Love Life. Respect Life.

Part two

It was no doubt desirable to speak to the prophets “in divers manners,” but the best way to speak to the men of all ages through the prophets was to record the communication. Although no one can doubt that language, whether written or spoken, is not a “perfect” means of communication, it seems evident that it was the “best” means available, not that the best means was “adequate.” It is incongruous that the scholars who raise a voice against the adequacy of language have found language adequate enough to convey their view that language is not adequate! The time-tested superiority of a written record of truth was the one God chose to use in order to make permanent and immortalize His message to men. There were several decided advantages to this medium of revelation.

Precision One of the advantages of language over the other media of communication mentioned is the matter of precision. It is a common experience that thoughts become more precise as they are expressed. In this connection it may be said that a student can understand better with a pencil than with any other instrument; because, if a thought can be apprehended and expressed in writing, it must have been clearly understood. Another illustration of the precision of language is the difference between one’s active and his passive vocabularies. It is possible to read and understand, in a general way, more words than one can use or write in a specific way. This is true because the accurate usage of words requires a more precise understanding of them, and precision is attained by expression. The proof of that point is the fact that mankind’s most treasured knowledge to date is in the form of written records and books. It is understandable, then, that God should choose to have His truth conveyed by books as precisely as is possible.
Propagation There is another advantage to written revelation, namely, the matter of propagation. It is possible to make more precise copies of a written medium than a spoken one. No one will disagree that a written copy can be, and usually is, a much more accurate reproduction than an oral tradition. No matter how careful the communication is made orally, there is always a greater chance for change and corruption of the original than with a written record. A simple experiment will suffice to convince the skeptic. The word-of-mouth story passed around a circle of friends returns with amazing emendations in a few short minutes. In fact, it is astounding to note that Jesus’ disciples misinterpreted and mistransmitted a simple oral tradition that they thought they had heard Jesus say (John 21:23). Thus, in order to transmit revealed truth accurately, written records were made and copied by hand, until the invention of movable type in the printing process. Once the movable[Page 324] type had been invented (in the fifteenth century), the advantage of the printed page, and ability to reproduce it on a mass scale, became most apparent.

Preservation Another advantage of writing is the matter of preservation. Failing memories are sometimes a blessing, but they are a decided disadvantage in the retention of the repertoire of revelation. It is always better to “make a note of it,” or to “put it on record.” As a matter of fact, it is difficult to imagine the adjudication of justice in a court without a record of testimony, to say nothing of the vacillation of memory in other realms. A written record has one additional advantage as well, namely, it can stimulate memory and conjure up within the individual’s imagination a host of personal implications that are latent within the given symbols or words of that record. Words, then, are not so wooden as to prevent a “personal blessing” for the individual reader, particularly in light of the fact that biblical words are the objective vehicle through which the Holy Spirit applies truth personally and subjectively to each reader individually (cf. John 16:13; 1 Pet. 1:11).

Geisler, N. L., & Nix, W. E. (1996, c1986). A general introduction to the Bible. Includes indexes. Includes a short-title checklist of English translations of the Bible (chronologically arranged). (Rev. and expanded.) (323). Chicago: Moody Press.

Written languages Important or not?

Geisler and Nix have very interesting facts check this out.

Several alternatives were open to God in His choice of a means for communication of His truth to men. As a matter of fact, a wide variety of the media of communication were actually utilized by God “in time past,” as He “spake unto the fathers by the prophets” (Heb. 1:1, KJV).

What God Could Have Used

God could have chosen to continue to communicate with men as He did initially in biblical times.
Sometimes God spoke through angels (Cf. Gen. 18-19, 22; Ex. 3.) In fact, their very name means “messenger.” Their ministry began in Genesis (chaps. 18–19), and continued through the very last chapter of the Bible (Rev. 22:8-9).[Page 322] However, the very nature of their celestial intrusion into the terrestrial made it a special revelation that did not lend itself to permanence. There were certain distinct limitations in having to call upon angels to convey everything that God wished to say to every man under every circumstance in every age. One could imagine quite an endless invasion from outer space in order to care for all the details of truth transmitted to billions of people, many of which have short memories.

