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: 686 Published: 08 Dec 2014
TWENTY-FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS
Not clearly numbered and listed, as in the Old Testament outward Law of the 10 Commandments, they are found among the teachings of Jesus in the 4 Gospels, and are available for all who have a heart to seek them.We all too easily think, with the emphasis that Jesus places on love and forgiveness, that he didn't teach any absolutes. But, as can be seen here, Jesus did place boundaries on believer's behaviour, along with instructions for Godly living.
I have grouped these into 3 categories for easier comprehension.
Don't take my word for it! Study the Scriptures!
David Tait
Walking With Jesus Ministries
www.wwj.org.nz
LOVE THE 25 COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS!
BRILLIANT!
Dr Bernie Wade
President - ICOF Global Union
You may download the PDF here.....
WHOSE CHURCH IS IT ANYWAY?
THE POST APOSTOLIC CHURCHThe major question now is, "where is the church of the 21st Century heading".
Fourteen years into the new century, it is becoming more apparent that God is 'doing a new thing'. But as we have seen over the past 2000 years, through the Dark Ages, the Reformation and the Holy Spirit revivals of the 20th century, the Holy Spirit will always be to the fore of what transpires.
Regrettably from a human perspective, all past movements of the Holy Spirit have come to an end, primarily because man has codified them and taken over. Like Moses, the world's humblest man and the closest to God before Jesus, when he hit the rock, (which he had done successfully before to bring water), rather than talk to it as God had instructed him to do,(Numbers 20:13) man has always seemingly known better than God. This cost Moses the opportunity to take the Israelites into the Promised Land.
So where do we go from here? What is God doing here and now, and into the future.
THE CHALLENGE OF..... LIVING THE KINGDOM LIFESTYLE
To conclude this series on the history of the church, past, present and likely future from a Holy Spirit anointing perspective, I will finish, over the weeks ahead, by looking at the 'Parables of Jesus' which set out the principles of living a kingdom lifestyle.
The relevant Scriptures can be accessed by clicking on the blue links.
THE PARABLE OF THE WEDDING BANQUET
Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 4 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless. 13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.†(Matthew 22:1-14)
This parable was spoken in the Temple, just 2 or 3 days before Jesus was crucified. Jesus had been rejected by the Jews, in particular, the religious leaders. Because of their disobedience to God, being too enamoured with traditional religious form rather than the present substance of Jesus, they would miss out on the kingdom. As we have seen elsewhere, they would have understood, but again ignored the message.
Surely this contains a warning to us today as well? Are we letting our precious denominational beliefs and paradigms get in the way of entering the kingdom?
Jesus started His ministry with a wedding, at Cana in Galilee, (see http://www.wwj.org.nz/pdf/wwj17p56.pdf) and the final act of the age will also be a wedding, between Jesus and His church.
Revelation 19:7
The wedding guests, that is the church, are to be dressed in fine the linen of righteousness.
Revelation 19:8
Unfortunately, within the church, there are those who are not clothed in the wedding dress of righteousness. Sadly, there are many in this situation who will be thrown out to live in eternal darkness at judgment time. Jesus made the point here that there will be many who reject His saving grace, both outside and within the church.
This truth is taught in other parables also, such as the tares and the wheat and the wide and narrow roads.
Matthew 13:40KJV, Matthew 7:13-14
Which road are you walking on?
So we can continue to say.....
THE TRUE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS ARE ONES WHO ARE OBEDIENT TO THE LEADING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THEIR LIVES.
(Continues next week)
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FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUS continuedThe Disciples Ask About the Future of Israel (Acts 1:4-11)
“You don’t need to know about the dates and times that are set by the Father’s authority,†he told them.
“But you will be given power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the furthest places on earth.â€
Jesus Commissions the Disciples (Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-18)
Immediately prior to His Ascension
“Go to the whole world, and announce the good news to everyone. “Anyone who trusts in me and is baptized will be saved, but anyone who chooses not to trust will be condemned. The following signs will accompany those who trust in me: in my name they will drive out demons; they will speak new languages; they will be able to handle snakes; if they drink something poisonous they won’t be harmed; they will place their hands on the sick and they will be healed.â€
“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. So go and make disciples of people of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to follow all the commands I have given you. Remember, I am always with you, to the very end of the world.â€
(Continued next week)
You can download the complete 'Words of Jesus' here.
