DON'T EXPECT HONEY AND ROSES

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SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES WITH BOB



Newsletter 176 V January 17, 2010



TRACTS STUDIES BOOKLETS STUMBLES AFRICA BOOKS SCRIPTURES EMAIL



The world wood it’s heroes with sweetness and flowers. Miss America gets praise, a giant spray of roses, a tiara, and financial awards. The talented, successful, sportsman may be offered a ridiculously high salary, but if he fails to produce, he will be fired and dropped like a hot brick. That is the way of the world. It is the way Satan works. Offer tremendous rewards, with meaningless promises. Remember, Satan is a liar who lures and holds prisoner his victims with meaningless promises. In a recent awards television show, one of the recipients made a point to deny God and that He had anything to do with it. Ignorantly denying God, she was giving credit to Satan, I wonder how soon she will find herself dropped. Perhaps not. Remember how Satan tempted Jesus, our lord, who created this world, with the promise that if he, Jesus, would just bow in worship of him, he, would give it all to him. It was a meaningless promise with nothing to gain, and all to lose, and Jesus’ response was, “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” (Matthew 4: 10)







The new Christian is as helpless as a little lamb before a wolf. Even a mature sheep has no defense on his own. The sheep needs a shepherd with a weapon. As Satan departed from Jesus, he in turn, has no answer to the wise use of scripture.







We read nothing about Jesus being tempted before his baptism and the beginning of his ministry for the whole time of his ministries, Satan was never very far away. His betrayer, Judas, was among his own apostles, and the priests, were watching his every move. Even Peter stumbled, and Thomas doubted.







The same is true of all Christians. There are “thorns in the flesh” in every congregation, perhaps well meaning, but misguided individuals. For every genuinely Christian thing that we do, Satan has a counterfeit, a counterfeit Bible, counterfeit churches, a twisted cross, a false gospel, greedy, misdirected evangelists. As time passes, these things qill grow worse, for Satan and his demons know that their time is drawing ever nearer.







But Christians need not be helpless. Jesus said, “I came to bring a sword.” Why, because his followers need to make use of it, the Bible, to respond to Satan. He showed us how, and Satan left him for the time.







Matthew 10:16-22 (King James Version)







16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. (Luke 10:3, Genesis 3:1, Matthew 24:25, Romans 16:19, Hosea 7:11)







17 But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; (Matthew 5:22, Matthew 23:34, Mark 13:9, Luke 12:11, Acts 5:40, Acts 22:19, Acts 26:11)







18 And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.







19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. (Matthew 10:19-22, Mark 13:11-13, Luke 21:12-17, Matthew 6:25, Luke 12:11-12)







20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. (Luke 12:12, Acts 4:8, Acts 13:9, 2 Corinthians 13:3)







21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. (Matthew 10:35-36, Mark 13:12, Micah 7:6)







22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. (Matthew 24:9, Luke 21:17, John 15:18, Matthew 24:13, ark 13:13)







Be assured, Christians may lose the battle at times, but the Holy Spirit is with them, and they have been assured to the end.



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READ THE BIBLE THROUGH AGAIN IN 2010







JANUARY







17th. Sunday – Genesis 34, 35, Matthew 13:1-23, Psalm 10:1-11



18th. Monday – Genesis 36, 37, Matthew 13:24-43, Psalm 10:12-18



19th. Tuesday – Genesis 38, 39, 40, Matthew 13:44-58, Psalm 11



20th. Wednesday - Genesis 41, Matthew 14:1-21, Proverbs 2:12-22



21st. Thursday – Genesis 42, 43, Matthew 14:22-36, Psalm 12



22nd. Friday – Genesis 44, 45, Matthew 15:1-20, Psalm 13



23rd. Saturday – Genesis 46, 47, Matthew 15:21-39, Psalm 14



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THIS WEEK'S SCRIPTURE







“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”







Matthew 11:29, 30







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It Happened Like This...



The following are actual statements found on insurance forms where car drivers attempted to summarize the details of an accident in the fewest words:



Coming home I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I don't have.



The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intentions.



I thought my windows were down but I found out it was up when I put my head through it.

I collided with a stationary truck coming the other way.

A truck backed through my windshield into my wife's face.

A pedestrian hit me and went under my car.

The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him.

I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law and headed over the embankment.

In my attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole.