MY TRUTH OR THE TRUTH

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What are our psychologists teaching us about life? The latest is the “identity theory of life“. It is entirely subjective. It emerges from how we feel, what we think, and what we want. It is not beholden to our Creator, to any fixed standard outside of us. It is my truth, not the truth.

What does God tell us about life? he starts with “In the beginning, God...” Then when He has anything to say about human beings, He says, ““Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…

There is a truth outside of us that we cannot escape. It determines what we are and who we are. And yet the world rebels against that truth. Why? The Prince of this World deceived Eve:

“But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4-5

We want to be God and determine how we will live our lives. We do not want to live according to our Creator’s commandments.

We are made in the image of God. What does that mean? Martyn Isles in his book Who Am I? Solving the identity Puzzle says the following:

“Scripture tells us that the whole of God’s nature may be summarised in that sacred word “holy”. First, it means sinless and perfect. So Adam and Eve were made sinless and perfect. But holiness is also a short way of referring to all of who God is. It includes all aspects of His perfection – all of His character traits. So, God’s character traits were able to be demonstrated by mankind in creation because of their holiness, to radiantly image Him and reflect His glory this includes things like His love, grace, mercy, righteousness, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, and so forth. Wow!

God made it possible for us to get right with Him and return to the right relationship. It could only be achieved by Jesus (God the Son) paying the price of our rebellion which was death. Jesus died so that we might live. He rose again from the dead and so will we to eternal life, first to reign with Jesus on this Earth during His Millennial reign, and then after the White Throne judgement, on a new Earth where only the righteous will dwell.

“They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:5-6

The Millennial Kingdom is next on God’s agenda for mankind. Are you prepared for what is coming? I was not and God narrowed my focus for a while so I could prepare the website http://www.millennialkingdom.net. May I suggest you go take a look and get prepared?

MORE EVIDENCE FOR A YOUNG COSMOS

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DEAD. COLD. DARK. SMALL. OLD, VERY OLD. Many such words have been used to describe the dwarf planet Pluto, which orbits the sun very far away. About 40 times as far from the sun as Earth. Pluto is much smaller than other planets and was ‘demoted’ from planet status in 2006. Secular scientists believe Pluto is 4.5 billion years (Ga) old. They also believed Pluto was dead, meaning geologically inactive. This is because, by being so small and far from the sun, if it were anywhere near that old, it would have lost all its internal heat long, long ago.

New Orions spacecraft and Pluto

In 2015, the New Horizons spacecraft finally reached its destination to study what NASA called “a relic from the formation of the solar system”. This was the first mission designed to study Pluto, its moons, and other objects in the Kuiper Belt. This belt is a vast region of space beyond Neptune’s orbit, containing icy bodies including Pluto.

The spacecraft took the first detailed, close-up images of the surface of Pluto and its moon, Charon, while studying the composition of the dwarf planet. What it has found and continues to find has been surprising, inspiring, intriguing, and mind-blowing. Pluto is shocking the science world by not being cold, dark, dead, and all the similar adjectives used to describe it. The greatest surprise is that Pluto does not appear to be old.

Several areas of Pluto studied are believed to be recently active cryovolcanoes. Among these areas are Virgil Fossae and Viking Terra. Similar icy volcanoes have also been discovered on the planetary moons Enceladus (orbiting Saturn) and Triton (orbiting Neptune). The question is then, how? How can a cold, dead planet still have volcanoes? How can a very old, small planet be active? Where would the energy come from, if not from internal heat? But how can Pluto be so small and still have internal heat? The Bible. God’s inerrant word gives us the answer it is about 6,000 years old not billions.

HOLDING A TRUE WORLDVIEW

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The Cultural Research Center (CRC) at Arizona Christian University recently released data from a survey of 400 children. This survey sought to examine “the prominence of belief in the ‘Seven Cornerstones of a Biblical Worldview’ among adolescents” (children ages 8–12). The seven cornerstones are the following:

  • God exists and is the all-knowing, all-powerful, perfect Creator and ruler of the universe.
  • As a sinner, the only solution to the consequences of sin is to acknowledge your sins, ask God to forgive you through Jesus Christ and rely on Him to save you from those consequences.
  • Sin is real and significant; we are all sinners, by choice.
  • Your most important reason for living is to do what God wants.
  • You trust the Bible because it is completely true and personally relevant to your life.
  • The Bible provides a complete and reliable understanding of right and wrong.
  • Success is consistently doing what the Bible teaches.

