July 7, 2016

The merger of dreams, desires and will by Gary Rose


Dreams are the stuff of imagination, but what if your wildest dreams came true? Really, anything at all! And then this "too good to be true" scenario was actually a dream! But, consider the opposite - what if all your worst fears came true in your dreams and those were also a dream? Gets confusing after awhile- doesn't it? 

What you want (or do not want) is sometimes beyond your control. In those instances, it is appropriate to look to God for direction. 

The Psalmist says...

Psalm 37 (WEB)

  1  Don’t fret because of evildoers,
neither be envious against those who work unrighteousness.
  2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass,
and wither like the green herb.
  3 Trust in Yahweh, and do good.
Dwell in the land, and enjoy safe pasture.
  4 Also delight yourself in Yahweh,
and he will give you the desires of your heart. (emp. added GDR)
  5 Commit your way to Yahweh.
Trust also in him, and he will do this:
  6 he will make your righteousness go out as the light,
and your justice as the noon day sun.
  7 Rest in Yahweh, and wait patiently for him.
Don’t fret because of him who prospers in his way,
because of the man who makes wicked plots happen.
  8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath.
Don’t fret, it leads only to evildoing.
  9 For evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for Yahweh shall inherit the land.


Trust in God! He will work everything out in HIS own way and in HIS own time. If your heart seeks after the heart of God, then your desires will ultimately be HIS desires and like Jesus you will find yourself saying- Not my will, but thine!!!

Bible Reading July 7 by Gary Rose


Bible Reading  July 7 (WEB)

July 7
2 Kings 7-9

2Ki 7:1 Elisha said, Hear the word of Yahweh. Thus says Yahweh, Tomorrow about this time a measure of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.
2Ki 7:2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if Yahweh should make windows in heaven, might this thing be? He said, Behold, you shall see it with your eyes, but shall not eat of it.
2Ki 7:3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die?
2Ki 7:4 If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall to the army of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die.
2Ki 7:5 They rose up in the twilight, to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they were come to the outermost part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no man there.
2Ki 7:6 For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great army: and they said one to another, Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come on us.
2Ki 7:7 Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life.
2Ki 7:8 When these lepers came to the outermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and ate and drink, and carried there silver, and gold, and clothing, and went and hid it; and they came back, and entered into another tent, and carried there also, and went and hid it.
2Ki 7:9 Then they said one to another, We aren't doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we hold our peace: if we wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us; now therefore come, let us go and tell the king's household.
2Ki 7:10 So they came and called to the porter of the city; and they told them, saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but the horses tied, and the donkeys tied, and the tents as they were.
2Ki 7:11 He called the porters; and they told it to the king's household within.
2Ki 7:12 The king arose in the night, and said to his servants, I will now show you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive, and get into the city.
2Ki 7:13 One of his servants answered, Please let some take five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel who are left in it; behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel who are consumed); and let us send and see.
2Ki 7:14 They took therefore two chariots with horses; and the king sent after the army of the Syrians, saying, Go and see.
2Ki 7:15 They went after them to the Jordan: and behold, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. The messengers returned, and told the king.
2Ki 7:16 The people went out, and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of Yahweh.
2Ki 7:17 The king appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to be in charge of the gate: and the people trod on him in the gate, and he died as the man of God had said, who spoke when the king came down to him.
2Ki 7:18 It happened, as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be tomorrow about this time in the gate of Samaria;
2Ki 7:19 and that captain answered the man of God, and said, Now, behold, if Yahweh should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be? and he said, Behold, you shall see it with your eyes, but shall not eat of it:
2Ki 7:20 it happened even so to him; for the people trod on him in the gate, and he died.

