"In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength." (Isa. 30:15)
In the Old Testament, when the Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah to the Israelites, He would encourage them to trust completely in Him to fight their battles for them. Yet, despite His Word, they refused to listen to Him. In verse 16 we read: "But ye said, No; for will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee; and, we will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift. One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one..."
When calamity comes, whose counsel will you take? Just like the Israelites at that time were faced with annihilation from their enemies all around them, we are faced with enemies seemingly too big to handle. We are in the end times, exactly as foretold in the Word of God. Wars and rumors of war, earthquakes, floods, fires and pestilences are upon us. Fear is all around us and daily expounded on by the news media.
The people of old SAID: No, we will handle it our way. Not only did they think it. They spoke it, and therefore they received what they spoke (verse 16 above). You get what you ask for, i.e. speak! The Lord gives His Word which tells us what to do. Yet, He will not negate your words. In other words, He answers your prayers! You may "pray" for healing, safety and provision in church or in your quiet time with Him, but do your everyday words reflect your faith that you have already received His answer?
"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not ....but watereth the earth... give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." (Isa. 55: 10; 11)
Wow! That's a fresh new revelation from the Lord for me today! As I'm writing this I realize that those verses don't just mean that whatever the Lord says, he will do, as I have always thought they referred to! Yes, it means that as well. But.. can you see it? He is telling you by His example not to speak anything you do not want, expect or mean to happen! Why? Because it will do what it says out to so! Your words express what you believe in your heart will happen. What you speak is tantamount to the most fervent "prayer." In fact, it is the essence of true prayer. If you ask Him in your prayer closet to heal your cyst, but constantly tell your family and friends about the pain and the doctor's negative prognosis, what are you doing? You are taking your fervent prayer back out of His hands and telling Him that you can do it in your own might!
The more you come to know His Word and thus His Will, the more you can speak His perfect purpose for your life into being! Fear is a strong motivator to get you to react against the Word of God. But, fear is the exact opposite of faith, and without faith we cannot please God. (Heb. 11:6)
Have you been preoccupied with work, worries about the future, and bad reports? Then I encourage you to return your attention to the Lord. Then He will give you rest. In His rest your spirit will grow quiet and gradually gain more and more confidence that He will do what He promises.
"Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." (Ps. 55: 22)
Article Source: http://www.articles-galore.com
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
David and Goliath
Imagine that you are standing in the middle of a valley. On the hill in front of you are thousands of enemy soldiers all shaking their fists at you and hoping you will die. On the hill behind you are thousands of your soldiers, all scratching their heads because they think that you are crazy. Right in front of you is a heavily armed, very angry giant that is twice your size, and he wants to kill you.
And there you are, all alone, with nothing in your hands except a sling and a few lousy pebbles, and the thought that keeps going through your mind is: What was I thinking?
I don't know if that's how David felt, but I know that I've felt that way a number of times. There I was just following my heart and doing what I thought God wanted me to do, and all along the path to my dream were giants, one after another.
Maybe you've also felt like that on the way to your dreams. Not only do the problems not go away, but they also seem to get bigger and bigger. You wonder if you've made a mistake, and if anyone will notice as you quietly slip away, go back to your "day job," and forget the whole thing.
People have asked me what I thought David was thinking as he stood there facing Goliath. The Bible doesn't really tell us, but I would imagine that he must have had some doubts. But we know from how the story ends that David didn't allow his doubts to stop him.
Throughout our lives we all face "giants" - problems and struggles that stand in our way. They loom large on the path to our dreams and make us feel like the difficulties we are facing are greater than the rewards we hope to gain.
But because of David's example, we have hope - not that the problems will disappear, but that the problems we're facing can be overcome. Regardless of what others may think, we know from our own experiences with God that the victory doesn't go to the one who seems strongest but to the one who is willing to believe.
What was it about David that enabled him to defeat Goliath? Jesus gave us the simple answer to that question when He said, "Have faith in God" (Mark 11:22). But as simple as that answer may seem, putting that statement into practice and living a life that exemplifies faith in God isn't always as easy as it sounds.
In order for us to overcome the "Goliaths" that we will face as we pursue our dreams, we will need to learn how to deal with our doubts. We all have them, and circumstances will continue to happen in our lives that will cause our doubts to surface and even stop us dead in our tracks. But like David, we can't allow our doubts to keep us from taking action on our dreams.
When we have doubts, thoughts that keep nagging at us and causing us to question God, we need to take control of our minds. We should fill our minds with God's promises. God spoke to Joshua and said, "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."
Like David, we can overcome any giant of a problem, if we will simply allow the word of God to speak to us when our minds are filling with doubts and fears. When we "meditate" on His word, it means that we repeat it to ourselves. We stop the doubts by reminding ourselves of God's faithfulness. He will never fail us and we don't have to let our doubts rob us of our dreams.
Free Article brought to YOU by ArticlesOn.com
And there you are, all alone, with nothing in your hands except a sling and a few lousy pebbles, and the thought that keeps going through your mind is: What was I thinking?
I don't know if that's how David felt, but I know that I've felt that way a number of times. There I was just following my heart and doing what I thought God wanted me to do, and all along the path to my dream were giants, one after another.
