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Today's Scripture Reading
- Thread starter Psalm23
- Start date
Hi my friend in Christ,
I am no theologian. I just want to share the daily scripture reading with friends in Christ. I am sorry to say I am unable to debate on the question you raise. However, I know from the Bible that God is actually in Three-Person, God, the Father, God the Son, Jesus, and God the Holy Spriit. Collectively, they are the Trnity - the term incidentally is not used in the Bible. Jesus, God the Son was sent to the earth to suffer for our sins.
I am no theologian. I just want to share the daily scripture reading with friends in Christ. I am sorry to say I am unable to debate on the question you raise. However, I know from the Bible that God is actually in Three-Person, God, the Father, God the Son, Jesus, and God the Holy Spriit. Collectively, they are the Trnity - the term incidentally is not used in the Bible. Jesus, God the Son was sent to the earth to suffer for our sins.
Today’s Scripture Reading [July 28, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
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]
When we are facing life challenges, many of us usually choose the easy way. Often the easy way out is just to give up, for example, instead of staying with a challenging marriage, one may just look for happiness in another mate; or just quit the job to look for another green pasture because of one or two ‘unbearable’ situations. Unfortunatey, we may settle for things that are worse than before and we regretted. Thank God, it’s never too late if we come to Him faithfully and ask for His guidance, counsel and forgiveness. Remember our ultimate destination and goal - to finish the race that Jesus has planned for us so that we can receive eternal life. So, hang on to all circumstances, endure them, pray continually for God’s strengths. We are just passing through this earth as guests and God has something much better for us. Just live for Jesus and we will live for eternity.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
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]
When we are facing life challenges, many of us usually choose the easy way. Often the easy way out is just to give up, for example, instead of staying with a challenging marriage, one may just look for happiness in another mate; or just quit the job to look for another green pasture because of one or two ‘unbearable’ situations. Unfortunatey, we may settle for things that are worse than before and we regretted. Thank God, it’s never too late if we come to Him faithfully and ask for His guidance, counsel and forgiveness. Remember our ultimate destination and goal - to finish the race that Jesus has planned for us so that we can receive eternal life. So, hang on to all circumstances, endure them, pray continually for God’s strengths. We are just passing through this earth as guests and God has something much better for us. Just live for Jesus and we will live for eternity.
Today’s Scripture Reading [July 29, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart. [Psalm 44:21]
Just like there is no black lie or white lie, there is no small sin or big sin and there is also no public sin or secret sin. Regardless of whether we view our sins as big or small, public or secret - sin is sin, and God sees. Although we may be able to keep secrets from others, we cannot keep secrets from God. He is omnipotent, meaning "all knowing," and there is nowhere to hide from God. Trying to hide our sins from God is futile. However, our loving God desires that we open our eyes and see our sin through His eyes. We must earnestly pray and seek healing of forgiveness that only Lord Jesus can provide. To fully please Him, we must repent not just in words through our prayer but also with our deeds and thoughts. Always remember: God knows the intention of our heart.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart. [Psalm 44:21]
Just like there is no black lie or white lie, there is no small sin or big sin and there is also no public sin or secret sin. Regardless of whether we view our sins as big or small, public or secret - sin is sin, and God sees. Although we may be able to keep secrets from others, we cannot keep secrets from God. He is omnipotent, meaning "all knowing," and there is nowhere to hide from God. Trying to hide our sins from God is futile. However, our loving God desires that we open our eyes and see our sin through His eyes. We must earnestly pray and seek healing of forgiveness that only Lord Jesus can provide. To fully please Him, we must repent not just in words through our prayer but also with our deeds and thoughts. Always remember: God knows the intention of our heart.
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Today’s Scripture Reading [July 30, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. [Mark 10:45]
We want recognition. We want to be famous. We want to be served. We want to be acknowledged. These are some of the very things we always wanted – besides material possessions. For example, many people, young and old are clamouring for recognition to be celebrities and the popularity of the America Idol contest speaks volume on this.
God has sent His Son, Jesus, to the world but not for popularity sake. He has become man to serve all mankind. God has given the greatest service that mankind desperately needed since the fall of Adam and that is to carry all their sins and nailed them onto the cross. Because of this we can be free from sin when we acknowledge Him, confess and repent of our sins.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. [Mark 10:45]
We want recognition. We want to be famous. We want to be served. We want to be acknowledged. These are some of the very things we always wanted – besides material possessions. For example, many people, young and old are clamouring for recognition to be celebrities and the popularity of the America Idol contest speaks volume on this.
God has sent His Son, Jesus, to the world but not for popularity sake. He has become man to serve all mankind. God has given the greatest service that mankind desperately needed since the fall of Adam and that is to carry all their sins and nailed them onto the cross. Because of this we can be free from sin when we acknowledge Him, confess and repent of our sins.
