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"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord!' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, 'Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?' Then I will announce to them, 'I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!' "Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn't…  ( Click for more )

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy: To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace. We always thank God for all of you, remembering you constantly in our prayers. We recall, in the presence of our God and Father, your work of faith, labor of love, and endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, knowing your election, brothers loved by God. - 1 Thessalonians 1:1-4 HCSB

An elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems. He went to the doctor who was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman…  ( Click for more )

For if the eagerness is there, it is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have. It is not that there may be relief for others and hardship for you, but it is a question of equality-- at the present time your surplus is available for their need, so that their abundance may also become available for your need, that there may be equality. As it has been written: The person who gathered much did not have too much, and the person who gathered little did not have too little. – 2 Corinthians 8:12-15 HCSB

Paul was once again correcting the…  ( Click for more )

Yet the Lord was pleased to crush Him, and He made Him sick. When You make Him a restitution offering, He will see His seed, He will prolong His days, and the will of the Lord will succeed by His hand. – Isaiah 53:10 HCSB

When I was young and unsaved, I spent my free time stealing. I looked upon it as a skill and worked at it, much like many kids develop their ability to skate board. I stole small items at first and gradually increased the complexity and risk of my thefts. Unfortunately, I was never caught.

When I became a Christian, I felt the need to go back to the…  ( Click for more )

Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on all the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died. - Zechariah 12:10

Have you ever seen pictures of the celebration that took place at the end of the Second World War? There were huge parties, ticker tape parades, dancing in the streets. One picture that always stands out to me is one of a sailor bending a young woman backwards in a deep romantic dip and kissing…  ( Click for more )

I am the least intelligent of men, and I lack man's ability to understand. I have not gained wisdom, and I have no knowledge of the Holy One. Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in a cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son--if you know? Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Don't add to His words, or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar. - Proverbs 30:2-6 HCSB

Whoa, whoa, whoa! Everybody calm…  ( Click for more )

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female. - Genesis 1:26-27 HCSB

Some cults teach that since we were created in God’s image and we are physical beings, Yahweh must also be a physical being. But in doing so, they are committing the very sin that enrages God – the sin of ascribing physicality…  ( Click for more )

Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence. God saw how corrupt the earth was, for all flesh had corrupted its way on the earth. Then God said to Noah, "I have decided to put an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence because of them; therefore I am going to destroy them along with the earth…And Noah did this. He did everything that God had commanded him. – Genesis 6:11-13,22 HCSB

There are two very famous examples of God warning a human being of coming catastrophes. In both cases, the calamities were not…  ( Click for more )

Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, "When you help the Hebrew women give birth, observe them as they deliver. If the child is a son, kill him, but if it's a daughter, she may live." The Hebrew midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had told them; they let the boys live. So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, "Why have you done this and let the boys live?" The midwives said to Pharaoh, "The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they…  ( Click for more )

And they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky. Let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise, we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth." Then the Lord came down to look over the city and the tower that the men were building. The Lord said, "If, as one people all having the same language, they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let Us go down there and confuse their language so that they will not understand one another's speech." So the Lord scattered them from…  ( Click for more )

Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: "Get up and go to meet Ahab king of Israel, who is in Samaria. You'll find him in Naboth's vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it. Tell him, 'This is what the Lord says: Have you murdered and also taken possession? ' Then tell him, 'This is what the Lord says: In the place where the dogs licked Naboth's blood, the dogs will also lick your blood! '" Ahab said to Elijah, "So, you have caught me, my enemy." He replied, "I have caught you because you devoted yourself to do what is evil in the…  ( Click for more )

The Lord of Hosts says this: “These people say: ‘The time has not come for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt.’” The word of the Lord came through Haggai the prophet: "Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?" – Haggai 1:2-4 HCSB

In a little town called Cawker City in the state of Kansas lies a monstrous ball of twine that would make any kitten die in paroxysms of pleasure. It weighs 17,980 pounds. That’s almost 9 tons! It has a 40 foot circumference, and is composed of over…  ( Click for more )

"Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him." Jesus replied, "I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." "But how can anyone be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked Him. "Can he enter his mother's womb a second time and be born?" Jesus answered, "I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. – John 3:2b-4 HCSB

“How can anyone be born when he is old?”…  ( Click for more )

El – mighty, strong or prominent One

Finally, the day came when the El said to Noah, “Go into the boat with all your family, for among all the people of the earth, I consider you alone to be righteous.” – Genesis 7:1

Genesis 6:9 tells us that “Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless man living on earth at the time. He consistently followed God’s will and enjoyed a close relationship with him.” I used to think of what an honor it would have been for Noah to have been judged by God Almighty to be the most righteous man of his…  ( Click for more )

In the course of time Cain presented some of the land's produce as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also presented [an offering]-some of the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions. The Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but He did not have regard for Cain and his offering. Cain was furious, and he was downcast. Then the Lord said to Cain, "Why are you furious? And why are you downcast? If you do right, won't you be accepted? But if you do not do right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must master it." Cain said to his brother Abel,…  ( Click for more )

Do not be deceived: "Bad company corrupts good morals." Become right-minded and stop sinning, because some people are ignorant about God. I say this to your shame. – 1 Corinthians 15:33-34 HCSB

If we want to become more like the Master, we need to find others who share a similar ambition and work out spiritually together.

Cultivate relationships with good and wise people. Try to determine what it is about them that makes them spiritually attractive. Analyze their behavior, both the good and the bad. Compare or contrast their habits to the Scriptures…  ( Click for more )

Catch the foxes for us -the little foxes that ruin the vineyards-for our vineyards are in bloom. – Song of Songs 2:15 HCSB

Every once in a while we all get the urge to make a lifestyle change. Perhaps we want to lose weight; perhaps we want to eat better or get more exercise. Unfortunately, most people will go for the gusto and make huge, sweeping changes that they cannot sustain.

They will try to go from burger chomping, milkshake guzzling, greasy pizza, finger-licking couch potatoes to vegetarian Olympic athletes in a single bound. After a couple weeks (or days) of…  ( Click for more )

For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form. –Colossians 2:9

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father grieved deeply for his only son.

About a month later, a young man stood at the rich man’s door with a large package in his hands. He said, “I am the…  ( Click for more )

Therefore just as the weeds are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather from His kingdom everything that causes sin and those guilty of lawlessness. They will throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom. Anyone who has ears should listen. – Matthew 13:40-43 HCSB

It was late at night, early morning actually, when the police car’s lights began flashing. After…  ( Click for more )

"’A son honors [his] father and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is [your] fear of Me?’ says the Lord of Hosts to you priests, who despise My name."

Yet you ask: "How have we despised Your name?"

"By presenting defiled food on My altar."

You ask: "How have we defiled You?"

“When you say: ‘The Lord's table is contemptible.’ When you present a blind [animal] for sacrifice, is it not wrong? And when you present a lame or sick [animal], is…  ( Click for more )

Isn't the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and to not ignore your own flesh and blood? Then your light will appear like the dawn, and your recovery will come quickly. - Isaiah 58:6-8a

Recently a young man, bound in chains of sin and blinded by bitter lonely tears, opened fire and killed 32 people at Virginia Tech. While the VT incident was tragic…  ( Click for more )

Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and provided redemption for His people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of old: salvation from our enemies and from the clutches of those who hate us. – Luke 1:68-71 HCSB

Many people will make promises to us. In fact, there’s an organization of men who actually call themselves the “Promise Keepers” but who are just as liable to sin as the rest of us.

There is One who has a tremendous track…  ( Click for more )

He was still speaking to the crowds when suddenly His mother and brothers were standing outside wanting to speak to Him. And someone told Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to You." But He replied to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother." – Matthew 12:46-50 HCSB

“I intended…  ( Click for more )

Don't be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows he will also reap, because the one who sows to his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don't give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, we must work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith. – Galatians 6:7-10 HCSB

This year, I am ramping up my gardening efforts. I expanded our family’s garden to include…  ( Click for more )