This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
On December 20, ABC aired a special entitled, "What Happens After Death?". Amazingly many tuned in to watch this program hosted by Barbara Walters as she interviewed people of different religious beliefs. Now the sad thing is many probably watched that program hoping to get answers. People, we all need to wake up! We don't have to watch a program put on TV by ABC, and we sure don't need to be listening to what men say about the after life. People, we need to start listening to God! You know that book called the Bible? We need to listen to it. We need to open it up and turn to Hebrews 9:27 and read "after death comes the Judgment." We need to open the Bible and read Luke 16:19–31 where Jesus teaches us that the soul or spirit goes to the realm of the unseen which is Hades; once there, the soul awaits the final judgment (Ecclesiastes 12:7; Luke 23:43, 46; Acts 2:22–27; Acts 7:59–60). We need to turn to Matthew 7:21 where Jesus said one must obey the will of God in order to enter Heaven. The will of God is His word and man must obey it (1 Timothy 4:16). But first, man needs to know what the word teaches (Ephesians 5:17). We don't need ABC, actors, neighbors, or religious leaders of different faiths telling us what they believe (Matt. 15:13–14). God has sent His Son, so let us listen to Him (Matt. 17:4–5, Hebrews 2:1–2, Heb. 5:9). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
Have you ever wondered about all the different teachings of churches? Some people think that such is OK, regardless of the differences taught by churches. But seriously just think for a moment—how can that be so? Here is the Catholic church, and over there is the Methodist church. The Mormons try to convert in the neighborhood, and the Jehovah's Witnesses do the same. The Baptists invite people to their revival, and the Presbyterians invite people to their bingo game. Two different minds could both be wrong, but there is no way they can both be right. It is very important that men be in the right church, because if he is in the wrong church, he will end up in the ditch (Matthew 15:1–14). The only way to avoid being wrong is to make sure that you are following God's word (John 17:17). The saints in Bible times had to know the word and by knowing the scriptures they were able to tell false doctrines from the truth (1 John 4:1–5, Revelation 2:2, Acts 17:11–12, John 7:17, John 8:31–32). Far too many people aren't studying the Bible—they are what they are because it has always been their family's faith, or the church building is majestic, or it has plenty of single men or women, etc. It's time to be your own priest, take out the Bible, study it, and let it guide you; rather than trying to make it fit your life. Can we be of help to you in knowing what the Bible teaches and not what man may believe? Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
Children are on earth to be educated and molded toward the correct way, and one thing parents can do is to teach their kids to be better in life than they are. For example, if a man is an officer in the patrol car, he should encourage his son who also desires to be in law enforcement to strive to be the captain of a precinct. If a lady works as a waitress in a diner, let her encourage her daughter to one day own a diner. In other words, don't be like me—be better than me! No parent who has raised children should be jealouswhen that happens because parents should desire the best for their kids. A man making $50,000 a year should jump for the heavens when his son or daughter captures that job that will pay $100,000 a year (Proverbs 10:1). But parents who use foul language, smoke, drink, fornicate, gamble, skip church, etc., should have enough sense to know that such is wrong and make sure their children are associating with those who will be positive examples of what is right (Proverbs 4:1–27). And a final word to the young—take advantage of what is good and take it to the next level. If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Above everything else seek God while you are still young (Ecclesiastes 12:1–8). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
You can not know what life will place upon you, so you shouldn't burn your bridges. If you are enraged at a person, never say, "I don't need you," or "I'll never come to you again," etc. The reason why is because you just might have to. Now I know that some people might laugh after reading this because they are so sure that they will never have to return to a place or person they have fallen out with. But I say to anyone out there, "Are you 100 percent positive about that? If you do go out on a limb and contend that you are 100 percent sure, tell me the year and make of the car that will drive past your house at 3:16 PM tomorrow. "I can't do that!" you will say. And of course you can't because God teaches that no man knows tomorrow (James 4:14). Thus establishing a strong case for not burning bridges. People are free to disagree, and they can go their separate ways, but they shouldn't be so confident in themselves that they burn all their bridges because in this life, you just never know (Luke 12:16–21). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
This old world is full of nonsense—people are so awful they will refuse to do what is right even when it is obvious (Romans 3:10–18). For example, there are people who owe money to others and won't pay it back (Psalm 37:21). People, if you borrowed the money, do the right thing and take care of your business by paying it back! (Romans 13:8). Don't show the world how awful you are by having the lender ask you about the money (Matthew 18:28–30). If you owe and can't pay, be up-front about it and go explain your problem; perhaps the lender will understand and work with you (Matthew 18:23–35; Luke 7:41–42; 16:5–7). If you are driving a car and cause damage to a person or property, don't drive off! Acknowledge your responsibility and take care of it, for the eyes of God sees even if man doesn't (Proverbs 15:3, Psalm 94:7–11; Jeremiah 23:23–24, Mark 4:22–23). And while I'm on the subject of cars, if you don't have liability insurance, park your car and start using the bus, so that your mishaps don't become a burden upon others(2 Corinthians 11:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:7–8; Jonah 1:1–17; Genesis 20:1–18). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
