May 6, 2019

The snowball effect by Gary Rose



I don’t remember how old I was when I first heard the term “White lie”, but I must have been very young. For those of you who have never heard this term before, I would define it as a very, small modification of the truth, with the intent of not hurting someone by telling them the unvarnished truth. My Wordnet dictionary has a slightly different description:
“1. white lie -- (an unimportant lie (especially one told to be tactful or polite))”

Frankly, I like my definition better because there is no such thing as an unimportant lie, for even the smallest lie has a tendency to snowball into something enormous. And then I thought of something the Apostle James said…


James 1 ( World English Bible )
Jam 1:13, Let no man say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God can’t be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.
Jam 1:14, But each one is tempted, when he is drawn away by his own lust, and enticed.
Jam 1:15, Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin; and the sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death.


If you know something is even a little bit wrong; do not do it. Because, if you do it once, you will find it easier to do it again and each time you are presented with a choice to sin or not sin, it will become so easy that it will become a habit and eventually destroy you.

If you look closely at the picture, that last “domino” (the big one on the left) is the one that will finally get you, but it could have been avoided if only you had not done the little thing in the first place.

Remember this Gary...

Bible Reading May 6,7 by Gary Rose


Bible Reading May 6,7

World English Bible

May 6
Deuteronomy 27, 28

Deu 27:1 Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandment which I command you this day.
Deu 27:2 It shall be on the day when you shall pass over the Jordan to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, that you shall set yourself up great stones, and plaster them with plaster:
Deu 27:3 and you shall write on them all the words of this law, when you have passed over; that you may go in to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Yahweh, the God of your fathers, has promised you.
Deu 27:4 It shall be, when you have passed over the Jordan, that you shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in Mount Ebal, and you shall plaster them with plaster.
Deu 27:5 There you shall build an altar to Yahweh your God, an altar of stones: you shall lift up no iron tool on them.
Deu 27:6 You shall build the altar of Yahweh your God of uncut stones; and you shall offer burnt offerings thereon to Yahweh your God:
Deu 27:7 and you shall sacrifice peace offerings, and shall eat there; and you shall rejoice before Yahweh your God.
Deu 27:8 You shall write on the stones all the words of this law very plainly.
Deu 27:9 Moses and the priests the Levites spoke to all Israel, saying, Keep silence, and listen, Israel: this day you have become the people of Yahweh your God.
Deu 27:10 You shall therefore obey the voice of Yahweh your God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command you this day.
Deu 27:11 Moses commanded the people the same day, saying,
Deu 27:12 These shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people, when you have passed over the Jordan: Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin.
Deu 27:13 These shall stand on Mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
Deu 27:14 The Levites shall answer, and tell all the men of Israel with a loud voice,
Deu 27:15 Cursed be the man who makes an engraved or molten image, an abomination to Yahweh, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and sets it up in secret. All the people shall answer and say, Amen.
Deu 27:16 Cursed be he who sets light by his father or his mother. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:17 Cursed be he who removes his neighbor's landmark. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:18 Cursed be he who makes the blind to wander out of the way. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:19 Cursed be he who wrests the justice due to the foreigner, fatherless, and widow. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:20 Cursed be he who lies with his father's wife, because he has uncovered his father's skirt. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:21 Cursed be he who lies with any manner of animal. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:22 Cursed be he who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father, or the daughter of his mother. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:23 Cursed be he who lies with his mother-in-law. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:24 Cursed be he who strikes his neighbor in secret. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:25 Cursed be he who takes a bribe to kill an innocent person. All the people shall say, Amen.
Deu 27:26 Cursed be he who doesn't confirm the words of this law to do them. All the people shall say, Amen.

