The Foods for Israel

During the 40 years in the Wilderness

ISRAEL'S FOOD IN THE WILDERNESS Some have the idea that all Israel had to eat for their wandering in the wilderness for 40 years under Moses, was "manna" - bread type substance, and water (from rocks) - both a miracle from God, but just the bare bread and water type jail sentence, for being so faithless and rebellious. That idea is just not true at all! I've just re-watched "The Ten Commandments" with old one from the 1950s with Charlton Heston as Moses. The scene where Israel was leaving Egypt was RIGHT ON as far as the various things they left with. Take note next time you watch that movie. Besides all the gold, silver, jewels, cloth, and many other fancy things, you will notice they left with HERDS and FLOCK, BIRDS, much LIVESTOCK! And so it is written: "And Pharaoh rose up in the night ... And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, "Rise up, and get you forth from among my people ... ALSO take your FLOCKS and your HERDS..." (Exodus 11:30-32). There it is, but many read right over it, because we have become so used to hearing how God fed Israel with manna for 40 years. But the manna was the flour cereal for bread and cakes, the "grain" part of their diet we could say (Exodus 16). Yes God did provide them with water, sometimes like a miracle, as many see in Exodus 17. Israel was to build a "tabernacle" or "sanctuary" (Exodus 25:8). It was not just to have as an ornament, tagging along with them, just kinda doing nothing except a dwelling place for God. We read about the tabernacle from Exodus 25 through to 27. Then the Priesthood is established as we begin to read chapter 28. Look at verses 4-6. We see no shortage of robes, braided coats, girdles, gold, blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen. Not only did they have to have the materials for all this, but the craft- persons to make it as God instructed. Now under chapter 29 and the consecration of the priests, read the first verses. Ah, a young BULLOCK, two RAMS, were to be taken. UNLEAVENED BREAD, CAKES, with OIL, FROM WHEATEN FLOUR! So they still had flour with them at this point in time. Notice verse 38-41, two LAMBS were to be offered EVERY DAY! Notice Exodus 35:20-29. Israel was not short of not only jewelry (which yes they got from the Egyptians when leaving Egypt), but they also had blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, goat's hair, red skins of rams, and badger skins. They had spice and oil. Not destitute in material things for sure. Now you can read Leviticus, the first five or so chapters. All that was needed for the various sacrifices, yes in the wilderness, offerings from the CATTLE, of the HERD, and of the FLOCK! This was all done under Aaron, who is mentioned in verse 5 of chapter one. The "consecration" of Aaron and his sons is in chapter 8, and note verses, 9,18,21,28, just for a few. Purification after childbirth is in chapter 12 of Leviticus. If a LAMB was not able to be brought, then two young PIGEONS could be brought. Israel had to have BIRDS among them during the 40 years in the wilderness. You can read about the all the offerings for daily, Sabbath, and Festival in Numbers 28 through 28. Note these verses in chapter 28; verses 3-4, 11-15, 19, 27. In chapter 29; verses 2, 8, 13, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32, 36. STOP AND THINK! For all those herds, cattle, flocks, you need FOOD! Yes, animals have to eat also to live. Did God work fantastic miracles to feed all those animals the Israelites had? Of course He could have done. But we are not told if He did! A more likely method for providing all that the Israelites needed in a balanced diet for themselves to stay healthy, and for all their flocks, is what we find in one verse, hidden away (not really) ... well missed by most people reading the books of Moses (if there are any Christians reading the books of Moses any more) is found in Deuteronomy 2:6. "You shall BUY meat (food) of them for money, that you may eat; and you shall buy WATER of them for money, that you may drink." Here Israel was to go through the land given to Esau, mount Seir, as we see from the previous verses. There it is! Israel was able to buy foods and water from various people along their 40 year journey in the wilderness. ISRAEL'S COMPLAINING So what about Israel complaining about not have meat to eat, and we have the famous "quail" story of Exodus 16. Pretty simple to answer. They obvious wanted flesh meat at every meal, once a week just was not pleasing to them, they wanted it all the time, they lusted after it, they were way overboard in what they wanted to consume as far as flesh meat was concerned. Other things? Yes, they did want some of the pleasant foods of Egypt, we see that in Numbers 11:5, "We remember the fish ... the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and the garlic." Then we have the verse that has led many to believe they only had "manna" to eat for 40 years, "But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, besides this manna, before our eyes" (verse 6). We need to remember when studying the Bible what saying or words are coming from whom. If Satan would say, "There is no sin, I'm not responsible for sin." Would that make it so? No, not at all. So the record of the people of Israel saying there was nothing but manna to eat, did not make it so! Yes, Israel may not have enjoyed the "foods and fruits from afar" as they had done in Egypt, but they had more than just manna and water. We have seen Israel did have other foods to eat and did have meat flesh from their herds and flocks and cattle. The truth of the matter is that Israel did COME INTO CONTACT WITH other peoples during their 40 years wandering, and they had opportunity to buy from them different foods and grain, for themselves and their cattle. They were not a bunch of dusty desert wanderers living only on bread and water. ..................... Keith Hunt (Written on the first holy day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, April 2009)

PASSOVER/UNLEAVENED…BREAD MESSAGE 2016

by Keith Hunt

WE KNOW THAT SIN IS THE BREAKING OF THE LAW [1 JOHN 3:4}; THE LAW TELLS US WHAT SIN IS [ROMANS 7:7]; THE LAW HAS POINTS [JAMES 2:10-12] AND THE LAW IS HOLY, JUST, AND GOOD [ROMANS 7:12].

WE CANNOT "EARN" OUR WAY OUT OF SIN; IN OTHER WORDS, YOU CAN NOT ADD UP EX NUMBER OF "GOOD THING" OR "CORRECT LAW KEEPING" TO WIPE AWAY SIN. YOU BREAK A SPEED LIMIT SIGN AND THE POLICE STOP YOU AND GIVE YOU A SPEEDING TICKET, YOU CAN NOT SAY TO THE JUDGE, "WELL JUDGE I OBSERVED THE SPEEDING LAW 100 TIMES BEFORE AND 100 TIMES AFTER I GOT THAT SPEEDING TICKET, SO I SHOULD NOW BE CLEAN AND SET FREE FROM PAYING THIS SPEEDING FINE." THE JUDGE AND ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE COURT ROOM WOULD LAUGH AT YOUR DEDUCTIONS.

SO WE ALL KNOW FROM COMMON LOGIC AND THE WORKING OF THE LAWS OF THE LAND, WHAT IT MEANS TO BREAK THE LAW.....IT MEANS WE GET TO SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES OF LAW BREAKING....A PENALTY COMES OUR WAY.

IF THE JUDGE SAYS, "WELL GUILTY ONE, MY SON IS GOING TO PAY YOUR FINE, SO YOUR FREE, THE PENALTY HAS BEEN PAID FOR YOU."

WE ALL KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS..... THE PENALTY HAS BEEN PAID FOR YOU, YOU HAVE RECEIVED GRACE!!

SO IT IS WITH THE THEOLOGY OF SALVATION.

AND SO THE BIBLE, PUTS THE ABOVE OVER AND OVER AGAIN, IN VARIOUS WAYS TO ILLUSTRATE THAT TRUTH.

WE ARE SINNERS, THE LAW BROKEN HAS A PENALTY..... THE PENALTY IS DEATH! [ROMANS 6:23]

THE NEW TESTAMENT TEACHES THIS OVER AND OVER; BUT IT ALSO TEACHES THE OTHER SIDE - GRACE, FORGIVENESS OF THE SIN, BECAUSE THE JUDGE'S SON WAS WILLING TO PAY THE PENALTY OF SIN. THROUGH HIS SHED BROOD AND BROKEN BODY, CHRIST JESUS PAID OUR SIN PENALTY - DEATH!!

SO IT ALL COMES DOWN TO A PRETTY SIMPLE ONE VERSER - EPH. 2:8 "FOR BY GRACE ARE YOU SAVED, THROUGH FAITH; AND THAT NOT OF YOURSELVES, IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD."

ADD A LITTLE MORE TO IT, "NOT OF WORKS LEST ANY MAN SHOULD BOAST" - V. 9.

SO THE LAW CAN HAVE A DARK SIDE..... IT TELLS US WHAT SIN IS. IT ALSO HAS A GOOD SIDE THAT CAN TURN AGAINST US. PAUL PUT IT THIS WAY, "THE COMMANDMENT THAT WAS ORDAINED TO LIFE, I FOUND TO BE UNTO DEATH" [ROMANS 7:12].

ON THIS PASSOVER NIGHT, A NIGHT TO BE MUCH OBSERVED INTO THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING NIGHT, WE STOP TO REMEMBER THE JUDGE'S SON DIED FOR US, SO WE BY HAVING FAITH IN THE SON'S DEATH, COULD FIND GRACE, FORGIVENESS OF OUR SINS, BE AT PEACE, AT ONE, WITH THE JUDGE [GOD THE FATHER] AND LAW OF THE LAND [THE JUDGE'S LAW OF HOLINESS].

I WANT TO SIDE-STEP FOR A MOMENT:

IF AS SOME TEACH, JESUS WAS JUST A MAN WITH MORE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT THAN ANY OTHER HUMAN WHO HAS EVER HAD; IF JESUS, AS SOME TEACH, DID NOT EXIST UNTIL IN THE WOMB OF MARY, TEACHING AS THEY DO WITH THIS KIND OF THEOLOGY, THAT JESUS WAS NOT A PART OF THE GODHEAD, NEVER "GOD" - NEVER IN SUCH A HIGH POSITION, THEN HOW COULD ONE MAN DIE FOR THE SINS OF ALL MANKIND? PUT IT ANOTHER WAY, DO YOU THINK THE ANGEL GABRIEL COULD HAVE BECOME HUMAN AND COULD HAVE DIED FOR ALL MANKIND? IF YOU THINK SO, THEN TO BE BLUNT WITH YOU, YOUR IDEAS AND THEOLOGY ARE FROM PLANET PLUTO, WHICH THEY SAY [WELL SOME DO] IS NOT A PLANET, SO THIS CRAZY THEOLOGY YOU HAVE IS NOT REALLY THEOLOGY AT ALL BUT LIKE SOME WILD, SILLY, FANATICAL, CRAZY IDEA FROM PLUTO.....IT'S SO FAR OUT, IT'S NOT EVEN IN THE SAME THEOLOGY PARK AS THE THEOLOGY FROM THE BIBLE.

ONLY A BEING FROM THE GODHEAD COULD HAVE TAKEN ON THE SINS OF ALL MANKIND, AND COULD HAVE DIED FOR THOSE SINS, SO ALL MANKIND COULD FIND GRACE, FORGIVENESS..... AND SO SALVATION AND ETERNAL LIFE.

PAUL PUT IT VERY PLAINLY; IF YOU DO NOT HAVE PAUL'S THEOLOGY, YOU AIN'T EVEN IN THE SAME BALLPARK OF SALVATION: "LET THIS SAME ATTITUDE AND PURPOSE AND [HUMBLE] MIND BE IN YOU WHICH WAS ALSO CHRIST JESUS: [LET HIM BE YOUR EXAMPLE IN HUMILITY]. WHO, ALTHOUGH BEING ESSENTIALLY ONE WITH GOD, AND IN THE FORM OF GOD [POSSESSING THE FULNESS OF THE ATTRIBUTES WHICH MAKE GOD GOD], DID NOT THINK THIS EQUALITY WITH GOD WAS A THING TO BE EAGERLY GRASPED OR RETAINED. BUT STRIPPED HIMSELF [OF ALL PRIVILEGES AND RIGHTFUL DIGNITY, SO AS TO ASSUME THE GUISE OF A SERVANT SLAVE], IN THAT HE BECAME LIKE MEN AND WAS BORN A HUMAN BEING. AND AFTER HE HAD APPEARED IN HUMAN FORM, HE ABASED AND HUMBLED HIMSELF [STILL FURTHER] AND CARRIED HIS OBEDIENCE TO THE EXTREME OF DEATH, EVEN THE DEATH OF THE CROSS" [PHILIPPIANS 5-8 AMPLIFIED BIBLE TRANSLATION].

THE FIRST 14 OR SO VERSES OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN ALSO MAKE IT PRETTY PLAIN AND SIMPLE READING. NOTHING A 9 YEAR OLD COULD NOT UNDERSTAND. IT SAYS WHAT IT MEANS AND MEANS WHAT IT SAYS. AS JESUS SAID UNLESS YOU BECOME AS LITTLE CHILDREN YOU SHALL NOT BE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD. THE STRAIGHT FORWARD VERSES OF THE BIBLE, ARE JUST THAT - STRAIGHT FORWARD, NO THEOLOGY DEGREE NEEDED.

THE PROOFS FROM THE BIBLE THAT JESUS CHRIST WAS FROM THE GODHEAD, WAS GOD, BUT ALSO WITH GOD..... THAT TRUTH I HAVE DEVOTED MANY STUDIES TO, ON THIS WEBSITE. ONLY A GOD BEING COULD DIE FOR THE SINS OF ALL MANKIND. ANY OTHER HUMAN MAN OR CREATED SPIRIT BEING, COULD NEVER DIE FOR THE SINS OF EVERYONE WHO HAS AND WILL EVER LIVE.

I PULL NO PUNCHES HERE. WHATEVER ELSE THEY MAY TEACH THAT MAY BE CORRECT, IF THEY TEACH JESUS WAS NOT FROM ETERNITY WITH THE FATHER GOD, WAS PART OF THE VERY GODHEAD, HENCE GOD ALSO - GOD BUT WITH GOD. IF THEY TEACH JESUS DID NOT EXIST BEFORE BEING CONCEIVED IN THE WOMB OF MARY..... YOU NEED TO RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN AWAY FROM THEM. IF THEY CANNOT READ THE BIBLE AND GAIN FROM VERY PLAIN VERSES THAT JESUS WAS WITH GOD, WAS GOD, BUT WITH GOD FROM THE BEGINNING; WAS A PART OF THE VERY GODHEAD ETERNAL, THEY ARE SO OFF-BASE IN BIBLE READING, THEY ARE BLIND LEADERS OF THE BLIND, AND JESUS SAID BOTH WOULD THEN FALL INTO THE DITCH.

JESUS GAVE UP HIS GODHEAD POSITION TO BECOME VERY HUMAN, FULLY HUMAN [AS WRITTEN TEMPTED IN ALL POINT LIKE US BUT NEVER SINNING, NOT EVEN ONCE] AND ALSO FULLY DIVINE. THIS PLAIN TRUTH I HAVE PROVED IN MANY STUDIES.

THE GODHEAD [FATHER AND SON, TWO BEINGS; JESUS SITS ON THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER, NOT ON TOP OF HIM, OR INSIDE HIM, SO IT IS WRITTEN] - A MEMBER OF THE GODHEAD WAS WILLING TO BECOME FLESH AND BLOOD, FACE SIN, BE TEMPTED, BUT NEVER ONCE SINNING; THIS MEMBER OF THE GODHEAD WAS WILLING TO DIE FOR YOUR SINS, MY SINS, FOR ALL THE SINS OF EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER LIVED, OR WILL YET LIVE.

THIS PASSOVER NIGHT, THIS NIGHT TO BE MUCH REMEMBERED, THE PASSOVER LAMB; THE NEW TESTAMENT SYMBOLS OF THE BREAD AND FRUIT OF THE VINE - IS INDEED THE MEMORIAL REMEMBRANCE OF OUR SAVIOR'S DEATH. IT WAS ON THIS NIGHT CHRIST JESUS GAVE US THE NEW TESTAMENT SYMBOLS OF HIS SACRIFICE FOR US.

THERE ARE MANY MANY VERSES IN THE BIBLE YOU COULD READ TONIGHT, ESPECIALLY FOR TONIGHT. THERE ARE THE PASSAGES IN MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE, AND JOHN; THERE IS ISAIAH 53; THERE IS PSALM 22. THERE ARE THE CONTEXT OF THE VERSES I HAVE GIVEN YOU IN THIS MESSAGE.

IT IS A TIME TO READ MANY OF THESE VERSES; IT IS TIME TO PRAY; IT IS TIME TO MEDITATE.

IT IS TIME TO JUST BLOT OUT THE WORLD, AND JUST FEAST ON GOD THE FATHER AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST. DO YOUR OWN BIBLE STUDY, OR USE THE MANY STUDIED I HAVE GIVEN YOU, ON THIS VERY SPECIAL EVENT OF THE 14TH OF THE FIRST MONTH IN GOD'S CALENDAR.

....................

UNLEAVENED BREAD FEAST STUDY

VICTORY OVER THE FLESH

FROM THE ALBERT BARNES BIBLE COMMENTARY

GALATIANS 5

13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not…..

13. For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty….. The meaning here is, that Paul wished the false teachers removed because true Christians had been called unto liberty, and they were abridging and destroying that liberty….. They were free; free from the servitude of sin, and free from subjection to expensive and burdensome rites and customs. They were to remember this as a great and settled principle; and so vital a truth was this, and so important that it should be maintained, and so great the evil of forgetting it, that Paul says he earnestly wishes (ver. 12) that all who would reduce them to that state of servitude were cut off from the Christian church. Only use not liberty, etc. The word use here introduced by our translators, obscures the sense. The idea is, "You are called to liberty, but it is not liberty for an occasion to the flesh. It is not freedom from virtuous restraints, and from the laws of God. It is liberty from the servitude of sin, and religious rites and ceremonies, not freedom from the necessary restraints of virtue." It was necessary to give this caution, because, (1.) There was a strong tendency in all converts from heathenism to relapse again into their former habits. Licentiousness abounded, and where they had been addicted to it before their conversion, and where they were surrounded by it on every hand, they were in constant danger of falling into it again. A bare and naked declaration, therefore, that they had been called to liberty, to freedom from restraint, might have been misunderstood, and some might have supposed that they were free from all restraints. (2.) It is needful to guard the doctrine from abuse at all times. There has been a strong tendency, as the history of the church has shown, to abuse the doctrine of grace. The doctrine that Christians are "free;" that there is liberty to them from restraint, has been perverted always by Antinomians, and been made the occasion of their indulging freely in sin. And the result has shown that nothing was more important than to guard the doctrine of Christian liberty, and to show exactly what Christians are freed from, and what laws are still binding on them. Paul is, therefore, at great pains to show that the doctrines which he had maintained did not lead to licentiousness, and did not allow the indulgence of sinful and corrupt passions, An occasion. As allowing indulgence to the flesh, or as a furtherance or help to corrupt passions; see the word explained in the Notes on Rom. vii. 8. To the flesh. The word flesh is often used in the writings of Paul to denote corrupt and gross passions and affections; see Notes on Rom. vii. 18; viii. 1. But by love serve one another. By the proper manifestation of love one to another strive to promote each other's welfare. To do this will not be inconsistent with the freedom of the gospel. When there is love there is no servitude. Duty is pleasant, and offices of kindness agreeable. Paul does not consider them as freed from all law and all restraint; but they are to be governed by the law of love. They were not to feel that they were so free that they might lawfully give indulgence to the desires of the flesh, but they were to regard themselves as under the law to love one another; and thus they would fulfil the law of Christian freedom. For all the law is fulfilled, That is, this expresses the substance of the whole law; it embraces and comprises all. The apostle of course here alludes to the law in regard to our duty to our fellow-men, since that was the point which he particularly enforces. He is saying that this law would counteract all the evil workings of the flesh, and if this were fulfilled, all our duty to others would be discharged. A similar sentiment he has expressed in Rom. xiii. 8—10; see Notes on that passage.

The turn here in the discussion is worthy of particular notice. With great skill he changes the subject from a doctrinal argument to a strain of practical remark, and furnishes most important lessons for the right mode of overcoming our corrupt and sensual passions, and discharging our duty to others, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, see this explained in the Note on Mat. xix. 19.

But if ye bite. The word here used means, properly, to bite, to sting; and here seems to be used in the sense of contending and striving—a metaphor not improbably taken from dogs and wild leasts. And devour one another. As wild beasts do. The sense is, "if you contend with, each other;" and the reference is, probably, to the strifes which would arise between the two parties in the churches—the Jewish and the Gentile converts. Take heed that ye be not consumed, As wild beasts contend sometimes until both are slain. Thus, the idea is, in their contentions they would destroy the spirituality and happiness of each other; their characters would be ruined; and the church be overthrown. The readiest way to destroy the spirituality of a church, and to annihilate the influence of religion, is to excite a spirit of contention.

16. This I say then. This is the true rule about overcoming the propensities of your carnal natures, and of avoiding the evils of strife and contention. Walk. The Christian life is often represented as a journey, and the word walk, in the scripture, is often equivalent to live; Mark vii. 5 ; Notes, Rom. iv. 12 ; vi. 4 ; viii. 1. In the Spirit. Live under the influences of the Holy Spirit; admit those influences fully into your hearts. Do not resist him, but yield to all his suggestions; see Note, Rom. viii. 1. What the Holy Spirit would produce, Paul states in ver. 22, 23. If a man would yield his heart to those influences, he would be able to overcome all his carnal propensities; and it is because he resists that Spirit, that he is ever overcome by the corrupt passions of his nature. Never was a better, a safer, or a more easy rule given to overcome our corrupt and sensual desires than that here furnished; comp. Notes, Rom. viii. 1—13. And ye shall not fulfil, etc. Marg. Fulfil not—as if it were a command. So Tindal renders it. But the more common interpretation, as it is the more significant, is that adopted by our translators. Thus it is not merely a command, it is the statement of an important and deeply interesting truth—that the only way to overcome the corrupt desires and propensities of our nature, is by submitting to the influences of the Holy Spirit. It is not by philosophy; it is not by mere resolutions to resist them; it is not by the force of education and laws; it is only by admitting into our souls the influence of religion, and yielding ourselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit of God. If we live under the influences of that Spirit, we need not fear the power of the sensual and corrupt propensities of our nature.

17. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit. The inclinations and desires of the flesh are contrary to those of the Spirit. They draw us away in an opposite direction, and while the Spirit of God would lead us one way, our carnal nature would lead us another, and thus produce the painful controversy which exists in our minds. The word " Spirit" here refers to the Spirit of God, and to his influences on the heart. And these are contrary, etc. They are opposite in their nature. They never can harmonize; see Rom. viii. 6, 7; comp. below ver. 19—23. The contrariety Paul has illustrated by showing what each produces; and they are as opposite as adultery, wrath, strife, murders, drunkenness, etc, are to love, joy, goodness, gentleness, and temperance. So that ye cannot do the things that ye would; see this sentiment illustrated in the Notes on Rom. vii. 15—19. The expression "cannot do" is stronger by far than the original, and it is doubted whether the original will bear this interpretation. The literal translation would be, "Lest what ye will, those things ye should do." It is rendered by Doddridge, "So that ye do not the things that ye would." By Locke, "You do not the things that you propose to yourselves;" and Locke remarks on the passage, "Ours is the only translation that I know which renders it cannot." The Vulgate and the Syriac give a literal translation of the Greek, "So that you do not what you would." This is undoubtedly the true rendering; and, in the original, there is no declaration about the possibility or the impossibility, the ability or the inability to do these things. It is simply a statement of a fact, as it is in Rom. vii. 15, 19. That statement is, that in the mind of a renewed man there is a contrariety in the two influences which bear on his soul—the Spirit of God inclining him in one direction, and the lusts of the flesh in another; that one of these influences is so great as in fact to restrain and control the mind, and prevent its doing what it would otherwise do; that when there is an inclination in one direction, there is a controlling and overpowering influence in another, producing a conflict, which prevents it, and which finally checks and restrains the mind. There is no reason for interpreting this, moreover, as seems always to be the case, of the overpowering tendency in the mind to evil, as if it taught that the Christian was desirous of doing good, but could not, on account of his indwelling corruption. So far as the language of Paul or the fact is concerned, it may be understood of just the opposite, and may mean, that such are the restraints and influences of the Holy Spirit on the heart, that the Christian does not the evil which he otherwise would, and to which his corrupt nature inclines him. He (Paul) is exhorting them (ver. 16) to walk in the Spirit, and assures them that thus they would not fulfil the lusts of the flesh. To encourage them to this, he reminds them that there were contrary principles in their minds, the influences of the Spirit of God, and a carnal and downward tendency of the flesh. These are contrary one to the other ; and such are, in fact, the influences of the Spirit on the mind, that the Christian does not do the things which he otherwise would. So understood, or understood in any fair interpretation of the original, it makes no assertion about the ability or inability of man to do right or wrong. It affirms as a fact, that where these opposite principles exist, a man does not do the things which otherwise he would do. If a man could not do otherwise than he actually does, he would not be to blame. "Whether a Christian could not resist the influences of the Holy Spirit, and yield to the corrupt desires of the flesh; or whether he could not overcome these evil propensities and do right always, are points on which the apostle here makes no affirmation. His is the statement of a mere fact, that where these counteracting propensities exist in the mind, there is a conflict, and that the man does not do what he otherwise would do.

18. But if ye be led of the Spirit. If you submit to the teachings and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Ye are not under the law. You are under a different dispensation—the dispensation of the Spirit….. and are under the control of the Spirit of God.

THE LAW CANNOT CLAIM YOU AS SINNERS AND ENCASE YOU IN WAGES OF SIN - DEATH [Romans 6:23]. YOU ARE UNDER GRACE. HAVING THE ATTITUDE OF WANTING, DESIRING, TO SERVE AND LIVE GOD'S WAY, BEING IN A HUMBLE REPENTANT STATE OF MIND, KEEPS YOU CONNECTED TO GOD, WHEREBY YOU ARE UNDER HIS GRACE. ALL EXPLAINED FULLY IN MY STUDY CALLED "SAVED BY GRACE" - Keith Hunt

19. Now the works of the flesh. What the flesh, or what corrupt and unrenewed human nature produces. Are manifest. Plain, well-known. The world is full of illustrations of what corrupt human nature produces, and as to the existence and nature of those works, no one can be ignorant. It is evident here that the word flesh, is used to denote corrupt human nature, and not merely the body; since many of the vices here enumerated are the passions of the mind or the soul, rather than of the body. Such are "wrath," "strife," "heresies," "envyings," etc, which cannot be said to have their seat in the body. If the word, therefore, is used to denote human nature, the passage furnishes a sad commentary on its tendency, and on the character of man. It is closely parallel to the declaration of the Saviour in Matt. xv. 19. Of the nature of most of these sins, or works of the flesh, it is unnecessary to offer any comment. They are not so rare as not to be well known, and the meaning of the words requires little exposition. In regard to the existence of these vices as the result of human nature, the Notes on Rom. i. may be examined; or a single glance at the history of the past, or at the present condition of the heathen and a large part of the Christian world, would furnish an ample and a painful demonstration.

20. Witchcraft, Pretending to witchcraft. The apostle does not vouch for the actual existence of witchcraft; but he says that what was known as such was a proof of the corrupt nature of man, and was one of the fruits of it. No one can doubt it. It was a system of imposture and falsehood throughout; and nothing is a better demonstration of the depravity of the human heart than an extended and systematized attempt to impose on mankind. The word which is here used, whence our word pharmacy, from a medicine, poison, magic potion) means, properly, the preparing and giving of medicine. Then it means also poisoning, and also magic art, or enchantment; because in savage nations pharmacy or medicine consisted much in magical incantations. Thence it means sorcery or enchantment, and it is so used uniformly in the New Testament. It is used only in Gal. v. 20; Rev. ix. 21; xviii. 23 ; xxi. 8. Some have supposed that it means here poisoning, a crime often practised; but the more correct interpretation is, to refer it to the black art, or to pretensions to witchcraft, and the numerous delusions which have grown out of it, as a striking illustration of the corrupt and depraved nature of man. Hatred, Gr. Hatreds, in the plural. Antipathies, and want of love, producing contentions and strifes. Variance, Contentions; see Note, Rom. i. 29. Emulations In a bad sense, meaning heart-burning, or jealousy, or perhaps inordinate ambition. The sense is ardour or zeal in a bad cause, leading to strife, Wrath. This also is plural in the Greek, meaning passions, bursts of anger; Note, 2 Cor. xii. 20. Strife. Also plural in the Greek; see Note, 2 Cor. xii. 20 Seditions; see Note, Rom. xvi. 17. Heresies; see Note, Acts v. 17; 1 Cor. xi. 19.

21. Envyings; Note, 2 Cor. xii. 20. Revellings; Notes, 2 Cor. xii. 20; Rom. xiii. 13. And such like. This class of evils, without attempting to specify all. Of which I tell you before.In regard to which I forewarn you. As I have also told you in time past. When he was with them. Shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Cannot possibly be saved; see Notes on 1 Cor. vi. 9—11.

In regard to this passage, we may remark; (1.) That it furnishes the most striking and unanswerable proof of human depravity. Paul represents these things as "the works of the flesh," the works of the unrenewed nature of man. They are such as human nature, when left to itself, everywhere produces. The world shows that such is the fact; and we cannot but ask, is a nature producing this to be regarded as pure? Is man an unfallen being? Can he save himself? Does he need no Saviour? (2.) This passage is full of fearful admonition to those who indulge in any or all of these vices. Paul, inspired of God, has solemnly declared, that such cannot be saved. They cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven as they are. Nor is it desirable that they should. What would heaven be if filled up with adulterers, and fornicators, and idolaters, with the proud and envious, and with murderers, and drunkards? To call such a place heaven, would be an abuse of the word. No one could wish to dwell there; and such men cannot enter into heaven. (3.) The human heart must be changed, or man cannot be saved. This follows of course. If such is its tendency, then there is a necessity for such a change as that in regeneration, in order that man may be happy and be saved. (4.) We should rejoice that such men cannot, with their present characters, be admitted to heaven. We should rejoice that there is one world where these vices are unknown, a world of perfect and eternal purity. When we look at the earth; when we see how these vices prevail; when we reflect that every land is polluted, and that we cannot traverse a continent or an island, visit a nook or corner of the earth, dwell in any city or town, where these vices do not exist, O how refreshing and invigorating is it to look forward to a pure heaven! How cheering the thought that there is one world where these vices are unknown; one world, all whose ample plains may be traversed, and the note of blasphemy shall never fall on the ear; one world, where virtue shall be safe from the arts of the seducer; one world where we may for ever dwell, and not one reeling and staggering drunkard shall ever be seen; where there shall be not one family in want and tears from the vice of its unfaithful head! With what joy should we look forward to that world! With what ardour should we pant that it may be our own!

ONE MAY WANT TO READ THIS SECTION IN A MODERN TRANSLATION, THEN IN A DICTIONARY LOOK UP EACH WORD PAUL USES TO DESCRIBE THE VICES OF THE HEART AND MIND, NOT LED AND GUIDED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD. THE HUMAN HEART IS A MIXTURE OF GOOD AND EVIL. THERE ARE MANY THINGS THAT CAN INFLUENCE THE MIND AND HEART OF MAN. BAD INFLUENCES CAN LEAD TO THE MOST EVIL RESULTS AS WE SEE ON NEWS BROADCASTS EACH DAY. BETTER INFLUENCES CAN LEAD PEOPLE TO BE, AS THE WORLD WOULD SAY, "GOOD PEOPLE" WHO LIVE DECENTLY WITH OTHERS, DO GOOD DEEDS, SERVE AND HELP OTHERS. YET THE BOTTOM LINE IS, IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, WE ARE ALL SINNERS, NEEDING TO BE RENEWED IN OUR MINDS BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD; NEEDING TO BE LED AND GUIDED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD - Keith Hunt

22. But the fruit of the Spirit. That which the Holy Spirit produces. It is not without design, evidently, that the apostle uses the word ''Spirit'' here, as denoting that these things do not flow from our own nature. The vices above enumerated are the proper "works" or result of the operations of the human heart; the virtues which he enumerates are produced by a foreign influence—the agency of the Holy Spirit. Hence Paul does not trace them to our own hearts, even when renewed. He says that they are to be regarded as the proper result of the Spirit's operations on the soul.

WELL CERTAINLY IN ITS FULL FORM, ITS DEEP ACTIONS, ITS FORM AS LED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, TO NOT ONLY UNDERSTAND THE WORDS PAUL NOW CHOOSES, BUT TO SEE THEM IN THE LIGHT OF GOD'S AMPLIFICATIONS IN HIS HOLY BIBLE. WORDS ARE JUST WORDS THAT CAN BE UNDERSTOOD DIFFERENTLY BY DIFFERENT PEOPLE, BUT IN THE BIBLE WE SEE THE TRUE DEEP MEANING, BY EXAMPLES AND BY THE EXPOUNDING OF THOSE WORDS, AS GIVEN BY JESUS AND ALL THE PEOPLE INSPIRED TO WRITE THE BIBLE AND ALL THEREIN. BY READING THE BIBLE WE SEE THE NITTY-GRITTY, THE DOWN-TO-EARTH EXPLAINING OF WHAT SUCH WORDS AS PAUL NOW GIVES AS THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT - Keith Hunt

Is love. To God and to men. Probably the latter here is particularly intended, as the fruits of the Spirit are placed in contradistinction from those vices which lead to strife among men. On the meaning of the word love, see Notes on 1 Cor. xiii.1; and for an illustration of its operations and effects, see the Notes on that whole chapter, Joy. In the love of God; in the evidences of pardon; in communion with the Redeemer, and in his service; in the duties of religion, in trial, and in the hope of heaven; see Notes, Rom. v. 2; comp. 1 Pet. i. 8. Peace. As the result of reconciliation with God; see Notes, Rom. v. 1. Long-suffering. In affliction and trial, and when injured by others; see Note, 1 Cor, xiii. 4. Gentleness.The same word which is translated kindness in 2 Cor. vi. 6; see Note on that place. The word means goodness, kindness, benignity; and is opposed to a harsh, crabbed, crooked temper. It is a disposition to be pleased; it is mildness of temper, calmness of spirit, an un ruffled disposition, and a disposition to treat all with urbanity and politeness. This is one of the regular effects of the Spirit's operations on the heart. Religion makes no one crabbed, and morose, and sour. It sweetens the temper; corrects an irritable disposition; makes the heart kind; disposes us to make all around us as happy as possible. This is true politeness; a kind of politeness which can far better be learned in the school of Christ Goodness; see Note on Rom. xv. 14. Here the word seems to be used in the sense of beneficence, or a disposition to do good to others. The sense is, that a Christian must be a good man. Faith. On the meaning of the word faith, see Note on Mark xvi. 16. The word here may be used in the sense of fidelity, and may denote that the Christian will be a faithful man, a man faithful to his word and promises; a man who can be trusted or confided in. It is probable that the word is used in this sense because the object of the apostle is not to speak of the feelings which we have towards God so much as to illustrate the influences of the Spirit in directing and controlling our feelings towards men. True religion makes a man faithful. The Christian is faithful as a man; faithful as a neighbour, friend, father, husband, son. He is faithful to his contracts; faithful to his promises. No man can be a Christian who is not thus faithful, and all pretensions to being under the influences of the Spirit when such fidelity does not exist, are deceitful and vain.

23. Meekness; see Note, Mat. v. 5. Temperance. The word here used, means properly self-control, continence. It is derived from strength, and has reference to the power or ascendancy which we have over exciting and evil passions of all kinds. It denotes the self-rule which a man has over the evil propensities of his nature. Our word temperance we use now in a much more limited sense, as referring mainly to abstinence from intoxicating drinks. But the word here used is employed in a much more extended signification. It includes the dominion over all evil propensities, and may denote continence, chastity, self-government, moderation in regard to all indulgences as well as abstinence from intoxicating drinks. See the word explained in the Notes on Acts xxiv. 25. The sense here is, that the influences of the Holy Spirit on the heart make a man moderate in all indulgences; teach him to restrain his passions, and to govern himself; to control his evil propensities, and to subdue all inordinate affection. The Christian will not only abstain from intoxicating drinks, but from all exciting passions; he will be temperate in his manner of living, and in the government of his temper. This may be applied to temperance properly so called with us; but it should not be limited to that. A Christian must be a temperate man; and if the effect of his religion is not to produce this, it is false and vain. Abstinence from intoxicating drinks, as well as from all improper excitement, is demanded by the very genius of his religion, and on this subject there is no danger of drawing the cords too close. No man was ever injured by the strictest temperance, by total abstinence from ardent spirits, and from wine as a beverage; no man is certainly safe who does not abstain; no man, it is believed, can be in a proper frame of mind for religious duties who indulges in the habitual use of intoxicating drinks. Nothing does more scandal to religion than such indulgences; and, other things being equal, he is the most under the influence of the Spirit of God who is the most thoroughly a man of temperance,.

BARNES IS WAY OFF THE PATH IN HIS COMMENTS ON WINE AND ALCOHOLIC DRINKS. THE BIBLE IS NOT AGAINST THE USE OF WINE AND ALCOHOL IN MODERATION!! OF COURSE ALL THAT IS ALLOWED A CHRISTIAN MUST BE IN BALANCE AND MODERATION. I HAVE IN-DEPTH STUDIES ON THIS WEBSITE REGARDING THE CHRISTIAN AND ALCOHOL. I LIKE WINE AND "STRONG DRINK" [AS IT IS CALLED IN THE BOOKS OF MOSES] NOW AND AGAIN. I HAVE NEVER BEEN DRUNK ONCE IN MY NOW NEARLY 74 YEARS OF LIFE. ALCOHOL HAS NEVER BLURRED MY SPIRITUAL VISION OR MY STUDY OF GOD'S WORD, AND ITS EXPOUNDING. IT HAS NOW BEEN SCIENTIFICALLY PROVED THAT A GLASS OF RED WINE, EVEN EVERY DAY, IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH. I PERSONALLY DO NOT HAVE A GLASS OF WINE EVERY DAY [IF ANYONE IS WONDERING] BUT I DO DRINK WINE NOW AND AGAIN - Keith Hunt

Against such there is no law. That is, there is no law to condemn such persons. These are not the things which the law denounces. These, therefore, are the true freemen; free from the condemning sentence of the law, and free in the service of God. Law condemns sin; and they who evince the spirit here referred to are free from its denunciations.

24. And they that are Christ's. All who are true Christians, Have crucified the flesh. The corrupt passions of the soul have been put to death; i. e., destroyed. They are as though they were dead, and have no power over us; see Note, chap. ii. 20. With the affections. Marg. Passions. All corrupt desires. And lusts; see Note, Rom. i. 24.

25. If we live in the Spirit. Note, ver. 16. The sense of this verse probably is, "We who are Christians profess to be under the influences of the Holy Spirit. By his influences andagency is our spiritual life. We profess not to be under the dominion of the flesh; not to be controlled by its appetites and desires. Let us then act in this manner, and as if we beieved this. Let us yield ourselves to His influences, and show that we are controlled by that Spirit." It is an earnest exhortation to Christians to yield wholly to the agency of the Holy Spirit on their hearts, and to submit to his guidance; see Notes, Rom. viii. 5, 9.

26. Let us not be desirous of vainglory. The word here used means proud or vain of empty advantages, as of birth, property, eloquence, or learning. The reference here is probably to the paltry competitions which arose on account of these supposed advantages. It is possible that this might have been one cause of the difficulties existing in the churches of Galatia, and the apostle is anxious wholly to check and remove it. The Jews prided themselves on their birth, and men are everywhere prone to overvalue the supposed advantages of birth and blood. The doctrines of Paul are, that on great and most vital respects men are on a level; that these things contribute nothing to salvation (Notes, chap. iii. 28); and that Christians should esteem them of little importance, and that they should not be suffered to interfere with their fellowship, or to mar their harmony and peace. Provoking one another. The sense is, that they who are desirous of vainglory, do provoke one another. They provoke those whom they regard as inferiors by a haughty carriage and a contemptuous manner towards them. They look upon them often with contempt; pass them by with disdain; treat them as beneath their notice; and this provokes on the other hand hard feeling, and hatred, and a disposition to take revenge. When men regard themselves as equal in their great and vital interests; when they feel that they are fellow-heirs of the grace of life; when they feel that they belong to one great family, and are in their great interests on a level; deriving no advantage from birth and blood; on a level as descendants of the same apostate father; as being themselves sinners; on a level at the foot of the cross, at the communion table, on beds of sickness, in the grave, and at the bar of God; when they feel this, then the consequences here referred to will be avoided. There will be no haughty carriage such as to provoke opposition; and on the other hand there will be no envy on account of the superior rank of others. Envying one another. On account of their superior wealth, rank, talent, learning. The true way to cure envy is to make men feel that in their great and important interests they are on a level. Their great interests are beyond the grave. The distinctions of this life are temporary, and are comparative trifles. Soon all will be on a level in the grave, and at the bar of God and in heaven. Wealth, and honour, and rank do not avail there. The poorest man will wear as bright a crown as the rich; the man of most humble birth will be admitted as near the throne as he who can boast the longest line of illustrious ancestors. Why should a man who is soon to wear a "crown incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away" envy him who has a ducal coronet here, or a royal diadem—baubles that are soon to be laid aside for ever? Why should he, though poor here, who is soon to inherit the treasures of heaven where "moth and rust do not corrupt,'' envy him who can walk over a few acres as his own, or who has accumulated a glittering pile of dust, soon to be left for ever? Why should he who is soon to wear the robes of salvation, made "white in the blood of the Lamb," envy him who is "clothed in purple and fine linen," or who can adorn himself and his family in the most gorgeous attire which art and skill can make, soon to give place to the winding-sheet; soon to be succeeded by the simple garb which the most humble wears in the grave. If men feel that their great interests are beyond the tomb; that in the important matter of salvation they are on a level; that soon they are to be undistinguished beneath the clods of the valley…..The rich and the great would cease to look down with contempt on those of a more humble rank, and the poor would cease to envy those above them, for they are soon to be their equals in the grave; their equals, perhaps their superiors in heaven!

……….

WE SHALL ALL BE REWARDED ACCORDING TO OUR WORK, WITH WHAT WE HAVE DONE WITH WHAT WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN. AND INDEED SOMEONE LOWLY IN THIS LIFE [WITH NO FAME, NOT MUCH PHYSICAL RICHES, NO HIGH POSITION IN THE WORLD OF MEN/WOMEN] MAY BE GREATER IN POSITION IN GOD'S KINGDOM, THAN SOMEONE FAMOUS, RICH, AND WITH A HIGH SECULAR POSITION IN THIS PHYSICAL LIKE.

THERE WILL BE NO JEALOUSY, NO ENVY, IN GOD'S ETERNAL FAMILY, FOR ALL THERE WILL BE PERFECT, SINLESS, AND RIGHTEOUS, AS THE FATHER AND OUR ELDER BROTHER CHRIST JESUS ARE - Keith Hunt

…………………………………………….

1. The Armor of God to Battle Satan!

Truth is up first!

