What Is The Fast That God Demands Of Us All?

The Prophetic Reading for the Fast of Yom Kippur

Isaiah 57:14-58:14
[Slightly midrashic translation, with commentary below, after the text]
Translated by Rabbi Arthur O. Waskow

And God said:
Open up, open up, Clear a path!
Clear away all obstacles
From the path of My People!
For so says the One
Who high aloft forever dwells,
Whose Name is Holy:

I dwell on high, in holiness,
And therefore with the lowly and humiliated,
To breathe new breath into the humble,
To give new heart to the broken-hearted.

For your sin of greed
I grew angry and smashed you,
I even hid My face.

Yet I will not do battle against you forever,
I will not be angry with you forever.
For from Me comes the breath that floats out to make all worlds.

The Lord's State of the Union Address

by Lonnie Lane 

What if the Lord gave a State of the Union address, to give an account of what is happening in the Kingdom of God presently. Can you picture it? From all over the world those who are the Lord's gather together in a huge chamber large enough for multitudes upon multitudes. Levels upon levels of balconies rise high into the heavens. As this is a governmental meeting, only those who have been elected – those who are of “the elect” (Matthew 24:31; Romans 8:33) may attend, except for the angels who stand in poised attention as aides along the walls. The place is alive with activity as we greet one another with rejoicing. Then suddenly, a trumpet is blown and Gabriel (Luke 1:19) comes through the enormous chamber doors that open automatically as he approaches them. All attention turns toward him as he steps into the chamber. Expectant silence fills the chamber. Then with a thunderous rumble that rolls up the balconies he announces, “THE LORD OF HEAVEN AND EARTH!” (Daniel 5:23; Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21; Acts 17:24). All stand to their feet. 

The Hidden Man of Christmas : Putting St. Joseph back in the picture.

By James Martin

As far as biblical figures go, St. Joseph—the man who married the mother of Jesus—often gets short shrift: his life isn’t prominently featured in the Gospels, and he’s rarely depicted on Christmas cards. Yet Joseph did fulfill an astonishingly important task: raising the son of God. James Martin explores what we do and don’t know St. Joseph’s identity in a 2008 article reprinted below. 

Christmas cards tend to fall into three categories: the family card (cheerful children in red and green sweaters), the secular card (snowmen, snowflakes, snowy villages), and the religious card. The religious card usually bears a portrait of the Virgin Mary gazing beatifically at the crib of her newborn son, Jesus. Behind her, the picture is just as some of the Gospels describe: shepherds, animals, maybe even the three wise men, though they actually were late on the scene.

But where's St. Joseph? Where is the man to whom, according to the Gospel of Matthew, an angel announced the birth of Jesus? Where is the guy who married Mary even though she was already "with child," the man who helped to raise Jesus, the carpenter who taught Jesus his craft?

Your Salvation Is Secure

“Lead me not into temptation; I can find the way myself.” —Church marquee

“Forbidden fruit creates many jams.” —Church marquee

Hundreds of years ago, one of the great church fathers, Martin Luther, patterned his whole day around ensuring that he didn’t sin. He was terrified that if he sinned, he would lose his salvation. Every evening he’d wrack his brain, trying to remember if he did something, said something, or thought something sinful.

Have you ever done that? It’s pretty miserable just to think about, isn’t it? If you believe that by sinning you can lose your salvation, tons of questions come up. How many sins do you have to commit to get booted out of the family? Or is it qualitative? Is there a “badness scale” of sin on which we can rate ourselves? Where is murder? Rape? Suicide? Adultery? Child abuse? Lust? Stealing? What about laziness or procrastination? How do we know if something is really a sin or not?

Pastor John Hagee Warns America About Obama Re-election

JENNIFER LECLAIRE

 

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Pastor John Hagee

Pastor John Hagee is raising his voice in an urgent call for prayer over the presidential election.

Hagee, senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, sent an e-mail addressed to all Christians and people of faith in America.

“First, I want to express my profound appreciation to President Barak Obama for doing what all of the Republican candidates have not been able to do for months: he unified the Bible-believing church in America in one week over the issue of abortion.

Entering the Highway of Healing

In April of 2001, my pastor solemnly announced from the pulpit that he’d had a vision and in it I was healed. I didn’t believe healing was “for today,” but my face lit up and I smiled back at him from my pew. The Lord showed him that He was going to open me up to hear the truth.

At the time I was sick with an incurable disease called multiple sclerosis. I felt hopeless and helpless. Seismic tremors wracked my body. There were multiple malfunctions on every front. I was in a losing battle.

