What Will Heaven be Like? part 2

Rev 21:1-5

It is a place of worship.  A place where God is worshipped in the way that he is due.  Worship means bowing down, kiss towards, pay homage to, revere, hold in awe.  It also has confession of how worthy God is.  Heaven is a place where true worship happens, around the throne of heaven.  God in heaven is continually worshipped, and all the worship here on earth through his people and by his people, rises up to heaven and joins the worship in heaven in praising God.  Rev 4:10-11 "The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."  This is the worship of elders in heaven.  Rev 5:9 "And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;" This is the worship of God by all nations.  Rev 8:4 "And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God..."  Here is the worship of saints on earth, their prayers ascending before the mercy seat in heaven, offered at the throne of God and answered from heaven.  Worship is performed in heaven by those on earth that worship in faith.  Heaven is a place of worship.  All true worship rises to heaven.   Serve, that is another meaning of worship.  What is it to cry and praise God for salvation, to fall before ones face before God, to bow down, that is worship. 

It is a place where the names of the saints, God's people, are written.  Luke 10:20 "Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven."   Daniel 12:1 "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince.......and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book." Phil 4:3 "And I entreat thee also, true yoke fellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel...and with other my fellow labourers, whose names are in the book of life."   Heb 12:23 "To the general assembly and church of the firstborn which are written in heaven..."  One of the aspects of heaven is that the names of the saints are written there.  That is something worth rejoicing over.  

What Will Heaven be Like? (Part 1)

Rev 21:1-6 "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.  And I john saw the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.  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...."

What will heaven be like?  In our nature, it is impossible to say but we can draw from the biblical pictures of what heaven is like.

It will be a new heaven and a new earth.  This theme is repeated throughout the bible.  Isaiah 65:17 "For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."  Isaiah 66:22 "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD.."  These are bible references.  A new heaven and a new earth.  Some people think that a new earth is symbolic but the reality will be more than the symbol.   The earth is created, but the world (people) are sinful.  Why would God ever want to make a new heaven and a new earth?  because God said he will.  The earth will be restored and renewed with all traces of sin gone.  The earth will be filled with the glory and knowledge of God.  In the life to come heaven and earth will be merged.   A brief look at the current earth shows us reasons as to why God would want to make a new one.  Corrupt, greedy, natural disasters, all consequences of the fall of man and the fall of creation from the good creation that God made at the beginning.

What is the current heaven?  It is a habitation of spirits, only the Lord Jesus Christ is in heaven in his glorified body.  But God is making a new heaven, not just for the spirits of just men made perfect, but for the glorified bodies of his people at Christ's second coming, the resurrection of the dead when believers will have bodies as like Christ's glorified body.  What can that mean to a believer that cannot walk, or is blind? 1 Corin 15:43 "it is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.." Christ had a real body after he rose from the dead. Luke 24:39 "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." 

Who Lives in Heaven?

Hebrews 12:18-29 

It is necessary and pleasant to study heaven.  If we are saved, we are already a citizen of heaven. Yes, we are citizens of heaven who are exiled in this world, this world for believers is not their home.  The believer is on a pilgrimage to heaven, and every Christian is presently an ambassador of heaven in this world.  Heb 13:14 "For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come."   Believers look forward to heaven.  Even though heaven is in eternity, it is very near, very close.

Who lives in heaven?  who is presently in heaven?  There are three categories: 

 God lives in heaven, the triune God lives in heaven.   That makes the God of Christianity different from any other God, the triune God that is one God but three persons, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit.  Three persons, one God.  This is a foundation of Christian doctrine.  Same in substance, equal in power and in glory.  Same in essence.  The essence of God is holiness, God the Father is holy, God the Son is the holy child, and the Holy Spirit.  Some people might say they don't understand so they can't believe it  but the answer is, of course you can't understand it, nobody can understand it.  How can a finite limited human mind understand the infinite God?  We cannot comprehend infinity because to understand it you would have to be equal with God.  But we believe it just the same because God has revealed himself in the bible. That is faith.  The bible says 1 John 5:7 "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." In John 1:1 the apostle John refers to the Lord Jesus as the Word.  Jesus says I and my Father are one.  The bible says that God's dwelling place is in heaven.  We have faith and trust in God's word that what it says is true even though some of it is beyond our full grasp.  It is the greatest fallacy that we need to understand something before we can believe it.  You don't understand exactly how airplanes work but you trust that they can fly.

Why Study Heaven?

This is Part 1 of a series by Paul Dowling  on the subject of Heaven.

Why Study Heaven?

Rev 22:1-6  

Glory, Paradise, or Heaven..  we are not studying the atmosphere, the universe or space, but God's dwelling place.  Why study heaven?  Because life in this world distracts us and blots out thoughts of heaven.  Things closer to us are seen to be bigger than eternity but they are not.  

