Healing’s a sign from God
“When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him.
A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.
Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
Matthew 8:1-4
I have always contended that God is the same yesterday today on always. Thus it is logical if healings took place in the Old Testament, and the New Testament then they have to happen today.
The healings and noble as they were, were not the purpose in Jesus coming to earth.
It was his teaching ministry that was the prime purpose in him coming. Through his teachings we are shown the way to heaven.
Still the miraculous healings show that what is said in the bible are real. If they were not real why would any rational person wanting to reach people of Christ leave them in.
Were they proven to be fake they would be counter productive to the cause of Christ.
The healings in the Bible are legitimate.
Now having said that I firmly believe that there are fake faith healers in the world today. Men that are supposedly healing people in the name of God and are not.
These people are fall into three categories, they are deluding themselves and others, they are out there to line their own pockets or they are there to mislead people.
Jesus said,
“Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
Matthew 7:22,23.
The only way we can truly know if we are listening to a fake faith healer or not is to check up on them.
First of all in the Bible.
Are the word they are speaking taken in context from the bible.
Second are they telling people to go to their doctor who can confirm that they have been healed and that they had the illness in the first place.
I’ve heard of case over the years of people claiming a healing the they never had.
Thirdly is the faith healer just putting on a good show.
I know of one faith healer that claimed that people were getting up out of wheel chairs and proved it by putting empty supposedly used wheel chairs on the stage.
Trouble was they were all new chairs that had never been used and this person had people meet visibly disabled people before they got to the stage ushering them away.
We need to demand proof when it comes miraculous healings.
All of the healing that happened both in the Old Testament and the New Testament were documented. It needs to be the same today.
Think about it.
Thursday, 6 March 2014
Wednesday, 5 March 2014
Build on The Rock
Build on the Rock
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Matthew 7:24-27.
Here Jesus gives the call for us to build our faith on the words of Jesus on the words of the Bible.
The Bible is first and foremost a book of faith it points us to God. Secondly and equally as important it is a rule book to telling us how to live with God and with our fellow man.
The Bible gives us moral values to live by.
If more people lived by them our world would be a far better place.
The bible’s highest ideal is love, the apostle Paul writing to the Corinthians saying,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
Jesus telling us,
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40.
Sadly even in Christian circles people do not practice love as Jesus and the Bible intended.
By not doing so they turn people away from God.
Anne Frank a Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis during world war two. A girl who experienced the worst mankind could offer and who died in a concentration camp wrote these words.
“Give of yourself, give as much as you can? And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness! If everyone were to do this and not be as mean with a kindly word, then there would be much more justice and love in the world. Give and you shall receive, much more than you would have ever thought possible. Give, give again and again, don’t lose courage, keep it up and go on giving! No one has ever become poor from giving!”
I like the prayer of Martin Luther King Jr. I think it’s something all Christians should take to hart. It reads,
"We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man.
We are in nature but we live above nature.
Help us never to let anybody or
any condition pull us so low as to cause us to hate.
Give us strength to love our enemies and to do good
to those who despitefully use us and persecute us.
We thank thee for thy Church, founded upon thy Word, that challenges us to do more
than sing and pray, but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon thee.
Then, finally, help us to realize that man was created to shine like stars and live on through all eternity.
Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace;
help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow will rejoice in one common bond of humanity in the kingdom
of our LORD and of our God, we pray.
Amen."
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
This I believe is what Jesus meant when he said to build our house on the Rock. To build it on the firm foundation of the Love of God and his teachings. Teachings that can change the world.
Think about it.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Matthew 7:24-27.
Here Jesus gives the call for us to build our faith on the words of Jesus on the words of the Bible.
The Bible is first and foremost a book of faith it points us to God. Secondly and equally as important it is a rule book to telling us how to live with God and with our fellow man.
The Bible gives us moral values to live by.
If more people lived by them our world would be a far better place.
The bible’s highest ideal is love, the apostle Paul writing to the Corinthians saying,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
Jesus telling us,
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40.
Sadly even in Christian circles people do not practice love as Jesus and the Bible intended.
By not doing so they turn people away from God.
Anne Frank a Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis during world war two. A girl who experienced the worst mankind could offer and who died in a concentration camp wrote these words.