Deu 28:1 It shall happen, if you shall listen diligently to the voice of Yahweh your God, to observe to do all his commandments which I command you this day, that Yahweh your God will set you on high above all the nations of the earth:
Deu 28:2 and all these blessings shall come on you, and overtake you, if you shall listen to the voice of Yahweh your God.
Deu 28:3 You shall be blessed in the city, and you shall be blessed in the field.
Deu 28:4 You shall be blessed in the fruit of your body, the fruit of your ground, the fruit of your animals, the increase of your livestock, and the young of your flock.
Deu 28:5 Your basket and your kneading trough shall be blessed.
Deu 28:6 You shall be blessed when you come in, and you shall be blessed when you go out.
Deu 28:7 Yahweh will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be struck before you. They will come out against you one way, and will flee before you seven ways.
Deu 28:8 Yahweh will command the blessing on you in your barns, and in all that you put your hand to; and he will bless you in the land which Yahweh your God gives you.
Deu 28:9 Yahweh will establish you for a holy people to himself, as he has sworn to you; if you shall keep the commandments of Yahweh your God, and walk in his ways.
Deu 28:10 All the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of Yahweh; and they shall be afraid of you.
Deu 28:11 Yahweh will make you plenteous for good, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground, in the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers to give you.
Deu 28:12 Yahweh will open to you his good treasure in the sky, to give the rain of your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand: and you shall lend to many nations, and you shall not borrow.
Deu 28:13 Yahweh will make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall be above only, and you shall not be beneath; if you shall listen to the commandments of Yahweh your God, which I command you this day, to observe and to do them,
Deu 28:14 and shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
Deu 28:15 But it shall come to pass, if you will not listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command you this day, that all these curses shall come on you, and overtake you.
Deu 28:16 You shall be cursed in the city, and you shall be cursed in the field.
Deu 28:17 Your basket and your kneading trough shall be cursed.
Deu 28:18 The fruit of your body, the fruit of your ground, the increase of your livestock, and the young of your flock shall be cursed.
Deu 28:19 You shall be cursed when you come in, and you shall be cursed when you go out.
Deu 28:20 Yahweh will send on you cursing, confusion, and rebuke, in all that you put your hand to do, until you are destroyed, and until you perish quickly; because of the evil of your doings, by which you have forsaken me.
Deu 28:21 Yahweh will make the pestilence cling to you, until he has consumed you from off the land, where you go in to possess it.
Deu 28:22 Yahweh will strike you with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with fiery heat, and with the sword, and with blight, and with mildew; and they shall pursue you until you perish.
Deu 28:23 Your sky that is over your head shall be brass, and the earth that is under you shall be iron.
Deu 28:24 Yahweh will make the rain of your land powder and dust: from the sky shall it come down on you, until you are destroyed.
Deu 28:25 Yahweh will cause you to be struck before your enemies; you shall go out one way against them, and shall flee seven ways before them: and you shall be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth.
Deu 28:26 Your dead body shall be food to all birds of the sky, and to the animals of the earth; and there shall be none to frighten them away.
Deu 28:27 Yahweh will strike you with the boil of Egypt, and with the tumors, and with the scurvy, and with the itch, of which you can not be healed.
Deu 28:28 Yahweh will strike you with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart;
Deu 28:29 and you shall grope at noonday, as the blind gropes in darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways: and you shall be only oppressed and robbed always, and there shall be none to save you.
Deu 28:30 You shall betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: you shall build a house, and you shall not dwell therein: you shall plant a vineyard, and shall not use its fruit.
Deu 28:31 Your ox shall be slain before your eyes, and you shall not eat of it: your donkey shall be violently taken away from before your face, and shall not be restored to you: your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have none to save you.
Deu 28:32 Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people; and your eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day: and there shall be nothing in the power of your hand.
Deu 28:33 The fruit of your ground, and all your labors, shall a nation which you don't know eat up; and you shall be only oppressed and crushed always;
Deu 28:34 so that you shall be mad for the sight of your eyes which you shall see.
Deu 28:35 Yahweh will strike you in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore boil, of which you can not be healed, from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.