2Ki 8:1 Now Elisha had spoken to the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go, you and your household, and sojourn wherever you can sojourn: for Yahweh has called for a famine; and it shall also come on the land seven years.
2Ki 8:2 The woman arose, and did according to the word of the man of God; and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.
2Ki 8:3 It happened at the seven years' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry to the king for her house and for her land.
2Ki 8:4 Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Please tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.
2Ki 8:5 It happened, as he was telling the king how he had restored to life him who was dead, that behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.
2Ki 8:6 When the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed to her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now.
2Ki 8:7 Elisha came to Damascus; and Benhadad the king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come here.
2Ki 8:8 The king said to Hazael, Take a present in your hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of Yahweh by him, saying, Shall I recover of this sickness?
2Ki 8:9 So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Your son Benhadad king of Syria has sent me to you, saying, Shall I recover of this sickness?
2Ki 8:10 Elisha said to him, Go, tell him, You shall surely recover; however Yahweh has shown me that he shall surely die.
2Ki 8:11 He settled his gaze steadfastly on him, until he was ashamed: and the man of God wept.
2Ki 8:12 Hazael said, Why weeps my lord? He answered, Because I know the evil that you will do to the children of Israel: you will set their strongholds on fire, and you will their young men with the sword, and will dash in pieces their little ones, and rip up their women with child.
2Ki 8:13 Hazael said, But what is your servant, who is but a dog, that he should do this great thing? Elisha answered, Yahweh has shown me that you shall be king over Syria.
2Ki 8:14 Then he departed from Elisha, and came to his master; who said to him, What did Elisha say to you? He answered, He told me that you would surely recover.
2Ki 8:15 It happened on the next day, that he took the coverlet, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died: and Hazael reigned in his place.
2Ki 8:16 In the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being then king of Judah, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign.
2Ki 8:17 Thirty-two years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
2Ki 8:18 He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for he had the daughter of Ahab as wife; and he did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh.
2Ki 8:19 However Yahweh would not destroy Judah, for David his servant's sake, as he promised him to give to him a lamp for his children always.
2Ki 8:20 In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves.
2Ki 8:21 Then Joram passed over to Zair, and all his chariots with him: and he rose up by night, and struck the Edomites who surrounded him, and the captains of the chariots; and the people fled to their tents.
2Ki 8:22 So Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah to this day. Then did Libnah revolt at the same time.
2Ki 8:23 The rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
2Ki 8:24 Joram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 8:25 In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign.
2Ki 8:26 Twenty-two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Athaliah the daughter of Omri king of Israel.
2Ki 8:27 He walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, as did the house of Ahab; for he was the son-in-law of the house of Ahab.
2Ki 8:28 He went with Joram the son of Ahab to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth Gilead: and the Syrians wounded Joram.
2Ki 8:29 King Joram returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

