Just sharing.

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“He will give grace and glory.”

Psalm 84:11

Bounteous is Jehovah in his nature; to give is his delight. His gifts are beyond measure precious, and are as freely given as the light of the sun. He gives grace to his elect because he wills it, to his redeemed because of his covenant, to the called because of his promise, to believers because they seek it, to sinners because they need it. He gives grace abundantly, seasonably, constantly, readily, sovereignly; doubly enhancing the value of the boon by the manner of its bestowal.

Grace in all its forms he freely renders to his people: comforting, preserving, sanctifying, directing, instructing, assisting grace, he generously pours into their souls without ceasing, and he always will do so, whatever may occur. Sickness may befall, but the Lord will give grace; poverty may happen to us, but grace will surely be afforded; death must come but grace will light a candle at the darkest hour. Reader, how blessed it is as years roll round, and the leaves begin again to fall, to enjoy such an unfading promise as this, “The Lord will give grace.”

The little conjunction “and” in this verse is a diamond rivet binding the present with the future: grace and glory always go together. God has married them, and none can divorce them. The Lord will never deny a soul glory to whom he has freely given to live upon his grace; indeed, glory is nothing more than grace in its Sabbath dress, grace in full bloom, grace like autumn fruit, mellow and perfected.

How soon we may have glory none can tell! It may be before this month of October has run out we shall see the Holy City; but be the interval longer or shorter, we shall be glorified ere long. Glory, the glory of heaven, the glory of eternity, the glory of Jesus, the glory of the Father, the Lord will surely give to his chosen. Oh, rare promise of a faithful God!

Two golden links of one celestial chain:
Who owneth grace shall surely glory gain.

 

[beensetfree]

Is It Sinful To Have Fear And Doubt?


Almost everyone’s had a time of doubt and fear, so what does the Bible say about fear and doubt? Is it sinful?

Doubt
Doubt is a feeling of not knowing what to believe or what to do, or the condition of being uncertain or it’s an uncertainty about something or someone, or even having difficulty believing in something or someone, but fear is more debilitating than doubt because fear is a feeling that can be induced by a perceived danger or a real threat. This causes a change in our metabolic and organ functions and can ultimately create a change in our behavior, so as you can see, doubt isn’t the same thing as fear. Fear can create a dysfunctional life, affecting work, family, and other personal relationships, but doubt is something that we all experience from time to time. Doubt isn’t exactly cynicism, but it’s more about having an uncertainty about a particular expectation or upcoming event, but both fear and doubt can creep into a believer’s life and stymie their walk with Christ…and as we shall read, fear and doubt are contagious.

Fear
As I said, fear is contagious, and perhaps the reason why is given when Israel was being oppressed by the Midian’s. God called Gideon to lead a small force to rid the nation of Midianite raiding parties. When Gideon had assembled over 30,000 men, “The LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me’” (Judge 7:2), so God tells Gideon, “’Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead.’ Then 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained” (Judges 7:3). I believe the reason why God removed the men who were fearful was because fear in contagious but more importantly, God wanted a small number to fight against the Midianites so that God would receive all the glory. When you see the battles between nations in the Bible, quite often, when one army flees, the others do too, so fear is like a disease…if you are around it, you can “catch it,” so this may be why God sent all 22,000 of the fearful men home.

Self-Preservation
Even though doubting is not as bad as being fearful, doubt can still rob you of your joy, assurance, and self-confidence. When we begin to doubt ourselves, and perhaps even doubt others, we’re projecting defeat before it ever happens. It’s like we wave the white flag of surrender before the battle begins. That’s how doubt can affect us, but when that doubt grows into fear, it can be especially crippling, however not all fear is bad. In some cases, fear can actually be a good thing and for several reasons. It can keep us from taking unnecessary risks or placing ourselves in danger. Fear can keep us alive. There’s a natural tendency for self-preservation in every one of us, and that type of fear is not debilitating, but is life-preserving, so fear is good for some things, but it can be bad when there’s no real reason to fear. If it’s a rational fear, it can keep us alive, but an irrational fear can make our lives miserable, and perhaps the lives of those around us.

The Wisdom of Fear
One type of fear that is beneficial is the fear of the Lord, because the fear of the Lord is the very beginning of wisdom (Prov 9:10). This kind fear isn’t the fear that comes from the judgement of God. The Apostle John wrote, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love” (1 John 4:18), so if you fear God’s judgment, you are either unsaved or you don’t understand that Jesus took the judgement that was due us.