Deu 28:36 Yahweh will bring you, and your king whom you shall set over you, to a nation that you have not known, you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone.
Deu 28:37 You shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples where Yahweh shall lead you away.
Deu 28:38 You shall carry much seed out into the field, and shall gather little in; for the locust shall consume it.
Deu 28:39 You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worm shall eat them.
Deu 28:40 You shall have olive trees throughout all your borders, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil; for your olive shall cast its fruit.
Deu 28:41 You shall father sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours; for they shall go into captivity.
Deu 28:42 All your trees and the fruit of your ground shall the locust possess.
Deu 28:43 The foreigner who is in the midst of you shall mount up above you higher and higher; and you shall come down lower and lower.
Deu 28:44 He shall lend to you, and you shall not lend to him: he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail.
Deu 28:45 All these curses shall come on you, and shall pursue you, and overtake you, until you are destroyed; because you didn't listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded you:
Deu 28:46 and they shall be on you for a sign and for a wonder, and on your seed forever.
Deu 28:47 Because you didn't serve Yahweh your God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, by reason of the abundance of all things;
Deu 28:48 therefore you shall serve your enemies whom Yahweh shall send against you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron on your neck, until he has destroyed you.
Deu 28:49 Yahweh will bring a nation against you from far, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies; a nation whose language you shall not understand;
Deu 28:50 a nation of fierce facial expressions, that shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favor to the young,
Deu 28:51 and shall eat the fruit of your livestock, and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed; that also shall not leave you grain, new wine, or oil, the increase of your livestock, or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.
Deu 28:52 They shall besiege you in all your gates, until your high and fortified walls come down, in which you trusted, throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you in all your gates throughout all your land, which Yahweh your God has given you.
Deu 28:53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom Yahweh your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies shall distress you.
Deu 28:54 The man who is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children whom he has remaining;
Deu 28:55 so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat, because he has nothing left him, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in all your gates.
Deu 28:56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not adventure to set the sole of her foot on the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil toward the husband of her bosom, and toward her son, and toward her daughter,
Deu 28:57 and toward her young one who comes out from between her feet, and toward her children whom she shall bear; for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in your gates.
Deu 28:58 If you will not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and fearful name, YAHWEH YOUR GOD;
Deu 28:59 then Yahweh will make your plagues wonderful, and the plagues of your seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance.
Deu 28:60 He will bring on you again all the diseases of Egypt, which you were afraid of; and they shall cling to you.
Deu 28:61 Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, Yahweh will bring them on you, until you are destroyed.
Deu 28:62 You shall be left few in number, whereas you were as the stars of the sky for multitude; because you didn't listen to the voice of Yahweh your God.
Deu 28:63 It shall happen that as Yahweh rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you, so Yahweh will rejoice over you to cause you to perish, and to destroy you; and you shall be plucked from off the land where you go in to possess it.
Deu 28:64 Yahweh will scatter you among all peoples, from the one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth; and there you shall serve other gods, which you have not known, you nor your fathers, even wood and stone.
Deu 28:65 Among these nations you shall find no ease, and there shall be no rest for the sole of your foot: but Yahweh will give you there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and pining of soul;
Deu 28:66 and your life shall hang in doubt before you; and you shall fear night and day, and shall have no assurance of your life.
Deu 28:67 In the morning you shall say, Would it were evening! and at evening you shall say, Would it were morning! for the fear of your heart which you shall fear, and for the sight of your eyes which you shall see.
Deu 28:68 Yahweh will bring you into Egypt again with ships, by the way of which I said to you, You shall see it no more again: and there you shall sell yourselves to your enemies for bondservants and for bondmaids, and no man shall buy you.