2Ki 9:1 Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, Gird up your waist, and take this vial of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.
2Ki 9:2 When you come there, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brothers, and carry him to an inner chamber.
2Ki 9:3 Then take the vial of oil, and pour it on his head, and say, Thus says Yahweh, I have anointed you king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and don't wait.
2Ki 9:4 So the young man, even the young man the prophet, went to Ramoth Gilead.
2Ki 9:5 When he came, behold, the captains of the army were sitting; and he said, I have a message for you, captain. Jehu said, To which of us all? He said, To you, O captain.
2Ki 9:6 He arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said to him, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, I have anointed you king over the people of Yahweh, even over Israel.
2Ki 9:7 You shall strike the house of Ahab your master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of Yahweh, at the hand of Jezebel.
2Ki 9:8 For the whole house of Ahab shall perish; and I will cut off from Ahab everyone who urinates against a wall, and him who is shut up and him who is left at large in Israel.
2Ki 9:9 I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah.
2Ki 9:10 The dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her. He opened the door, and fled.
2Ki 9:11 Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said to him, "Is all well? Why did this mad fellow come to you?" He said to them, "You know the man and what his talk was."
2Ki 9:12 They said, "That is a lie. Tell us now." He said, Thus and thus spoke he to me, saying, Thus says Yahweh, I have anointed you king over Israel.
2Ki 9:13 Then they hurried, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew the trumpet, saying, Jehu is king.
2Ki 9:14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram was keeping Ramoth Gilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria;
2Ki 9:15 but king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) Jehu said, If this is your thinking, then let no one escape and go out of the city, to go to tell it in Jezreel.
2Ki 9:16 So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram.
2Ki 9:17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company. Joram said, Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, Is it peace?
2Ki 9:18 So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said, Thus says the king, Is it peace? Jehu said, What have you to do with peace? Fall in behind me! The watchman told, saying, The messenger came to them, but he isn't coming back.
2Ki 9:19 Then he sent out a second on horseback, who came to them, and said, Thus says the king, Is it peace? Jehu answered, What have you to do with peace? Fall in behind me!
2Ki 9:20 The watchman told, saying, He came even to them, and isn't coming back: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he drives furiously.
2Ki 9:21 Joram said, Make ready. They made ready his chariot. Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and found him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite.
2Ki 9:22 It happened, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, Is it peace, Jehu? He answered, What peace, so long as the prostitution of your mother Jezebel and her witchcraft abound?
2Ki 9:23 Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah, There is treachery, Ahaziah.
2Ki 9:24 Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and struck Joram between his arms; and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.
2Ki 9:25 Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember how that, when you and I rode together after Ahab his father, Yahweh laid this burden on him:
2Ki 9:26 Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, says Yahweh; and I will repay you in this plot of ground, says Yahweh. Now therefore take and cast him onto the plot of ground, according to the word of Yahweh.
2Ki 9:27 But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. Jehu followed after him, and said, Smite him also in the chariot: and they struck him at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ibleam. He fled to Megiddo, and died there.
2Ki 9:28 His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.
2Ki 9:29 In the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab began Ahaziah to reign over Judah.
2Ki 9:30 When Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her eyes, and attired her head, and looked out at the window.
2Ki 9:31 As Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Do you come in peace, Zimri, you murderer of your master?
2Ki 9:32 He lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? There looked out to him two or three eunuchs.
2Ki 9:33 He said, Throw her down. So they threw her down; and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trod her under foot.
2Ki 9:34 When he was come in, he ate and drink; and he said, See now to this cursed woman, and bury her; for she is a king's daughter.
2Ki 9:35 They went to bury her; but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.
2Ki 9:36 Therefore they came back, and told him. He said, This is the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall the dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel;
2Ki 9:37 and the body of Jezebel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel, so that they shall not say, This is Jezebel.


Jul. 6, 7
Acts 6

Act 6:1 Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, a complaint arose from the Hellenists against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily service.
Act 6:2 The twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, "It is not appropriate for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables.
Act 6:3 Therefore select from among you, brothers, seven men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
Act 6:4 But we will continue steadfastly in prayer and in the ministry of the word."
Act 6:5 These words pleased the whole multitude. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch;
Act 6:6 whom they set before the apostles. When they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.
Act 6:7 The word of God increased and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly. A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Act 6:8 Stephen, full of faith and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people.
Act 6:9 But some of those who were of the synagogue called "The Libertines," and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen.
Act 6:10 They weren't able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.
Act 6:11 Then they secretly induced men to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God."
Act 6:12 They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and came against him and seized him, and brought him in to the council,
Act 6:13 and set up false witnesses who said, "This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law.
Act 6:14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us."
Act 6:15 All who sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face like it was the face of an angel. 

Trying Times by J.C. Bailey


http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Bailey/John/Carlos/1903/Articles/tryingti.html