Today’s Scripture Reading [July 31, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. [Romans 12: 4-8]
We often we feel discourage or even jealous when we see talented believers performing on stage playing musical instruments that we wish we can play or singing with their angelic voices. We just wanted to be one of them. This is quite natural even though we are believers, our carnal self always points us to the wrong directions and in the course we focus on the wrong things, resulting us harboring jealousy and envy which God hates.
Every gift is from God and everyone of us is given some gifts. God value our contributions no matter how small the contribution may be. More importantly, it’s the intent of the heart when you contribute or give to God. You can never give too much for God because He is everything and, nothing is too small to God if you give to Him with the right attitude. Whether doing things to Him or to men, do with the right attitude and with a sanctified heart.
I have encountered people who mentioned that they would like to get to 'really' do charity work because they wanted to 'really' contribute to society. If we open our eyes each time we walk to the market, or food court for example, we can have a lot of opportunities to do charity work. We don’t need to be always attached to charitable organizations to do charity work. We can for example be more considerate to others which in itself is a charitable act. You will no doubt have witnessed that when you go to a food court, you have inconsiderate people who just put their shopping bags on the seats when they are so many other people searching for empty seats to have their meal. A small act of courtesy of just putting the shopping bags on the floor so that others can use the seat is a charitable act, and I believe this will please God. It might be a small act but this tells a lot of our attitude. But, by all means if you can afford the time, if you are caring and charitable, get involved with the charity work – visit the old folks’ homes, the sick, the poor – and care for them. These people always need you. Even a simple visit to just talk to them and show genuine concern will cheer them up for the day. And remember, Jesus loves cheerful givers – whether it’s money, time or love.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. [Romans 12: 4-8]
We often we feel discourage or even jealous when we see talented believers performing on stage playing musical instruments that we wish we can play or singing with their angelic voices. We just wanted to be one of them. This is quite natural even though we are believers, our carnal self always points us to the wrong directions and in the course we focus on the wrong things, resulting us harboring jealousy and envy which God hates.
Every gift is from God and everyone of us is given some gifts. God value our contributions no matter how small the contribution may be. More importantly, it’s the intent of the heart when you contribute or give to God. You can never give too much for God because He is everything and, nothing is too small to God if you give to Him with the right attitude. Whether doing things to Him or to men, do with the right attitude and with a sanctified heart.
I have encountered people who mentioned that they would like to get to 'really' do charity work because they wanted to 'really' contribute to society. If we open our eyes each time we walk to the market, or food court for example, we can have a lot of opportunities to do charity work. We don’t need to be always attached to charitable organizations to do charity work. We can for example be more considerate to others which in itself is a charitable act. You will no doubt have witnessed that when you go to a food court, you have inconsiderate people who just put their shopping bags on the seats when they are so many other people searching for empty seats to have their meal. A small act of courtesy of just putting the shopping bags on the floor so that others can use the seat is a charitable act, and I believe this will please God. It might be a small act but this tells a lot of our attitude. But, by all means if you can afford the time, if you are caring and charitable, get involved with the charity work – visit the old folks’ homes, the sick, the poor – and care for them. These people always need you. Even a simple visit to just talk to them and show genuine concern will cheer them up for the day. And remember, Jesus loves cheerful givers – whether it’s money, time or love.
Today’s Scripture Reading [August 1, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. [Joshua 14:10-11]
As we grow older, we can feel very insecure. For people who are in their late 40s or early 50s and still working because they are the sole-bread winners in their families, this insecurity can cause them a lot of anxieties. This is even more apparent during the time of economic uncertainty. They feel (and rightly so) that they are the target to be made redundant by their companies. From purely economic standpoint, it sounds valid.
However, in God’s economy and kingdom, you can never be too old to serve Him. Joshua still felt he had the strength to carry out God’s instruction for war in spite of the fact that he was 85 years’ old.
In fact, older men and women can prove to be more resourceful when it comes to the Lord’s ministry. They are more temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance. They can be easily accepted as mentors for younger men and women by properly modeling worship and service to our Omnipotent GOD. They can set positive examples by their behavior at home, church and community.
It’s never too old for God. Bible has many God-loving people who, although, old in age, but were given promises that later fully glorified Him. Good examples are: Noel was very old when he built the ark; Abraham and Sarah were given a child when they were very old; Boaz who was old when he married Ruth and they too were blessed with a child, Obed who was the grandfather of King David.
Just like you can never give too much to Jesus because He is everything, you can never be too old to serve Him. God wants us to serve Him – young and old, educated and uneducated, men and women, fishermen and businessmen, rich and poor – God wants you to do the things He has appointed for your life.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. [Joshua 14:10-11]
As we grow older, we can feel very insecure. For people who are in their late 40s or early 50s and still working because they are the sole-bread winners in their families, this insecurity can cause them a lot of anxieties. This is even more apparent during the time of economic uncertainty. They feel (and rightly so) that they are the target to be made redundant by their companies. From purely economic standpoint, it sounds valid.
