The Next Generation

 

I Samuel 8:3 And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.   The Next Generation   Samuel was a man who stood head and shoulders above most we read of in the Bible. There were two people who were very influential in Samuel's life, Hannah and Eli. The contrast between these two mentors is quite striking. Hannah was a woman with very little power. Eli had great power. Hannah was a mother. Eli was a father, but he was also a high priest.  Hannah gave her son to God. Eli, apparently, gave his sons to a feeling of entitlement.   The Bible says that Eli's sons were "sons of Belial" who didn't know the Lord. They were supposed to be serving God, but were instead serving themselves. God said that He would judge Eli's house forever for their iniquity. Eli was, in many ways, a good man who served God, but did not do well with his own sons.   What is even more remarkable is what the Bible says in I Samuel 8:3, "And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment." The striking thing about that verse is that it's not talking about Eli; it is talking about Samuel. This is Samuel, who grew up in Eli's sphere of influence and saw the tragedy of Eli's sons, and who God used instead of Eli's sons because of his submission. Samuel had seen what could happen in a home that was not fully surrendered to God and yet Samuel lost his own sons.   While the loss of Eli's sons is sad, the loss of Samuel's sons is even more tragic because Samuel had the warning of Eli's life. We must learn from the mistakes of the previous generations. Samuel's generation, sadly, did not do that.   We must also be an example to the next generation. In so many ways Samuel was a grand example. Obviously, Samuel's sons were accountable for their actions, but God held Eli accountable for not restraining his sons and one has to wonder how these sons could be serving themselves if they had been given the guidance that God intends through a father and mother.   We lose ground if we conquer new territory but don't win our own children each new generation. Perhaps there is territory that God would have His people to win in days ahead, victories to be won, people to be saved, ministries that God could use. If we would just keep the kids we ourselves have, then we would be far better off than we are right now. It is not that there is a choice between winning the world and winning our home. It's that winning our home first helps us to better win the world.   If you are walking in the ways of God, make sure that you learn from the previous generation, and that you pass God's ways on to the generation that follows you.     Prayer Requests: -Meetings this week in Wayland, WI and Lowell, IN  Enjoy more devotionals, sermon audio, and articles on our website!

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The Stars Also

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April 2015 The Stars Also "And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also." (Genesis 1:16)   On the fourth day of the creation week, God made the two lights for day and night, and then—almost like an afterthought—"he made the stars also." Nothing, of course, is an afterthought with God, but this emphasizes the relative importance of these parts of His creation. Whether or not the earth is the geographical center of the universe, Earth is the center of God's interest in the universe. This is where He created man and woman in His own image, and where He will reign over His creation in the ages to come.   The primary purpose of the stars, as well as the sun and moon, was "to divide the day from the night; and . . . be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And . . . to give light upon the earth" (Genesis 1:14-15). They could not fulfill these functions, of course, if their light could not be seen on the earth, so we can be sure that these heavenly bodies and their light rays were created—like Adam and Eve—"full-grown," in a state of functioning maturity.   All that can be known scientifically about the stars must be determined from their light intensity and spectra. (Their distances can be measured geometrically only to about 300 light-years.) Any other information—any greater distances, size, temperature, etc.—must be derived by inference, based on some theory of stellar evolution.   Although the stars all look alike (even through a telescope, they all appear as mere points of light), these calculations have shown that each one is unique, as revealed long ago in Scripture: "One star differeth from another star in glory" (1 Corinthians 15:41). Those who believe can learn more about them in the ages to come, for "they that be wise shall shine . . . as the stars for ever and ever" (Daniel 12:3). HMM     Subscribe

CROSS SAYINGS OF JESUS – FATHER, INTO THY HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT

LUKE 23:44-46, 24:1-8

 

Pastor Rick Jackson

 

Like the sixth statement, “It Is finished!”, I consider this statement to be a cry of victory! At least three great doctrines are  expounded in this cry.

