I have Collected all the Raw and CCTv footages of the Nepal Earthquake ..we may not understand the pain they have undergone ..so please pray for them ..All credits to the respective owner
Japan hit again with a 6.2 earthquake 7 hours after the 7.8 quake this morning as end time signs continue to be fulfilledhttp://www.paulbegleyprophecy.com
Isaiah 53 tells the story of the Servant of the Lord, whose mission in life was to help men and women discover a deep and satisfying relationship with their Creator. Read the chapter: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?...
(45) "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a
merchant seeking beautiful pearls, (46) who, when he had found one pearl of
great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. New
King James VersionChange your email Bible version
The merchant was common in Palestine because it has always been a crossroads.
It was the crossroads of the Roman world. To get anywhere, it seems, one had to
go through Palestine. Ships often sailed along the coast and stopped in the
ports of Palestine.
The particular merchant Jesus speaks about was a very uncommon merchant. He
was special because he filled a narrow niche in the market: He bought and sold
only pearls. This indicates just what kind of person this merchant was. If he
could devote all his time to seeking just pearls, he must have been rich and
highly placed. He was not a common caravan master. We would him call "a
specialist."
He may even have been a buyer for a particular type of person, like royalty.
In the ancient world, pearls were so rare that usually only monarchs could
afford them, using them in their crowns and on their clothing to show off their
royal splendor and say, "Look at me - I can afford pearls."
Some have thought that the merchant is a person like us who goes seeking
after Christ, after the gospel, or after the Kingdom. However,
the Bible itself makes these ideas absolutely impossible. For instance, Paul
writes in Romans 3:11, "There is none who understands; there is none
who seeks after God."
No ordinary person - nobody at all - seeks after God. In agreement, Jesus
Himself says, "No man can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him"
(John 6:44). Isaiah 55:1 adds, "Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the
waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and
milk without money and without price." We cannot buy anything from God, so how
could any human being be the merchant who seeks and buys the pearl? It is
impossible. Luke 7:42 is part of the Parable
of the Two Debtors. One phrase applies to this: "And when they had nothing
with which to repay, he freely forgave them both." The creditor here is God, and
we are the debtors. God freely forgives us even though we have nothing to buy forgiveness
with, so a person cannot be the merchant. First, humanly, we cannot seek Him.
Second, we have to be called so that we can seek Him. Third, we cannot buy salvation,
and even if it were for sale, we do not have the money to buy it. On all counts,
it is impossible for a sinful human being to be the merchant.
That leaves only one person that it could be - Jesus
Christ Himself. He is the only One who has what it takes to buy this pearl.
Notice these confirming scriptures:
For the Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10)
You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go
and bear fruit. (John 15:16)
To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his
own sheep by name and leads them out. (John 10:3)
Only Christ can do it.
But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, O
Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have
redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. (Isaiah 43:1)
This tells us who the merchant is. Without a doubt, it is Jesus Christ, our
Redeemer.
I have been sharing some thoughts about having to wait for the Lord, and I hope you understand what I have trying to say, but I would be remiss if I didn’t address our attitudes and mindset during our period of waiting.
I will tell you up front that if we are going to pace the floors, fretting about it, won’t only delay things, they will also result in emotional turmoil. I assure you, our Lord has a better way.
Frankly, you don’t have a choice in the matter. You can’t make things happen, so you may as well prepare your heart now to wait patiently, and dependently. That is the kind of attitude we need to maintain. However, it won’t be possible unless you have truly submitted to the Lord’s authority over your concerns. If we believe and accept that He has our best interests at heart and can work it all out for our good, then we can rest in His right to choose the method and timing.