Maybe you've also felt like that on the way to your dreams. Not only do the problems not go away, but they also seem to get bigger and bigger. You wonder if you've made a mistake, and if anyone will notice as you quietly slip away, go back to your "day job," and forget the whole thing.
People have asked me what I thought David was thinking as he stood there facing Goliath. The Bible doesn't really tell us, but I would imagine that he must have had some doubts. But we know from how the story ends that David didn't allow his doubts to stop him.
Throughout our lives we all face "giants" - problems and struggles that stand in our way. They loom large on the path to our dreams and make us feel like the difficulties we are facing are greater than the rewards we hope to gain.
But because of David's example, we have hope - not that the problems will disappear, but that the problems we're facing can be overcome. Regardless of what others may think, we know from our own experiences with God that the victory doesn't go to the one who seems strongest but to the one who is willing to believe.
What was it about David that enabled him to defeat Goliath? Jesus gave us the simple answer to that question when He said, "Have faith in God" (Mark 11:22). But as simple as that answer may seem, putting that statement into practice and living a life that exemplifies faith in God isn't always as easy as it sounds.
In order for us to overcome the "Goliaths" that we will face as we pursue our dreams, we will need to learn how to deal with our doubts. We all have them, and circumstances will continue to happen in our lives that will cause our doubts to surface and even stop us dead in our tracks. But like David, we can't allow our doubts to keep us from taking action on our dreams.
When we have doubts, thoughts that keep nagging at us and causing us to question God, we need to take control of our minds. We should fill our minds with God's promises. God spoke to Joshua and said, "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."
Like David, we can overcome any giant of a problem, if we will simply allow the word of God to speak to us when our minds are filling with doubts and fears. When we "meditate" on His word, it means that we repeat it to ourselves. We stop the doubts by reminding ourselves of God's faithfulness. He will never fail us and we don't have to let our doubts rob us of our dreams.
Free Article brought to YOU by ArticlesOn.com
Friday, March 23, 2007
Are all of the Christians who have died, in Heaven?
It has long been taught that when a Christian dies they go straight to
> heaven. Is this what the Bible teaches or have paganistic doctrines and
> myths crept unbeknown into our Christian faith?
>
> What did Jesus say about his friend Lazarus who had died? John 11:11-14
> "These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend
> Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said
> his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of
> his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
> Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead".
>
> Jesus clearly showed us that the dead sleep. If Lazarus had gone to heaven
> Jesus would have said that he was in heaven with the Father. Also, after
> Jesus raised Lazarus, did anyone ask Lazarus "What was it like in heaven?
> Tell us about it". No one did, because it was the belief of the day that
> when someone died they slept until the resurrection on the last day.
>
> This is further clarified in Psalms where we are told that when we die our
> thoughts perish Psalms 146:4 "His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his
> earth; in that very day his thoughts perish".
>
> We are also told that we will not rise again until the heavens are no more
> (when Jesus returns) Job 14:12 "So man lieth down, and riseth not: till
> the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their
> sleep".
>
> Paul reinforced this understanding 1 Thessalonians 4:16 "For the Lord
> himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
> archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise
> first":
>
> Many Christians believe that when they die they go directly to heaven,
> even though the day of judgment has not even occurred yet. They visualize
> themselves in heaven with the angels praising God. But what does the Bible
> say? Psalms 115:17 "The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down
> into silence".
>
> It is clear that the Bible writers all believed that the state of the dead
> is like sleeping, to be awakened the moment after they closed their eyes
> at the final trumpet at the coming of Jesus on the day of redemption. 1
> Corinthians 15:52 "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last
> trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised
> incorruptible, and we shall be changed".
>
> Job made it clear that we return to dust and are no more until the
> resurrection Job 7:21 "And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and
> take away mine iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt
> seek me in the morning, but I shall not be".
>
> There are many deceptions of Satan going on in these end times and
> spiritism is on the increase. If people realized that the dead are all
> asleep and can't communicate with us, then they would start to question
> who exactly it is that they are communicating with. There are many
> deceptive demonic spirits in the invisible world around us, who take every
> opportunity they can to lead people astray. It is time that we recognized
> that when mediums are speaking to the 'other side' it is actually the evil
> angels that they are talking to and not dead beloved relatives.
>
> How can we help those who have been tricked by these deceptive spirits, if
> we don't demonstrate to people from a Biblical perspective that the dead
> are asleep and have no thoughts, so it can't be them doing the
> communicating?
>
> All Bible references are from the King James Version.
>
> Article Source: http://www.articles-galore.com By: Debra Lohrere
> heaven. Is this what the Bible teaches or have paganistic doctrines and
> myths crept unbeknown into our Christian faith?
>
> What did Jesus say about his friend Lazarus who had died? John 11:11-14
> "These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend
> Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said
> his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of
> his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
> Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead".
>
> Jesus clearly showed us that the dead sleep. If Lazarus had gone to heaven
> Jesus would have said that he was in heaven with the Father. Also, after
> Jesus raised Lazarus, did anyone ask Lazarus "What was it like in heaven?
