Category: Scriptures

SAVED by MERCY ~ SAVED by GRACE

NOT by Our OWN Righteousness!

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Scriptures taken from the KJV (King James Version of the Bible).

Believing is putting your trust in God and having confidence that he will fulfill his promises…GOD DOES NOT LIE!

Numbers 23:19  God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

Titus 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;

Hebrews 6:18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:

Jesus is Yeshua (Yeshua means SALVATION in the HEBREW language) JESUS is the WORD! He is God!

Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

John 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

According to Scriptures, even some of the disciples/followers of Jesus had difficulty recognizing that Jesus is our Messiah

John 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?

His disciple Thomas had difficulty believing that Jesus is the Son of God and that He had risen from the dead…

John 20:27-29 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Believers are born again (regenerated) when they believe. For a Christian to lose his salvation, he would have to be unborn again -unregenerated. That would mean that he would have to “NO LONGER BELIEVE”…once you “TRULY” believe, you will never stop believing…because the HOLY SPIRIT will not leave you. The Bible gives no evidence that the new birth can be taken away…when you “TRULY” believe, you trust in Yeshua and are filled with HOPE which becomes the path that the Christian walks. That hope lies in knowing that God does NOT lie!

However, the Bible does talk about quenching the Holy Spirit which I will talk about in a future blog. Quenching is not the same as being in unbelief…

John 3:15-16 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 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.

I can find no place in the Scriptures of the Bible that says: In order for you to be saved that you have to walk the isle, join a church, pay tithes, fill out a card or cry and sob in sorrow for others to witness or do your due diligence (works). It says over and over again…BELIEVE! There are over 150 Scriptures in the Bible that address “Belief”. Even Abraham, thousands of years before Jesus, found favor with God because he believed…yet he lied about Sarah several times and took a concubine because he was impatient for the promise of God to materialize, but through all of that God loved Abraham and to this day is still keeping His promise to him.

Paul asks two very fundamental questions:

Romans 8:33-34 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. 34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

To put it to you as simply as possible…Who will bring any charge against those whom are believers?

Matthew 7:1-4 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

It says in the Scriptures:

It is God who justifies.

Who is he that condemns? We are not called to condemn, but we are called to share the Gospel with our fellow man…ALL who are made in the image of God…nowhere in the Scriptures does is tell us to make the decision whether or not the person we shared the Gospel with accepted “the TRUTH”. We plant the seed…God will make it grow according to “HIS WILL”. Just because we can’t physically see the change in someone, doesn’t mean that Heavenly Father isn’t working on them…maybe He doesn’t need or want to use them in His ministry on this earth…HE JUSTIFIES THEM because HE LOVES THEM!

John 3:16 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.

Paul makes one of the most incredible claims in all Scripture and the diligent hard working Christian sometimes refuses to accept Paul’s claim…but if you don’t believe this claim by Paul…that must mean that you nullify everything else that Paul teaches about GRACE and SALVATION! It’s not up to us to “Cherry Pick” out of the Scriptures what we want to apply to our lives and to the lives of others. The “WORD” speaks plainly.

Romans 4:5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. another Translation “But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.”

What an AMAZING promise! Surely, you may think that there must be an error in the text made by whomever transcribed it! You’re maybe thinking that Paul must have said, “God justifies the one who tries to do his best (WORKS). God justifies the nice person who always meant well (the GOOD PERSON), who loved his family (even unbelievers love their family), devoted his time and money to help the needy (there’s many a non-Christian who donates his money and time to charities)(WORKS), went to church (there may be a lot of unsaved people sitting in the pews; people who know who Jesus Yeshua is but doesn’t believe in and trust HIM), a person who reads his Bible and prays every day.” About now, you’re saying to yourself… Paul could not have meant, “God justifies the ungodly, could he? That’s unthinkable!” But the FACT IS: THAT is EXACTLY WHAT it SAYS! We are ALL ungodly because we are ALL SINNERS!

John 3:36 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.

 Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord...

Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast

The Bible is clear about the penalty of sin, but scriptures on salvation reveal that we have received a powerful and life altering gift through the death and resurrection of Jesus Yeshua. All we need to do is accept the gift and salvation and eternal life are ours.

Christ Jesus, who died for the sins of the world—and more than that, who was raised to life—who now sits at the right hand of God is also interceding for us.” Jesus Yeshua is our HIGH PRIEST in Heaven. We are only asked to “BELIEVE” that He is the Son of God and that He died for our sins and rose from the dead to sit at the right hand of God!

John 5:23- 24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

So ask yourself these questions? Do You Believe that Jesus – Yeshua is the SON of GOD and the He died and rose from the dead to save you from your sins? Then who will bring a charge against you? No one will, because Christ is your advocate. Who will condemn you? No one will, because Christ, the One who died for us, is the One who condemns. We have both Grace and Mercy and through our advocate who is also our judge and especially awesome: HE IS OUR SAVIOR.

When Jesus the Messiah- Yeshua HaMashiach was dying on the cross at Calvary, there were 2 thieves on crosses next to him…one of the thieves mocked Jesus and the other thief BELIEVED!