Wouldn’t don’t agree? Is that too much for you to accept? Well, when we truly trust Him, there will be no maneuvering, manipulation, or rushing ahead. We won’t be forced to beg and plead with Him. Sometimes we are kind of like Burt Reynold in, “The End,” where he spent the entire movie trying to commit suicide but couldn’t do it successfully. Finally, he decided to drown himself and swam out a long ways from the shore. As he was in the middle of the ocean, he started to realized that he didn’t really want to kill himself, so he says, “Dear God, please save me, save me. I don’t want to die. If you save me, I’ll give you everything, one hundred percent, everything that I own. Save me!”
And he starts swimming toward the shore, and he was exhausted, not so sure he was going to make it. He looked up, saw the palm trees way out in the distance and says, “Please God, save me, save me. I don’t know if I’m going to make it. Save me! If I make it, fifty percent of everything I got is yours.” And he starts swimming and he’s exhausted, not sure he’s going to make it. He sees the trees cresting the horizon. He says, “Please God, get me the last 20 yards, I don’t know if I’m going to make it. Save me! If you save me, ten percent of everything I got is yours.” And he swims and swims and finally he makes it to shore, turns over, spits out the water, looks up at the sky and says, “You know, God, you got some nerve, asking for everything I got.”
Well folks, that won’t work! Instead, we need to stand on the Word! Period. End of commentary . . . no, seriously though, the Bible is our anchor during our times of waiting. One of the wisest things you can do is to read the Scriptures every day, asking the Author to give you passages which will bring stability to your life. I’m not talking about standing up and dropping your Bible and reading whatever passage it opens. Shoot, if your did that, it might be Matthew 27:5: “Judas hung himself.” See, that is absurd. But as I look back in my old Bibles (as well as my newer ones), I see verses that I marked, or highlighted, that carried me through some tough times. So, you need to read, study and ponder the Scriptures every day. Make it a habit.
I say that because, honestly, when you are experiencing difficult times, prayers aren’t enough. Yes, I’m shocked that I would say that, because I love prayer; I rely on prayer; I encourage prayer. But you need to hang on to a specific Word from God that will give you His perspective and promise in your situation! This is His Rhema for you! A rhema is a verse or portion of Scripture that the Holy Spirit speaks to our specific situation or need for direction.
As believers, we understand that every word of God is inspired, and that “Every Scripture passage is inspired by God. All of them are useful for teaching, pointing out errors, correcting people, and training them for a life that has God’s approval” (II Timothy 3:16). We understand that, but the Holy Spirit will illuminate specific Scriptures for us to apply in our daily walk with the Lord.
This is what Jesus was referring to when He said, “A person cannot live on bread alone but on every word [rhema] that God speaks” (Matthew 4:4); “The words [rhema] that I have spoken to you are spiritual. They are life!” (John 6:63).
When the Holy Spirit gives us a rhema to act on, He often confirms it with a second rhema, that “in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word [rhema] will be established” (II Corinthians 13:1). Not only that, when that “rhema” is spoken to us, we will receive the faith to stand on it! Paul wrote, “So faith comes from hearing the [rhema], and the [rhema] that is heard is what Christ spoke” (Romans 10:17). And, we are to “take salvation as your helmet and the [rhema] of God as the sword that the Spirit supplies” (Ephesians 6:17).
When you hear that “rhema,” you will be able to confidently pray, “Lord, here is what You promised me. And You can never go against Your promises, so I will cling to this truth while I wait on You!” You are standing on the Word, the Rhema, He spoke to you in the midst of your trial.
Once you have submitted yourself to the Lord and anchored yourself to His Word, His rhema, you can confidently watch for His will to unfold. He Knows exactly what to do and when to do it. He has the power to arrange, and to rearrange, any detail to bring about His desired plan. All we have to do is believe Him. That is all! Oh, and watch for His intervention or direction!
Nickolas
(I send out messages like this each morning in emails, and if you are interested in receiving them, send me your email address and I will add you to the list: Mail List)
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I have been sharing some thoughts about having to wait for the Lord, and I hope you understand what I have trying to say, but I would be remiss if I didn’t address our attitudes and mindset during our period of waiting.
Flotsam and Jetsam
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