CrystalClear,

I will simply say that I give thanks that the majority of Americans disagree with you completely. I also give thanks that the vast majority of our Armed Forces disagree with you completely.

Needless to say, I disagree with you completely and feel that your thoughts on this issue are extremely naive. A stick your head in the sand and wait until someone comes to get you philosophy is why we had 9-11. A like analogy would be waiting for your child to commit murder before you decide to discipline them.

We can agree to disagree, and that's fine. You just gave me something else to give thanks for.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 100:3  Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Two Minutes With The Bible - THE PROMISE GOD MADE TO HIMSELF


Jan 12

THE PROMISE GOD MADE TO HIMSELF

By Cornelius R. Stam

"In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the world [or, "ages"] began" (Tit. 1:2).

"The Cretians are always liars" (Ver. 12). "God... cannot lie" (Ver. 2). What a contrast! And how reassuring to know that our salvation depends upon the Word of God, who cannot lie!

Our opening passage, above, however, states that God made this promise "before the world [or, "ages"] began."How can this be? There is no indication that He made this promise to the angels, and there was no one else to whom He could have made it -- except Himself, and this is exactly the truth of the matter. Have we not all made earnest promises to ourselves?

Before God ever made one promise to any man, He promised Himself that He would provide salvation and all the riches of His grace for sinners through Calvary’s finished work, and the promises later made to men were but progressive revelations of a firm purpose He had already made in His own heart of love. Paul, the apostle of "the mystery," refers to this blessed fact again and again in his epistles:

"But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery... the hidden... WHICH GOD HATH ORDAINED BEFORE THE WORLD UNTO OUR GLORY" (I Cor. 2:7).

"According as HE HATH CHOSEN US IN HIM [CHRIST] BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD..." (Eph. 1:4).

"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, BEING PREDESTINATED ACCORDING TO THE PURPOSE OF HIM WHO WORKETH ALL THINGS AFTER THE COUNSEL OF HIS OWN WILL" (Eph. 1:11).

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to HIS OWN PURPOSE AND [HIS OWN] GRACE, WHICH WAS GIVEN US IN CHRIST JESUS BEFORE THE WORLD BEGAN" (II Tim. 1:9).

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Brother Bob,

Thanks for sharing this with us. I just downloaded the entire document in ".PDF" format. If others have the free Acrobat Reader,   it is very nice.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 103:15  As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

Hello Ammie,

I hope that you don't mind me moving this to "Questions and Answers" so that more people will see it. This really isn't a Bible study, so it is more appropriate there anyway.

I think that most people will need more information before they will be able to provide input. Are you talking about doing one-on-one work with International students going to school in the U.S., or are you talking about doing work by mail or some other long distance method?

Several in my family give room and board to International students while they go to school here. If this is something that you are interested in, I can get more information for you. This is usually arranged in advance through Christian organizations.

Or, maybe you are talking about doing some on campus Christian work. There are many Christian organizations that actively do this for many colleges. Off the top of my head, I think about The Navigators and Campus Crusade for Christ.

Give us some more information, and I'm sure that we can come up with some ideas for you.

Love In Christ,
Tom

I Corinthians 1:9  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

aw!    ;D  Since you didnt share your pie  ...*mumbles*...

 can you share a pic of the little pea?

Yes Sister, I will share a couple as soon as I figure out how. I did get a couple of new toys at Christmas that handle pictures. In case you are wondering, old dogs can learn new tricks. I already have the picture on my computer, but the file size and dimensions are huge. The pictures I'm thinking about are all over 1 meg in size. They represent my first tries in using a digital camera. I guess that I could have read all the directions first, but I didn't.   :D  I just set it "Auto, Auto, Auto" and it worked. My little camera is tiny, but it takes BIG PICTURES!!   ;D

Love In Christ,
Tom

Colossians 3:17  And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

AMEN BRONZESNAKE!!

The answers from the Holy Bible are always perfect, and there are no opinions there - JUST THE FACTS!

Love In Christ,
Tom

Colossians 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.

Does anyone believe that the Tsunami was a sign of the end?

also all of the floods, landslides, etc. does it sound like the end times

Hello Seeds,

I don't think that I've had an opportunity to welcome you yet, so WELCOME TO CHRISTIANS UNITE!

In answer to your question, I really don't know, but I do see many things in the world that lead me to believe that we are either seeing a preview of the end of this age of God's Grace, or it is happening right before our eyes.

