Read Ezekiel 38 & 39

EARTH TO EUROPE, RUSSIA: HAMAS MUST BE CRUSHED, NOT CODDLED

By Joel C. Rosenberg

(Washington, D.C., December 31, 2008) -- The Gaza war rages on with no immediate end in sight. Indeed, Israeli sources tell me a ground operation into Gaza is not yet definite, but is likely.


Israel has rightfully rejected a French-proposed 48 hour cease-fire, saying the Gaza operation will continue until Israel's goal of shutting down the terrorist rocket threat is accomplished. The leaders of the European Union, Russia, and many governments around the world are putting enormous pressure on Israel to stop defending the Jewish people and stop attacking the terrorist strongholds in Gaza. This is crazy. Why do the Europeans and Russians have such a double-standard when it comes to Israeli national security?


More than 6,300 rockets and missiles have been fired at Israel by Hamas since Israeli withdrew its military forces from Gaza in 2005. Some 400 rockets have been fired at Israel just since December 19th. Would the French or Germans agree to a cease-fire if they were being hit by hundreds and thousands of rockets, missiles, and mortars by enemies sworn to annihilate them? Of course not. The Russians invaded Georgia for far, far less.


"We didn't initiate the Gaza operation in order to end it while Israeli towns are still under fire, as they were before the operation," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told reporters. "Israel has shown restraint for years; she gave the truce a chance; we told ourselves 'let's try it,' but Hamas violated the truce."


I don't often say this, but Olmert is right. Hamas must be crushed, not coddled. Yet the world is trying to coddle these Palestinian Radical Islamic jihadists. It's an outrage. The onus is on the Hamas terrorists to lay down their arms and stop firing rockets into Israel. Until that happens, the IDF should continue fighting.


It pains me to see the suffering on both sides, but this is entirely Hamas' responsibility. They were urged by Egypt, by Mahmoud Abbas, and by the Israelis not to let the previous cease-fire lapse, but they chose war instead. They have never been hit this hard. Indeed, Gaza has not seen this level of fighting since 1967.


Israelis living within rocket range are truly safe and secure. Yet, the Islamic Radicals in Gaza don't appear ready to surrender. To the contrary, Hamas is using longer-range rockets than ever before - some of them made in Iran - putting hundreds of thousands of more Israeli at risk than in previous clashes. Hamas has already fired more than 50 rockets, mortars and missiles at Israel as of 4pm local time (9am eastern). Two hit the Israeli city of Beersheva last night, some 28 miles from Gaza. This is the first time Beersheva has ever been in range of Gaza-fired rockets. Haaretz reports that no one was injured but 40 people were treated for shock. The city is rattled, and theaters, cinemas and other shops and businesses are shutting down. Rockets also continue to hit the town of Sderot, and the Israeli coastal cities Ashkelon and Ashdod. I'm told that most of the children in Sderot have been evacuated from the town. Many are now temporarily relocated to northern Israeli cities and towns, such as Haifa.


Iran, in addition to providing Hamas longer-range rockets, is also now apparently recruiting some 10,000 volunteer suicide bombers to attack Israel.


With Prayers and Support for the Troops= Canadian - Israel - USA jnh

Trusting God in 2009 here are some ...

... Interesting thoughts:

One of the biggest mathematical miracles in the world centers around
Moses and the people of Israel. Moses and the people of Israel were in
the desert, but what was he going to do with them? They had to be fed,
and feeding 3 or 3 1/2 million people would require a lot of food.


According to the Quartermaster General of the Army, it is reported
that Moses would have to have 1500 tons of food each day. Did you know
that to bring that amount of food each day, two freight trains, each a
milelong, would be required? Besides, you must remember, they were out
in the desert, and they would have to have firewood to cook the food.


This would take 4000 tons of wood and a few more freight trains, each a
mile long, for one day.


And just to think, they were forty years in transit.


Oh, yes, they would have to have water. If they only had enough to
drink and wash a few dishes, it would take 11,000,000 gallons each day,
and a freight train with tank cars 11.8 miles long, just to bring water.
They had no lakes, and only a few wells. How were they to get water?


And then another thing . . . ! They had to get across the Red Sea in
one night. Now if they went on a narrow path, double file, the line
would be 800 miles long and would require 35 days and nights to get
through. So, there had to be space in the Red Sea 3 miles wide so they
could walk 5000 abreast to get over in one night. But, then, another
problem. ..


Every time they camped at the end of the day, a campground 2/3's the
size of Rhode Island, or a total of 750 square miles, was needed. That
comprises an area 25 miles wide and 30 miles long. Think of it! This
space just for nightly camping. Do you think Moses figured all this out
before he left? I think not. You see, Moses believed in God, and that
God was going to take are of these things for him.

Let us take courage, we have the same God!

We think our problems are so big.

Remember what God can do!


Just team up with God, and your problems will be in His care. Let him
run your life, and as the old song says: "He will take care of you."

In God We Trust.

THE COLD WITHIN

Six men were trapped by circumstance in bleak and bitter cold,
Each one possessed a stick of wood, or so the story's told.
The dying fire was in need of logs, but the first man held his back,
Because looking at the faces round the fire, he noticed one was black.


The second man saw not one of his own local church...
And he couldn't bring himself to give the first stick of birch.
The poor man sat in tattered clothes and gave his coat a hitch.
Why should he give up his log to warm the idle rich?


The rich man sat and thought of all the wealth he had in store,
And how to keep what he had earned from the lazy, shiftless poor.
The black man's face spoke revenge and the fire passed from his sight,
Because he saw in his stick of wood a chance to spite the white.


The last man in this forlorn group did naught except for gain,
Giving only to those who gave to him was how he played the game.
Their logs held tight in death's still hands was proof of human sin.
They didn't die from cold without... they died from the cold within.

In Times of Trouble...

In times of trouble, God’s trusting child may say;


First: He brought me here; it is by His will. I am in this strait place; in that will I rest.


Next: He will keep me here in His love, and give me grace in this trial to behave as His child.


Then: He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons he intends me to learn and working in me the grace He means to bestow.


Last: In His good time He can bring me out again – how and when He knows.


Say: I am here –

1. By God’s appointment.


2. In His keeping.


3. Under His training.


4. For His time.


“And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.” Psalm 50:15

Follow up, on Glenn Beck's Mormon Testimony

Glenn Beck's Mormon testimony

click on blue "Focus on the Family..." for youtube video

Focus on the Family Embraces Mormonism

from sliceoflaodicea.com by Ingrid Schlueter

From THIS article:

Focus on the Family, the evangelical organization founded by Dr. James Dobson, has removed from its website an interview with former CNN host Glenn Beck following complaints over the politically conservative TV personality’s Mormon faith.

The original article about Beck’s best-selling new book, “The Christmas Sweater,” appeared on the ministry’s CitizenLink website on Dec. 19, but three days later an article published on ChristianNewsWire criticized Focus for promoting a Mormon “as a Christian.”

“While Glenn’s social views are compatible with many Christian views, his beliefs in Mormonism are not,” writes Steve McConkey of Underground Apologetics on ChristianNewsWire. “The CitizenLink story does not mention Beck’s Mormon faith, however the story makes it look as if Beck is a Christian who believes in the essential doctrines of the faith.”

The article has since been pulled from the CitizenLink website.

Read more HERE.

Now get ready for His Second Coming ...

CHRIST’S COMING AND OUR RESPONSIBILITY
Luke 12:35-48
Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

:36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.

