8/31 (a new source - Morrison) http://kjvdevos.blogspot.com

The Testimony of His Enemies
They hated me without a cause— Joh_15:25

Love Is Not Blind
I take it that if you want to understand a person, the first essential is that you should love him. It is only love that sees into the deeps and reads the story in the light of God. There is a proverb which says that love is blind. If that were true, then God would have no eyes. Love is not blind. It has the keenest sight. It can read the smallest print without assistance. And we call it blind because the things we see and, seeing, can detect no beauty in, are to the eyes of love transfigured, like a window that reflects the sunset. It is when I am told that God is love that I commit all judgment to Him gladly. It is when I believe that someone loves me that I am never afraid to be myself. And so with Jesus—it was those who loved Him who saw the heights and depths of what He was, and it was always to the men who loved Him that He unlocked the treasures of His heart.

Value of Our Enemies' Estimate of Us
Yet while that is true both about Christ, and about every person be he great or small, it is also true that there may be a value in the testimony of one's enemies. I am not speaking of those malicious slanders which may assail a public reputation. These are a breath out of the mouth of hell to be scorned by every honorable man. I am rather speaking of those hasty comments that are made in the presence of a lofty character, and made, not by those who understand it, but by those who are antagonistic. Whatever in that character is weak is instantly detected by the envious. Whatever in that character is strong is wrested and distorted to a fault. And so through the haze of things that are half-true—back of the mists of prejudice and passion—we sometimes can discern, if we be wise, the lineament and figure of the truth. Now what I want to do is this. I want to look at Jesus Christ like that. I want to look at Him, not through His friends' eyes, but through the eyes of enemies and ill-wishers. I want to ask what qualities arrested them, no matter how they were travestied or torn, as they saw the deeds or listened to the words of this perplexing Personage from Galilee.

His Enemies Were Impressed by the Reality and Courage of His Comradeship
Well, the first thing the enemies bear witness to is the reality and courage of His comradeship. They looked on Jesus as an enemy, and yet they have taught the world that He was a Brother. "He is the friend of publicans and sinners"—that was the charge which they were always hurling. They thought that if nothing else could ruin Him that would forever blast His reputation. And now we take that charge and we accept it, and we believe it because His haters made it, and to us it is the witness and the seal of the magnificent comradeship of Christ. It is almost impossible for us to realize in what odium these publicans were held. Tax collectors for detested Rome, they were one and all of them traitors to their country. And their money was tainted and their hands were foul, and if one made an oath to them it was not valid. They were as loathsome as the hungry dogs that prowl for refuse in the eastern streets. It was of such that Jesus was the friend. Was not that enough to blight His reputation? And He not only spoke with them in public, He went to their houses and He ate and drank with them. And His enemies rejoiced when they saw that, and they said, "His tastes proclaim Him as a sinner"; and we accept the fact and say, "No, not a sinner; His action proclaims Him as a brother."

Jesus Impressed His Enemies as a "Gluttonous Man and a Wine-Bibber"
Then once again we gather from His enemies that He impressed them as a genial man. For you remember another charge they hurled at Him, "Behold a gluttonous man, and a wine-bibber." Any charge more villainously false it would be impossible for malice to conceive. Probably they only half-believed it although they used it in their campaign of calumny. Yet am I thankful it has been preserved and preserved, too, by the lips of Christ Himself, for through the vileness of it we discern a truth that is far too precious to let die. It is this that the enemies have borne their witness to—that Jesus was not ascetic and austere. He was no John the Baptist in His robe of hair shunning the pleasant fellowship of men. He was genial. He loved a kindly company. He sat and was happy at the social table. He moved among men not with a face of gloom; He moved among them with a face of gladness and joy. The bitterest foe would never have said that about Isaiah or about Jeremiah. The vilest slanderer would have been laughed at had he ventured so to speak of John the Baptist. And the very fact that men so spake of Jesus, and found an audience who would listen to them, is a witness of unequalled value to His gladness and His geniality.

Jesus' Composure in the Midst of Gloom Impressed His Enemies
Of course it is true that we read that Jesus wept while nowhere do we read that Jesus smiled. And some have concluded that He never smiled because the Gospel does not mention it. It seems to me that that is the wrong conclusion. Is not the other way about more natural? Is it not likely that His tears are mentioned because they were exceptional and rare? Let a thousand men be walking in the streets, and you never read in the newspapers of them. But one of them is crushed—meets with an accident—and it is of him you have the paragraph. So everyone noted it when Jesus wept. It was so unusual, so exceptional. And to the evangelists, when they sat down to write, these tears of Christ were hot and burning still. But His gladness was perennial and pervasive, so common that it did not need a chronicle, and we might almost have been blind to it save for some illuminative slanders. I do not forget that Christ was a Man of sorrows. I do not forget that He foresaw the cross. But of this I am sure, that in this weary world He never moved in a parade of gloom. He hid it deep—all that He had to bear. He went apart when He would agonize. And when the sorrow broke upon the surface, men were amazed and said, "Behold, He weeps!"

His Enemies Were Impressed by the Reality of His Power in Working Miracles
Once more, we have the testimony of His enemies to the reality of His power in working miracles. To me there is nothing more significant than that in the whole record of the Gospel. There is a good deal of talk on the miracles today. There are many to whom the miracles are stumbling blocks. There is something lawless in these displays of power to many who have been trained as we have been, but I am not going into that subject. It is too great to be treated by the way, but I want to suggest to you two considerations which seem to me of singular importance.
The first is that those who knew Christ best never expressed amazement at a miracle. It is always the people who are amazed at miracles, never any of the twelve disciples. I never read that Peter was amazed. I never read that Thomas was amazed. It was not they; it was the village crowds who were filled with wonder at these mighty deeds. And that just means that as men got nearer Christ, the less and less amazing grew the miracles. The more they knew Him—the more they understood Him—the more natural did the miracle appear. It was a deed of wonder to the ignorant just because they were ignorant of Christ. They judged Him by the other men they knew, and so His deeds of power were amazing. But to John, who lay upon his Master's bosom and had fathomed the infinite secret of His heart, it was not the miracle that was so wonderful. It was the wonderful Christ who was behind it.
And then the other suggestive fact is this. Christ's enemies did not deny His miracles. They never said, "He does not cast out devils by Beelzebub." Now, would not they have denied them if they could? Were not the miracles a mighty trumpet blast? Can you not imagine how the news would spread and be the talk beside a hundred hearths? And yet these miracles that drew the crowd and awed the reckless and thrilled a thousand hearts, these never once in the whole Gospel story were denied by the bitterest enemy of Christ. He casteth out devils by Beelzebub. They had to admit, you see, the casting out. It would have been their triumph to dispute it. There is not a trace they ever tried to do so. And what I say is that that bitter taunt which blights the motive, yet cannot touch the fact, is one of the strongest of all the lesser arguments that the miracles of Jesus Christ were real.

Jesus' Enemies Were Impressed by His Intensity
Then once again I gather from His enemies something of the intensity of Christ. They went to see Him, and they went to listen to Him, and they said, "He hath a devil, and is mad." It was not everyone who passed that verdict. There were simpler men who took another view. Thrilled by the depth and beauty of His speech, they could only say, "Never man spake like this man." But to the cold, precise, and formal Pharisees this baptism of fire was but insanity. And they steeled their hearts against the burning of it, and they said, "He hath a devil, and is mad." Had He been cold as they themselves were cold, how utterly foolish such a charge as that! The people would have turned on them and torn them and bidden the physician heal himself. What made the charge pass for truth for an hour was just the burning intensity of Christ, the fire that glowed at a white heat within Him, and shone through every syllable He spoke. There are two charges the enthusiast has to bear. Sometimes he is drunk, and sometimes mad. On the day of Pentecost, it was the one. With Paul as he stood before Festus, it was the other. And so when the enemies of Christ stood by and smiled and shrugged and said, "The man is mad," it only tells us what a fire was burning and what an intensity was glowing there.

His Enemies Were Impressed by His Calmness
I sometimes think our thoughts are not quite right in regard to the calmness of our Lord and Savior. Do we not dwell upon the rest of Christ in a way that is apt to rob Him of His power? l believe that Christ was infinitely calm. I believe He was unutterably restful. "Come unto me and I will give you rest"—and men looked upon His face and felt it true. Yet "He that is near to Me is near the fire," is one of the unwritten sayings of the Master. The rest of Jesus is not a rest that dulls and stupefies, the rest of Jesus is a rest that glows and irradiates. There is a calm which is the calm of sleep. There is another of intensest life. When all the powers are in perfect equipoise, then there is rest though energy be infinite. That is the calm of the expanse of ocean when we say it sleeps under the silver moon, and yet that sleep is but the perfect balance of the most mighty and stupendous forces. I like to think of the calm of Christ like that. His peace was as the sleeping of the sea. There was not a ripple on the expanse of water and not a breaker to frighten a child. And yet it was intense—the rest of God—and spoke of unseen powers that were tremendous; and so men looked at Him and smiled and shrugged and said, "He hath a devil, and is mad."

