What is Christmas to you? Is it hustle and bustle at the malls, or getting everything just right for a party? Howabout buying the right gift for someone special? Do you think of the real reason for the season or does it get pushed back into the corner of your mind from all the stresses that the holiday can create?
This is the day that we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The day has been replaced by materialism and merchandicing. We are starting to hear from the political correct that we should say happy holidays instead of Merry Christmas.
Christmas is a time for us to reflect. A time to remember what God has done for us and what he can do if we just ask. It should be a time of happiness and gift GIVING without a thought to receive a gift in return. A time to give to others who are in need and a time to spend with family.
But really, is Christmas time the only time of the year that we should do these things? Is there only one time of year that people are in need? We all need to look around us and see the less fortunate and the lonely people. Think of the people around you that have nothing, or that elderly person down the street who has no visitors.
What will happen to that child who has no shoes or clean clothes to wear to school? What is happening to the awnry old man next door who wants nothing to do with you or your children because he has been lonely for so long? Is he really unapproachable?
Is our December so filled up with things to do that we have no time for others? We need to stop and take a deep breath or two and look around. The best gift is giving from the heart with joy, love, and happiness. Its not the most expensive gift that we can afford, its the one that is selfless and full of caring. Its a gift that can be transferred to others. Its a gift of love and affection. Its a gift that says, "I care enough".
Charity is not necessarily a monetary value. Charity is the act of giving. An act that we all let slip by because we are too busy or just don't want to get involved. Charity can be giving time to those that are in need of help, like cleaning the gutters or making minor repairs for a neighbor. Taking a warm meal to the elderly and offering an ear to bend or a shoulder to cry on.
These acts are an act of kindness and love. Jesus gave us two commandments that are more important than anything else. He told us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love each other. Think about how you treat others and how you have taught your children to do the same.
Christmas is not about partying, or seeing who gets the best gift. Christmas is about giving, and giving our best. But it should not be one day or one month, it should be all year round.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
Noah and 8 plus souls
Noah, Genesis says, was one of eight souls that survived a cataclysmic world wide flood. This story has been told for centuries. Scientists have actually found records of tremendous flood scenarios around the world that date back to a time very near Noah's life. But were there more people that survived that just are not mentioned?
Genesis chapter 6 says that God was angry about all the evil and wickedness. So he tells his follower Noah that he is going to destroy the world with a flood. Noah is instructed to build an ark or a large barge that will handle all the beasts of the earth with food and provisions.
In Genesis 7:1, God said to Noah, "Come thou and all thy house unto the ark". It rained for 40 days and nights and the ark floated away with Noah, his family, and all the animals. Notice that The verse said all thy house?
The word house can mean family. It can also mean anyone under your care or command. How many stories in the bible show us that there were workers, maidens, concubines or slaves that were all under the same roof? These in some instances would be considered the house. The church is considered to be God's house and you can see how many people belong to it.
The bible mentions that Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth and these three had wives. Counting Noah and his wife, this accounts for eight souls. However the bible says that Noah was 500 years old when his three sons were born and it never mentions any children before his three sons. All the men from Adam to Noah had children by the time they were 187 years old. Why did Noah wait so long to have children?
The bible doesn't reveal anything unless it is significant with God's overall plan. It could be easily assumed that Noah and his sons already had children that could have entered into the ark along with the whole house.
God instructed Noah to bring the animals into the ark. Of the clean animals there were to be seven, both male and female. Of the animals that were unclean, just two of each, male and female. The ark will be a floating zoo that dwarfs any zoo in the world in comparison. Just think of 8 people taking care of a zoo. Do you think it would be impossible?
More to come
Genesis chapter 6 says that God was angry about all the evil and wickedness. So he tells his follower Noah that he is going to destroy the world with a flood. Noah is instructed to build an ark or a large barge that will handle all the beasts of the earth with food and provisions.
In Genesis 7:1, God said to Noah, "Come thou and all thy house unto the ark". It rained for 40 days and nights and the ark floated away with Noah, his family, and all the animals. Notice that The verse said all thy house?
The word house can mean family. It can also mean anyone under your care or command. How many stories in the bible show us that there were workers, maidens, concubines or slaves that were all under the same roof? These in some instances would be considered the house. The church is considered to be God's house and you can see how many people belong to it.
The bible mentions that Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth and these three had wives. Counting Noah and his wife, this accounts for eight souls. However the bible says that Noah was 500 years old when his three sons were born and it never mentions any children before his three sons. All the men from Adam to Noah had children by the time they were 187 years old. Why did Noah wait so long to have children?
The bible doesn't reveal anything unless it is significant with God's overall plan. It could be easily assumed that Noah and his sons already had children that could have entered into the ark along with the whole house.
