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My Father and my Lord
Thank you,Thank you,and Thank you,
For your mercy and kindness that's sure in my life and destiny.

Happy new year big bro

John 20:1-18

Mary the Magdalene was the last one to leave the site of the cross; she was the first one to come to the tomb.
many people had their demons cast out by the Lord, but only Mary the Magdalene sought after the Lord. Although other women came to seek the Lord, the very first one to come to the tomb was Mary the Magdalene. On the first day of the week, early in the morning while it was still dark, she came to the tomb. She did not care for anything; she came to seek the Lord. A brother once said something very good about this. He said, "Since the Lord Jesus died, the world in the eyes of Mary had become nothing but a void!" The whole world could not draw Mary's heart, because One had already taken her heart away. Mary's heart was a heart completely occupied by the Lord. Mary's heart was a heart captured by the Lord. Oh, the heart of Mary the Magdalene was seized by the Lord!

When Mary came to the tomb, what did she see? What did she do? She thought, "My beloved Lord has died. Today all I want is to have a look at His body." However, the body was gone! She could only run to Peter and John and say to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him." Peter and the other disciple, John, then went to the tomb. They ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came first to the tomb. Stooping down and looking in, he saw the linen cloths; yet he did not go in. Simon Peter followed him, went into the tomb, and saw the linen cloths; the handkerchief that had been over His head was not lying with the linen cloths, but was folded up in one place apart. Then the other disciple went in, saw, and believed. After the two disciples saw this, what did they do? The Bible says, "The disciples therefore went away again to their own home." They still had a home in the world which they regarded as their best. They still had a home. Although they found that the Lord was not there, they did not feel anything. They felt that going back to their own home was the most important thing to do. Besides the Lord, they still had a place to go.

What did Mary do? "But Mary stood outside at the tomb weeping." She had nowhere to go! She could not go away! How profound is the word "but!" Mary thought in her heart, "You have a home to which you can go, but I cannot because the Lord is not here. You think that the disappearance of the Lord is not important, but I cannot feel the same. Who has taken Him away? How can I leave?" She stood outside of the tomb weeping. In her eyes the world had become a void! The Lord was not there. What else could she do? She could not do anything but stand outside of the tomb and weep. Oh, Mary's heart was a widow's heart! The disciples who followed after the Lord went away. The disciples who had some knowledge went away. John, who loved the Lord, went away. Peter, who was so bold, went away. But Mary, a simple woman out of whom the Lord had driven seven demons, was caught by the Lord. She had no peace. She had no comfort. She could not go away. The Lord was not there; everything was over. Her heart was missing something. Her heart was empty; therefore, she could only weep.


"Then as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb and beheld two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? She said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." When Mary saw the angels, she was neither surprised nor frightened. Why? Her heart was completely set on the matter of "they have taken away my Lord." She paid no attention to other things. Her heart was so single in thinking about the Lord that even the manifestation of the angels could not attract her attention. She did not care for what the angels were doing. Her heart was only for her Lord. Even the angels could not move her heart.

Perhaps someone may think, "John loved the Lord so much. If I could only follow after him, it would be wonderful. Peter was dealt with by the Lord very much. If I could listen to his instruction once, it would be wonderful." But Mary's heart was not concerned with these things. Although Peter and John were present, it was not enough. Her heart was a widow's heart! You may think that she should have been glad to have angels talking to her. But Mary did not feel anything. While others may think that the angels were special and attractive in such white and shining clothes, Mary thought only about her Lord being taken away. The angels could not fill up her empty heart, and she could only weep. She thought, "The Lord is gone; I cannot be satisfied anymore! Although Peter and John are here, the Lord is gone; I cannot be satisfied! Although angels are here, the Lord is not here; I cannot be satisfied."

The angels asked her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." She thought that even though the Lord was dead, His body was still precious. It did not occur to her that the Lord had resurrected. In Matthew the Lord told the disciples four times that He would be raised on the third day after He died (Matt. 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; 26:32). But she did not know anything about this. On that day she was without hope. It would be good enough if she could only have the body of the Lord. Although she was so ignorant, her singleness in wanting the Lord caused the Lord to reveal Himself to her.

The reason the Lord manifested Himself to Mary was to satisfy a heart that was hungry and thirsty for Him. Peter and John went back to their own home. The Lord did not go to find them. But here was a heart which was single and wholly for Him. Therefore, the Lord needed to look for her. Brothers and sisters, it will not matter much if we have less knowledge. What matters is that we have a heart which can urge the Lord to look for us. This is the most precious thing.

"When she said these things, she turned backward and beheld Jesus standing there, yet she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? She, supposing that He was the gardener, said to Him, Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." She saw the Lord Jesus, but she thought He was the gardener. The Lord asked her whom she sought. She said, "If you have carried Him away." She forgot to say she was seeking the Lord. She was seeking Jesus the Nazarene. She only said, "Him." In Mary's eyes, there was only one "Him" in the world. In Mary's heart, she supposed everyone knew who "Him" was. Mary supposed everyone should recognize "Him." Mary did not care for anyone but only one "Him." This was Mary's heart.

"If you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." What kind of person was Mary? She was a woman. We do not know whether she was weak or physically strong, but we know that her heart wanted to take Him. She did not consider if her strength was great enough. She did not consider how far the way was. She only considered that she wanted to take Him. Love does not know the meaning of "difficulty." The most wonderful thing in the world is that the presence of love makes everything easy. She did not care for anything. She only wanted to know where others had taken Him. She would then go to take Him. This was Mary's heart.

Under this circumstance, the Lord had to reveal Himself to her. The Lord could not let her weep anymore. The Lord could not first go to find Peter and John, nor could He go to find the two disciples who were on the way to Emmaus. He also could not go to find Thomas. The Lord had to first fill up a heart that was hungry and thirsty for Him. The Lord had to manifest Himself first to Mary.

How did the Lord manifest Himself to her? "Jesus said to her, Mary! She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, Rabboni! (which means Teacher)." Have we heard the Lord speak "Mary" with such a voice? At the time of your prayer, in your chamber, if you hear this voice say, "Mary," it will be enough. When the Lord said, "Mary," Mary recognized Him. This was a revelation. Once the Lord speaks, it is enough. When the shepherd calls his sheep, the eyes of his sheep are opened. Once Mary heard the voice of the Lord, she knew that it was not the gardener but the Master. She did not need to weep anymore. Once the Lord reveals Himself to us, there is no need to say anything more. The Lord only said "Mary" once, and she immediately recognized that it was the Lord. Brothers and sisters, do we recognize the voice of the Lord?

