Thursday, December 27, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
Family Tree
Do you ever look up your ancestors and find out who is making up your family tree?
Many of us may be very proud to find out who our relatives are. You may, very well, be related to some very famous and important people.
I think I am related to Dean Smith some how. Can't prove it but we just seem close for some reason.
Jesus had a very peculiar family tree. You would think the Son of God would be related to the religious elite of history. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let's take a look at 4 women listed in his genealogy.
These are taken from John MacArthur's great book "God With Us"
1. Tamar
"Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar,"
The first outcast was Tamar, the Canaanite daughter-in-law of Judah. She gained notoriety in Genesis 38 by resorting to deception, prostitution, and incest when she couldn't get a child any other way. Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and tricked Judah into having sexual relations with her. From that illicit union were born twin sons, Perez and Zerah, and thus Tamar and her son Perez joined Judah in the Messianic line. Despite prostitution and incest, God's grace fell on all three of those undeserving persons, including a desperate and deceptive Gentile harlot.
2. Rahab
"Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab"
The second outcast was also a woman and a Gentile, but she made prostitution her livelihood. Rahab was no paragon of virtue, but she put her faith in the God of Israel and demonstrated it by protecting the two men Joshua sent to spy out her city. God spared her life and the lives of her family when Jericho was besieged and destroyed (Josh. 2:1-21; 6:22-25), and, brought her into the Messianic line. She became the wife of Salmon and the mother of the godly Boaz--David's great-grandfather.
3. Ruth
"Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth"
Ruth, the wife of Boaz, was the third outcast. Though she was a Moabitess and former pagan, having no right to marry an Israelite, God's grace brought Ruth into the family of Israel, and through Boaz, into the royal line. She became the grandmother of Israel's great King David.
4. Bathsheba
"And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,"
The fourth outcast was Bathsheba. She entered the Messianic line through adultery with David. The son of their sinful union died in infancy, but the next son born to them was Solomon (2 Sam. 11:1-27; 12:14, 24), successor to David's throne and continuer of the Messianic line. Once again, by God's grace Bathsheba became the wife of David, the mother of Solomon, and an ancestor of the Messiah.
I hope you can see how the genealogy of Jesus Christ is immeasurably more than a list of ancient names; it is even more than a list of Jesus' human forebears. It is a beautiful testimony to God's grace and to the ministry of His Son, Jesus Christ. He is truly the friend of sinners who came to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance (Matt. 9:13).
Many of us may be very proud to find out who our relatives are. You may, very well, be related to some very famous and important people.
I think I am related to Dean Smith some how. Can't prove it but we just seem close for some reason.
Jesus had a very peculiar family tree. You would think the Son of God would be related to the religious elite of history. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let's take a look at 4 women listed in his genealogy.
These are taken from John MacArthur's great book "God With Us"
1. Tamar
"Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar,"
The first outcast was Tamar, the Canaanite daughter-in-law of Judah. She gained notoriety in Genesis 38 by resorting to deception, prostitution, and incest when she couldn't get a child any other way. Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and tricked Judah into having sexual relations with her. From that illicit union were born twin sons, Perez and Zerah, and thus Tamar and her son Perez joined Judah in the Messianic line. Despite prostitution and incest, God's grace fell on all three of those undeserving persons, including a desperate and deceptive Gentile harlot.
2. Rahab
"Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab"
The second outcast was also a woman and a Gentile, but she made prostitution her livelihood. Rahab was no paragon of virtue, but she put her faith in the God of Israel and demonstrated it by protecting the two men Joshua sent to spy out her city. God spared her life and the lives of her family when Jericho was besieged and destroyed (Josh. 2:1-21; 6:22-25), and, brought her into the Messianic line. She became the wife of Salmon and the mother of the godly Boaz--David's great-grandfather.
3. Ruth
"Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth"
Ruth, the wife of Boaz, was the third outcast. Though she was a Moabitess and former pagan, having no right to marry an Israelite, God's grace brought Ruth into the family of Israel, and through Boaz, into the royal line. She became the grandmother of Israel's great King David.
