Logic, truth and destiny by Gary Rose

Kurtwood Smith says something very interesting here; and its about TRUTH-- its confusing, but TRUE!!!  When human beings make up truth and do what seems right to them without God's direction, eventually their faulty logic becomes contradictory.  We see it all around us; racist people race bating, people protected by armed body guards calling for gun control, politically correct speech that limits (controls) the rights of others while advancing their own agenda. Lies, all lies!!!

The is only one genuine truth- The truth that comes from GOD!!!

Consider...

Proverbs, Chapter 3 (WEB)

 ¹ My son, don’t forget my teaching;

but let your heart keep my commandments:

  ² for length of days, and years of life,

and peace, will they add to you.

  ³ Don’t let kindness and truth forsake you.

Bind them around your neck.

Write them on the tablet of your heart.

  ⁴ So you will find favor,

and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

  ⁵ Trust in Yahweh with all your heart,

and don’t lean on your own understanding.

  ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him,

and he will make your paths straight. (emp. added GDR)

Hebrews, Chapter 1 (WEB)

 ¹ God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,  ² has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds.  ³ His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 

John, Chapter 8 (WEB)

  ³⁰  As he spoke these things, many believed in him.  ³¹ Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had believed him, “If you remain in my word, then you are truly my disciples.   ³²  You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (emp. added GDR)

Want to know how to live? Open the manual made for human being to follow; The BIBLE!!! Or, perhaps you might just want to fight against God like the Pharisees...

John, Chapter 8 (WEB)

  ³³  They answered him, “We are Abraham’s seed, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How do you say, ‘You will be made free’ ?” 

  ³⁴  Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin.   ³⁵  A bondservant doesn’t live in the house forever. A son remains forever.   ³⁶  If therefore the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.   ³⁷  I know that you are Abraham’s seed, yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you.   ³⁸  I say the things which I have seen with my Father; and you also do the things which you have seen with your father.” 

  ³⁹  They answered him, “Our father is Abraham.” 

Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.   ⁴⁰  But now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God. Abraham didn’t do this.   ⁴¹  You do the works of your father.” 

They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father, God.” 

  ⁴²  Therefore Jesus said to them, “If God were your father, you would love me, for I came out and have come from God. For I haven’t come of myself, but he sent me.   ⁴³  Why don’t you understand my speech? Because you can’t hear my word.   ⁴⁴  You are of your father, the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and doesn’t stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks on his own; for he is a liar, and its father.  ⁴⁵  But because I tell the truth, you don’t believe me.   ⁴⁶  Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?   ⁴⁷  He who is of God hears the words of God. For this cause you don’t hear, because you are not of God.” 

  ⁴⁸  Then the Jews answered him, “Don’t we say well that you are a Samaritan, and have a demon?” 

  ⁴⁹  Jesus answered, “I don’t have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.   ⁵⁰  But I don’t seek my own glory. There is one who seeks and judges.   ⁵¹  Most certainly, I tell you, if a person keeps my word, he will never see death.” 

  ⁵²  Then the Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets; and you say, ‘If a man keeps my word, he will never taste of death.’   ⁵³ Are you greater than our father, Abraham, who died? The prophets died. Who do you make yourself out to be?” 

  ⁵⁴  Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say that he is our God.   ⁵⁵  You have not known him, but I know him. If I said, ‘I don’t know him,’ I would be like you, a liar. But I know him, and keep his word.   ⁵⁶  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it, and was glad.” 

  ⁵⁷  The Jews therefore said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 

  ⁵⁸  Jesus said to them, “Most certainly, I tell you, before Abraham came into existence, I AM.” 

  ⁵⁹  Therefore they took up stones to throw at him, (emp. added GDR) but Jesus was hidden, and went out of the temple, having gone through their midst, and so passed by. 

Ultimately, things will not end well for those who oppose God!

2 Thessalonians, Chapter 1 (WEB)

 ³  We are bound to always give thanks to God for you, brothers, even as it is appropriate, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of each and every one of you towards one another abounds;  ⁴ so that we ourselves boast about you in the assemblies of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions which you endure.  ⁵ This is an obvious sign of the righteous judgment of God, to the end that you may be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God, for which you also suffer.  ⁶ Since it is a righteous thing with God to repay affliction to those who afflict you,  ⁷ and to give relief to you who are afflicted with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire,  ⁸ giving vengeance to those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus,  ⁹ who will pay the penalty: eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might,  (emp. added GDR) ¹⁰ when he comes to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired among all those who have believed (because our testimony to you was believed) in that day.