Jesus' Enemies Were Impressed by His Trust in God
Then in the last place and in a single word—His enemies witness to His trust in God. That was the last taunt they flung at Him. It was the bitterest, and it was the truest. "He trusted in God," they cried when He was crucified. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him. Ah, how cruel it was—how diabolic—while the nails were through His feet and through His hands. And yet I think I see the face of Jesus lighting up with a glad look of triumph. Even His enemies had to confess at last that through storm and sunshine He had trusted God. Now tell me, have you any enemies? If you have friends you probably have foes. Well, now, if they began to taunt you, could they say with a sneer of you, "He trusted God"? Happy the man of whom that can be said! Happy the heart which has that hostile witness! Happy the life which has revealed its trust to the watchful eyes of malice and of hate! http://kjvdevos.blogspot.com/

Facing Our Fear

Scripture: Psalm 56:3, Isaiah 40:28, Acts 15:18, Matthew 6:8, John 21:17, Philippians 1:12, Romans 8:28, Daniel 2:21-22, II Timothy 1:7

1. We have fear of the unknown

A. Trust the fact that God is omniscient

“Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurs to God?”

2. We have fear of the uncontrollable

A. Trust the fact that God is omnipotent

“Faith- Forsaking All I Trust Him”

God is omnipresent and He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Columbus Baptist Church, “Go Forward”

http://www.columbusbaptist.net/foward.mp3

Light from the Lamp July/August 2009 Bible Study

July / August 2009
“Leaving Out With No Regrets”

Scripture Text
Philippians 2:16- Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

The Apostle Paul declares his desire to remain faithful to the Word of God until the day he sees the Lord Jesus Christ face to face. Is this how you feel? My desire is to have this same goal as Paul in finishing the course with no regrets. Notice what Paul says in Acts 20:24, But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Paul also wrote this personal charge to the young preacher Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:6-8, For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. The end of Paul’s earthly journey was about to end. The order was made to execute this preacher. He was considered to be a threat by the religious crowd. I believe Paul had no regrets of any kind even up to his last breath. I often wonder if Paul was asked if he had any last words before the executioner carried out the sentence. If he did, I am sure he gave his testimony and told those guards about the Lord Jesus Christ.

How can a person be able to rejoice in the day of Christ? In our text, that day is when Christians are rewarded for their stewardship (1 Corinthians 3:11-15). We all must be a light to this world shining for the Lord Jesus Christ. We must take every opportunity that God gives and serve Him faithfully. We must fully trust His Word and seek only His wisdom. The human side of us (the flesh) gives out and fails. We cannot serve the Lord by the means of our flesh. The only way to serve the Lord is to live and walk in the Spirit. Consider these two verses. Galatians 5:16- This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:25- If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit assures us that we are being led in the right direction. God will never lead His children astray! In serving the Lord, there are times of failure, discouragement and rejection. During these times, some people develop the attitude of regret and often abandon the Lord’s work. We must have a close relationship with the Lord and be faithful to His calling in our life.

The only regret a person should have is the life of sin they lived before salvation. After all, it is regret that is felt in their heart that brought them to a place of repentance. Once they receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour, that old life is cleansed by the blood and a new life begins. Their new life in Jesus should have no regrets because they are now a new creature according to 2 Corinthians 5:17, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. New believers are under serious attack from Satan because of this change. He will bring up their former life and the sinful deeds which held them in bondage and introduce doubt. If this can be accomplished then it is more likely a person will draw back and will get away from the Lord. Does it break your heart to see one of God’s people fall away because of the devil? If it doesn’t, then you need a check up yourself! In spite of all the attacks upon God’s children, I can truly say it has been worth every mile of the trip. I confess that some days are harder than others and at times I’m not sure I can take another step. God reminds me through His Word that I’m not in control of things. I have no regrets of trusting Him as my Lord and Saviour nor do I wish to turn my back upon His divine will for my life. How do you feel about your life today? Do you have any regrets? If you have regrets, then its time to call on God and get the matter settled once and for all.

When the race is complete and God’s people reach Heaven, we will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:10 , For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. My friend, keep running the race! Stay faithful to the Word! Live your life before others that will glorify God. Jesus is coming soon my friends. I admonish you all to keep on serving the Lord with all purity and sincerity. Let us all hear these words one glorious day: Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord (Matthew 25:23).

Until Next Time,
Pastor Craig Westbrook

The Fear of Risk

Henry Fairlie of the Washington Post, writing in the Tulsa World, states that the “fear of risk is killing the American Spirit.” He points out our over-reaction to Three Mile Island and the engine on one DC-10.

He believes that the nation that won’t build a dam because of a small snail darter, or that will delay a carriage to the stars because it might fall like Skylab is in deep trouble.

He asked, “Was the Mayflower seaworthy?” He contends that a group of Americans today would not have the heart to cross the Rockies as our forefathers did years ago. It would be too risky!

There is a lesson here for the church of our Lord. Many good works go wanting for fear of the risk involved. Some Christians will not become soul winners because of the risk of being hurt. Others have never given liberally to God because of fear of poverty. Church members refuse to become involved in domestic and world evangelism because they might not succeed. Another won’t defend truth for the same reason. No doubt but what the “fear of risk” has killed many good programs in the church. There is no “fear of risk” for Christ. He knew that He came into the world to die for all. He asked his followers to deny themselves daily and take up their crosses and walk! There will always be some perils, but think of the risk if we don’t!

Time to step out and step up to do the job God has called His church to do.

Have a great day,

Bro. Harry Shomaker

BaptistQuips.Blogspot

Partial disobedience is total disobedience.

Has it ever occurred to you that nothing has ever occurred to God?

Right is right, even if you are the only one doing it. Wrong is wrong even when everyone is doing it.

Even when you can't see Him, God is there.

"Look up Isaiah 53:6, and enter in at the first 'all', and come out at the last 'all'." - D.L. Moody

Not 'God, use me!', but rather 'God, make me usable!'" - Mike Bowling

Joy is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Christ. - William Hoven

Don't waste time trying to change GOD'S mind.

"The first and the great work of a Christian is about his heart." - Jonathan Edwards

Difficulties are only miracles that have not yet happened.

http://baptistquips.blogspot.com/

KJV Devos: Hymn "I Gave My Life For Thee"

I gave My life for thee, My precious blood I shed,
That thou might ransomed be, and raised up from the dead
I gave, I gave My life for thee, what hast thou given for Me?
I gave, I gave My life for thee, what hast thou given for Me?

My Father’s house of light, My glory circled throne
I left for earthly night, for wanderings sad and lone;
I left, I left it all for thee, hast thou left aught for Me?
I left, I left it all for thee, hast thou left aught for Me?

I suffered much for thee, more than thy tongue can tell,
Of bitterest agony, to rescue thee from hell.
I’ve borne, I’ve borne it all for thee, what hast thou borne for Me?
I’ve borne, I’ve borne it all for thee, what hast thou borne for Me?

And I have brought to thee, down from My home above,
Salvation full and free, My pardon and My love;
I bring, I bring rich gifts to thee, what hast thou brought to Me?
I bring, I bring rich gifts to thee, what hast thou brought to Me?

2 Corinthians 5:14
John 10:17-18
Ephesians 5:1-2
1 Thessalonians 5:9-11

Frances R. Havergal - Lyrics/1836 - 1879
Born: December 14, 1836, Astley, Worcestershire, Eng­land.
Died: June 3, 1879, Caswall Bay, near Swansea, Wales.
Buried: Astley, Worcestershire, England, the city of her birth. On her tomb­stone was the Scripture verse she claimed as her own: The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John 1:7

Philip P. Bliss - Composer/1838 - 1876
Born: July 9, 1838, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.
Died: December 29, 1876, Ashtabula, Ohio. Bliss and his wife died in a tragic train wreck caused by a bridge collapse. He survived the initial impact, but went back into the flames in an unsuccessful a­tempt to rescue his wife.
Buried: The remains retrieved from the Ashtabula disaster were placed in a common grave marked by a cenotaph in the Ashtabula Cemetery. A cenotaph in memory of the Blisses was also erected in the cemetery at Rome, Pennsylvania, July 17, 1877.

******************************************************

Francis Ridley Havergal was born on December 14, 1836, at Astley, Worcestershire, England. She was the youngest child of the Rev, William Henry Havergal, a minister of the Church of England. Her father was also a noted poet and church musician. Miss Havergal had training in linguistics and music. Although she was a highly educated and cultured, Miss Havergal always maintained a simple faith and confidence in her Lord. It is said that she never wrote a line without first praying over it. Her entire life was characterized by spiritual saintliness. In spite of being always frail in health, she lived an active and productive life until her death at the age of forty-three.

