10/30/13

From Ben Fronczek... He Will Make All Things New

He Will Make All Things New

In Revelation 21:5 The Apostle John records Jesus saying 

“And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.”

I don’t know a person that doesn’t like and appreciate things which are new! Our children’s eyes light up when we talk of giving them a new toy, a new gadget, or a new book. Even we like new clothes, new cars, new appliances, new tools, jewelry, furniture, and even new ideas. In this respect, we are all like children.

So we should not be surprised, that the mere words of the text this morning sound like a pleasant song in our ears; but I am thankful that their deeper meaning is even more joyful. The newness which Jesus brings is bright, clear, life changing, ongoing, heavenly, and even enduring.

Most of us here this morning are ready for a new year. Most of us have grown weary of 2011 with all its hardships. We are glad to escape from what has been for many twelve-months of trials, and we hope that this newborn year will be better than its predecessor. At any rate, it is new, and we are encouraged, even happy, so we say to one another, “I wish you a happy New Year.”

It is a shame when people get stuck in the past and lose the joy because they don’t see the ever evolving progression of God’s plan for their lives. The Bible in 2 Cor. 5:17 declares that when we become a Christian we become a new creation in Christ. The Bible speaks a lot about new things; specifically of new songs, new covenants, new mornings, new hearts, new garments, new wine, new heavens, and a new earth. In fact, even in the closing words of the Bible, 

God finalizes His eternal agenda by declaring,

 “Behold I make all things new…” (Rev 21:5)

The Lord has been in the business of renewing ever since the beginning. From the Creation event where He manipulated matter itself, to making new covenants, to remaking lives and now even on a personal level of making us anew.

As we read thru the New Testament we read about individuals who after meeting Jesus, their lives were changes, made new.
Do you remember the stories of Zaccaheus and Matthew. When Jesus first met them they were both looked down upon because they were Tax collectors. And after their encounter with Jesus Zacceheus  choose to make it right with anyone he ever cheated, and then had Jesus into his home, and likewise Matthew opened his home to Jesus and eventually became one of the 12 apostles. Peter, James and John, mere fisherman also became his greatest spokesmen and apostles.
Those steeped in sin and immoral ways of life after meeting Jesus change their lives. Even Saul who persecuted the church and Christians with a vengeance after meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus became a new man, even receiving a new name like Peter who was on called Simon, Saul was later called Paul, He was a new man and became one of Jesus’ greatest missionaries and apostles.
Over and over we read stories in the New Testament of men and women whose lives were changed when they came in contact with Jesus, and it’s still happening today.

Someone once said, “Newness can also come from rediscovering that which may be old.”

As people hear the old, old story about the Savior, lives change. Criminals give up their life of crime and become missionaries. Addicts give up their addictions and become servants and spoke persons for the Lord. You hear about the personal testimonies over and over again, of how Jesus can make us new.  I want to show you two videos that illustrate this:

IMPORTANT   
   
   Click on and View      


Then
            
               Video 2               

You may not believe how these men saw their visions but they do, and it changed them. Or maybe your story is not a dramatic as these two examples but it is happening every day. Why do we change and do things we never thought we’d be capable of doing because of Jesus? Is it because He forces something on us, twisting our arm saying, ‘you better do it or else?’

No, rather it’s because when someone reads or hears about Jesus, and learns about who He really is, and how much He loves us, and then what He did for us, some believe. Something touches our heart and we fall in love with Jesus. Faith wells up, a want, a desire, a hope for something better something new, and a life changes.

Some of you personally know exactly what I am talk about. You are not the person you were when you first learned about Jesus.  - You heard about Him, You learned about Him, how much He loves you, and wanted to save you from your sin and restore you back to the Father, How He was willing to die for us.                                                                      -
- You believed, you put your faith in Him, you asked Him to save you and take away your sin. You trusted Him as you went down in the waters of Baptism to remove your sin,
- and now you want to live for Him, asking Him to be the new Lord of your life,
And because of the new relationship with our Lord Jesus your whole life has turned upside down. Because of our relationship with Him, we think differently, we act differently, our priorities change, we become better people as we draw even closer to Jesus. Some of us are even different than we a year ago.

