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Matthew 18:12-14 – The Nazarene’s Commentary: Searching for Lost Sheep

Matthew 18:12-14 – Searching for the Lost Sheep Who Stumbled

|| Luke 15:3-7

MT18:12 “How does it seem to you?[1] If a shepherd[2] had one hundred sheep and one strayed, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills[3] and seek out the straying sheep? MT18:13 I tell you this truth: When he finds it he is happier[4] over the one sheep than the ninety-nine who had not strayed. MT18:14 And so, it is not my heavenly Father’s will[5] that even one of these little ones perish.[6]

[1] How does it seem to you: Or, KJV: how think ye; KNX: tell me this. The “you” is plural referring to all the disciples.

[2] Shepherd: Literally, “man.”

[3] Hills: Or, “mountains.”

[4] Happier: Or, MON: rejoices.

[5] It is not my heavenly Father’s will: Or, RHM: thus there is no desire in the presence of my Father; PME: you can understand then that it is never the will of your Father.

[6] Even one of these little ones perish: Or, RHM: should be lost. Note this is how the Father feels about the ‘little ones’. It is God’s will than none perish though the possibility of a little one being stumbled is there and thus the severity of the warning to those who would stumble others.

Preceding

Matthew 10:16-23 – The Nazarene’s Commentary: Sent Forth as Sheep among Wolves

Matthew 12:9-21 – The Nazarene’s Commentary: Is It Lawful to Cure on the Sabbath?

Matthew 18:1-6 – The Nazarene’s Commentary: Children and Stumbling

Matthew 18:1-6 Reborn and pliable as a child

Matthew 18:7-11 – The Nazarene’s Commentary: Danger of Stumbling-blocks

Additional reading

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Category:

Bible Quotes, Bible study, Church, Churchplanting, Jesus Christ, Jeshua Messiah, Welfare and health

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Nazarene Commentary Luke 3:1, 2 – Factual Data

Luke 3:1, 2 – Factual Data

|| Matthew 3:1-12;[1] Mark 1:1-8[2]

LK3:1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar[3] – [when] Pontius Pilate[4] was governor of Judea, Herod[5] was the tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip[6] was the tetrarch of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanius[7] was tetrarch of Abilene, LK3:2 also Annas[8] and Caiaphas[9] were chief priests – God’s message[10] came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert.

[1] Matthew 3:1-12: For details see notes in Nazarene Commentary 2000 on Matthew. The symbol || indicates parallel information in another Gospel.

[2] Mark 1:1-8: For details see notes in Nazarene Commentary 2000 on Mark.

[3] The fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar: One absolute date in human history is the year Augustus died and Tiberius became Emperor of Rome – 14 AD – thus this is the year 29 AD in the fall. This is the exact year Daniel foretold when Messiah would appear. [Daniel 9:24-27]

[4] Pontius Pilate: He was appointed Roman governor of Judea in 26 AD by Tiberius. Josephus mentions him. [Jewish Antiquities, XVIII, 55-59 (iii, 1); (Jewish Antiquities, XVIII, 60-62 [iii, 2]; The Jewish War, II, 175-177 [ix, 4])] As does the Jewish theologian Philo of Judea who is not flattering. [The Embassy to Gaius, XXXVIII, 299-305] An inscription was uncovered in 1961 confirming the existence of Pilate.

[5] Herod: For details see notes in Nazarene Commentary 2000 on Matthew 14:1.

[6] Philip: Son of Herod the Great by Cleopatra of Jerusalem.

[7] Lysanius: An inscription confirms his existence. [Corpus Inscriptionum Graecarum, Vol. 3, No. 4521]

[8] Annas: For details see notes in Nazarene Commentary 2000 on Matthew 26:3, John 18:13, and Acts 4:6.

[9] Caiaphas: For details see notes in Nazarene Commentary 2000 on Matthew 26:65; John 11:49-53; 18:12-14; Acts 5:17.

[10] God’s message: Or, word, command.

BS notes:

Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE – c. 50 CE), also called Philo Judaeus, a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, Egypt, during the Roman Empire.

Philo of Alexandria of Philo of Judea (Greek: Φίλων, Philōn; c. 20 BCE – c. 50 CE), also called Philo Judaeus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, Egypt, during the Roman Empire and led a delegation of Alexandrian Jews to the emperor Caligula in 40 CE to protest the recent ill treatment of Jews by Greeks in their city. His account of the proceedings survives in the treatise entitled Legatio ad Gaium.

The emperor Caligula wanted to be celebrated as a god but recognised that the Jews did not want to believe that he had been given a divine nature.

As a religious believer, Philo was convinced that the truth of things was to be found ultimately in the teachings of Moses who believed in Only One God Who had given His word to Moses and to Abraham that Word was the Logos and as Being The Word of God it was the most important element for the Judean people. As a philosopher, he felt a need to express this truth in terms that were intelligible to a world imbued with the ideas of Greek philosophy. But trying to bring philosophy in unison with the language of Scriptures made that several people started to give more attention to the philosophical thoughts instead of the Scriptural thoughts.

Philo believed God is the Most High Who has always existed and shall always exist. It is a Spirit or Being which has no beginning but also no end and as such is the only reality that is eternal. It is the Eternal Force which is totally “other” than human beings and unknowable. His providence is “individual, ” manifesting itself in direct intervention in the universe, with suspension, if need be, of laws of nature for the benefit of meritorious individuals. Of His own goodwill, He, Jehovah God, endows the human soul with immortality. These views were strongly contrasted by Philo with Greek views, such as those found in Plato’s Phaedo and Timaeus, in which both matter and the Ideas are said to be coeternal with God; Providence is said to be manifested in the basic laws of nature, and the human soul is said to be of its very nature immortal.
In his attempt to reconcile both his belief in a uniquely transcendent, eternal Creator and his general acceptance of the Platonic theory of Ideas. He rejects the Ideas as eternal, transcendent entities. Rather, they are temporal and part of God’s creation. Their exemplars, however, do exist eternally — as thoughts in the mind of God. The home of the Ideas he called the Logos, or Reason, and this Logos, like the Ideas, was said to exist both transcendentally, as an eternal exemplar in the mind of God, and temporally, as part of God’s creation. With this doctrine Philo attempted to bridge the gap between a God who is totally “other” and the material universe; the Logos, being (unlike God) both transcendental and temporal, was the all-important intermediary linking man and the universe to their creator. But the linking to man made many scholars link Logos also to the human person and as such made Jesus into the Logos and considering because Logos is masculine that it could only be a man. But when they think that way Wisdom being feminine would make it to be a woman and when God is Wisdom would make God to be a woman.

According to Philo Logos is the intermediary through which God’s will acts and is thus the creative power that orders the world. Along with the Logos, Philo posited a whole realm of beings or potencies that bridge the gap between the Creator and his creation. Only fragments of Philo’s works remain, but numerous quotations from his writings are found in early Christian literature.

In a way he understood where the apostle John was pointing at, namely looking at the New Creation the disciple of Christ saw in his master the one who only wanted to do the Will of his Father, whom he wanted all the world letting Him be known. The apostles came to understand that their rabbi was the first-born of the New Creation and as such understood that The Word of God had brought into existence that New Creation. The Speaking of God had made everything possible. God His words brought by His messenger to the mother of John the baptist and to the mother of Jesus had brought insight into those women of the tribe of Juda. Having had the Word (the Logos) brought to king David, the Logos given to the young woman from the tribe of kind David came into fulfilment.

The messengers where the intermediaries through which God’s will acted and by which the two men came into existence by which salvation would become pronounced and by which the intermediary through which God’s will could act for those who were sinners but could find whitewashing in the one provided by the Most High, having become a reality by the Logos (the Speaking of God). The Voice of God or the Word of God coming to the world by the Speaking of God by the birth of Christ had now become flesh. It was not God Himself who had become flesh or a human being but the Words of God having become a reality, being his promise made at the Garden of Eden becoming into being or becoming true.

In the Holy Scriptures God has given His Words. They are the “Logos” which we can carry in our hearts and as such take God in our hearts. by taking the words of the Bible at heart it will not make us into gods or becoming god the Creator, like it did not with Christ Jesus who only did the wish of his Father and always declared he could not do anything without his Father.

“Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19 NIV)

“Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”” (John 20:17 NIV)

“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,” (1 Timothy 2:5 NIV)

“to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” (Hebrews 12:24 NIV)

“5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:5-8 NIV)

“Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.” (1 Corinthians 11:3 NIV)

“When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.” (1 Corinthians 15:28 NIV)

The Logos shall return to God, and the full circle shall be able to be closed when Jesus shall hand over the Kingdom of God again to his Father, Jesus and all his followers in subjection to the Most High Word of the world and the whole universe, the Only One God Who is One, Adonai Elohim Hashem Jehovah.

Philo – Woodcut from Die Schedelsche Weltchronik

Philo wrote mainly dealing with the Pentateuch. “De Opificio Mundi” brings his thought on the Creation, “De Vita Mosis” (On the Life of Moses), “Legum Allegoriae” (Allegorical Interpretation), “De Somniis” (On Dreams), “Quaestiones et Solutiones in Genesin” (Questions and Answers on Genesis).
In addition, he produced various philosophical treatises on such subjects as providence and the eternity of the world. He also wrote works (of great historical importance for understanding the situation of the Jews in Alexandria) against the oppression of Jews by Flaccus, and concerning the cruelty of the Roman emperor Gaius.

Preceding article: Nazarene Commentary Luke 2:41-50 – Twelve Year Old Jesus in the Temple + Luke 2:51-52 – Jesus continued to be in subjection to his parents

Connecting articles:

Nazarene Commentary Matthew 3:1-6 – A Wilderness Baptist Prepares the Way

Nazarene Commentary Matthew 3:7-12 – Opposition and Two Baptisms

Nazarene Commentary Mark 1:1-8 – The Beginning of the Good News

Next: Nazarene Commentary Luke 3:3-6 – John Preaches Baptism of Repentance

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Saturday – Third Week of Advent (johnsramblings.com)
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness.
Herod and Pontius Pilate . . . Gentiles . . . peoples of Israel (proclaimingthegospelofchrist.wordpress.com)
Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. (Acts 4:27)
Jesus in Extra-Biblical Sources – Apologetics Canada (christianreasons.com)
Like Suetonius, Tacitus was also a Roman historian. He is best known for his Annals which records events from the death of Roman emperors Augustus to Nero in 14-68 AD.6 In Annals 15.44, Tacitus makes a reference to Jesus:
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Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular.
Commentary On The Gospel Of Mark Chapter 15:1-3 (studyoftheword.com)
Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea and was appointed by Tiberius in A.D. 26. He was in charge of the Roman army of occupation, in charge of the taxes going to Rome, had life and death power over his subjects, appointed high priests and decided cases involving capital punishment. He was a weak governor who let his personal and political agenda interfere with his duties. He knew that in Jesus’ case that justice was not being done and he did not want the Roman officials to know that he could not control the situation because this had already been brought to Tiberius’s attention.
Something about St. John the Baptist (englishminor1215.wordpress.com)
St. John the Baptist was born in the city Orini , family priest Zechariah. Elizabeth , his mother, was a descendant of the tribe of Aaron . The birth of the prophet John spent six months before the birth of Jesus . Birth was given by the angel Gabriel to Zacharias while he was serving in the temple. To not give credence to those proclaimed by the angel Gabriel, Zechariah will remain silent until the release of his son ‘s name .
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The fame of John the Baptist was so great , according to the evangelists Matthew and Mark that Herod come to believe that Jesus is actually John the Baptist risen from the dead to do wonders . The belief was widespread among Hebrew , as seen when Jesus asks his disciples who the crowds say that he is.
The Existence of Jesus Christ (gratiaetnatura.wordpress.com)
There is one thing I have discovered–that those who do not wish to accept Jesus as the Christ will go as far as to deny even atheist scholars’ claims that He lived from around 4 B.C.E.-29 C.E. in ancient Palestine. One recently claimed that only a branch of scholars influenced by Christian apologetics accept the existence of Jesus. My sense is that someone who is ready to deny the vast majority of scholarship, not only Christian, but also atheist, agnostic, and Jewish scholarship, is unlikely to be persuaded by a blog post.
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Both Tacitus, Suetonius, and Pliny the Younger (in his letter to the Roman emperor Trajan, 112 C.E.) mention Jesus as the founder of Christianity and that he was crucified under Pontius Pilate. These are the sure references to Jesus in extrabiblical literature of the second century. There is a reference, though later edited by Christians, to Jesus in Josephus, a first century Jewish historian.
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Mainstream scholarship of all creeds or lack thereof accepts Jesus existence–if we denied it on the critics’ grounds, we would have to deny the existence of Plato, Julius Caesar, Herod the Great, and other ancient historical people. The similarity of the Jesus story to dying and rising god stories proves nothing about Jesus existence. The critics are inconsistent–they demand absolute, quasi-mathematical proof for Jesus’ existence, but not for other historical figures they accept as having existing.
A Brief Sample of Archaeology Corroborating the Claims of the New Testament (str.typepad.com)
Sir William Mitchell Ramsay, a 19^th century English historian and prolific writer, held a pervasive anti-Biblical bias. He believed the historical accounts in the Book of Acts were written in the mid-2^nd century. Ramsay was skeptical of Luke’s authorship and the historicity of the Book of Acts, and he set out to prove his suspicions. He began a detailed study of the archaeological evidence, and eventually came to an illuminating conclusion: the historical and archaeological evidence supported Luke’s 1^st century authorship and historical reliability:“(There are) reasons for placing the author of Acts among the historians of the first rank” (Sir William Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveler and the Roman Citizen, p. 4).

Ramsay became convinced of Luke’s reliability based on the accurate description of historical events and settings. Ramsay wasn’t the only scholar to be impressed by Luke’s accuracy:

“One of the most remarkable tokens of (Luke’s) accuracy is his sure familiarity with the proper titles of all the notable persons who are mentioned . . . Cyprus, for example, which was an imperial province until 22 BC, became a senatorial province in that year, and was therefore governed no longer by an imperial legate but by a proconsul. And so, when Paul and Barnabas arrived in Cyprus about AD 47, it was the proconsul Sergius Paullus whom they met . . .’ (F.F. Bruce, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?, p. 82).

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For many centuries, Luke was the only ancient writer to use the word Politarch to describe “rulers of the city.” Skeptics doubted that it was a legitimate Greek term until nineteen inscriptions were discovered. Five of these were in reference to Thessalonica (the very city in which Luke was claiming to have heard the term).
A Kenyan Lawyer Sues King Herod, Israel, And Italy over the Trial and Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. (mojiakubudel.com)
Mr Indidis, a Roman Catholic, and former spokesperson for the Kenyan Judiciary, filed the lawsuit regarding Jesus’ death with the International Court of Justice, the primary judicial branch of the United Nations based at The Hague in the Netherlands.He filed the lawsuit against Pontius Pilate, several Jewish elders, King Herod, Tiberius (Emperor of Rome 42 BC-37AD), the Republic of Italy and the State of Israel.

“I filed the case because it’s my duty to uphold the dignity of Jesus and I have gone to the ICJ to seek justice for the man from Nazareth,” Indidis told the Nairobian in a recent interview.
New Ebook Released, just in time for Christmas!!! (sheiladeeth.wordpress.com)
hat happened in those hidden years, those intervening decades between the return to Nazareth and the time when Jesus began his public ministry? Ms. Deeth fills this gap using logic, imagination and a subtle sense of humor. In so doing, she presents everyday life in Nazareth for the boy Jesus. Throughout the book’s fifty-plus chapters he assists Joseph in his carpentry work, interacts with friends and neighbors, and experiences the wider world beyond his hometown. The reader meets a young, but self-aware Jesus filled with boyish curiosity yet often wise beyond his years. Ever alert to the world around him, he catalogs the ups and downs of First Century life compiling a treasure trove of memories. And it’s from those memories and experiences that Jesus extracts the nuggets of wisdom for his parables.
Josefo, sobre Fílon de Alexandria (filal.wordpress.com)
We find a brief reference to Philo by the 1st-century Jewish historian Josephus. In Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus tells of Philo’s selection by the Alexandrian Jewish community as their principal representative before the Roman emperor Gaius Caligula. He says that Philo agreed to represent the Alexandrian Jews in regard to civil disorder that had developed between the Jews and the Greeks in Alexandria, Egypt. Josephus also tells us that Philo was skilled in philosophy, and that he was brother to an official called Alexander the alabarch (Josephus, Antiquities viii. 8. 19). According Josephus, Philo and the larger Jewish community refused to treat the emperor as a god, to erect statues in honor of the emperor, and to build altars and temples to the emperor. Josephus says Philo believed that God actively supported this refusal.
In those days: some notes (friarmusings.wordpress.com)
Matthew 3:1 in those days: This is an OT expression that marks the beginning of the new period, not necessarily a precise indication of time (see Mt 13:1; 24:22, 29, 36; 26:29). Here it marks the time-shift from the infancy narrative to the adult Jesus’ appearance. the desert of Judea: wilderness would perhaps be the better word for modern English. The area is the barren region west of the Dead Sea extending up the Jordan valley.

Category:

Bible Quotes, Bible study, God Jehovah Jahweh (Nederlands), History, Jesus Christ, Jeshua Messiah, Word of God

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Good or bad preacher

Ups and downs

Everybody in the world has his or her ups and downs, good and bad days. A pastor, minister or a person of God is not exempt from the problems of this earth, the illnesses nor bad feelings.

As human being we like to compare ourselves to others and also often want to know what others think of us. Many of us want a big following and lots of friends. But would that big amount of friends be a good sign or mean that we are on the right track?

Those who are willing to bring forwards the Word of God also would like to have enough people who listen at them. Who would not like a lot of people listening to what you have to tell? A preacher is no different and is nothing without people listening. And we do agree we are just as human like any body else and would love to have some feedback and see that people enjoy what we have to offer to them.

Personal gain

Those teaching or in the “preaching sector” being in it for the money, have chosen the wrong profession. Though we do agree we can see several mega churches which seem to flourish. Religiously sensitive people who prefer not to turn from their sin are willing to pay to hear preachers teach that all God requires of you is to be religiously sensitive, not to turn from your sin. In certain countries teachers claim that people can buy themselves free of the punishment of sin. By giving money to the church, those teachers claim, the believers would be set free and could have a much better life. Often the preachers want the people to believe that how more they give to the church how better their life will be.

This clearly should be a sign for the believer to know he is not in a House of God, but in the house of the wicked. We should look at those preachers as the insubordinate, unruly and vain talkers and deceivers of souls, like the apostles encountered already in their time. Also by the Jews, the men of the circumcision, such preachers could be found. For gifts or for money their mouths were expedient to stop. They were teaching things which they ought not for the sake of filthy lucre. It has been of all times that there where preachers who did like to go for their own profit and did not mind to subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for dishonest gain. Such persons we should recognise as false teachers and we should rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; not giving heed to Jewish or Christian fables and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

“10 For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 Even one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the truth.” (Titus 1:10-14 NIV)

False apostles and boasters

The apostle Paul warned already for such false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. (2 Corinthians 11:13) He also gave the advice to look out if those preaching were people of sound mind, blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly, having charity out of a pure heart, with a good conscience and with faith unfeigned.

“5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6 Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk.” (1 Timothy 1:5-6 NIV)

God does not like empty boasters of knowledge, rights, and particular privileges; all noise, empty parade, and no work. For sure those who are willing or saying they want to or work for God, should be of the right attitude. Specious pretensions should not find any place in the heart of a preacher or of somebody willing to work in the church community. It is not because they can be handy man putting words together, playing by good words and fair speeches that they will necessary bring the Word of God. We should be on the lookout that it are not a multiply of words which deceive the hearts of the simple.

Being there for each other

Jewish Children with
their Teacher in Samarkand. Early color photograph from Russia, created
by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii as part of his work to document
the Russian Empire from 1909 to 1915. (Photo credit:
Wikipedia)

The one who likes to preach and have people in front of him he has to take care of, knows that when he is a pastor of a flock he is like a teacher having to really love his students, willing to ensure that each one knows how uniquely talented he or she is and how we all have our reason to be here on this planet and to be a child of God. As a child of God every person has his or her own speciality and those in charge of the ecclesia or community should try to see and nurture the potential in each member of the community.

As a preacher it is the task as like a teacher to care deeply about the meanings and purposes of the flock or members of the community their lives. We should be there for each one individually as a beacon in the dark see. At all time we should be ready to be there for them who need us. We always should be willing to help them see the connections between their powerful talents and their callings and their futures.

Popularity trap

Today we can fall in the trap of the taste of popularity. Several churches around us do everything to be the most popular in their region. As believer in the Word of God, we should wonder if the aim by such churches is to grow to further the Word of God or to be a church which can bring enough money in the till for the pastor to survive on it or even to bring more wealth to that church than necessarily so.

In the postmodern age the church no longer enjoys a prevalent role in society and may look as something “passé”. We would tell lies if we would say we would not be interested in the growth of our church. We as preachers and leaders want our churches to grow and flourish through programs, curriculum, and outreach efforts. Many of us do also their best to reach as many people as possible. Lots of us are very limited in the means to attract people. Many preachers do not have an own church to preach in. Are those than the bad preachers? No. Are those the less fortunate preachers? Not necessarily so.

Church attendance in the industrialised countries is on the decline. Most of the people in the wealthy world are not interested in God. but there is one of the functions laid in front of the preacher or teacher. We do have to get people back to God. We should show those around us how important it is to have God in our life.

Ambiguity

A Boris on Rob Fairbanks his The Drum discussing a book by the editor of the Missional Church, Darrel L Guder, looks at life full of ambiguities we can have to face, because it is shaped by its context as the gospel reshapes the context.

