YOUR EYES ARE TOO PURE TO LOOK ON EVIL

1. Your eyes are too pure to look on evil (1:12-13).Habakkuk accepted God's answer, and acknowledged God's authority to appoint Babylon to execute judgment. He also trusted God to preserve the lives of his own. But he still could not understand how God, whose eyes are too pure to even look on evil, would employ the evil Babylonians to do this. So again, he brought his complaint to God.

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2. The wicked fisherman (1:14-2:1).To the eyes of the prophet, Babylon was like a wicked fisherman. After a successful catch, the fisherman offers sacrifices to his idol. Babylon worshiped military and economic strength that made her secure and affluent. To Habakkuk, this is a great injustice. To him, the Babylonians were servants of the devil, who should be destroyed, not helped. He stands watch, awaiting God's answer.Prayer: Lord, I often watch as innocent people fall prey to the devil's schemes. It breaks my heart, and I cry to you. Please show me how you are working to bring about your good and perfect will.

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source : www.ubf.org

JESUS IS........................

Jesus is God
Jesus is The Lord
Jesus is The King
Jesus is The Savior
Jesus is The Lamb of God
Jesus is The Son of Man
Jesus is The Provider
Jesus is The Healer
Jesus is The Christ
Jesus is The Way

Joke : Where Fire?

The US Army is carrying out an artillery exercise.
Officer: "Load... Fire!"
Soldier: "Fire?! Where?!"

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source : www.coldwarjokes.com

Praising God In The Storm

You would probably have realised the new blog song which I have put up here. Its called "Praise You In This Storm" by Casting Crowns. All of us face storms in our life at one time or another. The storms can be big storms, or just small storms, but they all make life difficult for us. Why do we have storms in our life? Why does God allow these storms to come into our lives? Well, in the 1st place, no one, not even Jesus said that life would be easy. Life isn't easy, thats for sure. But another thing that we can be sure about is that God would be walking through it with us.
Its very easy to praise God for the things He has done for us when everything is sunny and fine, when things just seem to be perfect. Its easy to praise God when we are not facing any storms in our life. But what about when we are facing the storms in our lives? Do we praise God in this storm? Yes of course, thats because when God allows a storm to come into our life, He has a reason for it, and He will either calm the storm for us, or He will just ride through it with us. God will never leave us in the storm. Thats why even in the storm, we will praise God, because we know that He is with us.
There are 2 main reasons why God puts a storm in our life.
One reason is to change our stubborn thinking and mindsets, so that we can walk in His direction. This can be seen in the example of Jonah. You see, Jonah was running away from God's calling of going to Nineveh to preach. He got onto a ship and then faced a violent storm. Well, its a long story, but eventually Jonah was thrown overboard the ship into the sea as he is identified by the sailors for causing the storm as he has incurred God'd wrath. But well, that was not the end of Jonah. In Jonah 1:17, it says "But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights." Isn't this wonderful? God did not let Jonah die in the storm. God was riding with Jonah through the storm, sending a big fish to help Jonah keep alive in the storm! Well, to cut the story short, after spending the time in the fish stomach, Jonah finally soften his heart to God's calling and went to Nineveh to preach against it, thus saving the entire city from God's judgment. You see, this storm that God puts Jonah through was obviously aimed at softening Jonah's stubborness against the calling of God. Aren't we like Jonah sometimes, refusing to listen to the will of God and thus facing a storm that God put in our life? I myself admit to this. But do not be disheartened, God put this storm in our life only for our own good, and He will ride through it with us.

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Another reason why God puts a storm in our life is to make us depend on His power. Many a times, when we are so blessed and have lived a sunny life for too long, we get a little complacent and forgot God's blessing upon our life. We will tend to feel that we do not need God in our life anymore. When this happen, God will put a storm in our life to remind us that we still need to depend on Him as we are not as great we think we are. In Mark 4:35~41, we see that Jesus and his disciples were in a boat when a storm caught them. At that point of time, Jesus was still asleep. So the storm was really violent and the disciples got scared. So they woke Jesus up and Jesus rebuked the winds, calming the storm in the end. After that, the disciples were rebuked for having no faith because they were afraid. In this case, the storm was calmed. All that was intended was for the disciples to learn that they had to depend on Jesus and for them to realise their own state of faithlessness. I believe that before this, the disciples were probably thinking that they were mighty and strong in their faith. The storm made them realise their weakness and made them lean onto Jesus for help. This is true in our lives as well. Sometimes we will face storms in our life to make us realise that we are not as great as we thought we are and we eventually still need to go back to God for His strength and protection. But we do not have to fret, because God is in control all along and the storm will eventually be calmed.