However, in God’s economy and kingdom, you can never be too old to serve Him. Joshua still felt he had the strength to carry out God’s instruction for war in spite of the fact that he was 85 years’ old.
In fact, older men and women can prove to be more resourceful when it comes to the Lord’s ministry. They are more temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance. They can be easily accepted as mentors for younger men and women by properly modeling worship and service to our Omnipotent GOD. They can set positive examples by their behavior at home, church and community.
It’s never too old for God. Bible has many God-loving people who, although, old in age, but were given promises that later fully glorified Him. Good examples are: Noel was very old when he built the ark; Abraham and Sarah were given a child when they were very old; Boaz who was old when he married Ruth and they too were blessed with a child, Obed who was the grandfather of King David.
Just like you can never give too much to Jesus because He is everything, you can never be too old to serve Him. God wants us to serve Him – young and old, educated and uneducated, men and women, fishermen and businessmen, rich and poor – God wants you to do the things He has appointed for your life.
Today’s Scripture Reading [August 2, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. [John 11:1]
Regardless of your religion and your belief, we are all ‘praying creatures’. You may not be praying now because you don’t believe there is a God, or you may be at the prime of your career or have already achieved recognition in the society because of your vast amount of wealth you have and your pride tells you that you don’t need God to help you. However, that may change one day. Imagine you are inside a high rise building on 66th floor and suddenly you heard an announcement that there is a big earth-quake. You ran to the lifts, but alas, all the lifts are not working and you feel the shaking of the building. I can assure you that at that moment you will just pray that there is a God who will save you, a God can just stop the building shaking. Many years ago, I had a colleague who was not a Christian. This was what actually happening to him. He went to Peru for a business meeting. There was an earth-quake and he felt like the building he was in danger of collapsing. He told me that he had never pray so hard and so long in his life even though he didn’t believe in God. (Praise God! He is now a strong believer of Jesus and sharing Gospel and the love of God with others.) In our innermost, we always pray for help when we face calamities – whether you believe in God or not.
Let us not wait for that moment. Praying is a great privilege for all Christians. The Bible teaches us to pray unceasingly, pray always and in all circumstances. By the strictest Biblical definition, prayer is making petitions to God, expecting to receive what is asked. And when you pray, you pray only to the God of the Bible, Jesus, and not to others, not to the saints, not to your priests, not to your pastors, not to Moses, not to David, not to Mary, not to John - but to Jesus and Jesus alone.
Honest, sincere praying is not easy. Even Jesus’ disciples who were so close to Him had to ask Jesus to teach them to pray. It is an effort which must be acquired through sincere and constant practice. And there are conditions when you pray if you want Jesus to hear and answer your prayers: (a) you must have a righteous heart; (b) you must pray with the right attitude, and your purpose must not be a selfish one; (c) you must be humble, acknowledge your faults, and confess your sins to God, (d) you must pray in accordance with God’s will and purpose. His will and purpose for you are: to be closer to Him each day, to bring people, especially unsaved people, to know Him, to repent of your sins, to seek his holy counsel in all things you do, and to obey His commandments, and (e) you must have faith when you pray.
I encourage you to hear the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13) sang by Cliff Richard by clicking to the following website. It’s a wonderful piece of performance.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. [John 11:1]
Regardless of your religion and your belief, we are all ‘praying creatures’. You may not be praying now because you don’t believe there is a God, or you may be at the prime of your career or have already achieved recognition in the society because of your vast amount of wealth you have and your pride tells you that you don’t need God to help you. However, that may change one day. Imagine you are inside a high rise building on 66th floor and suddenly you heard an announcement that there is a big earth-quake. You ran to the lifts, but alas, all the lifts are not working and you feel the shaking of the building. I can assure you that at that moment you will just pray that there is a God who will save you, a God can just stop the building shaking. Many years ago, I had a colleague who was not a Christian. This was what actually happening to him. He went to Peru for a business meeting. There was an earth-quake and he felt like the building he was in danger of collapsing. He told me that he had never pray so hard and so long in his life even though he didn’t believe in God. (Praise God! He is now a strong believer of Jesus and sharing Gospel and the love of God with others.) In our innermost, we always pray for help when we face calamities – whether you believe in God or not.
Let us not wait for that moment. Praying is a great privilege for all Christians. The Bible teaches us to pray unceasingly, pray always and in all circumstances. By the strictest Biblical definition, prayer is making petitions to God, expecting to receive what is asked. And when you pray, you pray only to the God of the Bible, Jesus, and not to others, not to the saints, not to your priests, not to your pastors, not to Moses, not to David, not to Mary, not to John - but to Jesus and Jesus alone.