:37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.

39 And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.

:40 Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

:41 Then Peter said unto him, Lord, speakest thou this parable unto us, or even to all?

:42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?

:43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

:44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath.

:45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;

:46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.

:47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.

:48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.



Announcement of His Coming
“When He cometh” v. 36


Watching for His Coming.
“Shall find watching” v. 37


Reward of His Coming.
“Will come forth and serve them” v. 37


Blessedness of His Coming.
“Blessed are those servants” v. 38


Loss, if not ready for His Coming.
V. 39


Command about His Coming.
“Be ye therefore ready” v. 40



Faithfulness and reward regard His Coming.
Vs. 42-44


Effect of not expecting His Coming.
V. 45



Judgment upon those who are not ready for His Coming.
V. 46-48

Are you ready??

With the price tag on

Greetings from the TRUE NORTH STRONG AND FREE... Canada

Just a few Christmas holiday thoughts from the Hallmarks.

With both Sara and Leah along with their families in Texas, and Andy gallavanting around Europe (he is station in Germany, but has traveled to Czech Republic and talking about going to Austria for snow boarding). That just leaves Dave and Melissa with us here in Prince George as far as family is concern. Dave always said he would be his "mom's favorite" because he will live in Canada.


So on Christmas morning we made our way (three blocks) to Dave's for breakfast. We opened a few gifts and watch as Dave and Melissa open their gifts to each other.


Well, you know most folks take off the price tags, well not Dave and Melissa. They leave the price tags on to show how good of a deal they got. I mean Melissa got Dave a hoody, well the original price was like $47.00 marked down to $35.00 with the final sale price of $20.00. Boy, was that a BIG deal with them, and every gift was that way. Showing each other how much they saved.


We had Dave and Melissa over for Christmas Supper and gave them their gifts. I gave Dave a gun case for his new Ruger 10-22 he had brought earlier this years. He made the comment that there was a side case in which he could carry his 'banana clip'. Melissa was quick to question why David would need that since Dave doesn't like bananas.


After supper I beat everyone in a game of 'chicken foot, and they made their way home through the snow and cold.


On Boxing Day, December 26 we had an open house here at the Hallmarks. We had 6 of our families and the Badurias from Quesnel, BC dropped by. Great time of food and fellowship.


Now onto the last Sunday of 2008.


God Bless,



--
Bro. Jeff Hallmark
www.sprucelandbaptist.com
http://baptist-potluck.blogspot.com/

Merry Christmas 2008

Merry Christmas

from

Jeff and Regena Hallmark

Billy Sunday on Plain Preaching

Too much of the preaching of today is too nice; too pretty; too dainty; it does not kill.

Too many sermons are just given for literary excellence of the production. They get a nice adjective, or noun, or pronoun - you cannot be saved by grammar.

A little bit of grammar is alright, but don’t be a big fool and sit around and criticize because the preacher gets a word wrong - if you do that your head is filled with buck oysters and sawdust, if that is all you can use it for...I repeat that everybody who is decent or wants to be decent, will admire you when you preach the truth, although you riddle them when you do it.

One of the prolific sources of unbelief and backsliding today is a bottle-fed church, where the whole membership lets the preacher do the studying of the Bible for them. He will go to the pulpit with his mind full of his sermon and they will come to church with their minds filled with society and last night’s card-playing, beer-and-wine-drinking and novel-reading party and will sit there half asleep.

Many a preacher reminds me of a great big nursing bottle, and there are two hundred or three hundred rubber tubes, with nipples on the end, running into the mouths of two hundred or three hundred or four hundred great big old babies with whiskers and breeches on...sitting there, and they suck and draw from the preacher.

Some old sister gets the AMUSEMENT nipple in her mouth and it sours her stomach, and up go her heels and she yells. Then the preacher has to go around and sing psalms to that big two-hundred and fifty pound baby and get her good-natured so she will go back to church some day.

Your preachers would fight for Christ if some of you fossilated, antiquated old hypocrites didn’t snort and snarl and whine.

--- From Billy Sunday, "A Plain Speech".

The Boneless Tongue

The boneless tongue so small and weak,
Can crush and kill declared the Greek.
The tongue destroys a greater horde
the Turk asserts, than does the sword.


The Persian proverb wisely saith
A lengthy tongue - an early death.
Or sometimes takes this form instead,
Don't let your tongue cut off your head.


The tongue can speak a word whose speed  
The Arab says outstrips the steed.
While Chinese sages thus impart
The tongue's great storehouse is the heart.


From Hebrew wit the maxim's sprung,
Tho' foot may slip ne'er let the tongue.
The sacred writer crowns the whole,
Who keeps his tongue doth keep his soul.

 - Author Unknown

Tragic news from up north

Please don't allow your children to see picture below.











You might not want your wife to see it either.










Thanks D. West

Saturday Spurgeon - Your Own Salvation

A Sermon

Delivered on Lord's-day Morning, July 30th, 1871, by
C. H. SPURGEON,
At the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington

"Your own salvation."—Philippians 2:12.

Spurgeon closing remarks -

Now I must close: but one or two thoughts press me. I must utter them ere I sit down. I would anxiously urge each person here to see to this matter of his own salvation. Do it, I pray you, and in earnest, for no one can do it for you. I have asked God for your soul, my hearer, and I pray I may have an answer of peace concerning you.


But unless you also pray, vain are my prayers. You remember your mother's tears. Ah! you have crossed the ocean since those days, and you have gone into the deeps of sin, but you recollect when you used to say your prayers at her knee, and when she would lovingly say "Amen," and kiss her boy and bless him, and pray that he might know his mother's God.


Those prayers are ringing in the ears of God for you, but it is impossible that you can ever be saved unless it is said of you, "Behold, he prayeth." Your mother's holiness can only rise up in judgment to condemn your wilful wickedness unless you imitate it. Your father's earnest exhortations shall but confirm the just sentence of the Judge unless you hearken to them, and yourselves consider and put your trust in Jesus.


Oh I bethink you each one of you, there is but one hope, and that one hope lost, it is gone for ever. Defeated in one battle, a commander attempts another, and hopes that he may yet win the campaign. Your life is your one fight, and if it be lost it is lost for aye.


The man who was bankrupt yesterday commences again in business with good heart, and hopes that he may yet succeed; but in the business of this mortal life, if you are found bankrupt, you are bankrupt for ever and ever.


I do therefore charge you by the living God, before whom I stand, and before whom I may have to give an account of this day's preaching ere another day's sun shall shine, I charge you see to your own salvation. God help you, that you may never cease to seek unto God till you know by the witness of the Spirit that you have indeed passed from death unto life.


See to it now, now, NOW, NOW. This very day the voice of warning comes to certain of you from God, with special emphasis, because you greatly need it, for your time is short. How many have passed into eternity during this week!


You may yourself be gone from the land of the living before next Sabbath-day. I suppose, according to the calculation of probabilities, out of this audience there are several who will die within a month. I am not conjecturing now, but according to all probabilities these thousands cannot all meet again, it all have a mind to do so.


Who then among us will be summoned to the unknown land?


Will it be you, young woman, who have been laughing at the things of God?


Shall it be yonder merchant, who has not time enough for religion?


Shall it be you, my foreign friend, who have crossed the ocean to take a holiday?


Will you be carried back a corpse?


I do conjure you bethink yourselves, all of you. You who dwell in London will remember years ago when the cholera swept through our streets, some of us were in the midst of it, and saw many drop around us, as though smitten with an invisible but deadly arrow.