Later, Pastor “Doc” asked if he could come over once a week to show me what the Bible said about healing. He was a Class A+ worshipper, and he told me two things were required before I could enter the highway of healing and he wouldn’t begin working with me until they were done.

He said, “Here’s the first thing. Are you right with God? Do you willfully disobey Him?”

Hey, what kind of question is that? I go to church. I believe in Jesus. Though briefly offended, I knew I needed to pray. That night, I lay on my bed, alone, and I timidly asked, “Lord, am I right with you?” I heard no answer.

Resting in His Righteousness

Written by Brenda Miller

Do you think you let God down so He cannot possibly love you anymore? Be encouraged with today’s lesson on “The Forgiveness God Offers” 

“Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] (Hebrews 13:5, AMP)

I remember a time when I was so paralyzed by fear I’d lay awake at night with thoughts of anxiety and loneliness. I had lost the ability to look at anything through a positive lens. I longed to be near the Lord, but I did not know how to reach Him.

How were people saved before Jesus died for our sins-

Since the fall of man, the basis of salvation has always been the death of Christ. No one, either prior to the cross or since the cross, would ever be saved without that one pivotal event in the history of the world. Christ‘s death paid the penalty for past sins of Old Testament saints and future sins of New Testament saints.

The requirement for salvation has always been faith. The object of one’s faith for salvation has always been God. The psalmist wrote, Blessed are all who take refuge in him (Psalm 2:12). Genesis 15:6 tells us that Abraham believed God and that was enough for God to credit it to him for righteousness (see also Romans 4:3-8). The OldTestament sacrificial system did not take away sin, as Hebrews 10:1-10 clearly teaches. It did, however, point to the day when the Son of God would shed His blood for the sinful human race.

What has changed through the ages is the content of a believer’s faith. God‘s requirement of what must be believed is based on the amount of revelation He has given mankind up to that time. This is called progressive revelation. Adam believed the promise God gave in Genesis 3:15 that the Seed of the woman would conquer Satan. Adam believed Him, demonstrated by the name he gave Eve (v. 20) and the Lord indicated His acceptance immediately by covering them with coats of skin (v. 21). At that point that is all Adam knew, but he believed it.

God’s Unfailing Love - No force is greater than the power of God’s love.

by David C. McCasland

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Our Daily Bread Radio is hosted by Les Lamborn

Read: Hosea 10:9-15

Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; . . . for it is time to seek the Lord. —Hosea 10:12

Bible in a Year:
1 Chronicles 17-19

The Old Testament book of Hosea is the story of God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In what seems strange to us, the Lord commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would break her marriage vows and bring grief to him (Hosea 1:2-3). After she deserted Hosea for other men, the Lord told him to take her back—a picture of “the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods” (3:1).

Later, Hosea was called upon to tell the Israelites that because of their rebellion against the Lord, they would be carried away into captivity by a foreign power. “Tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered” (10:14).

Yet in the midst of their sin and punishment, the grace of God toward His people was never exhausted. In a grace-filled exhortation, He said: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (10:12).

Even when we have “plowed wickedness” and “reaped iniquity” (10:13), God does not stop loving us. Whatever our situation today, we can turn to the Lord and find forgiveness to make a new start. His love never fails!

           The Lord bestows unfailing love,
           Forgiving when we fall
           And then repent and turn to Him,
           Responding to His call. —Sper

No force is greater than the power of God’s love.

http://odb.org/2012/04/19/gods-unfailing-love/

Are we responsible for inborn sin?

This week's reading: Job 25:4 - "How then can a man be righteous before God? How can man born of a woman be pure?

"How can mere mortals prove their innocence before God?" (Job 9:2 ) is probably the most important question in life. The answer is clear: No one can claim personal righteousness equal to God's purity. Paul recognizes that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Ro 3:23).

The problem is, we are born in a sinful condition due to the sin of Adam and Eve (see Ge 3:6-7; Ro 5:12). David described this original sin (as some refer to it): "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me" (Ps 51:5).

Isn't that unfair? How can we be held accountable for something we inherit? The problem with such questions is that we too have sinned. The question instead should be: What do we do with the sinful nature we inherit? Do we indulge it? Or do we trust in the way God has provided to overcome it? Through faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross, God gives us a brand new nature with a righteous standing before him. This is how we take responsibility for our sins.

gotquestions  http://view.lists.biblegateway.com/?j=fe551678726206787013&m=fe621570756203757117&ls=fdbd1571736d03747d16737665&l

Receive Jesus as Your Savior

Choosing to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior is the most important decision you’ll ever make!

