"From Darkness To Light" - Inspirational Weekend

My previous post concerned itself with the darkness of a pagan holiday.  This weekend let us consider what is good, and pure, and holy; what can bring happiness and give one a sense of peace.

"Then spake Jesus unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."    -  John 8:12  (KJV)

Christ is truly and aptly compared to and most fittingly represented by light. One commentator has said, "The great end and errand of Christ's coming into the world, was to give light unto poor souls that sat in darkness."

All true believers remember how they were in darkness and sin and misery before they came to a saving faith in Jesus.  To know Jesus loves us and how He died a sacrificial death out of love for mankind, and that our sins are forgiven once we come to faith and belief in Him as our Savior who can wash away all of our sins,  then... and only then... can we find true happiness now and can look forward to an eternity of living in bliss with the good Lord.

No true disciple shall walk in the darkness.  Instead, he shall have as his own the Light of Life.  Light implies knowledge, guidance, safety, and holy purity.  So those who closely, humbly and steadily follow Christ shall have the Divine Light continually shining upon them.  Remember also, when you become a true follower of Jesus Christ and you are born again, you are sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13).  The Holy Spirit will guide you and keep you on the right path... the path of righteousness.   

"And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever;  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."  -  John 14:16, 17

It takes faith in Jesus to be saved, to be born again from above.  Charles Spurgeon had it correct when he said,  "Would you be comfortable and happy?  Would you enjoy religion?  Would you have the religion of cheerfulness and not that of gloom? Then have faith in God.  If you love darkness and are satisfied to dwell in gloom and misery, then be content with little faith; but if you love the sunshine, and would sing songs of rejoicing, covet earnestly this best gift, Great faith."

"In Him was life; and the life was the light of men."  -  John 1:4

God is declared to be Life or the Living God because He is the source or fountain of life.  This is also true of Jesus Christ, of course.  The Messiah was predicted as the Light of the world:  Isaiah 9:2, Isaiah 60:1.

Psalm 89:15 tells us, "Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of Thy countenance."

One commentator explains Psalm 89:15 by saying, "Being blessed with the light of truth, and being enabled to walk therein, they shall live under the comfortable influences of Thy love and favor."

"For Thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness."  -  Psalm 18:28

"For with Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see Light."  -  Psalm 36:9

Be happy !

Be blessed !  

But what if you are an unbeliever?

Can you see from all the above quoted Scriptures how much the good Lord loves you?!  That He longs to welcome you to the family of God as one of His beloved children?

Turn from sin and darkness !  Be free from the devil's evil plot to keep you in his grasp which suffocates you and renders you helpless to be free and full of joy.  Turn to the good Lord in faith and belief and break free from the devil's hold on you. 

Jesus is waiting with open arms, ready to embrace you in love and forgiveness.

If you have not been born again, turn to Him in true repentance and pray for forgiveness.  Believe Jesus is the Savior whose shed blood at Calvary can wash your sins away, if you have faith in Him.  Also, the Scriptures tell us to believe in Christ's resurrection.

Romans 10:9,10,13 tells us : (9) "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.(10)For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  (13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."   -   John 14:6

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."   -  John 3:16

The Devil's Holiday (With Videos)

The devil is described as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).   I have no photographs of any lions, so I used these handsome cheetahs instead.   The point is still made, however, as cheetahs also seek prey to devour.  

The devil can be sly and deceitful, and he can use the world and its celebrations to capture unwise believers into celebrating his holiday,  Halloween.   Think about it:  Halloween celebrates death and ghosts and everything which reeks of darkness and evil and is rooted in pagan rites of the ancient world.  Halloween celebrations are older than Christianity.   Following is a 21 minute video about the history of Halloween.

It really breaks my heart to see parents encourage their innocent children to have part in such an evil celebration......the children dress up as witches, vampires, ghosts, etc. -  all darkness and wickedness prevails on this holiday.   Please watch the above video and be warned.  

It is also disturbing that most churches today participate in some sort of Halloween celebration; whether it be a party at the church or some other sort of acceptance of all this darkness. 

The Bible speaks a lot about darkness and light.  Darkness refers to the evil and wickedness, whereas the light refers to the good and to God and Jesus.  

