“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark. And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.” Matthew 24:35-44.
The red lights flash, the bells clang, and the boom starts to lower. The wise man, not only obeys the law by stopping, but he also preserves himself and any others in his car from being destroyed by the passing train. We all know these warnings, anyone of which should be adequate to catch our attention and preserve our safety. Then, why is it that even with all these, plus the whistle of the train as well, do hundreds if not thousands die every year. They were warned, but they ignored the warning. In most cases they made a decision that they could beat the train across, for, after all it could be a very long train, and a long wait.
Jesus told the apostles, “If I go, I will come again.” There they were standing, mouths agape, staring up at the clouds where he had disappeared from their sight. It took two angels to break up their trance, and move them on to the task that Jesus had just assigned them. “Go ye unto all the world…” Jesus had returned to his Father, and to prepare a place for all who believe and obey that command. Jesus had not stated any date for his return. To have done so, would have seem to sanction doing nothing until one knew that the date was near. Instead he said, not even the angels know when, not even himself; only his Father. In effect he was saying to every generation that was to come, this is my command, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you,” Matthew 28:19-20. To this command, he adds the promise, and he keeps his promises, “and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”
In other references, he gives a log list of things to expect before he comes, things which every generation since that time, have seen as reminders that he is returning, and it could possibly be at any time, for the entire period of history from his ascension back to Heaven to make the final preparations for his return, is spoken of as being “the latter days” or the “end times.” The ever increasing violence of those signs seems to indicate the nearness of the end. Read the statistics. Every record seems to be being broken. This is true of both mankind and of the created earth itself. Nevertheless life continues now as it did up until the day that Noah entered the ark and God “took them all away.” “Therefore be ye also ready” today. God was vague in details, because He wanted every generation to live in anticipation and preparedness that it would always be ready. Don’t invite disaster, make ready, “for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”
We have all read the signs at the rail way crossings. We have heard the bells ringing. We have seen the lights flashing. Now we see the final dropping of the boom, and hear the horn of the approaching train. Are we ready? We don’t know when our Lord is coming, but it would seem that only the event itself lies ahead!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
WHEN GOD SAYS NO
“From whence come wars and fightings among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not, ye kill, and desire to have, and can not obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask and receive not, because ye ask amiss, tat ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. Do you think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” James 4:1-6.
God is pictured in both the Old Testament and in the New as being a loving father figure. James, the half-brother of Jesus was well acquainted with both testaments, and knew of that relationship. He was well acquainted with the realities of life, and that sometimes even the most loving father, must discipline his sons and daughters. Much of what is wrong with the youth of today began with a lack of discipline in the early days at home. If no boundaries, and no rules have been set, can we be surprised that the adult has no self-control? But, I diverge.
God has set rules and boundaries, and God can, has, and will discipline. When God says, “No” in answer to our prayers, there is a reason, and that reason always seems to come back to ourselves. In this particular case, James points out that they are at war with one another, fighting with one another, and behind that are greed, envy, and worldliness. He sums it up with one word, lust! That is a nasty word and It is hard to believe that he could have called the church, the bride of Christ, an adulteress, but then the Children of Israel had often been unfaithful when they cast aside God for the gods of the people among whom they lived. This term was used of them, and it is also used in the New Testament of unfaithful Christians, who cast aside Christ, because of a love for the world. They worship the creation, and not the Creator. If that is true, how can they expect God to answer their prayers. I have known evangelists, God’s servants, who lusted after powerful cars; a Mercedes, a BMW, a Jaguar, a Citroen. In each case, God permitted them to have it for a short time, but each was a total disaster in the end. A lesson was learned. We learn to be humble, dependent upon him. He can and will provide for his own. “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.”
If he says, “Yes,” that is good. If he says, “Not now,” let us be patient and wait for his timing. But, if the says “No,” let us await his unquestionable leading. God knows the conclusion, even before we come up with our “bright ideas.” If he planted the idea there, then he will open the way, for his humble servant. The cycle returns to us. Our motivation makes all the difference.
Sometimes God says, “No,” and it is for own good. He who loves us, knows what is best.
God is pictured in both the Old Testament and in the New as being a loving father figure. James, the half-brother of Jesus was well acquainted with both testaments, and knew of that relationship. He was well acquainted with the realities of life, and that sometimes even the most loving father, must discipline his sons and daughters. Much of what is wrong with the youth of today began with a lack of discipline in the early days at home. If no boundaries, and no rules have been set, can we be surprised that the adult has no self-control? But, I diverge.
