Eternity is a Long Time

    How many times have you said something and then immediately wanted to take back what you said? Unfortunately, there is no delete key for spoken words. Often, it happens in moments of passion and emotion where we let our words get ahead of our brain and we wish we could be anywhere else in the world.   Our tongues can be so useful and helpful. We can educate, instruct, entertain, uplift, encourage and help people with our words.   We can also insult, condemn, put down, hurt, lie, discourage and injure people with our words which come out of the same mouth as the good words.   The tongue can be a mighty weapon which can be used for good or bad and the consequences, both good and bad, sometimes far exceed the initial intent of the words.     Two other points need to be made before we go into the Bible verses. First, there are times when words need to be used as a weapon. Secondly, the hearer of the words has a responsibility to have grace and understa...

  People who live at the end of an airfield or next to a railroad track soon get very used to the noise and, eventually, don't even hear it. So too with sin for so many. These people - even professed Christians - allow themselves to get so used to their sin that the voice of the Holy Spirit becomes less and less audible until, unfortunately, it fades into oblivion. The awareness of the silenced sin can be awakened for most if there is some crisis or significant event, but not for all. There's a reason why it says not to grieve the Holy Spirit for you never know if you've gone too far. The key to the Prodigal Son is the son not only awakened to his sin but DID the right thing regarding it which was to humble himself and seek forgiveness. Sadly, too many people do not do the right thing regarding their sins even when they become aware of them. I speak from experience. Twice after I was saved, was I transformed by the hand of God out of specific sins - one that was ruining my ...

  The application and the foreshadowing in Hosea 5:15-6:2 is amazing! God said: "I will return again to my place, until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face, and in their distress earnestly seek me. Israel and Judah Are Unrepentant" (Hosea 5:15 ESV) And the people replied: “Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him." (Hosea 6:1-2 ESV) God wants us to turn to him with urgency and do so consistently; not just a one time crying out. The two days mentioned by the people before God raises them up is profound. Jonah was in the belly of the whale 3 days and it must have seemed like an eternity to him - but it was only 2 full days as Jonah was repenting and on the third day Jonah was released. This passage from Hosea, written 500 years or so before Jesus suffered on the ...

  How a God, if there is a God, can allow evil or, at the very least, bad things, to exist has been a sticking point for some people for centuries. In many cultures, this issue was dealt with through a pantheon of gods who were very similar to humans – just with greater powers. But with the advent of Judaism and, eventually, Christianity, people were being presented with an omnipotent and omniscient God, who created the cosmos as well as life on Earth yet, at the same time, allows evil to exist in the world. How could this be? After all, is it not a blatant inconsistency for an all good God to have any evil, anywhere, at all? If the argument is made from the Bible, then its legitimacy, along with the very validity of God, has to be established. This essay will describe some of the philosophical issues of evil vis-à-vis God as well as dealing with whether God is and if the Bible is to be relied upon. Evil can be broken down into two parts, as John Hick explains, moral evil or wicked...

  There are so many things that we do that are known but to God. There are some good things and some real bad things that we have done that absolutely no one knows anything about – except God. God will judge you for all those things you did wrong, each and every one, unless you put on the righteousness of Jesus. There is nothing you can do, on your own, that can save you from this judgment. The great thing is, once you open your heart to Jesus and trust Him, you can deal with all the stuff life throws at you so much better. Jesus is your absolute best friend and comforter.

  One of the more shocking stories in the New Testament is about the deaths of Ananias and his wife, Sapphira as told in Acts 5:1-11 . The couple lied to the Apostles, and God, about the money they were giving. They claimed to be giving all proceeds from the sale of their property but they kept some back for themselves. For this act both of them were struck dead after being confronted with their misdeed. They did not even give any defense of their action that is recorded. Now contrast this with what happens to a man called Simon who was a person performing amazing abilities in Samaria as depicted in Acts 8:4-25 . Many Bible translations say that Simon was a sorcerer but the Greek word here seems to indicate more someone who is impressing his audience with greater knowledge and technology rather than someone dealing in the occult. Be that as it may, Simon believed in Jesus but had not received the Holy Spirit. When Peter and John arrived (v14) and started laying hands on people, Sim...

Oh, for a peak into eternity. To see the heavenly hosts who are around us yet not visible. My late mother-in-law told my wife about the angels just before she died. She said they were very nice angels and she wasn't afraid of them at all. My wife regrets not asking more questions about what they looked like and what they were doing. She just wanted to make sure her Mom was comforted - which she was. Angels are around us all the time - both good ones and evil. The more we lean on Jesus, the more the evil angels (devils or demons) are forced to stay away. However, if we indulge in sin, they are right there encouraging us.