Honest, sincere praying is not easy. Even Jesus’ disciples who were so close to Him had to ask Jesus to teach them to pray. It is an effort which must be acquired through sincere and constant practice. And there are conditions when you pray if you want Jesus to hear and answer your prayers: (a) you must have a righteous heart; (b) you must pray with the right attitude, and your purpose must not be a selfish one; (c) you must be humble, acknowledge your faults, and confess your sins to God, (d) you must pray in accordance with God’s will and purpose. His will and purpose for you are: to be closer to Him each day, to bring people, especially unsaved people, to know Him, to repent of your sins, to seek his holy counsel in all things you do, and to obey His commandments, and (e) you must have faith when you pray.
I encourage you to hear the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13) sang by Cliff Richard by clicking to the following website. It’s a wonderful piece of performance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku7rLmJdmc0
Lord’s Prayer [Matthew 6:9-13]
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Lord’s Prayer [Matthew 6:9-13]
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
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Today’s Scripture Reading [August 3, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. [Exodus 20:7]
One of the objectives of the Ten Commandments that God has given to us through Moses is to establish for us the rules which we must live by. By obeying these rules, we are drawn closer to God. In fact, to completely keep us out of trouble especially with the secular laws, all we need to do is to obey the Ten Commandments. As someone has put it, if everyone obeys the Ten Commandments, we don’t need policemen, and if all the world leaders live according to the Ten Commandments, we don’t need a military because there will be no war.
We show our love to God by honoring and obeying Him. One of the ways to do it is to obey His Third Commandment by not misusing or abusing His name. Every conscious attempt must be made that in our everyday speech, our prayers and in our lives we must respect and honour God’s name. Whenever we use God’s name, or speak to God or about Him, we should do so with the utmost respect and reverence. Besides our daily day speech, we must not make a careless oath or promise unless we have every intention to fulfill it; we must not speak abusively of things or people that God has created such as trivializing the word hell, bloody, sex or calling other people with unkind names; we must stop substituting words (euphemisms) for the name of God, such as, "Gee", "Golly" or “Gosh”; and we must stop complaining against God.
The use of God's name in a degrading or in any way disrespectful manner expresses an attitude of disdaining the relationship we are supposed to have with Him. Having a true relationship with God demands that we represent Him accurately, sincerely and respectfully.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. [Exodus 20:7]
One of the objectives of the Ten Commandments that God has given to us through Moses is to establish for us the rules which we must live by. By obeying these rules, we are drawn closer to God. In fact, to completely keep us out of trouble especially with the secular laws, all we need to do is to obey the Ten Commandments. As someone has put it, if everyone obeys the Ten Commandments, we don’t need policemen, and if all the world leaders live according to the Ten Commandments, we don’t need a military because there will be no war.
We show our love to God by honoring and obeying Him. One of the ways to do it is to obey His Third Commandment by not misusing or abusing His name. Every conscious attempt must be made that in our everyday speech, our prayers and in our lives we must respect and honour God’s name. Whenever we use God’s name, or speak to God or about Him, we should do so with the utmost respect and reverence. Besides our daily day speech, we must not make a careless oath or promise unless we have every intention to fulfill it; we must not speak abusively of things or people that God has created such as trivializing the word hell, bloody, sex or calling other people with unkind names; we must stop substituting words (euphemisms) for the name of God, such as, "Gee", "Golly" or “Gosh”; and we must stop complaining against God.
The use of God's name in a degrading or in any way disrespectful manner expresses an attitude of disdaining the relationship we are supposed to have with Him. Having a true relationship with God demands that we represent Him accurately, sincerely and respectfully.
Today’s Scripture Reading [August 4, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? [Jeremiah 17:9]
We have seen how the world has progressed over that last fifty years especially in the areas of science and technology. The invention of internet can testify the explosive growth of information and it’s contents and uses, how it affects an average person including his family members for better or worse (and it's usually for worse). At the same time we also can see that human nature in different ages and in different circumstances is still the same – full of deceitful schemes hidden in the heart. We may camouflage our deceitful heart from our family members, our bosses, or our friends, or even from ourselves, but God knows because He searches our heart [Jeremiah 9:10].
In considering the deceitfulness of the heart, we have no need to refer to any particular sins. Rather it is all the wickedness of mankind - love of the world and the loving the creature above the Creator because soon after the fall of Adam and Eve, all manner of wickedness soon rushed in. We see all ungodliness, unrighteousness and injustice shooting out into crimes of every kind and the earth soon became a field of blood: revenge, hatred, envy, malice, blood-thirstiness cruelty, ambition, every species of public and private wrongs, were diffused through every part of the earth.