"I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness."   -  Jesus speaking, John 12:46

1 Thessalonians 5:22 tells us "Abstain from all appearance of evil." 

Why would a true born again believer want to have anything to do with darkness or anything that appears evil?

I have written previously, two years ago as of this date, about Halloween and you can find that article here .  At that link there is also another video about not celebrating Halloween.

I ran across a 5 minute sermon by Charles Spurgeon about entertainment in the church.  Some churches recall to mind rock concerts and worldly entertainment.  I feel like this Spurgeon video applies here because churches use holiday entertainment -  such as Halloween parties for adults as well as children, when they should be preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and saving souls - not encouraging them to participate in the devil's holiday.   Here is Spurgeon's video titled "Feeding Sheep Or Amusing Goats" :

"The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light."  -   Romans 13:12

"What Does God Require Of You?" - Inspirational Weekend

There are many verses in the Bible that tell us what God requires of us, or expects from us.   I will touch on a few that are known to many believers; but other believers seldom, if ever, read their Bibles so this article is also for them -  as well as for unbelievers.

First of all, we need to believe with all of our heart that Jesus is the Savior, and to put all of our hope and faith in Him in order to be saved.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  -  John 3:16

Faith and belief in Jesus is all that is required to be saved and to gain eternal life.   However, God also expects us to obey Him and to live godly lives and to bear much fruit.  (John 15:8).  

All true believers are already fully aware of all the information that I wrote above.  Let us consider Micah 6:8 which follows:

"He hath shewed thee,  O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"

To "do justly" is to be righteous; to act or being in conformity with what is morally upright or good.  To "love mercy" ....  a high obligation.  Mercy is a beautiful quality.  The spirit of mercy and forgiveness proceeds from the Father and the Son.  We should do likewise with forbearance and gentleness.

The Lord also requires man to "walk humbly with Him."  We can be humble when we contemplate how God took us out of the pits of darkness and brought us into His life-saving light; how we did not deserve His love and mercy, and that we should humbly acknowledge that we can do nothing without Him  (John 15:5).  Focus on the Lord and consider His powerful works and His majesty; live in awe and reverential fear of His power and realize that He is the Sovereign of the universe and we are but "specks of dust".  If we have a strong, intimate, and personal love relationship with God through Jesus Christ, we will be humble.

"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."   -  Ecclesiastes 12:13

The root of religion is fear of God reigning in the heart.  You will also have a reverence of His majesty, and submit to His authority. And because you love Him, you will dread to grieve Him by sinful thoughts and actions.  You will have a respect for all of His commandments and you will take care to keep them.  This also applies to Jesus, of course.  Love for Christ will compel you to live your life in a Christ-like manner.   Follow closely in His footsteps.

Another requirement of the Lord is found at Mark 12:30-31 which follows:

(30)  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  (31) And the second is like, namely this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  There is none other commandment greater than these."

To love God with all your heart is to love Him with all of your powers, and with perfect sincerity.  

The soul contains the affections, passions, and desires of the man under the rule of the will and conscience.  To love God with all thy soul is to love Him with the utmost fervor.  

To love God with all your mind, is to first of all fill your mind with the Word of God and dwell on things above  (Colossians 3:1-2).  That way you will have an enlightened mind in which to better exercise true love of God.

To love God with all of your strength is to love Him with all the energy of your being.  That covers the first commandment.

Now concerning the second commandment, to love your neighbor as yourself..... The Jews regarded only fellow Jews and full proselytes as their neighbors, but Jesus taught that a neighbor is anyone with whom we have any dealings whatsoever.  "Neighbor" in Greek literally means "one nearby."  If we are filled with the Holy Spirit and have the love of God within us, we will naturally want to help our neighbor and will love him and treat him kindly.

Don't forget the Great Commission !   After His resurrection, Jesus commanded His disciples (which includes you and me) the following:

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."   -  Matthew 28:19-20

Love of God and love of neighbor - and wanting to obey the Lord - will fill us with the desire to share the Gospel with everyone we possibly can.  We are on this earth to love and serve God, and to love and serve our neighbor.

These requirements of the good Lord are all familiar to true believers, but it is good to be reminded of things from time to time.

For unbelievers, you need to get right with the Lord and surrender your life to Him.  Time is short !  We all need to be ready for the return of Christ at the soon to occur Rapture of the Church.