Today, you have a choice. Think about it- before its too late!!!

Bible Reading June 28 by Gary Rose

Bible Reading June 28 (The World English Bible)

June 28

1 Kings 1-3

1Ki 1:1 Now king David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat.

1Ki 1:2 Therefore his servants said to him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and cherish him; and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may keep warm.

1Ki 1:3 So they sought for a beautiful young lady throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king.

1Ki 1:4 The young lady was very beautiful; and she cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king didn't know her intimately.

1Ki 1:5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.

1Ki 1:6 His father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why have you done so? and he was also a very goodly man; and he was born after Absalom.

1Ki 1:7 He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him.

1Ki 1:8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.

1Ki 1:9 Adonijah killed sheep and cattle and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En Rogel; and he called all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the men of Judah, the king's servants:

1Ki 1:10 but Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he didn't call.

1Ki 1:11 Then Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Haven't you heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and David our lord doesn't know it?

1Ki 1:12 Now therefore come, please let me give you counsel, that you may save your own life, and the life of your son Solomon.

1Ki 1:13 Go in to king David, and tell him, Didn't you, my lord, king, swear to your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne? why then does Adonijah reign?

1Ki 1:14 Behold, while you yet talk there with the king, I also will come in after you, and confirm your words.

1Ki 1:15 Bathsheba went in to the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king.

1Ki 1:16 Bathsheba bowed, and did obeisance to the king. The king said, What would you like?

1Ki 1:17 She said to him, My lord, you swore by Yahweh your God to your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.

1Ki 1:18 Now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and you, my lord the king, don't know it:

1Ki 1:19 and he has slain cattle and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the army; but he hasn't called Solomon your servant.

1Ki 1:20 You, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, that you should tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.

1Ki 1:21 Otherwise it will happen, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.

1Ki 1:22 Behold, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.

1Ki 1:23 They told the king, saying, Behold, Nathan the prophet. When he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.

1Ki 1:24 Nathan said, My lord, king, have you said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne?

1Ki 1:25 For he is gone down this day, and has slain cattle and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king's sons, and the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest; and behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and say,Long live king Adonijah.

1Ki 1:26 But he hasn't called me, even me your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon.

1Ki 1:27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and you haven't shown to your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?

1Ki 1:28 Then king David answered, Call to me Bathsheba. She came into the king's presence, and stood before the king.

1Ki 1:29 The king swore, and said, As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,

1Ki 1:30 most certainly as I swore to you by Yahweh, the God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place; most certainly so will I do this day.

1Ki 1:31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did obeisance to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live forever.

1Ki 1:32 King David said, Call to me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. They came before the king.

1Ki 1:33 The king said to them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon:

1Ki 1:34 and let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel; and blow the trumpet, and say, Longlive king Solomon.

1Ki 1:35 Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne; for he shall be king in my place; and I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah.

1Ki 1:36 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: Yahweh, the God of my lord the king, say so too.

1Ki 1:37 As Yahweh has been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David.

1Ki 1:38 So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride on king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.

1Ki 1:39 Zadok the priest took the horn of oil out of the Tent, and anointed Solomon. They blew the trumpet; and all the people said, Long live king Solomon.

1Ki 1:40 All the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth shook with the sound of them.

1Ki 1:41 Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Why is this noise of the city being in an uproar?

1Ki 1:42 While he yet spoke, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said, Come in; for you are a worthy man, and bring good news.

1Ki 1:43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, Most certainly our lord king David has made Solomon king:

1Ki 1:44 and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride on the king's mule;

1Ki 1:45 and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon; and they are come up from there rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that you have heard.

1Ki 1:46 Also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom.

1Ki 1:47 Moreover the king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, Your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne: and the king bowed himself on the bed.

1Ki 1:48 Also thus said the king, Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day, my eyes even seeing it.

1Ki 1:49 All the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.

1Ki 1:50 Adonijah feared because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.

1Ki 1:51 It was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah fears king Solomon; for, behold, he has laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword.

