Heal me O Lord

Heal me O Lord
And I will be healed
For you are the One I praise

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What Is Faith?

In order to identify what saving faith is, it would be ever so useful to describe what it is not. Various misperceptions regarding the true essence of faith are fairly common nowadays. So let’s call them by name and show their insufficiency.

What Faith is Not

Firstly, saving faith is not ‘dogmatic faith’. By that I mean a merely intellectual assent to the cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith without a personal commitment to them. One may believe in the existence of God, the historical crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth and the goodness of Christian morality without experiencing a personal transformation of one’s own heart. After all, the devils believe and tremble (James 2:19). Faith is something more than cerebral.

Secondly, saving faith is not ‘temporary faith’. Jesus referred to such a faith when He recounted the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:10-20). Folk with this brand of faith initially receive the Word of God, but when Satan or tribulation or worldly seductions come knocking at their door, they denounce the Word and sell their souls for a plate of lentils. Such rootless faith is of no value in God’s Kingdom.

Thirdly, saving faith is not ‘miraculous faith’. Pharaoh’s magicians and Nebuchadnezzar’s wizards did wondrous works; but they were not sons of God. Even Judas Iscariot had power to heal the sick and raise the dead; yet he was a child of perdition. Deuteronomy 13:1-3 makes it crystal clear that even false prophets can predict the future with pin-point accuracy. In other words, faith needs something more than miracles to be proved genuine.

Fourthly, saving faith is not just ‘credulous belief’. Before faith can flourish, it first needs to hear the uttering of a divine promise. Without this Word from God, there can be no faith. This fourth point is especially relevant given our contemporary church scene wherein multitudes are taught to dream up ideas and visions in their own hearts whilst confessing “in faith” that God will bring them to pass. Such a faith is no faith at all because genuine faith relies on the testimony of the Spirit of God; not the flippant spirit of man. Only when God speaks can faith be exercised. You cannot have faith in something that God has not spoken.

What faith is

We cannot get anywhere in determining what biblical faith is all about without the term ‘trust’. This is true both in Hebrew and Greek. Charles Hodge analysed that, “Faith, in the comprehensive and legitimate meaning of the word, therefore, is trust.” Faith’s primary element is trust. But this prompts a question: trust in what?

Scripture’s uniform answer is trust in God. But it’s a lot more than just a general confidence in some vague deity out there in the great beyond. Perhaps the best recent example of this kind of nebulous belief in the academic world is the late Anthony Flew (1923-2010). After championing the cause of atheism throughout the course of his life, he converted to Deism at the turn of the century confessing that all the evidence pointed to a designer God. Nonetheless, the distant and disinterested deity of Deism is not the intensely near God of the Gospel, that is, the loving Father God who reveals Himself in and through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Faith trusts in the God of the Gospel. But to dig a little deeper we need to ask another question: what exactly is it about the God of the Gospel that faith must trust? This is where the concept of ‘promise’ becomes all important. Faith puts its confidence in the chief promise of the Gospel, namely, that whosoever believes in Christ is not condemned (John 3:18, etc.). He (or she) has passed from death to life! Faith lays a hold of the mercy of God manifested in Christ crucified and refuses to budge an inch. Faith, therefore, glories in God’s merciful promises.

The first generation of Protestant Reformers stressed this connection between saving faith and God’s promises relentlessly. Martin Luther wrote, “Faith gives the honour to God that He can and will perform that what He promised, namely, to make sinners righteous.” His right-hand man Philip Melanchthon continued much in the same spirit, “Faith is clearly the recognition of that mercy by whatever promise you apprehend it.” And again, as one of the spokesmen of the second generation Reformers so eloquently put it, “We shall now have a full definition of faith if we say that it is a firm and sure knowledge of the divine favour toward us, founded on the truth of a free promise in Christ, and revealed to our minds and sealed on our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” A century later the Protestant Puritans kept preaching the same holy doctrine. Here’s a quote from just one of them, William Gurnall, who defined faith in the following matter: “It is the act of the soul whereby it rests on Christ crucified for pardon and life, and that upon the warrant of the promise.” In other words, faith is inseparable from the merciful promises of God. And all these merciful promises hone in upon Jesus. As the New Testament repeats time and time again in manifold texts, Christ is faith’s supreme object.