As part of her education, Francis studied in Dusseldorf, Germany. In the art gallery of that city hangs the famous painting by Sternberg, ”Ecce Homo,” a vivid portrayal of Christ, wearing his crown of thorns, before Pilate and the Jewish mob. Beneath the picture are the words, “This have I done for thee; what hast thou done for Me?”

While visiting the museum and seeing the painting, Miss Havergal was humbly moved. After gazing for a considerable time at the painting she took a pencil and scrap paper and quickly wrote the stanzas for this hymn. Later, while visiting her home in England, she again noted the words she had hurriedly scribbled, but felt the poetry was so poor that she tossed the paper into a stove. The paper, is said to have floated out of the flames and landed on the floor, where it was later found by her father. He encouraged her to keep the words and composed the first tune for the text.

Francis R. Havergal is also author of the hymns “Take My Life and Let it Be” and “I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus.”

More...

Finishing Well

What do you think of when you hear the name Miriam? She was intelligent, resourceful, and a leader. I have known women to say of someone like this, "When she walks into a room, strength walks in". Miriam faithfully watched her little brother by the river's brink. She bravely offered help and wisely suggested her own mother to nurse baby Moses. In Exodus 15, we find her leading the other women in praise to the Lord. She was a prophetess according to verse 20, yet shortly thereafter, she oversteps her boundaries, speaks against her brother Moses, and God swiftly puts her in her place.

In Numbers 12 we read of a terrible humbling she endured. She spoke against Moses for marrying an Ethiopian woman, and then asks this question, "Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us?". Was she jealous of the attention Moses was getting? Did she desire a higher place of leadership? Was the complaint against his wife just an excuse used to tear him down in order to make herself look better? For whatever reason, the Bible makes a note of recording, "And the LORD heard it."

The Lord was not pleased with her attack on his servant, Moses. He made it very clear to her in verses 6-8: "...If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches..."
While the prophets saw visions and dreams, Moses spoke to God face to face! God's judgement fell on her, and Miriam became a leper. Even though Moses prayed and God removed her leprosy, she was shamed for seven days as a leper: "...the LORD said unto Moses, If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and after that let her be received in again."

Miriam had held an honored place next to her brothers Aaron and Moses. She was a prophetess of God! The women obviously looked up to her, and followed her lead as she praised God. But after she faltered here, you never read of Miriam in the Bible again. Was she restored? Did she learn her lesson and go on to serve the Lord? It is important that we are careful not to think more of ourselves than we ought. Jesus was meek. Moses was meek. "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble".

As we serve Him, we need to be careful not to let pride, arrogance, jealousy, and bitterness ruin our testimony, shame us before others, and falter in the race God has left us to run. Rather, humbly and meekly we should serve the Lord, in our place, building up one another, and submitting to those in authority over us, so that we can one day say, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith".

Why Go To Church? (copied)

If you're spiritually alive, you're going to love this!
If you're Spiritually dead, you won't want to read it.
If you're spiritually curious, there is still hope!

A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper
and complained that it made no sense to go to church every
Sunday. 'I've gone for 30 years now,' he wrote, 'and in
that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But
for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them.
So, I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting
theirs by giving sermons at all.'

This started a real controversy in the 'Letters to the Editor'
column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for
weeks until someone wrote this clincher:

'I've been married for 30 years now.. In that time my wife
has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I
cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals.
But I do know this. They all nourished me and gave me the
strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given
me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise,
if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be
spiritually dead today!' When you are DOWN to nothing....
God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes
the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for
our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!'

All right, now that you're done reading, send it on! I think
everyone should read this! 'When Satan is knocking at your
door, simply say, 'Jesus, could you get that for me?
Live simply, Love generously. Care deeply, Speak kindly

Lord bless,

Bro. Harry Shomaker

Winning Over Worry

Scripture: Psalm 118:24, Matthew 6:25-34, Luke 12:13-15, Luke 12:20, John 10:28-30, I Peter 5:6-7

1. The problems of worry

- inconsistent

- irrational

- ineffective

- illogical

- irreligious

2. Plan for worry

- right priorities

- right perspectives

- right prayer

FAITH IS GOD CAN AND TRUST IS GOD WILL

Now is the time...

I read this letter this week, and thought that it spoke to Christians of every generation. Could it not just as easily be a plea for missionaries to go to our military today?



March 3, 1864

Now is the time to preach in the army. There is a half formed intention on the part of many of our brethren that they will come to the army when the weather opens, and spend a while in preaching to the soldiers. Let me urge that they come at once. There are comfortable houses of worship (thirty-seven in all) scattered throughout our camps; there is a good prospect of weeks of uninterrupted labor, and there is an eagerness to hear the Gospel seldom witnessed in camp. Many of our chaplains are now absent, taking a needed respite from their labors, and there are now comparatively few missionaries in the camps; so that, at a time when there is special demand for ministerial labors, the supply is unusually limited. I appeal, then to our brethren in the ministry (especially to our most useful pastors) to come at once, if only for a short time, and give us a helping hand in reaping the precious sheaves now "white unto the harvest." It will cost some trouble and sacrifice--but ought we not to be willing to endure these for the good of the noble fellows who risk their all for us? And do not delay your coming brethren, for these is many a poor fellow whom you might reach now, who will fill a soldier's grave in the early spring campaign. Take your roll of blankets and a box of provisions (if convenient) to help the "mess" with which you may stay, and come right along.

J. Wm. Jones, Army Evangelist

~from Christ in the Camp by J. William Jones, p. 367

Sharon Raub's family operates Eagle's Wings Military Ministry, an outreach to the families who pay such a high price for our freedom. Be sure to check out their site and pray for them!

picture from Smithsonian Images taken by Terry Buckwalter

BaptistQuips.Blogspot

If being a Christian was a crime, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

"I'm not looking for the undertaker, but the "upper-taker"! - Victor Sears

We may seem the object of ridicule, but we’re the focus of infinite love.

"We can easily be too big for God to use, but never too small for Him to use." - Lester Roloff

Opportunity may knock only once, but temptation leans on the doorbell.

"No matter what a man's past may have been, his future is spotless." - John R. Rice

When faithfulness is most difficult it is most necessary!

"You don't get strength for the load; you get strength from the load." - Jack Hyles

Truth does not divide people, it simply shows where there is already a division between them.

http://baptistquips.blogspot.com/

They Were Not Always This Way

Revelation 3:14-19 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; (15) I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. (16) So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. (17) Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: (18) I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. (19) As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

When someone says 'Laodicea', what usually comes to your mind? Well, I would bet you are just like me and you think of the passage of Scripture listed above. Laodicea, to us today, represents everything that is wrong with modern Christianity. Most American churches have been resting in a rut for so long that below average now seems like the average. I cannot remember who said it, but it was once said that, "a rut is nothing more than a coffin with the ends kicked out."

The Laodicean church, and the Laodicean church age of today, is neither on fire for the Lord or just plain cold. Instead, it is lukewarm. I like hot coffee (black, no cream or sugar) and I like cold coffee (iced mocha's are nice, and I have been on a Starbucks frappuccino mocha kick here recently), but I cannot stand lukewarm coffee, i.e. the coffee that started out hot but has cooled to room temperature over time.

So, for something to be lukewarm, means that it must have first been hot. Well, you ask, is there any Bible reference to the church of Laodicea ever being hot, or on fire for the Lord? I'm glad you asked! Look at this verse:

Colossians 4:13 For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis.

As Paul is making his closing remarks in Colossians, he reminds them of the love and service of Epaphras. And in doing so, he mentions that those in Laodicea had the same zeal.

What does all of this mean when we compare Scripture with Scripture? It means that Laodicea once had a great zeal for God and the saints of God, but became lukewarm in the abundance of their blessings. Many of you who are reading this may be saying to yourself, "Well, I am not lukewarm for Christ, but I have a great zeal for serving God and His saints." And I will commend you for it, with this word of caution: If it could happen to Laodicea, it could happen to us.

Guard your faith and your fervency for the Lord lest your fire burns out and you too become lukewarm.

T.H.I.N.K.

Scripture: John 3:8-10, Matthew 12:35-37, Ephesians 4:22-25, Proverbs 6:16-17; 16:24; 10:19; 17:28; 15:26; 29:20, John 8:43-44, I Corinthians 10:23, Galatians 6:1

Truth- Are your words true

Helpful- Are your words helpful

Inspiring- Are your words inspiring

Necessary- Are your words necessary

Kind- Are your words kind

8/25 Trail of Blood

4. There is one new doctrine to which we have failed to call attention. There are doubtless others but one especially--and that "Infant Communion." Infants were not only baptized, but received into the church, and being church members, they were supposed to be entitled to the Lord's Supper. How to administer it to them was a problem, but it was solved by soaking the bread in the wine. Thus it was practiced for years. And after awhile another new doctrine was added to this--it was taught that this was another means of Salvation. As still another new doctrine was later added to these, we will again refer to this a little later in the lectures.