Trying Times

The USA has had both floods and cyclones with some loss of life. Canada has had some floods with some loss of life. Canada is passing through a very serious political crisis. Only time will show how serious it is. Ethiopia has a civil war. In the midst of this civil war they had a prolonged drought. The press reported that more than a million people starved to death. Iran has just had one of the worst earthquakes of this century. Today they reported that more than 500 had died and the number could go much higher. India is subject to tropical storms, and they have just had the worst storm in more than a century. While the loss of life was not as great as in Ethiopia or in Iran, tens of thousands are left with only the clothes they have on their bodies! Do you know what they have asked for more than any other one thing? "Our Bible is gone, please give us a new Bible."
Thousands of our brethren are without shelter and without clothes. There has been some clothing shipped, but for light clothes for children and grownups, the demand is almost limitless. Brother Ron Clayton is making an appeal to meet this need. Be sure to respond. In Canada our postage rate is so high that it is better to just send the money and let them buy clothes in India. They produce their own wool, cotton and silk.
From these natural catastrophes, I want to draw some lessons.
"Jehovah is slow to anger, and great in power, and will by no means clear the guilty. Jehovah hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet" (Nahum 1:3).
Then we turn to the New Testament. "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed to us-ward" (Rom. 8:18); "And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to his purpose" (Rom. 8:28).
Paul is on a ship in the sea; they are lost; they are cold; they are hungry; they have not had anything to eat for fourteen days. Yet Paul said, be of good cheer. How could they be of good cheer? Paul told them that the God he served had told him that all would be saved. I quote, "...for I believe God, that it shall be even as he hath spoken unto me" (Acts 27:25).
I want to look at the Scriptures we have used and at some additional Scriptures that encourage us to say, I believe God, that it shall be as He told me. Do you profess to be a Christian? "But if God so clothes the grass of the field which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall not he much more clothe you, o ye of little faith? Be not therefore anxious saying what shall we eat, what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first his kingdom and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matt. 6:30-33).
We shall add some verses that we do not hear quoted very often, but that does not make their messages any less true. "Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood up and cried saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, from within him shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him were to receive. For the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified" (John 7:37- 39). We shall see when this measure of the Spirit was given.
Jesus was preached as Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36). Those who heard Peter, recognized the fact that he was Lord (Ruler) and Christ (the Anointed One). They then asked what they should do (vs. 37). And Peter said to them, "Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." When they repented and were baptized, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit. Verse 39 reads, "For to you is the promise and to your children and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him."
The Lord said that we are to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and the material things would be added. Yet there is a greater promise. After a believer repents and is baptized into Christ, he receives spiritual power.
J.C. Bailey, 1990, Bengough, Saskatchewan

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

The Order of the Lord’s Supper by Dave Miller, Ph.D.


http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=470&b=Mark

The Order of the Lord’s Supper

by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

In Matthew (26:26-27) and Mark’s (14:22-23) record of the institution of the Lord’s Supper, Jesus blessed the bread first and then the cup. However, Luke seems to give the opposite order with the cup mentioned first (22:17-19). Is this difference a discrepancy in which the inspired writers contradict each other?
It is certainly the case that Jesus only instituted the Lord’s Supper one time. He either blessed the bread first or He blessed the cup first. He did not do it both ways. So can we make sense of the text in such a way that the Bible is not discredited, recognizing that Jesus did not do it both ways? On that lone night so long ago, when He instituted the Lord’s Supper, which way did He do it? Bread then cup, or cup then bread?
It is clearly the case that Bible writers do not always claim to be representing a particular event in chronological sequence. Luke could have easily been treating the Passover and Lord’s Supper incident topically. In such a case, no contradiction would exist. However, in this particular instance, a different explanation presents itself.
Read carefully Luke’s reporting of the event:
Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be killed. And He sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat.” …When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you” (22:7-21, emp. added).
Observe carefully that Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper on the tail end of the observance of the Jewish Passover. One must be careful to distinguish between the two, particularly since the same emblems were used for both, and since the former typifies the latter. The killing of the Passover lamb under Judaism anticipated the death of Jesus Who, in turn, became “our Passover” (1 Corinthians 5:7). Luke, more than Matthew and Mark, demonstrates this close parallelism.1
Luke actually has two allusions to “cup”—one in verse 17 and the other in verse 20. The first “cup” was taken during the Passover and the second “cup” was part of the institution of the Lord’s Supper.2 Hence, Luke does not differ from Matthew and Mark in specifying the same order for partaking of the Lord’s Supper, i.e., first the bread and then the cup. Luke’s use in verse 21 of “likewise” refers back to “He took bread,” and “after supper” refers both to the bread and the cup of the Lord’s Supper.
This fact is further supported by Paul in his recounting of the occasion in 1 Corinthians 11:23-29. Observe the indications of sequence he portrays—
For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body (emp. added).
Observe that Paul goes out of his way to emphasize the order that Jesus instigated—bread/cup and eat/drink. He even clarified that the cup that is part of the Lord’s Supper was done “after supper,” i.e., after the Passover meal. So the “cup” of Luke 22:17-18 was the cup that was associated with the Passover meal—not the Lord’s Supper cup which is noted in verse 20after the Passover meal and after the bread of the Lord’s Supper.
Another consideration pertains to the fact that Luke 22:17-20 constitutes a textual variant. However, the Committee for the UBS Greek text concluded that the cup-bread-cup sequence is authentic based on “the overwhelming preponderance of external evidence.”3 Further, Sir Frederick Kenyon and S.C.E. Legg offer the only plausible explanation for the existence of variants by noting:
The first cup given to the disciples to divide among themselves should be taken in connection with the previous verse (ver. 16) as referring to the eating of the Passover with them at the reunion in Heaven. This is followed by the institution of the Sacrament, to be repeated continually on earth in memory of Him. This gives an intelligible meaning to the whole, while at the same time it is easy to see that it would occasion difficulties of interpretation, which would give rise to the attempts at revision that appear in various forms of the shorter version.4
Hence, the first allusion to “cup” in verse 17 links back with the eating and drinking of the Passover meal in verses 15-16, while the second allusion to “cup” refers to the Lord’s Supper. Luke agrees with Matthew and Mark that, when Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, He first took the bread and then took the cup. There is no contradiction.

