Meet, Meet, Meet...

Hebrews 10:23-25 - "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.  And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."


Matthew 24:9-13 - "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.  And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.  And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.  And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."

Paul wrote to Timothy that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.  There will be times of hardship and stress, tremendous pressure, darkness, and evil.  People will love pleasure and themselves, not God.  We are seeing it, all around us, aren't we?  Turn on the tv and the darkness and evil comes right into our living rooms.  It is not going to get any easier to be a Christian.  Jesus lays it out for us how bad it is going to be in the Matthew passage and in the book of Revelation.

Scripture tells us that believers are secure by the power of God, but that doesn't mean we can do anything we want to.  There is human responsibility to security...it's called holding fast...and that is what the writer of Hebrews said we should be doing.  God is telling us what we will need to do to remain steadfast.  We need to meet, meet, meet!  The only place we can remain steadfast until the Lord returns is with His people.  We need to meet and stir each other up to love.  Being a lone Christian is just not going to work as the days continue to grow darker.  The Lord said that many are going to fall away when Satan's wrath is unleashed during the great tribulation.  Pretty sobering, isn't it?  Those who don't remain and continue to love and hold fast will prove their faith was not genuine.  The love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.  It is there.  We need to meet and call each other to action, to walk in that poured into us love.  We are called to love and do good deeds, but we are also called to help each other love.  We need to help each other be loving people, to put the Lord and others before ourselves.  The greatest thing I can think of to stir you up in this is Jesus love for you.

Remember His great love for you.

Meet with His people.

Love.

Help others love.

Be loved.

The Great Contrast - Introduction

My mind has been on these two passages as of late:


Hebrews 10:23-25 - "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.  And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."


Matthew 24:9-13 - "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.  And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.  And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.  And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.  But the one who endures to the end will be saved."


I will be blogging about these passages for the next several posts.  While both passages initially had Hebrew audiences, they have application for everyone in the church as well.  Both have eschatological references, that is, they have references to the Lord's return, which I have highlighted in orange font.  Both also mention love, which I have highlighted in red font.  The Greek word, agape, is used - the love of the will where we choose to put others before ourselves.  These passages also talk about the perseverance of the saints.  The Hebrews passage calls for holding fast the confession of hope and the Matthew passage speaks about those who will endure to the end.  We also see there will be those who will no longer be loyal and persevere, but will betray and fall away, whose love was once warm but will diminish into coldness.  
Jesus used love and grow in the same sentence.  Stay tuned, I'll talk about that some more...


I hope you were able to be in church yesterday...and are you watching?  We are seeing the Day of His return drawing closer, as the unrest continues to increase in the world.

Garden Project Update

Getting close to being done...

DONE!

A nice pile of firewood, don't you think?!  The stack Tim is standing next to will be going to the mill.  Great job, Josh, Kent, and Barry...thanks!  (If you need any excavating work done in the Gig Harbor area, Reid Excavating does great work!)

Garden Project

Thought it would be fun to show you what has been going on at our place.  We are having some trees logged off and a garden terrace put in on the back of our property.  Daniel has been having a lot of fun watching all the big equipment work.  Can't wait for all the fresh produce to be set on the table later this summer!

1 John 3:1 - Part Two

I've been thinking about the prayer from my last post.  In it I asked the Lord to grow my love for Him, and I asked it on behalf of you, my readers too.  Can our love actually grow, is what I am wondering?  Did I choose the right wording?  The Bible talks about different kinds of love.  There is the love of self-sacrifice, of putting others before ourselves.  This is the love Jesus had for us in going to the cross.  This is the love genuine believers will have for the Lord and others.  There is also the love of affection.  I do have this for the Lord.  I have an emotional love for Him, because of what He has done for me, what He is doing for me, and because I know He is returning for me.  This is the type of love that I think grows, as our knowledge of the Lord grows.  The sacrificial love however, is either there or it isn't.  It is there when we choose to be obedient to His commands.  It is not there when we choose to please ourselves.  Love, you before me...  Being obedient is putting Christ ahead of ourselves.