Another reason is that through misunderstanding heaven it doesn't appeal to as many people as it should.  You may say "How could heaven not be appealing"?  Some may find it boring, they suppose it to be like a church service that goes on and on, while sitting on a marble seat.  Such a view has limited appeal and is childish.  Some are apathetic about heaven, clumsy at understanding its beauty.   But that is not the biblical view and that is another reason why believers should study heaven from the bible and look at the true biblical portrait.

Another reason is because we can know about it.  1 Corin 2:9 "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him"  Some people use this text to say we don't know about heaven, you can't picture it, you can't hear it, you can't imagine it so why consider it.  But they need to read the next verse, 10 .  "But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."   Natural man can't imagine the things that God has prepared, but God has revealed them to believers by his Spirit through his word, the bible.  That is the limit that God has told us about heaven and we can know what he wants us to know.   We are duty bound to study heaven because God has revealed it and whatever God has revealed, we are to study.  

We should study heaven because it is a powerful evangelistic weapon.  Look at the world around you, there is a dis-satisfaction with materialism.  Look at people's faces, are they happy?  They are not happy at all, most of them.  There is no joy in materialism, it does not bring happiness or contentedness.  If this life is it, and all we have and we live and then we die and it is over, that is depressing.   How appealing in that situation is heaven..  time is just a vapor but your soul lives forever and can live forever with God securely in heaven, satisfied in a place of indescribable beauty.  A new Paradise where every lie, deceit and wrong has been purged.  What a powerful evangelistic weapon therefore, heaven is.  God offers sinful human beings an eternity of happiness, what a glorious possibility. 

What Is It to be Sealed With the Spirit?

Ephesians 1:9-14; Romans 10:14-17

The child of God is blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ.  It doesn't matter whether the child of God feels or understand the blessings or not, Christ hath blessed us V3 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ."  Its something that Christ has done and we don't do it.  We are blessed in mind-blowing ways, in that we have been chosen in Christ from before the created order, we are blessed in that we are chosen to be holy and blameless before God.  In that we are adopted as God's beloved children and we are blessed in that it has been predestinated that we would inherit the inheritance of Christ.  We are blessed in that by grace we have been made acceptable in the presence of God, in that we have been bought by the blood of Jesus, all our sins are forgiven.  What blessings.  To do these things for us, God has abounded in his mercy and grace.  And more than that God has illuminated the saved, revealed his will to us and also the true believer has true unity in Christ presently.  One in Christ.  The body of believers is united.  We have been predestinated to bring God praise and glory.  

Another blessing is after we believed:  the sealing of the Holy Spirit.  Christ's people are sealed with the Holy Spirit.  V12-14 "That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory."
 
You trusted when you heard the gospel, you were sealed after you believed, and what is it to be saved by the Holy Spirit?

Godly or Ungodly?

Psalm 1

Out of all the countless number of people in the world and all their outward differences they are all one race, the human race.  Out of all those people there is one division, one dividing line that is not merely cosmetic, one dividing line that is real.  The bible plainly teaches that all the people in the world are divided into two groups.  Whatever group you are in is going to determine where you will spend eternity.  This one division between men is described as the saved and the lost, saints and sinners, child of light or child of darkness, believer or unbeliever.  Psalm 1 describes this division of humanity in detail.  This psalm gives all obvious physical and practical differences and evidences of who is in which group.  You can't read Psalm 1 and be confused about who is godly and who is not.  It is plain as day.  Psalm 1 describes the godly person and the ungodly person in unmistakable terms inwardly and outwardly.  Someone who is blessed and someone who is not.   You need to learn which group you are in because it is of drastic importance to your welfare in eternity.  Are you godly or ungodly?  What does Psalm 1 teach?

V1-3  "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."    Here is the person who is blessed.  The word blessed means someone who is enjoying God's special favor.  The godly person does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly.  The word counsel means advice.  The godly person does not follow the advice of ungodly people, they don't walk in that way.  The advice of the ungodly in our society is this:  don't be moral, do what you want.  Don't talk about sin.  The godly person will not take that advice because he does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly.  The word walk means the path of life, the direction.  If you are godly you don't take your direction from the ungodly.  The godly person's life is different.

The Temptation of Christ

Matthew 4:1-11, Psalm 91:1-12

Imagine the Son of God, working alone in a carpenter's shop in Nazareth..Jesus worked in this shop until he was 30 and then there came a day when the Lord Jesus left the carpenter shop, when he told his mother it was time for him to leave. There came a day when the public ministry of Jesus Christ began. On that day Jesus set out on a path set by God, a path for his life and that path would lead him to a tortured crucifixion even though he would never commit a single sin. That path would take him on a destiny that was planned by him and for him before the world was even made. The mission upon which eternal life or everlasting torment for the human soul depends. 

