have one.

How do we receive Christ? How are we born again? Simply by acknowledging our helplessness and our need, asking Him to forgive us, and save us. If we take one baby step toward Him, He'll come running down to meet us. But first, behind the scenes, throughout our lives, His Holy Spirit has been drawing us, preparing us for that moment. (This can get very theological, but we're not going in that direction. This is real life, not theory.)

If you want to see the gospel in one verse, here it is: For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit (1 Peter 3:18).

Is that clear? (To some folks, it might be more clear than they'd like!) All the elements of Paul's gospel, in 1 Cor. 15, and Jesus' command to be born again, are present in that one verse. Ask yourself some questions.

Who has suffered for sins? Obviously, Jesus Christ. Not Buddha, not Muhammad, not Mary, not Joseph Smith: Jesus Christ, and Him alone.

How often did He do it? He only had to do it once, at Calvary: as He died, He said, It is finished (John 19:30). He doesn't need to be re-crucified by a Catholic priest every week in a "sacrifice of the Mass." It's done.

Who's "the just?" Why, it's Jesus, obviously: the only good and just man Who ever lived. (Mark 10:18)

Who's the unjust? Come on now! That's the easy part. Go look in the mirror! (Romans 3:10, 23)

Why did He do it? To bring us to God. No other reason.

How did He accomplish it? Just like Paul said, back in 1 Cor. 15: by dying, and rising from the dead.

That's the gospel, and it's encapsulated in that single verse.

Thank God for what He did for us, and praise Him for making it so clear to us! What a Saviour!

How To Study the Bible - James Melton

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:00:00 +0000

2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

One of the most important things a Christian who has been born again according to John 1:12 needs to learn how to do is to study the Bible effectively. These tips from James Melton helped me:

When you were about ten or twelve years old, you were taught to memorize the multiplication table. You did so, and to this day you have in your mind the BASIC knowledge that you need to multiply numbers. You know very well that 8x7=56. You do not have to figure it up, because you just know it. You've made that fact a part of your own being. It goes with you always. You'll have no trouble figuring 8x70, 80x7, 70x80, 7x800, or 700x8, because you've learned the BASICS.

Well, the Bible works the same way. When studying God's word, there are several laws that one should keep in mind to serve as a study foundation. A good knowledge of these laws will prove helpful to you time and time again.

Literal Interpretation

Actually, there's no need for you to interpret God's word. He doesn't speak in unknown tongues. He means exactly what He says, as He says it, where He says it. Always take the Bible LITERALLY, unless it can't possibly be literal. In such cases, it may be figurative.

For example, Jesus said in John 10, "I am the door". Well, we know that's a figurative door, because literal doors do not talk. Always take God's word literally, unless it's impossible.

Context

Always notice the context of a passage before making application. Read the surrounding passages to understand the subject matter.

For example, no one today earns their salvation by enduring unto the end (Mat. 24:13). The context of Matthew 24:13 is the "great tribulation" (vs. 21). Millions of people are living a lie today because, they have failed to check the context of scriptural quotations made by their leaders.

Application

All Scripture has at least three applications: Historical, Doctrinal, and Spiritual.

Never make application of Scripture until a correct meaning has been firmly established with Scripture.

First Mention

Get in the good habit of taking note of "first mentions" in the Bible. Often times God will use the first mention of a word, phrase, or even a number, to establish a certain association that you'll need to remember throughout His word.

For example, the first mention of the word "life" in the Bible is Genesis 1:20. Here life comes from water. You'll need that information when you get to Isaiah 48:1, Proverbs 5:15-18, and you'll REALLY need it in John 3:5. A water birth is a physical child birth.

Progressive Revelation

To keep carnal and lazy people from learning the Book, God chooses to reveal truth to us in bits and pieces like a puzzle. He seldom addresses a subject in it's entirety in one place. He'll introduce a doctrine, and then He'll wait maybe two hundred chapters before telling you anything else about it! Sometimes He'll repeat the same thing over and over just for emphasis. Scripture with Scripture is the only way to learn God's word (Isa. 28:9-13; I Cor. 2:13).

Rightly Dividing

According to II Timothy 2:15, God's word has set divisions that must be respected if we are to understand Scripture.

There are various dispensations in which God dispenses to man certain duties, and these duties can differ greatly from one dispensation to the next. We just mentioned one when considering the law of context.

Like it or not, God is a divider. He has divided the Bible, the sexes, the races, the animals, the heavens, the spirit world, the underworld, the two natures in Christians, the first and second coming of Christ, and about a million more things. God's word must be rightly divided. Contradictions, confusion, and cults exist only because people refuse to rightly divide the word.

Dual References

Never limit Scripture to only one meaning. Sometimes a portion of Scripture can refer to something near at hand, and then also have a future fulfillment. Remember, God is eternal. He knew all of the future before any of the Bible was written. You can expect to see many double and even triple references in the Bible.

For example, Hosea 11:1 says, "When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt." In the immediate context this refers to the nation of Israel being God's "son", as we are also told in Exodus 4:22. However, a DUEL reference is found in Matthew 2:15, where Jesus' coming back from Egypt is said to be a fulfillment of Hosea 11:1.