God has set rules and boundaries, and God can, has, and will discipline. When God says, “No” in answer to our prayers, there is a reason, and that reason always seems to come back to ourselves. In this particular case, James points out that they are at war with one another, fighting with one another, and behind that are greed, envy, and worldliness. He sums it up with one word, lust! That is a nasty word and It is hard to believe that he could have called the church, the bride of Christ, an adulteress, but then the Children of Israel had often been unfaithful when they cast aside God for the gods of the people among whom they lived. This term was used of them, and it is also used in the New Testament of unfaithful Christians, who cast aside Christ, because of a love for the world. They worship the creation, and not the Creator. If that is true, how can they expect God to answer their prayers. I have known evangelists, God’s servants, who lusted after powerful cars; a Mercedes, a BMW, a Jaguar, a Citroen. In each case, God permitted them to have it for a short time, but each was a total disaster in the end. A lesson was learned. We learn to be humble, dependent upon him. He can and will provide for his own. “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.”
If he says, “Yes,” that is good. If he says, “Not now,” let us be patient and wait for his timing. But, if the says “No,” let us await his unquestionable leading. God knows the conclusion, even before we come up with our “bright ideas.” If he planted the idea there, then he will open the way, for his humble servant. The cycle returns to us. Our motivation makes all the difference.
Sometimes God says, “No,” and it is for own good. He who loves us, knows what is best.
Friday, June 6, 2008
ONE ANT TO ANOTHER
DON’T LOOK NOW, BUT THERE IS SOMETHING OUT THERE LOOKING AT US.
Let me tell you the great news a lone ant carried back to the ant colony following his escape to the real world outside, and then he somehow made his way back in again. He had great news. “There is a great, wonderful, world out there. It has huge colonies of other ants of all kinds and colors. You can not imagine it!” That could be us. We could be that ant. There is a great, wonderful, world out there beyond our galaxy, a place that we can never understand or describe! To most of the world, it is a well kept secret, though it shouldn’t be. How could it be? How did it come about? The world asks those very questions. What is out there? Well, you and I know in part. We know because we have been told how it came about. We know the maker of it all.
We know Jesus. We can even quote one of the scriptures that tells us of his part in creating it. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” John, the apostle who was closest to Jesus told us these facts in the first three verses of his gospel account. Paul in Colossians also wrote, “By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things and by him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16,17.
But, let us go back a few thousand years, as we measure time, to the first verse of Genesis. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.“ How can it say, “in the beginning” when he existed before then? Simple, there was no such thing as time, for months, days, and years all came about as part of the creation.
I recently saw a picture taken by the Hubble Space Telescope of the Helix Nebula that looked shockingly like a gigantic eye peering back at the camera! Of course it was something else, not an eye at all. Still it's resemblance gained it the name "Eye of God." But there IS something out there. That something is intensely interested in all that happens here. We are like the ant in the ant colony, the galaxy of which we are but a tiny speck is like that colony. That something is God, without beginning, and without end, so powerful that he spoke, “And God said,” and all that we know and see about us came into being. God wanted us to know that, so He saw to it that Moses wrote of it the book of, beginnings, Genesis. He also wants us to know about Heaven, Hell, and the ending of this “ant colony” we call our galaxy. There is a whole world out there, one that will never end, a world grand beyond our ability to visualize it, one where His family will be blessed to go to, because all that is evil will have been separated and sent to the place especially prepared for Satan and his fallen angels. There are glimpses of this place in the accounts of the rich man and Lazarus, portions of the book of Revelation 21 and 22, and numerous other scattered scripture references. There is no reason to wonder; his creation speaks loudly, “Look at me and see God’s handwork.” We only have to open our eyes and our minds to see.
Let me tell you the great news a lone ant carried back to the ant colony following his escape to the real world outside, and then he somehow made his way back in again. He had great news. “There is a great, wonderful, world out there. It has huge colonies of other ants of all kinds and colors. You can not imagine it!” That could be us. We could be that ant. There is a great, wonderful, world out there beyond our galaxy, a place that we can never understand or describe! To most of the world, it is a well kept secret, though it shouldn’t be. How could it be? How did it come about? The world asks those very questions. What is out there? Well, you and I know in part. We know because we have been told how it came about. We know the maker of it all.
We know Jesus. We can even quote one of the scriptures that tells us of his part in creating it. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” John, the apostle who was closest to Jesus told us these facts in the first three verses of his gospel account. Paul in Colossians also wrote, “By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things and by him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16,17.
But, let us go back a few thousand years, as we measure time, to the first verse of Genesis. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.“ How can it say, “in the beginning” when he existed before then? Simple, there was no such thing as time, for months, days, and years all came about as part of the creation.
