Jesus' Triumphal Entry Into Jerusalem

It is good for us to remember that, on that day of celebration, the day of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, there were those, among the crowd, who were, quite clearly, under the judgment of God. We read of "the great multitude of the disciples (who) began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice" (Luke 19:37). Sadly, however, we read of the Pharisees, who said to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples" (Luke 19:39). The story of the first Palm Sunday is repeated in our world today. There are those who are learning to rejoice in the Lord.. They are learning to worship the God of their salvation. Unfortunately, there are also those, mingling with the Lord's people, who seek to dampen the spirit of praise. They themselves know nothing of the true spirit of worship, and they don't like to see others rejoicing in the Lord. From the story of the first Palm Sunday, the Lord is speaking to us concerning salvation and judgment. Are you a disciple of Jesus, a disciple who is learning the meaning of true worship? Or, are you a Pharisee who knows nothing of the spirit of true worship?

Elijah Rain Publishing

Elijah Rain Publishing

"L et Us Come To Jesus ... "

Let us come to Jesus and experience His love. Let us come to Jesus and give Him our love.

Call For The Elders

Jam 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:

Jam 5:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

Jam 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

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"When God Looks On Us ... "

When God looks on us, He does not see our sin. He sees our Saviour.

A New Journey Through The Scriptures

At my Let's Share the Good News and The Theology of G. C. Berkouwer blogs, you can still find the Reading for each day (in its own box at the top of the page). The "New Journey Through The Scriptures", beginning with Genesis 1, starts tomorrow (22nd January 2009). If you follow these readings each day, they will take you through the whole Bible in three years.
I hope you will visit the "Daily Devotional Readings" and receive a blessing from the Lord.
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"When you read God's Word, you must constantly be saying to yourself, 'It is talking to me, and about me.'" (Soren Kierkegaard).
Let's commit ourselves afresh to reading the Word of God day-by-day.
Here are some links which you may find helpful.

Look up Scripture passage

Read a specific comment online

Print a booklet containing monthly readings

"Pray That God's Light ... "

Pray that God's light will shine brightly: "Shine, Jesus, shine. Fill this land with the Father's glory."

"The Saviour Of The World ... "

"The Saviour of the world" died "for the sins of the whole world" - Good News for "all the world."

"The Way Of The Lord ... "

The way of the Lord leads to blessing. The way of self leads to judgment.

Drink Deep The Goodness Of God

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.

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Rainbow Over Israel

Rainbows are beautiful, colorful and simply spectacular.

Rainbow:

Jan. 18, 2009

Caused by the reflection and refraction of the rays of the sun shining on falling rain. It was appointed as a witness of the divine faithfulness (Gen 9:12-17). It existed indeed before, but it was then constituted as a sign of the covenant. Others, however (as Delitzsch, Commentary on Pentateuch), think that it "appeared then for the first time in the vault and clouds of heaven." It is argued by those holding this opinion that the atmosphere was differently constituted before the Flood. It is referred to three other times in Scripture (Eze 1:27,28; Rev 4:1-3; 10:1).

Blessings, in Christ
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Israel Declares Gaza Cease Fire

I'm wondering how long this will last? Although Israel is declaring the cease fire, they are remaining in Gaza. Chances are Hamas will continue it's rocket attackes, continue attacking and escalate the situation once again.

Time will tell... tic toc

"God Is Able ... "

God is able to do so much more than we can ask for. Be bold. Pray that God will send revival in our time.

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This thought is taken from

Isaiah 24:1-23

'They raise their voices, they shout for joy; from the west they acclaim the Lord's majesty. Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord, exalt the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea. From the ends of the earth we hear singing: "Glory to the Righteous One"' (14-16). What a beautiful picture of a land that is enjoying God's blessing, praising Him and giving glory to Him! Looking around us, we see a very different picture - 'The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws... therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt' (5-6). Can the dark picture of sin and guilt be turned into the brighter picture of salvation and rejoicing? God 'is able to do so much more than we can ask for, or even imagine' (Ephesians 3:20). Be bold. Pray that God will send revival in our time.

The Old Life Has Ended. The New Life Has Begun.

Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Christian can look back to the past and say, "The old life has ended." Through Christ, the believer can now say, "The new life has begun." Do you have this testimony? - The old life has ended. The new life has begun. No matter how far down the old life may have dragged us, the Lord Jesus Christ reaches us and lifts us up to a new life. "Wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sin ... Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus, deeper than the mighty rolling sea. Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain, all sufficient grace for even me. Broader than the scope of my transgression, greater far than all my sin and shame; Oh, magnify the precious Name of Jesus, praise His Name!" However far we may have fallen, the Word of God says, "you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11). we rejoice in the great words of the Psalmist: "As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us" (Psalm 103:12).

Witnessing For Christ In Today's World (5)

What are we to say about the distinction between “believing” and “belonging”?