Luke 23:42-43 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Jesus – Yeshua did it ALL! His last words are “IT IS FINISHED”! He made it so easy: JUST BELIEVE WHO HE IS. There’s NOTHING left for you to do… If you are blessed in the sense that the Holy Spirit uses you for “HIS GLORY”…just remember this…GOD doesn’t need you to fulfill his plan for mankind.

God means what He says and says what He means! My hermeneutics are “literal”, however, that being said…study the scriptures yourself and make up your own mind! Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit…

Pick Up Your “SWORD”!

When are you going to start using your “SWORD”?

Did I get your attention?

Hebrews 4:12 For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Revelation 19:13  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Without the “SWORD of the SPIRIT”, how can you discern the WILL of GOD? The WORD of GOD is fully understandable if you “Trust in Jesus the Messiah – Yeshua HaMashiach”. The Holy Spirit comes to live in you and you become the Temple of God!

Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Galatians 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

When you ask the Holy Spirit for guidance and understanding, He will show you the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE!

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

So when you have Jesus – Yeshua…you have it ALL! You are a bearer of the Sword of God because the Spirit of Jesus lives in you…

It’s Only Going to Get Worse!

Choose Jesus – Yeshua while there’s still time!

If you haven’t read Revelation, I implore you to do so right now! It’s the only book in the Bible that tells us that you will be blessed for reading it.

Revelation 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Those of us who have “faith alone in Christ alone” have been given the Holy Spirit to guide us and we are expected to obey the command given by Jesus to communicate to everyone around us the Gospel, we must fulfill the “Great Commission”. For time is getting short…

ALL four of the Gospels as well as the Book of Acts, Jesus gives us the command to share the Gospel with the world.

Matthew 28:16–20 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Mark 16:15–16 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Luke 24:44–49 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.48 And ye are witnesses of these things.49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

The Apostle John records what Jesus said on the day of the Resurrection.

John 20:19–23 Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.20 And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:23 Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

Just before the Ascension of Christ to Heaven, Luke records this message from Jesus – Yeshua.

Acts 1:6–8 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Jesus has made it perfectly clear that we have been called to share the Gospel with the world! My position is this: I believe in a Pre-tribulation rapture, but I don’t want my fellowman to experience even a second of the “Tribulation”…for just as in the days of Noah, those who don’t have “faith alone in Christ alone” will suffer the consequences. When Jesus comes to take possession of the Earth and set up his 1000 year Kingdom, only the raptured believers and believers who survive the Tribulation will live and reign with Christ.

Matthew 24:37-39 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark,39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Sadly, in spite of all the warnings given throughout the entire Bible and especially spoken of by Jesus – Yeshua in the Gospels and Revelation, the world will be both surprised and shocked when Jesus comes again!

Warning others of the imminent end of the world and the consequences of sin isn’t just a “New Testament” calling. The Prophets (Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel to name a few) of the “Old Testament” also warn of the end times.

Isaiah foretold the birth of the Savior Jesus the Messiah – Yeshua Ha Mashiach

“Faith Alone in Christ Alone”

Evangelism is the communication of the gospel message that includes a call to Salvation at the Cross by the blood of Jesus.

John 3:16 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.

It includes an explanation of God’s remedy for sin—the gospel

Acts 8:29-35 The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”30 When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this: He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before its shearer, so He does not open His mouth. 33 In His humiliation justice was denied Him.
Who will describe His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.

God’s Righteousness through Faith

Romans 3:21-26 But now, apart from the law, God’s righteousness has been revealed—attested by the Law and the Prophets 22 —that is, God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe, since there is no distinction. 23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. 24 They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 26 God presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21 He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Acts 17:29-31 29 Being God’s offspring then, we shouldn’t think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image fashioned by human art and imagination.30 “Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God now commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because He has set a day when He is going to judge the world in righteousness by the Man He has appointed. He has provided proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.”

Romans 1:17 For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.

Romans 10:9-13 If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. 11 Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, 12 for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. 13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

The “Great Commission is for us to share the Gospel with everyone we meet, so in a way we plant seeds of faith! GOD MAKES them GROW!

The principle of Evangelism is to bring our fellow man to faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior. We must not be complacent…sometimes I think that Americans are the most complacent people on earth. We need to wake up as the day will come when His mercy will end, so we must not take His mercy for granted, share the Gospel while there’s still time.

John 16:8 When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment:

There are many living on this earth, in this country and even in your town that don’t know Jesus. They don’t realize that they’re dead in their sins, because they don’t recognize what sin is.  They may have heard of someone named Jesus, but they have no idea of what He did for mankind or the consequences of their thoughts and actions, because they’ve never heard the Good News. 

Do YOU ask yourself: “Am I truly a Christian”?

If you answer “YES” to the following questions you are a Christian!

  1. Do YOU BELIEVE that Jesus is the “Son of God”?
  2. Do YOU BELIEVE that He came into the world and lived a sinless life?
  3. Do YOU BELIEVE that He died on the cross for your sins?
  4. Do YOU BELIEVE that He rose from the dead?
  5. Do you claim Jesus – Yeshua as Your LORD and SAVIOR?