5. During the 5th Century, at the fourth Ecumenical Council, held at Chalcedon, 451, another entirely new doctrine was added to the rapidly growing list--the doctrine called "Mariolatry," or the worship of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. A new mediator seems to have been felt to be needed. The distance from God to man was too great for just one mediator, even though that was Christ, God's Son, the real God-Man. Mary was thought to be needed as another mediator, and prayers were to be made to Mary. She was to make them to Christ.

6. Two other new doctrines were added to the Catholic faith in the 8th Century. These were promulgated at the Second Council held at Nicea (Nice), the Second Council held there (787). The first of these was called "Image Worship, a direct violation of one of the commands of God.

"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image," (Ex. 20:3, 4, 5). Another addition from Paganism. Then followed the "worship of Saints." This doctrine has no encouragement in the Bible. Only one instance of Saint worship is given in the Bible and that is given to show its utter folly--the dead rich man praying to Abraham, (Luke 16:24-3l). These are some, not all of the many revolutionary changes from New Testament teachings, that came about during this period of Church history.

7. During the period that we are now passing through the persecuted were called by many and varied names. Among them were Donatists, Paterines, Cathari, Paulicians, and Ana Baptists; and a little later, Petro-Brussians, Arnoldists, Henricians, Albigenses, and Waldenses. Sometimes one group of these was the most prominent and sometimes another. But some of them were almost always prominent because of the persistency and terribleness of their persecution.

8. Let it not be thought that all these persecuted ones were always loyal in all respects to New Testament teachings. In the main they were. And some of them, considering their surroundings, were marvelously so. Remember that many of them at that far away, time, had only parts of the New Testament or the Old Testament as to that. The book was not printed. It was written in manuscript on parchment or skins or something of that kind, and was necessarily large and bulky. Few, if any, families or even simple churches had complete copies of the whole Bible. Before the formal close of the Canon (end of fourth century) there were probably very few simple manuscripts of the entire New Testament. Of the one thousand known manuscripts only about 30 copies included all the books.

9. Furthermore, during all the period of the "Dark Ages," and the period of the persecution, strenuous efforts were made to destroy even what Scripture manuscripts the persecuted did possess. Hence in many instances these people had only small parts of the Bible.

Daily Devotionals from The Trail of Blood and other devotions here: http://kjvdevos.blogspot.com

Just Remember...

The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember...
Noah was a drunk,
Abraham was too old,
Isaac was a daydreamer,
Jacob was a liar,
Leah was ugly,
Joseph was abused,
Moses had a stuttering problem,
Gideon was afraid,
Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer,
Rahab was a prostitute,
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young,
David had an affair and was a murderer,
Elijah was suicidal,
Isaiah preached naked,
Jonah ran from God,
Naomi was a widow,
Job went bankrupt,
John the Baptist ate bugs,
Peter denied Christ,
The Disciples fell asleep while praying,
Martha worried about everything,
The Samaritan woman was divorced, (more than once),
Zaccheus was too small,
Paul was too religious,

AND Lazarus was dead!

Peace After Prayer

Philippians 4:6-7 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. (7) And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

As I was reading Paul's letter to the saints of Philippi, one word stood out to me when I came to these two verses: the word "And" found at the beginning of verse 7. A lot of people like to quote verse 7, but never properly tie it in with verse 6. The only way we can truly have the peace of God is to first be careful for nothing and pray about everything.

When Christians lack peace, it is often because they lack prayer. I am afraid many born-again believers have no peace because they have no prayer.

Where can you begin to find the peace of God? In your personal prayer closet.

Twelve convincing reasons for having family devotions:

1. It unifies the family and sweetens home life.

2. It cultivates the Christian graces and relieves tension and misunderstanding that sometimes threaten the fellowship of the home.

3. It aids our boys and girls in becoming Christians, and helps them to develop ideals that guide them in vital Christian living.

4. It yields spiritual resources for daily tasks and assists us in cultivating dependence upon God.

5. It strengthens us in the face of adversities and disappointments and enables us to trust Christ implicitly in all of life’s circumstances.

6. It makes us conscious during the day of the abiding presence of our Savior and Friend.

7. It bears a Christian witness to the guests in our home.

8. It undergirds the Christian teaching of the Sunday School and the ministry of the church.

9. It affords opportunity for the Christian family to pray for and to sharpen its concern for non-Christian families.

10. It helps us to give a right place to spiritual values and saves us from an undue concern for the temporal things of life.

11. It encourages us to put Christianity into practice in our homes.

12. It honors God and provides an excellent outlet for the expression of our gratitude for the abundance of daily mercies and blessings which come from Him.

Do you have daily devotions?

Lord bless,

Bro. Harry Shomaker

And the winner is....

...Bro. Brad Gilbert! Please email me your snail mail addy (water05201@hotmail.com) and I will get your CD right out to you. Enjoy!

The Way, the Truth, the Life

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life— Joh_14:6

Love Prepares a Welcome
No one was more ready than Jesus to detect the anxieties of those He loved. We picture Him, as He taught the twelve, watching intently the expression on their faces to learn how far His words were understood. Jesus had noted, then, tokens of heart distress (Joh_14:1). The disciples felt His departure like a torture. And it was then that He consoled them with such simple and glorious speech that all Christendom is the debtor to their agony. They thought that His death was an unforeseen calamity. Christ taught them it was the path of His own planning. They thought that heaven was very far away. Christ taught them it was but another room in the great home of whose many mansions this beautiful world was one. He was not stepping out into the dark. He was passing from one room to another in the house. But the mightiest encouragement of all came when He told them, "I go to prepare a place for you." This, then, was the purpose of His going, that love might have all things ready when they arrived. When a child is born here, love has all things ready for it. It will be the same when we awaken in eternity. When a boy or girl comes home from the boarding-school, has not some heart at home been busy in preparation? There is someone at the station, and the bedroom is arranged, and the lights are lit, and the table is spread, and all day there has been happy excitement in the home because James or Mary is coming home tonight. So Jesus says, "I go to prepare a place for you. I go to have all things ready for your coming." And though there are depths in these words we cannot fathom and mysteries we cannot understand, they mean at least that love is getting ready to give the children a real welcome home.

For Wanderers in the Night: I Am the Way
Then Jesus utters the Via Veritas Vita: and first of all He says, "I am the way." It was the very word that the disciples wanted, for they all felt like wanderers that night. Do you know what it is like to lose the road? Did you ever, when out walking across the fields, find the track through the heather grow faint and disappear? There was a helplessness like that in the disciples when Jesus announced that He was soon to leave them. So far, they had all walked with Jesus. Now, at the cross, that pathway seemed to cease. We can hardly grasp the depth of comfort in it when they heard that Christ was to be the Way forevermore. It was in Him they were to fight and conquer. It was in Him they were to live and die. It was in Him they were to reach the glory and stand in the presence of the Father at the end. They felt there was a new and living way. Among the wonders of the old Roman people were the roads they made from end to end of Europe. And the Roman cities are in ruins now, and their palaces and their temples are destroyed, but men are still walking on the Roman roads. So Jesus, our Redeemer, is still the Way. A thousand things have gone, but that remains. It is through His death, and His rising from the dead, and through our daily fellowship with Him that we walk heavenward and reach home at last.

He Is the Truth That Sheds Light on Darkness
Then Jesus says, "I am the truth." He does not say, observe, I speak the truth. There was a deeper meaning in His mind than that. I hope that every child will speak the truth; yet every child, as his experience grows, will discover with shame how untrue he is at heart. Christ is the sum and center of all truth. Where Christ is not, there is a false note always. And one of the great joys of knowing Jesus is the sweet assurance that truth is ours at last. Before the discovery of the law of gravitation, there were a thousand facts that no man could explain. There was no key to them. There was no plan in them. They could never be gathered into a worthy system. But when the great truth of gravitation was discovered—so simple, so universal, so sublime—a flood of light fell on the darkness, and disorder became order everywhere. And it is just so when we discover Jesus. That truth sheds light upon a thousand facts. Things that were quite inexplicable once—sorrows and joys and hopes and fears and haunting—become intelligible through this great discovery. Did not some one say that if you would find the truth you must seek for it at the bottom of a deep well? The glory of the truth that is in Jesus is that it is found in no dark well, but on the way. Quid est veritas? asked jesting Pilate. And in one of the best anagrams the world has ever had, the answer is given, Est vir qui adest.