PUTTING ON THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD by Keith Hunt During the Feast of Unleavened Bread it is important we look at the fight we are in and the armor we need to be victorious. The apostle Paul knew that Christians were in a fight, a fight that was especially against Satan and the demons, powers of the heavenly realm, who are literally physically much more powerful than us humans. Why they can perform many acts that would come under the term "miracle." The false prophet of Revelation, THE greatest false prophet of all time will be able to perform signs and wonders, miracles we would call them. Satan and his helpers can come looking like they are "angels of light" (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Then there is the fight we have with our own carnal nature that wants to keep pulling us down, pulling us away from God and Christ, pulling us into sin. The apostle Paul talked about that fight, even getting very personal, opening up himself, telling us he did at times feel very wretched. We find his description of this battle in Romans 7. Yes, Paul knew we were in a fight, a battle, a war so to speak, and to win that war we needed the WHOLE armor of God. His description of this armor is found in Ephesians 6. "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil ... Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand" (Eph.6:11-13). (1) WRAPPED ABOUT BY TRUTH The first piece of armor Paul mentions is TRUTH. I have four books in my library devoted to helping ministers with preparing sermons. "Swindoll's Ultimate Book of Illustrations and Quotes" (650 pages) - "Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes - the Ultimate Contemporary Resource for Speakers" (833 pages). These two books contain NOTHING about the subject of "truth." The last two books of the four do contain remarks on "truth" - I will give them to you. Quotes: He who begins by loving Christianity better than truth will proceed by loving his own sect or church better than Christianity, and end in loving himself better than all. Samuel Taylor Coleridge (Devotion, Christianity) The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it. Flannery O'Connor (Courage, Relativity) The very amount of information that computers make available threatens us with cognitive overload: Overwhelmed with facts, people tend to mistake data for truth, knowledge for wisdom. With a mind-set fixed on information, our attention span shortens. We collect fragments. We become mentally poorer in overall meaning. Michiko Katkutani (Significance, Information) Hard are the ways of truth, and rough to walk. John Milton (Courage, Honesty) I never give 'em hell. I just tell the truth, and they think it's hell. Harry S. Truman (Speech, Honesty) Truth does not blush. Tertullian (Conviction, Honesty) Western culture has made a fundamental change in its religious base. We have exchanged that one who said, "I am the Truth" (John 14:6) for the incredibly expensive doctrine of Freud and the words of all his various disciples. Our new religion says with Pontius Pilate, "What is truth?" and teaches that our status is one of "original victim" rather than "original sin." Carol Tharp (Religion, Blame) A man can't be always defending the truth; there must be a time to feed on it. C. S. Lewis (Spiritual Growth, Apologetics) You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you mad. Aldous Huxley (Honesty, Anger) Peace, if possible, but the truth at any rate. Martin Luther (Peace, Honesty) From "1001 Quotes, Illustrations and Humorous Stories - for preachers, teachers, and writers" by Edward K. Rowell Truth: From the book "750 Engaging Illustrations for preachers, teachers, and writers" by Craig Brian Larson, we find this: Sodium is an extremely active element found naturally only in combined form; it always links itself to another element. Chlorine, on the other hand, is the poisonous gas that gives bleach its offensive odor. When sodium and chlorine are combined, the result is sodium chloride--common table salt-the substance we use to preserve meat and bring out its flavor. Love and truth can be like sodium and chlorine. Love without truth is flighty, sometimes blind, willing to combine with various doctrines. On the other hand, truth by itself can be offensive, sometimes even poisonous. Spoken without love, it can turn people away from the gospel. When truth and love are combined in an individual or a church, however, then we have what Jesus called "the salt of the earth," and we're able to preserve and bring out the beauty of our faith. Love, Saltiness Truth: The purple dinosaur named Barney is loved by millions of children. According to Reuters, on July 15, 1997, Barney had an accident. During filming of the Barney & Friends show, a cooling fan inside the sixty-pound dinosaur suit short-circuited and started to smoke. The actor playing Barney quickly got out of the suit but suffered smoke inhalation. He was taken to the hospital and soon released. The story of the accident was carried on the news, and it upset many children. Scores of parents called the television station to say their children were afraid that Barney had been burned, or worse, that he was a fake. A spokeswoman for the producers of the program said, "It can be really devastating to a three-year-old. They love Barney and they think that something terrible has happened to him, or that he's not real." Fantasies like Barney can bring a person good feelings. But a fantasy is a fantasy, and sooner or later the truth comes out. There are all sorts of fantasies. Those hostile to the God of the Bible must hold on to a great number of fantasies to justify their thinking and behavior. Sooner or later those fantasies are seen for what they really are. Truth: In Discipleship Journal author Mack Stiles tells the story of how he led a young man from Sweden named Andreas to Christ. One part of their conversation is especially instructive: Andreas said, "I've been told if I decide to follow Jesus, He will meet my needs and my life will get very good." This seemed to Andreas to be a point in Christianity's favor. But I faced a temptation - to make it sound better than it is. "No, Andreas, no!" I said. Andreas blinked his surprise. "Actually, Andreas, you may accept Jesus and find that life goes very badly for you." "What do you mean?" he asked. "Well, you may find that your friends reject you, you could lose your job, your family might oppose your decision - there are a lot of bad things that may happen to you if you decide to follow Jesus. Andreas, when Jesus calls you, He calls you to go the way of the cross." Andreas stared at me and asked the obvious: "Then why would I want to follow Jesus?" Sadly, this is the question that stumps many Christians. For some reason we feel that unless we're meeting people's needs they won't follow Christ. Yet this is not the gospel. I cocked my head and answered, "Andreas, because Jesus is true." Those on the side of truth come to Jesus. Truth: When the new technology of high-definition television came on the scene, it had an immediate effect on how things were done in the studio. Low-tech television had such poor picture resolution that the visual details of a studio did not show up on the screen. Actors and newscasters wore thick pancake makeup to hide wrinkles, moles, and blemishes, but the makeup was invisible to the relatively crude camera. Fake books rested on shelves, and cardboard backdrops with painted wood grain stood as walls. Still, with low-tech television, the viewer was none the wiser. Says Jim Fenhagen, a set designer who works for the major networks, "With the old TV, you can get away with murder." But high-definition television, using high-resolution digital technology, changed all that. The studio camera picks up everything from scratches on the desk to blemishes on the skin. That has forced a change in how things are done. Like television personalities facing an unforgiving high-definition camera, when we come to God, we come to the one who sees us as we really are. We must be completely truthful with him. .......... THE BIBLE AND TRUTH The Bible has much to say regarding the topic of "truth." The saints are to worship God in truth - John 4:24, with Ps.145:18. We are to serve God in truth - Josh.24:14; 1 Sam.12:24. We are to walk before God in truth - 1 Kin.2:4; 2 Kin.20:3. We are to observe the Feasts of the Lord in truth - 1 Cor.5:8. We are to esteem truth as inestimable - Prov.23:23. We are to love truth - Zech.8:19. We are to rejoice in truth - 1 Cor.13:6. We are to speak to one another in truth - Zech.8:16; Eph.4:25. We are to execute judgment with truth - Zech.8:16. We are to meditate upon truth - Phil.4:8. We are to bind about our neck what is truth - Prov.3:3. We are to write truth upon the tables of our heart - Prov.3:3. The fruit of the Spirit is in truth - Eph.5:9 Ministers of the Lord are to speak truth - 2 Cor.12:6; Gal.4:16. Those who teach are to teach in truth - 1 Tim.2:7. The servants of the Lord are to approve themselves by truth - 2 Cor.6:7,8. Speaking truth is showing forth righteousness - Prov.12:17. People with truth are the delight of God - Prov.12:22. Truth came by Christ - John 1:17. It is in Christ - 1 Tim.2:7. John bear witness of - John 5:33. Truth will set us apart - John 17:17,19. Truth is purifying - 1 Pet.1:22. Truth is revealed abundantly to the saints - Jer.33:6. Truth abides continually with the saints - 2 John 2. Truth should be acknowledged - 2 Tim.2:25 Truth should be believed - 2 Thes.2:10 Truth should be manifested - 2 Cor.4:2. Truth must be rightly put together from the Scriptures - 2 Tim.2:15. Truth is a shield and buckler to the saints - Ps.91:4. We should confide in truth - Ps.31:5; Tit.1:2. We should pray that it will be manifested to us - 2 Chr.6:17. We should pray truth will be exhibited to others - 2 Sam.2:6. Pray that truth be made known to others - Isa.38:19. Truth should be magnified and praised - Ps.71:22; 138:2. TRUTH IS GOD Truth is one of the attributes of God - Deut.32:4; Isa.65:16. He keeps it forever - Ps.146:6. It is inviolable - Num.23:19; Tit.1:2. It endures to all generations - Ps.100:5. Truth is exhibited in God's ways - Rev.15:3; in His works - Ps.33:4; 111:17; Dan.4:37. Truth is God's judicial statutes - Ps.19:9. His word is truth - Ps.119:160; John 17:17. It is the fulfilment of promises in Christ - 2 Cor.1:20. It is the fulfilment of His covenant - Mic.7:20. God deals with truth to those who keep his covenant - Ps.25:10. THE TRUTH IS NO PART OF THE WICKED The wicked are destitute of truth - Hos.4:1. They speak not truth -Jer.9:5. They uphold not truth - Isa.59:14,15. They do not plead for truth - Isa.59:4. They are not valiant for truth - Jer.9:3. They will be punished for want of truth - Jer.9:5,9; Hos.4:1,3; 2 Thes.2:7-12. Truth is denied by the Devil - Gen.3:4,5. Truth is denied by the self-righteous - 1 John 1:10. Truth is denied by the unbelievers - 1 John 5:10 .......... UNCLASSIFIED SCRIPTURES ON "TRUTH" Psa. 40:10. I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation. Psa. 51:6. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts Psa. 57:3 God shall send forth his mercy And his truth. 10. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. Psa. 85:10. Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. 11. Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Psa. 86:15. But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth. Psa. 89:14. Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. Psa. 96:13. He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth. Ps 98:3. He hath remembered his mercy an his truth toward the house of Israel. Psa. 100:5. For the Lord is good; his mercy as everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. Psa. 108:4. For thy mercy is great above the heavens and thy truth reacheth unto the clouds. Prov. 12:19. The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment. Prov. 16:13. Righteous lips are the delight of kings; and they love him that speaketh right. Isa. 25:1. O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou halt done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. Isa. 59:14. Truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. 15. Yea, truth faileth. Isa. 65:16. That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth, and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth. Jer. 5:3. O Lord, are not thine eyes upon the truth? Dan. 4:37. Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment. Dan. 10:21. But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth. Mic. 7:20. Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou halt sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. John 1:14. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John 8:31. Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 14:6. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: 17. The Spirit of truth. John 16:13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth. John 17:17. Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth. 19. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. John 18:37. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. 38. Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? Rom. 2:2. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. .......... YOU MAY LIKE TO DO A BIBLE STUDY ON ALL THE ABOVE PASSAGES - READING THEM OUT LOUD - LET THEM SINK DEEP INTO YOUR HEART - MEDITATE ON THEM! .......... We know that Jesus said God's WORD was truth. We know Jesus promised that when the Spirit came it would GUIDE His disciples into ALL truth. Truth is not given in a few minutes or a few hours. When Paul was called and chosen to do the work of the Lord, he went away into arabia for about 3 years before returning to start preaching and teaching the Gospel (Gal.1). I'm sure he spent a lot of time in prayer and he was a student of the Lord. Truth is usually given to us over a period of time. As we study and are willing to be led by the Spirit, then more truth will be added, given to us. And God weighs the heart and mind and our efforts. Sometimes, maybe most of the time, truth is given after we have SEARCHED the Scriptures as those at Berea were willing to do when Paul and Silas preached among them (Acts 17). They are called "noble" - they were willing to spend much time in searching the Scriptures. It is sad to say, but today most who go under the name of "Christian" are spiritually LAZY Christians. They will read books and watch DVDs by the dozens of people saying they are the ministers of Christ. They will stand is some "awe" of preachers with DR in front of their name or PhD after their name, and read their books and watch their DVDS by the hours, BUT they will not read their Bibles. They will not SEARCH the Scriptures. They will not read the Bible from cover to cover. They do not have a burning desire to ask God for the truth, neither will they take the time to search for it. Paul was inspired to give a VERY BLUNT AND POWERFUL WARNING to those, especially in the end times when THE man of sin, THE false prophet of Revelation appears on the world scene, coming in the name of Christ, looking like a great shinning light of righteousness, but who will actually be AGAINST Christ - teaching and preaching false doctrines, that will lead tens of, nay, hundreds of millions, into DECEPTION and SIN! Paul gives a WARNING to those who will NOT love the truth, that they might be saved. And so God will send STRONG DELUSION on the earth, that they should believe a LIE. And so will be judged for not yearning for the truth, but have pleasure in UN-righteousness (2 Thes.2:7- 12). Righteousness is DEFINED by God, the Bible INTERPRETS itself! Righteousness is ALL OF GOD'S COMMANDMENTS - Psalm 119:172!! We shall in future studies come to the armor of righteousness - the breastplate of righteousness that goes around and over the heart. For now our attention must be "truth" - and God's WORD is truth. Make sure you are reading it, studying it, searching the Scriptures. Only by doing so will you be able to KNOW the truth and find who are the true servants of the Almighty God - who is by His very nature - TRUTH! ....................... Written during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, April 2009 To be continued

The Armor of God to Battle Satan #2

The great Breastplate of Righteousness!

In fighting the battle over Satan and the demons, the apostle Paul told us in Ephesians 6 to put on the whole armor of God. The second piece of armor he mentions is the "breastplate of righteousness." It is that which covers the heart, to protect the heart, to keep the heart safe. The "heart" is used in Scripture for the DEEP TRUE EMOTIONS that lead to LOVING God in spirit and in truth. We talk about the "heart strings" as like an instrument of strings played in a way that brings harmony and true love towards a person. Love songs are heart songs moving outwards in the right wave length towards whom we have a heart felt love for; could be boy-friend, girl-friend, wife, husband, mother, father, brother, sister, or a friend. It is the heart strings being plucked in the manner that produces real quality and real "daily action" of works towards the one that the heart has a deep love for. Paul calls this piece of armor that we need to fight Satan and evil, the "breastplate of righteousness." Most of us instinctively know that righteousness means "doing that which is right." But what is "right?" For some this may be right in their eyes, while to another person the same thing is "wrong." Humans on their own can make their own list of what is right and what is wrong. And of course many do, living to their own standard, and the attitude of "Well I see it this way" philosophy. But what does God say is His righteousness? Can we find "righteousness" for how a person should conduct their lives, in the Word of God. Yes we can! The Word of the Eternal is not interpreted by the ideas of men or women. The Word of the Lord, the holy Bible, INTERPRETS ITSELF! So here is just ONE clear teaching from God as to what is righteousness. Mark it in your bible, maybe put it in a yellow high-lighter. PSALM 119:172 says: "...For ALL THEY COMMANDMENTS ARE RIGHTEOUSNESS!" Now isn't that simple? No fancy theological degree needed here. It is explained is simple words that a child can understand. ALL of the commandments of the Lord are righteousness! Look at Psalm 111. "His work is honorable and glorious: and His RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURETH FOREVER ... The works of His hands are verity and judgment; ALL His COMMANDMENTS are SURE. They stand FAST FOR EVER AND EVER, and are done in TRUTH and uprightness" (verses 3-8). More on all this later but for now some human examples of "righteousness." Quote: (1) In the Antarctic summer of 1908-9, Sir Ernest Shackleton and three companions attempted to travel to the South Pole from their winter quarters. They set off with four ponies to help carry the load. Weeks later, their ponies dead, rations all but exhausted, they turned back toward their base, their goal not accomplished. Altogether, they trekked 127 days. On the return journey, as Shackleton records in The Heart of the Antarctic, the time was spent talking about food-elaborate feasts, gourmet delights, sumptuous menus. As they staggered along, suf- fering from dysentery, not knowing whether they would survive, every waking hour was occupied with thoughts of eating. Jesus, who also knew the ravages of food deprivation, said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness." We can understand Shackleton's obsession with food, which offers a glimpse of the passion Jesus intends for our quest for righteousness. (2) Good posture contributes to good health. That is what several studies and physicians suggest, says writer Brenda Kearns. "Poor posture can cause headaches," says back specialist Laura Fleck, M.D. "The problem is your head," says Kearns. "It weighs 20 pounds, and when it's hanging forward, it strains the muscle's that hold the neck vertebrae together." Dr.Fleck also says that "many patients with low back pain have it because of poor posture." A spine out of proper alignment adversely affects the spinal disks and overworks back muscles. Posture may have something to do with carpal tunnel syndrome. One study found that "women who practice good posture for most of their work day are four times less likely to get CTS. Chiropractors have long claimed that poor posture affects a person's blood pressure and heart rate by adversely affecting the nerves that run from the spine to the rest of the body. One of the visual words the Bible uses to describe a person of character is uprightness. Just as good physical posture contributes to health, so good spiritual posture - a righteous lifestyle - brings health to our spirit, soul, and body. From "750 Engaging Illustrations" by Craig Brian Larson. God gives us clear instruction on how to live UPRIGHT! It is all contained in His word, the laws and commandments of God are uprightness and righteousness! On the subject of self-righteousness, here is a classic: Quote: YEARS AGO Joe Bayly, the late Eternity magazine columnist, visited some German Christians who had been devoted soldiers in the German army during World War 11. Two of them had been put up for promotion to become second lieutenants in the Nazi army. The commandant told them he would approve the promotion on one condition: that they join the Officers' Club. Being a member of the club would require them to attend some weekend dances. These young men believed that dancing was wrong because it could lead to immorality. Because of their convictions, they turned down the promotion. Later in their military careers these same men were assigned to the death camps where thousands of Jews were stuffed into ovens and killed. Even though they did not directly participate in the slaughter, they knew what was going on. Yet they never voiced any protest. When Joe Bayly talked to them many years after the war, they looked back on their experiences with no regret, convinced that they had made right decisions. For them, not conforming to social pressure and refusing to dance was an act of righteousness. And conforming to patriotic mass murder and remaining silent while thousands of Jews burned in ovens left them with no feelings of unrighteousness. When we set our own standard of external righteousness, we are capable of any evil. When we are filled with His righteousness, no good is too great. - Haddon Robinson, "What Jesus Said about Successful Living" From the book "Swindoll's Ultimate Book of Illustrations and Quotes." .......... The study of God's righteousness and commandments would be a study over many many hours, and really it is a life time study. But it is worth taking the time to use, say Strong's Concordance of the Bible and look up the passages where the word "righteous" or "righteousness" and "commandments" are used. Nave's Topical Bible has page after page after page, on the subject of "righteous/righteousness." FOLLOWING IS JUST A SAMPLE Ps.24:3-5. "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who shall stand in His holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who has not lifted up his life to vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of our salvation." Ps.106:3. "Blessed are they that keep judgment, and he that doeth righteousness at all times." Prov.2:7. "He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly." Prov.10:2. "Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death." Prov.11:19. "As righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursues evil pursues to his own death." Prov.12:28. "In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death." Prov.13:6. "Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way.: but wickedness overthroweth the sinner." Dan.12:3. "And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever." Mat.5:20. "For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter the Kingdom of heaven." Mat.19:17. "....but if you will enter into life, keep the commandments." John 14:21. "He that has my commandments, and keeps them, he it is that loves Me: and he that loves Me shall be loved of the Father, and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him." Rom.8:4. "That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom.14:17. "For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit." Eph.5:9. "For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth." Phil.1:11. "Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God." Phil.2:13. "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." 2 Tim.2:22. "Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." James 3:18. "And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace." 1 Peter 3:14. "But if you suffer for righteousness' safe, happy are you." 1 John 2:3-6. "And hereby we do know that we known Him, if we keep His commandments. He that sayeth he knows Him and keep not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whosoever keeps His word, in him truly is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him. He that says he abides in Him so ought himself to walk." 1 John 3:7. "He that does righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous." 1 John 5:3. "For this is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not grievous." .......... For those who are reading their Bible from cover to cover, they cannot but see that the COMMANDMENTS of God are RIGHTEOUSNESS. And that the TEN COMMANDMENTS have NEVER been "done away with" as false prophets like to claim. Yes, NOT ONE of the Ten Commandments have EVER been abolished or changed. The FOURTH commandment is still part of the ten. It is there, every word of it, as found in Exodus 20. The Sabbath Day command is STILL a command of the Lord! And that command is still the SEVENTH day of the week, not the first, or the fifth, or any day you like to choose. The holy Sabbath day is still the 7th day of the week. My past co-worker in the Lord's work - Jesse - has written about the value of the Ten Commandments. Her Website can be found on my Website. My co-worker - Tara - is presently writing about the Ten Commandments. It will be very in-depth, and right up in line with today's world. It may not be finished and published on her Website for another year, but when finished I will certainly let you know. The question is: Does YOUR heart love, play the tune of, the melody of the song that sings the praises of the righteousness and commandments of God? Then, just as important, does your LIFE follow the footsteps of our Lord and Savior. You have the four Gospels to read about and see the life of Christ Jesus. Does your heart ever see that the righteousness of man-made religions, even with the banner of "Christian" over them, is today FAR from the Christianity of Jesus and the apostles? Does your heart earnestly seek for the faith once delivered to the saints. Does it cry out for the righteousness of God, not some "Jewish" roots righteousness, that is the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Not some Roman Catholic rites righteousness that has twisted and perverted the true Gospel of Christ. Not some various forms of Pro-testant churches, which carry many of their mother church doctrines and practices. Do you hunger and thirst after the righteousness which is from God, pure and clean, right from His Word the Bible. Do not think that I teach a salvation by works. Nothing could be further from the truth. You need to fully and truly come to understand what being saved by grace means. You need to make sure you study my study called "Saved by Grace" on this Website. But with that said, your Bible teaches in no uncertain way, that you are to love and follow, with the help of the Holy Spirit, the commandments and righteousness of God. If your heart is covered by the breastplate of righteousness, the fiery darts of the wicked one will never cut through to stop your heart- strings beating the love melody towards your God and His son Christ Jesus. ....................... To be continued