God instructed Noah to bring the animals into the ark. Of the clean animals there were to be seven, both male and female. Of the animals that were unclean, just two of each, male and female. The ark will be a floating zoo that dwarfs any zoo in the world in comparison. Just think of 8 people taking care of a zoo. Do you think it would be impossible?
More to come
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Cain's wife
Cain had murdered his brother Abel and soon finds himself in the land of Nod. I always wondered where this land was. I also wondered who Nod himself was. I thought that maybe there was someone named Nod and the land was named after him.
Nod was not a person at all. The land of Nod wasn't even an actual place. The word Nod actually means "to wander about or live in exile".
Genesis reveals that Cain meets a woman and they have a baby and name him Enoch. Where did this woman come from? This is an age old question that many believing and nonbelieving people have asked.
Most people will tell you that Cain's wife was his sister or possibly a niece. But why would God allow Cain to marry a relative? God does not approve of incest, so why would he allow anyone, especially Cain, to do this?
The answer is in Genesis chapter 1. God created man and woman and told them to be fruitful and multiply. Then he formed a man and called him Adam. Created and formed are two different words that describe actions of God.
The word created in the Hebrew language is "bara". Bara means to create. The word formed in Hebrew is "yatsar". Yatsar means to mold or squeaze into shape. Two different words with two different meanings or actions declared by God.
Genesis 2:1 declares that God had finished his work of creating the heavens and the earth and all the host of them. The word host in Hebrew is "tsaba". Tsaba means a mass of people.
God had created people, men and women, and formed a man, Adam. The host, or mass of people was all the races of people, white, black, oriental and so forth. It was from these people that Cain had found his wife.
Nod was not a person at all. The land of Nod wasn't even an actual place. The word Nod actually means "to wander about or live in exile".
Genesis reveals that Cain meets a woman and they have a baby and name him Enoch. Where did this woman come from? This is an age old question that many believing and nonbelieving people have asked.
Most people will tell you that Cain's wife was his sister or possibly a niece. But why would God allow Cain to marry a relative? God does not approve of incest, so why would he allow anyone, especially Cain, to do this?
The answer is in Genesis chapter 1. God created man and woman and told them to be fruitful and multiply. Then he formed a man and called him Adam. Created and formed are two different words that describe actions of God.
The word created in the Hebrew language is "bara". Bara means to create. The word formed in Hebrew is "yatsar". Yatsar means to mold or squeaze into shape. Two different words with two different meanings or actions declared by God.
Genesis 2:1 declares that God had finished his work of creating the heavens and the earth and all the host of them. The word host in Hebrew is "tsaba". Tsaba means a mass of people.
God had created people, men and women, and formed a man, Adam. The host, or mass of people was all the races of people, white, black, oriental and so forth. It was from these people that Cain had found his wife.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Cain's dilemma
Cain was the first son of Adam who was mentioned in the bible. It is not certain if Adam had other children before Cain. But let's just assume that he was the first child.
Cain was a tiller of the ground or in otherwords, a farmer.
Cain had a brother named Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, what we might refer to as a rancher.
The two brothers gave offerings of their labors to God. Cain would offer grain, fruit, or vegetables that he had grown in his field and Abel offered some of the firstborn sheep of his flock. Over time, things must have changed in Cain's offerings.
The bible mentions that Abel offered the firstborn from his flock, but it does not say what Cain offered besides the fruits of his labor from the ground. This should make us think of what we offer to God.
Abel's offering was given to God before anything else. That is evident from the passage of his flock's firstborn sheep. Cain on the otherhand, must have had other thoughts and motives for his offerings.
Perhaps Cain gave his best at first but maybe he slacked off and started offering what was left on the barn floor. What comes to mind with this is all the dirt, mold, or chaffe that is left on the bottom of the pile.
God had respect for Abel's offerings but not Cain's. Was Able's offering more genuine and willing as opposed to Cain's who only gave his second best or less? This reflects our society today. We don't always give our best. We stop shy of giving unless we have an abundance. Some people don't even give when they are able to.
Cain grew angry at his brother because God had more respect for Abel. Abel is then murdered by Cain because of Cain's jealousy and rage.
As you read this and ponder, ask yourself, why did Cain lash out at Abel? What infuriated Cain so much that he had to take it out on his brother?
Many of us are like Cain. We feel that we are being treated unfairly and someone else is getting all of the credit or breaks. What we do not think about is who's fault it really is.
Look in a mirror and you will see who's fault it is. We accept that we have given our best. Then we feel cheated when we get passed over. Do we really give our best or do we give whatever we have left over? Do we keep the best for ourselves and offer the broken pieces to our neighbor?
Cain was a tiller of the ground or in otherwords, a farmer.
Cain had a brother named Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, what we might refer to as a rancher.
The two brothers gave offerings of their labors to God. Cain would offer grain, fruit, or vegetables that he had grown in his field and Abel offered some of the firstborn sheep of his flock. Over time, things must have changed in Cain's offerings.
