A Weekly World Wide Word of Encouragement to those in the Ministry
PRAISE GOD IT’S MONDAY!
A WEEKLY ‘WWW (world-wide word) OF ENCOURAGEMENT’
TO THOSE IN MINISTRY
A FREE service, currently connecting with Christian leaders from 3,000 denominations and ministries, in 70 countries.
Issue No: 546 Published: 09 Apr 2012
THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW? continues
We are looking at the differences between the Jewish (Eastern) and Greek (Western) ways of thinking, so that we can better understand the ways and teachings of Jesus. (See the last 12 weeks issues of PGIM!)JUSTIFICATION/SANCTIFICATION
Greek (Western) Justification (Just as if I never sinned) is seen as the key element of Christianity.
Interestingly, most of the references to justification are directed towards Gentiles. For example, from the Old Testament, as prophesied by Isaiah.....
11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:11)
And in the New.....
8 The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.†(Galatians 3:8)
We are justified through faith in Jesus.....
24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. (Galatians 3:24)
As we have seen previously, this concept of a 'mind decision' appeals greatly to our Greek-trained, ascendancy of thought, patterns. However, justification is to be only the first step in our 'walk with Jesus'.
Eastern (Hebrew) Sanctification (Put simply, living a holy and righteous life) is regarded as the most important. In the Jewish culture, actions speak louder than words. Hence, living a godly life is their focus.
3 It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, 5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; (1 Thessalonians 4:3-5)
Sanctification is to go hand in hand with justification.....
9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
Jesus was holy and righteous.....
14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. (Acts 3:14)
and we are called to the same walk, in the example of Paul, Silas and Timothy.....
10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. (1 Thessalonians 2:10)
again recognising the holiness and righteousness of Jesus in the final days.....
2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. 4 Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.†(Revelation 15:2-4)
For the Lord is returning for a sanctified, holy and righteous church.....
6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.†(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) (Revelation 19:6-8)
Amen.
SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY
1. Discipleship, following 'conversion', is essential in order to bring a believer into the fullness of faith Jesus requires of us all.
2. Conversion of those of an Eastern persuasion (Jews and Muslims) is dependant upon our actions rather than our words.
3. Jesus is to return for a pure white, sanctified, holy and righteous bride. We can become that church, or else, God will wait for another generation. The choice is yours, the choice is mine. What will our choice be?
(To be continued next week.)
Acknowledgements: http://www.followtherabbi.com and http://hethathasanear.com
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FROM THE WORD
Living to Please God"Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit. Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more. Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody." (1 Thessalonians 4:1-11)
Paul’s Ministry in Thessalonica
"You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition. For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else. As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory. And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. For you, brothers, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last." (1 Thessalionians 2:1-16)
Hallelujah!
"After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.†And again they shouted:
“Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.†The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried: “Amen, Hallelujah!†Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!†Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.†(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’†And he added, “These are the true words of God.†At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.â€" (Revelation 19:1-10)
Read the Bible (NIV Version) online at...
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DAVID'S DOODLINGS
HOLINESS1001. Holiness is not found in living to the letter of the Law, but reflected through the living law of our life.
1002. Holiness is an attitude reflected in behaviour.
1003. Holiness comes, as we let the hold on our lives, go.
1004. The 'Law of Holiness' needs to be written in our hearts and applied through our will.
1005. Holiness grows as we walk hand in hand with Jesus.
1006. Every day is to be a 'holy-day'
1007. Holiness is a way of life, not a doctrine.
1008. Holiness grows as my will goes.
1009. To walk on the path of holiness I need Jesus at my side.
1010. Holiness is tough, but hell, deadly!
1011. Life is a game, living holiness the aim.
Please feel free to quote these quotes. Acknowledgement of David Tait as the author would be appreciated. There are now over 1300 David sayings for you to view at ...
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
My thanks to John Cranwell for allowing us to use his cartoons over past years.Appreciation also to Tim Walburg for his future contributions.
Visit the Toon Fever website for more cartoon fun.....
http://www.toonfever.com
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THE OTHER PICTURES IN THIS EMAIL
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
THIS WEEK: A REVELATION OF……. THE PARABLE OF THE SOWERThe Call of the Kingdom
Now seeing how the parable applies to the church as a whole.