Jesus would live 3 more short years and accomplish a goal that would make him the Saviour of a countless multitude who will gather around the throne of glory in heaven. But also a mission that would make him the object of scorn, derision and hatred from the world. Nothing is more important than the life and death, resurrection and ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is his life, beginning at these 3 years and the things he did and how he suffered and died, and his present intercession that sorts out the sheep from the goats. That is what sorts out the children of God from the children of the Devil. This whole purpose of Christ from his baptism by John and when the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the form of a dove, when God spoke audibly from the glory and said Matthew 3:17 ..."this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased". And then Jesus was led into the Judain wilderness to be tempted of the devil, the temptation of Christ. Let us consider the passages concerning the temptation: Matthew 4:1-2 "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered."

Rejoice, Its a New Year

It was early to bed last night, and after being awakened at midnight by the noise of many fireworks, it was back to sleep and waking up this morning refreshed and happy that a new year has begun.  It's a day to rejoice for these reasons:

a fresh new start

the days are getting longer

Spring is coming

most of all, for Christians each day is one day closer to the Lord Jesus Christ's return

for myself and my husband perhaps the Lord will lead us to a church that holds to the old paths.  (Jeremiah 6:16 "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls...).

I don't have many goals but one of them is to eat healthier, mostly fruits and vegetables and no beef and another is to go for a walk everyday as I really need more exercise.

The old year and all of its trials and troubles are gone and Philippians 3:13,20 are perfect verses:

".....this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.  For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ."

Below is a beautiful sunrise, taken from our front yard.  A new day, and a new year has begun.

The Mystery of the Gospel

Ephesians 3:1-14 

The apostle Paul was a great man in intellect, in the gospel, and in his zeal for the promotion of the gospel across the known world at that time.  He was a man who trusted in providence, commissioned by God to do what he was doing, felt privileged to preach the gospel, had concern for other people, was in fellowship with God even though he was writing this epistle from prison.  What type of message did he preach?  Paul preached a revealed message that came to him by revelation.  It was and is a message that is revealed by God and therefore it is God's message.  If it is God's message it doesn't need to be adjusted by men and women who are sinful.  

Paul preached a message that was and is:
A mystery:  V3-4, 9  "How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ). And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ."  The message was a mystery, a hidden thing.  Mystery means "a thing that is not obvious to the understanding"  The gospel is not an obvious message contrary to what "easy believism" teaches.  It is profound.  General revelation is not enough, the creation is not enough to bring you to salvation.  It leads you to believe in a creator God if you think logically, but how we can know God through general revelation remains a mystery.  We need special revelation to get to know the creator God.  This is found in the word of God through the prophets and apostles.  The bible's message is profound and mysterious.  It tells us of a holy God who is sinless and perfect.

What is God? God is a spirit: infinite, eternal and unchanging in  his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.  How can this God justify sinners who are guilty and remain just and holy?  It doesn't make sense that he could or would, but that is exactly what the message of the bible is. A mystery that we would not know otherwise, that God can and does justify guilty sinners upon certain conditions.  And he does it in a way that his justice and holiness is retained.  That is profound and amazing, not obvious, a profound mystery explained.   This marvelous message has been shaken by some modern evangelists who say "You want to be saved? It is O so simple, repeat these words after me".  But no! It's not O so simple.  It's a profound, amazing message that God can and does save sinners.  God can save sinners and give them a perfect righteousness, blotting out all their sins by punishing all those sins on his only begotten Son.  He takes sinners into his own family even though they were and are guilty as charged.  That is not "O so simple, repeat these words and raise  your hand".  The gospel is about a message that brings you into an encounter with the living Christ, by grace through faith you receive him and it changes your life, you repent of your sin and trust him.  It is a mysterious, profound, amazing message.  It is about Christ becoming the Lord of your life, it is not "O so simple".  Modern techniques cheapen the mystery and the profundity of the gospel.  They make it into a man-made "easy peasy" ritual, perform this, that and the other and you have your insurance policy to heaven but that is not what Paul preached.

Psalm 34: I Will Bless the LORD at All Times

This is a very beautiful Psalm, full of faith and trust, and of the importance of a reverential fear of the LORD for who he is.  I believe that the Psalms is where the poetic beauty of the King James bible shines forth.

Psalm 34  (I do not put in the verse breaks, I would rather let the words flow.)
I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.  My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad.  O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.  I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.  They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.  This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.  O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.  O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him.  The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.  Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD.  What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good?  Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.  Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.

The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.  The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.  The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them from all their troubles.  The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.  Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.  V20  He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken.  Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate.  The LORD redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.

__________________________

V20 is probably prophetic speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross where none of his bones were broken.

My Masterpiece Girls

Ladies, do any of you love dolls?  I loved dolls as a child and had many of them but gave them away when I was in my late teens to a lady whose children didn't have much.  It wasn't until 2006 when I started collecting them again at the time when I was babysitting my little granddaughter, a girly-girl who loved dolls.  But in 2010 she moved with her parents away from me and I kind of lost my mind and gave all my dolls away to a thrift store that carried lovely merchandise.  Then in 2011 we moved to Vancouver Island and I was able to see my granddaughter again so when she began collecting American Girl dolls my love for dolls re-surfaced and I began collecting again.  Our bedroom should better be called "Dollyland" but thankfully my husband is approving of my collection.

