Pro 4:13 Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.
1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
2Ti 1:13 Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
Heb 3:6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
Heb 4:14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
Rev 2:25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.
Rev 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
Rev 3:11 Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
*******
Hold fast.
Hang on.
Wait.
Be patience.
Rev.2:25
Hold Fast--
G2902 (Thayer's Greek Lexicon)
krateo?
krat-eh'-o
From G2904; to use strength, that is, seize or retain (literally or figuratively): - hold (by, fast), keep, lay hand (hold) on, obtain, retain, take (by).
Obtain, retain, keep.
Rev. 3:3
G5083 (Thayer's Greek Lexicon)
te?reo?
tay-reh'-o
From ?????? teros (a watch; perhaps akin to G2334); to guard (from loss or injury, properly by keeping the eye upon; and thus differing from G5442, which is properly to prevent escaping; and from G2892, which implies a fortress or full military lines of apparatus), that is, to note (a prophecy; figuratively to fulfil a command); by implication to detain (in custody; figuratively to maintain); by extension to withhold (for personal ends; figuratively to keep unmarried): - hold fast, keep (-er), (ob-, pre-, re) serve, watch.
Guard, watch so it doesn't escape, hold in custody, maintain, keep, serve, watch.
If you're asked to hold fast to something what comes to mind? Someone wants you to keep hold of something so it doesn't get away, so you don't lose it, it's valuable. There are certain documents in life people are told to hold on to, not to lose because they're important. Yes, you could get replacements and some people do just that but it's a bothersome process. Sometimes there just are no replacements to something important given to you. A love letter from your wife or husband from years ago holding precious memories. You might say that's not important but the value is placed on it by the ones who gave it and keep it, right?
We are told to hold fast until Jesus comes. We are told to hold fast to what we've received through Jesus, to repent. We are told to hold fast and let no man take our crown. Hold fast to Jesus and all that is Jesus. Hold fast to Him, not to ourselves. Hold fast to Jesus' righteousness counting ours as filthy rags. We have to keep Jesus alive and real in our hearts, glorying and living in Him always even when our lives are a mess and they can be very, very, messy. Smile when your heart is breaking? Smile when the whole world hates you? Smile when you are dying? Smile when you live a life of pure misery? Smile? The smile only means that through the tears you can't help but shed you know this world is not the final world for you. You know this life is not the only life there is to look forward to. You know that the pain now is nothing compared to the glory in Christ that awaits and all this pain and agony is only temporary. Easy to say, hard to do. Only by the grace of God can we do it, can we live in Him as He will and when we try to stand by ourselves and claim victory of our own we will find it is a false victory, hollow and empty and it will crumble. The only hope of holding fast is in Christ, all for Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior now and forever.
Amen.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Keep His Works
Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
overcometh- prevails, conquers
keepeth- guards, holdfast
works- deeds, labour, acts
How do we guard Christ's deeds?
How do we holdfast to Christ's labours, His acts?
Seriously? How? If we're to prevail in this life and keep Christ's works to the end, what are we doing? What action? Guarding, holding fast, keeping the works of Christ.
If we're busy doing this guarding, this keeping we are occupied with doing so. Being a Christian isn't a check box we mark on a form that asks us if we have a religious preference. Being Christian isn't something we are one day a week, it's a way of life. Jesus' way of life. It's something that incorporates all that we are and all that we do. We can't separate our lives into little compartments and say this one is my work self, this is my home self, this is my public self, this is my private self, this is my religious self, this is my worldly self, this is my evil self, this is my relative self, this is my close friend self and yet don't we often find ourselves adjusting to various situations accordingly? Such as behaving one way in public and another in private. Allowing more leniency in behavior when no one is watching. It's natural isn't it? Natural for us to show our anger more to those close to us than those who aren't. Natural for us to bring home our upsets and sadness than to weep in public. We learn early on what sort of behavior is accepted where. We learn by the examples of our parents, by the various situations we see whether in real life or fictional on television, maybe even in school. We learn that in church you are to be reverent because in that building God is somehow closer to us, but once we step out the door we leave that behind and so things are back to every day life- actions and reactions without much consideration for God being close to us.
People like to compartmentalize their lives and yet if we are to truly keep the works of Jesus we can't compartmentalize Him. He is a way of life, not one compartment in many. He is life.
