Christians

Christians-by Maya Angelou

When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I’m not shouting “I’m clean livin’.”
I’m whispering “I was lost, now I’m found and forgiven.”
When I say.. “I am a Christian, I don’t speak of this with pride.I’m confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.
When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I’m not trying to be strong.I’m professing that I’m weak and need His strength to carry on.
When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I’m not bragging of success.I’m admitting I have failed and need God to clean my mess.
When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I’m not claiming to be perfect.My flaws are far too visible, but God believes I am worth it.
When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I still feel the sting of pain.I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.
When I say.. “I am a Christian”, I’m not holier than thou.I’m just a simple sinner, who received God’s good grace, somehow!

The wonder of it all

The Wonder of It All by Ralph Marston

Do you ever wonderAt the wonder of it all?
Do you ever stand in awe of the tiniest things and how perfectly they work together?
Do you ever stop to think about all the possibilities and how even though they have no limit they grow in number with every minute?
Do you ever wonder when the leaves flutter down in autumn at the incomprehensible power of life that brings them back in spring?
Do you watch the waves roll inand then look out far beyond them where the water seems to touch the sky and realize that the vast expanse before your eyes is only a small little corner of all there really is?
And do you comprehend that all there really is, as unimaginably grand as it may seem,is only a smaller corner still of all that there can be?
Do you ever wonder how love can stay alive past every pleasure and every pain and even when there can be no hope there is more than ever?
Do you ever struggle to lift a heavy rock and wonder how a massive mountain can rise thousands of feet above the plain without even trying?
Do you ever realize that no matter how much you may know, no matter how many wonders you may have experienced,there will always, always be more?
Do you ever wonder why it is you wonder and why you know what beauty is even though you can't define it?
Do you ever wonder who is doing the wondering, who is looking out through your eyes and feeling completely at home with the wonder of it all?
Whatever you believe,whatever you profess,whatever you doubt or fear or hope for,there are some things your heart cannot deny when you let go and let yourself know the wonder of it all.

The peace and power of knowing GOD'S name

The peace and power of knowing God's Name

The peace and power of knowing God’s name:
Elohim The creator
El Elyon The God most high
El Roi The God who sees
El Shaddai The all-sufficient one
Adonai The Lord
JehovahThe self-existent one
Jehovah-jirehThe Lord will provide
Jehovah-raphaThe Lord who heals
Jehovah-nissiThe Lord my banner
Jehovah-mekoddishkemThe Lord who sanctifies you
Jehovah-shalomThe Lord is peace
Jehovah-sabaothThe Lord of hosts
Jehovah-raahThe Lord my shepherd
Jehovah-tsidkenuThe Lord our righteousness
Jehovah-shammahThe Lord is there

Miscellaneous

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.Numbers 6:24-26.
Working for God on earth does not pay much, but His retirement plan is out of this world!!!!!
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him SHOULD not perish, but have everlasting life.John 3:16.
He who loses money, loses much; he who loses a friend, loses more; he who loses faith, loses ALL.

LORD make me an instrument of Thy peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow Love.

Where there is injury, Pardon.

Where there is error, Truth.

Where there is discord, Harmony.

Where there is doubt, Faith.

Where there is despair, Hope.

Where there is darkness, Light.

Where there is sorrow, Joy.