“Give of yourself, give as much as you can? And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness! If everyone were to do this and not be as mean with a kindly word, then there would be much more justice and love in the world. Give and you shall receive, much more than you would have ever thought possible. Give, give again and again, don’t lose courage, keep it up and go on giving! No one has ever become poor from giving!”
I like the prayer of Martin Luther King Jr. I think it’s something all Christians should take to hart. It reads,
"We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man.
We are in nature but we live above nature.
Help us never to let anybody or
any condition pull us so low as to cause us to hate.
Give us strength to love our enemies and to do good
to those who despitefully use us and persecute us.
We thank thee for thy Church, founded upon thy Word, that challenges us to do more
than sing and pray, but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon thee.
Then, finally, help us to realize that man was created to shine like stars and live on through all eternity.
Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace;
help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow will rejoice in one common bond of humanity in the kingdom
of our LORD and of our God, we pray.
Amen."
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
This I believe is what Jesus meant when he said to build our house on the Rock. To build it on the firm foundation of the Love of God and his teachings. Teachings that can change the world.
Think about it.
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
Not all who appear to be Christians are.
Not all who appear to be Christians are.
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
Matthew 7:15-23.
I know to many people outside the Christian community a Christian, is a Christian is a Christian.
They see someone in the media claiming to be the Christian and quoting from the Bible.
They make claims that on the surface look legitimate enough but are really truths twisted to suit their own needs.
I’ve heard one so called Christian evangelist say that God was going to kill all homosexuals in America. What garbage.
There are others out there simply to line their pockets by misquoting scripture to have people send them money.
The Bible warns against such people. These are people that give honest legitimate pastors and evangelist, not to mention the church a bad name.
Sadly people who do not go to church have no way of knowing who is honest and who is not.
That’s why it is important for Christians to speak out against the frauds and charlatans out their.
That is why I would say to Christian and none Christian alike to question anyone claiming to be a servant of God.
Check them out on the internet.
Take time to read the Bible passages that the person is speaking about. And not just the passages but the chapters around it.
Make sure they are not taking things out of context.
Question especially outrageous claims and never, never give money to any ministry that you are not sure of.
Go as far as asking them to send you an accounting of where the money they receive is being used.
If they don’t want to do so, don’t give them a penny.
Ultimately God will hold all those who misrepresent him to account.
There will be many who are in ministry today that will stand before God and hear the words, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Until that time however it is up to honest people within the church especially to hold every minister, evangelist and teacher of the Bible to account.
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
Matthew 7:15-23.
I know to many people outside the Christian community a Christian, is a Christian is a Christian.
They see someone in the media claiming to be the Christian and quoting from the Bible.
They make claims that on the surface look legitimate enough but are really truths twisted to suit their own needs.
I’ve heard one so called Christian evangelist say that God was going to kill all homosexuals in America. What garbage.
There are others out there simply to line their pockets by misquoting scripture to have people send them money.
The Bible warns against such people. These are people that give honest legitimate pastors and evangelist, not to mention the church a bad name.
Sadly people who do not go to church have no way of knowing who is honest and who is not.
That’s why it is important for Christians to speak out against the frauds and charlatans out their.
That is why I would say to Christian and none Christian alike to question anyone claiming to be a servant of God.
Check them out on the internet.
Take time to read the Bible passages that the person is speaking about. And not just the passages but the chapters around it.
Make sure they are not taking things out of context.
Question especially outrageous claims and never, never give money to any ministry that you are not sure of.
Go as far as asking them to send you an accounting of where the money they receive is being used.
If they don’t want to do so, don’t give them a penny.
Ultimately God will hold all those who misrepresent him to account.
There will be many who are in ministry today that will stand before God and hear the words, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Until that time however it is up to honest people within the church especially to hold every minister, evangelist and teacher of the Bible to account.
Monday, 3 March 2014
A Narrow Gate
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
Matthew 7:13,14
The one belief that separates Christians from all other faiths is the claim that they are the only way to heaven.
Here Jesus says that “small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
People all over the world today are looking for the truth. They are honestly looking for the way to heaven.
Almost all religions in the world say you have to be good. Being good is a good thing.
But most religions of the world also say that your good deeds must out weigh your bad deeds in order to enter heaven or reach a plain of ultimate enlightenment.