Types and Foreshadows

The Bible is filled with all sorts of types and foreshadows which can make Bible reading and study very interesting.

For example, the Old Testament offers many types of the Lord Jesus Christ. Able is a type of Christ in that he offered to God an acceptable sacrifice, and also that he was murdered by wicked hands. The sun is a type of Christ, Who is the light of the world. The Ark is a type of Christ in many ways. The offerings and the feasts in Leviticus all picture certain truths about Jesus Christ in His three offices as Prophet, Priest, and King. Moses and Joshua, great leaders of God's people, are types of Christ. Many of the kings of Israel, such as David, Solomon, Josiah, and Asa, typify Christ in various ways.

There are also many other types, like types of the church, salvation, the second coming, the tribulation, the millennial kingdom, the Antichrist, and word of God. Remember to look for and to study types in the Bible for they reveal to us the wisdom of a Master Designer.

Numerology

Another interesting design in God's word is His unique way of attaching meanings to various numbers. Developing a basic knowledge of what a number is generally associated with can be very helpful.

One is unity. Two is division. Three is trinity. Some say four is the earth (?). Five is death. Six is man. Seven is perfection, or completeness. Eight is a new beginning. Nine is fruitfulness. Ten is the Gentile number. Eleven is a mystery to me. Twelve is Israel's number. Thirteen is rebellion.

Take thirteen for example. The negative overtones of this number are not superstitious; they're Scriptural. The first thirteen in the Bible is Genesis 1:13. That just happens to be the first verse that doesn't use God's name. The first occurrence of the actual word is Genesis 14:4 and rebellion is the context. The main Antichrist chapter is Revelation 13. Mark 7:21 speaks of thirteen evils in the heart of man. "Judas Iscariot" has thirteen letters. Nimrod, a type of Antichrist, was the thirteenth from Adam (I Chr. 1). The Old Testament has thirty-nine books (3x13), and it ends with a curse. There's a curse in Galatians 3:13. "Roman Catholic" has thirteen letters. In Luke 4, Satan quoted from Psalm 91, but he omitted verse thirteen. In Revelation 17:5 (MYSTERY BABYLON...)there are thirteen block capital words consisting of sixty-five letters (5x13). The thing just never ends. Remember, numbers have meaning in the Bible.

There's no quick and easy method of learning God's word. It takes WORK (II Tim. 2:15). If you're lazy, then you'll never learn it. If you DO want to study and learn, you may start anywhere, and you may read as many books and commentaries as you like, but don't ever forget the BASIC RULES. They'll prove helpful time and time again.

The Simple Woman's Daybook for November 29

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 19:01:00 +0000

I'm past due for a Daybook entry as we close out November. I'm linking up with over two hundred other ladies over at The Simple Woman's Daybook, hosted by Peggy Hostetler. Come on over and join the fun!

*******

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...it is raining the proverbial cats and dogs, with no end in sight. Thank God it isn't snow or we'd be buried!

I am thinking...that with less than a month till Christmas and Dad having open heart surgery on Monday, December is going to be a busy month!

I am thankful...that Jesus saved me just over fourteen years ago!

In the kitchen...I have a big jar of pretzels and I'm going to grab some!

I am wearing...jeans and a flannel blouse and my red cardigan.

I am creating...a new quilt out of an old one that I took apart.

I am going...to stay with my stepmother next week while Dad's in the hospital.

I am wondering...about human nature.

I am reading...four titles at once on my e-reader. Two library books and two "free classics." I love my e-reader. Those things are a bibliophiles dream.

I am hoping...to finally get the quilt I made this past summer back from the shop, freshly quilted, by the end of the week.

I am looking forward to...settling down to read later today.

I am hearing...rain pouring on the roof.

Around the house...the cats are finally all settled down. I'll have to give the place a thorough clean before the weekend.

I am pondering...what else to have for lunch.

One of my favorite things...is buying myself a bunch of flowers to brighten up the living room during the dull fall/winter seasons.

A few plans for the rest of the week...getting caught up on computer stuff, cleaning the house, finalizing plans with my brother re: Dad's surgery Monday, cutting my quilt border.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...Niagara Falls at Christmas.

The Loveliness of Christ - C.I. Scofield

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 21:50:00 +0000

"Yea, He is altogether lovely." Song of Solomon 5:16

All other greatness has been marred by littleness; all other wisdom has been flawed by folly; all other goodness has been tainted by imperfection. Jesus Christ remains the only Being of whom, without gross flattery, it could be asserted, "He is altogether lovely.

Perfect Humanity

First, of all, as it seems to me, this loveliness of Christ consists in His perfect humanity.

In everything but our sins and our evil natures, he is one with us. He grew in stature and in grace. He labored and wept and prayed and loved. He was tempted in all points as we are -- sin apart.