JOHN 3:16

The “moment” YOU BELIEVE, you are saved by the “Grace of God”. There’s nothing you can do to add to or take away from Heavenly Father’s “FREE gift of GRACE”!

Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Believing and trust are synonymous. When you put your “trust” in Jesus-Yeshua. You become a “new man or woman” in Christ. The Holy Spirit dwells within you! So ask and allow the Holy Spirit to work inside you so that you can serve our Lord and SAVIOR- Jesus Yeshua with all your heart, mind and soul. Recognize that “all” are made in the image of God and that there’s only one race on this planet…The Human Race. When times get tough, keep in mind that the Lord disciplines you because HE LOVES YOU! You may have to get knocked down in this life so that you learn to “look up”! There’s nothing too big for Jesus-Yeshua to handle…so believe and trust in Him and you will be saved!

Is it a Matter of Salvation?

God means what He says and says what He means! My hermeneutics are “literal”, however, that being said…study the scriptures yourself and make up your own mind! Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit…

John 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 The same was in the beginning with God.3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Scriptures from the KJV – King James Version of the Bible.

The first verses in the first chapter of the Gospel of John makes it perfectly clear the identity of Christ – Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Ha Mashiach (Hebrew). If you had any question in your mind before now…these Scriptures answer the question.

Do you believe in millions and billions of years and have you convinced yourself that it’s okay as long as you believe that Jesus – Yeshua is the Son of God? I’ve been told that it’s not a matter of SALVATION…make up your own mind.

The belief in millions and billions of years spawned the belief of evolution! When you believe that the dinosaurs died millions of years ago, what does that do to the reason why mankind and all of creation face death as a consequence of Adam’s sin against God? What does that do to the Scripture in Genesis that says “in the beginning God created man in HIS IMAGE? When Adam and Eve believed the serpent over the WORD of GOD they broke HIS trust and disobeyed HIM! Now I ask you to read John 1:1 again and if you haven’t thought about it before now, maybe now is the time to rethink your position on millions and billions of years as well as evolution.

John 3:16  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.

I ask you – WHO do you actually believe in if you don’t believe HIS WORD? The belief in millions and billions of years and evolution are the Secular PAGAN Religion of the era that we live in. Can’t you see that the conception of this belief which began in the early 1700’s and continues to grow momentum day by day in the 21st century is destroying the foundation laid down for us in Genesis?

Psalm 11:3 3 If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

Can’t you see that this is Satan’s last ditch effort to pull us away from Jesus who summed it up in one verse, John 14:6 “I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE.” Isn’t Satan saying again…God didn’t really mean what He says? This secular – science motivated pagan religion is being indoctrinated into our children’s minds from the time they’re 2 or 3 years old and it’s only becoming worse as they get older and have access to the technological and mainstream medias or what is referred to as SCREEN-TIME. When we believe in Secular Science rather than the infallible WORD of GOD aren’t we calling God and Jesus Liars? I ask you – WHO do you actually believe in if you don’t believe HIS WORD entirely? Do you think the Bible is a buffet where you can pick and choose whatever you like and then make it fit into your idea of God and Jesus? He’s been specific right from the beginning! He doesn’t leave one jot or tittle for us to figure out, he speaks to us plainly and we don’t need an interpreter, we only need the HOLY SPIRIT to guide us and help us understand HIS WORD.

2 Timothy 4:1-4 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom 2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Did you hear that…GOD’S WORD will be turned into FABLES? That is what I call the indoctrination of Secular Paganism Religion (so called science) into the church. When we don’t believe HIS WORD, are we truly loving Him as Jesus instructed?

Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

If you spend anytime at all reading the Old Testament – Tanakh (Hebrew), you will see that every time, the Israelites chose to follow and invite the pagan religions into God’s WORD, they didn’t fair well at all! They stirred His wrath to the point of death!

Today’s world scoff’s at the idea of a 6,000 year old earth being created in 6 days by THE WORD. Our children have been indoctrinated by the merging of this Pagan Religion into the secular schools as well as the Christian Schools. From the first day of kindergarten until they graduate from secular college and even in our Christian schools and seminaries our children have been told that the history of the Bible is wrong and that the secular historical science is correct. According to Lifeway Research, around 1/3 of Pastors have incorporated into their Bible teaching the doctrine of millions and billions of years proclaimed by the secular scientists.

2 Peter 3-7 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

“YOM” is a DAY in the Beginning

I’m now going to address the subject of a “young earth”…from my investigation and study of YOM used in the Hebrew Bible means a literal day! I recognize that there are some out there who in their zeal to promote millions and billions of years as well as evolution within the Biblical timeline will argue otherwise. However, MY ZEAL lies in the WORD of GOD and I don’t find anyplace where there’s room in the Biblical text for an “old earth”.

GENESIS

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

***it’s obvious from the text that Genesis 1:5 is talking about a 24 hour day…He calls it day and night, He calls it evening and morning and He numbers it “1”.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

***In Genesis 1:8 God numbers it day “2” and qualifies it with evening and morning (the Hebrew day started at sunset and still does today).