There was one brother who knew of a family with only a mother and her son. Every evening the son rode home on a bicycle. When he was near home, he always whistled. His mother always knew when her son was back. One day this brother was talking to the mother in her home. As he was preparing to leave, she asked him to stay because her son would soon be home. He asked how she knew, and she replied that she had heard the sound of her son's whistling. To other people this sound had no meaning, but to his mother it was especially meaningful. The Lord said, "Mary." Other people may not have felt anything, but Mary recognized this voice. Once she heard it, she recognized that this was the Lord.

Following this, "Jesus said to her, Do not touch Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God." In Matthew 28, because the women were worshipping Him, the Lord allowed them to touch Him. Here the Lord did not allow Mary to touch Him. What does this mean? Mary had a strong desire to keep the Lord on the earth. She wanted to catch Him and not let go of Him. But what the Lord received on the earth was nothing more than the crown of thorns, the cross, and the tomb. Now the Lord would ascend to the heavens, to the place of "My Father and your Father, and My God and your God." This is why He said to Mary, "Do not touch Me." Do not keep Him on the earth. The Lord not only resurrected, but He also ascended, becoming the Head of the new mankind and the representative of man. Man had never been in the heavens. By the ascension of the Lord Jesus, the first man went there. Now, those who believe in Him will also go there. Hebrews 2:9-10 says, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little inferior to the angels because of the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor...For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in leading many sons into glory." Because of the suffering of death, the Lord received glory and honor, and many sons will also be brought into glory. The Lord has gone. The disciples will go too. After resurrection the disciples were called brothers by the Lord for the first time. In other words, the Lord is the firstborn, and we are the many sons. The Lord resurrected and ascended. His Father is also our Father; His God is also our God. Therefore, the Lord said to Mary, "Go to My brothers and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God."

Now what else did Mary have to say? She had nothing more to say. She had enough. She truly had enough. Therefore, Mary went back. Now she could go back. Brothers and sisters, if you lack this revelation, if you have not seen the Lord and have not heard the word of the Lord, can you blame the Lord? No. You cannot blame the Lord, because you do not have Mary's hunger. Please ask yourselves if you have deeply longed for the Lord. Have you longed for the Son of God from the heart? Do you know that the heart of the Lord will never be touched by your rank or by your reputation? But if you truly long for the Lord, even if but for a short time, His heart will be touched! May God create in you a desire so that you will long after the Son of God and love Him single-heartedly.

AntiChristian:
You are providing what I said earlier that Christianity is Paulinism by quoting Corinthians written by Paul.

Jesus can't save himself nor you!

Dude pls ignore these thread
Pls

OP
Still pray against any spiritual wife or convenant against your life.

chufor:
You know what the Bible says; 2 Corinthians 3:6
Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament;not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
You know the letter too much that it is already killing you- you are dying gradually oh(just take a retrospect of your life). You know the word of God is a double edged sword cutting deep deep into your heart.
But I tell you come get life by accepting Jesus as your Lord and personal saviour. He is king

Bro don't worry I will be thinking of you,and your salvation
You know God is able to do exceedingly abundantly what I ask or think.

Thanks for the advice unto antichristain and others like him.
I pray they believe by His Grace.
Compliments to you and ur family.

AntiChristian:
Mine too are for them

Dude I hear u

AntiChristian:
No, do I need to be a Christian to understand your Books?

Yes,that's the Gospel truth.
Most of my post are for Christains .

AntiChristian:
Don't be vexed! Can you mention the context?

Dude are u a Christan ?

AntiChristian:
That is for them too! or is it not from the same Bible?

Pls stop quoting scriptures out of context

AntiChristian:
When are you going to start using the verses below? Hosea too is OT.

Let us begin:
Deuteronomy
Chapter 2
32-37
And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land. 32 Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz. 33 And the LORD our God delivered him before us; and we smote him, and his sons, and all his people. 34 And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain. 36 From Aroer, which is by the brink of the river of Arnon, and from the city that is by the river, even unto Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: the LORD our God delivered all unto us

So Moses and his army killed women and children. Moses broke the 6th commmandment, thou shall not kill ANYONE. Or I see, when its in war it okay? Yet when Muslims say the 6th commandment is followed, but in war its different, Christians say nooooo. Either way, The Quran does not say kill women and children, I CHALLENGE ANY CHRISTIAN TO BRING THE VERSE RIGHT NOW. We see it in your Bible, one of your greatest prophets killing women and children by God's permission, meaning Jesus allowed it! So hence Jesus was responsible for killing women and children, and so was Moses so according to the Christians own argument, Moses cannot be a prophet since he killed. Note Moses and his army did this to many cities, verse 37 says there was not one city which was strong enough in the plural sense, hence up to 6 or 7 cities were destroyed with its women and children? What is the Christian response?

Deuteronomy
Chapter 3
1-7
1 Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. 2 And the LORD said unto me, Fear him not: for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into thy hand; and thou shalt do unto him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon. 3 So the LORD our God delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people: and we smote him until none was left to him remaining. 4 And we took all his cities at that time, there was not a city which we took not from them, threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 5 All these cities were fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; beside unwalled towns a great many. 6 And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children, of every city. 7 But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities, we took for a prey to ourselves

Notice the killing spree, scores of cities were raided by Moses and his army by the permission of JESUS, and they killed women and children! What does the Christian have to say to this?

Deuteronomy
Chapter 7
1-6
1 When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; 2 And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them: 3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. 4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly. 5 But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire. 6 For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth

So note, Jesus allows Moses to completly destroy cities and show NO MERCY, NO MERCY AT ALL meaning you can do whatever you want to them. Not only that, Jesus orders Moses and his army to destroy all their images and their places of worship, so much for religous tolerance among Christians. So once again we see Moses killing with NO MERCY as God Jesus ordered, we also see no tolerance of other religions, somethings which Christians rant about Islam! This proves which religion is the in-tolerant one, it is the Christian, their God is in-tolerant to other religions as you see.

Deuteronomy
Chapter 13
6-18
6 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; 7 Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; 8 Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: 9 But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. 10 And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 11 And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you.

12 If thou shalt hear say in one of thy cities, which the LORD thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying, 13 Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known; 14 Then shalt thou inquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought among you; 15 Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword. 16 And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the LORD thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again. 17 And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to thine hand: that the LORD may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and show thee mercy, and have compassion upon thee, and multiply thee, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers; 18 When thou shalt hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep all his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the LORD thy God.

Once again we the tolerance of the Christian God Jesus. In these passages God says that anyone who worships others Gods wherever they be must be killed. Even if your antartica and you worship some pagan deity you shall be put to death. As the verse says, to the ends of the world, meaning all over the world, so there is no tolerance in the religion. God Jesus orders his followers to stone the ones who dont believe in him, and to kill them, and to destroy the city with the sword and burn it and never rebuild it. The ending ot the paragraph is very interesting, God tells his followers TO KEEP all his commandments which include this one! To kill others who dont believe in him, so hence no religous tolerance. So this rule STILL APPLIES TODAY, because their God said:

keep all his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the LORD thy God.
Or did God change his mind? The God of the OT does NOT change his mind:
"God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" Numbers 23:19
He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind." 1 Samuel 15:29
So hence the Christian God doesnt change his mind so this rule still applies today, so Christians are still ordered to kill us!