Some fear kept people from being receiving eternal life, like many of the Jews who believed in Jesus, but “for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him” (John 7:13). Even though many “of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue because they’d be put out of the synagogue” (John 12:42), so fear can be good, but fear can also be very bad, and yes, fear can be sinful. The only thing we should fear is God, but if someone’s rejected Jesus Christ, Jesus warned them, saying “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt 10:28).

On one occasion, the disciples were in a boat with Jesus when “a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling” (Mark 4:37), but Jesus “awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him” (Mark 4:39-41)? At first, they feared the storm, but when Jesus rebuked the storm, calming it, they feared Jesus more, but this was not a sinful fear but a fear of Who they were with…and it was God!

Conclusion
Fear and doubt are normal for some things, but when fear and doubt join hands in our minds, they can be debilitating, and these two can be exceedingly hard to get out of your mind. It takes the Word of God to calm the fear of man and bring him peace…and it’s a peace that surpasses all human understanding (Phil 4:7). The peace of God comes from being at peace with God, and when we’re at peace with God, we have no reason to fear. Jesus left us with His own peace, telling the disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). If you have trusted in Christ, you have no more reason to fear.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and it is the fulfillment of wisdom, but that’s a healthy fear, not one of being struck down by God or fearing His judgment. To fear God means to reverence the Word of God and God Himself. The day is coming when God says, “I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the LORD” (Jer 23:4). Today is the day to remove all doubt and fear, and you can do that when you repent and put your trust in Christ. Then, there is no more reason to fear, and I can say that with absolutely certainty, and without a doubt.

 

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Victory over the world Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father Galatians 1:3,4 NIV __________________ I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. John 17:14-17 KJV __________________ For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 1 John 5:4,5 RSV __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

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“A man greatly beloved.”

Daniel 10:11

Child of God, do you hesitate to appropriate this title? Ah! has your unbelief made you forget that you are greatly beloved too? Must you not have been greatly beloved, to have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot? When God smote his only begotten Son for you, what was this but being greatly beloved? You lived in sin, and rioted in it, must you not have been greatly beloved for God to have borne so patiently with you? You were called by grace and led to a Savior, and made a child of God and an heir of heaven. All this proves, does it not, a very great and superabounding love?

Since that time, whether your path has been rough with troubles, or smooth with mercies, it has been full of proofs that you are a man greatly beloved. If the Lord has chastened you, yet not in anger; if he has made you poor, yet in grace you have been rich. The more unworthy you feel yourself to be, the more evidence have you that nothing but unspeakable love could have led the Lord Jesus to save such a soul as yours. The more demerit you feel, the clearer is the display of the abounding love of God in having chosen you, and called you, and made you an heir of bliss.

Now, if there be such love between God and us let us live in the influence and sweetness of it, and use the privilege of our position. Do not let us approach our Lord as though we were strangers, or as though he were unwilling to hear us—for we are greatly beloved by our loving Father. “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” Come boldly, O believer, for despite the whisperings of Satan and the doubtings of thine own heart, thou art greatly beloved. Meditate on the exceeding greatness and faithfulness of divine love this evening, and so go to thy bed in peace.

 

[beensetfree]

If Power Corrupts, Why Do We Place So Much Hope in Our Leaders?

Given the way my social media apps are looking, it’s clearly time to, for the most part, shut them down. As I’ve mentioned before, I unfollowed almost all political outlets a while back. But with something as uproarious as the Ford/Kavanaugh debacle, articles get through my feeds, and in no time, I’ve no idea where my in real life friends have disappeared to, but I become privy to petty facts such as Brett Kavanaugh having thrown ice when he was a teenager.

Did I ever tell you about the time when my best friend and I were sipping hot chocolate on a cold winter day, and how she started choking and how I got a case of the giggles so bad I nearly wet my pants? It was terrible for her. Terribly funny for me. At one point, she really did seem to be having trouble breathing, and I may have became a little concerned, perhaps, maybe, I don’t remember, but mostly … I found her sputtering and struggle to breathe too hilarious to even consider helping her out. Never crossed my mind, actually.
Also, her older brother once put her younger brother in the dryer and turned it on. Full blast.

Ca-clunk …. Ca-clunk …
Ahem. Where was I? Oh yeah …
It’s junior high all over again out there. Actually, scratch that. It’s more like first grade. We have literally discussed farts with a Supreme Court nominee, people. It makes me wonder, with head down in shame, what the rest of the world must think of us. My six and four year old grandsons who love to talk about their anatomy and what comes out of it could have easily participated in the conversations that have taken place. In the Senate. That’s how immature we’ve become. An investigation into what began as a serious allegation has crumbled to a pile of uncorroborated, juvenile bull puckey.