Below is a photo of my Masterpiece girl who arrived today.  She is the one on the left, her name is Rebecca.  The one on the right has been with me for a couple of years, the name she came with was Katrina but I re-named her Elizabeth.  Rebecca is 38 inches high and Elizabeth is 34. Rebecca is by the artist Monika Levenig and Elizabeth is by Monika Peter-Leicht  I guess that once a doll lover you never outgrow it no matter how old you are.

 

Here is a link to the Masterpiece Doll website where you can see many more beautiful dolls.

http://masterpiecedolls.com/

 

Psalm 25: Unto Thee O LORD

Further to my post a day or so ago regarding the words  "I Am" as used in positive thinking, as contrast here is a Psalm of David that shows the heart of a man devoted to the Lord but who was also a man who had sinned regarding Bathsheba and her husband Uriah (2 Samuel 11) and acknowledges that sin before the Lord asking for mercy and forgiveness.   Opposite of positive thinking,  Psalm 25 is a beautiful psalm of  requests, dependence and trust.  David's requests to the Lord are highlighted.
Here is Psalm 25:  (KJV)

Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.  O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me.  Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause.  Show me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths.  Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; (added by me - David's relationship with the Lord is a personal one)  on thee do I wait all the day.  Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old.  Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness' sake, O LORD.  Good and upright is the LORD, therefore will he teach sinners in the way.  The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.  All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.  For thy name's sake, O LORD, pardon mine iniquity; for it is great.  What man is he that feareth the LORD? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. (added by me - Proverbs 16:9 A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps).  His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth.  The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him (added by me - a reverential fear for who God is) and he will show them his covenant.  Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.  Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted.  The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring me out of my distresses.  Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins.  Consider mine enemies; for they are many; and they hate me with cruel hatred.  O keep my soul and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.  Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait no thee.  Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.

Two Simple Words: I Am

I Am - two simple words.    Yesterday I was waiting for our local news to start and caught the last couple of minutes of Dr. Phil's show with Joel Osteen on it promoting his book regarding I am.   In looking up a review for the book online today, it seems to me that that Mr. Osteen's book is about positive thinking - I am this, I am that, I am (put in the word of your choice).
However,  the words "I am" are very precious in the bible, the word of God.  How are the words "I am" used there?  here are a very few and these all speak of deity:

Genesis 17:1 "And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect"

Exodus 3:14 "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."

Exodus 20:2 "I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."

What does the Lord Jesus say about himself?

John 6:35 "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."

John 8:58 "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am."

John 9:5 "......................I am the light of the world"

John 10:11 "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep."

And what do men say about themselves using "I am" in the bible?

Psalm 6:2 "Have mercy upon me, O LORD; for I am weak: O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed."

Psalm 40:17 "But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God"

Psalm 119:141 "I am small and despised: yet do not I forget thy precepts."

Note that  none of the verses quoted above regarding what men say about themselves are lifting themselves up in a positive way, but they know that there hope is in the Lord, not in themselves.

Therefore, rather you should say, I am a sinner, and I need the Saviour, and then repent and call upon the Lord Jesus Christ who will save your soul.   All the positive thinking in the world will not  bring you to heaven, if you do not recognize your need of the Saviour, and repent of your sins, you are condemned to that place of torment.  The choice is yours.

The Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man: Why Was the Rich Man in Hell?

Luke 16:19-31

The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is very well known, it is about a beggar who is covered with sores, and a rich man who has all his wants and needs met.  But what happens when they both die is the key to the reason for this parable, told by the Lord Jesus Christ.



This passage teaches that life does not end at death.  Jesus plainly teaches in this section of scripture, in perfect alignment with the rest of the bible, that there are places where the human soul goes after death and continues to exist.  All true churches believe that because they all believe what Jesus says and they follow Jesus Christ.  A Christian is a follower of Jesus and believes Jesus.   These days a belief in hell is fading fast, and compromised churches are leading the way in unbelief.  As well as this, students in bible colleges are no longer interested in the subject.   It's the churches' neglect of the subject of everlasting punishment which has happened in the same period of time when the world is becoming more rebellious, more permissive, more violent and more godless.   The church is a pale reflection of the world and the world's views.  But the bible has not changed, the bible and the words of Jesus Christ are unchanged.  The eternal destinies of those who die have not changed, nothing has changed.  God has not changed his mind and it's completely irrelevant that society does not like or believe the doctrine or that they don't want the doctrine.  Hell still exists.   The opinion of men is not the measure of truth nor reality.  God's word is the measure of truth.  He is the ultimate reality.   Even if you don't believe in hell, you will still end up there if you are not a Christian.  Hell is a real and remote place, a place of fire and darkness, a place of everlasting punishment.  Think about it.

