Isaiah 40:18 “And to whom can YOU people liken God, and what likeness can YOU put along side Him?”
“He (Jesus) is the reflection of [his] glory and the EXACT representation of his very being” (Hebrews 1:3 )
1) The heavens are the works of God’s hands (Ps. 102:25) The heavens are the works of Jesus’ hands (Heb. 1:10)
2) God laid the foundations of the earth (Isa. 48:13) Jesus laid the foundations of the earth (Heb. 1:10)
3) God is our judge (Ps. 50:6; Eccl. 12:14; 1 Chron. 16:33) Jesus is our judge (2 Tim. 4:1; Rev. 20:12)
4) God is the temple of the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:22) Jesus is the temple of the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:22)
5) God is the alpha and omega (Rev. 1:8) Jesus is the alpha? and omega (Rev. 22:13)
6) God is the first and the last (Isa. 44:6; 48:12) Jesus is the first and the last (Rev. 22:13)
7) God is the beginning and the end (Rev. 21:6) Jesus is the beginning and the end (Rev. 22:13)
8) Only God can forgive sins (Luke 5:21) Jesus can forgive sins (Luke 5:20)
9) God is our hope (Ps. 71:5) Jesus is our hope (1 Tim. 1:1)
10) God is eternal (Deut. 33:27) Jesus is eternal (Isa. 9:6; Heb. 1:10-11)
11) God will come with all the holy ones (Zech. 14:5) Jesus will come with all the holy ones (1 Thess. 3:13)
12) Only God is our Savior? (Isa. 43:11) Jesus is our Savior (Tit. 2:13; 2 Pet. 1:1) Jesus is the creator of the universe (Jn. 1:3)
14) To God, every knee will bow and every tongue confess (Isa. 45:22-23) To Jesus, every knee will bow and every tongue confess (Phil. 2:10-11)
15) God is the same and his years will have no end (Ps. 102:27) Jesus is the same and his years will have no end (Heb. 1:12)
16) God is immutable (Mal. 3:6) Jesus is immutable (Heb. 13:8)
17) God is over all (Ps.? 97:9) Jesus is over all (Jn. 3:31)
18) The spirit of God dwells in us (Rom. 8:9) The spirit of Jesus dwells in us (Gal. 4:6)
19) God is a stone of offense and a stumbling block (Isa. 8:14) Jesus is a stone of offense and a stumbling block (1 Pet. 2:8)
20) God was valued at 30 pieces of silver (Zech. 11:12-13) Jesus was valued at 30 pieces of silver (Mt. 24:14-16)
The Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News scoured police blotters and local news stories trying to gauge the scope of sexual abuse within the Southern Baptist Convention. What they found is that over the last 20 years, roughly 380 Southern Baptist church leaders and volunteers have faced allegations of sexual misconduct – leaving behind more than 700 victims.
The gravity of the findings doesn’t seem lost on Southern Baptist leaders who are responding to the report. SBC President J.D. Greear calls the report “a warning sent from God, calling the church to repent.” Russell Moore of the denomination’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission calls it “a scandal crying out to heaven.”
Dr. Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Dallas, says the denomination must be held to account. “What is being described and what has been done to children is horrific and inexcusable,” he tells OneNewsNow. “There is no way to rationalize or minimize that. It is despicable what has been done – and there’s zero excuse for it at all.”
Making matters even worse, victims and advocates asked the SBC in the summer of 2008 – just as the Catholic priest abuse scandal was publicly metastasizing – to put together an offender database to at least keep those credibly accused from moving to other churches. The SBC’s Executive Committee rejected those proposals, drafting a report that “accepted the existence of the problem rather than attempting to define its magnitude,” said a member of the committee.
“At the core of Southern Baptist doctrine is local church autonomy, the idea that each church is independent and self-governing. It’s one of the main reasons that [August] Boto said most of the proposals a decade ago were viewed as flawed by the executive committee because the committee doesn’t have the authority to force churches to report sexual abuse to a central registry.”“Abuse of Faith”
Houston Chronicle (Feb. 10, 2019)
As Jeffress points out, there is no church hierarchy to oversee and implement such a project.
