"The Mysteries of God" - #381

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Hello!

I pray that you had a super weekend.

A very special thanks to all of those that pledged to help us buy a used laptop.  We have received pledges for about 45% of it.  If you have been a JCSM subscriber for awhile and you have been blessed by our ministry, then please prayerfully consider helping us with a part of the remaining balance.

Last week, I recorded "Away in a Manger" and uploaded it to the internet.  This is the first of many Christmas songs that we will be hosting and streaming.  Right now, we have many songs with lyrics and chords and we have the MP3 for "Away in a Manger."  Go here to read or to listen: http://jcsm.org/Songs/Christmas/.

Recently, a pastor friend of mine gave me his slideshow from Axum, Ethiopia.  This is the presumed location for the ancient Ark of the Covenant!  If you'd like to see the pictures from his trip, then please go here: http://www.jcsm.org/MISC/ArkofCovenant.htm.

Do you need inexpensive medication for you or your pet?  Endless Meds can provide you with lists for each, so that you can purchase your medication without a prescription in another country.  This is perfectly legal if you buy a 90 day dosage or less.  If you wish to learn more about this great service, please go to http://endlessmeds.com.

Right now, I'm seeking a Mormon to debate Mormonism and Mormon, religious literature.  I've studied it and I have found that it contradicts the Bible and itself.  If you know someone who may be interested in a formal debate (either online text, phone, or in person), please forward them this message and ask them to contact me.

Please pray that a man named Jesse gets saved.  He is posting messages in our discussion board at http://inerrancy.com.  He told us that he lost faith awhile back and wants us to pray for him.

We have simplified our commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes.  We've created bookmark links, so you can navigate the following page easier.  If you want to study this interesting book by "Koheleth," then please go here: http://www.jcsm.org/biblelessons/Ecclesiastes.htm.

I pray that God blesses you richly as you look to Him.

This Saturday, we will be moving about 15 miles to a house in San Diego.  Please pray that everything goes well!  We have a couple of helpers who have tentatively agreed to help us move, so we hope that they do and that everything goes quickly and smoothly.  In case you haven't moved, moving can be tiring and laborious!

The Kry is playing at Maranatha Chapel on Wednesday night at 7pm.  If you are in Southern California, you should come because they're an excellent band.  Child care is freely provided and a sermon by Ray Bentley will follow the music.

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Welcome to the new readers of this message!  Here is your Devotion, A Moment of Introspection, JCSM's Challenge, the Word of the Week, a faith-builder from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained," and the Quotes of the Week.  Have a fantastic week and God bless you!

Love in Christ,

Jason Gastrich

Contact Us: http://jcsm.org/contact.php

JCSM's Weekly Devotions (click here to listen!)

"The Mysteries of God"

1 Corinthians 4:1, 2  "Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.  Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful."

Romans 11:25  "For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in."

Ephesians 5:31-33  "'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.'  This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.  Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband."

1 Corinthians 15:51-53  "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.  For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality."

Colossians 1:26-28  "The mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints.  To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.  Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus."

Insight: Have you considered the mysteries of God?  Did you know that God has revealed a number of mysteries to Christians in the New Testament?  We are the stewards of His secrets.  Know them and share them.  Just like the rest of our gifts, we will be held accountable for what we do with them.

Prayer: "Dear Lord, thanks for loving us so much.  Thank you for revealing yourself to us and thank you for telling us about the awesome future ahead.  Help us to see You how You really are.  Motivate us to tell others about your good news.  Praise You for making the gospel understandable.  Thank you for saving us!  You are an awesome God.  Remind us that we have a gold mine, a wealth of information in your Word.  Help us to read and memorize it.  Thank you for speaking to us through the Bible and through prayer.  Let us be sensitive to your Spirit's voice.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

America's Foundation

Martin Van Buren (1782-1862), was the 8th President of the United states, 1837-41, after serving as a New York state senator, 1813-20, the Attorney General of New York, 1816-21, a U.S. Senator, 1821-28, Governor of New York, 1828-29, and Vice-President under President Andrew Jackson, 1932-36.  President Van Buren declared:

"I only look to the gracious protection of that Divine Being whose strengthening support I humbly solicit, and whom I fervently pray to look down upon us all.  May it be among the dispensations of His Providence to bless our beloved country with honors and length of days; may her ways be pleasantness, and all her paths peace."  - Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987), p. 473.

During his last illness he made this confession:

"The atonement of Jesus Christ is the only remedy and rest for my soul."  - ibid.

A Moment of Introspection

We should be thankful for all of the mysteries that God has shown us.  He has hidden a lot of things from us, but He has also shown us a lot of awesome things.  He has warned us about the rapture, told us about salvation, explained the plan for the Jews and Gentiles, and the gift and purpose of marriage.

Meditate on the mysteries of God.  Consider how you are sharing them.

God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

moose-tay-ree-on (Greek, see 1 Corinthians 4:1): to shut the mouth, a secret or mystery (through the idea of silence)

The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible" claims:

Genesis 17:12-13, 23 - God tells Abram that all males must be circumcised, even those whom Abram had bought with money. There isn't the slightest evidence in this passage, or in any other in the Bible, that the biblical God disapproves of slavery.

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" responds:

Here is another "argument from silence."  Much of the Bible is historical narrative.  Simply because God doesn't strike someone down, it doesn't mean He is pleased with their behavior.  However, in most cases, we see the punishment for sin in the subsequent chapters of the Bible.

(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Jason Gastrich.  This book is on CD and explains over 3,000 difficulties regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org.  There is also a 300 question workbook that accompanies the CD-ROM.)

There is a mystery regarding God's will and plan for us.

In the New Testament, when we read about mysteries and secrets, we also see their meanings and answers.

Don't just wait for Christ's return.  Watch and pray for it.

The word "gospel" was originally a conflation of the words "good" and "spell."

If we could see into the spirit world, we could probably see the Holy Spirit come into a new believer.

These quotes came from God, me, and Ray Bentley.

Do you need more quotes?  We have thousands in our archives!  They are located here: http://quotes.jcsm.org.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun.  Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles.  Some of the quotes are humorous or rhetorical, others are written from sermons and Bible studies, and some are lyrics from songs.  If you’d like me to go into more detail on any of them, please email me.

Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated.  To use what I’ve written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way!  Please don’t sell my quotes or publish them for profit.  If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes.  I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings.  God bless you all!

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If you have never repented from your sins and believed, trusted, and accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please email me!  I would love to share the gospel with you.  The Bible is very straightforward when it speaks about Heaven, Hell and eternal life.  If there is any doubt that you are going to Heaven when you die, please let me know today!  If you’d like to discover the biblical doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ, please go here: Audio Gospel Message - http://www.jcsm.org/godsplan/TheGospel.mp3. or the Textual Gospel Message - http://gospel.jcsm.org.

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