Christianity does not say that.
Jesus makes the following statements,
"Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
John 14:6
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
John 3:16-18
These statements make it clear that it is only through Jesus that we can enter heaven and obtain eternal life.
The apostle Paul writing to the Ephesians makes it clear,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8,9
The writer of Hebrews noting,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6.
We can never be good enough to enter into heaven. We are imperfect vessels. We all at one time or another in our daily walk fall far short of what God wants for our life. We sin.
Sin is simply falling short of what God wants for our life.
John states,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”
1 John 1:9,10.
Christianity simply states that in order to get into heaven we must first of all believe that Jesus is the one and only Son of God.
That we should confess our sins to Him that he may forgive our sins.
Then we are asked to do our best to live up to the ideals of Christ. knowing that if we do make a mistake if we do sin we can still go back to Him confess it and be forgiven.
Think about it.
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
Matthew 7:13,14
The one belief that separates Christians from all other faiths is the claim that they are the only way to heaven.
Here Jesus says that “small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
People all over the world today are looking for the truth. They are honestly looking for the way to heaven.
Almost all religions in the world say you have to be good. Being good is a good thing.
But most religions of the world also say that your good deeds must out weigh your bad deeds in order to enter heaven or reach a plain of ultimate enlightenment.
Christianity does not say that.
Jesus makes the following statements,
"Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
John 14:6
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
John 3:16-18
These statements make it clear that it is only through Jesus that we can enter heaven and obtain eternal life.
The apostle Paul writing to the Ephesians makes it clear,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8,9
The writer of Hebrews noting,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6.
We can never be good enough to enter into heaven. We are imperfect vessels. We all at one time or another in our daily walk fall far short of what God wants for our life. We sin.
Sin is simply falling short of what God wants for our life.
John states,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”
1 John 1:9,10.
Christianity simply states that in order to get into heaven we must first of all believe that Jesus is the one and only Son of God.
That we should confess our sins to Him that he may forgive our sins.
Then we are asked to do our best to live up to the ideals of Christ. knowing that if we do make a mistake if we do sin we can still go back to Him confess it and be forgiven.
Think about it.
Sunday, 2 March 2014
The Golden Rule
The Golden Rule
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 7:12.
This is a statement that is echoed in other faiths, the so called golden rule.
I find it is something Christians at times forget.
They in the name of God go around preaching and judging others. They try to force what they believe on others.
Many Christian groups have tried over the years to restrict the rights of others. This should not be so.
We should be helping preserve the rights of others whether we are in a democracy or not.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society. Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
We as Christians owe it to ourselves and to others to treat all people in the way we wish to be treated.
We should always take time to think before we act and ask ourselves the question would I like this being done to me.
Think about it.
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 7:12.
This is a statement that is echoed in other faiths, the so called golden rule.
I find it is something Christians at times forget.
They in the name of God go around preaching and judging others. They try to force what they believe on others.
Many Christian groups have tried over the years to restrict the rights of others. This should not be so.
We should be helping preserve the rights of others whether we are in a democracy or not.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society. Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
We as Christians owe it to ourselves and to others to treat all people in the way we wish to be treated.
We should always take time to think before we act and ask ourselves the question would I like this being done to me.
Think about it.
Saturday, 1 March 2014
Grave Yards
Grave Yards
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Isaiah 40:6b
I went through a cemetery the other day. A small one. By Canadian standards its old. From the few headstones I believe it was just one family buried there.
I noticed that all the headstones gave the date of birth and death. Some even gave the age of the person in years months weeks and days. Nothing more.
I assumed that these people were average although one name stood out to me. If I’m right he’s at least related to a prominent man in Canadian history. But still a man few Canadians even know.
Grave yards are cold quiet places. Places our relatives will place our bodies when we shed them.
When you come into our town from a certain direction you pass through two large grave yards.
It’s interesting that as you walk through them you can hear the traffic. Every now and then you hear a high powered car with its deep throated muffler rumbling through. It’s almost as though they’re trying to get away. A sort of acknowledgment that one day they will end there.
Sadly several in those high powered cars have ended their days at a bend mid way through.
Their bodies making only a slight detour through a funeral home or church before resting in the quiet yard.