The Armor of God to Battle Satan #3

Feet and Life shod with Peace

"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace" (Eph.6:15). There is a two fold aspect of the peace of God. One is for the here and now, the inner peace of the Christian heart, being at-one with the Father and Christ. The peace that comes from knowing you are a child of the Father, that you are reconciled to the Father through the blood and life of Christ, who came that we might have saving peace from sin and death, and new life in Him. Then there is the peace that is promised in the Gospel of the coming Kingdom of God on earth, where peace will reign supreme, where there will be no more war, where nations will not even learn war any more, when even the nature of animals will be changed, so the lion can dwell with the lamb and a little child will play with them. It is the peace foretold by all the prophets, for the whole world, when the Messiah will come in glory to be King of kings and Lord of Lords. All of that peace is expounded in full detail in the studies of the Old Testament prophets, on this Website. Both themes of peace are to be the Christian's walking shoes. We wear those shoes each day, we long to proclaim that two sided coin of peace to the whole world. It is a wonderful peace to share with others. It should be a part of our joy, each day, each week, each month, each year, to do what we can to teach and preach this peace. We do it in the calling we are given, and for most Christians that is in LIVING peace, PRAYING for peace, and SUPPORTING the efforts of the proclamation of peace by the Church of God and its ministry. Here are some "nuggets" on the topic of peace——- The Age of Anxiety A wife called the doctor one morning, saying, "Doctor, come quick! It's my husband!" "What's the matter?" he calmly replied. "Well, he got up this morning and took his vitamin pill. Then he took his appetite suppressant, his anti-depressant, and his tranquilizer. He also took an antihistamine and some Benzedrine. Then he lit a cigarette, and there was this explosion!" ...... A ship was wrecked in a furious storm and the only survivor was a little boy who was swept by the waves onto a rock. He sat there all night long until, the next morning, he was spotted and rescued. "Did you tremble while you were on the rock during the night?" someone later asked him. "Yes," said the boy. "I trembled all night-but the rock didn't." ....... Thomas Watson The Puritan Thomas Watson put it this way: God the Son was called the Prince of Peace. He came into the world with a song of peace: "On earth peace...... He went out of the world with a legacy of peace, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you." Christ's earnest prayer was for peace; He prayed that His people might be one. Christ not only prayed for peace, but bled for peace: "Having made peace through the blood of His cross." He died not only to make peace between God and man, but between man and man. Christ suffered on the cross, that He might cement Christians together with His blood, as He prayed for peace, so He PAID for peace. ...... (You may like to study my study on Ephesians 2:14 and Colossians 2:14, which expounds the context of these two often misunderstood and twisted passages to the destruction of many. They will make plain to you the peace which Christ brought to those called and chosen to be the children of God. The study of those two section of New Testament Scripture is on this Website - Keith Hunt)

...... Like a Cyclone F.B.Meyer describes the Christ-life as: A rest which is full of work, but like the cyclone, all the atoms of which revolve in turbulent motion around the central cavity of rest, so do all the activities of God revolve around His deepest heart which is tranquil and serene. And so it is possible, if you and I learn the lesson amid anxiety and sorrow and trial and pressure of work, always to carry a heart so peaceful, so still, so serene as to be like the depth of the Atlantic which is not disturbed by the turbulent winds that sweep its surface.

...... An Old Poem In the center of the whirlpool, while the waters rush around, There's a space of perfect stillness, though with turmoil it is bound; All is calm, and all is quiet, scarcely e'en a sense of sound. So with us - despite the conflict - when in Christ His peace is found. ...... In Acceptance Lieth Peace He said, "I will forget the dying faces; The empty places, They shall be filled again. O voices moaning deep within me, cease." But vain the word; vain, vain: Not in forgetting lieth peace. He said, "I will crowd action upon action, The strife of faction Shall stir me and sustain; O tears that drown the fire of manhood cease." But vain the word; vain, vain: Not in endeavor lieth peace. He said, "I will withdraw me and be quiet, Why meddle in life's riot? Shut be my door to pain. Desire, thou dost befool me, thou shalt cease." But vain the word; vain, vain:" Not in aloofness lieth peace. He said, "I will submit; I am defeated. God hath depleted My life of its rich gain. O futile murmurings, why will ye not cease?" But vain the word; vain, vain:" Not in submission lieth peace. He said, "I will accept the breaking sorrow Which God to-morrow Will to His son explain." Then did the turmoil deep within him cease. Not vain the word, not vain; For in Acceptance lieth peace. Amy Carmichael, "Toward Jerusalem" ...... Spiritual Retreat This was my calculated plan: I would set aside my usual schedule - The menial tasks that wedge in routinely. In the peace and quiet of my living room I would relax in Your glorious presence. How joyfully I envisioned the hours - My personal spiritual retreat! With Bible and notebook beside me I would study and meditate - I would intercede for the needy world. But how differently it happened, Lord: Never has the phone rung so persistently. Sudden emergencies kept pouring in Like summer cloudbursts. My husband came home ill. There were appointments to cancel Plans to rearrange. The mailman brought two disturbing letters A cousin whose name I couldn't remember Stopped by on her way through town. My morning elation became drooping deflation. And yet, dear Lord, You were with me in it all! I sense Your vital presence Your sure and steady guidance. Not once did you leave me stranded. Perhaps, in Your great wisdom You longed to teach me a practical truth: When You are my Spiritual Retreat I need not be a spiritual recluse. Ruth Harms Calkin, "Lord, You Love to Say Yes"

...... PEACE IS THE BRIEF GLORIOUS MOMENT in history when everybody stands around reloading. Lloyd Cory, "Quote Unquote" ...... Lord, keep me still, Though stormy waves may blow And waves my little bark may overflow, Or even if in darkness I must go; Lord, keep me still. The waves are in Thy hand, The roughest seas subside at Thy command. Steer Thou my bark in safety to the land And keep me still, Keep me still. Author unknown, quoted in Al Bryant, "Sourcebook of Poetry" ...... PEACE is that calm of mind that is not ruffled by adversity, overclouded by a remorseful conscience, or disturbed by fear. ...... HORATIO SPAFFORD, a businessman in Chicago, sent his wife and three daughters to Europe by ship while he remained back in the States, intending to join them later. En route there was a terrible storm and a shipwreck during which their three daughters drowned. Mrs. Spafford made it to safety and wired back saying, "All of our daughters have been lost. Only I have been saved." He took the next vessel. As they came near the place where his daughters drowned, the skipper of the ship pointed to the place where the other ship had gone down. It was there on the deck of the ship he wrote these stirring words: When peace like a river attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, "It is well, it is well, with my soul." John Haggai, "How to Win over Worry" ...... Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace! Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy. Oh, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled, as to console; To be understood, as to understand; To be loved, as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; It is in dying that we are born to eternal life! Francis of Assisi ...... THE TIME HAS COME for me to reorganize my life, my peace - I cry out. I cannot adjust my life to secure any fruitful peace. Here I am at sixty-four, still seeking peace. It is a hopeless dream. H.G.Wells ...... WASHINGTON has a large assortments of peace monuments. We build one after every war. Don MacLean in Lloyd Cory, "Quote Unquote" ...... ......

The above nuggets on peace were taken from "Swindoll's Ultimate Book of Illustrations" and "Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes" by Robert J. Morgan. ......

YOU MAY LIKE TO STUDY MY ARTICLE CALLED "BEING A PEACEMAKER" - IT'S ON THIS WEBSITE - Keith Hunt ...... EXAMPLES OF PEACE By Abraham - Gen.13:8,9 Abimelech - Gen.26:29 Mordecai - Esth.10:13 David - Ps.120:7 MANY SCRIPTURES PROCLAIM AND ADMONISH PEACE Here are some of the PERSONAL ones: Ps.34:14 "seek peace, and pursue it." Psa.37:37. "Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace." Psa.85:8. "I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints." Psa.119:165. "Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them." Prov.12:20 "To the counsellors of peace is joy." Prov.15:17 "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith." Prov.16:7 "When a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him." Prov.17:1. "Better is a dry morsel, and quietness therewith, than an house full of sacrifices with strife. 14. The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with." Prov.20:3. "It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling." Eccl.4:6. "Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit." Isa.26:3. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee. " Isa. 27:5. "Let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me." Isa.32:17. "The work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever, 18. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places." Isa.48:18. "O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." Isa.53:5. "The chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Zech.8:19. "Love the truth and peace." Matt.5:9. "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." Matt.10:21. "And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. 22. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. 34. Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household." Mark 9:50. "Have peace one with another." Luke 1:79. "To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." John 14:27. "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 16:33. "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace." John 20:19. "Then the same day at evening, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you." Acts 10:36. "The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ." Rom.2:10. "Glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile." Rom.5:1. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom.8:6. "To be spiritually minded is life and peace." Rom.10:15. "And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!'" Rom.12:18. "If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." Rom.14:17. "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." Rom.14:19. "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another." 1 Cor.14:33. "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." 2 Cor.13:11. "Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace." Gal.5:22 "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace." Eh.2:14. "For he is our peace, who bath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15. Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace, 16. and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 17. And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. Eph.4:3. "Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Col.1:20. "And having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself." 1 Thess.5:13. "Be at peace among yourselves." 1 Tim.2:2. "That we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 2 Tim.2:22. Follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." Heb.12:14. "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord." Jas.3:17. "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18. The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace." 1 Pet.3:10. "For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: 11. Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it." ……………….. IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO, MAKE SURE YOU STUDY MY STUDIES ON THIS WEBSITE CALLED "BEING A PEACEMAKER" AND "EPH.2:15 - COL.2:14." ……………………….. Keith Hunt (written during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, April, 2009) To be continued

The Armor of God to Battle Satan #4

The Shield of Faith!

The subject of "faith" is given a huge amount of time and space in the Bible. It would take many hours to look up and read all the verses on the words "faith" and "faithful" and "trust" (a twin word for faith). It is not the object of this study to look at all the passages where the above words can be found in the Bible. Strong's Concordance of the Bible will give you every verse in the Bible where those words can be found. You, your family, friends, your group Bible study could make that a project one day - reading the context of each passage where the above three words are used from Genesis to Revelation. It would take many a Bible study. Here, first, I will present some "nuggets" on what people have said and given examples as to what constitutes FAITH. YOUR FAITH OUGHT TO GET YOU IN TROUBLE AT TIMES. If everybody thinks you are nuts, you may be. It's OK if some think you are. You're probably in trouble if no one thinks you are. Author unknown ...... Faith is resting in the fact that God has an object in leaving me on the scene when I feel useless to Him and a burden to others. Pamela Reeves, "Faith Is" ...... Tradition is the living faith of those now dead. Traditionalism is the dead faith of those still living. Jaroslav Pelikan, "The Vindication of Tradition" ...... FAITH is speaking truth in love at the cost of position of relationships. ...... Faith like Job's cannot be shaken because it is the result of having been shaken. Abraham Heschel "Certainty, Difficulty" ...... A weak faith is weakened by predicaments and catastrophes whereas a strong faith is strengthened by them. Victor Frankl "Trials, Strengths" ...... Faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse." Philip Yancey "Vision, Trust" ...... That you are sitting before me in this church is a fact. That I am standing and speaking to you from this pulpit is a fact. But it is only faith that makes me believe anyone is listening. Anonymous preacher "Fact, Belief" ...... True faith goes into operation when there is no answers. Elizabeth Elliot "Difficulty, Doubt" ...... Faith does not operate in the realm of possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man's power ends. George Muller "Power, glory" ...... Our faith becomes practical when it is expressed in two books: the date book and the checkbook. Elton Trueblood "Time, Money" ...... Hope is hearing the melody of the future. Faith is to dance to it. Ruben Alves "Hope, Future" ...... DEAD FAITH What you gonna do when the river overflows?! Faith answers, I'm gonna sit on the porch and watch her go. What you gonna do when the hogs all drown? I'm gonna wish I lived on higher ground. What you gonna do when the cow floats away? I'm gonna throw in after her a bale of hay. What you gonna do with the water in the room? I'm gonna sweep her out with a sedge-straw broom. What you gonna do when the cabin leaves? I'm gonna climb on the roof and straddle the eaves. What you gonna do when your hold gives way? I'm gonna say, "Howdy, Lord! It's judgment day." Ben Patterson, "Waiting" ...... A BUCKET FULL If I Had Only Known You Lord, I crawled across the barrenness to You with my empty cup uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment. If only I had known You better I'd have come Running With a bucket. Nancy Spiegelberg and Dorothy Purdy, "Fanfare: A Celebration of Belief" ...... ARE YOU THIRSTY? LEGEND HAS IT that a man was lost in the desert, just dying for a drink of water. He stumbled upon an old shack-a ramshackled, windowless, roofless, weatherbeaten old shack. He looked about this place and found a little shade from the heat of the desert sun. As he glanced around he saw a pump about fifteen feet away-an old, rusty water pump. He stumbled over to it, grabbed the handle, and began to pump up and down, up and down. Nothing came out. Disappointed, he staggered back. He noticed off to the side an old jug. He looked at it, wiped away the dirt and dust, and read a message that said, "You have to prime the pump with all the water in this jug, my friend. P.S.: Be sure you fill the jug again before you leave." He popped the cork out of the jug and sure enough, it was almost full of water! Suddenly, he was faced with a decision. If he drank the water, he could live. Ah, but if he poured all the water in the old rusty pump, maybe it would yield fresh, cool water from down deep in the well, all the water he wanted. He studied the possibility of both options. What should he do, pour it into the old pump and take a chance on fresh, cool water or drink what was in the old jug and ignore its message? Should he waste all the water on the hopes of those flimsy instructions written, no telling how long ago? Reluctantly he poured all the water into the pump. Then he grabbed the handle and began to pump, squeak, squeak, squeak. Still nothing came out! Squeak, squeak, squeak. A little bit began to dribble out, then a small stream, and finally it gushed! To his relief fresh, cool water poured out of the rusty pump. Eagerly, he filled the jug and drank from it. He filled it another time and once again drank its refreshing contents. Then he filled the jug for the next traveller. He filled it to the top, popped the cork back on, and added this little note: "Believe me, it really works. You have to give it all away before you can get anything back." Charles R. Swindell, "Living Above the Level of Mediocrity" ...... FAITH is engaging in the deepest joy of heaven, knowing His unfathomable love for me as I walk through the thorny desolate now. Pamela Reeve, "Faith Is" ...... Faith Someone Once Said ... * Faith is like muscle which grows stronger and stronger with use, rather than rubber, which weakens when it is stretched. J. O. Fraser * Faith is the Samsonian lock of the Christian; cut it off, and you may put out his eyes and he can do nothing. Charles Haddon Spurgeon * Not a great faith we need, but faith in a great God. J. Hudson Taylor ...... DEFINITIONS of Faith * The art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted, in spite of your changing moods. C.S.Lewis * Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe. St.Augustine * Faith is voluntary anticipation. Clement of Alexandria ...... FAITH Biblical Definitions of Faith * Believing there will be a fulfilment of those things that are told us by the Lord Luke 1:45 * Believing that it will be just as was told us Acts 27:25 * Not wavering at the promise of God, but being fully convinced that what He has promised He is able to perform Romans 4:20-21 * Judging Him faithful who has promised Hebrews 11:11 * The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen Hebrews 11:1 ...... WHY God Responds to FAITH Houston pastor John Bisango describes a time when his daughter Melodye Jan, age five, came to him and asked for a doll house. John promptly nodded and promised to build her one, then he went back to reading his book. Soon he glanced out the study window and saw her arms filled with dishes, toys, and dolls, making trip after trip until she had a great pile of playthings in the yard. He asked his wife what Melodye Jan was doing. "Oh, you promised to build her a doll house, and she believes you. She's just getting ready for it." "You would have thought I'd been hit by an atom bomb," John later said. "I threw aside that book, raced to the lumber yard for supplies, and quickly built that little girl a doll house. Now why did I respond? Because I wanted to? No. Because she deserved it? No. Her daddy had given his word, and she believed it and acted upon it. When I saw her faith, nothing could keep me from carrying out my word." FAITH AS A LIGHT TO OTHERS Not long after the first Moravian missionaries had left for the West Indies, John Wesley, unconverted at the time, found himself aboard ship alongside another group of them. It was January 25, 1736, and the weather was rough. Three storms had already battered the boat, and a fourth was brewing. Wesley scribbled in his journal, "Storm greater: afraid!" But the Moravians were trusting God so simply and so completely that they evidenced no signs of fear, and they even persevered in their plans for a worship service. In the middle of their singing, a gigantic wave rose over the side of the vessel, splitting the main-sail, covering the ship, pouring water like Niagara Falls between decks "as if the great deep had already swallowed us up:" The English passengers screamed as the ship lurched and pitched between towering waves. A terrified Wesley clung on for dear life. But the German missionaries didn't miss a note. Wesley, awestruck by their composure, later went to the leader and asked, "Weren't you afraid?" "I thank God, no." "Were not your women and children afraid?" "No," replied the man. "Our women and children are not afraid." Back in London, Wesley was so struck by their sturdy faith that he attended a Moravian meeting on Aldersgate Street on May 24, 1738. He later said, "I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation, and an assurance was given to me that He had taken away my sins, even mine." Wesley became a famous evangelist and social reformer, with the world as his parish. But he himself was won to Christ by the power of a small group whose faith in Christ was strong enough to keep them unflappable in a storm. ...... An Old Story One of our oldest sermon illustrations still provides a powerful illustration of the personal nature of faith. A far-famed tightrope walker came to Niagara Falls and stretched his rope across the thunderous currents from Canada to the United States. Before the breathless multitudes, he walked, then ran, across the falls. He did the same blindfolded, with drums rolling. Then, still blindfolded, he pushed a wheelbarrow across the falls. The crowds went wild, and the aerialist shouted to them, "Who believes I can push a man in this wheelbarrow across these falls?" A gentleman in the front waved his hands, shouting, "I do! I believe!" "Then," said the walker, "come and get in the wheelbarrow." To no surprise, the man's intellectual assent failed to translate into personal belief. ...... Anyone Else? A man slipped and fell off a cliff while hiking on a mountaintop. Luckily he was able to grab a branch on his way down. Holding on for dear life, he looked down only to see a rock valley some fifteen hundred feet below. When he looked up it was twenty feet to the cliff where he had fallen. panicked, he yelled, "Help! Help! Is anybody there? Help!" A booming voice spoke up. "I am here, and I will save you if you believe in me." "I believe! I believe!" yelled back the man. "If you believe me, let go of the branch and then I will save you:" The young man, hearing what the voice said, looked down again. Seeing the rock valley below, he quickly looked back up and shouted, "Is there anybody else up there!"' ...... FAITHFULNESS Someone Once Said ... * Faithfulness to principle is only proved by faithfulness in detail. Frances Ridley Havergal * My dear Senator, I am not called to be successful, but faithful. Mother Teresa, to Senator Mark Hatfield who, while touring her work in Calcutta, asked, "How can you bear the load without being crushed by it?" * Dependability: Fulfilling what I agreed to do even though it requires unexpected sacrifices. (Proverbs 15:4) Bill Gothard ...... Old Faithful Old Faithful is not the largest geyser in Yellowstone National Park, nor does it reach the greatest height. But it is by far the most popular one. Why? It is regular and dependable, hence its name, "Old Faithful." ...... FAITHFUL WITH WORKS Two frogs fell into a tub of cream. The one looked at the high sides of the tub which were too difficult to crawl over and said, "It is hopeless." So he resigned himself to death, relaxed, and sank to the bottom. The other one determined to keep swimming as long as he could. "Something might happen," he said. And it did. He kept kicking and churning, and finally he found himself on a solid platform of butter, and jumped to safety. (Ah, that reminds me of the "faith" chapter of the book of James - chapter two. Though Martin Luther of the reformation called the book of James "an epistle of straw" he could not have been more wrong; James gives the other side of the coin of true Biblical faith - Keith Hunt) ...... An illustration of the balance between faith and works lies hidden within any tree. Leaves use up nutrients in the process of photosynthesis. As the leaves consume nutrients in the sap, a suction is formed, which draws more sap from the roots. Without the sap, the leaves and branches would die. But the continual flow of this sap comes only as it is used up by the work of the leaf. Likewise, through faith we draw life from Christ. But a continual supply of fresh spiritual nutrients depends on our willingness to "consume" the old supply through our acts of obedience, through our works. ...... FAITH TESTED This piece was heard on National Public Radio's Morning Edition on November 2,1988: In 1958, America's first commercial jet air service began with the flight of the Boeing 707. A month after that first flight, a traveller on a piston-engine, propeller-driven DC-6 airliner struck up a conversation with a fellow passenger. The passenger happened to be a Boeing engineer. The traveller asked the engineer about the new jet aircraft, whereupon the engineer began speaking at length about the extensive testing Boeing had done on the jet engine before bringing it into commercial service. He recounted Boeing's experience with engines, from the B-17 to the B-52. When his travelling companion asked him if he himself had yet flown on the new 707 jet airliner, the engineer replied, "I think I'll wait until it's been in service awhile." ...... Even enthusiastic talking about our faith doesn't mean much if we aren't also willing to put our lives where our mouth is. Donner Atwood, in "Reformed Review," writes: During the terrible days of the Blitz, a father, holding his small son by the hand, ran from a building that had been struck by a bomb. In the front yard was a shell hole. Seeking shelter as soon as possible, the father jumped into the hole and held up his arms for his son to follow. Terrified, yet hearing his father's voice telling him to jump, the boy replied, "I can't see you!" The father, looking up against the sky tinted red by the burning buildings, called to the silhouette of his son, "But I can see you. Jump!" The boy jumped, because he trusted his father. The Christian faith enables us to face life or meet death, not because we can see, but with the certainty that we are seen, not that we know all the answers, but that we are known. ...... ALL THE ABOVE were taken from four books: "1001 Quotes, Illustrations, and Humorous Stories" by Edward Rowell "750 Engaging Illustrations" by Craig Larson "Stories, Illustrations and Quotes" by Robert Morgan "Swindoll's Ultimate Book of Illustrations and Quotes" by Charles Swindoll ...... The Bible is full of quotes about "trust" and "faith" and "faithfulness." The Bible is full of examples of faith, as you read the Bible from cover to cover, you will find many stories of faith, real faith, not blind faith. As you read the Bible you will find over and over again the truth of LIVING faith as contrasted to DEATH faith. All of this covers much of what is written in the Bible. It is a large and expounded truth, which cannot be covered in this relatively short study, but I will give you some pertinent verses from the Bible and truths on faith from Jesus Christ - Keith Hunt ...... Ps.32:10 "He that trusts in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about." Ps.34:8 "O taste and see that the Lord is good, blessed is the man that trusts in Him." Ps.64:10 "The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in Him." Ps.78:7 "That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments." Ps.118:8,9 "It is better to put trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to put trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in princes." Ps.125:1 "They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever." Ps.147:11 "The Lord taketh pleasure in then that fear Him, in those that hope in his mercy." Prov.3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." Prov.29:25 "He that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe." Isa.26:3 "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusts in Thee." Nah.1:7 "The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him." There is the book of Romans that expounds for you how we are justified, made at-one with the Father through faith in the sacrifice of Christ Jesus. This book I have fully opened to you under "The New Testament Bible Story." We are saved by grace through FAITH, as it is written "By grace are you saved through faith; and not of yourselves, it is the gift of God" - Eph.2:8. Being saved by grace through faith I have in-depth revealed to you in my study "Saved by Grace." You have also two chapters (Hebrews 11 and James 2) in the New Testament dealing with faith. SOME OF THE WORDS OF JESUS ON FAITH, BELIEF, TRUST Please read the contexts Mat.7:24,25 "Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock." Mark 9:23 "Jesus said unto him, If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes." Luke 7:9 "When Jesus heard these things, He marvelled at him, and turned about himself, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel." Luke 17:6 "If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you might say unto this sycamine tree, Be you plucked up by the roots, and be you cast in the sea; and it should obey you." John 5:24 "Truly, truly, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." John 7:38 "He that believes on me, as the Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." John 11:25 "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life; he that believes on me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." John 12:36,44,46 "While you have light, believe in the light, that you may be the children of light. Jesus cried and said, he that believes on me, believes not just on me, but on Him that sent me. I am come as a light into the world, that whosoever believes on me should not abide in darkness." John 18:37 "Every one that is of the truth hears my voice." ...... Faith is hearing what Jesus taught. It is reading and listening to God through His written word, the Bible. Faith is believing that word, that it is truth, and then putting that faith truth into LIVING ACTION by trusting and obeying the will and commandments of God. Faith is "trust and obey" just as the popular hymn says, "Trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, than to TRUST and OBEY." WITH THE SHIELD OF FAITH IN FRONT OF US AS WE GO OUT TO BATTLE THE FIERY DARTS OF THE WICKED ONE, WE SHALL CONQUER HIM; IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR SATAN'S DARTS TO KILL US WHEN WE FIGHT WITH THE SHIELD OF FAITH. ................... Keith Hunt (this study written on the last holy day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, April 2009) To be continued