As we enter this new year, He still wants to work on you and me, renewing us and helping us become more than we ever thought we could become. Whether you realize it or not, if you are a Christian the best is yet to come.
In Philippians 3 Paul was basically saying, ‘Yea as far as my old life goes, I’ve given that up because knowing Christ and His way is so much better. Compared to knowing Jesus and doing His will my old life was no more than garbage.’
I think he was saying, ‘Yea even if I have to suffer and die like Jesus did, it’s still worth it just to be able to experience a resurrection and the prize of Heaven. He goes on to say, “Not that I already have it, (Just like none of us have it easy or perfect now) but he says, 

“but I press on to take hold for that which Christ took hold of me.’ He said,  ‘One thing I do: I try to Forget what is behind me and strain toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.’  

 He goes on to say that you should all have the same attitude if you are a Christian.            To read entire context click on the following link  Philippians 3:7-14 And I think we should likewise seek a new righteousness that comes from God on the basis of our faith.  I believe that Jesus will help us and wants us to become all that we can be if we just let Him.

In John 14, John records Jesus saying,  

15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”

In Chapter 16 John records Jesus saying,

 “12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; He will speak only what he hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.”

When we think we can’t change, or conquer a sin habit, or change a lousy attitude, or overcome a fear, or do something we never thought we could do before on our own, Jesus tells His disciples, ‘You don’t have to do it on your own.

As this new year begins I want you to realize Jesus going to be there to help you. His Spirit will be with you and in you to help you make those changes. He will convict you from within. He will silently help and guide you.’
That promise if for everyone who is a Christian.

If you are not a Christian I encourage you to consider becoming one. Learn about who Jesus is and what He has done for you. He is God’s one and only son who was born with flesh and blood just like you and me. He lived a perfectly pure life and then was willing to give up that life as a sacrifice for us. He was beat and abused and was willing to suffer punishment and a cruel death on a wooden cross for your and my sin. If you believe that let others know as well a Jesus Himself. Do your very best to turn from your sin in repentance and follow Him. And then He tells us that He will take away and remove our sin in the waters of Baptism (see Acts 2:36-41 and Colossians 2:8-13 )   I encourage you to find a Church of Christ near you and let them help and assist you learn more about our wonderful savour.

So may challenge is to pick something you want to change about yourself or something you want to improve in your life and lay it before Him. If it’s something He wants to help you with, He will. If Jesus could change those men we saw in the videos, or dramatically change the lives we read about in the Bible I think is He strong enough to help you with an attitude problem or a bad habit.
Trust Him and just watch what He will this up and coming year.

For more lessons click on the following link: http://granvillenychurchofchrist.org/?page_id=566

From Jim McGuiggan... All Israel will be saved (5)

All Israel will be saved (5)

The common evangelical view is that a mass of Jews, the bulk of living Jews close to the time or at the time of Christ's final appearance will turn to God in faith in Jesus Christ. This they think is the fulfillment of Romans 11:6, "And so all Israel will be saved." Perhaps this is true but we need to recognize the gravity of the loss if this view is correct. Besides, I don't think such a view would accomplish Paul's aim. First, there's the gravity of the loss if this view is correct.

As Paul presents it, God hardens the Jewish unbelievers and they reject the Christ but this is to bring salvation to the world (11:8-11,15). He says the hardening would last "until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in" (11:25). Numerous people take that to mean "until the last Gentile is saved," or as some versions render it, "until the full number" of Gentiles has arrived. Since Gentiles are still being saved these people think that 11:25 hasn't yet been fulfilled. They think it will be fulfilled close to or at the final appearance of Christ. When the last Gentile is saved, God will end the hardening that blinds Israel and they will turn to Christ en masse.

And what of the Jews between the 1st century and the 21st? Imagine a Jew asking Paul how God proposes to maintain his faithfulness to all of Abraham's descendants through Jacob. Imagine Paul saying something like, "God will continue to harden Israel for two thousand years and then, close to the time when the Messiah makes his final appearance, God will end his hardening work and save the bulk of that generation then alive." What do you suppose that Jew would say?