St. Francis of Assisi

A possible chronology of the end times

A possible chronology of the end times

A possible chronology of the end times
EVENTS IN HEAVENThe rapture of the church: 1 Corinthians15:51-58, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Revelation 3:10The judgment seat of Christ: Romans 14:10, 1 Corinthians 3:9-15, 4:1-5, 9:24-27, 2 Corinthians 5:10The marriage of the Lamb: 2 Corinthians 11:2, Revelation 19:6-8The singing of 2 special songs: Revelation 4-5The Lamb's receiving of the seven-sealed scroll: Revelation 5:1-14EVENTS ON EARTHBeginning of 7 year tribulation begins when the anti-Christ signs a covenant with Israel, bringing peace to Jerusalem and Israel: Daniel 9:27, Ezekiel 38:8, 11The Jewish temple in Jerusalem is rebuilt: Daniel 9:27, Revelation 11:1The reunited Roman empire emerges in a 10-nation confederation: Daniel 2:40-44, 7:7, Revelation 17:12At the beginning of the 7-year tribulation: Jesus opens the seven seal judgments; Revelation 6:1-17, 18:1-5 the 144,000 Jewish believers begin their great evangelistic ministry; Revelation 7:1-8At the mid-point of the tribulation: Gog and his allies invade Israel and God decimates them; Daniel 11:40-45, Ezekiel 38-39 anti-Christ breaks his covenant with Israel and invades the land; Daniel 9:27, 11:40-41 anti-Christ begins to consolidate his empire by plundering Egypt, Sudan and Libya, whose armies God has just destroyed in Israel; Daniel 11:42-43, Ezekiel 38-39 while in North Africa, anti-Christ hears news of insurrection in Israel and immediately returns there to destroy and annihilate many; Daniel 11:44 anti-Christ setus up the abomination of desolation in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem; Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15, 2 Thessalonians 2:4, Revelation 13:5, 15-18 Sometime during these events anti-Christ is violently killed, possibly during a war or by assassination; Daniel 11:45, Revelation 13:3, 12, 14, 17:8 satan is cast down from Heaven and begins to make war with the woman, Israel; Revelation 12:7-13 the chief means he uses to persecute Israel is the 2 beasts of Revelation 13 the faithful Jewish remnant flee to Petra, in modern Jordan, where they are divinely protected for the remainder of the tribulation; Matthew 24:16-20, Revelation 12:15-17 anti-Christ is miraculously raised from the dead to the amazement of the entire world; Revelation 13:3 after his resurrection from the dead, anti-Christ gains political control over the ten kings of the reunited Roman empire, 3 of these kings are killed by anti-Christ, and the other 7 submit; Daniel 7:24, Revelation 17:12-13 the 2 witnesses begin their 3-1/2 year ministry; Revelation 11:2-3.During the last half (3-1/2 years) of the tribulation, the anti-Christ blasphemes God, and the false prophet performs great signs and wonders that promote the false worship of the anti-Christ; Revelation 13:5, 11-15 the false prophet introduce and enforces the mark of the beast (666); Revelation 13:16-18; energized by satan, anti-Christ dominates the world, politically, economically and religiously; Revelation 13:4-5, 15-18 the trumpet judgments are unleashed throughout the final half of the tribulation; Revelation 8-9 since he only has a short time left, satan intensifies his relentless, merciless persecution of the Jewish people and Gentile believers; Daniel 7:25, Revelation 12:12, 20:4.At the end of the tribulation, the bowl judgments are poured out in succession; Revelation 16:1-21 Babylon is destroyed; Revelation 17-18 the campaign of Armageddon begins; Revelation 16:16 anti-Christ kills the 2 witnesses, and God resurrects them 3-1/2 days later; Revelation 11:7-12 Christ returns to the Mount of Olives and slays the armies gathered throughout the land, from Megiddo to Petra; Revelation 19:11-16, Isaiah 34:1-6, 63:1-5 the birds gather to feed on the carnage; Revelation 19:17-18.After the tribulation there is an interval or transition period of 75 days; Daniel 12:12 anti-Christ and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire; Revelation 19:20-21 the abomination of desolation is removed from the temple; Daniel 12:11 Israel is regathered; Matthew 24:31 God judges Israel; Ezekiel 20:30-39, Matthew 25:1-30 God judges the gentiles; Matthew 25:31-46 satan is bound in the abyss; Revelation 20:1-3 God resurrects Old Testament and tribulation saints; Daniel 12:1-3, Isaiah 26:19, Revelation 20:4 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth; Revelation 20:4-6 satan's final revolt and defeat; Revelation 20:7-10 the Great White Throne judgment of the lost; Revelation 20:11-15 the destruction of the present heavens and earth; Matthew 24:35, 2 Peter 3:3-12, Revelation 21:1 the creation of the new heavens and the new earth; Isaiah 65:17, 66:22, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1-8; eternity; Revelation 21:9-22:5.

The importance of Bible prophecy

The importance of Bible prophecy

Importance of Bible prophecy
It's been a while since I've been here and just need to get up to date on a few things.
1. God is an on-time God, never early, never late. There are so many proofs of this in my life alone that i could never list them all here.Most recent is that i bought a use 98 Ford van last year and then about 3 months ago, it started stuttering and stalling, especially when I run the air-conditioner. Van was due for service about that time, but first I asked the guy if they could repair problems with the idle and since it has fuel-injectors, he said that I would have to find someone else to work on that.In retrospect, I should have let him go ahead and do the service, but I was stressed out thinking I was going to have to pay a big repair bill, so I just let it go until yesterday, when I finally took it in for service.As it turns out the stuttering and stalling was being caused by a loose hose, which just had to be reattached.If I had just had it serviced, when service was due, God would have removed 3 months of worry from me.

There are 3 main views of the Bible (especially concerning the Book of Revelation).

A. Amillenial: holds that satan was bound at Christ's first coming, that the present age is the millenium and that at Christ's second coming we will enter the eternal state.
B. Postmillenial: holds almost exactly the same view as the Amillenialists.
C. Premillenial: holds that satan was not bound at Christ's first coming, the present age=the church age, at the end of the present age a literal 7-year tribulation period will begin at the end of which Christ will return to earth, satan will be bound and Christ will rule in perfect peace for a literal 1,000 years. At the end of the 1,000 years, we will enter the eternal state.

