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strangers and angels -  Part 3

3/30/2017

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Strangers and Angels – Part 3 
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.  (Heb 13:2)  Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?  (Hebrews 1:14)

Angels are a big Bible subject and we have paid a brief visit. But angels must always be seen in their relationship to Jesus. The writer of Hebrews does it best. God, who at sundry times and in divers (various) manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
(Heb 1:1-2)

God created angels with great power and with great assignments to carry out His will. But, angels had no part in creation. Angels shed no blood to redeem us from our sins. Angels will not rule God’s kingdom and have not been appointed to the role of heirs. Jesus did not die for the sins of the angels that rebelled with Satan. Angels watch as God’s plan for the human race unfolds and serve as God’s assistants when needed. They continue in that role today. The writer of Hebrews finds it necessary to make a comparison of angels to the Son of God.

Who (Jesus) being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.  (Heb 1:3-4)

To illustrate the exalted place of the Son of God above angels, we are told that Jesus, by Himself purged our sins from us so that we are left endowed with His righteousness, as though we had never sinned. We are not endowed with innocence, as were Adam and Eve, but with righteousness. The angels have never enjoyed the place of sons in their relationship to their Creator. Moreover, they are to worship the Son of God who is above them.

For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?  And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.  (Heb 1:5-6)
 
“This is a quotation from Psa_104:4. The writer of Hebrews, who I believe is Paul, is showing that Christ is superior to the angels, and He is using the Old Testament Scriptures to prove it. Can you see how absolutely important the first two chapters of Hebrews are? They put down a foundation for the rest of the book which deals with the present ministry of Christ for believers today.

“It is easy to understand that angels were very important to the Hebrews because most of them were well acquainted with the Old Testament. They thought of angels as next to the very throne of God. They had read of the appearance of angels to many of God's servants and to many of the prophets. Angels were very important beings to them.”

“Well, human beings never become angels. I think it would really surprise us if we had any conception of the number of angels in the universe. They are called the "host of heaven," and that means there are a whole lot of them. Their numbers apparently are not diminished or added to in any way, but we have no idea how many angels there are. They have an important part in God's plan, but Christ is superior to the angels.” (McGee)(Condensed)
​

I was asked recently if angels have wings. They appeared as human beings and we have no wings.  Angels traveled far and fast and did not need wings for that. In the Old Testament, there were angelic figures in the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle and Temple. They stood over the Ark of the Covenant with their wings touching and reaching to the outer walls; a span of 30’.

Ezekiel saw creatures with wings but they were not angels. At times, angels may have had wings but the accounts of their appearance do not mention wings. We must give them their due: they are spirits and ministers who can go about as a flame of fire. By contrast, Jesus is pictured sitting upon a throne in majesty.


And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.  Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.  And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:  (Heb 1:7-10) (Jesus was co-creator with God His Father.)
​

But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?  (Heb 1:13-14) Jesus is the sovereign God. Angels are His servants. Ω

Read Through the Bible in a Year  
MARCH 31, 2017 – FRIDAY      
A.M.  Judges 3-5      P.M.  Luke: 7:31-50
 (Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
The Hills of Heaven Call Me (5:49)
– (Gaither Group)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXrL-Z44KHc&list=RDP23u1hjkhxI&index=15
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strangers and angels - Part 2

3/29/2017

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Strangers and Angels – Part 2
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.  (Heb 13:2)  Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?  (Hebrews 1:14)

“Angels” are divided into two categories of: Good Angels and Fallen Angels. The Good Angels are appointed by God as ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation. We know the names of two good angels: Michael and Gabriel. We do not know how many angels there are but there are many thousands of them.

Fallen Angels contrast with good angels and are headed up by Satan (Lucifer), who is a fallen angel. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:   I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.   Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.  (Isa 14:12-15)

God’s angels and the fallen angels have been in conflict from the beginning of the rebellion of Satan. Eventually, Satan and his angels will be subdued.

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,  And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.  (Rev 12:7-10)

A surprising thing takes place in how Michael, the archangel dealt with Satan when they were having a dispute over the body of Moses. Michael did not rebuke Satan.
Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.  (Jude 1:9)
 
I found this comment by McGee on the incident: “This is a most remarkable verse of Scripture. Here is Wuest's very fine translation of it: "Yet Michael, the archangel, when disputing with the devil, arguing concerning the body of Moses, dared not bring a sentence that would impugn his dignity, but said, May the Lord rebuke you."
“Satan is a fallen creature and an avowed enemy of God, yet Michael, when contending about the body of Moses, would not bring a sentence that would impugn the dignity of Satan.