In Ambiguity In the Church Fairbanks writes:

While ambiguity can cause stress, I’d like to argue that it is God’s tool to keep us on our toes. Instead of approaching the question of “are we reaching our culture?” as a reactionary instinct to a church crisis, I’d like to offer that we approach the issue as an opportunity to seek God. You see, the cause of ambiguity, and therefore many church problems, is not the lack of love for God or decline in spirituality (although this may sometimes be the case). The cause, as Guder puts it, is the dynamic “interaction between the gospel and all human cultures.” These cultures are always changing and need constant re-engagement by the church. In other words, ambiguity should be to the church as potholes are to the streets department (to contextualize it to the great City of Spokane). This is our business. As we move through ambiguity, we must seek God and the power of His Spirit to contextualize the message of the gospel and proclaim Jesus.

According to Darrell L. Guder in his book,Missional Church, the real issues in the current crises of the Christian church are spiritual and theological. Many have forgotten that the core of the church needs to flow from God and not as such from one or the other denominational organisation, be it the Papal instructors from Rome or the Tract and Bible Society from Pennsylvania.

Servant of the Master Teacher

We all should remember the task the Master Teacher Jeshua (Jesus Christ) has given those who are willing to follow him. Those who claim to be Christian should first of all be followers of Christ Jesus and try to do that what Jesus asked them to do. Secondly they also should take an example of their Master and try to step in his footsteps willing to become like him.

When you look for a good church, a good minister or good pastor you should look if in that place where you want to find God you can find the message of Christ and you find people trying to get the character of Jesus. The character of us individually and the character of us, collectively as a family, should clearly show positive results of the teachings of Christ and should show that it is a family of God. It was individual character and values that caused the first century church to grow rapidly during the Roman Empire’s pagan culture of many gods and emperor worship.

Lesslie Newbigin writes in Missionary Theologian:

Just because of the total dominance of European culture in the ecumenical movement there has seldom been any awareness among Western theologians of the extent to which their own theologies have been the result of a failure to challenge the assumptions of their own culture, and because theologians of the younger churches have been compelled to adopt this culture as the precondition of participation in the ecumenical movement they have not been in a position to present the really sharp challenge which should be addressed to the theologies of the Western churches.

In the religious world we have seen that the big accent went to what theologians had to say. Many forgot the Word that they had received and which was handed down from one generation to the other. Lots of priests, ministers, pastors or just the majority of clergymen where taken by the books of worldly people instead putting all their attention to the Holy Scriptures, the Book of books god has given humanity to find everything out.

Gospel Communication

It is truly the communication of the gospel which should conquer the hearts. And we should know that the right or the good preacher can be noticed in the willingness of him to submit himself to that Word of God and to let that Word of God speak for itself. The main focus in a service should be on that Word of God and not on the words of speaker such and so.

Preachers are not called to preach what’s popular according to the polls. They should concentrate on the Plan of God and may bring that in view by showing people the relation of what is going on and what God has in mind for our future. What happens today can be compared to previous happenings recalled in the Holy Scriptures. But the one speaking in front of the community is not called to preach merely moral exhortations or history lessons or social commentaries. We are called to preach the Word of God to the church of God and to everyone in His creation. This is how God brings life. Each person . . . is flawed and has faults and has sinned against God. And the terrible thing about our fallen natures is that we are greedy for ways to justify our sins against God. Every single one of us wants to know how we can defend ourselves from God’s charges. Therefore, we are in desperate need to hear God’s Word brought honestly to us, so that we don’t just hear what we want to hear but rather what God has actually said.

Serious word or entertainment

That what God has actually said must be brought forward. In the ecclesia everybody should come aware of what is written in the most Holy Book of Books. In case not much is read in the Bible at a service or in church, the visitor should wonder if in that church enough place is given to the Word of God. A tendency in churches today is that because people want to be entertained the church leadership is willing to oblige. If the people want more music and drama, many churches are willing give it and even to cut back on the time given to reading fragments of the Bible and on the time spent for the sermon or exhortation. Today music and drama will win hands down over preaching in many of our churches.

Holding on

When we look for a church we should look for the love of that word of life (Philippians 2:16). The great task of the preacher is to “hold out the word of life” to people who need it. The preacher willing to put himself aside for enabling that Word of God to resound in the church is the good preacher. Perhaps he may not be the best talker, the best preacher and not be the best entertainer, what is important is that he is a man of God and behaves like it.

Jehovah witnesses convention hall or Kingdom-hall in Varkaudessa

As a man of God he shall show love for God His Creation and shall respect all creations, no matter which believe they may have. We should listen very carefully how the preacher talks about others or how that church looks at other churches or treats other denominations. Do they bring hate talk or do they enjoy making the others look like devils? On the internet we can find hundreds of websites who spit on non-triniarian denominations like the Jehovah Witnesses (JW), the Bible Students (BS) and Christadelphians (Cd). Often many lies are told about those denominations and people are made afraid to encounter people from those denominations or to let others know they had already met such people.

Peterborough Christadelphian Hall

We would advice any person who has heard weird ideas about the JW, BS, or Cd, to go and look for themselves at their websites and to visit their kingdom halls, their a places of worship, prayer meeting-rooms or ecclesia buildings. It is not by a church-building with a classical tower that you shall be able to find the right preacher or right church. Church can be made in any sort of place. Any public room can be a place where people come to gather in the name of Christ, and there God will be with them. In church you should find people who love Jehovah, the Only One God, and who keep to His commandments and as such do not pray in front of portraits or statues, bow down for pictures and pray not to death people are saints, but direct their words to the Most High, Elohim Hashem Jehovah.

Watchdogs

We must be on our guard that we are not taken in by lies just because we hear them over and over again. We must also make sure that we ourselves are not guilty of trying to convince others of something that is not true by the use of repetition. We must be careful not having the Blind leading the blind. In the religious world there are many rebuking what is false but who not focus their teaching toward sound doctrine. Stemming from a pedestal of moralistic pride, Watchdog Preachers harp on everything that is wrong with the world. By those so called “Watchdog preachers” you shall be able to find many who from their websites and from the pulpit spit on other denominations and try to picture those other denominations as awful as possible. For many it looks like a sport to find denominations which they can pull down. They would love to shoot down the ones in charge of that ghastly denomination. The preachers who love to show their dread and whose words are full of horror, should show you those are not people with love for the others in their heart.

When you encounter a website or when you do come in a church where you only hear remarks about others, you should question this. Those only telling their sheep where the poisoned food is, we often do not find them looking in their own bosom. Such Watchdog preachers rarely expound on the pure spiritual food of God’s word. Mostly they are more concerned to blacken others good name, to bring a misinterpretation of other denominations, to enjoy the slander and to run down the reputation of others. In the Body of Christ such malignant speaker when targeting other genuine Christians whose theology or philosophy of ministry does not exactly match up to theirs. Such a dogmatic approach makes the congregation sceptical of (at best) or judgemental toward (worst) anyone outside their camp. This also would make it more difficult for anybody with their previous background of an other denomination to have no conflicts after some time in that new camp of the Watchdog preacher.

All right, All good teachers

On the other hand having preachers who find everything is all right and everything can be done, it is also not good. Not everything is good ion the world. Not everything can be right. We live in a world of right and wrong, where not everything should be fully black and white. There may be shades of grey. While the Watchdog preacher may spit on those from outside he perhaps forgets to look what happens really in his own circles and like the “It’s All Good” Preachers he can look over the faults or wrong things which can happen in their own community.

Anybody in a Christian community always should listen carefully to and look at what others do and say in the community. When something happens which would not be according the teachings of Christ he or she should let the others know. The elder or preacher should exhort the people of the community and should help them to stay on the right track. But he also when he would be saying which could be wrong should be made aware of it. Perhaps it can be a misinterpretation or misunderstanding, but it is important that everything what is shared in the church community is according to the Biblical teachings.

Searching God’s Word

The word of God (Photo credit: jangkwee)

Every teacher has to address false winds of doctrine. He himself should not only look to others that that preach according to the Holy Scriptures, but he also should always make enough effort to check that everything he says in the community is according to the Bible. He also best uses the Bible to let it speak in the meeting. The better teacher is that one who is willing to show others where in the Holy Scriptures is written that what he says it claims to say. A good teacher should not be afraid of the best handbook which God provided for him. We should be proud of it and use it as much as we can.

The good teacher or preacher is the one who understand that God is the Best Teacher and that His Word is the best way to bring the thought over to people.

Criticism and evaluation

Those who think the elder, pastor or minister may not criticise too much what is happening in the world should wonder if it is not our responsibility to look at the world and to take position in it. A “It’s All Good” Preacher may fail to critique current issues that need to be addressed and their congregation may never learn how to compare and contrast a secular worldview with a biblical one. Over time their congregation views current popular culture values as their source of authority in addition to (or instead of) the Bible. This results in over synthesizing and over-assimilating the unbiblical values of the culture.

In the past times admonition, warnings, and judgements were proclaimed, and so was good news — of victories, deliverance, and blessings — as well as praises to Jehovah God. (1Chronicles 16:23; Isaiah 41:27; 52:7) Many prophets like Jesus acted like an official herald, alerting their listeners to their Sovereign God’s activity, to a time of opportunity and decision. It was not only the ‘Good Newsshow’ which the prophets brought.

Comparison and attitude

When you are looking for a church you have to see and hear what is done and said in that church and should compare it to the Biblical texts and checking if what is preached is also be done or lived by.

Studying the Bible together in each others house or in a small space

As a preacher you should aim to live according to the commandments of God and to bring the Word of God in all its forms. You should try to do your uttermost best but should know that being a good preacher in the eyes of god does not necessarily mean that you will be a good preacher in the eyes of men.

You will notice when you look around that some people will believe the things said while other listeners would not believe. (Acts of the apostles 28:24) As a preacher it shall require patience and trust in God, who is the One who calls. Those coming in a Christian meeting should see if the Word of God gets the first place. Real Christian preaching should be based on God’s Word, making people to think about the essence of that Word and giving the community an opportunity to study that Word and to bring it in practice. Studying the Bible requires a response of some kind. It is vigorous, dynamic, and above all, it presents an issue on which people must take sides.

Man of God

Having a person of God, willing to serve the Only One God, Creator of heaven and earth, shall make that others look in vain to him or out of jealousy and out of anger others, also other preachers, will oppose him. Like Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, (Acts of the apostles 13:50) teachers of ‘high position’ or noted people in the civil community, will oppose those men of God. Also good preachers will find that others will hate them and be filled with envy, speaking against those things which were spoken honestly from the heart in love with God. The other denominations contradicting and blaspheming the ones who dare to keep to the teachings of the Bible and withholding any form of tradition. The unbelieving so called Christians shall like the unbelieving Jews stir up the Gentiles and plant evil in their minds against the brethren. (Acts 14:2) Therefore a teacher or preacher following the Word of God should not be afraid or wondering if he is doing right keeping on the track of God, when an assault is made both by the gentiles and also the preachers of other denominations, with their rulers. The preacher willing to be a man of God should know that when he places God His Word in the first place, he an the brethren he can show God’s Purpose, becoming followers of the churches of God in the world which are in Christ Jesus, remembering the suffering of the first Christians, for you also have suffered like things from your own countrymen, even as they have from the Jews. (1 Thessalonians 2:14)

Going out in the world

Going from house to house witnessing for Jehovah God – Lisboa, Portugal

A brother or sister in Christ, following the task Jesus has given: to go out in the world and to teach the Gospel of the Good News. When Jesus sent out his early disciples to preach, he directed them: “Into whatever city or village you enter, search out who in it is deserving.” (Matthew 10:7, 11-14) A good teacher, preacher or elder can stimulate the ones in the congregation to keep going around telling the Word of God. The good preacher can persuade the listeners around him to continue in the grace of God, and is not afraid to personally dispute in the synagogue with the Jews, on the net with the other preachers who oppose him, and with the devout persons, and in the marketplace daily with those who met with him to discuss the Word of God. (Acts 17:17). But we should also know that such ‘searching out’ would reasonably include going to the people’s homes, where “deserving” persons would heed the message and where disciples even would be able to find lodging for the night if necessary. (Luke 9:1-6).