The prophet Isaiah wrote,
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Isaiah 40:6b-8
As I looked through the small grave yard and the two big ones not one name did I recognize as doing anything great.
The walk reminded me of when I was younger. We lived in a house that was a thousand years old.
Near by was the ruins of an old Abby of which our house had been a part centuries before. On the grounds of the Abby was an old grave yard.
It’s occupants starting to take up residency around 1000 AD. The Abby at one point being one of the richest in England. Some famous historical people were buried there although I can’t seem to remember them now.
I guess that’s what it’s like for all of us. Some day the body our soul calls home will end it’s days in a the quiet yard. To be eventually forgotten by men.
I believe it’s the grave of the unknown soldier that has the inscription “known only to God” on it.
Eventually that’s how it will be for all of us. We will be known only to God.
Ultimately I think that’s all that is important. That we are known only to God.
Sadly both non-Christians and some who call themselves Christians will here the words of Jesus recorded in Matthew,
“Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
Matthew 7:23
Which begs the question dear reader do you know God?
Do you know where you will spend eternity?
Think about it.
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Isaiah 40:6b
I went through a cemetery the other day. A small one. By Canadian standards its old. From the few headstones I believe it was just one family buried there.
I noticed that all the headstones gave the date of birth and death. Some even gave the age of the person in years months weeks and days. Nothing more.
I assumed that these people were average although one name stood out to me. If I’m right he’s at least related to a prominent man in Canadian history. But still a man few Canadians even know.
Grave yards are cold quiet places. Places our relatives will place our bodies when we shed them.
When you come into our town from a certain direction you pass through two large grave yards.
It’s interesting that as you walk through them you can hear the traffic. Every now and then you hear a high powered car with its deep throated muffler rumbling through. It’s almost as though they’re trying to get away. A sort of acknowledgment that one day they will end there.
Sadly several in those high powered cars have ended their days at a bend mid way through.
Their bodies making only a slight detour through a funeral home or church before resting in the quiet yard.
The prophet Isaiah wrote,
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
Isaiah 40:6b-8
As I looked through the small grave yard and the two big ones not one name did I recognize as doing anything great.
The walk reminded me of when I was younger. We lived in a house that was a thousand years old.
Near by was the ruins of an old Abby of which our house had been a part centuries before. On the grounds of the Abby was an old grave yard.
It’s occupants starting to take up residency around 1000 AD. The Abby at one point being one of the richest in England. Some famous historical people were buried there although I can’t seem to remember them now.
I guess that’s what it’s like for all of us. Some day the body our soul calls home will end it’s days in a the quiet yard. To be eventually forgotten by men.
I believe it’s the grave of the unknown soldier that has the inscription “known only to God” on it.
Eventually that’s how it will be for all of us. We will be known only to God.
Ultimately I think that’s all that is important. That we are known only to God.
Sadly both non-Christians and some who call themselves Christians will here the words of Jesus recorded in Matthew,
“Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
Matthew 7:23
Which begs the question dear reader do you know God?
Do you know where you will spend eternity?
Think about it.
Friday, 28 February 2014
Do not Judge
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Matthew 7:1-5
Here is a truth that transcends Christianity. A truth everyone needs to adhere to.
We do not know the circumstances in someone’s life. We do not know why people do what they do.
It’s easy to find fault with people. It can be hard to find the good in people at times but we need to look for the good in people.
Here Jesus is saying don’t judge another person especially don’t be a hypocrite when you judge someone.
Remember you do things wrong from time to time.
Now Jesus is not ruling out discernment here. He’s not saying to trust people no matter what.
We need to be careful in our business dealings. We need to look carefully when someone is trying to sell us something.
There are all types of people out there trying to conn people out of money or lead us down the garden path.
We need to exercise good judgment when it comes to that.
What Jesus is saying we shouldn’t berate someone for something they did wrong.
The classic example is when someone cuts us off in their car. At times we want to wring their neck. We yell and curse them. But you must remember you do things wrong when your driving. You speed. I’m sure most drivers have run red lights, even stop signs.
We need to be a little more understanding when someone wrongs us and not judge them harshly.
Remember we are far from perfect.
Think about it.
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Matthew 7:1-5
Here is a truth that transcends Christianity. A truth everyone needs to adhere to.
We do not know the circumstances in someone’s life. We do not know why people do what they do.