Power corrupts.
If that’s true, and by all appearances, it is, then in what or whom are we to place our hope?
I’m convinced the craving for socialism in America is the result of people looking to the government for salvation. Everything is free in a socialist state, right? It’d be like living with our parents until we die. We’d be fed, watered, sheltered, educated, and medically tended to if everyone threw their money into a pot and trusted the government to divvy it up – no matter who worked the hardest or longest.

For the people, socialism is a way to mooch. For the government, socialism is a way to own and control. For all the outcry about how slavery is such a horrible atrocity, it’s strange how we embrace it, as long as it looks a wee bit different than a white man beating black people to hurry and pluck more cotton. Where is the freedom in working your arse off, throwing the earnings into a pot, and letting your lazy neighbor’s hands dig in? Where is the freedom in big government? So big, that your food and housing and medical care are owned and dictated by those who have been corrupted by power? Freedom, at that point, doesn’t exist. Only slavery exists.
Like the black slaves of the past, I don’t see any hope in working for someone else and never seeing the proceeds go into my mouth or the mouth of my babes.


If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. (2 Thess. 3:10) And I think we could also say have a roof over his head, be educated, or have health care. That’s not to say there’s never a call for welfare, but it is to say that America has become far too socialist in their dealings with the people’s tax money. We’ve allowed others in who are not willing to embrace the American dream of work hard, be free. We permit anyone to cross the border, for fear of “discriminating”, and allow them, and even our natural born citizens, to feast off the earnings of other hard working men and women.

All that to say …
If power corrupts, why do we continue to place our hope in where the power lies?
This might come as a shock, but the government doesn’t actually care about you. Or me. God, on the other hand, has said that He loves us with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3). And the Bible says God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3: 16)
Of course, that doesn’t promise a cushy, earthly life. But it does promise an eternal destiny lived in peace, love, provision, and worship of Him who saved … if we believe.
The point is: earth and earthly governments are not where it’s at. We can (and should) strive for peace and provision, but the truth is, until Christ returns or until we die and go to Heaven, life will be messy. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. (Matt. 24:6)

Our hope, then, is not in government. For where power is, therein lies corruption. But where God is, there is everything our human hearts crave. Do I think America has the best governmental system on earth? Yes – if we are referring to what the Founding Fathers intended. But as a Christian, the US government is not where my ultimate hope lies. My ultimate hope lies in the fact that one day, Christ will come riding in on a white horse like the King He is and make everything right.
That doesn’t mean I become lazy in my daily work or never fight for justice, for the poor, for the hurting, for the marginalized. It just means that when I hope, I hope in the King of kings, knowing that earthly kings’ hearts are like streams of water in the hand of the Lord, and He turns them wherever He will. (Prov. 21:1)

If power corrupts, where should we place our hope and trust?
For the non-Christian, it appears as though the consensus is government. For Christians, we hope and trust in the name of the Lord our God. And in that trust, we find peace and the courage to keep on keepin’ on. Even if it means putting up with juvenile politicians with ulterior motives.

 

[beensetfree]

He will save you Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the skies. You are awesome, O God, in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God! Psalm 68:34,35 NIV __________________ In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. Zechariah 12:8 KJV __________________ For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 4:15 NASB __________________ They will see the glory of the LORD, The majesty of our God. Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you." Isaiah 35:3,4 NASB __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

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“He himself hath suffered being tempted.”

Hebrews 2:18

It is a common-place thought, and yet it tastes like nectar to the weary heart — Jesus was tempted as I am. You have heard that truth many times: have you grasped it? He was tempted to the very same sins into which we fall. Do not dissociate Jesus from our common manhood. It is a dark room which you are going through, but Jesus went through it before. It is a sharp fight which you are waging, but Jesus has stood foot to foot with the same enemy. Let us be of good cheer, Christ has borne the load before us, and the blood-stained footsteps of the King of glory may be seen along the road which we traverse at this hour.

There is something sweeter yet — Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never sinned. Then, my soul, it is not needful for thee to sin, for Jesus was a man, and if one man endured these temptations and sinned not, then in his power his members may also cease from sin. Some beginners in the divine life think that they cannot be tempted without sinning, but they mistake; there is no sin in being tempted, but there is sin in yielding to temptation. Herein is comfort for the sorely tempted ones.