13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

***in Genesis 1:13, God once again numbers the day “3” and references evening and morning.

14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

***One of the arguments I hear is that there had to be light from the sun at the very beginning and I’m here to say that the WORD is light and He has no need of a sun. The sun is for our benefit…not HIS! Revelation 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,

18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

***In Genesis 1:19, God uses the exact same pattern as days 2 & 3. I believe this is because, he’s already explained to us in Genesis 5 exactly what he means by day.

23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

***Genesis 1:23 is the number of day “5” in the exact pattern as days 2,3,4.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

***SAME PATTERN

Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

As you can see with Genesis 1:31 God is consistent and doesn’t change His pattern. Another argument is from the misinterpretation of 2 Peter 3:8 which says a day is a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day. Peter is saying that GOD is outside of time and if you think about it, the two statements cancel themselves. But for arguments sake, lets say a day is a 1000 years…this would still make the earth at most only 13,000 years old which is a far cry from millions and billions. It also says God rested on the 7th day, do you really believe that GOD made a day of rest to last a 1000 years? First of all, HE doesn’t need rest, He made the day of rest HOLY as a model for man to follow…another sign of our obedience to HIM that because he made a day HOLY and gave it to us as a gift so that we could rest from our work is just one more example of how loving and patient our GOD is!

If you read on into Genesis 2 and when you come to verse 4, the WORD tells us “These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,”

The only place in the Bible where people have an issue with the meaning of the word DAY (YOM) is in the 1st Chapter of the book of Genesis. Yôm is used over 2,300 times in the Old Testament (making it the most common noun in the Old Testament) (apologeticspress.org), more than 100 of these times, the words evening and morning go along with the usage. Anyplace else in Scripture, when yôm is joined with a number, it references an actual 24 hour day! Nobody questions the meaning of yôm (Hebrew for day) in similarly structured passages in the rest of the Bible. Everywhere else in the Old Testament, when the Hebrew word for “day” (יוםֹ, yom) appears with “evening” or “morning” or is modified by a number (e.g., “sixth day” or “five days”), it always means a 24-hour day. (answersingenesis.com)

Now if you’re asking “How important is this?” I can only tell you how important it is to me! When I asked you at the beginning of this blog “WHO DO YOU BELIEVE?” Recall how Adam and Eve fell for the lies of the serpent. Satan, our enemy, who is alive and well and doing his best to destroy mankind.

Genesis 3:1-4 Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

Here’s the question: Did GOD really say that in 6 days he created the Heavens and the Earth and on the 7th day he rested?

When man adds millions and billions of years from the secular world to the Bible, he’s rewriting the WORD of GOD!  We have been warned not to take away from or add to His WORD.  Who and what you believe makes a difference in whether or not you’re following GOD’S book written by The WORD or Man’s Book written by Satan!

Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Spiritual Warfare

Important Guidelines for Life Pt. 5a

God means what He says and says what He means! My hermeneutics are “literal”, however, that being said…study the scriptures yourself and make up your own mind! Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit…

Mind Your Emotions:

Every emotion that you are feeling whether it’s sorrow, joy, fear, etc should be brought to Heavenly Father in prayer.

Philippians 4:6-7 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

It’s been determined that there’s an almost unknown number of distinct human emotions, but in this blog, I’m only going to talk about the most common emotions that we experience almost on a daily basis: sadness, joy, anticipation, trust, disgust, surprise, anger & fear.

Scriptures from the KJV – King James Version of the Bible.

SADNESS: Equated with unhappiness, loneliness, depression and melancholy…etc.

From time to time, we all experience moments or even long periods of sadness, sometimes these times will evoke a gauntlet of feelings…the ones mentioned in the heading are only a few. Because we are human and we live in this sinful world, these feelings are normal and they can and will occur at one time or another during our lives. Some people might tell you that you need to see a counselor or get psychiatric help. But I’m here to tell you that God – Our Heavenly Father can handle it if we’re willing to humble ourselves and give it to him!

1 Peter 5:6-7 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

God keeps His promises! When we keep our eyes on Jesus and our faith and trust in Our Heavenly Father, we have a future that is beyond anything that we are able to comprehend!

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Sadness has been equated to feelings of darkness, but keep this Scripture in your heart:

1 John 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

JOY: Equated with happiness, contentment, pleasure and elation….etc

Once again, the feelings mentioned in the heading are only a small list. Joy is the emotion that we all look forward to! And Joy is the emotion that we are constantly seeking! Of course we want to feel this emotion, it’s the polar opposite of sadness! However, there are many ways to feed this emotion in the world that aren’t truly satisfactory and leave us seeking more ways to experience this feeling of elation.

It’s also true that “Joy” is one of the fruits of the spirit! So when we experience this feeling, we must pay attention to what has actually triggered it. If it’s from the Spirit of God our joy will last forever. If it’s because of something worldly, for example, there’s a new car in the driveway making you happy, it will be fleeting…you will soon need something else to replace and renew this feeling…which of course will lead you to the polar opposite when you feel like you need to feed your joy with something else from the world. Please don’t get me wrong…it’s okay to be happy with a new car or a new house, just don’t count it as your true joy in this life…cars get dented and houses need repairs. The JOY we receive from a relationship with Heavenly Father will last eternally!