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Therefore, we should praise God even in the storm. Reason being in the fact that God puts these storms in our lives only for our own good, to make us learn, and that He is always looking after us, either by riding through the storm with us or by calming the storm in the end.
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Source :http://jellydrink.blogspot.com

Military jokes

A military exercise is carried out at an American airbase. The paratroopers have jumped out of the C-130 Hercules. Suddenly, a soldier screams desperately to his officer!
Soldier: "Sir! My parachute doesn't open!"
Officer: "Don't worry soldier! This is just an exercise!"
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Source : www.coldwarjokes.com

Only Faith in the Word of God Is True Goodness

Chapter three of the Book of Genesis underscores just how important it is to believe in God’s Word. Had Adam and Eve believed in God absolutely and trusted in His Word without falling into their own thoughts, they would have stood against the Devil when he came to tempt them, saying, “What are you talking about? Stop spewing out such nonsense! Don’t slander God! God is not evil. I believe in Him!” Eve would have also said, “If I eat of the tree of the knowledge of God, I will surely die,” and then the Devil would have fled, realizing, “Oh, no! I tried to deceive but my tricks aren’t working!”

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However, Eve said instead, “Lest you die,” and so Satan thought, “Yes! You don’t believe in God’s Word! You are my prey now!” and the Devil blew doubts into her heart all he wanted. So, as the Devil said, “In the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,” Eve was tempted by this and ended up eating the forbidden fruit, and she led Adam to eat it as well.

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Because of this, mankind came to have a standard of good and evil different from God’s. But, is there true goodness to mankind? No, all that human beings have is just evil. In fact, we have no ability to discern good and evil, and there is nothing correct in our standard.

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If we had a standard to discern good and evil on our own, wouldn’t this mean that we were no different from God? Human beings, having eaten the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, left God and sat on the seat of judge by themselves. We must remember here that the Devil was brought down precisely for this kind of arrogance, for trying to become God himself.

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Only God is the One who exists by Himself, only He is true, and only He is good. Only His Word is the never-changing Truth, and only His Word is right. In other words, only God can discern good and evil, and it is His standard that constitutes the absolute standard of good and evil in this world.

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As the Devil himself failed to become like God, he is now inciting us to fall into disbelief, and thereby hurt God’s heart, who loves mankind. Instead of being at the forefront himself, the Devil eggs us on to challenge God—this is the wiles of the cunning Devil. Since he is already doomed, he wants to take us down with him.

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My fellow believers, faith in God alone is goodness. If there is any goodness to us humans, it is when we believe in God and trust in His Word. Only faith constitutes our goodness. None other than not believing in God is evil. All of us need to have the belief that God takes care of and leads all the lives of His people, from our brothers and sisters here attending at the Mission School to His appointed workers.

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God leads us according to His time, provides for our needs in His time, trains us in His time, and sets us free from our weaknesses in His time. We are not here in this same place forever as we are, stagnant as faithless beings. One day, God will transform you. It is faith that makes you and me live. This is what today’s Scripture passage is talking about.

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We have read and seen here how Adam and Eve fell into Satan’s temptation by not believing God. For you and me alike, we, too, will fall into the Devil’s temptation if we do not believe in God. Preaching the gospel to souls is also made possible only by faith. In fact, it is only by faith that we can live a victorious life. There is nothing we can do but to believe in God.

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And we should realize that when we seek to do God’s work, if we are motivated by a desire to be praised by others, or if we only want to work under propitious circumstances, then we will not be able to do anything at all. Since faith grows when we rise up to our challenge, we should launch and carry out God’s work believing that under all circumstances, the will of God will be surely accomplished.

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When we read chapter three of Genesis and analyze the cause behind the fall of Adam and Eve, we can realize that they fell into sin because they did not believe in God. We must remember that unless we believe, we, too, can very easily fall into sin. But what happens when we believe in God? We are freed from sin.

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We believe in God, who is not seen in our eyes. And we believe in His Word. My fellow believers, it is this faith in God that makes us whole. We are fully convinced that that God will bless us His believers. And we are sure that our faith will lead many souls to be saved. We believe that God’s Church will be established all over the world by faith. We believe that by trusting in God, everything will be provided for us and all our needs will be filled. We believe that our lives will be made beautiful by faith. We believe that through our faith in God, we will become wise. We believe that whether our lives can or cannot be made righteous, wise, and beautiful, all depends entirely on our faith.