Glory to God! By the Blood of Jesus, we can be cleansed of our deceitful heart. And as an essential part of our service and worship, we must pray every moment asking God to search our heart and reveal to us our deceitfulness (as what King David did so faithfully). We must also ask God to renew our mind each day to transform us so that we will not be conformed to the world but to do all those things that are good and acceptable to Him [Romans 12:2].
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? [Jeremiah 17:9]
We have seen how the world has progressed over that last fifty years especially in the areas of science and technology. The invention of internet can testify the explosive growth of information and it’s contents and uses, how it affects an average person including his family members for better or worse (and it's usually for worse). At the same time we also can see that human nature in different ages and in different circumstances is still the same – full of deceitful schemes hidden in the heart. We may camouflage our deceitful heart from our family members, our bosses, or our friends, or even from ourselves, but God knows because He searches our heart [Jeremiah 9:10].
In considering the deceitfulness of the heart, we have no need to refer to any particular sins. Rather it is all the wickedness of mankind - love of the world and the loving the creature above the Creator because soon after the fall of Adam and Eve, all manner of wickedness soon rushed in. We see all ungodliness, unrighteousness and injustice shooting out into crimes of every kind and the earth soon became a field of blood: revenge, hatred, envy, malice, blood-thirstiness cruelty, ambition, every species of public and private wrongs, were diffused through every part of the earth.
Glory to God! By the Blood of Jesus, we can be cleansed of our deceitful heart. And as an essential part of our service and worship, we must pray every moment asking God to search our heart and reveal to us our deceitfulness (as what King David did so faithfully). We must also ask God to renew our mind each day to transform us so that we will not be conformed to the world but to do all those things that are good and acceptable to Him [Romans 12:2].
Today’s Scripture Reading [August 5, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
…..If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. [John 7:37-39]
Everyone of us needs water, and that include all living things. Science has confirmed that without water, there will be no live. One of the things that scientists are looking for when exploring other celestial bodies for living organism is to look for signs of water whether in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid ice. It may be a simple chemical structure, H2O, but water, rather fresh water, is absolutely essential for all living things.
Jesus has offered us a different kind of living water – the water of life. He is talking about it’s abundance of this water that is being given to the people of the earth and, for free, of course. The water is the Holy Spirit that one receives upon belief, repentance, and baptism. The water that Christ gives is a water that is eternally energizing and will allow one to live the life of God. All the yearnings of the human spirit are fulfilled in its combination with God's Spirit, and the ensuing process of growth that ends in eternal salvation and life as God lives it. What a gift this living water is! And we can have it because God has offered to us.
Contrary to the world, it thirsts after so many different things. There are those thirsting after money, sex, fame, popularity and a host of many other things yet not having that thirst quenched. Satan offers many oasis in this dry thirsty world. But the thirst always returns and because it’s so captivating that we want more and more to satisfy our desires and it will lead us into deep water and eventually death!
So, let us all come to Him to take up His loving offer and to drink of His living water which provides everlasting life and it never runs dry.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
…..If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. [John 7:37-39]
Everyone of us needs water, and that include all living things. Science has confirmed that without water, there will be no live. One of the things that scientists are looking for when exploring other celestial bodies for living organism is to look for signs of water whether in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid ice. It may be a simple chemical structure, H2O, but water, rather fresh water, is absolutely essential for all living things.
Jesus has offered us a different kind of living water – the water of life. He is talking about it’s abundance of this water that is being given to the people of the earth and, for free, of course. The water is the Holy Spirit that one receives upon belief, repentance, and baptism. The water that Christ gives is a water that is eternally energizing and will allow one to live the life of God. All the yearnings of the human spirit are fulfilled in its combination with God's Spirit, and the ensuing process of growth that ends in eternal salvation and life as God lives it. What a gift this living water is! And we can have it because God has offered to us.
Contrary to the world, it thirsts after so many different things. There are those thirsting after money, sex, fame, popularity and a host of many other things yet not having that thirst quenched. Satan offers many oasis in this dry thirsty world. But the thirst always returns and because it’s so captivating that we want more and more to satisfy our desires and it will lead us into deep water and eventually death!
So, let us all come to Him to take up His loving offer and to drink of His living water which provides everlasting life and it never runs dry.
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Today’s Scripture Reading [August 5, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
…..If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. [John 7:37-39]
Everyone of us needs water, and that include all living things. Science has confirmed that without water, there will be no life. One of the things that scientists are looking for when exploring other celestial bodies for living organism is to look for signs of water whether in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid ice. It may be a simple chemical structure, H2O, but water, rather fresh water, is absolutely essential for all living things.