This observation helps us to understand another important facet of faith i.e. that it is not self-sufficient. The glory of faith does not reside in itself. Faith always points above and beyond itself. It cannot be content alone. Faith’s grandeur consists in being the avenue through which Christ’s righteousness is applied to the sinner’s heart. Faith is the tunnel that draws vast goodness from the lake of Christ. Jesus is an end in Himself; faith is but a means to Him.

Faith, then, is entirely captivated by Christ. This explains why I think that the best way to think about faith is a pair of arms wide open waiting to embrace the love of God. Whereas repentance signifies a turning away, faith is a drawing near, a coming close and a kiss of deep affection. It is so much more than a scholarly agreement. To go back to the original definition we proposed, faith is heart-warming ‘trust’. This is the essence of what true faith is all about. Faith believes that God will be eternally merciful to sinners because that is what He has promised. Or as the writer of Hebrews declared, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not yet seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

Application

To conclude, faith is neither ‘dogmatic faith’ nor ‘temporary faith’ nor ‘miraculous faith’ nor ‘credulous belief’. It is a solid trust in the merciful promises of God of the Gospel revealed through Christ. Since faith is entirely orientated towards Jesus, it is a thoroughly affectionate substance that sets the heart of men (and women) of God ablaze with holy passion.

So I ask you today: have you placed your faith in Christ? Are you depending on what Jesus has promised or on the whims of your own heart? Is Jesus everything to you? Does your heart ache for Him on the one hand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God on the other?

If you haven’t called upon the name of the Lord yet, I repeat the apostolic promise: “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved!” And if you have already trusted in God’s goodness, then I urge to keep walking from faith to faith finding full satisfaction in the sweet presence of King Jesus- the One in whom faith finds its reason for being.

By William Graham

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Effect of Antiperspirant

This is very helpful information for everyone. I would be glad if you find it useful and willing to share it with friends.

Sometimes ago, a question was raised by a group of people. The question is base on the use of deodorant- A lot of people use deodorant to keep their armpit fresh and make it smell pretty good. But they don’t know its effects.

Breast cancer has affected so many lives and even killed millions of people in world record. About 70 to 80% products in market are combination of antiperspirant deodorants. Anyway, deodorant is still okay but antiperspirant is very harmful to the body due to much concentration of toxins causing mutation in the cell; likely cancer.

Few areas in the body like the armpit, side of kneel or behind, and some other areas can eliminate toxins. Through perspiration, toxin is eliminated. Antiperspirant prevents the body from perspiring, thereby making armpit the alternate way to eliminate toxin.

Breast cancers mostly take place in the upper sternum. This is common in both male and female. The use of anti-perspiration open way to breast cancer; it is advisable to use good water and soap in washing your armpit rather than using some other product.

My conclusion is stop using any product that can open your body to cancer or any other diseases.

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SNAKE POISON NEUTRALISED BY ANOINTING WATER

Here is yet another powerful testimony concerning the Anointing Water from the nation of Malawi…

“My name is Mrs Wema Mizwa; I live in Lilongwe, Malawi. I write to glorify the name of our Lord Jesus for the great things He has done to my family through the medium of the Anointing Water. Indeed, God does everything according to His words. He said, “You shall drink deadly poison and shall not die; you shall step on snakes and scorpions and nothing shall harm you”. In the book of Acts, it happened to Paul on that Island of Malta when a viper did no harm to him.

“Last Saturday, I had made up some fire from wood to heat up water for the family to take their bath. As I was trying to collect some firewood which was heaped under a tree within our courtyard, a snake just came out of the woods and I moved backwards screaming to alert my husband and my brother who were just nearby. At this time my 11 year old daughter was playing some distance from where I was and got interested to see what was happening. As she rushed towards us, she too stepped on another snake which was lying underneath some dry grass along a path.