For me, an important cornerstone is missing, 8. Biblical history clearly teaches a young earth and a worldwide flood of Noah’s day that caused billions of dead things to be buried all over the world including fossil fuels from buried plant life. God ordained 6,000 years of man’s rule with Satan, god of this world, next will be Jesus ruling with the glorified Saints for 1,000 years (Satan bound in the Abyss) from a newly created Jerusalem. Israel will be the ruling nation on this Earth for Jesus’ Millennial reign. In 7,000 years this Earth’s history will be complete. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away… ” Revelation 21:1

The CRC survey found that just 3% of children embraced all seven of these cornerstones. The majority only agreed with one or two, rejecting or stating they were unsure about the others. As the survey report states, “That does not bode well for adolescents building a stable foundation that will lead to a robust and biblical worldview.”

So what worldview are these children forming? Researcher George Barna says it’s a worldview of syncretism—the dominant worldview in the West today as people combine a little bit of this and a little bit of that into a religion of their own making. Barna says:

They are following in the footsteps of their parents, only 2% of whom have a biblical worldview, and 96% of whom are Syncretists. That mindset and lifestyle is modeled for their children every day and has become the comfortable default position among most adults, teens, and children who call themselves Christian.

Every person has a worldview. The question is whether it is the right worldview. The answer to that is this: “The only correct worldview is the one grounded on God’s Word.” Every other worldview is ultimately founded in man’s opinion (man’s word) and is therefore subjective and arbitrary. The only absolute worldview is the one that comes from God’s Word.

Parents, these survey results should be sobering. They should make you stop and consider what kind of priority teaching your children the things of the Lord has in your home. And that doesn’t just mean teaching children good morals from God’s Word so they do what is right. It means teaching them the theology and doctrine of God’s Word so they can look at the world through the right lens. It means teaching them the gospel so they understand what Jesus did for them and how they can be saved. It means always taking everything back to Scripture as the ultimate authority.

Yes, this is hard work, but it’s the task the Lord has called parents (and especially fathers!) to, and it has eternal consequences (life or death). Don’t delegate your children’s worldview training to the church, a Christian school, or the world. Open the Word of God with your children and teach them diligently so that they may proclaim the works of God to a generation yet unborn (Psalm 78).

Helpful resources available from Answers in Genesis

Truth for Toddlers

The Answers Books for Kids.

BOOK OF REVELATION – GOD’S GRAND FINALE

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Revelation, the Bible’s last book is God’s final word to mankind—and the breathtaking revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ and His return to Earth to fulfill God’s promises to the nation He established for His purposes. Though Revelation describes depravity, devils, destruction, and God’s wrath, it also provides an incredible portrait of our almighty God, delivering profound insights into who He really is and how He will end the story of planet Earth and the Cosmos He created.

Christian Post interviews Jeff Kinley, the author of GODS GRAND FINALE – Wrath, Grace, and Glory in Earth’s Last Days. I have added my own views on Revelation’s seven churches, its seven seals, and Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom.

KINLEY: We try to make God in our own image. We customized Jesus, if you will, to fit our preconceived thoughts about Him or emotions. We want to express love for God, but the basic premise of worship is that we cannot worship a God that we do not know. And it goes back to John 4 when Jesus told the woman at the well that God is searching for worshipers who will worship Him in spirit and in truth. And so, there has to be a theological foundation for Who God is before we can ever even love that God. In order to truly love God, we have to first do a little bit of theology. 

CHRISTIAN POST: Regarding the book of Revelation, you wrote that it is not “a riddle to be solved, but a revelation to be believed. It’s not a metaphoric tale laced with undecipherable symbols, but rather, a literal scene-by-scene depiction of history, to be written down in advance of its fulfillment.” Do you believe a lot of churches have this misunderstanding about the Book of Revelation?

KINLEY: I do. I think people view Revelation as sort of being off-limits to Christians because of its apocalyptic language, and some of its symbolism that’s in there. Also, it’s ironic because number one, it is the last book God ever wrote and He tells us that everyone who reads it will be blessed. Also, the very word, “Revelation,” means to uncover or reveal or to unveil, not to hide. So, the irony is that people think that it’s a book of hidden knowledge when the very title of the book tells us that it is a book that tells us Who God is and tells us what’s going to happen.

