CECE WINANS - ALABASTER BOX (LIVE)

Worthy Is The Lamb - Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir

Billy Graham's Last Message? Could Be...So Don't Miss It.

Voddie Baucham - The Supremacy of Christ and Truth in a Postmodern World

How do you know that Christianity is the one true worldview?

You Love Second

From the excellent Book "Note to Self:  The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself."

You must learn, relearn, and remember your Savior's love and sacrifice for the wicked, the rebellious, the black-hearted - for people like you.  And when you see the Holy One's sacrificial love for you, you not only see what love looks like, but also you find strength and power to love like Him.

Seeing Salvation this Christmas

The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations,
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God. Isaiah 52:10

What's His Name?

For unto us a child is born; to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. Isaiah 9:6-7

What Simeon Saw

Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to lyour people Israel.” Luke 2:25-32

John the Baptist's Purpose

John was to prepare people for this:

because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. Luke 1:78-79

Must We Believe in the Virgin Birth?

Good article by Al Mohler.

Jesus is the Father's Glory Revealed

And the Glory of the Lord shall be revealed; and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. Isaiah 40:5

And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. Luke 2:9

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”. Luke 2

Forgive? Why?

It seems ridiculous that we should forgive people for horrible, terrible things they have done to us....until, that is, that we fully realize the extent of our offense against our Father.  And yet, we were forgiven.  If we really think about it, our conclusion will be that the ridiculous thing is that He forgave us.       

23 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.
24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.'
27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.
28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, 'Pay what you owe.'
29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you.'
30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.
31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.
32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.
33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?'
34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.
35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart."

Just like He said

Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.

What Did He Say Again?

...the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise." And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.

He Has Destroyed It By Enduring It!

He Has Destroyed It By Enduring It!

Let no one grieve at his poverty,
   for the universal kingdom has been revealed.
Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;
   for forgiveness has risen from the grave.
Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.
  He has destroyed it by enduring it.

—John Chrysostom, bishop of Constantinople; sermon, ca. 400

A Guard of Soldiers

The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, "Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, 'After three days I will rise.'Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, 'He has risen from the dead,' and the last fraud will be worse than the first." Pilate said to them, "You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can." So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

Jesus and Judas on Wednesday

Jesus on Wednesday: "And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." & "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats."

Judas on Wednesday: Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priest and said, "What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?" And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.

My, how easily we forget.

Jesus told the disciples EXACTLY what was about to happen to him. And yet, they either forgot His words, thought He was lying or that He meant well but lacked the power to follow through. Actually, Mark 9:32 says that the disciples did not understand what Jesus was saying. But how could it be any clearer?

for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.". Mark 9:31

And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. Mark 8:31

And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, "See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised
on the third day.". Matthew 20:17-19

There was no formula then and there is none now. It's all Him. All we can do is believe.

On Tuesday

[on Tuesday], When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, "You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified."