Sunday 7/21 ~ Teaching the teachers

Our scripture for today, July 21 (7/21), is Matthew 7:21ff as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

NF-WorshipChanges-WorshipFirst“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ “

There are hundreds of denominations/sects out there all contradicting each other. It’s impossible for them all to be right. They cannot all be on different roads going to the same place. They cannot all be pleasing God if we decide opposing things please him.

You can never rely on what someone else says just because they look and act holy and say all the right holy words and phrases and pray such holy-sounding prayers. You must never rely on your religious leaders to tell you what to believe. Shall you take their opinion or God’s opinion?

Romans 10:1 in the Bible mentions some people who had a lot of zeal for God, but were lost because it was not according to the proper knowledge.

Well, how do you get God’s opinion? Read the Bible for yourself! Use a concordance (lists every word in the Bible and every scripture with that word ~ Bible Hub has one on the internet) and look up your chosen subject.  Then, having found the truth, why not go back to your religious leaders in love and try to teach your teachers? Some just might listen to you.

 

NF-WorshipChanges-WorshipFirstWORSHIP CHANGES SINCE THE 1ST CENTURY gives the very year changes were introduced and who introduced them. It also tells what they did to the protesters to each change.  WORSHIP THE FIRST-CENTURY WAY gently covers each part of our worship beginning with quotes from famous theologians, scripture examples, and intermittent prayers for guidance.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2M2Gsux

LINK TO ALL MY BOOKS:  http://bit.ly/MyBookInfo

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Saturday 7/6 ~ It IS possible to know!

The scripture for today, July 6 (7/6), is Mark 7:6f as found in the New Testament of the Bible.

“He [Jesus] replied, ‘Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’ ”

It is the trend today to say that all religions ~ even those who teach opposing things ~ are right and all are good. It is the trend today to say all gods are the same God, and we are all going to the same heaven if we’re pretty good. It’s not that simple.  Jesus did not say this. Well, then, how do we know which religious things we are taught and do today are from God and which from men?

You are smart. Don’t be lazy.  Read the holy books of all major world religions for yourself. Who knows? What you have been told all your life may be wrong.  Do the other holy books have built-in proofs they really originated from God?  Perhaps scientific, archaeological, ancient inscriptions, prophecies fulfilled? Here is a website with those holy books on it:  https://www.sacred-texts.com  Here is a website with nearly 400 proofs the Bible is from God:

https://casagrandechurchofchrist.com/bible-proofs/

If you conclude the Bible is true, use a concordance and do a study of everything the Bible says about any topic. That way you will have God’s opinion, not men’s.

Here is a website with an online Bible concordance and it’s easy to use:  http://bibletab.com

You can find out for yourself,~ you can KNOW ~ whether what you were told to believe by family, friends, and leaders is what God told you to believe. Your eternity depends on it.

 

CHRISTIANITY OR ISLAM: THE CONTRAST quotes from both the Qur’an and New Testament of the Bible on the same subjects without comment. It can be given in a Muslim without offending them. Things they have been told about Christianity which is not true are explained. It ends with statements of over 100 Muslims I have studied with who decided Jesus really was the Son of God and not just a prophet.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2NyJHMH

 

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Thursday 7/4 ~ This is that Jesus

The scripture for today, July 4 (7/4) is Romans 7:4 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 5-FloodGates-Cover-Thumbnail-New“So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.”

This is not talking about just any law. It is talking about the law, a specific law ~ the Law of Moses.

Have you ever tried wading through Leviticus, the third book of the Bible? It’s full of all those laws in the Law of Moses (over 600 of them). Thank God Jesus nailed them to the cross and we are no longer bound by killing animals, stoning people for adultery, tithing, having priests, burning incense, going to the temple three times a year, only traveling 1/3 of a mile on Saturday, paying for traveling mercies, and on and on.

How did “we” in today’s scripture die to the law? He said in the previous chapter (6:4) “we were therefore buried with him through baptism into death” and in Colossians 2:14 where Christ “having canceled the written code with its regulations that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross” and in Hebrews 9:13, 10:1 “By calling this covenant ‘new’ he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear….The law was only a shadow of the good things that are coming.”

God now freely gives you and me His gifts through Jesus Christ.  This is the Jesus who overcame Death, overcame Satan, overcame our having to be perfect when his body came back to life. This is the Jesus who sacrificed everything to bring you to him.

 

0-BK 5-FloodGates-Cover-Thumbnail-NewTHEY MET JESUS:  FLOOD GATES.  Indeed, Jesus did release the flood gates when he announced he was greater than the prophets and greater than Moses.  All the prophecies about some day God coming to be their king were thrown out the window. The religious leaders needed him out of the way. The religious leaders decided to kill their competition.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/32c5UTQ

 

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Wednesday 7/3 ~ Gear up and take that leap

The scripture for today, July 3 (7/3), is Acts 7:3 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-” ‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’ “

This is part of a speech by Christian Stephen soon after the church began. He was reminding the Jewish leaders how God told their ancestor Abraham to leave his religion, home and family, and move to where God had something special for him ~ to begin the Jewish nation and a new religion.

