Come, let's obey God!

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Reading: Hebrews 3:7-19

"Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today" (Heb 3:13)

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Help and support from fellow believers, friends and family folks make obedience to God easy. We are exhorted in Hebrews 3:13-15, "Encourage one another daily, while it is called `Today'... while it is said: Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts." This passage means that we never outgrow the need for the fellowship of saints as long as we are on earth. When we enter eternity, there will be no "today" because there will be no yesterday or tomorrow! A walk of obedience with God is ultimately the individual's choice and responsibility, but he cannot do it all by himself. Not isolation but integration is the safest road to walk in consistent obedience.

We must not fail to note when exactly God gave Eve to Adam. It was immediately after He commanded Adam about the tree of knowledge (Gen 2:15-18). God said, "It's not good for man to be alone!" Not that he would fall into adultery if he were alone. In fact there was no woman at all at that time! The companionship of Eve was mainly to help Adam to obey God and resist Satan. What an awesome responsibility God has placed on spouses to mutually encourage and exhort one another in their walk of obedience to God! When together they seek to obey God in all matters, relationship between them also becomes smoother. This was the secret of oneness between the old couple Elizabeth and Zacharias (Lk 1:6,59-63).

Sarah helped Abraham obey God. The Bible nowhere says that Abraham left home with Isaac to sacrifice him without telling Sarah! It's a meaningless interpretation of the narrative. While commenting on the faith of Abraham, the writer of Hebrews says, "By faith Sarah ALSO...." (Heb 11:8-11).

Children need the help of parents to obey God. King Solomon stresses it in the very beginning of his book of Proverbs. "My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother" (Prov 1:8; 4:1-4). The influence of mummy and granny on Timothy is well known (2 Tim 1:5).

"Leave me alone," is the demand of youth both at home and outside. This puts the devil in an advantageous position to play havoc in their lives. Let them listen to the words of the wisest king ever lived: "Two are better than one... Because, if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up... Better is a poor and wise youth than an old foolish king who will be admonished no more" (Eccl 4:9,10,13).

Experience His Love

Experience His Love

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE
"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38–39, KJV).

TODAY'S WORD
God loves you so much today! He wants you to know and experience His love.  When you experience something, it becomes real to you. You "own" it, so to speak.

For example, let's say you've never eaten chocolate before. Someone else can describe it to you. They can tell you all about the taste and texture, but until you take a bite of it, it won't really mean anything.
In the same way, you can hear all about God's love and how wonderful He is, but it's not until you experience it first hand and allow His love to sink down into your heart that something happens on the inside of you. His love changes you. It builds confidence and strength in you. It empowers you to overcome temptation and to stand strong no matter what difficulty you may be facing. When you open your heart and receive His love, you will be fully persuaded that nothing can separate you from Him!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father in heaven, I open my heart to You today. Fill me with Your love so that I can know You more. I desire to experience You in every part of my being. I surrender every area of my life to You. Have Your way in me.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.

God's Kid, Don't Kid

God's Kid, don't Kid!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading: Matthew 4:1-11

"Resist the devil and he will flee from you" (Js 4:7)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Satan's attack on God's people are multifarious. Let's learn today how to overcome Satan when he challenges you.
The first two of the three typical temptations Jesus faced in the desert were a challenge on His Sonship. The tempter came to Him and said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread... If You are the Son of God, jump down..." (Mt 4:3,6). It was not only a challenge to Jesus but also on what God the Father had said just before Jesus went into the desert: "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" (Mt 3:17). Satan put the same words of challenge in the lips of the passersby who watched Jesus on the Cross: "If You are the Son of God, come down from the Cross!" (Mt 27:40).
Satan spares no saint of this temptation. He challenges every child of God about God's fatherhood towards him and his sonship. This temptation will be intense during your days of spiritual infancy as well as times of infirmity due to adversities. "How can a sinner like you suddenly become a child of God? Can this happen to you if you are a child of God?" Such questions will bombard you day and night.
To overpower Satan against this temptation, you must constantly remind yourself of the assurance of your sonship. This assurance is yours through the written Word of God and the inner voice of the Holy Spirit. Jesus combated the devil's attack in this area by quoting on his face the Scriptures. He said, "It is written... It is also written" (Mt 4:4,7). You can say, "It is written that I have the right to be a child of God because I have believed on Christ and received Him" (Jn 1:12).
The assuring companionship of the Holy Spirit with Jesus was another weapon. We read that He was led into the desert "by the Spirit" and returned "in the power of the Spirit" (Mt 4:1; Lk 4:14). While talking to the Christians in Rome about suffering, Apostle Paul said, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God." Don't therefore be intimidated by any fear caused by the devil. God is your "Abba" and He is your "Father!" (Rom 8:15-18). This adoption into God's family cannot be cancelled or the authority of sonship annulled under any circumstance.
Be ye strong in the Lord and the power of His might!
Firmly standing for the truth of His Word;
He shall lead you safely through the thickest of the fight,
You shall conquer in the Name of the Lord! 
                                                          (El Nathan)

Are You In Jesus?

