Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 October 2012 Jude 3

Jude 3.    Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

Ah Friends, another serious calamity is in our midst; Hurricane Sandy. Now whether Sandy is specifically God sent to shake us up in our ungodliness, or it’s just a natural natural disaster, isn’t important at this time. What’s important is that after running over Jamaica, Cuba, the Bahamas and some of Haiti (poor Haiti), killing about forty people in the Caribbean, he or she is now heading for the North American East Coast and early next week, in time for Halloween (Oct.30) is expected to turn into a ‘Frankenstorm’ as it meets up with another storm of cold air coming down from the north. Hn! And though Sandy is now at a Category 1 status, this hybrid monster storm is expected to do about a billion dollars of damage, if not so much through its wind power, certainly through the rain and flood water it will deliver and cause. So all you Friends along the East coast and close inland areas, please be prepared for strong winds and plenty water in the next few days. Please be careful, as they say it could prove to be more dangerous and damaging than Irene last year. Ah Lord! What’s next eh! It calls for plenty praying mih people! But enough about Sandy, right now I want to apologize to Randall (Randy) Lee, the short, stocky Trinidadian of Chinese descent, my one time pan leader at the U.W.I Mona campus in Jamaica, who died last week in Trinidad. Sorry Randy mih brother for not mentioning you before, but being the quiet, patient, easy going, not given to seeking the limelight person you were, I know you’ll understand. But how can I not say a few words on Randy’s behalf and send out some condolences to his family, when he played a decent part in my young life at the University. Just getting me to commit to beating bass in the steelband with its strong focus and discipline, surely improved my own focus and discipline. And though I wasn’t the greatest bass man, between Randy and Shirley Wylie, they made me adequate. The good thing about Randy is that he wasn’t a loud mouth, abusive leader, but led by example, though there were times when he lost it. But any pan leader will tell you that’s just the nature of the beast. And for those of you who know how hard it is to get disciplined people to beat pan, or inject it into them afterwards, just imagine the headache of getting university students from various disciplines and different walks of life to do it. But Randy Lee did it, even with his own heavy work load of medical studies. I can still see him beating his tenor pan in the pan room with a burning cigarette hanging loosely from his lips. Through his disciplined leadership and Joe Ramsaran’s managerial talent, they made the Playboys Steelband locally famous in the Kingston area. Consequently, more people knew me from, and for beating pan, than for my scholastic achievements. (smile) And isn’t it funny how I had to leave T&T to go to Jamaica to beat pan, since I couldn’t do it at home, because of its low-life status. I could hang out in the pan yard, but not actually beat a pan, because it was reputedly below the level of my family’s social status. Steups! Oh Friends, most of you don’t know the terrible knocks pan and pan men took, some deservedly, before pan reached its current accepted status. It caused strife in a whole lot of families. Anyway Randy mih son (he was older than me), I know that you had a good heart and I feel assured that you’re resting comfortably with the Father now. So till we meet again, up there where the air is rare, keep beating that sweet tenor pan of yours. And finally turning to our Bit: ‘Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once (for all time) delivered unto the saints.’ Yes Friends, it’s the last day for this Bit, and by now you should know what it’s talking about, so we’ll get right into some appropriate scripture from Bruh Paul, as he enlightens Timothy on the coming apostasy (abandonment of religious faith). ‘This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous (money lovers), boasters, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers (irreconcilable), false accusers (slanderers), incontinent (without self-control), fierce (brutal), despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady (reckless), high-minded (haughty), lovers of pleasures, more (rather) than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate (disapproved) concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.’ (2 Tim.3:1-9) Ah Friends, I can’t say it any better, and besides Bruh Paul is the authority on the subject. But I can assure you that Christ’s church is going through some rather rough and dramatic changes right now, and if we, the true believers don’t stand up strong and make our voices heard, then I don’t want to see what will prevail on the other side of this regeneration. And we’ll end with some notes from the scholars on that scripture. ‘The last days began with the birth of Christ and will culminate in Christ’s return to the earth to set up His kingdom. The prediction of perilous times indicates that apostasy will characterize the final days of the church age. A form of godliness is mere religion without power or spiritual life. Paul commands Timothy to turn away from these false teachers who prey upon silly women laden with sins, who are especially susceptible to false teachers. Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth condemns not intense study but some esoteric quest for truth apart from God’s Word. Jannes and Jambres, according to Jewish tradition, were two magicians in Pharaoh’s court who attempted to duplicate Moses’ miracles. (cf. Ex.7:11; 9:11). ‘  Oh Friends, I again implore us to take the matter very seriously, because as we can all see, it’s coming true, and we certainly don’t want anything less than the absolute TRUTH to be taught in Christ’s church in His Holy Name. That would indeed be utter blasphemy, worthy of death and a life of eternal darkness with Lucifer. So let’s rise to the occasion nuh my people, and diligently raise the profile of Jesus and His church, thereby making Him proud of us. Much LOVE!…to know false teachers…one must be familiar with the scriptures…and ask the Lord for discernment in your faith walk…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 25 October 2012 Jude 3

Jude 3.    Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
 
Ah mih Friends, yuh see why I’m not a big fan of this wireless communication revolution. I’ve been trying for about the last forty minutes to send a message to two friends in Jamaica, re how Hurricane Sandy was treating them. I seem to have gotten off the first one okay, but five minutes later the second one refused to go. They told me that the server was busy, then something went wrong, to check the service status of Hotmail. I did that, but they claimed it was working properly. Then I was advised to report the problem to Microsoft, which simply told me thanks for reporting it, but to click on to some user services advice site. Now why do I have to go to other users for advice with a Microsoft problem eh? Steups! I finally logged off of Internet Explorer – I started out with it, and I still prefer its set up to the other browsers – and logged into Firefox. At least there I was able to open the draft e-mail, but after that I still got the same run around, and finally another server busy notification. Now what’s happening at 3.30-4 in the morning that Hotmail’s server is so busy eh? Laugh at me, but I still like my telephone and my typewriter. Yes, they may be slow, but they always work, and I don’t lose valuable time and info. Believe me, if I wasn’t writing this Scrip-Bit, my computer would remain unused and unopened for several days. That reminds me of one time in the early days, before the Bit, Hotmail banned me for a month, because I had over 500 unopened e-mails. Hn, hn! Ah Lord, longing for the good, old days! When the wireless stuff works, it’s fine, but the slightest glitch causes untold headache, plus loss of time, money and info. So now I don’t know when I’ll be able to send out the Bit. It’s a good thing I usually do a rough copy by hand, then transfer it to the computer. I just seem to get my thoughts together better that way. Anyhow, I was planning to talk about Hurricane Sandy that seems to be cutting a dangerous path across my second home, the lovely island of Jamaica. And if you’re wondering why I call it my second home, it’s because I lived there from 1966-1969, attending the University of the West Indies on the Mona campus. Don’t ask me what I studied -partying, hanging out and beating pan. (smile) In fact that’s where I became a man, while suffering the first real hardships of life on my own. But you know what Friends, although those were possibly the roughest times I’ve ever been through, overall, I enjoyed it tremendously, because the people treated me like a million dollars, though they didn’t know me from Adam. I now realize that it was the hand of God moving on my behalf, amidst all the testing that He was putting me through, apparently priming me for this work, some thirty odd years later. Believe me Friends, there were a few times if the Lord hadn’t intervened, I wouldn’t be writing this Bit. But enough about me, let’s offer up some serious, heartfelt prayers for the wonderful, though currently down on its luck, island of Jamaica and its beautiful people, asking the Good Lord not to allow Sandy to do too much damage to the already suffering land. Oh fellow believers, I guess a loud ‘Praise the Lord’ is in order, because I just tried sending that message again (4.30) and it seems to have gone through. So, hopefully the Bit will go through too, when I’m finished writing it. And our Bit is the same as the last couple days: ‘Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye earnestly contend for the faith which was once (for all time) delivered unto the saints.’ Now yesterday we looked at why Jude felt it necessary to write the epistle, because of the false teachers who were slyly infiltrating the church of Jesus. We also saw that it’s now an even bigger problem in these current times with the availability of untold information and the ease of mass communication. That’s why brethren it’s becoming ever more important to closely watch, monitor and verify what we read, and whom we listen to. This also makes it extremely important for each of us to consistently read and become very familiar with the Good Book, so that we can at least ask questions as we seek the TRUTH. For if we personally don’t know what the Word says, then we can’t counter what anyone else tells us, which is absolutely necessary in these times of much false teaching and teachers. And before we go any further, please note, as one scholar, Bill Crowder, points out, in contending for the faith, we should not be contentious. (smile) That means we have to do it without too much fussing and fighting, quarrelling and belligerence. But instead, as Bruh Paul warns Timothy: ‘And the servant of the Lord must not strive (quarrel); but be gentle unto all men, apt (able) to teach, patient, In meekness, instructing (correcting) those that oppose themselves (are in opposition); if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of (so that they may know) the truth.’ (2 Tim.2:24-25) Ah Friends, that’s sometimes difficult to do, but if we are to be true followers of Jesus, we have to try and adopt His methods. And Jesus was never quarrelsome or argumentative. So I guess that’s one more facet of His Holy nature that we have to incorporate into our faith walk. Unfortunately space and time have run out on us, so, until tomorrow then, hasta manana, when we’ll resume this topic, provided that fits into God’s plans. And if it doesn’t, then we’ll be in an even better situation, in heaven, resting comfortably in the bosom of Jesus. (smile) Much LOVE!…believers MUST read, meditate on and understand the Good Book…so that they won’t be easily led astray…
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 October 2012 Jude 3