May 7
Deuteronomy 29, 30

Deu 29:1 These are the words of the covenant which Yahweh commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which he made with them in Horeb.
Deu 29:2 Moses called to all Israel, and said to them, You have seen all that Yahweh did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land;
Deu 29:3 the great trials which your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders:
Deu 29:4 but Yahweh has not given you a heart to know, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, to this day.
Deu 29:5 I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes have not grown old on you, and your shoes have not grown old on your feet.
Deu 29:6 You have not eaten bread, neither have you drunk wine or strong drink; that you may know that I am Yahweh your God.
Deu 29:7 When you came to this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out against us to battle, and we struck them:
Deu 29:8 and we took their land, and gave it for an inheritance to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half-tribe of the Manassites.
Deu 29:9 Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may prosper in all that you do.
Deu 29:10 You stand this day all of you before Yahweh your God; your heads, your tribes, your elders, and your officers, even all the men of Israel,
Deu 29:11 your little ones, your wives, and your foreigner who is in the midst of your camps, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water;
Deu 29:12 that you may enter into the covenant of Yahweh your God, and into his oath, which Yahweh your God makes with you this day;
Deu 29:13 that he may establish you this day to himself for a people, and that he may be to you a God, as he spoke to you, and as he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
Deu 29:14 Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath,
Deu 29:15 but with him who stands here with us this day before Yahweh our God, and also with him who is not here with us this day
Deu 29:16 (for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we came through the midst of the nations through which you passed;
Deu 29:17 and you have seen their abominations, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were among them);
Deu 29:18 lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turns away this day from Yahweh our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; lest there should be among you a root that bears gall and wormwood;
Deu 29:19 and it happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart, to destroy the moist with the dry.
Deu 29:20 Yahweh will not pardon him, but then the anger of Yahweh and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and all the curse that is written in this book shall lie on him, and Yahweh will blot out his name from under the sky.
Deu 29:21 Yahweh will set him apart to evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that is written in this book of the law.
Deu 29:22 The generation to come, your children who shall rise up after you, and the foreigner who shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses with which Yahweh has made it sick;
Deu 29:23 and that the whole land of it is sulfur, and salt, and a burning, that it is not sown, nor bears, nor any grass grows therein, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which Yahweh overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:
Deu 29:24 even all the nations shall say, Why has Yahweh done thus to this land? what means the heat of this great anger?
Deu 29:25 Then men shall say, Because they forsook the covenant of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt,
Deu 29:26 and went and served other gods, and worshiped them, gods that they didn't know, and that he had not given to them:
Deu 29:27 therefore the anger of Yahweh was kindled against this land, to bring on it all the curse that is written in this book;
Deu 29:28 and Yahweh rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as at this day.
Deu 29:29 The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Deu 30:1 It shall happen, when all these things have come on you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you shall call them to mind among all the nations, where Yahweh your God has driven you,
Deu 30:2 and shall return to Yahweh your God, and shall obey his voice according to all that I command you this day, you and your children, with all your heart, and with all your soul;
Deu 30:3 that then Yahweh your God will turn your captivity, and have compassion on you, and will return and gather you from all the peoples, where Yahweh your God has scattered you.
Deu 30:4 If any of your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of the heavens, from there will Yahweh your God gather you, and from there he will bring you back:
Deu 30:5 and Yahweh your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and he will do you good, and multiply you above your fathers.
Deu 30:6 Yahweh your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your seed, to love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, that you may live.
Deu 30:7 Yahweh your God will put all these curses on your enemies, and on those who hate you, who persecuted you.
Deu 30:8 You shall return and obey the voice of Yahweh, and do all his commandments which I command you this day.
Deu 30:9 Yahweh your God will make you plenteous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground, for good: for Yahweh will again rejoice over you for good, as he rejoiced over your fathers;
Deu 30:10 if you shall obey the voice of Yahweh your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law; if you turn to Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul.
Deu 30:11 For this commandment which I command you this day, it is not too hard for you, neither is it far off.
Deu 30:12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it to us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?
Deu 30:13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it to us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?
Deu 30:14 But the word is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart, that you may do it.
Deu 30:15 Behold, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil;
Deu 30:16 in that I command you this day to love Yahweh your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, that you may live and multiply, and that Yahweh your God may bless you in the land where you go in to possess it.
Deu 30:17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but shall be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;
Deu 30:18 I denounce to you this day, that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land, where you pass over the Jordan to go in to possess it.
Deu 30:19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that you may live, you and your seed;
Deu 30:20 to love Yahweh your God, to obey his voice, and to cleave to him; for he is your life, and the length of your days; that you may dwell in the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