Visions and dreams This was another means of communication that God occasionally chose to utilize (cf. Dan. 7:1; Gen. 41). Visions and dreams had more potential for universality and individuality than did angels. This is because it did not involve the mass of heavenly traffic and it could even be worked into one’s personal experience more readily. However, this method also has serious handicaps. For one thing, visions and dreams tend to be subjective and personal rather than objective and universal. For another, even their ecstatic impact could wear off and be forgotten.

The Urim and Thummim and the lot These methods were sometimes used to determine God’s will (see Ex. 28:30; Prov. 16:33). However, they were limited in the scope of the content of truth they could convey. Apparently, all they could indicate was a yes or no answer to questions that men happened to direct toward God. Thus, their scope was quite limited when compared with a detailed description of God’s declarations to men found in other media of transmission.

The moral law and creation God has revealed Himself by the moral law “written in the heart” (Rom. 2:15) as well as through creation (Ps. 19:1 ff.) to all men. But the amount of truth available here is limited and subject to corruption. Romans 1:18-19 says that although the truth from creation is “evident within them,” men “suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” Their consciences also distort the moral law (Rom. 2:15; cf. 1 Tim. 4:2). Further, even though this general revelation is sufficient for man’s condemnation (Rom. 1:20; 2:12), only through special revelation has salvation come to light (Heb. 1:1; Rom. 10:9 f.).

The audible voice and the direct miracle These were also media of divine communication (see 1 Sam. 3 and Judges 6:40), but they suffered from the same intrinsic difficulties that other means had, namely, they were good ways for God to speak to one man on one occasion and for one specific purpose. Nevertheless, it would be a strain on the divine economy to expect a repeat performance of these feats in speaking to all men everywhere. This is not to say that all of these methods were not good; they were in fact the ways by which God did speak to the prophets. There was, however, a better way to[Page 323] communicate; it was a more precise,

Tomorrow we will be viewing what God used in the second part of this article.

Did you know?

Whether you realize it or not, people have died for you to be where you are right now. For you and for me to not realize and respect that is wrong. Life is about choices and sacrifice whether you come to that conclusion or not. For us as humans to have a chance to live after we die there was a sacrifice made on our behalf. We were justified, sanctified, and will be glorified if we recognize and respect the sacrifice that has been made in the past on our behalf.

First, we were justified by the death of Christ on the cross. Justification should convey the idea that Christ spoke on the behalf of you and I. What should be bestowed upon us? A sense of comfort knowing that someone in the past cared for you before you were ever thought of by your parents and He had concern for your soul. That is a deep love.

Second, we are sanctified for the reason of being acceptable to God. When you think about nothing being able to stand in the sight of God without being sanctified then He the sanctifier makes us presentable for God the Father. I think that this is very important for one to know how good life really is but what a tragedy if you do not recognize Christ’s sacrifice.

Third, we are glorified by God. When we acknowledge God’s law and abide in His commandments He will glorify us for keeping that humble heart. That is such a wonderful concept that often people forget. That is the highest honor ever to be glorified by God. That exceeds any job promotion, CEO position, Grammy Award, or any riches on earth.

God loves us more than we love ourselves and God will be glad to glorify you if you just obey His commandments. So if you are asking the question so what? How do I get in the right relationship with God for Him to glorify me? Here you go.

1) Know the sacrifice that was made on your behalf and know He rose from the dead.
2) Follow His commandments the way He wants them done.
3) Humble yourself in all things
4) Read a chapter a day and understand what you are reading. Start in Romans ch.1
5) Pray all the time for His guidance, because everything means nothing if it’s not for Him.

I hope you are encourage by this “Fear God and keep His commandments”. (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

Beauty of the Creator's work.

