As Christians we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. But it is up to us every day to ask Him for His help. Here are four things we can ask of Him.
1. That He will give us power over temptation. The Bible says that if we live by the Spirit—that is, if we have our mind set on what the Spirit desires and we do what the Spirit tells us—we will not carry out the desires of the flesh (Rom. 8:5; Gal. 5:16). It seems so easy. But the reason why it often turns out to be so hard is because we try to live by the Spirit without asking for His help.
We cannot live by the Spirit or set our mind on what the Spirit desires without bowing our head in prayer—constantly asking for the Spirits help. Pray for His help and power! And…
Revelation 13:11-18. Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon. 12 He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. 13 He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. 14 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life. 15 And it was given to him to give breath to the…
I’m not sure exactly what the Psalmist was referring to, but for me it has plenty of application to my old age. Every morning I get up reeking with arthritis pain, and it takes me a while to get going. And I also find that every little thing I do is more worrisome. These pains and problems tend to drive me more to God in prayer and in the word. I seek Him more now than ever before. So, I conclude with the Palmist that affliction is good for me; it keeps me in line with Him, seeking His will.
The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
I don’t always think of my prayer as pleasing God. But if we are His children and our prayers are genuine and with love, He will be pleased, and our prayers will be as incense to Him. Let that be our prayer and our motivation to pray.
And when He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints (Revelation 5:8).
Just before Jesus ascended to heaven He told His disciples that as soon as He arrived He would send the Holy Spirit back to them. Then He said, “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged” (Jn. 16:8-11).
What does this all mean? Well, let’s break it down. Since Jesus has left, we know that the Holy Spirit has come. And by this passage we know that He is now working to convict (or to convince) the people of this world of three things: of sin, righteousness, and of judgment.
SIN
He works to convict them of sin, Jesus said, “Because they do not believe in…
After reading about how some who are, and have been, in political office, and have used their position to make millions, and I have to work hard for every dollar I make, I wonder, because of the way I feel, if I am guilty of the sin of envy?
So many are living the billionaire lifestyle, not by working but by using people—people that they were supposed to be serving. They are not business people or entrepreneurs; they are scam artists and they know how to work the system.
So anyway, after reading about all this, I think I may feel a little envious. I mean I don’t really want to do what they do, or be like them; but maybe just make more money and make it easier. I try to be content and be honest at my work and treat people fairly and not worry about what others do, but at times its hard. My work has always been hard—like work. And I know no other way to make money. But there are some, like politicians who seem to know how to rake in the cash so quickly and effortlessly. And well, I don’t think it’s right—especially if they are using people and stealing from people. That’s definitely wrong.
So, I’m gonna really work on not being envious of people, especially the wicked, as it says in Psalm 37.
Psalm 37:1-11
Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
2 For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And fade like the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6 And He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
Do not fret, it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place, and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land,
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
We will turn our attention toward the beast from the sea, also called the Antichrist. He may be examined quite extensively from three chapters in Daniel, from 2 Thessalonians, and from six chapters in Revelation. Here we will look primarily from just Revelation thirteen. We will start with the first six verses.
Revelation 13:1-6.And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.
Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names. 2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. 3 I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain…
In the back of my mind, I’m always wondering how safe my savings is and when this new digital currency is coming. Being a Christian, I’m not too concerned, but it always pays to be somewhat cautious.
I just read an article by John Whitehead of the Rutherford Institute on this subject. I will share six points from it.
The government has come up with a new plan to make it easier for its agents to seize Americans’ bank accounts. It will be by the digital dollar.
President Biden, on March 9, 2022, issued an Executive order calling for the federal government to consider establishing a U.S Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Look out!
Meanwhile, the FBI and the Justice Department have quietly moved ahead with plans for a crypto-currency enforcement team (digital money cops). What will they be doing?
The government will tell us that they are giving us tools to make our lives easier, but they will also be tracking and controlling us. Be aware!
In spite of modern conveniences in our currency, the new trends signal the beginning of the end for what little privacy we have left and for government thieves.
We can only hope and trust that those in power will treat our information with respect. Pray that they do.
To all Christians: be aware that the Church age is winding down gloriously fast. Let us hang on until the end—when Jesus comes to take us to the Father.
To all nonbelievers and doubters: Since you are not a member of the universal church, you will get the worst of this digital tyranny. Please give your heart to Christ while there is still time. Believe in Him and read His Word, the Bible.
There are several ways the Holy Spirit has been described in scripture. Here are five descriptions:
As Wind
On the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came suddenly as a “rushing mighty wind” (Acts 2:2-4). This wind—the Holy Spirit—filled the whole house where believers were gathered together for prayer; and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Thus we see that the Holy Spirit, just like the wind, is invisible, mighty, and awesome. And even though we may be unaware of it, He still is moving all over the world. He rushes in to fill and empower every heart that is prepared by prayer. I believe He makes His presence especially powerful to those who gather together in one accord.
As Water
In John 4:13-15 and in John 7:37-39 we see that Jesus offers living water to all who thirst. This living water in fact was and is the Holy…
Stephen Nielsen 