Jude 3.    Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints.
 
A most passionate and joyful ‘top o’ the morn’ to all you faithful Friends and believers out there in Scrip-Bit Land! Yuh know that we Christians are the luckiest people in the entire world? Of course! That’s because we have an all-powerful God, who LOVES and cares for us and enriches us with new blessings everyday! And all God’s people sent a rousing ‘Praise the Lord!’ up to heaven. However my people, all the mercy, LOVE, blessings, forgiveness, compassion etc. are of no use unless we enjoy the earthly life that’s set before us, the race we were put here to run. Remember Jesus said that He came that we might have an abundant life. (John 10:10) So what’s the purpose of having abundance if you’re not enjoying it eh? None whatsoever my brethren! And I want to share an appropriate quote from the renowned German Reformed Theologian, Jurgen Moltman (1926-) which declares: ‘The more passionately we LOVE life, the more intensely we experience the joy of life.’ And that’s an undeniable truth Friends! When we choose to live life on its own terms, rather than our short-sighted, selfish ones, we experience and enthusiasm and passion that’s incomparable. Then we can enjoy the highs and lows of life without too much worry or anxiety, knowing that both are essential parts of life, and that the lows are only temporary setbacks. And if you’re a practicing Christian, then you can appreciate that fact even more, because we have the promise of our omnipotent, faithful God that He will work everything out for our good, and never leave nor forsake us, if we stick close to Him. We certainly can’t ask for more encouragement and confidence than that! However Friends, too many of us believers are still going around sad, despondent and worried, like ‘poor me ones’ without home or a future. Oh my people, Christians ought to be enthusiastic and passionate about life! In fact the MOST enthusiastic and passionate people on the face of God’s great earth should be Christians, since we have Jesus, our Lord and Saviour providing salvation, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us as a help-meet here on earth, and the Father to whom we’ve been reconciled through Jesus’ precious blood, thus forgiven and looking forward to everlasting life with the Holy Triumvirate. Now if that doesn’t make us ecstatic, causing us to just jump and shout it out loud, I don’t know what will. Oh fellow believers, I am trying to encourage us to be more enthusiastic and passionate about life in general and our faith in particular. But unfortunately, I suspect that my words are falling on deaf ears, because deep down we still don’t truly believe what we should. We hear it, and think we believe it, but putting it into serious action is another story, because we’re still running scared of the big, bad world and all its evil. And when we turn to our Bit, we find Jude also encouraging us to stand up passionately and earnestly for our wonderful, exceptional FAITH in Christ Jesus. ‘Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once (for all time) delivered to the saints.’ Now yesterday we promised to find out why Jude wrote that missive to his friends and fellow believers. And he clearly spells it out in the verse after our Bit: ‘For there are certain men crept in unawares (unnoticed), who were before of old ordained to (long ago marked out for) this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness (licentiousness), and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (Jude 4) Ah mih people, that was a sad fact back then, and it’s an even bigger and sadder one today! But let’s hear the scholar’s opinion on that verse before we go any further. ‘Before of old ordained is probably not speaking of predestination in the sense of God deciding in advance that he would condemn these men and so seeing to it that they sinned. Rather Jude recognizes that Scripture often predicts the demise and judgement of any who flaunt God’s will. The men in question are wrongly assuming that grace means “no moral laws.” They thus effectively deny the sovereignty and eternal moral lordship of both the Father and the Son.’ And unfortunately Friends, today’s world is sadly beset with those false teachers and preachers, who unnoticed, are deceptively infiltrating Christ’s church and teaching stuff that’s not gospel truth. In this instance, they’re taking the liberty afforded us by the grace of God to cause His people to sin, to ignore His dictates, claiming or insinuating that it’s okay to go further than is really true. Yes my people, in this supposed modern and enlightened age, there are numerous people, groups, cults etc. who are going around spreading either completely false doctrine, or doctrine with a convenient spin on it to make it profitable for their own evil, sinister purposes. That’s why it’s so important for us to constantly talk, to communicate with each other about the TRUTH OF OUR FAITH. Without that constant communication, we’ll be left wide open for all sorts of false people and false info to invade our souls. And that’s definitely an unwelcome position. More on this tomorrow, if the Good Lord sees fit. Till then, please, let’s diligently LOVE our God, LIVE our Faith, and SPREAD His Word. Much LOVE!…believers beware…for evil doesn’t only lurk in dark corners…but also in wide open, bright places…and comes in all sorts of guises…like wolves in sheep’s clothing…
 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 21 September 2012 Colossians 2:6

Colossians 2:6.     As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.

Oh my beautiful Friends in Christ, it’s Friday, and I hear you expressing that fact in a most joyous fashion, by you exclaiming ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ Yeh, even the really tired ones get a second wind come Friday, and are able to perk up because they know that the weekend is about to unfurl. And as always, we’ll remind us that the weekend is not merely for fun and frolic, but also for some serious face time with God, through fellowship and meditation. So let’s put it all in proper perspective by chanting our Friday Chant. With much verve and mucho gusto now. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’ Yes my people, we have to use our free time wisely and not let Lucifer and his evil minions make any inroads into our lives by doing ungodly stuff. And that warning fits right in with our Bit today. ‘As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.’ Words of ultimate wisdom and absolute truth my fellow believers! Bruh Paul is there warning the Colossians about false teachers and teachings cropping up to destroy and /or destabilize their faith in Jesus Christ. Hear the scholars explain it: ‘The verse may be paraphrased thus: “Therefore, just as you accepted the teaching that presents Jesus as both Messiah and Lord, so continue to maintain this relationship with Him.” The recipients had been taught that Jesus is (1) Messiah (the One divinely anointed to secure man’s salvation), and (2) Lord (the divine person to whom man submits in obedience). The heretics denied Jesus’ atoning death and Lordship. So the Colossians are urged to keep Him just as they were initially taught – as Messiah and Lord. They are continue to look to Him for salvation and continue in submission to His authority.’ And without a doubt Friends, all of that also applies to us today! Possibly even more so than to the Colossians, because the days now are so evil and ungodly, don’t know if they have ever been this bad. That makes it very difficult for the ordinary man to discern friend from foe and truth from falsehood. Everybody’s peddling something, and much of it for personal gain. Thankfully I don’t count myself amongst that lot, since I’m not making any physical gains, like money from what I’m doing. However I am benefiting from my studying and writing in the sense that I am becoming more aware of and mature in Christ, and hopefully helping others to do the same. That’s why true believers have to be oh so careful about whom and what they listen to, for all sorts of scam artists are out there pretending to preach and teach the word. Plenty are sincere, but too many are using it for their own glorification and not God’s. That’s why we believers today have to be just like Bruh Paul advised the Colossians: ‘Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you (plunder you or take you captive) through philosophy and vain (empty) deceit, after (according to) the tradition of men, after (according to) the rudiments (basic principles) of the world, and not after (according to) Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power (rule and authority).’ (Col.2:7-10) And we’ll end with an informed explanation of that last verse by the scholars. ‘Ye are complete in him (or, “you are filled by Him”); Believers have been filled by Jesus with all the spiritual blessings they need; hence they are “complete” and lacking nothing. This, too refutes the heresy that denied the sufficiency of Christ and encouraged Christians to look to other spiritual beings for help. Five of these blessings, with which believers have been filled, are listed in verses 11-15. They are (1) spiritual circumcision, verse 11; (2) being raised form the old life verse 12; (3) new life, verse 13; (4) the removal of the curse of the law, verse 14; and (5) the conquering of Satan and his demonic forces, verse 15.’ And that’s the gospel truth Friends! Believers lack nothing that’s needed to live successfully in this world. All the necessary seeds have been planted in us from the day we received Jesus and His Holy Spirit that then came to dwell in us. Now we just need to allow that Spirit to raise and grow the seeds of righteousness that are planted in us. Let them develop strong, sturdy roots, so that we can resist the vicious attacks, lies and deceits of the enemy. Therefore my brethren, let’s all contemplate and ponder our individual situations today nuh, re our ‘rootedness’ in Christ. Then let’s take serious action to improve it, for we all can use some improvement in our spiritual lives, especially in these rough and troubled times. Much LOVE!…without the basic principles of Jesus’ teachings…deeply rooted in our souls…believers will not make much headway against Beelzebub…