Jesus has offered us a different kind of living water – the water of life. He is talking about it’s abundance of this water that is being given to the people of the earth and, for free, of course. The water is the Holy Spirit that one receives upon belief, repentance, and baptism. The water that Christ gives is a water that is eternally energizing and will allow one to live the life of God. All the yearnings of the human spirit are fulfilled in its combination with God's Spirit, and the ensuing process of growth that ends in eternal salvation and life as God lives it. What a gift this living water is! And we can have it because God has offered to us.
Contrary to the world, it thirsts after so many different things. There are those thirsting after money, sex, fame, popularity and a host of many other things yet not having that thirst quenched. Satan offers many oasis in this dry thirsty world. But the thirst always returns and because it’s so captivating that we want more and more to satisfy our desires and it will lead us into deep water and eventually death!
So, let us all come to Him to take up His loving offer and to drink of His living water which provides everlasting life and it never runs dry.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
…..If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. [John 7:37-39]
Everyone of us needs water, and that include all living things. Science has confirmed that without water, there will be no life. One of the things that scientists are looking for when exploring other celestial bodies for living organism is to look for signs of water whether in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid ice. It may be a simple chemical structure, H2O, but water, rather fresh water, is absolutely essential for all living things.
Jesus has offered us a different kind of living water – the water of life. He is talking about it’s abundance of this water that is being given to the people of the earth and, for free, of course. The water is the Holy Spirit that one receives upon belief, repentance, and baptism. The water that Christ gives is a water that is eternally energizing and will allow one to live the life of God. All the yearnings of the human spirit are fulfilled in its combination with God's Spirit, and the ensuing process of growth that ends in eternal salvation and life as God lives it. What a gift this living water is! And we can have it because God has offered to us.
Contrary to the world, it thirsts after so many different things. There are those thirsting after money, sex, fame, popularity and a host of many other things yet not having that thirst quenched. Satan offers many oasis in this dry thirsty world. But the thirst always returns and because it’s so captivating that we want more and more to satisfy our desires and it will lead us into deep water and eventually death!
So, let us all come to Him to take up His loving offer and to drink of His living water which provides everlasting life and it never runs dry.
One of the objectives of the Ten Commandments that God has given to us through Moses is to establish for us the rules which we must live by. By obeying these rules, we are drawn closer to God. In fact, to completely keep us out of trouble especially with the secular laws, all we need to do is to obey the Ten Commandments. As someone has put it, if everyone obeys the Ten Commandments, we don’t need policemen, and if all the world leaders live according to the Ten Commandments, we don’t need a military because there will be no war.
Does the above law apply to Christians too?
Does the above law apply to Christians too?
Yes. The Ten Commandments apply to all Christians, although Jews also believe in them because they are in the Old Testatment which is actually Jewish Bible. In fact, in the U.S. (and only until recently), certain government buildings were required to display the Ten Commandments. However, I understand legislations were passed to make them unconstitional to display in some states' judicial buildings. It's very sad when once great Presidents of the U.S. gave such strong priority to obeying the Ten Commandments, the top officials in the U.S. are now doing the opposite.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/08/27/ten.commandments
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Today’s Scripture Reading [August 6, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? [Genesis 3:8-9]
One of the most common games that we played when we were young was the game of hide and seek. We tried to hid and someone tried to find us. We could end up as loser or winner, depending on whether we were found or not.
Since the fall of Adam and Eve, men have tried hiding from God. But God is so loving that He is reaching out to us. "Where are you?" This is the question God is always asking us. This does not mean that God does not know where we are. There is, however, a very strong biblical connotation - God is asking us to go to Him. He, as Creator of the universe, is all-knowing, and He definitely knows where we are, knows our thoughts, knows our desire – we cannot hid from God. Let us not play the hide-and-seek game with God because we will always end up as loser. This is not a game and so let's not gambled away our life.
It is most striking to me that all religions, apart from Christianity, begin on the note of man seeking after God. Only the Bible starts with the view of God seeking after man. That highlights an essential difference between our Christian faith and the other great religions of the world. So, now you should know why it is so difficult to talk to people about God, to share with them the Gospel and to talk about Jesus, His love, His birth, His death, His resurrection. The answer is in Genesis 3:8-9 - men just want to hid away from God. Don’t hid from God and that includes our sins or our hardness of heart.
Don't you also think it's time that we, who call ourselves Christians, stop hiding the Christianity of Jesus Christ from the world around us? I know it is not easy to share the love of Christ to non-believers because men always want to hid away from God, but the least we can do is to pray for those people who we are given the burden to bring Gospel to them. They may be your relatives, colleagues, friends or neighbors or even your ‘enemies’. We pray that they will open their doors and invite Jesus into their lives.
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? [Genesis 3:8-9]
One of the most common games that we played when we were young was the game of hide and seek. We tried to hid and someone tried to find us. We could end up as loser or winner, depending on whether we were found or not.
