NCarolinian

Do you want to know Christ's daily routine when He was here on earth? "Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives," (Luke 21:27) . It is no wonder Scripture records - "Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written." (John 21:25) His teaching astonished the people ( Matthew 22:33 ). His teaching amazed the peopled so much because He taught with authority ( Mark 1:22 ). His teaching was "hard" at times and difficult to "accept" .  After Christ spoke about Himself as The Bread of Life, "many of His disciples said, 'This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?'" (John 6:60)   However, from all the astonishment, from all the amazement, from all the difficulty the Disciples encountered with the teachings of Jesus - there...

There is a saying on my computer that greets me every day, it says, "Stop hating yourself for everything you aren't. Start loving yourself for everything that you are." This message was recently confirmed to me through one of my favorite Christian authors - brother Rick Renner - in his monthly newsletter I subscribe to. In Rick's exhortation, he mentioned 2 Corinthians 10:12. The verse reads -  "We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise."   Mr. Renner explained that although this verse addresses believers in Corinth who thought themselves spiritually superior, "there is a principle in this verse that the Holy Spirit used to help set me free from the spirit of inferiority that tried to plague me as I stepped out to obey God's call on my life. And it is exactly the point I want to get across to you today...

Whenever and wherever personnel from any branch of the U.S. Armed Forces wears their uniform, civilians know to whom they belong; the military knows to whom the soldier belongs; the soldier knows to whom he/she belongs. Listening in on a discussion recently, I learned if you are serving in one of the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces one has to be found wearing an appropriate uniform at all times. For civilians, this is a great way to spot those who serve and thank them or if we needed their help in anything - ask for assistance. For the military branch, this is a great way to visually locate and identify their soldiers for use. For the soldiers themselves, wearing the uniform could be a psychological and heart-felt stamp of identification with the military in public. Should you decide to accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are automatically enlisted in Christ's Armed Forces. The uniform and armor should never come off - just maintained, cleaned-up and renewed by the ...

Have you ever watched a movie and found yourself wanting the bad guy to meet his demise in a fierce and long-suffering manner? That desire was usually precipitated by the villain's malicious and/or hateful actions to the good guy(s) of the movie. In the movie of this world that we call Life, the bad guy, Satan has been acting maliciously/hatefully for some time now. I am so ready for Christ Jesus, the ultimate good guy, to deliver what Satan deserves. Scripture descriptively speaks about this in Joel. Joel 2:11 The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command. The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it? Joel 3:16  The Lord will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the heavens will tremble. But the Lord will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel. While I highly anticipate this kind of thundering from The Lord, there is another kind o...

I don't know how they do it, but I know some people and have some friends who keep a tidy house/apartment/condo.......dwelling all year long. Some places resemble a museum quality of cleanliness. To those individuals and efforts I simply say, "Wow!" The tidiness of their homes at all times got me thinking. Besides the owners desiring a clean and well-kept house for themselves - was there anybody of significance/importance they were expecting to visit them soon? Maybe it is to be ready for anybody at anytime, but I have been in places where I felt like somebody else of higher reputation was expected to arrive later on. The idea of always keeping your House tidy and in order for the company of His Majesty, King Jesus is what I want to communicate to you today. God's Word through Paul says, "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;" (1 Cor. 6:19) So, you are not...

I am at a point, albeit a different angle of approach than Paul, of saying - "I would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord." (2 Corinthians 5:8)  There are many factors that contribute to this, like the predictability of my daily life, but I still come to this conclusion. Before this verse, Paul uses very descriptive language to portray the condition - "For while we are in this tent [body], we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling..." (2 Cor. 5:4)  This talk sounds like Paul knew exactly how I felt - "we groan and are burdened" . One thing is for certain, God knows.  After the  2 Corinthians 5:8 declaration, Paul says a lot when he says the word "So" . I interpreted that word to mean - since we have not left to be with His Majesty yet . The actual verse reads -  "So we make it our goal to please Him, whether we are at home in the body or away from...

"And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith." -1 Corinthians 15:14 I would dare to venture that many, if not most, of us have yards and houses that need work on at least a weekend basis if not a daily basis. Assuming you are one of these people, like I am, allow me to submit an analogy. Someone comes to your door, makes some observations about your yard/home and offers to pay for renovations. What is the catch? You just have to accept The Currency. For this situation, it is dollars. Let us say you accept. The great bonus is that the payment not only accounts for the lifetime treatment of the outside of your yard and house, but it also covers the inside of your home and all it's furnishings. The noticeable thing however is that your generous Provider went bankrupt supplying you that service; that gift. Hearing about this you wonder and fear - would He be able to come through on those promises? Fear not! A well established ...