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I noticed while going through all the discussion groups listed, that BC does not have a library of recommended reading material which, along with God's word "the Bible" might be of benefit to other believers. If I have missed something, please let me know.
If you have suggestions of Christian materials which might benefit another person on this site, please let us know the name of the book/publication, the author/publisher, and where this might be obtained.
Bibles come in numerous translations but are all the Word of God. What Bible do you use, and why is it meaningful to you?
In setting up this site, I would like to let everyone know that they would please stay to the topic intended for the use of others who may be in need of information.
God Bless all who respond, and thank you.
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Something to think about.
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Sep 27, 2009 4:30 pm
342 Views
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DID YOU KNOW?
As you walk up the steps to the
building which houses the U.S Supreme Court
you can see near the top of the building a row
of the world's law givers and each one is
facing one in the middle who is facing forward
with a full frontal view ... it is Moses and he
is holding the Ten Commandments!
DID YOU KNOW?
As you enter the Supreme Court courtroom, the
Two huge oak doors have the Ten Commandments
Engraved on each lower portion of each door.
DID YOU KNOW?
As you sit inside the courtroom, you can see
The wall, right above where the Supreme Court
judges sit, a display of the Ten Commandments!
DID YOU KNOW?
There are Bible verses etched in stone all
over the Federal Buildings and Monuments in
Washington , D.C.
DID YOU KNOW?
James Madison, the fourth president, known as
'The Father of Our Constitution' made the
following statement:
' We have staked the whole of all our political
institutions upon the capacity of mankind for
self-government, upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to
the Ten Commandments of God.'
DID YOU KNOW?
Every session of Congress begins with a prayer
by a paid preacher, whose salary has been paid
by the taxpayer since 1777.
DID YOU KNOW?
Fifty-two of the 55 founders of the
Constitution were members of the established
orthodox churches in the colonies.
DID YOU KNOW?
Thomas Jefferson worried that the Courts would
overstep their authority and instead of
interpreting the law would begin making law
an oligarchy
the rule of few over many.
How then, have we gotten to the point that
everything we have done for 220 years in this
country is now suddenly wrong and
unconstitutional?
Lets put it around the world and let the world
see and remember what this great country was
built on.
It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God.
Therefore, it is very hard to understand
why there is such a mess about having the Ten
Commandments on display or 'In God We Trust'
on our money and having God in the Pledge of
Allegiance. Why don't we just tell the other
14% to Sit Down and SHUT UP!!!
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Problems Galore
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Sep 26, 2009 3:37 pm
375 Views
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Psalm 55:6-7
"And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah." KJB
This Psalm of David is literally a Psalm of "complaint" and gives us great insight into what he was going through. What with having to dodge the king and his murderous rampage and many other things, he looked for a way to escape, to run away from, or even to "...like a Dove..." and "...fly away..." and "...remain in the wilderness."
Many years earlier, the prophet Jonah (his name literally means Dove), tried that very tactic and look what it did for him: swallowed by the great whale and was there for three days and three nights. (Jonah 1:3-15). If we are to take David's and Jonah's example, it does not pay to run from your problems, because usually they just follow you any way. AMEN
Then I want you to notice what David did in his complaining to the Lord. (Psalm 55:9-15). He tried to berate them and complain to the Lord at: "Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice" (Psalm 55:17). The words, "...pray, and cry aloud..." could also be translated as "complain and mourn", so if we rewrite this verse it would say: "Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I complain and mourn: and he shall hear my voice." However, in verse nine we see David's actual motive towards those prayers, for we read: "Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues: for I have seen violence and strife in the city." (vs. 9). And then David starts in belittling them by saying: "Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it. Wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from her streets." (vss. 10-11). But these are not enemies which David is complaining about but rather those who are his supposedly "friends" for we read: "For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company." (vss. 11-15). These friends of his were out to destroy David probably because they wanted to get on the good side of King Saul, the one who had tried to impale David with a spear at least twice before because of jealousy. Of course, that is just speculation on my part. But, the apostle Paul tells us this: "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." (Romans 12:19), which is actually a quote taken from an Old Testament Scripture in Deuteronomy 32:35 KJB, "To me belongeth vengeance , and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste."
