Book Writing - Page Count and Chapter Length

Regardless of genre, there is no hard and fast rule about how many pages or words each chapter should contain or how many chapters should be in a book. However, there are some general guidelines in this article that may help you determine the page count and chapter length needed for your book.

Pages in a Chapter:

Many people read in spurts, at lunch time, or on the subway to work, readers enjoy chapters that can be finished in ten to fifteen minutes.

I try to set my chapter lengths by how long it takes me to read the material. If it goes past fifteen minutes, I may decide to divide a chapter in half and make two chapters out of it. Take into consideration that I write mostly non-fiction.

As you probably know, there's a difference in the way fiction and non-fiction are handled. In a fiction book, writers use shorter chapters. Some are only one page if that is all it takes to catch the reader up on the action of other characters in other scenes. When writing non-fiction, your chapter content needs to be specific to your chapter's heading or title.

Twenty pages per chapter is a good rule of thumb, but the most important thing is to include everything that relates to a particular topic in one chapter. For example, if your book is about fishing, you want to include the bulk of your information about fly casting in one chapter. All your info about bait and lure would be in another chapter.

Chapters/Pages in a Book:

These guidelines should give you a general idea of how to determine the length of your chapters and your book.

If your book is titled "The Accuracy of the US Census" you may have 52 chapters (one on each state). If your book is titled "Ten Tips for Marketing" you may have only ten chapters. There's no rule about how many chapters a book can or must have.

In order to be considered a book rather than a pamphlet or booklet, a book needs to be at least 10,000 words. If your book has more than 475 pages, you might want to consider producing it in two volumes.

Because you will submit your manuscript as an 8.5" x 11" word-processing document, you cannot be certain of its final length until after your publisher formats it for print. I have found that 250-300 words will approximate one page of 12-point font text in a standard size (5.5"x8" or 6"x9") perfect-bound book.

Yvonne Perry is a freelance writer and the owner of Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services (WITS). She and her team of ghostwriters are ready to assist you with writing and editing for books, eBooks, Web text, business documents, resumes, bios, articles, and media releases. For more information about writing, networking, publishing, and book promotion, or to sign up for free email delivery of WITS newsletter, please visit http://www.writersinthesky.com New subscribers receive a free eBook Tips for Freelance Writing

Born Again or The Kingdom of God

Jesus was sent to Earth to deliver a Message to mankind. A startling message from Outer Space - the third Heaven - from our CREATOR GOD. A correct understanding of what that REVELATION is - the one and only true Gospel - separates God's Church from all others, and exalts the pure religion above every false way (John 17:17).

There is only one way to enter God's Kingdom - and that is through Christ (Acts 4:12). He is the Key that unlocks God's Royal House, the Open Door to the Universe, the Gateway to Eternity, the Immortal Pioneer who has led the way! All other ways are dead ends and will self-destruct (John 10:1).

GOD IS REPRODUCING HIMSELF! That's the glorious Good News that Jesus boldly proclaimed! The Gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD announces the GOD KINGDOM: a Spirit-Born Kingdom of God-Beings! A Royal Family that we can enter (Rev. 3:21). A Divine Family that will administer God's Government throughout the universe and eternity (Isa. 9:7; Dan. 7:18).

God became man, so man could become God (John 1:14; Matt. 10:25). Mankind has been created after the GODKIND, and after a life of conversion, of changing for the better, of going through the process of purification (becoming more God-like, more Christ-like, more Kingdom-like) we can be BORN AGAIN BY A RESURRECTION - just like Jesus was, the firstborn of MANY brethren! (Rom. 1:4; 8:29). Presently, we're far too human, but soon we're to be transformed into glorious, immortal Spirit! (John 10:34-35; Ephes. 4:24). This is what Jesus told Nicodemus, the Jewish religious leader. He didn't beat around the bush, He got straight to the point and told him: "You must be born again" (John. 3:3).

Jesus elaborated on this bombshell, seeing Nicodemus was dumbstruck (just like so many religious people today), and explained that if your parents are flesh and blood humans, it's only natural that you're also human. "That which is born of the flesh IS flesh." You're nothing more or less. Kind after kind (Gen. 1:27). And if you're born again by a Spirit-composed GOD, it's only supernatural that you'll become a Spirit-composed God! "That which is born of the Spirit IS Spirit" (John 3:3-8). Human-beings can become GOD-BEINGS! But first we must be BORN AGAIN.

Unless we're born again - by a RESURRECTION - we can't even see or enter God's Royal Family! The apostle Paul clearly taught the same as Jesus: "And as we have borne the image of the earthy (flesh and blood), we shall also bear the image of the heavenly (Spirit). Now this I say, brethren, FLESH AND BLOOD CANNOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD...but we shall all be CHANGED... raised incorruptible... and...put on immortality" (1 Cor. 15:48-53). When will mortals become immortal? (Proving we're not now!). When will we change our composition and character? "...at the last trump" (vs.52) - NOT during this life, but at Christ's Coming and our resurrection (Rev. 11:15; 20:6). How plain and simple!

Why have the vast majority of professing Christians been deceived on this point? Why do they go about bleating that they're "born again" already? Jesus said "that which is born of Spirit IS Spirit" and Paul said "flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God." Will you believe the Bible or traditional Christianity? (Mark 7:7).

But will we actually become GOD-BEINGS? (1 John 3:9). Will God be our literal FATHER? Will we take on His FAMILY NAME? (Ephes. 3:15; Rev. 22:4). Yes! Because it's REVEALED that "when He shall appear, we shall be like Him" (I John. 3:4), "who shall change our vile body (flesh), that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body (Spirit), according to the working whereby HE IS ABLE even to subdue all things unto Himself"(Phil. 3:21). Even as David and Daniel prophesied of the BRIGHT FUTURE God has in store for us, when we'll inherit His divine nature and form: "... I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied when I awake (at the resurrection), with thy likeness" and "shine...as the stars for ever and ever" (Ps. 17:15; Dan. 12:3). Again, kind after kind (Gal. 4:19). What a glorious hope and calling!

Mankind created after the Godkind, born again at the resurrection, Spirit-composed and Divine! THIS IS THE WHOLE PLAN AND PURPOSE OF GOD! Soon it'll be mission accomplished in our lives and we'll experience the "finishing touch" to our spiritual creation (Phil. 1:6; Rev. 1:8; Ephes. 2:10). We're actually the Kingdom of God in embryo - the PIONEERING COMMUNITY of an advanced civilization - who'll soon help establish HEAVEN ON EARTH! Meanwhile, may we continue to develop and reflect the HOLY, RIGHTEOUS CHARACTER of God in joyous anticipation! (2 Pet. 1:4).

David Ben-Ariel, a Christian-Zionist writer and author of Beyond Babylon: Europe's Rise and Fall, shares a special focus on the Middle East, reflected in hard-hitting articles that help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Check out Beyond Babylon

Prophecy - Second Heaven Authority 4

This is the fourth article in this series on The Second Heaven. Here I want to tell you about the power of intercession. To intercede in prayer and in the authority of Jesus is one of the greatest power filled Keys that Christians have. The spiritual leaders of wickedness that reside in the Second Heaven realize this and consequently pit so much confusion, strife, false accusation and other tactics against it. If we are not interceding, we will find ourselves criticizing, gossipping, growing bitter, spiteful and full of worry. The inevitable end of such is trauma, tragedy and destruction. God is recalling many of His people into this strategic position to break the oppression coming out of the Second Heaven. The Holy Spirit and the Warrior Angels in God's Throne room are deploying now to stand with those Believers on earth who will take up this Key and release the Kingdom of Heaven into the earth. There is a rising roar of intercession rising from the earth from God's people. You need to close the ranks with others and take your place. This article will empower you to do that.

