THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW?

GODS v GOD 

Greek (Western) In Greek culture, there was a multiplicity of gods who, although residing in heavenly places, took on the characteristics of men. No one god was capable of reflecting the great diversity of man.

Gods were seen as acting in the human image, exhibiting human emotions such as love and hate, good and evil, rage and happiness. But no single god was capable of encompassing all of these.   

Additionally, the god's behaviour, their morality, changed over time, as determined by the democratic decisions of the majority of the people at the time. There were no godly behavioural absolutes. Therefore the people governed themselves by what they thought to be right at the time.    

This process can be seen in action today, both in the world and in the church.     
In the world, man has effectively set himself up as the supreme ruler, being guided and developed by the gods of education and science. There are no moral absolutes. Morality is developed to suit the desires of the people of the time and place.

In the church too, we have subtly changed from 'knowing God' to 'knowing about God', through our emphasis on theological education. Christianity has gradually absorbed many of the ideas of the world, from a fetish about prosperity, to a major battleground of today, the place of homosexuality within the church. And many, many, others.     

Salvation has become an intellectual pursuit, reflected in structured creeds, rather than a relationship with the person Jesus, the unchanging reflection of God upon the earth.    

Eastern (Hebrew) In the Hebrew, there is only one, unique God. There is no other like Him. He is the ultimate source of life, and all life begins with Him.

This is reflected in the Old Testament, again.....      

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-8) 

and again.....     

6 “This is what the LORD says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. 7 Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come— yes, let him foretell what will come. 8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.” (Isaiah 44:6-8)

Again in the New.....   

4 So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one. 5 For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (1 Corinthians 8:4-6) 

and again.....      

After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed:  

“Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. (John 17:1-5)     

In the Western world we view God as evolving and changing in a linear fashion. This is entirely different to the Jewish way, where God is considered in a cyclical way, illustrated in the natural by the repeated phases of the moon. Biblically, this is reflected in the seasonal 'Feasts of the Lord' which are repeated year after year in a continuous, unchanging pattern, as illustrated in Leviticus 23.....

The Sabbath..... The Passover and Unleavened Bread..... Firstfruits..... Feast of Weeks..... Feast of Trumpets..... Day of Atonement..... Feast of Tabernacles     

God is the one and only 'I AM', who remains constant and unchanged, from generation to generation.....    

14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation (Exodus 3:14-15)

May we never forget.  

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)        

SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY   
1. We are to become one with Jesus through personal relationship with Him. 

2. Knowing about Jesus is not a substitute for knowing Jesus.    

3. We need to stand firm on Biblical principles, not being swayed by the changing morality of the day of the world.       

4. We must make Jesus the lord of our life, and live for Him, irrespective of the cost.

 

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FROM THE WORD

THE WORDS OF JESUS
May we hear what the Lord is saying to us.....  

Parables by the Lake(Matthew 13:1-35, Mark 4:1-34, Luke 8:4-18)

Told from a boat anchored away from the shore, out there because of the size of the crowd. 

Parable of the Sower(Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-29) 

“As he was sowing, some of the seeds fell on the path. The birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on stony ground where there wasn’t much earth where they sprouted quickly. The sun rose and scorched them and they withered because they had no roots. Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked them. Still other seeds fell on good soil. They produced a harvest—some one hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what had been planted. Anybody who has ears should be listening! 

The disciples asked why he spoke in parables. 

“You’re privileged to have revealed to you the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but they’re not given such insights,” “Those who already have will have more given to them, more than enough. But those who don’t have, whatever they have will be taken away from them. That’s why I speak to them in illustrations. For even though they see, they do not see; and even though they hear, they do not hear; nor do they understand.

“The prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled in them: ‘Even though you hear, you won’t understand, and even though you see, you won’t perceive. They have a hard-hearted attitude, they don’t want to listen, and they’ve closed their eyes. If they didn’t they might be able to see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand in their minds. Then they could return to me and I would heal them.’

“Your eyes are blessed, for they see. Your ears are blessed too, for they hear. I’m telling you, many

prophets and good people longed to see what you’re seeing, but didn’t see it. They longed to hear what you’re hearing, but didn’t hear it.

“So listen to the story of the sower. When people hear the message about the kingdom, and don’t understand it, the evil one comes along and rips out what was sown in their heart. This is what happens to the seeds sown on the path. The seeds sown on stony ground are people who hear the message and happily accept it straight away. They last for a while, but because they don’t have roots, when problems and troubles come, they quickly fall away. The seeds sown among thorns are people who hear the message, but then life’s worries and the temptation of money choke the message so that they become fruitless. The seeds sown on good soil are people who hear the message, and understand it, and who produce a good harvest—some one hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what was sown.”

