DAYS OF ELIJAH – An Exposition on a Song From SCRIPTURE

DAYS OF ELIJAH – An Exposition

~ by James Fire

When we bring “a sacrifice of praise to the LORD” as it says in JER 17:26 and JER 33:11, we worship the LORD with our hearts as we love on Him, our voices as we sing to Him, our bodies as we raise our hands to Him, (maybe even dance!) and with our minds as we meditate on Him.

That’s why there are certain worship songs that really move my heart, because they so glorify GOD and magnify His majestic magnificence and exalt His excellency and draw me into His presence and I am eagerly offering Him the praise and worship for all He has done for us, all that He is doing for us and all that He has promised to do for us, and beyond that, to praise and worship Him for Who He is! He is worthy of all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength. And songs with a lot of biblical meaning to them are the best!

I especially love worship songs that address GOD in the first person, so that as we sing, we are not saying “He” and “the LORD” but rather “You” and You, LORD” because when we worship it is a kind of prayer that we address to GOD directly.

Rebellion Against God - A Lesson For Rebels

by A.M. Kisly

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen the anguish of godly parents over the state of their rebellious children. The depth of the love of parents for their children cannot be measured, and the grief of a parent over a rebellious child is almost inconsolable. Is it possible for a child to be raised in a godly home only to turn to wickedness, opposing God in every aspect of life?

Yes, it is absolutely possible….

In 2 Chronicles chapter 33, we read of one of the kings of Judah. King Manasseh was king of the southern kingdom of Judah and the details of his life are recorded in 2 Kings 21:1–18 and 2 Chronicles 33:1–20, and also mentioned in Jeremiah 15:4.

Manasseh was the longest reigning king of Judah. Scripture tells us that he began his reign at the age of twelve; and reigned for a total of fifty-five years. He stands out among all the other kings of Judah as the most wicked of them all. Manasseh "did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel" (2 Kings 21:2).

His record of wickedness was a staggering one.

GENESIS – An Expositional Overview of the Beginning of God’s Revelation: Chapter FORTYSEVEN

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez and James Fire

Chuck Missler Bible Commentary – GENESIS Chapters 46-50

GENESIS 47 – by James Fire; for the Facebook video of this teaching, go here.

INTRODUCTION: Jacob has known a lot of struggles and hardships; all sorts of uncertainties, impulsive decisions that went bad; and trials, anxieties and stresses. He had a brother that wanted to kill him and an Uncle that would’ve been happy to help. All kinds of family strife from wrong choices in the mix, and the grief of burying his wife – only then to lose his most precious son Joseph.

Then to top it all off, a severe famine that covered the continent, and the potential loss of – who knows how many of his sons who could be lost because of this crises, and Benjamin no less!

Now in old age, the LORD in His mercies, looks with kindness on his circumstances; he discovers not only that Joseph is alive, but that he also has two more grandsons. He is removed from a dry, weary land of desperate famine and brought to Egypt where he is given Pharaoh’s assurance that he and all his kin will have “the fat of the land” to dwell in.

Though his life at times weighed heavily, to the point where he didn’t live as long as his father Isaac (180 years) or his grandfather Abraham (175 years), he is still a man of faith and the LORD always honors those who will place their faith in Him.

Our Christian Witness - Keeping Our Attitudes Right

posted by A.M. Kisly

We advance the cause of the gospel in the world when we keep an attitude of thankful submission to God in the midst hard times.

In the second chapter of Paul’s letter to the Philippians. In the middle of this chapter, in verses 14-16, we read this word of instruction to Paul’s brothers and sisters in Philppi;

"Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain ."  Philippians 2:14-16

Over the past years, I have developed an interesting ‘morning’ routine. The first thing I do when I get up, of course, is to make coffee. (No surprise there.) While that coffee is brewing, I make my husband’s lunch to take to work, make him breakfast to go, and then take care of our barn animals. All of this takes place before 7:30 in the morning and by this time I can’t wait to sit down with a cup of coffee. I usually turn on the television to watch the news, and to see what the big news of the day might be when the feeling of Deja vu comes over me, for months and months the news cycle has not change much. After about ten minutes of listening to the news anchors tell me how unprecedentedly ‘horrible’ everything is right now, I hang in there for the weather report, then shut off the television, open my Bible, and gain a higher perspective from God’s unchanging word.