Place to meet

All people should know that there is no requirement of a special church building, but that any place can be a house for God. We as preachers should not be ashamed we do not have our own church building and do perhaps have to meet in small places not of our own, to discuss the Word of God. As the first followers of Christ came together in their own houses we also as brethren and sisters in Christ and as interested people in the Word of God, should share our houses with those who are willing to learn about that Word of God. Any private house is worthy to become a place where people can meet to read in the Holy Scriptures and to talk about the Wishes of God. A preacher should be happy when he can find such a house as a house-church, where he can enter and say first, ‘May this house have peace.’ (Luke 10:1-7) Than to make it a place where people can gather in peace and share the love of God between each other.

Presenting a place where holiness and expression of worship can come from inside shall foster a small community rich in spirit. With that fire going in the few their heart the preacher as well as the followers should be pleased because it will be a much higher treasure than what those people, present in a mega church, perhaps can find. Having not only a preacher committing himself to the trustworthy creator, but all present offering themselves to God, shows where the right preacher is working.

Action and reaction

As a person present in the community, but also as preacher you should know that some may become active opposers of the Kingdom message. (Acts of the apostles 13:50; 18:5, 6) We all should know that it is quite possible that some will listen for a time, but eventually will turn their back for various reasons. (John 6:65, 66) Not those disappointing happenings should get our minds in distress, but we should find joy in those, even when it are just a few, who will accept the good news and act upon it. (Acts 17:11; Luke 8:15). We should be pleased when we can find a growing amount of people willing to do the Will of God.

All of the community should go out and tell the world about the work Jesus has done for all of us. It is the task of the leaders to guide such a preaching work. At such occasions the good preacher should provide counsel on such superintending ministry. The good teacher shall always be reminding the ones of the community of our important task to bring the Word of God to all people all over the world. He shall not be afraid of telling about the biblical orders or commandments, charging them before God as witness, observing the commandments and becoming doers of the Word.

A place of peace and clean pure words

In the place where God shall be able to be found it will be the preacher with the elders who shall take care that people can peacefully come together not to fight about words, a thing of no usefulness at all because it overturns those listening. They shall take care that all members of the gathering will be willing to give their share to the community and will do their utmost, to present themselves approved to God, a workman with nothing to be ashamed of, handling the word of the truth aright.

The good preacher shall shun empty speeches that violate what is holy; for they will advance to more and more ungodliness, and their word will spread like gangrene. The good preacher shall do his utmost best to use the Word of God to proof what we should know and how to keep all believing the right things.

Small but strong and upright, belonging to God

It is better to have the solid foundation of God staying standing strong in a small community than having a mega church where many people may have a lot of fun but do not really learn much about God His Word. The good or right church, or the best community or ecclesia is the one which is looking for God His Will.

The pleasure for the pastor should be that he can see that the flock is listening to God and having this seal: “Jehovah knows those who belong to him,” and: “Let everyone naming the name of Jehovah renounce unrighteousness.”

“14 Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarrelling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”” (2 Timothy 2:14-19 NIV)

Every preacher, pastor, minister or elder should be willing to give himself totally in the hands of God. Those people in charge of a church-community should make sure that their flock will gather regularly to hear from God.

When we have been hearing all sorts of messages all week long; when we come together with like minded brethren and sisters we all should take time to hear a message from God His Word and to feel how we all can be united under Christ as children of Jehovah God. As important as it is for the people in the gathering to have time to express themselves to God, it is more important that they hear God express Himself to them; that they be fed from His Word; that they be instructed in the ways of God’s kingdom; that they be effectively strengthened by His might in their inner beings to be salt and light to the world in which God has placed them and to have their joint training for the kingdom.

Of interest:

Readings from other groups and denominations:

Does the method of preaching from house to house have its basis in the Scriptures?
Some religions have acknowledged the Christian obligation to preach in public places and from house to house, although this is often left to a limited group of missionaries or clergy to fulfill… not every member.
What is the “Good News of the Kingdom”? Who is Preaching it? And What Does “For a Witness to all the Nations” Mean? (Mt. 24:14)
Telling us what will mark the last days, Jesus went on to say: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be great earthquakes, and in one place after another pestilences and food shortages; and there will be fearful sights and from heaven great signs.” (Luke 21:10, 11) Jesus also said: “This good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.”(Matthew 24:14)
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Jesus did not specifically say that every man, woman and child on earth will have the good news directly preached to in the last days. He said that the good news will be preached in all of the Earth for a witness to all of the nations. This means that every nation will have the good news preached in it to some extent.
Following Jesus’ Footsteps
We love and cherish our heavenly father Jehovah; we are committed to sharing the ‘good news’ of God’s kingdom, the same as Jesus.
How Is Our Kingdom-Preaching Work Organized?
We try to contact people at their homes. Jesus trained his disciples to preach the good news from house to house. (Matthew 10:11-13; Acts 5:42; 20:20) Those first-century evangelizers were assigned specific territories in which to preach. (Matthew 10:5, 6;2 Corinthians 10:13) Similarly today, our preaching work is well-organized, and each congregation is given an assigned area to cover. This enables us to fulfill Jesus’ command to “preach to the people and to give a thorough witness.”—Acts 10:42.
Preach the word, be at it urgently
When you consider what stands to be gained or lost as a result of our preaching, you probably feel an urgent need to speak to others about the good news. (Rom. 10:13, 14)
Bearing thorough witness concerning the kingdom of God and by using persuasion with them concerning Jesus
Was Paul disheartened because not everyone accepted the good news? By no means! Acts 28:30, 31 tells us: “He remained for an entire two years in his own hired house, and he would kindly receive all those who came in to him, preaching the kingdom of God to them.” w12 1/15 2:18-20
As you go, preach, saying, “The kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.”
Jesus warned his apostles that many would oppose their Kingdom-preaching work. (Matt. 10:16-23) An especially painful form of opposition is experienced when family members reject the Kingdom message. (Matt. 10:34-36) Does this mean that happiness is out of reach for Christ’s followers who live in religiously divided households? Not at all!
Preaching with zeal and urgency vital to keeping on the watch.
no chain could silence the zealous apostle! Paul continued to find ways to bear witness. After three days, Paul summoned the principal men of the Jews in order to give them a witness. Then, on a chosen day, he gave an even greater witness.—Acts 28:17, 23, 24.w12 1/15 2:17, 18

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Additional reading about House-churches:

An organic church
By “organic church,” I mean a non-traditional church that is born out of spiritual life instead of constructed by human institutions and held together by religious programs. Organic church life is a grass roots experience that is marked by face-to-face community, every-member functioning, open-participatory meetings (opposed to pastor-to-pew services), non-hierarchical leadership, and the centrality and supremacy of Jesus Christ as the functional Leader and Head of the gathering.
Put another way, organic church life is the “experience” of the Body of Christ. In its purest form, it’s the fellowship of the Triune God brought to earth and experienced by human beings.
The House Church Movement: Learning from the Past – Pioneering for the Future
Why house church
Many people today are catching the vision of what the church is meant to be as she throws off the hindrances and becomes the Spirit-filled movement of Believers she is destined for. They are catching the vision for living life 24/7, with and for God without one moment or place being more holy than another. It is a vision of every believer contributing to one another through the spiritual gifts that reside in each one.
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Perhaps the most significant case for house churches is that they can be easily started and multiplied. God’s clear desire is for the earth to be filled with the “knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14). Rather than build buildings and organizations that require tremendous time, finances, and energy to reproduce, The Kingdom of God multiplies organically: one seed produces fruit, that produces more seed that produces more fruit. The principle of multiplication is far more powerful than we realize. Take a look at any forest and realize how much is accomplished through natural reproductive processes without any human aid at all.
Are You in the Wilderness?
So many Christians I meet today, whether in person, on social networks, or through emails, tell me that they are living in a spiritual wilderness. They feel alone, spiritually isolated, and they don’t have too many Christian friends that they are experiencing a rich and full fellowship in Christ with.
Some of them attend a church on Sunday morning, yet still, they are living in the desert and they know it.
Church in the Home? Or at Home in the Church?
what we do in our own houses, our relationships with our families, with our sons, daughters, with our wives, we should bring all of it into the church. We should act as if these people are really our own brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers, because that is what they really are.
A Hundred Mothers, Brothers…Intimate Relationships
true “house church” is bringing the home into our church life, not bringing our church into the homes. It’s very superficial to just bring our big building into little buildings, but never change anything in the heart.
Time to Listen and Change
The books of the Bible were written across continents. The letters and relationships are across years and across cities, countries and continents. Not a single book in the Bible is about only one local assembly. The point is, that even across the miles and the continents, we need each other. God’s call to us today is that we begin to live that way and involve ourselves in each other’s lives. Are we to admonish one another on Sunday only? No, daily. Why? So that we won’t be hardened and deceived. That’s in the Bible. Be called alongside one another daily so that we won’t be hardened and deceived. Whether we are old or young, single or married, ten children or two children, teenager or toddler—who are my mothers, brothers and sisters? We need each other, because you have gifts I don’t have.
House Church Central
All of the churches in the New Testament era were small assemblies that met in homes. While setting up institutional forms of “church” may or may not provide a way to honor God, the movement toward the institution and the human authority that tends to accompany hierarchical institutional structure are not theologically neutral.
Thoroughly Biblical Church
When they came together in their houses their corporate worship and sharing together was completely open and spontaneous (I Corinthians 14v26 describes the proceedings as, “…each one has…”), with no one leading from the front. The early believers didn’t have anything that even approximated a church service.
As part of these proceedings they ate the Lord’s Supper as a full meal, indeed as their main meal of the day, commonly referring to it as the love-feast.
They understood each church to be an extended family unit (the idea of churches being institutions or organizations would have been totally alien to them), and practiced non-hierarchical plural male leadership that had arisen from within the church they would subsequently lead. This indigenous eldership (elder, pastor/ shepherd, bishop/overseer being synonymous terms in the New Testament) sought to lead consensually wherever possible, and was understood to be purely functional and not in any way positional.
Devonport House Church ->
About House Church
House church is an informal term for a group of Christians gathering regularly or spontaneously in a home instead of a building dedicated to the purpose. Another term with the same meaning is “home church”.
Some groups meet like this because they lack a conventional church building; but these are not normally regarded as house churches. Others meet in homes because they prefer to meet informally, or because they believe meeting in a home is the true pattern set in the first century and intended by Christ. Some, perhaps, meet in homes for several of these reasons.
House churches should not be confused with cell churches. A house church is not normally part of a larger, overseeing organization, although the group may associate informally with other Christians and house churches in networks reflecting equality rather than hierarchy. Those who meet in house churches regard themselves as belonging to the worldwide Church, but are self-governing and independent, generally without formal relationships with established “institutional” churches.
Some house churches have a conventional leadership structure, others have none.
The House Church Movement, the perfect church
Thousands of Christians are now meeting in simple House Churches in the United States. They have “dropped out” of institutionalized religion and prefer to worship Jesus in biblical authenticity and simplicity – just like the early Christians did.
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From living rooms to coffee shops, offices to parking lots, under trees and secretly underground (in oppressive countries), these new expressions of the Body of Christ are rapidly multiplying around the world. In recent years, Christian researchers and secular media alike have taken notice of the dramatic transformation within Christianity.
House Church Basics — Pt. 3: Missional Church
One of the hallmarks of the house church movement is that it seeks to be what the church, in fact, is: missional. Jesus went everywhere proclaiming and demonstrating the reality, love, and power of the Kingdom (healing the brokenhearted, setting captives free, proclaiming God’s acceptance, etc.) The church (the people of God) goes and does the same.
This means that church, first of all, needs to transition from being a “come and see” place to a “go and be with the lost” movement.
Inspired by Cuban Christians
They have very little money, limited transportation, limited communication, no freedom of speech, no freedom of assembly, no church buildings in which to minister, and the knowledge that they are constantly being watched. The Christian work is primarily through house churches and word of mouth.
Yet what passion; what joy; and what commitment to the Lord. They are sacrificing for the Lord in ways that would make most American Christians embarrassed.
China cracks down on house church groups again
The church tried to hold services in the open air after it was evicted from a rented space as the landlord was pressured to not renew the lease, China Aid said.
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Underground church members are routinely sent to labor camps where abuse and persecution is reported even as they languish in the camps without trial.

