3/9/13

From Gary... Understanding Redneck's


If you do one thing today, read the list of "Medical terms" above; being a Redneck is optional.  Some of them are downright hilarious!!!  

My top three favorites are: 
1. Urine 
2.  Fibula 
3. Barium.

Now, I realize that not everybody will find these are funny, but for those who enjoy such things- I hope it makes your day!!!  Fact, people are different; each with their own sense of humor and attitudes towards life!!!  That's fine, we are all different!!!  But some things are worth the time and effort to try to understand- especially when it comes to SPIRITUAL MATTERS.  Because these things will have eternal consequences.  If  God tries to teach you something from the Bible and you don't understand- don't give up, sooner or later you will get it!!!  Maybe you just need it explained to you?  Jesus' apostles were no different...

Mark, Chapter 4

 1 Again he began to teach by the seaside. A great multitude was gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat in the sea, and sat down. All the multitude were on the land by the sea.  2 He taught them many things in parables, and told them in his teaching,  3  “Listen! Behold, the farmer went out to sow,   4  and as he sowed, some seed fell by the road, and the birds came and devoured it.   5  Others fell on the rocky ground, where it had little soil, and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil.   6  When the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.   7  Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.   8  Others fell into the good ground, and yielded fruit, growing up and increasing. Some produced thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times as much.”  9 He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.” 


  10  When he was alone, those who were around him with the twelve asked him about the parables.  11 He said to them, “To you is given the mystery of the Kingdom of God, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables,   12  that ‘seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins should be forgiven them.’”  



  13  He said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How will you understand all of the parables?   14  The farmer sows the word.   15  The ones by the road are the ones where the word is sown; and when they have heard, immediately Satan comes, and takes away the word which has been sown in them.   16  These in the same way are those who are sown on the rocky places, who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with joy.   17  They have no root in themselves, but are short-lived. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they stumble.   18  Others are those who are sown among the thorns. These are those who have heard the word,   19  and the cares of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.   20  Those which were sown on the good ground are those who hear the word, and accept it, and bear fruit, some thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times.” 


Everybody has to start somewhere, even Rednecks.  Be patient with the thick headed, the stubborn and those who seem stupid.  Someone might use these terms to refer to you!!!  One more thing; don't let things get in the way of understanding God's word, focus on it, hold to it and never change- you won't be sorry. I wouldn't fibula!



From Gary V. Womack...


ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD

Rom. 8:18 "For I consider that the sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

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

"All things work together for good" - Both good and badThis promise is given "...to those who love God...who are called" The "good" that he speaks of is "...according to His purpose."

JOSEPH - a living example of how all things work together for good... according to God's purpose

Gen. 37:4 "But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him."

Gen. 37:11 (After Joseph's dreams) "And his brothers envied him...."

Gen. 37:18-20 Joseph's brothers wanted to kill him.

Gen. 37:28 Why to Egypt (and not elsewhere)?

To meet Potipher & help him.

Gen. 39:1-6 Why to Potipher (and not to some lesser slave owner)?
To meet Potipher's wife.

Gen. 39:7-20 Why Potipher's unscrupulous wife? Did Joseph love God?

To go to prison.

Gen. 39:21-23 Why prison?

To come in contact with Pharaoh's butler.

Gen. 40:1-4 Why Pharaohs butler?

To interpret his dream.

Gen. 40:5-8, 12-15 Why such a dream that resulted in the butler's release?

To provide a means of Joseph's release & coming before Pharaoh.

Gen. 41:1, 9-13 Why come before Pharaoh?

To interpret Pharaoh's dream.

Gen. 41:14-16, 28-36 Why should Joseph be the one to interpret that dream?
To provide food during the coming famine - & save many people.

Gen. 41:37-44, 56-57 Why should Joseph have been chosen for this work?

So all who needed grain would have to come to Joseph.

Gen. 42:1-3, 6-8 Why come to Joseph (and not some other official)?
So Joseph's family could be saved from the famine & be reunited.

Gen. 45:1-11 Why should the family of Jacob end up in Egypt?

To fulfill God's promises to Abraham.

Gen. 12:2 "I will make of you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name
great and you shall be blessed."

Gen. 15:13 "Then He said to Abram: 'Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land  that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will
afflict them four hundred years.'"

Stephen gave a synopsis of all of these events & onward to Moses:

Acts 7:17-20 "But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt (18) till another
king arose who did not know Joseph. (19) This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live. (20) At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father's house for three months."

Acts 7:37 "This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him
you shall hear.' "

This also was in fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham:

Gen. 22:18 "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice."