I recently saw a picture taken by the Hubble Space Telescope of the Helix Nebula that looked shockingly like a gigantic eye peering back at the camera! Of course it was something else, not an eye at all. Still it's resemblance gained it the name "Eye of God." But there IS something out there. That something is intensely interested in all that happens here. We are like the ant in the ant colony, the galaxy of which we are but a tiny speck is like that colony. That something is God, without beginning, and without end, so powerful that he spoke, “And God said,” and all that we know and see about us came into being. God wanted us to know that, so He saw to it that Moses wrote of it the book of, beginnings, Genesis. He also wants us to know about Heaven, Hell, and the ending of this “ant colony” we call our galaxy. There is a whole world out there, one that will never end, a world grand beyond our ability to visualize it, one where His family will be blessed to go to, because all that is evil will have been separated and sent to the place especially prepared for Satan and his fallen angels. There are glimpses of this place in the accounts of the rich man and Lazarus, portions of the book of Revelation 21 and 22, and numerous other scattered scripture references. There is no reason to wonder; his creation speaks loudly, “Look at me and see God’s handwork.” We only have to open our eyes and our minds to see.
Monday, June 2, 2008
THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NO, NOT ONE.
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understand, There is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, They are together become unprofitable; There is none that doeth good, no not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; With their tongues they have used deceit; The poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
No, this is not the ravings of some present day preacher condemning today’s living generation. It is actually the apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome. Romans 3:10-18. In the King James version of the Bible, it is also written all in capital letters, which I have not done. That would be unacceptable on the web today.
These words were, and are, spoken of all mankind, for “all have sinned and fallen short.” To most people, religion is the keeping of a set of laws. Remember what Jesus said to the rich young ruler who came to him and asked, What must I do to the saved? Remember that he said of the Law; I have kept all those from my youth up. The Word tells us that Jesus loved him, so that must have been a fairly accurate statement, but it wasn’t enough, was it? His wealth was the major obstacle. Everyone has a major obstacle that needs to be overcome. It effects not only the individual but all those who follow him. Anyone who has watched racing of nearly any type can recall occasions when a leader of the pack makes a mistake and there is a pile up. It is not only the leader that suffers, but what ever happened to him, also happens to many others as well. However, don’t despair, salvation is not earned by good works. We need to overcome whatever may be holding us back; not because of a law, but because we want to serve the Lord and we know it has to be removed before we can do so. In my own case, because of my military service, I could have used the G.I. Bill of rights to go back and complete the university training I had started. I had in fact, already recieved acceptance to return to the university. Had I done so, probably by now I would be more than financially secure for life but what about after that? That training could well have been my own downfall. Our Bible says, he that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin. There are times in all our lives, when, like a fork in the road, effect everything from there on, including the final destination we all want to reach, Heaven.
Paul was pointing out that there is not one person, no not one, who of himself is righteous. We all need help. We need the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We read in the book of Acts 2:38, that those who were obedient in baptism, received two things, the forgiveness of their past sins, and the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide them from returning to all those things of before ever again. When Jesus forgave the sins of any individual, he always instructed them to go and sin no more. Now, he has sent us the Spirit to guide and be with us, and help us to be living temples. The temple was the dwelling place of God. With the Holy Spirit to guide us, and the Lord within us, there is nothing He wants us to do for Him that we can not do. “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:20. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God: being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” Romans 3:23-25.
No, this is not the ravings of some present day preacher condemning today’s living generation. It is actually the apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome. Romans 3:10-18. In the King James version of the Bible, it is also written all in capital letters, which I have not done. That would be unacceptable on the web today.
These words were, and are, spoken of all mankind, for “all have sinned and fallen short.” To most people, religion is the keeping of a set of laws. Remember what Jesus said to the rich young ruler who came to him and asked, What must I do to the saved? Remember that he said of the Law; I have kept all those from my youth up. The Word tells us that Jesus loved him, so that must have been a fairly accurate statement, but it wasn’t enough, was it? His wealth was the major obstacle. Everyone has a major obstacle that needs to be overcome. It effects not only the individual but all those who follow him. Anyone who has watched racing of nearly any type can recall occasions when a leader of the pack makes a mistake and there is a pile up. It is not only the leader that suffers, but what ever happened to him, also happens to many others as well. However, don’t despair, salvation is not earned by good works. We need to overcome whatever may be holding us back; not because of a law, but because we want to serve the Lord and we know it has to be removed before we can do so. In my own case, because of my military service, I could have used the G.I. Bill of rights to go back and complete the university training I had started. I had in fact, already recieved acceptance to return to the university. Had I done so, probably by now I would be more than financially secure for life but what about after that? That training could well have been my own downfall. Our Bible says, he that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin. There are times in all our lives, when, like a fork in the road, effect everything from there on, including the final destination we all want to reach, Heaven.
Paul was pointing out that there is not one person, no not one, who of himself is righteous. We all need help. We need the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We read in the book of Acts 2:38, that those who were obedient in baptism, received two things, the forgiveness of their past sins, and the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide them from returning to all those things of before ever again. When Jesus forgave the sins of any individual, he always instructed them to go and sin no more. Now, he has sent us the Spirit to guide and be with us, and help us to be living temples. The temple was the dwelling place of God. With the Holy Spirit to guide us, and the Lord within us, there is nothing He wants us to do for Him that we can not do. “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:20. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God: being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” Romans 3:23-25.
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