Amillenial: When will Christ reign; between the first and second coming (present age). This cannot be true, since it is apparent that there is no peace in the world and satan is on the loose. How and where will Christ reign; Christ rules over a spiritual kingdom in the hearts of believers on earth and over the souls of the redeemed in Heaven (spiritual reign).
Postmillenial: When will Christ reign; between the first and second coming, but arriving by degrees (present age). Again this cannot be true for the same reasons that the Amillenial view cannot be true. How and where will Christ reign; Christ rules in the hearts of believers as the church brings in the kingdom by the triumph of the gospel in this world (spiritual reign).
Premillenial: When will Christ reign; immediately after the second coming (future reign).How and where will Christ reign; Christ will rule personally for 1,000 years over a literal, physical, earthly kingdom with satan bound and the curse of the fall removed (earthly reign).As you can see only the Premillenial view coincides with the scriptures.The rapture: although this word does not appear anywhere in scripture, it has become a word associated with the removal of Christ's people before the tribulation. This pre-tribulation removal is supported by scripture:
1 Thessalonians 1:10, 5:9, Revelation 3:10.

Archaeology confirms the accuracy of the Bible

Archaeology confirms the accuracy of the Bible

ARCHAEOLOGY PROVES THE ACCURACY OF THE BIBLE

The science of archaeology has proved to be a valuable tool in better understanding, confirming, and verifying the accuracy of the Bible.

Before the 19^th century little was known about the events, background, and setting of the Old and New Testament Scriptures. It was nearly impossible to confirm the reliability of the Biblical record. Modern archaeology, time and again, has provided the evidence of the reliability of the Bible.

As a matter of fact, however, it may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a Biblical reference. (Nelson Gleuck, archaeologist)

There can be no doubt that archaeology has confirmed the substantial historicity of Old Testament tradition. (William F. Albright)

It is therefore legitimate to say that, in respect of that part of the Old Testament against which the disintegrating criticism of the last half of the 19^th century was chiefly directed, the evidence of archaeology has been to reestablish its authority, and likewise to augment its value by rendering it more intelligible through a fuller knowledge of its background and settings. (Sir Frederic Kenyon)

The great value of archaeology has been to show that the geography, technology, political and military movements, cultures, religious practices, social institutions, languages, customs, and other aspects of everyday life in Israel and other nations of antiquity were exactly as described in the Bible.

Before the impact of Biblical archaeology, one of the assured results of higher criticism, was that the Pentateuch could not have been written by Moses because writing was not yet in existence in Moses’ day. These critics assured us that the first 5 books of the Bible were put together centuries after Moses by a group of editors and were subsequently attributed to Moses. However, in 1901 the Black Stele was found which contained the detailed laws of Hammurabi’s Code. The significant aspect of this find was that it was pre-Mosaic by at least 300 years. Therefore, it proved both writing and law codes were in existence centuries before Moses.

Another archaeological find that confirms the existence of writing centuries before the time of Moses is the discovery of the Elba Tablets in northern Syria in the 1960’s.

The Elba kingdom was in existence approximately 1,000 years before Moses lived. These documents written on clay tablets in approximately 2,300 BC, demonstrate that both personal and place names that occur in the account of the patriarchs are genuine. Critics thought that the name “Canaan” was incorrectly used in the book of Genesis, but it is found in the Elba Tablets. The word for the deep in Genesis 1:2 (tehom) was said to belong to a time much later than the writing of Genesis. But the word tehom also appears in the Elba Tablets.

Sir William Ramsay was one of the great archaeologists of modern times, undertaking extensive work in Asia Minor (modern Turkey). Initially, he started this work as an unbeliever who was convinced that the book of Acts was the product of the 2^nd century and not written by Luke, a 1^st century historian. One of his goals was to prove that the history of the 1^st century was inaccurate. His beliefs were drastically changed when his finds confirmed the accuracy of the book of Acts in even it minutest detail.

Acts 14:6 “But they found out about it (a Jewish plot against Paul and Barnabas) and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country.”

In the 19^th century, Acts 14:6 was presented as an example of an historical error in the Bible. The verse portrays Paul and Barnabas as entering the province of Lycaonia when they came to Lystra and Derbe. The problem was that Iconium, the city from which they fled, was also in the province of Lycaonia. Ramsay checked out this passage in his quest to prove the historical inaccuracy of Acts. His archaeological discoveries showed that Iconium was made a part of Phrygia only during AD 37-72, both before and after this it was part of Lycaonia. Thus we find that Luke’s statement was written in the one and only period of history in which it would be accurate.