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17, NKJ)

TODAY'S WORD
The very moment we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we instantly become a new creation! Our spirits are made alive in Him and the old passes away. His peace fills our hearts. Now, everything in your life doesn’t change instantly. Some things do, but God will do some things in your life over time as you grow in your relationship with Him. The key is to keep moving forward in your spiritual journey one step at a time. As you abide in Him by spending time with Him in prayer and worship, and as you study His Word and connect with other believers in a Bible-based church, He will continue to transform you and renew you from the inside out!

Today, remember, God is at work in your life. You may not be where you want to be. You may have made some mistakes or had some setbacks. Know that in Him, you are the righteousness of God. In Him, you are new. In Him is everything you need to have victory in every area of your life!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father God, thank You for making me new! Thank You for ordering and directing my steps. I trust that You are at work in my life transforming me into Your image. Keep me close to You as I put You first in everything I do. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Who is Jesus then...

HE IS JESUS (Son of God - Pure & Divine)

WHO IS HE?
IN CHEMISTRY, HE TURNED WATER TO WINE.

IN BIOLOGY, HE WAS BORN WITHOUT THE
NORMAL CONCEPTION;

IN PHYSICS, HE DISAPPROVED THE LAW OF
GRAVITY WHEN HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN;

IN ECONOMICS, HE DISAPPROVED THE LAW
OF DIMINISHING RETURN BY FEEDING 5000 MEN WITH
TWO FISHES & 5 LOAVES OF BREAD;

IN MEDICINE, HE CURED THE SICK AND THE
BLIND WITHOUT ADMINISTERING A SINGLE DOSE OF DRUGS,

IN HISTORY, HE IS THE
BEGINNING AND THE END; 

IN GOVERNMENT, HE SAID THAT HE SHALL
BE CALLED WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, PRINCE OF PEACE;

IN RELIGION, HE SAID NO ONE COMES TO
THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH HIM;

SO. WHO IS HE?

HE IS JESUS!
JOIN ME AND LET'S CELEBRATE HIM; HE IS
WORTHY.
THE EYES BEHOLDING THIS MESSAGE SHALL
NOT BEHOLD EVIL, THE HAND THAT WILL
SEND THIS MESSAGE TO EVERYBODY SHALL
NOT LABOR IN VAIN, AND THE MOUTH SAYING AMEN TO THIS PRAYER SHALL SMILE FOREVER.
REMAIN IN GOD AND SEEK HIS FACE ALWAYS.
AMEN
IN GOD I'VE FOUND EVERYTHING! 

The Greatest Man in History
Jesus had no servants, yet they called Him Master.
Had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher.
Had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.
He had no army, yet kings feared Him..
He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.
He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him.
He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.
I feel honored to serve such a Leader who loves us!
If you believe in God and in Jesus
Christ His Son .. share this to all.

Have a blessed day and keep smiling...

Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 3

The Cause of Death

If interested, you may read 'Crucifixion of Jesus' - Parts 1 and 2 to proceed further.

Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 1
Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 2- The Agony of the Cross

Below is 'Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 3':

Metherell had made his point – graphically - about the pain endured as the crucifixion process began. But I needed to get to what finally claims the life of a crucifixion victim, because that's the pivotal issue in determining whether death can be faked or eluded. So I put the cause-of-death question directly to Metherell.    

"Once a person is hanging in the vertical position," he replied, "crucifixion is essentially an agonizingly slow death by asphyxiation.    

The reason is that the stresses on the muscles and diaphragm put the chest into the inhaled position; basically, in order to exhale, the individual must push up on his feet so the tension on the muscles would be eased for a moment. In doing so, the nail would tear through the foot, eventually locking up against the tarsal bones.
    
After managing to exhale, the person would then be able to relax down and take another breath in. Again he'd have to push himself up to exhale, scraping his bloodied back against the coarse wood of the cross. This would go on and on until complete exhaustion would take over, and the person wouldn't be able to push up and breathe anymore.

As the person slows down his breathing, he goes into what is called respiratory acidosis-the carbon dioxide in the blood is dissolved as carbonic acid, causing the acidity of the blood to increase. This eventually leads to an irregular heartbeat. In fact, with his heart beating erratically, Jesus would have known that he was at the moment of death, which is when he was able to say, 'Lord, into your hands I commit my spirit.' And then he died of cardiac arrest."    

It was the clearest explanation I had ever heard of death by crucifixion - but Metherell wasn't done.    

"Even before he died - and this is important, too - the hypovolemic shock would have caused a sustained rapid heart rate that would have contributed to heart failure, resulting in the collection of fluid in the membrane around the heart, called a pericardial effusion, as well as around the lungs, which is called a pleural effusion." "Why is that significant?"    
"Because of what happened when the Roman soldier came around and, being fairly certain that Jesus was dead, confirmed it by thrusting a spear into his right side. It was probably his right side; that's not certain, but from the description it was probably the right side, between the ribs.    