And with a little bit of study and a little bit of guidance, it really isn’t that hard to understand.

CHRISTIAN POST: You dedicated two full chapters to the topic of the letters sent to the seven churches mentioned in Revelation. Why did you believe that the topic needed to be covered in two chapters rather than just one? 

KINLEY: I think because Jesus’ heart is for His bride, the Church. He loves His Church, He loves believers very, very much, and the thing He wanted most for those first-century churches is for them to get their relationship, their doctrine, and their lives calibrated to Who God is, to God’s character. The only way He could do that was to send some messages to them that would rebuke them for their error and then offer them a way back to Himself.

And so, five of the seven churches received severe rebukes from Christ, two did not. But I think they mirror many churches today. And so, that’s why it’s so relevant for today because those seven churches, we can look around us today and say, ‘Wow, there’s that church, there’s Ephesus, there’s Smyrna, there’s Sardis, there’s Philadelphia, and so it’s a relevant section of the book. So, I wanted to spend more time on it. 

EDWARDS: Sadly, Jeff Kinley misses the fact that the seven churches are prophetic, they represent the church in each of the last seven years prior to Jesus’ return. Just as the seven seals are prophetic of what is unfolding/happening on Earth during the last seven years. It is obvious the church of Philadelphia in the sixth year is the church that is raptured and the seventh church of Laodicea (spew you out of my mouth) is the church that is left behind. Just as at the sixth seal, we see the Celestial signs that precede Jesus’ return and the announcement that the wrath of God has come.

CHURCH OF PHILADELPHIA: “I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name… Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.” Revelation 3:8,10

SIXTH SEAL: “When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” Revelation 6:12-17

CHRISTIAN POST At Armageddon, you note that “The risen Christ is the hero of the ages, a conqueror for all time. The world knows virtually nothing about this Jesus described in Revelation. And sadder still is that the church knows very little of this side of Jesus as well.” Why do you believe that the church knows very little about this End Times side of Jesus?

KINLEY: Two reasons. Number one, we tend to spend most of our time about Christ in the Gospels. And we get our vision, our image, our view of God from the Gospels. But the rest of the New Testament really tells us more about the character of God and Who Christ is. And when we get to Revelation, specifically chapter one, there’s a vision of Christ there, but it’s unlike anything we hear preached in most churches today. 

By the time we get to Revelation 19, the close of the age, we see a Christ coming back to essentially, get rid of sin, get rid of sinners, to set the world right again. Which is really something that everybody wants to happen in their heart. They want evil to go away, they want righteousness to reign, justice and fairness, and Christ is going to bring that kind of Kingdom immediately following his second coming.  

EDWARDS: I have not read Kinley’s book so do not know if he understands that what is next on God’s agenda is Jesus’ Millennial reign on the Earth. When Jesus returns to Earth it is to rule and reign with the Saints with a rod of iron for 1000 years. Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom is a transition era when the covenants with Abraham, David, and the New Covenant are fulfilled. Also, Satan is bound for most of the thousand years but when he is released his still able to raise an army like the sand of the sea to come against Jesus and the Saints. Fire from heaven quickly disposes of Satan and the rebels. What follows is the White Throne judgement and then a new Heaven and a new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.” Revelation 20:11-12

CHRISTIAN POST: What do you hope people take away from your book?

KINLEY: The main thing is that they just know God and love Him more. Revelation is the last book of the Bible and God wants us to know Who He is. And Revelation was written so that we could know our God better. And so, that’s what I want people to do: to know God, to love Him more as a result of this book.

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor

GOD’S WORD IS TRUTH: FULFILLED PROPHECY PROVES IT

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Scripture says this about its own nature:

“Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16

“No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination, for no prophecy was ever borne of human impulse; rather, men carried along by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” 2 Peter 1:20-21

The people in Berea were commended for subjecting the apostle Paul’s words to God’s Word:

“Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” Acts 17:11

Everything the Bible says about God is true; everything anyone says about God that contradicts the Bible is false. Apart from a belief in the authority of God’s Word—as well as a growing knowledge of what it says—we’ll be vulnerable to deception. This is why one of the greatest needs in churches today is the consistent teaching of sound doctrine. Without it, and without people reading good books that reinforce a biblical worldview, God’s people will drift along, swept away by the current of popular opinion.