“Since she could not see it she stepped on it with all her force. The snake immediately lept up and bit her on her left foot. It then started to run away at high speed. A neighbour who was just nearby also saw the snake. He ran over, shocked, saying that it was a very poisonous type and my daughter needed immediate medical attention. She started crying and blood was oozing from the bitten area. Knowing how serious it is to be bitten by a snake, I knew that only faith in Jesus and His Grace was the way my daughter would survive. We had heard several cases in my area of people losing their lives through such poisonous bites.

“Before any first aid was given to her, I quickly took out my Anointing Water, sprayed it on the affected area and made her drink some in the name of Jesus. I was doing that while praying and meditating on the words and promises of God, remembering what happened to Paul on that island. I knew with faith in my heart that through the Anointing Water, all the snake poison had been neutralized and no harm would come upon my daughter. We decided to take her to the hospital so that she can receive an anti-venom injection.

“While we were driving to the hospital, I kept on praying and reading the Word. Surprisingly, I felt very relaxed as if nothing serious has happened; even my daughter kept asking me why we were taking her to the hospital after ministering the Anointing Water because all her pain had gone! I told her that there was no need for her to worry as I didn’t want me and her father to argue about the issue. I encouraged her just to wait and see how things would end up.

“We arrived at the first hospital but did not get any treatment as they said they did not have any treatment for snake bites; they only referred us to other clinics and pharmacies. We spent two and a half hours going around clinics, pharmacies and other veterinary clinics looking for the anti-venom drug to no avail. We were advised to go to the government central hospital where they put her on a fast running drip as they had no anti-venom drugs in stock.

“The clinician told us that normally all patients with snake bites are admitted into the wards for observations to check for any effects associated with snake poisons like swelling, shocks, headaches, heart running very fast and the like. However, my daughter had none of these symptoms. After running the drip for less than an hour, the clinician said he saw no reason of keeping her admitted in the hospital so he discharged her and gave her some antibiotics to take for some days.

“To the glory of God, she is completely fine – no swelling, no headaches, not even a single side effect! My daughter even refused to take the antibiotics; she only ministered the Anointing Water. Indeed, Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is the one who rescued Paul and He has rescued my daughter today. There is nothing too hard for my God: Praise be to His Holy Name. May God continue to strengthen and bless you Prophet TB Joshua and your ministry in Jesus’ name. Without the grace of God in the Anointing Water from your ministry, we would have been saying something else about my daughter.”

Mrs Wema Mizwa, Malawi

Visit: Daily Word

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Ceased Menstruation For 12 years Miraculously Restored

When you acknowledge God as your Healer, Deliverer and Redeemer, He will do it again and again. Be inspired in your faith as you read this awesome testimony:

“Emmanuel! My name is Liberty Akpan and I am a Nigerian. I want to testify to the goodness of God in my life! First of all, I thank the Almighty God and I also thank Prophet T.B. Joshua for allowing God to use him. I was having the problem of ceased menstruation for 12 years from 2000 to 2012. I had gone to hospitals, done evacuation on numerous occasions and taken many herbal roots they had given to me yet it was all to no avail. I had prayed and fasted about this problem but everything I tried seemed to yield no result.

“Last year, I was introduced to Emmanuel TV and saw what God was using Prophet T.B. Joshua to do in the lives of people. I went and bought a decoder and began to pray along with Prophet T.B. Joshua on Emmanuel TV. During this period, a friend came and gave me some Anointing Water which I also ministered to myself. Shortly afterwards in August 2012, I started seeing my menstruation! Incredibly, the cycle was complete, just as it supposed to be. Since that month until the present, my menstruation has been flowing normally! To God be the glory!”

Visit: Daily word

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Heal me Lord

Listen and watch this lovely Healing song video of Don Moen

Chorus:
Heal me o Lord
And I will be healed 
Save me and I will be saved
Heal me o Lord
And I will be healed
For You are the one I praise
You are the one I praised

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GOD WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE BEAUTIFUL

There was a time when life used to be beautiful. Everything was so fresh, so new and so astonishingly enthralling. Mystery surrounded us. Every step we took was music. By day, sunbeams smiled down warmly and by night, the stars twinkled munificently. All creation erupted in a carnival of dancing for us to contemplate the splendour on display. Perfection and paradise were our lot. With so much to discover and experience, we quivered under the thought of the promised sweetness awaiting us. We were merely starting out as meagre pilgrims on the vast journey of life. We couldn’t escape from hope’s embrace.