The Armor of God to Battle Satan #5

The Helmet of Salvation - the Mind of Christ!

"And take the helmet of salvation" - Ephesians 6:17 The head and so the brain, and so the mind, is of vital importance if we are going into battle against Satan and his fiery darts of destruction. If the enemy can control your mind, or put it another way, if you are not mentally on the mark, mentally sound, mentally sharp as we say, then you are immediately at a great disadvantage in opposing someone as wily and cunning and deceptive as the Devil. Why it is written that he and his helpers can come looking like an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Jesus told us that before He came again to earth, deception would be so great that IF it was possible even the very elect would be deceived (Mat.24:24). John in his day, said that many anti-christs were present (1 John 2:18). Jude in the first century, had to exhort the saints to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude 3-4). The grace of God was already in his day being turned into a licence to sin. The apostle Paul had to tell his readers that the mystery of iniquity was already at work (2 Thes.2:7). If deception and iniquity coming in the name of "Christ" was already at work and even abounding, coming as looking like angels of light, in the days of the first apostles, then pray tell what so-called "Christianity" must be like today, two thousand year later. Most of us grow up in a ready-made world. We are taught things from being an infant that the popular Christianity says is truth or Biblical. Most of us do not question the customs and teachings of the "churches" we may grow up in. I went to a Church of England school from grade one to grade twelve. Fortunately with our school Bible reading, we were not taught "doctrine" as such. We did read the Bible and we did have to recite some Psalms and the Ten Commandments as found in Exodus 20, the full version. I never heard it from one mouth of any Church of England priests or any Sunday school teacher, from age 5 to 18 (when I left England and came to Canada) that Sunday was the first day of the week. I knew what the 4th commandment said in full form. I presumed that Christianity was observing the 4th commandment as written. Until I came to Canada and found out differently, I believed Christianity was observing the 7th day of the week! WHAT A SHOCK when I found out at age 18 that Christianity was observing the 1st day of the week. I had taken things for granted all those years. It was another SHOCK to go to the Public Library and read a book by a Roman Catholic Bishop called "Christian Feasts and Customs" in which he openly stated that customs like observing Christmas and Easter and many other feasts and days, were not observed by the first century Church of God. This RC Bishop explained in clear language where all these so- called "Christian" feasts came from, and it was NOT the Bible! Well my mind at age 18 was being blown apart as we may say, but really it was God who was opening up my mind as never before, because I had grown up in a ready made world, and had accepted things as they were present in my culture and society. If the enemy can get to our mind, have influence over it in whatever way, have control over it, then the battle, is really lost before we begin, because then we will not have the correct strong shield of faith, we will not have the correct strong breastplate of true righteousness, and we shall not be wrapped in the clothes of truth. The mind is where the battle is won or lost. With the wrong mind-set we will not even know we are in a battle with Satan. We will think we are just fine, we will not even know we are in DECEPTION and following a lie! And so it is as the New Testament makes clear (see Romans chapter 9 to 11) - all are in deception, blinded to the truths of God, until the blindness is removed, until God calls us as part of the "election of grace" - and the rest are blinded to spiritual truth. I cannot over state that the MIND, has to be protected by the helmet of salvation. If Satan can win your mind, he wins the battle, and you have lost! HERE IN THE WORDS OF OTHERS IS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE MIND!! At the Wright Patterson Air Force base in Dayton, Ohio, researchers hope they will develop the means for pilots to fly airplanes with their minds. The project is called brain-actuated control. Writers Ron Kotulak and Jon Van say this is how it could work. The pilot would wear scalp monitors that pick up electrical signals from various points on his head. The scalp monitors would be wired to a computer. Using biofeedback techniques, the pilot would learn to manipulate the electrical activity created by his or her thought processes. The computer would translate the electrical signals into mechanical commands for the airplane. Imagine being able to bank an airplane's wings, accelerate, and climb another ten thousand feet, all by controlling what you think. Although controlling airplanes with the mind is yet to be developed, our mind already has tremendous control of one thing: our behavior. Our thoughts sooner or later lead to our actions. ...... According to an October 29, 1994, story from the Reuters news agency, a Chinese woman named Zhang Meihua began to suffer mysterious symptoms when she turned twenty She was losing the ability to nimbly move her legs and arms. Doctors could not find the cause, and the symptoms continued. Two decades passed, and Zhang began to also suffer from chronic headaches. Again she sought help from the doctors. This time a CAT scan and an X ray found the source of the woman's mysterious symptoms. A rusty pin was lodged in her head. The head of the pin was outside the skull, and the shaft penetrated into her brain. Doctors performed surgery and successfully extracted the pin. The Xinhua news agency reported the doctors expressed amazement that the woman "could live for so long a time with a rusty pin stuck in her brain." After noting the position of the pin in her skull, they speculated that the pin had entered her skull sometime soon after birth and before her skull had hardened. Zhang, now fully recovered, said she "had no memory of being pierced by a pin in the head." Like the rusty pin in that woman's brain, unwholesome thoughts, bad attitudes, and painful memories can lodge in our minds and cause chronic problems. God tells us to renew our minds. ……… From "750 Engaging Illustrations" by Craig Larson ……… Someone Once Said ... * The most important things in life are the thoughts you choose to think. Marcus Aurelius * I think, therefore I am. Decartes * It doubtless is true that people become what they think about. Gary R. Collins * All mortals tend to turn into the thing they are pretending to be. C. S. Lewis * If I knew what you think, I would know what you are. Our thoughts make us what we are. Dale Carnegie * A man is what he thinks about all day long. Ralph Waldo Emerson * Our life is what our thoughts make it. Marcus Aurelius * For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. Proverbs 23:7 ……… THE BATTLE GROUND * Every temptation comes to us via our thoughts. Erwin Lutzer * The mind of man is the battleground on which every moral and spiritual battle is fought. J. Oswald Sanders * Our defeat or victory begins with what we think, and if we guard our thoughts we shall not have much trouble anywhere else along the line. Vance Havner * Self-control is primarily mind-control. John Stott * Every kidnapping was once a thought. Every extramarital affair was first a fantasy. Leslie Flynn MORE QUOTES: * It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well. Descartes * For 2,400 years, ever since Hippocrates located the seat of the intellect inside the skull, the mind has been forced to admit that its greatest achievements, its loftiest thoughts, its deepest emotions all arise from something with the consistency of Jell-O and the color of day-old slush. Newsweek * A bookstore is one of the only pieces of evidence we have that people are still thinking. Jerry Seinfeld ……… DEPRESSION AND THE MIND In his book Learned Optimism, Professor Martin Seligman makes a case for considering depression as arising, not from misplaced chemicals or lingering childhood trauma, but from negative thinking. Summarizing the research of Joseph Wolpe and Tim Beck, Seligman explained how cognitive therapy began to be considered a treatment for mental illness. "Depression is nothing more than its symptoms," writes Seligman. "It is caused by conscious negative thoughts. There is no deep underlying disorder to be rooted out: not unresolved childhood conflicts, not our unconscious anger, and not even our brain chemistry. Emotion comes directly from what we think: Think `I am in danger' and you feel anxiety. Think `I am being trespassed against' and you feel anger. Think `loss' and you feel sadness.... "Depression results from lifelong habits of conscious thought. If we change these habits of thought, we will cure depression." (Some would no doubt not fully agree with Seligman. He probably has some truth in what he states, but I think depression can and is often caused by misplaced chemicals - Keith Hunt) ……… MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR'S SEAT In the "Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr.", Dr.King tells of growing up in Atlanta, Georgia: I remember another experience I used to have in Atlanta. I went to high school on the other side of town - to the Booker T Washington High School. I had to get the bus in what was known as the Fourth Ward and ride over to the West Side. In those days, rigid patterns of segregation existed on the buses, so that Negroes had to sit in the backs of buses. Whites were seated in the front, and often if whites didn't get on the buses, those seats were still reserved for whites only, so Negroes had to stand over empty seats. I would end up having to go to the back of that bus with my body, but every time I got on that bus I left my mind up on the front seat. And I said to myself, "One of these days, I'm going to put my body up there where my mind is." And he did. Our bodies always end up where our minds are. ……… SPURGEON'S CONFESSION Charles Spurgeon once made a remarkably honest confession to his congregation. In a sermon entitled "The Power of the Holy Ghost," he said: I hope that my will is managed by Divine Grace. But I am afraid my imagination is not at times. Those who have a fair share of imagination know what a difficult thing it is to control. You cannot restrain it.... My imagination has taken me down to the vilest kennels and sewers of earth. It has given me thoughts so dreadful that, while I could not avoid them, yet I was thoroughly horrified by them. These thoughts will come; and when I feel in the holiest frame, the most devoted to God, and the most earnest in prayer, it often happens that that is the very time when the plague breaks out the worst. ……… GARBAGE Leslie Flynn tells of a mother who was peeling vegetables for a salad when her daughter, home from college, casually mentioned she was going to a questionable movie that evening. The mother suddenly picked up a handful of garbage and threw it in the salad. "Mother!" said the shocked girl. "You're putting garbage in the salad." "I know," replied the mother, "but I thought that if you didn't mind garbage in your mind, you certainly wouldn't mind a little in your stomach." ……… The Power of Suggestion Franz Anton Mesmer was the talk of Paris in the 1780s. In spite of his training as a physician, he held the unorthodox view that a mysterious magnetic power permeates the universe and resides in human bodies. Treatment of disease, he proposed, could best be done by using magnetic forces from the environment to restore the patient's "magnetic equilibrium." Such view put Mesmer into conflict with the medical profession in his native Vienna, but laypeople were intrigued with the theory. When the doctor moved to France, his reputation preceded him and soon patients were flocking to experience magnetic treatments. It wasn't easy to treat so many people on a one-to-one basis, so Mesmer developed a group technique. As many as thirty people would come at a time and sit around a large wooden tub known as a "baquet." The baquet was filled with water, ground glass, iron filings, and long metal rods that extended from the tub and were grabbed at one end by the patients. According to Mesmer, the magnetic fluid in the baquet somehow came to the people through the rods and led to all kinds of physical cures. Mesmer did what he could to make the healing sessions impressive and emotionally powerful. Soft music played in the background. The room was dimly lit and thickly draped. Mesmer himself demanded silence when he entered the room. Often he wore a long flowing lilac silk robe, and walked about, touching the afflicted body parts with a long iron wand and making magnetic "mesmeric passes" as he waved his free hand through the air. A few people had no response to this dramatic treatment, but many thought they felt forces moving through their bodies, and some went into prolonged convulsions. These involved jerking of the body, apparent dreaminess or stupor, and some times piercing cries. Mesmer's followers called this experience "the crisis" and claimed that it brought great healing. But King Louis XVI wasn't so easily convinced and undoubtedly His Majesty's interest in Mesmer was sparked by secret reports that some mesmerites had radical political ideas. To investigate, the king appointed a Royal Commission and declared that it would be chaired by the American ambassador to France, a man named Benjamin Franklin. The commissioners went to work with enthusiasm, conducting experiments and interviewing Mesmer's patients. After careful study, it was concluded that body magnetism did not exist, that the baquet fluid had no power, and that convulsions and proclaimed cures came as a result of the creative imagination of Mesmer and his highly suggestible followers. Shortly after the report was issued, Mesmer left France and the mesmerites went underground, but a half-century later mesmerism reemerged in a more sophisticated form and with a new name - hypnosis. ……… AS A MAN THINKS ... One of history's sharpest minds belonged to Thomas Edison, the great inventor. Despite only three months of formal schooling, Edison and his inventions changed the world forever. His secret? "One percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration," as he put it; and he proved his definition by working days at a time, obsessed with his projects, neglecting family and friends, and stopping only for short catnaps. Failure never seemed to discourage him. When about ten thousand experiments with a storage battery failed to produce results, a friend tried to console him. "Why, I have not failed," Edison quipped. "I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Of all his inventions, perhaps the most famous is the electric light. He devised the prototype, then spent two years looking for the right filament, sending associates to the jungles of the Amazon and to the forests of Japan. He even tried strands of red hair from a friend's beard. Finally, he utilized carbonized thread, and it worked! The world gained electric lights. Our light bulbs today have three parts to them. There is the glass itself - the bulb surrounding the filament. Inside the bulb is a mixture of gases, commonly argon and nitrogen. Finally, in the very center of the bulb, is the filament. Most filaments today are made of a very tough metal, and when electricity flows through them, they become very hot - about 4,500 degrees - making them glow and give off light. Light bulbs bear a fascinating resemblance to you and me. There is the outside covering, the glass bulb, the body - the part people see. Inside, like invisible gases within the bulb, are our personalities. And at the very center of it all is that part of us that glows and enlightens - the human mind. The mind is the sum and substance, the axis and pivot, of our existence. It is the base of operations, the core of our humanity. Our minds are the most important things about us, and our lives are simply the overflow of our thoughts. Dale Carnegie was once asked on a radio program, "What is the biggest lesson you have ever learned?" He quickly replied, "By far the most vital lesson I have ever learned is the importance of what we think. If I knew what you think, I would know what you are. Our thoughts make us what we are. Our mental attitude is the X-factor that determines our fate. Emerson said: "A man is what he thinks about all day long. How could he possibly be anything else?" Why? An old maxim states: "Thoughts produce acts, acts produce habits, and habits produce character." The Roman philosopher Marcus Aurelius said, "Our life is what our thoughts make it." Or as the Bible puts it, "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." (Proverbs 23:7) ……… THE CAULIFLOWER JEWEL Each of us owns a jewel far more valuable than any displayed in the window of Cartier's or Tiffany's. It's a three-pound blob of grey pulp resembling a rotting cauliflower. Unimpressed? This jewel is the most incredible creation in God's universe, a fabulous, living supercomputer with unfathomable circuitry and unimaginable complexity. It is the human mind - a collection of billions of neurons, each as complex as a small computer. Imagine having 100 billion computers inside your skull! Each of these neurons consists of a central nerve-cell core attached to a long tail and several thousand wispy dendrites. These dendrites reach out to make contact with other dendrites, and the number of connection points between these dendrites is perhaps one quadrillion in every human brain. According to one writer, the number of connections within one human brain rivals the number of stars and galaxies in all the universe. That's not all, for each of these connection points is itself a marvel of complexity. The dendrites don't actually touch each other, but they efficiently and rapidly pass messages to each other through the form of electrical and chemical impulses in a series of processes that takes less than one-thousandth of a second. "All of this is so complex," said one scientist, "that the brain cannot even begin to comprehend its own complexity." What a jewel!