Since the fall of Adam and Eve, men have tried hiding from God. But God is so loving that He is reaching out to us. "Where are you?" This is the question God is always asking us. This does not mean that God does not know where we are. There is, however, a very strong biblical connotation - God is asking us to go to Him. He, as Creator of the universe, is all-knowing, and He definitely knows where we are, knows our thoughts, knows our desire – we cannot hid from God. Let us not play the hide-and-seek game with God because we will always end up as loser. This is not a game and so let's not gambled away our life.
It is most striking to me that all religions, apart from Christianity, begin on the note of man seeking after God. Only the Bible starts with the view of God seeking after man. That highlights an essential difference between our Christian faith and the other great religions of the world. So, now you should know why it is so difficult to talk to people about God, to share with them the Gospel and to talk about Jesus, His love, His birth, His death, His resurrection. The answer is in Genesis 3:8-9 - men just want to hid away from God. Don’t hid from God and that includes our sins or our hardness of heart.
Don't you also think it's time that we, who call ourselves Christians, stop hiding the Christianity of Jesus Christ from the world around us? I know it is not easy to share the love of Christ to non-believers because men always want to hid away from God, but the least we can do is to pray for those people who we are given the burden to bring Gospel to them. They may be your relatives, colleagues, friends or neighbors or even your ‘enemies’. We pray that they will open their doors and invite Jesus into their lives.
Just look at the 1st two Commandments:
"And God spoke all these words, saying: 'I am the LORD your God…
ONE: 'You shall have no other gods before Me.'
TWO: 'You shall not make for yourself a carved image--any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.'
And now u guys say God come down to Earth as His creation and die for His creation??
And also the 3-1 concept?
The 1st and 2nd commandment already speaks for itself. Crystal clear. Associating GOD with human and 3-1 concept is Blasphemy!
"And God spoke all these words, saying: 'I am the LORD your God…
ONE: 'You shall have no other gods before Me.'
TWO: 'You shall not make for yourself a carved image--any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.'
And now u guys say God come down to Earth as His creation and die for His creation??
And also the 3-1 concept?
The 1st and 2nd commandment already speaks for itself. Crystal clear. Associating GOD with human and 3-1 concept is Blasphemy!
Today’s Scripture Reading [August 7, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. [Romans 12:19]
Whether we are at home or in the office, we continuously face irritations. This is due to the sinful nature of ourselves – we are impatience, jealous, proud and easily get angered even by the tiniest irritation that we encountered. At the extreme end, this can be translated into grievous emotional hurt and, inwardly, we try to seek revenge. We have read in the newspapers quite frequently the court cases of family members (some even children fighting with parents), business associates and sadly, even by church members. For some others, they may take the matters into their own hands by physically hurting or even killing the other parties.
The Bible has warned us not to take revenge in any circumstances. This is because we must leave it to God to take the appropriate actions for us. I am quite sure that we had at one time or another even felt pain ourselves when we took matters into our own hands and it did not work out the way we wanted it to be. In fact, it may hurt us more than it hurts the other parties whom we, ironically, trying to inflict the wound.
We must make forgiveness a habit. Jesus has taught us to forgive seven times seventy times, and that is 490 times! [Matthew 18:22]. We are to keep no record of wrongs. There should be no limit to our forgiveness because there is no limit to God's. When we refuse to forgive, we become a prisoner of our own bitterness, making the person we are unwilling to forgive our jailer! Forgiveness cannot be conjured or worked up; it is a deliberate choice that we must continually make. If we make the choice to forgive, God will supply all the forgiveness we need. Some situations may be quite challenging for us to really forgive others. But by the Grace of God, we are given the power of the Holy Spirit when we acknowledge Jesus as our Saviour and when we repent of all our sins we are able to forgive regardless of the cirumstances. With God, everything is possible [Luke 1:37].
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. [Romans 12:19]
Whether we are at home or in the office, we continuously face irritations. This is due to the sinful nature of ourselves – we are impatience, jealous, proud and easily get angered even by the tiniest irritation that we encountered. At the extreme end, this can be translated into grievous emotional hurt and, inwardly, we try to seek revenge. We have read in the newspapers quite frequently the court cases of family members (some even children fighting with parents), business associates and sadly, even by church members. For some others, they may take the matters into their own hands by physically hurting or even killing the other parties.
The Bible has warned us not to take revenge in any circumstances. This is because we must leave it to God to take the appropriate actions for us. I am quite sure that we had at one time or another even felt pain ourselves when we took matters into our own hands and it did not work out the way we wanted it to be. In fact, it may hurt us more than it hurts the other parties whom we, ironically, trying to inflict the wound.