I interviewed a Pastor F. Shongwe who lives in South Africa. He was beaten and stabbed to death one night. He received a fatal stab wound in the heart and was declared dead on arrival at the local hospital. The police arrested one man and were in the process of opening a murder investigation. His body was placed in the morgue at the hospital overnight. Meanwhile, He went to Heaven and experienced many awesome things there. He spoke at length with Abraham about the end times. He saw different categories of Angels there. Some where very small, others were human size and many Angels were giants that held great authority and power. These giant Angels were assigned to nations and regions. While in Heaven, Pastor Shongwe, heard a roar similar to ocean waves ascending from the earth that went by him and up higher into the regions of God's Throne. He didn't understand what this noise was so he asked and was told "This roaring sound is the prayers and praises of God's people on earth ascending to the Father in the Throne Room." On the earth the people of his church prayed all through the night for him, knowing that he was dead. They also prayed for the drunken young men who had killed him. When the police arrived for a second time in the morning, the church leaders told the police "we as Believers have decided to forgive these young men." This upset the police but they said because of the crime, criminal charges would proceed. However, at the approximate time the church announced that they chose to forgive the offenders; Pastor Shongwe was resurrected and was discovered alive by a nurse at the hospital. Within a short time of his coming back to life the swelling, bruising and three stab wounds had completely disappeared and he walked out of the hospital with another Pastor who had come to visit him. The two pastors then went to the jail and lead the man who had used the knife, to personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is an awesome testimony that demonstrates the power of intercession when God's people pray. It also demonstrates the importance of forgiveness even in the face of obvious wrong.

When adversity, sin, illness, satanic activity or whatever trouble arises in the earth, God's word to His people is to intercede. Isaiah 59:16 says of God: "He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no one to intercede; then his own arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him." Every Believer has a mandate from God to pray and intercede for God's will to be released. This includes personal needs as well as needs in the nations. Intercession is more about partnering with God and making spiritual declarations over the circumstances so that God can confirm those declarations. For years, many have thought of intercession as "begging God to do something" because He didn't seem to care, so we had to awaken His compassion. However, intercession is more about partnering with God so that our prayers and the words of our mouth can be used by God to confirm what has been prayed.

I would be remiss if I didn't include scriptures to verify this article. Let me share just a few as follows.

We read in:

Romans 8:26 "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groaning s too deep for words."

Romans 8:27 "And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."

Romans 8:28 "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Romans 8:34 "Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us."

1Timothy 2:1 "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,

1Timothy 2:2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

1Timothy 2:3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,"

Hebrews 7:25 "Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them."

Isaiah 58:6 "Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?

Isaiah 58:7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

Isaiah 58:8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.

Isaiah 58:9 Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, 'Here I am.' If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,"

Here are two important applications of intercession:

• To intercede with (with = partner with God to do the work of His Kingdom and release Heaven into the earth) God and

Note: Many of God's kids still have an orphan spirit/mentality where to them intercession means begging God to do something because He is otherwise withholding something from them. Their feeling is that God and they are at odds and not really reconciled. This is wrong.

• To stand against Satan, demons, sickness, non-Godly circumstances on behalf of others and yourself.

When you take up this Important Key you will have great authority over Second Heaven spirits of wickedness. Intercession overlaps with prophecy. Prophecy better equips you to release God's power into earth's circumstances through intercession and that stops the work of evil operating from the Second Heaven.

Remember:

Maintain a clean heart before the Lord. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin. (Psalm 24: 3, 4, 5)

Rely on the Holy Spirit to pray through you. (Romans 8:26)

Don't rely on your own thoughts for how you should pray. Acknowledge His direction and wisdom. (Proverbs 3 : 5 and 6)

Praise God for His awesome faithfulness and ability to change every situation. (Ephesians 6:18 and Philippians 4:6) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Be assertive against the devil and his kingdom. Come against him with all the power of the Lord Jesus Christ and the sword of the Spirit. (Luke 10:19, Mt 10:1, James 4:7)

Be responsive to the Holy Spirit for He often will speak, direct or prompt us through the Word. He will confirm His Word as well as you wait in His Presence.

Praise God for what He is doing and will continue to do. The glory belongs to Him.

Romans 11:36 "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen."

Keith A. Paul has many years of Ministry experience and is an Author. He is used in the gift of prophecy, dream interpretation and words of knowledge which are gifts of the Holy Spirit. He currently lives in Abbotsford B.C. Canada. He travels internationally speaking and imparting the supernatural works of the Holy Spirit. To receive Keith's free Prophetic Words, free Dream Interpretation or purchase His E Books please visit http://www.restorationplaceministries.com

Why Was Jesus Born?

Why was Jesus born? The Bible provides a number of reasons. God the Father and Jesus agreed from the foundation of the world that Jesus would come and give his life as the sacrifice for the sins of mankind (I Peter 1:20, Revelation 13:8). Therefore, one reason Jesus was born was to give himself as the ransom for the sins of mankind.

Another important reason for the birth of Jesus was to be a king. When Pilate questioned him during his trial before his crucifixion, Pilate asked him if he were the king of the Jews (John 18:33). Jesus answered that his kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36). It was not the time for him to establish the Kingdom of God

Jesus did not come the first time to establish his kingdom. He came the first time to suffer for us, to give his life a ransom for many, and to be born into the royal family of David. He will sit on the throne of David and rule in the Kingdom of God.

Pilate asked Jesus clearly if he were a king. Here is how the gospel according to John records Pilate's question and Jesus' answer in John 18:37:

"Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." (KJV)

Jesus here clearly states that he was born to be a king. Jesus came into the world to bear witness of the truth of God and to preach the good news of the coming Kingdom of God. However, he noted that his kingdom was not of that time. It was to be a future kingdom as he explained more clearly elsewhere.

One of things that the angel Gabriel stated in his announcement to the virgin Mary of the future birth of Jesus is that God would give him the throne of his father David. Here is how the gospel according to Luke records it in Luke 1:30-33.

"And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.

He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." (KJV)

God sent the angel Gabriel to tell the virgin Mary that the son she would bear would be the son of God and that he would have an eternal kingdom over the house of Jacob. Jacob was the patriarch whose named God changed to Israel (Genesis 35:10).

Many people associate only the Jews with the House of Israel. However, Jacob or Israel had 12 sons who became the 12 tribes of Israel (Genesis 35:22-26). They were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

David was a great king over the 12 tribes of Israel. His son Solomon reigned after he died (I Kings 2:10-12). After the death of Solomon, the Kingdom of Israel was divided into two kingdoms. King Rehoboam ruled the Kingdom of Judah, which had its capital in Jerusalem. King Jeroboam ruled the Kingdom of Israel, which had its capital north of Jerusalem in Samaria.

The virgin Mary was a descendant of King David (Luke 3:23-31). She was of the royal family. Today, she would be called a princess. She knew well what the angel Gabriel meant when he said that her son Jesus would reign over the House of Israel. She knew that he would be a king over a literal kingdom just as her forefather David was a king over the House of Israel.

While David's rule was temporary, the reign of Jesus will be forever. As the Hallelujah Chorus of Handel's famous oratorio The Messiah says "king of kings forever and ever hallelujah."

Why was Jesus born? He was born to be bear witness of the truth of God and to preach the good news of the Kingdom of God. He was born to be the savior of the world. He was also born to be a king. He will be the King of Kings in the Kingdom of God. Jesus will reign as the King of Kings forever in the Kingdom of God. That is indeed good news.

Alan D. Campbell lives in Brandon, Florida. For more good news, please see his blog The Good News of the Kingdom of God at http://goodnewsofthekingdomofgod.blogspot.com

1 John 1 - Chapter 1 of John's Letter Explained

1 John 1 is not addressed to converts or Born Again Believers! How can this be I hear you say, and if it is not addressed to Spirit Born believers, how have 'Bible scholars', ministers, pastors and theologians missed this crucial understanding of God's Word? Under the title Recipients in the NIV Study Bible they clearly state 1 John is aimed at believers, but notice, they conveniently choose 1 John Chapter 2 to erroneously prove their point i.e. they go straight to Chapter 2 and in the process by-pass Chapter 1. Why do they do that? Easy, the NIV is the work of Bible intellectuals and theologians who are men with their own agendas. Unfortunately these agendas are not The Lord Jesus Christ's agenda and they never were.

Now, there are two factors of error or gross misunderstanding at work here. The first and most important factor is the error of reading the epistles as if they were, and are, written for the benefit of the converted alone. In fact this is a common failure of most 'Christian teaching'. The second factor of error, which leads to the first error is this: Paul's epistles are aimed at the converted or those being called; that is, Spiritually aware, so the above mentioned 'authorities' jump to the conclusion that all the epistles that follow Paul's epistles are also written to the same audience; to disciples, Spiritual beginners and mature Born Again believers alike. This is what I call 'one size fits all' preaching or, preaching as if to people all with same level of Spiritual maturity, but as I will prove, this is definitely not the case and especially in 1 John 1.

As an example, let's consider this; everyone is in church on a Sunday and a Spiritual message is delivered. Now this message maybe for those new to The Faith or it maybe for Spiritual children or it maybe for mature believers; some will say "is there a difference?" Well Paul certainly thought there was because he withheld his meaty teaching from certain congregations because they weren't ready for it:

1 Corinthians 3:2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.

I have only ever met one minister who differentiated or separated his flock for teaching. Why did he do this? After I have explained 1 John 1 I hope you will understand why he did.

So if 1 John 1 is not aimed at Born Again Believers, to whom is it aimed and what is the issue at stake here in this passage of Holy Scripture? Is the issue sin? Well yes, of course it is, but then again, no, it's more than that. The emphasis is more to do with attitude toward sin, a preparedness to admit to being a sinner, a willingness to confess those sins for the first time - honesty and truthfulness. Being prepared to not live in a state of denial; a state of mind of not kidding oneself - Truth, but before I get into the meat of this passage we need to understand the opening verses of 1 John 1.

1 John 1:1-5 "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; Verse 2; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us Verse 3; That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. Verse 4; And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. Verse 5; This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all."

Look at these opening verses carefully. "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard..." John is immediately setting the scene, style and approach of this letter or as some have commented - this sermon - a letter to be read aloud to the Churches, but what is the style or approach of this letter? It's as if it is all new to the listeners and of course, it is, because the first five verses amount to a declaration and the word 'declare' appears twice; verses 3 & 5. Now only new news is declared - no one ever declares old news, so these opening verses must be for the benefit of those who have not heard this message before; they were new to this message and teaching. Why would John 'declare' this news to those already converted? They already believe, don't they? Have they not heard this message before? Of course they have, they knew very well that the Apostle John was an original disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Have you noticed, too, the other important point here, a point more important than it being a declaration? I have put it italics along with the word 'declare' - "That you also may have fellowship with us". We need to understand this crucial point! This is telling us that these people are not yet in fellowship with the brethren of that Church; they are not yet in fellowship with the congregation of that church area and if you ignore this Truth then you do so at your peril.

OK, let's now move on to the meaty part of this chapter, and notice, John opens it with the word 'IF' (the biggest word in the world!) and he says it five times.So let's go through these five verses, one by one, and reveal the real message or Truth within them:

1) Verse 6: "IF we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:"

Straight away, John is stating an obvious fact; how can we say we have fellowship with The Lord Jesus Christ and walk in darkness; it's impossible and it is a total contradiction in terms and in Spiritual reality? So who are they that walk in darkness? Who do you think they are; the fairies at the bottom of your garden!!?? Why, it's those who are still in the world and are of the world and are not saved - they are the lost, they are those who live in darkness and they walk in darkness and, therefore, cannot "do The Truth". Why can't they "do The Truth", because The Truth is not in them? Why and how is the Truth not in them, because they have not been called of the Father to His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ through His Holy Spirit!? They are not Born Again or Born from above. So why did John make this challenging, opening statement? Why, to help these potential new converts to examine themselves to see if the Father was calling them to His Son or not - to see if they were "doing The Truth". Furthermore, if we say we have fellowship with Him and we are not disciples or Born Again, then we are liars - plain and simple.

2) Verse 7: "But IF we walk in the light, as He is in The Light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."

Now what is John saying here when he says: "If we walk in The Light, as He is in the Light"? Let's be clear, the word 'in' here is a poor translation, because the Lord Jesus Christ is The Light, so He has to be able to walk 'in' the light for all The Light emanates from Him in the first place. The Lord Jesus Christ never walked in light that came from elsewhere or from another source, and I will rewrite verse 5 for the proof of this fact:

1 John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all.

Returning to verse 7, what is John saying here? He is saying 'If we?' Well, do we or don't we, do we walk in The Light or not, or perhaps more importantly; how can we walk in The Light? That's easy, or maybe it's not so easy. We begin to walk in The Light by confessing our sins, being baptised and receiving the Holy Spirit - becoming a Born Again son or daughter of God. Now we walk in The Light. Now we have fellowship one with another as brothers and sisters as Jesus' Blood has cleansed us from; now notice this - ALL SIN. All sin means all sin, not some of our sins but all of them!! Past, present and future, and don't let any blasphemer tell you otherwise.

3) Verse 8: "IF we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."

OK, here's a question: What type of person is going to say they have no sin? Is a non believer going to say this or someone the Father is calling? Or, in this case, are these potential converts going to admit that they are sinners or not; are they going to say that they have no sin or confess that they do have sin? If they are going to say they have no sin they are then deceiving themselves. In this scenario of 1 John 1 the Father is probably calling some of them, and this question will challenge them and convict them, but not the others. Some of them will not have The Truth and some of them will have The Truth, so who is not going to be truthful? Now notice the last part "The Truth is not in us". If The Truth is not in someone, then they are of the world and not Born Again; they do not have the indwelling of The Holy Spirit. Now, if the Father is calling someone [John 6:44], this potential convert's awareness of sin is automatically enlivened; he or she will be made aware of their sins for the first time in their lives. Anyone reading this passage of Scripture, too, will also be convicted of their sins for the first time in their lives if they are being called. This is the whole purpose of 1 John 1.

If, on the other hand, we think this verse applies to True Believers or to those Born Again, let's try and apply it to them and see if it makes any sense. As an aside, I ask this question, for there are multiple thousands of mainstream Christians out there, who have been Baptised (albeit erroneously into the trinity) and do believe that this verse applies to them, and then they wonder why they find no relief from guilt and no peace - the peace that passeth all understanding. This means they do not live under grace.

OK, I've digressed a little there, but a necessary digression. So, is a Born Again son or daughter of God going to say they have no sin? Hello! Excuse me! Well, the first thing a switched on believer will say to this question is something like this: I have a body of sin that sins, but I, the Born Again Spiritual new man, do not sin because I cannot sin, so that means I can tell you quite plainly that I have no sin, apart from the sin in my body of sin which is no longer me, it's just a vessel that I reside in until I am resurrected and my body of sin dies. This also means that by telling you I have no sin I cannot be deceiving myself and the Truth is definitely in me. Please read my articles: "The Grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ - His True Grace, Not the Watered Down Religious Version!" and "Was the Apostle Paul a Schizophrenic? - Romans 7:14-25", for a full explanation of what it means to be truly forgiven, sinless and living free under His glorious grace.

Now bearing all this in mind, can you now see the nonsense of trying to apply this verse to Born Again believers? This verse can only apply to those approaching the Lord Jesus Christ for the first time - potential new converts. John is using this statement to invoke or prompt repentance within the souls of these new people whom the Father may, or may not, be calling to His Son.

4) Verse 9: "IF we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (emphasis mine)

John says, if we confess our sins. Now when do we do that? Well we know don't we, at the time of our calling and/or at the time of our Baptism? We need to understand, too, that confession of sins is a one off event, repetitive confession of sins is not required of Born Again sons and daughters of God. Please see my article for the proof of this Biblical truth: "Is Repetitive Confession of Sins, Biblical?" Moving on, John then tells us that if we do confess our sins the Lord Jesus Christ is faithful and just to forgive us sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness, not some or only part of our unrighteousness, but all our unrighteousness.

Born Again sons and daughters of God have already confessed their sins, they are now walking in The Light and The Truth is now in them, so why would John re-teach this fundamental again, is he into preaching to the converted? No. True Believers who keep on believing are cleansed of all their sins and this cleansing takes place at Baptism. This verse, as with the whole of 1 John 1, can only apply to those new to the Faith and/or non believers being called. John here is encouraging those who were hearing the message to confess their sins for the first and only time.

5) Verse 10: "IF we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and his Word is not in us."