God’s Word promises, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation…. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Rom. 10:9–10,13).

By His grace, God has already done everything to provide salvation. Your part is simply to believe and receive.

Pray out loud, Jesus, I confess that You are my Lord and Savior. I believe in my heart that God raised You from the dead. By faith in Your Word, I receive salvation now. Thank You for saving me!

The very moment you commit your life to Jesus Christ, the truth of His Word instantly comes to pass in your spirit. Now that you’re born again, there’s a brand-new you!

Please contact us and let us know that you’ve prayed to receive Jesus as your Savior. We would like to rejoice with you and help you understand more fully what has taken place in your life.


We have a Helpline staffed by mature Christians who will be glad to pray with you. Our Helpline is open from 4:00 A.M. to 9:30 P.M. (Mountain Time) each weekday. The number is (719) 635-1111.


Give us a call — we’re here to help you understand and grow in your new relationship with the Lord.

http://www.awmi.net/receive_jesus

Glorious Times to Come : God's Jealousy For Jerusalem

(Daily Portion 10317)
Scripture Passage    :    Zechariah 8:1-12

God promises glorious times to come for Jerusalem. It will be called a city of truth and will have both the elderly and the young in its streets. The remnant of the Jews will be returned to the land and they will be prosperous. The Lord will be their God and they will be His people in truth and in righteousness.

What Does It Say?

1. When God blesses Jerusalem, the _________ of the city shall be full of boys and girls __________.
2. God will save His people from the ________ country and from the _________ country.
3. They shall be God’s people and He will be their God in truth and in _______________.
4. God gives words of strength to those that were in the day that the _____________ of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the ____________ might be built.
5. God will cause the remnant of this people to _____________ all these things.

What Does It Mean?

1. We normally think of jealousy as a negative trait; as something we should not have. However, in the Bible, jealousy is attributed to God more than to men and we can be certain that it is not wrong for God to be jealous. In our passage God states, “I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury” (v.2). Look up the word in a dictionary and consider the following verses where God is jealous: Exodus 34:14
   ; Deuteronomy 4:24
   ; Deuteronomy 32:16
   ; Deuteronomy 21; 1 Kings 14:22
   ; Psalm 78:58
   ; Ezekiel 39:25
   ; Joel 2:18
   ; Zechariah 1:14
   . Compare these verses with 2 Corinthians 11:2
    where Paul speaks of having “godly jealousy.” What is the basic meaning of jealousy? What does it mean when God is jealous? Why is it alright for God to be jealous? When can we have jealousy that is godly?
2. From verse 3, we can see that God has a future for Jerusalem. Compare this with Isaiah 2:1-4
   . What kind of city will Jerusalem be? When will this happen?
3. The Jews have just recently returned from captivity in Babylon. They found the city and the surrounding area in ruin. Zechariah promises that better times are coming. Verse 10 describes how things have been there. Tell in your own words what has been going on in the city as described in verse 10.

What Does It Mean to Me?

1. Zechariah realizes that his wondrous description of God’s future for Jerusalem may be far beyond the belief of his audience. They see a destroyed and ruined city. He describes a marvelous city. Verse 6 states, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts.” That is, it may be marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of the Jews that are left, but it is not marvelous in the eyes of God. In a similar vein, Psalm 118:23 
   says, “This is the LORD'S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.” Why are some things marvelous in our eyes but not in the eyes of God? Name some of these things.
2. The Lord tells the Jews, “Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets” (v.9). The words of the prophets will give them strength. We know that words can hurt or they can help. The Lord can teach us “how to speak a word in season to him that is weary” (Isaiah 50:4
   ). What kinds of words give strength? What kinds of words hurt? How are you going to use your words today?

Suggested Memory Verses

Zechariah 8:3
, Zechariah 8:6

http://www.learnthebible.org/glorious-times-to-come-daily-portion-10317.html

How Does the Death of Jesus Save?

Chuck Swindoll

One way to understand the meaning of the death of Jesus is to imagine a courtroom scene in which we are on trial for our sins and God is the judge. 


Our sins against God are capital crimes. God Himself is our judge, and according to divine law our crimes deserve the death penalty. Death, in a spiritual sense, means eternal separation from God in unending torment. That's a very serious judgment.


By shedding His blood on the cross, Jesus took the punishment we deserve and offered us His righteousness. When we trust Christ for our salvation, essentially we are making a trade. By faith, we trade our sin and its accompanying death penalty for His righteousness and life.