But when David thought all was lost and the Lord would not give him an answer, and he would find the rest that he so diligently sought after, for we read: "Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." (vs. 22). Jesus said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30) KJB. What better person to lay your burdens on than the King of King's, and the Lord of Lord's. David had the same Lord as we do today and his problems are no more worse than those we face today, even though at the time David thought otherwise. Of course, we might not have someone out to kill us like David did but maybe to us it would cause the same burdens as David had. Notice what David said in the very last verse of that Psalm: "But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee." David knew that in the end his God would have the final say about what happens. The great thing about it is this, we have the same or better knowledge about what the end would be like because David did not have the end of the story as we have in our Bible, God's final word to mankind.
There has been over 2,400 years of silence from the Lord, the 400 years between Malachi and the New Testament, and the last 2,000 years. But, the time will come when the very words of the Lord will be broadcast over the entire world and all will know what He wants and what He is going to do and that time is rapidly approaching. Are you prepared for that time to come? If not, why not?
If you are troubled and heavy laden with problems, give them to the Lord to handle. He can do a much better job of fixing them than you can ever think of doing and everything that He does will be perfect of that you can rest assured. The way to actually deal with your problems is not to flee from them but rather to face them head on and to give them to the Lord: Peter said: "Casting all your care upon the Him; for He careth for you" (1 Peter 5 ) KJB. If you run from them they will be there when you get back or you will take them with you, you cannot escape your problems. Jonah learned the lesson the hard way because I know that I would not want to be swallowed by a large fish and left in it's belly for three days. Can you imagine the stench and all the other stuff that the fish swallowed before and after you? Yucccckkk.
What about you, are you trying to run from your problems? If so, give them to God instead and watch what He does with them.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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The Good Shepherd
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Sep 25, 2009 12:53 pm
396 Views
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Psalm 23:1
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want." KJB
This one chapter in the Bible is one of the most loved and quoted chapters in the entire Bible. Along with John 10:1-30 we have one of the greatest examples when it comes to the security of the believer. The 23rd Psalm is a beautiful picture of Christ and John 10 literally has Christ telling us that He is the Great Shepherd. He is the "good shepherd" which "giveth His life for the sheep", which He did on the cross of Calvary. However, He did it not only for the sheep which knoweth Him, but for the entire world. If we could understand these two chapters we can understand how much God loves us and willingly stood and gave His life for this world, this world which rejects Him over and over again. Humanly speaking, when man is rejected they want nothing more to do with those who reject them, but speaking Godly we see that is when God tries even the more to bring those who reject Him into the fold.
During the time of David we find that the shepherds would take the flock of sheep out into the country side to eat and when it came time to take and pen the flock back up they would do so and then usually sleep across the entrance to keep out those who would harm the flock. After all, sheep are not the smartest animal in the world. Therefore, when one understands how the shepherd protects the flock it is easier to accept that the security of the believer is there for all who accept the Great Shepherd.
Within the 23rd Psalm we find that all six verses are fine examples of God's testimony towards the providing and protecting the believer in Christ. And in the 10th chapter of John we find that the word "shepherd" is used six times and each time it is used gives us another picture of God's work when it comes to providing the protection for the believer. I hazard to guess, this is not a mere coincidence, but is set this way in order to show us how much the Old Testament and the New Testament are interconnected. Without the Old Testament we would not be able to understand much in the New and vice-versa. There are also six other references in the New Testament in regards to the shepherd.
David, in the 23rd Psalm, gives us a very personal aspect when he uses the personal pronouns such as "I", "me", "my", etc. He lets us know that we have also the same Good Shepherd and we to can have no need to want of anything because He will provide all our needs according to His riches in glory. (Philippians 4:19) KJB. He makes us lie down in those very same green pastures, speaking also of His providing our sustenance to live. (John 10:9) KJB. And He calms the stormy seas of our lives and gives to us the still waters. (Matthew 8:27; Mark 4:41; and Luke 8:25) KJB. When anyone receives Christ, their souls are restored or as our Lord said, they are born-again. (John 3:3). If we listen to the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, we will be lead in the "paths of righteouness for His name's sake." We all walk through many valleys of the shadow of death and we need not fear what man can do to us because our souls are already in the hands of God, who gave His life that we might have that eternal security, because as we go through this life, as His child, Christ Jesus is with us. We, as His children, has the comfort of knowing that God loves us because when His "rod and staff" is brought to bear we are reminded that when God does chasten us, He is showing His love towards us. That is why it is so important that we, as God's children, understand that when He uses that rod and staff to correct us when we do wrong, we could do no less with our own children. The world does not comprehend this and never will until our Lord is their Lord and Savior. Our lives are bountiful and even though our enemies would seek to destroy us, the Lord provides what we need when we need it because He prepares the table while we are yet buffeted about by those enemies, and the entire world is our enemy. As David said, the Lord "anointest my [our] head with oil" a picture of salvation and that the soul is healed completely because of it. Our cups definitely over flow with the many blessings that He gives to those who love Him and seek after Him. While we are yet here on this earth, His "goodness and mercy shall follow" us "all the days of my [our] life" and we shall "dwell in the house of the LORD for ever."