May 6, 7
Luke 20

Luk 20:1 It happened on one of those days, as he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the Good News, that the priests and scribes came to him with the elders.
Luk 20:2 They asked him, "Tell us: by what authority do you do these things? Or who is giving you this authority?"
Luk 20:3 He answered them, "I also will ask you one question. Tell me:
Luk 20:4 the baptism of John, was it from heaven, or from men?"
Luk 20:5 They reasoned with themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will say, 'Why didn't you believe him?'
Luk 20:6 But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet."
Luk 20:7 They answered that they didn't know where it was from.
Luk 20:8 Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."
Luk 20:9 He began to tell the people this parable. "A man planted a vineyard, and rented it out to some farmers, and went into another country for a long time.
Luk 20:10 At the proper season, he sent a servant to the farmers to collect his share of the fruit of the vineyard. But the farmers beat him, and sent him away empty.
Luk 20:11 He sent yet another servant, and they also beat him, and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty.
Luk 20:12 He sent yet a third, and they also wounded him, and threw him out.
Luk 20:13 The lord of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. It may be that seeing him, they will respect him.'
Luk 20:14 "But when the farmers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir. Come, let's kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'
Luk 20:15 They threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do to them?
Luk 20:16 He will come and destroy these farmers, and will give the vineyard to others." When they heard it, they said, "May it never be!"
Luk 20:17 But he looked at them, and said, "Then what is this that is written, 'The stone which the builders rejected, the same was made the chief cornerstone?'
Luk 20:18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but it will crush whomever it falls on to dust."
Luk 20:19 The chief priests and the scribes sought to lay hands on him that very hour, but they feared the people-for they knew he had spoken this parable against them.
Luk 20:20 They watched him, and sent out spies, who pretended to be righteous, that they might trap him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the power and authority of the governor.
Luk 20:21 They asked him, "Teacher, we know that you say and teach what is right, and aren't partial to anyone, but truly teach the way of God.
Luk 20:22 Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"
Luk 20:23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test me?
Luk 20:24 Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?" They answered, "Caesar's."
Luk 20:25 He said to them, "Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."
Luk 20:26 They weren't able to trap him in his words before the people. They marveled at his answer, and were silent.
Luk 20:27 Some of the Sadducees came to him, those who deny that there is a resurrection.
Luk 20:28 They asked him, "Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies having a wife, and he is childless, his brother should take the wife, and raise up children for his brother.
Luk 20:29 There were therefore seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died childless.
Luk 20:30 The second took her as wife, and he died childless.
Luk 20:31 The third took her, and likewise the seven all left no children, and died.
Luk 20:32 Afterward the woman also died.
Luk 20:33 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them will she be? For the seven had her as a wife."
Luk 20:34 Jesus said to them, "The children of this age marry, and are given in marriage.
Luk 20:35 But those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage.
Luk 20:36 For they can't die any more, for they are like the angels, and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.
Luk 20:37 But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed at the bush, when he called the Lord 'The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.'
Luk 20:38 Now he is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for all are alive to him."
Luk 20:39 Some of the scribes answered, "Teacher, you speak well."
Luk 20:40 They didn't dare to ask him any more questions.
Luk 20:41 He said to them, "Why do they say that the Christ is David's son?
Luk 20:42 David himself says in the book of Psalms, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand,
Luk 20:43 until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet." '
Luk 20:44 "David therefore calls him Lord, so how is he his son?"
Luk 20:45 In the hearing of all the people, he said to his disciples,
Luk 20:46 "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts;
Luk 20:47 who devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers: these will receive greater condemnation."

Beware of false teaching on baptism! by Roy Davison

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

Beware of false teaching on baptism!

Many people believe untruths about baptism. This is because many wrong things are taught about baptism.
Ultimately, the devil is behind false teaching (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). He is a liar and the father of lies (John 3:44). He lied to Eve in the garden (Genesis 3:4) and he fills the world - including the religious world - with lies today.

Some of the devil’s most destructive lies relate to baptism.
Millions of pious people will be lost because they believed the devil’s lies about baptism. How can we know they are lies? By comparing them with the word of God. Jesus said: “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed” (John 8:31). The bright light of God’s word exposes the devil’s dark lies about baptism.