1Ki 1:52 Solomon said, If he shall show himself a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth; but if wickedness be found in him, he shall die.

1Ki 1:53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and did obeisance to king Solomon; and Solomon said to him, Go to your house.

1Ki 2:1 Now the days of David drew near that he should die; and he commanded Solomon his son, saying,

1Ki 2:2 I am going the way of all the earth: you be strong therefore, and show yourself a man;

1Ki 2:3 and keep the instruction of Yahweh your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his ordinances, and his testimonies, according to that which is written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do, and wherever you turn yourself.

1Ki 2:4 That Yahweh may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, If your children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you, said he, a man on the throne of Israel.

1Ki 2:5 Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, even what he did to the two captains of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner, and to Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war on his sash that was about his waist, and in his shoes that were on his feet.

1Ki 2:6 Do therefore according to your wisdom, and don't let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace.

1Ki 2:7 But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those who eat at your table; for so they came to me when I fled from Absalom your brother.

1Ki 2:8 Behold, there is with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, I will not put you to death with the sword.

1Ki 2:9 Now therefore don't hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down to Sheol with blood.

1Ki 2:10 David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.

1Ki 2:11 The days that David reigned over Israel were forty years; seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty-three years reigned he in Jerusalem.

1Ki 2:12 Solomon sat on the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly.

1Ki 2:13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. She said, Do you come peaceably? He said, Peaceably.

1Ki 2:14 He said moreover, I have something to tell you. She said, Say on.

1Ki 2:15 He said, You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: however the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother's; for it was his from Yahweh.

1Ki 2:16 Now I ask one petition of you; don't deny me. She said to him, Say on.

1Ki 2:17 He said, "Please speak to Solomon the king (for he will not tell you 'no'), that he give me Abishag the Shunammite as wife."

1Ki 2:18 Bathsheba said, Well; I will speak for you to the king.

1Ki 2:19 Bathsheba therefore went to king Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. The king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself to her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand.

1Ki 2:20 Then she said, I ask one small petition of you; don't deny me. The king said to her, Ask on, my mother; for I will not deny you.

1Ki 2:21 She said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as wife.

1Ki 2:22 King Solomon answered his mother, Why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he is my elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.

1Ki 2:23 Then king Solomon swore by Yahweh, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life.

1Ki 2:24 Now therefore as Yahweh lives, who has established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death this day.

1Ki 2:25 King Solomon sent by Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell on him, so that he died.

1Ki 2:26 To Abiathar the priest said the king, Go to Anathoth, to your own fields; for you are worthy of death: but I will not at this time put you to death, because you bore the ark of the Lord Yahweh before David my father, and because you were afflicted in all in which my father was afflicted.

1Ki 2:27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest to Yahweh, that he might fulfill the word of Yahweh, which he spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

1Ki 2:28 The news came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he didn't turn after Absalom. Joab fled to the Tent of Yahweh, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.

1Ki 2:29 It was told king Solomon, Joab is fled to the Tent of Yahweh, and behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall on him.

1Ki 2:30 Benaiah came to the Tent of Yahweh, and said to him, Thus says the king, Come forth. He said, No; but I will die here. Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.

1Ki 2:31 The king said to him, Do as he has said, and fall on him, and bury him; that you may take away the blood, which Joab shed without cause, from me and from my father's house.

1Ki 2:32 Yahweh will return his blood on his own head, because he fell on two men more righteous and better than he, and killed them with the sword, and my father David didn't know it, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the army of Judah.

1Ki 2:33 So shall their blood return on the head of Joab, and on the head of his seed forever: but to David, and to his seed, and to his house, and to his throne, shall there be peace for ever from Yahweh.

1Ki 2:34 Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell on him, and killed him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.

1Ki 2:35 The king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the army; and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar.

1Ki 2:36 The king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, Build yourself a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and don't go forth from there any where.

1Ki 2:37 For on the day you go out, and pass over the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall surely die: your blood shall be on your own head.

1Ki 2:38 Shimei said to the king, The saying is good: as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do. Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.

1Ki 2:39 It happened at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. They told Shimei, saying, Behold, your servants are in Gath.

1Ki 2:40 Shimei arose, and saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his servants; and Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath.

1Ki 2:41 It was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again.