The word "sheep" is used 17 times in John 10 with this grand theme of His loving us so much that He died for us and when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior, that salvation will be for all eternity and can never be taken away. Now, the number 17 is repeatedly crops up throughout our Bible and each and every time it comes up, it is referring to the security of the believer or that of the nation of Israel if it is in the Old Testament. For example, we find Paul in the 8th chapter of his Epistle to the church at Rome listing 17 things that can never "separate us from the love of God" (eternal security). (Romans 8:35-39) KJB. This in only one example but it is the example which is used the most to show that we are eternally secure in Christ when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior, no matter what man can do to us.
Now, this 23rd Psalm which speaks of David's security in His Lord, which by the way is the very same Lord that we have, contains this great promise and testimony. As David said, we can say "Surely Christ's love, His goodness and His mercy shall follow me as long as I live, and when I die I will live in His presence within His house for all eternity." What a great and wonderful promise we have in Christ when we learn to accept Him and then live for Him while yet here on this earth. When we learn this, we are joyful beyond measure. Now, having joy and being happy are not the same thing because we can have joy in the Lord and yet not have happiness because of our circumstances while here on this earth.
Take heed in what David said and you to shall say the same thing as he did.
Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Tears in Heaven
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Sep 24, 2009 2:47 pm
445 Views
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Isaiah 25:8
"He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it." KJB
Some will try to tell us that there are no tears in heaven but there are at least three places in our Bible which literally speaks of our tears and how God will wipe those tears away. Our text is the first place in the Bible which speaks about this, the wiping away of our tears off all faces. What a great promise.
This text is quoted in the New Testament by Paul, he said, (even though it does not speak about the tears portion but it is in regards to the second coming of the Lord): "Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55) KJB. The graves will be emptied on earth and death itself will die when Christ comes again! But there will still be those tears in heaven, because He could not wipe them from our eyes if there were not tears.
We read about the tears portion from the Apostle John in the book of Revelation and we read: "For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." (Revelation 7:17; 21:4) KJB. These tears, that He will wipe away from our eyes, will be no more but they are still in heaven, but once He wipes our tears from our eyes, we will never cry again. All three references to our tears being wiped away are in regards to the second coming of Christ. "...[who] shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." Now, the last one is actually in New Jerusalem, "...God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
The question has been asked, why should there be tears when death has finally been wiped out completely? Our Bible does not speak clearly on this subject but I believe that probable these tears are in regards to those lost opportunities to speak to others about the salvation which comes through Jesus Christ, especially with our own loved ones. But, once those tears are wiped away and when we are in His presence, He will wipe those tears away and they will be no more, AMEN. Our Bible does say though, in the new earth, we shall "look upon" the lost (Isaiah 66:22, 24) and that some of the saved "shall suffer loss" when their works during their physical life, do not "abide" in the judgment and Paul speaks of this in his epistle to the church at Corinth, (1 Corinthians 3:13-15). However, even though these tears will be shed, God will wipe them from their eyes, and there will not be any more tears nor even crying anymore. AMEN. I know, that in my life, there are those times when I did not speak about the Lord and His gracious salvation to some who came into and out of my life after I received Christ myself. It still amazes me, that after over twenty one, almost twenty two years of my Christian walk, that I still feel very emotional and shed a few tears over those who I am able to lead to the Lord and I know that is He who lives within me that is over joyed with their salvation. But there are some with whom the Lord caused a sense of needing to speak to someone and I did not do it, it is those times which I might shed tears in heaven because of my disobedience to the Holy Spirit and His nudging me. I have asked the Lord for forgiveness for those times.
