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Showing posts from April, 2017

One of Jesus' titles is "The Coming One". He IS coming again. Are you ready?- ebooks-freezone

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In listening to John MacArthur's series in Revelation, this sermon yielded some glorious truths, once again. The sermon is titled The Certainty of the Second Coming . Now, we all know Jesus is coming to earth again. This time He will not be a meek servant, but a powerful judge. But do we know just how certain His coming is? How often the Bible makes reference to it? We don't hear the Second Coming preached much, or spoken of often. But it is the next prophetic event on the calendar (along with the rapture, which will happen just prior). Here is an excerpt from the sermon: "The Coming One" was a title for Messiah. "The Coming One" was a special name for Messiah. In fact, back in Matthew we have an interesting reference to it. I�ll just read it to you. In Matthew, John the Baptist was in prison and he sent word by his disciples to Jesus. And they said to Him, "Are You the Coming One?" You see, the Jews all knew that the Coming One was a Messianic tit...

Brass in the Bible, and brassy, brazen women- ebooks-freezone

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Did you ever think about brass? Looking at some of the items in the Bible more closely is enjoyable. Linen, pomegranates, ants, and palm trees have all been examined on this blog. Soon it will be fishing boats. Today I'm interested in brass. My interest was piqued when I was listening to a John MacArthur sermon on Revelation 1 . As an aside I'd like to add a personal note. I've listened to Dr MacArthur's sermons on the eschatological passages and I have researched his doctrinal stances on eschatology. I have of course also studied the eschatological doctrines myself directly in the Bible, and have listened to many other men preach on them. I believe Dr MacArthur is the most solid and biblical. Here, he preaches " Why every Calvinist should be a Premillennialist " and explains all the main eschatological viewpoints, biblically. He is firm but graceful on his pre-tribulation stance because it's biblically rooted (a stance to which I hold and I believe to be ...

The LORD is Creator and Commander of the animal kingdom- ebooks-freezone

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The Lord in His power directs every atom, every person, every angel, every demon, and every animal on earth (and in heaven). He created all and He is in control over all. Not that He makes humans like robots, but His providence sees to it that His will and His plans are carried out. I enjoy pondering His power over His creation, don't you? There are many verses that speak to this fact. Here are a mere few that demonstrate His sovereignty. "The earth is the LORD�s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters " (Psalm 24:1-2). " Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God " (Psalm 90:2). " He is before all things, and in him all things hold together " (Colossians 1:17). One demonstration of His power is His control over the animals. Let's take a look. The most obvious one is His control over animals when He ...

Throwback Thursday: If We had X-ray Vision, what would Sin Look Like?- ebooks-freezone

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This was first published in January 2014 on this blog. ---------------------------------------------------------- When satan was created, He was the most beautiful angel. Ezekiel 28:12 says � Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: �You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty." Inside or out, satan was not only beautiful, but he was the very seal of perfection. But it didn't last. Though he was created perfect, one day, unrighteousness was found in him. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you ." (Ezekiel 28:15) Initially, sin might look beautiful but the more a person becomes trapped in it, the less beautiful it seems to them and the more they are eternally destroyed. The woman may be beautiful, and the sin so enticing, Proverbs 5:3 says, For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil. But the ...

I'm not broken- ebooks-freezone

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Do you hear a lot of conversation these days involving the word 'broken' and 'brokenness'? I do. It is the newest trendy word. Words matter. They present reality, create meaning, knit a cultural understanding. Words matter. The Lord revealed Himself to us by His Word. He IS the Word made flesh. He could have revealed Himself to us in pictures, symbols, or any other method. He chose the Word. We will be judged by our words. Jesus said, " I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned ." (Matthew 12:36). Words matter. In Genesis 11:1 we read, " Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. " In Genesis 11:7 God said, " Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech ." [Literally, 'one lip']. How did the LORD choose to restrain ma...

Paul's warm letters- ebooks-freezone

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These are the openings of all of Paul's letters, except Galatians. Please don't skip, read them through. I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:3-6). I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge� 6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you� 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord . (1 Corinthians 1:4-9). Grace to you a...

What about a Christian's Weakness?- ebooks-freezone

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There's weakness, and then there's weakness. It depends on which kind you're talking about. Christian women are noted as the weaker vessel. (1 Peter 3:7). GotQuestions explains in this excerpt : This is not a popular idea among many women or even many men. However, the Scripture tells us that the woman was deceived (1 Timothy 2:14), she is subject to her husband (1 Peter 3:1) and that she is a �weaker� vessel. That women are usually physically weaker is undeniable, but the implication of the fall is that by virtue of her being deceived by Satan, women may also sometimes be weaker in other ways. That definitely does not mean she is less valuable (Ephesians 1:6) or that she does not have equal access to grace (Galatians 3:28).  As for Christian weakness in general, we�re all weak, we are supposed to be. Paul said that Jesus replied to him, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weakness...