Faith is not inherently virtuous. Its value depends on the worth of its object. The Bible, understood in context and given precedent over our own instincts and preferences, is our dependable guide for faith and practice. Only by learning what Scripture says about God can we know what’s true about Him.

When we delight in God’s Word, we are delighting in Him.

I’ve heard people say, “Don’t take pleasure in the Bible; take pleasure in God.” But to study God’s words is to take pleasure in God because His Word is an expression of His very being.

Anyone who finds happiness in God must find happiness in God’s words as David did:

“In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.” Psalm 119:14

“I find my delight in your commandments, which I love.” Psalm 119:47

“Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.” Psalm 119:97

Notice these Scriptures demonstrate that to delight in and to meditate upon God’s Word is to delight in God Himself.

The point of studying God’s Word is to know Him.

There is a danger of idolizing our own knowledge of the Bible rather than remembering the point is to know Him better. (If we fail to understand that, the problem is with us, not the Bible!)

J. I. Packer, in the first chapter of his book Knowing God, says this: “To be preoccupied with getting theological knowledge as an end in itself, to approach Bible study with no higher a motive than a desire to know all the answers, is the direct route to a state of self-satisfied self-deception. We need to guard our hearts against such an attitude and pray to be kept from it. …there can be no spiritual health without doctrinal knowledge, but it is equally true that there can be no spiritual health with it if it is sought for the wrong purpose and valued by the wrong standard… Our aim in studying the Godhead must be to know God himself better. Our concern must be to enlarge our acquaintance, not simply with the doctrine of God’s attributes, but with the living God whose attributes they are. As he is the subject of our study, and our helper in it, so he must himself be the end of it.“

May we see Bible study and doctrine as a basis for humble worship of our King and Savior, not for prideful posturing.

God’s words have the power to bring heart happiness.

When Jeremiah said that God’s Word “became to me a joy and the delight of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16), he was suggesting that Scripture has a cumulative effect that increases over time. Happily, by God’s grace, As Joni Eareckson Tada says: “If you want to increase your desire for God, then get to know Him more deeply. And there is no better way to know Him than through His Word. Get into God’s Word, and you will get a heart for Jesus. Get passionate about Scripture, and your passion for Him will increase. Feelings follow faith…and faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.“

God promises that His Word “will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). We live in a time where the Bible is increasingly minimized. Let’s be committed to doing everything we can to uplift and honor God’s Word, as a means of knowing and loving Him.

Adapted from an article by Randy Alcorn, “Is There a Danger of Worshipping the Bible Instead of God” http://www.patheos.com

WHAT COMES NEXT FOR YOU?

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For the present, by God’s grace and kindness, people can reject God but still receive the benefits of His common grace, including the enjoyment of loving relationships, natural and artistic beauty, and pleasure. However—and we need to be so warned—we live on borrowed time. This temporary situation will come to an abrupt end. Death but also judgement follows.

Have you accepted God’s offer of eternal life through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus? If not you need to seriously consider first the following two Scriptures then open or purchase God’s Word, a Bible. This is the only way you can discover the truth about the world in which we live and answers to the big questions, like why there is pain, death, and suffering. Below I have also given you three paragraphs from the Book of John to consider why you need to get a Bible if you do not have one. A New King James, ESV or a New American Standard are all excellent translations from my experience.

“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.“ Hebrews 9:27-28

This first Scripture reveals that Jesus is returning to earth to “save those who are eagerly waiting for him“. Revelation 8 and 15 reveal that He is also going to pour out His wrath upon those that have rejected Him with the trumpet and bowl judgments. God has given us many prophetic scriptures revealing the events that will proceed Jesus’ return. Those events are already happening, the first major one was the reestablishment of Israel as a nation back in 1948.

“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence, earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done… And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-12,15

This second Scripture shows those that had died and been raised to life to face Jesus at the white throne judgement.

BOOK OF JOHN

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:1-5

“The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:9-13

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness, we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” John 1:14-18

101 ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES THAT PROVE THE BIBLE IS AN ACCURATE HISTORICAL RECORD

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Secular archaeologists have spent 200 years attempting to establish that the Bible is a collection of mythology and Jewish/Christian propaganda, yet archaeological evidence is more consistent with the Bible as an accurate historical document. In Unearthing the Bible, Dr Titus Kennedy isolates and illuminates 101 archaeological discoveries that buttress the thesis that the Bible is a reliable historical record by the traditionally recognized authors at the traditionally accepted times they lived.