Gal. 3:16 "Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, 'And to seeds,' as of many, but as of one, 'And to your Seed,' who is Christ."

Every spiritual blessing is the result of God's good pleasure, all of which points back to God's purpose from the beginning.

Eph. 1:3-11 In Him we have obtained an inheritance...according to His will

Rom. 8:16-18,28 "The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, (17) and if children, then heirs - heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. (18) For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." (28) And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose."

INVITATION

From Jim McGuiggan... As good as it gets


I think I know people whose lives are one serious wrestle day after day after day. They get tired! They're physically, emotionally and otherwise worn down and nearly worn out. It isn't something that a good eight-hour sleep will cure (though, God knows, if they could get one of those they'd think it was halfway to Paradise). They've tried all the little social and mental tricks to ease the brain. They're read with deep irritation silly books that tell them every problem in life is part of "the small stuff" that they aren't to sweat and they fling it against the wall in justified impatience. Nonsense books like that are written for people whose lives need nothing more than fine-tuning to make them heavenly. For the really troubled they're a sharp stick in the eye.
In the movie Mr. Udhall is a man with serious problems (pleasantly made to look funny in the movie) of the compulsive behavioural kind. Beneath his rudeness, self-centredness and sheerly insulting behaviour is someone who wishes he was free and at peace like so many others around him. Because of his inner turmoil he resents the harmony in their lives and so, when he can, he makes them pay dearly for the good fortune. This further isolates him and screws the coffin lid a bit tighter down on him.
But he's demented and sometimes his excessive ordering of his ways doesn't help and his pain makes him scream out for help. He bursts into the doctor's office and is promptly told to leave without consultation and as he leaves through the crowded waiting room he looks at the people lining the walls. Their needs are written all over their faces and in their body language as they lounge dispiritedly. He says to them, "What if this is as good as it gets?"
Whatever the shortcomings of the movie it is truly worth watching. For Udhall things take a lovely turn. I have no wise pieces of advice for people who live with the screws tightening on their hearts but I have heard Someone say that if we give our lives to him that life as it now is not as good as it gets! He says he came to give us life to the full (John 10:10) and he never lies. (If you'd like to give your life to Christ, contact me, please. holywoodjk@aol.com

©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.

From Mark Copeland... Mt 19:16-26


                        "THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW"

                 The Difficulty With Riches (19:16-26)

INTRODUCTION

1. A well known story in the life of Jesus involves His interview with
   a rich young ruler - Mt 19:16-26; Lk 18:18-27

2. In this story we find a man who was so right, yet wrong...
   a. He came to the right person - Mt 19:16
      1) He came to Jesus
      2) Who could tell Him the way to eternal life
   b. He asked the right questions - Mt 19:16b,20
      1) "What good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"
      2) "What do I still lack?"
   c. He certainly received the right answers - Mt 19:17-19,21
      1) "...if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments"
         (suitable for one living under the OT covenant)
      2) "If you want to be perfect, go, sell...give to the poor...and
         come, follow Me" (fitting for one who would become a disciple
         and follow Jesus during His ministry)
   d. But in the end, he made the wrong decision - Mt 19:22
      1) He went away sorrowful
      2) For he had great possessions

3. As rich young ruler went away sadly, Jesus told His disciples about
   the difficulty of riches...
   a. That it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God - Mt 19:23
   b. That it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle
      - Mt 19:24

4. What is it about being rich that makes salvation so difficult?
   a. Are we aware of the dangers of riches?
   b. Do we understand the proper attitudes toward wealth, whether we
      are rich or poor?

[Let's first consider...]

I. THE DIFFICULTY WITH RICHES

   A. THE ABSORBING INTEREST OF RICHES...
      1. Riches do not satisfy, and we foolishly think that simply more
         riches will bring satisfaction - cf. Ec 1:8; 5:10
      2. With riches comes the preoccupation with them:  how to use,
         maintain, store, etc.
      -- Like a black hole, the accumulation of riches can absorb what
         time and energy we have so that we have little for anything
         else (such as family, church, the Lord)

   B. THE DECEITFUL PROMISE OF RICHES...
      1. Jesus warned about the deceitfulness of riches - Mt 13:22
      2. Riches promise much, but really offer little in return
         a. They can easily disappear, rust, or be stolen - Pr 23:5;
            Mt 6:19
         b. They cannot buy one's salvation - Ps 49:6-9,16-20
         c. Neither can they protect one from God's wrath - Zeph 1:18
      -- Riches can deceive one into thinking they are in need of
         nothing; the parable of the rich fool illustrates the folly of
         such thinking - Lk 12:16-21