1Ki 2:42 The king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, Didn't I adjure you by Yahweh, and protest to you, saying, Know for certain, that on the day you go out, and walk abroad any where, you shall surely die? and you said to me, The saying that I have heard is good.

1Ki 2:43 Why then have you not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the commandment that I have instructed you with?

1Ki 2:44 The king said moreover to Shimei, You know all the wickedness which your heart is privy to, that you did to David my father: therefore Yahweh shall return your wickedness on your own head.

1Ki 2:45 But king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before Yahweh forever.

1Ki 2:46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he went out, and fell on him, so that he died. The kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

1Ki 3:1 Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of Yahweh, and the wall of Jerusalem all around.

1Ki 3:2 Only the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was no house built for the name of Yahweh until those days.

1Ki 3:3 Solomon loved Yahweh, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.

1Ki 3:4 The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer on that altar.

1Ki 3:5 In Gibeon Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, Ask what I shall give you.

1Ki 3:6 Solomon said, You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, according as he walked before you in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you; and you have kept for him this great loving kindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

1Ki 3:7 Now, Yahweh my God, you have made your servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child; I don't know how to go out or come in.

1Ki 3:8 Your servant is in the midst of your people which you have chosen, a great people, that can't be numbered nor counted for multitude.

1Ki 3:9 Give your servant therefore an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this your great people?

1Ki 3:10 The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.

1Ki 3:11 God said to him, Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, neither have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice;

1Ki 3:12 behold, I have done according to your word: behold, I have given you a wise and an understanding heart; so that there has been none like you before you, neither after you shall any arise like you.

1Ki 3:13 I have also given you that which you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like you, all your days.

1Ki 3:14 If you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.

1Ki 3:15 Solomon awoke; and behold, it was a dream: and he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.

1Ki 3:16 Then there came two women who were prostitutes, to the king, and stood before him.

1Ki 3:17 The one woman said, Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house.

1Ki 3:18 It happened the third day after I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also; and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house.

1Ki 3:19 This woman's child died in the night, because she lay on it.

1Ki 3:20 She arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.

1Ki 3:21 When I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead; but when I had looked at it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, whom I bore.

1Ki 3:22 The other woman said, No; but the living is my son, and the dead is your son. This said, No; but the dead is your son, and the living is my son. Thus they spoke before the king.

1Ki 3:23 Then said the king, The one says, This is my son who lives, and your son is the dead: and the other says, No; but your son is the dead, and my son is the living.

1Ki 3:24 The king said, Get me a sword. They brought a sword before the king.

1Ki 3:25 The king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.

1Ki 3:26 Then spoke the woman whose the living child was to the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no way kill it. But the other said, It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.

1Ki 3:27 Then the king answered, Give her the living child, and in no way kill it: she is its mother.

1Ki 3:28 All Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

Jun. 28, 29

Acts 2

Act 2:1 Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place.

Act 2:2 Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

Act 2:3 Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them.

Act 2:4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.

Act 2:5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.

Act 2:6 When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language.

Act 2:7 They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Behold, aren't all these who speak Galileans?

Act 2:8 How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?

Act 2:9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,

Act 2:10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

Act 2:11 Cretans and Arabians: we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!"

Act 2:12 They were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying one to another, "What does this mean?"

Act 2:13 Others, mocking, said, "They are filled with new wine."

Act 2:14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke out to them, "You men of Judea, and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

Act 2:15 For these aren't drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.

Act 2:16 But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

Act 2:17 'It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams.

Act 2:18 Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.

Act 2:19 I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.

Act 2:20 The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.

Act 2:21 It will be, that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

Act 2:22 "Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you, even as you yourselves know,

Act 2:23 him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;

Act 2:24 whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.

Act 2:25 For David says concerning him, 'I saw the Lord always before my face, For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.

Act 2:26 Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope;

Act 2:27 because you will not leave my soul in Hades, neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.

Act 2:28 You made known to me the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.'

Act 2:29 "Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

Act 2:30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,

Act 2:31 he foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was his soul left in Hades, nor did his flesh see decay.

Act 2:32 This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.

Act 2:33 Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this, which you now see and hear.

Act 2:34 For David didn't ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit by my right hand,

Act 2:35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." '

Act 2:36 "Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified."

Act 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"

Act 2:38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Act 2:39 For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself."