 John 16:24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

John 16:24 amongst many other verses are often used by prosperity preachers to convince us that things and stuff and money will bring us joy. I do believe that it’s true that God wants us to grow and do well in this life, but He also tells us in a parable:

Matthew 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

Jesus – Yeshua has a lot to say about riches…

Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Mammon, biblical term for riches, often used to describe the debasing influence of material wealth. The term was used by Jesus in his famous Sermon on the Mount and also appears in The Gospel According to Luke. Medieval writers commonly interpreted it as an evil demon or god.

So when we think of growing, we need to think about growing in the faith, not necessarily growing our bank accounts. When it comes to doing well, I personally believe that it means that we will have a roof over our heads, warmth, food and clothing to cover our bodies and prayerfully enough left over to help provide these essentials for others. The fact is that the majority of those of us who live in the USA, have very few needs, but VERY MANY WANTS.

ANTICIPATION: Looking forward to, Hope, Confidence and Promise…etc.

When I think of anticipation, I immediately think of the hope that we have in Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Ha Mashiach and the promises of God!

God’s promises are to ALL of us! Jesus – Yeshua died on the cross for ALL sinners! But mankind must accept Jesus as their Savior and the Son of God as well as repent from their sins to reap these promises. God’s promises are laid down on a foundation of unshakable HOPE!!! Without hope we have nothing because Jesus is our only HOPE.

1 Timothy 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;

Titus 2:13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Romans 12:12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

We must never lose HOPE! When we do, we are losing our faith in Jesus as well as our trust in Heavenly Father! However, keep in your mind, that not everything you hope for is the will of God and that sometimes our anticipation takes us away from our one and only true HOPE which is found in Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 13:12 Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.

1 Peter 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Our faith and trust in Jesus gives us eternal life and that is where our HOPE lies…not in the things of this world. God keeps his promises and through Jesus – Yeshua he’s keeping his promise of HOPE!

TRUST: Faith, Belief, Protection and to Rely Upon…etc.

It’s not easy for humans to truly put their trust in anyone…generally speaking man has a tendency to only trust himself. My question: how does that usually work out?

Romans 12:2 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Sometimes we have to be knocked down to our knees over and over again before we recognize that we can only trust in God and the plans He has for us!

Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV) For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Heavenly Father watches out for us all the time! To put it simply, if we allow HIM , HE has our backs! He will never forsake those who LOVE HIM, BELIEVE IN HIM and TRUST HIM!

John 14:1  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

Proverbs 3:5  Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

Psalm 56:3-4 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. 4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.

The take away from these Scriptures is that TRUST is demanded of us as followers of Jesus and believers in God.

TO BE CONTINUED: Important Guidelines for Life Pt 5b

DISGUST:

SURPRISE:

ANGER:

FEAR:

Four Books Written by the Apostle John

Of the 66 books that are in the Bible, the Books of John are my favorite to read as they share what we need to know about our Savior, especially if you’re a new Christian. I’m posting this blog today for a new and dear friend. Blessings in Christ to anyone who listens to the Word of our Heavenly Father. I pray that the Holy spirit guides you as you listen to the Word.

I have not included the Book of Revelation which was also written by the Apostle John, because if your a new Christian you need to start out slow with milk and the Revelation is meat. There’s more than one reason why it’s the last book of the New Testament of the Holy Bible. You will need to read and understand the rest of the Bible before you are ready to read and understand the Revelation of John.

Is Belief in Billions of Years & Evolution Atheism?

God means what He says and says what He means! My hermeneutics are “literal”, however, that being said…study the scriptures yourself and make up your own mind! Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit…

The Creation: I’m going to make my case as a “YOUNG EARTH” Christian, because I believe that GOD literally created the earth in 6 days exactly like He says He does in Genesis. Therefore, I absolutely reject the biological concept referred to as evolution. I also believe that you can’t honestly claim God the Father of Jesus and the giver of the Holy Spirit as the basis of your belief system and then continue to embrace the atheistic view of billions of years and evolution. Christianity and the Atheistic beliefs of billions of years and evolution conflict with the plan of Salvation which is the 1st verse of Genesis.

This is early Hebrew Pictographs of the 1st 3 words of Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning”. In Hebrew it’s actually translated “In Beginning”. When you read pictographically, the death of Jesus – Yeshua on the cross was planned before creation!

There are some who claim that their belief lies in God as well as in the billions of years and evolution… The “Old Earth” Christian thought is that the earth is billions of years old and there’s a gap in the scriptures that leaves room for the billions of years between verses 1 & 2 of Genesis Chapter 1. By accepting the gap, verse 2 picks up after the billions of years. There’s also the Christian view known as “Theistic Evolutionist” that the earth is billions of years old and that God has created the earth and what lives on it today using initiated or guided processes of evolution.