   C. THE FOOLISH PRIDE OF RICHES...
      1. Wealth tends to promote a sense of arrogance and pride - cf.
         Deut 8:11-17
      2. It was such pride that was the downfall of Sodom and Israel
         - Ezek 16:49-50; Hos 13:4-6
      -- Blinded by such pride, one will not seek God - Ps 10:4

   D. THE HARDENING SELFISHNESS OF RICHES...
      1. The wealthy, while in a position to help others, often close
         up their hearts to the cry of the poor
      2. This was one of Israel's sins - Am 2:6; 5:11-12; 8:4-6
      -- Abusing the poor to make money, failing to respond to their
         cries for justice, interested more in money than the welfare
         of the poor...such are problems that often afflict the rich

[Certainly not all who are rich are guilty of such things.  Some of the
most godly people in the Bible were rich (Job, Abraham, Joseph, David,
Solomon, Barnabas, Philemon, Lydia).  But these are reasons why it is
so hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. If they let mammon
become their god, they will not be willing to serve the true God! (cf.
Mt 6:24)

From what we have seen about the danger of wealth, let's now draw
some...]

II. LESSONS GLEANED FROM THE DIFFICULTY OF RICHES

   A. THE FOLLY OF COVETOUSNESS...
      1. Why be so anxious to be rich, when riches might prove to be a
         curse for us?
      2. Besides, covetousness is viewed by God as a form of idolatry
         - Ep 5:5; Col 3:5
      3. It not a sin to be rich, but the desire to be rich is wrong
         a. Those who desire to be rich will fall into temptation, and
            not go unpunished - 1Ti 6:9; Pr 28:20
         b. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil - 1Ti 6:
            10
            1) For which some have strayed from the faith
            2) And suffered many sorrows

   B. THE DUTY OF CONTENTMENT...
      1. Contentment along with godliness is true wealth - 1Ti 6:6-7
         a. "He is richest who is content with the least." - Socrates
            (470-399 B.C.)
         b. "Contentment comes not so much from great wealth as from
            few wants" - Croft M. Pentz (The Complete Book of Zingers)
      2. Contentment is a virtue that is learned - e.g., Php 4:11-12
         a. By having a proper perspective on life - 1Ti 6:7
            1) "You can't take it with you"
            2) Ever see a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer?
         b. By understanding what is truly essential in life - 1Ti 6:8
            1) Food and clothing...anything more is a luxury
            2) Realizing this, we will appreciate how blessed we are!
      3. Therefore Christians are to be content with what things we
         have - He 13:5

   C. THE NEED FOR SYMPATHY FOR THE RICH...
      1. Jesus loved the rich young ruler - Mk 10:21
         a. We should certainly love those who are rich
         b. We should not be envious, nor despise them
      2. If the rich are overcome by their riches, we should bear in
         mind...
         a. That the desire to be rich affects both the rich and those
            who want to be rich
         b. That the rich face many temptations that the poor do not
      3. The rich are in need of salvation as much as the poorest
         beggar - Ro 3:23; 6:23

   D. FAITH IN THE POWER OF GOD...
      1. Though it is hard for a rich person to be saved, it is not
         impossible - Mt 19:23-26
         a. No one can save themselves, whether rich or poor
         b. But God can save the rich by His own power, through the
            gospel - Ro 1:16-17
      2. There were many rich people who became Jesus' disciples
         a. Those that supported Him during His earthly ministry - Lk 8:1-3
         b. Others such as Zaccheus, Matthew, Barnabas, Lydia, Aquila
            and Priscilla, Gaius, Philemon
         c. Such people used their riches in service to God and others
            - cf. 1Ti 6:17-19
      3. Therefore...
         a. The rich should have the gospel preached to them
         b. We should pray for the rich
         c. We should rejoice greatly that there are rich men and women
            in the kingdom of God

CONCLUSION

1. The issue of wealth and riches is often one of contention...
   a. The poor are often envious of the rich
   b. The rich often despise the poor

2. But riches and poverty both have their difficulties...
   a. Wealth can one make one arrogant, less receptive to the gospel
      and the kingdom
   b. Poverty can make one bitter, filled with envy of others

3. Whether rich or poor, we should all be aware...
   a. Of our need for salvation that comes only by the grace of God
   b. That we can share together in the riches of salvation

Have you become an heir to the "unsearchable riches of Christ"?

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

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