"The spear apparently went through the right lung and into the heart, so when the spear was pulled out, some fluid - the pericardial effusion and the pleural effusion-came out. This would have the appearance of a clear fluid, like water, followed by a large volume of blood, as the eyewitness John described in his gospel."    
 

John probably had no idea why he saw both blood and a clear fluid come out-certainly that's not what an untrained person like him would have anticipated. Yet John's description is consistent with what modern medicine would expect to have happened. At first this would seem to give credibility to John being an eyewitness; however, there seemed to be one big flaw in all this.    

I pulled out my Bible and flipped to John 19:34. "Wait a minute, Doc," I protested. "When you carefully read what John said, he saw 'blood and water' come out; he intentionally put the words in that order. But according to you, the clear fluid would have come out first. So there's a significant discrepancy here."    

Metherell smiled slightly. "I'm not a Greek scholar," he replied, "but according to people who are, the order of words in ancient Greek was determined not necessarily by sequence but by prominence. This means that since there was a lot more blood than water, it would have made sense for John to mention the blood first."    

I conceded the point but made a mental note to confirm it myself later. "At this juncture," I said, "what would Jesus' condition have been?" Metherell's gaze locked with mine. He replied with authority, "There was absolutely no doubt that Jesus was dead."

The Case For Christ is also available online in PDF format. 

www.thejesusjoint.net/books/leestrobel/caseforchrist.pdf

Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 2

The Agony of the Cross

If interested, you may read this Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 1 to proceed further.

Below is 'Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 2':

As distasteful as the description of the flogging was, I knew that even more repugnant testimony was yet to come. That's because historians are unanimous that Jews survived the beating that day and went on to the cross – which is where the real issue lies.

These days when condemned criminals are strapped down and injected with poisons, or secured to a wooden chair and subjected to a surge of electricity, the circumstances are highly controlled. Death comes quickly and predictably. Medical examiners carefully certify the victim's passing. From close proximity witnesses scrutinize everything from beginning to end.

But how certain was death by this crude, slow, and rather inexact from of execution called crucifixion? In fact, most people aren't sure how the cross kills its victims. And without a trained medical examiner to officially attest that Jesus had died, might he have escaped the experience brutalized and bleeding but nevertheless alive?

I began to unpack these issues. "What happened when he arrived at the site of the Crucifixion?" I asked.

"He would have been laid down, and his hands would have been nailed in the outstretched position to the horizontal beam. This crossbar was called the patibulum, and at this it was separate from the vertical beam, which was permanently set in the ground."

I was having difficulty visualizing this; I needed more details. "Nailed with what?" I asked. "Nailed where?"

"The Romans used spikes that were five to seven inches long and tapered to a sharp point. They were driven through the wrists," Metherell said, pointing about an inch or so below his left palm.

"Hold it," I interrupted. "I thought the nails pierced his palms. That's what all the paintings show. In fact, it's become a standard symbol representing the Crucifixion."

"Through the wrists," Metherell repeated. "This was a solid position that would lock the hand; if the nails had been driven through the palms, his weight would have caused the skin to tear and he would have fallen off the cross. So the nails went through the wrists, although this was considered part of the hand in the language of the day.

"And it's important to understand that the nail would go through the place where the median nerve runs. This is the largest nerve going out to the hand, and it would be crushed by the nail that was being pounded in."

Since I have only a rudimentary knowledge of the human anatomy, I wasn't sure what this meant. "What sort of pain would that have produced?" I asked.

"Let me put it this way," he replied. "Do you know the kind of pain you feel when you bang your elbow and hit your funny bone? That's actually another nerve, called the ulna nerve. It's extremely painful when you accidentally hit it.

"Well, picture taking a pair of pliers and squeezing and crushing that nerve," he said, emphasizing the word squeezing as he twisted an imaginary pair of pliers. "That effect would be similar to what Jesus experienced."

I winced at the image and squirmed in my chair. "The pain was absolutely unbearable," he continued. "In fact, it was literally beyond words to describe; they had to invent a new word: excruciating. Literally, excruciating means 'out of the cross.' Think of that: they needed to create a new word, because there was nothing in the language that could describe the intense anguish caused during the crucifixion.

At this point Jesus was hoisted as the crossbar was attached to the vertical stake, and then nails were driven through Jesus' feet. Again, the nerves in his feet would have been crushed, and there would have been a similar type of pain."

Crushed and severed nerves were certainly bad enough, but I needed to know about the effect that hanging from the cross would have had on Jesus. "What stresses would this have put on his body?" Metherell answered, "First of all, his arms would have immediately been stretched, probably about six inches in length, and both shoulders would have become dislocated-you can determine this with simple mathematical equations. "This fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy in Psalm 22, which foretold the Crucifixion hundreds of years before it took place and says, 'My bones are out of joint."'

Here is 'Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 3':

Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 3 - The Cause of Death

Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 1

At times, I used to wonder what is so unique about the crucifixion of Jesus. Criminals and martyrs have had to suffer cruel deaths as well. But, after reading this description of Jesus' crucifixion from Lee Strobel's The Case For Christ, I am convinced that nobody else would have suffered so much – such is the intensity of sin! I thought of sharing this excerpt from the book. Since it is quite long, I will be sending it in 3 parts (one part in a day). Encourage you to read till the end.

Let me set the context (in case you haven't read this book). The author of The Case For Christ is Lee Strobel, educated at Yale Law School, award-winning former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune – with a background of atheism. His project is to determine if there's credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God. He interviews a dozen scholars, with doctorates from Cambridge, Princeton, Brandeis, and other top-flight institutions, who are recognized authorities on Jesus. This one is an interview with Alexander Metherell. Metherell has a medical degree from the University of Miami in Florida and a doctorate in engineering from the University of Bristol in England.

He cleared his throat. "It began after the Last Supper" he said. "Jesus went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives – specifically, to the Garden of Gethsamane. And there, if you remember, he prayed all night. Now, during that process he was anticipating the coming events of the next day. Since he knew the amount of suffering he was going to have to endure, he was quite naturally experiencing a great deal of psychological stress."

I raised my hand to stop him. "Whoa – here's where sceptics have a field day," I told him. "The gospels tell us he began to sweat blood at this point. Now, c'mon, isn't that just a product of some overactive imaginations? Doesn't that call into question the accuracy of the gospel writers?"

Unfazed, Metherell shook his head. "Not at all," he replied. "This is a known medical condition called hematidrosis. It's not very common, but it is associated with a high degree of psychological stress.

"What happens is that severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. As a results, there's a small amount of bleeding into these glands. As a result, comes out tinged with blood. We're not talking about a lot of blood; it's just a very, very small amount."

Though a bit chastened, I pressed on. "Did this have any other effect on the body?"

"What this did was set up the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman solider the next day, the skin would be very, very sensitive."

Well, I thought, here we go. I braced myself for the grim images I knew were about to flood my mind. I had seen plenty of dead bodies as a journalist – casualties of car accidents, fires, and crime syndicate retribution – but there was something especially unnerving in hearing about someone being intentionally brutalized by executioners determined to extract maximum suffering.

"Tell me," I said, "what was the flogging like?"

Metherell's eyes never left me. "Roman floggings were known to be terribly brutal. They usually consisted of thirty-nine lashes but frequently were a lot more than that, depending on the mood of the soldier applying the blows.

"The soldier would use a whip of braided leather thongs with metal balls woven into them. When the whip would strike the flesh, these balls would cause deep bruises or contusions, which would break open with further blows. And the whip had pieces of sharp bone as well, which would cut the flesh severely.

"The back would be so shredded that part of the spine was sometimes exposed by the deep, deep cuts. The whipping would have gone all the way from the shoulders down to the back, the buttocks, and the back of the legs. It was just terrible."

Metherell paused. "Go on," I said.

"One physician who had studied Roman beatings said, 'As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh.' A third-century historian by the name of Eusebuis described a flogging by saying, 'The sufferer's veins were laid bare, and the very muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure.'

"We know that many people would die from this kind of beating even before they could be crucified. At the least, the victim would experience tremendous pain and go into hypovolemic shock."

Metherell had thrown in a medical term I didn't know. "What does hypovolemic shock mean?" I asked.

"Hypo" means 'low,' vol refers to volume, and emic means 'blood,' so hypovolemic shock means the person is suffering the effects of losing a large amount of blood," the doctor explained. "This does four things. First, the heart races to try to pump blood that isn't there; second, the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; third, the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left; and fourth, the person becomes very thirsty as the body craves fluids to replace the lost blood volume."

"Do you see evidence of this in the gospel accounts?"

"Yes, most definitely," he replied. "Jesus was in hypovolemic shock as he staggered up the road to the execution site at Calvary, carrying the horizontal beam of the cross. Finally Jesus collapsed, and the Roman solider order Simon to carry the cross for him. Later we read that Jesus said, 'I thirst,' at which point a sip of vinegar was offered to him.

"Because of the terrible effects of this beating, there's no question that Jesus was already in serious to critical condition even before the nails were driven through his hands and feet."

If interested, you may read 'Crucifixion of Jesus' - Parts 2 and 3.
Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 2- The Agony of the Cross 
Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 3 - The Cause of Death

Moment by Moment - Simple but Profound

Moment by Moment



There was a little girl, whose father was a pastor.

One day, she came to her father and said, "Daddy, can a person go their whole life without sinning?"

The father answered, "No, honey, I'm sorry, but that's just not possible."