But when Stephen got to the part where now God wanted his audience to leave the Jewish religion and move on to a still better one ~ the Christian religion ~ they were outraged. They were not like Abraham; they did not want to change. So, not liking the message, they killed the messenger. These religious leaders stoned Stephen to death.

Have you learned “new” things in the Bible that your religion is against? It is hard to change. You could lose your friends and family like Abraham did; you could even lose your home as Abraham did. It takes a great big “leap of faith” to follow that “new” truth you have discovered in the Bible. But when God does the recommending, you can know he has something special in mind for you. So, gear up and take that leap!

 

00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-PAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE did everything possible to not change from Judaism to Christianity. He hauled people to prison and even killed them if they refused to stop talking about changing. It was only when he changed sides that he saw what he had been missing out on. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this: https://amzn.to/328ta59

 

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Tuesday 7/2 ~ God’s Opinion?

The scripture for today, July 2 (7/2), is Proverbs 7:2ff as found in the Old Testament of the Bible.

0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-Thumbnail“Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister,’ and call understanding your kinsman.”

It is popular today for people to reject Christianity because they don’t like rules. That is not logical. Everything in life has rules ~ getting tired and having to sleep is a rule to keep your energy up.  Eating is a rule to keep you alive.  Not running out into the street with cars coming is a rule to save your life.  True Christianity has the same kind of logical rules. They may annoy you, but God is trying to save your soul.

Still, it seems, everywhere we turn, we are given differing religious rules and way too many. They cannot all be true, yet people who give them seems to be so good. They all pray and do good deeds, and never kill, cheat or steal.

How can they all be right when they contradict each other? Preachers and creeds and elders and dogmas. No wonder people are turned off by all the man-made rules.  When it comes down to it, only God’s opinion counts.

So how do we get God’s opinion? We look up everything in the Bible using the keyword we are concerned about. We look it up for ourselves and decide for ourselves. We do not let other people decide for us.

Well, how do we find all those verses? By using a concordance which is like a large dictionary listing all the words in the Bible and what verses carry those words. It is the size of a large-city telephone book. You can also get it on the internet free here:  http://bibletab.com/

So today look up something about Christianity you have always been curious about. It will open up a whole new world for you. Then you’ll have wisdom, understanding, and God’s opinion.

 

0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-ThumbnailTHE HOLY SPIRIT:  592 VERSES EXAMINED. The religious world has confused us with so many pet theories about God’s Holy Spirit.  Let’s forget them all and look up every verse in the Bible where God himself explains his Spirit to us.  Put together, we have a simple and beautiful picture of the Holy Spirit.  It is only $2.99 in e format and $12 in paper. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2FzPTQu

 

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Sunday 6/16 ~Ask for the ancient paths

The scripture for today, June 16 (6/16), is Jeremiah 6:16 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Titus-Cover-Lg Thumb“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”

We need history, not only for an appreciation of what our forefathers did for us but also to learn which mistakes not to make all over again. This is true with religion also. There are hundreds of denominations and religions out there. This divisiveness hurts us. It seems the more denominations and religions we have, the fewer people are interested in spiritual things. They call it “organized religion”.

Within Christianity, think about creeds for a moment. If a creed is less than the Bible, it isn’t enough. If it is more than the Bible, it is too much. If it is the same as the Bible, why have it? Let us change our loyalties away from denominationalism and toward the Bible. All this confusion is exhausting!

Human nature has always been the same, and the Bible written long ago applies just as much to human nature today as it did then. Proverbs! The life and speeches of Jesus! The many mistakes made by people in the Old Testament! The advice to Christians in the New Testament!

It’s not confusing. And maybe then, we will find rest for our souls.

 

0-Titus-Cover-Lg ThumbTITUS: THE ARISTOCRAT was raised in the elite city of Antioch (according to tradition). When he was converted to Christianity, Paul sent him everywhere to arbitrate problems between Christians and problems in churches.  He was a “smooth operator” and knew how to make both sides feel they won while staying true to the one path of truth.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2MRwnmn

 

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Monday 6/3 ~ Do you say no to what God says yes to?

The scripture for today, June 3 (6/3), is Romans 6:3f as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-Joseph-Cover-Thumbnail“Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life….because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.”

Oh! Baptism does all that? Some people say no. God says yes. Some people hate this topic because their church leaders have rejected it as unimportant and even call people who quote such verses in God’s Word as dangerous.  Why?

Look at the list in that verse that baptism does for us.  In baptism, we obtain a new life ~ are born again. And in baptism, we are freed from sin ~ forgiven. Look at it this way: Just as Jesus died carrying our sins on himself, we die to our sinful nature ~ the part of us that sins and doesn’t care. Then just as Jesus was buried in his tomb, we are buried in our watery tomb. And just as Jesus came up out of his tomb the Savior, we come up out of our tomb the saved ~ with a “new life” and “freed from sin.”