Michael even respected the position of Satan. Clement, one of the early church fathers, quotes from an apocryphal writing dealing with the funeral of Moses. When Michael was commissioned to bury Moses, Satan opposed it on the grounds that, since he was the master of the material and matter, the body belonged to him. Michael's only answer was, "The Lord [that is, the Creator] rebuke thee." Satan also brought the charge of murder against Moses. Also it is suggested that Satan wanted to hinder the later appearance of Moses at the Mount of Transfiguration.


“Lucifer was a creation of God and apparently, the highest creature that God created. And then evil was found in him. Don't think that evil means that he went out and stole something. The evil that was in him was that he put his will against the will of God. He was lifted up by pride, and he wanted to become independent of God. He actually thought he could dethrone God—at least from part of His universe.

As far as this world is concerned, God has permitted him to carry on this rebellion, and God has a high and holy purpose in it. But this creature still believes he will be able to take a segment of God's created universe and be the ruler over it. I'm sure that Satan wants this earth as his." (McGee)


Read Through the Bible in a Year  
MARCH 30, 2017 – THURSDAY      
A.M.  Judges 1-2      P.M.  Luke: 7:1-30
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
How Great Thou Art (6:07) – (Choir & Orchestra) (FBC – Jax.FL)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iqtCTtVIB4&list=RDP23u1hjkhxI&index=6
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strangers and angels

3/28/2017

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Strangers and Angels…
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.  (Heb 13:2)  Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?  (Hebrews 1:14)

“Angel” in singular and plural forms occurs about 300 times in the Bible. They are God-created beings that figure large in parts of the Bible. They are organized into groups and hierarchies with leaders. Satan and his followers are angels that rebelled against the authority of God and fell from their place in God’s angel kingdom. Thus, they are “fallen angels.”

Note these verses: And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.  (Rev 12:7-9)

It will take more than one day to examine our theme of Strangers and Angels because angels are a big Bible subject. Also, some good writing has been done about Angels and I would like to include some samples here. (You know that I’m prejudiced toward McGee because he is so down-to-earth in his comments.)

The above picture is famous. A German artist, Bernhard Plockhorst, painted it in 1886. His story is interesting and he painted several other Bible-theme works. If this link works, you can read about it here: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernhard_Plockhorst

There’s a lot of talk these days about angels but most people have never personally seen an angel, to their knowledge. A close look at the first verse above gives a hint as to why we may not know if we have seen an angel. They don’t always look like the pictures drawn by artists with wings and other-world appearance. Angel simply means “messenger.” Pastors in Revelation (Rev.1:20) were called “angel” and yet they were very much human.

But there is that heavenly messenger that shows up looking every bit like a human being. Jacob wrestled with an angel, which put his hip out of joint and caused him to limp the rest of his life (Gen.32:24-30).  An angel of the Lord killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in one night (2Kings 19:35). So, if you are in a tight place and call on the Lord to help you, it wouldn’t be unreasonable that the Lord should send an angel to help you. But don’t expect him to hang around for supper, although that has been done too. I would not pray to angels for their help. Pray to God and let Him send an angel if that’s what ought to be done.

“All the angels, even those of the highest order, are employed by their Creator to serve those who believe in Christ Jesus. What these services are, and how performed, it would be impossible to state. Much has been written on the subject, partly founded on Scripture, and partly on conjecture. They are, no doubt, constantly employed in averting evil and procuring good. If God helps man by man, we need not wonder that he helps man by angels.

We know that he needs none of those helps, for he can do all things himself; yet it seems agreeable to his infinite wisdom and goodness to use them. This is part of the economy of God in the government of the world and of the Church; and a part, no doubt, essential to the harmony and perfection of the whole.” (Adam Clarke: a British Methodist theologian and biblical scholar; died 1832.)


I believe angels have been active in our area of Sand Mountain, Alabama for several years. A retired Southern Baptist pastor whom I personally have known for almost thirty years, shared one of his personal stories while we were visiting at a funeral home. His daughter was putting gas in her car at a service station where we have bought gasoline many times. A big car pulled up a few feet away. One of the men in the car jumped out and grabbed her and was dragging her toward his car.

Just as quickly, a truck pulled up and a man jumped out of the truck. With one mighty blow, he put the big man on his back on the concrete and shoved the pastor’s daughter toward her car. “Go!” He said. She got into her car and started the engine. As she looked back, the big man that had been dragging her was getting back into his car and the car sped away. The man who had rescued her was nowhere to be seen, nor his truck.”