Deuteronomy
Chapter 21
18-22
18 If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: 19 Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; 20 And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. 21 And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear. 22 And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree.

I wonder what Christians have to say about that? So as you can see, a bad kid is stoned, and bad men are hanged on trees for all to see. I would really love to see what Christians have to say to these verses. Remember the God the Christians believe in is the same God of the OT, so hence this is Jesus making these commands. So Jesus commanded people to kill their bad kids, to kill bad people and hang them on a tree.

Deuteronomy
Chapter 22
25-29
25 But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die. 26 But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbor, and slayeth him, even so is this matter: 27 For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her. 28 If a man find a damsel that is a virgin, which is not betrothed, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; 29 Then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel's father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his days

So as you can see, rape is allowed in certain cases. When the victim is a virgin, she must marry the rapist, if the victim is not a virgin then the rapist is put to death. This law is a shame and insult to rape victims, you bring me one single lady who would want to marry her rapist, and if Christians even try to defend this then they are even more sick and their own book which says it is okay. So hence you now see that the Christian God Jesus allowed rape in certain cases, this is why America separated Church and state, because Christian laws are sick as you can see.

Deuteronomy
Chapter 23
1-4
1 He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD. 2 A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the LORD. 3 An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the LORD for ever: 4 Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee

Now why cant these people go into the congregation of the lord? What happened to the God who hears all, and accepts all? It seems at one time Jesus did not like bastards, and did not like men without their private parts! I wonder what the Christian has to say to this. Why cannot Ammonites and Moabites go into the congregation of the lord? What again happened to the God who loves all and hears all? It seems that the Christian God Jesus is not very loving after all and that Christians have been spreading a myth about their God. Anyway, can we really accept such rubbish like this?

Deuteronomy
Chapter 25
1-3
1 If there be a controversy between men, and they come unto judgment, that the judges may judge them; then they shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked. 2 And it shall be, if the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down, and to be beaten before his face, according to his fault, by a certain number. 3 Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed: lest, if he should exceed, and beat him above these with many stripes, then thy brother should seem vile unto thee

Now I can understand that punishments like this can be carried on, the reason I post this is because CHRISTIANS do not accept things like this. When they read in the Quran that it says lash the ones who commit illegal sexual intercourse, the Christians start ranting how can you do such a thing! Thats so evil!!!!!! So I am just using their own argument against them, so as we see, the punishment of beating a sinner is in their own book. Hence based on their own arguments and own criteria, their book and God is not peaceful and is evil, and who is this God? It is Jesus.

Dude the OP is for Christains pls

solite3:
truly where your treasure is there your heart will be.
Jesus is our treasure

Amen bro

Hosea 7:8, which says that "Ephraim is a cake/Not turned." Brothers, in God's eyes, there are always two sides to whatever we do. A bird can only fly with two wings. Even a blade of grass has to have two sides before it can be complete. Likewise, a door has to have two sides. In this universe, everything is balanced. What is true in the physical realm is also true in the spiritual realm; everything should be balanced between two sides.

Hosea 7:8 says, "Ephraim is a cake/Not turned." What is an unturned cake? Although many of us have not made cakes before, we all have eaten cakes. Even if we do not know how cakes are baked, we have at least seen others frying bean or frying vegetables. If a person only fries one side without turning it over, the result will surely be that one side is raw, and the other side is overcooked. One side will have too little heat, while the other side will have too much heat. Anyone who cooks vegetables or fries bean knows that the same amount of heat has to be applied to both sides. If one keeps cooking only one side, the result will be that one side is burnt and the other side is uncooked. Anything burnt cannot be considered proper food; it cannot feed others."a cake not turned." This is a principle from God for our living. If a person pays too much attention to anything, he becomes a cake not turned. One can, of course, cook one side by exposing it to fire. But if he does not turn it to the other side, the whole piece will not be well-cooked and will become useless. The most important thing for a Christian to do is to be balanced. We will pick out some examples to see how a Christian who over-emphasizes one aspect of things will become a cake not turned.

Many Christians are living a life of an unturned cake. Many emphasize personal spiritual living and neglect the corporate life. This is an unturned cake. Some pay much attention to the corporate life but forget about the individual life. Such people are also unturned cakes. Some pay too much attention to righteousness and have no grace at all. Such people are unturned cakes. It is right to be righteous. But paying attention to righteousness all the time without taking care of grace is being an unturned cake. Some people are nice; they are good to others. But they do not have any principle of righteousness. They do not want to deal with others. They pay too much attention to grace and no attention to righteousness. This also is an unturned cake. Some people pay most of their attention to the objective truths and forget the work of the Holy Spirit within man. These people are also unturned cakes. Some people pay too much attention to the subjective truths and do not pay much attention to the accomplishments of Christ on the cross. They also are unturned cakes.

No truth should be over-emphasized. There is always the need of balance, and there is always the need to pay attention to both sides. With the Bible, we should be aware of two things. The first is fact, and the second is principle. A fact requires us to believe in it, while a principle requires us to obey it. Many people pay attention only to the facts and not to the principles. These persons are unturned cakes, being burnt on one side. Other people only pay attention to the principles and speak much about obedience, but they do not pay attention to the accomplished facts of Christ. These people are also unturned cakes, being burnt on the other side. Such an over-emphasis of one side will cause a Christian to have a distorted living and not bring him to perfection.

May His Grace and Mercy continue to abide in and with us and transform us into fully baked cake in Jesus name.

Fortissimo502:
Very interesting...

Indeed bro
Compliments

Oksman:
Filled!

Thank you so much. @ OP.

Amen bro
May He continue to fill u up in Jesus name

THE VIRGIN

"For I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God; for I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I fear lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your thoughts would be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity toward Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2-3).

The Bible not only tells us that our attitude toward the world is one of a widow, and that our position with respect to the riches of Christ is that of a wife, but it also tells us that in waiting for the Lord's return, we are a virgin. This means that we need to keep ourselves chaste while waiting for His return. Paul said, "For I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God." We know the meaning of jealousy. Because of Christ, Paul was jealous over the fact that some others had won their hearts. We belong to the Lord, and no one should snatch us away. Suppose I have a friend who is engaged to a girl. While he is away, his fiancee turns her love to someone else. As his friend, I would surely become jealous. She should not have done this to my friend. For my friend's sake, I would become jealous over the fact that someone has taken away her heart.