“In many ways [the autonomy of our churches makes it] a greater challenge for Southern Baptists,” he explains. “We have 36,000 churches. For there to be a zero level of child abuse means that every church must have its own standards for how to ensure this doesn’t happen.”
Jeffress is calling on all Southern Baptist churches and institutions to confront the problem openly and immediately. Source
www.HNewsWire.com
Keep Your Hand On The Plow
Every Christian is called to be God's servant and should strive to serve with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. In Luke 9:62, Jesus said, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." Jesus is telling us not to look back at the world and our old way of life but to to keep looking to God for all things. He seems to be speaking mainly to those in ministry, however, it applies equally to all believers. Even though everyone is not called into ministry, all believers are called to be servants for life. The Bible does not mention part-time Christians, part-time service or early retirement for anyone. Once a person accepts God's call into ministry, he becomes God's servant for life and should continue in service for as long as he or she is able. Once we have put our hand to the plow, we should not look back otherwise we will drift off the path God has chosen for us. If we long for what we have left behind, we will soon become worldly and backslide to become unfit for service in the kingdom of God. Our focus must always be on God and how to serve Him better.
Going into ministry
Jesus warned those who wanted to follow Him that He had no place to lay his head and if anyone wanted to follow Him then they must leave their old life behind (Luke 9:57-62). Elisha is a perfect example of the attitude needed by a person accepting God's call into ministry. In 1 Kings 19:19-21, we are told that Elijah anointed Elisha to succeed him as prophet. At the time, Elisha was plowing with his oxen. After Elijah anointed him, he went home to say goodbye to his family. He then slaughtered his oxen and burned his plowing equipment to cook the meat as a feast for the people. Then, after burning his bridges, he set out to follow Elijah and become his attendant. Elisha knew he was going into ministry for life so he completely cut himself off from his old way of life; he left family, friends, cattle and land to serve the Lord. Jesus said, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" (Luke 9:23). Elisha denied himself all things and completely relied upon God.
Remaining faithful to the call
Not all who go into ministry remain faithful. For example, Balaam loved the world more than he loved God and he became wicked (2 Pet. 2:15). Initially, going into ministry may not be such a hard thing to do but it can become very testing. It seems that when we first go into ministry, and also when we first get saved, we go through a honeymoon period with the Lord. We strongly sense the Lord's presence and everything goes very well (I floated on clouds for ages). However, after a while the Lord withdraws those feelings somewhat and the honeymoon ends, so to speak, because God wants us to live by faith, not feelings.
Continuing in faith
Some years ago, I quit work and went into full time service for the Lord. In Mark 10:29-30 Jesus promises to provide for anyone who, like Elisha, leaves everything for Him and the Gospel. He said, "I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields--and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life." For many years I had no trouble believing this promise but, with age, my faith has weakened at times. It is easy to trust in something that is a long way off but the real test of faith comes when we are face to face with the situation. Jesus' disciples were very confident that they would not desert Him but they soon scattered in fear when He was arrested. In the same way, my faith is being tested as I face old age.
This testing of my faith resulted in serious agitation at times and a complete lack of peace for long periods. Recently, worrying that the Lord would not provide for me, I considered getting work to stop my bank account from emptying but that thought brought an even greater lack of peace. After much prayer, I came to understand how I was sinning against God: I was seriously offending Him in two ways:
I had previously fully committed myself to Him but now I was considering going back into the world and removing myself from His service. Num. 30:2 came to mind and heavily convicted me. It says, "When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said." If I went back to work then I would be breaking my word and that would make me a liar.
I was calling God a liar because I was no longer trusting His promise to provide for those who had left everything for Him and the Gospel.
It's no wonder that I had no peace. God doesn't like being lied to or being called a liar so it is easy to see why He had taken my peace away. Thankfully, once I came to see that my weak faith was leading me into great error, I repented and, needless to say, the peace of God returned. There is no doubt that in the future I will waver from time to time but big mistakes leave big scars and I am not likely to forget this lesson in a hurry.