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*** ANOTHER DAILY EZINE FROM WWJ!*** 'LAUGHING AT OURSELVES' Subscribe Today
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LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused****** "Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others." ***
475. THINK FIRST
My Protestant clergy friend was speaking with a Catholic Priest and wanted to make a solid friendship. He spoke of many things and felt it was going well, but when he asked if his Father had been a Priest, the conversation was over.
474. THE NEW WINE
One communion Sunday, my communion steward prepared communion with a twist. When it came time to uncover the elements the grape juice looked darker than usual. I thought nothing of it and began to serve the communion. Promptly upon receiving the cup, each recipient's face had a peculiar, stunned look. When it came time for me to receive I discovered why the strange looks...the juice was prune juice! One parishioner stated, "Perhaps this is a Divine commentary on our spirituality...we need a little loosening up!"
473. EMPATHY
Jesus made a quick return to earth for a visit. He came upon a lame man, had compassion on him, and healed his leg. Further down the road, Our Lord came upon a blind man, had compassion on him, and healed him. A little further down the road, Jesus came upon a man sitting on the curb sobbing his heart out. Jesus asked him what was wrong. The man cried out in agony, "I'm a pastor!"
Jesus sat down beside him, put his arm around him.............. and cried too.
FREE DOWNLOAD: You can now download the book 'Laughing At Ourselves' in PDF format at LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
One of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 800 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ...
FACTS FOR FUN
LAST WEEKS QUESTION: Who were the Buccaneers?ANSWER: Today, ‘buccaneer’ is simply another word for pirate. Buccaneers started out as hunters on the islands we now know as Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Their name came from the French word ‘boucan’ (meaning barbecue), as they liked to barbecue their meat on grills. The Buccaneers were driven out by the Spanish in the sixteenth century and to get revenge they teamed up with other persecuted peoples, such as escaped slaves and deserters, and began attacking Spanish ships, particularly those bringing goods to the Spanish American colonies. By the seventeenth century, the word ‘buccaneer’ was used to describe pirates and privateers based in the West Indies. (Do ‘buccaneer businessmen’ have West Indian Tax Havens?)
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: Is it true that August stole a day from February?
Answer Next Week.
SOME FUN FACTS1133. A SMALL CATCH
In Cleveland, Ohio, it's illegal to catch mice without a hunting license. (Are mousetrap sales legal?)
1134. WHAT IS A SCAPEGOAT?
The term is now used to refer to a person who is inappropriately blamed for the sins or behaviour of a group of people. But in the Bible, in Leviticus 16, it refers specifically to the practice of presenting two goats at the Altar of the Tabernacle of Moses. The casting of lots determined which goat was sacrificed to the Lord and which was set aside. The high priest would then transfer the sins of the people onto this unfortunate ‘scapegoat’ and send it into the wilderness where it died of thirst. (Death - the ultimate price of all sin)
1135. WILL TAKE YOUR WORD FOR IT
There are apparently 1792 steps to the top of the Eiffel Tower. (Haven’t checked it out for myself - yet!)
A WORD PUZZLE FOR YOU
Make another word from this word using all the letters.
HEIRLESS
Answer at the end of A David Musing
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BIBLE QUESTION - THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW
14: In the parable of the workers in the vineyard, why were some of the labourers unhappy with being paid only one penny?a. They had been promised two pennies
b. Some had worked less hours for the same pay
c. They were made to work overtime for no extra pay
d. They didn't think it was enough for the type of work
Source: http://biblequizzes.org.uk
Heaps more fun and serious 'God Facts' are found at...
IF ONLY I'D THOUGHT OF IT!
"""OTHER'S SAYINGS TO ENLIGHTEN, AMUSE, OR BEMUSE"""SAYINGS FOR YOU TO PONDER
!!!!!!! You cannot stumble if you are on your knees.
!!!!!! Most of the world's useful work is done by people who are pressed for time, or are tired, or don't feel well.
!!!!! Humility is a strange thing ~ the moment you think you have it, you have lost it.
!!!! Sin leaves a mark, just as a nail leaves a hole in furniture ~ when you pull the nail out, the hole is still there.
!!! The goal of Christianity is not to make good people, but new people.
!! Office sign: If you have nothing to do, please don't do it here.
! He slept beneath the moon; he baked beneath the sun; he lived a life of going to do ~ and died with nothing done.
100'S MORE TO BE FOUND AT...
WORLD'S GREATEST GROANERS!