What does Jesus say about the passage in Luke 16?  he is speaking to people who were religious but not converted, not saved.  V14 "And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him." 

There were once two men:  V19-21 "There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day.  And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores."   We see in these verses a description of the two men.  The rich man is described as being clothed in purple and fine linen, same thing in Rev 18:12, it means that this emphasizes luxury, the best.  The labels of the day, the rich man was clothed in. V19 tells us of his diet.  He had plenty to eat every day.  But then the beggar is also described.  His name is Lazarus, the rich man is not named.  Lazarus is the complete opposite of the rich man:  lying at the gate, outside the home.  He is full of sores, the Lord says the dogs came and licked his sores, so the sores were not bandaged, no one was looking after him.  What was the beggar's desire?  He simply wanted the crumbs, the leftovers, the scraps that fell from the rich man's table.  What a pitiful picture.  The Lord is describing two men who are vastly different.

The Translation of the Authorized King James Bible: Why It Was Important Then, and Why It Is Important Now

It is right that Christians should take time to consider and reflect upon the origin, use and acceptance of the Authorized version of the bible also known as the King James.  It is also necessary because of the implications arising from such a study.   For 1300 years English speaking people were without a bible and during that time idolatry and superstition reigned.  This was known as the Dark Ages.  We should value the privilege we have to read the King James bible that we have now.

There was a pressing need of an acceptable, reliable and good translation that would be of great use to the cause of Christ,  from Hebrew and Greek into English.  The King James bible was authored by the cream of English scholarship. (for detailed information regarding these scholars please listen to the audio of this sermon linked to at the bottom of this post.)  When these men were all summoned to engage in the King's business we must remember that this was to be an international enterprise.  The translators were grouped into companies and not committees, because this was to be an imperial project, done publicly for English speaking people across the world.  Once the companies had finished their work it was sent to a final group of 12 that examined the entire translation before publication.   These men were not perfect, they were like you and I except God gave them certain abilities he did not give to us.  What did they think of themselves?  There were many chosen for this task that were greater in other men's eyes than their own, these were men that sought the truth rather than their own praise.  They were not interested in themselves.  They were humble.   These men were not ashamed at what they believed.  

There were rules which governed them:

1-5 emphasizing continuity with previous work done (Tyndale, Wycliffe, the Geneva Bible; (these were bibles which were despised by authorities and hated for their spread of the word of God across the land).  The translators were to make use of all that was done before. 

6-7 regarding commentary and explanation.  Cross references had a double purpose, to assist in understanding the text and also to demonstrate that it was one bible, a unity and a harmony in God's revelation.  It's all God's word, it's all authoritative, it's all from God, from Genesis to Revelation.

8-15 regarding the mechanics of translation.. there was a resolution of disputes, then the completed work was sent to a group of 12 that examined the entire translation.

The Authorized King James: Loved, Hated or Ignored

I’m quite sure that most people will see the title of this post and pass it by, but please bear with me because the subject is very important, whether you know it or not.  In Christianity today, there are few in number that still hold to their King James bible.  Most have been caught up by promoters of the new versions,  who use the excuse that their version is based on “older and better” manuscripts, (or so they believe) or else that it will be “easier to understand”.  Why did this happen? and what are the consequences? My next post will be notes from a sermon regarding the history of the King James and why it is so important.

My own history with the King James began when I was in grade 4, back in the day when the school day began with a bible reading from the King James and a recitation of the Lord’s Prayer.  The teacher asked me to memorize Psalm 23 and I am still struck by the beauty of the poetry of this most well-known and loved of Psalms.
Lets compare it with Young’s Literal Translation which is also in the public domain.

Psalm 23:1-6  Young’s Literal Translation
 Jehovah is my shepherd, I do not lack, In pastures of tender grass He causeth me to lie down, By quiet waters He doth lead me.  My soul He refresheth, He leadeth me in paths of righteousness, For His name’s sake,   Also — when I walk in a valley of death-shade, I fear no evil, for Thou art with me, Thy rod and Thy staff — they comfort me.  Thou arrangest before me a table, Over-against my adversaries, Thou hast anointed with oil my head, My cup is full!  Only — goodness and kindness pursue me, All the days of my life, And my dwelling is in the house of Jehovah, For a length of days!

Psalm 23: 1-6  King James
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want, He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

In the examples above, both of them are quite close in meaning, although the Young’s suggests a time period in the last verse, “for a length of days” while the King James is comforting in  that David believes that he will “dwell in the house of the LORD for ever”.  But more importantly, which one would be easier to memorize?  In the King James, the words flow in poetic beauty as it does throughout all of this bible (I won’t call it a version).

