“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish…” John 10:28 “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:” “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? John 11:26 “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called…”1 Timothy 6:12 “…and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:12B Have we transferred eternity into our profession? Do we believe eternity? Timothy did. Do we profess eternity? In an article called “Seeking eternal life, silicon-valley is solving for death,” https://qz.com/ we read: “For years now, the luminaries of Silicon Valley have been putting their minds, money, and machines behind an all-out effort to solve for death. Full of futurists who don’t have enough time in the day to achieve their lofty goals,…
Healing at the Cross Posts
“Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” “Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.” “So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet: for his God gave him rest round about. ” 2 Chronicles 20:15,17, 20, 21, 22, 30 Another battle breaks while Elisha lives: “Alas, my master! how shall we do? And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of…
I’m sad, let me count the ways;: Lets forget that I’m a Christian man and let’s talk about the fellowship of mankind. A human being from birth, ha ha, I knew nothing of anything but the fellowship of mankind for 25 years (pre-Christian). I learned people youngly, from my own observations. Gaining a relationship with a person depended totally on the other person; I was not a “people” person. I had no self-image. What did I learn? — Superficial, superficial, superficial stuff. Hopeless, I became one drunk drugger. So what? — Self destructive. Conditions seem worse than ever today. Seems, folks think defaming a person’s character wins friends. Slander has become “in vogue” per today’s world. Newscasters do it all the time, news media has developed a clever deceit. Lack of people-skills abounds on social media, Twitter, and high-powered bitter anger fuels the charge. It seems that this mojo flies without…
Grief stricken, a person isolated their psychological pain. Strong willed? Strong minded? The current generation harnesses many soul powers like “isolation”. Coping mechanisms or defense mechanisms can hold back the flood tides sometimes. Where do these come from? “A well-known categorization of defense mechanisms by George Vaillant in 1994 differentiated between immature defense mechanisms, such as projection (blaming others) and denial, and mature defenses, like humor and sublimation (turning your unconscious motives into productive activity).” Sounds like we have grown more sophisticated? Not just yet. Here are some other “modern” mechanisms: Isolation — keeps yourself clueless about your flaws and missteps. Self-Compensation — your attempt to find an external outlet to feel better. Dissipation — you turn all of your anxieties onto some idealized version of yourself. Interesting, however, “The criterion for evaluating the effectiveness of a defense mechanism, in the Nanjing authors’ model, include whether it (a) distorts the individual’s self-representation (self-image), or (b) causes poorer relations with others.”…
In Paul’s “Romans” letter we delight in a plethora of plenty, an Easter basket of colors, a bounty of beautiful treats, a bundle of love. First, a plethora of plenty; We have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. by faith we stand in Grace. Second, an Easter basket of colors; While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son. Third, a bounty of beautiful treats; The gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounds to the many, The free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. By the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness we reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. Fourth, a bundle of…
Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.” Ephesians 5:11-14 Light brightens up our darkness, and in the light we gain more and more light in the rooms of our soul. Rooms of our soul? The metaphor was first painted by our Founder and Pastor, Dr. Carl Stevens. He states, “The first thing grace teaches us is to deny ungodliness. Then we can live “soberly”—with discreet, quiet truth, having the rooms of our soul filled with categorical doctrine.” He continues, “Once the foundation, which is Christ, has been established in…
Michael Dorstewitz wrote an interesting editorial at newsmax.com Here is an excerpt: “‘Columnist Elizabeth Bruenig suggested Tuesday in The Washington Post that, “It’s time to give socialism a try. Not to be confused for a totalitarian nostalgist, I would support a kind of socialism that would be democratic and aimed primarily at decommodifying labor, reducing the vast inequality brought about by capitalism, and breaking capital’s stranglehold over politics and culture,’ she wrote.’ Her piece appears to be based on the fundamental misconception that people in a capitalist society struggle to obtain their own individual piece of the economic pie. While there may be but one ‘economic pie’ in a socialist society, in capitalism, each person is given the freedom to create his own pie.” Michael Dorstewitz O my Lord! What a metaphor for the Christian Life! Do you realize that you have been given a “pie” and this pie can be…
There hides a secret place and there a person finds a stairway leading up. In that secret place of Song of Solomon 2:14 the safe zone promotes our elevation, our lift, our rising above. There He encourages our voice, our countenance. There hides another place, a strong tower, where we also ascend to the highest overlook possible. Here, in His nature, we are above our enemies. A third hiding place preserves from trouble; songs of deliverance flow around. Another places us under His wing’s shadow. Psalm 32:7, Proverbs 18:10. Psalm 91:1 Corrie and Betsie ten Boom were middle-aged sisters working in their father’s watchmaker shop in pre-WWII Holland. Their uneventful lives are disrupted with the coming of the Nazis. Suspected of hiding Jews & caught breaking rationing rules, they are sent to a concentration camp, where their Christian faith keeps them from despair and bitterness. Betsie eventually dies, but Corrie survives,…
A believer reckons two things: I’m dead indeed unto sin. I’m alive unto God. Well here’s three: For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:18 We reckon as in our soul’s ledger book — zero on the sin side, heavy on the resurrection side, light on the suffering side. To conceal or reveal? that is a question in reckoning? It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.. ..It is his (man’s) glory to pass over a transgression. A talebearer reveals secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit conceals the matter. Proverbs 11:13 A prudent man conceals knowledge: but the heart of fools proclaims foolishness. Proverbs 12:23 …God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses…
“While imprisoned in a tiny prison cell for his attempts to reform the Church, sixteenth-century Spanish mystic John of the Cross composed many of his now classic poems of the soul’s longing for God. This poem is, “Dark Night of the Soul.” On a dark night, Kindled in love with yearnings—oh, happy chance! — I went forth without being observed, My house being now at rest. In darkness and secure, By the secret ladder, disguised—oh, happy chance! — In darkness and in concealment, My house being now at rest. In the happy night, In secret, when none saw me, Nor I beheld aught, Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart. This light guided me More surely than the light of noonday To the place where He (well I knew who!) was awaiting me— A place where none appeared. Oh, night that guided me, Oh, night more…