With Thomas, we confess Him Lord and God. We adore and revere Him. There is no other who establishes with us such intimacy, who comes so close to these human hearts of ours: no one else in the universe of whom we are so little afraid. He enters as simply and naturally into our twentieth century lives as if He had been reared in the same street with us. He is not one of the ancients; He is one with us.

How wholesomely and genuinely human He is! Martha scolds Him. John, who has seen Him raise the dead, still the tempest, and talk with Moses and Elijah on the mount, does not hesitate to make a pillow of His breast at supper. Peter will not let Him wash his feet, but afterwards wants his head and hands included in the ablution. They ask Him foolish questions, and rebuke Him, and venerate and adore Him in one breath. And He calls them by their first names, and tells them to fear not, and assures them of His love. In all this He seems to me altogether lovely. His perfection does not glitter; it glows. The saintliness of Jesus is so warm and human that it attracts and inspires. We find in it nothing austere and inaccessible, like a statue in a niche. The beauty of His holiness reminds one rather of a rose, or a bank of violets.

Jesus receives sinners and eats with them -- all kinds of sinners: Nicodemus, the moral, religious sinner, and Mary of Magdala, "out of whom went seven devils" -- the shocking kind of sinner. He comes into sinful lives as a bright, clear stream enters a stagnant pool. The stream is not afraid of contamination, but its sweet energy cleanses the pool.

Perfect Compassion

Moreover, Christ's sympathy is altogether lovely. He is always being "touched with compassion." The multitude without a shepherd, the sorrowing widow of Nain, the little dead child of the ruler, the demoniac of Gadara, the hungry five thousand -- all these represented suffering, and whatever suffers touches Jesus' heart. His very wrath against the scribes and Pharisees is but the excess of His sympathy for those who suffer under their hard self-righteousness.

Did you ever find Jesus looking for "deserving poor"? He "healed all their sick." And what grace there is in His sympathy! Why did He touch that poor leper? He could have healed him with a word as He did the nobleman's son. Why, for years the wretch had been an outcast, cut off from kin, dehumanized. He lost the sense of being a man. It was defilement to approach him. Well, the touch of Jesus made him human again.

A Christian woman, laboring among the moral lepers of London, found a poor street girl desperately ill in a bare cold room. With her own hands she ministered to her; she changed her bed linen, procured medicines and nourishing food and a fire, making the poor place as bright and cheery as possible. And then she said, "May I pray with you?"

"No," replied the girl, "you don't care for me. You are doing this to get to Heaven."

Many days passed -- the Christian woman unwearily kind, the sinful girl hard and bitter. At last the Christian said: "My dear, you are nearly well now, and I shall not come again, but as it is my last visit, I want you to let me kiss you," and the pure lips that had known only prayers and holy words met the lips defiled by oaths and unholy caresses -- and then, my friends, the hard heart broke. That was Christ's way.

Perfect Humility

Again, Christ's humility is altogether lovely. Can you fancy His calling a convention of Pharisees to discuss methods of reaching "the masses"? He, the only one who ever had a choice of how He should be born, entered this life as one of "the masses." What meekness, what lowliness! "I am among you as one that serveth. He "began to wash his disciples' feet." "When he was reviled, reviled not again." "As a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth." Can you think of Jesus as posing and demanding His rights?

Perfect Gentleness

Further, Christ's gentleness is altogether lovely. It is in His way with sinners that the supreme loveliness of Jesus is most sweetly shown. How tender He is, yet how faithful; how considerate, how respectful! Nicodemus, candid and sincere, but proud of his position as a master in Israel, and timid lest he should imperil it, "comes to Jesus by night." Before he departs, this master in Israel has learned his utter ignorance of the first step toward the kingdom, and goes away to think over the personal application of the truth, "they loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." But he has not heard one harsh word, one utterance that can wound his self-respect.

When He speaks to that silent despairing woman, after her accusers had gone out, one by one, He uses for "woman" the same word that He used when addressing His own mother from the cross.

Follow Him to Jacob's solitary well and hear His conversation with the woman of Samaria. How patiently He unfolds the deepest truths, how gently yet faithfully He presses the great ulcer of sin which is eating away her soul! But He could not be more respectful to Mary of Bethany.

Even in the agonies of death, He could hear the cry of despairing faith. When conquerors return from far wars in strange lands they bring their chief captive as a trophy. It was enough for Christ to take back to Heaven the soul of a thief.

Perfect Poise

Finally, Christ is altogether lovely in the perfect equipoise of His various perfections. We could speak at length of His dignity, of His virile manliness, of His courage. In Him, all the elements of perfect character are in lovely balance. His gentleness is never weak. His courage is never brutal. My friends, you may study these things for yourselves. Follow Him through all the scenes of outrage and insult on the night and morning of His arrest and trial. Behold Him before the high priest, before Pilate, before Herod. See Him browbeaten, bullied, scourged, smitten upon the face, spit upon, mocked. How inherent greatness comes out! Not once does He lose His self-poise, His high dignity.

I close with this word of personal testimony: This is my Beloved and this is my Friend. Will you not accept Him as your Saviour and likewise discover His loveliness?