This same pastor had previously felt compelled to pick up a hitch-hiker. He witnessed to him and the man replied that he knew the Lord and that Jesus was coming soon. Soon, the man wanted to get out of the car, although there were no houses or other roads. He let him out of the car and looked into the rearview mirror as he pulled away. Nothing. He stopped the car and got out and looked all around and the man had disappeared.

Since I have lived in Flat Rock, stories have spread through the community about two women in Chattanooga who picked up a hitch hiker (against their better judgment). They drove toward Cleveland and talked a few minutes. Suddenly, the man disappeared out of their car. He had told the ladies that the Lord is coming soon. In the same period a highway patrolman went forward in his church on a Sunday morning and asked permission to give his testimony.

He had approached a big-rig on the side of the road and the two drivers were looking all around the truck for something. He stopped and they told him: “You’ll never believe this…” they had picked up a hitch hiker and after talking to them about the Lord, he had disappeared out of the truck. They were looking for him.

This same story with some variation was spread throughout this area and then no more stories.  Yes, although some of the stories may have been embellished or changed with the telling of them, I believe an angel was troubling the waters in this area. Some have entertained angels, unawares. (Hebrews 1:14). Ω


​Read Through the Bible in a Year  
 MARCH 29, 2017 – WEDNESDAY      
A.M.  Josh: 23-24      P.M.  Luke: 6:27-49
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling(3:27)
– (Male Trio) (Calvary Mem.Church – S.Pines, NC)
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the spirit bears witness with our spirit

3/27/2017

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The Spirit Bears Witness with Our Spirit

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit,
that we are the children of God: (Rom 8:16)
 

This is worth thinking about. Either it is true or it is not. The verse does not claim that the witness is in the form of words, but meaningful communication, nevertheless. It is a convincing witness, bypassing normal word language. Your spirit will know that the Holy Spirit is there pressing against your own spirit and tilting your opinion in His direction about the important subject of your being a child of God. He is a master of communication.

Every thought we have is not from God. We are instructed: But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.  (Heb 5:14)

Our subject is not broad but limited to the Holy Spirit bearing with our Spirit that we are the children of God. Most often, (but not always) the Spirit will use a verse of Scripture or a phrase in a verse of Scripture. The Word of God is the sword of the Spirit. You may have read a verse many times and it was not special to you and then suddenly the verse comes alive. We call that “the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit.” He will never lead you contrary to the Word of God but always in-step with the Scriptures.

The communication of the Holy Spirit with the human spirit is one of the great mysteries and I will not attempt to put that mystery into “easy to understand” words. It cannot be done. How much explanation does one need to perceive the noon day sun is overhead? We don’t see word descriptions of the noon day sun in dictionaries or encyclopedias. It is one of those “self-evident” truths that is referred to in the American Declaration of Independence. The presence of the Holy Spirit is also a self-evident presence that is His own announcement and His own description of what He is there to communicate.

The Holy Spirit communication with us begins as the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin and draws us toward God. Jesus said: No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.  (Joh 6:44) Many Bible scholars agree that the Father draws by the agency of the Holy Spirit who works with the Father in creating and in convicting of sin. And when he (the Holy Spirit) is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:  (Joh 16:8)

We read:   For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.  (Rom 8:14) God’s Spirit will tell us what we need to know, when we need to know it. This is the broad, lifelong leading of the Holy Spirit.

But, the first essential place we need to be led, is in knowing we are saved. We call it “assurance.”  Sometimes the Holy Spirit will draw out a person even for months, withholding the assurance until certain things are accomplished in that person’s soul. And then, without effort on the part of the waiting enquirer, the assurance comes as easy as a baseball player sliding into first base. In the end, only the Spirit of God can give you the assurance that you are a child of God. No human being can do that.

The following commentary is a little “stiff” and scholarly but is loaded with food for thought.  Notice his biography: (Adam Clarke (born. 1760–1762, died. August 28, 1832) was a British Methodist theologian).
 
“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit - Αυτο το πνευμα, that same Spirit, the Spirit of adoption; that is, the Spirit who witnesses this adoption; which can be no other than the Holy Ghost himself, and certainly cannot mean any disposition or affection of mind which the adopted person may feel; for such a disposition must arise from a knowledge of this adoption, and the knowledge of this adoption cannot be given by any human or earthly means; it must come from God himself: therefore the αυτο το πνευμα must have reference to that Spirit, by whom alone the knowledge of the adoption is witnessed to the soul of the believer.