> Tell us about it". No one did, because it was the belief of the day that
> when someone died they slept until the resurrection on the last day.
>
> This is further clarified in Psalms where we are told that when we die our
> thoughts perish Psalms 146:4 "His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his
> earth; in that very day his thoughts perish".
>
> We are also told that we will not rise again until the heavens are no more
> (when Jesus returns) Job 14:12 "So man lieth down, and riseth not: till
> the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their
> sleep".
>
> Paul reinforced this understanding 1 Thessalonians 4:16 "For the Lord
> himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
> archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise
> first":
>
> Many Christians believe that when they die they go directly to heaven,
> even though the day of judgment has not even occurred yet. They visualize
> themselves in heaven with the angels praising God. But what does the Bible
> say? Psalms 115:17 "The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down
> into silence".
>
> It is clear that the Bible writers all believed that the state of the dead
> is like sleeping, to be awakened the moment after they closed their eyes
> at the final trumpet at the coming of Jesus on the day of redemption. 1
> Corinthians 15:52 "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last
> trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised
> incorruptible, and we shall be changed".
>
> Job made it clear that we return to dust and are no more until the
> resurrection Job 7:21 "And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and
> take away mine iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt
> seek me in the morning, but I shall not be".
>
> There are many deceptions of Satan going on in these end times and
> spiritism is on the increase. If people realized that the dead are all
> asleep and can't communicate with us, then they would start to question
> who exactly it is that they are communicating with. There are many
> deceptive demonic spirits in the invisible world around us, who take every
> opportunity they can to lead people astray. It is time that we recognized
> that when mediums are speaking to the 'other side' it is actually the evil
> angels that they are talking to and not dead beloved relatives.
>
> How can we help those who have been tricked by these deceptive spirits, if
> we don't demonstrate to people from a Biblical perspective that the dead
> are asleep and have no thoughts, so it can't be them doing the
> communicating?
>
> All Bible references are from the King James Version.
>
> Article Source: http://www.articles-galore.com By: Debra Lohrere
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Justification by faith alone
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
One of the most famous song in the world is Amazing Grace.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed
Every person has sinned, and broken God's law. Each person has turned away from God. The outcome of our sin is death - eternal separation from God.
Because we have turned away from God, there is nothing we can do to bring us back to him. No amount of good works will ever be enough to undo the sin we have done.
On the Cross, Jesus took our sin upon himself, and died for us. This was the only way that our sin could ever be taken away from us.
We can be made righteous in God's eyes (that is, justified) by our faith - when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and believe that he died for us. This belief wipes away all our sins - past, present and future. We are no longer eternally separated from God, but are now his children!
This faith is all that is needed for our salvation. There is nothing we can or need to do to earn our salvation - faith alone is sufficient.
Grace is this free, unmerited gift of salvation from God.
Good works are not required for our salvation. However, faith in Christ will lead to good works.
John 3:16 is probably the most well known Bible verse in the world.
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
Luke wrote in Acts 13:38-39
Paul said, "Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything that could not be justified from the law of Moses."
Paul wrote in Romans 3:28
For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.
Again Paul wrote in Galatians 2:16
We know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no-one will be justified.
Throughout the New Testament the theme is clear. There is nothing we can do to gain everlasting life with God. There is no way to ever earn this because we have sinned and turned from God. But because of Christ there is nothing we need to do. We can be cleaned from our sin (justified) and can have everlasting life with God freely, as a gift. This is grace.
The first words of the well known book called, "What's so amazing about grace" are
There is nothing we can do to make God love us more
There is nothing we can do to make God love us less.
I think that's pretty amazing too.
One of the most famous song in the world is Amazing Grace.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed
Every person has sinned, and broken God's law. Each person has turned away from God. The outcome of our sin is death - eternal separation from God.
Because we have turned away from God, there is nothing we can do to bring us back to him. No amount of good works will ever be enough to undo the sin we have done.
On the Cross, Jesus took our sin upon himself, and died for us. This was the only way that our sin could ever be taken away from us.
We can be made righteous in God's eyes (that is, justified) by our faith - when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and believe that he died for us. This belief wipes away all our sins - past, present and future. We are no longer eternally separated from God, but are now his children!
This faith is all that is needed for our salvation. There is nothing we can or need to do to earn our salvation - faith alone is sufficient.
Grace is this free, unmerited gift of salvation from God.
Good works are not required for our salvation. However, faith in Christ will lead to good works.
John 3:16 is probably the most well known Bible verse in the world.
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
Luke wrote in Acts 13:38-39
Paul said, "Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything that could not be justified from the law of Moses."
Paul wrote in Romans 3:28
For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.
Again Paul wrote in Galatians 2:16
We know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no-one will be justified.
Throughout the New Testament the theme is clear. There is nothing we can do to gain everlasting life with God. There is no way to ever earn this because we have sinned and turned from God. But because of Christ there is nothing we need to do. We can be cleaned from our sin (justified) and can have everlasting life with God freely, as a gift. This is grace.
The first words of the well known book called, "What's so amazing about grace" are
There is nothing we can do to make God love us more
There is nothing we can do to make God love us less.
I think that's pretty amazing too.
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