This verse just confirms and sums up what has already been said with the added dimension of telling the new converts that if they profess to be of The Lord Jesus Christ and they say that they have not sinned they make Our Lord out to be a liar as well, and His Word and Truth is not in them. By contrast, how could this verse apply to Born Again sons and daughters of God? Quite simply, it couldn't, because those Born of God cannot sin, so this statement could only be aimed at or only apply to those being called out of this world of sin and into His glorious Light.

Charles Crosby

http://yes2truth.com.istemp.com/index.html

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There are no contradictions in the Holy Word of God only the evil corruptions of men, within its pages, who have deliberately created them to meet the requirements of their satanic religious agendas - Charles Crosby

Revised and edited 7th September 2008

Even Unto Death

As we walk another day, we see many Christians in peril, and even being killed. We see this in India, Africa, and many points around this world. When Jesus spoke of the end days, He spoke of His sacrifice as well, as the sacrifice that many today will, and must make.

Churches burn, Christians suffer and the world speaks not of these things, but rather they speak of governments, leaderships, and the over all good of man. Who then is man that we should speak highly of him? Who is saying that man has the answers, has the wisdom, and the knowledge, to bring peace upon this earth? Do you realize that with each conflict, struggle and war, we approach the end of man as we have know him?

Have you not seen that when a conflict comes between the poor and the rich, many times the poor are the first to suffer. They burn down their own homes, businesses and churches, this is all madness, for the rich are not influenced by these things, but rather rejoice over the destruction that the poor have brought down upon themselves. Are these things new to the Christian or followers of God? No, many things that we suffer today are being suffered by other brothers and sisters around the world. There is nothing strange about these events, for even in the beginning it was accomplished, lets read;

"Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:
And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;
(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth." (Heb 11:35-38)

"being destitute, afflicted, tormented;
(Of whom the world was not worthy:)"
We are the Children of the Most High God, we suffer, for Christ suffered, we roam in a world, and a land, that is strange to us, for we have no home as Christ had none. He was from above, and not below, He was from God, and is God, we are to be as He is, and not as we think. This world is not our home, but a place to witness and testify of the Glory of Salvation threw the Blood of Jesus Christ.

Destitute(Not having or possessing; wanting; as destitute of virtue, or of piety; destitute of food and clothing.)
Afflicted(The cause of continued pain of body or mind, as sickness, losses, calamity, adversity, persecution.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous. Psa 34.)
Tormented;(To tease; to vex; to harass; as, to be tormented with importunities, or with petty annoyances.)

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous."
We are to be harassed and tormented in these end days. Do not think that it is strange that war, murders, conflicts and persecution comes upon you, for as the word has stated that these things shall come about, it has.
These are the times of the end. A countdown was started when Jesus was born and we are almost at the midnight hour, when all this earth will be rocked as a drunkard.

"And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.
The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again." (Isa 24:18-20)

We are to endure many things, for we are, my brothers and sisters, the terminal generation that shall see great signs, and wonders, in the Heavens, and upon the earth.
"Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.
But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God." (Act 20:23-24)

"But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself." This is what we are to be about. These things that are coming upon this earth shall try our faith and also our patience. For it all comes down to faith and how we handle it.
Can your faith save you in these times of trouble? Yes. Can your faith keep you from these troubles that will come? No. Your faith gives you a weapon that you can rely upon. Many afflictions shall come upon those that believe. Just as with the conflicts that are taking place today, many Christians have their churches, homes and businesses burnt to the ground, and many will be beaten, suffer nakedness and even hunger. This all according to the will of God that must try the faith of this generation. This is not new for it happened even unto our Savior.

Our lives are purposed to be, born and die. There is always a reason for everything that happens to a believer in Christ. Are you unhappy or even disappointed in the life you have? Do you believe that you shouldn't suffer because you have faith? Have you not heard of our teacher of distresses? Read again;
Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I.
Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.
Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?
If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities. (2Co 11:22-30)

"in perils by mine own countrymen." Do you not see this today? Have you not heard of Nations being divided, riots and conflicts? So then we must, as Paul taught, If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities.
Thank the Lord that we are counted worthy to suffer as Christ suffered. Hold to your faith and hope, look up our redemption draws nigh.
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. (Rev 2:11) ars

Temple of Spirit & Truth Ministries
A.R.Smith Ministries
http://www.ourchurch.com/member/a/arsmithsermons/

Antidotes For Doubt

Now there were only eleven men on the mountain with Jesus on the day He left Earth to begin another phase of His preparation for the coming Kingdom. Only eleven. These eleven had seen Him die and had seen Him risen from the dead. They had walked with Him three years and watched Him raise others from death and near-death. They had seen a disturbed Sea of Galilee hushed. Now for 40 days after His own decease and resurrection they had eaten with Him, been amazed by off and on appearances, beheld as He walked through walls. Now He stands in front of them to receive their worship, a parting gesture that will remain in their memory as they face a world that most certainly is not a friend of Jesus of Nazareth. Their hands are raised, the praise begins. And then, can you possibly believe this, the Gospel writer adds, "but some doubted."

Doubt has been showing up at church ever since. We who have the entire written testimony of these and other men in a Book that has become in itself a miracle; we who have had our own mountain-top experiences with Him, not the least of which has been a changed and changing life, often sit in our little prisons of doubt and fear and ask with John the Baptist, "Are You the One Who was to come, or should we keep looking for someone else?"

That's who we are at times. We doubt Him, and we doubt what He has done for us. And we wait for a rushing mighty wind or light from Heaven that has not been promised us in these days. Some do experience unqualified and totally verifiable miracles. But not all. Maybe not even many. And both the haves and the have-nots of the miraculous must deal with the Word that says, "Blessed are those who do not see [something] and still believe."

The Jesus who left from a mountain in the Middle East will eventually return via the clouds to that same mountain. All will be gathered to Him to give an account. John in his first epistle indicates that many will be ashamed. And John shows the way not to be ashamed at that coming. In 1:28 he counsels us simply to abide in Him. Stay put. Keep believing. Keep trusting. Talk to Him, walk with Him. Let Him talk to you.

By this method, slowly but very surely one becomes aware of the dual nature of the non-physical part of man, and sees that all those doubts - which will plague from time to time - are part of the old nature, the corrupted mind, the messages from elsewhere. He will see that the new man continues to broadcast hope and courage. The key will be , which of these two power centers will be strongest, which will he feed the most?

John takes it farther than a struggle of the soul. He gives a series of tests of the whole man and the actions being produced in it. He says that the man abiding with Jesus will not have a sinning habit any more. He will have a healthy dislike of this present evil world system. He will naturally gravitate to the brothers and sisters in the Lord and care about their well-being. This man can take a look in the mirror John has fashioned and know in an instant whether there is a real Jesus and whether this Jesus lives in him. Great antidotes for doubt. Has the new nature produced a new man?

Of course, such an examination is a potential cause for concern, too.What if the image is blurred? What if staring back at him is a picture of an empty man who loves his worldliness and his vices -even chuckles about it all - and has a hidden distaste for people who are into Jesus "a little too much", which means being interpreted, more than himself ? One can throw away such a mirror of course and live with the ever-nagging and ever-growing doubt, or one can repent.

I believe now that doubt in most believers is a common possibility. The enemy will continually look for an entry place. But if Satan finds that the entry-ways are well guarded, there is a good chance he will go to some simpler task elsewhere. Doubt then becomes our choice.

As does its opposite, faith.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://sermonaudio.com - There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

Will Babylon Rise Again?

Any day now, many Biblically informed people expect to see a headline about a revival of old Babylon to accompany the constant deluge of Iraq stories. Hearts were beating rather quickly during the prime Saddam years, when the dictator was giving out that he was in some way the new (or was it the old?) Nebuchadnezzar, and that his Babylon would rise to world prominence again. He was well on the way to developing his Babylon-centered theme park when several inconvenient truths dawned on his land. Shock and awe and George Bush, to name a few.

So what's the big deal with Babylon, anyway? It's just a historic wonder, not to be considered a part of anything remotely modern, and definitely not future, right? Not so fast, not so fast. There are two ways to look at the Bible's Babylon doctrine. And maybe both of them are involved in this horrendous war.

Babylon was a real city. A real empire. Bible students recall how this great power was used by God to come against His own people, Israel. But Babylon overstepped its bounds and allowed pride to enter the mix. God vowed that Babylon would have to go. And go it did, right? Again, slow down. It ain't necessarily so.