What about you, do you speak about the Lord to others? If not, why not? As you came to the Lord because of someone speaking about Him to you, why won't you speak to others about Him? We are all commanded to spread the Gospel of Christ so that others might learn and be saved. God will wipe away those tears of regret and we shall never shed tears again because there will not be any more sorrow, nor even pain for that matter in heaven. Praise God for His great promise.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Son of Man Son of God
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Sep 23, 2009 9:27 am
267 Views
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Matthew 8:20
"And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head." KJB
In our Bible we find two descriptions of Jesus as being both the Son of God and the Son of man, which He was the only one capable of fulfilling both roles. Jesus taught clearly that He was the Son of God and that we need to think of Him in both His roles, as God coming in the flesh, and as one who came to experience being fully man at the same time. We read this: "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities ; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin." (Hebrews 4:15) KJB. He couldn't be touched with the feeling of our infirmities because He was feeling them for Himself. He felt pain, He felt anger, He felt love, He felt sadness and the rest of human feelings, which we all go through while here on this earth.
We read the phrase, "...son of man..." first in the book of Numbers: "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man , that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" (Numbers 23:19) KJB. Notice in this one verse, being about the Messiah to come, brings out both His being man and also God, who cannot lie and does not need to repent of anything. We find that the phrase "...son of man..." is used 196 times in our Bible, and most of them refer to God in some way or another, bringing forth God's attributes as the son of man. We read in Psalms this: "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man , that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour." (Psalm 8:4-5) KJB. This one reference is about the Messiah coming to earth, becoming man, but yet He is still God come in the flesh. After a few verses in which we find what He is in control of, and then the last verse of Psalm 84, we read: "O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!" (Psalm 8:1, 9) KJB. Both words which are translated as "LORD" here is the word "Jehovah" which literally means "self-existant or eternal God". We cannot help but think about the New Testament verses when we read these words in Psalms, which says: "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11) KJB.
We learn by reading the New Testament that God had to come to earth, to live a sinless life, and die for the sins of all mankind in order for us to be saved. He came to seek and to save that which was lost, the souls of mankind. John wrote: "Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world." (1 John 4:2-3) KJB. As perfect and sinless man, He could represent us before the Father, and finally, because a perfect blood sacrifice was required to atone for the sins of man, Christ went to the cross, shedding His perfect blood, making the payment for man's sins, all of them (past-present-future). Some would try to tell us that because of this doctrine we have full license to sin all the more, which is true, but they do not understand, that once we are saved, we do not want to sin. In fact, we go out of our way not to sin, not even the appearance of sin. If someone was to look at you, would you reflect Jesus' perfection back at them or would they still think you are sinning because of what they see? Remember, our Bible tells us, "Abstain from all appearances of evil" (1 Thessalonians 5:22) KJB. That means, if someone would even think you are not doing the things they think a Christian should do, they would say, "What a hypocrite that person is! They say they are Christian but look at them, look at what they are doing." Even though you might be doing everything you can not to sin, they might not see that you are. People will see what they want to see. If they look for sin, they will find it in something you do or don't do. So, remember to not put yourself in the position where someone would say you are not who you say you are, a child of God.
Satan and his cohorts recognized Jesus as the Son of God (Matthew 4:3; 8:28-29) KJB. But not once did Satan recognize Jesus as the son of man! This attitude is reflected today in the so called "New Age" movement, and also the so called "pantheistic"religions of today. Pantheism is the doctrine which equates God with the forces and the laws of the Universe. They mock Christ and glibly speak of Christ as a spirit which might possibly come on many and very bitterly refuses to recognize Him as fully man as well as being the Son of God, coming as God in the flesh.
To end this, I cannot help but to realize, that He only became the Son of man at His incarnation, but that He will remain the Son of man for all eternity. John saw Him in His glory, as we will see Him in the same glory when we are with Him, for we will see Him as the "...one like unto the Son of man..." (Revelation 1:13;14:14) KJB. We will see as He is, AMEN! What a glorious day that will be.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Making Your Calling sure
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Sep 22, 2009 11:18 am
255 Views
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(There is a message here for a specific member, and I hope God will bring him here to read it.)
2 Peter 1:10
"Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:" KJB
The calling of God in our lives is very important and it is by His grace only that we are called into His glorious Kingdom. This calling is not by works, lest anyone should boast, but rather is by His grace and His grace alone. (Ephesians 2:8-10) KJB. In our text for today, we are told "....to make your calling..." sure. So what does it mean to be called in the first place? There might be several reasons that we are called but the first one is the most important. We are called to salvation first of all. There are many more who reject this calling than there are those who accept it but God still calls each and every person in this world. This calling is through the Holy Spirit speaking us through the small still voice from within. Making sure that we are the children of God is the most important calling in which we are urged to do but there is one other calling which is important in our lives also but not as important as being called to salvation and that is the calling on our lives to serve Him with all our heart mind and soul.