Everything works together beautifully ~ hearing, believing, confessing, dying to sin, being baptized. What an honor and privilege we have been given to imitate what he did for us! 1st Peter 3:21 says it is an answer of a good conscience toward God.

Just as the crucifixion was a physical thing to obtain a spiritual outcome, baptism is a physical thing to obtain a spiritual outcome.  How beautiful. How amazing.

 

PERFECT FOR FATHER’S DAY GIFT ~

JOSEPH: THE OTHER FATHER had the greatest challenge in the history of the world ~ to raise God’s child in a violent world. A year before Jesus died, he visited his hometown of Nazareth. The people there said, “ISN’T this the son of the carpenter?” not “WASN’T”. Read the story of Joseph and all he may have gone through to keep Jesus protected until he was grown. To BUY NOW, click a book title or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2HTIcE6

 

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Monday, 5/27 ~ Which is true?

The scripture for today, May 27 (5/27), is Job 5:27 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-Thumbnail“We have examined this, and it is true. So hear it and apply it to yourself.”

How many times have you gone to worship or listened on TV to a minister/priest/rabbi/imam and believed everything he said because the speaker looked so holy and convincing? Isn’t that confusing when so many different holy-looking religious leaders teach different things and conflict with each other?

What is the answer to this dilemma? Examine the Bible for yourself! You’re smart! You can do it!

The best way is to get a concordance. It lists every word in the Bible alphabetically, and every scripture that contains that word. If you want to know God’s opinion instead of man’s, use your concordance and look up every passage your chosen topic appears in. You can buy one (it is the size of an unabridged dictionary but not expensive) or use one on the internet.

Then examine everything God ~ not man ~ has to say about anything. Then there are no doubts. You have examined the facts. Now you know the truth.  Now you are ready to apply it to yourself. The truth will set you free.

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Sunday 5/12 ~ He’s pretty good at that wisdom thing

The scripture for today, May 12 (5/12), is 1st Kings 5:12 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Michel-COVER-Kindle-Thumbnail“The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him.”

God makes a promise of wisdom to Christians today. James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”

Amazing! God doesn’t sit around and tell certain people, “You really messed up. Your life is full of turmoil. Now you come to me expecting me to get you out of your mess.” No, God does not throw your faults in your face. It’s no use dwelling in the past; that is history.

He is ready and willing to provide guidance for the present and future, the now and later. But how can you know God’s wisdom? He certainly does not make you guess.

He put everything he wants you to know in his Word, the Bible ~ examples of people who did and did not mess up their lives ~ and words of advice. All you have to do is open it and ask God to help you understand it and apply it with wisdom.

God promised. Check him out. He’s pretty good at that wisdom thing.

Image result for "Buy the book" button redMICHEL: THE FOURTH WISEMAN: Believing a new god had been born with the appearance of THE STAR, King Phraates demands his wise men advisors to tell him who that god is so he can get on his good side. They search the world for the meaning of the star while Michel keeps telling him the answer is right in their own backyard in their archives written by his ancestor. They refuse to listen to Michel’s wisdom. To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2vRiqJE

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Thursday 5/2 ~ Does truth even exist?

The scripture for today, May 2 (5/2), is Micah 5:2 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0000-BK 1-StarSong-Cover-new-Thumbnail“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

In today’s world completely connected and interconnected universally, people are asking “Who is the Higher Power?”.  Some say the Muslim Allah is, some say the Hindu Brahman is, some say the Buddhist Nirvana, some say the Jehovah of Christianity is. This is called the “New Age Movement”.

Buddhism (though most people do not realize where it came from) has infiltrated the young American culture by declaring there is no such thing as truth.  One thing is true to one person, an opposite thing is truth to another person, so believe what you want.  Hinduism teaches we have to keep being reborn and live through this yard life eternally or until we become perfect.  Islam teaches paradise is a place where you can drink all the wine you want and never get drunk, and are waited on my wide-eyed virgins.

None of the writings of these religions have been proven true. The Bible is the only religious book in the world with built-in proofs that it is of divine origin. Prophecies of many events in the life of Christ and of entire empires flow throughout the Old Testament. No human could have known these hundreds of facts hundreds of years before they happened. And, if these prophecies were truth, then the rest of the Bible is truth.

Today’s amazing scripture prophecies where the “ruler…from ancient times” ~ the eternal king ~ will be born. It gives the exact city Jesus (who had been in heaven before his human birth) would be born in but was written seven centuries before his birth.

The Word of God in flesh wasn’t just a prophet, he wasn’t just a good man, he wasn’t a fraud. Thank God, He thought of everything to help us believe Jesus was, indeed, the Son of God, God materialized.

Image result for "Buy the book" button redTHEY MET JESUS: STAR SONG is a novel about Jesus being born exactly at the time and in the city prophets had predicted centuries earlier. It is a book of fascination as God came to us in the innocence of a child and kept that innocence his entire life.  To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2vvlACO

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