 

I. THE RELATIONSHIP RESTORED [v. 46] “Father…”

 

1. Reestablishes the Fellowship Broken By Christ’s becoming Sin [v. 34, 46, cp. w/Matthew 27:46]

 

2. Reaffirms the Payment was Satisfactorily Made for Sin [Heb. 10:10-14]

 

3. Recognizes the Path Christ took was Divinely Ordained [Acts 4:27-30]

 

II. THE DEITY OF CHRIST DEMONSTRATED [v. 46 into thy hands I commend My Spirit”]

 

1. The Demonstration of the Scriptures [Ps. 31:5]

 

2. The Demonstration of the Trinity [Jn. 10:17-18, Romans 10:9, 8:11, 1 Peter 3:18]

 

3. The Demonstration of Divine Power [v. 46, Mt. 27:50, Mk. 15:37-39, Jn. 10:17-18, Eccl. 8:8]

 

III. THE DISTINCTION OF DOCTRINES [v. 46]

 

1. The Way to God Made Clear [v. 45, Heb. 9:8-14, 10:19-20, 4:14-16]

 

2. The Direction Christ Travelled Made Clear [v. 46] He was not tortured by Satan for 3 days

 

3. The Place of Paradise is Made Clear [v. 46, Jn. 14:2, Luke 23:43, 2 Corinthians 12:2-4, Revelation 2:7]

CROSS SAYINGS OF JESUS – IT IS FINISHED!

JOHN 19:30-20:8

 

Pastor Rick Jackson

 

The Greek word “tetelestai”, here correctly translated, “It is finished!”, had 3 primary uses in Jesus’s day. I believe each one has a meaning for us on this glorious Easter morning.

 

I. THE GOAL IS ACCOMPLISHED- a servant would tell his master  “tetelestai” when a task was completed

 

1. The Scripture concerning the pre-redemptive tasks had been completed [17:1-4]

 

2. The Scripture concerning the redemptive task was now completed [Jn. 19:28-30]

 

3. The Scripture concerning the post-redemptive work would be completed as well [Jn. 20:8-9, Acts 13:28-38]

 

II. THE DEBT IS COMPLETELY PAID- Papyri receipts for taxes have been recovered with this word written across them

 

1. We Owed a Debt We Could Not Pay, He Paid a Debt He Did Not Owe [Is. 53]

 

2. He Paid a Price More Than Equal to the Debt, Yet Many Choose to NOT Accept Him [1 Jn. 2:2, Hebrews 4:2, 2:3]

 

3. The Resurrection is the Stamp of Approval on the Payment Made [Rm. 1:1-4, Is. 53]

 

III. THE VICTORY IS SECURE- when the war was essentially over, the enemy defeated, the cry was given

 

1. The Battle Goal Was Clear [1 John 3:8]

 

2. The Victory Has Been Declared [Jn. 19:30]

 

3. The Spoils of Victory have been Shared [Rm. 8:33-39]

Question of the Week: What Did Jesus Suffer on the Cross?

A Glimpse into Christ's Suffering Unlike first-century Christians, for whom crucifixion was a familiar reality, most of us have a sanitized view of our Lord's suffering. The physical suffering that Jesus willingly endured was beyond horrific. To better understand the extent of His suffering is to get a glimpse of His love for us.   Get Answers →   Get Equipped In Defense of Easter Buy the Book Now 〉

Contradiction: Who Incited David to Count the Fighting Men of Israel—God or Satan? We are told in 1 Chronicles 21:1 that Satan provoked David to number Israel. Did God incite David to take a census of Israel, or did Satan? How Is AiG Reaching into Public Schools? Information is being censored from children in their public school classrooms—places that in most cases are churches of atheism. Murder Isn't Murder If It's an Unborn Baby … Really? A tragic story has been making headlines recently that highlights how far our culture has drifted from a biblical standpoint on the sanctity of life. Training Up Creation Apologists in Malaysia and Indonesia Joseph Tan and his family have established the Answers Academy in Malaysia to train and equip believers in Creation Apologetics.

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John R. Rice Quotes of the Week

As I dictated this chapter, my daughter said, "Can there be love when there is not respect?" I answered, "God loves sinners who do not and cannot deserve His respect. Many a mother loves a drunken, profane son, loves him all the more passionately because he has broken her heart so many times. Love that is unselfish, love that is godly, can be deep and powerful even when there is not much room for respect." - John R. Rice

God does not give clear guidance to rebellious hearts. - John R. Rice

Since the modernist has a false religion, not the Bible religion, does not know the Christ of the Bible, has not been converted, then he is going to Hell. He ought never be given recognition as a Christian.
And the truth taught in these Scriptures, that Christians should not yoke up with unbelievers, is intimated and reinforced throughout the Bible. - John R. Rice