Visual Exegesis: The Life of Every Living Thing- ebooks-freezone

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Chris Powers of Full of Eyes creates exegetical art, still and moving images, intended to point people to the beauty of God in the crucified and risen Son. His work can be found on Youtube , Patreon , and his website, fullofeyes.com. There are study guides to accompany the videos, tracts, and art- free to use for the edification of the global church and the exaltation of Jesus' name.  Today's presentation is called The Life of Every Living Thing . Below Powers' illustration is the artist's statement. Job 12:10, "In His hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind."  It was tough to come up with a verse picture today. I spent most of my time reading this morning in Genesis considering some of the patterns we see in the Creation week....some wonderful stuff there, but nothing that seemed to lend itself to a picture. I also read a bit in Job and came across 12:10.....I was hesitant to make the picture that I did because it is similar to an...

The biblical worldview is that there is the righteous and the wicked- ebooks-freezone

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When you read chunks of the Bible at one time, patterns and themes emerge that may not be as noticeable as when you read just a few verses more deeply. That's why both kinds of study are valuable. In reading the Psalms, one immediately notices David's worldview. It's stark, solid, and biblical. With David, there are the righteous, and the wicked. Period. We live in times where Christians are pressured to blur those lines. We're told to accept and tolerate all manner of sin, value any and all professions of faith even if they're unaccompanied by fruit, and to view all people as inherently good. Failure to do the above invites catcalls of "Pharisee", "judgmental", or worse. However, when we blur those lines, the loss to the church is that mission fields shrink and disappear. Doctrinal lines are dismissed. Sadly, if we don't know who is in and who is out, who do we evangelize? I found this article from a church in MO, called The Righteous and th...

Kay Cude poetry: Predetermined Will- ebooks-freezone

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Poetry by Kay Cude. Used with permission. Click to enlarge

Throwback Thursday: Sin's poison is visible in the world- ebooks-freezone

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A version of this was originally published on The End Time in December 2009 Jan Brueghel the Elder THE GARDEN OF EDEN WITH THE FALL OF MAN In these waning days of the Age, do you think about the Garden of Eden? What untainted creation must have looked like? I do. The only mirror I have of earth as originally intended is in Genesis 1, and there, the LORD called it "good." The reverse of that is earth in today's condition. And today it looks pretty bad. How far and deep has the effect of sin permeated our waters, our land, our food, and our very bodies and brains? Everything seems as poison now. Creation itself is laboring under the poisonous effects of a sinful world. " For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of...

Help! My Friend Is Reading a Dangerous Book- ebooks-freezone

A question was asked at our Bible Discussion Group on how to sensitively approach someone who is in a false religion in order to open discussion as to the truth. This same question has been asked of me personally regarding how to approach a friend whom you see carrying around a book by a false teacher. At Discussion Group, I'd offered my process of how I deal with friends involved with false teachers, false doctrine, or false religion. I'd said that first, it depends on the relationship you have with them. If you don't know the person or are only bare acquaintances, it won't do to walk up to them and just say something brusque or out of the blue that in effect, amounts to saying "You're doing it wrong." The Bible encourages and commands discipling relationships with one another. This is so we can keep each other accountable. We can carry each other's burdens. Ultimately, close involvement with each other means can edify and grow one another and one way...

Bargain Ebook: A Knot in the Grain: and Other Stories by Robin McKinley

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A Knot in the Grain: and Other Stories by Robin McKinley is on sale in ebook format for $1.99. It is usually in the $6-7 range. Book description: Magical stories set in alternate universes . . . tales of curses and gifts of healing . . . a wizard who has lost his powers . . . and a princess, a troll, and a teenage girl are featured in this diverse collection from Newbery Medalist Robin McKinley In �The Healer,� Lily was born mute, but she has so great a natural gift for healing that the local midwife and healer takes her as an apprentice. One evening, riding home, she meets a stranger on the road who can speak to her silently, mind to mind. Overjoyed, she takes him home to Jolin�but Jolin can read the mage-mark on him and fears for Lily�s safety, for mages are not to be trusted. In �The Stagman,� Ruen is a princess and will become queen on her name day�if her uncle, the Regent, greedy for the power that should belong to his niece, cannot think of a way to prevent it. And so he invents...

The Sad Story of the Wind Phone- ebooks-freezone

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The lost are in the night, the cold, the outside. The lost are stumbling around, leading each other into a pit. They know not what they do. They dwell in a land of darkness with no hope. For that reason, we can have compassion and pity. This week I read an article that pulled at my heart strings. It was one of those articles that evoked pity, but also gratitude. I say gratitude because the Lord transferred me from the Kingdom of Darkness into His kingdom of Light. I have hope for an afterlife, the assurance of His more sure word on what is going to happen. The phone of the wind. CC BY-SA 4.0 Wind Telephone A disconnected rotary phone for "calling" lost loved ones offered a unique way of dealing with grief in disaster-stricken Japan. When Itaru Sasaki lost his cousin in 2010, he decided to build a glass-paneled phone booth in his hilltop garden with a disconnected rotary phone inside for communicating with his lost relative, to help him deal with his grief.  Only a year later,...