Thoughts Concerning the Preacher (fromthepreacherspc.org)
There is usually a lot of confusion in most congregations of the Lord’s church concerning the work of the preacher. Many have their own ideas, some have no real idea, and others have the wrong idea about the preacher’s job. To help the church and the preacher have a better working relationship, consider the following thoughts.
What if Modern Preachers Preached What Jesus was Preaching? (holyspiritactivism.wordpress.com) wonders what would happen if certain preachers did what Jesus preached according to the Bible.
A Plea for Sharp and Polished Preachers… (pastorkemp.com)
It is very easy to become so preoccupied with the work of the ministry that we fail to remain hidden for long periods of time with God. It is seldom those hectic busy moments that are always clamoring for our time and attention where we are sharpen and polished by God—that only occurs when we are close to the “flesh-killing” presence of Almighty God.
In Have You Seen the Viral Videos of the ‘Pint-Sized Preachers’ Yet? (theblaze.com) you can see how children can be exploited and which impression some people have about “teaching” and “preaching” and what certain people do call a “sermon”.
+Are you ready for National Geographic’s “Pint-Sized Preachers?” The new hour-long documentary explores the lives of three kid preachers who give their all to spread Jesus Christ’s message.While some believe that these children are being exploited my overly fervent parents, others see them as a beacon of hope. This latter group believes that, despite their youth, God has chosen to speak through them.

The bizarre part (and there are some very intriguingly odd pieces to this puzzle)? One of the three — 4-year-old Kanon Tipton — is barely out of diapers, yet he delivers fiery sermons and inspires faith in those who listen.
Cotton Candy Preaching (fromthepreacherspc.org)
Is it worse to teach in the Lord’s church false doctrine or to teach simple pleasant truths from God’s word? In answer to this question most people would quickly say that false doctrine would be the worst thing of all to teach. But consider this, what if we only taught concerning the loving story of Ruth, or about benevolence, or about the need for loving families, or about the need to feel good about ourselves? Now these are topics that we should be concerned about and are issues of interest, and should be taught. But, can a Christian survive spiritually solely on this kind of diet? Can a child of God mature and be grounded in the faith solely on these kinds of meals? The answer is no!
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Many preach to please men and tickle their ears with what they like to hear. Paul said, “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10). Paul warned Timothy about people who have “itching ears” and warned that such people will gather around those who will scratch their ears by teaching lies (2 Tim. 4:3-4). The whole counsel of God must be preached, regardless of how it is received (Acts 20:26-27)! The truth is truth and must be preached! I didn’t write the book (Bible) and have no right to “water it down” to please men.
More Expository Preaching Please! (watumishiwaneno.wordpress.com)
- Humanity seeking Self-Praise- All men uniting to build a tower whose top reaches the heavens with one aim of making a name for themselves!
This is what man-made religion does; seeking glory and praise for man instead of giving praise and glory to God.
10 Scriptures In The Bible That ‘Prosperity Preachers’ Choose To Ignore! (endtimereport.net)
On one so called ‘Christian’ channel this evening, a prosperity pimp is selling potential “salvations” for 5 of your “loved ones” in return for a financial donation. On another, a (proven) fraud is offering his “miracle mixture” and on another a so-called ‘financial preacher’ is manipulating the viewer to hurry up and send in a $58 ‘seed’ for a “triple blessing.”No mention of Jesus or any solid Bible teaching or call for repentance, just a manipulative call for your hard-earned cash! Welcome to perhaps 50% or more of Christian programming today (unfortunately).
Thinking over my life (mysecretlifewithyou.wordpress.com)
People are really interested in just reaching the masses, and not everyone has issues and so we don’t have to talk about everything, but wouldn’t it be comforting to have someone talk to you in your situation. I’m grateful that I’ve heard some great preachers in my life that have brought healing to my heart, but the majority of people I know in my church are about pretense and appearance. I do it to, I smile when I don’t want to…. I shake hands and clap backs, and act like I’m happy, because being unhappy means I don’t have faith and I don’t believe God can handle my situation.

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Church, Churchplanting, Preaching, Religion, Word of God

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In the death of Christ, the son of God, is glorification

The God Creator the Most High His son

Jehovah God, the Most High, who never lies, had told the people who stood around Jesus that they could see God His beloved son.

“16 As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”” (Matthew 3:16-17 NIV)

That son of David and son of God had now given himself as a sacrifice to the Elohim. The Nazarene man has always tried to do only the Will of the Father in the heaven. Jesus was never interested to do his own will, but only wanted to please his Father. Like David he had in mind only to do God His Will, even in the hour of his death.

“I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”” (Psalms 40:8 NIV)

“”Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”” (Luke 22:42 NIV)

The one who served God His purpose

Like when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, Jesus fell asleep and was buried. But now a miracle happened. The only begotten son of God was not laid to rest to stay there in the underground (the sheol or hell) He only stayed there in the darkness for three days. Then God took him out of the dead and let him walk again on this earth to meet his friends again and to show them that he was risen. He proofed them that his Father had not let his body to body to decay.

Icon of Jesus being led to Golgotha, 16th century, Theophanes the Cretan (Stavronikita Monastery, Mount Athos). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The blood poured out on the altar of the stake on Golgotha brought the ransom offer of the Lamb of God. By walking around on this earth again Jesus showed the apostles that his Father had accepted his offering and taken him under his alms. Now he could convince them, also by the Power of God, the Holy Spirit which came over the apostles, that he was the Messiah by whom people could come free — free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free!

Jesus in his lifetime had always said he could do nothing without his Father, who is greater than him and that the Father could be glorified in the works he did. Never did Jesus take the glory himself, but it was his father who glorified him and made him higher than he was before.

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18 NIV)

“And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.” (John 5:27 NIV)

“Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19 NIV)

“”You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” (John 14:28 NIV)

“So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”” (Hebrews 5:5 NIV)

“5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:5-8 NIV)

United by bloodshed

Jesus thought of everything, provided for everything the apostles could possibly need, letting his disciples in on the plans he took such delight in making, trying to give them insight in the Torah. All the time he tried to make the Words of his Father clear, so that the people could fully understand the Holy Scriptures and could find the God of heaven and earth. It was this Jehovah God who set it all out before the apostles in Christ. In this son of God, the Nazarene man Jeshua (Jesus) who was brought to death on the wooden stake, his friends now became united to understand the long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth. It’s in Christ that they found out who they were and what they were living for. Long before they first heard of Christ and got their hopes up, he had his eye on them, had designs on them for glorious living. We also may believe that God His Plan for the world is also part of us in Christ. Part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone. It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free — signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first instalment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.

“7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfilment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. 11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:7-14 NIV)

Our chief end

We in Christ have become freed from our sins, have redemption and be part of God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. But than we may ask “What is it that God really wants for us more than anything else? What is He really after for us?”

The Scottish catechism says, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God.” Is that according to you also the top goal of living. For sure God created the universe to be part of One Great Unit in Unison with His wishes. We should strive to come in unison with the Creator of heaven and earth. That’s the great business of our lives.

God is displaying His glory in His Creation. And in the created order of the universe, what’s the universe doing? “The heavens declare the glory of God; the earth is full of his glory,” says Isaiah.

When God made man, what was his purpose? He made man in His image to bear His likeness and Hebrews tells us that we are crowned with glory.

Faithful to the Father

Jesus, the son of God in his life, always tried to follow the Will of his Father. For him that was very important, not to say the most important thing in his life. Jesus always said to others he could do nothing without his Father. Without God no man can do anything. Jesus also spoke of glorifying God’s name and finishing the work He had for him to do. He also spoke of God being glorified through His death.

God created the world like a theatre in which to display His Glory. He has sent His Son in order that we may see something of His glory in the face of Jesus Christ – He is now working by the Holy Spirit in the hearts and lives of His people that they may be changed into the image of His glory.

Jesus prayed immediately before His death, “Father glorify your Son.”

God who can not die, nor be seen by a living soul or that one would die, found a man who was willing to offer himself for all the other people. Jesus did not mind to have his blood streamed down onto the ground.

Glory and heaviness of action

The original meaning of the word ‘Glory’ in the Bible is really ‘weight’. That’s weight in the sense of the ‘heaviness’ of something. In Jesus his case it meant the heaviness of his action. It was incredible that he, as an ordinary human from a workers family, wanted to present himself as a worker for God, going to many places preaching the Gospel. God can not be tempted but Jesus was many times, and it was not always easy for him to make the right choice. Sometimes he had to worry his earthly parents or to ask a lot of his mother Mary (Miriam) He had to show them his good character. He also proofed to God and the adversaries of God that it is possible for man to be faithful to God.