There is still more to encourage them if they reflect that the Lord Jesus, though tempted, gloriously triumphed, and as he overcame, so surely shall his followers also, for Jesus is the representative man for his people; the Head has triumphed, and the members share in the victory. Fears are needless, for Christ is with us, armed for our defence. Our place of safety is the bosom of the Saviour. Perhaps we are tempted just now, in order to drive us nearer to him. Blessed be any wind that blows us into the port of our Saviour's love! Happy wounds, which make us seek the beloved Physician. Ye tempted ones, come to your tempted Saviour, for he can be touched with a feeling of your infirmities, and will succour every tried and tempted one.

 

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What The Bible Says About Good Works


We are not saved by works but saved to do works, so here’s what the Bible says about works.
Not by Works
Jesus said that the kingdom of God is about repentance and faith or belief (Mark 1:14-15), but it is only through Jesus Christ that we can be saved. The Bible teaches that it is “by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph 2:8-9). Eternal life is not received by, or attained by, or kept by a person’s conduct or behavior (works), and if we try to add works to our salvation, we have rejected grace. Jesus warned about those who thought they were righteous because of what they did, saying, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15). It is never about religion. It’s about a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. It is not by grace plus stop smoking or grace plus weekly church attendance or grace plus baptism or grace plus stop drinking (or just fill in the blank). We are saved by grace alone, period.

Danger of Works
Who could imagine that doing good works could turn against them someday? If we believe our works contribute to our salvation, instead of being a byproduct of our salvation, then our trust is not fully on Christ. For example, a person who believes we should obey the Ten Commandments or be lost doesn’t understand grace. The Apostle Paul would tell them, “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace” (Gal 5:4). If that is the case, “Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh” (Gal 3:2-3)? The truth is “all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them” (Gal 3:10), so “it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith” (Gal 3:11).

Works for Christ
Jesus indicated that our works must be done in secret, just as our giving should be, but when our works are done to be seen by others, and the person receives the glory, their works are worthless to God. Jesus said of the Day of Judgment, “that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name,” but what does Jesus tell them? He says, “I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’” (Math. 7:22-23). Once a person trusts in Jesus Christ, there isn’t anything else they can do to improve on it. How can you improve on Christ’s perfection; in His perfecting gift of His own life? It is all sufficient in His propitiation. Certainly our works will naturally become better by the new nature in us, but we are not saved by those works. Jesus warned that “many” will say to Him, “Lord, Lord,” we did such and such, but these same many will be turned away…forever. Perhaps they were thinking their works would be enough so save them. Wrong.

Fellowship and Relationships
If I fast twice a week, read the Bible daily for one hour, never miss church, God loves me exactly the same as if I did none of those things this week. Our fellowship will be hurt, but our relationship will not change. When my son was young, he got in trouble for breaking house rules, and our fellowship as father and son was strained, but our relationship never changed! It will always be the same. Nothing he could do would ever stop me from loving him, and he will always be my son, no matter what he does. It’s the same with our heavenly Father. You know you are preaching the works-plus-nothing-gospel if it is salvation through grace alone, by Christ alone. Any other form of salvation than by grace alone is man’s own fabrication, and it’s nothing you can hang your hat on. It is [solely] “the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8), and not the effort by man. We’re not saved by works, but we’re saved to do works that God has ordained that we should walk in (Eph 2:10).

To attempt to make the believer’s response part of their own salvation, and to look upon grace as “a help,” is to flatly deny the gospel, since if it is “by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace…” (Romans 11:6). The simple Biblical message is that we are saved only by the free gift of graces, “For if by one man’s offense death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17). The thief on the cross had no chance of doing any good works before death, and even if he could have, they wouldn’t have helped him get saved.

Shed Blood
Jesus came to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45), and when He introduced the New Covenant, He said, “for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). The Apostle Peter proclaimed that “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit” (1 Peter 3:18). Paul’s preaching is summarized at the end of 2 Corinthians 5:21, writing that it was “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” The righteousness needed to enter the kingdom is only found outside of ourselves, since we have no righteousness within us. Sadly, there are far too many who, “being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness” (Romans 10:3).

Conclusion
Aren’t you glad that we don’t have to do good works to save ourselves? If that were the case, who would ever know when enough good works would be enough? Jesus only mentioned works one time in regards to what we could do, saying, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:29), and just who can believe on Him? Anyone who repents and puts their trust in Christ can be saved (John 3:16). Today is the day of salvation (2 Cor 6:2). Today, Jesus beckons, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matt 11:28-30). Trying to work your way into heaven will wear you out! Come to Christ today and rest in Him, because His “yoke is easy” and His “burden is light.” A lot easier and lighter than yours and mine is.