We must make forgiveness a habit. Jesus has taught us to forgive seven times seventy times, and that is 490 times! [Matthew 18:22]. We are to keep no record of wrongs. There should be no limit to our forgiveness because there is no limit to God's. When we refuse to forgive, we become a prisoner of our own bitterness, making the person we are unwilling to forgive our jailer! Forgiveness cannot be conjured or worked up; it is a deliberate choice that we must continually make. If we make the choice to forgive, God will supply all the forgiveness we need. Some situations may be quite challenging for us to really forgive others. But by the Grace of God, we are given the power of the Holy Spirit when we acknowledge Jesus as our Saviour and when we repent of all our sins we are able to forgive regardless of the cirumstances. With God, everything is possible [Luke 1:37].
Everything needs to be taken in context, including the concept of justice and vengeance.
If Joshua did not fight, if David did not fight, there will be no Israel today.
If Christians under all circumstances are to turn the other cheek, Hitler will be in control today.
If all Christians are pacifists, they should boycott National Service.
If Christian judges dare not execute vengeance, all criminals will walk free.
If Christians who were attacked just kneel and pray to God for vengeance, then why should Christians all over the world care when the South Koreans were attacked by the Taliban? In such a case, did their pastor made known to the South Koreans that if they were caught and tortured, then all the Christians will do is to pray?
Clearly these are undesirable matters.
Therefore there has to be a context to your words.
As to war, there are righteous wars and unrighteous wars.
As to timing, there is a time for peace and a time to fight.
Revenge is a separate matter. Justice is not.
If Joshua did not fight, if David did not fight, there will be no Israel today.
If Christians under all circumstances are to turn the other cheek, Hitler will be in control today.
If all Christians are pacifists, they should boycott National Service.
If Christian judges dare not execute vengeance, all criminals will walk free.
If Christians who were attacked just kneel and pray to God for vengeance, then why should Christians all over the world care when the South Koreans were attacked by the Taliban? In such a case, did their pastor made known to the South Koreans that if they were caught and tortured, then all the Christians will do is to pray?
Clearly these are undesirable matters.
Therefore there has to be a context to your words.
As to war, there are righteous wars and unrighteous wars.
As to timing, there is a time for peace and a time to fight.
Revenge is a separate matter. Justice is not.
Brother Whoami,
In Genesis, the first book of the Bible, it's clearly mentioned that God is used in plural form - Let us create man in our own image. [Both us and our are plural]. God is One in Three-Person just like all matters can be in three forms: eg. water can be in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid as ice.
God has to become man because worldly men could not pay the price of their sins. We need a sinless man and God has graciously become this sinless man so that His sacrifice can be accepted. People from all cultures from very ancient time to now have been sacrificing animals (goats, sheep, pigs, etc) to appease their gods. They are hoping that their gods can accept these sacrifices and that their sins can be washed away. How wonderful for God to make Himself a sinless man and died for us. Jesus has also been referred in the Bible as the Lamb of God. He is the sacrificial Lamb for all mankind. That is why true believers of Jesus do not need to carry out all these rituals of sacrificing animals. When Jesus died on the cross, His last words were: It is finished.
The God who gave the Ten Commandments in the OT is the same as the NT Jesus. In the Bible, God has appeared in many names. There is no contradiction between the OT and NT. There is only one theme in the Bible in both Old and New Testatments: Due to the sinfulness of man, we need God to save us. No one can do this redemptive work - only God. He did this by sending His Son Jesus to die for us. The virgin birth of Jesus, His death and His resurrection have appeared in many books in the Bible in the OT and this was fulfilled in the NT.
In Genesis, the first book of the Bible, it's clearly mentioned that God is used in plural form - Let us create man in our own image. [Both us and our are plural]. God is One in Three-Person just like all matters can be in three forms: eg. water can be in the form of liquid, gas/vapour or solid as ice.
God has to become man because worldly men could not pay the price of their sins. We need a sinless man and God has graciously become this sinless man so that His sacrifice can be accepted. People from all cultures from very ancient time to now have been sacrificing animals (goats, sheep, pigs, etc) to appease their gods. They are hoping that their gods can accept these sacrifices and that their sins can be washed away. How wonderful for God to make Himself a sinless man and died for us. Jesus has also been referred in the Bible as the Lamb of God. He is the sacrificial Lamb for all mankind. That is why true believers of Jesus do not need to carry out all these rituals of sacrificing animals. When Jesus died on the cross, His last words were: It is finished.
The God who gave the Ten Commandments in the OT is the same as the NT Jesus. In the Bible, God has appeared in many names. There is no contradiction between the OT and NT. There is only one theme in the Bible in both Old and New Testatments: Due to the sinfulness of man, we need God to save us. No one can do this redemptive work - only God. He did this by sending His Son Jesus to die for us. The virgin birth of Jesus, His death and His resurrection have appeared in many books in the Bible in the OT and this was fulfilled in the NT.
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