Don't be left behind !

Pray for forgiveness and believe with all of your being that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and that His blood shed at Calvary can wash your sins away if you but have faith in Him, and believe in His resurrection.    

It is a simple faith that can save you.  You must repent of your sins and renounce them and never go back to a life of sin.   God will help you because once you are truly saved you will be sealed with the Holy Spirit Who will help you resist temptations and will help you to live a godly life. (Ephesians 1:13).

Choose life everlasting in heaven !

Choose Jesus !

Romans 10:9,10,13 tells us (9)  "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  (10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  (13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

"Jesus saith unto him,  I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."  -  John 14:6

"He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him."  -  John 3:36

As we enjoy this beautiful weekend, let us examine ourselves - our hearts - to see if we meet the good Lord's requirements.  Let us put Him first in our lives.

Have a Christ centered weekend...... and life!

How To Find Joy And Peace" - Inspirational Weekend

"Thou wilt shew me the path of life: In thy presence is fullness of joy; At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."  -  Psalm 16:11

This morning my Bible study for the day was Acts 2:28, where Peter quotes from Psalm 16 and says, "Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance."

The word "countenance" is referring to God's "presence."  Knowing that God is truly near and present gives one great joy; as does His answers to  prayer. It gives you a sense of peace and contentment and safety when the good Lord's presence is felt.  And most of all you feel loved.  You are loved.   God is love  (1 John 4:8).

"Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering.  It is the presence of God."  -  Sam Storms

Nehemiah 8:10 b tells us ".... for the joy of the Lord is your strength."  

One commentator tells us concerning Nehemiah 8:10 b,  "Religious joy, properly tempered with continual dependency on the help of God, meekness of mind, and self-diffidence, is a powerful means of strengthening the soul.  In such a frame of mind no man ever fell, and in such a state of mind the general health of the body is much improved; a cheerful heart is not only a continual feast, but also a continual medicine."

This morning I also read again Psalm 16.  Please turn there and read about not only king David, but how this Psalm also speaks of the prophesied resurrection of Christ.  Pay special attention to verses 8 to 11.  I have already quoted verse 11 and  will now quote  verses 8 to 10 :

(8) I have set the Lord always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.  (9) Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: My flesh also shall rest in hope.   (10)  For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."

Some mysteries in the Bible are hard to understand, but if you are a born again believer the Holy Spirit will help and guide you to understand the Holy Word.  Jesus' death and resurrection gives us the assurance that we too will be resurrected and live forever with the good Lord.  That is indeed something to be joyful about, and to live a life of obedience and gratitude towards the Lord. 

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."  -   Hebrews 12:2

"We should concentrate on Jesus, the goal and objective of our faith.  Our faith, which has its beginning in Him, is also completed in Him. "  -  King James Study Bible notes.

Think about how Jesus suffered, bled and died so that those who believe in Him as the Savior might have eternal life !  What love!

We are living in the last "hour" of the last days.  So many prophecies are in the process or the beginnings of fulfillment right now.  Remember, Israel is God's prophetic time clock.  In fact, the entire 7 year Tribulation is to bring Israel to its knees in acknowledgement that Jesus is the Messiah they are looking for.  Isaiah 17:1 could be fulfilled at any time, where it says that Damascus will be destroyed and become "a ruinous heap."  If you look at any photos of present day Damascus, a good portion of it is destroyed already.   Also, the Gog/Magog war of Ezekiel 38 and 39  may happen soon, as Russia, Iran, and Turkey have become "good buddies" and will soon come against Israel as shown in Ezekiel 38.... they as well as other surrounding nations will come against Israel in this war.

We live in the end times.  Now is the time to put your faith and trust in Jesus as the Savior if you have not already done so.  Before the Tribulation period, Jesus will Rapture all true believers to be with Him in heaven.  They will be with the Lord and will escape the wrath of God to come upon the ungodly and unrepentant persons left on earth after the Rapture.   The Tribulation will be a time of destruction and horrors and hell on earth.

Don't be left behind!

Go to the Lord in heartfelt prayer and confess your sins and repent never to return to your sins again; ask God for forgiveness.  Put your faith in Jesus as the Savior and  believe in His resurrection.