What is the Bible? God's Inspired Word

2 Timothy 3:13-17  "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.  But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; 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.  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."

The doctrine of scripture, or what is the bible, is what we are studying.  A true understanding of what scripture is will direct you on the true course of your Christian life.  It will put scripture in authority over you and guide you, but if you are unsure or wrong on the doctrine of scripture, if you are wrong on what is the bible, you will not remain on the true course in the Christian life.  You will find that the scripture will not guide you in vast areas of your life because if you don't have a true understanding of what scripture is.  You will end up supplanting scripture with your own ideas, your own tastes, likes and dislikes.  All heresy and apostasy comes from a wrong view of what scripture is, what the bible is.  People want to ignore the bits of the bible that they don't like on the basis of their own reason, their own mind.  They come to judge and sift the bible and say that bits are cultural and don't apply.  Error in the doctrine of scripture is the cause of all of this.  

What is the bible?  Scripture or the bible is God's inspired word.  It is God's inerrant word, that means it contains no errors.  It is God's infallible word, that means that whatever scripture speaks on, it is right or correct on that subject.  Scripture is the word of God.  But do we really see the implications of this?  we must really believe that, we need to get that, scripture is the word of God.  If we don't get that and understand what it means, we will end up adding our own ideas.  It is not the word of the apostle Paul, the prophets Isaiah or Jeremiah, not the word of the apostle John, it's the word of God.  The bible does not contain God's word like the liberals say, that is nonsense.  The bible does not contain God's word, the bible IS the word of God, therefore it is not wrong on miracles, or sodomites, or judgment, or anything it speaks on because it is God's word.  That is why there is no true Christian who can say, "O but that's just Paul, that's just his opinion", no true Christian will ever say that.  It's not Paul's opinion at all, its the word of God, not Paul.   People who do this show that they do not believe that the whole bible is the word of God.   Evangelicals  need to stop playing word games and say that they believe the bible is the word of God "but"..  you either believe that the bible is the word of God or you do not. The bible is the word of God and that is what Christians believe.

Daily Living: A Leaking Skylight and the Grace of God

I am always amazed, but not surprised, at the grace of God in simple things of a Christian’s daily life, because I have always believed that God is in control of all things.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that the skylight on one of our bathrooms was allowing water to seep into the drywall.  I was very concerned about it because we are in our rainy season right now and when it rains in this valley, it is not a gentle rain.  When I noticed the leak it was pouring outside.  My husband got a roofer to look at it and he noticed a place down by the roof that was not caulked, so he caulked it and pronounced the leak problem fixed.  But a couple of days later it rained again and the leak was back, however the roofer would have nothing more to do with it.

My husband then called a glass company that specializes in skylights, and they came to look at it and said that to try to find a leak would be pretty much impossible and that it would be better to replace the skylight.  Of course, they may have been just wanting new business, but we had no choice so a date was set a week later to install the new skylight, but according to the long-range weather forecast it was supposed to rain all of the week in which they were to come.  The day after the fellow from the glass company was here, the weather cleared up and for the week we were waiting the weather was sunny but very cold.

It was supposed to start raining this past Monday and the skylight was not due to be installed until Tuesday, so I began to ask the Lord to hold off the rain until the skylight was installed.  Well,  we did not have rain on Monday,  and only a few drops on Tuesday morning.  The installers arrived at 1:00pm and they did an excellent job of taking out the old and installing the new, and caulking every place they possibly could, and including caulking the skylight in the kitchen to prevent problems there because that skylight was the same age as the one that was leaking.

Now here is the grace of God: as they were finishing up a few drops began falling, and as they were leaving the rain began in earnest, and it poured rain for day and night from Tuesday after they left until this morning, and I am happy to say that there has been no further leakage.

So I thank the Lord for his grace in holding back the rain which was so important for us because had it started raining before the installers were finished, they would not have been able to do the required caulking.

Job 5:8-10:  I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause: which doeth great things and unsearchable; marvellous things without number: who giveth rain upon the earth,  and sendeth waters upon the fields.

The True Gospel

Romans 1:14-17 "I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."

I would like you to come back with me in your minds to the year AD57 and you are going to come into a room in a house where the preachers have their lodgings.  It's more than likely at night.  In this room there are two men, one is writing, one is speaking.  The man who is speaking is the apostle Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles.  God the Holy Spirit is inspiring him to speak the very words of God.  In this room the epistle to the church at Rome is being written.  Paul V16 says "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."     The letter to the Romans, the church at Rome is thought by many people today to be complicated, hard to understand and really only for professors of theology, but that is not the case because the apostle Paul was speaking to the majority of Christians who made up the church of Rome who were uneducated slaves (for the most part) and they understood what it says.  That means that modern educated man is not so smart as what he thinks he is if he finds difficult to understand what uneducated slaves understood in the first century AD. 

