QUOTES OF THE WEEK!

The Devil has no happy old men. - H.A. Ironside

What is worldliness? Many think it is doing or not doing certain things (usually they have a list of those things!). A definition of "world" needs three parts. First, the word world or cosmos means order, not disorder. It is translate "adorn" in 1 Peter 3:3 and 5. The words "cosmetic" and "cosmetology" are built on the word cosmos and mean to adorn, put in order. Second, our definition must recognize that Satan is the ruler of this world (John 12:31). So far our definition states that the world is that orderly system ruled by Satan. Third, we need some specific characteristic of that system. A list would be endless, so we need a umbrella characteristic. Here is my suggestion--the world is characterized by leaving God out. So a definition is: the world is that orderly system ruled by Satan that leaves God out. We can leave Him out of good things, bad things, things that are neither good or bad or which can become good or bad. They just leave God out. So you can test if something--activity, thought, goal, etc.-- is worldly by asking, Does it leave God out? What is the opposite of worldliness? It is godliness. "Do not love the world" (1 John 2:16). -Dr. C. C. Ryrie, author of Ryrie Study Bible

"Pray without ceasing": (1 Thessalonians 5:17). This seems impossible, but that's what Paul commands. Yet he practiced it (1 Thess.1:3 and 2:13), and Paul was a very busy man. How can we ever begin to pray without ceasing? Here's something that will help clarify this command. Outside the New Testament "without ceasing" is used of having a hacking cough. You don't cough all the time, but you do have a cough all the time. We don't verbalize prayers all the time, but the prayer line is always open between us and the Father. An important benefit of this conscious communion with our Lord is to remind us that we are dependent on Him all the time, and we will find ourselves expressing that dependence in specific prayers. - Charles Ryrie

My wife is a great cook. She makes some great meals using many different methods of cooking, but my favorites tend to come out of the Crock-Pot. I love the food that comes out of the Crock-Pot, but I do not love the time it takes to prepare it. "Can’t you just stick it in the microwave?" I ask.
"No, it will not taste the same," she replies.
Powerful, Word-saturated, and Spirit-filled preaching comes from the Crock-Pot, not the microwave. Preachers who try to microwave God’s truth on the "quick and easy" setting in the name of "saving time" will find the meal from God’s Word will not taste the same. Spirit-led preaching calls for the slow-simmering effect of the Crock-Pot, where the longer the meal saturates in the simmering heat, the juicier and more tender it becomes.” - Greg Heisler

God the Father showed us how to live when He released His dear Son to us.
God the Son showed us how to die when He released Himself to the Father.
God the Spirit will show us how to live and die as we learn to release whatever has us in its grip.

Several years ago, the investment firm of E. F. Hutton had a slogan, “When E. F. Hutton talks, everyone listens.” If only people had this respect and reverence for God and His Word! That is the kind of ear we ought to have for the matchless Word of the Living God. If you do not incline your ear, you might miss something! It has been said that God will not only hold us accountable for what we hear but also for what we would have heard if we had listened. – Dr. David Jeremiah

The mediocre teacher tells.
The good teacher explains.
The superior teacher demonstrates.
The great teacher inspires. -- William Arthur Ward

In a Sunday school class, a pastor asked a young boy, "What is the Trinity?" The boy had a soft voice and answered quietly, "The Trinity is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." The pastor leaned forward and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't understand what you said." To which the bright young man replied, "You're not supposed to—it's a mystery!"----- Dale Flynn of WOL