"With our spirit - In our understanding…This is done that we may have the highest possible evidence of the work which God has wrought. As the window is the proper medium to let the light of the sun into our apartments, so the understanding is the proper medium of conveying the Spirit’s influence to the soul.

"We, therefore, have the utmost evidence of the fact of our adoption which we can possibly have; we have the
word and Spirit of God; and the word sealed on our spirit by the Spirit of God. And this is not a momentary influx: if we take care to walk with God, and not grieve the Holy Spirit, we shall have an abiding testimony; and while we continue faithful to our adopting Father, the Spirit that witnesses that adoption will continue to witness it; and hereby we shall know that we are of God by the Spirit which he giveth us (Clarke-abbreviated).
​

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

Read Through the Bible in a Year  
      MARCH 28, 2017 – TUESDAY      
A.M.  Josh: 21-22      P.M.  Luke: 6:1-26
          (Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
​This World is Not My Home (2:01)
– (Male Trio) (Calvary Mem.Church – S.Pines, NC)
https://www.facebook.com/100009410046480/videos/1823841747939476/
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the bible's own proof

3/26/2017

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The Bible’s Own Proof
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:   Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.   For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.  (2Pe 1:19-21)

The late, Dr. Walter Wilson of Kansas City, medical doctor, tent maker and pastor, said something like this: “God wrote two books. One book, you can hold in your hand and it’s called: The Bible. The other book is the creation of the earth and the vast universe”. (I heard him say this sixty years ago.) You can’t have a watch without a watch maker. An effect is always smaller than its cause…and a cause is always bigger than its effect.

 
A few years ago, a few TV programs were aired by a group of highly rated professors entitled: “In Search of the Real Jesus.”  Their approach was to sift through archaeological diggings and various museum relics for verifying the Jesus of the Bible. That has been the approach of “Higher Criticism” for over a hundred years. “It will be true when we say it is true.” These fellows should ‘fess up and tell the people they want to sell books to that they are broken up into various camps and they can’t agree with each other any more than Bible-believing Christians can agree on some things.  ‘nuff said.
 
We already know the Bible to be the Word of God whether these dedicated students find any more significant relics. It’s a bit like the efforts of sending space craft aloft and ignoring the vast treasure lying buried in our oceans. Some of most reliable proofs of Bible trustworthiness is the Bible itself.

When I was in the sixth grade, we lived in Elizabethton, TN. Our curriculum included a study of the Greek gods. I was particularly interested in Thor, the god of thunder and for lending us his name for our Thursday of the week. (Thor’s day.) My thoughts: “These people thought their gods were the true gods. How do I know my God is the true God?” My best, honest reason was that it was what my mother believed and she was a good woman. For several years I read my Bible, attended church, and kept this question in the back of my mind. It was bedrock that the most honest people I knew believed the Bible was the book of the real God.

“Isn’t the Bible as reliable as the Greek writings? Why do these public-school text books raise the question of which god and did not include the Bible as being as reliable as the Greek books of mythology?” Then, I processed through a bit of college philosophy studies and found philosophy gurus couldn’t agree with each other. So, the Greeks took a big chance on honoring Thor and their other chief gods. Their gods were defective.

At last, I came across some of the prophetic statements of the Bible and went to county fairs. At the County Fair, there was the jar of marbles or jelly beans and you could pay to guess how many were in the jar. That would be almost impossible, so, I didn’t waste my money on it. I had never heard of “compound probability.” That’s a little branch of math that deals with the probability of a certain thing being true. The more factors that go into the problem, the less likely you are to come up with the right answer.

Many years later, I was teaching a high-school prophecy class and we considered what the chances were that Jesus could fulfill the prophesies in the Old Testament concerning Himself. Some math students in Texas had already taken it on as a project and concluded that it was one chance in 1, followed by 80 zeros. I began making zeros on an eight-foot chalk board and found I could draw 40 reasonable-size zeros across the chalk board. So, I had to go across the chalk board twice with zeros. There it was: a one followed by eighty zeroes. I never heard of any state lotteries having that many zeroes, not even a national lottery would have that many zeroes.

Even before I heard of compound probability, I had looked at the element of prophecy in the Bible and knew that I had found something the gods of the Greeks didn’t have. None of the gods of any nation in the history of the world has ever had a proven rate of fulfilled prophecies in its literature. None!

​That’s why I enjoy walking around in the Library of Congress, realizing there’s not one book in the massive national library that can tell the future. Well, there IS one book: there are some Bibles in the Library of Congress. That one book in our largest library tells the most significant things that are going to happen in the future. It also tells where we came from and what our purpose is in being here.