Jesus says here [Mt. 5:17-18] that not only the words but the very letters and the markings of the Bible, as far as they were in the original manuscripts, were given of God.
Of course you and I know that the Bible was not originally written down in English. Of course you and I know there are problems of copying, problems of translation. Nevertheless, here it is clearly true that God intended us to know that revelation is to be marked by words which God gave originally, and by even spelling that God gave originally. - John R. Rice

Luke 24:25-27 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.
The whole Old Testament here Jesus vindicated; and He said that anybody who is even slow to believe it is a fool. Anybody who is even slow or critical about the Bible and believing every bit of it- all of Genesis, all about Jonah, all about creation, all of it that contradicts evolution, every bit of it- if you are slow to believe it, then you are a fool. You may be a nice, polite, smart, educated fool; or you may be a dumb, country-hick fool, but you are still a fool when you are slow to believe the Word of God. Jesus Christ said so. - John R. Rice

Did you know you are supposed to smell bad to the world? Isn't it strange that this world hates Jesus Christ, spits on Him? This world has no room for Jesus. They crowd Him out at Christmas for a potbellied old fellow who sells Seagram whiskey. At Easter they don't want Jesus but rabbits to lay eggs, etc. This world has no room for Jesus.About the only way most people ever use His name is to curse and blaspheme. Isn't it strange that the world likes you so well? But if you were enough like Jesus, someone would have it in for you. - John R. Rice

I want you to notice it is penitent sinners whom Jesus received. He did not say, "Nicodemus, you are all right just like you are. You will add to my prestige. Come and be chairman of My revival campaign." On the contrary He said, "Nicodemus, you have to be born again if you get to Heaven. You have a dirty old heart, so you have to be born again." - John R. Rice

Mindful of the Words

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2015 Mindful of the Words "That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour." (2 Peter 3:2)   There has long been a tendency for certain Bible teachers to water down the doctrine of verbal inspiration by arguing that it is the "thoughts" of Scripture that count—not the precise words. They forget that the transmission of specific thoughts requires precise words. Ambiguous language is bound to produce fuzzy thinking and uncertain response.   Thus the apostle Peter, in his last chapter, urged his followers to heed the words written by the Old Testament prophets. And Paul—in his final epistle—stressed that "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God" (2 Timothy 3:16). That is, all the writings are "God-breathed." The "Scripture," of course, means the writings, the actual words written down—they are "God-inspired," not just the concepts.   Similarly John, in his last chapter, warned of the grave danger incurred by anyone who would either "add to" or "take away from," not just the ideas, but "the words of the book of this prophecy" (Revelation 22:18-19). Actually, "he which testifieth these things" was not just John but the glorified Jesus Himself (see Revelation 22:16, 20).   In fact, Jesus frequently quoted passages from the Old Testament, sometimes basing His entire thrust on a single word (e.g., John 10:34, 37; arguing on the basis of the word "gods" in Psalm 82:6). In that connection, He stressed that "the scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:35), referring to the actual words written by Moses and the prophets.   Near the end of His earthly ministry, He made a startling promise: "Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away" (Mark 13:31). Thus the actual words of the Bible have come ultimately from God, and we do well to learn them and make them a part of our lives. HMM       The information in this post was provided by the highly recommended ICR. | Subscribe

THE CROSS SAYINGS OF JESUS - I THIRST

John 19:16-30

 

Pastor Rick Jackson

 

I. JESUS SUFFERED OUR HELL AS ONLY GOD COULD

 

1. Darkness [1 Jn. 1:5, Jn. 1:1-9]

 

2. Separation from God [Is. 59:2, John 8:29, 11:42]

 

3. Becoming Sin [Isaiah 53:6, 1 Peter 2:242 Cor. 5:21]

 

II. JESUS SUFFERED OUR HELL AS ONLY MAN COULD

 

1. No Reputation [Phil. 2:5-7] the mocking, the false trials, the humiliation

 

2. No Escape [Phil. 2:8, John 18:11]

 

3. No Relief [Jn. 4:14, 6:35, 7:37, 19:28]

 

III. JESUS FULFILLED ALL SCRIPTURE

 

1. He Thirsted for God [Ps. 42:1-2, 63:1]

 

2. He Thirsted for God’s Word [Ps. 69:21, Jn. 19:28]

 

3.He Thirsted for Souls [ Proverbs 25:25, Rm. 1:16, 10:16