That disease is said to be on its way hither again; it is said to be rapidly sweeping from Poland across the Continent, and if it come and seize some of you, are you ready to depart?


Even if that form of death do not afflict our city, as I pray it may not, yet is death ever within our gates, and the pestilence walketh in darkness every night, therefore consider your ways. Thus saith the Lord, and with his word I conclude this discourse:

"Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel."

Glenn Beck's Mormon testimony

click on blue "Focus on the Family..." for youtube video

Focus on the Family Embraces Mormonism

from sliceoflaodicea.com by Ingrid Schlueter

Focus on the Family’s Citizen Link publication presents conservative political talker Glenn Beck’s “Christian” testimony in this month’s online edition. The only problem is, Glenn Beck is a member of the Latter Day Saints. That’s the Mormon Church that teaches that Jesus and Lucifer were spirit brothers. Here’s a web page that shows how Mormonism denies biblical doctrine.

Here is Glenn Beck’s Mormon testimony.

James Dobson and Focus on the Family promotes Glenn's testimony, shame. jnh

Thanks for stopping by ...

Of all the blogs out there on the WWW, you stop by Baptist-potluck. Thanks


It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career, and life itself got in the way In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.

Over the phone, his mother told him, 'Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday.' Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

'Jack, did you hear me?'

'Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,' Jack said.

'Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence,' as he put it,' Mom told him.

'I loved that old house he lived in,' Jack said.

'You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life,' she said.

'He's the one who taught me carpentry,' he said. 'I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important. Mom, I'll be there for the funeral,' Jack said.

As busy as he was, Jack kept his word. He caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

The night before Jack had to return home, he and his mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time.

Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step, every picture, every piece of furniture held memories. Jack stopped suddenly.

'What's wrong, Jack?' his mom asked.

'The box is gone,' he said.

'What box?' Mom asked.

'There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'it's the thing I value most,' Jack said.

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.

'Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him,' Jack said. 'I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom.'

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day, Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. 'Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days,' the note read.

Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. 'Mr. Harold Belser' it read.

Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope.

Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside, 'Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents toJack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life.' A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. Inside, he found a beautiful gold pocket watch.

Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover and found these words engraved:

'Jack, thanks for your time! -Harold Belser.'

'The thing he valued most was my time,' Jack whispered.

Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days.

'Why?' Janet, his assistant, asked.

'I need some time to spend with my son,' he said. 'Oh, by the way, Janet, thanks for your time!'

'Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away,'

Think about this. You may not realize it, but it's 100% true.

1. At least 2 people in this world love you so much they would die for you.

2. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.

3. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if they don't like you.

4. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you before they go to sleep.

5. You mean the world to someone.

6. If not for you, someone may not be living.

7. You are special and unique.

8. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good can still come from it.

9. When you think the world has turned its back on you, take a look: you most likely turned your back on the world.

10. Someone that you don't even know exists loves you.

11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget about the rude remarks.

12. Always tell someone how you feel about them; you will feel much better when they know, and you'll both be happy.

13. If you have a great friend, take the time to let that person know.

To everyone I sent this to:

'Thanks for your time!'

Thanks, Dean West

It was so cold...

It was so cold . . . Starbucks was serving coffee on a stick!


It was so cold . . . hitchhikers were holding up pictures of thumbs!


It was so cold . . . roosters were rushing into Kentucky Fried Chicken andbegging to use the pressure cooker!


It was so cold . . . I chipped a tooth on my soup!


It was so cold . . . we pulled everything out of the freezer and huddledinside it to warm up!


It was so cold . . . UN weapons’ inspectors suddenly decided that chemicalweapons might be hidden in Hawaii!


It was so cold . . . Richard Simmons started wearing pants!


It was so cold . . . the kid’s snowman knocked on the door and asked tosleep on the couch!


And the best one . . .It was so cold . . . we had to chop up the piano for firewood - but we onlygot two chords.

Who Is Your Role Model???

Don't Cheat! Do this - it is really, really great

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL???

Try it without looking at answers

1) Pick your Favorite number between 1-9

2) Multiply by 3, then

3) Add 3, then again Multiply by 3 (I'll wait while you get the calculator....)

4) You'll get a 2 or 3 digit number..

5) Add the digits together (i.e. 31: 3+1=4)

Now Scroll down ..............

Now with that number see who your ROLE MODEL
is from the list below :

1. Einstein

2. Nelson Mandela

3. Arnold Schwarzenegger

4. David Beckham

5. Bill Gates

6. Gandhi

7. Brad Pitt

8. Hitler

9. Jeffery N. Hallmark

10. George W. Bush

I know....I just have that effect on people....one day you too can be like me.... :-) Believe it!

PS. Stop picking different numbers.

NOW CHANGE YOUR NAME IN NO. 9 AND SEND IT ON!!
HAHA

The Silent Preacher

I preach some weighty sermons,
But utter not a word;
And tell folks things worth hearing,
Although I can’t be heard.


Born of a love for mortals,
I help those in distress
To find the loving Jesus
Who gives the weary rest.


I go into the prisons
Where captives sadly mope,
And for eternal freedom,
I tell them how to hope.


Unto the sick I hasten
With a prescription sure;
Tell where the poor and needy
Great riches can secure.


’Tis strange but true; my message
Doth comfort, bless, and cheer,
Yet oft the truths I herald
Make sinners quake and fear.


Yes, many miles I travel
And sometimes I’m sent back
I go where you can’t enter,
For I am a gospel tract. (The Bible Friend)

HIS STAR

On Sunday evening I preached on ‘His Star’ from Matthew 2:1-10, below is the barebone outline. I wanted to share my introduction with you, because of a number of times I have dealt with Mormonism.

Mat 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Our King James Bible is very plain as to where Jesus was to be born and where He was born. Bethlehem.

Mic 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.


Now I am going to read to you from ‘The Book of Mormon”

Mosiah 3: 8 And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary.
http://scriptures.lds.org/en/mosiah/3

Alma 7:10 And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and concieve by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God.
http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/7


Notice that “The Book of Mormon” says that Jesus was ‘born of Mary at Jerusalem’. This is just one of many reasons why the mormon jesus in NOT the Lord Jesus Christ of the Bible.




Mat 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Mat 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
Mat 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Mat 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
Mat 2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
Mat 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
Mat 2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
Mat 2:8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
Mat 2:9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.
Mat 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.



His Star

Note verses 1,2; 7; 9; 10.

His Star is a …

Promised Star (Numbers 24:17) v. 1,2

Peculiar Star (appeared) v. 7

Personal Star (HIS) v. 2

Purposeful Star (stood over) v. 9

Praising Star (great joy) v. 10

Histroy Mystery

I have seen most of this before in a number of emails and other places. But this is the first time someone emailed it to me altogether.

Thanks CB.

---

History Mystery Have a history teacher explain this----- if they can. Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846. John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946. Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860. John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960. Both were particularly concerned with civil rights. Both wives lost their children while living in the White House. Both Presidents were shot on a Friday. Both Presidents were shot in the head Now it gets really weird. Lincoln 's secretary was named Kennedy. Kennedy's Secretary was named Lincoln . Both were assassinated by Southerners. Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson. Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808. Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908. John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839. Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939. Both assassins were known by their three names. Both names are composed of fifteen letters. Now hang on to your seat. Lincoln was shot at the theater named 'Ford'. Kennedy was shot in a car called ' Lincoln ' made by 'Ford'. Lincoln was shot in a theater and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse. Kennedy was shot from a warehouse and his assassin ran and hid in a theater. Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

WHO FIGURED THIS OUT?