4. Bathsheba
"And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,"
The fourth outcast was Bathsheba. She entered the Messianic line through adultery with David. The son of their sinful union died in infancy, but the next son born to them was Solomon (2 Sam. 11:1-27; 12:14, 24), successor to David's throne and continuer of the Messianic line. Once again, by God's grace Bathsheba became the wife of David, the mother of Solomon, and an ancestor of the Messiah.
I hope you can see how the genealogy of Jesus Christ is immeasurably more than a list of ancient names; it is even more than a list of Jesus' human forebears. It is a beautiful testimony to God's grace and to the ministry of His Son, Jesus Christ. He is truly the friend of sinners who came to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance (Matt. 9:13).
Birth of Jesus Quiz!!
If you know the answers to the questions please let me know.
How many Kings came to see Jesus at His birth?
How many Magi came to see Jesus at His birth? Where did they come from?
Did the angels ever sing at the birth of Jesus?
Did the shepherds and wise men all come to the same place to see baby Jesus or different places?
Is Jesus God?
Is Jesus the Lord of your Life?
Read this great quote:
"The world is happy to let Jesus Christ be a baby in a manger, but not willing to let Him be sovereign King and Lord that He is. Yet that is the central truth of the Christmas story: the Child of Christmas is God."
How many Kings came to see Jesus at His birth?
How many Magi came to see Jesus at His birth? Where did they come from?
Did the angels ever sing at the birth of Jesus?
Did the shepherds and wise men all come to the same place to see baby Jesus or different places?
Is Jesus God?
Is Jesus the Lord of your Life?
Read this great quote:
"The world is happy to let Jesus Christ be a baby in a manger, but not willing to let Him be sovereign King and Lord that He is. Yet that is the central truth of the Christmas story: the Child of Christmas is God."
Friday, December 21, 2007
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Mary Did You Know?
Mary Did you know people would, worship you, pray to you and hold you up in such Holy esteem? I doubt it.
The following is taken from Roman Catholic Catechisms:
These are unalterable, fixed, unchanging doctrines in the Roman Catholic Church. And here are the five that relate to Mary:
Number one is called The Immaculate Conception of Mary. It does not mean that she immaculately conceived Jesus Christ. It means that she was immaculately conceived by her mother. It is teaching the virgin birth of Mary, thus making Mary free from original sin. The immaculate conception has not to do with the birth of Christ, it has to do with the birth of Mary.
The second doctrine the Roman Catholic Church decreed is the sinlessness of Mary, that she lived her entire life and never sinned.
The third doctrine is the perpetual virginity of Mary, that is that she never knew a man all her life long. She was a perpetual virgin, thus preserving in their system something of the singular purity and untouched character of Mary.
Fourthly, the Roman Catholic Church has determined that it has always been true and is a doctrine that Mary never died. And they call it The Assumption of Mary, or the bodily ascension of Mary into heaven.
Fifthly, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that when Mary assumed her place in heaven, when she ascended into heaven she was coronated as the Queen of Heaven, a position of sovereignty and a position of authority. And in all honesty, in the Catholic system Jesus Himself is put in a position on occasion to be appealing to His sovereign mother.
Roman Catholics believe Mary is the Mother of Mercy, the All-Knowing One, Mary is involved in saving us, Mary's name is to be honored like God's name.
The following will be quotes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on Mary.
#491 Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, "full of grace" through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception. That is what the dogma of the Immaculate Conception confesses, as Pope Pius IX proclaimed in 1854: The Most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.
#494 Espousing the divine will for salvation wholeheartedly, without a single sin to restrain her, she gave herself entirely to the person and to the work of Her Son; she did so in order to serve the mystery of redemption with him and dependent on him, by God's grace: As St. Irenaeus says, "being obedient she became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race." Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert ...: "The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith." Comparing her with Eve, they call Mary "the Mother of the living" and frequently claim: "Death through Eve, life through Mary."