 

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Be Strong and Very Courageous! If you put away the sin that is in your hand and allow no evil to dwell in your tent, then you will lift up your face without shame; you will stand firm and without fear. Job 11:14,15 NIV __________________ My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV __________________ I will make them strong in the LORD and they shall glory in his name," says the LORD. Zechariah 10:12 RSV __________________ O love the LORD, all you His godly ones! The LORD preserves the faithful And fully recompenses the proud doer. Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD. Psalm 31:23,24 NASB __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

[beensetfree]

“If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

1 John 2:1

“If any man sin, we have an advocate.” Yes, though we sin, we have him still. John does not say, “If any man sin he has forfeited his advocate,” but “we have an advocate,” sinners though we are. All the sin that a believer ever did, or can be allowed to commit, cannot destroy his interest in the Lord Jesus Christ, as his advocate. The name here given to our Lord is suggestive. “Jesus.” Ah! then he is an advocate such as we need, for Jesus is the name of one whose business and delight it is to save. “They shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.” His sweetest name implies his success.

Next, it is “Jesus Christ” — Christos, the anointed. This shows his authority to plead. The Christ has a right to plead, for he is the Father's own appointed advocate and elected priest. If he were of our choosing he might fail, but if God hath laid help upon one that is mighty, we may safely lay our trouble where God has laid his help. He is Christ, and therefore authorized; he is Christ, and therefore qualified, for the anointing has fully fitted him for his work. He can plead so as to move the heart of God and prevail. What words of tenderness, what sentences of persuasion will the anointed use when he stands up to plead for me!

One more letter of his name remains, “Jesus Christ the righteous.” This is not only his character but his plea. It is his character, and if the Righteous One be my advocate, then my cause is good, or he would not have espoused it. It is his plea, for he meets the charge of unrighteousness against me by the plea that he is righteous. He declares himself my substitute and puts his obedience to my account. My soul, thou hast a friend well fitted to be thine advocate, he cannot but succeed; leave thyself entirely in his hands.

 

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The Black Death
================

In the book Killing Giants, Pulling Thorns, Charles R.
Swindoll writes about the Black Death and the superstitions
that resulted from it.

"Someone came up with the foolish idea that polluted air
brought on the plague. So, people began to carry flower petals
in their pockets, superstitiously thinking the fragrance would
ward off the disease. Groups of victims, if they were able to
walk, were taken outside the hospitals.

Holding hands, they walked in circles around rose gardens,
breathing in deeply the aroma of the blooming plants. In some
cases, the patient couldn't get out of bed, so the attending
physicians filled their pockets with bright-colored petals
from English posy plants. While visiting the patient they walked
around the bed sprinkling the posy petals on and around the
victim.

As death came closer, another superstitious act was employed
with sincerity. Many felt if the lungs could be freed from
pollution, life could be sustained. So, ashes were placed in
a spoon and brought up near the nose, causing a hefty sneeze
or two. But neither flowers nor sneezes retarded the raging
death rate. Not until the real cause was discovered, the bite
of fleas from diseased rats, was the plague brought in check.

The awful experience gave birth to a little song which innocent
children still sing at play. It was first heard from the lips of
a soiled, old man pushing a cart in London, picking up bodies
along an alley:

Ring around the roses,
A pocket full of posies;
Ashes, ashes, We all fall down."

 

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God is able Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:5-8 KJV __________________ Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Psalm 1:1-3 NIV __________________ I will be like the dew to Israel; He will blossom like the lily, And he will take root like the cedars of Lebanon. His shoots will sprout, And his beauty will be like the olive tree And his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon. O Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols? It is I who answer and look after you. I am like a luxuriant cypress; From Me comes your fruit. Hosea 14:5,6; 8 NASB __________________ God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work! 2 Corinthians 9:8 KJV __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

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“He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.”

Mark 16:16

Mr. MacDonald asked the inhabitants of the island of St. Kilda how a man must be saved. An old man replied, “We shall be saved if we repent, and forsake our sins, and turn to God.” “Yes,” said a middle-aged female, “and with a true heart too.” “Aye,” rejoined a third, “and with prayer”; and, added a fourth, “It must be the prayer of the heart.” “And we must be diligent too,” said a fifth, “in keeping the commandments.” Thus, each having contributed his mite, feeling that a very decent creed had been made up, they all looked and listened for the preacher's approbation, but they had aroused his deepest pity.