INCREDIBLE
1) Fold a NEW $20 bill in half...




2) Fold again, taking care to fold it exactly as below



3) Fold the other end, exactly as before < /B>




4) Now, simply turn it over...




What a coincidence! A simple geometric fold creates a catastrophic premonition printed on all $20 bills!!!

COINCIDENCE?

YOU DECIDE

As if that wasn't enough...
Here is what you've seen...

Firstly The Pentagon on fire...



Then The Twin Towers.


..And now .. look at this!



TRIPLE COINCIDENCE ON A SIMPLE $20 BILL
Disaster (Pentagon)
Disaster (Twin Towers)
Disaster (Osama)???

It gets even better 9 + 11 = $20!


Creepy huh? Send this to as many people as you can, cause:

Hey, this is one history lesson most people probably will

not mind reading!

Twenty- five years ago today...

Twenty-five years ago today I boarded a plane at DFW and flew to Seatac airport in Seattle, Washington. There I was met by Ray Thiessen and John Anderson, we then headed north to the US and Canadian border. In January of 84, Regena, Sara, Leah and 6 weeks old David join me here in Abbotsford. So starts our years of ministry here in British Columbia Canada.


The Community Baptist Church of Abbotsford, BC had called me to be their pastor, and praise the Lord for twelve and a half years of serving our Lord and Savour Jesus Christ there.


For the last twelve years we have been in Northern British Columbia.

Someone asked Regena and I if we were going home for Christmas, we told them we are at home.

Saturday Spurgeon - The Simplicity and Sublimity of Salvation

Intended for Reading on Lord's-Day, June 5th, 1892,
Delivered by
C. H. SPURGEON,
At the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington
On Thursday Evening, March 6th, 1890.

In closing his message... jnh

I have to go through this story almost every day of the year, and sometimes half a dozen times in a day. If there is a desponding soul anywhere within twenty miles, it will find me out, no matter whether I am at home, or at Mentone, or in any other part of the world. It will come from any distance, broken down, despairing, half insane sometimes; and I have no medicine to prescribe except "Christ, Christ, Christ; Jesus Christ and him crucified.

Look away from yourselves, and trust in him." I go over and over and over with this, and never get one jot further. Because I find that this medicine cures all soul sicknesses, while human quackery cures none. Christ alone is the one remedy for sin-sick souls. Receive him; believe on his name. We keep hammering at this.

I can sympathize with Luther when he said, "I have preached justification by faith so often, and I feel sometimes that you are so slow to receive it, that I could almost take the Bible, and bang it about your heads." I am afraid that the truth would not have entered their hearts if he had done so. This is what we aim at, to get this one thought into a man, "Thou art lost, and therefore such an one as Christ came to save."


One said to me just lately, "Oh, sir, I am the biggest sinner that ever lived!" I replied, "Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners." "But I have not any strength." "While we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died." "Oh! But," he said, "I have been utterly ungodly." "Christ died for the ungodly." "But I am lost." "Yes," I said, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." "The Son of man has come to save that which was lost." I said to this man, "You have the brush in your hand, and at every stroke it looks as if you were quoting Scripture. You seem to be making yourself out to be the very man that Christ came to save.

If you were to make yourself out to be good and excellent, I should give you this word—Jesus did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. He did not die for the good, but for the bad. He gave himself for our sins; he never gave himself for our righteousness. He is a Saviour. He has not come yet as a Rewarder of the righteous; that will be in his Second Advent.


Now he comes as the great Forgiver of the guilty, and the only Saviour of the lost. Wilt thou come to him in that way?" "Oh! But," my friend said, "I have nothing to bring to Christ." "No," I said, "I know that you have not; but Christ has everything." "Sir," he said, "you do not know me, else you would not talk to me like this;" and I said, "No, and you do not know yourself, and you are worse than you think you are, though you think that you are bad enough in all conscience; but be you as bad as you may, Jesus Christ came on purpose to uplift from the dunghill those whom he sets among princes by his free, rich, sovereign grace."


Oh, come and believe in him, poor sinner! I feel that, if I had all your souls, I would believe in Christ for their salvation; I would trust him to save a million souls if I had them, for he is mighty to save. There can be no limit to his power to forgive. There can be no limit to the merit of his precious blood. There can be no boundary to the efficacy of his plea before the throne. Only trust him, and you must be saved. May his gracious Spirit lead you to do so now, for Christ's sake! Amen.

USA Today - Report: TV, Internet harm kids

By Liz Szabo, USA TODAY

Parents and policymakers need to take action to protect children from being harmed by TV, the Internet and other types of media, a report says.

Researchers have done individual studies for years to learn how media affect children. A review released today, which analyzed 173 of the strongest papers over 28 years, finds that 80% agree that heavy media exposure increases the risk of harm, including obesity, smoking, sex, drug and alcohol use, attention problems and poor grades.

TELL US: How do you manage your children's use of the media?

Some of the links are particularly strong. For example, 93% of studies found that children with greater media exposure have sex earlier. Authors say the soundest studies are those linking media use with obesity, while the evidence linking media exposure to hyperactivity is weaker.

The study provides overwhelming evidence of the importance of limiting children's use of media and teaching them to critically evaluate the ever-growing volume of text, images and sounds with which they are bombarded, says co-author Ezekiel Emanuel of the National Institutes of Health. He says the report also urges Hollywood and technology makers to create entertainment that is less toxic and more family-friendly.

"The idea that this is having a really measurable adverse impact on health makes it important to take this seriously," Emanuel says. "Every year, we have 4 million new kids. How long are we going to wait?"

The average child spends nearly 45 hours a week immersed in media — almost three times the amount of time they spend with their parents, according to the report, commissioned by Commonsense Media, a non-partisan watchdog group. In comparison, children spend an average of 30 hours in school.

Keeping an eye on children's media use is tougher today, says Jane Brown, a journalism and mass communication professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill who was not involved in the report. In the past, families often watched TV together, and parents could easily change the channel or voice their disapproval. Today's technology often isolates children, who may tune out their families to concentrate on a cellphone screen only they can see.

Even pediatricians struggle to stay connected to their children. Victor Strasburger, a pediatrics professor at the University of New Mexico who was not involved in the study, says he took away his 15-year-old daughter's phone when he caught her text-messaging at Thanksgiving dinner.

Michael Brody, a child psychiatrist at the University of Maryland who also was not involved in the study, says the country needs to address the onslaught of negatives images. He says children today have greater exposure to online pornography and Internet "hate sites" that attack minorities and gays.

The study's authors say policymakers also need to establish "clear limits" on marketing products such as junk food to children.

Ignoring these problems, Brody says, will only lead to even higher rates of childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes, violence and teen pregnancy.

"At some point," Brody says, "we are all going to be paying for this."

PARENTS: How do you manage your children's use of the media? Do you think you need to learn more about new technology — such as cellphones, MP3 players or the Internet? Leave any related questions or comments for reporter Liz Szabo in the comment section below.

Experts offer these tips to protect children: � Limit screen time to one to two hours a day. Consider ditching cable or TV altogether. � Learn about new media, such as text-messaging or social-networking websites, and how your children are using them. � Don't rely on the ratings for video games. Instead, watch or play the games yourself. � Don't allow children to have computers, TVs or other media in their bedrooms. � Set limits on how a child may use a new purchase, such as an iPod, from the beginning. Sources: Emanuel Ezekiel, National Institutes of Health; Michael Brody, University of Maryland; Jane Brown, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; Victor Strasburger, University of New Mexico School of Medicine

One Hundred Years Ago +

The year is 1908. One hundred years ago. Here are some statistics for the Year 1908:

The average life expectancy was 47 years. The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!