Is He not altogether lovely?

The Christian's Death Wish - a sermon by Dr. Neil Chadwick

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 21:46:00 +0000

I came across this sermon about a year and a half ago. It's convicting, thought-provoking, and in the words of a dear sister with a sense of humour, "dead right."

Death is all around us. Even if it doesn't affect our personal lives, we can hear about it every day on the news. It's a subject that bothers us a lot, a serious subject, but one which is often dealt with humor.

The other night while shooting a few hoops here in the church gym, Doyle told me a funny joke about three fishermen who went out early one warm summer morning to spend the day together at the side of a beautiful Michigan lake. Everything was going very nicely until one of them tugged on his line and realized that he must have snagged a root. Not wanting to lose his expensive lure, he decided to go into the water to free it. His two friends tried to dissuade him, but he dove into the water anyway, and soon was out of sight. It seemed like he was gone for much too long, and his friends became alarmed. One of them said, "I've got to go in after him." He dove into the water, and a few moments later resurfaced with the body. The two friends dragged him up on the shore, one began pushing rhythmically on his chest, while the other prepared to do mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. The friend up at the head exclaimed, "Wow, his breath smells terrible." The other fisherman, pushing on his friend's chest said, "Well, I don't understand that. But also, I don't remember that he was wearing a snowmobile suit either!"

As kids, we used to chant the taunting refrain: "Never laugh when a hearse goes by, for you may be the next to die. They'll wrap you up in a big white sheet, and bury you down about six feet deep. All will go well for about a week, and then the worms will begin to creep."

Not only do we deal with the subject of death with humor, but it's also interesting to me that the words and ideas of death slip into our everyday vocabulary.

There are "dead dogs", "dead stops", and "dead beat dads".

Some people are "dead last", some are "dead wrong", and some regularly "laugh themselves to death".

In some parts of the country when a relative is leaving to go on a trip, you might say, "Give me a call, or I'll worry that you're dead in the ditch." (In more urban areas it gets changed to "dead in the doorway".)

Someone once said, "When you yelled at me you scared me half to death." My reply was, "I promise I won't yell again because that will finish you off."

April is the month we remind ourselves there are two unchangeable features of modern life, "death and taxes."

If you get on the wrong side of your husband or wife, you're a "dead duck" - probably "deader than a doornail".

A sports event might end in "sudden death"; or if the race is close it's a "dead heat".

A marksman takes "dead aim", and if he hits the bull's eye, it is said that he was "dead on".

The coldest time of year is the "dead of winter"; and we have been told that the best way to die is "death by chocolate."

If you don't have a chance, you're "dead in the water"; or if you can't keep a straight face while telling an April Fools joke, you're a "dead give away".

An anxiety attack is when someone is "worried to death"; when thirsty, they're "dying for a drink".

When someone is embarrassed, they might be heard saying, "I could have died a thousand deaths"; and when they're sleeping soundly, they are "dead to the world."

Some people wouldn't be "caught dead" talking about death.

But furthermore, even though we make jokes about death, and use it in our daily, casual conversation, we really don't want to talk about it at all!

Most of us have the hardest time just saying the words. Instead, we say things like, "he passed on", or "she passed away". In the church we hear that "the Lord took him", someone "went to be with the Lord", or has "gone to Heaven." We don't want to admit that people "die", so they just "expire", or become "deceased", "meet their early demise", "kick the bucket", or like old soldiers, they "just fade away".

It may come as a surprise that the Bible doesn't seem to have this same aversion to these words. Rather, the words "die", "death" and "dead" show up in the Bible 1,167 times.

In fact, it is apparent to me, that from the Biblical perspective, death is actually desirable. It may startle you when I say it, but true Christians are people who have a "'death wish." No, we're not talking about suicide, or even a desire to be martyred. And we're certainly not agreeing with cult leaders like Jim Jones 20 years ago, or the apparent cult murders just discovered in Uganda. That's not the kind of death that we're encouraging.

What then is the "death wish" that is characteristic of all true Christians?

The Apostle Paul is the one who brings this to our attention - it can be best seen in the familiar verse, Galatians 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

In the "Prison Epistles" several references are made to this death: "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead." (Php 3:10,11)

"For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:3)

"Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances," (Colossians 2:20)

And in 1 Corinthians 15:31 Paul writes, "I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily."

But this idea wasn't new to Paul. Jesus Himself encourages this "death wish":

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." (John 12:24)

But the most powerful representation of the Christian's identification with death, is baptism. This comes across loud and clear in Romans 6:3-13. Take a few minutes to review the numerous references to death in this passage.

There are actually thee death wishes for the Christian.

1. The Christian wants to be dead to the old self.

Jesus said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." This same verse is found in each of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23). But notice the little added note provided by Luke: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily."

2. The Christian wants to be dead to sin.

By the Power of the Holy Spirit, the Christian is able to take one step beyond the forgiveness of sin. When dead to sin, the Christian realizes power over sin, and Satan - even the power of temptation is broken.