"What about a year, daddy? Can a person go a whole year without sinning?" She continued.

"No, I don't think that's possible either."

"What about a day, can a person go a day without sinning once?"

"It's very unlikely, no, I don't think they can."

"What about one moment, daddy, can a person go one moment without sinning?"

"Yes, that is possible."

"Then daddy, I want to live my life, moment by moment."

Awe striking but isn’t there a great truth in those lines?
 
Live moment by moment, as if this moment were your last one before you reach eternity.

 
 
 
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord…

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Bye bye Sickness, Sin...

Goodbye, Sickness!

Reading: Romans 8:18-25
"To those who eagerly wait for Him, Christ will appear a second time,
without sin, for salvation" (Heb 9:28)

 

There was no sickness before sin entered the world. Even though sin is not the direct cause of every sickness today, if man had not sinned he would have never become sick. That's why, along with our sins, Christ bore our sicknesses also on His body. The Bible teaches us that His blood cleanses us (1 Jn 1:7) and His wounds heal us (1 Pet 2:24). However a question arises here: If Christ has borne my sins, why do I still have to struggle with sin, having believed on Him? (1 Jn 1:9). If He has borne my sicknesses, why do I still have to suffer from sicknesses? (1 Tim 5:23).

"We know that the entire creation groans and labours with birth pangs together until now. And not only they, but we also who have the first fruits of the Spirit... groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our bodies" (Rom 8:22,23).

On the Cross Jesus finished whatever had to be done. He paid fully the penalty for our sin. He purchased for us all that mankind had lost because of transgression. But the total realization of the benefits of Calvary in our lives has not come until now. We are enjoying the "first- fruits" only. We are still "groaning." The perfect healing of our bodies is still awaited. We will receive it only at the Second Coming of Christ.

The body we now have is earthly and mortal. Life in this body is a journey from birth to death. Just like the resurrected Christ we will be given a glorious body at His coming. If we would be alive when He returns, we will be transformed. If dead, we will be resurrected. It will happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. "When the trumpet sounds, the dead will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we would never die. For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die" (1 Cor 15:51-53).

About our disease-free life in Heaven, we are told, "God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away!" (Rev 21:4).

Jesus is coming His saints to release,
Coming to give to the warring earth peace;
Sinning and sighing and sorrow shall cease;
Jesus is coming again! (El Nathan)

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Crucifixion of Jesus - Part 1

At times, I used to wonder what is so unique about the crucifixion of Jesus. Criminals and martyrs have had to suffer cruel deaths as well. But, after reading this description of Jesus’ crucifixion from Lee Strobel’s The Case For Christ, I am convinced that nobody else would have suffered so much – such is the intensity of sin! I thought of sharing this excerpt from the book. Since it is quite long, I will be sending it in 3 parts (one part in a day). Encourage you to read till the end.
 
Let me set the context (in case you haven’t read this book). The author of The Case For Christ is Lee Strobel, educated at Yale Law School, award-winning former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune – with a background of atheism. His project is to determine if there’s credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God. He interviews a dozen scholars, with doctorates from Cambridge, Princeton, Brandeis, and other top-flight institutions, who are recognized authorities on Jesus. This one is an interview with Alexander Metherell. Metherell has a medical degree from the University of Miami in Florida and a doctorate in engineering from the University of Bristol in England.
 
He cleared his throat. “It began after the Last Supper” he said. “Jesus went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives – specifically, to the Garden of Gethsamane. And there, if you remember, he prayed all night. Now, during that process he was anticipating the coming events of the next day. Since he knew the amount of suffering he was going to have to endure, he was quite naturally experiencing a great deal of psychological stress.”
 
I raised my hand to stop him. “Whoa – here’s where sceptics have a field day,” I told him. “The gospels tell us he began to sweat blood at this point. Now, c’mon, isn’t that just a product of some overactive imaginations? Doesn’t that call into question the accuracy of the gospel writers?”
 
Unfazed, Metherell shook his head. “Not at all,” he replied. “This is a known medical condition called hematidrosis. It’s not very common, but it is associated with a high degree of psychological stress.
 
“What happens is that severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. As a result, there’s a small amount of bleeding into these glands. As a result, comes out tinged with blood. We’re not talking about a lot of blood; it’s just a very, very small amount.”
 
Though a bit chastened, I pressed on. “Did this have any other effect on the body?”
 
“What this did was set up the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman soldier the next day, the skin would be very, very sensitive.”
 
Well, I thought, here we go. I braced myself for the grim images I knew were about to flood my mind. I had seen plenty of dead bodies as a journalist – casualties of car accidents, fires, and crime syndicate retribution – but there was something especially unnerving in hearing about someone being intentionally brutalized by executioners determined to extract maximum suffering.
 
“Tell me,” I said, “what was the flogging like?”
 