This brings to light another problem! DEATH! If the Dinosaurs died 65 million years ago or more…if you’re a Christian, I ask you how? The curse of sin which brought on death didn’t happen until Adam and Eve accepted the lie of Satan Genesis 3:4 No! You will not die,” the serpent said to the woman. Satan called God a liar and Eve believed him. WHY do we continue down this same vein of thought all these thousands of years later?

Scriptures from HCSB – Holman Christian Standard Bible

Romans 1:20 For His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse.

Is it possible that people who believe in billions of years and evolution, yet claim Christianity are sitting on the fence? Do they believe that it’s okay for them to call God a Liar? If they don’t believe Scriptures about Creation, how can they reconcile Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Ha Mashiach rising from the dead? How can they believe in all the miracles performed by Jesus? If the entire BIBLE – THE WORD isn’t 100% true, why would anyone believe any of it?

Romans 1:25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served something created instead of the Creator, who is praised forever. Amen.

Is it possible that when we accept a lie, that God just says okay, go ahead, you’ve made your bed, now lie in it? After all, we do have the freedom to choose! That’s one of the attributes and gifts that make Him such an AWESOME God! He doesn’t force us to believe anything…but He does give us proof if we’re willing to take off the blinders.

1 Peter 3:3-7 First, be aware of this: Scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, living according to their own desires, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? Ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: Long ago the heavens and the earth were brought about from water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these waters the world of that time perished when it was flooded. 7 But by the same word, the present heavens and earth are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

When you deny Creation, aren’t you a Scoffer? Are you saying then that it’s okay to live your life anyway that you please because God’s plan doesn’t fit your timeline? Aren’t you saying by your disbelief of what what God has done in the past makes it likely that what God says about our future also isn’t true?

Genesis 1-31

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: At a particular instant roughly 15 billion years ago, all the matter and energy we can observe, concentrated in a region smaller than a dime, began to expand and cool at an incredibly rapid rate. By the time the temperature had dropped to 100 million times that of the sun’s core, the forces of nature assumed their present properties.

*Scientists claim: In science we adopt the plodding route: we accept only what is tested by experiment or observation.

MY QUESTION: When, How and where did they test the theory of billions of years? How can they experiment and observe billions of years?

2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and He called the darkness “night.” Evening came and then morning: the first day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: It was five billion years ago. A giant cloud of matter in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, condensed under its gravity, exploding in nuclear fusion. This fusion released what we call sunshine. Very, very, very hot sunshine. And the newly formed star was our Sun.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: Though Earth was neatly orbiting the Sun as a rocky mass four and a half billion years ago, no organism could survive there. Radiation from the recent supernova kept the planet extremely hot, its surface molten, and oxygen was non-existent. Plus, incredibly massive meteorites and asteroids frequently slammed onto the surface — creating even more heat. The Earth got so hot, it began melting. Heavier material sank to the bottom, lighter stuff rose to the top. Some elements evaporated. This transformation created the Earth’s layered core and mantle, crust, and atmosphere.

MY COMMENT***The Bible clearly says that the earth was formless and empty and then God created light…this is entirely opposite of what science teaches us. Science teaches that light came before earth was formed.

My QUESTION: Using the scientific method and claim, how is this scenario anything more than a theory? How did they experiment and observe?

6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters, separating water from water.” 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” Evening came and then morning: the second day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW:

1. Earth’s original atmosphere was probably just hydrogen and helium, because these were the main gases in the dusty, gassy disk around the Sun from which the planets formed. The Earth and its atmosphere were very hot. Molecules of hydrogen and helium move really fast, especially when warm. Actually, they moved so fast they eventually all escaped Earth’s gravity and drifted off into space.

MY QUESTION: And how many billion years ago did this all happen? We still have hydrogen and helium today…why hasn’t it all left?

My Comment***Please notice how what they know about hydrogen and helium moving fast is somehow lending credibility to their hypothesis. We have so much abundant helium today that we can use it in party balloons and we fuel rockets with liquid hydrogen!

2. Earth’s “second atmosphere” came from Earth itself. There were lots of volcanoes, many more than today, because Earth’s crust was still forming. The volcanoes released steam (H2O, with two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom), carbon dioxide (CO2, with one carbon atoms and two oxygen atoms), ammonia (NH3, with one nitrogen atom and three hydrogen atoms).

MY QUESTION: How and where did the water ( H2O ) come from when there isn’t a mechanism to generate the oxygen yet? All there was was the hydrogen and Helium. Today we get Oxygen from the Carbon Dioxide ( CO2 ) that the plants on earth need to grow…their bi-product is oxygen.

***it’s not exactly true that this is what Volcanoes spew today and HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT the VOLCANOES SPEWED supposedly Billions of years ago? This is what I found out about today’s volcanoes: The most common volcanic gas is water vapor, followed by carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Sulfur dioxide can cause breathing problems in both healthy people and people with asthma and other respiratory problems. Other volcanic gases include hydrogen chloride, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen fluoride. Therefore we can’t use today’s information as a key to the past…today’s information can “ONLY” be a key to the present.