Consider these verses on what God says about Himself.
Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.  (Isa 42:9)
 
Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,  Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:  (Isaiah 46:9-10)
 
Jesus said: Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.  (Joh 13:19)
 
Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.  (Act 15:18)

Fulfilled prophecy is one of the main things that interests me about the trustworthiness of the Bible. There are other reasons, but this is one of the foundational proofs that the Bible is reliable. It would take several months of articles like this to go through all the Bible prophecies and their fulfillment. The Bible contains plenty of proof in its own pages to prove it is what it says it is: The Word of God. Ω
 
Read Through the Bible in a Year  
      MARCH 27, 2017 – MONDAY      
A.M.  Josh: 19-20      P.M.  Luke: 5:17-39          
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)


Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
Glory to His Name(2:01)
– (Male Trio) (Calvary Mem. Church – S.Pines, NC)
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the house of God

3/23/2017

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The House of God…
I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD (Psa 122:1). Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching (Heb 10:25).
 
These verses from the Old and New Testament are just what we need today in a busy world. King David was glad when someone reminded him to go to the House of the Lord. Paul reminded his readers that they need to be careful to assemble themselves together, to encourage one another. They were getting beat up all the time. No one was glad they were Christians; poked fun at them; and some government officials put them in prison and robbed them of everything they had. It was easy to get discouraged.  Of course, they needed to pray alone and as a family, but it was important for them to meet together, to sing, to pray, to share what Bible verses they knew (nobody had a Bible).
 
Church-going was built into my life even before I was born. My mother carried me to church in her womb to Falling Springs Baptist Church in Overton County, Tennessee. My mother was saved there as a teenager under the preaching of an itinerate woman evangelist who got permission to hold a week-long meeting in the church.
 
At Falling Springs, most of the people walked to church or rode a mule or horse. Only 2 or 3 people in the community had a car or truck. Sometimes a farmer would hitch his mules to a wagon, padded with hay and invite people who lived along the road to ride to church. It was a simple but sturdy wood-frame church painted white. There was no electricity and no inside rest rooms. People walked down the hill and drank water out of a mountain stream. In July of each year, after the corn was “laid by,” a visiting preacher would conduct a two-week revival meeting. Sometimes it would last three weeks.
 
When I was seven or so I attended the Christmas program at the Alpine Presbyterian Church, above and for the first time heard Joy to the World! It was too complicated for me to remember and sing at home, but I never forgot it. I knew I had heard a great piece of music. I will never forget it!   

The building was finished in the late thirties and some oily rags in a closet caught fire and burned the building before it was ever used. The stone structure remained, so the building was rebuilt in a couple of years. The church is located about 200 yards above the Alpine school I showed yesterday. I took this picture in July 2007.          

 
Alpine, TN was a poor community. Some Christians in New York commissioned the building and a nearby stone high school building; All of this during the great depression. The high school had an auditorium with a stage and was heated with a steam boiler. A stone gymnasium and teaching wood working shop were added. It was a great encouragement to people of the area.
 
So, the Presbyterian Church in New York invested heavily to build church and school buildings for poor Alpine. They believed that the best way to help a poor, isolated rural area was to encourage the assembling together of God’s people for worship and education. The schools closed many years ago but the church building remains in use after 80 years.  I hope you are glad to go into the house of the Lord and that you are fellowshipping with people of like faith to encourage you to live for the Lord in these troubled days.
 
Psa 122:1 - I was glad - It was a subject; of joy to me. The return of the happy season when we were to go up to worship filled me with joy. The language is expressive of the, happiness which is felt by those who love God and his sanctuary, when the stated season of worship returns. The heart is drawn to the house of prayer; the soul is filled with peace at the prospect of being again permitted to worship God. Who the speaker here is, is not known. It may have been David himself; more probably, however, it was designed by him to be used by those who should go up to worship, as expressive of their individual joy (Barnes).
 
Heb 10:25 - If there ever was a time - when believers needed to come together, it is today. Instead of chopping down each other, we need to draw together in love around the person of Christ.

"Exhorting one another." We need to study the Word of God together. God has something for a group that He will not give to any one individual. One of the reasons I like to teach the Word of God is selfish. It is because God won't let me grow in the knowledge of His Word unless I share it. We are not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. If you have a Bible study at your church, be sure to go because there is a blessing for you there that you can't get when you study the Bible by yourself. So these are the three "let us" verses:
                                   Let us: Draw near in faith (toward God)
                                   Let us: Draw near in hope (for ourselves)
                                   Let us: Draw near in love (for others) (McGee). Ω
 
Read Through the Bible in a Year  
MARCH 24, 2017 – FRIDAY      
A.M.  Josh 11-13      P.M.  Luke: 4:1-32
          (Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
​
To God Be the Glory (3:25) – (Congregational) (Royal Albert Hall - London)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-15v9iworAU
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Train up a child

3/22/2017

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Train Up a Child…
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it (Pro 22:6). …from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus (2Ti 3:15).