Act 2:40 With many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, "Save yourselves from this crooked generation!"

Act 2:41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls.

Act 2:42 They continued steadfastly in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer.

Act 2:43 Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

Act 2:44 All who believed were together, and had all things in common.

Act 2:45 They sold their possessions and goods, and distributed them to all, according as anyone had need.

Act 2:46 Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart,

Act 2:47 praising God, and having favor with all the people. The Lord added to the assembly day by day those who were being saved.

God loves a cheerful giver by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/give.html

God loves a cheerful giver

"So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7). The Revised Standard Version has "not reluctantly or under compulsion."
In the church of Christ each one is to give as he purposes in his own heart and there is to be no compulsion.
I once attended a Pentecostal tent meeting in Canada where buckets were passed around several times to collect money. For a half an hour the preacher pled with the people to give more and more. He drove a Cadillac.
I once visited a mass in West Flanders where the priest went up and down each row of chairs, holding out the collection basket and looking each person straight in the eye. When he came to me, I said: "No, thank you."
Worldly churches often use unscriptural methods of obtaining money. When I was a boy there was a building near our home that we called 'The Bingo Church'. The only sign was a large billboard with the words: 'Bingo Every Thursday Night!' Some denominations sell lottery tickets, have rummage sales and use all kinds of gimmicks to raise money.
Some misuse religion for material gain. Paul warned Timothy about such people, "men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself" (1 Timothy 6:5).
Giving is an important aspect of being a Christian, and an opportunity to give is provided on the Lord's day (1 Corinthians 16:2). But in the church of Christ we may not pressurize people to give or use worldly devices to obtain money. Christians give as they have purposed in their own heart and as the Lord has prospered them.
Church leaders have no right to tell people how much to give or to request pledges. How much someone gives is between him and God. Nor should we ask for funds from non-Christians. We should make it clear that visitors are not expected to contribute.
Paul wrote to Philemon: "But without your consent I wanted to do nothing, that your good deed might not be by compulsion, as it were, but voluntary" (Philemon 14).
God wants us to give willingly out of love. When the tabernacle was built, "The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 'Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering' " (Exodus 25:1,2).


We give cheerfully because God has given so much to us.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights" (James 1:17). "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" (John 3:16). Jesus "gave Himself for our sins" (Galatians 1:4). "Walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us" (Ephesians 5:2). God is a giver and He wants us to be like Him.
God wants us to give liberally.
When Paul explains how each member of the body is to function, he says "he who gives, with liberality" (Romans 12:8).
"He who has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor" (Proverbs 22:9).
We are to be generous even to our enemies: "If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; for so you will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will reward you" (Proverbs 25:21,22).
God wants us to give ourselves to Him.
Even though they were poor, the churches of Macedonia gave liberally because they had first given themselves to God: "Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And this they did, not as we had hoped, but first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God" (2 Corinthians 8:1-5).
God wants us to give according to our ability.
Jesus told His followers, "give alms of such things as you have" (Luke 11:41).
God never asks us to give more than we can. "Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans. So He called His disciples to Him and said to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood' " (Mark 12:41-44).
We are not really giving if we just give what is left over. Our giving should be planned. We are to give as we have purposed in our heart.
The story is told of a little girl who was given two euro, one to buy candy and one to put in the collection plate. As she skipped along the street she dropped one of the coins and it rolled into the storm drain. As she peered through the grate she said: "Whoops! There went the Lord's euro!"
We are to share with others.
When the people asked John the Baptist, "What shall we do then?" he replied, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise" (Luke 3:10,11).
"Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life" (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
God will bless us if we are generous.
"Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you" (Luke 6:38). If we use a teaspoon to measure out our giving, God will use a teaspoon to measure out our blessings. If we use a dump-truck to give, God will use a dump-truck to bless us spiritually.
Paul explained to the Corinthians that God would provide for their needs if they were generous to others: "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, have an abundance for every good work. As it is written: 'He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness remains forever.' Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God" (2 Corinthians 9:6-11).
He explains that their liberal sharing brings glory to God: "For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God, while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men" (2 Corinthians 9:12,13). The churches of Galatia were told: "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith" (Galatians 6:10).
God wants us to work so we can give.
Paul had set an example in this for the Christians at Ephesus: "Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' " (Acts 20:34,35).
In his letter to this same church, he wrote: "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need" (Ephesians 4:28).
God wants us to lay up treasure in heaven.
Jesus said: "Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Luke 12:33,34).
God wants us to give personally and through the church.
Our good deeds are to be done discreetly. Jesus said: "But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly" (Matthew 6:3,4).
Christians are instructed to give on the first day of the week as they have been prospered. Paul told the Christians at Corinth: "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come" (1 Corinthians 16:1,2).
Gifts can also be given at other times to meet special needs. We read about the church at Jerusalem: "Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles' feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need" (Acts 4:34,35).
How are we to give?
"Let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7).
No compulsion is to be used in the church of Christ.
God wants us to give willingly through love. We give cheerfully because God has given us so much.
God wants us to give liberally, according to our ability, but first of all He wants us to give ourselves to Him.
God will bless us if we share what we have with others.
God wants us to work so we can give and lay up treasure in heaven. We give both personally and through the church.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Did Both Thieves Revile Christ? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=768&b=Mark