God had promised an immediate destruction. But the city hung on for many centuries after the Medo-Persians took over the Empire. The conquering armies of many nations that followed used Babylon as one of their headquarters. In Jesus' time the city still existed and was dwelt in by many Jews.

God cannot lie. Or exaggerate. The city lost power but not existence. Through Saddam's ingenuity it is still with us. And Revelation 17-18 foretells the immediate fall of Babylon as still in our future! Will the old city rise again?

But you say, we all know that Mystery Babylon is none other than the Roman System. In our day, yes. Back up through the Middle Ages, still yes. And Imperial Rome, and Greece, and Medo-Persia, and Assyria, they all wore the robes of Babylon at one time. There were seven heads to the beast, you will recall.

What if, in the final flow of world history, Islam and Europe unite and form a power that has two capitals, two Babylons? It is clear that a Babylon on seven hills (Revelation 17) can only be Rome, but the unfulfilled prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah call us to have an open mind. The mystery is great. Let's not say we understand it until all the questions are answered.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. I have created over 200 blogs and the site features a live news feed, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. I love to write Scriptural works. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Occasionally you will see depictions in art of the scene Jesus portrays in Matthew 25. That's where He stands before a divided congregation of sheep on one side and goats on the other. Artists usually see Jesus standing alone and the two groups before Him. I think there might be something wrong with that picture. Consider:

1. Jesus is not coming back alone. He is coming with the saints.

2. The saints have already been "judged". I'm talking about bona-fide products of grace who overcame the world and were caught up to meet Jesus in the air. They are not breathlessly waiting to see whether they are a sheep or a goat.

3. The terms and conditions of the offer made to these two groups is not the same as the salvation offered now. It is works-based. Because you did such and such, namely offer friendship to a suffering Christ, you may now come to Heaven. But although works are produced by saved saints, the message to them is clear: we are saved by grace through faith and that not of ourselves...

4. If this is about rewards as we know it, where is the mention of the preaching of the Gospel, and the many other gifts and ministries that operate in a Spirit-filled Church? Why no reward for this?

5. Why are the saints surprised when they discover that serving others is serving Christ? (Inasmuch as you did it to the least of my brothers, etc) Babes in Christ know this.

No, I think this passage is a victim of tradition, and needs to be seen as it really is.

The prophets talked about a Kingdom, Israel in its fullness, that would be ruled by Messiah. Daniel sees a plurality of thrones, as does the Revelator. A kingdom truly is coming. And many kings will reign under King Jesus.

But Kingdoms are made up of subjects and rulers both. And those Jewish prophets saw ordinary people doing ordinary things entering into that Kingdom. In fact, at the end of that Kingdom period there will still be people on earth able and willing to rebel against Jesus the Lord over all the earth for 1000 years at that time. Surely Spirit-sealed saints do not leave the City.

No, the Kingdom of God will be a combination of saints (rulers) and non-saints (subjects) who will have the opportunity to give their heart fully to Christ or reject Him and pay the consequences. The Millennium, though incredibly peaceful and orderly, will still have room for imperfection, thus the need for rulers. Eternal bliss follows the Millennial reign.

So, do you now see three groups in Matthew 25? The saints, coming back with Jesus, stand with Him, poised and ready to rule. But they need someone to rule. That's group 2. Who will it be? Those who had a heart to help the suffering Jesus- the Body of Christ persecuted - when he was being hurt by evil men. On this basis, following the worldwide tribulation, the entire planet is separated. One group is asked to stay and enter the Kingdom.The other group, group 3, the goats, is sent to eternal perdition, the public pronouncement of which will take place 1000 years later.

Let us humbly bow before our God who calls us to be Christ crucified in this evil day. Are you a member of His Body by faith?

Look for "Bob Faulkner" on http://sermonaudio.com There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, ovber 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

The Perfect Unity Of Daniel And John

Have you ever considered just how much Daniel and John have in common? As young men, both had a personal relationship with the Lord. They were both considered "beloved" of God. Defiantly strong for the Lord as young men, they both grew into long-term servants of God whose ministry involved prophecy. Both lived until their 90's, when both received the vision of the end of the world, much of which overlaps. Both received these visions as men in captivity to their respective Empires.

Their prophecies were given by the same Spirit, so you would expect common threads running through both. Away, please! with the notion that John was an "intuitive" thinker who created his own wild vision of the end of the world, with generous borrowings from Daniel's work. I've actually heard such talk in church settings. May God have mercy on those who corrupt His Word.

John was an old ex-fisherman, a life-time disciple of Jesus, and a man full of the Holy Ghost. He was appointed of God to be one of twelve men to lay the foundational teaching stones of the church. His book of Revelation was placed last in the list of accepted books for a reason. And the warning within the book of "don't add-don't subtract" has led all true believers of Jesus to understand that John has been given the final word to the church. Oh how we need to listen!

But in the portions we will hear, there will be a clear resemblance to the tune the Spirit played through Daniel.

John sees in Revelation 13 a beast rising from the sea. Daniel (chapter seven) saw the four winds of heaven stirring up the "Great Sea" out of which came four beasts, the fourth of which was the same as the one before us now. The Great Sea is the Mediterranean Sea. The fourth beast of Daniel and John's beast here are meant to represent the final world power before Christ comes back. Most recognize this to be the power that incorporated all powers before it, but centered in the Mediterranean region. So when John sees his beast here, he connects with Daniel in identifying him with the last formation of the Roman animal.

John's beast has seven heads. This characteristic is missing from Daniel's, yet the total number of heads seen by Daniel is also seven, if one includes all four beasts that he saw. The Spirit's object in the Daniel beast seems to be to predict what world powers are coming, one at a time, whereas in John we are being shown a conglomerate of all the world powers at once. The seven heads when thought of as kingdoms are normally considered to be, in chronological order, Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and the 10-nation confederation that flows out of Rome at the end. Following Daniel's order, we would start with Babylon, then go to Medo-Persia, then instead of Greece alone would be the four divisions of the Grecian Empire: Greece, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, and finally Rome (in both of its forms.) The "heads" of the beast are key elements in identifying antichrist later.

Back to Revelation 13. The beast has ten horns. So does Daniel's. The number ten in Daniel's and John's prophecies is always referring to a ten-nation confederation flowing out of the final world power, Rome. So it is in Daniel 2 and 7, the statue and the animals, toes and horns. Ten. Rome will be colossal and powerful at first. It will then shrink to the background noise of human history, stretching as those long legs of the statue and then resurfacing as a pair of feet with ten toes. The imagery is perfect. We are headed for another Roman Empire, somehow divided into ten parts. Each part will have its own "crown" or seat of government, thus the beast we see has ten crowns.

These are a few of the similarities between John and Daniel. How God used these men! Their united voice confirms God's end-time program.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.

Ever Met a Man of God?

Ever met a man of God? Are you sure? What do you think a man of God might look like?

I think He would be simple, unassuming. He'd be holy, separated, but not weird. He would love the Word of God, every page, every line. Very quiet. Very powerful. A lion in the pulpit, a lamb one-on-one. Unafraid to preach the wrath of God so hot you could smell the fire and brimstone your nasty soul deserves. Able to lift a broken reed from the river bed, gently put it back together, replant it, and watch it flourish with joy. Full of mercy.

The man of God by which we measure all men of God is Jesus. Full of the Spirit, nailed to a cross. Buried in a rock-sealed tomb. Resurrected in power. Constant contradiction. Escapes near-death often but also escapes near-triumph. Judges sin. Forgives sin.

[Voice of the Martyrs founder] Richard Wurmbrand's faith always challenged me. Many have talked of the cross, his life demonstrated it. Many preach the prosperity that ends with a new car or house. Wurmbrand showed the true prosperity that comes from finding the gold refined in the fire. His life too was an enigma to most of us. He founded an organization, at the prompting of the Lord in his heart, that ministers to the needs of the suffering church. It is a relief organization. But in some of his writings he seems to indicate that he wished to be in the pit of suffering again, for there was the riches of Jesus Himself. No relief necessary, he might say. We who have not been educated in the school of suffering, but continue to go after men's degrees, cannot comprehend a man like this. A man of God.