Metherell’s eyes never left me. “Roman floggings were known to be terribly brutal. They usually consisted of thirty-nine lashes but frequently were a lot more than that, depending on the mood of the soldier applying the blows.
 
“The soldier would use a whip of braided leather thongs with metal balls woven into them. When the whip would strike the flesh, these balls would cause deep bruises or contusions, which would break open with further blows. And the whip had pieces of sharp bone as well, which would cut the flesh severely.
 
The back would be so shredded that part of the spine was sometimes exposed by the deep, deep cuts. The whipping would have gone all the way from the shoulders down to the back, the buttocks, and the back of the legs. It was just terrible.”
 
Metherell paused. “Go on,” I said.
 
“One physician who had studied Roman beatings said, ‘As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh.’ A third-century historian by the name of Eusebuis described a flogging by saying, ‘The sufferer’s veins were laid bare, and the very muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure.’
 
“We know that many people would die from this kind of beating even before they could be crucified. At the least, the victim would experience tremendous pain and go into hypovolemic shock.”
 
Metherell had thrown in a medical term I didn’t know. “What does hypovolemic shock mean?” I asked.
 
“Hypo” means ‘low,’ vol refers to volume, and emic means ‘blood,’ so hypovolemic shock means the person is suffering the effects of losing a large amount of blood,” the doctor explained. “This does four things. First, the heart races to try to pump blood that isn’t there; second, the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; third, the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left; and fourth, the person becomes very thirsty as the body craves fluids to replace the lost blood volume.”
 
“Do you see evidence of this in the gospel accounts?”
 
“Yes, most definitely,” he replied. “Jesus was in hypovolemic shock as he staggered up the road to the execution site at Calvary, carrying the horizontal beam of the cross. Finally Jesus collapsed, and the Roman soldier ordered Simon to carry the cross for him. Later we read that Jesus said, ‘I thirst,’ at which point a sip of vinegar was offered to him.
 
“Because of the terrible effects of this beating, there’s no question that Jesus was already in serious to critical condition even before the nails were driven through his hands and feet.”

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What was in Jeremy's Egg?

What was in Jeremy's Egg?

Jeremy was born with a twisted body, a slow mind and a chronic, terminal illness that had been slowly killing him all his young life.  
Still, his parents had tried to give him as normal a life as possible and had sent him to St Theresa's Elementary School.
At the age of 12, Jeremy was only in second grade, seemingly unable to learn.
His teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his seat, drool and make grunting noises.
At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy irritated his teacher.

One day, she called his parents and asked them to come to St. Theresa's for a consultation. As the Forresters sat quietly in the empty classroom, Doris said to them,
"Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is a five-year gap between his age and that of the other students!"
 
Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue while her husband spoke. "Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here."
Doris sat for a long time after they left, staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Forresters. After all, their only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach, and Jeremy was a distraction.
Furthermore, he would never learn to read and write. Why waste any more time trying?
As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. "Oh God," she said aloud,
 "Here I am complaining, when my problems are nothing compared to that poor family! Please help me be more patient with Jeremy."
From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's noises and his blank stares. Then one day he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him.
 "I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loud enough for the whole class to hear. The other students snickered, and Doris' face turned red.
She stammered, "Wh-why, that's very nice Jeremy. Now please take your seat."
Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large plastic egg.
 "Now," she said to them," I want you to take this home and bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you understand?" "Yes, Miss Miller!" the children responded enthusiastically - all except for Jeremy. He just listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even make his usual noises.
Had he understood what she had said about Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.
That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop for groceries, iron a blouse and prepare a vocabulary test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy's parents.

The next day, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk.
After they had completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs.
In the first egg, Doris found a flower.

 "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of new life," she said. "When plants peek through the ground, we know that spring is here." A small girl in the first row waved her arm. "That's my egg, Miss Miller," she called out.
The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes and grows into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that is new life, too." Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is mine!"
Next, Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that moss to, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom. "My daddy helped me!" he beamed.
Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty! Surely it must be Jeremy's, she thought, and, she had forgotten to phone his parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside and reached for another.
Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up. "Miss Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?"
Flustered, Doris replied, "But Jeremy - your egg is empty!" He looked into her eyes and said softly,
"Yes, but Jesus's tomb was empty, too!"
Time stopped. When she could speak again, Doris asked him, "Do you know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh yes!" Jeremy exclaimed. "Jesus was killed and put in there. Then his Father raised him up!"
The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the school yard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted completely away.
Three months later, Jeremy died.
 Those who paid their respects at the mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket, all of them empty.

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Finding faith in us

Firm Faith

Reading: Matthew 24:1-13
"He who endures to the end shall be saved" (Mt 24:13)

 

The greatest incentive to our faith is the Second Coming of Christ. "In yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him" (Heb 10:37-38). Christ Jesus is not only the Author of our faith but also its Finisher. "The end of a thing is better than its beginning" (Eccl 7:8).