The ‘Glory’ Christ Jesus got is the sign of what he is worth. Those people who take Jesus for God ridicule in a certain way his offering. Because God knows everything, is eternal, can not be tempted and can not die. When Jesus would have been or would be God, than this God would not always have told the truth, because He spoke about His son and did not say “that is me” or “this is me” and the son said about his Father that He is bigger and he can not do anything about Him. Jesus, in case he was God would have not only faked his death but would also have brought a charade of doing like he was asking the Father in heaven to do something he could not do. God can do everything and knows everything, though Jesus told the people he even did not know when he would come back to the world.

A build up of character

God His character is the most Holy and righteous; It is not a misleading Spirit. Christ Jesus is also not a misleading person. He could have sinned (God does not sin). Jesus did not sin and proofed in that way his faithfulness to the Laws of his Father, never going in against the Will of his Father.

The Glory of both is implicated with their character. In other words, the glory of God is the display of His worth, of His character. Also the manner of behavement of Christ Jesus, following the Will of his Father even bringing him into death shows us how strong this man has been. This is why we see the glory of God as supremely displayed in the ‘Cross of Jesus’, Jeshua finding death on the stake.

John Calvin made this point: “Nowhere in the universe does God display His glory more fully than in the Cross of Christ.”

It’s because there at the torture stake and by the resurrection of His son, the wisdom, love, justice, mercy, goodness and faithfulness of God are on show in all that God has done.
It makes us who believe part of the people called ‘the forgiven much’. When we understand that, we will love much and will serve much, and worship much, and adore Him, out of a heart of devotion and not just do it because we are Christians and we’re meant to do that kind of thing.

As Paul writes in Second Corinthians 3:18:

“but we all, with [our] face having been unveiled, having beheld the glory of the lord as in a mirror, are being changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the lord spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18 MKJV)

A reliable witness to God His power and His ways

Isaiah in his 24st chapter verse 20 wrote “the earth staggers like a drunken man … its transgression lies heavy upon it, and it falls ….” We see this as a fitting description of how our world is staggering today. Its transgression of the ways of God are causing it to fall apart. Let us not “put off” developing the faith and the patience and the earnestness, and a sense of “full assurance” – for, said Jesus, “the one who endures to the end will be saved.” [Mark 13:13] and will then be ready to inherit the wonder of what God has promised.

God had promised a Messiah and a Land for His people. In Jesus we should recognise this ‘Christos’ or Man of Salvation, the Christ. The apostle Paul was a devote Jew who knew the Torah very well. He only believed in One God, like Jesus also believed in that One and Only God, the Elohim Hashem Jehovah. In his letters to the Hebrews Paul clearly explains that the reality of Jesus as a Son. The apostles like Jesus did believe that the Scriptures also teaches that the heavens declare the glory of God and are a reliable witness to His power and his ways.

The Bible also appeals to us to carefully consider the evidence of God’s creations and what it tells us about God, and that it is a reliable source of knowledge.

When we do not want to accept the Words like they are written down, telling us who is who, we are not only ignoring the Truth, but we are minimising all the actions that took place. In case we do not accept Jesus his position we ignore the words of the prophets who lived before him and are not taking God His Words at heart when He talks about His beloved son. When we take Jesus to be God we do not want to believe a man could do such wonders by the Power of God, or we do not want to accept that God would give such Powers to a man of flesh and blood. By taking Jesus as God or by not accepting the written words ‘black on white’ of the printed Scriptures, in your ignorance of the Truth, you despise the evidence and so reject the knowledge of God that the heavens reveal night after night.

How much glory to the one who gave his life

God can not die but Jesus really did die.

Jesus gave his life for us, how motivated are we to accept what this man really did and to serve him as a result? Recall how Paul expresses it at the end of Romans 5, “…as sin reigned in death (before he/we knew Christ) grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” [Romans 5:21]

Let us see and understand the verse of dire warning in the letter to the Hebrews. After writing of the punishment of sinners under the Law of Moses the question is put, “How much worse punishment, do you think will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the spirit of grace?” [Hebrews 10:29] May we so live that we are among the “vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory – even us whom he has called …” [Romans 9:23-24] In the Scriptures we ‘hear’ him calling! Are you listening properly?

Are we willing to recognise the elements which show us the Grace of God in Christ? And are we willing to accept the position of Christ, who is seethed next to his Father, to be a mediator between God and man? Or do you prefer to think it is Jesus himself who has taken up the throne and the position of God?

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” (Hebrews 2:9 NIV)

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—” (Hebrews 2:14 NIV)

“For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.” (Hebrews 2:17 NIV)

“Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:12 NIV)

“In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you” (1 Timothy 6:13 NIV)

“”You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”” (John 18:37 NIV)

“Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”” (Acts 4:12 NIV)

“All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”” (Acts 10:43 NIV)

“And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” (John 17:5 NIV)

“Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.” (1 Corinthians 11:3 NIV)

“When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.” (1 Corinthians 15:28 NIV)

“who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.” (1 Peter 3:22 NIV)

“20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,” (Ephesians 1:20-22 NIV)

“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,” (Philippians 2:9 NIV)

“22 Moreover, the Father judges no-one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him.” (John 5:22-23 NIV)

“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,” (1 Timothy 2:5 NIV)

“to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” (Hebrews 12:24 NIV)

Coming to Jesus giving him the honour due to him

Are you wiling to accept that Jesus gave his life for you? Are you willing to come to Jesus, who presents us with a new covenant, a fresh charter from God. We should recognise his position and not take it lightly. When we make him not just a god but the God, Creator of all things, we do not accept that a man could proof to be faithful to God. Then we also do not believe Jesus is the Mediator of the covenant God made with His people. A mediator is namely a person who mediates between two parties, in this case God and the human beings.

God is an eternal Spirit, meaning that he had no beginning and no end. Jesus had a beginning when he was placed in the womb of the virgin Myriam (Miriam/Mary/Maria) God can not be tempted, but after many temptation Jesus had to endure he found an end to his life like it was ‘murder’, unlike Abel’s — a homicide that cried out for vengeance — which became a proclamation of grace.

English: child Jesus with the virgin Mary, wit...

Child Jesus with the virgin Mary, with the Holy Spirit (represented as a dove) and God the Father, with child john the Baptist and saint Elizabeth on the right (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

God is the Most High of all but Jesus, made “not quite as high as angels,” and then, through the experience of death, crowned so much higher than any angel, with a glory “bright with Eden’s dawn light.” In that death, by God’s grace, he fully experienced death in every person’s place. And therefore should receive our full recognition and the glory due to him.

The Saviour being of flesh and blood gave way to rescue us by his death. By embracing death, taking it into himself, he destroyed the Adversary‘s hold on death. [Hebrews 2:14]

Now we can trust God and his son who came before God as high priest to get rid of our sins. As God rewarded him extravagantly, we also should give Jesus the best of everything, the highest honours, because he looked death in the face and didn’t flinch, because he embraced the company of the lowest. Jesus took on his own shoulders the sin of the many, he took up the cause of all the black sheep and we should be grateful for that and give him praise for doing so.

We should be fully aware that salvation comes no other way, because no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one, the man Jesus, son of God, who was promised many years beforehand. But the world had to wait such a long time, not because God was so much enjoying the suffering of the people, but because it took such a long time before there was at last a man who could proof to the world, to the many adversaries of God (in many Bibles translated with the word ‘Satan‘ or ‘devil‘) that it was really possible that a man could honour and love his Creator so much that he always preferred and did do the will of this Creator, the Only One God.

Not alone in our believes and glorification

Salvation belongs to Jehovah God. He allowed His son to be the human Saviour by bringing his life to an end at the stake, liberating the world form the spell of death.

Perhaps you may say there are not many people who take it for granted that Jesus was the son of God who died for our sins. Not many did want to testify of the wonders the Nazarene man Jeshua (Jesus) did. But we’re not alone in this. Our witness that he is the means to forgiveness of sins is backed up by the witness of all the prophets and is clearly written down in the Book of Books, the Bible, which we consider the word of God.

It is that Word of God we want to follow and not the dogma‘s or certain teachings people just have to accept, because they are to difficult to understand. God is a God of order and clarity. He wanted all people to find Him and to love Him. He did not reserve the knowledge of Him only to very special educated people. No, everybody should be able to find out who God really is and to whom Glory is due.

Jehovah, God, was asked by Jesus to glorify him with His very own splendour. God has a Plan and He foresaw the Messiah already from the beginning of the world. In the Garden of Eden when the first man went against God, Jehovah provided a solution to save all those who would come after Adam and Eve, so that the World of God could become a nice Creation into the end, a Kingdom of God, full of peace and tranquillity.

There in that Kingdom of God, the son of God, Jesus may have the glory and very splendour in the presence of the Most High Elohim, who has given him the authority to judge over us and to be king on this earth until Jesus Christ, having the last word on everything and everyone, from angels to armies, shall have brought everything and everyone finally under God’s rule. Then Jesus, the Son of God, will step down, taking his place with everyone else, showing that God’s rule is absolutely comprehensive—a perfect ending! (1 Corinthians 15:28 )

Therefore let us accept the son of man Jesus (Jeshua) as the son of God, the Father who handed over to the Son all authority to judge, so that the Son will be honoured equally with the Father. Anyone who dishonours the Son, dishonours the Father, for it was the Father’s decision to put the Son in the place of honour. [John 5:22-23]

Please do find also to read:

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Love. Chapter One. (rebellredarts.com)
Everything is for the glorification of God. Everthing that we do here on this earth has a purpose. The purpose is the glorification of God. Our work is his work. Eternal life is knowing God , says Jesus Christ. Jesus tells his Dad that he gave glory to him by finishing the work that he gave him to do. God gives us all work while we are to accomplish, to finish. one day we will all get to experience this awesome day.
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Jesus gives us Glory, the same Glory that God gave him. Why? so that people will believe. So that they will see the Love of God and having seen it, want it for themselves! His whole purpose is Love, and Unity in Love and.. God is Love. Love + Unity = Gods Plan. Jesus wanted everyone to know . Love.
Press on towards the goal – Jesus! (thesavingfaith.wordpress.com)
Christian Truth (pilgrimpassing.com)
Mohammed, Buddha, Krishna, and others taught a way to God, some truth about God, and gave instructions on how to live life. These religions did not originally claim to be exclusively true, just better than competing brands. Christianity, however, is unique. It claims “revelation” truth: that God has once and for all “expressed Himself”. Jesus Christ is what God wanted to say.
One Way Only: Off The Grid Columnist Bill Heid Argues One Way to Salvation in Latest Article (prweb.com)
In his most recent article, No Other River, No Other Stream, Off The Grid News columnist Bill Heid discusses God’s grace and the ways in which He gives it. Though many say that truth is relative and that any religion can provide a way to salvation, Heid argues that salvation comes from God alone through the means He has prescribed.
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Just as Naaman had to follow God’s instructions to be healed, so must people today follow the path of salvation God laid out through His Son Jesus. Grace and salvation are free gifts from God
Does your life put Christ in a place of honor? (clydestyle.org)
We honor judges, politicians, clergy, successful businessman and public officials all because of the service they give. We honor fathers and mothers mostly because the bible tells us so and we even honor our spouses — sometimes whether they deserve it or not. Teachers are honored, seniors are honored and even a person who has done a good deed can get our honor.
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We know that Christ died, “while we were sinners” and “while we were without strength”. His death, burial and resurrection which are the very facts of his gospel had a profound effect on our place of honor on judgement day.