It’s easy to find fault with people. It can be hard to find the good in people at times but we need to look for the good in people.
Here Jesus is saying don’t judge another person especially don’t be a hypocrite when you judge someone.
Remember you do things wrong from time to time.
Now Jesus is not ruling out discernment here. He’s not saying to trust people no matter what.
We need to be careful in our business dealings. We need to look carefully when someone is trying to sell us something.
There are all types of people out there trying to conn people out of money or lead us down the garden path.
We need to exercise good judgment when it comes to that.
What Jesus is saying we shouldn’t berate someone for something they did wrong.
The classic example is when someone cuts us off in their car. At times we want to wring their neck. We yell and curse them. But you must remember you do things wrong when your driving. You speed. I’m sure most drivers have run red lights, even stop signs.
We need to be a little more understanding when someone wrongs us and not judge them harshly.
Remember we are far from perfect.
Think about it.
Thursday, 27 February 2014
Of God and Man
Of God and Man
“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1:26,27.
Man was created not in the physical likeness of God because God is spirit and doesn’t have a physical body as such. But man was made in the psychological, emotional and spiritual likeness of God.
Man’s body is only temporary the moment he is born his body is destined to return to dust.
However that spark inside the body. The soul that is man. The thing that separates him from the animals and gives him self awareness lives on through eternity.
Martin Luther King Jr. in one of his famous speeches said,
“We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man. We are in nature but we live above nature.”
Man’s original purpose was to live on forever and have fellowship with God. However God gave man a free will to choose what he wants to do.
God through the Bible shows man how he can live eternally with God. It has been described as a narrow way and it is certainly the only way.
Sadly some say there are many ways to God and eternal life. While others deny there is a God. That is there choice.
I as a Christian look at it this way. If those who deny there is a God are right and if those who say there are many ways to heaven are right, I have nothing to fear.
However if I am right and I am certain I am, then they have a lot to fear.
Jesus said,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
John 3:16-18.
Think about it.
“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1:26,27.
Man was created not in the physical likeness of God because God is spirit and doesn’t have a physical body as such. But man was made in the psychological, emotional and spiritual likeness of God.
Man’s body is only temporary the moment he is born his body is destined to return to dust.
However that spark inside the body. The soul that is man. The thing that separates him from the animals and gives him self awareness lives on through eternity.
Martin Luther King Jr. in one of his famous speeches said,
“We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man. We are in nature but we live above nature.”
Man’s original purpose was to live on forever and have fellowship with God. However God gave man a free will to choose what he wants to do.
God through the Bible shows man how he can live eternally with God. It has been described as a narrow way and it is certainly the only way.
Sadly some say there are many ways to God and eternal life. While others deny there is a God. That is there choice.
I as a Christian look at it this way. If those who deny there is a God are right and if those who say there are many ways to heaven are right, I have nothing to fear.
However if I am right and I am certain I am, then they have a lot to fear.
Jesus said,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
John 3:16-18.
Think about it.
Wednesday, 26 February 2014
The Love of Money
The Love of Money
“People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
1 Timothy 6:9,10.
Here is something that is a universal truth for both Christians and non-Christians.
Let me underscore here that being wealthy is not a sin. It’s “the love of money that is the root of all kinds of evil.”
Think of how many people over the years have fallen for get rich quick schemes. People who have been conned out of their life savings.
The people who are taking advantage of others by running the get rich quick schemes are themselves looking to get rich quick themselves by stealing others money.
Most get caught and end up in jail. Still there is always someone out their willing to help someone wanting to make a quick buck part with their money.
Lets face it being rich comes with prestige attached to it.
It supposedly give you time to enjoy life. But does it?
There are lots of stories of people who have won millions in lotteries only to blow through it in a few years leaving them worst off than they were before the win.
The apostle Paul notes,
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
I’ve known lots of people over the years who almost live at work. They work and they work to get the money to get the good things in life, yet they can’t enjoy it. They have no time.
Conversely I know several people who are church mouse poor yet enjoy life to the fullest.
I’m reminded today of my sister-in-law Shirley who passed away exactly two years ago today.
She was indeed church mouse poor. She struggled with alcohol addiction but managed to remain sober for the last fifteen years of her life.