He Is the Source of Life
Then lastly Jesus says, "I am the life." In Thackeray's great story, Vanity Fair, we read of Amelia Osborne and her baby George. And Thackeray, speaking of the baby, says, "How his mother nursed him and dressed him and lived upon him need not be told here. This child was her being." That is a little picture of the way in which one person can be the life of another. It helps us to understand what Jesus meant when He said to the disciples, "I am the life." There is no book in any literature so filled with the message of life as the New Testament. If there is one word that sums up the Gospel, it is life. And here we are taught that that life is in Jesus Christ. He is the source of it. It is treasured in Him. And there is no way to gain it and to keep it but by trusting and by loving Him.
I cannot solve mysterious things,
That fill the schoolmen's thoughts with strife;
But oh! what peace this knowledge brings—
Thou art the Life!
Hid in thy everlasting deeps,
The silent God His secret keeps.
The Way, the Truth, the Life, Thou art!
This, this I know; to this I cleave;
The sweet, new language of my heart—
"Lord, I believe."
I have no doubt to bring to Thee;
My doubt has fled, my faith is free!

Reminder!

Today is the last day you can enter the IFB_KJV FREE Music Giveaway - the winner will be drawn tomorrow.


If you have not entered yet, go to: http://ifbkjv.blogspot.com/2009/08/free-music-contest.html

Hymn - "Does Jesus Care?"

1 Peter 5:7
Psalm 55:22
Psalm 43:5
Matthew 6:25-34

Is God really present and concerned during my times of hurt? Does He care, when the burdens weigh heavily on my every thought and activity? Does He care, when I can no longer endure some strong testings? Does He care, when I must say a final farewell to my dearest loved one on earth?

These questions and doubts are common to nearly all of God’s children at some time or other in life, just as they were to the author of this text, Frank E. Graeff. Mr. Graeff was a minister in the Methodist denomination and served some of its leading churches, in Philadelphia Conference. Throughout the district, he was known as the “sunshine minister.” C. Austin Miles, author of the popular hymn, “In the Garden,” paid this tribute to Frank Graeff:

"He is a spiritual optimist, a great friend of children; his bright sun-shining disposition attracts him not only to children, but to all with whom he comes in contact. He has a holy magnetism and a child-like faith."

In spite of his outwardly-cheery disposition and winsome personality, Graeff was often called upon to go through severe testing experiences in his life. It was while passing through such a test and experiencing severe despondency, doubt and physical agony, that Mr. Graeff wrote this text. He turned to the Scriptures for solace and strength. First Peter 5:7 became especially meaningful to him during this particular struggle: “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.”

The phrase, “He careth for you”, spoke deeply to his need and eventually became the basis for this text.

To experience times of question and even doubts regarding the nearness of God, as Frank Graeff did in the verses of this hymn, is only human and normal. It is only as a believer comes through such a struggle, however, with the firm conviction as Mr. Graeff did in the chorus of this hymn, “O yes He cares, I know He cares,” that a child of God can be truly victorious.

More... Other KJV Devos

The Great Affirmation

August 23

In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you— Joh_14:2

Christ Knew about Death; Socrates Only Speculated - It is not by any amplified detail that these words so appeal to human hearts. It is rather by the quiet, assured confidence with which the Savior speaks of the beyond. In the whole of literature there is but one scene worthy to be compared with this. It is where Plato tells of the last hours of Socrates in prison before he drank the poison. I know few things more admirably fitted to reveal the preeminence of Christ than a comparison of these two incidents. Like Christ, Socrates is going to die. Like Christ, his thoughts run on immortality. He discusses it with the friends who come to visit him; he speculates, he argues, and he wonders. What a perfect and stupendous contrast between that and the attitude of Christ. Socrates speculates about a life unknown. Christ speaks of a life that He has known, a realm as real and familiar to Him as my study is to me. It is not what He says so much; rather it is the tone in which He says it that has reached the heart and comforted humanity and given it an anchor for the soul. Where others speculate, the Savior knows. Where others question, He is quietly sure. Where others see but dimly in the shadows, He sees with the certainty of God. And all this on the night of His betrayal, when all that He had lived for seemed in ruins, and nothing seemed to lie before Him but a grave.

Man's Instinct for Immortality - These great words of Jesus corroborate the longings of the heart. All that we crave and hope for in the deeps here is countersigned by the Lord Jesus. Deep and ineradicable is the instinct of man for immortality, witnessed in every age, in every country, in every religion. Even when men deny it with their lips, still do they confess it with their lives, for life has its arguments no less than intellect. By the powerlessness of the whole world to satisfy the poorest heart; by the cargoes we all have on board of things that are not wanted for the voyage; by the passion for truth, the craving for perfection, the glimmering of ideals we never reach, man stretches out his hands to immortality. Whoever loved without longing for forever? Deep affection postulates eternity. Love does not want a year or a millennium. Love cries for immortality. And now comes Christ and looks upon mankind and sees the secret hunger of their souls and says, "If it were not so, I would have told you."

There are beliefs that influence life but little, like the old belief that the sun went round the earth. We may cling to them, or we may give them up, with little difference to conduct. But there are other beliefs that touch and mold and color every action of the common day, and among these is the belief in immortality. In the light of it everything is altered. Altered is our outlook on the world. Altered is the discipline of life, and the import of the chastisements of heaven. Love is different, and hope is different; duty gains august and awful sanction if that instinct of immortality be true. Changed is the face of suffering, of infirmity, of weakness, and of pain. Changed is the loneliness of dying; changed the horrid darkness of the grave. And Christ says, "Children, do you think one instant that if that were an error I would let you keep it? If it were not so, I would have told you. Believe if you like that the sun goes round the earth. That does not matter. I shall not interfere. You may be Mine; you may be washed and sanctified though you believe that the sun goes round the earth. But that deep instinct for immortal life affects profoundly everything you do, and if it were a deception I would have told you."

"I Would Have Told You So" - He would have told us because He loves us and cannot bear to see His own deceived. He would have told us though it almost broke His heart to see the vanishing of hopes and dreams. He would have told us because He was the Truth and refused to let His people live and die under a hope that was the devil's falsehood. Christ corroborates our deepest longing for an immortal life that shall be personal. And He does it in His own quiet way, confidently, with perfect, full assurance. No wonder, then, that this is the favorite chapter with millions of the human race. No wonder that when Lockhart read it to Sir Walter, his big heart was rested and was comforted. No wonder that in Margaret Ogilvy's Bible the pages would fall open at this place, and when she could not read, she stooped and kissed it.

Jesus is All This and More (Post 3 of 3)

He is my Joy,

He is my Comfort,

He is my Lord and

He rules my life!

I serve Him because His bond is Love,

His burden is light and His goal for me is Abundant Life.

I follow Him because He is the Wisdom of the Wise.

The Power of the powerful, the Ancient of Days,

The Ruler of Rulers, the Leader of Leaders,

The Overseer of the Overcomers and the Sovereign Lord of all

that was and is and is to come.

And if that seems impressive to you; try this for size:

His goal is a relationship with ME!

He will never leave me, never forsake me,

Never mislead me, never forget me, never overlook me and

never cancel my appointment in His appointment book!

When I fall He lifts me up!

When I fall He forgives!

When I am weak, He is strong!

When I am Lost, He is the Way!

When I am afraid, He is my courage!

When I stumble, He steadies me!

When I am broken, He mends me!

When I am blind, He leads me!

When I am hungry, He feeds me!

When I face trials, He is with me!

When I face persecution, He shields me!

When I face problems, He comforts me!

When I face loss, He provides for me!

When I face death, He carries me home!

He is everything for everybody, everywhere, every time, and every way.

He is God

He is Faithful

I am His, and He is mine!

AMEN! AMEN!

Drag Mouse From (X) To (O)

X - Even When You Can't See Him, GOD is THERE - O

See: http://ifbkjv.blogspot.com/

Jesus is All This and More (Post 2 of 3)

Herod couldn't kill Him,

The Pharisees couldn't confuse Him and

The people couldn't hold Him!

Nero couldn't crush Him,

Hitler couldn't silence Him,

The New Age can't replace Him, and

Donahue can't explain Him away!

He is Light, Love, Longevity and Lord.

He is goodness, Kindness, Gentleness and God.

He is Holy, Righteous, Mighty, Powerful and Pure.

His ways are right.

His word is eternal, His will is unchanging,

And His mind is on Me!

He is my Redeemer

He is my Savior

He is my Guide

And He is my Peace!

BaptistQuips.Blogspot

"We ought to attempt something so great for God that unless God intervenes, we are bound to fail." - Bruce Wilkinson

Behaviors are beliefs turned into actions.

"Soulwinning is better caught than taught." - Paul Chappell

"The difference between religion and salvation can be summed up in two words: do and done". - D.L. Moody

Satan has no interest in your past. Its your future that excites him!

