Category: CHURCH

Christmas Season is here. Tis the Season to be Jolly! Good Will, Peace on Earth to all men!
For most of the people this peace, good will, time to be jolly comes STRAIGHT FROM THE BOTTLE.

During two to three weeks during this season, hundreds of people will die, simply due to Drinking.
Thousands of others will be crippled, maimed, seriously injured.
WHY? Because someone thought the way to be happy was to get soused … drunk … blasted!

As many will visit family and friends during the holidays, many (most) will be offered a drink (alcohol).
Just to be sociable … many will accept it …. Just to be sociable …
Well, what does one little drink hurt?
Intoxicating drink is the devil’s best friend.
If you are a Christian, that one little drink will at best ruin your testimony for the Lord and bring reproach on His name. At worst it can turn you into an alcoholic … “Oh pooh” says you. I DEFY YOU to show me an acholic who never drank and all of them will say “it was just one little drink”.

Now, let’s see what the Bible says about drinking:
Wine, in the scripture was (if alcoholic) a natural fermentation ….
Alcohol, hard booze, wasn’t invented until 1790 (after Bible Printed)
The Bible records the sins of men, and drink is one of those sins:
It never condones Sin.

Deuteronomy 21:20 Punishable by death (under the Law)
Proverbs 20:21 Makes FOOLS of men
Proverbs 23:20-21 Rewards for drinking … Poverty
Proverbs 23:29-35 More results of drunkenness
Proverbs 31:4-5 Not for kings (righteous)
Proverbs 31:6-7 Only for those without hope

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Honoring God for His Gift 1 Corinthians 1:7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Making room for Him Luke 2:7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Singing His Praises Luke 2:13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Inquiring of Him Matthew 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

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

Cheerful giving 2 Corinthians 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

Remembering the poor Proverbs 28:27 He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack: but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.

Sacrifice for others Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Thanks Giving 2 Corinthians 9:15 Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.

Have a very, merry Christmas. Put Christ in your holiday.

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First observed in Rome, 354 A.D.
First observed in Jerusalem 385 A.D.
December 25th was chosen in Rome to coincide with the Pagan Holiday of Sun Worship so that Christians might perform their sacred rites undisturbed, while the Pagans celebrated their Holiday.
In 1647, the Puritans, Baptists, Presbyterians, and Quakers so opposed Christmas that it was outlawed in North America.

CHRISTMAS … formed from the word’s Christ’s Mass.
Occurred in English Language as early as 1038.
ADVENT … the time of preparation, preceding the coming of the Lord.
EPIPHANY … the Festival in the Christian Church honoring the visit of the Magi.
Occurs on January 6th, the 12th day after Christmas.
NOEL … French word – A word shouted or sung as an expression of Joy.
Originally to honor the birth of Christ.
YULE … of pagan Teutonic Origin … the idea of noise or clamor accompanying some feast. In old English it’s used to denote the time of December, January.
CANDLEMAS … the feast celebrating the purification of the Virgin Mary.
Or the presentation of Christ in the Temple. It occurs on February 2nd.

The real reason for Christmas … The birth of the Saviour of the World.
The Old Testament is full of His coming. Consider:
Born of a Woman
Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Seed of Abraham
Genesis 18:18 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
From the Tribe of Judah
Genesis 49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Born of a Virgin
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Heir to David’s Throne
Isaiah 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Time of His birth (fulness of Time)
Daniel 9:25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
Place of His birth
Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

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What comes to mind when you think of Thanksgiving?
Turkey, Big Meal, Family, Friends, Fun, Happiness, Pilgrims<
Thanks to God, What the Lord Jesus has done….
Pilgrims … They had many reasons for coming to the new world.
escape persecution, escape old debts, adventure, a new beginning …
Thanksgiving should remind us of a new beginning.
When you became a Christian, you got a new beginning.
All your sins Past, Present and Future were forgiven!
Consider this: We, Believers are Pilgrims, new creatures, a new life!
As pilgrims how should we live?
Let’s look at Hebrews 11:8-16 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Verse 8 OBEY Each individual mentioned in the faith chapter OBEYED God. Verse 11:6 The Key to happiness in this Life, that your Joy may be full. Words of Christ, John 15:10-14And if you don’t obey: Words of Christ, Luke 6:46-49
Verse 9 Dwelt in Tents, didn’t settle for this world… What’s the most important thing to you right now? Spouse, Children, Home, Car, Job, Health…?
Words of Christ, Matthew 10:37. The Lord should be first.
Words of the Apostle Paul to Believers, 1 Corinthians 6:14-19
Verse 10 Looked for a city Are you looking forward to Heaven?
Words of Christ, John 14:1-3. Or is your treasure here?
Words of Christ, Matthew 6:19-21. Be like Moses Hebrews 11:26
Verse 11-12 Faith Sara’s faith brought forth the nation of Israel.
Verse 13 Vision (Spiritual) How’s your vision?
They could see afar off, 20/20 spiritual vision FAITH.
Is your hope in HIM or today? Are you willing to suffer a little here to gain there? The scripture speaks over and over again about suffering …Peter…James…Paul…Confessing their Faith.
Words of Christ, Matthew 16:24
Verse 14 Looking to the future. Are you looking for Heaven?
Verse 15 Looking at what you were.
The danger of taking your eyes off of Christ. 2 Peter 2:20-22
Verse 16 Looking for a new Goal. Heaven, David wrote 1 Samuel 20:3 …there is but a step between me and death.
Only a breath, only a heart beat.