Finally
When we look back, it is always easy to see our error but, the truth of the matter is, sin often creeps up and can overcome us like cancer. It starts out small but if we don't deal with it quickly then it will grow and cause us to sin. A lack of peace is a sure sign that there is sin between us and God; He always removes our peace when we sin. Sin can start out small but if it is not quickly repented of then it can soon cause big problems: A lie can utterly destroy relationships; dislike can lead to hate and even murder; a lingering look or touch can lead to lust and immorality; a covetous thought can lead to theft or jealousy or worse and our emotions can lead us into error just like my fear led to unbelief. For this reason, if we want to keep our hand on the plow and honour God then we have to keep our eyes on Jesus and deal with sin as soon as the Spirit convicts us. As soon as we lack peace we should ask God why He has taken our peace away. In this experience of mine, I was far too slow in seeking God and I suffered for it. I should have looked to Him much, much sooner. I have an article on hearing and following the Lord's voice, called The Way Of Peace, at
http://www.christianissues.biz/thewayofpeace.html
(Please note that this article is about my personal walk with the Lord. I am not saying that it is wrong to be in ministry and work at the same time. Paul worked as a tent maker during his ministry.)
This article can be downloaded under the heading Blog Articles at
http://www.christianissues.biz/downloads.html
Mick Alexander
<p>mikeoverson.multiply.com/video My Bible notes at Multiply are only until they will discontinue it like Friendfeed did, (nice going you evil atheists, see pages 165 and 210). Because I, (Mike Overson), had a calling  to represent Jesus' return,  (an awkward job but somebody had to do it), I felt obligated to make a note on every part of the Bible that I received as a sign. It's not finished yet but I thought I'd better post what I have in case I die a premature death. The latest update on 12-22-12 is on page 211, previous updates on 11-23-12 are on pages 33 to 46 and 188 to 211. After making these updates I'm convinced that Multiply is making a very evil mistake, (= a siren at 1148am which confirms it because it means "I can't believe how cold you are"). The only way I know of to stop Multiply in a case like this is by PRAYER, (see pages 33 and 115 or my class L122 here at Multiply or at Vimeo), so I'm praying that God will rescue social networking at Multipy and I hope others will to. latest Bible notes on 12-22-12 @ page 211.zip At Multiply: Download the attached Bible notes zip file and open it in text edit and instead of printing it click Preview for the best view of these notes. (I make these instructions idiot proof in case anyone is as dumb at computers as I am.)</p>
<p>"[1] You know that someone who has become rich in earthly goods has most of the time also become in his heart as a stone of in sensitiveness and without love. What does he care about the many thousands of other people who are tormented by hunger, thirst and still other disasters, for he is well provided for, has never felt hunger or thirst and has an abundance of treasures to please him with every other pleasure, so that he does not have to taste any boredom or any other displeasure.</p>
<p>[2] But then, where does such a person stand in his inner spiritual sphere of life? I say to you: on the point of eternal judgment and its death, and his whole circle of acquaintances is not far away from it.</p>
<p>[3] Besides that, remember what I will proclaim to you: <strong><span class="fbUnderline">when there will be a lot of Epicures on the Earth, a general judgment over all the people on this Earth will also soon be allowed by God.</span> Then we will see if somewhere there will again be men who will stand up with the measuring stick in their hand and dare to say to their fellowmen: ‘Look, I have measured this big piece of land, I have indicated its boundaries and declare this as my complete inviolable property, and he who has the brutality to dispute this or will only say: ‘Friend, everyone of us has the right to snatch this imagined right out of your hands, as long as he has the power and the means to do it', I will punish with death.'</strong></p>
<p><strong>[4] I say to you: <span class="fbUnderline">at that time such people will never exist</span>, for when next time I will come again on this Earth to keep judgment over such dead epicures, but also to give the reward of life to those who out of love for God and their fellowman have suffered much misery and distress, then the Earth will no more be measured with any measuring stick for the benefit of one person only, but wherever one will stand, he will also reap and provide for his need. And the people will well support one another, and no one will say: ‘Look, this is my property and I am lord over it.'<span class="fbUnderline"> Because then men will perceive that I alone am the Lord, and that they all are brothers and sisters.</span></strong></p>
<p>[5] It is true that this should also be the case among the people now, but in this middle period of development of men who are still not purified by the big fire of life, it will stay allowed, but from now on, it will not be a full 2.000 years anymore. After that, the spirit will predominate strongly with men and on the Earth no more ‘mine' and ‘his' will be seen, nor will be talked about it.</p>