Paul echoed this sentiment, wanting to know the "fellowship of His suffering." There must be something wonderful about dying to self. Laying one's own flesh and blood on the line. Fully surrendering. God's top men and women have experienced this triumph.

Ever felt God tugging at you, saying, "There's more, there's more?" Did you respond by getting out a catalog so you could put in your order? Or did you think that perhaps He was speaking of the "more" that starts with less? That's how men and women of God think. That's how Jesus thought. For the joy that was set before Him He endured the cross.

First the cross. Then the joy. If we can just get that in order, we're on our way to the fellowship He desires.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://www.sermonaudio.com - There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos3@gmail.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

A Message From the Cardinal

He sits outside my window year 'round. Something tells me I told you about him already. No matter. He's worth telling about every winter, 'cause he helps me get through every winter.

Not that I don't notice him in the summer too. But then he's surrounded by raspy starlings and grackles and redwings, not to mention the huge supply of sparrows that my neighbor's incessant feeding attracts. There's an occasional jay or goldfinch, and even a hungry hawk that brings silent tension to the bird-hood.

So he doesn't stand out.

But when not only the birds, but the leaves are gone, what a spectacle is the brilliantly red cardinal! Just seeing him stirs something so deep... And I just know that if he could utter his thoughts, he'd be saying something like, "Hang on bro', just a little longer. Pretty tough out here now, pretty barren, pretty ugly, and downright uncomfortable, but us strong birds hang on, and we see good things when it's all over."

Yeah, that's him. That's the message. Of course right away I'm in North Korea, wishing he, or I, or someone, could say those very words, or chirps, or whatever, to the believers there. "Hang on friends of Jesus. Just a little while, it'll be springtime - forever. You can make it. Be faithful to death. Don't deny Jesus. He loves you still, but you acquired a great enemy when you came to Jesus for salvation."

This is the "winter of our discontent," as Shakespeare would have it. Or as C.S. Lewis describes, "always winter, but never Christmas." These are hard times for Christians. North Korea has been experiencing non-stop "winter" for 60 years! Oh much more, if you count the sordid history of attack by this and that nation. A barren desolate ugly cold wintertime.

But Jesus comes. To individuals. To the world one day. "The promised kiss of springtime that makes the lonely winter seem long..." That's Jesus. We've just got to stay on that branch and hang on.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://sermonaudio.com There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos3@gmail.com.

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

Sabbath - What Is The State Of The Law Of God Today?

Are to believe all that Rome has created in the way of a Christian Sabbath because Paul the apostle said to take an offering on the first day of the week? All of this because the Christians in Troas were meeting on the first day of the week? Are the things that believers do en masse therefore dictated by the Holy Spirit for all? It is through this philosophy of listening to "the piety of the people", that is, God speaking doctrines and practices through what the majority of the professing Church believes, that Rome has come up with other teachings, some of which are quite blasphemous. How far to go with such a philosophy? For me, no farther than what is written for all believers for all time, the Holy Scriptures that concluded with the apostle John in the first century A.D. If the people in their piety believe that, it is because there is light in them from Heaven. If they believe something beyond the word, it is fiction pure and simple.

This much we know, then. But the question comes, what do we do with knowledge thus gained? Does God care if we continue on as we are? Is there an eternal significance to the Sabbath to which true followers will eventually be drawn ? Is God more concerned with the picture or the reality of our rest in Jesus Christ and the coming rest of the planet during the Millennium? Are we under any laws of any kind in Christ Jesus, or are we truly free from law when in Christ?

Most of us are probably not aware of all the "Old Covenant" things we do in connection with our church life. Think of all the Psalms we sing, the prophecies we read and believe, the great histories of God's men and women. All of this is before Calvary and Pentecost, yet somehow we think of it as part of the will of God for us.

Let me ask you this: What common practice in the New testament Church was first practiced in the Old Testament times, but without a recorded command from God? It began in Genesis spontaneously, or so it seems, and was later a part of the Law of Moses. It was never specifically commanded in a New Testament book although it is implied in several. Since the New Testament church was first Jewish, we expect it is probably for today. Pastors swear by it, but it is much less a New Covenant idea than the seventh day Sabbath which is nearly written off as cultic. Answer? The tithe.

We are literally steeped in Jewish ways. Why do we want to exclude the Sabbath rest? Did God?

The question of the Sabbath, only one of ten commandments, and those commandments only one component of a comprehensive legal system, must be considered in a broader context if the hint of a solution is to be found. The much more difficult question concerns the law itself. What is the law's place in the believer's life? Did the law pass away? Are we totally lawless now?

For the answers, we return to the only written Source of Truth available, and call upon the Truth Himself to guide us through this maize. Let's read His prophet Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 31:31-34 [portions]. "Behold the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah- not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers... My covenant which they broke...But this is the covenant that I will make...I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."

a. First note that this covenant is not suddenly "Gentile". It is to be a new covenant for the old people. We know that Gentiles were admitted in, but it is originally offered to Israel and Judah. And originally, it was those Jews who responded.

b. Its newness has as much to do with method as with message. In fact, no change to the message is mentioned. But the way of communicating this covenant, we discover later, is the Spirit of God and His filling of the believer in Jesus. This will bring the obedience so long sought for by God.

c. But not to be overlooked here is the word "law" itself. "My" law, says God, the things I have always wanted them to do, not some new law, will be inside them. The destruction of all law is not envisioned here, only a way for God's people to keep that law holy.

Here then is a glimmer of light to help us to understand how the Sabbath, and other Commandments, can be kept by believers in our own day.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. I have created over 200 blogs and the site features a live news feed , lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosen together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. I love to write Scriptural works. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

Is Overpopulation a Religious Problem?

Overpopulation really isn't that hard to understand. People love each other, want to reproduce and have offspring. Their parents took care of them, and they will take care of their children. People love to have families and these families love to have more families. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

Now is overpopulation a religious problem? If you listen to religious text and understand a few simple sentences, you will see that there are plenty of religions all over the world that encourage the multiplication of mankind.

In the Bible, God tells man to be fruitful and multiply. If you read this a little differently, you might take it that God wants men to eat as much fruit as he wants to and plant more trees so that he can have more fruit and be fruitful.

That's not exactly how most Christians read this Bible verse. Christians need to have more children, and their children need to have more children. This is how they interpret the words, to be fruitful and multiply.

I do believe that religions all over the world play an important part in our worlds population problem today. It's not the people who are educated, that are constantly reproducing, in today's world.

Most religions support population expansion, but what are they going to do, once the world becomes so overpopulated, that we can't even take care of ourselves. This should give you another point of view to look at, especially if you one part of the problem and not the solution.

What About The End of The World

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.
His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with superior biblical knowledge , answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Thanks For Reading Our Articles

Rocking the Foundation of Christianity

Whatever you build a house, you start with the foundation, if you're writing a book, it might be an outline for the table of contacts, but when were talking about Christianity, rarely do any Christians ever research the origins or how Christianity began.

Most Christians assume that Jesus was the one who started Christianity, however, he was Jewish and there is a good chance that he never even thought about starting a new religion. I know, Jesus is God and he knows everything and he knew that he was going to start Christianity. Okay, but what if.

That might not be entirely true. We don't have any proof that Jesus was actually a superior god like being. We can speculate or assume all that we want to, however there is very little evidence to support, that Jesus did anything that the writers of the New Testament, suggested he had done.

I would like to challenge most Christians, to do a little research and quite possibly start rocking the foundation of Christianity. It's much more important to understand Christianity than to call yourself a Christian. Will a little bit of research help or hurt you, as you study Christianity.

You can start by looking at the origins of the Bible, the Council of Nicaea, the Emperor Constantine, the missing years of Jesus in the early Roman Catholic Church.

To understand anything, you must understand its origins. Take some time out of your busy life, to start studying the foundation of Christianity.

Do Christians Believe Everything
You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:
Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a Christian Article Library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.
Thanks

Does Anyone Have a Direct Line to God?

I have heard Catholics tell me that the pope has a direct line to God. I don't really know if that's true, but if he does, or anyone else does, I would like to ask them to do me a favor.

I would like them to ask God a few questions, these questions aren't going to be difficult, and we could even make them in yes or no formats, but these answers need to be asked and only God can provide us with the answers.