God designed our existence to be that way. His creation was a joy-driven work that saturated nature in abounding love and soul-drenching hope. He made everything to be ever so good. What a delight He took in furnishing us a world so perfect to live in! Such was His love that His handiwork flowed fluently and freely. He was satisfied to see His creation satisfied. He rejoiced to see others rejoice. He put glee in man’s heart to fascinate him with divine goodness. Could God have been any more melodious, harmonic and tuneful? He did all things well. The whole earth responded merrily in an anthem of effortless praise.

So what went wrong? The problem began when we forsook the fount of all beauty: God, the Creator. Having denied ourselves an authentic existence before Him, we became dark beasts that opted for a shadowy existence and an identity based upon human self, success and domination. We crucified the holy passions with which we were formed. So the Wholly Other One disappeared from sight. And we were wickedly thankful. God was condemned to oblivion. At last, we had got rid of the Imposter! Or so we thought.

This primitive longing for beauty and existential fullness has never left man and it never will. It forms part of our human constitution. That’s why so many middle-class and middle-aged Westerners wake up one day in their forties to realize they have become walking institutions burdened by the crippling weight of having to project a constant image of untarnished success. Rather than rejoicing with those that rejoice, they get rotten about the happiness that others find in life, bearing their disgust with a diplomatic smile in public. Life, for them, has turned into a dead-end alley of pressure, rules, things, money and structure. Frustration is triggered, and sooner or later, an inherent scream in every one of these beauty-forsaking well-to-doers releases itself in the most violent and desperate of manners. This soul-piercing scream squeals frantically for redemption. It is the sign of paradise lost. It uncovers the scary depths of humanity’s anguish.

There is no way to find satisfaction for this vicious thirst until peace is made with God. God created the human soul to fill it with Himself. After all, man was made for something greater than success and domination; he was formed for beauty. He was crafted to delight in it. And as the Bible shows, absolute beauty can only be found in the Eternal One, that is, He who revealed His majesty on a bloody cross in Palestine on a run-of-the-mill Friday afternoon not too long ago. Faith is the key to recovering this dynamic and adventurous joy of life that God the Creator desires to bestow ever so richly upon every desperate life.

If you are one of the broken ones, why not ask God to fill you? He’ll make your life beautiful.

Will Graham

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THE CHARM AROUND MY WAIST DISAPPEARED

Where the light of God is, darkness has no hiding place…

“My name is Sniko Lennox Mbangatha from South Africa. First of all, I would like to thank Mr Milton Marire for showing me this station of Emmanuel TV which God used to save my life and rescue me from the clutches of darkness. My mother died when I was very young, so I was raised by family members through the years. Last year, my uncle passed away and he was the one who had really been taking up responsibility for me. After his passing, so many negative things began happening in the family. People started doing rituals and visiting traditional healers, known as ‘sangomas’ in my language.

“As a result of this, I was given a small rope to keep around my waist at all times for protection. My wife really didn’t want it in the house and we fought over it many times. However, at this point a friend introduced me to Emmanuel TV and I began to watch. Shortly afterwards, a friend of my wife came to our house with Anointing Water and ministered it to us. Right from childhood, I had been plagued with demonic attacks; it was so hard for me to sleep at night because I kept hearing these strange voices the whole night. However, after using the Anointing Water, the following day when I woke up, to my greatest surprise, the rope was gone in my waist! I couldn’t believe my eyes; it was removed by God Himself! I thank God and T.B. Joshua for the blessings He gave me because now I can sleep at night peacefully without hearing these strange voices. I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. I pray that I would come to Lagos one day to thank T.B. Joshua personally for saving my life.”  

Via Distance is not a  Barrier

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God so loved the world

"God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son." He gave Him not only to live among men, to bear their sins, and die their sacrifice. He gave Him to the fallen race. Christ was to identify Himself with the interests and needs of humanity. He who was one with God has linked Himself with the children of men by ties that are never to be broken. Jesus is "not ashamed to call them brethren" (Hebrews 2:11); He is our Sacrifice, our Advocate, our Brother, bearing our human form before the Father's throne, and through eternal ages one with the race He has redeemed the Son of man. And all this that man might be uplifted from the ruin and degradation of sin that he might reflect the love of God and share the joy of holiness...Amen!♥

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GOD OWES US

GOD OWES US, NOTHING YET GIVES US EVERYTHING.

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Jesus is the Messiah

Jesus is the Messiah! He came to the world to give life to those who need it. Who doesn't need life? Everyone needs life. The Bible says “His own people received Him not… (John 1:11).” But to those who received Him without being septic, “He gave them the power to become the SONS of God (John 1:12)”

There shouldn't be an argument. Jesus is Lord and Savior of our lives. He is in beginning with God; with Him all things were made. Without Him nothing was made. He is the word and the word is God (John 1:1-3)

Jesus is Life; without Jesus we are lifeless and in crisis. Life was given to men by God. He gave us life so that we can serve in Him in truth and holiness. He made all things, so that we can feel happiness all days of our life. Light was given to because darkness can’t comprehend it.

Who is the light and who is the darkness? Jesus is the Light. Evil doers own the darkness. They destroy lives through darkness. But light gives life.

Some scholars does not believe Jesus, yes, they don't. It is a pity! If they don't believe in Jesus who else will they believe? Will they believe you or me? They won't because they are filled with false ideas. So many times they get confused but they won't tell you. Most of them secretly believed that Jesus is the life. But they won't tell you that. Reason is because they want to be popular with their false-idea teachings.

It is funny but reality. Three things made those scholars who claimed not to believe in Jesus who also called themselves atheism. They are :( 1) those scholars who took their pens and start writing about theories of evolution or related have no work to do. Yes they don't. If they do, they wouldn't have gone for researches for “unsearchable.” (2) Devils gave them a lot of money, in turn they will bring confusions to the world after they have got some falsehood ideas. Finally, they claimed not to believe Jesus because they want to become a superman which can never be possible.

We do not need to doubt, we shouldn't. All we need to do is BELIEVE THAT JESUS IS LORD AND SAVIOR. Preach the true gospel to the world. Let all you have acquired in life be used in glorifying the Lord. The more we glorify Him, the more we help those in need, the more He blesses us.

I can say it proudly; since I gave my life to Jesus I have been experiencing greater things in my life. Believe me, you too can.

All I want from you today is for you to make up your minds and start preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. Don't find it difficult to helping those who needs your help. The more you bless them, the more the Lord will bless you.

Conclusion: Friends, please don't believe their false teaching, follow what your Bible tells you.

GOD BLESS YOU IN JESUS' NAME.

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PREACH THE WORD, NOT YOUR DREAMS

The Christian church was birthed into the world preaching and proclaiming the Word of the Lord. In Jesus of Nazareth- they claimed- the Jewish Scriptures had been fulfilled. Just read carefully through Peter’s message on the Day of Pentecost. His whole sermon was extracted from the promises of the Old Testament.

That’s the way God planned things to be. In the pulpit only one thing was worthy of being preached, namely, the Word of God. Even in the midst of a wondrous outpouring of tongues and miracles, Peter put the emphasis on biblical exposition. His concern was what the Scriptures had to say.

This divine pattern should set off alarm bells ringing in our head every time some preacher gets up into the pulpit to speak about his dreams, his visions, his (miraculous) gifts or the voices he’s been hearing from  angels. The pulpit doesn't exist for us to proclaim our dreams. It is there to put all the spotlight on the precious Word of God. Don’t get me wrong- I’m elated for every child of God who has had unforgettable spiritual experiences (I've had some too)- but the pulpit is a house built upon the solid rock of the Bible.

Over the years I've heard guys preaching whole messages about how they visited hell and saw great visions of how the devil was punishing everyone there with a big whip. That’s just a load of nonsense! The Bible says the devil goes to hell to suffer eternally not to beat up others. If you’ve ever had a vision or ‘word from the Lord’ that doesn't line up with Scripture, you are to reject it on the spot. And never in a million years should you make it the topic of your sermon.

In an age of ever growing mysticism and a non-biblical spirituality, we need preachers who will not shun to proclaim the whole counsel of God. That’s right. We need folk who will just put their finger on the Bible and preach what is written there, expounding verse by verse the blessed Book of God.

So let’s get back to the real Christian way- the Word of God way! Preach the Word in season and out. And if you honor God’s teaching, God will honor you…

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Amazing Grace

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THE MOST MISQUOTED VERSE IN ALL THE BIBLE

If you were to ask me which Bible verse I considered to be the most widely misquoted, I would unhesitatingly answer, Matthew 7:1. What does it say? “Judge not lest you be judged!”

Too many folk quote this verse off by heart without understanding anything of its original meaning. Why did Jesus say this? Does being a disciple of the Lord really mean that you are not allowed to think for yourself and judge spiritual judgment? It would help a lot if we read the context of the verse in question, “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you shall be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it shall be measured to you again. And why do you behold the mote that is in your brother’s eye but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye? Or how will you say to your brother, “Let me pull out the mote from your eye”; and behold, a beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the beam of your own eye, and then you shall see clearly to cast the mote out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:1-5).

Once we read the passage in its entirety, then the expression, “Judge not lest you be judged” doesn't seem too difficult to understand. What Jesus was hitting out against was a spirit that condemns others for faults and sins in which the accuser himself (or herself) was guilty of. If you live a secret life of sin and iniquity, who are you to dare to speak out against anyone else’s sin in public? That is the height of hypocrisy! Once you've got rid of the beams from your eye, then you can judge righteous judgment (as John 7:24 commands) and discern by the Spirit of the Lord.

The great problem with misquoting this verse is that we are very subtly doing away with any form of judgment in the Christian faith; a very anti-biblical idea. Jesus spoke these words, but remember that He Himself is the Almighty Judge (1 Peter 4:5) who will send His angels to cast apostates into everlasting hell-fire. His ferocious words directed against the Pharisees and religious elite of first-century Palestine were undeniably judgmental (just like the words of all the Old Testament prophets). He said if you don’t repent of your sins, then you will perish. Now that’s not a very ‘loving’ message according to our new brand of user-friendly faith; but it doesn't matter what a smooth-as-butter religious organization says, it’s the Word of God that counts. Your eternal destiny depends upon the Lord; not tongue-twisting and manipulative man-made ministry. I've watched so-called evangelical preachers giving television interviews afraid of affirming dogmatically that Jesus Christ is the only Way of salvation. They've wrought more evil than good thanks to their lack of biblical judgment.

If judgment is forbidden to saints, then who was Paul to judge the case of incest at Corinth (1 Corinthians 5)? Who gave Peter the right to accuse Ananias and Sapphira of lying (Acts 5)?  The man of God Chrysostom wrote that we are to correct one another, but not as an enemy seeking revenge, rather as a doctor looking to heal. The right spirit must possess our judgment.  We judge according to the Scriptural standard and, by doing this, we are spared from deception and obey the mandate of God. We judge to obey God; not to defame rebels.

Let’s translate all this into a practical example: a man in your church pulpit is preaching heretical doctrine. Suppose he says (like many reprobates do today), “God is not a Triune God; there is no personal distinction in the Godhead. Forget all about the Father, Son and Holy Ghost,” or maybe, “Jesus Christ is not God manifest in the flesh,” how do you respond? Do you just sit back and say, “Oh well, I’ll not do anything, after all, I’m not called to judge!”? Who would be so foolish as to allow the glory of God to be thus blasphemed? Would you let a girl be raped in front of your eyes and then say, “I didn't intervene because I didn't want to judge the situation. I’m too loving a person!”

God calls us to “prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). If you don’t test and judge according to the Word of God, then you are going to be deceived. In the latter day apostasy, many men are going to be handed over to strong delusions that they should believe a lie. Why? Paul answers, “That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:12). That’s fierce language, but it only goes to show the pressing and urgent need for Biblical judging of all teachings and actions. Therefore, judging biblically, far from being a mere archaic concept that was only valid for previous generations, is the only assurance of our spiritual survival in these coming years ahead.