<p>[6] You, who are now My friends, possess a big piece of land of the Earth that has been measured to you. Ask yourselves who measured it to you as your legal property, and the answer will be: the laws made by men, and your money and other treasures to which again only men have awarded an idle value to it.</p>
<p>[7] From God's point of view, the whole Earth belongs to all men in equal measure, as this was the case in the beginning. Wise men should divide it according to the need of the people and should teach them to cultivate it, and then the fruits should be partly distributed by the wise men and the surplus should be kept in warehouses and storehouses that are arranged for that, so that no one in the community should suffer need.</p>
<p>[8]<strong> But if the rich and mighty will draw everything unto themselves, a lot of people must by that become very poor and live their lives in great misery and distress, because everything belongs to the few rich and mighty but nothing to the poor, except what the rich and mighty want to give them in a scanty measure for the heavy work that they have done for them.</strong></p>
<p>(Great Gospel of John Book 20, chap. 30.   About future events)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>-----------------------------------</p>
<p>"[1] Thus, let everyone be full of meekness and humility. By that you will give each other the greatest and most true human honor, and live and have dealings with each other in peace and quietness.</p>
<p>[2] However, thirst for honor and pride will awaken resentment, offense, contempt, grudge, anger and finally vengeance, war and its evil consequences. <strong>The one who is proud and is thirsty for honor is also always full of self-interest and greed, and the sad consequence for the fact that he only wants to acquire everything for himself to increase his worldly honor, is that hundreds and thousands of people around him have nothing and must live in the greatest poverty and need, as it was the case during the time of Noah, and will be the case even more during the last time of the new paganism.</strong></p>
<p><strong>[3] But this evil and complete hellish condition among the people will be the judgment that they will cause themselves.<span class="fbUnderline"> The enormous number of poor and oppressed people will finally rise against their extremely proud oppressors and will make a short work with them, and this will be a second deluge by the fire of the finally too badly and too heavily oppressed poor people.</span></strong></p>
<p>[4] But during that time, also a natural fire will destroy many places, for <strong>because of a too highly inflated pursuit of earthly gain during that time,</strong> the people will penetrate like malicious worms into the depths of the Earth, will search therein all kinds of treasures and will also find them. However, once they will have reached the mighty layers of buried ancient forests of the Earth and will use them for the glowing and melting of metals and still for many other things, then also, the latest judgment which they will prepare for themselves, will be at the door.</p>
<p>[5] Yet, the people who will then live in the great cities of the kings and the mighty of the Earth of that time will have to suffer the most.</p>
<p>[6] Therefore, always stay meek and humble, and by that in true neighborly love, then no judgment will be called over you, because where during that time the people will live according to My order, there will be no last judgment. I have told you this now beforehand with the purpose that you will also tell and proclaim it to the people, so that finally no one can bring forward the excuse that he had not been warned for the danger.”</p>
<p> (Great Gospel of John Book 18, chap. 99. The coming judgments)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>-----------------------------------------------</p>
<p> </p>
<p>[5] <span class="fbUnderline"><strong>But when too many people will have reached the full measure of their evil</strong></span>, <strong>then the time of their unpunished evil actions will be shortened by Me for the sake of the still few good ones and chosen ones</strong>, and then their own judgment and their death will devour them before the eyes of the few righteous ones, just like it was the case at the time of Noah, and of Abraham and Lot, and also partially at the time of Joshua, and as it still will be repeatedly the case from now on.</p>
<p>[6] The beginning of that will soon be experienced by the Jews, as well as later by other kingdoms with their rulers and nations. <strong>And in not completely 2.000 years there will again be a very big and general judgment</strong>,<span class="fbUnderline"><strong> leading to salvation of the good ones and to ruin of the worldly great ones and the complete loveless people.</strong></span></p>
<p>[7] How that judgment will look like and what it will imply, that I have revealed already several times to all My disciples who are present here with Me, and after Me they will proclaim it to the nations of the Earth. Happy the one who will take it at heart and who will arrange his life accordingly, so that he will not be taken by the judgment.</p>
<p>(Great Gospel of John Book 20 Chap 97. About the measure of good and evil)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>-------------------------------------------------</p>
<p> </p>