Only 14% of the homes had a bathtub. Only 8% of the homes had a telephone.

There were only 8,000 cars only 144 miles of paved roads and the maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

The average wage was 22 cents per hour. The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year; a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

More than 95% of all births took place at home.

90% of all doctors had NO college education. Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as ’substandard.’

Sugar cost four cents a pound. Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen. Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.

Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.

Five leading causes of death were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza 2. Tuberculosis 3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease 5. Stroke

The American flag had 45 stars.

The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was only 30

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn’t been invented yet. There was no Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.

20% of all adults couldn’t read or write. Only 6% of all Americans had graduated from high school.

Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, ‘Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels,
and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.’

18% of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.

There were about 230 reported murders that year in the ENTIRE U.S.A.

Now I forwarded this from someone else without typing it myself, and sent it to you and others all over the US and Canada and around the world in a matter of seconds!

Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years. IT STAGGERS THE MIND!

One night a teenage girl brought her new boyfriend home to meet her parents, and they were appalled by his appearance: leather jacket, motorcycle boots, tattoos, and pierced nose.

Later, the parents pulled their daughter aside and confessed their concern.

“Dear,” said the mother diplomatically, “he doesn’t seem very nice.”

“Oh please, Mom,” replied the daughter, “if he wasn’t nice, why would he be doing 500 hours of community service?”

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Bill forwarded this story about an elderly couple who stopped at a roadside restaurant for lunch. After finishing their meal, they left the restaurant, and resumed their trip. When leaving, the elderly woman unknowingly left her glasses on the table and she didn’t miss them until they had been driving about forty minutes. By then, to add to the aggravation, they had to travel quite a distance before they could find a place to turn around, in order to return to the restaurant to retrieve her glasses.

All the way back, the elderly husband became the classic grouchy old man. He fussed and complained, and scolded his wife relentlessly during the entire return drive. The more he chided her, the more agitated he became. He just wouldn’t let up one minute. To her relief, they finally arrived at the restaurant.

As the woman got out of the car, and hurried inside to retrieve her glasses, the old geezer yelled to her, ‘While you’re in there, you might as well get my hat and the credit card.’

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

More choices for the best (or wurst) puns, this the December batch:

“She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.”

“A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a
weapon of math disruption.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

A youngster was playing in the living room while Dad was watching the news. The newscaster added a brief word at the conclusion of a story. “And two Brazilian men died in a skydiving accident.”

The child took that in and tears began to form in her eyes. “That’s horrible!! So many men dying that way!”

Confused, he said, “Yes dear, it is sad, but they were skydiving, and there is always that risk involved.”

After a few minutes, the child, still whimpering, asked, ‘Exactly how many IS a Brazilian?”

Top 10 reasons that a coalition would be bad for Canada

For our friends outside of Canada there is a coalition wanting to outs the present Conservatives Party Government.

Seems like some want to follow the US of A and place as leader of Canada an up and coming Michael Ignatieff. One till today was not a house name here in Canada. Bro. Jeff

1. A coalition government between the NDP and Liberals, supported by the Bloc Quebecois would undermine democracy because Jack Layton, Gilles Duceppe and Michael Ignatieff would govern without the consent of the Canadian voter.


2. Michael Ignatieff has walked into the leadership of the Liberal party without one vote from the Liberal grassroots. The coalition government would be led by Ignatieff as Prime Minister without earning one vote from Canadians.


3. Mandates are earned not taken. Canadians ought to express their will through the ballot box, not have it tossed aside through backroom deals.


4. The Bloc Quebecois should never dictate the terms of our government. Theirs is a party founded on the principle of ripping up Canada and now they want a hand in influencing its governance?


5. 74% of Canadians voted against a Liberal government. Now, that's a majority!


6. In a time of economic crisis, we don't need a political crisis. In the UK, PM Gord Brown and opposition leader David Cameron have put aside petty partisanship to make government work. Why did Bob Rae say he'll vote to defeat this government even without looking at its budget?


7. Coalition talk is decreasing international confidence in our political and economic stability. On the first day of trading after the coalition plan was unveiled, the Toronto Stock Exchange plunged 864.41 points (9.3%). This is the biggest drop since Black Monday in 1987.


8. We just had an election! Just a few weeks ago!! The Canadian people gave this current government a mandate. Now let them govern.


9. The economy is the number one priority of Canadians. Most Canadians don't care about the usual day-to-day bickering in Ottawa. Canadians care about their families and their jobs. Political brinksmanship reflects how out-of-touch Ignatieff, Layton and Duceppe really are with real Canadians.


10. Why would the Liberals team up with the NDP anyway? The Liberals themselves have called the NDP "economy damaging". We have an economist as Prime Minister. When you have a toothache you go to the dentist. When your car breaks down you go to a mechanic. Who better than an economist to deal with the economy?


There are many more reasons why the NDP-Liberal coalition would be harmful to our country. Please forward this email to your network. If you want to stay in the loop on latest developments, sign up:


http://www.rallyforcanada.ca/nocoalition.php

Thanks! JET

News from a far country

(Please note that Texas is the only state with a legal right to secede from the Union - Reference the Texas-American Annexation Treaty of 1848. Of course, that didn't stop the
Yankees from violating the treaty and forcing Texas back into the Union
in 1865]

Dear Friends:

We Texans love y’all, but we’ll probably have to take action since B.
Hussein Obama won the election. We’ll miss you too. Here is what can happen:

#1: Barack Hussein Obama becomes President of the United States on January
20th. Texas immediately secedes from the Union.

#2: George Walker Bush will become the President of the Republic of Texas.

So what does Texas have to do to survive as a Republic?

1. NASA is just south of Houston, Texas. We will control the space industry.

2. We refine over 85% of the gasoline in the United States .

3. Defense Industry–we have over 65% of it. The term “Don’t mess with
Texas,” will take on a whole new meaning.

4. Oil - we can supply all the oil that the Republic of Texas will need for
the next 300 years. Yankee states? Sorry about that.

5. Natural Gas - again we have all we need and it’s too bad about those
Northern States. Obama will have to figure out a way to keep them warm….

6. Computer Industry - we currently lead the nation in producing computer
chips and communications–small companies like Texas Instruments, Dell
Computer, EDS, Raytheon, National Semiconductor, Motorola, Intel, AMD,
Atmel, Applied Materials, Ball Micro-conductor, Dallas Semiconductor,
Delphi, Nortel, Alcatel, etc, etc. The list goes on and on.

7. Medical Care - We have the largest research centers for cancer research,
the best burn centers and the top trauma units in the world, as well as
other large health centers. Dallas has some of the best hospitals in the
United States.

8. We have enough colleges to keep us going: University of Texas, Texas A&M,
Texas Tech, Rice, SMU, University of Houston, Baylor, UNT (University of
North Texas ), Texas Women’s University, etc. Ivy grows better in the South
anyway.

9. We have a ready supply of workers. We could just open the border when we
need some more.

10. We have essential control of the paper industry, plastics, insurance,
etc.

11. In case of a foreign invasion, we have the Texas National Guard and the
Texas Air National Guard. We don’t have an Army, but since everybody down
here has at least six rifles and a pile of ammo, we can raise an Army in 24
hours if we need one. If the situation really gets bad, we can always call
the Department of Public Safety and ask them to send over Chuck Norris and a
couple of Texas Rangers.