Lord, may we grow in our affection towards You, as we grow in grace and knowledge of You, and may our obedience to You become more and more consistent, matching up more and more with our perfect position in which You have so graciously and lovingly placed us.

I love you, Lord.  Thank you for loving me.

1 John 3:1

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.

Think about this.  At one time we were God's enemies.

Enemies...don't...deserve...saving...

Yet, He loved us so much that we went from being His enemy to His child, so that we could comprehend the depth of His love for us.

Enemy of God, now children of God.

Lord, You loved us when we were Your enemies...when we wanted nothing to do with You, when we could care less about You.  We now love You because You first loved us...give us understanding of how You so vastly and deeply loved us.  Your love is pure and flawless and never diminishes for us.  That cannot be said about our love for You.  Grow our love for You as You love us!

Will the Church See Antichrist?

Here's what Paul said...

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day (the day Jesus returns in judgment and we are gathered together to Him) will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God - 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (ESV).


Paul also said not to let anyone deceive you concerning that day...


Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day (the day Jesus returns in judgment and we are gathered together to Him) will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God - 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (ESV).


What else does Paul tell us the church will see?


Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day (the day Jesus comes and we are gathered together to him) will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God - 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (ESV).

What Paul wrote does not take away the Blessed Hope.  What it does take away is the assumption and teaching that Christ could return at any moment.   We have been given clear markers of what we will see before Jesus returns and gathers us to Himself.

I urge you to be a student of the Word.  Take this passage and compare it with what Christ taught us in Matthew 24 and Mark 13...they line up perfectly...

Jesus:  "And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake" - Mark 13:37.

Daniel 2:21 - Who's Really in Control

"It is He who changes the times and epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings..."


Mubarak steps down...


Times are changing, and it's not because the people of Egypt called for it...

We don't know yet who the Lord is going to use to fill the vacuum and accomplish His purposes by Mubarak's leaving.  Right now it appears to be the military.

Joel Rosenberg made some good comments on his blog today.  He said that for most people uncertainty can create anxiety.  Followers of Jesus Christ need to stay focused on the truth that Christ is the King of Kings and Lord of laws.

He was asked this question on a radio program:

"As you've watched this situation in Egypt unfold in recent weeks, do you see a possibility that if there is an orderly transition that the situation for Christians could actually improve?"

Here was his answer:


Yes, it could. I think of the time when the Soviet Empire collapsed on Christmas Day in 1991. That opened up Russia and the entire Eastern bloc to the gospel. Many people came to faith in Christ. Many new congregations were planted. Many new pastors were called and trained. So that's one scenario, more freedom opening a door for the gospel. But then there's the Iraninan model. The fact that Radicals have been in power there for 32 years has been what God has used to begin to change that country. A Radical regime in Iran has counterintuitively been the healthiest for the church. Not easy. Don't get me wrong. There's been terrible persecution. But God has used all this to shake Iranians from their belief that is Islam is the answer and jihad is the way. Millions of Iranians have turned away from Islam. At least one million Iranians, it is estimated, have come to faith in Christ. So God can use two entirely different environments, the opening up of freedom and democracy, or a crackdown and more repression, to bring souls to Himself. God is sovereign. And we need to pray that the people of Egypt hear the gospel and make a decision to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior no matter which way this plays out. 


I love seeing God on the move, don't you?

Assurance of Sonship

Romans 8:5, 13, 14 - "For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit...For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.  For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God."

To what we are drawn reveals to Whom/whom we belong and those who claim to belong to God but are perpetually comfortable living in sin or with sin all around them, cannot have assurance that they are His.  A true child of God is constantly engaged in a battle with the sin that remains in the flesh.  A true child of God hates that sin and wants it dead, and takes steps toward killing it.  This is a good self-examination passage, to test whether or not we are in the faith - to know if we have experienced the new birth.  If we are a warrior in this battle against sin, we can rest assured, we belong to God and His Spirit dwells in us.  