There may be people of ‘vague faith’ who do not have a feeling of belonging because they do not really want to move beyond a ‘vague faith.’ Surely, we must ask whether this kind of ‘vague faith’, which shows no real interest in becoming a life-changing faith in Christ, should be described as ‘believing’.

There may also be people of a very strong faith who do not have a sense of belonging when they come to our congregations because they do not feel that Christ is at the centre of all that we do. Often, such people will go elsewhere, feeling that they must look for a fellowship of believers who seek to keep Christ at the centre of their worship and witness.

Whatever else may be said about ‘believing’ and ‘belonging’, those who wish to focus attention on Jesus Christ must surely agree with the statement that “any attempt to promote the church as an institution, to ‘sell’ the church as a form of religious commitment is futile.” We do not promote the church. We “preach … Jesus Christ as Lord” (2 Corinthians 4:5). We do not ‘sell’ the church. We point people to the Saviour, emphasizing that “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

Witnessing For Christ In Today's World (4)

What do we mean when we use words like “evangelism” and “mission”? If “evangelism” means no more than bringing people to faith in God, have we taken them any further than the deist who sees ‘God’ as the most rational explanation of the mystery of life. Surely, evangelism takes us beyond this by focusing attention on our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. When mission emphasizes the importance of being a “gracious neighbour”, we must surely take care to make it clear that being a gracious neighbour arises out of loving the Lord our God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength (Luke 10:27).

If, in our understanding of our work for the Lord, we emphasize the importance of both our words and our actions, I don’t think there is any great need to say that evangelism is one thing and mission is something else. Both words describe our commitment to serving the Lord in the whole of life.

Witnessing For Christ In Today's World (3)

It’s often said that our theology should be an “answering theology.” We are to engage with the questions people are asking. Recognizing the importance of this approach, we should be aware of the danger that our theology can end up becoming a “questioning theology.” When we end up saying things like, “We have more questions than answers”, are we not losing the simplicity of the Gospel which tells us of God’s Answer to the problem of human sin? We don’t need to have “all the answers to all the questions”, but we can point to “Christ Jesus who came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). “The courage to doubt” may help us to acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers. It is only the courage of faith that will enable us to confess Christ as our Saviour and call upon others to trust in Him.

Witnessing For Christ In Today's World (2)

It’s often said that people no longer understand Biblical and theological language. What are we to do about this? Are we to “demythologize” the Christian message? Can we share the Good News if we are dismissive of the facts on which the Gospel is based – “Christ died for our sins” and was “raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)? By focusing on words such as suffering, social justice and mystery, we may find points of contact with people’s experience. This may lead to wide-ranging discussion of issues that are of general interest to people who might describe themselves as humanists. At what point do we speak of Christ? Sometimes, when we speak of dialogue, it can end up in a rambling type of discussion which never really gets very near to focusing attention on the Jesus Christ of the Bible. He always has more to say to us than simply calling us to love our neighbour. When we get people’s attention, what are we to say to them? If we are to get their attention for Jesus Christ, we must surely seek to move beyond a conversation about social issues.

Witnessing For Christ In Today's World (1)

Offering a theological analysis of contemporary society does not mean that we ‘curse’ the society within which we live. We must always bring the Good News of God’s love – “God so loved the world …” (John 3:16). That doesn’t mean that we become uncritical of the world. We must never forget these words: “Do not love the world or the things of the world” (1 John 2:15). How are we to “seek the welfare of the city”? Do we get so caught up in earthly city that we forget about “the city of God” – so wrapped in a this – worldly outlook that we lose sight of the eternal dimension – God’s eternal love, God’s eternal purpose, God’s eternal Kingdom? It’s often said that we can become too heavenly-minded to be any earthly-good. Have we reached the stage where we need to be reminded that we can become too earthly-minded to be any heavenly-good?

May The Love Of Christ Shine Brightly In Our Lives.

The life, filled with Christian love, is the life which is controlled by the love of Jesus Christ. The life which is controlled by the love of Christ will be a life of service, a life constrained by the love of Christ - constrained to reach out to others with His love. When our lives are controlled by the love of Christ, there will be both love for God and love for our neighbour - not one without the other, but both together. We will offer praise and worship to God. We will give ourselves in the service of needy mean and women. Through our words and actions, we are to show the love of Christ. We cannot be content with words only, for words without actions are dead. Let us live for Christ. Let us speak for Christ. Let us pray that the love of Christ will shine brightly in our lives, as a light which draws men and women to the Saviour.

Let the Love Of Christ Control Your Life.

1 Corinthians 13 is the most well-known Bible passage on the theme of Christian love. When we read 1 Corinthians 13, it is most important that we understand that true Christian love is not something which comes naturally to us. true Christian love is nothing less than the love of God: "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). True Christian love is not something which arises from deep within our own hearts. It is the love of God which has been poured into our hearts by God Himself. True Christian love grows in us as we allow our lives to be brought under the control of Jesus Christ. In 2 Corinthians 5:14, the Apostle Paul wrote, "The love of Christ controls us. The love of Christ constrains us."