Note: I first published this almost ten years ago, under the Good Morning series. I needed to visit Alpine again.

 
                                              ──Alpine Elementary School──
In September, 1940 I rode a yellow bus to the above almost-new public school building built by the WPA. There, I began my “higher education” in the first grade, taught by Miss Hattie Brown. There were two grades per room.  I already knew all the letters on the baking powder can and lard bucket in the kitchen at home, except for Z and maybe Q.

​The next year I was promoted to the other side of the room and we had a new teacher, Miss Vaughn. She wrote John 3:16 on the blackboard and we recited it every morning before we prayed together. After Christmas, we began John 3:17. That second year, we shared our space with ruffians from the Wilder coal mining area up on Cumberland Mountain. Believe you me, THEY really needed John 3:16! Miss Vaughn knew that and took it to heart.

Miss Vaughn played the first piano I ever heard--- in the lunch room, every week to begin chapel. She played hymns with gusto and we sang with her. The lunch room was at the end of the walk, up the steps and through the double doors above.

We were not supposed to carry pocket knives in the second grade, but most of the boys did and some of them were from Wilder. I closed a new Christmas knife on my own finger which drew a lot of blood and I carried the scar for forty years. But, we didn’t cut each other. Mumbley Peg was one of my favorite games at recess and you had to have your own knife to be your best at that game.  (Check it out on Google.)


If parents sent their children to school with tobacco, they could smoke down at the privy during lunch. The rest of us also smoked down at the privy if we could get hold of some tobacco and rollin’ paper. Most of us got our paper from a brown paper sack. The brown paper may have been more harmful than the tobacco. Strong stuff! The success of the mission depended on one boy in the bunch having “a” match and the match had to strike into a flame! So many boys smoked at age 6 and 7 that smoking was not a test of manhood.

The test of manhood was chewing a “chaw of backer” without throwing up. I tried a “chaw of backer” and leaned up against the wall between the two windows above and chewed with vigor to show myself a man in front of the older boys. The wall and the sky became unstable. I slid down the wall and my stomach urged me toward the ball field behind the camera in this photo. I learned a lot “on the other side of the ball field.” I left that part of our culture to the “professionals” in the fourth grade.

We repeated the two verses above and listened to Bible stories and good classic stories for children. We all learned John 3:16,17 without much trying. The Monthly Memory verse and Bible Reading at the bottom of Morning Minute are a pass-along from Miss Vaughn. Blame her if you happen to become addicted to reading and memorizing Bible verses and it changes your life. We last saw Mabel, her sister, ten years ago, who would now be about 100.

When we teach children the Word of God, it may go to their hearts and guide their lives. It might even inspire them to call on the Lord and become a Christian and citizen of Heaven, and they may teach their children and their children may….  It’s not a sure-fire thing. They may grow up to be mean as the devil, but as a whole, a well-taught child will be a well-lived adult. Ω

Read Through the Bible in a Year  
      MARCH 23, 2017 – THURSDAY      
A.M.  Josh 9-10      P.M.  Luke: 3
 (Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:
​
Through It All (3:45)
– (Carroll Roberson)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2tVfw56ViM
 
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the god of all comfort

3/21/2017

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The God of All Comfort
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;  Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God (2Co 1:3-4).
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people,
saith your God (Isa 40:1).
...God is the great comforter…
He always yearns for holy living in His own, but He also yearns for the comfort of his own.  Furthermore, it is God’s will that as God’s helper we comfort those in need.  We do not have to plead with God, to persuade God to feel compassion for us. He is already there. Jesus made this defining statement: By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another (John 13:35).

It is not perfect church attendance that convinces people we belong to Jesus, but the love and compassion we exercise toward others, especially other believers.

...God Comforts Us…
“It is a very wonderful thing that we have a God who can comfort us in all our troubles. It is one thing to have comfort when the sun is shining and with someone patting us on the back. But, my friend, what we really need is comfort in the time of trouble.    We will see that Paul experienced that kind of comfort in his time of trouble. You see, we need the assurance of the presence of God in all the circumstances of life—in the area of our greatest need, in our loneliness, in the desperate hour of life.

