North Korea. Hope? The Problem of Evil. Does God Hear? God Gets Our Attention. Not Merely Outward. You're Probably Not Saved, Yet. Abraham Lincoln. Titanic. Mikey.

 

For “Scripture Sunday”:

North Korea: Madman, Arrows and Death

“North Korea's recent threats against America and other nations has everyone on edge. The threats should be take seriously and they teach us a lesson about our own relationships.”

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-daily/christian-living/north-korea-madman-arrows-and-death

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Hope?

“Viewers often write us asking for more on prophecy and world events. What are they really saying?”

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-daily/news-and-prophecy/hope

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The Problem of Evil 

“If God is good, how can we explain evil? From the Holocaust to the senseless slaughter of school children, evil permeates our world. Is God responsible?

When you read about school shooters killing innocent children, suicide bombers blowing up hundreds of innocent passersby, violent regimes maiming and murdering their political opponents, or arsonists causing the tragic deaths of a young family, do you ever ask yourself, “Where is God in all of this?”

As children, many of us learned a song titled “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” However, when we see the evil, the sadness and the suffering that, at times, seem to surround us on every side, we might wonder about that premise. For if this really is God’s world and if He really has the whole world in His hands, how do we explain these horrible events?

Is He powerless before these evil forces and actions? If He really does have the whole world in His hands, it would appear that He has dropped it on numerous occasions.

What is the answer to the perplexing problem of evil?

The god of this world

As is the case in so many situations like this, men have assumed that the Bible says something it really doesn’t. For instance, how many realize that, according to the Bible, Satan is the god of this world? So states the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:4.

From the very beginning, Satan the devil (identified by Jesus Christ as the father of liars and a murderer from the beginning—John 8:44) has sought to destroy what God created and established.

He was the snake who lied to Eve and encouraged her to ignore God and partake of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This eventually led to the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden and the severing of mankind’s direct relationship with his Creator.

Satan’s position as the god of this world was challenged by the birth of Jesus Christ, and Satan sought to murder Him shortly thereafter. Joseph and Mary took their young Son and fled to Egypt to escape Herod’s decree that all male children 2 years old and under who were born in the region of Bethlehem during the approximate time of Christ’s birth be put to death.

The kingdoms of this world reflect Satan

Consider also the temptation of Christ by Satan as he confronted Him in the wilderness (Matthew 4). In his final attempt to conquer Christ, Satan took Him to the top of a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. Then he said to Him, “All these things will I give You if You will but bow down and worship me.”

Of course, Christ did not succumb to that temptation, but the point is this: All the kingdoms of the world were Satan’s to give! He’s the god of this world, the author of confusion, the father of liars, a thief and a murderer, and so this world reflects the nature of its god or ruler, Satan the devil. He is “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2).

It was Satan who stirred up the religious leaders of Christ’s day to say and do whatever was necessary to have Him crucified. As was prophesied in Genesis 3:15, “He [speaking of Christ] shall bruise your [Satan the serpent’s] head, and you [Satan] shall bruise His heel.”     More at: http://lifehopeandtruth.com/life/evil-and-suffering/the-problem-of-evil/

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Does God Hear?

“Have you ever felt your prayers go unheard? Here's a passage from the Bible to keep in mind.” http://youtu.be/Cff7vKWpcyg

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-daily/christian-living/does-god-hear

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God Gets Our Attention

“God knows what we need and wants to bless us. But at times he needs to get our attention.”   http://youtu.be/l8IIfm4hlbE

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-daily/christian-living/god-gets-our-attention

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Not Merely Outward

“AN AMAZING FACT:  Before the 1930s, diamonds were rarely given as engagement rings.

Egyptians worshiped the circle as a symbol of eternity. They plaited rings out of reeds and gifted them to symbolize everlasting love. They wore them on the third finger of their left hands because they believed the vein of that finger traveled directly from the heart. The Greeks learned this tradition from Egypt, passing it to Rome and beyond. But it wasn’t until a diamond cartel coined the best advertising slogan of the 20th century for the hardest substance in nature, convincing us that “a diamond is forever.”
In the Bible, a king’s ring symbolized his authority. Rings were given to trusted servants (Genesis 41:41, 42), to potential mates (Genesis 24:22), and in celebration (Luke 15:22). Like today, jewelry and fine clothing were also used simply for beauty (Ezekiel 16:11–14). Of what purpose are the gems and bright colors God created except to lend beauty? We express ourselves through our wardrobes, homes, and landscapes. But self-expression goes awry when we rely on clothing, hairdos, houses, cars, gardens, and gadgets for our value (Ezekiel 16:15).
Swinging the pendulum in the other direction, Puritanism shunned the use of superfluities like jewels, color, and modern technology. But Peter’s balanced approach, “Do not let your adornment be merely outward” (1 Peter 3:3), ensures that the beauty of your character matches—or exceeds!—that of your person or possessions.
In Haggai, God promises His people a ring as a sign of being chosen (Haggai 2:23). But even better, God adorns us with the “garments of salvation” and the “robe of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:10). It’s okay to surround yourself with beauty, but don’t let it replace the beauty of salvation.”