Lie number one:
Infant baptism is valid.
Because of this lie, many people think they have been baptized because someone else decided to have them christened when they were babies. What happened to them, however, bears no resemblance whatever to the baptism we read about in the New Testament.
Jesus said: “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). When the Ethiopian asked Philip, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may” (Acts 8:36, 37).
Baptism must be based on faith. A baby is not yet able to believe or make a decision to follow Christ.
Peter said: “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38).
A baby cannot repent. He has committed no sins of which he needs to repent. Nor can he be baptized for the remission of sins, since he has committed no sins.
If you have only been christened as a baby, you have been deceived. You have not been baptized at all.

Lie number two:
Sprinkling and pouring are valid ways to baptize.
The word “baptism” is a transliteration of a Greek word meaning “immersion”. The context makes this clear. “Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there” (John 3:23). Baptism requires much water.
Paul writes: “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death” (Romans 6:4). We were “buried with Him in baptism” (Colossians 2:12). Baptism is an immersion, a burial in water.
If you have never been immersed, you have been deceived. You have not experienced Christian baptism at all.

Lie number three:
Baptism is not for the forgiveness of sins.
How do we know this is a lie? Because we are commanded to be baptized for the remission of sins! “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’ Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins’” (Acts 2:37, 38).
Many people do not obey this simple command because they believe another lie, namely, that one is saved by faith only. How do I know this is a lie? Again, because the Bible says exactly the opposite! “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (James 2:24).
Who shall we believe, God or man? God says we are not saved by faith only. Evangelicals say we are saved by faith only. And because they have been deceived on this point, they also do not obey the command of Peter: “Be baptized ... for the remission of sins.” They think their sins were forgiven as soon as they believed in Jesus Christ and that baptism is not necessary for salvation.
As a consequence, Evangelical baptism, although immersion, is invalid because it is not done for the commanded purpose. Even if you have been immersed, if you were not baptized for the remission of sins, you did not obey the command Peter gave on the Day of Pentecost. You have been deceived. You have believed a lie. You have not been baptized at all.

Lie number four:
Baptism does not wash away sins.
How do we know this is a lie? Because the Bible says exactly the opposite! Ananias told the penitent Paul, who had been praying and fasting for three days: “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16).
If you were deceived by the doctrine of “salvation by faith only,” thinking you were already saved before baptism, you were not baptized to wash away your sins! What you experienced, although it was immersion, was not the same baptism Paul experienced. You have been deceived. You have not been baptized at all.

Lie number five:
Baptism is not necessary for salvation.
How do we know this is a lie? Because Jesus said: “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16), and Peter wrote: “There is also an antitype which now saves us, namely baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:21).
Baptism saves because of its relation to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is not a cleansing of the body but a cleansing of the soul, a cleansing of the conscience by the blood of Christ and the power of His resurrection.
“Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection” (Romans 6:3-5).
Baptism is essential for salvation because God has ordained that our union with the death, burial and resurrection of Christ is accomplished through baptism.
When someone says that salvation is possible through faith in Christ without baptism, he may believe in Christ, but he does not believe Christ! Jesus said: “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16) but he does not believe that. In a sense, he is an unbeliever because he does not believe the words of Christ. He does not believe what Jesus says about baptism!
If you were immersed thinking you were saved before baptism, or that baptism was not necessary for salvation, you have not experienced the baptism we read about in the Bible. You have been deceived.

Lie number six:
Spiritual rebirth does not occur at baptism.
Some claim that there are two baptisms, spiritual baptism and water baptism, and that the spiritual rebirth does not occur when one is baptized in water. We know this is a lie because Paul said there is “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5). The water and the Spirit are both involved in the one baptism commanded by Christ.
How do I know? Because Jesus told Nicodemus: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). The spiritual rebirth is realized by God’s Spirit when a penitent believer is immersed into the death, burial and resurrection of Christ through baptism. From the watery grave of baptism, he rises to walk in newness of life.
If you think you were baptized by the Spirit, separate from, or without, baptism in water, you have dismembered the one baptism. You have been deceived. What you experienced was not the baptism Christ commanded.