The bible mentions that Abel offered the firstborn from his flock, but it does not say what Cain offered besides the fruits of his labor from the ground. This should make us think of what we offer to God.
Abel's offering was given to God before anything else. That is evident from the passage of his flock's firstborn sheep. Cain on the otherhand, must have had other thoughts and motives for his offerings.
Perhaps Cain gave his best at first but maybe he slacked off and started offering what was left on the barn floor. What comes to mind with this is all the dirt, mold, or chaffe that is left on the bottom of the pile.
God had respect for Abel's offerings but not Cain's. Was Able's offering more genuine and willing as opposed to Cain's who only gave his second best or less? This reflects our society today. We don't always give our best. We stop shy of giving unless we have an abundance. Some people don't even give when they are able to.
Cain grew angry at his brother because God had more respect for Abel. Abel is then murdered by Cain because of Cain's jealousy and rage.
As you read this and ponder, ask yourself, why did Cain lash out at Abel? What infuriated Cain so much that he had to take it out on his brother?
Many of us are like Cain. We feel that we are being treated unfairly and someone else is getting all of the credit or breaks. What we do not think about is who's fault it really is.
Look in a mirror and you will see who's fault it is. We accept that we have given our best. Then we feel cheated when we get passed over. Do we really give our best or do we give whatever we have left over? Do we keep the best for ourselves and offer the broken pieces to our neighbor?
Friday, October 30, 2009
God's greatest creation, mankind
Do you think that Adam was the first human being ever created? Come with me to the King James version bible and I will show you hints to this great mystery.
Genesis 1:26 through 28 says that God created men and women. He also told them to be fruitful and multiply. Then in Genesis 2:7 God formed a man from the dust of the ground.
Notice that created and formed are two different words. In the Hebrew language, the word created is bara which means to create. The word formed in Hebrew is yatsar, which means to mold or squeeze into shape. Two different words to describe two different actions by God. But wait, there is more.
Genesis 2:1 says, "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. I used to think that host was talking about other planets or stars or animals. Host in Hebrew is tsaba. Tsaba means a mass of people.
Again, two different actions by God to create people and to form a man. This man that was formed was Adam, and the people that were created are all the human beings in general. These people are made up of all the races of humans such as black, white, and oriental.
As for Adam, he is the first human that God communicates with. He is also the start of the lineage of the Israelites and eventually Jesus Christ himself.
More to come
Genesis 1:26 through 28 says that God created men and women. He also told them to be fruitful and multiply. Then in Genesis 2:7 God formed a man from the dust of the ground.
Notice that created and formed are two different words. In the Hebrew language, the word created is bara which means to create. The word formed in Hebrew is yatsar, which means to mold or squeeze into shape. Two different words to describe two different actions by God. But wait, there is more.
Genesis 2:1 says, "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. I used to think that host was talking about other planets or stars or animals. Host in Hebrew is tsaba. Tsaba means a mass of people.
Again, two different actions by God to create people and to form a man. This man that was formed was Adam, and the people that were created are all the human beings in general. These people are made up of all the races of humans such as black, white, and oriental.
As for Adam, he is the first human that God communicates with. He is also the start of the lineage of the Israelites and eventually Jesus Christ himself.
More to come
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Six Day Creation
I believe in creation, not evolution. The book of Genesis says 10 times that all things were created of their own kind.
Genesis also says that God created our earth and universe in 6 days. Think about this, God doesn't live on earth. He doesn't go by earth days. His days are periods of time. He created our universe in 6 periods of time.
Second Peter 3:8 says that one day is with God as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. Plug in billion instead of one thousand years and you get 6 billion years instead of 6 days.
You see, the bible was written in Hebrew (old testament) and Greek (new testament). If you knew these languages, you could understand a little more about the creation. Since I have no idea how to read these languages, I look them up in an Exhaustive Concordance.
A concordance has all the words of the bible in English translated from Hebrew and Greek and it gives the meanings of each word.
A lot of studying is involved, but it is well worth it. If you don't have 15 years like it took me, then you can read my book.
Much more to come
Genesis also says that God created our earth and universe in 6 days. Think about this, God doesn't live on earth. He doesn't go by earth days. His days are periods of time. He created our universe in 6 periods of time.
Second Peter 3:8 says that one day is with God as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. Plug in billion instead of one thousand years and you get 6 billion years instead of 6 days.
You see, the bible was written in Hebrew (old testament) and Greek (new testament). If you knew these languages, you could understand a little more about the creation. Since I have no idea how to read these languages, I look them up in an Exhaustive Concordance.
A concordance has all the words of the bible in English translated from Hebrew and Greek and it gives the meanings of each word.
A lot of studying is involved, but it is well worth it. If you don't have 15 years like it took me, then you can read my book.
Much more to come
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