KEY BIBLE TEXT:  But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living. The depth saith, It is not in me: and the sea saith, It is not with me. It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof. It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. The gold and the crystal cannot equal it: and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.     - Job 28:12-18

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This morning’s program on WGN TV:

You're Probably Not Saved, Yet

“Are you sure you have eternal life? How do you know if you're saved? What is salvation, really? You need to know.”

 

Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-program/christian-living/youre-probably-not-saved-yet

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On This Day:

John Wilkes Booth shoots Abraham Lincoln, Apr 14, 1865:

“President Abraham Lincoln is shot in the head at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. The assassin, actor John Wilkes Booth, shouted, "Sic semper tyrannis! (Ever thus to tyrants!) The South is avenged," as he jumped onto the stage and fled on horseback. Lincoln died the next morning.”

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RMS Titanic hits iceberg, Apr 14, 1912:

“Just before midnight in the North Atlantic, the RMS Titanic fails to divert its course from an iceberg, ruptures its hull, and begins to sink. The sinking of the Titanic did have some positive effects, however, as more stringent safety regulations were adopted on public ships, and regular patrols were initiated to trace the locations of deadly Atlantic icebergs.”

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Yesterday:

Jay called at 7.45am to ask if I was on schedule.  He hadn’t changed the clocks in his house yet!  He said that he wanted to go to church with me, so I said I would pick him up when it was time. Then my daughter and I had our Saturday phone call.  Just I was ready to go pick up Jay, he called and said that he wasn’t going.  Later, I found out that he wasn’t sick, he did a job for a neighbor, and then drank the money.  As I was already ready, I was going to go to the Bible study and morning service at the Conroe church. 

But I had to check on Mikey first.  Sam, his “Dad” has had a stroke, so I have to remember to take Mikey for his vet appointments, and it was about time for him to have another one.  The minute I laid eyes on Mikey, I knew there was something terribly wrong, he was swollen up like a balloon, and Sam said he wasn’t eating.  Also he couldn’t stop coughing.  I quickly put Mikey in my van, and called the vet on the way. 

I usually go to Porter Road on the left fork from Airport Road which is the continuation of FM 8083, but I was in a panic, and took the right fork in the road.  Both roads lead to SH 105, but you have to turn either right or left when you get to SH 105 to get to Porter Rd.  I was driving along, when I was pulled over by a cop.   If I had been on FM 8083 there would have been no problem with me going at 54 MPH, but on the other road the speed limit was 35 MPH.  He asked me where I was going, so I told him the vet on Porter Road.  One look at the swollen dog in my back seat, and he just gave me a warning.  Whew!!

The vet stuck a syringe needle in Mikey’s stomach and fluid just came pouring out.  He said that it was because of his compromised heart that he is retaining fluids.  That's why he wasn’t hungry, everything was pressing on him.  With some of the fluids gone, Mikey’s coughing became less. Also, the vet said there is no way we can keep Mikey’s health under control unless he can be given meds daily, in fact twice daily.  So I have volunteered to do that.  When I took Mikey home, I gave him his 4 pills.  And even though I am an experienced push-the-pill-down-the-throat-pusher, Mikey would manage to un-swallow one or two, and I’d have to push them down with my thumb again.  There is no way Sam can do that, and he wouldn’t be able to see well enough to know if Mikey had taken them or spat them out.  Mikey is on Lasix, Vetmedin, Enalapril, and some pills to stop his cough, so I will have to go down there twice a day to give them to him to keep him alive.  Sam has to get used to the idea that Mikey’s condition is terminal, and sooner or later he will have to be PTS.

Bible Trivia was just starting when I got to the afternoon Willis church, and we all had fun answering the Bible trivia in the form of a question. It was the gals against the guys this time, and we won.

A pastor visiting from one of the Church of God congregations in San Antonio gave the sermon about Samson, it was very interesting.  He and his family stayed for the potluck afterwards and a good time was had by all.

In the evening there was a disturbance in my front yard. Ray and Shay had come out of their house next door to see Claudia, and her neighbor, Leo, who had pulled up here.  Jay, absolutely soused, and broke, had stolen some money from Claudia, his mother’s purse, and they were chasing him down.  Leo had followed Jay to the store, and taken the beer that he had bought with the stolen money.  Leo was so furious that we though he was going to have a stroke.  Jay was so drunk, and still drinking beer in my yard, that he could hardly drive his ATV.  I wish they had called the cops right then, as Claudia should have filed charges of theft on him, but she won’t. Claudia sat here talking to us for quite a while, and said, once again, that she will try to get Jay committed on Monday.