Romanian Pictorial
Labels:
personal testimonies
I wanted to share with you a recent trip to Romania, complete with photos. It began on August 21 and involved a ten-hour layover in Barcelona. My friend, Jose, was there to pick me up and we had time to have a meeting before catching the plane to Bucharest. In the 8 P.M. meeting in Barcelona, I shared a message, which I hoped to develop also in Romania on The Year of Jubilee. Another good friend, Ionut, was at the Otopeni airport at 3:45 A.M. and drove me to his home for some rest before a trip into the mountains.
We arrived at the comfortable inn near Rucar in time for an evening meeting. David Harasemiuc, very proficient on the keyboard, led the singing. He is from a family of musicians and, being a lover of violin, I especially enjoy his sister, Patricia's, ability with that instrument. This girl, playing the violin, is not yet a teenager, (if I remember correctly) and is the daughter of long-time friends, Daniel and Cristina. Ionis, son of my translator and her husband, joins in song.
I began a series of three Bible studies on The Year of Jubilee. Perhaps in the near future I can share the content on this BlogSpot.
The house has 10 guest rooms and comfortably housed 60 people. On Saturday, more arrived, totalling around 80 altogether. I take you with me up the stairs to the next floor....
Gospel Awakening
Labels:
Important messages
 |
| Rachel and Mike |
This is the first message I have
ever posted on this BlogSpot from our son, Mike. It was his opening message
that he preached, after taking on the senior pastorate at Church of Hope in Elk
River, Minnesota. Very early in his ministry, Mike was a chaplain in a
Christian high school. Later he became a youth pastor and, as he states in this
article, he was asked to take on the children’s ministry besides, in that same
church.
Here are a few words from Mike’s own
personal testimony: “When people ask me where I’m from,
I'm not sure what to say. I was born in Mexico. For the first seven years of my
life, I lived in Minnesota, moved to Germany, lived there for twelve years and
now I'm back in Minnesota. I spent half a year in Alaska, too. That's where I’m
from.”
“I grew up on the mission field and I have to say that I wouldn't trade that opportunity for anything in the world. When I am asked what caused me to continue in God's work after leaving home, I have to agree with the answer that my older brothers and sisters give to the same question: It's the reality of God – it’s as simple as that.”
Revelation 22
Labels:
Important messages
Chapter 22
1. Then the angel showed
me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne
of God and of the Lamb
2. through the middle of
the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life
with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of
the tree were for the healing of the nations.
3. No longer will there
be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and
his servants will worship him.
4. They will see his
face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5. And night will be no
more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their
light, and they will reign forever and ever.
6. And he said to me, “These
words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the
prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.”
7. “And behold I am
coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this
book.”
8. I, John, am the one
who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to
worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me,
9. but he said to me, “You
must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the
prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”
10. And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy
of this book, for the time is near.
It’s interesting to note that
heaven provides security and healing, even though enemies are destroyed in the
Lake of Fire forever, and sickness will cease to exist. In the last chapter,
verse 12, there is a high wall and an angel guarding each gate of the city. If
you have ever had a doubt that sometime in eternity, sin or the consequences of
sin might revive, this vigilance is recorded to assure the reader that God has secured
eternity. The Creator insures and reassures that these maladies will never
again return.
Earthly cities attempt to
beautify themselves with trees, parks and rivers or lakes, but the heavenly
city seems to be, essentially a park… a well populated park! There is no
mention made of buildings, but in this chapter, John is taken inside the city
to see, first of all, a river. It is called the River of the Water of Life. The
source or fountain of the river is the throne of God and the Lamb. The river is
as bright as crystal (1).
Revelation 21
Labels:
Important messages
Chapter 21
1. Then I saw a
new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed
away, and the sea was no more.
2. And I saw the
holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a
bride adorned for her husband.
3. And I heard a
loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with
man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will
be with them as their God.
4. He will wipe
away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall
there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have
passed away.”
5. And he who was
seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these
words are trustworthy and true.”
6. And he said to
me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To
the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.
7. The one who
conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
8. But as for the
cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually
immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake
that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
The New Jerusalem
In Genesis 1:2, the verb that describes the action of the Holy Spirit at the dawn of creation is moved in a number of major versions of the Bible, such as the KJV: "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." Moved suggests an extremely broad action to a Hebrew word, which
should be much more specific. The first definition for that word in the
Strong’s Hebrew dictionary states: A
primitive root; to brood. It is the same verb used in Deuteronomy 32:11,
where it is usually translated flutters…
“Like an eagle that stirs up its
nest, that flutters over its young…”
If the Holy Spirit is seen brooding over creation, it adds passion to His movements. Then, when
the trinity communes in Genesis 1:26 and states, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” we see man’s
creation, not only as the main event in creation, but an uncovering of the
heart of the Creator. The entire biblical revelation of the purpose of the
existence of mankind is that of a being, who is capable of having intimate
communion with God. I will not yield to the temptation to go into details that
will clearly prove the point, but will simply declare it to be fact, hoping for
your acquiescence. When we are talking of creation, we are specifically
speaking of the creation of man, male and female, and the rest of the work was
to provide an ideal ambiance for his existence.
In John 14, verses 2 and 3 (AMP version), Jesus speaks to
His beloved disciples: “In My Father’s
house are many dwelling places (homes). If it were not so, I would have told
you; for I am going away to prepare a
place for you. And when I go and make ready a place for you, I will come back
again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also.” In
John 17:24, He pours his heart out to His Father: “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with
me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me…” And now, as we draw
near the end of the New Testament, John the beloved disciple sees, “the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down
out of heaven from God, prepared as a
bride adorned for her husband” (2). This is the perfect, eternal ambiance
for His followers. He told them that He would prepare a place and here it is, prepared
as a bride. It fits their new nature like a glove.
Revelation 20
Labels:
Important messages
Chapter 20
1. Then I saw an
angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless
pit and a great chain.
2. And he seized
the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for
a thousand years,
3. and threw him
into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive
the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must
be released for a little while.
4. Then I saw
thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was
committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the
testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the
beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their
hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
5. The rest of the
dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the
first resurrection.
6. Blessed and
holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second
death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they
will reign with him for a thousand years.
Leading up to the Millennium
We have a very short account by John, concerning the
millennial reign of Christ upon the earth, but the prophets had much to say
about it. We will not be able to give an exhaustive study on the subject,
because that would easily require a book. However, we will go back to the
prophets and pick up more details about this tremendously important period of
human prophecy. After six millenniums of man’s rule, the return of Christ
brings them to an end and then, He will reign on earth for a final one thousand
years. This gives much more sense to God’s creation, after Adam sinned so early
in human history and chaos has followed ever since. God will show us an ideal
reign through the Prince of Peace, the last Adam. There will be paradise on
this planet!
We have just studied the Battle of Armageddon and the
destruction of world empires. The beast and the false prophet have been thrown
for eternity into the Lake of Fire. There are other events preliminary to the
Millennium. One is the Judgment of the Nations, as described in Matthew 25:
31-46. Notice when this takes place: “When
the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will
sit on his glorious throne” (Mt.25:31). This will involve the treatment
given to Christ’s brothers, according to the flesh, the Jews, during the Great
Tribulation. The participants will be divided into two groups, described as
sheep and goats. They have carried out the law of their nature, apparently
unconscious of the source of their actions, and either aided or neglected the
Jews in their tribulation plight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
Recommended Books