When you look at the awsomeness of the of the Bible you can only read and be amazed. When you look at the intricacy that it sustains in the Bible one is forced to respect and recognize the holiness of the Creator.

The Bible contains: Poetry, History, revelation, inspiration, love, hate, truth, deception, respect, exultation, humility, exaggeration, humor, sadness, gladness, revenge, compassion, sagacity, structure, redemption, condemnation, forgiveness, evil, greed, lust, happiness, hindrances, hurt, philosopies, rich, poor, Apostles, Sadducees,Pharisees, false prophets, Lovers of God, faithhulness, unfaithfulness, willingness, prayers, blessings, glory, proverbs. What shall we say now? With all these components of the Bible one or even half of one be a contradiction? It will never be!!

The Bible is truth in John 5: 39 the word gives testimony to Jesus that He came to earth died and was ressurected. Anyone, who does not believe that the Son came to earth to seek and save the lost and anyone one who does not believe they must abide in His commandments will be left behind. Even me! I urge you who read this take into consideration where your relationship is with Christ Jesus our savior and Lord and ask for forgiveness, repent and be baptized or your sins will lead you to the lake of fire where the most valuabe possession is lost which is your life.

MAY THE GRACE OF CHRIST JESUS BE WILL YOU....... Amen.

Darkness prevailing in the Light, It will Never Be!

In my bed for one hour,
I laid there and cried,
In my heart it felt
As if my brother had died,

Not seeking light,
He arrived into the night,
He was not raging against,
The dying of his sight,

As the pendulum swings,
Drift closer to the light,
Overcoming darkness,
Should be in our best interests
And delight.

Like the Prodigal son,
And the Lost coin indeed,
O, Brother! Come home so we can wash your feet!

To escape darkness,
The word is providing,
Put it in your heart,
And forever it’ll be residing.

For one's soul to spend a day in darkness is a day too long. We are to reach our brothers who are in nightfall to save them “In The Day of the Lord”. O, Brother! O, Brother! Please come home! Or forever you will be seated next to Satan’s dark thrown.

Death is no longer master, so why fear?

Does death end life? Or does death create life?

For some fear just the thought of death. The importance of the fear of death to Christians and non-Christians could simply be the lack of knowledge of the love of Christ Jesus. Should a true Christian fear death? May it never be! If we as Christians know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we are no longer slaves to sin (Romans 6:6). We should understand that we live with Christ, this leads me to the first part of the question Does death end life?

Does death end life? For a non-Christian death ends life permanently. Two facts that prove death ends life for a non-Christian. First, we must see what sin is and what it results in. Sin separates you from God and whatever is not with God is thrown into the lake of fire which is death. In Romans 6:23 for the wages of sin is death.

Second, we are slaves to the one whom we obey either sin resulting in death or obedience resulting in righteousness. So we see sin is equivilaent to death and the opposite of life is death.

To answer the second part of this two fold question. Does death create life? For Christians physical death here in earth certainly creates life. Two facts that prove that physical death here on earth creates life.

First fact that proves that physical death for Christians creates life is found in Romans 6:3. Do we not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were also baptized into His death. So we see that we have died with Christ and if we have died with Christ we are united with Him in His likeness. From the death to the ressurection. We can clearly see the concept dying as Christ died and then being raised to life as Christ lives on today and forever more amen.

Second, as Christians are living their life for Christ and being raised from the dead know that death is no longer master over them. Just as it stated in Romans 6:10 the death Christ died was once and for all as goes the same for Christians, we die once and that is the physical death and then because we live our life for Christ we are raised and never to die again. So depending on who you are living for answers the question who is master over you which is m either death or life and if life is master over you there is nothing to fear.

Death is a long venture which one cannot escape. Eternally mastered by death and never to rule over in any sense. Death is master to non- Christians and to those who are unfaithful. Make the right choice for who to life for.

Quinton" Life is Good" Decker

May grace and Peace be with you all