Kennedy’s book should be in the hands of everyone serious about a historical study of the Bible. Sketching 101 intersections between God’s Word and archeological evidence, Kennedy crafts a sturdy structure of information and argument that makes clear that belief in the truth, accuracy, and reliability of the biblical narrative is not merely possible, but it is sensible and rational. Indeed, it takes a full dose of willful blindness and/or intellectual dishonesty to refuse to acknowledge the legitimacy and implications of some of these artifacts. Complete with photographs and translations of ancient inscriptions, a helpful principle of organization, and explanations that are clear and coherent, the book is a genuinely useful tool. No fair-minded reader can deny the book’s success in demonstrating that ancient events left behind extensive evidence that the biblical narrative is accurate.

As Kennedy notes on page 9, “the Bible has been routinely attacked and disregarded on the basis of history or archeology.” Unearthing the Bible challenges those attacks and dismissals head-on. The book cites the biblical passages related to each artifact, anchoring the archaeological context with the date and location of each piece’s discovery, a note on the biblical period in question, keywords, and citations of related biblical passages. The reader’s sense and understanding of the relevance of each artifact to the scriptural record grows as the array of archaeological discoveries increases in number and characteristic. In the end, a reader hostile to a biblical worldview may still ‘attack’, but ‘disregarded’ is no longer an option.

 Kennedy’s book is a collection of convincing illustrations that scientific evidence does not contradict God’s Word. Just as biology, geology, chemistry, and physics are consistent with the Bible, the evidence found in archaeology is consistent with the Bible.

TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE FOR ETERNITY

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A new study finds that the overwhelming majority of those who read the Bible at least three times a year have experienced transformation as a result of their encounters with Scripture. Imagine how their lives would have been transformed if they read God’s Word daily. A sizable minority of Christians who interacted with the Bible less frequently also experienced transformation.

The American Bible Society released the seventh chapter of its 12th annual “State of the Bible” report Wednesday, which focuses on “Bible use.” The survey of 2,598 adults conducted from Jan. 10-28 defines “Bible users” as those who said they interacted with the Bible at least three to four times a year.

Within this group of “Bible users,” 92% answered in the affirmative when asked if “the message of the Bible has transformed my life.” Just 8% said otherwise. By contrast, a majority of respondents who did not meet the criteria for designation as a “Bible user” (62%) did not see the message of the Bible as a source of transformation in their lives, while 38% did.

John Farquhar Blake, the director of ministry intelligence for the American Bible Society, reacted to the findings of the survey in a statement: “While we’ve reported that there has been a sharp decline in Bible reading, nearly 60 million people who engage with the Bible less than three times per year say it has had a transformative impact on their lives.

The Bible Society research shows that consistent interaction with God’s Word changes us.

Of course, it will, the Bible contains the truth about us and God’s world. It reveals the truth about our spiritual enemy (Satan and his demons) and the good news of what Jesus has done for us by taking the punishment that is due all sinners by dying in our place so that we might be restored to a right relationship with our Heavenly Father. When we repent of our rebellion against God and accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, our Heavenly Father then sends the Holy Spirit to indwell our Spirit to enable us to combat our spiritual enemy and live a Christian life.

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12

We cannot live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit to be our counsellor, comforter, and teacher. He is the one that produces the fruit (9) of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, goodness, gentleness, kindness, and self-control. He is also the one that provides the gifts (9) of the Spirit for ministry (1 Corinthians 12) words of knowledge, words of wisdom, prophecy, discernment of spirits, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues, faith, healing, and miracles. He is the third person of the Trinity and we must not grieve Him or quench His work in our lives. Sadly, many of us do, we do not openly say my will be done today not your will Holy Spirit but in effect, we do not recognize the Holy Spirit’s deity and consult Him about each day’s activities.

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30

READING OF THE BIBLE

Broken down by age demographic, majorities of both adults aged 58 and older (75%) as well as adults aged 18-57 (65%) reported reading from a printed Bible in the month prior to the survey’s collection. Majorities of younger Bible users embraced Bible apps (53%) and searched for Bible-related content on the internet (57%) in the preceding months, while 35% of their older counterparts used both of the aforementioned methods for interacting with the Bible.