So let us correct those around us that constantly misquote Matthew 7:1. Jesus has not called you to take your brains out; He calls you to judge righteous judgment and to make sure that you are not caught up in the same falsehood and sin that you rebuke in others. That way we will avoid the danger of being judged for judging others.

Will Graham

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Biblical Prophecy

This is the Book of Matthew Chapter 5:
1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Note: the Bible verse is taken from KJV

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IF GOD EXISTS, WHY IS THERE SO MUCH EVIL IN THE WORLD?

You've all heard the famous argument against the existence of God that stems from the thinking of Pierre Bayle. He proposed that if God were all-powerful, He could eliminate all evil in the world. And if He were good, then He would desire to do so.

The objection, then, goes like this: since evil continues to exist in the world, there are four possibilities: 1) God is good but He is not all-powerful because He cannot destroy evil; or 2) God is all-powerful but He is not good because He does not want to destroy evil; or 3) God is not all-powerful and not good; or 4) God simply does not exist. Therefore, the God of biblical revelation dies. Or so Bayle would lead us to believe…

A closer analysis of Bayle’s argument reveals a few severe leakage points.

1.- Now doesn't mean forever.

Bayle’s argument depends upon the current presence of evil in the world. But Bayle- let’s not forget- was writing to us in the late seventeenth century. Yes, evil existed in the seventeenth century just as it exists in our days in the twenty-first century. Nevertheless, God has promised that all evil and evildoers will get their recompense in the not too distant future. The Lord promises us that justice will be done to all sinners and that evil will ultimately be dealt the death-blow when Jesus returns. Just because a turkey is alive and kicking now doesn't mean it won’t be slaughtered in the week leading up to Christmas. In the same way, evil may flap her ugly wings all around us; but her days are numbered. Evil must exist now. But that does not mean God won’t do something about it. The Christian can reply to Bayle: “God is all-powerful therefore He will defeat all evil. God is all-good therefore He desires to do so.” That answers possibilities 1, 2 and 3.

2.- Hey! Where does Bayle get his idea of evil from?

A subtler point is that Bayle uses an argument from evil to decry God. However if God doesn't exist, one would have to ask Mr Bayle where he gets his ethical concept of evil from. If God is dead then so are objective moral values. Good and evil no longer exist. There is no right and wrong. The notion of evil only makes sense in a universe where a moral Legislator exists. Therefore if God does not exist, then Bayle has no argument. It’s simple nonsense. In a quite ironical twist, Bayle actually needs the existence of God for his logic to make any sense. That answers possibility 4.

3.- Did Bayle ever hear speak of Jesus Christ (or Christians)?

And just to add on a little Christian flavour to the argument, one would have to ask Bayle if he’d ever heard of Jesus Christ who went about doing good and destroying the work of evil. The Son of God dedicated his life to denouncing sin and promoting the righteous values of the Kingdom of heaven. Ever since His death and resurrection, multitudes of believers have sought to do the same. Atheist Albert Camus once said we must either decide to join the doctors in fighting a plague or join the priests in refusing to fight against it. It’s just another false dichotomy. The Christian may very well fight the plague as a means of serving God’s cause in the world. Disciples of Jesus are by their very profession of faith anti-evil. Maybe Mr Bayle should have spent less time philosophizing and more time reading his New Testament.

Conclusion

So there you have it. God is all-powerful and all-good. And that is pretty bad news for evil. Jesus is the perfect incarnation of how God wants all Christians to respond to evil in the world. And He is the surety that evil will get its comeuppance in due time.

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Gospel Songs

I am the Lord that healed thee
I am the Lord
Your healer
I sent my Word and healed your disease
I am the Lord
Your healer. Amen

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Pictures Of Jesus

To be rich, is not what you have in your bank account, but what you have in your heart.

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THE HARD WORDS OF JESUS

A few years ago I realized something deeply disturbing: the Jesus most people talk about in the twenty-first century is not the Jesus of the Bible. Today’s fake version of Jesus is more like a doll or a teddy bear or a fluffy bunny. He is not the Almighty Christ talked about in the New Testament. The new Jesus is nothing more than a cheap invention of modern sentimentalism’s chief policy: “Do not offend anyone! Just love, love, love…!”