David's brave prayer- ebooks-freezone

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In Matthew 16:24-26 we read, Then Jesus told his disciples, �If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? We know that passage means we turn our back on the kingdom of darkness and everything it represents, including self-aggrandizement, self-absorption, selfishness, anything self, &etc. We know we are supposed to die to self. We know we are supposed to hold others in higher regard than ourselves. We know it is written that we should be willing to lay down our life for our friends. It's hard. Very hard. Oh, does the flesh rebel against this. We read in Psalm 7:3-5, the following prayer by David. O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is wrong in my hands, if I have repaid my friend with evil or plu...

He is risen!- ebooks-freezone

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Jesus accomplished the work God sent Him here to do. He did it perfectly, sinlessly, and died on the cross after absorbing all God's wrath for sin. He even endured a horrific separation from the Father. Jesus had only ever known perfect harmony with God and love and sweet communion. O! To be cruelly dismissed from His presence! Jesus was not afeared of the pain of the crucifixion as much as he was dreading being separated from God. It was the loneliest moment in history forever. He endured that separation and bore the wrath, so we would never have to. We can come into sweet communion with the Father, justified, sanctified, and someday, glorified. God was pleased with His Son, and resurrected Him from the dead. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it . (Acts 2:24)

Woe and Lamentation!- ebooks-freezone

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For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption . (Psalm 16:10) Therefore he says also in another psalm, '"You will not let your Holy One see corruption.' For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, but he whom God raised up did not see corruption . (Acts 13:35-37). O! It is grievous to think of our precious Lord being nailed to the cross as He was on 'Good' Friday. It IS a Good Friday because His life, death, and resurrection makes it possible for sins to be forgiven once and for all. Jesus' work on the cross made permanent reconciliation with His called ones possible. It was effectual and final. But oh! To think of his broken body being carefully lowered from the cross, quickly prepared for burial, and laid in a dark tomb.... it wounds the conscience. It darkens the heart. It grieves the flesh. Death is final, the body no more thriving wit...

Chris Powers: In This Is Love- ebooks-freezone

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Full of Eyes is a support-based ministry of exegetical art that creates still and moving images intended to point people to the beauty of God in the crucified and risen Son. All art and animations are done by Chris Powers. Powers' goal is to help people see and savor the faith-strengthening, hope-instilling, love-kindling beauty of God in Christ. And he does this by creating free exegetical art in the form of pictures, animations, and discussion guides. His work is at http://patreon.com/ , Youtube , and his website fullofeyes.com ----------------------------------------------- In This Is Love . Artist's statement By Chris Powers: 1 John 4:10, "In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."  Today, from 9am to 3pm, Jesus--fully man and fully God--would swallow all of our death and hell and horror and hopelessness into Himself so that we could be drawn into eternal fellowship with God.  May we be ...

Bargain Ebook: Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story by Carolyn Turgeon for $1.99

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Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story by Carolyn Turgeon is on sale in ebook format for $1.99. This one is a Cinderella retelling, one of many fairy tale novels by Turgeon. Book description: A new take on Cinderella, told from the perspective of the fairy godmother living in modern-day Manhattan Lil is an old woman who spends her days shelving rare books in a tiny Manhattan bookstore and lonely nights at home in her apartment. But Lil has an intriguing secret. Tucked and bound behind her back are white feathery wings--the only key to who she once was: the fairy godmother responsible for getting Cinderella to the ball to unite with her Prince Charming. But on that fateful night, something went terribly and beautifully wrong. Lil allowed herself the unthinkable: to feel the emotions of human beings and fall in love with the prince herself, going to the ball in place of Cinderella in her exquisitely gorgeous human guise. For her unforgivable mistake, she was banished to live among human...

Bargain Ebook: Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen by Serena Valentino for $1.99

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Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen by Serena Valentino is on sale in ebook format for a limited time for $1.99. Price could go up any time so don't hesitate if you're interested. (The sale was supposed to only yesterday!) Book description: Why exactly is the wicked Queen so nasty, particularly to Snow White? Perhaps it has something to do with the creepy-looking man in the magic mirror who's not just some random spooky visage...

Throwback Thursday: 340 year old bible found, reminds me of Hilkiah's finding the Law in the temple- ebooks-freezone

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This was first published in January, 2011 at The End Time -------------------------------- Here is a small thing that is good and nice. It is a news piece out of Wisconsin, ripped from 2 Kings 22. First, the modern version: "A centuries old relic has been discovered in a Bonduel (WI) church, tucked away for decades. No one realized it was even there, or what it was. In a cramped, rarely seen safe, no bigger than a kitchen pantry, at St. Paul Lutheran Church are heaps of old books and pamphlets. Many of which are more than 100 years old and in foreign languages. Most of the artifacts wouldn't fetch a high price at auction, but represent the church's nearly 150 year history and heritage. Now, one item kept there for an unknown length of time has taken the entire congregation by surprise. "This is an authentic 340-year-old Bible. We don't know how we got it. We don't know how it got into the safe. We've been asking some of our elderly folks and pe...