It is very easy to mistake this call to service and to go against what God wants us to do for Him. We might mistake His calling and think that He called us to become a leader of His church when all He wanted for us at the time was to help clean the house of God because we were not ready to do otherwise. So Peter, in this our text, tells us to make sure that this "...calling and election sure...". We might all be called to salvation but not all are called to lead a church. The first thing that we need to do to make sure that we are truly called of God is that we need to truly love God with all our hearts (Romans 8:2 and this love is not to be superficial, but, as I said before, with all the heart, mind, and soul. (Matthew 22:37) KJB. And once we are called, we need to "...walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love..." (Ephesians 4:1-2). There will be times in which we fail the tests of life but we need to make sure that we "...examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith: prove your own selves..." (2 Corinthians 13:5) KJB. The hardest thing that we can do is to have "longsuffering" towards one another because the natural man does not have the patience to do this. God is longsuffering towards us because of the sins we committed against Him from the moment we became His through salvation because we are still in the flesh and the flesh is weak even though our souls are saved, our bodies are still in sin. We are sill sinners, yet saved through His grace.
As I have said before, the first thing we are called unto is salvation, but we are also called to do a particular service for Him and this service is to His glory.. Some, like Paul, were called to be apostles. (Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:1; 2 Corinthians 1:1 and six other books which are penned by Paul) KJB. Even though the office of apostle died out when the last apostle, John, died on the island of Patmos in the later part of the first century. Some seem to think that this office was given over to the church but the evidence of this is not found in our Bible. There are only two offices which were given to the church, the office of pastor and the office of deacon. There are two Greek words which tell us about these two offices and they are "diakoneo" (deacon) and the word "poimen" (pastor). The word "poimen" is translated as pastor and means to be a shepherd and the word "diakoneo", translated as deacon, literally means to be an attendant. However, there are not just two ways in which we are called to serve the Lord. We might be called to make sure the trash is taken out for that matter any other means in which to serve God. When we serve the people of God we are serving God it is as simple as that.
There were those, in the time of Paul, who were called to be slaves, for we read: "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant. Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men. Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God." (1 Corinthians 7:20-24) KJB. Slavery was abolished in the United States after the Civil War but there are places in the world where slavery is still seen, even in these modern times. It will take the Lord coming back to abolish this sick practice.
The Apostle Paul, said this, as should we: "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14) KJB. As our text says, we are to make our "...calling and election sure..." and the only way to do that is to get into His word and pray about what the Lord wants of each and every one of us. He calls us to salvation, and then calls us to service. We each are to serve God in our unique way. Only you can do what you do, for He gave to you gifts to use for His service. If you fail to use your gift for Him, then you fail to heed His calling on your life to serve Him in the only way in which you are called to do. Seek Him and learn of your duty to Him.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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The Eyes of the Lord
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Sep 21, 2009 2:57 pm
311 Views
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2 Chronicles 16:9
"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars." KJB
We cannot help but find that God is in essence a Spirit and the apostle John tells us so in chapter 4 and verse 24 and because of that He is omnipresent (everywhere present), therefore, one cannot help but ask, "How can God have eyes, when He is Spirit?" However, our Bible speaks frequently on the subject of God and His eyes. The phrase "...the eyes of the Lord..." in itself occurs no less than 21 times. So, if it is used that many times we cannot help but "know" that God has eyes and those eyes can see you and I no matter where we are in this world or for that matter in the entire universe. Now, because He has eyes, and sees us at all times, why is it we try to hide things from Him? We can't, that is the point.
Even though, at times this doctrine of God's eyes, is hard to understand in one way but in another sense it makes all kinds of sense when we take into account that God is also omnipotent and omniscient in His nature as well as being omnipresent. In our understanding of the eye and how it works we have made leaps and bounds this past century, but we read in His word this: "He that formed the eye, shall he not see?" (Psalm 94:9) KJB. He formed the eye, so why do we think He cannot see us when we sin? We have understood the eye and how it functions in the physical realm, but the Spiritual eye is another thing. I cannot totally understand the idea of God's Spiritual Eyes, nevertheless, "....the eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good" (Proverbs 15:3) KJB. We are limited to the physical realm in the use of our eyes, but God's eyes see not only in the physical sense but also in the Spiritual sense. He knows those that are His because He can see deep into our souls and see the soul as it is, either saved or unsaved, therefore, we cannot fool God.