117. FISH AND CHIPSLost on a rainy night, a nun stumbles across a monastery and requests shelter there.
Fortunately, she's just in time for dinner and was treated to the best fish and chips she had ever tasted.
After dinner, she went into the kitchen to thank the chefs. She was met by two of the Brothers.
The first one says, "Hello, I am Brother Michael, and this is Brother Charles."
"I'm very pleased to meet you," replies the nun. "I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful dinner. The fish and chips were the best I've ever had. Out of curiosity, who cooked what?"
Brother Charles replied, "Well, I'm the fish friar."
She turned to the other Brother and said, "Then you must be....?"
"Yes, I'm afraid so -- I am the chip monk."
PS: Still New Zealand's favourite fast food. Best eaten straight out of the paper they come wrapped up in! Enjoy!
118. OLD HABITS
Several Nuns were in there second floor convent one night when a fire broke out. The Nuns took their habits off and tied them together to make a rope to get out of the building via the window.
After they were safely on the ground and out of the building, a news reporter came over to one of the Nuns and said to her, "Weren't you afraid that the habits could have ripped or broke since they are old?
The Nun Replied, "No, don't you know old habits are hard to break".
119. NEW STAFF
Microbiology Lab: Staph Only!
120. FAR AWAY.......
Far away in the tropical waters of the Caribbean, two prawns were swimming around in the sea - one called Justin and the other called Christian.
Prawns were constantly being harassed and threatened by sharks that patrolled the area. Finally, one day during a tropical storm, Justin said to Christian, "I'm bored and frustrated at being a prawn, I wish I was a shark - and then I wouldn't have any worries about being eaten..."
As Justin had his mind firmly on becoming a predator, a flash of lightning hits the water and lo and behold, Justin turns into a shark. Horrified, Christian immediately swims away, afraid of being eaten by his old mate.
Time went on, and Justin found himself becoming bored and lonely as a shark. All his old friends simply swam away whenever he came close to them, Justin hardly realizing that his new menacing appearance was the cause of his sad plight.
During the next tropical storm, Justin figures that the same lightning force could change him back into a prawn. Lightning never strikes twice except in stories like these, but while he was thinking of being a prawn again, a flash of lightning strikes the water next to Justin and lo and behold, he turns back into a prawn. With tears of joy in his tiny little eyes Justin swims back to his friends and buys them all a cocktail.
Looking around the gathering at the reef, he looks for his old pal. "Where's Christian?" he asked. "He's at home, distraught that his best friend changed sides to the enemy and became a shark" came the reply.
Eager to put things right again and end the mutual pain and torture, he sets off to Christian's house. As he opens the coral gate, the memories come flooding back. He bangs on the door and shouts "It's me, Justin, your old friend. Come out and see me again!"
Christian replies, "No way man. You'll eat me. You're a shark; the enemy. I will not be tricked."
Justin cries back, "No I'm not. That was the old me. I've changed ...
.... I'm a prawn again Christian.... !!"
More 'Great Groans' here.....
BIBLE TRIVIA (Strange and Amazing Facts)
THOUGH GOD IS INVISIBLE AND HAS NO BODY PARTS......... the Bible refers to Him using masculine pronouns. We are said to be made 'in His image', according to Genesis.
Adapted from: '1001 Surprising Things You Should Know About The Bible' MacGregor & Prys
'Religion' and 'Christian' suggest shifting vocabulary of faith
04 Apr 2012OregonLive.com
"Religion" is a loaded word -- not just in the minds of people who reject and/or resent religious belief altogether, but increasingly among people of faith.
As Christians prepare to celebrate Easter and their belief in the resurrection of Jesus, some of them cringe at the word "religion."
Many go so far as to resist the term "Christian" because, they say, it carries too much baggage.
"When some people use the word 'Christian,' they mean right wing, Republican, white, judgmental. They don't mean somebody who sees their life's goal as carrying on the work of Jesus in the world," says John Mark Comer, 31, lead pastor of Solid Rock, a growing community of 6,000 adults that meets weekly in three locations in Portland and the suburbs.
"The word 'Christian's' only used a few times in the Bible, and then it's used by people on the outside," Comer says. "The people on the inside -- the word they used dozens of times was 'disciple,' which means 'apprentice' or 'follower.' So when we call ourselves 'a Jesus church,' we mean God has come into the human story in Jesus, and we are a group of people who are his disciples, his apprentices."