Still she never had a lot of money but she managed.
She was the kind of person that would give you the shirt of her back. She helped everyone.
She volunteered her time at church and with organization that helped the poor and those fighting alcohol addiction.
Shirley was one of the happiest people I have ever met. Yet most times she didn’t have a dime to her name.
People still come up to my wife and I saying how much they miss her and telling us of how she helped them.
Proof you don’t need to be rich to bring a little joy and happiness into someone’s life.
Jesus said,
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:19,20.
Think about it.
“People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
1 Timothy 6:9,10.
Here is something that is a universal truth for both Christians and non-Christians.
Let me underscore here that being wealthy is not a sin. It’s “the love of money that is the root of all kinds of evil.”
Think of how many people over the years have fallen for get rich quick schemes. People who have been conned out of their life savings.
The people who are taking advantage of others by running the get rich quick schemes are themselves looking to get rich quick themselves by stealing others money.
Most get caught and end up in jail. Still there is always someone out their willing to help someone wanting to make a quick buck part with their money.
Lets face it being rich comes with prestige attached to it.
It supposedly give you time to enjoy life. But does it?
There are lots of stories of people who have won millions in lotteries only to blow through it in a few years leaving them worst off than they were before the win.
The apostle Paul notes,
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
I’ve known lots of people over the years who almost live at work. They work and they work to get the money to get the good things in life, yet they can’t enjoy it. They have no time.
Conversely I know several people who are church mouse poor yet enjoy life to the fullest.
I’m reminded today of my sister-in-law Shirley who passed away exactly two years ago today.
She was indeed church mouse poor. She struggled with alcohol addiction but managed to remain sober for the last fifteen years of her life.
Still she never had a lot of money but she managed.
She was the kind of person that would give you the shirt of her back. She helped everyone.
She volunteered her time at church and with organization that helped the poor and those fighting alcohol addiction.
Shirley was one of the happiest people I have ever met. Yet most times she didn’t have a dime to her name.
People still come up to my wife and I saying how much they miss her and telling us of how she helped them.
Proof you don’t need to be rich to bring a little joy and happiness into someone’s life.
Jesus said,
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:19,20.
Think about it.
Tuesday, 25 February 2014
Misguided pastor
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40.
Yesterday on the news I heard that Uganda had passed laws that put homosexuals in prison for fifteen years for a first offence. And life for a second offence. How awful.
What was more disturbing was the fact that they interviewed an American educated Ugandan pastor that was supposedly instrumental in helping get the law passed.
How totally detestable!
This man to me is not living up to the ideals Christ.
Jesus and his disciples never got involved in politics. Not once did they try to change Roman law or have laws enacted that favoured them.
Jesus, and his disciples had one goal in life to point people to heaven.
It was Jesus who said, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
You cannot do that an restrict the rights of any individual or group of people and say you love them.
This pastor may think homosexuality is a sin, that is his right in a free democracy BUT he has no right nor has any government the right to restrict the freedoms of any group of people.
I am what my brother describes as a card carrying charismatic evangelical Christian. And I am appalled at what this pastor did and what the Ugandan Government did.
How can we show homosexuals the way to heaven when we are sending them to prison. Prison will no more change a homosexual than that pastor standing in garage will turn into a car.
Sadly however I feel he is the extreme tip of a group saying they are Christians in the United States and Canada that want to restrict the rights of those they disagree with.
Such thinking is not Christian.
When did Jesus ever say restrict the rights of the Samaritans, or gentiles or other groups. He didn’t.
He reached out to a Samaritan woman, Roman Centurions, tax collectors and others that in his day were considered sinners.
The only way Christians are going to reach the world is by reaching out to those we disagree with and present in a spirit of peace the gospel of Peace.
Jesus said,
“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”
Matthew 10:16.
We cannot be innocent if we are helping pass laws that restrict the rights of others.
Our role on this earth is not to judge others of sin but to win the world for Christ and thus make it a better place for all mankind.
Martin Niemoller wrote,
“When they came for the Communists, I did not stand up, because I was not a Communist. When they came for the Jews, I did not stand up, because I was not Jewish. When they came for the Catholics, I did not stand up, because I was not a Catholic. When they came for me, there was no one left to stand up.”