Paul was afraid that their hearts would be corrupted from the simplicity and purity toward Christ, just as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness. Every Christian should have an undefiled heart, one that has not been touched by anyone else. Let us check ourselves today before God and see if we have lost the simplicity and purity toward Christ. If there is a believer whose desire is not Christ but his own enjoyment, his Lord will not be pleased.

Brothers and sisters, today we need to say, "Lord, I am Yours. May You preserve my garment, my heart, my thoughts, and my everything as undefiled and pure. Oh, may I be touched by nothing." This is like the words in the Song of Songs, which say, "A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed" (4:12). The words "inclosed" and "sealed" are used again and again because no one should get into our garden. Our garden is opened to our Beloved only. None can draw water from us and be satisfied. None can draw water from us and quench his thirst. The well and the spring within us are kept for Him. Brothers and sisters, day by day we ought to maintain such an attitude. We are for the Lord, and no one should touch us. Paul said, "Henceforth let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the brands of Jesus" (Gal. 6:17). Oh, we bear the marks of the cross, and no one should trouble us anymore.

THE WIFE

"For the married woman is bound by the law to her husband while he is living; but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law regarding the husband. So then if, while the husband is living, she is joined to another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if the husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress, though she is joined to another man. So then, my brothers, you also have been made dead to the law through the body of Christ so that you might be joined to another, to Him who has been raised from the dead (pay attention to this phrase), that we might bear fruit to God" (Rom. 7:2-4).

The Bible not only tells us that we are a widow in the world; Romans 7 also says that every Christian is like a wife. I wonder if we know the difference between a widow and a wife. A widow does not have a husband; she has nothing to rely on. A wife has a husband and someone to rely on. Who should bear a family's financial responsibility? It is the husband, not the wife. It is not normal for a husband to rely on his wife to support the family. A widow has lost her support in the world. A wife, however, receives all of her supply from her husband. Brothers and sisters, do you know that our relationship with Christ is one of a husband and a wife? All our needs are supplied by Him. We do not have to worry about how we can receive our supply for the month. We can receive all of our supply from Christ. We may have a bad temper. We may be proud and cannot forgive others. We may be weak in our work and have no burden to pray or any taste for the Word. But, brothers and sisters, let me say that all these problems can be solved by Christ. Through the power of His resurrection, we can bear fruit.

It is a universal custom that as soon as a woman is married, she immediately uses her husband's name. Only his wife can have the same name. Many Christians do not see the preciousness in the words "in My name." We do not realize how much blessing there is in the phrase "in My name." We can receive whatever we ask in His name. We can cast out demons in His name, anoint patients in His name, forgive sins in His name, and preach in His name. What does this mean? Who can use the Lord's name? Some may think that when they cast out demons, all they have to do is say the Lord's name, and the demons will be chased away. Others may think the name is used only as a formality when they perform baptism. Let me ask: Can we go to the bank and draw money in the name of Brother IChuka? This name is his, not ours. We can only use our name. But praise and thank God that every Christian can do things in the Lord's name because we belong to Him, and all that He has is ours. He is the Christ, and we are His people. Brothers and sisters, every Christian has the right to use His name. The day we believed in the Lord, we were united with Him. Therefore, His name is ours. This is why we can pray in His name. We can do things in His name because we have been joined to His resurrection. There is nothing that we cannot acquire from God. Just as a husband loves, cherishes, supplies, and supports his own wife, Christ does the same for us. Let us remember that with respect to the riches of Christ, we are not a widow, but a wife.

Luke 18:3; Rev. 18:7; 17:1; Rom. 7:2-4; 2 Cor. 11:2-3

The verses tell us that the church or Christians have three kinds of circumstances before God. Before speaking about these three circumstances, I want to relate one thing first: there is a line from Genesis to Revelation of women being used by God to typify His children, His people. God likens His children to women. In one case He likens them to a widow; in another case He likens them to a wife; in the third case He likens them to a virgin. Every Christian who lives in the world is a widow, a wife, and also a virgin. In the world, there are great differences between a widow, wife, and virgin. Yet in the Bible, Luke says that a Christian takes the position of a widow (18:3), Romans 7 says that a Christian takes the position of a wife (vv. 2-4), and 2 Corinthians 11 says that a Christian takes the position of a virgin (vv. 2-3).

Every Christian is a widow towards the world. At the same time, he is a wife with respect to the enjoyment of the riches of Christ, and a virgin with respect to his restriction for the sake of Christ.

THE WIDOW.

"And there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, Avenge me of my opponent" (Luke 18:3).

"As much as she has glorified herself and lived luxuriously, as much torment and sorrow give to her; for she says in her heart, I sit a queen, and I am not a widow, and I shall by no means see sorrow" (Rev. 18:7).

"And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, Come here; I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits upon the many waters" (Rev. 17:1).

One thing that moves my heart very much is that on earth today, our heart is a widow's heart! The reason we do not love the world is not that the world is unattractive or that the Bible forbids us. It is not because the world and the lusts of it will pass away. The world is lovely, and the things, objects, and people of the world are lovely. Although the Bible has sixty-six books, only one book, Ecclesiastes, says that all things are vanity under the sun. The reason a Christian does not love the world is not that the world is vain but that our Lord was crucified in the world. Consequently, our heart is a widow's heart.

If the one you love is in a certain place, the place becomes lovely. The place where he is becomes paradise to you. But since He is not here, our heart is a widow's heart. The world is not attractive to us because it has become a void to us. It is comfortable and pleasurable to dress and eat well, but when our heart is drawn to the One we love, all these things will become nothing to us. Since He is not here, our world has become bitter. If a woman can still dress and eat well after her beloved husband passes away, those around her may criticize her, saying, "What kind of a heart does she have!" Is it wrong for her to dress well and eat well? It is not wrong, but since her husband is not here anymore, her heart should no longer care for these things. It is not that these things lose their taste in themselves, but they no longer have the same taste within her. It is not that the world has become more unattractive, but that we do not have a heart to love it anymore.

Among the vast sea of humanity, I feel lonely because He is not here. When I am alone, my heart is on fire because I think of Him. When I walk by the seashore, see the waves, and hear the sound of the tides, I do not feel lonely or isolated because He comforts me. Brothers and sisters, there may be many things in the world which can attract you, but if the Lord fills your heart, all those things will be counted as nothing.

When He was in the world, He was killed by men. He left only a cross and an empty grave. Our Lord has died; therefore, we are widows. It is not that the world is evil or unattractive, but that He is not here. Brothers and sisters, we are truly widows in this world. Our Lord is not on this earth anymore. As a result, the world can no longer attract us. If there is a brother or a sister who feels no need for the Lord to satisfy their heart, I do not know what kind of heart they have. In Luke 18 the Lord says, "And there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, Avenge me of my opponent." Our condition in this world is that of a widow, one who is being ridiculed and insulted by others.