In theological terms, this is called "substitutionary atonement." Christ died on the cross as our substitute. Without Him, we would suffer the death penalty for our own sins....

"My Time Has Come"

"Maybe my time has come to die," said the old man from his hospital bed.

"Yes, but are you ready to die?" I asked him. "Are you saved and ready to meet God?"

"That is a deep question," he replied slowly and thoughtfully. "I have always tried to do what was right, and I have never done anything really bad in my life."

"Then you don't have a chance in the world of going to heaven," I said.

He stared at me, and I could see he did not believe his ears, so I repeated it. "If you have never done anything wrong in your life, then you don't have a chance in the world of going to heaven. Jesus Himself said, 'I came not to call the righteous'; so if you are righteous, there is no hope for you; you cannot be saved. Jesus said He did not come to save good people" (see Luke 5:31,32).

The old man seemed to be absolutely dumbfounded. He looked as if he had been shot. Tears trickled down his cheeks as he said brokenly:

"Can it be that I have been wrong all my life? I have never in my life heard that before. I thought God saved good people."

"No, Jesus said plainly that he did not come to save righteous people, but sinners. So if you are not a sinner, you cannot be saved." After quoting a number of Scriptures to him, he saw that he was a sinner (Romans 3:23). He also was shown that Christ came to save sinners, and therefore to save him, if he repented of His sin before God and trusted Christ as His Saviour (Acts 20:21). Only the blood of Christ can cleanse from sin (1 John 1:7) and make one fit for God's presence.

How astonishing it is to see people who go through life hoping they are all right because they have never killed anyone or robbed a bank. Then they launch into eternity, to meet God in their sins, and find themselves shut out of heaven forever. Yes, this dear old man had joined some church and been baptized, he told me. He raised his family right, and did all he could to help other people. But he did not understand anything about God's wonderful salvation, which is entirely by grace and not of works (Ephesians 2:8,9). And now literally with one foot in the grave (for one of them had been amputated), and with the other one sliding on the brink, he evidently heard for the first time in his life that he could not save himself.

What about you? Are you a sinner? If not, there is no hope for you, for "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners"—only sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). If you are depending on your good life, you will not be saved. When your time comes to leave this life, you will enter into judgment.

—C.D. Carter

http://www.mwtb.org/site/moments-for-you/back-issues/third-quarter-1996/my-time-has-come.html

Does “robbing God” in Malachi 3:8 apply to us today?

When you come to a subject like tithing, I think it is important to see that there are two extremes to avoid. The first is the temptation to conclude that tithing is not for this age, so that I feel no obligation to give, and can keep as much money for myself as possible. The other is to use the tithing texts to make people feel obliged to give more, and to feel guilty if they don’t. Preachers are usually the guilty ones with respect to the latter. The sad reality is that in most churches, at least half of those who attend give nothing —that’s right, nothing—at all to the Lord’s work.
In the King James Version, “tithing” (“tithe,” “tithes,” “tithing”) occurs 40 times in the Bible, 32 times in the Old Testament, and 8 times in the New. In the New Testament, 5 of the 8 occurrences are found in Hebrews 7:5-9, which are referring to the “tithe” of Abraham to Melchizedek in the Old Testament. Two of the remaining 3 occurrences occur in Luke. In Luke 11:42 we find a parallel text to the one remaining text (Matthew 23:23). Here, Jesus accuses the Pharisees of tithing in the small, inexpensive, things (mint, dill, cummin), but neglecting the weightier matters. Thus, Jesus does not condemn tithing, but says that there are more important matters. (One could point out that at this point Jesus was still talking as One in the old dispensation, and not the new.) In Luke 18:12 we see the self-righteous Pharisee, boasting about his tithing as a proof (in his mind) of his righteousness. So far as I can find in the New Testament, neither Jesus or any of His apostles taught the necessity of tithing. Neither can we find any statement that they did tithe—that they practiced tithing. Jesus did pay the temple tax (Matthew 17:24-27), but we do not read of Him paying His tithe.

The question one always must ask when dealing with Old Testament practices and commands is this: “Does the New Testament (1) embrace and continue, or (2) modify, or (3) do away with this Old Testament practice? The New Testament surely set aside the “clean/unclean” food regulations of the Old Testament (Mark 7; Acts 10-11). By and large, the Ten Commandments have been carried over into the New Testament. Those laws which pertained to the administration of justice have (at least some of them) been modified. It is no longer our duty or obligation to stone disobedient children. The state/government does administrate justice, which may even include capital punishment (this is debated by some, but lets leave it at this for the moment). Certainly we are not to stone adulterers today, though we are to “hand them over to Satan” (1 Cor. 5) for the destruction of their flesh. So, the question must be, where does tithing fit into this scheme? Has it been brought over into the New Testament age, or has it been set aside, or modified?