The devil would have us treat Jesus and our walk with Him as something that only happens every now and again, once a week, once a day, three times a week, three times a day, four...five. He would have us put our Christianity into points of time rather than having our Christianity timeless and forever in us.
We need to follow Christ fully and perhaps you're saying that you can't really think about God while you're sitting at a desk under the grind of paper work, or while you're out there banging away at a hammer constructing a house it's not good to be distracted by anything when you're busy concentrating on what you're doing for your job whatever it may be, even if it's putting together a recipe for dinner that night.
No one is saying that to be fully Christ's you have to stop doing your job. Christ was a carpenter and for years He concentrated on doing His job while being prepared for His ministry. While He planed that wood was His mind not on the correct way of doing it, of taking off just the right amount of wood to complete what He was doing? No, Christ concentrated on His work as well, but He was forever God's. He consecrated Himself to God in all that He did.
Christ didn't want us to stop working, but in all that we do, we do it to the glory of God.
1Cor 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
For our lives to be Christ's, for us to keep His works our lives must be consecrated to Him and all we do must be done to the glory of God. Can you dig a ditch to the glory of God? Yes. Can you sweep a floor to the glory of God? Yes. You can live and do all to the glory of God if He is truly alive and real in our lives and not put into a compartment to pull open as desired.
May God help us all as we seek Him in all that we do. If we are having trouble giving glory to God in something we do, may we ask for His mercy and grace, His help in our time of need to overcome whatever may be hindering our walk with Christ. Only by His righteousness do we have hope, by faith in His ability to overcome and save us through His grace.
By His mercy and love, in Him now and forever.
Amen.
overcometh- prevails, conquers
keepeth- guards, holdfast
works- deeds, labour, acts
How do we guard Christ's deeds?
How do we holdfast to Christ's labours, His acts?
Seriously? How? If we're to prevail in this life and keep Christ's works to the end, what are we doing? What action? Guarding, holding fast, keeping the works of Christ.
If we're busy doing this guarding, this keeping we are occupied with doing so. Being a Christian isn't a check box we mark on a form that asks us if we have a religious preference. Being Christian isn't something we are one day a week, it's a way of life. Jesus' way of life. It's something that incorporates all that we are and all that we do. We can't separate our lives into little compartments and say this one is my work self, this is my home self, this is my public self, this is my private self, this is my religious self, this is my worldly self, this is my evil self, this is my relative self, this is my close friend self and yet don't we often find ourselves adjusting to various situations accordingly? Such as behaving one way in public and another in private. Allowing more leniency in behavior when no one is watching. It's natural isn't it? Natural for us to show our anger more to those close to us than those who aren't. Natural for us to bring home our upsets and sadness than to weep in public. We learn early on what sort of behavior is accepted where. We learn by the examples of our parents, by the various situations we see whether in real life or fictional on television, maybe even in school. We learn that in church you are to be reverent because in that building God is somehow closer to us, but once we step out the door we leave that behind and so things are back to every day life- actions and reactions without much consideration for God being close to us.
People like to compartmentalize their lives and yet if we are to truly keep the works of Jesus we can't compartmentalize Him. He is a way of life, not one compartment in many. He is life.
The devil would have us treat Jesus and our walk with Him as something that only happens every now and again, once a week, once a day, three times a week, three times a day, four...five. He would have us put our Christianity into points of time rather than having our Christianity timeless and forever in us.
We need to follow Christ fully and perhaps you're saying that you can't really think about God while you're sitting at a desk under the grind of paper work, or while you're out there banging away at a hammer constructing a house it's not good to be distracted by anything when you're busy concentrating on what you're doing for your job whatever it may be, even if it's putting together a recipe for dinner that night.
No one is saying that to be fully Christ's you have to stop doing your job. Christ was a carpenter and for years He concentrated on doing His job while being prepared for His ministry. While He planed that wood was His mind not on the correct way of doing it, of taking off just the right amount of wood to complete what He was doing? No, Christ concentrated on His work as well, but He was forever God's. He consecrated Himself to God in all that He did.
Christ didn't want us to stop working, but in all that we do, we do it to the glory of God.
1Cor 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
For our lives to be Christ's, for us to keep His works our lives must be consecrated to Him and all we do must be done to the glory of God. Can you dig a ditch to the glory of God? Yes. Can you sweep a floor to the glory of God? Yes. You can live and do all to the glory of God if He is truly alive and real in our lives and not put into a compartment to pull open as desired.
