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JERRY MILLER

Paul Writes About Having A Christ-like Attitude

“With regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24).
Many religions of today, including the New Age philosophies, promote the old lie that we are divine or that we can become gods. But the truth of the matter is that we will never become God, or even a god.
Satan’s oldest lie was promising Adam and Eve that, if they followed his advice, “you shall be as gods” (Genesis 3:5).
Each time we try to control our circumstances, our future, and the people around us, we’re only demonstrating that we want to be a god. But we must understand that, as creatures, we will never be the Creator.
God doesn’t want us to try to become gods. Instead, He wants us to become like Him, taking on His values, His attitudes, and His character.
We are meant to “be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:23-24).
Finally, we must always keep in mind that God’s ultimate goal for His children is not our comfort, but the transformation of our minds into the attitude of godliness.
He wants us to grow spiritually, to become like Christ. This doesn’t mean losing our personalities or becoming mindless clones.
Christlikeness is all about transforming our minds. Again, Paul tells us, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2).
It is God’s will that we develop the kind of mindset described in the Beatitudes of Jesus (Matthew 5:1-12), that we exhibit the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), that we emulate the principles in Paul’s great chapter on love(1 Corinthians Chapter 13), and that we strive to pattern our lives after Peter’s characteristics of an effective and productive life (2 Peter 1:5-8).

DR KENNY MCCLINTON

2. Thunder: The Voice of God! Psalm 29:3

Text: “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thundereth; the Lord is upon many waters.”
Psalm 29:3.

Good morning, alert and listening Christian! Because the Lord God has, by His Spiritual power, opened your ears and mine and enabled us to hear His powerful voice: we are saved; we are secure in Christ; we are Eternally grateful; and we are ever listening to hear ’the still small voice…’ of His every guiding whisper. Praise God for alert and listening Christians!

“The Lord God hath given me the tongue of he Learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him this is weary; He wakeneth morning by morning, He wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned. The Lord hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.” (Isaiah 50:4-5)

Verse 3. “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters. No sight more alarming than the flash of lightning around the mast of a ship.

“The glory of God thundereth. Thunder is in truth no mere electric phenomenon but is caused by the interposition of God Himself. Electricity of itself can do nothing; it must be called and sent upon its errand; and until the Almighty Lord commissions it, its bolt of fire is inert and powerless. As well might a rock of granite or a bar of iron fly in the midst of Heaven as the lightning go without being sent by the great First Cause.” (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 141)

As an ex-Seaman, sailing on foreign-going ships, across the vast oceans of our world, I have experienced at first hand the power and unleashed atmospheric violence of an ‘electric storm’ at sea. Bolts of power-filled lightning sizzle across leaden black skies, lighting up all across a thousand mile radius, as though it were the middle of the day. Then, moments later - BOOM! An explosive peal of thunder proclaims the reason for the flash, but not the Source. God’s Voice is heard in the power of His Created elements; God’s glory is partially reflected in the sheer brightness of a lightning bolt. Were His glory not partially concealed, I believe all the earth would shrivel up in an instant. Our God is a Holy Lord God of Divine and omnipotent power.

“Wherefore we receiving a Kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: for our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:28-29)

Too many today, in this 21st Century of increased apostasy and rebellion against the Lord God, dare to think of the Almighty Lord as a kind old man with a long white beard, who can be fooled by the worldly wise, and condescended to by those deeming themselves to be noble. What a travesty! What a dangerous notion to hold! Let us begin for a moment to think again of the hint of God’s power unleashed in a thunder storm, and surely we must - as a nation, and as individuals - humble ourselves, seek His forgiving grace, and healing for our sin-sick land.

“If My people, which are called by My Name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

Yes, great God, this heart hitherto so dry, so arid, so hard; this rock which Thou hast struck a second time, will not resist Thee any longer, for out of it there now gushes healthful waters in abundance. The self-same voice of God which overturns the mountains, thunders, lightens, and divides the Heaven above the sinner, now commands the clouds to pour forth showers of blessings, changing the desert of his soul into a field producing a hundredfold; that voice I hear.” (Jean Baptiste Massillon 1663-1742)

Verse 3. “The God of glory thundereth. God’s Word teaches us clearly that ‘The voice of the Lord is upon many waters…’; waters depicting diverse and changing nations of the world. God’s Word is still being sent out to many diverse nations; nations that have not only rejected Bible-based Christian beliefs, but have openly rebelled against such God-given beliefs and are currently seeking the total destruction of Christian believers and the faith that they desire to openly practice.

In Nigeria, in Sudan, in India, and China, and Vietnam, and North Korea - Christians are being first despised, then thrown into prisons, kidnapped and tortured, and martyred ruthlessly for holding Bible-based Christian beliefs and seeking to practice them. Fact.

Never has there been a more worldwide, cruel and horrific persecution of Christian believers than today in this 21st Century. Pray, Christian, pray!