I would have to say that the whole tithing system cannot be brought over, in a wholesale fashion, to the church age or the New Testament saint. We are not physical Israel. We don’t live in the promised land. We don’t have a Levitical priesthood, or sacrifices to offer (literally, at least). We are, however, to support those who minister to us (1 Corinthians 9:1-14; 1 Galatians 6:6; 1 Timothy 5:17-18). We are to give to the poor, especially the saints (Acts 6:1-6; Romans 12:13; 1 Corinthians 16:1f.; 2 Corinthians 8 & 9; Gal. 2:10; 6:10; etc.). From 2 Corinthians 8 & 9 and Philippians 4, we certainly see that our giving should be out of gratitude, and something we joyfully do. The whole concept of stewardship should abolish the mindset that says, “Ten percent of what I own is to be given to God, but the remaining ninety percent is mine.” It is all God’s. 

As stewards, we are to wisely invest it for the glory of God and the advancement of His kingdom. In the 2 Corinthians (8 & 9) text and the Philippians 4 passage I do not see Paul appealing to the Law as the basis for giving, as though it was only our duty. I see Paul speaking of giving as though it were our delight, as it should be. All of this is to say that I would not seek to employ the Malachi text to badger saints to give. I would use the New Testament texts such as those I have mentioned to do so. We should give. Most of us should give more than we do. But I don’t personally find the Malachi text the compelling text for teaching others about giving.

http://bible.org/question/does-%E2%80%9Crobbing-god%E2%80%9D-malachi-38-apply-us-today

WHAT IS LENT?

(For Ash Wednesday)

Don Schultz  166 Don Schultz Sermons

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” the man says.
“But sir, you’ve just been in a terrible car accident. You’re bleeding and have some deep bruises. There may be internal damage!”
“There’s nothing wrong with me!”
“At least have a doctor check you out, sir. We have an ambulance right here – it wouldn’t take very long..”
“I told you, there’s nothing wrong with me!”
“But sir.”
Then the man walks away from the car accident. His wife picks him up and drives him home. Later he dies from internal bleeding.

“There’s nothing wrong with me” can be a dangerous thing to say. Spiritually, it is probably the worst thing a person could possibly say. For a person to stand before God and say, “There’s nothing wrong with me” – that’s incompatible with Christianity, and unacceptable to God. What is the opposite of “there’s nothing wrong with me”? Wouldn’t it be “there’s everything wrong with me”? According to the Bible, a Christian is someone who stands before God and says “there’s everything wrong with me.” A Christian is also someone who says, “But Jesus Christ has overcome my sin. He has taken away all the things that are wrong with me.”

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. What exactly is Lent? What’s it all about? We find the answer as we focus on a story Jesus tells about two opposite people – one who said “there’s nothing wrong with me” and one who said “there’s everything wrong with me.” One of them represents what Lent isn’t, and one of them represents what Lent is. Tonight, we focus on these two people as we seek to learn better what Lent really is, and what it means to us today.

Jesus told this story to people who were confident in their own righteousness, and looked down on everybody else. “Two men” Jesus said “went up to the temple to pray – a Pharisee and a tax collector.” Remember, the Pharisees were the people who lived good, clean lives. The tax collectors were people who swindled and intimidated others out of their money. Both of them came to church – went to the temple to pray. “The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.” Maybe you can sum up his prayer this way: “I thank you, God, that there’s nothing wrong with me.”

Maybe he was right! He was a good citizen. He obeyed the law, lived a moral and upright life. He even did the religious things you were supposed to do – he gave ten percent of his income to church, and he even fasted twice a week. Really, there’s wasn’t much wrong with him.

Then Jesus focuses on the tax collector in his story – the opposite of the Pharisee. He had been stealing money from people his whole life – ruining the lives of others so that he could live it up. He knew that his whole life had been a disaster, and that he deserved to go to hell when he died. Jesus says that “the tax collector stood at a distance” – he wouldn’t even walk up to the front of the temple – “He would not even look up to heaven” – he was so ashamed of his sin – “but beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me, a sinner.’” His prayer was the opposite of the Pharisee’s, wasn’t it – maybe you can sum it up this way, “God, there’s everything wrong with me.

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/what8217s-it-all-about--rodney-buchanan-sermon-on-finding-fulfillment-164777.asp