And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. …
And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” …
If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
The Resurrection – images from pixabay.com
Chris Tomlin – Resurrection Power Lyrics (Worship Song 2018)
The Hebrews welcomed Jesus on Palm Sunday because they thought He was about to become a conquer and a king in a way that would throw off the rule of Rome. The people hoped for this although Jesus arrived as a Prince of Peace.
The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. …
Hosanna (Praise Is Rising) – Paul Baloche (Best Worship Song with Lyrics)
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
Ravaged Places – images from pixabay.com
You may grow very tired saving people, feeding people or attending to those who are ill but this “weary” is not about our need to get physical rest. This “weariness” a mental (or even spiritual) tiring that may lead one to abandon the “good work”. No we are not collecting points to enter heaven we have eternity with GOD by what Jesus has accomplished when he shed His blood and paid for sin by dying on The Cross.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Assist – images from pixabay.com
The good works demonstrate the love of god and our gratitude for our salvation.
What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
You do not have to travel far to find hungry people
People living on the edges of society, homeless and hungry, permeate just about every corner of our land – urban areas and isolated rural areas also. As Christians we can help them; as we do, we demonstrate the Love of GOD and can explain the Gospel to them. We should not make our help conditional nor try to force our belief on them. In The Word of God it says:
But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being
prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the
hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
*Spencer Collection, The New York Public Library. “‘Îsâ (Jesus) receives food from heaven and is able to feed his followers.” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 25, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/d304a860-a153-0135-63e1-05dec81b5a8f
In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had
nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, “I have
compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days
and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes,
they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.”
And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with
bread here in this desolate place?” And he asked them, “How many loaves
do you have?” They said, “Seven.” …
Sometimes in the aftermath of disasters too.
Bread and Soup Line **
Soup and Bread at the Tables ***
** The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. “Jim Forrest and his supply camp on Laguna St., San Francisco disaster, April 18, 1906.” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 25, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e1-60b8-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
*** The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. “Los Angeles relief camp in Golden Gate Park. 10,000 people were fed there every day.” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 25, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e1-609a-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
How can these believers in religions that worship a loving God allow this to happen? Take the Balkan Peninsula of Southeastern Europe for example:
” The places of lowest religious concentration were Slovenia 65.4%, Serbia with 63.7% and Croatia with 63.6%. Religious differences between Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats, Muslim Bosniaks and Albanians alongside the rise of nationalism contributed to the collapse of Yugoslavia in 1991.” https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yugoslavia
Countless peoples around the world have scores to settle with neighbors, some hundreds of years old. Sad to say even Christians can be found in this group.
Before you start judging who is more just, I want you to see how even the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ can bring a peaceful time even in the most dire of circumstances: Global war
“During World War I, on and around Christmas Day 1914, the sounds of rifles firing and shells exploding faded in a number of places along the Western Front in favor of holiday celebrations in the trenches and gestures of goodwill between enemies.” https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/christmas-truce-of-1914
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Forgive and Forget; Extent your hand in peace.
Go in the world and avoid conflict as much as it is possible. Let ancient grudges fade away – who living today even was witness to many of these happenings. Take care they are not the children of mythology causing harm to the innocent. You my fellow believer are the Representative of Christ and the expression of The Love of GOD.
No matter what the outcome and when the deadly evidence has vanished future generations may completely forget the great suffering the conflicts of the past had inflicted on humanity.
After the Great Wars – images from pixabay.com
Share this blog with someone you know.
Christ has Risen and Lives in Heaven – images from pixabay.com
*Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division, The New York Public Library. “Christian martyr, in Madagascar in chains – receiving consolation.” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 15, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47dd-c940-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
However we are curious: it is in our nature. We also have a tendency to gravitate toward drama. We may seek relief from our fears by knowing somethings others do not know. Or, it could just be entertainment for some people. Rest assure however our eternity is hinged on what we believe about GOD and Jesus. No doubt GOD has a plan; people may disagree on the details but what does scripture say? This blog cannot cover it all so I suggest a long term Bible study with good references and bona-fide teaching.
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
What do I believe? I believe in the per-tribulation rapture: I with other Christians living and dead will be called up to meet Jesus when He returns I believe I will experience the 1000 year reign of GOD before the final judgement.
Share this blog with someone you know.
Christ has Risen and Lives in Heaven – images from pixabay.com
Many people consider how the Earth will end, even Christians. Christians have a lot of clues and if prophecy is studied it is not such a mystery; the warnings are there in the Bible. Still “end of days”, “last days”, “The end of the World” are mixed in with pre-, mid- and post- Tribulation Raptures, the return of Jesus and the 1000 year reign. What are these ideas? Where to begin?
One thing should be clear: do not let all the different interpretations and opinions concerning “The Last” days and “The Return of Jesus” keep you from becoming more Christ-like every day.
So a close look at The New Testament reveals how to be saved, how we should live and what we may expect. Keep your eyes on Christ and do not let the common human fear of the unknown distort your daily life. Keep away from sin and consider Jesus could return at any moment.
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his
servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by
sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of
God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw.
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and
blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the
time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you
and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the
seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the
faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on
earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
…
Share this blog with someone you know.
Christ has Risen and Lives in Heaven – images from pixabay.com
All that pertains to the last days and end times is hinged on the return of Jesus and the events associated with that event. Christians have several variations of this event and even some may be misguided. First let us highlight the foretelling of Jesus’ first incarnation.
I will touch upon important scripture
GOD and Love – images from pixabay.com
These are a number of points made in widely separated times and made by different prophets, Apostles or Jesus. To get a better understanding a more complete Bible study considering context is important.
“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the
clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler
in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
Jesus died for all sin belief in Him enables you an eternity with GOD. Getting into Bible studies and instruction from competent Christian teachers will help you understand what it means when we speak of The Second Coming of Jesus.
Next Week: Prophecy IV: Last Days
Share this blog with someone you know.
Christ has Risen and Lives in Heaven – images from pixabay.com
But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God:
Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my
people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know
that I am the Lord, when I open your graves,
and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit
within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land.
Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”
Then Belshazzar gave the command, and Daniel was clothed with
purple, a chain of gold was put around his neck, and a proclamation was
made about him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
The Bible must be studied as a whole and these and other prophets involve studies into themselves therefore, today’s blog is only a hint concerning the impotance of prophets.
Cites
for Prophet Images
No 1 The
Lower Pool of Siloam. The old mulberry-tree, supported by stones, is
said to mark the spot where the Prophet Isaiah was sawn asunder, in
the presence of King Manasseh
Dorot Jewish Division, The New York Public Library. “The Lower Pool of Siloam. The old mulberry-tree, supported by stones, is said to mark the spot where the Prophet Isaiah was sawn asunder, in the presence of King Manasseh” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed February 13, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-5dc7-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
No
4 Belshazzar’s feast–Daniel interpreting the handwriting on the
wall.
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. “Belshazzar’s feast–Daniel interpreting the handwriting on the wall” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed February 13, 2019. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e4-133a-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
Title Page
Depicting Prophets [Alle Propheten Teutsch]
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. “Title Page Depicting Prophets [Alle Propheten Teutsch]” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed February 13, 2019.http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/5bd3f690-63d5-0133-b389-00505686d14e
Share this blog with someone you know.
Christ has Risen and Lives in Heaven – images from pixabay.com