In Revelation 18 Babylon typifies the fallen church. She says in her heart, "I sit a queen, and I am not a widow, and I shall by no means see sorrow." Only fallen ones do not consider themselves as a widow. Whenever you become fallen, you will lose the characteristics of a widow. Oh, if we want to serve the Lord faithfully in this world, we have to be a widow with respect to the world. We have to maintain a widow's attitude toward the world daily. Once the disciples of John came to Jesus, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast much, but Your disciples do not fast?" (Matt. 9:14). Jesus said unto them, "The sons of the bridechamber cannot mourn as long as the Bridegroom is with them, can they? But days will come when the Bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast" (v. 15). Oh, today He is no longer here. This is the time for us to fast. Are we fasting with respect to the world? This earth is not our home; we have no happiness on this earth because He is not here.

Today the bread of the Lord's table tells us that He is not here. The cup also tells us that He is not here. The bread tells us that He was killed. The cup tells us that His blood was shed. Because He is not here, our heart is not here. What can replace Him in our heart? Nothing can replace Him. We want to be free from the world because the One we love is not here, not because the world is unattractive. For where our treasure is, there our heart is. Since my treasure is not here, my heart is not here.

Compliments to everybody

jiggaz:
Interesting piece!! God bless you bro!!

Thanks bro
Compliments

Can you find the difference between these two passages after reading them? The Gospel of Matthew says that after the Lord's resurrection, an angel told the women to tell His disciples of His resurrection. The Gospel of Mark records that the angel asked the women to tell the Lord's disciples and Peter. Oh, the words "and Peter" cause tears to fall. All of the four Gospels record the story of the Lord's resurrection. But only the Gospel of Mark has the words "and Peter." Since John was the one whom the Lord loved, why does the Bible not say "and John"? Since Thomas was doubtful about the Lord's resurrection, why does it not say "and Thomas"? The angel did not mention the best disciples or the most needy disciples. He specifically mentioned Peter. Why? What made Peter different from the others?

What kind of person was Peter? Three days before the resurrection, Peter committed a great sin, a sin that would cause the Lord not to confess him before the Father's angels. Peter not only denied the Lord before men, he even denied the Lord before a maid who was despised by others at that time. But the Lord wanted the women to tell the disciples and Peter about His resurrection. The words "and Peter" have a very deep meaning! If any brother or sister had Peter's experience, they might think:

"Oh! I have fallen. The sin which I have committed is not a common sin. I am afraid that I cannot draw close to the Lord anymore. The Lord might have already forsaken me. I am afraid that from now on, whenever the Lord has any important thing to do, He will not take me along. I will not be able to have special experiences like I had when I was with Him on the mount of transfiguration. I will not be able to accompany Him like I did in the garden of Gethsemane. I told the Lord that I would die for Him, and the Lord said that before the cock crowed twice, I would deny Him three times. I thought that the Lord misunderstood me. When He was taken, I even cut off a man's ear with a sword, thinking that I could love Him courageously. Yet I fell. I did not fall before the high priest or before the powerful Pilate, but before the questioning of a maid. I denied the Lord once, twice, and finally I even swore in my denial of the Lord. At one time I confessed that He was the Christ, the Son of the living God. At another time I said to Him, `Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.' But eventually, I fell just as the Lord was about to be crucified. I committed the great sin of denying Him. Although I cried with regret, I do not know how the Lord is going to treat me. It would have been better if He had not known that I denied Him. But when I denied Him, He turned His back and looked at me. He knew what I had done. What should I do? I dare not come close to Him anymore. Although He loves me, I dare not approach Him because there is a sin which separates me from Him. Perhaps from now on, I cannot be close to Him. Yet, after the Lord resurrected, several women brought back word that they were to specifically tell me about it. Oh, the Lord has not forsaken me, even though I denied Him three times. He does not hate me, nor is He angry with me. His heart was thinking of me. He did not mention anyone but me specifically. It is as though He was only thinking about me. `And Peter!' `And Peter!' These words are truly the most beautiful music in the world, the most wonderful tidings! If the Lord had only told the women to tell the disciples, I would have thought that I was no longer worthy of being His disciple and that I was no longer one of His disciples. I would not dare to go see Him. But since the Lord said, `and Peter,' I know that He still wants me. Although I do not have the strength to go see Him, `and Peter' encourages me to go. The message brought back by the women is true. The Lord told the angel to mention my name specifically. The Lord did not forsake me. I can still draw near to Him. Let me rise up and go see Him!"

Here was a fallen, sinful Peter, a Peter who had denied the Lord. Yet the Lord specifically mentioned him. This is the gospel! Brothers and sisters, do you know that once the Lord saves you, He saves you eternally? Although you may be discouraged, the Lord will never be discouraged. A sinful person like you may feel shame in turning back to Him, but the One you have sinned against considers that there is nothing wrong in returning to Him. Why should you keep thinking of your failure when He is not concerned with it? If the Lord can remove the veil from your face today, you will not fear Him or be afraid to come near to Him. Peter might have remembered that he said to the Lord, "If all will be stumbled because of You, I will never be stumbled" (Matt. 26:33). He might have also remembered what he said at the lake of Gennesaret, when he saw the glory of the Lord: "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord" (Luke 5:. After Peter realized his true condition, how could he dare see the Lord again? He might have remembered the Lord's pleading: "So were you not able to watch with Me for one hour?" He might have heard the Lord's command in his ear: "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation" (Matt. 26:40-41). His condition was far below the Lord's requirements. How could he dare to go see Him? But he went to meet the Lord anyway. He dared to go because of the words "and Peter." Brothers and sisters, if you know the Lord's intention behind the words "and Peter," will you still turn away from Him, instead of turning toward Him? If you realize the profound significance of the words "and Peter," you have to come near to the Lord.

Among the four Gospels, only the Gospel of Mark records this matter. Mark was a young man who followed and learned from Peter. The Gospel of Mark was dictated by Peter and written down by Mark. The words "tell His disciples and Peter" were specifically dictated by Peter. These words might not have been important to other people, but they were very important in Peter's heart. When the Holy Spirit was writing the Bible, He specifically wanted to show us that, even though these few words were considered unimportant by Matthew, Luke, and John, they were very unforgettable and important to Peter who dictated the Gospel of Mark. "And Peter" had special meaning for him. Each remembrance of these words was sweet. Words of grace are especially memorable to the person who receives the grace.