The purpose of the long list of the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 is given in the very first verse of the next chapter: "Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses... let's run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking into Jesus the Originator and Perfecter of our faith." The faith race can be compared to a relay race. In the race there are participants as well as spectators. We are the runners. "The cloud of witnesses" are the spectators of our performance. When a person finishes his run, he hands over the baton to the one who is to run next. All the forerunners of faith have done their part superbly well and have entrusted the finishing part to us. We who are running the last lap of the relay race are excited. The heroes of faith of yesteryears are even more excited than us as they are looking forward to see how we will finish our course.

We are the citizens of Heaven. Currently we are participating in the race in this world, just as for the Olympics, athletes from our country go to the country where the race is held. Several runners have finished their course and gone to their motherland (Heaven). They along with our forefathers desire to see our performance. It is not wrong to imagine that they are constantly encouraging us in our race. If we fail to run well they will be sore disappointed that all their efforts have gone waste.

To finish our life of faith successfully we have to overcome sufferings, depression and hardship, and oppositions in the gospel work. Like Paul we must be able to testify, "I have fought a good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith" (2 Tim 4:7). We need to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3). Jesus asked, "When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" (Lk 18:8). Let's affirm to Him saying, "We live by faith alone, Lord. You will find faith in us!"

We run the race the saints above
With shouts of triumph ran;
By faith they, like a whirlwind's breath,
Swept on o'er every field,
The faith by which they conquered death
                         Is still our shining shield!

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Mold me God

Roy Lessin

Prayer of Service

Jesus, use my voice to speak as You;

use my ears to listen as You;

use my hands to give as You;

use my feet to walk as You;

use my life to serve as You;

use my heart to love as You.

But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out His special favor on me…it was not I but God who was working through me by His grace.
1 Corinthians 15:10 NLT

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The History of St.Thomas Mount

The History of St.Thomas Mount  Madras, India

 



After the resurrection of Lord Jesus and in obedience to His command to preach the Gospel to the ends of the world, all His disciples spread out in the middle east for preaching.

Only one disciple came out of the Palestine area to a distant land, India. Apostle Thomas was that person.

Read his story.



Come over. Put  your finger here, see my hands.  Reach out your hand and put it into my side.  Stop doubting and believe.

 

One of the important landmarks in Madras city, India,  is,  “St. Thomas Mount” at the southern most end of the city, near the  airport.  It is  a small hill feature about 300 feet high (91 meters).  It  was on this hill that Thomas Didymus, one of the disciples of Lord Jesus Christ, was killed in the year 72 A.D. and this hill had been named after the Apostle.

Resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ

According to the Bible, Lord Jesus rose physically  from the dead on the third day after His crucifixion.  A week later, He appeared to 10 out of the 12 disciples. [Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, had hanged himself, leaving only 11 alive]



St Thomas - A picture

 

The eleventh disciple by the name Thomas Didymus, was not in the house when Lord Jesus appeared. He had perhaps gone out somewhere.  When he returned, the 10 told him that Lord Jesus was very much alive and He materialized before them even when they were inside a closed room.

Thomas wouldn’t believe the news at all.   “A dead person coming to life?” he debated and asked, “Are you sure? Was it Lord Jesus or someone else?” Then, he made his mind known to his colleagues. 

 “Unless I  see the nail marks in his hands and  put my hand into his side, I will not believe ,” he had declared.

Hence the title “Doubting Thomas” for the disciple.

After another week, when all the 11 disciples were huddled inside their room, Lord Jesus came in view to them once again.  He told Thomas,

“Come over. Put  your finger here, see my hands.  Reach out your hand and put it into my side.  Stop doubting and believe.”

Thomas did go near him and did touch the wounds with his fingers.  He was immediately convinced and  cried out, “My Lord and My God.”

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed;  blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  [John 16: 24-28]

This event was possibly engineered by Jesus Christ Himself, not only to bring home a truth to all His disciples but also to the entire humanity that would follow.  It was also to set at rest any doubt about the physical resurrection of the Son of God.

Preaching Jesus Gospel

Before finally ascending to Heaven, His original abode, some 40 days after resurrection, Lord Jesus  commanded the disciples to stretch out and preach  the Good News to the ends of the Earth.  Accordingly, the disciples (later named Apostles) branched out in different directions from Jerusalem but seem to have restricted their missionary work to the areas in Syria, Lebanon, Greece, Turkey, Yugoslavia, Italy and Malta.  None of them went to Africa or the Northern part of Europe or Russia or Asia.

Thomas’s journey to India

Possibly it was Lord Jesus’s desire that the Gospel must be propagated  in India and He had chosen Thomas for the role.  But Thomas was reported to have declined the proposal. 

 ”Lord, why me?  Send someone else to India.  Of all places…….?”

But the Lord wanted only Thomas to evangelize in India.

About this time, an emissary of an Indian king happened to visit Jerusalem for the purpose of finding an architect who could build a super palace for the king.  He had heard that good architects were available in Jerusalem.