REFERENCES

1 See J.W. McGarvey and Philip Y. Pendleton (no date), The Fourfold Gospel (Cincinnati, OH: The Standard Publishing Foundation), p. 646.
2 Ibid, p. 658. See also J.W. McGarvey (1910),Short Essays in Biblical Criticism(Cincinnati, OH: The Standard Publishing Company), pp. 342-343.
3 Bruce Metzger (1971), A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament (New York: United Bible Societies), p. 176.
4 Sir Frederick G. Kenyon and S.C.E. Legg (1937), “The Textual Data” in The Ministry and the Sacraments, ed. Roderic Dunkerley (London: SCM), pp. 285-286.
Suggested Resources

The Insane Expulsion of God by Dave Miller, Ph.D.


http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=1867

The Insane Expulsion of God

by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

On a daily basis in America, the Christian religion and the God of the Bible are subjected to disdain, contempt, and open hostility by those who seem determined to eradicate the Christian worldview. The number and nature of these outrageous affronts are increasing in magnitude and absurdity. One recent instance is seen in the removal of “In God We Trust” from the image of a nickel on the yearbook of the Liberty Elementary School in Keller, Texas. The Superintendent said the decision was made to omit the phrase since it “might create an issue with people of several religious faiths” (Brown, 2006). In another incident, the Fredericksburg, Virginia city council voted to ban any reference to Jesus Christ in prayers after being threatened by the ACLU if the practice continued (Battle, 2006). The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had already unanimously ruled that by opening its meetings with a prayer that mentions Jesus Christ, the Great Falls, South Carolina Town Council was guilty of an unconstitutional government advancement of one religion, i.e., Christianity (“4th Circuit...,” 2004). AnotherACLU instigated lawsuit resulted in a U.S. District Judge ruling that the Indiana House of Representatives could not formally open with prayers that mention Jesus Christ or use Christian terms such as “savior” because they amount to state endorsement of a religion (Wilson, 2006). All such actions fly flagrantly in the face of over 180 years of contrary legislative and judicial practice. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 33:12).

REFERENCES

Battle, Emily (2006), “Councilman Sues Fellow Council Members,” The Free Lance-Star, January 1, [On-line], URL: http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2006/012006/01112006/turner.
Brown, Jessamy (2006), “School Officials Express Regret,” Star-Telegram, May 23, [On-line],URL: http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/14646600.htm.
“4th Circuit: Council Prayers Unconstitutionally Advance Christianity” (2004), The Associated Press, July 23, [On-line], URL: http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=13769.
Wilson, Charles (2006), “Indiana House Speaker Appeals Prayer Ruling,” The Associated Press, May 13, [On-line], URL: http://www.christianpost.com/article/society/2507/section/indiana.house. speaker.appeals.prayer.ruling/1.htm.