May God help us all as we seek Him in all that we do. If we are having trouble giving glory to God in something we do, may we ask for His mercy and grace, His help in our time of need to overcome whatever may be hindering our walk with Christ. Only by His righteousness do we have hope, by faith in His ability to overcome and save us through His grace.
By His mercy and love, in Him now and forever.
Amen.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Blessed is he that keepeth...
Rev 22:7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
quickly- shortly, soon (by surprise), suddenly, readily
blessed- extremely fortunate, well-off, happy
keepeth - to watch, to guard, hold fast, keep, serve.
sayings- what is said, what is meant, doctrine, preached
prophecy- prediction
book- writing
Look, I come suddenly: happy is he that holds fast the doctrines of the predictions of this writing.
We need to study the doctrines, the predictions in this book of Revelation. It is a book that reveals and we are blessed by the revelations as long as we keep them, guard them, hold fast to them.
Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev 16:15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Rev 22:7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
quickly- shortly, soon (by surprise), suddenly, readily
blessed- extremely fortunate, well-off, happy
keepeth - to watch, to guard, hold fast, keep, serve.
sayings- what is said, what is meant, doctrine, preached
prophecy- prediction
book- writing
Look, I come suddenly: happy is he that holds fast the doctrines of the predictions of this writing.
We need to study the doctrines, the predictions in this book of Revelation. It is a book that reveals and we are blessed by the revelations as long as we keep them, guard them, hold fast to them.
Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev 16:15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Rev 22:7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Everlasting Life- For You?
Rev 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
Rev 1:2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Rev 22:15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Rev 22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Rev 22:21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
When you take away from the words of a book you are doing what? With any book what happens when you take parts out? Books are edited by editors before being published. This book was edited by God and deemed to be appropriate in all that was written there. Appropriate and important, vital to us. So vital there is a warning given-
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Our names are to be taken OUT of the book of life. Names that are written in the book, names of those to live forever, are to be taken out! So grievous is the crime of altering this book of Revelation it warrants removal from eternal life. Great caution has to be taken that nothing is altered, that nothing is taken away from these words of prophecy. How amazingly important these words have to be for such an eternal punishment to be given. Why such a punishment? Because by taking away from these words we take away the understanding people need to claim Jesus as their Savior. The everlasting gospel, the choice of either receiving the mark of the beast or not, knowing that God's people are to be those who keep His commandments and have the faith of Jesus. Without the knowlege, without giving this knowlege to others in its fulness the responsibility for their lack of salvation rests upon the shoulders of those who understand. To take away the knowledge warrants eternal death.
This all sounds like something from a fantasy movie, Satan would have us believe its just that, not real. If he can get us to marginalize everything, to fictionalize the truth he has us as His fully.
How many people long for adventure, for an amazing life such as those pictured in movies and described in books little realizing they live daily the adventure that will decide their eternal life in a battle, a warfare that has everlasting consequences for them. Taught to believe their lives have little meaning beyond the daily grind, that their lives are so banal they could do whatever they want and nothing matters. Taught that to reject fantasies that hint at reality as being beyond their intelligence, people are trapped by their own limited beliefs and need to realize that their lives are amazingly important and the gift of that life to be lived in Christ has a reward unimaginable in its fulness to anything we can think of.
Truly this is our prayer...
Rev 22:20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Rev 22:21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Rev 1:2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Rev 22:15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Rev 22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Rev 22:21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
When you take away from the words of a book you are doing what? With any book what happens when you take parts out? Books are edited by editors before being published. This book was edited by God and deemed to be appropriate in all that was written there. Appropriate and important, vital to us. So vital there is a warning given-
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Our names are to be taken OUT of the book of life. Names that are written in the book, names of those to live forever, are to be taken out! So grievous is the crime of altering this book of Revelation it warrants removal from eternal life. Great caution has to be taken that nothing is altered, that nothing is taken away from these words of prophecy. How amazingly important these words have to be for such an eternal punishment to be given. Why such a punishment? Because by taking away from these words we take away the understanding people need to claim Jesus as their Savior. The everlasting gospel, the choice of either receiving the mark of the beast or not, knowing that God's people are to be those who keep His commandments and have the faith of Jesus. Without the knowlege, without giving this knowlege to others in its fulness the responsibility for their lack of salvation rests upon the shoulders of those who understand. To take away the knowledge warrants eternal death.