Do you know why I don't smoke? Simply because I'm not a smoker. Smoking offers no temptation to me because I'm dead to that. Do you know why I don't drink alcohol? Because I'm not a drinker. Drinking offers no temptation to me because I'm dead to that; smokers smoke, I'm not a smoker.

The same can be said of other besetting sins like anger, malicious talk, unclean thoughts, and rebellion. Being dead to sin frees us from the power of those sins.

3. The Christian wants to be dead to desires.

This at first sounds very much like the teaching we find in Buddhism which states that the path to true happiness is the renouncing of all desire. However, there is a significant difference. Christians are not dead to all desire, rather, their desires are transformed. Now instead of being motivated by selfish desires, what the Bible calls "...the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life..." (1 John 2:16), Christians are motivated by a different desire, the desire to love God, please God, and serve God. Like our Lord and Master we say, "The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up" (Psalms 69:9), and, "I come to do thy will, O God." (Hebrews 10:9)

Conclusion

It was no April Fools joke when the New York Times posted this story on April 1 about the deaths of at least 924 followers of a Christian fringe sect whose end-of-the-world prediction had failed to come true. They were followers of Credonia Mwerinde, a 48-year-old sect leader known as "the Programmer." The bodies were found within a 50-mile radius among luxuriant green hills and volcanic lakes in southwestern Uganda. Obsessed with the desire to obtain the property of her followers, Mwerinde was ingenious and greedy. She "founded a religious movement and sold her spiritual wares to the gullible and the searching, particularly among the ranks of disaffected Roman Catholics."

Evidently, this "apostle'' of the "Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God secured the loyalty of sect members -- and their possessions -- by invoking visions she claimed to receive from the Virgin Mary." Before that, she had risen from grinding poverty and a fourth-grade education to become the owner of a shop that sold banana beer and bootleg liquor, earning a reputation for promiscuity and cunning along the way.

Once recruits joined, they were subjected to a severe living situation which "divided mothers from children and husbands from wives and deprived followers of sleep and food. A code of silence was instituted that allowed members to communicate only with hand signals and a ban on visits from outsiders served to quell discontent and challenges to her authority."

Mwerinde was successful, according to the popular notion among Ugandans. She was very large, and hers was an expanding sect compound at Kanungu, at the end with 12 buildings.

The common belief is that "the failure of the world to end Dec. 31 spurred members to demand belongings they had surrendered to Mwerinde to join the sect. In turn, the reasoning goes, that inspired an insurrection that was put down with murder." However, these reports have not been confirmed.

The March 17 a fire in a boarded up building in Kanungu took the lives of nearly 400 men, women and children. Now it is believed to have been nothing but a well-conceived plan, "mass suicide'' to cover up murders of that already had been committed over the previous two weeks.

As was stated earlier, this certainly is not the meaning of what we are calling the "Christian's Death Wish."

However, unless we are willing to die to self, die to sin, and die to selfish desires - only then will we be assured that we really won't have to die after all.

God is dead

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 01:52:00 +0000

Are you sure about that? God isn't dead; I talked to Him just a few minutes ago, actually! He's given us quite a number of scriptures that also attest to the fact that He is alive and well. Take a gander at some of these:

Deuteronomy 5:26 For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?

Joshua 3:10 And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.

1 Samuel 17:26 And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?

1 Samuel 17:36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

Psalms 42:2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?

Psalms 84:2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.

Isaiah 37:4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which the LORD thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.

Isaiah 37:17 Incline thine ear, O LORD, and hear; open thine eyes, O LORD, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent to reproach the living God.

Jeremiah 10:10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.

Jeremiah 23:36 And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man's word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God.

Daniel 6:20 And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?

Daniel 6:26 I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end.

Matthew 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 26:63 But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.

John 6:69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

Acts 14:15 And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:

Romans 9:26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.

2 Corinthians 3:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

2 Corinthians 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

1 Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

1 Timothy 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1 Timothy 6:17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;

Hebrews 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

Hebrews 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Hebrews 10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Hebrews 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

Revelation 7:2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

Music With A Message - Are You Afraid to Die?

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 18:49:00 +0000

Ro 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Ro 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Ro 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Ro 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Ro 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

The Louvin Brothers and Eddie Hill wrote this song in the late 50s. It's been recorded by several artists since then, including the Stanley Brothers, Carl Story and this more recent version by Ricky Skaggs. If you're afraid to die, you don't have to be. Call on Jesus to save you according to John 1:12! Now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation!

Are you a stranger to God
Carried away with your pride ?
Tell me sinner, did you ever step to think
Are you afraid to die ?

Are you afraid ?
Are you unsaved ?
Are you afraid to die ?

Call on Him while he is near
Moments are swift passing by
Will you seek Him while he may be found ?
Are you afraid to die ?