Brothers and sisters, when you are at the Lord's table meeting remembering the Lord, are you still afraid of God in your heart? Is there any sin separating you from God? You may have deeply wept, repented, and admitted that you disappointed the Lord. But do you dare say to the Lord, "Lord, I come to You"? Please consider this: If He was willing to go to the cross because He loved you, would He stop loving you just because you failed, fell, and backslid? Would the love He had on the cross decrease? It may be very easy for you not to love Him, draw near to Him, or return to Him; but it is impossible for Him to forget you, forsake you, or not love you. During the three days after the Lord was crucified, Peter was silent because he had fallen. But the Lord did not forget him. Therefore, if you do not have the strength to come to the Lord, as long as you are willing to believe in His words, He will give you the strength to draw near to Him. If you fall, He can make you rise up again. Although it seems that you will not be able to draw near to Him anymore, remember in faith the words "and Peter," and you will be able to draw near to Him. When you want to come close to the Lord, but feel that you are very far from Him and have no strength to come near to Him, you need to remember the words "and Peter." The more Peter fell, the more the Lord wanted to remember him. Although Peter dared not come too close to the Lord, the Lord's heart attracted him and kept him from running away from Him. May you not misunderstand the Lord's heart. If you ever hear the words "and Peter," you should know that the Lord has not forsaken you. The Lord did not desert Peter, and neither has He forsaken you. "And Peter" means "and you"—"you" who have failed like Peter. May you see the Lord's heart for you. If you see the Lord's heart, you will run toward Him.

December is right in front of us, and many people will again celebrate Christmas. According to the opinions of many believers, it is a good thing to have a day each year to remember the Savior's birth. I dare not treat the opinions of God's children lightly. However, apart from man's opinion, God's Word, the Bible, is still the only standard and the highest standard. Our concern lies not with what man speaks, but with what God has spoken. This is what we care about. "Thus saith the Lord" is the supreme judge over all things.

Does the Bible have a command to remember the birth of Christ? If God's children are willing to ask this question, they will receive the shining of God's light. What a pity that so many have forgotten the necessity of asking this question. According to the Bible, during the last supper, the Lord only asked us to remember His death. He did not command us to celebrate Christmas, nor did He command us to celebrate Easter! These things are poison from Roman Catholicism. Only one who believes in the Bible will know that the things God did not command and the things God did command have the same significance.

Many say, "God never put a stop to the celebration of Christmas." But did God ever command us to observe Christmas? It is sad when Christians search the Scriptures to give a basis for their sin and an occasion to the flesh. They say, "The Bible does not prohibit this, so why can we not do it?" Oh, how I wish that God's children would not speak in this way. May God give us more strength to enable us to say, "How do we dare do what God has not commanded?"

OP
There can never be constant light in Nigeria.
Not possible with the kind of government we uphold.
1.the ministry has to be scraped totally.
2.let each village,town,community and state workout ways to address there light issues.
My bro without these nothing go happen.

Galatians 5:4 says, "You have been brought to nought, separated from Christ, you who are being justified by law; you have fallen from grace." When many read this verse, they think that, first, one can be separated from Christ, and second, one can fall from grace. Such a one is surely not saved. This understanding is wrong. We have to realize the background in which Paul wrote the book of Galatians. When the clear gospel of God was preached to Galatia, the people there heard it. After this, false prophets came to Galatia to preach the gospel. They did not change the first half of the gospel; they changed the second half. The first half said that man was saved only by trusting in Christ and receiving Christ. However, the second half said that before one believes in the Lord Jesus, he cannot have the righteousness from the law; but after one receives the Lord Jesus, he should have the righteousness of the law. Paul wrote the book of Galatians just to refute them. He argued that as a man cannot have the righteousness of the law while he is yet a sinner, in the same way, he cannot have the righteousness of the law after he is saved. The book of Romans says that while we are sinners, we cannot have the righteousness of the law. Galatians says that after a sinner is saved, he still cannot have the righteousness of the law. The subject of both books is not having the righteousness which is of the law. These ones taught that after a man has believed in Christ, is saved, and has eternal life, he has to have the righteousness of the law. The first thing and the minimum requirement of the righteousness of the law is circumcision.

After you are clear about the background of this book, you will know what Galatians is speaking of here. In chapter one Paul said that he marveled that the Galatians were so quickly removing from Him who had called them in the grace of Christ to a different gospel. He marveled that they were so quickly deceived to follow another gospel (v. 6). He also said that if he, an angel, or any spirit came and preached to them a gospel different from what they had received, they should be anathematized. The word anathematize is the strongest word of curse in the Greek language. It means that all the curse in heaven falls on the cursed one and that all the blessings are withheld. Paul said that his gospel was revealed to him by God alone. He received it in the wilderness of Arabia. This is the reason that his gospel could not contain any mistake. Galatians 2 tells us what this gospel is. In this chapter Peter pretended. When he saw the Jews coming in from James (vv. 11-12), he maintained himself as a Jew. Paul rebuked him to his face. Circumcision means nothing. Christ has already died. It is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives. Chapter three tells us that God's goal is not the law but the promise. The reason that God gave man the law was to cause man first to know his sin and then to accept the Son of God. Chapter four brings out two other things to show us that it is useless for man to keep the law even if he is able to do it. Hagar represents the law, and Sarah represents grace. Hagar must go before Sarah can remain. Even if you can keep the law, you are just Hagar, and you still have to go. The first sentence in chapter five is, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free." Christ has brought us into freedom. We must now stand firm in this freedom. Do not lose this freedom. If a man keeps circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to him. If the system of the law is retained, Christ will have to be denied. One cannot keep the law a little and then ask Christ to make up the rest. Christ never does this kind of piecemeal work. Hence, Paul said, "And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to do the whole law" (5:3). Why would some not choose other things in the law? Why would some only pick up the matter of circumcision? Why would they only pick up what they liked and not keep the whole law? If they wanted to keep one item of the law, they would also have to keep the entire law. If one stays, all have to stay. They cannot choose one and reject all the others. Verse 4 says, "You have been brought to nought, separated from Christ, you who are being justified by law; you have fallen from grace." To be brought to nought from Christ means the same thing as Christ profiting nothing at the end of verse 2. It seems as if Christ is not expressed in you. You do not have forgiveness, joy, and peace. Furthermore, if you follow the law, Christ will be brought to nought in you. Here, it is not a matter of receiving salvation. It is speaking of the condition to be saved. Suppose a brother comes to you and says, "Brother ..., I should keep the Sabbath. If I do not keep the Sabbath, my salvation will not be complete." You know that this brother is indeed saved. There is no question about it. Now that he has received such a wrong teaching, You must tell him, "If you keep the Sabbath, the work of Christ will have no effect on you. It is of faith that we are in Christ. Now you have gone back to the law. You have fallen from grace." Thus, it is not a question of salvation or perdition. It is a matter of the condition for being saved. It shows us that a man is saved by Christ and not by himself. If a man keeps the law, there will be no grace.

solite3:
I didnt say a Christian can lose his salvation. Heb 6 Vs 1-3, is talking about teaching in the church. The church of hebrews need to move on to perfection not laying foundations again but if it was necessary by the will of God they will come back to the basis.
The person who cannot be renewed to repentance was not saved in the first place.