In any meaningful discussion or debate, defining terms is an essential first step. But the vocabulary of Christianity shows signs of breaking down. Casual usage and common misunderstandings chip away at the traditional meanings of religious words, and this worries some of the faithful.
"Christianity in the United States is deeply divided," says Marcus J. Borg, an Oregon theologian who writes for "progressive" Christians who, he says, "take the Bible seriously, not literally."
In his 2011 book, "Speaking Christian: Why Christian Words Have Lost Their Meaning and Power," Borg encourages progressive readers to reclaim the language of their faith.
Words like "sin," "righteousness" and "repentance" are misused and misunderstood, he says, but they are essential to Christians trying to live out their faith.
"There are millions who have dropped out of churches because the common meanings of words stopped making compelling sense to them," Borg says. "Christians need to know our own language, or we cease to be Christians."
In January, a YouTube video, "Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus," may have proved his point.
Twenty-four hours after Jefferson Bethke, a 2011 graduate of Pacific University in Forest Grove, posted his video, he'd scored a million hits.
Last week, the tally was more than 20 million. Bethke, 22, a Tacoma native who evangelizes online, contrasted the "example" of Jesus -- as he understands it from the Bible -- with the "experience" of institutional religion, which he's found rigid and hypocritical. Bethke said Jesus opposed "religion." His critics argued that Jesus practiced "religion."
"In the Northwest context, when someone says 'religion,' immediately people think 'hates gays, can't drink beer, and no tattoos,'" Bethke says in an email interview.
"Because of that, I wanted to separate from that word and show that really is not the essence of Jesus at all." Bethke thinks "90 percent of the controversy" resulted from people using the same words differently.
"There is tension in our language between using a dictionary definition of a word and using a street definition of a word," he says.
"No one uses the dictionary definition for 'gay' anymore, and if they did there would probably be some serious miscommunications. I think we have to gauge the culture and understand the power of words and speak in a way that touches hearts and minds."
Monica R. Miller, a post-graduate fellow at Lewis & Clark College, is interviewing young adults for a research project titled "Remaking Religion."
Miller, who also teaches in the school's religious studies department, is surveying young adults in coffee shops, in music clubs and on street corners, asking how they find and describe ultimate meaning in their lives.
What words do they use and what everyday practices shape their perceptions of the world?
She's encountered young adults who say spending Sunday mornings at Powell's City of Books is "sacred" time or deciding on and receiving a particular tattoo is a "spiritual" experience.
"I not only see change in the use of language among young people, but I also see the pushback against traditional language," Miller says.
"'Religion' is bound by institutional context. For youth, religion is only done in institutions of faith, and for them, that's a problem."
DAVID'S DOWNLOAD
A REVELATION OF... DIVIDING THE WATERSA revelation based upon the 3 times the waters were divided in the Bible (The Red Sea with Moses, The River Jordan with Joshua and The River Jordan again with Elijah and Elisha.) and their meanings for the restoration of God's church in these end times.
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WAXING LYRICAL
Celebrating the most important event in history – the death and resurrection of Jesus.To some it may seem like a tragedy but the reality is that it was the final victory for Jesus over sin and death, and through Him, for us too. The ultimate example of the saying, ‘No gain without pain!’ For the pain Jesus suffered that day was indescribable. He was beaten to a pulp, unrecognisable, not at all like the sanitised pictures we have
of this gentle looking man sadly looking down on his followers from the cross. He suffered the most agonising and extreme torture and death that it was possible for the Romans to inflict, and they were real experts at it.
This poem attempts, inevitably inadequately, to describe some of the events of that day, a day that had amazingly, been specifically predicted hundreds of years before it came. Indeed it was foreshadowed from the very time that it became necessary, the moment that Adam and Eve were separated from God through sin.
SEVEN TIMES SHED FOR ME
(Matthew 27:46)"Eloi, Eloi, lama sabaacthani" He cried,
My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?
On the stroke of the ninth hour he died
Rejected, cruelly nailed to the God deserted tree.
My Jesus, shedding his blood for me.
To Gethsemane he came, the holy one
(Luke 22:42) Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me;
Yet not my will, but yours be done.
For I’ll ever be obedient, until you set me free.
(Luke 22:44) Being in anguish he prayed more earnestly,
His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
The disciples exhausted, slept on peacefully.