Refrain

Are you too wicked to cry ?
Would you to God's bosom fly ?
Soon He's coming like a thief in the night
Are you afraid to die

Refrain

On Spiritual Growth

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 17:09:00 +0000

1Pe 2:1 ¶ Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,

1Pe 2:2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
1Pe 2:3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

Thoughts on Spiritual Growth:
One spring our family was driving from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa, Florida. As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. When we stopped for breakfast, I ordered orange juice with my eggs. "I'm sorry," the waitress said. "I can't bring you orange juice. Our machine is broken." At first I was dumbfounded. We were surrounded by millions of oranges, and I knew they had oranges in the kitchen--orange slices garnished our plates. What was the problem? No juice? Hardly. We were surrounded by thousands of gallons of juice. The problem was they had become dependent on a machine to get it. Christians are sometimes like that. They may be surrounded by Bibles in their homes, but if something should happen to the Sunday morning preaching service, they would have no nourishment for their souls. The problem is not a lack of spiritual food--but that many Christians haven't grown enough to know how to get it for themselves.

-- LeRoy Eims, The Lost Art of Disciple Making.

*******

Are You a Growing Christian?

Are you growing? Here are some ways you can tell.

What do you think about?

One of the first signs that you are growing in Christ is that you think about what Jesus has done on your behalf. You reflect upon it and you praise Him for it. Your sins are forgiven and you’re on your way to heaven. What a glorious thought!

What are you doing with your life?

You’re saved, but you don’t stop there. You develop muscles and become a strong warrior to the glory of God. You become an active member of the Lord’s army. Let me ask you: Is the devil afraid of you? Are you an overcomer or are you overcome?

If you are saved and still sitting on the sidelines, shame on you! Indeed, shame on all of us if we’re not exhorting and encouraging one another to lay down our lives to get into active service for our Lord!

Are you evangelizing and discipling others?

A father is one who has children. Do you have any spiritual children? This is a mark of a growing Christian—that you are multiplying yourself (what God did in you) by sharing it with others. When you appear before the throne of God, will you be standing there alone? Or will you be standing with children you have “parented” in Christ?

Do you know why we have so many flabby Christians? They come down the aisle of the church, get baptized, then come Sunday after Sunday and just sit, soak, and sour. They do not exercise. They don’t have daily quiet times; they’re not sharing Christ in their communities and neighborhoods; they’re not ministering in their church.

-- Adrian Rogers

What God Hath Promised - a poem

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 18:31:00 +0000

Annie Johnson Flint was quite a poet, and she had her share of trials to draw from as she wrote. This is one of my favourites:

God hath not promised skies always blue,

Flower strewn pathways all our lives through;

God hath not promised sun without rain,

Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

God hath not promised we shall not know

Toil and temptation, trouble and woe;

He hath not told us we shall not bear

Many a burden, many a care.

God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,

Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;

Never a mountain rocky and steep,

Never a river turbid and deep.

But God hath promised strength for the day,

Rest for the labor, light for the way,

Grace for the trials, help from above,

Unfailing sympathy, undying love.

--Annie Johnson Flint

*******

2Co 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
2Co 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Thoughts on the Eagle and Isaiah 40:31

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 21:19:00 +0000

A short devotional that I put together years ago when I was a fairly new Christian:

Isaiah 40:31 is a well-known and loved Bible verse that says But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

The eagle can circle for hours without landing. Picture how that applies spiritually to a Christian who has been saved according to John 1:12. God wants us to be like the eagle that uses rising air currents to hold itself aloft.

If an eagle tried to fly over a mountain by continually flapping its wings, it would grow weary, lose strength and fall to the ground.

When we face a mountain - be it of trouble or any kind of difficulty - we can climb with all our strength to get over the problem, and like the eagle flapping its wings, we will grow weary and be overcome. But if we let God lift us over the mountain as the eagle uses air currents, He gives us new strength to go on.

When we wait on the Lord, He renews our strength. Then we can mount up with wings like eagles, run and not get tired, walk and not faint.

photo courtesy Jason Mrachina, "InspiredinDesMoines," via Flickr

The Danger of Misplaced Commitment

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:33:00 +0000

Where does your devotion lie? To your church? To your pastor or other church leader? Or to the Head of the church: Jesus Christ?

Thank God for Bible-believing and Bible-preaching pastors and teachers! Remember though: they are not your final authority on spiritual matters. They're human, and just as prone to error as you are.

In the words of A.W. Tozer:

A.W. Tozer

"Faith in Jesus is not commitment to your church or denomination. I believe in the local church; I am not a tabernacle man. I believe in the divine assembly. We ought to realize that we are, as a group of Christians, a divine assembly, a cell in the body of Christ, alive with His life. But not for one second would I try to create in you a faith that would lead you to commit yourself irrevocably to a local church or to your church leaders. You are not asked to follow your church leaders. You are not asked like a little robin on the nest to open your innocent little mouth and just take anything I put in. If what I put in is not biblical food, regurgitate and do not be afraid to do it. Call me or come see me or write me an anonymous letter. But do something about it. Do not, by any means, swallow what your leaders give you. Here is the book, the Bible; go to it. Faith is faith in Jesus Christ, God"s Son. It is total faith in Christ and not in a denomination or church, though you may love the church and respect and love your leaders and your denomination. But your commitment is to Christ."