You see, his death (shedding of his blood) cleansed our sins and made reconciliation possible. For now God can begin a new relationship with us because of that death. His burial was just as important as it serves as the launch pad for resurrection. You have to have a death and burial or else there is no need for a resurrection. Baptism serves as our burial (launch pad) today as anyone who believes on Jesus and is baptized shall receive a resurrection.
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Showing Others Sincere Appreciation
Jesus always uplifted the downtrodden. The King of Kings consistently sought the lost and the rejected by society. Matthew was a despised tax collector. Most of the disciples were untrained fishermen. Thomas was a glass-is-half-empty skeptic. James and John were driven by ambition. Despite their weaknesses, Jesus chose them to be the ones who would bring the Good News of the Gospel to the Jewish people and the nations. What an honor!
When we look at the Verse For Today ,John 3:16 (savedbygraceblogdotcom.wordpress.com) we should always remember and be thankful that God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son. Today there are still many who do not want to accept it that it was God His son who expressed the love of his Father. That he so loved His Creation He wanted to be restored to the beginning and therefore gave his Son to become the first of the reborn new generation, the new creation. The Son did not come to appease the Father‘s wrath, but to fulfill the wishes of his Father and our Father, the Only One God, Creator of heaven and earth. Those who want to make a god of Christ Jesus do not respect the words of Jesus nor of His Father who said “this is my beloved son”.

Category:

God Jehovah Yahweh (English), Jesus Christ, Jeshua Messiah

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Death of Christ on the day of preparation

Photograph of the central part of a mosaic in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, on the outer wall of the Catholicon behind the Stone of Unction. The mosaic depicts Jesus being taken down from the cross, and his body being anointed prior to placing in the tomb. – Photo by SreeBot

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“The Jews answered him, We have a law, and according to [our] law he ought to die, because he made himself Son of God.” (John 19:7 Darby)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal.” (John 3:16 Darby)

“and behold, a voice out of the heavens saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight.” (Matthew 3:17 Darby)

“17 And he went out, bearing his cross, to the place called [place] of a skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha; 18 where they crucified him, and with him two others, [one] on this side, and [one] on that, and Jesus in the middle.
19 And Pilate wrote a title also and put it on the cross. But there was written: Jesus the Nazaraean, the King of the Jews. 20 This title therefore many of the Jews read, for the place of the city where Jesus was crucified was near; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, Latin. 21 The chief priests of the Jews therefore said to Pilate, Do not write, The king of the Jews, but that *he* said, I am king of the Jews. 22 Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.” (John 19:17-22 Darby)

“23 The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified Jesus, took his clothes, and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and the body-coat; but the body-coat was seamless, woven through the whole from the top. 24 They said therefore to one another, Let us not rend it, but let us cast lots for it, whose it shall be; that the scripture might be fulfilled which says, They parted my garments among themselves, and on my vesture they cast lots. The soldiers therefore did these things.” (John 19:23-24 Darby)

“They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.” (Psalms 22:18 Darby)

“And having crucified him, they part his clothes amongst [themselves], casting lots on them, what each one should take.” (Mark 15:24 Darby)

“28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now finished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, says, I thirst. 29 There was a vessel therefore there full of vinegar, and having filled a sponge with vinegar, and putting hyssop round it, they put it up to his mouth. 30 When therefore Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished; and having bowed his head, he delivered up his spirit.” (John 19:28-30 Darby)

“And Jesus, having cried with a loud voice, said, Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit. And having said this, he expired.” (Luke 23:46 Darby)

“1 For the law, having a shadow of the coming good things, not the image itself of the things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually yearly, perfect those who approach. 2 Since, would they not indeed have ceased being offered, on account of the worshippers once purged having no longer any conscience of sins? 3 But in these [there is] a calling to mind of sins yearly. 4 For blood of bulls and goats [is] incapable of taking away sins. 5 Wherefore coming into the world he says, Sacrifice and offering thou willedst not; but thou hast prepared me a body. 6 Thou tookest no pleasure in burnt-offerings and sacrifices for sin.
7 Then I said, Lo, I come (in [the] roll of the book it is written of me) to do, O God, thy will. 8 Above, saying Sacrifices and offerings and burnt-offerings and sacrifices for sin thou willedst not, neither tookest pleasure in (which are offered according to the law); 9 then he said, Lo, I come to do thy will. He takes away the first that he may establish the second; 10 by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11 And every priest stands daily ministering, and offering often the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But *he*, having offered one sacrifice for sins, sat down in perpetuity at [the] right hand of God, 13 waiting from henceforth until his enemies be set [for the] footstool of his feet. 14 For by one offering he has perfected in perpetuity the sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:1-14 Darby)

“31 The Jews therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for it was [the] preparation, (for the day of that sabbath was a great [day],)demanded of Pilate that their legs might be broken and they taken away. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first and of the other that had been crucified with him; 33 but coming to Jesus, when they saw that he was already dead they did not break his legs, 34 but one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. 35 And he who saw it bears witness, and his witness is true, and he knows that he says true that ye also may believe.” (John 19:31-35 Darby)

“4 I have glorified *thee* on the earth, I have completed the work which thou gavest me that I should do it; 5 and now glorify *me*, *thou* Father, along with thyself, with the glory which I had along with thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested thy name to the men whom thou gavest me out of the world. They were thine, and thou gavest them me, and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things that thou hast given me are of thee; 8 for the words which thou hast given me I have given them, and they have received [them], and have known truly that I came out from thee, and have believed that thou sentest me.” (John 17:4-8 Darby)

“In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth any of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.” (Exodus 12:46 Darby)

“12 They shall leave none of it until the morning, nor break a bone thereof: according to every ordinance of the passover shall they hold it. 13 But a man that is clean, and is not on a journey, and forbeareth to hold the passover, that soul shall be cut off from among his peoples; because he presented not the offering of Jehovah at its set time: that man shall bear his sin.” (Numbers 9:12-13 Darby)

“17 [The righteous] cry, and Jehovah heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. 18 Jehovah is nigh to those that are of a broken heart, and saveth them that are of a contrite spirit. 19 Many are the adversities of the righteous, but Jehovah delivereth him out of them all: 20 He keepeth all his bones; not one of them is broken.” (Psalms 34:17-20 Darby)

“36 For these things took place that the scripture might be fulfilled, Not a bone of him shall be broken. 37 And again another scripture says, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
38 And after these things Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly through fear of the Jews, demanded of Pilate that he might take the body of Jesus: and Pilate allowed it. He came therefore and took away the body of Jesus.” (John 19:36-38 Darby)

“And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and of supplications; and they shall look on me whom they pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for an only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn.” (Zechariah 12:10 Darby)

“Behold, he comes with the clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they which have pierced him, and all the tribes of the land shall wail because of him. Yea. Amen.” (Revelation 1:7 Darby)

“45 Now from [the] sixth hour there was darkness over the whole land until [the] ninth hour; 46 but about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 47 And some of those who stood there, when they heard [it], said, This [man] calls for Elias. 48 And immediately one of them running and getting a sponge, having filled [it] with vinegar and fixed [it] on a reed, gave him to drink. 49 But the rest said, Let be; let us see if Elias comes to save him.
50 And Jesus, having again cried with a loud voice, gave up the ghost. 51 And lo, the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom, and the earth was shaken, and the rocks were rent, 52 and the tombs were opened; and many bodies of the saints fallen asleep arose, 53 and going out of the tombs after his arising, entered into the holy city and appeared unto many. 54 But the centurion, and they who were with him on guard over Jesus, seeing the earthquake and the things that took place, feared greatly, saying, Truly this [man] was Son of God.” (Matthew 27:45-54 Darby)

“38 And after these things Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly through fear of the Jews, demanded of Pilate that he might take the body of Jesus: and Pilate allowed it. He came therefore and took away the body of Jesus. 39 And Nicodemus also, who at first came to Jesus by night, came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds [weight]. 40 They took therefore the body of Jesus and bound it up in linen with the spices, as it is the custom with the Jews to prepare for burial. 41 But there was in the place where he had been crucified a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. 42 There therefore, on account of the preparation of the Jews, because the tomb was near, they laid Jesus.” (John 19:38-42 Darby)

“Now on the morrow, which is after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees came together to Pilate,” (Matthew 27:62 Darby)

“And when it was already evening, since it was [the] preparation, that is, [the day] before a sabbath,” (Mark 15:42 Darby)

“50 And behold, a man named Joseph, who was a councillor, a good man and a just 51 (this [man] had not assented to their counsel and deed), of Arimathaea, a city of the Jews, who also waited, [himself also,] for the kingdom of God 52 — he having gone to Pilate begged the body of Jesus; 53 and having taken it down, wrapped it in fine linen and placed him in a tomb hewn in the rock, where no one had ever been laid. 54 And it was preparation day, and [the] sabbath twilight was coming on. 55 And women, who had come along with him out of Galilee, having followed, saw the sepulchre and how his body was placed. 56 And having returned they prepared aromatic spices and ointments, and remained quiet on the sabbath, according to the commandment.” (Luke 23:50-56 Darby)

“See, for Jehovah hath given you the sabbath; therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread for two days. Abide every man in his place: let no man go from his place on the seventh day.” (Exodus 16:29 Darby)

“Remember the sabbath day to hallow it.” (Exodus 20:8 Darby)

“Keep the sabbath day to hallow it, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee.” (Deuteronomy 5:12 Darby)

Preceding: Imprisonment and execution of Jesus Christ

For the Will of Him who is greater than Jesus

On the first day for matzah

Servant for the truth of God

The Anointed One and the first day of No Fermentation

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie: Jezus vindt de dood op Golgota op voorbereidingsdag

French version / Version en Français: La Mort du Jésus Christ sur le Jour de Préparation

German version / Deutsch: Jesu Tod auf Golgatha am 14 Nisan

Please also do find:

+++

Jesus Christ, Our Passover (fredswolfe.wordpress.com)
Jesus was dead in the grave with no consciousness for 3 full days and 3 full nights = 72 hours. There is no way in Hell to fit 3 full days and 3 full nights between Sunset Friday and Sunrise Sunday. Therefore, there is no such thing as Good Friday! Jesus Christ, our Passover Lamb,was sacrificed for us and was buried on a Wednesday around sunset beginning the 1st night (Thursday). At dawn Thursday began the first day. At sunset Thurs. began the 2nd night of Friday, then Friday day; thenFri at sunset began the 3rd night, Saturday; then Saturday at sunset completed the 3 days and 3 nights. Sunset Sat. began Sunday night:Jn 20:1 The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.KJV
Passover: A Time To Remember (jacksonandrew.com)
I am thankful that today, we can celebrate this feast without the sacrifice of a life for our sins, as Christ, our Passover Lamb, has once and for all, become the substitute… and with Him, God is well pleased. Don’t forget to remember or you are doomed to return to what once enslaved you.
Dave Hunt : Scripture reveals the answer Of .Crucifixion Week (ioan17.wordpress.com)
the rabbis had determined not to arrest Jesus during Passover,
+The fourteenth of Nisan began at sunset Wednesday evening. That night, Jesus and His disciples had the “last supper” in the upper room where they were preparing to eat the Passover the following night.
+Shortly before noon, Jesus, scourged and beaten, was led out of the city to “the place of the skull.” By noon, the One whom Jerusalem, in fulfillment of prophecy, had hailed as its long-awaited Messiah, was hanging naked on the center cross between two thieves.
G-dfearers Participation In Shabbat, And Pesach According To Toby Janicki (paradoxparables.justparadox.com)
Gentile believers have been brought near to the commonwealth of Israel. Although this does not make Gentile Christians into Jews, they share in the spiritual heritage of the nation of Israel.