 

 

 

 

Today’s Sccrip-Bit 27 April 2012 Proverbs 20:19

Proverbs 20:19.    He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips.
 
Well Friends, that joyful harbinger of the weekend is here. It’s Friday once again! And all those who have the weekend off, emitted a tired but expectant shout: “Thank God is Friday yes! Ah don’t know if I could handle another day of this depressing, tiring work!’ But Friends, as the song I’m listening in the background is encouraging, let’s rejoice! Yes, rejoice, because Jesus is in our lives and that’s the BEST NEWS in all the world! It’s amusing though, how we die for Friday to come because we get a couple of days off, but intensely dislike Mondays, since we have to go back out to labour for the little pittance that most of us receive. I guess that’s only natural, but as always, to help us handle the situation, let’s chant our Friday Chant with great expectations. As one voice now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’ Yeh mih breddren, that should put us in a more controlled and godly frame of mind. So now we can address our Bit without any of you throwing tantrums at my words, (smile) since some of you genuinely believe that some of the stuff you revel in is quite harmless. But our Bit begs to differ: ‘He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle (associate) not with him that flattereth with his lips.’ Oh my people, we know that to be very true, but refuse to believe it because we either engage in it ourselves or encourage others to do so. Yesterday we looked at a couple scriptures that dealt mainly with tale bearing, today we’ll look at some that deal mainly with the second half of our Bit: ‘therefore meddle (associate) not with him that flattereth with his lips.’ Now Friends, that’s excellent advice because some of us are quite prone to flattery; we so desire to hear nice and good things about ourselves that we make the cliché very true; flattery will get you any and everywhere. And there are plenty people out there quite willing to indulge us, so please don’t associate with that type, cause they will only take advantage of our weakness and lead us astray. Hear Bruh Paul’s warning to the Romans on the subject. ‘Now I beseech you, brethren, mark (note) them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good (smooth) words and fair (flattering) speeches deceive the hearts of the simple (innocent).’ (Rom.16:17-18) That’s gospel truth Friends! So please pay careful attention to it. Now listen to this other warning to the Colossians, re false teachings. ‘And this I say, lest any man should beguile (deceive) you with enticing (persuasive) words….As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him. Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you (plunder, or take you captive) through philosophy and vain (empty) deceit, after (according to) the tradition of men, after the rudiments (basic principles) of the world, and not after Christ.’ (Col.2:4,6-8) And if you don’t believe it happens, then here is an excellent example of it from Acts, in the days of the council of Jerusalem. ‘And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.’ (Acts.15:1) Now that’s totally false, but men were preaching that kind of falsehood back then, and plenty are still preaching all kinds of untrue stuff today. That’s why it’s so important that we be very careful with whom we associate and the tenor of their beliefs because once they get their hooks into us, they can very easily lead us astray. And here’s the final word from Peter, re false prophets and teachers: ‘But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily (secretly) shall bring in damnable (destructive) heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious (destructive) ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of (blasphemed). And through covetousness shall they with feigned (deceptive) words make merchandise of (exploit) you: whose judgement now of a long time lingereth not (has not been idle), and their damnation (destruction) slumbereth not.’ (2 Pet.2:1-3) And believe me, Friends, obnoxious false teachers and teachings are still with us today, possibly even with greater deception. So I implore us to delve deep into the Good Book ourselves, and get proper instruction from reputable people, so that we can know these false teachers and meddlers who go around intentionally misleading the brethren. I pray that we can all stand on the true Word of God, and not be misled. In Jesus’ name. Amen. Much LOVE!…Lucifer’s deceivers are so good… that it takes a true Jesus believer to spot them…   P.S. And as the rocking soca song in the background’s saying: ‘Thank God for Jesus, Thank God for Jesus, EVERYDAY. Thank God for Jesus, He is my Saviour, He is the Truth, He is the the Light, He is the Way…Thank God for Jesus…He is the truth, He is the Light, He is the Way.’ No doubt about that mih people! So let’s give Him the thanks He so rightly deserves! Much LOVE!
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 March 2012 Titus 1:16