 

Lamp on a Stand(Mark 4:21-5) 

“Who puts a lamp under a bucket, or beneath a bed?” “No, you put a lamp up on a lampstand. Everything that is hidden will be revealed, and everything that is secret will be brought out into the open. 23If you have ears to hear, listen to what I’m saying! Pay attention to what you’re hearing,” “for you will be given according to how much you want to receive, measure for measure. More will be given to those who already have understanding, but those who don’t want to know will have what little understanding they have taken from them.

(Continued next week) 

 

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A MUZUNGU’S (White Man’s) THOUGHT – Issue 32

A MUZUNGU’S (White Man’s) THOUGHT – Issue 32

REPENTANCE THE KEY TO SPITIUAL AWAKENING

My wife, Kathy, listens to online preachers at this time of trouble in the world, and at other times too.

One of the key themes I here is looking forward to a third or just a new awakening.

Yet I do not hear about the spiritual conditions necessary to bring it on. Most seem to think, in the Father Christmas Christianity church in which we live, that the reduction in gifts which we are all experiencing now will be sufficient to bring down the Holy Spirit in power.

I am sorry, this is simply false teaching, along with the insidious, false prosperity teachings at its source that have taken over much of the church today to a greater or lesser extent.

Yes, God is love. He loves you and me and all fellow believers, indeed all humanity. He does not desire to see anyone perish.

Yet that is not the full story. To participate in the intimacy of God’s love, there are certain conditions.

But surely David, salvation is a free gift? While it is free and available to all, there are conditions required to receive it.

Let us read…..

Repent or Perish

13 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. ² Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? ³ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (Luke 13:1-5)

again…..

“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15)

and again…..

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”(Acts 2:38)

REPENTANCE IS AT THE HEART OF OUR CHRISTIAN WALK. WITHOUT REPENTANCE WE DO NOT SHARE ON GOD’S GOODNESS NOR PARTICIPATE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT.

So, if our desire is to participate in a personal spiritual awakening, let us repent of all those things in our lives that are not of God and acknowledge Jesus as our personal Saviour and Lord.

WITHOUT REPENTANCE THERE IS NO FORGIVENESS OF SIN.

You may say that I repented when I accepted Jesus initially. That is great, but it is not all.

Repentance is an ongoing process, past present and future. That is the Jewish understanding. Jesus was e Jew. We have been saved, we are being saved and we will be saved. Both repentance and salvation are ongoing, not a single event. That is the way of the Lord.

May we put aside our complacency and pride, seek the Lord’s face and confess to all unconfessed sin in our life.

Don’t believe me? Believe Scripture, where Jesus rebuked the church in Laodicea, the picture of today’s church, being neither hot nor cold…..

¹⁹ Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. ²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

And the reward is the ultimate one of all the Revelation churches…..

²¹ To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

What a spiritual awakening that is!

Amen.

Shukrani

(Thank You)

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'THE WORDS OF JESUS' REMAIN 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.

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DAVID'S DOODLINGS

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TUESDAY TEACHINGS

NEXT WEEK: TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHURCH: 3. FROM KINGS TO KINGDOM continues.....

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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. ***     

 

QWIK QWIP: “It sometimes looks foolish for folks to be spending so much time loving their enemies when they should be treating their friends a little better.”

 

396. Speed Reading

The parson had been disturbed by a person who was a fast reader. "We shall now read the Twenty-third Psalm in unison," he announced. "Will the lady who is always by 'the still waters' while the rest of us are in 'green pastures,' please wait a minute until we catch up?"

 

 

397. Amen, Preach!

"Amen, Preach!"

Preacher: "This church is just like a baby, and every baby has to learn to crawl."

The congregation shouts out, "Amen Preach, let her crawl.."

The Preacher continues: "But nobody stays a baby forever. After a while this church is going to stand and walk."

Congregation: "Amen, Preach it--Let her walk."

Preacher goes on: "And after a while this church is not just going to stand or walk, it's going to run!"

Congregation: "Amen Preach, let her run."

Preacher: "And in order for this Church to run it needs to give!"

Congregation: "Let her crawl Preach, Let her crawl"

 

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A DAVID MUSING

Covid-19 has brought up many issues in all our lives. Food supply, isolation, loneliness, boredom, things out of our control, and many many more. 

Here in Kenya, things are not so bad. Meetings are banned and we have a curfew overnight. A complete lockdown would not work well, for many people would die of hunger, as they live on a day to day basis. Plus, there is no Social Security. You work or you die, or you have to be looked after by your extended family. Kenyan welfare system! 

Spiritually though, this outbreak is a great opportunity to reflect on the place of God in our lives. Many of us have plenty of time to do so. 

Ultimately, who do we rely on?

In New Zealand, where we came from, the Government is providing a welfare net to help people with their expenses, even if they lose their job. Others will have savings to draw on. 

Most people, therefore, look to the Government for their provision.

But can I suggest that we spend time in the Word of God, the Bible, and see what God has to say to us about times of trouble in life. You may be in for a pleasant surprise!

Until next time.....

MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD

His servant and yours 

David Tait

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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 website
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Walking With Jesus Ministries
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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!

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