Relook at verse 13: These all died in faith
How’s your Faith? Wavering? Why not get right with God, TODAY!

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Fathers, instruct your Children
Proverbs 1:8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
Proverbs 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
Proverbs 5:7 Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.
Proverbs 6:20 My son, keep thy father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
This even includes grand children:
Proverbs 17:6 Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.
Results of love and proper training:
Proverbs 23:24-25 The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him. Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.

Until a child is 21 be friendly BUT you are NOT their friend.
After 21 they become your friend, but still with fatherly advice.
Love them and discipline them in Love.

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Explaining the Chart:
ABIB 14 Wednesday Passover Leviticus 23:6
Hung on the Cross and gave up his spirit Luke 23:26
Removed from the cross and placed into the tomb Luke 23:56
ABIB 15 Thursday A sabbath Day Luke 23:57 – Unleaven Bread Leviticus 23:6-7
Lies in the Tomb guarded by Temple Guards
ABIB 16 Friday
Lies in the Tomb guarded by Temple Guards
ABIB 17 Saturday 7th day Sabbath Leviticus 23:3
Lies in the Tomb guarded by Temple Guards
ABIB 18 Sunday 1st day of the week Luke 24:1
The Tomb is empty Luke 24:3
The Lord Jesus speaking of His death:
Matthew 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Mark 8:31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

Remember the Jewish day starts at 6PM – Night then Day

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“The Time is at Hand”, this phrase is used twice in the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Once in the beginning: Revelation 1:3 and again at the end Revelation 22:10. Like a set of parentheses.
Revelation 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
A few things to consider concerning this passage:
This book is a revelation (revealing) of Christ
It’s to show us things which must come to pass.
John, the writer, was to write of all the things he saw.
The person who reads, hears and keeps these things written will be blessed.
“FOR THE TIME IS AT HAND”.
Time (according to Webster) a measure of duration, a system for identifying a moment. Our system includes words such as: millennium, century, score, decade, year, month, fortnight, week, day, hour, minute, second, millisecond, nano second, half-a-second, split second. No matter how we define time, how we categorize it, use it or misuse it, WE CANNOT STOP IT.

It does seem that the older one gets the faster time flies, but this is not true.
There are still 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day, 7 days in a week …
The Bible teaches us that everyone must give an account of our time here on earth, and one day we will hear: “For the time is at hand”.

Every year at the end of December, we are faced with a New Year, and it’s time to evaluate what WAS accomplished this past year, as “the time is at hand”. How we evaluate our past year depends on our standards. Some time in January you will receive a form in the mail, a form that wants you to evaluate your year in terms of money. That’s right, INCOME TAX TIME. The time is at hand to evaluate what we’ve accomplished dollar wise thru out the year so we can support our Federal Government by paying taxes. And depending on the State you live in, it will also want a report so it can collect it’s share.

We are also to take this time to take stock of what’s happened in our lives over the past year. If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit our short comings. RESULT: many will make resolutions, hopefully for the best. The resolves will be to quit doing such and such, saying this or that, going here or there, being this or that, etc. The effort is to change the outside in hopes it will change our feelings inside.

“For the time is at hand”.

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Read 2 Tim0thy 1:3-18
New Year – What will it bring? Predictions are being made. Newspapers, magazines, Radio, TV all making predictions … an advertisement …for an amount of money will predict what is going to happen to you.
What does the Bible have to say about this… James 4:13-16 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
Examples: Genesis 11:4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. Luke12:18 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
What does Tomorrow bring? Only God knows. Proverbs 27:1 Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
But what about all these Astrologers? Ecclesiastes 10:14 A fool also is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him?
What Will the New Year bring? Look at 2 Timothy 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
What Wonderful, Beautiful Promise … And as most of God’s promises, it contains a condition — WHICH I HAVE COMMITTED!
Why do people not know they are saved? Not committed! (They worry, Fret, Fear, Go to fortune Tellers, Read their Horoscopes, Astrology charts).
2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

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The Magi were wise men, probably Jews
The Magi were like the Prophet Daniel
The Magi were most likely believers in Yahweh and the Coming Messiah
The Magi believed God spoke in Dreams
They came from a country in the East
There might have been more than 3 Wise Men
Herod feared and respected the Magi
The Magi were not at the Birth of Jesus,
they came to the house (up to 2 years later)
The gifts gave Joseph and Mary money to flee to Egypt
In the 3rd Century, is When the Magi Were Considered Kings
Only the Gospel of Matthew Mentions the Magi
Some of the Scripture the MAGI could have based their trip on:
Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Jeremiah 23:5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
Psalm 72:10-11 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him.
Numbers 24:17 I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

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