Remember that "all Israel will be saved" is Paul's way of denying that God is faithless! And would his saving the bulk of a single generation of Jews in (say) the 21st century show his faithfulness to fifty generations of Jews that he hardened? Two thousand years of hardening is to be offset by his saving the bulk (or even all) of a single 21st century generation of Jews?

As for me, it seems better to hold that God's judicial hardening of unbelieving Jews lasted until the door was opened for Gentile blessing (see 11:30-32). That was occasioned by the death (and glorification) of the Messiah when God made Gentiles full of the spiritual wealth that he had always promised to Israel. Once the door had been thrown wide open the gospel was for all (11:32).

©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... Things Seen In Paul (Philippians 4:9)




                    "THE EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS"

                        Things Seen In Paul (4:9)

INTRODUCTION

1. A description of our Heavenly Father frequently used by Paul is "the
   God of Peace"...
   a. "Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen" - Ro 15:33
   b. "And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly..."
       - Ro 16:20
   c. "...and the God of love and peace will be with you." - 2Co 13:11
   d. "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely..." 
      - 1Th 5:23
   e. "Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the
      dead..." - He 13:20
   -- In similar fashion does Paul refer to God in Php 4:9 which serves
      as the text of our lesson

2. In our text, we learn from Paul the key to having the "God of peace"
   blessing us in our lives

3. It involves doing the "things"...
   a. Learned from Paul
   b. Received from Paul
   c. Heard about Paul
   d. Seen in Paul

4. What are some of "The Things Seen In Paul", which if we do, will
   assure that the "God of peace" will be with us?

[The answer can be found both in his epistle to the Philippians and in 
his other letters.  For example, we see...]

I. HIS CONCERN FOR HIS BRETHREN

   A. AS EXPRESSED IN PHILIPPIANS...
      1. With the case of Eudoia and Syntyche - Php 4:1-3
      2. Indeed, with all the brethren there at Philippi - Php 1:8-11

   B. ELSEWHERE, PAUL REVEALS HIS CONCERN...
      1. For all the churches - 2Co 11:28-29
      2. For brethren who are weak in faith - cf. 1Co 8:8-13; Ro 14:
         14-21; 15:1-3

[As seen in Ro 15:3, this concern for his brethren is simply a 
reflection of Christ's concern for us, and therefore certainly worthy 
of our imitation.

Another thing seen in Paul that is worthy of imitation is...]

II. HIS STRIVING FOR PERFECTION

   A. TO THE PHILIPPIANS, PAUL WROTE...
      1. Of his admission that he was not perfect - Php 3:12a
      2. Of his desire to press on, to reach forward, to press toward the
         goal - Php 3:12b-14

   B. TO THE CHURCH AT CORINTH, PAUL REVEALS...
      1. That he viewed his Christian life as a "race", a "boxing match"
         - 1Co 9:24-26
      2. Where there is always room for improvement, lest he become
        "disqualified" - 1Co 9:27

[Why this desire for perfection?  As revealed in Php 3:8-11, it was part
of his "magnificent obsession" to "gain Christ and be found in Him."  If
we want the same for us, then we need to have the same desire!

Another thing seen in Paul that relates closely to this desire for
perfection is...]

III. HIS EFFORTS TO SAVE THE LOST

   A. AS EXPRESSED IN HIS EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS...
      1. His efforts continued despite being under "house arrest" - 
         Php 1:12-14
      2. He would willingly offer himself as a martyr if it would help 
         - Php 2:17

   B. THE DEGREE TO WHICH HE WOULD GO IS SEEN IN HIS EPISTLES TO THE
      CORINTHIANS...
      1. He made himself a servant to all - 1Co 9:19-23
      2. He endured much suffering as a minister of Christ and His gospel
         - 2Co 11:23-27

[Even with so much suffering in his efforts to save others, we see yet 
another thing in Paul that is worthy of emulation...]