12. We are totally self-sufficient in beef, poultry, hogs, and several types
of grain, fruit and vegetables, and let’s not forget seafood from the Gulf.
Also, everybody down here knows how to cook them so that they taste good.
Don’t need any food.

13. Baptist churches abound.

This just names a few of the items that will keep the Republic of Texas in
good shape. There isn’t a thing out there that we need and don’t have.

Now to the rest of the United States under President Obama:

Since you won’t have the refineries to get gas for your cars, only President
Obama will be able to drive around in his big 9 mpg SUV. The rest of the
United States will have to walk or ride bikes.

You won’t have any TV as the Space Center in Houston will cut off satellite
communications.

You won’t have any natural gas to heat your homes, but since Mr. Obama has
predicted global warming, you will not need the gas as long as you survive
the 2000 years it will take to get enough heat from Global Warming.

Signed, the People of Texas

ps - This is not a threatening letter - just a note to give you something to
think about!

SLEEP WELL TONIGHT - THE EYES OF TEXAS ARE UPON YOU!

The Responsibility of Leadership

by A W Tozer


The history of Israel and Judah points up a truth taught clearly enough by all history, viz., that the masses are or soon will be what their leaders are. The kings set the moral pace for the people.


The public is never capable of acting en masse. Without a leader it is headless and a headless body is powerless. Always someone must lead. Even the mob engaged in pillage and murder is not the disorganized thing it appears to be. Somewhere behind the violence is a leader whose ideas it is simply putting into effect.


Israel sometimes rebelled against her leaders, it is true, but the rebellions were not spontaneous. The people merely switched to a new leader and followed him. The point is, they always had to have a leader.


Whatever sort of man the king turned out to be, the people were soon following his leadership. They followed David in the worship of Jehovah, Solomon in the building of the Temple, Jeroboam in the making of a calf and Hezekiah in the restoration of the temple worship.


It is not complimentary to the masses that they are so easily led, but we are not interested in praising or blaming; we are concerned for truth, and the truth is that for better or for worse religious people follow leaders. A good man may change the moral complexion of a whole nation; or a corrupt and worldly clergy may lead a nation into bondage. The transposed proverb, "Like priest, like people," sums up in four words a truth taught plainly in the scriptures and demonstrated again and again in religious history.


Today Christianity in the Western world is what its leaders were in the recent past and is becoming what its present leaders are. The local church soon becomes like its pastor, and this is true even of those groups who do not believe in pastors. The true pastor of such a group is not hard to identify; he is usually the one who can present the strongest argument against any church having a pastor. The strong-minded leader of the local group who succeeds in influencing the flock through Bible teaching or frequent impromptu talks in the public gatherings is the pastor, no matter how earnestly he may deny it.


The poor condition of the churches today may be traced straight to their leaders. When, as sometimes happens; the members of a local church rise up and turn their pastor out for preaching the truth, they are still following a leader. Behind their act is sure to be found a carnal (and often well-to-do) deacon or elder who usurps the right to determine who the pastor shall be and what he shall say twice each Sunday. In such cases the pastor is unable to lead the flock. He merely works for the leader; a pitiful situation indeed.

A number of factors contribute to bad spiritual leadership. Here are a few:


1. Fear. The wish to be liked and admired is strong even among the clergy, so rather than risk public disapproval the pastor is tempted simply to sit on his hands and smile ingratiatingly at the people. "Fear of man will prove to be a snare" (Proverbs 29:25). says the Holy Spirit, and nowhere more than in the ministry.


2. The economic squeeze. The Protestant ministry is notoriously underpaid and the pastor's family is often large. Put these two facts together and you have a situation ready-made to bring trouble and temptation to the man of God. The ability of the congregation to turn off the flow of money to the church when the man in the pulpit gets on their toes is well known.

The average pastor lives from year to year barely making ends meet. To give vigorous moral leadership to the church is often to invite economic strangulation, so such leadership is withheld. But the evil thing is that leadership withheld is in fact a kind of inverted leadership. The man who will not lead his flock up the mountainside leads it down without knowing it.


3. Ambition. When Christ is not all in all to the minister he is tempted to seek place for himself, and pleasing the crowds is a time-proved way to get on in church circles. Instead of leading his people where they ought to go, he skillful leads them where he knows they want to go. In this way he gives the appearance of being a bold leader of men, but avoids offending anyone, and thus assures ecclesiastical preferment when the big church or the high office is open.


4. Intellectual pride. Unfortunately there is in religious circles a cult of the intelligentsia which, in my opinion, is merely beatnikism turned wrong side out. As the beatnik, in spite of his loud protestations of individualism, is in reality one of the most slavish of conformists, so the young intellectual in the pulpit shakes in his carefully polished Oxfords lest he be guilty of saying something trite or common. The people look to him to lead them into green pastures but instead he leads them in circles over a sandy desert.


5. Absence of true spiritual experience. No one can lead another farther than he himself has gone. For many ministers this explains their failure to lead. They simply do not know where to go.


6. Inadequate preparation. The churches are cluttered with religious amateurs culturally unfit to minister at the altar, and the people suffer as a consequence. They are led astray and are not aware of it.


The rewards of godly leadership are so great and the responsibilities of the leader so heavy that no one can afford to take the matter lightly.

Virginia, the Battleground for Religious Liberty

Virginia was known as the great battleground for religious liberty. The colony was founded by members of the Church of England, and no other church was tolerated. The Charter of 1606 provided that "the presidents, councils and ministers should provide that the true Word and service of God should he preached and used according to the rites and doctrines of the Church of England"


The bloody military code of 1611, the first published for the government of the colony, required all men and women in the colony, and any who should afterwards arrive, to give an account of their faith and religion to the parish minister, and if not satisfactory to him, they should report often to him for instruction. If one refused to go, the governor could whip the offender for the first offense. For the second refusal, he would be whipped twice and would acknowledge his fault on the Sabbath day in the congregation, and for the third offense, he would be whipped every day until he complied.


Efforts to legislate religion continued under Sir William Berkeley, who passed the following law on December 14, 1662: "Whereas many schismatical persons out of their averseness to the orthodox established religion, or out of new fangled conceits of their own heretical inventions, refused to have their children baptized. Be it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, that all persons that, in contempt of the divine sacrament of baptism, shall refuse when they carry their child to lawful minister in that country to have them baptized shall be amersed two thousand pounds of tobacco, half to the publique."


Of course such statutes were directed at the Baptists, whose principles and convictions dictated that they baptize only believers on their confession of faith and who believed pedobaptism to be a Romish invention carried over into Protestantism by the Reformers. The Church of England increased her membership by pedobaptism, but the Baptists by evangelism and proselytizing.

This difference of belief caused a head-on confusion between the established religion, the Church of England, which tenaciously held to pedobaptism, and the lowly Baptists, who repudiated it and baptized all who believed and gave their testimony to their faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross for their salvation.


Hawkes, the historian of the Episcopal Church of Virginia, said, "No dissenters in Virginia experienced, for a time, harsher treatment than did the Baptists. They were beaten and imprisoned; and cruelly taxed the authorities’ ingenuity to devise new modes of punishment and annoyance."


Despite the persecution, the Baptists continued to increase in influence and number. The very nature of salvation by grace alone repudiates persecution of any kind and any system that endeavors to legislate its principles and doctrines of human works.