What have we learned about baptism?
  • Baptism must be based on one’s own faith (Mark 16:16; Acts 8:36, 37).
  • Baptism is a burial, an immersion (John 3:23; Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12).
  • Baptism is for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38).
  • Baptism washes away sins by the power of the blood of Christ (Acts 22:16).
  • There is one baptism (Ephesians 4:5).
  • Spiritual rebirth occurs at baptism (John 3:5).
  • Baptism is essential for salvation (Mark 16:16; 1 Peter 3:21).
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). Amen.
Roy Davison
The Scripture quotations in this article are from The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers unless indicated otherwise. Permission for reference use has been granted.

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

Jonah (Part 6) by Ben Fronczek

http://granvillenychurchofchrist.org/?p=1672

Jonah (Part 6)

So we’re finishing up in Jonah today…
I don’t know a single preacher or evangelist that wouldn’t be overjoyed if an entire city of 120,000 repented when they preached, but not Jonah. Today in chapter 4 we’ll see that he is actually angry that God showed mercy, and then he gets angry again when a plant dries up and no longer shades him. Instead of me just talking about it, let’s go ahead and go to the text. (Read Text)
“But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant[a] and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”
But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”
“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”
10 But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
First of all I want you to notice that the writer of Jonah makes it clear to us that everything that happened in this story happened because it was appointed by the Lord. God appointed Jonah to preach. God appointed the storm, God appointed the fish, God appointed the message for the Ninevites. God appointed the plant, God appointed the scorching heat and wind. He even appointed a worm to chew on the plant and make it wither.
I think He might be trying to tell us that God is sovereign and in controlWhat do you think? And also, it’s better to work WITH the One who is sovereign and in control rather than to try and go AGAINST Him?              How good are you at that?
Jonah also was appointed as the agent of God to bring God’s mercy and grace to the people of Nineveh but he wasn’t very happy about doing that. Even though he somewhat reluctantly obeyed Him, God shows Jonah mercy and grace by providing shade, but I personally don’t think he deserve that plant because of his attitude.
When God removes the plant, Jonah is angry… In fact our verse 9 tells us that he was angry enough to die. And the Lord then says to him, 10 … “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
So what’s the point here, and the lesson we need to learn from this?
Well I think it comes here in God’s response to Jonah. God is pointing out to Jonah that instead of being bitter and angry and sulking, he should rejoice and be happy that God cares enough for people to provide a way to save them from themselves and prevent their destruction.
This plant that God provided to shade Jonah was an act of grace, something He did for an undeserving man who had an attitude problem. He was trying to show Jonah that those people in that city also needed His grace as well but
Jonah was more concerned about that silly plant than all those men, women, and children, not to mention the all those animals.
So God causes this plant to spring up and give shade to Jonah, and our text tells us that Jonah was glad. He was happy with this gift from God… But he was unhappy with God’s grace toward the Ninevites. Jonah was ok as long as God showed him favor and grace, but it was quite another thing for God to show grace to others. I wonder how often we do the same thing.
That guy you think is a jerk at work gets a promotion and you don’t… when God shows someone else bit of grace and they get the promotion instead of you do you get angry or celebrate that God showed such an undeserving sinner grace? Or maybe there’s someone you know who seems to have it all… you know… big house, nice vehicles, money never seems to be a problem for them. How do you feel about that? Angry? Jealous? Envious?
I think this little book is showing us that we should not be angry with God because He has blessed others. Instead we should look at it as an opportunity to praise God for His grace and love and ability to show mercy to all of us sinners..
We are all blessed and are recipients of His grace, in so many ways, including material blessings. But what happens when God removes those blessings?
When things are going good it’s easy to praise Him. But what happens when all of a sudden some unexpected bills come due, or sickness strikes us or someone else in our family. What happens when you lose your job, or your barn or house burns to the ground? What happens then? How do you act towards God then?
You see; Jonah’s problem is often times our problem, a problem that we have; we get upset, with the way God distributes His blessings.
