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Tag: news

Times of Difficulty
Joel 1:

Has such a thing happened in your days,
or in the days of your fathers?

3 Tell your children of it,
and let your children tell their children,
and their children to another generation.

While disasters loom and chaos rules, talking heads debate over who said what about the rein of evil isolated in time or place.

I’m outraged!
```
(But it's not what you think.)
```
One death causes lingering debate, then a couple dozen again across the sea.

India – 2 million child deaths/year

Yet  what of a crisis in a hospital in India where 68 children died because of a financial dispute over who would pay for oxygen?

What of 250 dead, lost to floods in Nepal, India and Bangladesh?

Would a press so entertained over a single firing dare mention 28 deaths from a national election controversy in a poor country like Kenya?

These acts of violence by evil men of many races and differing religion are not news. Extreme political positions and taunting of opposing opinion are nothing new under the sun.

Hidden in the headlines of Shiite Islam vs. Sunni Islam in Iraq (along with Syria, another war no one has won) we see starving children, victims of war’s atrocities, malnourished and wounded, gleaning fields for a few bites to eat. Least of all world-wide entertaining news would never herald the passing of 100 souls from hunger each and every hour!

China commits ‘staggering’ 23 million abortions per year, according to US State Dept.

Could self-defining generations of sexually active ‘single’ women ever be chastised for their ‘right’ to end the lives of more than 25 million babies so far this year?!

[ctt title=”Could the two most populous countries in the world ever be held accountable for all the babies and young children who have died? ” tweet=”https://ctt.ec/j1nfg+” coverup=”j1nfg”]

When will the LORD finally say, enough is enough?

Genesis 6:

5 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”

Exodus 12:29

At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock.

The Lord intervenes

You may not have read from scripture of the great power of the Lord, though you witness the magnificence of His Almighty hand every day. Recall (or read for the first time) how a prayer reached the hearing of the Lord and the Lord saved Israel.

2 Kings 19:

5 When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me…

15 And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said:

[ctt title=”“O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth.” tweet=”“Whom have you mocked and reviled? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes to the heights? Against the Holy One of Israel! 2Kings19:” coverup=”iFGf9″]

16 Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 17 Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands 18 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed. 19 So now, O Lord our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone.”

35 And that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians.

And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. 36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh.

Judgment of the Lord

Not so remarkable that the Lord of all the heavens and earth, the Lord who makes the sun and moon and stars to move; not so awesome that 185,000 men or all the first born of Egypt should unexpectedly be struck down.

Have you heard of the Lord’s covenant to never destroy all mankind by flood? Do you believe that? You who cannot gaze upon the brilliance of the sun the Lord has placed in the heavens, uncover your ears to hear his warnings to repent!

His patience withholds fire and brimstone from the destruction of evil, yet their judgment will come. In the Person of Christ Jesus the Lord has come to man and He will return.

Cover your eyes and open your heart. Look only to Jesus and no false man, dead or in power, mortals who cannot save your eternal soul.

Joel 1:

15 Alas for the day!
For the day of the Lord is near,
and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.

Joel 2:

Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming; it is near,
2 a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!

Return to the Lord

¹²“Yet even now,” declares the Lord,
    “return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
¹³    and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the Lord your God,
    for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
    and he relents over disaster.

The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit

²⁸“And it shall come to pass afterward,
    that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
    your old men shall dream dreams,
    and your young men shall see visions.
²⁹Even on the male and female servants
    in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

³⁰“And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. ³¹

The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

^{32 [ctt title=”And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. ” tweet=”Christ Jesus is Lord! A new heavens and a new earth await the Lord’s return.” coverup=”W2wAz”]}

To be continued…
August 21, 2017
(Go into all the world and) SHARE the Gospel – 2

The Great Commission

Preach the gospel (KJV & others); proclaim the gospel (ESV & others); share the good news: kēryssō euaggelion – publish good tidings to every creature.

“You share everything else on social media, why not share the good news of Jesus Christ”

Jesus, the Messiah of God died for our sins and is risen: therefore you may have eternal life in Him! Good News, a gospel we should long to share.