IV. HIS JOY IN SUFFERING

   A. THIS "JOY" IS ESPECIALLY SEEN IN THE EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS...
      1. Which we have seen time and again is an "epistle of joy"
      2. For example, his joy in Christ being preached, despite his
         imprisonment and the efforts of false preachers - Php 1:12-18 
         (note especially verse 18)
      3. Even if it meant martyrdom, he viewed it as a reason to rejoice,
         and wanted them to rejoice with him! - Php 2:17-18

   B. IN ROMANS, HE EXPLAINED WHY HE WOULD "REJOICE IN TRIBULATIONS"...
      1. Such trials and sufferings would produce "perseverance" 
         - Ro 5:3
      2. Which in turn would produce "character" and "hope" - Ro 5:4


CONCLUSION

1. Such were some of the qualities seen in Paul, that we also learn from
   him if we take his epistles seriously

2. And we should, if we desire the "God of peace" to be with us and He
   clearly was with Paul throughout his life and service as a disciple
   of Jesus Christ!

3. Are the things seen in Paul, also seen in us?  Are we living in such
   a way that we could say to others:

      "The things which you learned and received and heard and saw
      in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you"?

4. In view of such passages as 1Ti 4:12 and Tit 2:6-7, where we are
   called to be an example to others, we should!

May the "God of peace" help us to live in such a way that we can be an
example like Paul!

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

From Gary... Time



 








Time changes Sunday morning.  Really?  In fact time remains the same; we just manipulate our keeping of it, that's all.  Time, what is it anyway?  It is not a thing you can hold, you don't produce it, although it might SEEM to go faster or slower (depending on the circumstances) it doesn't change.  OK, somebody out there will remind me that time slows down as we approach the speed of light, but hey- I don't think I will ever go that fast!!!  So, this morning I saw the picture at the top and happened across the next one, which made me think of the first linked song and then made me a bit curious, which led to the second link.  But, what about the Bible?  In fact, the Bible has a lot to say about time, but for the sake of brevity, I will just list a few verses...


Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3
 1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:   2 a time to be born,
and a time to die;
a time to plant,
and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
  3 a time to kill,
and a time to heal;
a time to break down,
and a time to build up;
  4 a time to weep,
and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn,
and a time to dance;
  5 a time to cast away stones,
and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace,
and a time to refrain from embracing;
  6 a time to seek,
and a time to lose;
a time to keep,
and a time to cast away;
  7 a time to tear,
and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence,
and a time to speak;
  8 a time to love,
and a time to hate;
a time for war,
and a time for peace.
 Luke, Chapter 10
 17  The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 
  18  He said to them, “I saw Satan having fallen like lightning from heaven.   19  Behold, I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will in any way hurt you.   20  Nevertheless, don’t rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
 
Revelation, Chapter 12
  7  There was war in the sky. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war.  8 They didn’t prevail, neither was a place found for him any more in heaven. 9 The great dragon was thrown down, the old serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.  10 I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, the power, and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ has come; for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night.  11 They overcame him because of the Lamb’s blood, and because of the word of their testimony. They didn’t love their life, even to death. 12 Therefore rejoice, heavens, and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and to the sea, because the devil has gone down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has but a short time.” 


2 Corinthians, Chapter 6
 1 Working together, we entreat also that you not receive the grace of God in vain,  2 for he says, 
“At an acceptable time I listened to you,
in a day of salvation I helped you.”

Behold, now is the acceptable time. Behold, now is the day of salvation.

Time really is an abstract concept, something to reflect the changes that occur around us.  It was interesting to me that Daylight Savings Time is a modern scheme and things were much different in bygone eras.  Although in the past, humans measured things differently, still, the Ecclesiastes passage points out that everything has its appointed time. And if you put the passages from Luke and Revelation together, we see time from God's point of view (Jesus' actually).  All this can get confusing unless you take some time to think about it, but for a simple guy like me, the following is true:

1. I was born
2. I grew up
3. I married
4. I became a father
5. I became a grandfather
6. I am growing old
7. I will die
8. If I am faithful until death, I will live eternally

Almost everyone out there can relate to 1,2, 6, and 7.  But what about that last one? Well, reread that Corinthian passage above... hummm, now would be a good time to think about it!!! 

PS.  In all this, I didn't even mention a pocket watch- can you believe it???

NOT!!!