Good bro

Goshen360:
Those who think sin is greater than the finished works of Christ are in delusion while they themselves still ask for forgiveness of sins. If their doctrine is correct, their names too should be erased when they sin and write back again when they repent etc. It doesn't add up to scriptures. Scriptures says, when Christ comes again he is not coming to deal with sins. Why? Because he already dealth with it once and for all times.

Thanks bro.longtime.
It's like one travelling from Abuja to OSHODI ,Lagos through road.when he gets to Ojota,Lagos there his car broke down.will he now go back to Abuja and start the trip all over again to OSHODI,Lagos since he didn't get to his final destination(OSHODI) intially?
Or after fixing his car at Ojota he will jus drive down to OSHODI ?
Thanks bro believers need to know the whole Gospel and not just half baked doctrine given to them by there MOG .

James 5:19-20 says, "My brothers, if any one among you is led astray from the truth and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner back from the error of his way will save that one's soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins." Some people also infer from these two verses that a saved person can perish. To them, in verse 19 we have the brother. Then in verse 20, we have the sinner. To them, verse 19 says to turn a brother back, and verse 20 says that in turning back the brother, the soul is saved from death. This would mean that some brothers need to turn back, and some need to have their souls saved from death. Would this not say plainly that a brother can lose his salvation?

In order to understand these two verses, there are a few things here that we have to pay attention to. First, James 5:19 and 20 are like a lone mountain. They are not connected to the preceding verses, and they have nothing to follow. All the other Epistles in the Bible have greetings and benedictions. James is the only book that ends this way. Verses 17 and 18 speak of prayer. All of a sudden these few words seem to break in from nowhere. This is a very peculiar thing.

Second, from chapter one until the end, the book of James is on practical love among the brothers and sisters. Because of love, there is the mercy, the care, and the concern for the brothers. This is what the book of James shows us. From 1:1 to 5:18, there is a continuous line, a definite goal, and a subject. Verses 19 and 20, however, seem to drop down from nowhere. One can say that 1:1 to 5:18 are very organized. But we do not know where these two final verses come from.

Third, in principle, since James 1 through 5 speaks of love expressed in one's conduct, verses 19 and 20 should not deviate from this point. They should also tell us what we should or should not do when we love the brothers. If a sinner continues in the error of his way, and you save him in love, you are saving a soul from death. In addition, you will also cover a multitude of sins. All readers of the Bible know that what covers a multitude of sins is love (1 Pet. 4:. The many sins spoken of here do not refer to sins before God. They refer to the sins before man. If you turn a sinner from the error of his way, God will no longer remember his sins and will cast them into the deep sea. All his sins will be under the blood. Now what about us? Suppose Brother .... was a very evil man before he became a Christian. His past history is very black and unseemly. You know his past history and stories of his past. You could lay them out and expose them. But if You expose his sins of the past, You am acting contrary to God's will. God has cast his sins into the sea. After we are saved, God does not mention our past sins any longer. When I see a brother, I have to cover his past because among us God has covered our past sins.

Verse 20 is on the matter of principle, and verse 19 is on the matter of example. In other words, verse 20 is the formula, the law, and the principle of action, whereas verse 19 is the case study and the individual incident. Verse 20 says that if anyone turns a person, he will not die and his sins will be covered before God and before men. Verse 19 shows us what happens when one brother among us is led astray from the truth or has erred in his way. We have to turn him back. The exhortation in verse 19 is based upon the principle in verse 20. If you see a brother in the church led astray from the truth, you have to recover him. When a sinner is turned, his soul will not die and his many sins will be covered. This being the case, how much more should we do the same on behalf of a brother? What James was saying here was that we should do unto the brothers as one would do unto the sinners. James is telling us here that a Christian should treat his brothers and sisters with love and should recover them. This portion is not speaking of a brother perishing.

solite3:
Hebrews 6 speaks of those who after receiving the truth about the salvation of Christ, turned back and reject it and turned back such person cannot be restored to faith again, they are doomed already.

Hi bro
You are wrong.Hebrew6:1-6 has nothing to do with Salvation being lost,but on Christain maturity.
1Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3And this will we do, if God permit. 4For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh,
The above verse meant that we that have been saved should progress I to maturity.even if we slip and fall we should get up and move forward,that Christ can't come back and be crucified again for us.
We should get up and move on bro.

The apostle was telling the Hebrew believers here that the repentance from dead works, the faith in God, the teaching of baptisms and of the laying on of hands, of the resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment, are all words of the beginning of Christ. If they have once been enlightened, once tasted of the heavenly gift, once partaken of the Holy Spirit, once tasted the good word of God, and once tasted the powers of the age to come, and have then slipped, they cannot lay again the foundation and cannot again be renewed to repentance.


Please remember that the repentance here is the foundation spoken of in the first section. The repentance here does not mean repentance in general, for in the previous verses there are six items of the words of the beginning of the Christ. The first is repentance from dead works. Hence, we cannot take the repentance we have in our concept and equate it to the repentance here. We must consider the context of the Scripture, and we must expound it according to the thought of the apostle. The repentance spoken of by the apostle is the same as the repentance from dead works in verse 1. The meaning here is that after a man has believed in God and has been baptized, and after he has understood the coming judgment and the truth of resurrection, and has repented of dead works, he cannot repent again for what he has repented of. Once he is baptized, he cannot be baptized again. Once he has believed in the teaching of judgment, he cannot try to believe again. Once he has believed in the teaching of resurrection, he cannot try to believe again. The word repentance here includes all six items mentioned above. The apostle did not repeat the words "to renew again" as many times as I did: to renew again the repentance from dead works, to renew again faith toward God, and to renew again this and that. He only needed to use the words to renew again once. If there had never been anything yet, we would use the words to begin. But if there was something already, we would use the words to renew again. The apostle was afraid that we would not understand the meaning of renew, anakainizo. Hence, he added a further word again, palin. Hence, the repentance spoken of in verse 6 must refer to the repentance in verse 1. If the repentance in verse 1 were mentioned as the second item, we might not be very clear. But thank the Lord, it is placed as the first item. As long as it is the first item, we know that all the other items are like this one.