………

I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT YOU When Harry Truman became president, he worried about losing touch with common, everyday Americans, so he would often go out and be among them. Those were in simpler days when the President could take a walk like everyone else. One evening, Truman decided to take a walk down to the Memorial Bridge on the Potomac River. When there, he became curious about the mechanism that raised and lowered the middle span of the bridge. He made his way across the cat walks and through the inner workings of the bridge, and suddenly he came upon the bridge tender, eating his evening supper out of a tin bucket. The man showed absolutely no surprise when he looked up and saw the bestknown and most powerful man in the world. He just swallowed his food, wiped his mouth, smiled, and said, "You know, Mr.President, I was just thinking of you." It was a greeting that Truman adored and never forgot. Wouldn't it be wonderful, if Jesus Christ were to suddenly appear before us physically or come suddenly in the cloud, if we could say, "You know, Lord, I was just thinking of you." ……… THE HARBOR The Bible describes our minds by using the figure of a ship looking for a harbor. Though you may be unable to keep disease-ridden ships from sailing back and forth on the ocean, you can refuse them docking privileges in the harbor of your mind. * Jeremiah 4:14 says, "How long will you harbor your evil thoughts?" (NLT) * Deuteronomy 15:9 says, "Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought." (NIV) * Job talks about those who harbor resentment in their hearts. * The Psalmist talks about those who harbor malice in the minds. * James talks about those who allow bitter envy and selfish ambition to harbor within them. * Jesus conveyed the same basic idea when asking, "Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your minds?" (Matthew 9:4-NIV) * Paul had the same thought in mind when he said, "Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." (Romans 13:14-NIV) ……… FROM JOHN SPURGEON'S "John Ploughman" Some will say they cannot help having bad thoughts; that may be, but the question is, do they hate them or not? Vain thoughts will knock at the door, but we must not open to them. Though sinful thoughts rise, they must not reign. He who turns a morsel over and over in his mouth, does so because he likes the flavor, and he who meditates upon evil, loves it, and is ripe to commit it. Snails leave their slime behind them, and so do vain thoughts. Good thoughts are blessed guests, and should be heartily welcomed, well fed, and much sought after. Like rose leaves, they give out a sweet smell if laid up in the jar of memory. They cannot be too much cultivated; they are a crop which enriches the soil. ……… PEPSI OR SEVEN-UP? Suppose you have a sponge and a pitcher of Pepsi Cola. If you dip your sponge into Pepsi and squeeze it, what's going to come out? Seven-up? No, when you squeeze a sponge soaked in Pepsi, Pepsi is going to gush out of it. If you saturate your mind with questionable movies, videos, magazines, novels, music, and entertainments, do you think that holiness and happiness and godliness will flow out? ……… GLASS HIVES When I was a child my parents took me to the Tennessee Valley Fair to ride the rides and see the exhibits. One of the most interesting displays was the honeybees in glass hives. There appeared to be thousands of bees, all of them hustling and bustling in frantic activity beneath the pane of glass that covered their colony. The bee keeper showed us the queen and explained about the workers, the guards, and the drones, every one of them oblivious to the fact that their every move was being observed by a higher intelligence. In the same way, our heads, are like glass hives and God sees every hustling, bustling thought buzzing through our brains. None are hidden from Him. * 1 Chronicles 28:9 - The Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intents of the thoughts. * Psalm 7:9 - The righteous God tests the hearts and minds. * Psalm 94:11 - The Lord knows the thoughts of man. * Psalm 139:1 - 0 Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. * Jeremiah 11:20 - 0 Lord of hosts, You who judge righteously, testing the mind and the heart.... * Jeremiah 12:3 - But You, O Lord, know me; You have seen me, and You have tested my heart toward you. * Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart (is) deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind. . . . * Jeremiah 20:12 - 0 Lord of hosts, You who test the righteous and see the mind and heart ... * Ezekiel 11:5 - Thus says the Lord: ... I know the things that come into your mind. . . . * Revelation 2:23 - I am He who searches the minds and hearts. * Hebrews 4:12-13 - For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. * Matthew 12:25 - But Jesus knew their thoughts.... ……… From "Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes" by Robert Morgan ……… "LET THIS MIND BE IN YOU, WHICH WAS ALSO IN CHRIST JESUS" (Philippians 2:5) ……… And the above verse is the key to it all. It is allowing Jesus into your mind through the power of the Holy Spirit. Actually through the Spirit BOTH the Father and Christ come to dwell in us (John 14:23). So if they are in us, then we will think as they think, not as unconverted humans think, not as our self-guided emotions think, but as the Father and Christ think! Let me give you just ONE example. For people living in North America, the celebration of "Thanksgiving Day" is an automatic custom so ingrained in most people, that to NOT celebrate that day on the calendar of the USA or Canada (those countries keep it at different calendar dates) would be by most, considered practically as "unrighteousness" or sin! I have given you a study on this Website that shows the origin of that day, which is no different than the Christian world observing December 25th as Christ's birthday party. It may all be dressed in nice platitudes and fancy clothes but the bottom line is that Satan has used these adopted customs, invented by man, to HIDE the TRUE Festivals of God. Why would you want to observe the "thanksgiving festival" of the Feast of Tabernacles, when you have "Thanksgiving Day"? Such man made, out of the minds of men, who were not looking in the Bible to see when a Thanksgiving Festival should be held to praise and honor God, is just not looking at it the way God's mind looks at it. The Father has already established a thanksgiving festival, thousands of years ago, that His people should be observing. When you look at the festival customs of a Christian world that has adopted and "made up" a whole bunch of festivals (depending how many according to if you are Roman Catholic or Protestant) out of their own thoughts and minds, then you put aside the mind of God (who has already given His mind on what Festivals are His - Leviticus 23) to observe the traditions of men, that lay aside the commandments of God (see what Jesus said about that in Mark 7). Having the MIND of Christ, the MIND of the Father, is finding out what is THEIR mind, buy reading their mind as written down in all the books and verses of the entire Bible. You can then win the battle against Satan, and having the mind of God naturally leads us into the next piece of armor - the Sword of the Spirit, which is the WORD of God! ........................... Keith Hunt (written on the last holy day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, April 2009) To be continued

The Armor of God to Battle Satan #6

The Sword of the Word!

"...and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Ephesians 6:17) The Spirit of the Lord is what guides us into all truth (John 16:13). God very seldom literally talks to us. Very few in history have had God come and talk to them. It has happened though, it is written the Lord talked to Moses as friend to friend. Certainly for three and one half years God in the flesh (Christ Jesus) talked to humans during His ministry. After Jesus ascended to heaven, very few indeed have had Him talk to them in a literal way. Of course God can talk to us in "dreams" and He certainlky can comunicate to our minds through the power of His Holy Spirit. The overall way God now at present talks to us about His way of life He wants us to live by, is through His written word - the Old and New Testament - the Holy Bible. And that word, is not passive, it can be very cutting, very up front, pull no punches, say it like it is. God's word can TEACH us, it can ENCOURAGE us, it can INSPIRE us, it can COMFORT us, it can ADMONISH us and CORRECT us. Hence it can be like a SWORD, to cut to attack, to use as an offence weapon. They say the best way to defend is to attack. But to defend by attacking with the Sword of the Word of God, you have to KNOW that sword. It is like having the whole Bible written on a physical sword, and you as a skilled expert in the use of that sword, can drive back the darts of the evil one, and get him to not only stop his attack but to run from you. To be skilled with the sword (like in the art and sport of "fencing") takes time, effort, diligence, practice, mental fitness. You are not going to be a world class athlete in fencing if you never get into it and do the work to be skilled in that sport. If you just sit on the side lines, wishing you were a world class fencer, and never get involved, your dreams will just remain that, dreams. As a kid growing up I wanted to come West and work with Western horses and be a skilled Western rider. I wanted to also be a skilled "trick rider" doing all those twirls and hang-up- side-down on a horse that trick-riders do. Well, at the age of 5 my parents moved from the Welsh village (and the out-doors farm working world all around us) and went to an industrial town in Northern England where there was much more work opportunities. So for the next 13 years I lived in the city, and back then in Britain there was no "Western riding stables." I had to be 18 years old before I could come to Western Canada, to fulfil my dream. At the age of 16 I thought, well if I'm going to do what I want to do on the back of a Western horse, I better get on one even if it was "English riding." For two years I did English riding, a few overnight trecks, and it got me out of the dug-out so to speak. You do not become an expert horse rider by never get on a horse. That is just common logical sense. I did come to Canada, and yes I did become an expert horse rider and trick-rider. But it took working at and practice. So it is with being skilled on attack with the Sword of the Word of God. You have to read the word of God, from cover to cover. You have to meditate upon it. You have to think about it, get to know it. You have to be willing to search it like those at Berea did when Paul and Silas came teaching God's word (Acts 17). You have to be able to check things out when told this or that by this or that person, as to what the Word teaches. It takes effort to get to know the word of God, it takes time spent with your eyes and mind in it. Only then can you have the skill to do what Jesus did when Satan tried to use the word of God to deceive Christ. Jesus was able to answer him by the Word, and when Satan tried to tempt Him to turn the stones into bread, He was able to answer that it was written, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God" (Mat.4:4). You must also have a LOVE of the Word of God. You must be willing to led it teach you and correct you. Now teaching and correcting does not happen over night. And with some things God can be very patient with and guides you into more truth over many years, sometimes decades. Your part is to keep your mind wanting to be guided and corrected and to grow in grace and knowledge. In time, in God's time, He will lead you into all truth, you have to be of a ready mind to admit truth and to admit error. The offensive Sword of the Word is to battle Satan as he comes to deceive you, remember he can come as an angel of light, so it is written. Deceivers are not going to come and say, "Well, now, let me tell you, I'm here to deceive you." No! They will most of the time come saying Jesus is the Christ, and they are coming in Christ's name. And you need to remember that Jesus said deception would be so strong before He returned that IF it was possible, even the very elect would be deceived (Mat.24:24). The Word of God is your sword of not only defence but attack. You will put to silence the deceivers if you KNOW the skill of the Sword of the Lord. As you handle it keep in mind that it works both ways, it is sharp and can cut you also, providing you are open to being led into all truth. As it is written: "For the Word of God, is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing of the soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12). The follwing words by humans are very real when it comes to the Sword of the Word of God. Word of God: To better understand the human body, in 1994, researchers made available a new computer tool called "The Visible Man." The Visible Man consists of almost two thousand computer images. To produce the images, scientists at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center took a man's body that had been willed to science and took CAT scans, X rays, and MRI images of it. Then they embedded the body in gelatin. They froze it, sliced it crosswise into 1,800 millimeter-thin sections, and digitally photographed each cross section. Medical students can look at "The Visible Man" from any angle, call up an image of any cross section they desire, rotate the images, and put them back together again. What The Visible Man does for the body, the Word of God does for the soul. God's Word pictures the inner person - our motives, priorities, thoughts, and sins. ……… Any of us more than forty years old can probably remember where we were when we first heard of President Kennedy's assassination. British novelist David Lodge, in the introduction to one of his books, tells where he was - in a theater watching the performance of a satirical revue he had helped write. In one sketch, a character demonstrated his nonchalance in an interview by holding a transistor radio to his ear. The actor playing the part always tuned in to a real broadcast. Suddenly came the announcement that President Kennedy had been shot. The actor quickly switched it off, but it was too late. Reality had interrupted stage comedy. For many believers, worship, prayer, and Scripture are a nonchalant charade. They don't expect anything significant to happen, but suddenly God's reality breaks through, and they're shocked. ……… From "750 Engaging Illustrations" by Craig Larson "Nave's Topical Bible" has half a dozen or so pages on "The Word of God." So it is no small topic in the Bible. I shall only produce about half the verses that the Lord gives us concerning His Word. WORD OF GOD CALLED: Book - Psa.40:7; Rev.22:19; Book of the Lord - Isa.34:16; Book of the Law - Neh.8:3; Gal.3:10; Good Word of God - Heb.6:5; Holy Scriptures - Rom.1:2; 2 Tim.3:15' Law of the Lord - Psa.1:2; Isa.30:9; Oracles of God - Rom.3:2; 1 Peter 4:11; Scriptures - 1 Cor.15:3; Scriptures of Truth - Dan.10:21; Sword of the Spirit - Eph.6:17; The Word - Jas.1:21-23; 1 Peter 2:2; Word of God - Luke 11:28; Heb.4:12; Word of Christ - Col.3:16; Word of Life - Phil.2:16; Word of Truth - 2 Tim.2:15; Jas.1:18. LIKENED TO: Seed - Mat.13:3-8,18-23,37,38; Mark 4:3-20,26-32; Luke 8:5-15. TO BE READ PUBLICLY: Deut.31:11-13; Josh.8:13,18; 2 Kin.23:2; 2 chron.17:7-9; Neh.8:1-8,13,18; Jer.36:6; Acts 13:15,27; Col.4:16; 1 Thes.5:27. TO BE EXPOUNDED: Neh.8:8; by Jesus, Luke 4:16-27; 24:27,45. SEARCHED: Acts 17:11. SEARCHINBG OF, ENJOINED: John 5:39; 7:52. TEXTS SOMTIMES WRITTEN IN PUBLIC PLACES: Deut.6:9; 11:20. NOT TO BE ADDED TO OR TAKEN FROM: Deut.4:2; 12:32; Rev.22:18,19. CONVICTION OF SIN FROM READING: 2 Kings 22:9-13; 2 Chron.17:7-10; 34. FULFILLED BY JESUS: Mat.5:17; Luke 24:27; John 19:24. TESTIFY OF JESUS: John 5:39; Acts 10:43; 18:32,35; 13:27; 17:2; 18:24; 28:23. THE STANDARD OF THE JUDGMENT: John 12:48; Rom.2:16. NOT OT BE HANDLED DECEITFULLY: 2 Cor.4:2. ……… THE WORD OF THE LORD CONCERNING HIS WORD FROM SECTIONS OF THE WHOLE BIBLE WORD OF GOD Ex.24:3. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do. 4. And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD.... Deut.4: Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diininish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do these; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the, nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes arid judgments so righteous as all this law which I set before you this day? Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it..... Deut.6: And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And tlwu shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of their when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates..... Deut.8:3. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know: that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live. [Matt. 4:4]..... Deut.17: And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them..... Deut.29:29. The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law..... Deut.30: For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. 12. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? 13. Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? 14. But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it..... Josh.1:8. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success..... Josh.3:9. And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God...... And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law. There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them...... 1 Chr.16:15. Be ye mindful always of his covenant; the word which he commanded' to a thousand generations..... Job 22:22. Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in I thine heart..... Job 23:12. Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food..... Psa.1:2. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night..... Psa.12:6. The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times..... Psa.19:7. The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10, More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward..... Psa.33:4. For the word of the LORD is right; 6. By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth..... Psa.40:8. I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart..... Psa.56:4. In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust..... Psa.78:1. Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. 7. That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: 8. And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God..... Psa.94:12. Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law..... Psa.107:19. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. 20. He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered there from their destructions..... Psa.111:7. The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. 8. They stand fast for ever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness..... Psa.119:9. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way 8 by taking heed thereto according to thy word. 11. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. 12. Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes..... 15. I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. 16. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. 18. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. 19. I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me. 20. My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times. [v.40.] 24. Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors. 25. My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word. 28. My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word. 30. I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me. 31. I have stuck unto thy testimonies: O LORD, put me not to shame. 33. Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end. 35. Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight. 41. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation, according to thy word. 45. And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts. 46. I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed. 47. And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. 48. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes. 49. Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou halt caused me to hope. 50. This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me. 51. The proud have had me greatly in derision: yet have I not declined from thy law. 52. I remember thy judgments of old, O LORD; and have comforted myself. 54. Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage. 61. The hands of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law. 66. Teach me good judgment and knowledge for I have believe thy commandments. 67. Before I was afflicted I went astray but now have I kept thy word. 70. Their heart is as fat as grease; but I delight in thy law. 72. The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver. 74. They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word. 76. Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant. 77. Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight. 78. Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt perversely with me without a cause but I will meditate in thy precepts. 81. My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word. 82. Mine eyes fail for thy word, saying, When wilt thou comfort me? 89. For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. 92. Unless thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction. 93. I will never forget thy precepts: for with them thou hast quickened me. 96. I have seen an end of all perfection - but thy commandment is exceeding broad. 97. O how love I thy law it is my meditation all the day. 98. Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. 99. I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. 100. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts. 103. How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! 104. Through thy precepts I get understanding, therefore I hate every false way. 105. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 109. My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law, 117. Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart. 113. I hate vain thoughts: but thy law do I love. 115. Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God. 119. Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross: therefore I love thv testimonies. 127. Therefore I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold. 126. Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way. 129. Thy testimonies are wonderful: therefore doth my soul keep them. 130. The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. 131. I opened my mouth, and pauted: for I longed for thy commandments. 133. Order my steps in thy word. 138. Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful. 140. Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it. 141. I am small and despised: yet do not I forget thy precepts. 142. Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth. 143. Trouble and anguish have taken hold on me: yet thy commandments are my delights. 144. The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live. 148. Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word. 151. Thou art near, O Lord; and all thy commandments are truth. 152. Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for ever. 153. Consider mine affliction, and deliver me: for I do not forget thy law. 157. Many are my persecutors and mine enemies; yet do I not decline from thy testimonies. 156. I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved; because they kept not thy word. 159. Consider how I love thy precepts: quicken me, O Lord, according to thy lovnigkindness. 160, Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever. 161. Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word. 162. I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil. 163. I hate and abhor lying: but thy law do I love. 165. Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them, 167. My soul hath kept thy testimonies, and I love them exceedingly. 172. My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness. IS YOUR HEART LIKE THE HEART OF DAVID? DO YOU LOVE THE WORD OF GOD? DO YOU LOVE THE LAW, THE COMMANDMENTS, THE STATUTES, THE PRECEPTS, THE JUDGMENTS OF GOD? DO YOU SEARCH OUT THE WORD OF GOD? DO YOU LOVE FINDING TRUTH IN GOD'S WORD. ARE YOU WILLING TO BE CORRECTED AND GUIDED BY THE WORD OF THE LORD? LET'S CONTINUE...... Psa.138:2. I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou halt magnified thy word above all thy name. Psa.147:15. He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth: his word runneth very swiftly. 19. He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel. Prov.6:20. My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 21. Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. 22. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. 23. For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life. Prov.22:11. That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee. Prov.30:5. Every word of God is pure he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. 6. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee. and thou be found a liar. Eccl. 5:1. Keep thy foot when thou guest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. Ecc.12:10. The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth. Isa.2:3. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. Isa.8:16. Bind up the testimony, seal the law among any disciples. 20. To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. Isa.28:13. But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept: line upon line, line upon line: here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. Isa.30:21. And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. Isa.34:16. Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read. Isa.40:8. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. Isa.51:7. Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law. Isa.55:10. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, arid returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11. So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Jer.13:15. Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the LORD hath spoken. Jer.15:16. Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. Jer.22:29. O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. Jer.23:28. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD. 29. Is not to my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? 36. And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man's word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God. Ezek.3:3. And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 10. Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears. Dan.10:21. But I will show thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth. Dan.12:4. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. 9. And he said, Go thy way, Daniel for the words of mthis prophecy are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Hos.6:5. Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth. Amos 8:11. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. 12. And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it. Mic.2:7. O thou that art named the house of Jacob, is the spirit of the Lord straitened? are these his doings? do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly? Zech.7:7. Should ye not hear the words which the LORD hath cried by the former prophets. ……… ARE YOU HEARING THE WORDS OF THE PROPHETS? ARE YOU READING THE PROPHETS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT GOD TEACHES, WHAT HE IS DOING, AND WHAT HE WILL YET DO? I HAVE EXPOUNDED THE PROPHETS FOR TODAY, ON THIS WEBSITE. IT IS TIME O ISRAEL, IT IS TIME WHOEVER YOU ARE TO LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF GOD SPOKEN THROUGH HIS PROPHETS. LET'S CONTINUE: Mat.4:4 Man shall not live by bread alone, but my every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Matt.5:17. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I have come not to destroy, but to fulfil. Matt.7:24. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. Matt.11:13. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. 15. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. Matt.13:23. He that received seed into the good ground is he that he eareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Matt.15:3. But he answered and and unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? 9. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matt.22:29. Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. Mark 7:9. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. 13. Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered. Mark 12:24. And Jesus answering said unto thorn, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? Mark 13::31. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. Luke 1::37. For no word from God shall be void of power. Luke 4:22. And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. Luke 8:11. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God 12. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 13. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. 14. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. 15. But that on the good ground are they, which with an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. Luke 11:28. But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it. Luke 13:17. And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail. 29. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 31. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. Luke 24:32. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? 45. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. John 2:22. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. John 5:24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. 39. Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. John 6:6:3. It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto ,you, they are spirit, and they are life. Jolts 8:31. Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John I5:3. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. John 17:8. For I have given unto them the words which thou gravest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. [v. 14.] 17. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. 19. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. 20. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word. Acts 17:11. These were more noble than those in Thesgalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. ……… DO YOU READ THE WORDS OF JESUS? IF YOU HAVE A RED LETTER NEW TESTAMENT, THE WORDS OF JESUS ARE EASY TO FIND AND READ. HE IS THE WORD OF TRUTH. DO YOU SEARCH THE WORD OF GOD DAILY, TO KNOW IT, AND TO FIND WHO SPEAKS THE WORDS OF TRUTH? LET'S CONTINUE: Rom.3:1. What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision? 2. Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of GOd. Rom.6:17. But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Rom.9:4. Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; 6. Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. Rom.10:17. So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Rom.12:2. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Rom.15:4. For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learninging, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Rom.16:26. But now is made manifest and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith. 1 Cor.2:13. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 1 Cor.10:11. Now all these things happened onto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 2 Cor.2:17. For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ. Eph.1:12. That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Eph.5:26. That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. Eph.6:17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Phil.2:16. Holding forth the word of life. Col.1:5. For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before me the word of the truth of the gospel. Col.3:16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 1 Thess 2:13. For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe. 1 Tim. 4:5. For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. 6. If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus, Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto tbou hast attained. 1 Tim.6:3. If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 4. He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings. 2 Tim.1:13. Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 2 Tim.2:15. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Tim. 3:15. And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16. All scripture. is given by inspiraiton of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. Heb.1:1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2. Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the ivorlds. Heb.2:1. Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. 2. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward: 3. How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard hint. Heb.4:2. Unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. 12. The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Heb.6:5. And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come. Heb.11:3. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. Jas.1:14. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of fiistfruits of his creatures. 19. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: 21. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. 22. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25. But whoso looks eth into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. 1 Pet.1:23. Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 24. For all flesh is 1s grass, and all the glory of man its the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25. But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. 1 Pet.2:2. As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby. 2 Pet.1:4. Whereby are given unto its exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped tile corruption that is in the world through lust. 19. We have also a more sure word of prophecy whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star rise in your hearts 20. Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any pri vate interpretation. 21. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of men but holy men spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. 2 Pet.3:2. That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior: 15. Account that the longsuffering of the Lord is salvation: even as our beloved brother Paul; also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you: 16. As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be uderstood, which they who are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their destruction. 1 John 2:7. Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from tile beginning. 14. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one. 21. I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 1 John 5:11. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 13. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. Jude 3. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me, to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. 17. But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. Rev.1:2. Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that lie saw. 3. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which care written therein: for the time is at hand. Rev.22:18. For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book 19. And if any man shall take away from the words of tile book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and omit of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this hook. ……… NOTE: THIS HAS BEEN A LONG STUDY. BUT SO IS THE WORD OF GOD. THERE ARE MORE VERSES THAT I COULD HAVE ADDED, BUT THE ABOVE VERSES ARE ENOUGH TO SHOW YOU THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING AND SEARCHING THE HOLY SCRIPTURES, FOR IN THEM IS TRUTH AND LIFE AND GLORY. Keith Hunt (April 2009) To be continued

ARMOR of God to Battle Satan #7

Praying Always ...