When you pray, move your feet. - African Proverb

"Wherever you are, be all there." - Jim Elliot

"The world does not evolve around you." - Pastor Mike Twardy

When Satan is knocking at your door, simply say, "Jesus, could you get that for me?"

http://baptistquips.blogspot.com/ (my new blog)

The Loneliness of Sin

August 21

He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night— Joh_13:30

He Made His Bed in Hell

What first strikes us here is the utter loneliness of Judas. No word-painting, however vivid, could give a deeper impression of that than these few words of John: "He ... went immediately out: and it was night." Within, there was light and gladness, and the richest fellowship this world had ever known. For Christ was there, and John was leaning upon Jesus' bosom, and the talk was on high and holy themes that evening. Outside was fierce hostility. Outside was dark. And no man drove out Judas. No push and curse hurried him to the door. It was the momentum of his own heart and life that impelled him to choose the darkness rather than the light.
Shall we follow Judas into the dark street? He turns and looks, and the light is gleaming from the window of the upper chamber. He hurries on, and the streets are not empty yet. A band of young men, like himself, goes singing by. The sounds of evening worship come stealing from the houses. And everything that tells of love, and breathes of fellowship, and speaks of home, falls like a fiery rain on Judas' heart. The loneliness of Judas was intolerable. He had made his bed in hell. A friend of mine was once preaching on that text in the Assembly Hall in Edinburgh. And when he left the hall and was stepping homewards, a young man rushed across the street and grasped him by the arm and cried, "Minister, minister, I have made my bed in hell," and disappeared. And the lonely misery of that cry will ring in my friend's ears till his dying day. There was a loneliness in it like that in Judas. He was estranged, apart. "He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night."

In a Sense Everybody Is Lonely
There is a sense in which every person is lonely. Each has his different road, his different trial, his different joy; and these differences are invisible barriers between us, so that even in fellowship we walk apart. We say we know that woman thoroughly, and we believe we do, till someday there comes a new temptation to her, or a new chance to be heroic, and all our reckoning are falsified, and there are depths our plummet never sounded. I cannot utter forth all that I am. Gesture, speech, even music are but rude interpreters. The dullest has his dream he never tells. The very shallowest has his holy ground. There is an isolation of the soul that brings the note of pathos into history, and makes me very reluctant to judge my friend, and leads me to the very feet of Christ.

In a Sense Christ Was Lonely
For there is a deep sense in which Christ was lonely too. And it is strange that on the night of the betrayal, perhaps the two loneliest figures in the world were the sinful disciple and his sinless Lord. But oh, the world of difference between the two! Christ lonely because He was the Son of God, bearing His cross alone and going out into the glory. And Judas lonely because he was the son of perdition, with every harmony destroyed by sin, and going out into the night. Now towards which figure are you making, friend? For towards one or the other your feet are carrying you. There is a loneliness upon the mountain top. There is a loneliness in death and in the grave. And the one is the isolation of the climbing heart, and the other the isolation of the lost. Towards which are you headed? Is it "To the hills will I lift up mine eyes" or "The wages of sin is death"?

Sin Separates
This, then, is one continual effect of sin. In every shape and form, in every age and country, it intensifies the loneliness of life. We talk of social sins. All sin is ultimately anti-social. We hear of comradeship's based upon common vices. All vice in the long run grinds the very thought of comradeship to powder. Sin isolates, estranges, separates; that is its work. It is the task of God ever to lead us to a richer fellowship. It is the work of sin, hidden but sure, to make us lonelier and more lonely till the end. From all that is best, and worthiest, and purest, it is the delight of sin to separate. And I want to touch on the three great separations that sin brings, making life a lonely thing.

Sin Separates Man from His Ideal
First, then, sin separates man from his ideal. When I have an ideal, I can never be quite lonely. When I have the vision beckoning me on, when I have something to live for and to struggle for higher than coin or food, there is a fervor in my common day, and a quiet enthusiasm for tomorrow, that are splendid company for my secret heart. And even if my ideal be a dream, it is so. In the famous battle between the clans on the North Inch of Perth, rendered immortal in the story of Sir Walter Scott, you will remember how the old chieftain Torquil sent out his sons to fight for Hector. And as one son after another fell under the smiting blows of Hal of the Wynd, the old chief thundered out, "Another for Hector," and another of his sons stepped forward to the battle. And they were all slain, every one of them, for Hector—and Hector was a coward. Let the ideal be a dream, yet men will fight for it; and fighting, the heart forgets its loneliness.
And the work of sin has been to separate the world from its ideals—to blot out the vision and to say to men, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Sin lays the emphasis on what I see. Sin holds me back from what I would be, and binds me a prisoner to what I am. Until, at last, through years of weary failure, all that we hoped and longed to be is gone, and the beckoning hands have vanished, and the vision is fled, and we are alone with our own poor selves. Sin separates a man from his ideal. Judas had his ideal once, but the devil entered him, and the ideal died out; and from that hour Judas drew apart.

Sin Separates Man from Man
Not only does sin separate man from his ideal, it separates man from man. When Cain slew Abel, he became an outcast. When David fell, he had to fly. When Peter denied Christ, he went out and wept bitterly. Sin broke life's ties for them, sundered the bonds that bound them to their fellows. Read over every narrative of sin within the Bible, and underneath the outward form of it—it may be passion, envy, treachery, revenge—you will detect, from Genesis to Revelation, the sundering of ties between man and man.

And sin is always doing that. There is not a passion, not a lust or vice, but mars and spoils the brotherhood of life, and tends to the loneliness of individual souls. God meant us to be friends. God has established numberless relationships. And God is righteousness and God is love, and the Spirit of righteousness and love inspires them all. And sin has been unrighteous from the first, and shall be cold and loveless till the end. O sin, thou severing and separating curse! There is no tie so tender but my vice will snap it. There is no bond so strong but sin will shatter it. It separates the father from his child; it sunders hearts; it creates distances within the home, till the full harmonies of life are lost, and the deep fellowships of life impossible. And the world is lonelier because of sin.

And Jesus Christ knew that. Christ saw and felt sin's separating power. And so the Gospel, that rings with the note of brotherhood, centers in Calvary upon the fact of sin. The social gospel is but a shallow gospel, false to the truth and alien from Christ, unless it roots itself in the divine forgiveness and the inspiring power of the Holy Ghost. The poet Whittier tells a story of the Rabbi Nathan, who long lived blamelessly but fell at last, and his temptation clung to him in spite of his prayers and fastings. And he had a friend, Rabbi Ben Isaac, and he felt that his sin had spoiled the friendship. But he would go to him and speak to him and tell him all. And when they met, the two embraced each other; till Rabbi Nathan, remembering his sin, tore himself from his friend's arms and confessed. It was the separating power of sin. But when Rabbi Ben Isaac heard his words, he confessed that he too had sinned, and he asked his friend to pray for him as Rabbi Nathan had asked himself. And there in the sunset, side by side, they knelt and each prayed with his whole heart for the other. "And when at last they rose up to embrace, each saw God's pardon in his brother's face."

Sin, separation—pardon, brotherhood; it is the order of the universe and God.

Sin Separates Man from God
And so sin separates a man from his ideal and a man from men. But the most awful separation of all, the one that reaches the very heart of loneliness, is this: sin separates a man from God.
I can never be lonely in God's fellowship. When I detect His glory in the world, and trace His handiwork in field and sunset; when I recognize His voice in conscience, when I feel the power of His love in Christ; "there is society where none intrudes," there is the sweetest company in solitude; and I may dwell alone, but I can never be a lonely man. "For me to live is Christ," said the apostle; and the friendship of God was so intense for him, that even in the prison at Philippi he had society.

But from the first it has been sin's great triumph to separate the soul from God; and the deepest loneliness of sin is this, that it blinds me to One whom not to see is death, and bars me from the fellowship of Him whose friendship is of infinite value to my heart. If in the sky and sea, if in the call of duty, if in the claims of men, if in the love of Christ, if in all these I see and hear no God. this is a lonely world. And sin has blinded me, and made lonely, as the prodigal was lonely when far from his father and father's home. Shall I arise and go to Him tonight? Shall I return by the way of Calvary to God? I have been separated from holiest and the best. I have been living far from goodness and from God. But -

Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidd'st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
—Charlotte Elliott

Jesus is All This and More (Post 1 of 3)

HE IS ALL THIS AND MORE

He is the First and Last, the Beginning and the End!

He is the Keeper of Creation and the Creator of all!

He is the Architect of the Universe and the Manager of all times

He always Was, He always Is, and He always Will Be - Unmoved, Unchanged, Undefeated, and never Undone!

He was bruised and brought healing!

He was pierced and eased pain!

He was persecuted and brought freedom!

He was dead and brought life!

He is risen and brings power!

He reigns and brings Peace!

The world can't understand Him,

The armies can't defeat Him,

The schools can't explain Him, and

The leaders can't ignore Him.

God Was Not Well Pleased

1 Corinthians 10:1-5 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; (2) And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; (3) And did all eat the same spiritual meat; (4) And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. (5) But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Here's a quick thought for you today: You can have God's blessing and yet He still not be pleased with you. Think about all that Israel had experienced under the leadership of Moses, and yet they still rebelled and God was not pleased with them.