What Do You Know? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.


http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=3520


What Do You Know?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

We may not all understand the technical, philosophical terminology that philosophers use to dissect and describe things that we can and cannot know, but most rational people understand that there are some things we can know and some things we cannot. We can know that we exist. We can know that 1 + 1 = 2. We can know that yesterday is in the past and tomorrow is yet to be seen and full of the unknown. What is mind boggling are those things that atheistic evolutionists say Christians cannot know, while at the same time assuring the world of the many things they know regarding the origins of man and the Universe.
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that there is a Creator, and that in fact, they know there is no Creator. Yet, they will affirm that they know that the Universe is the result of a infinitesimal ball of matter that exploded about 14 billion years ago. After explaining that the Universe came into existence billions of years ago from “nothing” in a black hole, world renowned, atheistic cosmologist Stephen Hawking said: “That is exactly what happened at the start of the Universe” (“Curiosity…,” 2011, emp. added). Really? He knows “exactly what happened” 14 billion years ago?
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that Christ lived, died, and arose from the dead 2,000 years ago (Acharya, 1999), yet they claim to know “exactly what happened” at the beginning of time, supposedly 14,000,000,000 years ago. Seriously?
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that life was created by a supernatural Creator a few thousand years ago. Even though biogenesis has repeatedly proven itself true—that in nature life comes only from life and that of its own kind—atheistic evolutionists claim to know the very opposite to be true: in nature life evolved from non-life billions of years ago.
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that a Creator created sea creatures and land animals, but they affirm with all confidence that fish flopped out of water and evolved into amphibians and reptiles, while fox-like, land animals drifted out into water and evolved fins, flukes, and blow holes on their way to becoming whales (“The Evolution of Whales,” 2012).
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that human life was specially created differently from all other creation (Genesis 1:26-28), but they know that humans evolved from ape-like creatures. As was emphatically stated in one widely used middle school textbook, “There is no doubt among scientists…that humans evolved from common ancestors they share with other living primates. Scientists also know that the human species evolved in Africa and then spread around the Earth” (Evolution…, 1994, p. 78, emp. added). [Of course, to be consistent, if humans evolved from animals, and were not created in the image of God, then butchering babies could be considered no more evil than butchering baboons, bugs, bull frogs, or buffalo.]  
  • Atheists contend that Christians cannot know that the Bible is from God, but they can know that their man-made, assumption-based, often-contradictory dating techniques prove that various rocks on Earth are billions of years old.
This list could go on and on. Atheistic evolutionists continually contend with all assurance that they “know” what happened millions and billions of years ago. They “know” that purely naturalistic evolution is “a fundamental fact…as real as hunger and as unavoidable as death” (Hayden, 2002, 133[4]:43). Creation-believing Christians, who refuse to accept the alleged “fact” of evolution, are, as world-renowned atheist Richard Dawkins put it, “ignorant, stupid, or insane” (1989, p. 3, emp. added). Why? Because we believe that the Universe is an effect of a cause much greater than the explosion of a tiny ball of matter. Because we believe that Mind, not matter, is eternal. Because we believe that design demands a Designer, and not a random explosion. Because nature (i.e., the Law of Biogenesis) demands a supernatural explanation for the origin of life. Because a human life is more precious than a bug’s. Because we choose to believe the answers that the Creator provided for us in His inspired, ever-enduring, never-changing revelation (see Butt, 2007), rather than in the ever-changing, constantly revised fable of evolution.
We can know that God exists because He is “clearly seen” by His Creation (Romans 1:20); the heavens declare His glory (Psalm 19:1). We can know that the Bible is His will for mankind because of its amazing predictive prophecy, scientific foreknowledge, historical accuracy, and perfect unity. We can know the Truth (John 8:32).
The world, through what is falsely called “wisdom,” does not know God (1 Corinthians 1:21). They believe that Christ and His Creation are “foolishness” (1 Corinthians 1:23). As Christians, we “boast in the Lord” (Psalm 34:2, emp. added). We know of His existence. We trust in His Word. Stephen Hawking and other atheists claim they can know “exactly what happened at the start of the Universe,” even though, allegedly, no conscious being was around 14 billion years ago to witness it. Christians, on the other hand, choose to believe in the answers of the One Who was at Creation and did the creating. Rather than accept the “wisdom” of the world, we seek the wisdom of the One Who created the world. Ultimately, only He can provide the details to the origin of the Universe and everything in it.
“Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge?... Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding” (Job 38:2,4).
“[T]he foolishness of God is wiser than men” (1 Corinthians 1:25).