Paul finishes his discourse on the full armor of God to battle Satan the Devil with: "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints: And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the Gospel ... that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak" (Eph.6:18-20). Prayer! Yes prayer is a weapon to use against the enemy Satan and his darts of death. You pray always by being in the ever attitude of walking with the Lord, of being mindful you are His, that He is, has been, and forever will be. No matter where you are, in a crowd, in the supermarket, driving your car, at work, at play ... wherever ... you are "with the Lord" in ever contact with God and His Son Christ Jesus. Sometimes you may say, "Now, how would Jesus do this; how would He act; how would Jesus speak" in some situations. Other times, you may have to say, "Forgive me Lord, renew a right spirit in me, I'm thinking the wrong things." "Lord, please help me to get a right attitude in this situation." Or it may be, "Thank you Father for your kind mercy, the situation could have been terrible because of my mistake." Praying always is being in constant contact with our heavenly Father, being aware nothing is hid from Him, we are an open book before Him. And because we are still in the flesh, we are sinners, and truly knowing that, we know we are saved by His grace, not by any works we have done, are doing, or will yet do. Praying always is being thankful that our Father deals with us in patience; He corrects us not as we deserve, but with kindness and love. Praying always is always being in a repentant attitude, willing to be corrected, willing to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus. Praying always is never getting hardened to sin and the evil around us. It is always sighing and crying for the wickedness in the world. Praying always is desiring, praying for "Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Praying always is serving and helping others, yes, those literal things to do for people, that is good and right, is a way of praying always, for it is the way of ever being mindful you are a child of God, and so being, His children would do this or do that in loving their fellow man. Praying always is loving your neighbor as yourself. It is not wrong to look after yourself, to obey the laws of health, to eat right, to exercise, to get the proper amount of sleep. It is not wrong to keep your mind on good wholesome things. It is not wrong to have some pleasure time for yourself. All things in moderation as the Bible teaches. So if looking after yourself physically, emotionally, and spiritually, is not wrong, and is a form of praying always, then that shows you how to love your neighbor as yourself. You will want your neighbor to do well, have a good and healthy and happy life. Yes, even if your neighbor is not a Christian, even if they do not think about or believe in a God in heaven above. You should still want the best for your neighbor just as you would like it for yourself. When you understand that everyone is spiritually blinded UNTIL God removes that blindness, then you will have love and patience for your spiritually blinded neighbor. Praying always is even loving your enemy, doing good to them when they do you evil. It is praying for your enemy. It is as Jesus did and said: "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do." Praying always is watching out for all the saints of God. Certainly when you have saints around you, in your town, city, village, or over in the next valley, you can get a personal relationship with them. You can get to know them in their daily lives, what their trials and problems are that they have to face. You can get to know their children if they have any. Watching out for the saints can get very personal, and I do not mean, sticking your nose in when you need to keep it out. watching for the saints is to know when, where, and how, and why, you need to be involved with them, in any particular circumstance. All of that kind of living with your fellow saint takes knowledge and wisdom; you should be able to find many studies on this Website to help you develop that knowledge and wisdom. Praying always and watching for your Christian brother and/or sister, often ones you do not know, all you know is they are out there as the salt of the earth. And you know there will be times of trails, troubles, even literal persecutions for some, in some countries of this earth. You get to know by reading, by the news, by documentaries on TV, by the Internet, that some of your brothers and sisters in Christ NEED your prayer for them. You can get very specific in your prayers for your brethren, from the above news that come your way, you can find out some of their very personal needs, be it physical safety, clean water, employment, deliverance from persecution, enough food for themselves and their family. There are so many ways to be watching for all saints. And in your situation perhaps you only have prayer to give them. But NEVER THINK that "just prayer" is nothing of worthless. Far from it, for through prayer miracles have happened. The stories put in the form of books that could be written about miracles that came ONLY through prayer, I'm sure could fill your house. This last piece of armor gets forgotten many times. The POWER of prayer can be a mighty strong defensive and attacking piece of armor. It can work as a defence and it can work as a great weapon to slay the adversary. Praying always with SUPPLICATION! That is with "petition" or with requests, entreat, plea, beseechment, imploring, appeal, request of, urge. Christians are not only to pray for each other but to pray with an attitude of urgency in their beseechment with the Father. Sometimes we known the specific requests to make on behalf of others, then many times we do not know the specifics, but we do known that the children of God somewhere, are going through trials, tests, and troubles, maybe persecutions, maybe rejections by family members, maybe the loss of a job, maybe sickness. We can pray with earnest beseeching that the Father will give the power of His Spirit to His children in whatever needs they may have at this time in their lives. And it is the Holy Spirit that will give Christians everywhere the strength and the will of mind to endure whatever they must endure, to the end. We need to pray that true Christians will fight the good fight, battle the wiles of the Devil, for as Peter said, he goes about like a roaring lion trying to devour whoever he can. How many of you have known many over the last 20 years or more that have thrown in the towel, put up the white flag of surrender, given up the battle? How many of you have known people that were once enlightened with the truths of God, but through tests of faith (i.e. ministers being unfaithful, or "organizations" becoming corrupt, or leaders and organizations going back into Roman Catholic and Protestant teachings) have now gone back into the world, and just gave up on the Father and Christ and the Bible completely? Sadly, I have known of dozens of such people over the last 40 years, who have become as Peter said, like a dog returning to its vomit. I have known men who were ministers, leaders, deacons, men looked up to in their congregations, who not only turned their back on truths of God, but who walked right back into the world from which they came. I have known people who now do not give one thought about God and Christ, and have stopped reading the Bible. All of this Paul must have had running through his mind, when he penned the words of verse 18. He saw it happen to ones he knew: "This charge I commit unto you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on you, that you by them mighty war a good warfare. HOLDING faith, and a good conscience, which SOME HAVING PUT AWAY concerning faith have made shipwreck: Of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander ...." (1 Timothy 1:18-20). Going to the thought of Peter about the dog returning to its vomit, I think it needful I quote his context: "Which [people] have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray ... These are well without water, clouds they are carried with a tempest ... For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to TURN FROM the Holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The god is turned to his own vomit again, and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire" (2 Peter 15-22). Being a child of the Father is not always for a short duration of our physical life, some are called as children, or teens, or young adults. Most of us will have to face trials and tests and troubles that can come along in this life time. Many of us will have to battle through the times when "minister" fail, when "organizations" corrupt themselves, when "organizations" fall away and depart from the truths of God and go back into the Babylon of religion that is all around us. It is important we pray always for our brothers and sisters in Christ, that they will remain true to the calling they have been given. Yes I know it is also true that the wheat must be separated from the chaff, that the blowing winds of the problems of this life must come, so the chaff and the wheat can be separated. The sheep and the goats must be separated. This is all true and God has His ways of doing just that. But that does not mean we must not pray always with supplication for the saints. We must pray that the true saints will fight the good fight, remain faithful, endure to the end. I like the words of Albert Barnes in his Bible Commentary: "Praying Always: It would be well for the soldier who goes forth to battle to pray - to pray for victory; or to pray that he may be prepared for death, should he fall. But soldiers do not often feel the necessity of this. To the Christian soldier, however, it is indispensable. Prayer crowns all lawful efforts with success, and gives a victory when nothing else would. No matter how complete the armor; no matter how skilled we may be in the science of war; no matter how courageous we may be; - we may be certain that without prayer we shall be defeated. God alone can give the victory; and when the Christian soldier goes forth armed completely for the spiritual conflict, if he looks to God by prayer, he may be sure of a triumph. This prayer is not to be intermitted; it is to be ALWAYS! In every temptation and spiritual conflict we are to pray. WITH ALL PRAYER AND SUPPLICATION: With all kinds of prayer; prayer in the closet, the family, the social meeting, the great assembly; prayer at the usual hours; prayer when we are specially tempted, and when we feel just like praying; prayer in the form of supplication for ourselves, and in the form of intercession for others. This is, after all, the great weapon of our spiritual armor, and by this we may hope to prevail." LIFE LESSONS IN PRAYER While standing dazed, evaluating the mess and wondering about the future, he heard a stirring in the lumber pile that was the remains of the henhouse. A rooster was climbing up through the debris, and he didn't stop climbing until he had mounted the highest board in the pile. That old rooster was dripping wet, and most of his feathers were blown away. But as the sun came over the eastern horizon, he flapped his bony wings and proudly crowed. That old, wet, bare rooster could still crow when he saw the morning sun. And like that rooster, our world may be falling apart, we may have lost everything, but if we trust in God, we'll be able to see the light of God's goodness, pick ourselves out of the rubble, and sing the Lord's praise. ...... In "Contemporary Christian Music," John Fischer writes: I have a bad habit. When my children tell me about something they've learned for the first time, I often act as if I knew that. Even worse, sometimes I tell them how the same thing happened to me years ago. When my wife hears something "new" from the kids, her mouth drops open and her eyes widen. It's as if she has never heard this kind of thing before. The kids' faces brighten, and they feel as if they have actually enlightened their mother. I used to think my wife was just acting and sooner or later the kids would find out and feel lied to. Then I realized it isn't an act at all. Though she may already have experienced what they are trying to tell her, she's never experienced it through them. Their personal "revelations" are entirely new. It's the same with God. As all-knowing and sovereign as he is, I'm sure he's still eager to hear our prayers because he has never heard it quite the way we say it. We are all unique. We have our own signature attached to all we do and say. Our lives, our experiences, and our faith expressed to him are never old. ...... Bill Gates, who is chief executive at Microsoft (he was when this was written) is hooked up to the international computer network called Internet. Subscribers to the Internet can send through their computers electronic mail (called e-mail) to other users of the Internet. Bill Gates had an Internet address just like everyone. But then the New Yorker magazine published his Internet address. Anyone could send the computer genius a letter. In no time Bill Gates was swamped with five thousand messages. It was more than any human could handle. So Gates armed his computer with software that filters through his e-mail, allowing important messages through and sending other letters to electronic oblivion. People are limited. They can handle only so much communication and offer only so much help. God, on the other hand, never tires of s-mail (spirit mail). His ear is always open to our prayers. And he has unlimited capacity to help. ...... When our children were small, we played a game. I'd take some coins in my fist. They'd sit on my lap and work to get my fingers open. According to the international rules of finger opening, once the finger was open, it couldn't be closed again. They would work at it, until they got the pennies in my hand. They would jump down and run away, filled with glee and delight. Just kids. Just a game. Sometimes when we come to God, his hand. "Lord, I need a passing grade. Help me to study." "Lord, I need a job." "Lord, my mother is ill." We reach for the pennies. When God grants the request, we push the hand away. More important than the pennies in God's hand is the hand of God himself. That's what prayer is about. ...... They tell us the 911 emergency system is the state of the art. All you need do is dial those numbers, and you will almost instantly be connected to a dispatcher. In front of the dispatcher will be a read-out that lists your telephone number, your address, and the name by which that telephone number is listed at that address. Also listening in are the police, the fire department, and the paramedics. A caller might not be able to say what the problem is. Or perhaps a woman's husband has just suffered a heart attack, and she is so out of control that all she can do is hysterically scream into the telephone. But the dispatcher doesn't need her to say anything. He knows where the call is coming from. Help is already on the way. There come times in our lives when in our desperation and pain we dial 911 prayers. Sometimes we're hysterical. Sometimes we don't know the words to speak. But God hears. He knows our name and our circumstance. Help is on the way; God has already begun to bring the remedy. ...... In 1996 the Chicago Bulls basketball team won their fourth world championship behind their leader Michael Jordan. Jordan's contract ended after the season, however, and fans in Chicago were uneasy about whether the Bulls could re-sign Jordan for the upcoming year. Would owner Jerry Reinsdorf be willing to pay the huge salary that everyone knew Jordan would request for a new contract? On July 12, 1996, the Chicago media discovered the answer. The Bulls announced they had agreed to pay some $30 million. Bob Verdi reported later in the Chicago Tribune that months prior to the negotiations, when snow was on the ground, Reinsdorf had joked with Jordan and his agent that when the season ended, if the negotiations took more than five minutes, they would be wasting their time. At a dinner with Jordan less than two weeks before negotiations began, Reinsdorf repeated his intention to wrap things up quickly. And when the time came to talk numbers, Reinsdorf paid Jordan's asking price without a qualm. "I could have tried to talk Michael down from what he asked," said Reinsdorf. "But why? ... Michael is unique. I can afford what he's getting, he deserves what he's getting, and if it's not the best business transaction I ever made, so what? This wasn't a business deal in the truest sense, anyway. Call them psychic dollars. When we couldn't give Michael what he deserved because of the salary cap, I told him there would be a day. Well, the day has come." Like Michael Jordan asking for a big salary, we often come to God with large requests, and we wonder how he will feel about it. Jesus taught us that God's response to our prayers is guided in large measure by how he feels about us. God's sons and daughters are more special to him than Michael Jordan is to the owner of the Chicago Bulls. For God, prayer isn't some spiritual negotiation; prayer is love. God is giving "heart dollars." ...... In "Total Eclipse" Annie Dillard writes: The Ring Nebula, in the constellation Lyra, looks, through binoculars, like a smoke ring. It is a star in the process of exploding. Light from its explosion first reached the earth in 1054; it was a supernova then, and so bright it shone in the daytime. Now it is not so bright, but it is still exploding. It expands at the rate of seventy million miles a day. It is interesting to look through binoculars at something expanding seventy million miles a day. It does not budge. Its apparent size does not increase. Photographs of the Ring Nebula taken fifteen years ago seem identical to photographs of it taken yesterday. Huge happenings are not always visible to the naked eye-especially in the spiritual realm. How often it is that this nebula resembles the process of prayer. Sometimes we pray and pray and seemingly see no change in the situation. But that's only true from our perspective. If we could see from heavens standpoint, we would know all that God is doing and intending to do in our lives. We would see God working in hearts in ways we cannot know. We would see God orchestrating circumstances that we know nothing about. We would see a galaxy of details being set in place for the moment when God brings the answer to fulfilment. ...... In May 1996, Valujet Flight 592 crashed into the Florida Everglades, killing 110 passengers. To determine the cause of the crash, the National Transportation Safety Board needed the plane's black box. That would not be easy to find. The crash had scattered plane debris across a large area of swamp. Dozens of searchers descended on the scene to sift through muck and water as much as eight feet deep in an attempt to find the black box. Navy experts tried using special technology that detected submerged metal, without success. Holding a rope that kept them spaced three feet apart, other searchers systematically poked through every square foot of the crash area. After fourteen days, they had found nothing. For workers the physical conditions were nigh unbearable. The Florida sun beat upon them, and temperatures hovered in the 90s. Diesel fuel and caustic hydraulic fluid from the wrecked plane floated in the water, forcing searchers to wear several layers of protective rubber and latex despite the heat and humidity. Fourteen days of that had left many searchers dehydrated, but they had to find the black box. Sergeant Felix Jimenez, of the Metro-Dade police, was one of the searchers. For fourteen days he had prayed for the bereaved families and for the safety of his fellow workers, but on the fifteenth day as he took a break, suddenly he realized he had failed to pray for one important thing: that God would help them find the black box. So he asked God for direction, resumed the search, and when he stuck his pole into the water, he hit something metallic. He pulled the object out of the muck. It was the black box. Jimenez writes in Guideposts, "At the end of the day ... I thought of the many days we had spent searching for the recorder, how we must have tromped over it many times, and I wondered why its retrieval had taken so long. Amid the low rustle of saw grass and the call of a great white heron, I seemed to hear the response: 'Why did it take you so long to ask?'" ...... James David Ford, chaplain of the United States House of Representatives since 1979, told the following story about prayer to "Leadership" journal: In the spring of 19761 sailed the Atlantic Ocean with a couple of friends. In a thirty-one-foot vessel, we sailed from Plymouth, England, to New York - 5,992 miles. During the trip, we hit a real hurricane - some of the waves were thirty-five feet high - and frankly, I was scared. My father had said, "Don't go. You have five children. Wait till they're grown." The hurricane went into its third day, and I thought of my father's words about the children. I thought, Why am I out here? Was this thing that I thought was courage and adventure really just foolhardy? The skies were black, and clouds were scudding by. I wanted to pray for God to stop the storm, but I felt guilty 'cause I'd voluntarily gotten into this. I didn't have to go across the ocean.... Finally I came up with a marvellous prayer, seven words: "O God, I have had enough. Amen." Within half an hour of that simple prayer, the sky in the west lifted like a screen in a theater, and there was blue sky. Was my prayer tied to the opening of the sky? I don't worry about it. One thing is certain: simple, sincere prayers are sufficient. ...... FROM THE BOOK "750 ENGAGING ILLUSTRATIONS" by Craig Larson and Leadership Journal YOU CAN DO MORE THAN PRAY after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed - John Bunyan ...... THANK YOU FOR SAYING NO Lord, day after day I've thanked you for saying yes. For saying no? Yet I shudder to think Of the possible smears The cumulative blots on my life Had You not been sufficiently wise To say an unalterable no. So thank You for saying no When my want list for things Far exceeded my longing for You. When I asked for a stone Foolishly certain I asked for bread Thank You for saying no To my petulant "Just this time, Lord?" Thank You for saying no To senseless excuses Selfish motives Dangerous diversions. Thank You for saying no When the temptation that enticed me Would have bound me beyond escape. Thank You for saying no When I asked You to leave me alone. Above all Thank You for saying no When in anguish I asked "If I give You all else May I keep this?" Lord, my awe increases When I see the wisdom Of Your divine no. Ruth Harms Calkin, "Tell Me Again Lord, I Forget" ...... PRAYER IS SURRENDER - surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will. If I throw out a boat hook from a boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore? Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God. E. Stanley Jones, "A Song of Ascents" ...... WILLIAM R. NEWELL says kneeling is a good way to pray because it is uncomfortable. Daniel prayed on his knees. Jim Elliot said, "God is still on His throne, we're still His footstool, and there's only a knee's distance between!" He also said, "That saint who advances on his knees never retreats." Elisabeth Elliot, "Shadow of the Almighty" ...... THERE'S SOMETHING EXQUISITELY LUXURIOUS about room service in a hotel. All you have to do is pick up the phone and somebody is ready and waiting to bring you breakfast, lunch, dinner, a chocolate milkshake, whatever your heart desires and your stomach will tolerate. Or by another languid motion of the wrist, you can telephone for someone who will get a soiled shirt quickly transformed into a clean one or a rumpled suit into a pressed one. That's the concept that some of us have of prayer. We have created God in the image of a divine bellhop. Prayer, for us, is the ultimate in room service, wrought by direct dialing. Furthermore, no tipping, and everything is charged to that great credit card in the sky. Now prayer is many things, but I'm pretty sure this is not one of the things it is. Kenneth Wilson, quoted in Lloyd Cory, "Quote Unquote" ...... HEAVEN IS FILLED with a room that will surprise all of us when we see it. The room has within it large boxes neatly packaged with a lovely ribbon on top with your name on it, "Never delivered to Earth because never requested from Earth." PRAYER IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE for work, thinking, watching, suffering, or giving; prayer is a support for all other efforts. George Buttrick, quoted in Lloyd Cory, "Quote Unquote" ...... I asked God for strength, that I might achieve; I was made weak, that I may learn humbly to obey. I asked God for health, that I may do greater things; I was given infirmity, that I might do better things. I asked for riches, that I may be happy; I was given poverty, that I might be wise. I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men; I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God. I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life; I was given life, that I might enjoy all things. I got nothing I asked for but everything I hoped for. I am, among all men, most richly blessed. A Confederate Soldier Croft M. Pentz, "Speaker's Treasury of 400 Quotable Poems" ...... DEPTH, not length, is important. . . . When the Gettysburg battleground became a national cemetery, Edward Everett was to give the dedication speech and Abraham Lincoln was asked to say "a few appropriate words" Everett spoke eloquently for one hour and fifty-seven minutes then took his seat as the crowd roared its enthusiastic approval. Then Lincoln stood to his feet, slipped on his steel spectacles, and began what we know today as the "Gettysburg Address: Poignant words "... The world will little note nor long remember ..." - suddenly, he was finished. No more than two minutes after he had begun he stopped. His talk had been so prayer-like it seemed almost inappropriate to applaud. As Lincoln sank into his settee, John Young of the Philadelphia Press whispered, "Is that all?" The President answered, "Yes, that's all." Don't underestimate two minutes with God in prayer. Charles R. Swindoll, "Quest for Character" ...... IF I COULD HEAR Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me. Robert Murray McCheyne, quoted in Lloyd John Ogilvie, "Drumbeat of Love" ...... GOD ANSWERS SHARP and sudden on some prayers, / and thrusts the thing we have prayed for in our face. / A gauntlet with a gift in 't. Elizabeth Barrett Browning, "Aurora Leigh" ...... IT IS POSSIBLE to move men through God by prayer alone. J. Oswald Sanders, "Spiritual Leadership" ...... BROOM HILDA, a cartoon character, is a little three-foot-high witch who is all hair and face. In one amusing comic strip she approaches a wishing well and, standing next to it, puts her hands on the edge of the well and says loudly, "I don't want anything!" And the next panel is quiet. Then she steps back and says, "I just thought you'd enjoy knowing there was one satisfied person around." THE CARTOON CHARACTER Ziggy is standing, looking up on a mountain. The sky is dark and there's one cloud up there. Ziggy says, "Have I been put on hold for the rest of my life?" Sometimes prayer feels like that, doesn't it? "Will You ever answer?" As one man put it, "The heavens are brass and nothing comes back." Tom Wilson cartoon, Universal Press Syndicate, July 18, 1980 ...... (Ah, but it does come back, in God's time, in His time not ours - Keith Hunt) DR. LEWIS SPERRY CHAFER told a story on the subject. It seems that a certain minister was in the habit of profound prayers, oftentimes resorting to words beyond the ken of his simple flock. This went on week after week, to the dismay and frustration of the congregation. At last, a wee Scottish woman in the choir ventured to take the matter in hand. On a given Sunday, as the minister was waxing his most eloquently verbose, the little woman reached across the curtain separating the choir from the pulpit. Taking a firm grasp on the frock tail of the minister, she gave it a yank, and was heard to whisper, "Jes' call Him Fether, and ask 'im for somethin." Richard Seurne, "Shoes for the Road" ...... TWO IRISHMEN, Pat and Mike, had narrowly escaped death on a sinking ship. They were floundering around in icy ocean waters on a couple of planks. Pat was addicted to the grossest profanity and he thought he ought to repent of it and then the Lord would come to his rescue. Mike thought his theology was sound. Pat began to pray, but just before arriving at the main thesis of his repentant prayer, Mike spotted a ship coming toward them. As delighted as Columbus when he first spotted the North American shore, Mike hollered, "Hold it, Pat. Don't commit yourself. Here's a ship." Pat immediately stopped praying! Isn't that the way many of us are? The only time we pray is when we are "in a jam." As soon as things improve we forget God. John Haggai, "How to Win over Worry" ...... O THOU WHO HAS GIVEN US SO MUCH, mercifully grant us one thing more -- a grateful heart. George Herbert ...... A MAN WAS BEING PURSUED by a roaring, hungry lion. Feeling the beast's hot breath on his neck and knowing his time was short, he prayed as he ran. He cried out in desperation, "O Lord, please make this lion a Christian." Within seconds, the frightened man became aware the lion had stopped the chase. When he looked behind him, he found the lion kneeling, lips moving in obvious prayer. Greatly relieved at this turn of events - and desirous of joining the lion in meditation, he approached the king of the jungle. When he was near enough, he heard the lion praying, "And bless, O Lord, this food for which I'm exceedingly grateful!" ...... FROM "SWINDOLL'S ULTIMATE BOOK OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND QUOTES" PRAYER QUOTES: I am often, I believe, praying for others when I should be doing things for them. It's so much easier to pray for a bore than to go and see him. C.S. Lewis Souls without prayer are like people whose bodies or limbs are paralyzed: They possess feet and hands but they cannot control them. Teresa of Avila In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without heart. John Bunyan I have often learned more in one prayer than I have been able to glean from much reading and reflection. Martin Luther As we are involved in unceasing thinking, so we are called to unceasing prayer. Henri Nouwen I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day. Abraham Lincoln In prayer, we are aware that God is in action and that when the circumstances are ready, when others are in the right place, and when our hearts are prepared, he will call us into the action. Waiting in prayer is a disciplined refusal to act before God acts. Eugene Peterson Not to want to pray is the sin behind sin. P.T.Forsyth To pray is the greatest thing we can do, and to do it well, there must be calmness, time, and deliberation. E. M. Bounds The penalty of not praying is the loss of one's capacity to pray. Pray the largest prayers. You cannot think a prayer so large that God, in answering it, will not wish you had made it larger. Pray not for crutches but for wings! Phillips Brooks We are too busy to pray, and so we are too busy to have power. We have a great deal of activity but we accomplish little; many services but few conversions; much machinery but few results. R.A. Torrey ILLUSTRATION OF PRAYER Jean Giono tells the story of Elzeard Bouffier, a shepherd he met in 1913 in the French Alps. At that time, because of careless deforestation, the mountains around Provence, France, were barren. Former villages were deserted because their springs and brooks had run dry. The wind blew furiously, unimpeded by foliage. While mountain climbing, Giono came to a shepherd's hut, where he was invited to spend the night. After dinner Giono watched the shepherd meticulously sort through a pile of acorns, discarding those that were cracked or undersized. When the shepherd had counted out 100 perfect acorns, he stopped for the night and went to bed. Giono learned that the fifty-five-year-old shepherd had been planting trees on the wild hillsides for over three years. He had planted 100,000 trees, 20,000 of which had sprouted. Of those, he expected half to be eaten by rodents or die due to the elements, and the other half to live. After World War I, Giono returned to the mountainside and discovered incredible rehabilitation: There was a veritable forest, accompanied by a chain reaction in nature. Water flowed in the once-empty brooks. The ecology, sheltered by a leafy roof and bonded to the earth by a mat of spreading roots, became hospitable. Willows, rushes, meadows, gardens, and flowers were birthed. Giono returned again after World War II. Twenty miles from the lines, the shepherd had continued his work, ignoring the war of 1939 just as he had ignored that of 1914. The reformation of the land continued. Whole regions glowed with health and prosperity. Giono writes: "On the site of the ruins I had seen in 1913 now stand neat farms.... The old streams, fed by the rains and snows that the forest conserves, are flowing again.... Little by little, the villages have been rebuilt. People from the plains, where land is costly, have settled here, bringing youth, motion, the spirit of adventure." Those who pray are like spiritual reforesters, digging holes on barren land and planting the seeds of life. Through these seeds, dry spiritual wastelands are transformed into harvestable fields, and life-giving water is brought to parched and barren souls. Hal Seed ...... FROM "1001 QUOTES, ILLUSTRATIONS AND HUMOROUS STORIES" by Edward K.Rowell PRAYER BEFORE MEALS Where Did This Come From? At supper one night, seven-year-old Brad asked why his dad thanked God before eating food that had come from the grocery store. The father picked up a roll and asked, "Where did this come from?" "From the store," Brad said. "Where did they get it?" "I dunno. From the bakery?" "Where did they get it?" "They made it." "From what?" asked the father. "From flour." "Where did that come from?" "From wheat." "Where did the wheat come from?" "The farmers." "And where did the farmer get it?" "He grew it," said Brad. "From what?" "Seed.," "And who made the seed?" "God, I guess," said Brad. "And that," said the father, "is why we thank Him." ...... BACK OF THE LOAF: Back of the loaf is the snowy flour, And back of the flour the mill, And back of the mill are the wheat and the shower, And the sun, and the Father's will. Anonymous ...... In his book "Home: Where Life Makes Up Its Mind," Charles Swindon says: Most of us did not learn to pray in church. And we weren't taught it in school, or even in pajamas beside our bed at night. If the truth were known, we've done more praying around the kitchen table than anywhere else on earth. From our earliest years we've been programmed: if you don't pray, you don't eat. It started with Pablum in the high chair, and it continues through porterhouse at the restaurant. Right? Like passing the salt or doing the dishes, a meal is incomplete without it. Swindoll goes on to offer several suggestions for saying grace before meals, including: * Think before you pray. What's on the table? Call the food and drink by name. "Thank you, Lord, for the hot chicken-and-rice casserole in front of us. Thank you for the cold lemonade." * Involve others in prayer: Try some sentence prayers around the table. * Sing your family blessing. * Keep it brief, please. * Occasionally pray after the meal. ...... UNGRATEFUL BEGGERS According to "Our Daily Bread," when King Alfonso XII of Spain learned that the attendants of his court were neglecting to pray before eating, he determined to teach them a lesson. A huge banquet was prepared, and all the king's guests plowed in, none of them pausing to give thanks to God. But by pre-arrangement, a filthy beggar wandered into the banquet hall, seated himself at the head table, and chowed down. The guests waited for the guards to seize the man, but, to their amazement, he continued gobbling up the food without hindrance. Then the beggar wiped his mouth, rose and stalked out without a word. Someone near the king said, "What a despicable fellow! He didn't even say ,thank you." Rising, King Alfonso said to them all: "Do you realize that you've been bolder and more ungrateful than that beggar? Every day you sit down at a table abundantly supplied by your Heavenly Father, yet you neither ask His blessing nor express your gratitude!" It was a lesson none of them ever forgot. ...... FOOD FOR ALL George Mueller, born into a German tax collector's family, was often in trouble. He learned early to steal and gamble and drink. As a teenager, he learned how to in stay in expensive hotels, then sneak out without paying the bill. But at length he was caught and jailed. Prison did him little good, for upon release he continued his crime spree until, on a Saturday night in 1825, he met Jesus Christ. Mueller married and settled down in Bristol, England, growing daily in faith and developing a burden for the homeless children running wild and ragged through the streets. At a public meeting in Bristol on December 9, 1835, he presented a plan for an orphanage. Several contributions came in. Mueller rented Number 6 Wilson Street, and on April 11, 1836, the doors of the orphanage opened. Twenty-six children were immediately taken in. A second house soon opened, then a third. From the beginning, Mueller refused to ask for funds or even to speak of the ministry's financial needs. He believed in praying earnestly and trusting the Lord to provide. And the Lord did provide, though sometimes at the last moment. The best-known story involves a morning when the plates and bowls and cups were set on the tables, but there was no food or milk. The children sat waiting for breakfast while Mueller led in prayer for their daily bread. A knock sounded at the door. It was the baker. "Mr. Mueller," he said, "I couldn't sleep last night. Somehow I felt you didn't have bread for breakfast, so I got up at 2 A.M. and baked some fresh bread." A second knock sounded. The milkman had broken down right in front of the orphanage, and he wanted to give the children his milk so he could empty his wagon and repair it. Such stories became the norm for Mueller's work. During the course of his ninety-three years, Mueller housed more than ten thousand orphans, "prayed in" millions of dollars, travelled to scores of countries preaching the Gospel, and recorded fifty thousand answers to prayer. Robert Morgan, "On This Day" (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1997), April 11th. ...... NEVER AGAIN Charles Colson, former special assistant to President Richard Nixon, went to prison for his role in the Watergate scandal and was converted to Christ through reading C. S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity." He wrote of his conversion in "Born Again," a book that was launched with a backbreaking tour that ended up in California. Arriving late at his hotel, he and his friend Fred Denne went to the coffee shop for a snack. The room had a Spanish motif; red tile on the floor, wrought iron tables and chairs. A waitress in a pink uniform waited on them. The men noticed she looked like a young starlet, blondish hair and pleasant-faced. "Two cheese omelets, one milk, and one iced tea," said Fred. After she left, the two men reviewed the next day's schedule a few minutes, then decided to ask the Lord's blessings on their anticipated meal. They bowed their heads, and, as blessings go, it was fairly long. When they raised their heads, the waitress was standing nearby, omelets in hand. "Hey," she said loudly, "were you guys praying?" Everyone in the small room turned to look at them. "Yes, we were," said Colson. "Hey, that's neat," said the waitress. "I've never seen anybody do that in here before. Are you preachers?" They said no, but she persisted in asking questions. Then she said, "I'm a Christian. At least I was once." "What happened?" the men asked. "I accepted Jesus as my Savior at a rally when I was a teenager. Then I went to live in Hawaii. Well, I just lost interest, I guess. Forgot about it." "I don't think you lost it," Colson said gently. "You just put it aside for a while." The waitress seemed thoughtful. "It's funny, but the moment I saw you guys praying I felt excited all over again." They talked to her at some length about returning to the Lord, about the prodigal son, and about the Lord's love and forgiveness. Later during their stay at the hotel they saw her again. "Hey, you guys," she shouted. She told them she had already called a Christian friend and was joining a Bible study the next day. "And I'm going to find a church, too. I've come back." Colson later wrote, "Until that night, I had felt awkward at times praying over meals in crowded restaurants. Never again." Charles W Colson, "Life Sentence" (Minneapolis: World Wide, 1979), 105-106. HELLO ... Hello. This is Emily. I'm fine, how are you? Thanks for the sky and birds and stuff. Actually I'm having a pretty good week. And thanks for the mashed potatoes, but not for the lima beans. I thank you really much for the meatloaf. And thanks for the chairs, and the tables, and the doors, and the couch and the television and the walls and the roof and the bed and the bathroom and the towels and the grass and the clouds and the street and ... ... Take care. Amen, from Emily. - Prayer of a five-year-old, reported by Robert Fulghum "Uh-Oh" (New York: Villard Books, 1991), 140-141. ...... SOMEONE ONCE SAID ... It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business of the morning and the last in the evening. - Martin Luther, in a forty-page letter to his barber who had asked him about the Christian life. * Prayer is the key to the morning and the bolt of the evening. - Anonymous * A day hemmed in prayer is less likely to come unravelled. - Anonymous * The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray. - Samuel Chadwick * Prayer is a mighty instrument, not for getting man's will done in Heaven, but for getting God's will done on earth. - Robert Law * I never prayed sincerely for anything but it came, at some time ... somehow, in some shape. - Adoniram Judson * Prayer delights God's ear, it melts His heart, it opens His hand: God cannot deny a praying soul. - Thomas Watson * I must talk to Father about this. - Billy Bray * Prayer bathes the soul in an atmosphere of the divine presence. - Charles Finney * When life knocks you to your knees - well, that's the best position in which to pray, isn't it.? - Ethel Barrymore * Daniel would rather spend a night with the lions than miss a day in prayer. - Anonymous ...... WHEN YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE PRAYING * When thou feelest most indisposed to pray, yield not to it. But strive and endeavor to pray even when thou thinkest thou canst not pray. - an old divine * Pray when you feel like it, for it is a sin to neglect such an opportunity. Pray when you don't feel like it, for it is dangerous to remain in such a condition. - quoted by Ruth Bell Graham * It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business in the morning and the last in the evening. Guard yourself against such false and deceitful thoughts that keep whispering: Wait a while. In an hour or so I will pray. I must first finish this or that. Thinking such thoughts we get away from prayer into other things that will hold us and involve us till the prayer of the day comes to naught. - Martin Luther, in a forty-page letter to his barber, Peter Beskendorf, who had asked, "Dr. Luther, how do you pray?" ...... WHO PRAYS? Newsweek Magazine devoted its cover-story on January 6, 1992, to the subject of prayer, saying, "This week, if you believe in all the opinion surveys, more of us will pray than will go to work, or exercise, or have sexual relations. According to the recent studies at NORC, a research center, by Andrew M. Greeley, the sociologistnovelist-priest, more than three quarters (78 percent) of all Americans pray at least once a week; more than half (57 percent) report praying at least once a day. Indeed, Greeley finds that even among the 13 percent of Americans who are atheists or agnostics, nearly one in five still prays daily.... "Indeed, the current edition of 'Books in Print' lists nearly two thousand titles on prayer, meditations, and techniques for spiritual growth - more than three times the number devoted to sexual intimacy and how to achieve it." The article goes on to talk about the benefits that are experienced by couples who pray together in marriage, saying, "As some young couples have found, praying together is the tie that really binds.... Greeley's surveys show that spouses who pray together report greater marital satisfaction than those who don't, and that frequent sex coupled with frequent prayer make for the most satisfying marriages." ...... WHAT WE PRAY FOR According to a Yankelovich Poll reported in USA Today commissioned for the Lutheran Brotherhood, nine out of ten adults in America say they pray. What do they pray for most often? * 98% - Our own families * 81% - World's Children * 77% - World Peace * 69% - Co-workers PRAYER UNANSWERED The following was an unpublished poem of hymn-writer Fanny Crosby, recently discovered by Donald Hustad. The manuscript carried several notations, including the initials "M.S." and the name "H. P.Main." There is also a question, "Is this O.K.?" signed by "I.A.S" - Ira Allan Sankey - and the further notes "O.K." and "This is fine." At the upper right the paper is embossed with the name "HAMILTON." The poem is entitled, "For What His Love Denies." God does not give me all I ask, Nor answer as I pray; But, O, my cup is brimming o'er With blessings day by day. How oft the joy I thought withheld Delights my longing eyes, And so I thank Him from my heart For what His love denies. Sometimes I miss a treasured link In friendship's hallowed chain, And yet His smile is my reward For every throb of pain. I look beyond, where purer joys Delight my longing eyes; And so I thank Him from my heart For what His love denies. How tenderly He leadeth me When earthly hopes are dim; And when I falter by the way, He bids me lean on Him. He lifts my soul above the clouds Where friendship never dies; And so I thank Him from my heart For what His love denies. Fanny Crosby, Jan. 6, 1899 ...... GOD'S FOUR ANSWERS In talking with people who are concerned because God doesn't seem to be answering their prayers, Pastor Bill Hybels uses a little outline he borrowed from a pastor friend of his: * If the request is wrong, God says: No * If the timing is wrong, God says: Slow * If you are wrong, God says: Grow * But if the request is right, the timing is right, and you are right, God says: Go! ...... AWAKENED TO PRAYER His nightmares began each day when he awoke. James Stegalls was nineteen. He was in Vietnam. Though he carried a small Gideon New Testament in his shirt pocket, he couldn't bring himself to read it. His buddies were cut down around him, terror was building within him, and God seemed far away. His twentieth birthday passed, then his twenty-first. At last, he felt he couldn't go on. On February 26, 1968, he prayed for it all to end, and his heart told him he would die before dusk. Sure enough, his base came under attack that day and Jim heard a rocket coming straight toward him. Three seconds to live, he told himself, then two, then. . . A friend shoved him into a grease pit, and he waited for the rocket to explode, but there was only a surreal silence. The fuse malfunctioned. For five hours James knelt in that pit, and finally his quivering hand reached into his shirt pocket and took out his Testament. Beginning with Matthew, he continued through the first 18 chapters. "When I read Matthew 18:19-20," he said, "I somehow knew things would be all right." Long after Jim returned home, as he visited his wife's grandmother, Mrs.Harris, she told him a night years before when she had awakened in terror. Knowing Jim was in Vietnam, she had sensed he was in trouble. She began praying for God to spare his life. Unable to kneel because of arthritis, she lay prone on the floor, praying and reading her Bible all night. Just before dawn she read Matthew 18:19-20: If two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together because they are mine, I am there among them. She immediately called her Sunday school teacher, who got out of bed and went to Mrs.Harris' house where together they claimed the Lord's promise as they prayed for Jim until reassured by God's peace. Having told Jim the story, Mrs.Harris opened her Bible to show him where she had marked the passage. In the margin were the words: Jim, February 26, 1968. ...... URGENT IMPRESSION Archibald Gracie relished his swim on April 14, 1912. The ship's pool was a "six-foot tank of salt water, heated to a refreshing temperature. In no swimming bath had I ever enjoyed such pleasure before." But his account went on to say, "How near it was to being my last plunge. Before dawn of another day I would be swimming for my life in mid-ocean in a temperature of 28 degrees!" After his swim that Sunday night aboard ship, Colonel Archibald Gracie retired to his cabin and fell asleep, only to be awakened by "a sudden shock and noise." Dressing quickly, he ascended to the deck and learned the ship had collided with an iceberg. During the same moments in New York, his wife's sleep was also disturbed. Seized by sudden anxiety, she sank to her knees holding her prayerbook, "which by chance opened to the prayer 'For Those At Sea.'" She prayed earnestly until about 5 A.M. when the burden lifted. She rested quietly until eight when her sister "came softly to the door, newspaper in hand, to gently break the tragic news that the Titanic had sunk." What had happened meantime to her husband? "I was in a whirlpool, swirling round and round, as I still tried to cling to the railing as the ship plunged to the depths below. Down, down, I went. it seemed a great distance ... (Ascending back to the surface) I could see no Titanic. She had entirely disappeared beneath the surface of the ocean without a sign of any wave. A thin light grey smoky vapor hung like a pall a few feet above the sea. There arose the most horrible sounds ever heard by mortal man, the agonizing cries of death from over a thousand throats ..." Col. Archibald Gracie later wrote: "I know of no recorded instance of Providential deliverance, he wrote, more directly attributable to ... prayer." Colonel Archibald Gracie, "Titanic: A Survivor's Story" (Gloucestershire, the United Kingdom, 1985). ...... COMING TO THE KING Thou art coming to a King Large petitions with thee bring; For His grace and power are such None can ever ask too much. John Newton ...... FROM "NELSON'S COMPLETE BOOK OF STORIES, ILLUSTRATIONS, AND QUOTES" by Robert J. Morgan ................ I have spent much time and effort in this 7th piece of armor we need to put on to battle Satan the Devil. It is indeed one of our greatest defence and attack weapons. We defend and we attack with PRAYER! Paul went on to request prayer for himself (likewise for others also) that he would be able to open his mouth or I suppose write with his pen, in BOLD manner, the mysteries of the GOSPEL. He was at the time in chains in prison (verse 20), yet he wanted prayers on his behalf that he could even in prison open his mouth BOLDLY and speak the Gospel. At the present in this year of 2009, there is still relative FREEDOM to proclaim the mysteries of the Gospel. I have freedom to continue writing and uploading studies to this Website, to give forth the truths of the Word of the Lord. The day will come when there will be a mighty blackout on being able to have freedom to publish what you can find on this Website. I thank you for your prayers. I request as Paul did that you will remember me in your prayers, that as long as this age goes on, before the last 42 months come, that I will be in health, that I will be able to BOLDLY publish the truths of God, that I will be guided to speak therein as I ought, so many others around the world will come to know the salvation of God, and who will accept Christ Jesus as their PERSONAL Savior, and who will give their lives in humble repentance to live by every word of God, as our Savior taught us to do (Mat.4:4). With all the complete ARMOR of God brethren, we can stand up TALL AND STRONG to face the enemy, to go to battle with the unseen powers of spiritual wickedness, and to not only fight the good fight, but to WIN the battle, to FINISH THE COURSE, and to be able to say with Paul, "I HAVE KEPT THE FAITH: HENCEFORTH THERE IS LAID UP FOR ME A CROWN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto ALL them that LOVE HIS APPEARING!" (2 Tim.4:6-8). May our God richly BLESS you all as you SERVE Him with His WHOLE ARMOR upon you. ........................ Keith Hunt, May 2009

The Meltdown Continues

Saturday, April 12, 2025

UNLEAVENED BREAD STUDIES— #1, #2, #3,— ARMOR OF GOD #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7.