^{Mark 16:14}Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. ¹⁵And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. ¹⁶Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

What an amazing end to a Son of Man crucified on the cross! Jesus appears many times to many followers; He IS alive in body and spirit. Jesus tells not only the eleven to share the gospel, our Lord commands more followers who witnessed his resurrection and by His command those who will follow.

20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.

More to Come

You could say the the Gospel began in Genesis. It the the privilege and duty of Israel to share the truth of the One Lord with everyone. John’s gospel reveals to us that in spite of the fall of adam, the Word was present not only from before Abraham, as Jesus claims, but from before the beginning.

John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Jesus IS the Word and the Light. Even after a fallen Kingdom of David, Jesus claims the eternal Throne to which He anointed Kings and Prophets by the Authority of the LORD. And the Good News gets even better.

The Resurrection of Christ

1 Corinthians 15:1-6A

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time…

20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

Mystery and Victory

Paul encourages believers with words oft’ repeated when mourning the death of a loved one.

50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55 “O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

How do we share the Gospel now?

Since Moses, after Abraham, in the Kingdom of David and for centuries witness of the Lord seemed local. It still is, for our neighbors see Christ in our daily lives better than anyone. (Or at least, they should.)

Israel and the nations were built on the foundations of family, grown in the love of communities. Yet empires fall by the dividing hand of evil and conquered in disobedience to the Lord. I will repay, says the Lord, the God of Israel.

Sharing good news was easy and local, just tell your family and friends who are so much like you. Now that the world is connected, yet disjointed, our families are broken. Our values are lost in a world of competing idolatries and waring followers of false prophets. These listen and look for light and hope, which is distant yet connected through social media.

June 6, 2017
Go into all the world (and SHARE the Gospel) – 1

God came into the world as a man in the flesh to save sinners, yet so many do not know Jesus or turn away from the incarnate and risen Lord.

He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. – John 1:10”

If you believe, what did the Lord command his servants (that is, you and me)?

Go into all the world

The Gospel of Mark, which closes with Christ’s Great Commission to “Go into all the world..” opens with his summary overview: The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,”

son of God

Term used preeminently of Jesus Christ, as enjoying the supreme love of God, united to him in affectionate intimacy, privy to his saving councils, obedient to the Father’s will in all his acts.

used to describe Adam (Lk. 3:38)
used to describe those who are born again (Lk. 20:36) and of angels and of Jesus Christ
of those whom God esteems as sons, whom he loves, protects and benefits above others
in the OT used of the Jews
in the NT of Christians
those whose character God, as a loving father, shapes by chastisements Heb. 12:5-8)

Mark 1:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight..’”

4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

…

14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying,

[ctt title=”“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”” tweet=”Jesus Christ, Son of Man proclaims in the Gospel of Mark 1:15″ coverup=”z5edx”]

The Lord Rules the World

He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s,
and on them he has set the world. – 1 Samuel 2:8

Let all the earth fear the LORD;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him! – Psalm 33:8

I will punish the world for its evil,
and the wicked for their iniquity;
I will put an end to the pomp of the arrogant,
and lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless. – Isaiah 13:11

[ctt title=”The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one..” tweet=”The words of Jesus, Gospel of Matthew 13:38” coverup=”bP8Uh”]

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. – Gospel of John 14:27

I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.” – John 16:28

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33

The Mission

Some may recognize the theme of our post here as the beginning of the Great Commission. Praise the Lord God, Creator of the heavens and earth, all that is seen and unseen. Believe from the scriptures that God has so loved the world that he sacrificed his only Son, Christ Jesus, for our sins. We are adopted into the loving eternal family of the Lord. Receive the Holy Spirit of the triune God to guide your heart and refine your flesh.

If you believe, are you listening to the Lord?

Here the words of Jesus, risen Son of Man:

John 5:25-29 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.

Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

Resurrection of the body, commission to save souls

Mark 16:

15 [ctt title=”And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” tweet=”https://ctt.ec/_0d4q+ NEW Christian Social Witness mission via facebook” coverup=”_0d4q”]

To be continued…

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May 29, 2017