#510 Mary "remained a virgin in conceiving her Son, a virgin in giving birth to him, a virgin in carrying him, a virgin in nursing him at her breast, always a virgin"
#966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death." The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:
#2677 Because she gives us Jesus, her son, Mary is Mother of God and our mother: we can entrust all our cares and petitions to her: she prays for us as she prayed for herself: "Let it be to me according to your word." By entrusting ourselves to her prayer, we abandon ourselves to the will of God together with her: "Thy will be done"...By asking Mary to pray for us, we acknowledge ourselves to be poor sinners and we address ourselves to the "Mother of Mercy," the All-Holy One. We give ourselves over to her now, in the Today of our lives. And our trust broadens further, already at the present moment, to surrender "the hour of our death" wholly to her care. May she be there as she was at her son's death on the cross. May she welcome us as our mother at the hour of our passing to lead us to her son, Jesus, in paradise.
#829 "But while in the most Blessed Virgin the Church has already reached that perfection whereby she exists without spot or wrinkle, the faithful still strive to conquer sin and increase in holiness. And so they turn their eyes to Mary": in her the Church is already the "all-holy."
Mary Did you know?
The following is taken from Roman Catholic Catechisms:
These are unalterable, fixed, unchanging doctrines in the Roman Catholic Church. And here are the five that relate to Mary:
Number one is called The Immaculate Conception of Mary. It does not mean that she immaculately conceived Jesus Christ. It means that she was immaculately conceived by her mother. It is teaching the virgin birth of Mary, thus making Mary free from original sin. The immaculate conception has not to do with the birth of Christ, it has to do with the birth of Mary.
The second doctrine the Roman Catholic Church decreed is the sinlessness of Mary, that she lived her entire life and never sinned.
The third doctrine is the perpetual virginity of Mary, that is that she never knew a man all her life long. She was a perpetual virgin, thus preserving in their system something of the singular purity and untouched character of Mary.
Fourthly, the Roman Catholic Church has determined that it has always been true and is a doctrine that Mary never died. And they call it The Assumption of Mary, or the bodily ascension of Mary into heaven.
Fifthly, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that when Mary assumed her place in heaven, when she ascended into heaven she was coronated as the Queen of Heaven, a position of sovereignty and a position of authority. And in all honesty, in the Catholic system Jesus Himself is put in a position on occasion to be appealing to His sovereign mother.
Roman Catholics believe Mary is the Mother of Mercy, the All-Knowing One, Mary is involved in saving us, Mary's name is to be honored like God's name.
The following will be quotes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on Mary.
#491 Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, "full of grace" through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception. That is what the dogma of the Immaculate Conception confesses, as Pope Pius IX proclaimed in 1854: The Most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.
#494 Espousing the divine will for salvation wholeheartedly, without a single sin to restrain her, she gave herself entirely to the person and to the work of Her Son; she did so in order to serve the mystery of redemption with him and dependent on him, by God's grace: As St. Irenaeus says, "being obedient she became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race." Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert ...: "The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith." Comparing her with Eve, they call Mary "the Mother of the living" and frequently claim: "Death through Eve, life through Mary."
#510 Mary "remained a virgin in conceiving her Son, a virgin in giving birth to him, a virgin in carrying him, a virgin in nursing him at her breast, always a virgin"
#966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death." The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:
#2677 Because she gives us Jesus, her son, Mary is Mother of God and our mother: we can entrust all our cares and petitions to her: she prays for us as she prayed for herself: "Let it be to me according to your word." By entrusting ourselves to her prayer, we abandon ourselves to the will of God together with her: "Thy will be done"...By asking Mary to pray for us, we acknowledge ourselves to be poor sinners and we address ourselves to the "Mother of Mercy," the All-Holy One. We give ourselves over to her now, in the Today of our lives. And our trust broadens further, already at the present moment, to surrender "the hour of our death" wholly to her care. May she be there as she was at her son's death on the cross. May she welcome us as our mother at the hour of our passing to lead us to her son, Jesus, in paradise.
#829 "But while in the most Blessed Virgin the Church has already reached that perfection whereby she exists without spot or wrinkle, the faithful still strive to conquer sin and increase in holiness. And so they turn their eyes to Mary": in her the Church is already the "all-holy."
Mary Did you know?
Friday, December 14, 2007
Heresy Alert!!!!
Jesus did not claim to be the Messiah! What?
John should read this verse:
Luke 2:11 "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."
"The Christ" (Greek) and "the Messiah" (Hebrew) both mean "the Anointed One"; also in verse 26.
or this verse:
He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ). John 1:41
or this verse:
John 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." 25The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things." 26Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."