Ac 17:10 ¶ And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
Ac 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

1Co 3:3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
1Co 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?
1Co 3:5 ¶ Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?
1Co 3:6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
1Co 3:7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.

The Christian's Step-by-Step Walk

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:37:00 +0000

As a born-again Christians mature, they should increasingly resemble Jesus and decreasingly resemble the world around them (John 3:30). They should be "in the world, but not of the world," as was Jesus Himself (John 1:10). How do we achieve that? By following scripture such as Ephesians 4:22-32.

Christian, walk your talk.

1) Put off former conversation (the old man), verse 22
2) Be renewed in the spirit of your mind, verse 23
3) Put on the new man: righteousness and true holiness, verse 24
4) Put away lying; speak truth, verse 25
5) Be angry and sin not, don't let the sun go down on your anger, verse 26
6) Neither give place to the devil, verse 27
7) Let him that stole steal no more, but labour honestly with his hands to give to those in need, verse 28
8) Let no corrupt communication come out of your mouth, but only that which is edifying and ministers grace to those who hear it, verse 29
9) Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, verse 30
10) Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, evil-speaking and malice be put away, verse 31
11) Be kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as the Lord forgave you, verse 32

Eph 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
Eph 4:15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
Eph 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Eph 4:17 ¶ This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,
Eph 4:18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:
Eph 4:19 Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
Eph 4:20 But ye have not so learned Christ;
Eph 4:21 If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:

Eph 4:22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
Eph 4:23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
Eph 4:24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Eph 4:25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.
Eph 4:26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
Eph 4:27 Neither give place to the devil.
Eph 4:28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
Eph 4:29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Eph 4:31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
Eph 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Encouraging verses about the Lord's faithfulness

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 16:58:00 +0000

Praise God for His faithfulness to us, even when we are not faithful to Him. He cannot deny Himself, and as He is faithful to keep His children's salvation, He will also be faithful to judge those who reject Him. His invitation still stands: behold, now is the day of salvation. (2 Cor 6:2)

De 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;

Ps 119:138 Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful.

Ps 36:5 ¶ Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds.

Ps 40:10 I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation.

Psalms 89:1 Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite. I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

Psalms 89:2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.

Psalms 89:5 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.

Psalms 89:8 O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?

Psalms 89:24 But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted.

Psalms 89:33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.

Psalms 119:75 I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.

Psalms 119:90 Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth.

Psalms 143:1 A Psalm of David. Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.

Isaiah 25:1 O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

Lamentations 3:22-23 It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

1Co 1:9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

1Th 5:23-24 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.

2Th 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.

2Ti 2:11-13 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

Heb 2:17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

1Pe 4:19 Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

1Jo 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Re 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

Re 19:11 ¶ And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

Re 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Re 22:6 ¶ And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.

More about spiritual gifts

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 19:10:00 +0000

Almost a month ago, I wrote a post about the spiritual gift of faith. While a full study of the spiritual gifts is beyond the scope of this blog, I did find some old notes and further thoughts on the subject kicking around in my files.

For example:
It's important not to confuse spiritual gifts with natural talent. There may be similarities between the two, but not always. Oftentimes, God gifts us in ways that are opposite the direction in which our natural talent lies. (More than one preacher who is scared to death of public speaking, or who is painfully shy but is called to get behind the pulpit each week, will attest to that!)

The more we use our spiritual gifts, the more we grow. Spiritual gifts are temporal and not to be confused with the fruit of the Spirit, which is eternal.

For every spiritual gift listed in scripture, Satan has a counterfeit. There's no surprise: Satan is a master counterfeiter! An example of this can be seen with the gift of prophecy, which was a sign gift given at the beginning of the church age. It's a gift that's now passed away, but Satan tries to make people believe otherwise through psychics and false prophets such as Nostradamus and Jeane Dixon.

Here are four points I've heard preached about how to discover your spiritual gifts:

1) Prayer/fasting. Ask God to show you your areas of giftedness. You will have an unselfish desire to serve in your area(s) of giftedness.

2) Your areas of giftedness will be confirmed through other believers in the church.

3) Experiment with various areas of ministry. You will serve happily and effectively in the areas of giftedness that you possess. Serving may not be easy, however, because God wants you to depend on Him as you serve.

4) Evaluate your effectiveness for God's kingdom. Are positive results evident? We are happiest when we are using our spiritual gifts in obedience to God, and in the centre of His will.

According to Knowledge

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 19:38:00 +0000

As I read through 1 Peter 3 recently, I realized that the first 7 verses of that chapter are similar to the opening verses of 1 Timothy 3. They're both passages in which Christians like to focus on a select part of the chapter while conveniently overlooking the rest of it.

In 1 Tim 3:1-7, the requirements of an ideal pastor are given and while there are over 15 qualifications listed, many Christians stop reading after the second one. They then proceed to get up on their soapboxes and insist that divorced men do not belong in the pastorate.

In 1 Peter 3, many male Christians seem to stop reading half-way through the first verse and many female Christians seem to end at verse 6.