The World Is Watching How We Live.

A well-known atheist, Nietzsche, once said, "His disciples will have to look more saved if I am to believe in their Saviour." This is very challenging. The only "Bible" many people ever read is the "Bible" of our lives. They never read the Bible we carry with us to Church, but they watch how we live our lives. They watch like a hawk, and they make up their minds about Christianity on the basis of what they see in Christians. A Marxist writer, Machovec, has pointed out that "critics practically never reproach Christians for being followers of Christ, but ... for not being such" (A Marxist Looks At Jesus, cited in H. Kung, On Being a Christian, p. 558).

Let Christ's Love Flow Through You.

All that we do may sound very impressive, but, without love, it is nothing - nothing at all. Living as a disciple of Jesus does not mean being a "Bible-thumper." It means loving Jesus and loving other with the love of Jesus. We are not called to hit people with a book. We are to love them with the love of Jesus. We are not to bombard them with words. We are to show them the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. Words have their place, but we must practise what we preach. In our everyday life, we must live out the love of Christ. Love - this is what really makes the difference. Love - this is what really draws men and women to Jesus Christ.

The Most Important Thing Is Love.

The importance of having love in all that we do is emphasized in a modern song, entitled, "Witness": "I witnessed to a man today. I witnessed to his wife. I told them 'bout the way and I told them 'bout the life. I told them that they needed to surrender to the Lord. I told them 'bout the power of His double-edged sword. I witnessed to a drunkard outside a tenement. I told him he was shameful and he needed to repent. I witnessed to a blind men beggin' money on the street. I put a tract into his cup and did not miss a beat. I passed out all the tracts with all the Scripture underlined. I handed one to each and every one that I could find. I'd shove one in their hands and I'd walk on to the next. I must have reached a hundred souls with my salvation text. I gave out little Bibles, with the Gospel of St. John, into a hundred hands before my Bibles were all gone. I told each one I met the words of John3 verse 16, and sandwiched in a little bit of Matthew in between. I finished out the day and yet I was not satisfied. And, on my way back home, it hit me, and I almost cried. I'd given them the message and I'd given them a little shove, but I'd missed the most important thing. I had not given love." (from Chuck Girard's album, "The Stand).

The Life Of Discipleship Is A Life Of Love.

In the Church, we are to live as disciples of Jesus Christ. In the world, we are to live as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. When we consider the life of discipleship, we must learn to think of it as a life of love. Jesus said, "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35). Sharing our love within the context of marriage is, for some of us, a part of life. Sharing our love as disciples of Jesus - this is something we are all called to do. Living as disciples of Jesus means more than just saying the right words. It means living the right way. It means letting the love of Christ fill our lives. His love is to shape our attitudes. His love is to inspire our actions.

God Loves You And I Love You.

In 1979, I visited a church in the USA, where the members of the congregation greeted each other with these words: "God loves you, and I love you." A year later, after my return to Scotland, I heard a song with the words: "God loves you, and I love you, and that's the way it should be." The love of God is not merely words which we speak. The love of God is to be seen in the lives which we lead. "God loves you, and I love you." "God loves you, and I love you, and that's the way it should be." these words have stuck with me over the course of the years. When I conduct a wedding, I read the words of 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 and 1 Corinthians 13:13. I give the couple a motto to carry with them into their married life: "God loves you, and I love you." I emphasize that human love is founded on divine love. Our love for each other is based on God's love for each of us. I stress to them that there are times, in every marriage, when you become painfully of your partner's weaknesses, times when you are very disappointed in your partner. At such times, it is difficult to share your love with your partner. These are the times when we must remember the love of God. When you find it difficult to love your partner, remember God's love for you. God sees your weaknesses as well as your strengths. He sees your bad points as well as your good points. He knows all about your faults and failings, yet He continues to love you. When you think of such love, you will find it so much easier to share your love with your partner. The words, "I love you", will come to mean so much more when both husband and wife are seeking to build upon the love of God. This is the advice that I give to newly married couples; Build your human love on divine love. Build your love for each other on the love of God for both of you.

The Beast

Rev 11:6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

Rev 11:7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

Rev 11:8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Rev 11:9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

Rev 11:10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

Rev 11:11 And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.

Rev 11:12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

Rev 11:13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

Revelation Chapter 11

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Find The Eye Of The Storms

The Hurricanes To Come
Yesterday Is Gone, Today Is Here & Tomarrow

2008 is simply past history and 2009 is upon us. Our world is struggling in so many areas, in so many situations and the circumstances, well, they just seem to be intensifying.

Much like watching a hurricane building and creating strong winds. However, there is a eye in the midst of such storms where the air currents are calm.

May the Prince of Peace be the eye of the storms that arise in your life. May Christ be the Rock that you stand upon and may the Spirit be the wind in your sails.

Happy New Year!
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