Returning from his prayers, by Jesus they were found.
My Jesus, he shed his blood for me.
(Luke 22:47) While he was still speaking a crowd came up,
Included traitor Judas, with whom he did sup.
The chief priests, officers, soldiers and all,
They arrested him, for that was their call.
At the chief priests house they questioned him,
(Matthew 26:67) Spit in his face and struck him with their fists.
The cup of his blood now overflowing its rim,
Grieving eyes closing, seeing through mists.
My Jesus, again he shed his blood for me.
So Jesus, my Saviour, to Pilate was now taken,
His determination to do God’s will, never shaken.
(Matthew 27:11) "Are you the king of the Jews?" Pilate demanded,
(27:11) "Yes it is as you say". My Saviour then remanded.
(Matthew 27:23) "What crime has he committed?" The people, they were consulted.
(27:22-3) "Crucify him! Crucify him!" The rabble cried out loud.
(27:26) Then he released Barabbas to them, Pilate’s feelings most insulted,
(27:26) While he had Jesus flogged, simply to please the crowd.
A third time, my Jesus shed his blood for me.
Seven hundred years before that terrible day,
Through the prophet Isaiah my Jesus did say,
(Isaiah 50:6) "I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting",
To happen to Jesus, God’s son, was not befitting.
(Isaiah 50:6)"I offered my back to those who beat me,
My cheeks to those who pulled out my beard."
With beard gone, Oh God, how could it be,
So intense the pain, more than he had feared.
Four times, my Jesus shed his blood for me.
(Matthew (Matthew 27:27) Then the Governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium.
No peace for him there, no place to rest, was no sanatorium,
(27:28) They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him,
Preparing my Jesus to die, out on that awful limb.
(Matthew 27:29) They twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head,
(27:29) They put a staff in his right hand, for truly he was the righteous king.
They used the staff to beat the thorns in deeper and deeper instead,
(27:30) Struck him on the head again and again, making worse his suffering.
Five times, my Jesus shed his blood for me.
Under the weight of the cross, voice slurred,
(Psalm 22:15) "My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth",
Step by step weakening, as he headed south.
(Psalm 22:16) Hung on to the cross, "they pierced my hands and my feet."
(Matthew 27:33-4) At The Place of the Skull. There they offered Jesus wine to drink.
The time was coming near, with his Father again to meet.
His blood poured out, his body near death, it began to shrink.
Six times, my Jesus shed his blood for me.
(Mark 15:33) Darkness came over the whole land until the ninthour,
An ‘awe-full’, fearsome display of God’s fury and power!
(Mark 15:37) With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last,
His worldly pain, now a thing of the past.
(John 9:33) The soldiers came to Jesus and found that he was already dead,
So now there was no need to break his legs.
A lunging spear into his side, spewing forth blood so red,
All poured out, right down to the dregs.
This final time, Jesus shed all his blood for me.
Yes, seven times my Jesus shed his blood for me,
Receiving from the Father, forgiveness of all my sin.
He came to earth; he died, forever to set me free,
He opened the heavenly gates, now to welcome me in.
All because, seven times, Jesus shed his blood for me.
My thanks to Dr Derek Prince for his insights in discovering and teaching this truth.
More of David's offerings at...
A DAVID MUSING
EASTERE is for EGG, the symbol of new life
A is for Jesus, now NO. 1 priority
S is for the SAVIOUR, who died for me
T is for the CROSS on which He died
E is for ENORMOUS, the sacrifice He made
R is for RESSUSECTION, for my eternity
What does EASTER mean to you?
Until next week.......
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD.
His servant and yours
David Tait
Today's 'Word Puzzle' Answer: RELISHES
TODAY'S 'BIBLE QUESTION' ANSWER: b. Some had worked less hours for the same pay. "Such is the kingdom of heaven. Some may labour in the Lord's vineyard for longer, but the reward is the same." (Matthew 20:1-16)
REPRODUCTION OF NEWSLETTER CONTENT
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ABOUT US
WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Hastings, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God’s people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ’s return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord’s direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our websitewwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.
Walking With Jesus Ministries
7 Bull Street
Ahuriri
Napier
New Zealand
Phone: (06) 835 0567 International (+64) 6 835 0567
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz
Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "… so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole – and have a smile while doing it!
For comments upon and contributions to this service, please contact
david@wwj.org.nz