REFERENCES

Acharya, S. (1999), The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold (Kempton, IL: Adventures Unlimited Press).
Butt, Kyle (2007), Behold! The Word of God (Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press).
“Curiosity: Did God Create the Universe?” (2011), Discovery Channel, August 7.
Dawkins, Richard (1989), “Book Review” (of Donald Johanson and Maitland Edey’s Blueprint),The New York Times, section 7, April 9.
Evolution: Change Over Time (1994), (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall).
“The Evolution of Whales” (2012), Understanding Evolution, University of California Museum of Paleontology, http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/evograms_03.
Hayden, Thomas (2002), “A Theory Evolves,” U.S. News & World Report, 133[4]:42-50, July 29.

Much More than an Empty Tomb! by Brad Bromling, D.Min.


http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=10&article=256


Much More than an Empty Tomb!

by Brad Bromling, D.Min.

As dawn broke on the third day after Christ’ crucifixion, several pious women made their way to the tomb that Joseph of Arimathea had donated for Jesus’ burial. When they arrived, they found it open and empty. Instead of seeing their Lord, they saw men (angels) dressed in dazzling clothes who announced that Jesus had been raised from the dead. The women returned to the community of Jesus’ followers and gave a full report. No one believed them. Peter and (apparently) John ran to the tomb to see for themselves. They found it as the women had said. The tomb was empty. But surprisingly, rather than spreading the exciting news that Jesus had been raised from the dead, Peter went away perplexed!
Later that day, two other disciples left Jerusalem and headed toward Emmaus, their hometown about seven miles away. As they walked, they shared their thoughts of disappointment over the death of Jesus. A stranger joined them and asked what they were talking about (they didn’t know the stranger was Jesus). They explained how that Jesus, the mighty prophet from Nazareth, had been crucified. They said, “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel,” indicating that their hopes had been dashed (Luke 24:21). They continued: “Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened.” Apparently they expected Jesus to be raised; but even after hearing testimony from the women and the two men, the disciples from Emmaus were not convinced that a resurrection had taken place.
A few hours later they were back in Jerusalem enthusiastically telling others that Jesus was raised from the dead. What moved them from hopelessness to confident proclamation? The answer is plain: they had seen the Lord! By that time, so had Peter. In fact, from that point forward, Jesus appeared repeatedly to His followers for the next forty days before He finally ascended into heaven (Acts 1:3).
The central message of the Church is not simply that Jesus’ tomb was empty—that fact alone was not enough for the original followers of the Nazarene, nor would it be enough two thousand years later. A skeptical mind can imagine many ways to explain how Jesus’ body left the tomb (all of which have been sufficiently answered; see Geisler and Brooks, 1990, pp. 123-128; Bromling, 1993, pp. 33-38; et al.); but for a believer, only one way matters—resurrection. Faith in that is based upon the reliable testimony of people who, after having seen the risen Lord, devoted the rest of their lives to telling the Good News. Jesus left more than an empty tomb; He left credible flesh-and-blood witnesses who said of Jesus, “we have heard” Him, “we have seen [Him] with our eyes,” and “our hands have handled” Him (1 John 1:1).
Maybe an empty tomb should have been enough; after all, Jesus rebuked the disciples from Emmaus for being “foolish” and “slow of heart to believe the prophets” (Luke 24:25). But the fact is, we have much more than that. We have the Good News that Jesus appeared to: Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Peter, Cleopas and his fellow disciple from Emmaus, the rest of the apostles, Stephen, James, Paul, and an additional five hundred unnamed people, many of whom Paul indicated would have testified if given a chance (Matthew 28:1-20; Mark 16:9-20; Luke 24:1-50; John 20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8; et al.).
Christianity is not faith in an empty cave; it is faith in a Savior Who ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25). It is faith in the One Who by His resurrection has the ability to promise: “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

REFERENCES

Bromling, Brad T. (1993), “What Happened to the Body?,” Reason & Revelation, 13:33-38, May.
Geisler, Norman L. and Ron Brooks (1990), When Skeptics Ask (Wheaton, IL: Victor).