<p>[16] Correspondingly, when men become, concerning their inner life activity, lukewarm, lazy, sleepy and without light, then immediately great movements will arise in the endless great spirit world, and these will then cause by their influence also all kinds of movements and waves among men who still live on this Earth. Then one nation rises against the other, one teaching fights against the other, and this will continue for a long time until men will be led to the greatest possible life activity.</p>
<p>[17] <strong>As a result, it will then also become clearer and lighter among them</strong>. The apparent need makes them inventive and forces them in this manner to an ever greater and more orderly activity. Because of that, the nations will learn to know each other, who before hardly knew anything of each other, and in time they will become useful for each other, and in course of time the light will increase among them and will in the first place bring about a greater longing for an almost tangible proven truth of life.</p>
<p>[18] When finally the need will become more general and the people will be no more satisfied with the pure authoritative belief, which is all the time a cause of the dark and lazy superstition, <strong>then the time will have come to give them a great and tangible light of life, full of clearness and truth.</strong></p>
<p>[19] <strong>And look, a lot of people on the whole Earth who nowadays are as if seized by a deep sleep by all kinds of laziness and darkness of life, <span class="fbUnderline">must thus be led into a heavy stormy movement until they can be awakened after a long series of periods of time to a point where in this awakened condition they finally begin to feel what they are lacking</span>.</strong>” </p>
<p>(Great Gospel of John Book 20 Chap. 10.  The order in the household of God)</p>
<p>  The Fat Shepherds Are Fleecing The Sheep - Ezekiel 34   What has happened to our society? Why is the world becoming more and more immoral and lawless? Why has the church lost its godly influence? There was a time when the church was well respected and had a strong moral grip on society but that is no longer the case. Why? The fact is, when the world looks at 'Christianity' today, they see paedophiles, homosexuals, filthy-rich leaders and televangelists teaching false doctrine, self appointed prophets prophesying lies, crazy antics in churches and so called Christians joining with cults and pagan religions etc. There really is no need for us to scratch our heads and wonder why there has been such a strong moral decline in society – it is simply because the church has gone astray and lost its stabilising influence. The unsaved are not stupid; they see through much of the nonsense and, quite rightly, consider themselves as good as any 'Christian' and perhaps even more righteous. How can a Christian talk to them about their sinfulness when they see the 'church' doing the same things? Why should they bother seeking our guidance? A friend said that the Devil has done such a great job destroying the church that he is now holidaying somewhere in the Caribbean, and it doesn't look as though he will ever need to return to work. He can relax and enjoy his holiday because the shepherds he has placed in the church are doing a great job for him.   Looking after the flock Ezek. 34 tells how the shepherds of Israel fed richly off the people but didn't take care of them, just as many of the church leaders do today. Ezek. 34:2-4 says, “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally.” Israel's shepherds were feasting off the flock while neglecting to care for them physically or spiritually; the spiritually weak were not being helped in their faith; those needing physical help were ignored; those who had strayed from the faith were not brought back or even searched for – the flock was neglected and abused in every way while the shepherds ate off the fat of the land. This is exactly what is happening in many churches today. Leaders are not tending their flocks but rather they are fleecing them and living in luxury while there are believers in great need worldwide. It can't be justified.   Ezek. 34:5 gives the result of neglecting the flock: “They were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals.” When believers are not being cared for, they can lose their faith and hope and wander off to become food for the many false religions and cults. It is common for people to get sucked into churches who promise all sorts of things but when these promises fail they leave in disappointment and bitterness, rejecting Christianity in the belief that it is full of lies. This leaves them wide open to other wolves who will seduced them into their hell-bound ways.   False doctrine 2 Tim. 4:3 tells us that “the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” Surely that time is now. Many leaders and televangelists have replaced solid doctrine with shallow 'all about me' nonsense - “Make me rich! Give me power!” Their teachings are shamelessly self-centred yet well received by many itching ears because it is all about what they can get from God, rather than death to self. Death to self is complete self-denial but many prefer the lies as Jer. 5:31 tells us: “The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end [at the judgment]?”   