Maybe John should just read the Bible instead of writing books about Jesus not being what He said He was.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Tebow
Tebow Facts:
Tim Tebow was homeschooled through High School.
Tim was a top rated High School Quarterback.
Tim was featured in an ESPN documentary "The Chosen One"
Tim is a member of First Baptist Jacksonville in Florida. His pastor Mac Brunson has preached at ETBC.
Tim as a key reserve helped the Gators win college football's national championship game for the first time since 1996.
Other facts you don't hear as much about:
Tim was born on August 14, 1987 in the Philippines, where his parents were serving as Christian missionaries.Pam suffered infection with a pathogenic amoeba while pregnant with him, and an abortion was recommended by her doctors. She chose to go through with the pregnancy.
Tim's dad heads the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association, mission work in Philippines.
Tim is not ashamed of Jesus!
"If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." Mark 8:38
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Question #1
Each week I will try to post a difficult question for you to answer. Some wil be right or wrong questions others will deal more with opinion.
The question below I sent several months ago to many of my pastor friends. So far only one has responded.
Give it a try. Comment by email or in comment section.
Help me answer this question.
If a lion had the choice between eating hay or a raw steak, what would he choose. Would he make this choice every time?
I believe we all know the answer to that question is yes, because he was
made that way and it is the desire of his heart.
So if the lion was made that way does the lion have freedom of choice or does the lion have freedom of inclination, meaning he will choose his desire every time.
Answer this question:
Take a lost person for example: choose sin or God. Which will he choose every time. If he will choose sin every time then how does he come to choose God. And if he does choose God, why? And if he chooses God does he really have freedom of choice....
--Think before you answer ...
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were
dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ- by grace you have been saved-"
Ephesians 2: 4-5
The question below I sent several months ago to many of my pastor friends. So far only one has responded.
Give it a try. Comment by email or in comment section.
Help me answer this question.
If a lion had the choice between eating hay or a raw steak, what would he choose. Would he make this choice every time?
I believe we all know the answer to that question is yes, because he was
made that way and it is the desire of his heart.
So if the lion was made that way does the lion have freedom of choice or does the lion have freedom of inclination, meaning he will choose his desire every time.
Answer this question:
Take a lost person for example: choose sin or God. Which will he choose every time. If he will choose sin every time then how does he come to choose God. And if he does choose God, why? And if he chooses God does he really have freedom of choice....
--Think before you answer ...
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were
dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ- by grace you have been saved-"
Ephesians 2: 4-5
Monday, December 10, 2007
Priceless!
3 tickets to see Enchanted = $20.50
2 Medium Drinks and Large Popcorn = $11.50
A night out with my Girls = Priceless!!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Modesty
Modesty in 2007- what does it look like?
In a day when teenage divas and overpriced clothing stores like Hollister and Abercrombie decide for parents how their teens should dress, what does the Bible say?
"I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, 10but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God."
1 Timothy 2: 8-10
The Bible says to dress modestly. To get a better understanding of this word and how the Bible expects His children to dress, listen to this great message by one of my favorite preachers C.J. Mahaney
http://www.therebelution.com/downloads/soul_of_modesty.mp3
You may have to copy and paste but it is well worth the time and trouble!
This web site is a great resource for teens and parents. It is run by the brothers of Joshua Harris. Great site!
In a day when teenage divas and overpriced clothing stores like Hollister and Abercrombie decide for parents how their teens should dress, what does the Bible say?
"I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, 10but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God."
1 Timothy 2: 8-10
The Bible says to dress modestly. To get a better understanding of this word and how the Bible expects His children to dress, listen to this great message by one of my favorite preachers C.J. Mahaney
http://www.therebelution.com/downloads/soul_of_modesty.mp3
You may have to copy and paste but it is well worth the time and trouble!
This web site is a great resource for teens and parents. It is run by the brothers of Joshua Harris. Great site!
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Merry Christmas!
I love and appreciate my staff, and they love and appreciate you.
Check out this link for a very special Christmas message from Kevin, Mark, and Rodney!
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1133508786
Copy and paste the address to see!
Check out this link for a very special Christmas message from Kevin, Mark, and Rodney!
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1133508786
Copy and paste the address to see!
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