Read what the Prophet Zechariah has to say: "For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth." (Zechariah 4:10) KJB. God can not only see the large things but He can also see the "small things", why? because His eyes "...run to and fro through the whole earth." KJB. This phrase is used the first time, that is "...the eyes of the Lord..." is used first when He sees "...the wickedness of man was great..." and that "...the earth was filled with violence..." (Genesis 6:5, 11) KJB. But, we also read that God is able to see the condition of Noah's heart and "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord" (Genesis 6: KJB. I can imagine that God's eyes are seeing the very same thing today because man's wickedness is great in the earth today and this earth is filled with all kinds of violence. Of course one would argue, when was not the earth in these two conditions, wicked and violent? There has never been a time when that is not true and it might be that today, because of our method of being able to report things in an instant, and broadcast it into the air waves and spread that news instantly over the entire earth, that we see more an more violence and wickedness. And because God was able to see into the very heart of Noah, that His entire family was saved, eight souls, on the terrible day of God's judgment of man via the world wide flood. And if we had the eyes of God, we would see the evidence of the flood no matter where we look, but because we do not have those all penetrating eyes we look at the forest and fail to see the trees.
Now, the last use of the phrase, "...the eyes of the Lord..." is last found in Peter's epistle, and he is doing nothing more than quoting Psalm 34:15 when he said: "For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil" (1 Peter 3:12) KJB. There is one doctrine that we should learn and that is that the eyes of God are upon us no matter where we are in the world and no matter what the condition of our heart truly is. We can hide from man but we cannot hide from God. Jonah found that out the hard way, in the belly of the whale. We read in Genesis this: "Thou God seest me..." (16:13), therefore, when we learn this one great thing, we would conduct not only our physical self in respect of Him but also that our spiritual self be found in Him. We cannot fool God, so why try? God is watching us with great deep concern and cares about us sometimes more than we do. Let us not forget that God's eyes go to and fro over the entire earth looking for those who would go and preach His gospel unto a dying world, a world that will be judged because of their sins and great wickedness. Are you one of those? I hope so, because we "all" are called to preach the gospel to those who are dying and going to a
Christ-less hell.
What about you, does the eyes of God see that the righteousness of Christ is in you and that you are His child? If not, then isn't it about time.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Called According to His Purpose
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Sep 21, 2009 1:14 pm
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Romans 8:28
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." KJB
This great promise has been sought out by Christians throughout the centuries since it was written by Paul to comfort and strength during those times when they were and are in trials, seemingly, beyond their measure. Our God will not give us anything, nor allow anything to happen to us that goes beyond our ability to endure, that is His promise to us who are "the called according to His purpose." Notice that this promise, our text for today, is written specifically to "the called", that is to Christians. We are all called out to worship Him and to learn of Him, which by the way is the word in which we get church from, and that is the word ekklesia (the called out). The best way to describe these "called" out, is to think of them as "them that love God". There are many who go to "church" and do not love the one who called them to that church, because, mainly, they do not know who He is. They go to church to make an appearance, to let the world see them going. These people, might have been called, or directed to go to church but they do not know why they go, other than to say, "See, I go to church, aren't I spiritual." And there are those who go to church in order to receive their brand of salvation. But, let us get back to the "real" called out ones, the true Christians.
There are many words which can describe these true Christians. There are two Greek words in the New Testament which have been translated as "called" or "calling". They are, respectfully, "kletos" (called), and "klesis" (calling). We have talked about another Greek word, "ekklesia", meaning "the called out ones). In other words, the true church, is a church which is composed of men, women, and children who have been called out of the world and it's system, coming together in a local visible body of believers and have fulfilled their purpose by being the called out ones.