This all sounds like something from a fantasy movie, Satan would have us believe its just that, not real. If he can get us to marginalize everything, to fictionalize the truth he has us as His fully.
How many people long for adventure, for an amazing life such as those pictured in movies and described in books little realizing they live daily the adventure that will decide their eternal life in a battle, a warfare that has everlasting consequences for them. Taught to believe their lives have little meaning beyond the daily grind, that their lives are so banal they could do whatever they want and nothing matters. Taught that to reject fantasies that hint at reality as being beyond their intelligence, people are trapped by their own limited beliefs and need to realize that their lives are amazingly important and the gift of that life to be lived in Christ has a reward unimaginable in its fulness to anything we can think of.
Truly this is our prayer...
Rev 22:20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Rev 22:21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Two Sides
Rev 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Rev 17:2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
In and ideal world children would always obey their parents and stay within the family fold, yes? Raised in certain beliefs they'd carry on in those beliefs teaching their children who would then teach their children and so on forever. That's in an ideal world. Are there situations where it seems that families have gone on century after century living as they were taught to live without question? Certainly there are, but it's rare.
Why do we have so many different religions today? Because Satan would have something that appeals to everyone. When all those recognizes somethings stop appealing and people start drifting away that's okay too, it suits his purposes well. Did God intend that we should have hundreds of different religions to choose from? Did he intend that we even have 3 great faiths as is were, to choose from? No. The intention was never that man would have to make that choice and yet a choice had to be available. Not for 3 faiths or 1000 faiths. The choice has forever been between God and Not God. People protest loudly and say we all worship the same God just in different ways. Would God be so vastly different in those religions contridicting one another? Does that make sense? This church has a statement of beliefs that is nothing like the next one and yet they worship the same God? If I say I'm a follower of the Catholic church I'm saying I believe in the Pope. If I say I'm a follower of Islam, I say I believe in Mohammad. If I say I'm a Protestant I'm declaring that I'm not a follower of the Catholic church or Islam. What we claim to be, what we claim to follow declares to one and all what we believe.
Just recently my mother was in the hospital and they asked her what her religion was, she looked at me and I said Non-demnominational. What did I mean by that? I meant that she believes, but doesn't adhere to any one denomination. She doesn't declare to follow any one specfic religion. With so many religions out there claiming their beliefs to be the true ones to follow isn't that the safest way to be?
We believe in God and God tells us if we love Him to keep His commandments. He declares that by our works we are known. He sent His Son and His Son revealed the Father to us in His every day life, in His words. When the first followers of Christ stepped away from their Jewish fold, a belief system that heldfast to rituals and the belief that a Messiah was still to come rather than had come, they believed in a God that offered forgiveness through the life of His Son as promised. They moved away from the way things had been for God's chosen people, but they moved forward by the revelation of God in Jesus, His Son. We were given Jesus and all His teachings that would keep us until the end when He would return and take us home with Him.
Now people will shout that we all interpret things differently and therefore the different interpretations demand different religions and what does it all matter if it's God we believe in. The questions are good ones. The trouble is that religions tend to focus on their interpretation of beliefs excluding any other possibility of interpretation. We have to be descriminatory people say.
What's all this to do with Rev. 17:1-2?
There are only TWO sides. Those who follow Satan and those who follow God. There aren't several sides. There is the whore with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, the inhabitants of earth have drunk her wine - the guilty.
Two sides not a hundred with half for God and half for Satan.
Two sides.
We have to hold fast to just God and His truths in the Bible as He reveals to us. It's not our place to put them into a denominational setting and get others to believe in our denominations beliefs. We need to live our lives as Christ would have us live, not concentrate on setting up a church among thousands of churches. The day when there was one true church is long gone in the sense it can be named. The Catholic church believes they are the one true church and all others are stray sheep wandered from the fold that need to return. We know that's not true through past studies. May God Bless us as we open our hearts and minds to Him fully and seek His way and only His way through His Word, through His Son, by His grace and mercy now and forever.
Amen.
Rev 17:2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
In and ideal world children would always obey their parents and stay within the family fold, yes? Raised in certain beliefs they'd carry on in those beliefs teaching their children who would then teach their children and so on forever. That's in an ideal world. Are there situations where it seems that families have gone on century after century living as they were taught to live without question? Certainly there are, but it's rare.
