DC Talk: "Jesus Freak"

This song reminds me of myself during my junior high and high school days. I used to hand out tracts to the kids and I wore my Christian badges proudly. And when I had an opportunity, I defended Christ in class

Listen to this loud and proud song about our Lord here:

The worst persecution I suffered for the Master was mild compared to the suffering of God's apostles. Hebrews 11:36-38 (Bible in Basic English) reads, "And others were tested by being laughed at or by blows, and even with chains and prisons: They were stoned, they were cut up with knives, they were tested, they were put to death with the sword, they went about in sheepskins and in goatskins; being poor and in pain and cruelly attacked, Wandering in waste places and in mountains and in holes in the rocks; for whom the world was not good enough."

I'm glad Jesus made no secret of persecution to come when we follow him. He warned in John 16:2 (BBE), "They will put you out of the Synagogues: yes, the time is coming when whoever puts you to death will have the belief that he is doing God's pleasure."

I believe that when persecution comes to us, the Holy Spirit will strengthen us to go through it. Revelation 12:10 (BBE) reads, "And a great voice in heaven came to my ears, saying, 'Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ: because he who says evil against our brothers before our God day and night is forced down.' And they overcame him through the blood of the Lamb and the word of their witness; and loving not their lives they freely gave themselves up to death."

And lest anybody thinks God won't avenge those who would rather die than abandon Christ, Revelation 6:9-11 (BBE) shows his concern for his martyrs. "And when the fifth stamp was undone, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been put to death for the word of God, and for the witness which they kept. And they gave a great cry, saying, 'How long will it be, O Ruler, holy and true, before you take your place as judge and give punishment for our blood to those on the earth?' And there was given to every one a white robe, and they were ordered to take their rest for a little time, till the number was complete of the other servants, their brothers, who would be put to death, even as they had been."

No matter what happens, we must keep in mind John 12:25 (BBE). "He who is in love with life will have it taken from him; and he who has no care for his life in this world will keep it for ever and ever."

If Christ hasn't returned by Thursday, I plan on posting about pride and a great song by Deep Purple.

Eternal Life Verses Eternal Judgement

Since all people have immortal souls, how can only some be said to have eternal life? Hank Hanegraaff has a good answer to that. Eternal life is more than mere existence. It's the quality of that existence.

This quality is expressed in John 12:25 (BBE). "He who is in love with life will have it taken from him; and he who has no care for his life in this world will keep it for ever and ever."

When Christ spoke of the resurrection and final judgement in Matthew 25:46 (BBE), he showed the kind of eternal existence the wicked will experience. "And these will go away into eternal punishment; but the upright into eternal life."

Jesus used metaphors to impress upon us the utter horror of hell. He said in Mark 9:48 (BBE) that it's, "Where their worm is ever living and the fire is not put out."

Darkness is another metaphor for the extreme misery of hell. We find  it described in regard to the eternal destination of the wicked in Jude 1:13 (BBE). He called such wretches, "Violent waves of the sea, streaming with their shame, wandering stars for whom the darkest night is kept in store for ever."

Peter also described the wicked and their eternal fate in 2 Peter 2:17 (BBE) with these metaphors. "These are fountains without water, and mists before a driving storm; for whom the eternal night is kept in store."

Light is always a metaphor for holiness and truthfulness. That's why Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 5:5 (BBE), "For you are all sons of light and of the day: we are not of the night or of the dark."

We need to understand the Bible's metaphors or we'll become confused. Many false prophets misuse these to trick believers into following their teaching instead of what the Bible says.

On Thursday, if Christ hasn't returned, I plan on posting about the danger of spiritists.

Saturday Song: Lenny Kravitz, "Life Ain't Ever Been Better Than It Is Now"

As I promised, here's a great song by Lenny Kravitz. We who know Christ and follow him usually don't have a good life in this world. Even so, we can praise the Lord for what we have. Salvation is a wonderful treasure and it won't suffer from the uncertainties of life in this world.

Hear Lenny Kravitz' praise song here.

Many Christians around the world suffer persecution, yet they have the Lord whom persecutors can't remove from them. Hebrews 13:5 (KJV) reminds us to, "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, 'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.'"

Neither should we become fixated on obtaining more and more material blessings. Jesus said in John 12:25 (KJV)that,  "He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal."

Even so, we must be thankful for what we have, no matter how little it might seem. As Jesus also reminds us in Luke 12:23 (KJV), "The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment."

Let's therefore give thanks for what we have, like Lenny sang in this song. May you all have a good weekend too.

My next post will deal with the error of allegorizing the Bible. Watch this space.