Thomas's journey to India

Pointing at Thomas, a Jew said that he was a renowned architect.  The emissary approached the Apostle for negotiations.

At this moment,  Lord Jesus Himself  joined the twosome in physical form and said showing a finger at Thomas,

“He is my slave.  I am giving him to you.  Take him to India.”  Thomas Didymus was stunned.

The emissary turned to the ‘architect’ and demanded, “Is this man your master?”  Thomas hesitated for an instant even as the risen Lord kept gazing at him.  He could not deny that Jesus was his Master. Simon Peter’s denial of the Lord  at the palace of Pontius Pilate, prior to Jesus’s  crucifixion, was fresh in his mind.

 “Yes”, he confirmed loudly and positively.

Jesus Christ told Thomas briefly “Go” by way of farewell and walked out of sight.  Knowing that his Master wanted him to go to India at any cost, Apostle Thomas landed at Cranganore  in Kerala, in the western coast of Southern India, during the year 52 A.D.

As regards the king’s palace, Thomas withdrew large sums of money from time to time from the king’s treasury but spent it all on the poor along with his evangelism. Whenever the king asked the architect for a progress report, Thomas would say,

“The palace is coming up beautifully oh my king – in Heaven.”   The king didn’t understand the statement at all. In course of time, the king came to know that instead of a palace, Thomas was building churches on the western coast and was also feeding the poor. Getting wild, the king had decided to punish the Apostle with death.

 

St Thomas spent all the money on the poor along with his evangelism



But, that night he had a dream.  He found himself  in a magnificent country, alike of which he did not imagine ever existed. A guide was showing him around.  On seeing an exquisite building structure that was just about  half complete, the king enquired, “Whose mansion  is this?”   The guide raised his head in surprise and answered,  “Of  course, it’s yours, your majesty. You had ordered it.  Don’t you remember?”

The king woke up and realized that Thomas was a godly man who knew that his palace was coming up in some other world.  He then began to revere Thomas and asked to know everything about the Gospel of Lord Jesus Christ.

After completing 7 churches in Kerala, St. Thomas crossed over to the Coromondal coast and landed in Madras.  He lived for some years here.  His home was a cave on a small hillock.  This cave is preserved till date at a place called Little Mount which is about 3 KM from St. Thomas Mount.

Besides evangelism to thousands of people, St. Thomas also built a chapel with his own hands in Mylapore, which is about 6 KM from Little Mount.

 

St Thomas Ministries

 After his martyrdom,  the Apostle’s body was buried here.  And today stands on St Thomas’s tomb, a big church of Gothic architecture called, “San Thome Cathedral”.

Some records say that the Apostle made a brief visit (possibly for some months only) to China and returned to Madras.  The Apostle’s evangelism perhaps was confined only to the Madras city region. People flocked to hear him. He performed several miracles through the power of Lord Jesus Christ such as, healing the sick, the lame, the blind and other varieties of handicapped persons.

San Thome Cathedral

One summer when multitude of people  had come to listen to his sermon, the Apostle noticed that they were thirsty and were looking around for some water to quench themselves.  Little Mount is an area known for its water scarcity and was so in the first century as well. Taking pity on the audience, the Saint struck at a particular point on the hillock with his staff. And water gushed out at once.  This was reminiscent of what prophet Moses did to provide water for the Israelites in the desert between Palestine and Egypt about the year 1430 B.C.

The existence of a small spring almost at the top of a hillock and water being available round the year would sound truly remarkable.  This is known as the fountain of St. Thomas,  which exists even today. Some miraculous power is attributed to this water.

Martyrdom and thereafter

St Thomas - A picture

The spread of Christianity in a Hindu dominated society of Madras was indeed a matter of jealousy for many of  St.Thomas’s  persecutors.  The flash point came when  one day a Hindu Brahmin chased the Saint from his Little Mount cave-home along the road and pierced him to death with his lance when the Saint ran the distance of 3 KM to the hill feature.  And thus came the name  “St. Thomas Mount”, the spot where St. Thomas was murdered.

His body was taken to Mylapore and buried in the chapel built by him.

Thomas Mount remained a simple hill feature for several centuries.  One Diego Fernandez, a Portuguese, built a small chapel on it in the year 1523 A.D   By then St. Thomas Mount had become a place of pilgrimage and as the  number of pilgrims increased, one Father Gasper Goelho converted the chapel into a big church in 1548 A.D.

This ancient  church on top of the 300 feet high  Mount, had been a sign post  for mariners for some 400 years.  In the 16th and 17th centuries, when the Portuguese and Armenian ships sighted the church, the sailors used to offer prayer of thanksgiving for a safe voyage  ahead and then fire a gunshot as salute.

May the living Lord  Jesus Christ bless you richly.

Jayakaran Israel

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/128007_the-history-of-st-thomas-mount-madras-india