Why do we have so many different religions today? Because Satan would have something that appeals to everyone. When all those recognizes somethings stop appealing and people start drifting away that's okay too, it suits his purposes well. Did God intend that we should have hundreds of different religions to choose from? Did he intend that we even have 3 great faiths as is were, to choose from? No. The intention was never that man would have to make that choice and yet a choice had to be available. Not for 3 faiths or 1000 faiths. The choice has forever been between God and Not God. People protest loudly and say we all worship the same God just in different ways. Would God be so vastly different in those religions contridicting one another? Does that make sense? This church has a statement of beliefs that is nothing like the next one and yet they worship the same God? If I say I'm a follower of the Catholic church I'm saying I believe in the Pope. If I say I'm a follower of Islam, I say I believe in Mohammad. If I say I'm a Protestant I'm declaring that I'm not a follower of the Catholic church or Islam. What we claim to be, what we claim to follow declares to one and all what we believe.
Just recently my mother was in the hospital and they asked her what her religion was, she looked at me and I said Non-demnominational. What did I mean by that? I meant that she believes, but doesn't adhere to any one denomination. She doesn't declare to follow any one specfic religion. With so many religions out there claiming their beliefs to be the true ones to follow isn't that the safest way to be?
We believe in God and God tells us if we love Him to keep His commandments. He declares that by our works we are known. He sent His Son and His Son revealed the Father to us in His every day life, in His words. When the first followers of Christ stepped away from their Jewish fold, a belief system that heldfast to rituals and the belief that a Messiah was still to come rather than had come, they believed in a God that offered forgiveness through the life of His Son as promised. They moved away from the way things had been for God's chosen people, but they moved forward by the revelation of God in Jesus, His Son. We were given Jesus and all His teachings that would keep us until the end when He would return and take us home with Him.
Now people will shout that we all interpret things differently and therefore the different interpretations demand different religions and what does it all matter if it's God we believe in. The questions are good ones. The trouble is that religions tend to focus on their interpretation of beliefs excluding any other possibility of interpretation. We have to be descriminatory people say.
What's all this to do with Rev. 17:1-2?
There are only TWO sides. Those who follow Satan and those who follow God. There aren't several sides. There is the whore with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, the inhabitants of earth have drunk her wine - the guilty.
Two sides not a hundred with half for God and half for Satan.
Two sides.
We have to hold fast to just God and His truths in the Bible as He reveals to us. It's not our place to put them into a denominational setting and get others to believe in our denominations beliefs. We need to live our lives as Christ would have us live, not concentrate on setting up a church among thousands of churches. The day when there was one true church is long gone in the sense it can be named. The Catholic church believes they are the one true church and all others are stray sheep wandered from the fold that need to return. We know that's not true through past studies. May God Bless us as we open our hearts and minds to Him fully and seek His way and only His way through His Word, through His Son, by His grace and mercy now and forever.
Amen.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
The Bride and the Whore
Rev 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
*******
'...the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters'
The great whore.
That word invokes quite a picture doesn't it? Whore. It's derogatory, detracting, dishonest, degrading. Does anyone say it with affection? Well maybe nowadays they do, but if said in any serious content calling someone a whore is bad-mouthing them. If a friend calls another friend a whore it's said in jest and there's no consequence. If a friend calls another a whore during an argument it brings consequences doesn't it? It's hurtful. To be a whore is considered allowing yourself to be debased by others.
whore (hôr, hor) noun
1. A prostitute.
2. A person considered sexually promiscuous.
3. A person considered as having compromised principles for personal gain.
Compromising principles for personal gain. Sexually promiscuous.
If you're married to someone and you are sexually promiscuous are you cheating on them? Are you betraying them? I'm not talking about the marriages of old or even current where it's acceptable in some parts to have more than one wife, I'm talking about where it's not acceptable.