“Our Master Yeshua chose the wine and the matzah of a Passover Seder to represent his body and blood. More than just learning about and celebrating the concept of freedom from oppression and exile, for disciples of Messiah, the seder celebrates Yeshua’s atoning death and resurrection while remaining firmly grounded and centered on God’s deliverance of the Jewish people from Egypt.” Toby Janicki
+
“Although the imagery to “celebrate the festival” is clearly metaphorical, it could really only be understood by readers who were in fact literally celebrating Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread, complete with some level of abstention from leaven.” Toby Janicki
Happy Passover! (jewishvoice.wordpress.com)
we as people of faith can celebrate being saved from certain death when we apply the blood of Yeshua our Messiah to our lives and repent of those sins that kept us in our own personal bondage.To help you celebrate this wonderful occasion, we have put together some Passover resources so that you can be educated and inspired by the beauty of this holy feast.

Category:

Bible Quotes, Jesus Christ, Jeshua Messiah

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Uncovering wrong sayings and unbiblical teachings

What change, big or small, would you like your blog to make in the world? In Christendom there are lots of denominations but oh such a few, keep really to the biblical teachings. A lot of churches claim they are the only right church. In case they would follow all the teachings of Christ Jesus, […]

Those grafted in again

The apostle Paul wrote about the dispersion, the dispersed House of Israel. They had been “without covenant“, but Paul was sent out to recover them. So they were “grafted in again“ (Romans 11/23). Or, Grafted back in“. If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been […]

Cart ministry is back

Rob Mac wonders when the door to door will return? He wrote this a while back, and went sharing it again. Many Jehovah’s Witnesses hate the door to door ministry, although they won’t readily admit it. Many Jehovah’s Witnesses have developed ‘creative’ ways of counting their time doing this work, and many strategies for avoiding actually […]

Religion and believers #14 Church and state

Constantine wanted unity in his realm, and his call in 325 C.E. for a council of his bishops at Nicaea, located in the Eastern, Greek-speaking domain of his empire, across the Bosporus from the new city of Constantinople was in a certain way his goal to achieve some agreement by which many could live. Constantine […]

Religion and believers #13 Superstition, misunderstanding and hatred leading up to the Nicene Creed

Superstition, misunderstanding and hatred caused the Christians trouble for many generations, and governmental repression they had to suffer occasionally, as a result of popular disturbances. No systematic effort was made by the imperial authorities to put an end to the movement until the reign of the Roman emperor (249–251) who fought the Gothic invasion of […]

Hittite Empire’s Enigmatic “Wish Stone” Continues to Puzzle Archaeologists

Beth Snider on the Odd News Show writes about a mysterious large green stone discovered at the Temple complex in Hattusa, the capital of the ancient Hittite Empire, standing on a raised platform and measures 215 by 140 feet (65 by 42 metres). The Hattusa Green Stone is a roughly cubic block of nephrite standing […]

What Happened to Cain in the Bible?

Did Lamech kill Cain? What happened to Cain in the Bible? In the Book of Genesis, we are told about Cain’s birth, his violent act of fratricide and his subsequent exile. We learn that he married and had descendants, but the Bible is strangely mute about his death. How did Cain die? If he did […]

The first two brothers of the first family in history

Read Elie Wiesel’s essay on Cain and Abel in the Bible as it originally appeared in Bible Review, February 1998. First republished in BHD June 1, 2015. Cain and Abel: The first two brothers of the first family in history. The only brothers in the world. The saddest, the most tragic. Why do they hold […]

Op 14 en 15 Nisan geen dienstvoorziening door broeder Marcus

Op maandag 22 april zal onze broeder, Marcus Ampe ter operatie in het ziekenhuis Gasthuisberg te Leuven verblijven. Hierdoor zal hij in de ecclesiae van Brussel-Leuven, Anderlecht, Mons-Lille de avonddienst voor 14 Nisan niet kunnen voorgaan. Wij hopen dat onze leden in hun kleine kringen het vergaderen niet zullen nalaten en Jezus laatste avondmaal in […]

Vain Traditons

“In vain do they worship Me, teaching as teachings the commands of men.” (Matthew 15:9) SPECIALS SPECIALS SPECIALS SPECIALS Every 10 You Order You Will Get 5 Extra Free Copies. Greetings Supporters, If you are not aware of the existence of this book, it would do you service, to all those who sense something not […]

A multi-front war between Israel and her surrounding, nearby enemies

The Israeli military has established a new mountaineer unit tasked with carrying out operations across the country’s hostile borders with Lebanon and Syria amid worsening tensions over the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. “We are in a multi-front war—Lebanon, Syria, Judea and Samaria, and Gaza, and also farther away,” IDF Chief of the General […]

US strikes Houthi missiles in Yemen and Iran-backed militia in Iraq

The Times, January 24, 2024 Event Two cargo ships sailing close to the Gulf of Aden came under attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Wednesday night, the White House said — forcing the US navy to intervene as the Iran-backed militia intensified its maritime assault on commercial shipping. Houthi forces fired three anti-ship ballistic […]

Are we witnessing the opening salvos of World War 3?

The Independent, January 19, 2024 Event It is hard to escape the impression of a theatre of military conflict that is inexorably growing – to the east and the south, if not yet to the north and the west. And if you look backwards, rather than forwards, the Hamas massacres of Israelis on 7 October, and Israel’s all-out […]

Russia, Turkey, Iran Condemn Attack on Yemeni Houthis

VOA, January 12, 2024 Event Thursday’s retaliatory attacks by U.S. and British forces on Iranian-backed Houthis inside Yemen have prompted support and condemnation from the international community. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani “strongly slammed the military strikes by the U.S. and Britain,” in a statement, calling it “an arbitrary move” that “clearly breached Yemen’s […]

Britain and US launch airstrikes on Houthi targets

The Times, January 12, 2024 Event Explosions were heard across Yemen late on Thursday night as British and US forces launched strikes on Houthi targets, after the Iranian-backed group ignored warnings to stop attacking ships in the Red Sea. Rishi Sunak, who had authorised the military action hours earlier and briefed ministers in an emergency […]

Climate change: ‘Uncharted territory’ fears after record hot March

BBC, April 9, 2024 Event Climate change could move “into uncharted territory” if temperatures don’t fall by the end of the year, a leading scientist has told the BBC. The warning came as data showed March was the world’s warmest March on record, extending the run of monthly temperature records to 10 in a row. […]

Being there for someone else

°If you really want to be there for someone else and help mentally recover, love him or her without an agenda. Unconditional. °

Er zijn voor een ander

° Als je er echt graag voor een ander wil zijn en wil helpen mentaal te herstellen, heb hem of haar dan lief zonder agenda. Onvoorwaardelijk. °

Nothing wrong with you

° Remember for the difficult moments that there is nothing wrong with you. In essence, you are just a beautiful person. It’s time to find this in yourself again and really believe it. °

Be willing to try new things

° ”Be willing to try new things! If you don’t, how will you know what you enjoy? There’s so much value in challenging yourself to do something different. You may not stick with an activity, but the point is you tried it!” — Craig Melvin, news anchor of Today, co-host of 3rd Hour of Today, […]

Agora A meeting place for Bible students, containing the writings of George Booker and many other Christadelphians.
Belgian Christadelphians English Google site of the Belgian Christadelphians
Belgische Brüder und Schwestern in Christus oder Christadelphians Deutsche Seite der Belgischen Brüder in Christus
Belgische Broeders in Christus Nederlandstalige WordPress site van de Belgische Broeders in Christus
Belgische Christadelphians Nederlandstalige artikelen van de Belgische Christadelphians of Broeders in Christus
Belgische Vrije Christadelphians / Belgian Free Christadelphians – Old Google Main Website Interesting pages of the Brethren in Christ giving answers on many subjects. – Boeiende bladzijden en Hoofdwebsite van de Belgische Christadelphians of Broeders in Christus.
Bijbelvorser Flemish Bibleresearcher – Vlaams Bijbelvorser
Broeders in Christus Vlaamse Broeders in Christus of Christadelphians
C4All Christ For All – Presenting ways to find Christ in your life
C4U Christ For you & Christadelphians for you
Christadelphes Belges
Christadelphia Association of the Christadelphian community – Vereniging van de Christadelphians
Christadelphia – City of Christ Community of true followers of Christ
Christadelphia Worldwide Worldwide Bible-based community of believers
Christadelphian Ecclesia The Church community in Belgium of the Christadelphians. – Kerkgemeenschap van de Broeders in Christus.
Christadelphian World News and thoughts from the Christadelphian Worldpointview. – Een kijk op het wereldgebeuren vanuit het standpunt van de wereld der Christadelphians.
Christadelphians on Facebook Facebookaccount, a place to connect
Christadelphians on Tumblr Short notices from Christadelphians
Dawn Christadelphians Living and preaching First Century Christianity
De Weg naar God
Exploring the Bible 26-lesson postal/web correspondence course working following the consistent message of the Bible through from Genesis to Revelation
Glad Tidings Monthly magazine to encourage the study of the Bible as God’s inspired message to mankind
God vinden
Hoop tot Leven – Redding in Christus Betreft de Hoop die wij kunnen hebben in de Redding door Jezus Christus.
Messiah for all Presentation of Jesus Christ the Messiah, showing the necessity of him for us
Op zoek naar God
Our World
Relating to God (Weebly.com)
Relating to God (WordPress Blog)
Stepping Toes A provocative Christadelphian website – Een durvende in vraag steller
The Biblesite To encourage the reading and study – and therefore the knowledge – of God’s Word

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Posts tagged ‘Will of God’

Matthew 18:12-14 – Searching for the Lost Sheep Who Stumbled

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Luke 3:1, 2 – Factual Data

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Ups and downs

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False apostles and boasters

Being there for each other

Popularity trap

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Servant of the Master Teacher

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All right, All good teachers

Searching God’s Word

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Comparison and attitude

Man of God

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Small but strong and upright, belonging to God

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The God Creator the Most High His son

The one who served God His purpose

United by bloodshed

Our chief end

Faithful to the Father

Glory and heaviness of action

A build up of character

A reliable witness to God His power and His ways

How much glory to the one who gave his life

Coming to Jesus giving him the honour due to him

Not alone in our believes and glorification

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