This morning I went through Matthew’s Gospel underlining every “hard” word Jesus spoke and I was astonished to find so many quotes that would be condemned by today’s sugary brand of faith as “intolerant”, “harsh”, “judgmental” or just downright “unloving”. There are far too many quotes to even begin a serious study. But let me offer you a selection of some of the fiercest of the words that Jesus used when confronting His enemies. Remember: I’m quoting directly from Jesus’ words in the Scriptures. There are no human add-ons here…

1.- Repent! (Matthew 4:17)

Jesus’ public ministry began with the watchword of John the Baptist. It wasn’t love, love, love! But repent, repent, repent! This radical message of repentance explains why Jesus said He came to bring a sword (and not peace) so that whole families would be divided because of Him (10:35-38). “If you don’t love me more than everything else,” reasons Jesus, “you are not worthy of me!”

2.- Clear off! (Matthew 4:10; 16:23)

On two occasions Jesus tells the devil “get behind me” and “get hence”. In contemporary terms: “Clear off, Satan! Take a hike!” He didn't dialogue with the devil. He told him where to go. Full stop! Doesn't sound too tolerant, does it?

3.- Beware of judgment! (Matthew 5:22, etc. Too many to mention)

As I read through Matthew it became ever so clear that Jesus’ key message is that judgment is coming soon. It was as if condemnation was never off His mind whilst He was preaching. I jotted down dozens of texts where Jesus warns His followers and others in no uncertain terms to get serious about following God. Just take a read through the book yourself and you’ll see what I mean. He is coming! So get ready!

4.- Insults!

Jesus’ lips are full of fierce insults for the enemies of the Kingdom of God. “Hypocrites” is a term that appears throughout the whole Gospel (fifteen times). Then there are the two related terms “snakes” and “vipers”. Add to that list “blind fools”, “blind guides”, “wicked”, “perverse”, “evil” and “cursed” and you’ll start to see what Jesus thought of the devil’s servants. Who would dream of speaking like that nowadays? The Barbie Jesus of the twenty-first century sure wouldn't!

5.- Darkness and gnashing of teeth!

I counted six threats regarding “darkness and gnashing of teeth” pronounced by Jesus in Matthew (8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30). Whatever hell must be like, it sure isn’t going to be pretty. The Lord tried to convey something of the torment that will afflict all of the reprobate eternally. Sometimes the word “fire” is used as well in these passages to emphasis the severity of the suffering.

6.- Woe!

The word “woe!” sends shivers down my spine. It was just about the harshest word a Jew could utter. To proclaim a woe upon someone or something meant to curse them in the severest of terms. Jesus proclaims “woe!” more than ten times in the Gospel (fourteen to be exact). Woe to the Pharisees! Woe to the scribes! Woe to the one who betrays the Son of man- it would be better for him not to have been born! Woe to the world!, etc.

7.- You won’t be forgiven! (Matthew 6:15; 12:32)

Jesus also makes it very clear that there will be no forgiveness for two types of people: 1) those who refuse to forgive others; and 2) those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit. It’s that simple. Jesus makes no false promises. He preached with holy zeal!

8.- You’re better off tying a rock around your neck! (Matthew 18:6)

One final “unloving” word from the biblical Jesus is found in Matthew 18:6 when Jesus warns folk about offending children. “Whosoever offends one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea!” (Matthew 18:6). Jesus was no fairy. He didn't live in a magical bubble. He warned, He exhorted and He admonished in the name of the Lord.

Conclusion

I hope this goes some way to dispelling the twenty-first century myth about Jesus. He is not a doll or a teddy or a fluffy bunny. He is the eternal Judge made manifest in flesh. There are so many more texts that I could add from Matthew’s Gospel; but this article will serve as a starter. We must not be ashamed of the biblical Jesus. “Whosoever shall deny me before men, him also will I deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32). So if we’re going to follow Jesus, let’s make sure He’s the correct One… 

Will Graham

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