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Faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit leads us to a beautiful life. At the very end of our journey, when we look back our lives, we will come to confess that our faith in God’s servants, in His Church, and in His Word has transformed our lives beautifully.

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We believe in the Lord’s righteousness.

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Source : www.bjnewlife.org

IS JESUS GOD?

Is Jesus God? The Historical DisputeIs Jesus God?

The answer to this question is the only real dispute surrounding the historical Jesus. No legitimate scholar today denies that Jesus is a historic figure that walked on this earth about 2,000 years ago, that he did remarkable wonders and acts of charity, and that He died a horrible death on a Roman cross just outside Jerusalem. The emotionally-charged dispute focuses specifically on whether Jesus was God incarnate who rose from the dead three days after His Crucifixion.

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Is Jesus God? The Only AlternativesIs Jesus God?

Many people have dealt with this "spiritual" dispute by intellectually accepting Jesus as a great man, great teacher, or great prophet. However, Jesus and His inspired followers didn't mince words when they declared Him to be God (John 10:30-38, Matthew 16:13-17, Mark 14:61-64, John 14:6, Hebrews 1:8, Colossians 1:16, John 12:40-41 [quoting Isaiah 6:1-10]). Therefore, any type of intellectual compromise calling Jesus a "good man" is logically inconsistent. Why? Because there are really only three legitimate alternatives for the identity of Jesus Christ. He is either a liar, a lunatic or our Lord and God. Since Jesus claimed to be God, His claims are either true or false. If false, He must have been a liar, deliberately misleading the multitudes. Or, He was a lunatic, sincerely believing Himself to be God, when in reality He was just a man. However, if Jesus was a "good man," as most people now agree, how then could He be both good and crazy, or good and a liar? There is only one logically consistent alternative - He must have been telling the truth. In addition to the logical inconsistency, the remarkable historical, archaeological and manuscript evidence shows that Jesus was neither a liar nor a lunatic. Again, the only position left is that His claim is true. Jesus is Lord and God. The only real argument that remains, is that Jesus was just a legend or myth. There is little likelihood that Jesus' claims are legend. There just wasn't enough time for any legendary development of the story to replace what really happened. For instance, we now know that the Gospels were written 30 to 50 years after the crucifixion of Jesus. More dramatically, we now date some of the early Christian creeds, proclaiming the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, to 3 to 10 years after His crucifixion. This includes Paul's letters to the Corinthians, Romans and Galatians. Finally, if Jesus' claim of deity was a myth, the early Jewish opponents of Christianity would surely have presented the fact that these claims never happened. Unlike modern skeptics, the Jewish rabbis never denied that Jesus made the claim that He was God. Instead, they called Him a liar, and tried Him for blasphemy.

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Is Jesus God? The Only AnswerIs Jesus God?

Once you have asked all your questions, weighed all the evidence, and tested all the arguments, you will ultimately be confronted with this question. In Mathew 16:15, Jesus put it this way, 'But who do you say that I am?' One of His disciples, Simon Peter, replied: 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' What is your reply?

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SOURCE : www.allaboutjesuschrist.org

SALVATION THROUGH THE GRACE OF JESUS

Acts 15:1-11
1. What is necessary for salvation? (1-2).Some Jews went to Antioch and taught the believers that they needed to be circumcised and become Jews to be saved. Paul and Barnabas disputed with them but the matter could not be resolved. They decided to bring the matter before the apostles in Jerusalem. This was not a minor issue. The future of the Christian church depended on the answer to whether or not circumcision was necessary for salvation. Some people still insist that Jesus plus something else is required for salvation. How was this dispute resolved?

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2. By grace alone, through faith alone (3-11).Paul and Barnabas visited other churches as they traveled to Jerusalem. They reported how God had brought salvation to the Gentiles. The brothers were glad. Paul and Barnabas were welcomed in Jerusalem but some Pharisees challenged them. After much discussion, Peter testified about his ministry to Cornelius. God had accepted him and his family and confirmed this by giving them the Holy Spirit. Peter's testimony agreed with Paul. Salvation is by faith in Jesus alone.Prayer: Lord, thank you for the all-sufficient gospel of Jesus and for the work of the Holy Spirit.One Word: Saved by God's grace alone

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Source : www.ubf.org

Humor : PRICE OF A SERMON

A man and his ten-year-old son were on a fishing trip miles from home.
At the boy's insistence, they decided to attend the Sunday worship service at a small rural church.
The father forgot to bring any cash, so he reached in his pocket and gave his son a dime to drop in the offering plate as it was passed.

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As they walked back to their car after the service, the father complained. "The service was too long," he lamented. "The sermon was boring, and the singing was off key."
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Finally the boy said, "Daddy, I thought it was pretty good for a dime."

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Source : www.christian-jokes.org

Joke : Do you know what's in the Bible?

Minister: Do you know what's in the Bible?
Little Girl: Yes. I think I know everything that's in it.
Minister: You do? Tell me.
Little Girl: OK. There's a picture of my brother's girlfriend, a ticket from the dry cleaners, one of my curls, and a Pizza Hut coupon.
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(Mark Brown, "Comedy Comes Clean")
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source :www.angelfire.com

Joke : Asking God

A man: God, how much is a million dollars to you?
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God: It is but a penny.
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A man: God, how long is a million years to you?
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God: It is but a second.
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A man: God, could you please give me a penny?
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God: Sure, just a second.

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Source :http://www.angelfire.com

Crucifixion of Jesus Christ

Crucifixion of Jesus Christ - His Death

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ and His resurrection are the two most important events in human history. Why is this so? Because of Jesus' death, the human race has the opportunity for eternal salvation.

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All four of the New Testament Gospels talk of the crucifixion of Christ. These authors give us graphic accounts of the ancient Roman practice. Here are some main points in the crucifixion timeline:

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*Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:43-52).
*Jesus endured six trials - three by Jewish leaders and three by the Romans (John 18:12-14, Mark 14:53-65, Mark 15:1a, Mark 15: 1b-5, Luke 23:6-12, Mark 15:6-15) Jesus survived painful beating, whipping, and mocking (Mark 15:16-20)

*Pilate tried to compromise with the religious leaders by having Jesus beaten, but this act didn't satisfy them. Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified (Mark 15:6-15)
*Jesus was mocked by the soldiers as they dressed Him in a purple robe and a crown of thorns (John 19:1-3)
Jesus was crucified on Golgatha, which means the Place of the Skull (Mark 15:22)

*The sky turned dark for three hours (Mark 15:33).
*Jesus cried, "Father! Into your hands I commit my spirit!" and He died (Luke 23:46).

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Author Arthur W. Pitt describes it this way, "With bleeding back, carrying His cross under the heat of the now almost midday sun, He [Jesus] journeyed up the rugged heights of Golgotha. Reaching the appointed place of execution, His hands and feet were nailed to the tree. For three hours He hung there with the pitiless rays of the sun beating down [on] His thorn-crowned head. This was followed by the three hours of darkness, now over. That night and that day were hours into which an eternity was compressed."

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The Savior of the world had emerged from three hours of darkness, during which He was separated from God the Father. Why did the Father turned away from Him? It is against the character of God to face sin, so God withdrew Himself from communication with His Son while Jesus bore the guilt of the world's sin.

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Crucifixion of Jesus Christ - His Burial and Resurrection

Following the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Joseph was given permission to bury Jesus, so he brought fine linen, wrapped the body, laid Jesus in a tomb and rolled a large stone across the entrance. Jesus was in the grave for three days. After the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of Jesus), and Salome prepared spices to anoint Jesus' body. When they arrived at the tomb, the stone had already been rolled away! They entered the tomb, where an angel said, "Don't be alarmed. . .You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you'" (Mark 16:6-7).

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Crucifixion of Jesus Christ - His Eternal Gift

What does the crucifixion of Jesus Christ have to do with you? God, who knows what you're are made of, knew you could not live the sinless life necessary for heaven. So He decided to offer Himself in your place. He did that by becoming a man in the person of Jesus Christ, His own Son. Jesus lived a sinless life on earth.

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God had said the punishment for sin is death. Since we all have sinned (Romans 3:23, 6:23), we needed someone sinless to die in our place. Jesus, being sinless, died in our place and became the saving grace of the world. He died for you! Romans 5:10 says, "For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!"

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The Bible says, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. . ." (Acts 16:31). Attending church or performing good works will not contribute to your salvation. God saves you by His grace.

Jesus is offering you the gift of eternal life. Will you accept it by faith?

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Source : www.allaboutjesuschrist.org