Give Attendance to Reading

Now since the New Year has begun how many resolutions have you broken, changed or fudged on? It one of your resolutions was to read the Bible through this year may I encourage you to do so. A big task, where do I start, where will I ever find the time are concerns but can be overcome by realizing that it will only take 20 minutes a day. This will allow you to read four chapters and thereby the entire Bible in 298 days.

But reading is not the problem. Time or rather the proper allocation of time is. It used to be when greeting someone with how are you they would reply fine, but now it’s busy. Busy is only found once in the Bible, 1 Kings 20:40 “busy here and there” and he let a prisoner escape. Time is the most precious commodity we have and no one wants to waste it. John in Revelation 1:3 said “Blessed is he that readeth”. Jesus asked several times about reading: Matthew 19:4 “have ye not read”, 21:6 “have you never read”, 21:42 “did you never read”. When the Lord asks us that question in the day of judgement hopefully we will be able to answer in the affirmative - yes, Lord we spent time reading.

We must not just own a Bible, carry a Bible, display a Bible but we must read it. “Seek ye out the book of the Lord and read….”, Isaiah 34:16. An unread Bible is as useless as an uncashed check, an unredeemed coupon, unclaimed inheritance, untaken medicine, or uneaten food. The Bible is, as one has said like a telescope - look through it and you see worlds beyond, look at it and you see a telescope. Most only look at the Bible as a dead letter and see old words, a dead book.

Besides being “too busy” another excuse is it’s too difficult. That I think is the lamest of excuses in our sophisticated age of technology. People seem quite capable of mastering all kinds of electronic gadgets and besides there are many study helps to glean the full meaning from the pages of God’s word. Quite possibly the real problem is we are just plain lazy. Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 12:12 “Much stud is a weariness of the flesh”. Yes it takes effort.

The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy “give attendance to reading”. Give attendance to what Paul? Reading. Reading the scriptures that make us wise unto salvation, 2 Timothy 3:15. Not all religious material will give us such wisdom however. In our age of multiculturialism and tolerance there is a trend to consider any and all religions of eternal benefit. So, the thinking is I can take some from the Quran, the Veda, the Book of Mormon and any New Age fluffy philosophy or even from one from outer space and be pleasing to God. No. Keep in mind the admonition Paul writes in Galatians 1:8,9 that even if and angel brings another gospel let him be accursed. That requires one to know (which comes by reading) what the Gospel is. It is the Bible, the good news “once delivered”, Jude 3, that arms one against the religious hoaxes passing themselves off as the word of God.

During the Dark Ages the Roman Catholic Church as much as chained the Bible to the pulpit requiring the “lay” person to get their knowledge from some man or “clergy” (a Catholic term). Any person or religion that takes one away from the Bible is a false religion. The Bible today is unchained and available to be read by anyone. What is lacking? Two things. A realization that the Bible is the source of truth, John 17:17 and second, a love of truth, 2 Thessalonians 2:11,12. Begin now reading and learning the Bible. Your destiny is within it’s pages.

Thanks For Coming!

Thanks to everyone that came to our Gospel Meeting, we appreciated it! If you didn't make it you can listen to it here on our site!

Don't forget to to listen to the other lessons we have posted!

New Sermons!!!!!

Things have been busy but we finally got some new sermons uploaded so go ahead and check them out and tell us what you think!

Have you ever wondered about coming up short?

Leaving a store after making a purchase you count the change, and if you come up short, you go back. If in getting directions, a few turns are omitted, you arrive late, or not at all. Your recent eBay purchase didn't have all that was advertised, you file a claim.

No, we don't like to come up short. We want all that was advertised or promised, no surprises. What about being shorted on spiritual information; the promise of eternal life, but with just a few "tidbits" of information left out?

This is the greatness of God's word in that it gives us all we need to know for life and godliness, 2 Peter 1:3. No other book is needed, but at the same time we must have the "whole counsel of God," Acts 20:27. What we might be told may be good, but just incomplete, as valuable as a 6ft. ladder in a 20ft. flood --- it comes up short.

information such as "How one can be absolutely certain of going to heaven" needs to include all the information from God's word, the Bible. The apostle Peter addressed that issue in Acts 2:37, 38. Did those Jews believe? Yes. Did they acknowledge they were sinners? Yes. Did Peter then tell them to be thankful God had forgiven them? Counted them as holy? Assured them of eternal life? Not until they had complied with Acts 2:38.

Jesus said in Mark 1:15 to repent and believe the gospel, but one will come up short by ignoring Jesus' remarks in Mark 16:15, 16 (as Paul Harvey says "And now the rest of the story") because here Jesus says one must believe and be baptized to be saved. The words of Jesus and Peter are ignored or explained away because they don't fit what we have been told, or they make us uncomfortable. Consequently one will come up short on the day of judgment having no excuse for not having personally searched the scriptures to see if what is being told is the truth, all the truth, and nothing but the truth.

Are people born naturally inclined to do wrong??

The common term is "original sin" when referring tot his theory. The Bible verse that is often used is Ephesians 2:3 "And wereby nature the children of wrath." Interestingly the Greek word for "by nature" is defined as "a mode of feeling and acting which by long habit has become nature." It has nothing to do with how one is born or the inherited quality but one's environment and the habits learned from it.

"Oh, but look how that baby is inherently selfish. He cries when he wants something that doesn't have, is not bothered that it doesn't belong to him, or that he disturbs others in the process." This they say, is an indication of an "inherent sinful nature," but did Adam and Eve want the forbidden fruit and demonstrate these qualities called "inherent selfishness" BEFORE the fall? Sin had not entered the world, therefore their acts were not sin.

What apparently is missing is a distinction between desire to gratify self, which is God placed in man and is not wrong, and selfishness, which is exclusive regard for one's own interests at the expense of another or in disobedience to God.

Man (Adam and Eve) was created in the image of God, Genesis 1:27 with self interest, the fallen nature was developed, as it is today, by responding to the Devil's temptations. Consequently, babies are not born win sin but learn it from their environment.

Is the Bible really from God?

Have You Ever Wondered is the Bible Really From God or is it Just Another Book?
The following are some points indicating its very unique nature showing how the Bible differs dramatically from men's writings.

1. Flawless accuracy and without contradiction. Though it is written by 40 men over 1600 years, the Bible is scientifically and historically accurate. It's never wrong and never needs updating.

2. Prophetic fulfillment. The Old Testament contains over 1000 precisely worded pronouncements of future events. Over 300 concerning the Messiah. Man in all his sophistication today can't even predict tomorrow's weather.

3. Miraculous confirmation of the writers themselves. Events that even their enemies were unable to refute. Acts 4:14

4. The Bible's own claim of being the word of God, 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Over 3800 times in the Old Testament it is claimed that what is written is the word of God. In the New Testament the writers stated they were writing the word of God, 1 Corinthians 11:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:15

5. Survival from decay and attempts of man and religious institutions to suppress or destroy the Holy Word.

6. It's relevance to today. Though it is 2000 to 4000 years old, it is unsurpassed in its dynamic power to change lives.

These are but a few ways in which the Bible distinguishes itself from any other writing thereby supporting the fact that yes, it is indeed from God.

Do I have to go to church to go to heaven?

Have You Ever Wondered Do I Have to go to Church to go to Heaven?

Yes and No. You have to be a Christian in order to go to heaven and Jesus was very clear on how one becomes a Christian: John 8:24, Luke 13:3, Matthew 10:32, Mark 16:15-16, Matthew 10:22. From the book of Acts we read those who were saved (Christians) were added (they did not join anything but the Lord added upon their obedience) to the church. The only church that existed then was Christ's church the only one He built, Matthew 16:18. Faithful believers then meet regularly as the Bible instructs for worship and Bible study.

So do you have to meet regularly? Of course not. No more than you have to go to heaven. The choice is yours, Joshua 24:15.