The apostle was saying that the word of the beginning of Christ can be compared to the foundation. For one to be a Christian, first there is the need for the repentance from dead works, to judge his sins. Then he has to have faith in God, to be baptized, to have the laying on of hands, and to believe in the resurrection of the dead and the eternal judgment. All these are foundational matters. Once the foundation has been laid, there is no need to lay it again. While one is building on this foundation, even if his foot slips, there is no need to lay again the foundation. Even if one wants to lay a foundation again, it is impossible to do so. For example, a Brother has just come into a church meeting hall from the main entrance on Lekki phase1. After he came into the alley from the entrance, and as he was turning the corner to come into the building, he slipped. What then should he do? His goal is to come to the meeting. Now he has slipped. He does not need to start all the way from Lekki phase1 again. He can rise up from where he has slipped. The apostle was saying that once a person has been enlightened and has tasted of the heavenly gift, if he slips, he cannot repent from dead works again, believe in God again, be baptized again, have the laying on of hands again, and believe in resurrection and eternal judgment again. In other words, the apostle has no intention to say that a man can perish again after he is saved. What he means is that after a Christian is regenerated, he cannot be re-regenerated. At most we can be regenerated once. The apostle was not saying that one is not allowed to repent again. He was saying that it is impossible to repent by starting all over again.


The next part of verse 6 says, "Crucifying again for themselves the Son of God and putting Him to open shame." Some have said that to fall is to crucify the Son of God again. Who can crucify the Lord again? The work of the Lord Jesus was accomplished once for all. He was not like the bull and the goat, which must be slaughtered when they are needed. On your side, you cannot renew your repentance. On the Lord's side, He cannot renew the crucifixion. If you have to renew your repentance, that means that the Lord Jesus will have to renew His crucifixion. If that were the case, then you would be putting the Lord to open shame. You would be saying that the Lord Jesus' onetime crucifixion was not enough, that there have to be more crucifixions. Hence, this is not a question of salvation and perdition here.

eternal salvation is a fact that cannot be overturned. If there is a fallen and backslidden Christian among us, who was once clearly saved and was clear about God's salvation, for him to rise up again does not require a fresh start. As long as he would rise up today, that is all that is needed. There is no possibility of crucifying the Lord Jesus again and putting Him to open shame.

In the last section in verses 7 and 8, not only was the apostle saying that there is no need and that there is no possibility, but he went on to say, in a more serious way, that there is no right. Why do we not have the right? It is because a laying again of the foundation would crucify again the Lord Jesus. If one does that, there would be serious danger ahead of him; he would suffer great punishment. "For the earth, which drinks the rain which often comes upon it and brings forth vegetation suitable to those for whose sake also it is cultivated, partakes of blessing from God. But if it brings forth thorns and thistles, it is disapproved and near a curse, whose end is to be burned." After one reads Hebrews 6, he can see that this chapter speaks of the matter of progress. It is not on the question of salvation or perdition. Hebrews 6 never tells us that a saved person can perish.

The second section requires an introduction. Before we read verse 4, let me first tell you about this introduction. Before the apostle wrote verse 4, he anticipated that these ones would ask, "If you say that we should not lay again the foundation, what then should we do if we sin again? If a person has failed, backslidden, and sinned, does he not have to lay again the foundation?" Here the apostle said something in anticipation of their question. "For it is impossible for those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift..." If you have a Greek New Testament in your hand, you will see that the word once according to the grammar of the original language does not refer only to the first item of the list, but to every item in the list. It should read, "...those who have once been enlightened, and who have once tasted of the heavenly gift, and have once become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have once tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come..." This is very clear in the original text. Here is a man who has been enlightened, has tasted of the heavenly gift, and has become a partaker of the Holy Spirit, and has tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come. The age to come is the millennium. This one has tasted the powers of the millennium. In other words, he has seen and tasted miracles, wonders, healings, and the casting out of demons. If such a one falls away, it is impossible for him to be renewed again to repentance. "And yet have fallen away..." One British brother who studied Greek and who specialized in the book of Hebrews for his whole lifetime said that the falling away here means to have a slip of the foot. When it says that it is impossible to again renew themselves unto repentance, many think that it means perdition. But this explanation is not valid.

If there is a man who has once been enlightened, who has once tasted of the heavenly gift, who has once become a partaker of the Holy Spirit, who has once tasted the good word of God and once tasted the powers of the age to come, is it possible that such a one cannot any longer repent once he makes a slip? Are there cases of fallen Christians who have risen up again? The Word of God tells us that indeed there have been many, and church history also tells us that indeed there were many. Many Christians who had once slipped eventually became the best runners of the heavenly kingdom course. Beginning from Peter, there have been countless Christians who have fallen and have risen up again. If there were no possibility for these to rise up again, then Peter would have been the first one that could not have risen up. He slipped terribly. We can say that he had fallen flat on his face. Peter was not the only one. Throughout the two thousand years of church history, countless Christians have failed. But eventually they became the best testimonies. I can enumerate countless proofs of this. If what was said before was right, then there should not have been a single one; if there is one, the Bible would be wrong.

Hebrews 6:1-8. presents the greatest problem in the Bible. Almost all the ones who doubt that salvation is eternal take Hebrews 6 as their city of refuge. All of them dig their support material from here. They argue that if a man was saved and now has fallen away, it will be impossible for him to be renewed again to repentance. Would that not mean that such a person is through and is doomed to perish? Because many are not clear, they take this passage as reason for man's perishing.

But we have to realize that the subject of Hebrews 6 is not salvation. It has nothing to do with salvation at all. If one wants to understand this passage, he must begin from the end of chapter five. There it says that many who should be eating solid food are still taking milk. According to their age, this group of believers should have been the teachers already. But they were still like babes and were not progressing, but were staying at the same place. Hence, chapter six begins by saying, "Therefore leaving the word of the beginning of Christ, let us be brought on to maturity." The subject of Hebrews 6:1 is therefore progress, and not salvation. If you put the subject of salvation in, surely you will encounter difficulty. The purpose of this chapter is to tell others how to progress, and not to tell us how to be saved. The first thing we must take note of is that the topic here is on progress to maturity, not regressing to perdition.

The apostle was here talking about being brought on to maturity. Verses 1 through 8 can be divided into three sections. We can use three words to represent these three sections. The first section is on having no need, the second section is on having no possibility, and the third section is on having no right. This portion tells the Hebrew believers from these three standpoints that they have to progress. First, they have to leave the word of the beginning of Christ and should not lay again a foundation. The word of the beginning of Christ is like the cornerstone in a building. In building a wall, a person does not need two foundations. The apostle said that these ones had been talking about foundational things. But the foundation was laid already; there was no need to lay the foundation again. The word of the beginning of Christ are teachings such as repentance from dead works, faith in God, baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. All these are the words of the beginning of Christ. The apostle said that these need to be done only once. There was no need to do them again. He was exhorting them to go on to perfection................,

solite3:
The gospel of the cross is the power of God to save.
Glory and honor be unto God our father and unto the Lord Jesus forever. Amen

Amen bto