Titus 1:16.    They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

 HAPPY  ST. PATRICK’S  DAY

Well ‘ello dere me Irish Friends! A Happy St. Paddy’s Day to you and yours! No matter that only my name is Irish, and I’ve never set foot on the Emerald Isle. (smile) But St. Paddy’s Day was always a special day in T&T during my youth, for it was the only day in Lent that you were allowed to party and hear calypsos on the radio. That means we always looked forward to that jubilant break in the middle of a rather austere Lenten season practiced back then. Hope you have a fine day celebrating the Patron Saint of Ireland, with all your green stuff, and enjoy your parades and whatnot. But please remember to be very careful, and drunk or sober, mind your business, for the evil one and his associates are always lurking around these celebrations hoping to entice us into their dark lairs of lust, debauchery and ungodliness. Those workers of iniquity walk around in sheep’s clothing, but on the inside they are really ravenous, voracious wolves disguised as sheep, and they can do untold damage to us and Christ’s Church, if we allow them access to our inner beings. Like Bruh Paul told Titus in our Bit, way back when: ‘They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate (disqualified).’ And that’s the living truth Friends! It’s amazing how plenty time passes in this world, but so many things remain the same, for we also have lots of that type of people circulating in our world, just like Bruh Paul’s day. And unfortunately they might be even more treacherous and devious today with all the new psychological warfare and technology. As Bruh Paul opens this warning passage on false teachers: ‘For there are many unruly (insubordinate) and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake (dishonest gains).’ (Titus 1:10-11) Yes Friends, a lot of fraudsters are running around the globe teaching false and/or subversive stuff solely for dishonest gain, whether it be power, money or some other earthly favour.  In this highly modernized world, all sorts of theories abound, some of which do sound good enough to be true, and the dishonest purveyors of these theories or slants, all claim that they are God driven; ‘they profess they know God.’ But listen to Jesus on the subject: ‘Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils (demons)? and in thy name done many wonderful works (miracles)? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity (lawlessness).’ (Matt.7:20-23) Truly my people, all that glitters is not gold, likewise all that sounds like truth is not necessarily true, neither are all those who claim to preach God’s Word, true believers. And we certainly don’t want to get involved with that kind, for when Jesus comes again in glory, we’ll sadly discover that we’re on the outside with Lucifer and his evil workers, looking in at the good life taking place in Jesus’ domain. That would certainly be disastrous on all counts! And Jesus was so serious about that message, He reiterated it in the parable of the ten virgins. Re the foolish ones who did not bring extra oil to the wedding for their lamps, and weren’t there when the bridegroom finally arrived and shut his door. ‘Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.’ (Matt.25:11-13) It’s a rough life this Friends, but we just have to be very careful and concentrate on the eternal things of Jesus, rather than the exhaustible and temporal things of this evil world, for everybody has some wonderful scheme to offer us. Note the high amount of white-collar fraud that’s currently prevalent. And that’s because we’re greedy and thus easily taken in. The con artists feed on that undesirable trait of our character.  How can someone offer us 10 or 15% interest on our money, when the big moneyed people can barely get 5%, if so much? If it sounds too good to be true, then most likely it is a fraudulent deal. The same goes for those claiming to preach the Word. Now let’s end with some appropriate words from 1 John, re tests of true knowledge: ‘And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the LOVE of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.’ (1 John 2:3-6) More on this tomorrow, if we’re still alive and kicking. Till then, please be careful of those evil wolves masquerading as sheep. Stay close to Jesus, that’s where it’s safest! Much LOVE!…things that are eye-catching and ear-pleasing…are not always what they seem to be…often they are just façades for evil…

 

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