Martin Niemoller was a German pastor during the time of Adolf Hilter. Originally he supported Hitler then turned away becoming a strong opponent of the Nazis.
Niemöller was imprisoned in Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps from 1937 to 1945. He narrowly escaped execution and survived imprisonment. After his imprisonment, he expressed his deep regret about not having done enough to help the victims of the Nazis.
I know that one day this pastor and those who enacted the anti gay laws in Uganda and anywhere else in the world will have to stand before God and be judged.
I pray that before they are they will have a change of heart and reach out in Love to the members of the gay and lesbian community.
To the members of the LBGT community I ask that you do not judge Christians on the actions of these misguided individuals.
There are many of us within the Christian community that wish to reach out in love with the one message we believe not only the gay and lesbian community need to hear but the whole world.
The message that Jesus does indeed love you and want very much to be a part of your life.
Jesus saying,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
John 3:16,17.
Think about it.
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40.
Yesterday on the news I heard that Uganda had passed laws that put homosexuals in prison for fifteen years for a first offence. And life for a second offence. How awful.
What was more disturbing was the fact that they interviewed an American educated Ugandan pastor that was supposedly instrumental in helping get the law passed.
How totally detestable!
This man to me is not living up to the ideals Christ.
Jesus and his disciples never got involved in politics. Not once did they try to change Roman law or have laws enacted that favoured them.
Jesus, and his disciples had one goal in life to point people to heaven.
It was Jesus who said, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
You cannot do that an restrict the rights of any individual or group of people and say you love them.
This pastor may think homosexuality is a sin, that is his right in a free democracy BUT he has no right nor has any government the right to restrict the freedoms of any group of people.
I am what my brother describes as a card carrying charismatic evangelical Christian. And I am appalled at what this pastor did and what the Ugandan Government did.
How can we show homosexuals the way to heaven when we are sending them to prison. Prison will no more change a homosexual than that pastor standing in garage will turn into a car.
Sadly however I feel he is the extreme tip of a group saying they are Christians in the United States and Canada that want to restrict the rights of those they disagree with.
Such thinking is not Christian.
When did Jesus ever say restrict the rights of the Samaritans, or gentiles or other groups. He didn’t.
He reached out to a Samaritan woman, Roman Centurions, tax collectors and others that in his day were considered sinners.
The only way Christians are going to reach the world is by reaching out to those we disagree with and present in a spirit of peace the gospel of Peace.
Jesus said,
“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”
Matthew 10:16.
We cannot be innocent if we are helping pass laws that restrict the rights of others.
Our role on this earth is not to judge others of sin but to win the world for Christ and thus make it a better place for all mankind.
Martin Niemoller wrote,
“When they came for the Communists, I did not stand up, because I was not a Communist. When they came for the Jews, I did not stand up, because I was not Jewish. When they came for the Catholics, I did not stand up, because I was not a Catholic. When they came for me, there was no one left to stand up.”
Martin Niemoller was a German pastor during the time of Adolf Hilter. Originally he supported Hitler then turned away becoming a strong opponent of the Nazis.
Niemöller was imprisoned in Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps from 1937 to 1945. He narrowly escaped execution and survived imprisonment. After his imprisonment, he expressed his deep regret about not having done enough to help the victims of the Nazis.
I know that one day this pastor and those who enacted the anti gay laws in Uganda and anywhere else in the world will have to stand before God and be judged.
I pray that before they are they will have a change of heart and reach out in Love to the members of the gay and lesbian community.
To the members of the LBGT community I ask that you do not judge Christians on the actions of these misguided individuals.
There are many of us within the Christian community that wish to reach out in love with the one message we believe not only the gay and lesbian community need to hear but the whole world.
The message that Jesus does indeed love you and want very much to be a part of your life.
Jesus saying,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
John 3:16,17.
Think about it.
Monday, 24 February 2014
God is Real
God is real
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”
Genesis 1:1,2
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
John 1:1-3.
The things I have written in this blog and others are Christian truths that can be used by Christian and non-Christian alike.
They speak of the teachings of Jesus what he claimed to be and what he called Christians to do.
I believe much of this proves God exists. Still I know the sceptic will say God does not exist.