We live in a results oriented society, and many born-again believers have taken this concept and married it with their Christian faith. They think that as long as nothing bad has happened, then God is pleased with them. Lets not judge our life based on circumstantial blessings, but based on obedience to God's Word.

Summer Burritos

I like to cook as rarely as possible when it gets hot in the middle of August. This recipe can be made early in the morning, or late in the evening, when it is cooler in the kitchen. I make 20-40 at a time, and wrap each burrito individually in tin foil to freeze, which equals about three meals for my family! One of the best things about this recipe, is when it is time to cook them, they can be baked in the over for about thirty minutes, until heated through and the cheese melts - or even outside in a closed hot grill! We have had much success taking these on camping trips, and heating them over a campfire, as well. You can add meat, but you do not have to. Cooked sausage, shredded chicken, or beef would all go well with this recipe. There are many boxed rice mixes you can explore with and find the best one to suit your family's taste, this recipe is very adaptable.

Makes 20:
Two boxes Zatarains's Dirty Rice (prepared, minus the meat)
5 cups shredded cheese (I like "Mexi-Cheese")
Two 15 oz. cans corn, drained (Again, I often use "Mexicorn" instead)
Two 15 oz. cans kidney beans, drained
20 flour tortillas
Spices to taste (cumin or chili powder, garlic or onion powder, salt and pepper)

While the rice is cooking, drain the corn and beans and mix them, cold, with the cheese and spices. Then simply lay out a tortilla on a 12x12 inch piece of foil; pile a spoon of rice and a spoon of the corn mixture on the tortilla, and roll it into a burrito. Then fold in the ends of the foil, and tightly wrap the burrito completely in the foil. Freeze at this point if desired, and later bake until hot at 350 degrees (20 minutes if not frozen, 30-35 minutes if frozen, depending on size). Recommended: serve with a green salad.

Our Sources of Hope

Scripture: Psalm 146:5, Romans 15:4, James 5:17, Psalm 102:17, Luke 18:1-8, I Thessalonians 2:17-20, Titus 2:13

GODLY HOPE: STEDFAST, SURE, ANCHORED, NEVER FAILING

WORLDLY HOPE: WISHFUL THINKING, MAY OR NOT HAPPEN, UNSURE

1. God’s Word provides Hope

2. Prayer to God provides Hope

3. God’s people provide Hope

4. God’s Son provides Hope

Prayer re: Hedges

Hedges

Job 1:9-1:11

You have often heard I and others pray a hedge of protection or thorns about folks but you may not have known where we get the idea from even though you might like it. One lady told me she loved it when I prayed that because it gave her great comfort. Hedges can be a great comfort depending on what they are made of, why they are there, who put them there. Some can be bad news and not having one at all can mean disaster.

The first mention we have of hedges in Scripture is in Job.
Job 1:9-11

Job was a righteous man and was doing quite well in life. Indeed, when God can call your name to the devil for an example of a man God approves you know he had to be quite a fellow. Of course, that ticked the devil off and he accused the Lord of buying him. He said God hedged him in from all the trials and tribulations of life so no wonder Job loved God. Tear down that hedge and see what happens, said the devil.

Note that God never agrees with the charge. He never said he treated Job differently they anyone else. Job may have been merely reaping the rewards of a righteous man versus ending up with the hard life and way of an unbeliever or backslider.

Prov 13:15

Nevertheless God allowed the devil to go after Job. If God did not have a hedge around Job before He did now. He placed a small one around him so that satan could not touch his life. That was a good hedge to have and it was impregnable since God placed it there.

Some hedges we put up ourselves and they are not so wonderful though they are as nearly as impregnable.

Prov 15:19

Have you ever heard someone complain about they can never seem to get ahead in life? They can never pay their bills; keep a job and a long list of other problems. Often when you get down to the root of it they are lazy. No matter what advice you give them they always find excuses for not doing it. You tell them about jobs and they don’t apply or wait until it is too late. They complain if they do not get hired or promoted so you tell them what they need to pursue either in education or experience and they never get it done. There is always a difficulty or as scripture puts it, “a lion in the way, a lion in the streets”. (Prov 26:13)

They toss and turn on their beds because they have anxiety over their condition or just because they don’t do enough to be tired. (Prov 26:14) You tell them where food can be procured and they want you to go get it or they don’t want it because it is too hard to prepare. You wonder how they find energy to even eat and if they want to be spoon fed. (Prov 26:15)

Their life is hedged in by thorns of their own making. They may have natural ability to succeed but not the diligence or determination to make it happen. They may even ask for God’s guidance but they don’t move. We all know it is much easier to steer a moving vehicle than one that is parked. They want God to tow them to the ideal job or keep feeding them like fledglings in the nest. Every bird has to grow and fly and like the eagle God will push them out of the nest at some point if we don’t continue to enable their laziness in the name of grace or familial love.

Isa 5:4-5

God did hedge in His people Israel when they were obedient. However there were times when He tore the hedge down and allowed the heathen to punish them for their sin. Habakkuk questioned how God could use the wicked to chastise those that were more righteous. The Lord told David that when Solomon took over that if Israel sinned they would be chastened with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men. (2 Sam 7:14) The wicked belong to Him as well as the righteous and He has the right to tear down the hedges if He so desires. What is praiseworthy is that His actions are for redemptive purposes or else we would have no hope.

I believe that America’s hedges are being torn down due to our sin and turning from God and at this late stage in timeline of man there may not be any return or redemption for the country. Individually, all we can do is come before Him and to be sure that we are in a place in our relationship that He does not have to take down our hedge and allow satan to pillage and destroy to get us to return to Him. Worse yet, we want to be sure that He does not have to turn our body over to satan allowing him to take our life though our soul will be saved. (1 Cor 5; 1-5)
Sometimes God looks and expects to find some of us to be used as a protective hedge and He can’t find any. Abraham was hoping for enough souls to be present to be a hedge for Sodom and Gomorrah and had he gone down to one righteous person they would have been spared. He stopped and there were not that many there so God took out four but ended up with three.

Sadly, God often looks to those who are called his men or prophets to be the one who stands in the gap to protect the nation and in Ezekiel he did not find someone. He was going to use them to fill up the gap to make the hedge and they failed so Israel fell. All the prophets had left the Word of God and God and preached what people wanted to hear for their own gain, fame or whatever. They had the titles and position of prophet but they were opportunistic foxes taking spoils where they may in the desert they created by not using the water of God’s Word to irrigate it thus by that drought they set up the country for judgment.

Ezek 13:4-10

Ezek 22:29-31

When He found the prophets were unworthy in chapter four we see Him in chapter twenty-two saying He sought for a man. Sounds like when the leadership failed He looked for another Amos that He could call though he was not a prophet or a son of a prophet. He just wanted an obedient man and He found none. One righteous man was all that was needed to spare the country and none was found. In chapter fourteen, verse twenty we see God finally got to the point where His anger would no longer spare even if Daniel, Noah and Job were there. They would be spared but not the country. Woe unto us if we have no one God can use to make a hedge to fill in the gap for the country or ourselves. We are in an age where we definitely need to dare to be a Daniel or eschew evil like Job if we hope to have an ark to run to when the flood of God’s wrath comes down on the nation that forgets God.

Sometimes we do not see the benefit of God’s hedge because we are out in sin or rebellion and we are singing “don’t fence me”. It is good to grow up and leave home and find out what life is all about but sometimes we think that means tossing everything we learned or were told in the trash and seeking new things and thoughts. Our eyes catch the glitter of the world’s trinkets and we leave behind or trade out our real treasure for fool’s gold.

Hos 2:5-7

Hosea was told to marry an unfaithful woman or a harlot. She represented Israel whoring about with the pagans and their gods to gain their delicacies and treasures. They seemed better than what God had provided. Yet, the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof so all the stuff the pagans had came from the true God they just did not give Him the credit.

There came a time when God said He was going to hedge in her path so that she would come back to Him. He made her life difficult with that hedge of thorns so that there was no place she could go or turn was without trouble or pain. He made her allure fade so that those who have loved her no longer found her exciting or pleasurable. All the things they gave her were taken away or not replaced when she had consumed them. The grand life she was living became not as grand as the prodigal son found out centuries later. She, like him, had to come to her senses and say it was better with her husband and thus she returned.

I have referred this passage to many people over the years whose spouse has left them or their children have run away or gone off into sin. I don’t tell them to turn it into an evangelical rosary like some have made the Prayer of Jabez. I do tell them to use this pattern for their situation.

People run off into various sins because the devil has used someone or something to make the path they are taking desirable. To bring them back to reality their way has to become hard and they have to be broken or heartbroken so that the old 20/20 hindsight can kick in. Then they see the foolishness of their ways and if they are broken enough they will seek the Lord and the life they left.

Many people have gotten their life straight because people have prayed for this type of hedge to be placed around their loved ones. Some came back without knowing that a hedge request was being prayed. Some have been told that a parent or spouse was praying the hedge which came to mind when things started going wrong for them and they came back. Some were told that a hedge was being prayed but if they did not heed the hedge then the prayer was for God to save their soul and take them home.