“Christianity is just a theory to many people. It is merely a profession; it is like a garment to be put on for special occasions and then worn lightly. It is a stagnant ritual and an empty vocabulary. My friend, may I say to you that the proof of Christianity is how it walks in shoe leather. It wasn't just a theory to the apostle Paul.” (McGee-Abbreviated).

...Christians Are to Comfort Others…
The verses we are using today could be called: “comfort concentrate.” Paul wrote his two letters to the new Christians in the city of Corinth. It was a sin-sex center and not a likely place for the Christian message to take root. One might think that Paul would write letters dealing primarily with the city’s debauchery and write about other things, later. The Holy Spirit had poured out Himself upon the city and was generous with distributing spiritual gifts in the church. Some of the gifts were being used well and some of the showier gifts were puffing up the believers in pride and hindering progress.

​One of the greater needs of the people was some deep comfort to their troubled spirits. The ultimate source of comfort is God Himself. But, He wanted to spread comfort around by channeling Himself through others whom He had comforted. When people believed the message of the cross and the resurrection of Christ from the dead, it brought division between those who believed and those who did not believe. Sometimes it caused an unbelieving husband to leave his wife and she was left alone.

People died and the survivors wondered if they would ever see them again. What if Jesus were to come again and caught up the living, what about their loved ones who had already died?  This was a question in every city where the Gospel was preached and established. On top of that, persecution was their daily lot as they tried to make a living and share their faith with those who would listen. Some were arrested; some were shunned and isolated from friends and loved ones.

...People need comforting…
The words, “one another” occur often in the New Testament. Our relationship to the Lord is number one. But, that’s not a dead-end. It’s on its way to our relationship with “one another.”

I was a poor-rich kid in Medlock Hollow. May 1 was the day when farmers in our area began planting corn and the day when little boys pulled off their shoes to go barefooted. But it was also the day when the feet of little boys were the most tender. Invariably, I stepped on something or stubbed my toe on a rock or root that brought the blood. There’s only one solution for that! Run in the house as fast as you can go yelling: “Mah-Ma!” I never saw a little wounded boy yelling for his “Daah-De!”

Never mind the blood. He wants his mother of all comfort to hold his foot, soothe him with her low, understanding, loving voice and tell him: “Everything is going to be all right. There, there now.” “Shhhh.” 
With child in lap, she begins to hum and move back and forth (if she’s in a straight chair) or set the rocker in motion if they are rich enough to own a rocking chair. It works just as well for bee stings and for fingers caught in the screen door.

God is a lot like that in Spirit but He needs people with skin on them to hug and hold and soothe and calm the worst pain and fears!  When there’s an accident, when a job is lost, when there’s a death, when a child fails a grade. There is no substitute for someone to show up with a gift for comforting. Sometimes people simply do not realize how valuable a kind, comforting word can be to someone whose inside is shattered or burning down.  Comfort ye my people, saith your God. Ω
 
Read Through the Bible in a Year  
 MARCH 22, 2017 – WEDNESDAY      
A.M.  Josh 7-8      P.M.  Luke: 2:25-52
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:    
Fill My Cup Lord (3:28)
– (Carroll Roberson)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHvWsRflf7I
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fear thou not

3/20/2017

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Fear Thou Not
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (Isa 41:10).

The word “fear” occurs in the King James Bible 400 times. Isaiah delivers a message from God to “fear not.” Some Bible messages are so penetrating you can feel the muscles in your body relaxing. This is a prime verse for meditation. Please don’t rush on to pursue your day. Tarry here and read this over, several times. Notice the “I am’s” and the “I will’s.” Is God really with me? Is He really my God? He says He will strengthen you…He will help you…He will uphold you with the right hand of His righteousness. Stop and meditate on these words. Say them aloud. They are for you if you want them.

An anchor for the soul – There may come a day when you had rather lay hold on this verse than to have a million dollars laid in your hand.  Life can lay some heavy burdens on you, in case you haven’t been down the road very far. Where can you buy relief from fear or grief? Where can you buy strength or steadiness for your faltering steps? Sooner or later most of us reach that place where we realize that our greatest need is the living God. “Lord, where are you?  God, please show up!”

Rarely will you see a deer in the wild with closed eyes as in the above photo. The rabbit appears to be leaning on the greater power of the deer. (I’m thankful to the lady who took this picture.) Beyond our need for breath, sometimes our greatest need is for words, for thoughts. Years ago, I memorized the above verse and have felt its strength many times as I quoted it and meditated on it.