Most recent pictures of Mai and Charlie in Vietnam...

Sure do miss them...
Don't you just love Charlie's toes?!  

Psalm 95:1-6

Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise!

For the LORD is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

In His hand are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are His also.

The sea is His, for He made it,

and His hands formed the dry land.

Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the LORD,

our Maker!

We were created to worship the One Who created us, 

 the LORD.
We are to come together and worship.
We are to come together in thankfulness.
He has done so many things for us,
and blessed us tremendously,
our salvation being one of His great blessings.
He is a righteous and a just Ruler,
a great King.

  He is the only God, and
all worship is to be directed to Him.
All other gods are man's creations.
Their recognition and attention
take away
what is rightfully due the LORD,
and Him alone.
The LORD surrounds His entire creation.

It all belongs to Him, including you.

May you have a great day of worship,
singing songs of praise and thanksgiving
to the LORD, our great God and King,
Jesus Christ, our Maker -
Because of Who He is,
because of what He has revealed about Himself,
and because of what He has done for us,
is doing for us,
and will do for us -

To You, Lord Jesus, be all glory and honor,
We magnify You and praise Your name!

Yes...

...yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!

Count the yes's and you come up with how many years ago on this date I said yes to Tim...(You have to count the title yes, too...)

I love you, Timothy Robert Hall...I thank the Lord for you...best yes I ever said!

God is on the Move

Ok, did you see the headlines on Fox News this (Wednesday, 2/2) morning?  


Egyptians turning on each other... (The home page used this title for the story you will read)


Near/far fulfillment?  Is God going to bring a fierce king to rule them?  


Wow...this is so exciting...


God's Word is truth, folks...we can walk by faith, knowing that the Lord will bring a good result, even in the darkest of times...


Alright, I have to tell you, I am excited over the events that have been occurring in Egypt.  Why?  Because we could be seeing prophecy fulfilled right before our eyes.

Isaiah 19 is a prophecy concerning Egypt.  In verse two the Lord tells Isaiah that He is going to stir up Egyptians against Egyptians and they will fight against each other.

If you've been watching the news reports, things are changing daily in Egypt.  Hundreds of thousands of their citizens are calling for the resignation of Mubarak, their current president.  The military is allowing the protests and one of the last reports I read is that Mubarak sees the handwriting on the wall.  Without the backing of the military, he has no power.  The military put him into power thirty years ago, and also his two predecessors, Anwar Sadat, who was assassinated, and Gamal Nasser.  The ones with the guns control what is going to happen.  (I won't go into what my mind has been thinking about what could happen here...)  I've also read that El Baradei would like to step in and take the leadership.  He is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization that is not friendly to Israel.  Mubarak, though a dictator, has been one of the last allies in the region with Israel.

What happens if some in the military want El Baradei, and others wants someone else?  It could be that chaos will really take over.   Verse four in Isaiah 19 tells us that the Lord is going to give the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master, and a fierce king will rule over them.  Is this a prophecy regarding what could happen in our time?  I don't know, we'll just have to wait and see how this unfolds.  I do love the end of this prophecy.  Verse twenty-three tells us the Egyptians will worship the Lord with the Assyrians.   And here's verse twenty-five,  "Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel, my inheritance."  The Lord is going to bring blessing to Egypt.

By the way, the Suez Canal is located in Egypt...oil ships come through there.  Right now, they are still making it through...this could all come to a screeching halt, and then you know what happens next, right?  We may need to hang on to our hats here in America, things could be changing for us, real soon...better yet...hang onto the Lord, He really is the one in control...

***I did a little research this evening - The Assyrians conquered Egypt around 670 B.C. so the fierce king part of the prophecy may have already been fulfilled 2700 years ago, or so.  What is clear however is that verse 16 and following has yet to be fulfilled...


God is definitely on the move right now as He brings His plan for this age even closer to its conclusion...we need to keep our eyes on what is going on in and around Israel...