Some seem to think that the church was started at Pentecost, but I do not hold that view. I know that the doctrine of when the church started is not important for salvations sake, but let me give you my reasons for thinking that the church was started by Christ during His earthly ministry, before He died on the cross of Calvary. Remembering that the definition of church is the "called out" from among the world and it's system. When did Jesus first call out those who were to follow Him? The word "ekklesia" is used 115 times in the New Testament, so it is a pretty good bet that it was used before He went to the cross, died, was buried, and rose again the third day. The following day that Jesus came down out of the wilderness at the time of His 40 day fast, what did He do? Did He not "call" the disciples out and told them to "follow" Him for He would make them fishers of men, for they, Andrew and then Simon Peter and then the rest of the Apostles were "called out" from the world to follow Jesus. It was Jesus who directed them to go forth two at a time, to preach the coming of the kingdom of God, before His death. He also sent them forth with the gospel, that is His death, burial, and resurrection, after He rose from the dead. But He first called them out before His death, to follow Him. This group of "called out ones" were to hold gatherings or church services on many occasions. He gave to the disciples what we call today "communion" and even Baptism (which are the only two ordinances that the church was given by the Lord Himself), both before He died, was buried, and rose again the third day. Now, some would say, "Isn't that splitting hairs to think that the church started before Pentecost? In a way, yes, but what does a church do today, when we gather? Do we not learn of Him? Yes! Do we not gather to lift each other up when we gather together? Yes! Do we not exhort one another? Yes! Now, did the disciples learn from Jesus directly, whereas we learn of Him from our Bible? Did they not lift each other up? Yes! Did they not exhort one another? Yes! So you see, we do the same things as we gather together as the body of called out ones and do the very same things they did when they gathered before Jesus died on the cross of Calvary. The only difference is that we do these things after His resurrection and ascension and they did them before He left this earth to stand at the right hand of God, to make intercession for us, "the called out ones", with the Father.
Paul said, "Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called" (1 Corinthians 1:26). There was no intelligence test given, nor was there a physical exam to the original "called out" believers, nor was there an evaluation as to how we socialize with others, so why is it we apply these today? God, through the Holy Spirit, has called you and me out from among the world in order to go forth and make disciples of others, who have been called by the Holy Spirit to be saved, who in turn, do the very same thing. No one is exempt from this calling, all have been called out and all have been given the same "commission", (Matthew 28:18-20) KJB, to go forth, preaching the gospel so that others might become the "called out ones".. God called us out for His purpose and not for our own.
Remember what Paul said to Timothy: "[God] hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (2 Timothy 1:9) KJB.
This "call" of God was for His purpose and by His grace, for it is grace which we have been saved and not by our works which we have done. (Ephesians 2:8-10) KJB. And not forgetting the next verse when Paul says: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (vs. 10). And then Paul said to the church at Thessalonica: "Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thessalonians 2:14) KJB.
It is no wonder, that we can say and know with such conviction that Jesus will make "all things work together for good" on behalf of all those who "are the called according to His purpose." Those of you, who love God and are the called, should be what He wants you to be and to do what He has called you to do, go forth and preach the gospel, making disciples who follow Christ.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Delighting in the Law
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Sep 18, 2009 8:18 pm
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Psalm 1:2
"But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night." KJB
Some Christians feel that the "...law of the LORD...." is to harsh and very burdensome and fail to keep the law of God because of it. They rejoice because the Bible tells us that we are set free from the law but they have failed to understand what Paul was speaking about. However, the fact is that the law should be a rejoicing matter and our delight should be in it because without the Law of the Lord let's us see how much of a sinner that we are. Paul said: "For I delight in the law of God after the inward man" (Romans 7:22) KJB, and then again we read: "The law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good" (Romans 7:12) KJB. David even testified this: "The law if the Lord is perfect, converting [or restoring] the soul" (Psalm 19) KJB. Notice that both Paul and David loves the law of God because it shows them what type of people they truly are.
We read about the 119th Psalm and it's having 25 very distinctive testimonies and the benefits of the law which is speaks of. We read this: "Blessed [happy] are [those] who walk in the law of the Lord" (vs. 1). And then we read: "Great peace have they which love thy law" (vs. 165). and then again: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law" (vs. 1, and then we read: "Thy law is my delight" (vs. 77). If we are to read the entire 119th Psalm we would read of David's love for God's Word and why he loved it. As I said before, the law was given to show man that they cannot keep it in the first place. Remember, Adam and Eve only had one rule or law to keep and they blew it even with that one law.
Christ, did not say that the law was revoked because He came. The law was not set aside because we read something of this in the New Testament: for Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." (Matthew 5:17-1 KJB. Some seem to think that the law was given to the Jews only and they are the only ones it pertains to but that is not true, for we read this in the Old Testament: "One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you" (Exodus 12:49) KJB. The "stranger" that is spoken of here is the Gentile and the one who is homeborn, is the Jew, therefore, that one verse tells us that the law is for all peoples. God's law covers all aspects of sin in the world.