The Lord God has promised ‘His people’, ‘I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee…’ Soon the oppressing nations will be cut short in their puny rebellion against the people of God; soon those nations will indeed hear the voice of God thundering in the skies all around them His wrath against all who would dare harm His anointed people. The Lord will ‘laugh’ at such rebellious persecutors as, in power, He delivers us from them.

“He that sitteth in the Heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision.” (Psalm 2:4)

Thought: Listen carefully for the voice of the Lord - Jehovah alone is God Almighty; He will not be mocked by persecutors of ‘His people’. Speak, Lord.

THOMAS BRROKS

You should follow in His steps

(Thomas Brooks, "The Crown and Glory of Christianity,
or, HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness", 1662)

"He who says he abides in Him, ought himself also
to walk even as He walked." 1 John 2:6

Christians are to set all Christ's moral actions before them
as a pattern for their imitation. In Christ's life, a Christian
may behold the picture or lineaments of all virtues--and
accordingly he ought to order his life in this world.

To walk as Christ walked is to walk . . .
humbly,
holily,
justly,
meekly,
lovingly,
fruitfully,
faithfully,
uprightly.

To walk as Christ walked is to . . .
slight the world,
despise the world,
make a footstool of the world,
to live above the world, and
to triumph over the world as Christ did.

To walk as Christ walked is . . .
to love those who hate us,
to pray for those who persecute us,
to bless those who curse us, and
to do good to those who do evil to us.

To walk as Christ walked is to be patient, and silent,
and submissive, and thankful, under the vilest reproaches,
the heaviest afflictions, and the greatest sufferings.

"Leaving you an example, that you should follow
in His steps." 1 Peter 2:21

UNKNOWN AUTHOR

SATAN'S CONVENTION?

(The following article was edited with additions and
subtractions. The original author is unknown.)

It is said that Satan called a worldwide convention; and in his
opening address to all his evil angels, he said, "We can't keep
the real Christians from going to church services. We can't
keep them from reading their bibles and knowing the truth.
We can't even keep them from holding godly values. But we
can keep them from forming an intimate, abiding fellowship with
Christ. This is most critical for our cause, for if they have
intimate, abiding fellowship with Christ, then we can have no
power over them, and no chance of gaining strongholds in their
lives. Therefore, my evil comrades, this is what I want you to
do-- DISTRACT THEM!"

"But how shall we do this?" shouted one of his demons.

"Keep them busy in non-essentials of life! Invent unnumbered
schemes to occupy their minds. Tempt them to spend, spend,
spend and to borrow, borrow, borrow! Convince them to
work 6 and 7 days a week with both husbands and wives
working 10-12 hours per day, so they can afford their
lifestyles. Keep them from spending time with their children.
Let televisions, VCR's, CD's, video games, and movies baby-
sit their children. By these tactics alone, we will fragment
their families."

"Over stimulate their minds with high energy sounds and
entertainment so that they cannot hear the still small voice of
our dread enemy, the Holy Spirit. Entice them to listen to
music and to watch programs, even many of the religious ones,
which will jam their minds with our agenda and our
philosophies. Flood their schedules with every kind of sports
activity you can imagine. They are especially gullible to these
kinds of tactics, since there is 'nothing wrong with them'!
Fill them with dread by pounding their minds with news and
weather reports 24 hours a day. Flood their mail and email
boxes with "stuff"; and have them pass trivia to and fro to one
another. Fill their minds with incredible amounts of sports
trivia. You see, my dark friends, we shall JAM THEIR
MINDS AND KEEP THEM FROM COMMUNION
WITH CHRIST!"

"In their recreation, entice them to be excessive. Fill church
calendars with sports and recreation. Exhaust them, so that
they will be too tired for serious bible study and prayer.
Exhaust them so that they will have no time for Christian
hospitality. Exhaust them so that they will have no heart for
ministry to the lost. O evil one, our plan will cause them to
forget that the lost are lost! Keep them going to amusement
parks, sporting events, concerts and movies; keep them
consumed with the cares of this life! And when they do meet,
instead of spiritual fellowship, have them involved in gossip
and small talk and card games."

"And don't forget to crowd their lives with causes and events
that are 'good and acceptable'. Again, our strategy is to so
exhaust them that they have no time to feed their souls, or to
cultivate love for our dread enemy, Christ. Thus, they will
have no spiritual power over temptations, over habits, over
wrong attitudes and so much more. They will have less and less
discernment as to what is true and what is false, as to what
is good, and what is evil. They will not even suspect us!"

Well, as you can tell, it was quite a convention!
And the demons went eagerly to their assignments.

Can we judge the success of their convention? Yes!
Just give an honest answer to this one question--
Do you know any busy, busy, busy, exhausted Christians
who are running to and fro, who have knowledge about
many things, but have precious little time to sit at
Jesus' feet, and who are fast loosing their grip on peace
and holiness and love and purity and forgiveness, and
who have less and less time and heart for eternal things,
or for the souls of others (even their own children!)
because their minds and hearts are jammed with
the things of this world?