When God created man He would forever be known at their Creator. A Creator who created a creature that was intelligent and able to make its own decisions about many, many things. One of those things was the decision to believe in the creator, to trust in the one who created them. In an ideal world we could say like a parent wants their child to trust in them, yet more and more nowadays there are parents who could careless if their child trusts them, a child to them is more of a hindrance than one beloved. Yet, trust is something desired and something that can be betrayed. God wanted His children to trust Him and they didn't. The trust was betrayed. God decides to over and over again to forgive His children to give them opportunities to regain that trust. When the children of God were freed from captivity in Egypt a covenant was made, a covenant the children accepted yet time and time again they betrayed the trust of that covenant. Since not long after man's creation there has been a breaking of the trust between man and God. Children that were supposed to be true to God betrayed Him with other gods. Betrayal. Whore. Principles that were put in place by God for His children were compromised selfishly. God's children became whores. The covenant entered into was broken, other gods were embraced. Whores.
The great whore. The great apostasy from God. The greatest trust betrayed.
Judgment will come for the great whore, for the apostasized system that has gone from being a Bride of Christ to a whore. Two sides- the true and the false, the just and the unjust, the good and the evil. There are only two sides in the greatest controversy, two sides in life. One side that is true to God and the other side who betray Him. We will either be the Bride of Christ to be embraced at the marriage supper of the Lamb, or the whore that will be cast out and destroyed forever.
It's important to know what God desires of His Bride, it's important to truly know God and through the grace and mercy of Christ we can.
Amen.
*******
'...the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters'
The great whore.
That word invokes quite a picture doesn't it? Whore. It's derogatory, detracting, dishonest, degrading. Does anyone say it with affection? Well maybe nowadays they do, but if said in any serious content calling someone a whore is bad-mouthing them. If a friend calls another friend a whore it's said in jest and there's no consequence. If a friend calls another a whore during an argument it brings consequences doesn't it? It's hurtful. To be a whore is considered allowing yourself to be debased by others.
whore (hôr, hor) noun
1. A prostitute.
2. A person considered sexually promiscuous.
3. A person considered as having compromised principles for personal gain.
Compromising principles for personal gain. Sexually promiscuous.
If you're married to someone and you are sexually promiscuous are you cheating on them? Are you betraying them? I'm not talking about the marriages of old or even current where it's acceptable in some parts to have more than one wife, I'm talking about where it's not acceptable.
When God created man He would forever be known at their Creator. A Creator who created a creature that was intelligent and able to make its own decisions about many, many things. One of those things was the decision to believe in the creator, to trust in the one who created them. In an ideal world we could say like a parent wants their child to trust in them, yet more and more nowadays there are parents who could careless if their child trusts them, a child to them is more of a hindrance than one beloved. Yet, trust is something desired and something that can be betrayed. God wanted His children to trust Him and they didn't. The trust was betrayed. God decides to over and over again to forgive His children to give them opportunities to regain that trust. When the children of God were freed from captivity in Egypt a covenant was made, a covenant the children accepted yet time and time again they betrayed the trust of that covenant. Since not long after man's creation there has been a breaking of the trust between man and God. Children that were supposed to be true to God betrayed Him with other gods. Betrayal. Whore. Principles that were put in place by God for His children were compromised selfishly. God's children became whores. The covenant entered into was broken, other gods were embraced. Whores.
The great whore. The great apostasy from God. The greatest trust betrayed.
Judgment will come for the great whore, for the apostasized system that has gone from being a Bride of Christ to a whore. Two sides- the true and the false, the just and the unjust, the good and the evil. There are only two sides in the greatest controversy, two sides in life. One side that is true to God and the other side who betray Him. We will either be the Bride of Christ to be embraced at the marriage supper of the Lamb, or the whore that will be cast out and destroyed forever.
It's important to know what God desires of His Bride, it's important to truly know God and through the grace and mercy of Christ we can.
Amen.
Monday, November 2, 2009
'...which is the second death'
Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
Fearful
Unbelieving
Abominable
Murderers
Whoremongers
Sorcerers
Idolaters
Liars
FEARFUL
1. Causing or capable of causing fear; frightening: a fearful howling.
2. Experiencing fear; frightened. See synonyms at afraid.
3. Feeling or inclined to feel anxiety or apprehension; timid; nervous.
4. Indicating anxiety, fear, or terror: a fearful, nervous glance.
5. Feeling reverence, dread, or awe.
6. Extreme, as in degree or extent; dreadful: a fearful blunder; fearful poverty.
UNBELIEVING
Not believing; doubting: The incident occurred right before our unbelieving eyes.