There is only one thing that the law cannot do, save people from their sin. The law points out sin but does not save the sinner. We read this: "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:10) KJB. Remember, there are more than the Ten Commandments contained within the law of God. There are listed in the Old and New Testament some six hundred and thirteen commandments and, even though man should be able to keep the Ten alone, the rest of the six hundred and three show them that they are sinners. James tells us that if we break one of God's law, we are guilty of them all, even murder. Remember, "Christ...redeemed us from the curse of the law" (Galatians 3:13), so we might be redeemed, as born again believers in Christ, but that does not give us free reign to break the law of God. Christ died for us on the cross, to redeem us, but He did not die so that we can do what we please. When I was unsaved, I did not really feel guilty about breaking God's law but now that I am saved I strive to keep it, even though at times I fail. I have the Holy Spirit living within me to convict me when I break the law of God, not to show me how bad I truly am, but rather so that I might get right with God the Father because of it. Once I did not care whether I broke His law, but now, as I learn more and more about Him, I struggle to keep it, because I, as both David and Paul said, I delight in the Law of God. His law, which is the whole Bible, is no more a burden for me but rather a delight because it shows me the true me and what I need to do to change and become more Christ like. Jesus, not once, broke the law of God, for if He did, He could not have become the perfect sacrifice for us. He kept the entire law of God and went to the cross of Calvary, providing for all mankind the means and way to regain fellowship with the Father.
The law of God not only is a delight to me, but it has restored my soul and it is it which brings me true success and the greatest peace to me, which He can also do for all those who ask of Him and become born-again believers in Christ. There is still room at the cross for all who would come to Him. But, it will be the law of God which will show you how much a sinner you are, even at the time of your judgment, and all will be judged, some to eternal rest and comfort and most to live an eternity, separated from God for they failed to heed the Law of God.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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Set the Borders
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Sep 17, 2009 2:26 pm
398 Views
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SET THE BORDERS
Psalm 74:16-17
"The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun. Thou hast set all the borders of the earth: thou hast made summer and winter." KJB
In this, our text for today, we read that this "...day is thine (God's), the night also is thine (God's)”. This very sad lamentation (Psalm 74) has contained in the middle this wonderful statement of faith by the psalmist and we read: "For God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth". Notice how the Psalmist supports his faith in the midst of what is happening to the people of God and how he recognizes God's mighty handiwork in ancient times, which in turn tells us that God is able to create salvation for man in the psalmists day but also that He is able to do the same in our time and day.
There are those who believe that man is the center of or the measure of all things and is sufficient unto himself but our Bible reminds us of how dependent we are on God's provisions. He set the very rotations of the earth into motion and set it at the exact angle in the universe and on the earth God set the very rhythm of all biological life, including man. It was God, and not man, that set this all in motion from the beginning, for it is He who "...divided the light from the darkness..." (Genesis 1:4) KJB. It is God, the Creator, who tells us that it is He who "...prepared the light..." before the sun was created. (Genesis 1:3, 14) KJB. This shoots holes in those who would later come and worship the sun as the giver of all life on this earth and even the source of the earth itself. When man began to worship the creation more than the creator they set in motion man's rebellion against the Creator of all things.
It is God who "...set all the borders (boundaries) of the earth." Before the flood of Noah there was one super continent but after the flood we see that there were many continents, which we explain by plate tectonics today. This happened rapidly and not over millions of years, for it was at the "tower of Babel" where God caused man to be separated by language and sent to all corners of the earth by God. It is God who "...set all the borders of the earth" and not man, even though we seem to think so. It is God who forced man to scatter over the earth and it is He who "...determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation" (Acts 17:26) KJB. We seem to think, because of evolutionary thinking, that man migrated all over the earth, but it was God who caused them to migrate.
It is God who made "...summer and winter, and day and night [that] shall not cease" (Genesis 8:22) KJB. It is God and not man who caused this to happen. Think about this very carefully, evolutionary humanism is nothing more than man's futile attempt to explain their very existence on the earth that God created in the beginning. One day, God, will answer the cry of the psalmist when he said "Arise, O God, plead thine own cause: remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily" (Psalms 74:22) KJB.
At some time, very close in the future, man will bow down and confess that He (God) is the creator of all that there is, confessing that Jesus is God and that it is He who created everything. That time is fast approaching, are you ready for Him to come back again? He is coming back and no one can stop it happening.
By Dr. Terry Cleaveland, Pastor (retired), Preacher, Teacher of God's Holy Word, Grand Junction, Co.
Used with permission
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