Thank God for our Baptist forefathers who clearly defined the gospel of the grace of God in the face of the persecution that a tyrannical religious system brought to bear upon them.

Not Just @ Christmas Time

GIFTS

To your enemy, forgiveness.

To an opponent, tolerance.

To a friend, your heart.

To a customer, service.

To all men, charity.

To every child, a good example.

To yourself, respect.

Saturday Spurgeon - Salvation

Salvation of the Lord

A Sermon
Delivered on Sabbath Morning, May 10, 1857, by the
REV. C. H. Spurgeon
at the Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens.

His sermon ends with... (jnh)

IV. And now in concluding, let me just tell you WHAT IS THE OBSERVE OF THIS TRUTH.

Salvation is of God: then damnation is of man. If any of you are damned, you will have no one to blame but yourselves; if any of you perish, the blame will not lie at God's door; if you are lost and cast away, you will have to bear all the blame and all the tortures of conscience yourself; you will lie for ever in perdition, and reflect, "I have destroyed myself; I have made a suicide of my soul; I have been my own destroyer; I can lay no blame to God."


Remember, if saved, you must be saved by God alone, though if lost you have lost yourselves. "Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye die, O house of Israel." With my last faltering sentence I bid you stop and think.


Ah! my hearers, my hearers! it is an awful thing to preach to such a mass as this. But the other Sunday, as I came down stairs, I was struck with a memorable sentence, uttered by one who stood there. He said, "There are 9000 people this morning without excuse in the day of judgment." I should like to preach so that this always might be said; and if I can not, O may God have mercy on me, for his name's sake! But now remember! Ye have souls; those souls will be damned, or saved.


Which will it be? Damned they must be for ever, unless God shall save you; unless Christ shall have mercy upon you, there is no hope for you. Down on your knees I Cry to God for mercy.


Now lift up your heart in prayer to God. May now be the very time when you shall be saved. Or ever the next drop of blood shall run through your veins, may you find peace!


Remember, that peace is to be had now. If you feel now your need of it, it is to be had now. And how? For the mere asking for it. ' Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find."

"But if your ears refuse
The language of his grace,
Your hearts grow hard, like stubborn Jews,
That unbelieving race,
The Lord with vengeance drest,
Shall lift his hand and swear,
You that despised my promised rest
Shall have no portion there."

O! that ye may not be despisers, lest ye "wonder and perish!" May ye now fly to Christ, and be accepted in the beloved. It is my last best prayer. May the Lord hear it. Amen.

First Major Snow Fall of 2008

Our 1st major snow fall of the year, we have had already about 10 inches but it was all gone. Thursday the Lord open up his treasure chest and blessed with about 1 foot of the white stuff.

Clearing both front and back, about 30 minutes.




Looking at the shovel, we can measure about 1 foot of snow.

Friday Funnies - 'Bear-ack'

The photo below captures a disturbing trend that is
beginning to affect all wildlife in the U .S.



Anticipating a sweeping Democratic Party victory in the November elections, animals that were formerly self-sufficient are already modifying their behavior to take advantage of what they expect to be a new set of societal norms in the next four to eight years.


This black bear from Montana has ceased hunting for a living and is sitting outside the US Fish & Wildlife Service office in Kalispell, apparently waiting to be fed and to have his winter den dug by government employees.


The residents of Kalispell are calling him 'Bearack Obama'.

'The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is
for good men to do nothing."
- Edmund Burke (1729-97)


Thanks Harvey

Empty Nester's Chocolate Cake

With it being just Regena and I here at the house, we really don’t need a big cake. Here is a recipe Regena received from a ladies list. I renamed it 'Empty Nester’s Chocolate Cake'.






5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE CAKE IN A MUG

1 Coffee Mug

4 TBSP Flour

4 TBSP Sugar

2 TBSP Baking Cocoa (or less cocoa)

Pinch Salt

1/8 tsp. Baking Powder

1 Egg

3 TBSP Milk

3 TBSP Oil

Small splash vanilla

Optional: 3 TBSP Choc. Chips or nuts

Mix dry ingredients in mug. Mix liquid ingredients in small
measuring cup 1st, then mix in mug with dry mixture, adding
choc. chips and/or nuts last. I didn’t grease the mug.

Put in microwave on high for 3 minutes. Mixture will
rise, but won’t spill usually. Allow to cool a bit. I slid
a knife around edges, then turn over onto a plate. It
can serve 2. Most dangerous chocolate cake recipe!—
5 minutes away for those needing a chocolate fix!!



Recipe from
C. Brinkman

Give it a try and give us your comment.

CALVIN SEED

An article entitled, "Questions Which Challenged a Fundamentalist Preacher," by Roland C. Crosby, was sent to me by a friend. In the article, Brother Crosby regrets the tradition and theology, which he learned at the seminary, which were contrary to Calvinistic truths, which he later discovered. He says that he "resigned from an active ministry to give myself to full time study of the Bible" in order to resolve these questions. We have a problem with that, but it is the brother's business and not ours. Albeit, we will not need to resign anything to comment on the brother's questions and new found philosophy (Calvin Seed).

1. Can fallen sinners come to Christ of their own will and ability?

Well, we are not free will Baptists, and we do not believe that a man can save himself, but we do not believe that the FREEWILL OFFERINGS (Num. 15:3; Deut. 16:10) were irresistibly given. Moreover, it is plain to us that after the gospel is preached, after the Holy Spirit has reproved a fallen sinner, the word is nigh that sinner, even in his mouth, that is the word of faith which we preach (Rom. 10:8). Nevertheless,
fallen sinners cannot believe without hearing and cannot hear without a preacher (Rom. 10:14). If the fallen sinner wills, God already wills (John 7:17)!


2. Does the Bible teach that God loves all men without distinction as is widely preached today?

The approach to this question is a novel one. Proof texts are cited to show that God hates Esau and "hates ALL workers of iniquity" and abhors nations, and then complaint is made over the INDISCRIMINATE love that is preached. Well, what about the indiscriminate hate? Are there no elect in the abhorred nations? Are the elect never found among the "workers of iniquity?" What about the elect that "were by nature CHILDREN of WRATH, even as others (Eph. 2:3)?


3. Does the Bible teach that God requires repentance and faith from a sinner before he can be regenerated?

This seems to be the case, at least, in one hundred fifty places. Oddly, after dis daining his college training and traditions, the good brother appeals to the GARBC articles of faith for support on this one. Moreover, despite his loving comments for the King James Bible as the preserved word of God, he better renders 1 John 5:1 - IS BORN (after a modern translation) as follows: "whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ - has already been born of God." If the good brother is so willing to take these liberties, we submit a few other suggestions to illustrate how much fun he could have, proving that regeneration takes place BEFORE faith and repentance.


"When thou art saved or be born again, thou wilt believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." --Acts 16:31 (Calvin Reversed Stumbled Version)


"Whosoever receives remission of sins believeth on him." --Acts 10:43 (Calvin Reversed Stumbled Version)


"But these are written that ye might have life . . . and having life ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ." --Acts 20:31 (Calvin Reversed Stumbled Version)


"For God so loved the elect that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever of the elect having everlasting life should believe on him." John 3:16 (C. R. S. V)


"He that heareth my word and hath everlasting life believeth." --John 5:24 (C. R. S. V.)