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'THE WORDS OF JESUS' NOW AVAILABLE FOR PDF DOWNLOAD
Join the many who have downloaded the 'The Words of Jesus'. I am sure you will be blessed by it, as I have been.One key element here is the setting out in chronological order (as far as it is possible to do so) our Lord's words drawn from all the Gospels, and the elimination of repetition between Gospels.
You may be surprised by the different perspective this presentation gives you both in understanding of His life and ministry, and in achieving a closer relationship with Him.
Download the free PDF here.....
DAVID'S DOODLINGS
THE RESURRECTION1295. How I long for my resurrection body!
1296. To be resurrected I must first die. a hard lesson to learn!
1297. While all desire resurrection, few are prepared to pay the price of the cross.
1298. The price of eternal life is death - Jesus' and mine!
1299. As a flower dies to produce the seed of new life, so must I.
1300. Jesus resurrected is a glimpse of the glorious kingdom of God.
1301. The cross qualifies me to walk in resurrection power.
1302. Death is the price of resurrection.
1303. Once we can walk through walls, will there any longer be a need for doors?
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
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
THIS WEEK: BEYOND THE VEIL – 2NEW TESTAMENT REVELATION ON ATONEMENT THE BOOK OF HEBREWS
The interpretation of the Day of Atonement is an underlying theme of a good part of the New Testament, particularly the book of Hebrews which is largely devoted to this theme.
We will see how.
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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. ***
122. THE WORD
Our five-year-old son went to a church conference with my wife and me. He got restless, so my wife handed him a pad and pencil and suggested he mark down every time the speaker said the word "and." After a while, he grew bored, and I asked,
"Would you like to listen for a different word?"
"Yes," he whispered. "I'd like to listen for 'Amen'."
121. VISITING CHURCH - AGAIN!
A one-dollar note met a twenty-dollar note and said, "Hey, where have you been? I haven't seen you around here much."
The twenty answered, "I've been hanging out at the casinos, went on a cruise and did the rounds on the ship, back to the United States for a while, went to a couple of baseball games, to the mall, that kind of stuff. How about you?"
The one dollar note said, "You know, same old stuff - church, church, church."
120. PERFECTION
An evangelist had a great revival camp going. One night he was up in front of a large audience, speaking on imperfection. He asked his audience towards the end, "Has anyone ever known anyone who has come CLOSE to the perfection of our lord, Jesus Christ?" Nobody, of course raised their hand. So he issued the question again. "Anybody! Has ANYONE ever known that kind of perfection?"
Finally a guy in the back raised his hand, so of course he was asked to stand up. "Tell us. Tell us who you knew who was so close to perfection."
The man responded, "My wife's first husband."
"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: What do you call a group of turtles?ANSWER: Often called a ‘herd’, but the correct collective term is a ‘bale’ of turtles. (Turtles are very particular about this!)
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: What is a ‘Limey’?
Answer Next Week.
SOME FUN FACTS 618. BULKY SPRINTER
The hippopotamus can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot (120cm) child inside yet can still run faster than a man. (Hippopower heads horsepower handsomely.)
619. PI PLEASE
If you need to remember the formula for ‘Pi’, simply count the letters of each word in the following sentence. ‘May I have a large container of coffee?’ If you are extra polite and say ‘thank you’, you will get 2 further places. (3.141592653 to be exact!)
620. POKER PLEASE
There are 2,598,960 possible five card combinations available when dealing from a deck of 52 cards. (Stop! My memory can’t take it all in.)
A WORD PUZZLE FOR YOU
Make another word from this word using all the letters.
RIPPED
Answer at the end of A David Musing
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BIBLE TRIVIA 1
2: Which high priest is Zechariah told to crown?a. Joshua
b. Zadok
c. Hilkiah
d. Eliashib
Source: http://biblequizzes.org.uk
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IF ONLY I'D THOUGHT OF IT!