3. Much of the CO2 dissolved into the oceans. Eventually, a simple form of bacteria developed that could live on energy from the Sun and carbon dioxide in the water, producing oxygen as a waste product. Thus, oxygen began to build up in the atmosphere, while the carbon dioxide levels continued to drop. Meanwhile, the ammonia molecules in the atmosphere were broken apart by sunlight, leaving nitrogen and hydrogen. The hydrogen, being the lightest element, rose to the top of the atmosphere and much of it eventually drifted off into space

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: Now we have Earth’s “third atmosphere,” the one we all know and love—an atmosphere containing enough oxygen for animals, including ourselves, to evolve.

MY COMMENT***PLEASE READ CAREFULLY the “third atmosphere” CONCLUSION.

MY QUESTION: WHERE is there any proof of these steps? Where is the model from billions of years ago that they were able make their experimentation and observation? Was it once again, another guess?

MY COMMENT*** Notice the language used as the conclusion…“the one we all know and love“, followed by the word evolve. Talk about brainwashing the reader!

9 Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land “earth,” and He called the gathering of the water “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.” And it was so. 12 The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 Evening came and then morning: the third day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: According to this theory, the ocean formed from the escape of water vapor and other gases from the molten rocks of the Earth to the atmosphere surrounding the cooling planet. After the Earth’s surface had cooled to a temperature below the boiling point of water, rain began to fall—and continued to fall for centuries.

MY QUESTION: Does this scientific view clearly say it’s a “Theory”?

MY COMMENT***So once again, it’s a hypothesis without experimentation and observation.

14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs for festivals and for days and years. 15 They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to have dominion over the day and the lesser light to have dominion over the night—as well as the stars. 17 God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18 to dominate the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: Like the other planets, Earth formed from the leftover cloud of dust and gas orbiting the young sun. … Gravity bound the ejected particles together, creating a moon that is the largest in the solar system in relation to its host planet. The young protostar (our sun) was a ball of hydrogen and helium not yet powered by fusion. Over tens of millions of years, the temperature and pressure of the material inside increased, jump starting the fusion of hydrogen that drives the sun today. “A star the size of our sun requires about 50 million years to mature from the beginning of the collapse to adulthood,”according to NASA. “Our sun will stay in this mature phase … for approximately 10 billion years.” The first stars did not appear until perhaps 100 million years after the big bang, and nearly a billion years passed before galaxies proliferated across the cosmos. Astronomers have long wondered: How did this dramatic transition from darkness to light come about?

MY QUESTION: Even after they have made all of their guesses, they’re still guessing! Yes, they use computer simulations, etc, but they can only guess what to put into the computer to perpetuate the simulation! Remember the old computer adage: Junk in – junk out? Once again I ask: Where’s the experiment and observation?

MY COMMENT***How can anyone’s guess be taken as Gospel? Because if you believe in these theories, that’s what you’re doing! Essentially, you’re saying that God is a liar! That Jesus who is the WORD…didn’t tell us the truth!

20 Then God said, “Let the water swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21 So God created the large sea-creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water, according to their kinds. He also created every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 So God blessed them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.” 23 Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: All evidence suggests that the Earth was inhospitable to life for the first 700 million years, largely because it was so hot. However, the Earth gradually cooled, and 4 billion years ago it became more hospitable. Within little more than 100 million years, the first single-cell life forms appeared.3 Where did these organisms come from? And what were their capabilities?

MY QUESTION: Why do scientists continue to make guesses and then publish them as fact?

MY COMMENT*** There’s no evidence that minerals can create life code (DNA). To have life, you must have DNA. To recreate DNA, you NEED DNA! This is an ever changing theory with many more questions than answers. The scientific community is not lacking for ideas and theories, but they are lacking facts and proof!

If you desire to be further confused, look up the origins of life on earth via the internet and be stunned by all the different theories.

24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: That life evolved. The earliest known mammals were the morganucodontids, tiny shrew-size creatures that lived in the shadows of the dinosaurs 210 million years ago. They were one of several different mammal lineages that emerged around that time. All living mammals today, including us, descend from the one line that survived.

MY QUESTION: How is it anyone could believe that the diversity and beauty of our planet earth is a “Happy Accident” that “Chaos” could ever be responsible for the existence of the universe, earth, humanity and all that’s on this earth?

MY COMMENT***It seems to me that science is “selective”. I mean in the sense that they choose to believe their theories and their guesses without proof.

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”

27 So God created man in His own image;
He created him in the image of God;
He created them male and female.

28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” 29 God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This food will be for you, 30 for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it. I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.

SCIENTIFIC VIEW: The first human ancestors appeared between five million and seven million years ago, probably when some apelike creatures in Africa began to walk habitually on two legs. They were flaking crude stone tools by 2.5 million years ago. Then some of them spread from Africa into Asia and Europe after two million years ago.

MY QUESTION: Since science uses the “missing link” theory to perpetuate the idea of evolution and billions and millions of years, why hasn’t a single missing link been found between any of the kinds of species on this earth? The fact is the fossil record says NO! There are no missing links!