What is Romans about?  It is about the gospel. That's it.  V16 and 17 are all about the gospel, the good news.  The gospel is not just the love of God, the gospel is not just the crucifixion, the gospel contained in the bible begins in the book of Genesis with the creator God, man's fall into sin, God's grace and his plan to sacrifice his Son for sinners, and his offer of forgiveness that is given indiscriminately to all and the salvation of those who believe.  The gospel continues on with instructions for Christian life to the final glorification in heaven.  The gospel of Jesus Christ is the whole counsel of God from Genesis to Revelation and its important for us to remember that.  Many churches have a limited view of what the gospel is.  The gospel is not just a little part of the bible.

The Good Shepherd

The Good Shepherd

John 10: 1-11 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.  This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.  All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep."
 
The Shepherd and his sheep is a beautiful picture taken from this world and applied many times to the relationship between God and his people, the shepherd and his flock of sheep.  Many passages come to mind, Psalm 23:1 "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."   God sometimes is pictured as a loving shepherd that feeds his flock, Isaiah 40:11 "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." We also know there are evil shepherds:  Jeremiah 23:1 "Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD"  When sheep are forsaken they easily become pray to wild animals, and then of course there is the Good Shepherd, the Messiah, Ezekiel 34:23 "And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd."  Sheep need a shepherd.  When you look up the word sheep in the dictionary one of the things it says is that sheep wander, they are defenceless when they wander because they are helpless and weak.  They get into trouble when they wander.  They don't understand why they get into trouble and to get out of trouble they need to go back to the flock they have left, back to the place they departed and until they do that they will always be in trouble.  Sometimes the shepherd has to come and get them and lead them back.  The rod is for rescuing, the staff is for discipline because sheep have to stay close to the Shepherd. 

Are you a member of God's flock?  if you are, do you wander away? How far do you wander?  How many times has God had to bring  you back? What will he do if you keep wandering?  

A Warning to Moderate Comments Left on Your Blog..

Thank the Lord that Blogger has an option to moderate comments left on your blog.   In all the time this blog has been up I haven't received many comments but all of them have been positive.  However this morning that changed.  Yesterday I posted a piece called Message to Moderns and this morning in email there was a comment to be moderated which said that it was a good post and that I should keep writing.  Sounds positive, right?  However, included was a link to their web page which was not named but only had three letters in the link.  Before I approve any comment I always check out links and was not really surprised to find out that this was a link to a porno site.  So of course the comment was deleted, never to appear here.

I really wonder about the mentality of people like this with bad intentions who feel it is necessary to post their filth on a Christian site, but this isn't the first time, although it is the first time here.  I had a very bad experience years ago with people posting photographs on a children's bible site I used to have, before I learned the lesson of moderating all comments.  So from today, any who want to comment have to be registered with Google, and they have to do the word copy so as to eliminate automated comments.

I do really hope that whoever sent that comment took the time to read Message for Moderns, for it was meant for such as they.

vcg/November 2015

A Message to Moderns

This is a very long sermon, but in this day of compromise in churches, sound-bite technology, a pleasure-seeking society and "my truth" it is a very important sermon.
 
Message to Moderns

Acts 17:22-32 "Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.  For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.  Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.  God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing  he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; and hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and not find him, though he be not far from every one of us....Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.  Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ).  And when they hard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter."
 
Here we have a sermon that gives us a very good outline of many of the things that must be preached by the church when addressing the unsaved.  It is fitting that we should look generally at this because what is the church's message?  Many think that the church must change to be relevant in this modern world when the church is going to declare the gospel to sound-bite people in a technology driven society.  What is the church's message to this society, this pleasure-seeking society, this society that doesn't really believe in any absolute truth?  What message is the church to bring that is gong to have an impact upon so-called modern people?  Many would say we need to not mention sin or judgment but that is nonsense.  The same old message that was preached by the old testament prophets and the new testament apostles is the same message that needs to be preached today in the exact same way.  It needs to be preached to a modern people who have the exact same needs as those who lived thousands of years ago, people who haven't changed one bit.  Modern life is not modern, modern life is very old, it's just the same as what life has always been.  To be a sound-bite based society means that people communicate less and in fragmented bits and technology makes no difference at all because its the same old problems.  Nothing has changed, people haven't changed.  The problem is called sin. "Hath God said?"  the serpent said to Eve questioning God's word.   Pride even in the unfallen world in the garden of Eden.  There are no different needs than any other human beings in history.

Job's Faith: Why So Strong?

This is a continuation of yesterday's post regarding Job, and why bad things happen to the child of God.