Most Christians believe that Jesus' return cannot be too far off. If we really believe this then we must also take careful note of His warnings of end time deception (Matt. 24). If you and I want to be able to discern this deception then we must have a good understanding of scripture. If we don't know the real thing then how can we discern a fake? Do you study your Bible and take it to church or do you just believe the voice from the pulpit? That voice could be one of the Devil's co-workers masquerading as a servant of righteousness (see 2 Cor. 11:13-15). We only get one chance at salvation so we must be careful and study the Bible to see if we are in the truth and truly born again. Jesus commands us not to be deceived - can you biblically defend what you have been led to believe? Do you get upset when someone questions your beliefs? If so, then it is a sign that you are not secure in your doctrine, you may be in error. We all need to study opposing doctrine and have peace about what we believe. If we are misled then we can't blame someone else. We must check things out for ourselves. Remember, there is no second chance, no Purgatory.   Finishing off The greatest reason for the world's ever worsening condition is that the church has lost its godly influence over society. Christianity was once a standard for morality and common decency but ungodly behaviour by so called Christians has blackened the name of Jesus. Sadly, the unsaved see the wickedness and nonsense in the 'church' and think it is Christianity. A good way to explain things to the unsaved, and witness at the same time, is to show them Matt. 24 where Jesus predicted it would happen before He returns to destroy the wicked.   We really can't do anything about the falling away of the church because it is part of end time prophecy. However, we can be good Bereans and search the scriptures to be sure of what we believe. My question to you is, “Are you in the faith or into heresy?” Search the scriptures and be separate from the wicked.     This article can be downloaded under the heading Blog Articles at http://www.christianissues.biz/downloads.html     Mick Alexander Email: leeandmick@gmail.com Website: www.ChristianIssues.biz              </p>
To all who "have ears to hear and eyes to see..."- I invite you to join me in this petition. Simply click on this URL. Sign the Petition if you would like to join me. It will take many signatures so maybe you can copy and paste this URL and send it to your contacts on FB, blogs, websites and channels.
<p>  Faith That Saves "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Heb. 11:6).   What is faith? We often say, "I have faith" or "I'm saved by faith alone," but what do we mean when we say this? Are we living up to what faith really is? Hebrews 11 speaks of many men and women of faith; what was it about their lives that earned them the right to be known as people of great faith? It's important for us to understand what faith it is because Heb. 11:6 tells us that “without faith it is impossible to please God.” So, if we want to please God, in fact if we want to be saved, then we must have faith that saves because it is through our faith that we are saved. Eph. 2:8 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith."   Heb. 11:1 tells us that "faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Faith is an inner conviction which overflows into the life of Christians and results in a lifestyle of holy living and good works for the Lord.   Faith and holy living It is through our faith that we believe in Jesus and are saved from our sins. Rom. 3:22 tells us that "righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe." The word 'believe' means to commit to or to put trust in. When we commit our ways to Jesus, and put our trust in Him for the forgiveness of sins, we receive the Holy Spirit who empowers us to resist sin and to live a righteous life. In 1 Pet. 1:16, God commands us to live a righteous life where He says, "Be holy, because I am holy." It's very important that we follow this command because "without holiness no one will see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14).   Faith and works A Christian's lifestyle includes both holy living and good works. Good works don't save us but rather, they are the result of being saved. James 2:18 tells us that someone may say, "You have faith; I have deeds." James' reply to this is, "Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." James is saying that faith is proven by its actions. The fact is, faith without good works (deeds) is a dead faith. James 2:26 says, "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." Good works, such as helping those in need, is a natural result of our salvation and part of a Christian's lifestyle. James 1:27 says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress [that is, do good works] and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world [that is, keep oneself from sin]." So, a Christian lifestyle includes both good works and holy living.   Living out our faith When we sit on a chair, we have faith that the chair won't break. If we thought it would break then we wouldn't sit on it. This is like the story of a man who walked a tightrope over the Niagara falls, pushing a wheelbarrow. When he got to the other side he asked the people if they believed that he could go across again with someone in the barrow. They said “Yes” but when he asked for a volunteer to get in the barrow, no one would do it. The people believed that it could be done but no one had the faith to do it. The fact is, we can't have absolute faith in material things like chairs and we can't always fully trust people because people and the things of this world can fail us but thankfully God never does. In Num. 23:19 we are told, "God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" We can trust God fully because He faithfully fulfils every promise He makes.   