Sound harsh? Remember 1 Cor 5? That is basically what Paul was saying. If they didn’t get right they would get right before the throne. Some people can only hear things when they are rough so telling someone that “I’m going to pray God hedges you in until you get right or He has to kill you” might work for some folks but I would be very sure that I had run that by God before I used that approach. We pray that it would never get to that but we must be aware that it could happen. John tells us about a sin unto death. (1 John 5:16) I believe that is the last resort for God. If you don’t listen here, He will definitely have your undivided attention there.

Isa 5:3-6

When you think about it, God has the right to expect fruit from His people. We are His vineyard. He has done so much for us than we can comprehend and as Brother John says, far more than we deserve. If He has to tear down the hedge and chastise us to get us to return do we have anyone to blame but ourselves? We are thrilled that once we are saved there is a hedge between us and Hell so why not be grateful and stay within the hedge of His protection by obedience rather than force His hand to deal with our rebellion? If our way is hard then praise His name as it may be that hedge spoken of in Hosea to keep us from evil and evil from us that we might finally see where our true treasure is and where real love abides.

Father, I ask that indeed you would hedge in your obedient children and keep them from evil and evil from them that they might enjoy all that You wish to give them in their relationship with You and that they might be forth much fruit as is only their reasonable service. For those who are straying or about to embark on the wrong path, please hedge them in as well so that they will have no joy or peace until they return to you. Let all that would lead them astray lose interest in them. Let them be deserted so that you can find them in the desert and speak comfortably to them as you did Gomer and return them to you in a betrothal of righteousness, faithfulness, judgment, lovingkindness and in mercies. Amen and amen!! Maranatha!

Sermon by Maverick http://teachus2pray.blogspot.com/

The Sheep

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. “ (Isa. 53:6)

I am a sheep. I wish I were a lion, the “king of beasts”, but I am not; I would not mind being a ferocious tiger, or a majestic elephant, but I am only a lowly sheep. I would like to be something else, but I cannot change what I am. If I am raised among wolves, I am still only a sheep; I do not stray from the flock and become a predator; I do not learn to growl, because I am only a sheep. I can never change what I am, so I must learn to be content with being a sheep. All the “hoping”, all the “trying”, all the associations in the world will not change what I am, and pretending to be different will not make me different, because I was born a sheep, and will remain a sheep.

Oh, I get so tired of running in fear at the sight of danger; I have no defense against attackers, but must rely on the Shepherd and His ability to protect me. If I try to lose myself in the midst of the flock, the predator seems to find me; I fear being ravished by the wolf. I cannot call out, I do not know how to bark, nor to growl back at him, and I don’t even look fierce enough to scare the wolf away. I must rely totally on the Shepherd, He is my only hope of survival, I must stay close to Him.

Yes, many times I wished that I was not the meekest of all animals. I sometimes dream of being something that I am not; I find myself wishing I were not so helpless, and could run on my own, go my own way, and fend for myself, but I realize then, that I am merely a sheep. I fantasize about being the predator instead of the prey, but when danger comes, I see my frailty, and run to the Shepherd. I am so glad for the Shepherd’s care. He is there when danger comes, and in the “quiet” times as well; He constantly watches over His flock. Without His presence I would be overwhelmed with fear, and surely be ravished by the wolf. I would not be able to find green pastures by myself, nor to seek out the streams of refreshing, but would wander aimlessly in the wilderness, and undoubtedly be torn by some ferocious beast. Without the Shepherd, I have no haven, no place to run to for safety; I thank God for the Shepherd, the keeper of my soul. He does not allow me stray, though I am prone to do so, but watches over me night and day. I will stay close to him, it is the only wise thing to do.

God turned the curse into a blessing unto you

http://billthereasoner.blogspot.com/2009/08/god-turned-curse-into-blessing-unto-you.html

So says Deuteronomy 23:5 (later quoted in Nehemiah 13:2). The fact is, we desperately need to know somebody is on our team. I have watched those who "sorrow as though there is no hope", and I must tell you that I am glad to be one of His.

Gainsayers and critics abound. "Has beens" and "would've beens" are not content to forsake their past apathies and move on...they must also believe that you will not be blessed. They may even whisper words of cheer when they watch you fall. Those of your own household; those of another; they may all watch with anticipation to see if their doubts and "curses" of you will come true.

"What shall we then say to these things?" Shall we despair? Shall we think for even a nanosecond that our God has turned His back upon those that are His? Nay! For He did this once upon my Substitute. There is not a reason for His back to be towards me. Should we expect His hand of blessing to turn into a hand of chastisement. Again, the penitent man or woman finds no reason for a grudging Father.

O you have stumbled upon this blog--may you find an ever merciful God Who is not willing that any of His should be lost! Will you seek to be one of His? Will you not trust the once-bleeding hands of the Savior which were nailed to an altar for your sins?

Believer, will you not realize afresh and anew that all of the promises of God are "Yes" and "Amen" in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20)? Will we not rest in His work, His promise, His presence?

There is no better time to bow the knee.

Free Music Contest!

IFB KJV is holding it's first free giveaway contest!

We recently had the lovely Karpenko Family sing at our home church, and are offering one of their CDs to a random commenter on this post, just for the fun of it!

If you would like to enter the contest, just add a comment on this post, and come back next Monday to see if you are the winner!

The Karpenko's website: http://www.davekarpenkofamily.com/

The Blood of Christ

Scripture: Col. 1:14, Heb. 9:22, Lev. 17:11, I Peter 1:18-19, I John 1:7, Rm. 5:8-9

1. Only Christ’s Blood has the Power to Save

2. Only Christ’s Blood has the Power to Redeem

3. Only Christ’s Blood has the Power to Justify

4. Only Christ’s Blood has the Power to Cleanse

Spurgeon

“This sickness is not unto death.”
- John 11:4

From our Lord’s words we learn that there is a limit to sickness. Here is an “unto” within which its ultimate end is restrained, and beyond which it cannot go. Lazarus might pass through death, but death was not to be the ultimatum of his sickness. In all sickness, the Lord saith to the waves of pain, “Hitherto shall ye go, but no further.” His fixed purpose is not the destruction, but the instruction of his people. Wisdom hangs up the thermometer at the furnace mouth, and regulates the heat.
1. The limit is encouragingly comprehensive. The God of providence has limited the time, manner, intensity, repetition, and effects of all our sicknesses; each throb is decreed, each sleepless hour predestinated, each relapse ordained, each depression of spirit foreknown, and each sanctifying result eternally purposed. Nothing great or small escapes the ordaining hand of him who numbers the hairs of our head.
2. This limit is wisely adjusted to our strength, to the end designed, and to the grace apportioned. Affliction comes not at haphazard-the weight of every stroke of the rod is accurately measured. He who made no mistakes in balancing the clouds and meting out the heavens, commits no errors in measuring out the ingredients which compose the medicine of souls. We cannot suffer too much nor be relieved too late.
3. The limit is tenderly appointed. The knife of the heavenly Surgeon never cuts deeper than is absolutely necessary. “He doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.” A mother’s heart cries, “Spare my child”; but no mother is more compassionate than our gracious God. When we consider how hard-mouthed we are, it is a wonder that we are not driven with a sharper bit. The thought is full of consolation, that he who has fixed the bounds of our habitation, has also fixed the bounds of our tribulation.

Sharing the Gospel

That wonderful Thursday evening, our church’s Bible Class came up with a good compact sharing “tool” to help us, Christians, share the gospel to anybody who would listen. This can also be used as a basic tool for Bible studies.

I took note of the categorized verses, present it in tabular form, and share it with you in the hope that you might get some important ideas from it as you share the gospel to others.

We are not all good in memory and these hinder us a lot in sharing the gospel to others. Therefore, one suggestion offered is for you to print a copy of the verses below, and keep it in your wallets or bags so that anytime you will need a reference, you can use it. From the five categories, you can start anywhere and connect the others as you go along. Friends, happy sharing!

SOME IMPORTANT VERSES TO SHARE

1) ABOUT ETERNAL LIFE

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.

John 3:36 - He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

John 5:24 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

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

1 John 5:13 - These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

2) THE ONLY WAY OF SALVATION

Acts 16:31 - And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Acts 4:12 - Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

3) HOW TO GO TO HEAVEN

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 3:5,6 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

John 1:12,13 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: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

4) HOW TO BE ASSURED

1 John 5:13 - These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

John 14:6 - Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 5:24 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Ephesians 1:13,14 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

John 3:16,36 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. 36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

John 10:27,28 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [man] pluck them out of my hand.

5) HOW TO BECOME RIGHTEOUS

Galatians 2:16 - Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Isaiah 1:18 - Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

(c) August 2009, Luisa Mercado/www.mikenluisa1.blogspot.com