The carnal mind always maps out for itself a way in which self can work and become great, but the Lord's way is quite the reverse. Believing and being baptized are no matters of merit to be gloried in — they are so simple that boasting is excluded, and free grace bears the palm. It may be that the reader is unsaved — what is the reason? Do you think the way of salvation as laid down in the text to be dubious? How can that be when God has pledged his own word for its certainty? Do you think it too easy? Why, then, do you not attend to it? Its ease leaves those without excuse who neglect it.

To believe is simply to trust, to depend, to rely upon Christ Jesus. To be baptized is to submit to the ordinance which our Lord fulfilled at Jordan, to which the converted ones submitted at Pentecost, to which the jailer yielded obedience the very night of his conversion. The outward sign saves not, but it sets forth to us our death, burial, and resurrection with Jesus, and, like the Lord's Supper, is not to be neglected. Reader, do you believe in Jesus? Then, dear friend, dismiss your fears, you shall be saved. Are you still an unbeliever, then remember there is but one door, and if you will not enter by it you will perish in your sins.

 

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Will We Know Family, Friends, And The Saints In Heaven?



When believers finally enter the kingdom, will they recognize family members and friends?

Lazarus and the Rich Man
What does the Bible say about who we will know once we get to heaven? One of Jesus’ most powerful accounts is that of Lazarus and the Rich Man. Let’s read the account to see if this gives us any help as to whether we will recognize people on the other side of eternity, even after death. It is found in Luke 16:19-31 where every day, the rich man ate sumptuously while “at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table” (Luke 16:20-21a). The rich man “Lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side” (Luke 16:23), and Abraham told him, that “between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us” (Luke 16:26).

All the rich man, being in torment, could say was “I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house—for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment” (Luke 16:27-28). The point of this is the rich man still remembers his family after his death, and being in torment, he didn’t want them to end up in the same place. This shows that after death, there will be full mental capacities with the ability to remember and have regrets, and he experienced feelings like thirst, however this applies only to those who die without Christ.

The Transfiguration
When Jesus revealed his glory to Peter, James, and John, they immediately recognized Moses and Elijah, even though they had never personally met them. Somehow, they recognized them. Jesus never introduced them or told the disciples who these men were…the disciples already knew them. During the transfiguration, Peter, not knowing exactly what to say (Matt 17:5), said, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” (Matt 17:4).

God of the Living
When Jesus spoke of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, he spoke of these men as still being alive, for they are! Jesus said He said, “I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 8:11). God also told Moses that “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob” (Ex 3:6). We could put it this way and still be correct: He is the God of the still living. They’re still living, but not here on earth. One day the “Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Jesus and questioned Him, asking, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies having no children, his brother as next of kin shall marry his wife, For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living” (Matt 22:23-32). Jesus said of those who had been married that they would neither be married nor be given in marriage. This indicates that those who are married today will know each other in the kingdom of heaven. Notice that “Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people” (Gen 25:8). Also, “Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people” (Gen 25:17).

Jacob was explicit in his instructions about his burial in Genesis 49:29-33 where it says that “he gave them these instructions: “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in Canaan, which Abraham bought as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite, along with the field. There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried, there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried, and there I buried Leah. When Jacob had finished giving instructions to his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed, breathed his last and was gathered to his people.” Clearly, Jacob knew that he was going to be buried with his fathers and his relatives, but also would be “gathered to his people.”

David’s Infant
David also knew for sure he would recognize his son who died in infancy. He knew that he would see him again, saying, “But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me” (2 Sam 12:23). There is no doubt David will recognize his own son for he spoke expectantly of seeing him again and going to him. This “going to him” is where the child is at now. In 1 Corinthians 13:12 Paul says, “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.”

A Cloud of Witnesses
Is it possible for our loved ones in heaven to see us now? Is there a way for them to know what we are doing? What is the biblical evidence for or against whether our loved ones can see us from heaven? The fact is we just don’t have any evidence. The “cloud of witnesses” mentioned in Hebrew 12:1 are witnesses left for us…not that they are witnessing what we do. There is no Scriptural evidence that our lost loved ones can see us from heaven any more than those in hell can (see account of Lazarus and the Rich Man). Hebrews 12:1 is a conclusion of what was just said in Hebrews 11:39-40, which says, “And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.”