"""OTHER'S SAYINGS TO ENLIGHTEN, AMUSE, OR BEMUSE"""SAYINGS FOR YOU TO PONDER
!!!!!!! The Scripture passages that bother me the most are the ones I understand.
!!!!!! Did you hear about the undertaker who closed his letters with the words "Eventually Yours"?
!!!!! Some people talk, not because they have something to say, but because they have to say something.
!!!! A curious person who asks questions may be a fool for five minutes ~ he who never asks questions remains a fool forever.
!!! To really know a man, observe his behaviour with a woman, a flat tyre, and a child.
!! A shady business never yields a sunny life.
! A gossip is just a fool with a keen sense of rumour.
100'S MORE TO BE FOUND AT...
LIFE'S A LAUGH
162. THE BANK ACCOUNTHer mother decided that 10-year-old Susie should get something practical for her birthday. "Suppose we open a savings account for you?" she suggested. Susie was delighted.
"It's your account, darling," Susie's mother said as they entered at the bank, "so you fill out the application."
Susie was doing fine until she came to the space for "Name of your former bank".
With just a slight hesitation, she put down "Piggy"
163. GOLFING
My husband was a Navy chaplain deployed to the Persian Gulf at the end of Desert Storm. I did everything possible to ensure our three young children wouldn't be worried about
their father's being in danger. It wasn't always easy, but I knew I'd succeeded when someone at church asked our three-year-old where his dad was. He replied, "He's in Persia, golfing."
164. THE REAL TRUTH
Carolyn's car was in for service so her son picked Miss C up from work one evening, and she seemed a bit irritated. Carolyn complained that the day hadn't gone well, and on top of everything else, a young customer had addressed her as "Ma'am."
"I'm not that old!!!" Carolyn insisted. "I deserve more respect."
Miss C continued to vent the whole way home while hitting the scan button on the radio. Finally her son asked, "Mom what are you looking for?"
Carolyn replied, "The oldies station."
Just have a laugh at life here.....
Iranian Converts Bringing Life to German Church
CBN NewsBERLIN -- Parts of Germany are among the most godless areas in the world. Polling shows that belief in God in the old communist east is only 13 percent.
But church attendance is growing, thanks to former Muslims from Iran. At the House of God's Help (Church) in Berlin, Persian converts to Christianity have doubled the size of the congregation.
"It came like an unexpected summer rain," church deaconess Rosemarie Götz said. "Suddenly new people started coming every week and asked to be baptized."
"In the beginning only five or six Iranians came. They were easy to spot and we got to know them," she continued. "And then over time they brought their friends and neighbors."
Hungry for Freedom
Germany has experienced a surge in Islam this year. Muslims conducted a nationwide campaign to give away Korans in a country that has largely turned its back on biblical Christianity.
But Iranian immigrants, or Persians, have already experienced the darkness and oppression of Islam in their native land, and they are hungry for the freedom and joy of Christianity.
"I met a few times with friends in Tehran in an underground church in a flat and there we spoke about Jesus," one man named Michael, who attends the church, told CBN News. "We held Bible studies but sometimes without an actual Bible. And five years ago I was baptized in a bathtub."
All the Persians CBN News talked to accepted Christ in Iran and then had to either flee or risk prison or death.
"I was going to a house church meeting when I saw police outside the flat, so I didn't go in," another church member named David told CBN News. "And later I called home and my mother said,' The police were here looking for you.' So I knew I couldn't go home, so they helped me flee the country."
A woman named Nafiseh said it was difficult to learn about Christianity in Iran.
"Because it's forbidden when someone is a Muslim and they want to become a Christian," she said. "My husband at that time was a Muslim and when he learned that I wanted to become a Christian, he forbade me."
"It was really difficult; I had to leave my parents, so I lost my home, my family," she said.
Real Conversions?
Götz said some of the converts were surprised to find so many Germans disinterested in Christianity.