"We are them that are saved to the believing of the soul." --Hebrews 10:34 (C. R . S. V)


". . .receiving the end of your salvation, even the faith of your souls." --1 Pet. 3:9 (C. R. S. V)


Even Brother Crosby's appeal to John 1:13 to prove such nonsense avoids and ignores John 1:12, which insists on receiving Christ and believing on His Name to be born of God.


4. Does the Bible teach conclusively that God wills to save all men without exception as is so often taught using John 3:16; 1 Tim. 2:4; Heb. 2:9; 2 Pet. 3:9

Curiously, Brother Crosby has no problem applying Esau to all of the non-elect, but he has difficulty with the world, all, and every man being applied to the world, all, and every man. We are sure that he is capable of finding places where the world, all, and every man do not really mean the world, all, and every man (as the J.W. is capable of finding places where fire, hell, torment, forever, and everlasting do not really mean fire, hell, torment, forever, and everlasting). Are such stalemating tactics an indication of Crosby's strength . . . or weakness?



5. Does not the Bible clearly state that God elected or chose certain individuals "in Christ before the foundation of the world" to salvation (Eph. 1:4; 2 Tim. 1:9) while leaving others to just condemnation for their sins?

Well, as a matter of fact . . . No! It does not clearly or unclearly state that. Only a manipulation of the text could make it say that. It says nothing about "leaving others to just condemnation of their sins." Moreover, it does not say that God elected or chose CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS. It says, "US!" Not one living unsaved man can clam to be chosen in Him or can be said to be CHOSEN IN HIM - before or after the foundation of the world. Only saved BELIEVERS have claim to this scripture. Also, the rest of the verse tells us that saved folks were chosen that they "should be holy and without blame before him in love." Obviously, some have not fulfilled that part of their election. The key phrase is IN CHRIST No one can benefit from any of the blessings or promises that are IN CHRIST until he is IN Christ. No one is elect, WHO IS NOT IN CHRIST!


6. If you are saved and sure of heaven and your brother (?) is lost and going to hell, what makes the difference?

Brother Crosby's implication is not clear in the question, but his contention is that a person's faith is not the determining factor in their salvation. His task, here, is to make non-calvinists appear to be saying that their faith is the basis of their salvation and that they regenerate themselves and that they take credit for their own salvation.

The blood of Christ is the basis of salvation. Faith is the means or connection to Christ's blood. That faith is the determining factor and not meritorious is born out by Ephesians 2:8, "By Grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift (salvation by grace - not faith) of God . . ." No faith - no salvation! That is as determinative as you can get!


7. Why do the vast majority of professing soul winners, who claim the eternal destinies of the lost are hinged on their efforts, spend so little time, energy, or money to win the lost?

Good question! Good point! You have us there. A feeble reason (but no excuse) would be the world, the flesh, and the devil, but we are still speechless. Nevertheless, since you love human philosophy and logic, why do the vast majority of professing Calvinists, who claim the eternal destinies of the lost are fixed and hinge on nobody's efforts, spend any time, energy, or money at all to win the lost? (we are aware that many of them have already come to that conclusion and so abide).


8. Why do many pastors and churches tolerate and even ignore known sin within the church membership, when the Bible clearly commands that sin be purged from the local body of Christ? (1 Cor. 5)

Brother Crosby, shame on you! We thought you knew. They have no free will! There is nothing that can be done about it! It is all fixed and settled before the foundation of the world!

Conclusion

Philosophical human reasoning, ambiguity, and nuances of language along with intellectual intrigue are the novelties that convert unsuspecting, unprepared, and gullible folk into this philosophical system. They do not come by it by reading and studying the Bible. Calvinistic books, articles, and statements are planted somewhere along the way. They are called Calvin Seed!

--Herb Evans

The Unbaptized Believer

THE UNBAPTIZED BELIEVER

by A. A Davis

Much is said today in religious circles about baptism. One school of thought says baptism is of no importance, it makes no difference whether you are baptized, how you are baptized, or why you are baptized. This school plays down the divine command. Another school of thought takes the opposite position, that baptism is everything, that you cannot be saved until you are baptized, that you are not born again, cannot have peace with God, cannot be reconciled with God, cannot have your name in the Lamb's Book of Life, cannot have your sins forgiven, cannot be justified, cannot be redeemed, cannot pass from death to life, none of these until you are baptized.


Many born-again believers in Christ have not been baptized, being victims of the former school of thought. Many who have been baptized (humanly speaking, not scrip rurally) have never been born again as believers in Christ. These are victims of the latter school of thought. To the former, we say positively, no fear of the successful contradiction; there is no verse of Scripture which says "He that is baptized not shall be damned." To the latter we say with the same force; there is no Scripture which says "He that is baptized shall be saved."


The people called Baptists reject both these positions as absurd and
unscriptural. If the former school of thought be correct, then Christ and the Apostles were in error. If the latter school of thought be correct, then "He that lives closest to the creek, lives closest to the Lord." The following facts we submit:


1. The unbaptized were not added to the church (Acts 2:41) therefore, were not members of the New Testament church.


2. The unbaptized were not present at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 11:18), the church observed the supper, and they were not members.


3. The unbaptized were not commissioned by Christ to preach the gospel or to baptize anyone (Matt. 28:18-19; Acts 1:22).


4. The unbaptized were not commissioned to teach the baptized disciples (Matt 28:19; Acts 1:22)


5. The unbaptized have not been planted in the likeness of His death (Rom. 6:5).


6. They have not been raised in the likeness of His resurrection (Rom. 6:5).


7. They have not given answer to a good conscience (1 Pet. 3:21).


8. They have deprived themselves of great joys (Acts 8:39).


9. They have no visible divinely appointed evidence that they have gladly received His word (Acts 2:41).


10. They have not been raised in symbolic faith in the resurrection of Jesus (Col. 2:12).


11. They have not identified themselves with the blessed Trinity of the New Testament faith (Eph. 4:5).


12. They find themselves in embarrassing company (John 14:21; 15:14; Matt. 5:19).


13. Unregenerate world walks in disobedience to God (Eph. 2:1-4).


14. They are not in symbolic union with Christ (Gal. 3:27).


15. They declare as useless and meaningless the baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:15-17).


16. In hypocrisy they call Jesus, "Lord" (Luke 6:46).


17. They are little in the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 5:19).


18. In their disobedience they live under divine chastisement (Psa. 89: 29-34; Heb. 12:5-10).


19. They reject the symbols of the great salvation (1 Pet. 3:20-21).


20. Since they are not members of the New Testament church (Acts 2:41), they are not continuing steadfast in the apostles doctrine (Acts 2:42).


21. They are not contending for all of the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude 3; Eph. 4:5).


22. They are faced with the same puzzling questions Jesus asked the chief priests and Pharisees (Matt. 21:25).


23. They encounter difficulty in convincing others that "they have gladly received His word" (Acts 2:41).


24. They are not in full harmony and obedience to the divinely revealed will and practice of Jesus Christ (John 4:1).


Excerpted from. The Baptist Story, Sermons on the Trail of Blood, by A A. Davis, pp. 196-198. Softback, 242 pages, available from Baptist Heritage Press, P. O. Box 366, Watertown, Wisconsin 53094. $9.95.

This Really is Incredible

This Really is Incredible

THIS IS INCREDIBLE.... Read all the Numbers..
Slowly and in Order!!
Be Careful not to MISS ANY

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Scroll down .....................

TOMORROW I'LL SEND YOU THE ABC's

It so easy to amuse old people.

My 2008 Hunting Season