After Death
The very moment after you die, if you are a believer, you are with the Lord. Paul wrote that “to be absent from the body [is] to be present with the Lord” (2 Cor 5:8), which also means that “while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord” (2 Cor 5:9). When Paul says “in the body” he means here on earth, and when he speaks of “with the Lord,” we know he means being with the Lord. How do we know that? Jesus is presently seated at the right hand of the Father, because after His death and resurrection, the Scriptures say that God “seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places” (Eph 1:20), so right now, Jesus “is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” This is because God has “highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name” (Phil 2:9b).

Conclusion
If you have lost loved ones who have gone to be with the Lord, you will see them again, but for those who’ve rejected Christ and die outside of the faith, that’s the last time they will see them, or they will see you. No one can go to the Father except through Christ (John 6:44), so there is no other way (Acts 4:12). Only those who trust in Christ will be “gathered to [their] people.” I hope that is you.

 

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Abide in Me, and I in you They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will rejoice in the bounty of the LORD-- the grain, the new wine and the oil, the young of the flocks and herds. They will be like a well-watered garden, and they will sorrow no more. Jeremiah 31:12 NIV __________________ The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing. Psalm 92:14 KJV __________________ Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:2-5 NASB __________________ God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work! 2 Corinthians 9:8 KJV __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

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“He had married an Ethiopian woman.”

Numbers 12:1

Strange choice of Moses, but how much more strange the choice of him who is a prophet like unto Moses, and greater than he! Our Lord, who is fair as the lily, has entered into marriage union with one who confesses herself to be black, because the sun has looked upon her. It is the wonder of angels that the love of Jesus should be set upon poor, lost, guilty men. Each believer must, when filled with a sense of Jesus’ love, be also overwhelmed with astonishment that such love should be lavished on an object so utterly unworthy of it. Knowing as we do our secret guiltiness, unfaithfulness, and black-heartedness, we are dissolved in grateful admiration of the matchless freeness and sovereignty of grace.

Jesus must have found the cause of his love in his own heart, he could not have found it in us, for it is not there. Even since our conversion we have been black, though grace has made us comely. Holy Rutherford said of himself what we must each subscribe to — “His relation to me is, that I am sick, and he is the Physician of whom I stand in need. Alas! how often I play fast and loose with Christ! He bindeth, I loose; he buildeth, I cast down; I quarrel with Christ, and he agreeth with me twenty times a day!”

Most tender and faithful Husband of our souls, pursue thy gracious work of conforming us to thine image, till thou shalt present even us poor Ethiopians unto thyself, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. Moses met with opposition because of his marriage, and both himself and his spouse were the subjects of an evil eye. Can we wonder if this vain world opposes Jesus and his spouse, and especially when great sinners are converted? for this is ever the Pharisee's ground of objection, “This man receiveth sinners.” Still is the old cause of quarrel revived, “Because he had married an Ethiopian woman.”

 

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Born Again & Born from Above



In the course of our excellent Bible study of Job–I never realized how evangelical, how focused on justification, that book is–we went down a side road on Bible translation. Pastor Moerbe had us look at John 3:3, in which Jesus tells Nicodemus that no one can see the kingdom of God without being “born again.” The word in Greek is ánōthen (ἄνωθεν.)

The word derives from ánō (ἄνω), meaning “above.” It literally and most usually means “from above,” as in describing the view from a mountain. But it can also mean “again.” (See this discussion from Strong’s and other Biblical Greek lexicons.)
So which is it? You must be “born again,” or you must be “born from above”? Many evangelicals stress the necessity of a “born again experience,” whereas Lutherans, Calvinists, and others stress that God’s action brings us into faith. How should the passage be translated?
I was aware of the controversy, but I didn’t notice how the context shows both meanings. Consider how the passage in John 3 unfolds:

3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again [ἄνωθεν] he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Nicodemus interprets the word in the sense of “again”:

4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”

Jesus responds, using the word in the sense of “from above”:

5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

This is not an ambiguity. The word in Greek carries both meanings. Nicodemus picks up on one of the meanings, then Jesus draws out the other.

An English translation, though, since it lacks a word that includes both senses, chooses one or the other. I would think that the meaning intended by Jesus should win out, though then we would miss Nicodemus’s puzzlement.
Go here for how the various English translations handle the verse. The most accurate renditions are probably the ones that combine both senses: “born again from above” (Contemporary Jewish Bible, Jubilee Bible); “reborn from above” (Amplified Bible). Luther, interestingly, renders it “jemand von neuem geboren werde,” which means “again,” but not so much in the sense of another time (“nochmal,” or “wieder”) but in the sense of “newly.”)
This also shows the importance of pastors, who are charged with explaining and preaching the text, knowing the original languages.