Somewhere along the way, Jonah probably thought that he merited or deserved God’s favor and blessings, even His calling. But none of us can merit, earn or buy God’s favor or grace. The word grace means, unmerited favor.
Like that plant that shaded Jonah, many of God’s blessings and acts of grace come to us freely, as a gift of love from God. So many things come without us laboring to earn them, produce them, or make them grow. We may get to enjoy those blessing for a while, but sometimes they disappear
And when that happen we should be more like Job than Jonah. Remember Job; all the bad things happened to him, all that he lost? But he goes on to say in Job 1:21
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised,  What an amazing attitude!
In chapter 2 Job’s wife tells him that he should curse and die for all that has happened, but he goes on to say “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”          The only thing that Jonah seemed to care about his own comfort and getting his own way.
If anything, this little book should cause to recognize that it’s not all about Jonah, or you, or me. It’s not all about us. We need to be looking at things from God’s eternal perspective. He is God, not us.
God provides us with all kinds of things and many times we start caring more about the things and the stuff than we do about the One who provided it. Even the eternal destiny of those who are around us seem less important than our own comfort. We can become just like Jonah… we can care more about our little shaded spot and our own comfort than we care about God’s will and those people around us!
Jonah found happiness and comfort in the thing God provided, rather than in the One who provided it. So God took that thing away to show him where his affections lay. And the result …Jonah got angry and he just wanted to die.
What’s his problem? He’s selfish, self-centered, arrogant, and he’s an idolater who worships and adores himself more than he worships and adores God.
Do you love yourself and what you have, or what you do more than you love God? I don’t care much about what you say you do, rather, what do you actions show or reveal?
Jonah is mad because God didn’t destroy all those people, and he’s mad because his plant died and he had to sit in the sun. He wanted to die because things didn’t go his way. Do you ever feel like that? We have our pity party and stomp our feet because things don’t go the ways we want or think.
That’s when God rebuked Jonah. God gets the last word in, and that’s where the book ends. ‘Jonah wake up and think about what you are saying and thinking!’
What about us, what can you and I take home from this? The reality is if we’re honest; we probably don’t love and care for others the way we should. Nor do we understand God’s amazing grace the way we should.
God used Jonah, not because He couldn’t find a better prophet.
I believe He used Jonah because as God converts the sailors on the ship, and as God converts the people of Nineveh, He was working on Jonah as well. God took Jonah on journey through his own self-righteousness, rebellion, and anger, and through his racist prejudice, all for the purpose of making Jonah the man of God he was meant to be!
This is just as much a story of God’s mercy and grace to Jonah as it is a story of God’s mercy and grace to the people of Nineveh.
You may ask, ”Did Jonah repent?” And my answer is, “Who wrote the book?” I personally believe that the fact that we have the Book of Jonah, shows us that Jonah repented. I believe He wrote it because God did humbled him, and knowing that this book would cast him in a bad light, he really didn’t care how it made him look.
I believe his desire in doing so was to glorify God and show God in all of His glory, and show His grace in all its awesomeness and how even religious people can have a bad attitude.
The book is a revelation to God’s people of His sovereign power and loving concern for all His creatures, including sinners and those cows (4:11).
So I would like to suggest that you should learn to be willing to act when God calls you to do something…even if you find His calling difficult, perhaps even distasteful.
Like I stated in our last lesson, “Sometime it’s just plain easier and less troublesome if we do what God prompts us to do in the first place. Jonah needed to look at things from God’s eternal perspective and we need to do the same Simply put, we save ourself a lot of trouble and grief if he simply obey God from the start rather than choosing to resist Him.
Just as God helped Jonah with his attitude problem, He may also take some strong measures to deal with your attitude.
We also need to remember that God loves everyone of us… even those who have messed up. We have to be careful about condemning another. Rather we should turn them over to God and pray that He will intervene and work on that person’s heart.
And if you don’t have something you think you should have or something you want, there is probably a pretty good reason why God has not given it to you. We have to believe and trust that He will work all things out for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28) …. If you don’t believe or recognize this truth, and trust God, you are just going to be just plain miserable.
Based on a sermon by Ken McKinley