A higher share of older Bible users (46%) adopted an app-based Bible reading plan at some point in the month preceding the survey, along with 35% of younger Bible users. On the other hand, more younger Bible users (32%) watched Bible-oriented programming than older ones (23%).

FORGIVENESS

The survey also inquired as to whether respondents were “able to sincerely forgive whatever someone else has done to me, regardless of whether they ever ask for forgiveness or not.” Forty-seven percent of Scripture engaged respondents indicated that they strongly agreed with that statement, while an additional 47% somewhat agreed. Just 4% somewhat disagreed and the remaining 2% strongly disagreed.

The overwhelming majority of those in the “Movable Middle” told pollsters that they somewhat agreed with that statement, followed by 20% who somewhat disagreed, 17% who strongly agreed, and 4% who strongly disagreed. Forty-eight percent of Bible-disengaged respondents “somewhat agreed” that they were able to sincerely forgive those who had done them wrong, while 30% somewhat disagreed, 11% strongly agreed and 10% strongly disagreed.

Christians need to get back to treating the Bible as the inspired, inerrant Word of God.

The Bible alone truly answers the greatest questions that men of all ages have asked: “Where have I come from?” “Where am I going?” “Why am I here?” “How can I know the truth?” For the Bible reveals the truth about God, explains the origin of man, reveals the only way to salvation and eternal life, and explains the vexing problem of sin and suffering.

A GOOD NEWS STORY

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A new report by the United Bible Societies (UBS) has shown the distribution of Bibles increased worldwide in 2021. At least 32.6 million complete Bible editions were distributed last year following the “pandemic-related slump in Bible distribution the previous year”, an increase of 5.5% in 2021 compared to 2020. Around 20% of all distributed Bibles were downloaded from the internet.

The distribution of digital editions is playing an increasingly important role, especially in crisis regions such as Mozambique. The Bible Society there was able to provide a digital Bible edition to a total of 51,000 people. However, the distribution containing only the New Testament was down, going from 5.7 million to 5.1 million in 2021. Horst Scheurenbrand, head of the German Bible Society said: “apart from Europe, more full Bibles were distributed on every continent than in the previous year. This is a good sign after the decline the year before”.

God is still at work making sure His Word, His Truth is reaching all those that are seeking truth.

REAPING A HARVEST OF DEATH AND MISERY

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By turning our back on God and His Word we are reaping a harvest of death and misery. God is the creator. God is the source of life. Satan works to destroy life (murder/death).

Evidence is clear nations that once honoured God’s ways have abandoned/rejected God: unrestricted abortion, euthanasia, indoctrinating children with gender bending ideology, extremist deep green ideology that sees humans as a plague on the earth. The Bible that the world rejects reveals with startling accuracy exactly what is unfolding in our day. In both the O.T and N.T there are many prophecies of the years leading up to Jesus return to this earth first to take His Saints to heaven before pouring out His wrath upon an unrepentant world with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements of Revelation

Only God can reveal what is truly going on in His world. The discovery of DNA and the electron microscope has revealed that the earth is designed for life. Our planet has all the hallmarks of brilliant systems engineering. No thinking scientist can believe that life and the universe happened by random chance.

God has revealed that just as our original ancestors disobeyed God’s command knowing that death would be the outcome. The Bible reveals that another one of God’s created beings (an angelic being now called Satan) also rebelled against God and it was he that deceived Adam and Eve. Note well what Jesus told us about him and all who follow him. Jesus was speaking to the religious leaders of the day. Whom do you follow even if unwittingly?

“If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but He sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” John 8:44

Note what Jesus said about Himself and what He said about Satan.

“Jesus said to him (Thomas), “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” John 14:6-7

“The thief (Satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:10-11

GOD the Father, GOD the Son, and GOD the Holy Spirit

Read what Jesus promised His disciples and us that He will provide to enable us to live the Christian life. Our Heavenly Father will send the third person of the Trinity to indwell our spirit. Note also that He acknowledges Satan as ruler of this world.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.” John 14:26-31

Article inspired by article in the latest Creation magazine “EXIT GOD, ENTER DEATH CULTURE.” http://www.creation.com