Where did this myth about “Saint Peter” at the “pearly gates” welcoming people into heaven, come from? If it came from the Bible, give me book, chapter and verse (1 Peter 4:11). On the other hand, if it came from man, we better quit passing it on as fact and get rid of it all together. But the truth is, Peter was human just like everyone else, and he was no Pope, nor anyone special (Acts 10:25-26).
Peter was an Apostle, but so were 12 other men, and we don’t hear anyone talking about meeting “Saint Matthew” or “Saint Andrew” at the “pearly gates”. The Bible teaches that we will stand before Christ and be judged by Him, and He will be the one to allow our entrance though those “pearly gates”(2 Corinthians 5:10; Matthew 25:31-46, 7:21-23). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. Being in the midst of a shooting rampage is a terror that no one wants to encounter. So this nation must outlaw certain kinds of guns that have no business being in hands of those who aren’t police or military. And if a person has mental issues, the medical world must deal with that so that no one gets killed by such a one firing a weapon.
But also personal responsibility must change, and that is done when men obey the gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Committing murder is condemned by the word of the Lord (Romans 13:9). If people can accept what God teaches and don’t murder, things will get better for us (Luke 6:27-36; Romans 12:9-21; Titus 2:11-15; 2 Peter 1:3-11). The people who are mourning their losses will need as much help and prayers that the righteous can offer. So let us see that they get that help. Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. There has always been talk about dinosuars, and we know they lived because we have their bones in museums. In the beginning, God created all creatures that fly, swim, walk, crawl, and breathe (Genesis 1:20-26).
With a statement like that, we know that dinosuars were included. So the dinosuars are like lost cities of old, they are all extinct today. But the work of God’s hands can still be seem in gators, lizards, flying mammals like bats or strange looking sea creatures, etc. Extinction is nothing new, and it takes nothing away from the fact that God created the heavens and earth and all creatures big and small. Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. Here today, and gone tomorrow. Just look at the death notices in the newspapers. And next week at this time, many who are now alive will be featured in the obituaries. Man cannot change or escape from this of which I now speak (Hebrews 9:27). But man can surely do something which will make facing death easier (Philippians 1:20-23). First thing is the recognition of knowing that one must do something. What must I do? (Acts 16:29-30). Second, is to do what must be done. Repent and be baptized for forgiveness of your sins! (Acts 2:37-38). Third, one must continue to stand faithfully until death. I have kept the faith and finished the course and a crown of glory awaits (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
If you haven’t done what the word of the Lord teaches. I hope the reading of these words will prompt you to seek what is right before death comes knocking. Because after death, man’s fate is set, and it cannot be changed (John 8:21). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. When a bottle of liquid has a skull and cross bones on it, you should be smart enough not to drink it. If one notices the sign “slippery when wet,” one should be smart enough not to speed that way. If the shark tank has “no hands allowed,” one should be smart enough not to put a hand in there. The point of all this is, we wish that people would learn without having to suffer the consequences of being hard headed. A man may know the risk of picking up hookers, but not learn his lesson until he is arrested or is a victim of a transmitted sexual disease (Proverbs 5:11-13).
If the word is out, “Don’t send text messages while driving,” you should learn from those words and not from having an accident. In Luke 15:11-32, we read of a young man who demanded his inheritance and wasted it after moving far away. This young guy didn’t listen to anything until he was broke, alone, and sitting among the pigs, desiring the slop they ate. Likewise the word of the Lord warns men, but are we listening? (Prov. 1:20-33, 22:3). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. |