MY COMMENT***I don’t have any idea of what the true numbers are of the scientist community who believe the Bible is true history. I suspect that there are many who don’t speak out for fear of losing their position or grant funding. I do know that 40 years ago when I asked my college geology teacher about the current methods of dating rocks, he refused to answer in the classroom. I invited him and his wife to dinner and he told me that it’s just a guessing game…that the dating methods, no matter how much the scientific community adheres to them, they’re inconclusive. I asked why he wouldn’t answer the question in class, he said it was because his answer would more than likely cause him to lose his job.

Since those days, the “CREATION SCIENTISTS” from the Institute for Creation Research have carbon 14 dated fossils and have even found carbon 14 in Diamonds, in Dinosaurs, in several other fossils found in the layers that are proposed by the secular scientists to be 65 million years old (Mesozoic Period). HOW CAN THIS BE? It’s believed that Carbon 14 loses half of it’s life in 5,700 years, mathematically, it totally disappears in 100,000 years…supposedly diamonds were formed 1-3.3 Billion years ago. HOW CAN THIS BE? Not to mention that they have found soft tissue that once was in animals that supposedly died 65 million years ago. HOW CAN THIS BE? This tissue was recently discovered by secular scientists (Dr. Mary Schweitzer was on 60 minutes about 7 years ago) and to her credit, they redid the tests many times and came up with the same conclusion. It seems that soft tissue in dinosaur fossils is nothing new. Since then, they’ve found blood cells and vessels, nerve cells, bone cells in many different countries including China, Mexico, Russia and the USA.

If you’d like to learn more about Creation Science :

https://www.icr.org

Home Page – Is Genesis History

What is Evangelism?

Evangelism is the communication of the gospel message that includes a warning, an explanation, and a call to Salvation at the Cross by the blood of Jesus. Evangelism warns people about sin and it’s consequences.

John 16:8 When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment:

Acts 24:25 Now as he spoke about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix became afraid and replied, “Leave for now, but when I find time I’ll call for you.”

Revelation 20:11-15 Then I saw a great white throne and One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them. 12 I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books.13 Then the sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead; all were judged according to their works. 14 Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And anyone not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

It includes an explanation of God’s remedy for sin—the gospel

Acts 8:29-35 The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”30 When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this: He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before its shearer, so He does not open His mouth. 33 In His humiliation justice was denied Him.
Who will describe His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.

God’s Righteousness through Faith

Romans 3:21-26 But now, apart from the law, God’s righteousness has been revealed—attested by the Law and the Prophets 22 —that is, God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe, since there is no distinction. 23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. 24 They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 26 God presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21 He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

And it includes the clear call to REPENT (to turn from sin and to turn toward God) and believe the gospel, by faith.

Repent or Perish

Luke 13:1-5 At that time, some people came and reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 And He responded to them, “Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all Galileans because they suffered these things? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well! 4 Or those 18 that the tower in Siloam fell on and killed—do you think they were more sinful than all the people who live in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well!”

Acts 17:29-31 29 Being God’s offspring then, we shouldn’t think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image fashioned by human art and imagination.30 “Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God now commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because He has set a day when He is going to judge the world in righteousness by the Man He has appointed. He has provided proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.”

Romans 1:17 For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.

Romans 10:9-13 If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. 11 Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, 12 for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. 13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

WE PLANT THE SEEDS! GOD MAKES IT GROW!

The principle of Evangelism is to bring our fellow man to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior. We must not be complacent…sometimes I think that Americans are the most complacent people on earth. We need to wake up as the day will come when His mercy will end, so we must not take His mercy for granted, share the Gospel while there’s still time!

The entire chapter of Matthew 10 tells the disciples of their commission to go out and preach, He warns them of the pitfalls…

Matthew 10:16 Jesus said…”Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves… so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”

Matthew 4: 17 And as ye go, preach, saying: The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

As the a member of the body of Christ I’m blessed…I know Jesus died for me and that when I repented (turn away) from my sins and put my trust in Jesus, that by His intercession, He will save me from God’s wrath. 

Here’s the Hitch!

There are many living on this earth, in this country and even in our town that don’t know Jesus. They don’t realize that they’re dead in their sins, because they don’t recognize what sin is.  They may have heard of someone named Jesus, but they have no idea of what He did for mankind or the consequences of their thoughts and actions, because they’ve never heard the Good News. 

The Ten Commandments EXODUS 20: 1-17 (NIV)

And God spoke all these words:

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

 “Now once a man has thus been humbled by the Law (10 Commandments) and brought to the knowledge of himself, then he becomes truly repentant for the true repentance begins with the fear and with the judgment of God.  He sees that he is such a great sinner that he cannot find any means to be delivered from his sin by his own strength and effort of works.” (Martin Luther)

Martin Luther, O.S.A. 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk, and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Luther was ordained to the priesthood in 1507. Wikipedia

The Bible teaches that as the church, we are the body of Christ. “We are to love the people of the world.  We are here for this very purpose – to go into the nations and proclaim the Gospel to all who will hear.” (The Gospel Project, Vol 2, p.96) 

***The Gospel Project is an adult Sunday school study program with teacher’s guides and student workbooks.