The first question that I would like to ask God, would be about starvation, why are there so many starving people all over the world? Are we or are we not supposed to be fruitful and multiply? Is overpopulation creating more problems in the world today, than it might have 2000 years ago?

These questions above, could be a little difficult to answer, but they shouldn't be too difficult for someone like God. I believe that God can handle a few tough questions and if the Pope or anyone else has direct communication with God, I would like to suggest something to them, quit wasting your time on frivolous things and start asking God the serious questions, that every one is really interested in.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, to pray and worship to somebody who realistically won't answer or deliver the things that we are requiring. I realize that most religious people are told, that God only answers some prayers or that God isn't ready to answer your prayers yet.

Anyway, if gods not going to answer all of our prayers, couldn't he at least answer some of our questions.

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:
Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended authors, Don Miguel Ruiz

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Thanks For Reading Our Articles

Living the Ultimate Lie - Religious Fundamentalism

I've been doing research on Christianity and other religions throughout the world for quite some time and find it hard to believe that most of these religious followers, won't even listen to facts that I and others have found regarding their religion.

I find most of these people to be living the ultimate lie and when it comes to Christian fundamentalism or someone who I would consider to be a super Christian, these people adamantly hold both hands over their ears, while stomping their feet, trying to scare me into submission.

No matter how you slice it, no matter how you want it delivered to you, the truth is always going to be the truth. If you won't listen to the truth, you will live trapped living in a world of lies. It doesn't matter whether you're a Christian who believes in Jesus or an Islamic follower of believes in Allah, the truth, for most people, can only be found outside of your religion.

Let me give you an example of what I'm talking about. How many religions talk about how the world was created, most of their followers, choose to believe their religious leaders and their religious text, without ever questioning, but often doubting what they were taught.

Science teaches us one way, religion teaches us another, however, neither one of them have any scientific evidence to back up their theories.

The minute that you state either one of these beliefs as a truth, you're living in a world of lies. If a scientist or religious leader, can convince you that their way is right, they have simply took a belief, without any evidence and made it into a fact. This illusion, is simply a belief that you have personally made into a truth and as long as you continue to believe this, without doing any of your own research, you will continue to spread lies and rumors throughout the world.

Problems With Noah's Ark Story

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a religous article library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Thanks

Is Overpopulation a Religious Problem?

Overpopulation really isn't that hard to understand. People love each other, want to reproduce and have offspring. Their parents took care of them, and they will take care of their children. People love to have families and these families love to have more families. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

Now is overpopulation a religious problem? If you listen to religious text and understand a few simple sentences, you will see that there are plenty of religions all over the world that encourage the multiplication of mankind.

In the Bible, God tells man to be fruitful and multiply. If you read this a little differently, you might take it that God wants men to eat as much fruit as he wants to and plant more trees so that he can have more fruit and be fruitful.

That's not exactly how most Christians read this Bible verse. Christians need to have more children, and their children need to have more children. This is how they interpret the words, to be fruitful and multiply.

I do believe that religions all over the world play an important part in our worlds population problem today. It's not the people who are educated, that are constantly reproducing, in today's world.

Most religions support population expansion, but what are they going to do, once the world becomes so overpopulated, that we can't even take care of ourselves. This should give you another point of view to look at, especially if you one part of the problem and not the solution.

What About The End of The World

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.
His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with superior biblical knowledge , answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Thanks For Reading Our Articles

Rocking the Foundation of Christianity

Whatever you build a house, you start with the foundation, if you're writing a book, it might be an outline for the table of contacts, but when were talking about Christianity, rarely do any Christians ever research the origins or how Christianity began.

Most Christians assume that Jesus was the one who started Christianity, however, he was Jewish and there is a good chance that he never even thought about starting a new religion. I know, Jesus is God and he knows everything and he knew that he was going to start Christianity. Okay, but what if.

That might not be entirely true. We don't have any proof that Jesus was actually a superior god like being. We can speculate or assume all that we want to, however there is very little evidence to support, that Jesus did anything that the writers of the New Testament, suggested he had done.

I would like to challenge most Christians, to do a little research and quite possibly start rocking the foundation of Christianity. It's much more important to understand Christianity than to call yourself a Christian. Will a little bit of research help or hurt you, as you study Christianity.

You can start by looking at the origins of the Bible, the Council of Nicaea, the Emperor Constantine, the missing years of Jesus in the early Roman Catholic Church.

To understand anything, you must understand its origins. Take some time out of your busy life, to start studying the foundation of Christianity.

Do Christians Believe Everything
You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:
Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a Christian Article Library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.
Thanks

Does Anyone Have a Direct Line to God?

I have heard Catholics tell me that the pope has a direct line to God. I don't really know if that's true, but if he does, or anyone else does, I would like to ask them to do me a favor.

I would like them to ask God a few questions, these questions aren't going to be difficult, and we could even make them in yes or no formats, but these answers need to be asked and only God can provide us with the answers.

The first question that I would like to ask God, would be about starvation, why are there so many starving people all over the world? Are we or are we not supposed to be fruitful and multiply? Is overpopulation creating more problems in the world today, than it might have 2000 years ago?

These questions above, could be a little difficult to answer, but they shouldn't be too difficult for someone like God. I believe that God can handle a few tough questions and if the Pope or anyone else has direct communication with God, I would like to suggest something to them, quit wasting your time on frivolous things and start asking God the serious questions, that every one is really interested in.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, to pray and worship to somebody who realistically won't answer or deliver the things that we are requiring. I realize that most religious people are told, that God only answers some prayers or that God isn't ready to answer your prayers yet.

Anyway, if gods not going to answer all of our prayers, couldn't he at least answer some of our questions.

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:
Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended authors, Don Miguel Ruiz

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Thanks For Reading Our Articles

The Sabbath - Written On Our Hearts?

Is the Sabbath for today? Has the Fourth Commandment been placed in our heart when we were filled with God's Spirit under the New Covenant?

It was men full of the Spirit of God who wrote the will of God for God's New Covenant People. Following is a partial list of how the Ten Commandments left the stone tablets of Moses and found their way into New Covenant thinking and into our hearts through the Spirit. God's law, you will see, has not changed, only gotten deeper, better, richer.

Commandments 1 and 2: Exodus 20:1-6, "...have no other gods before Me... do not make images..." is repeated in I John 5:21, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." Acts 15:20 tells us, "...abstain from things polluted by [offered to] idols." Likewise I Corinthians 10:28, "If anyone says to you, This was offered to idols, do not eat it..." II Corinthians 6:14, 16, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers...what agreement has the temple of God with idols...?" The New Covenant, written in our hearts, keeps us not only from other gods but also from fellowship with idolaters.

Commandment 3: Exodus 20:7, You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain" is suggested by Jesus in Matthew 6:7, explaining to the disciples how to pray, "...do not use vain repetitions, as the heathen do." Also, "Hallowed be Thy Name," from the Model prayer in Matthew 6:9. We are taught to ask in His Name anything we want, call on His Name for salvation, and that there is no other way to be saved but by that Name. We are taught that only the evil people "blaspheme the Name by which you are called," James 2:27. Truly no Spirit-filled believer will lightly use the Name of the Lord.

Commandment 4: Exodus 20:8, "Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy..." Since the fourth commandment is the subject of this research, allow me to discuss it last.

Commandment 5: Exodus 20:12, "Honor your father and your mother." This one is quoted verbatim by Paul in Ephesians 6:1-3. In addition the Spirit-filled apostles command the people of God to honor widows, honor the king, honor all men! Spirit-filled living is respectful living. Disrespect is a sure sign that the enemy is present.

Commandment 6: Exodus 20:13, "You shall not murder." James put it this way in 2:11, "...if...you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law." Romans 13:9 has Paul summing up the last 5 commandments in the one concept of love. Rather than destroy the law, Paul says, we live it out by loving. The sentence of death is destroyed, but the righteous requirement of the law lives on and prospers in us.

Commandment 7: Exodus 20:14, "You shall not commit adultery." In Galatians 5:19, adultery is listed as one of the works of the flesh. Those who practice these works will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Commandment 8: Exodus 20:15, "You shall not steal." And in Ephesians 4:28, "Let him that stole steal no more."