ABOMINABLE
1. Unequivocally detestable; loathsome: abominable treatment of prisoners.
2. Thoroughly unpleasant or disagreeable: abominable weather.
MURDERERS
1. The unlawful killing of one human being by another, especially with premeditated malice.
2. Slang. Something that is very uncomfortable, difficult, or hazardous: The rush hour traffic is murder.
WHOREMONGERS
1. A man who associates with or pays for sexual relations with prostitutes or a prostitute.
2. A pimp.
SORCERERS
One who practices sorcery; a wizard.
IDOLATERS
1. One who worships idols.
2. One who blindly or excessively admires or adores another.
LIARS
One that tells lies.
Fearful - scared
Unbelieving - doubting
Abominable - loathsome
Murderers - unlawful murder
Whoremongers - pimping others
Sorcerers - wizard
Idolaters - worshipping idols
Liars - telling lies
'Shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.'
This is plain enough isn't it? All those that stand for things other than what God stands for will die. They'll be as if they never were. If you grasp fear you lack trust. If you doubt you have no faith. If you're abominable you are far from embracing Christ who was the pure manifestation of love. If you kill another you take what isn't yours to take- life. If you abuse others for your own gain such vileness cannot be rewarde. If you seek spirits to give you powers for your own selfish desires, you aren't seeking God. Worshipping any thing other than God is placing your trust in things created and not the created. Lying is embracing the life of the devil who is the father of all lies and those who lie are children of the devil spawn that continue his work and have nothing to do with Christ Jesus our Savior.
We don't want to have our part be in the lake of fire which brings about our permanant end. We want to be with Christ, alive and living in Him forever in all that is good and right, just and true, holy and righteous through Him, in Him forever.
May God bless us and lead us towards the end that will keep us in Him forever! Protect us Lord Jesus, keep us, we need Your righteousness, Your truth. Bless us! Forgive us! Keep us! Know us! By Your grace and mercy.
Amen.
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
Fearful
Unbelieving
Abominable
Murderers
Whoremongers
Sorcerers
Idolaters
Liars
FEARFUL
1. Causing or capable of causing fear; frightening: a fearful howling.
2. Experiencing fear; frightened. See synonyms at afraid.
3. Feeling or inclined to feel anxiety or apprehension; timid; nervous.
4. Indicating anxiety, fear, or terror: a fearful, nervous glance.
5. Feeling reverence, dread, or awe.
6. Extreme, as in degree or extent; dreadful: a fearful blunder; fearful poverty.
UNBELIEVING
Not believing; doubting: The incident occurred right before our unbelieving eyes.
ABOMINABLE
1. Unequivocally detestable; loathsome: abominable treatment of prisoners.
2. Thoroughly unpleasant or disagreeable: abominable weather.
MURDERERS
1. The unlawful killing of one human being by another, especially with premeditated malice.
2. Slang. Something that is very uncomfortable, difficult, or hazardous: The rush hour traffic is murder.
WHOREMONGERS
1. A man who associates with or pays for sexual relations with prostitutes or a prostitute.
2. A pimp.
SORCERERS
One who practices sorcery; a wizard.
IDOLATERS
1. One who worships idols.
2. One who blindly or excessively admires or adores another.
LIARS
One that tells lies.
Fearful - scared
Unbelieving - doubting
Abominable - loathsome
Murderers - unlawful murder
Whoremongers - pimping others
Sorcerers - wizard
Idolaters - worshipping idols
Liars - telling lies
'Shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.'
This is plain enough isn't it? All those that stand for things other than what God stands for will die. They'll be as if they never were. If you grasp fear you lack trust. If you doubt you have no faith. If you're abominable you are far from embracing Christ who was the pure manifestation of love. If you kill another you take what isn't yours to take- life. If you abuse others for your own gain such vileness cannot be rewarde. If you seek spirits to give you powers for your own selfish desires, you aren't seeking God. Worshipping any thing other than God is placing your trust in things created and not the created. Lying is embracing the life of the devil who is the father of all lies and those who lie are children of the devil spawn that continue his work and have nothing to do with Christ Jesus our Savior.
We don't want to have our part be in the lake of fire which brings about our permanant end. We want to be with Christ, alive and living in Him forever in all that is good and right, just and true, holy and righteous through Him, in Him forever.
May God bless us and lead us towards the end that will keep us in Him forever! Protect us Lord Jesus, keep us, we need Your righteousness, Your truth. Bless us! Forgive us! Keep us! Know us! By Your grace and mercy.
Amen.
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