If the only view of things we had today were the things told to us by the news shows, we’d have to conclude that these are the most dire days in human history. And of course, there’s no question that ‘hard times’ have arrived and perhaps worse times seem to be just around the corner. But how truly hopeless we’d be if we didn’t have God’s sure word on the times in which we’re living!

And here’s what I’ve been concluding lately. The more I have compared the current threat of ‘hard times’ with the unchanging promises of God’s word, the more I realize that we’re living in a time of great opportunity for the gospel. Many of the things that people have been trusting in, and many of the comforts that they have been building their lives upon, will very likely be shaken from them soon. And perhaps, in the months to come, many people in our culture will become more receptive to the message of the gospel than they’ve ever been in their entire lives. Perhaps this will be the final call of salvation to our nation.

We have a great opportunity, as God’s people, to stand out in these ‘hard times’; and to bear a message of bright hope in an increasingly darkening and fear-filled world. And it’s the thought of this ‘opportunity’ that has drawn me to a passage from Paul’s letter to the Philippians.

GENESIS – An Expositional Overview of the Beginning of God’s Revelation: Chapter FORTYSIX

Contributing commentaries by pastors Sonny Islas, Albert Lopez and James Fire

Chuck Missler Bible Commentary – GENESIS Chapters 46-50

GENESIS 46 – LOOKING TO GOD DURING TRANSITIONAL PERIODS IN LIFE by Sonny Islas; for the Facebook video of this teaching, go here.

Introduction: Jacob is now going to transition from living in Canaan aka Israel (the promise land) to living in Egypt. You and I would say (what’s the big deal?) this move is a no brainer – Jacob should up and go (pronto!) without a second thought because after all - Joseph is alive and because there is a great famine in all the land!

But what we must understand is that Jacob (which means trickster) made quick self-centered moves in the past that brought about lots of pain, regret and trouble (i.e. when he listened to mom (Rebecca) to trick his dad (Isaac) which then angered his brother Esau who then became his worst enemy which then forced Jacob to run away from home etc.) He was quick to make bad decisions.

Jacob is very old now and he’s learned a lot from his mistakes; mainly the mistake of jumping the gun instead of looking to God first. One indication that you’re maturing spiritually is that you’ve become less impulsive and take things a bit slower - all while waiting on God in prayer.

SOME NOTES ABOUT HEAVEN - by Lambert Dolphin

~ By Lambert Dolphin
For the complete article, click here!

Heavenly Daze!

My sister Susanne, in response to my question (back in the year 2000), suggested I write an article on heaven. I knew vaguely what sorts of things to talk about. But first I decided to see what was on the Internet, so I searched the first 500 web sites I found where heaven was mentioned in some form or fashion. Yes, two or three of these 500 web sites were about the heaven that is in the Bible, though none of these Biblical web sites had much to say that interested me.

I did make a list of some of these "heavenly" web sites one can visit in Cyberspace. I think not many people give a hoot about what happens to them after they die? Here are some of my "favorite" Internet web sites about "heaven."

THE MARXIST AGENDA: Introduction - "Our Nation Is Divided" PART One and Two

by A.M. Kisly

Our nation is divided. 

This past week, we celebrated our nation's birth and independence. We truly have so  much to be grateful for. 

So why then is there so much division, hatred?  Why do so many desire to destroy our Constitution and dismantle our government, and every aspect of civil society?

What is going on?
This can only be answered from a biblical view.

Our nation was founded upon Christian principles. Americans shouldn't simply forget about their country’s Christian roots. Anyone interested in an accurate account of the nation’s past cannot afford to ignore the important influence of faith on many Americans, from the Puritans to the present day.

Christian ideas underlie some key tenets of America’s constitutional order. For instance, the Founders believed that humans are created in the image of God, which led them to design institutions and laws meant to protect and promote human dignity. Because they were convinced that humans are sinful, they attempted to avoid the concentration of power by framing a national government with carefully enumerated powers. As well, the Founders were committed to liberty, but they never imagined that provisions of the Bill of Rights would be used to protect licentiousness. And they clearly thought moral considerations should inform legislation.

America has drifted from these first principles, yet we would do well to reconsider the wisdom of them.