Now, verses 1-6 are wonderful verses for a Christian wife to read, learn and practice. The Lord covers a lot of territory and the verses apply to Christian wives in both equally and unequally yoked marriages: to Christian wives married to believers as well as Christian wives who are married to unbelievers. The book, however, is written to believers.

No too long ago, I heard a Christian woman say that women are complicated creatures and men don't understand them - like that somehow justifies a man's disobedience to God in the context of Christian marriage and his Bible-mandated spiritual headship.

I think she's partly right: I don't understand myself half the time; I know I'm a complicated creature!

But what saith the scripture? Is a Christian husband excused from being his wife's spiritual head and the leader of his home because he doesn't understand her? Because men often don't understand women?

God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar (Romans 3:4).

God designed woman; He knows how complicated we are. He also doesn't buy that as an excuse for a Christian husband to default on his marital responsibilities.

If we look beyond the first six verses of 1 Peter 3, we see that verse 7 says, Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

In one verse, the Lord lays the responsibility clearly on the husband to dwell with his wife according to knowledge (KJV). If he doesn't understand his wife, it's not because she's a complicated creature: it's because he hasn't fulfilled his scriptural responsibility.

A person comes to understand him- or herself by reading the Bible (James 1:22-24), drawing close to the Lord and letting His Holy Spirit explain and clarify things as He sees fit.

A husband will come to understand his wife the same way. It takes effort, and it's a process.

1 Peter 3:7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

There are no exemptions in that verse. It doesn't say "unless" anywhere. But the verse does explain why it's important for the man to dwell with his wife according to knowledge: "that your prayers be not hindered."

If, as a man and the head of the home (which is what God says you are), it's too much work for you to learn to understand and honour your wife, then God says it'll be too much work for Him to hear your prayers.

We live in a time when many Christian men shirk their God-given responsibilities. Christian ladies, if you're living with such a man, your best recourse is to go straight to the Lord about him. It'll do you no good to nag your husband, but if you are both born-again children of God, tattle on him to your Father and let Him look after it. It's not easy, but if your husband is shirking his spiritual responsibilities, overstepping yours will only make things worse.

Music with a Message - The Love of God

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:50:00 +0000

Ro 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Ro 8:36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Ro 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Ro 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Ro 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

"One day, during short intervals of inattention to our work, we picked up a scrap of paper and, seated upon an empty lemon box pushed against the wall, with a stub pencil, added the (first) two stanzas and chorus of the song…Since the lines (3rd stanza from the Jewish poem) had been found penciled on the wall of a patient’s room in an insane asylum after he had been carried to his grave, the general opinion was that this inmate had written the epic in moments of sanity."

--Frederick M. Lehman, “History of the Song, The Love of God,” 1948

The Love of God

words and music by Frederick M. Lehman

The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.

Refrain

O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints’ and angels’ song.

When years of time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Refrain

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

Refrain

Once I Heard A Song

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:31:00 +0000

Once I heard a song of sweetness,

As it cleft the morning air,

Sounding in its blest completeness,

Like a tender, pleading prayer;

And I sought to find the singer,

Whence the wondrous song was borne;

And I found a bird, sore wounded,

Pinioned by a cruel thorn.

I have seen a soul in sadness,

While its wings with pain were furl'd,

Giving hope, and cheer and gladness

That should bless a weeping world;

And I knew a life of sweetness,

Was of pain and sorrow borne,

And a stricken soul was singing,

With its heart against a thorn.

Ye are told of One who loved you,

Of a Saviour crucified,

Ye are told of nails that pinioned,

And a spear that pierced His side;

Ye are told of cruel scourging,

Of a Saviour bearing scorn,

And He died for your salvation,

With His brow against a thorn.

Ye "are not above the Master."

Will you breathe a sweet refrain?

And His grace will be sufficient,

When your heart is pierced with pain.

Will you live to bless His loved ones,

Tho' your life be bruised and torn,

Like the bird that sang so sweetly,

With its heart against a thorn?

--author unknown

Mt 10:24 The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.

Mt 27:29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

Atheists don't know poop

noreply@blogger.com (Laura) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 20:04:00 +0000

Source: Friend's post of a repost of a repost of a repost...

An atheist was seated next to a little girl on an airplane and he turned to her and said, "Do you want to talk? Flights go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger.."

The little girl, who had just started to read her book, replied to the total stranger, "What would you like to talk about?"

"Oh, I don't know," said the atheist. "How about why there is no God, or no Heaven or Hell, or no life after death?" as he smiled smugly.

"OK," she said. "Those could be interesting topics but let me ask you a question first. A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff - grass. Yet a deer poops little pellets, while a cow makes a big flat patty, but a horse poops clumps. Why do you suppose that is?"

The atheist, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence, thinks about it and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea."

To which the little girl replies, "Do you really feel qualified to discuss why there is no God, or no Heaven or Hell, or no life after death, when you obviously don't even know anything about poop?"

And then she went back to reading her Bible...

Ps 53:1 ¶ To the chief Musician upon Mahalath, Maschil, A Psalm of David. The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.