"Most of them became Christians in Iran and know more about Christianity than you would expect," she said. "They're ahead of us in a sense because they have already been persecuted for Christ and they figured out really quickly that a lot of Germans are Christians in name only. And they're disappointed that Germans take religious freedom for granted."
Some Germans are suspicious of the conversions because being baptized can help a refugee stay in Germany rather than be deported. So, Götz makes the Persian converts go through a rigorous schedule of Bible classes.
"I did suspect that some of them just wanted to be baptized so they could get their residency in Germany, but that has turned out to be the case with only a few," she said. "In fact, some of those who have already been baptized have come back to our faith and baptism class for the fourth time."
National Phenomena
It's not known how many Persian immigrants have converted and joined churches in Germany, but it has become a nationwide phenomenon, and the baptisms are said to number in the thousands.
At the House of God's Help, it has reinvigorated the congregation.
"These young, energetic, diligent Iranian Christians have brought a little revival from Iran to our congregation," Götz said. "And I'm thankful that out members opened their hearts to them."
Via: OpenHeaven.com
DAVID'S DOWNLOAD
A REVELATION OF... THE 3 RIVERS OF GODThe principle of the 'river' in scripture and how it applies to our lives and the church today.
Download your free PDF Files here.....
WAXING LYRICAL
Just couldn’t leave out this story of the sailing of my friend Neil’s yacht from Whangarei to Tauranga, a 30 hour journey down the North Island of New Zealand’s east coast.One of the longest 30 hours of my life!
DAYS OF ‘CHUNDER’! Part 2
By now my stomach, surely was bare,
Empty of food, with the sea to share!
But how little about myself, do I know,
For there was still a little left, to let go!
And let go I did, four times more,
The sea now, really settling the score.
Before calming down all the rest of the way,
"Beginning to enjoy this," I could now say.
Of course, all adventures do come to an end,
Back on solid earth, my time now to spend.
I had conquered the challenge inside of me,
My fear overcome – with a little difficulty!
As I reflect upon what I have done,
Of a victory earned, a race won.
The surprising parallel of life at sea
With God’s working, occurs to me.
For as He continues to purify us in the fire,
To remove the dross of sin, as is His desire.
It can be likened to the act of ‘chunder’,
Which wrenches the stomach asunder!
To empty ones gut, overboard,
With some, will strike a chord.
An example of removing sin from life,
As God seeks, to keep us from strife.
Letting go of things, is not always easy,
Amazing, how we hold on to the sleazy!
But once we have given our homely habit away,
We wonder, why so long, we allowed it to stay.
But surely Lord, there can be no more!
I’m good enough now, to be in your store.
But like the spew spraying forth, from the gut to the sea,
The Lord finds more that needs changing, inside of me.
No more Lord! Please – I’ve had enough,
My life’s spew is horrible tasting stuff!
But as the seemingly endless bouts of ‘chunder’ go on,
A voice says "eat my food, and your sickness will be gone."
For as we give over our desires to Him,
He then rebuilds us, limb upon limb.
Until we come into His likeness you see,
Yes, that’s the place, He wants us to be.
More of David's poetry here.....
A DAVID MUSING
From nothing to share last week (hence the nonsense verse) to my crowning as 'GYM JUNKIE OF THE MONTH' at the local gym I attend. I trust you can notice the change in me! LOL!The award is simply based upon attendance, and I am s regular. More regular than anyone else last month, I guess!
Not based on performance - which isn't to bad though, for an old codger! I am very ungodly when I can get satisfaction out of lifting heavier weights than some of those half my age! Repentance required!
In our PC world, in New Zealand anyway, success and standing out from the crowd is so often frowned upon. (Not that I do stand out from the gym crowd, in reality)
In the church, worldly measures of success are all too often equated with godliness. True success in God though is defined through our character. We need to check out Matthew, chapters 5-7 to see how you measure up.
For my primary desire is to win the 'race of life', a race all can enter and win if we so desire.
Now, back to the gyms - of fitness and of life!
So until next week.....
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD
His servant and yours
David Tait
Today's 'Word Puzzle' Answer: DIPPER
TODAY'S 'BIBLE QUESTION' a. Joshua (Zechariah 6:9-15)
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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