When Jesus began His
ministry, He said, “Repent, for the kingdom of
heaven is at hand.” Matt. 4:17
He said this to Israel,
to the Jews, NOT to the world. Jesus’s ministry was TO THE JEWS, to fulfill
prophecy. Everything
Jesus did was to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament, and the promises
made TO ISRAEL, about Himself.
“For I have
come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who
sent Me.” John 6:38
Four concepts contrast the fleeting, physical nature of earthly life with the unending, divine nature of the soul. Together, they form a framework to guide believers in prioritizing lasting spiritual growth over temporary physical desires. The distinctions break down into two main pairs:
We live unto the Lord, Rom. 14:8
“If God had willed it, each of us might have entered heaven at the moment of conversion. It was not absolutely necessary for our preparation for immortality that we should tarry here. It is possible for a man to be taken to heaven, and to be found meet to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light, though he has but just believed in Jesus. It is true that our sanctification is a long and continued process, and we shall not be perfected till we lay aside our bodies and enter within the veil; but nevertheless, had the Lord so willed it, He might have changed us from imperfection to perfection, and have taken us to heaven at once.
In a prior post, I point out that it is contrary to fundamental Christian beliefs and character to vote for a democrat. (I don't think everyone gets that… or WANTS to get it?) There is NO WAY I can be a part of or support a group that actively promotes, advances, endorses, encourages, helps, campaigns for, supports, advocates abortion and/or homosexuality. That is not only my perspective, but that is my faith, my firmly held conviction, … that's my stand. I loathe the democrat party. To me it is an antichrist. Do I make my point?
The only power God recognizes in His Church, is the power of His Spirit. Whereas the only power actually recognized today by the majority of evangelicals, is the power of man. God does His work by the operation of the Spirit; while Christian leaders attempt to do theirs, by the power of entertainment. Bright personality has taken the place of the Spirit's influence. But only what is done through the Holy Spirit will abide eternally.
Hebrews 12:2, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus!"
“In the
beginning, God (Elohim) created
the heavens and the Earth.” Gen. 1:1
John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God.”
We all know the creation
account in Genesis chapters 1:1 through 3:24. Chapters that require much study.
And those of us who have put in much study (relatively) need to put in
much more study...unless we think we know it all (again, relatively and with
all due respect).
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is GIVEN (John 3:16); 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.” Isaiah 9:6
And Micah 5:2
says, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come
forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose
origins are of old, from the days of eternity.”
The Half-Converted Cowboy
(A.W. Tozer)
Psalm 29:2,
"Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name;
worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness."
There is grief in my
spirit when I go into the average church, for we have become a generation
rapidly losing all sense of divine sacredness and reverence in our worship. God
has been abridged, reduced, modified, edited, changed and amended--until He is no
longer the high and lifted up God whom Isaiah saw! We've reduced the God of
Abraham and Jacob, to a "stuffed God" that can be appealed to by
anybody at any time. The religious clown on the radio can break into his fun
and say, "Now we will have a minute of prayer." In the religious concert,
the half-converted cowboy dressed like an idiot will say after he's twanged out
some catchy numbers, "Now I'll do a holy number for you."
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word...
We could spend, at least, the rest of the day on this very
short first part of this verse.
“Word” here, Logos, is from the Greek, and in a
few words means: thought (or reason), and (expressed) word. Think
of it as that which is not seen (being thought or mind), and that which
is manifest (as in, spoken or revealed)... God Who is Spirit manifest
in Jesus in the flesh. (which we read later in verse 14, the Word was made
flesh.) It is what “incarnate” means; “made flesh, or embody with
flesh.” The word incarnate is not, to my knowledge, found in scripture.
Paul’s first letter to
the Corinthians is a critical letter for us today in that we, the corporate
church like the Corinthians, are carnal and worldly. Whereas we should be growing
up into Christ (maturing), most have remained “babes” to the extent that
we can’t even “walk” right yet as we should. After years of church attendance,
Bible reading, conferences, and retreats... we still need the “milk” because we
can’t handle the “meat.” Without the “meat” we do not grow strong. Living on
just the “milk” we remain part of a vast nursery. (https://ourdivineportion.blogspot.com/2016/01/the-vast-nursery.html)
Why Is it?
~Arthur Pink, 1886-1952
Psalm 36:1, "An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes!"
Why is it, that today the
masses are so utterly unconcerned about spiritual and eternal things, and that
they are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God? Why is it that defiance of
God is becoming more open, more blatant, more daring? The answer is, because "There is no fear of God before their eyes!"
Romans 3:18
The WHOLE Bible is about GOD! Many, many Christians, down through time, have become “Jesus” worshippers to the exclusion of God the Father, especially during and after the “hippie” era. I lived through it. Some would say, “Yes, but they generated interest in Jesus.” Yes they did... some good, but a lot bad. Bad because it was from a wrong perspective and motive. The “Jesus” movement took away from God. But that’s another sermon.
(J.C. Ryle, 1879) published by Grace Gems
1 Timothy 6:3, "The
doctrine which is according to godliness . . ."
Inane things... the conversation of the world.
Through a recent exchange of “semantics” I
believe I have just had a revelation of a fundamental problem within the
Christian church as a whole. It is that we do NOT submit to the Truth of the
Word of God. Duh!
Why not?
A reality of the Old Testament was God’s dealings with the Hebrews. Beginning with calling out one man, Abraham who was called out of the race of men, since there was not yet a “race” of Jews. God worked to bring about a righteous holy people for Himself who would (should) evangelize the world. We’ve all heard the phrase “the best laid plans of mice and men” and in this case God too... “do often go astray.” Yes, indeed! But God is not surprised or foiled... all part of the plan.
I came away from church
this past Sunday with the distinct impression that we (the corporate church
in the world) do not really understand. It wasn’t
“church” that was disappointing... it was the bible teaching, but I’ll confess,
I could be cynical, or I’m naïve and only think I’m cynical.