M. E Anders in his book 30 days to understanding the Christian life 1994 published by T. Nelson states,
The Bible offers itself as the source of truth. The Bible presents itself as the great, cosmic “instrument panel.” It tells us where we came from, where we are, and where we are going. It is up to us to decide whether we accept the “readings” we get from it.
The Bible does not defend itself. It was written to people who accepted its message and therefore spends little time convincing its readers of its authenticity. Charles Spurgeon once said, “The Bible does not need to be defended any more than a caged lion needs to be defended. All we need to do is let it out of its cage, and it will defend itself.”
The fundamental assertion that the Bible makes concerning itself is that, in spite of the human collaboration in the writing of it, the Bible is a revelation of God to man, it was written without error, and it can be trusted to reveal truth to us regarding God, man, life, and death....
God is not to be found in the laboratory. He cannot be proved. But then, love is not to be found in the laboratory. Neither is courage, nor longing, nor hope.
God is to be found in the courtroom. While data cannot be garnered to prove His existence, evidence can be amassed to demonstrate the probability of His existence. There is a gap between the probable and the proved. But then, few things can be proved to the unbelieving mind. Unbelief never has enough proof.”
Dear reader do you believe in God. Ultimately it comes down to looking at the evidence as one would in a court. There may be no hard and fact forensic evidence, although that’s debatable.
There is however a very strong circumstantial case.
Ultimately it comes down to an act of faith
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6
Think about it.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”
Genesis 1:1,2
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
John 1:1-3.
The things I have written in this blog and others are Christian truths that can be used by Christian and non-Christian alike.
They speak of the teachings of Jesus what he claimed to be and what he called Christians to do.
I believe much of this proves God exists. Still I know the sceptic will say God does not exist.
M. E Anders in his book 30 days to understanding the Christian life 1994 published by T. Nelson states,
The Bible offers itself as the source of truth. The Bible presents itself as the great, cosmic “instrument panel.” It tells us where we came from, where we are, and where we are going. It is up to us to decide whether we accept the “readings” we get from it.
The Bible does not defend itself. It was written to people who accepted its message and therefore spends little time convincing its readers of its authenticity. Charles Spurgeon once said, “The Bible does not need to be defended any more than a caged lion needs to be defended. All we need to do is let it out of its cage, and it will defend itself.”
The fundamental assertion that the Bible makes concerning itself is that, in spite of the human collaboration in the writing of it, the Bible is a revelation of God to man, it was written without error, and it can be trusted to reveal truth to us regarding God, man, life, and death....
God is not to be found in the laboratory. He cannot be proved. But then, love is not to be found in the laboratory. Neither is courage, nor longing, nor hope.
God is to be found in the courtroom. While data cannot be garnered to prove His existence, evidence can be amassed to demonstrate the probability of His existence. There is a gap between the probable and the proved. But then, few things can be proved to the unbelieving mind. Unbelief never has enough proof.”
Dear reader do you believe in God. Ultimately it comes down to looking at the evidence as one would in a court. There may be no hard and fact forensic evidence, although that’s debatable.
There is however a very strong circumstantial case.
Ultimately it comes down to an act of faith
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6
Think about it.
Sunday, 23 February 2014
Paul gives The Answer
Paul gives the Answer
"Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.
And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”
At that, Paul left the Council.
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others."
Acts 17:22-34
Paul had been speaking in the synagogues and in the market place to people about Christ, when the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers heard what he was saying and invited him to speak at the Areopagus, the Athenian equivalent of a modern day chat room.
The Athenians were interested in new philosophies and religions and the Areopagus was the place they debated them.
It was the ideal place for Paul to present the gospel.
It is there in this august meeting place that Paul not only tells Athenians about Jesus but us today.
His message then is as relevant today. Thus I would ask that you read it carefully and think about it.
"Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.
And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”
At that, Paul left the Council.
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others."
Acts 17:22-34
Paul had been speaking in the synagogues and in the market place to people about Christ, when the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers heard what he was saying and invited him to speak at the Areopagus, the Athenian equivalent of a modern day chat room.
The Athenians were interested in new philosophies and religions and the Areopagus was the place they debated them.
It was the ideal place for Paul to present the gospel.
It is there in this august meeting place that Paul not only tells Athenians about Jesus but us today.
His message then is as relevant today. Thus I would ask that you read it carefully and think about it.
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