Jesus is our greatest example of faith and we need to look to Him for strength. Heb. 12:2 says, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Jesus willingly went to the cross with the absolute faith that God would raise Him from the dead. He had perfect trust in God's promises and so can we. The Old Testament saints were commended for their faith because they believed against all odds. By faith Abraham believed God's promises and was even willing to sacrifice his son, believing that God would raise him from the dead (Heb. 11:8-19). Hebrews 11 is known as the Heroes Of The Faith chapter. It mentions many men and women who had a living, active faith which was proven by their actions. Even though they faced mockery, rejection, terrible persecution, huge enemy armies etc. they believed God and kept their faith and have gone on to their eternal rewards. They followed James' example where he said, "I will show you my faith by what I do" (James 2:18).   Finally Faith that saves is an ongoing, active faith which leads us to repent of our sins and commit ourself to living a holy lifestyle and to stand firm in the face of hardship and persecution. Our faith grows when we exercise it by believing God's promises and acting on them. Faith is like a muscle: exercise it and it grows stronger; do nothing and it becomes as weak as a baby. 2 Cor. 5:7 tells us that "We live by faith, not by sight" but faith is not blind. Even though we can't see what we believe in, there is no need for us to grope along like blind men as we have the Holy Spirit and the infallible Word of God to guide us in thought, word and deed. By faith we can believe every promise in the Bible and when we act on that faith God fulfils His promises to us and our faith grows. Amen.     This article can be downloaded under the heading Blog Articles at http://www.christianissues.biz/downloads.html   Mick Alexander Email: leeandmick@gmail.com Website: www.ChristianIssues.biz</p>
Romans 8:28 .... all things work together for good to them that love God ......
To tell someone God fixes broken lives is all Well and good , but what if it's your life that's broken ? It's a very serious issue that needs not only answer's , but practical answers you can sink your teeth into.
If you are a believer in Christianity , it can make it easier , but not necessarily better. First and foremost , you must , I repeat "must" believe that God is in total control of all happening's on this planet , and that he has a plan for your life. If one cannot get beyond that , all the rest of their life will be lived out in hit and miss , resulting in confusion , no matter how much teaching or counseling they receive.
Realistically speaking , the catalyst of life , revolves around breaking and mending. No difference how low one has sunk in this life , God has a way of incorporating the broken pieces of a life
into his wonderful plan . The negative part of brokenness is that it blinds you for a season. Any answer given during that season cannot be utilized until the grieving is over. As one develops their trust in the fact , that God truly is in control and does have a plan for their life , they will start seeing him at work.
See God in everything and you can make it through anything !
http://purebobby.wordpress.com
God bless you on your journey !
HNewsWire-Here is the order of things to come according to the Bible: It will be just like the days of Noah and Lot: people will be eating; drinking; marrying; giving in marriage; buying; selling; planting; building and SAYING: “Peace & Safety” and then like the flood and the destruction of Sodom so shall sudden destruction come on those who do not enter into the rapture like Noah entered into the ark.
1 Thessalonians 5:3 (KJV): For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
Matthew 24:37-39 (KJV): But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Luke 17:26-30 (KJV): And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. 27 They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; 29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
~Susan Davis~
HNewsWire- “All political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable.” Just look at some of our modern day examples: torture is “enhanced interrogation techniques”; murder is “collateral damage”; the aggression initiation of war is a “pre-emptive strike”; the theft of taxpayers’ money is a “bailout”; and the theft of depositors’ money in a bank is a “haircut” or “bail-in”.In a blatant example of Newspeak, the New World Order controllers (through the psychiatric DSM V) have tried to rename pedophiles as “minor-attracted persons” and redefine pedophilia as a “sexual orientation”. This makes no sense, since sexual orientation has to do with gender not age, with whether you are attracted to males or females, not how old they are. There are even organizations (like B4UAct.org) which are claiming that pedophiles are being unfairly stigmatized for their feelings! Psychiatry, it should also be noted, has a history of inventing fictitious diseases such as ADHD (as admitted by its inventor on his deathbed by Leon Eisenberg).
It is impossible to find anyone in the Bible who was a power for God who did not have enemies and was not hated.
Please help me help these kids(orphans) that are in trouble, PLEASE 80% of the book sales goes directly to: https://www.the127.org
HNewsWire Radio
www.HNewsWire.com