Fear thou not - This verse is plain in its meaning, and is full of consolation. It is to be regarded as addressed primarily to the exiled Jews during their long and painful captivity in Babylon; and the idea is, that they who had been selected by God to be his special people had nothing to fear. But the promise is one that may be regarded as addressed to all his people in similar circumstances, and it is as true now as it was then, that those whom God has chosen have nothing to fear.

For I am with thee - This is a reason why they should not be afraid. God was their protector, and of whom should they be afraid? ‘If God be for us, who can be against us?’ What higher consolation can man desire than the assurance that God is with him to protect him? (Barnes)

It is good for God’s people to practice seeking the presence of the Lord before there is a great crisis at hand. Jesus said: Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  (Joh 14:27)

Jesus speaks these words as though we are in control of our troubled hearts. Yes, that’s what it says. “This threat shall not overwhelm me! He is with me! He has promised me His presence and peace and I choose to believe Him!” But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Heb 11:6)


It is not faith when we are walking by sight. On this earth, we walk by faith until our journey ends where we shall walk by sight. Fear thou not to walk by faith. Ω

​Read Through the Bible in a Year  
      MARCH 21, 2017 – TUESDAY      
A.M.  Josh 4-6      P.M.  Luke: 2:1-24
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)


Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)

​Song for Today:    
Living By Faith (3:36)
– (Gaither Group)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwJfwYMuZEQ
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teaching children the holy scriptures

3/19/2017

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Teaching Children the Holy Scriptures
 
And that from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus (2Tim 3:15).
The mother of Timothy was a pious Hebrew. One of her most important duties was to train her son in the careful knowledge of the word of God. The Jewish Scriptures require this of Jewish families. Rabbi Judah says, “The boy of five years of age ought to apply to the study of the sacred Scriptures.” Rabbi Solomon, on Deu 11:19, says, “When the boy begins to talk, his father ought to converse with him in the sacred language, and to teach him the law; if he does not do that, he seems to bury him.” (Barnes-abbreviated).
 
Here is the verse: And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.  (Deu 11:19)
 
Deut.6:4-5 was quoted by Jesus as the “great commandment.” when replying to a lawyer. Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.  (Deu 6:4-5)
 
The next verse says: And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.  (Deu 6:6-7)
 
When Moses was telling Israel what a great nation they were, he warned them:
Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;  (Deu 4:9)
 
The child who knows the Scriptures has a great advantage over those who do not know. It’s like living in a house is an advantage over living in a tent or under a bridge. The auto mechanic with a set of tools has an advantage over the mechanic who works with his fingers. The Scriptures are about here and the hereafter. How do you deal with the here or the hereafter without reliable knowledge?
 
The Prophet Hosea declared: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.  (Hos 4:6)

The reason they did not have knowledge was that they had rejected it. They could have had knowledge but they turned it down and resisted it. It was having repercussions in their children and their country in general.  In our country, the Supreme Court outlawed school-sponsored reading of the Bible to tax-funded public school students, claiming that it was a state-endorsed religion.


In that 1963 Ruling, it upheld Bible reading for
literary and historic purposes. Nevertheless, there has been great abuse of the ruling by school administrations and teachers who either misunderstood the ruling or else used it as an excuse to eliminate it to satisfy their own distaste for the Bible. http://familypolicyalliance.com/issues/2016/09/27/supreme-court-supports-bible-reading-public-schools/  

The Supreme Court has never ruled against Bible reading in the home and that’s where the greatest damage of children has taken place in their deficiency of Bible knowledge. The Bible commandment to teach the Bible to children was about teaching them at home. There were no public schools for another two thousand years.

According to Hosea 4:6, parents who ignore God’s commandment to teach the Word of God to their children are destroying their children. They will not have much of a sense of right and wrong. One of the greatest mission field of the world are American children. Parents and grandparents can make a big difference in the lives of their children and grandchildren by encouraging the teaching of the Word of God in the home. Ω

Read Through the Bible in a Year  

MARCH 20, 2017 – MONDAY      
A.M.  Josh 1:3      P.M.  Luke: 1:57-80
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)

Memory Verse This Month:
Let the words of my mouth, and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  (Psa 19:14)


Song for Today:    
In the Resurrection Morning (3:13) – (Gaither Group)   

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9P5VdY9ZBk&list=RD_LjZfjuOASs&index=21
 
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    Dan Carr is a "retired" pastor, writer, teacher and continues to write at this website. This blog and other articles are e-mailed free to anyone who wants them. Go to: 
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    Dan and Barbara live 
    at Flat Rock, AL between Chattanooga, TN and Huntsville, AL. on Sand Mtn.
    We enjoy gardening, reading, church, family and friends.

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