For me, I simply feel led to pray that God uses me for His Will and purpose for as many hours or days that I have in this life. If Jesus comes for us this hour and catches us up for eternity with Him, it will simply be an hour of great joy for all who love Him. Whether it is the end of this age or not, I pray that all Christians have a heavy burden on their heart to share the GOOD NEWS of Jesus and the Cross with the lost. The time for this burden is always, but I personally believe that Bible prophecy is unfolding before our very eyes. My thoughts don't involve the natural disasters, rather all of the other things that are happening in the world right now. I certainly wouldn't argue with another brother or sister in Christ about this, but I think the end of this age is near.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Matthew 5:3-11  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

 ;D

[THE JUST FOR THE UNJUST!]

AMEN BROTHER ASAPH!!

I love that portion of Scripture and many other portions that proclaim the absolute Majesty of our LORD. I was just thinking about how small, insignificant, and unworthy I am, YET Jesus died for me, THE JUST FOR THE UNJUST!

He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, YET he allows me to come into his presence with prayer, praise, and worship. In fact, HE sent His Holy Spirit to live in my heart as a guide and comforter. It makes me very sad to know that many of the lost consider the preaching of the Cross as foolishness. If they only knew and understood what Jesus did for them, they would be on their knees or prone with us in thanks, appreciation, praise, and worship. Jesus is the most precious GIFT that anyone can ever receive, but many still reject Him for the things and traditions of this world.

I pray that God will soften their hearts and let them hear the WORD. Faith does come from hearing HIS WORD, but one has to listen to get the message. I do know absolutely that THE WORD is powerful and is never wasted. THE WORD is sharper than any sword, and I pray that it pierces the hardened hearts of the lost. The greatest and most precious event of a Christians life is the moment that THE WORD pierced their hearts.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 62:7  In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

Psalms 28:7  The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.

Romans 5:17-18  For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)  Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

Acts 26:18  To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

John 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Hebrews 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

I Corinthians 2:5  That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Psalms 18:46  The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.

Ephesians 1:12-14  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

I Peter 3:18  For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

John 8:12  Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Colossians 1:12-14  Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Romans 5:6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Psalms 100:1-5  Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Shylynne,

 ;D  WHAT A HOOT! You've got me laughing again. Thanks!

Brother Hermann,

Let me look into this and pray about it. I'm just a volunteer here and really don't know what I can do. I will try to do what God leads me to do. In the meantime, I will be praying for your school and the children who go there.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 73:26  My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

Tom gets his pie and gets to eat it too!
Weell now aint this a fine howdy doody!  :(

Shylynne,

 ;D  Sister, I read this and immediately thought about my 18 month old grandson who had a grand time with pie and cake at several family gatherings recently. I took some great pictures of him eating the pie and cake with his little hands. Obviously, it was all over his face. When his hands got sticky, he simply wiped them off in his hair.   ;D  WHAT A HOOT!! - I'm still laughing about it, but my daughter didn't appreciate me laughing so much and encouraging him to do more. Grandpas do cause trouble every now and then, but that's part of our job.   ;D

I did have to remind my daughter that she used to throw food at the table, and she hit me many times. Further, I never got even with her, so my grandson is doing it for me.   ;D

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 105:4  Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face evermore.

Brother Joshua,

I will be praying for all who have broken hearts today. I had the unpleasant duty of notifying family members of loss of a loved one for many years, so I know what a crushing blow this can be for family and friends.

We should all be reminded about how short and uncertain this life is. Brother Joshua, I will be praying for you as you minister to this family and your friends. I pray that others will be led to Christ through this tragedy. I also pray that God will give peace and comfort that only HE can give.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Colossians 3:17  And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Hello Hermann,

If you have proof that this article is false, I can only suggest that you write to the source of the article and provide that proof.

Christians Unite carries news stories from many Christian sources. The author of the article has nothing to do with Christians Unite and is not a member here. I would simply say that I'm not aware of a single article by the Christian news sources used by Christians Unite that has been proved false or malicious. If so, I'm not aware of it.

Regardless, the source of the article isn't Christians Unite, so your time would be better spent with the source, not one of the thousands of places where the article is available for Christians to read. I hope this helps some.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 100:5  For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Musiclover,

 :D  Did someone say "insane"? It's maybe time for just a tiny bit of levity. I used to suffer from multiple personalities, but we are all fine now.   :D

I think that we are all somewhat insane, and "YES!", God loves insane people too.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Philippians 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.