Job's Faith, Why So Strong

Job 2, Job 13:15, Job 19:21-26

Job was a spiritual man, a family man, a burdened man for his family, but the book of Job teaches us that there is another  unseen world, a spirit world.  A prime plane of God and angels which Satan has access to.  What happens in that spirit world affects what happens in the physical world, the two are not separate but intertwined and they affect one another.  In this spiritual world Satan gets permission from God to unleash misery and trouble upon Job's life and Job suffered terribly.  Job reacted in sadness but he worshipped God even in this terrible tragedy. Job 1:20-22 "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly."   He confesses that the LORD has a right to take away that which he has given, and he was going to love God anyway, even if God did not bless him.   The teaching is this, Job's faith overcame the troubles and woes that he was going through in his life because Job's faith was in God himself.  It was not dependant upon material blessings so therefore the material blessings could all be removed but Job's faith in God remained untouched.  Job did very well.  He lost his wealth, he lost all his children but he still kept his faith, but it wasn't over yet.

Why Do Bad Things Happen to the World and to the Child of God?

This post is further to yesterday's post entitled "Downhearted but why, and then an answer.  Lately I have read quite a few posts at Wordpress asking the question If God is a God of love, why does he allow bad things to happen?  I believe that these notes from the sermon by Paul Dowling provide the answer, why bad things happen to those in the world, and to the child of God.

Why do Bad Things Happen?

Job 1:1-12 

At some time in their life everyone has wondered,  "why do bad things happen to good people?"  Why was the missionary Amy Carmichael, who was doing her best to obey God, who did so much good work for the Lord, why was she confined to her bed in agony for the last 20 years of her life?  Why do bad things happen to good people.   Why is there so much suffering?

Some people in this world take the question further and they say "if God is the God of love why all the human misery".  Why..  For anyone who would ask that question, it is quite easy to answer although most people who ask that question do not want to know the answer.   If God is a God of love, the word if,  that is a sign of doubt and unbelief.  There is no doubt about it, the bible says that God is love, there is no "if" about it.  If there is doubt, there is no belief in the first place.  We need to remember that God is not a God of love only, love is not his only attribute. There is more to God than 1 John 4.

If you know your bibles you do know that God did not create the world the way it is now. Genesis 1:31 "And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good...."  The world is the way it is now with all its suffering and misery because of human free will.  In the garden of Eden, when there was free will that was not under bondage to sin,  Eve first, and then her husband Adam, used that free will to believe the serpent's lie and be disobedient to God's command and that is how sin entered into this world..  That caused the fall,  but God did not create the world the way it is now.  

Why are there starving people in the world?  Is it God's fault? No it's not, there are starving people in the world because of human greed.  There is more than enough food in this world to feed everybody but the problem is not in the amount of food.  Some countries are hoarding food and won't give it to those who are starving.  The problem is human greed.  It's not God's problem, it is human caused problem.

Why all the wars? That is easily answered because humans fight.  Why so much murder and killing? It's because of human aggression, this goes back to Cain murdering his brother Abel (Genesis 4:8 "And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.").   It's human's fault, not Gods.  Why do so many humans die from simply cured illnesses in the poorer countries of this world. Why do thousands of poor people die? It's because they can't have operations because there are no surgeons but we can have cosmetic surgery to improve our looks. That is how arrogant many people are in the western world, so don't blame God.

Why do triple heart by-pass patients have to wait such a long time for their operation which is life-threatening, but if you pay some money you can have the surgery in a matter of weeks? Because money talks louder than human need.  You can blame God but most of the human suffering in this world is caused by human greed.  So put the blame where it belongs.

If you don't believe in God how can you blame God?   A far more important and honest question is in the bible, in the book of Job.  That is, why do God's people sometimes suffer for no apparent reason.  

Do Not Follow the Majority

 Exodus 23:1-2 "Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thy hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.  Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment."

We are going to study  one of the devices or traps or snares that Satan sets to hinder Christians from doing their Christian duties, those being reading God's word, prayer, assembling with other believers, obeying what God's word says.  "thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil"  Satan has devices to keep Christians from doing these duties.  Practical things that the bible tells the believer to do.  When we do these things it leads to spiritual growth, holiness of life and maturity instead of immaturity as is seen in some people. 

As the spiritual temperature of the church plummets, it is evident that immaturity, lack of knowledge of scripture and neglect of duties has come to the fore.  Satan is using this trap to devastating effect to take Christian people from doing what God says they should do after they are saved according to the scriptures.

The snare of Satan is this.  "don't worry too much about reading your bible, don't worry too much about praying, don't worry too much about going to church, don't worry too much about obeying the bible"  Most people do not bother with those things, most people walk and live following the ways of their own heart.  They do what they want to do.  They say  "Just do what the rest do.  Stick with the majority, they must be right.  After all the majority couldn't be wrong.  Don't be different." For the church they say: "Don't worry about disciplining sin in your church, don't worry about using worldly methods and then calling it evangelism, don't look to the bible as your guide to faith and practice, just look at what the majority of churches do, they aren't guided by the scripture, anything goes.  Just follow the majority."

It's common to hear "but everybody's doing it".   Don't worry about obeying God, just do what everybody else does.  That is the snare of Satan.  God says "thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil"  do not follow the majority to do sin.