Did Both Thieves Revile Christ?
by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Very likely, the most well-known, nameless person in the Bible is “the thief on the cross.” The Lord demonstrated His mercy one last time before His crucifixion by pardoning the thief who begged Jesus, saying, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). Having the “power on Earth to forgive sins” (Matthew 9:6), and an overflowing amount of compassion, Jesus told him: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).

After rehearsing the story of “the thief on the cross” countless times from Luke’s gospel account (a story that, sadly, has been misused by many to justify that a person today can be saved without being baptized “for the remission of sins”—Acts 2:38; cf. 22:16), some Bible students are puzzled when they eventually compare the “beloved physician’s” account with what Matthew and Mark recorded. Whereas Luke wrote: “Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, ‘If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us’ ” (23:39), Matthew and Mark stated the following:

“Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him” (Matthew 27:44)

“Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him” (Mark 15:32)

The obvious question is, why did Matthew and Mark indicate the “thieves” (plural) reviled Jesus, while Luke mentioned only one who insulted Him?

First, it is quite possible that, initially, both thieves reviled Christ, but then one of them repented. After hearing Jesus’ words on the cross, and seeing His forgiving attitude, the one thief may have been driven to acknowledge that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. How many times have we made a statement about someone or something, but then retracted the statement only a short while later after receiving more information?

A second possible explanation for the minor differences in gospel accounts regarding the two thieves who were crucified next to Jesus involves the understanding of a figure of speech known as synecdoche. Merriam-Webster defines this term as “a figure of speech by which a part is put for the whole (as fifty sail for fifty ships), the whole for a part (as society for high society)…or the name of the material for the thing made (as boards for stage)” (italics. in orig.). Just as Bible writers frequently used figures of speech such as simile, metaphor, sarcasm, and metonymy, they also used synecdoche. As seen above (in the definition of synecdoche), this figure of speech can be used in a variety of ways (see also Dungan, 1888, pp. 300-309):

• A whole can put for the part.
• A part may be put for the whole.
• Time might be put for part of a time.
• The singular can be put for the plural.
• And the plural can be put for the singular.

It is feasible that Matthew and Mark were using the plural in place of the singular in their accounts of the thieves reviling Christ on the cross. Lest you think that such might be an isolated case, notice two other places in Scripture where the same form of synecdoche is used.

Genesis 8:4 indicates that Noah’s ark rested “on the mountains of Ararat.” Question: Did the ark rest on one of the mountains of Ararat, or did it rest on all of them at the same time? Although the ark was a huge vessel, it obviously did not rest on the many mountains of Ararat; rather, it rested on one.

In Genesis 21:7 Sarah asked, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.” Anyone who knows much about the Bible will remember that Sarah had but one child. In certain contexts, however, one might use a synecdoche and speak of one child (as did Sarah) by using the word children.

We must keep in mind that the biblical apologist does not have to pin down the exact solution to an alleged contradiction; he need show only one or more possibilities of harmonization in order to negate the force of the charge that a Bible contradiction really exists. The skeptic cannot deny that both of the above options are plausible explanations to the question of why Matthew and Mark wrote of “thieves” reviling Christ, instead of “thief.”

REFERENCES

Dungan, D.R. (1888), Hermeneutics (Delight, AR: Gospel Light), reprint.