Commandment 9: Exodus 20:16, "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor," becomes "Do not lie one to another..." in Colossians 3:9.

Commandment 10: Exodus 20:17, "You shall not covet." Paul says, "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you as is fitting for saints... no... covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God." (Ephesians 5:3, 5)

And so the commandments come full circle. Worshiping false gods to worshiping the works of man's hands and every evil practice in between was forbidden by Moses and is forbidden by Jesus and the apostles. That is to say, the same Spirit has directed all His messengers to give the same message, even though intensified, to God's people. And now that message is to be fulfilled in God's people by the Author Himself.

Now what about that fourth commandment? There is no specific command by any apostle to keep the seventh day holy. There is also no specific repeal of the Sabbath command of 4,100 years. There is likewise no command to rest on the first day of the week. If all other commands are in evidence in the New Covenant's Spirit-filled life, what are we to assume about this one? If indeed every man is to be convinced in his own heart of the truth (Romans 14:5) then it seems to me that he will be convinced only by a word from God. A Gentile who has been taught first-day Sabbath may, like myself, eventually be called upon to seek out the truth. It seems, though, that if he does not, he is under no condemnation. Eventually all this will be made right, when Jesus comes. And there is no question in my mind about which day will be the Kingdom standard . The prophets are very explicit about the coming seventh-day Sabbath experiences of the people of God.

For now, I prefer to relate as much as possible to the saints throughout Scripture who rested on the seventh day, met most any day, and had a special meeting on the first day, the day of the creation of light, the day of the resurrection, the day of the church's founding. But I would be hard-pressed to show you a New Testament verse that puts all that together. But one of my reasons for writing this report is to show that the Sunday-Sabbath folks would be equally hard-pressed to prove that that day is a day of rest equal to the original Sabbath of the Lord. The weight of evidence shows that Rome, not Scripture, is the basis for this teaching.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. I have created over 200 blogs and the site features a live news feed , lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. I love to write Scriptural works. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond .

God at a Railroad Crossing

This testimony is fresh from the Korean peninsula. God continues to work and move to do His will among those who will seek Him.

Let me tell you about the first time I came to China. It was with my brother-in-law. He has visited for several years and has been helped through his friendship with the church. Often he tried to persuade me to have faith in the God he met. But I ignored his encouragement.

Well, I have many questions about God. Does God really exist, like my brother-in-law always is saying? Hey, if God exists, why does he let North Korean people stay so poor?' If God really loves humans so much, why does He let North Koreans die by starvation? Also, Just how big is this God? Does He even have the power to help humans? I didn't believe God, but I had a lot of questions. On this China visit, I began to get some answers.

You'll never believe what happened as we made our way from NK to China. Around 4 a.m., we tried to cross over a railroad passage into China, but we were just frozen. We somehow went the wrong way, and passed up the train tunnel. Suddenly we saw 2 NK guards. There was just 40 meters between the guards and us. It was light out, we couldn't do anything.

My brother-in-law prayed to God, "God, please help us!" The prayer was really quiet and very simple, and he prayed it again and again. And then he said "Let's go." I couldn't move. Not even one step. I shook my head, but he began to walk.

I couldn't believe it! We made clearly audible sounds with our steps, but the guards never even looked at us! What was happening?

Brother said God had heard his prayer, and made the guards blind and deaf to us. I couldn't say anything. I couldn't understand such a thing with common sense, but it had happened. I began to believe in God's existence after His amazing help.

With this experience, I decided to believe God. I accepted Jesus as my Savior, and my Lord.

God is my salvation, my shelter. Jesus is my joy, my hope.

Thank you, God. Thank you Jesus.

One at a time He builds His glorious Kingdom. Thanks for praying.

Look for Bob Faulkner's home page on http://sermonaudio.com. There you will find a combination of love for the Scriptures and a desire for North Korean believers to have their needs met. There are nearly 300 blogs, over 200 Bible teaching MP3's, lists of resources, NK picture albums, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos3@gmail.com

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.

The Sabbath Before Sinai

One can read the Bible as history or as a living Word with ramifications for his own life, here and now. While not ignoring valid historical methods of communication, I prefer to see this history as ongoing. I want to know, God, does this have anything to do with me, today? Let's walk through the Sabbath Scriptures with that mentality.

1. Following the account of creation are these words in Genesis 2:2-3.

"On the seventh day, God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made."

a. Who wrote this? Our longest tradition is that it came from the pen of Moses. Since Moses wrote it, some say that perhaps he had in mind the people of Israel before him in the wilderness. Perhaps, they speculate, adding the command just here was a motivation for them to keep this new invention called Sabbath, a gift to the Jewish people. When we take the maybes out, we're left with a statement spoken by God 2500 years before the man Moses lived! I do not doubt Moses' authorship, but I do doubt modern scholarship that speculates about human motivations, and questions authentic words from the Lord, trying desperately to confirm their own theological notions.

b. God had just finished his beautiful work of creation, which included one man and one woman. These humans were neither Jew nor Gentile. The need for calling out a special people to bring in a Messiah for sin did not exist, for at this moment, sin was nowhere to be found. There was only one class of humans, and during their existence He spoke these words.

God made this day holy for His own purposes, to declare to all ages that His work is completed and worthy of praise. This seventh day was to be a time of rest and rejoicing in the work of God. This is not speculation. God said it. Did He say it in the hearing of Adam? I would think it strange that humans never heard such a thing until Moses, but here the text is silent. We speculate that what would later be a 10-commandment practice, along with practices regarding respect for elders (later the 3rd commandment), keeping from adultery (7th) and murder (6th) , and stealing (8th), were somehow written in to the minds of men before being written down at Sinai. How it was written we shall not know for awhile. But that some communication was out there becomes obvious when the notion of the tithe suddenly appears in Genesis, and later this same tithe is incorporated into the legal system of Israel. Something is being said somehow. The point that is important to make here is that the day was set aside, that it was sanctified, long before the law that made it "official."

The question that must follow then is, if God blesses a day and sets it apart from the other days, can any man say that this blessing and sanctification is null and void? Can man either say, there is no day to be so revered, or, there is such a day, but it is not the seventh day? I do not answer this question, at least now, but it seems important that we take the time to try.

2. We must now skip those 2,500 years of history and come to the second book of the Bible, in the days of Moses. For this is the next mention of a special seventh day. Allow me to quote portions of Exodus 16:5, and 22-30.

"And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily... And it was so, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread... Then [Moses] said to them, This is what the Lord has said: Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord... [the next day] Moses said, Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field... The Lord said...See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath... Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day [to gather manna]. So the people rested on the seventh day [from gathering manna]."

a. Here is the historic moment when the Sabbath, for 2,500 years special to God, if not to his created beings, is handed over to the Jewish people. For some, the case is closed here. The Sabbath is Jewish. Next question, please. But first, is this the only spiritual benefit given the Jews? Are we willing to say that everything given the Jews is, therefore, Jewish, and not to be tasted by other people groups? The Jewish Apostle to the Gentiles is not so willing:

Romans 3:2, "Unto them [the Jews] were committed the oracles of God." Oracles are sayings. We're talking about the Scriptures. Not only the works of Moses , but also the histories, the Psalms, the prophets. All of these were first given to Israel. Later in Romans, Paul adds a few more items:

Romans 9:4-5, "...Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom according to the flesh, Christ came..."

We need to re-open the case. It is clear that things given to Israel are not only Israel's. Why, the very idea of one God vs. the multitude of gods in Moses' day and in Abraham's day, was a truth entrusted to Israel, but meant for any who will receive it. Preserved by Jews, but not for Jews alone.

b. Another point to be suggested here is that even at this point in the wilderness, the "law" had not been officially pronounced from the mountain-top. Here are simply the people of God being told of the ways of God, one of which ways included a seventh day rest. This was a teaching that had fallen into oblivion, for sure, but so also was the very idea of one God and only one. The world had gone into madness in its definition and worship of deities. Israel is now raised up to be the guardian of truth.

So before the Sinai experience, before the law of God was oficialized, there was a Sabbath Day.

http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. Just about every day I'm writing a blog featuring some news, a book, or a story of North Korea. There's a live news feed on the site, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together!

And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond on my site.