Does this same double meaning apply in Aramaic, which Jesus is assumed to have spoken, or did Jesus also speak Greek? Mark Ward gives quite a bit of evidence that Jesus, along with other first century Jews–including the common folk–did speak Greek, at least sometimes. For example, 68% of inscriptions, from tombs to synagogues, are in Greek. Galilee, where Jesus was from, had a strong presence of Hellenistic, Greek-speaking Jews. Even its normal Aramaic dialect was quite different from that of Jerusalem, so a conversation between Jesus and a member of the Sanhedrin may well have been in Greek.
At any rate, the inspired text that we have is in Greek, so this is what we must go by.
We must be born again, but the way this happens is to be born from above, by the work of the Holy Spirit. Specifically, one must be “born of water and the Spirit,” which gets us into the theology of Baptism.

 

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He gives more grace But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall Malachi 4:2 NIV __________________ For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Matthew 13:12 KJV __________________ But he gives more grace; therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." James 4:6 RSV __________________ And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them. Also the cow and the bear will graze, Their young will lie down together, And the lion will eat straw like the ox. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den. They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea. Isaiah 11:6-9 NASB __________________ God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work! 2 Corinthians 9:8 KJV __________________ Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God is the object of our faith; the only faith that saves is faith in Him.

 

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“Now on whom dost thou trust?”

Isaiah 36:5

Reader, this is an important question. Listen to the Christian's answer, and see if it is yours. “On whom dost thou trust?” “I trust,” says the Christian, “in a triune God. I trust the Father, believing that he has chosen me from before the foundations of the world; I trust him to provide for me in providence, to teach me, to guide me, to correct me if need be, and to bring me home to his own house where the many mansions are.

I trust the Son. Very God of very God is he — the man Christ Jesus. I trust in him to take away all my sins by his own sacrifice, and to adorn me with his perfect righteousness. I trust him to be my Intercessor, to present my prayers and desires before his Father's throne, and I trust him to be my Advocate at the last great day, to plead my cause, and to justify me. I trust him for what he is, for what he has done, and for what he has promised yet to do.

And I trust the Holy Spirit — he has begun to save me from my inbred sins; I trust him to drive them all out; I trust him to curb my temper, to subdue my will, to enlighten my understanding, to check my passions, to comfort my despondency, to help my weakness, to illuminate my darkness; I trust him to dwell in me as my life, to reign in me as my King, to sanctify me wholly, spirit, soul, and body, and then to take me up to dwell with the saints in light for ever.”

Oh, blessed trust! To trust him whose power will never be exhausted, whose love will never wane, whose kindness will never change, whose faithfulness will never fail, whose wisdom will never be nonplussed, and whose perfect goodness can never know a diminution! Happy art thou, reader, if this trust is thine! So trusting, thou shalt enjoy sweet peace now, and glory hereafter, and the foundation of thy trust shall never be removed.

 

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What Are YOU Waiting On?
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I was sitting at a prayer breakfast during the Trumpet Awards.
The guest speaker was Bishop Eddie L. Long. He spoke about a
private moment that he had with Barack Obama before he became
the President of the United States. Hundreds of community and
business leaders, clergy, members of the media and others were
in the audience.

Sitting in a room in New Orleans a year and a half before he
became the President, Bishop Long asked Obama,

"Why are you running for President?"

I have not seen President Obama's answer revealed in any other
media; although, it's easy for me to have missed it since I don't
generally read newspapers or watch the news.

This was Obama's answer:
"Because I believe God told me to do it."

Then he said, "I'd rather be wrong than sit back and not move."

This issue is not to debate politics at all so don't think in
the vein of politics. Think in this vein:

What has God told YOU to do?

In reply you've said:
It's too hard!
I don't want to do it!
It's not time!
Get someone else!
I've got too much to do!
I'm scared!
I'm not prepared!
It's not popular!
Your reason here_____________________________________!

The key is not if God told someone else something.
Too often we focus on what someone else is doing or not doing
instead of what WE are supposed to be doing. It's easy to focus
on what the "other" person is supposed to be doing.

The key and the big point of your life is: what has God spoken to
your heart, mind and spirit that YOU have failed to follow?

It's probably difficult and it's probably something that for
various reasons you are not particularly inclined to do. If it
were easy and something that you really wanted to do, you would've
most likely have already done it.

Are you sitting back and not moving on what God spoke to YOU?

NOW is the time for you to move even though it's difficult and
even though you've got one or more of the above reasons why you
haven't moved.

So what are YOU waiting on?