If you are a man, I want you to know that it isn't a poor reflection upon your manhood to go to church. In the church, the women always out number the men because Christianity is perceived as a weakness by some guys. Hitler considered the Bible, and those who live by it, as weak. He believed that religion was for wimps, women, and children. But Hitler was just as wrong about that as he was about everything else. A strong man is one who has given his life over to Jesus Christ and is out there every day leading the way and showing others how to overcome their problems and be a positive example through the teachings of the word of God. A man who is faithful to God will stand tall year-in and year-out, turning back the challenges of Satan. A weak man will give in to the Devil's devices or run away when it is time to take a stand for what is right. In order to do that daily, one couldn't be a wimp—he has to be a strong man because the evil of this world is tough, and it will take a strong person to beat against the grain. So men, prove your manhood by obeying the Bible and showing strength in the knowledge of God (Romans 4:20, 1 Corinthians 16:13, Ephesians 6:10, 2 Timothy 2:1). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
When people are facing hardships that is the time to step up and be of assistance to them. No one can be insensitive toward the suffering of others and go unpunished. We as humans are here to help when others are in need, and we are to be doing so. I know there are con men out there; and let us not be stupid. No one is to give their hard earned money to a snake, who is out to make a living off you. Learn people—know how to separate the con men from the people who are really in need and be generous and give. Let us not only give of our money, but also of our time. Do you have a neighbor who is elderly on a fixed income and could use some help painting the house, cutting the grass, etc.? Then be a good neighbor and give them some of your time by helping out with whatever you are able to do (Hebrews 13:16). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
A lot of people talk about coming to church after they get their act together. Now excuse me if I fail to understand what that means. Here is a person confused, messed up in the bondage of sin, and he is talking about getting his act together without the help of Jesus Christ? No way!!! Imagine if such were possible, one wouldn't need Christ in the first place! I thought it was Jesus' job to get us together because He is the great physician, and He seeks and saves those who are lost (Mark 2:17, Matthew 11:28–30). When we are torn apart by the evil of this life, the word of God is the light by which man can pull himself up and be placed on the right road (Ephesians 2:1–22). A person saying that he will get himself together without God's help, is the same as saying, "I will save myself from the flood and I'm not even inside Noah's ark," (Genesis 7:17–24). Because the nature of man is contrary, he needs help to overcome his demons and that is where Christ comes in—for we can do all things through Him (Philippians 4:13). So remember what the prophet Jeremiah said, "it is not in man that walks to direct his steps," (Jeremiah 10:23). The conclusion is that a person is going to need help in getting himself together so that God is pleased with the results. Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
If a person is dead not one prayer or sermon at a funeral is going to help or change what the life was (Job 7:6–10; Ecclesiastes 9:4–10; Eccl. 11:3; John 8:21). After Halloween each year the day of the dead is remembered by some and there are parades and other celebrations. As it has been said, that matters not—because dead means dead and afterward the next stop will be the Judgment bar (Hebrews 9:27). Many people ask for prayers for those who have died, but such prayers are vain because prayers are to be offered for the living (1 Timothy 2:1–2, Matthew 5:44, John 17:9, James 5:16, 1 Samuel 12:23; Philemon 4). Matthew 5:28 teaches that whosoever looks on a woman in order to lust after her has committed adultery in the heart. This is bad news no matter how you slice it. Adultery in the heart is just as bad as adultery with the whole body, for both will send you to Hell (1 Corinthians 6:6–10). In order to avoid lust, don't think about it or place yourself in a position where you will give in to it. Start focusing on good things that are positive and can be shared with others. Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. This is only for people who believe the Bible to be God's word.
One of the worst things about human beings as they age is they get set in their ways. This behavior is that of stubbornness, having the closed mind attitude of, "I know it all, so no one can tell me anything," etc. It doesn't matter if one is 27-years-old, or 95-years-old, no one knows everything, and anyone regardless of age can always do betterbecause there is always room for improvement (1 Corinthians 8:2; Proverbs 20:9; Luke 1:80; Matthew 5:48; Luke 2:52; Colossians 2:2–7). When things are presented to us, we should at least hear what the other person is saying and consider the kind of information that has been placed before us (Matthew 23:3; Mark 4:9; Acts 15:4–6). After hearing the person out, we can then decide if that person is speaking what is true, and if so, we should be willing to acknowledge that we aren't above learning new things and we should change (Acts 17:11). On the other hand, if we listen to the person and find they are wrong, we need to refute the misleading information (Revelation 2:2; Acts 19:13–20). So remember, the person who can't see the warning is usually the one who is in danger (Proverbs 22:3, Ezekiel 3:16–21; Romans 11:8–10; 2 Corinthians 4:3–4; 1 Corinthians 1:18–21). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. |