Romans 10:9,10,13 tells us:  (9) "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  (13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."  -  John 14:6

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."   -  John 3:16

The main thing is to believe with all of your being that Jesus is the Savior and the only way to eternal life.   If you are truly converted, you will bear much fruit and good works will follow.  Works do not save you, but they are proof that you are truly saved and have put all of your trust in the good Lord.  You will want to serve the Lord out of love and gratitude.

BELIEVE !

Jesus is waiting to receive you with open arms full of love and 

forgiveness !

He will give you peace and joy !

Have a blessed and Christ centered life !!

"The Rapture Is Near! Are You Ready?" (With Videos) - Inspirational Weekend

"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ."  -  Titus 2:13

All Christians know that that "Blessed Hope" is the Rapture of the true believers; that promised hope we long for, for we will be taken to heaven to be with Jesus forever.  Actually, after the 7 year Tribulation period, we will return with the Lord to the earth to live for 1000 years under the Millennial Kingdom, with Jesus Christ ruling over us.   But that is another subject for another article.

Prior to this post, we have discussed here the Mystery of God and the Mystery of Godliness .  Now we will discuss the Mystery of the Rapture.  To begin, here is a 59 minute video on that topic where Amir Tsarfati gives an excellent discourse with much information to digest.  It was published in January of 2017, as Amir mentions that year in his sermon; however, facts presented here are still relevant and true today.

The purpose of the Rapture is to take believers to heaven with the Lord before God pours out His wrath upon those ungodly and unrepentant persons left behind to face the horrors of the tribulation period.  You do not want to be here and face the destruction and plagues and the wrath of God during the 7 year tribulation!  Make sure you are ready to meet Jesus by living a godly life; but first, of course, by surrendering your life to Him in faith and belief in Him as the Savior.

1 Corinthians 15:50-54 tells us:  (50) "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. (51) Behold, I shew 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 trump:  for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  (53) For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  (54)  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory."

In the verses above, the apostle Paul clarifies some of the mystery of the Rapture.  I have written often concerning the Rapture.  You can go to the "Search this blog" box on the upper right hand side of this page and type in "rapture" and several posts will appear which you can then read the ones that are of interest to you.  Here is a link to one of the articles I wrote last year about how the Rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of the Lord differ.

In the above link, there is a short video featuring author Ron Rhodes, who speaks on the timing of the Rapture. He uses humor to help make his point and it is a pleasure to listen to his reasoning.  One thing he mentioned was "Every  problem we've got will be fixed by the Rapture."   If you are old and falling apart, the Rapture will fix that.  If you are tired and just want to be at rest with the good Lord, the Rapture will fix that.

We must make sure that we are ready for the Lord's soon return in the Rapture !!

"The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come."  -  Isaiah 57:1

Praise and thank God for His mercy and love in keeping believers from the wrath of the Tribulation period!

Remember, you must be born again and totally committed to the Lord to escape the tribulation.  

"Jesus answered and said unto him,  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."   -  John 3:3

When you are born again, you have put your faith and belief in Jesus as the Savior; you have repented of all sin, and you pray to God for forgiveness of your past sins.  You believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, and you endeavor to live a godly life; a life of obedience to the Lord.  You become a new creature; your carnal nature is transformed into a holy nature, focused on things above, not on things of this evil world scene.  

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are past away; behold, all things are become new."   -    2 Corinthians 5:17

Colossians 3:1-2 admonishes us:  (1) "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  (2) Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth."

Here is a song about the Rapture, or should I say, about being "left behind".

Don't be left behind! Take to heart the Scriptures found in this article.  Make sure you are ready for Jesus' return !

Romans 10:9,10,13 tells us:  (9) "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.    (13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."   -  John 14:6

 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."   -  John 3:16

Think about all the good Lord has done for you.

Think about His great love and that He longs to hear from you, to fellowship with you, and to have a strong personal and intimate love relationship with you.

Turn to the Lord and live a life pleasing to Him.

Believe Jesus is the Savior !

Repent and turn from your sins.

He will welcome you with arms wide open in an embrace of love and forgiveness!

As you draw close to Him, He will draw close to you (James 4:8)

Be blessed and have a Christ centered weekend ..... and life !