Saturday, March 13, 2004

Luke 21:25
And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;



What an exciting article I have found tonight to share with you. The above scriptures tell us that there will be signs to point us to the truth of the near return of the Lord Jesus Christ! This one thrilled my soul! You can find more of these interesting articles at : Prophecy In The News. Hope you enjoy as much as I did. Have a blessed Lords Day tomorrow.
Elaine






Amazing Discoveries (3/1/2004)

Astronomers have recently discovered an amazing object in the heavens. Some have dubbed it a "celestial cross."

The most majestic and beautiful objects in the universe are the galaxies. Awe-inspiring photographs of them grace the pages of astronomical photo collections, boggling the mind with their endless variation. Around their edges, they usually feature an array of spiral arms, or a gaseous nebulosity that thins into a tenuous curtain that stretches across the vastness of space.

But at the center of virtually every galaxy is a brilliant spheroid of light, made up of hundreds of thousands of stars. At the galaxy’s core, they are so closely spaced that they produce a uniform, powerful light that has the appearance of being solid. In reality, these myriad stars are gathered around an organizing framework. What structures lie within the impenetrable glare?

For many years, astronomers have conjectured that these close congregations of stars may conceal a sort of cosmic whirlpool, which has been dubbed a "black hole." In theory, such a monster would be created when a super-massive star or star cluster collapses of its own weight into a super-dense mass with such enormous gravitational force that nothing — not even light — can escape its gravitational grip. Since the theory was developed, they have been looking for the telltale signs that would mark such an anomaly. But nothing of the sort has been visible.

However, the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope spotted a peculiar formation in the center of the Whirlpool galaxy some 20 million light-years from earth. A startling photo was released during the second week of June 1992 and published in TIME magazine, in the June 22 edition.

The Hubble telescope, taking advantage of the fact that it doesn’t have to peer through a distorting atmosphere, has been able to see farther with more clarity than any optical telescope ever built.

In this photograph a mammoth "X" is seen at the galaxy’s center. According to TIME editors, "The scientists think one arm of the X is a massive, doughnut-shaped cloud of dust swirling around the hole. The doughnut is seen edge on, hiding the black hole from view, but two cone-shaped beams of light emitted by hot gas closer in can be seen escaping out the sides. As for the second arm, no one knows what it is."

According to theory the escaping light is not from the black hole itself, but from energized particles of dust and gas that brighten as they approach the point of maximum acceleration on their spiraling, one-way trip into the maw of the black hole. Their great burst of light is a sort of final farewell to a universe that will never again witness their presence.

What is interesting is that the first time anyone has ever gotten a good, close look at a galactic center, it turns out to hold the sign that is of the greatest possible importance to humanity. In the Latin language, the word "crux" designates the cross. Planet earth came to the crossroads at the foot of the cross. Divine action designated this simple geometric shape as the symbol for decision.

Our words, "crucial," "crucible," and "excruciating," are all derived from the word "crux." These words speak of the fiery forces that lie at the very heart and core of important events. They imply the pain and testing of weighty decisions made under stress and testing.

In the days of our Lord, the cross was reserved for criminals and those thought to be accursed by God. It depicted the suffering, shame and humiliation that Christ endured for the sake of a fallen humanity in need of redemption. The cross symbolizes that mission, voluntarily undertaken in submission to a God whose love reached out to those in need.

The cross is a sign that beams a message of truth into the soul of humanity almost devoid of that commodity. The meaning is as clear as it is convicting. If one has not had an encounter with the cross, one has never dealt with the Truth.

Many refuse to accept that truth, but we are told that one day a "sign" will appear over the earth, signaling that the Lord is coming to make manifest the work that was completed at the cross. Matthew 24, verses 29 and 30 mention the return of the Lord, preceded by the greatest sign in the history of the planet.

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light ... then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven ... they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."

Surely the sign mentioned here must be a reflection of that horrible instrument so essential in the final the work of Christ. It will hang suspended between heaven and earth, a harbinger of the justice that is about to be fall upon the world. Every man who sees it will instantly be reminded of the finished work of Christ. Guilt and conviction, like flames, will sear the heart and soul of every human being who ever rejected the cross as just another myth.

A curious cross has now been dimly perceived in the heavens. What it is, no one really knows. But like the cross of Christianity, it shines forth for those who will see it — who will still be brought to the point of decision about their eternal destiny. It shines dimly, sending forth a final message of hope — and warning.

It is a statement that there is still a little time — very little. And that is the crux of the matter.


ARE YOU READY FOR THE RAPTURE?




JOHN3:16



Tuesday, March 09, 2004

2 Timothy 4
2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.






The above scripture tells it like it is. Here is an article from Joseph Farah that many will not dare to discuss. The world will not accept the truth just as they won't accept The Passion of The Christ. It is nice that we still know who wins in the end!

Have a blessed day
Elaine






The Bible And Homosexuality

by Joseph Farah

World Net Daily
Sen. John Kerry suggested to an audience in Mississippi recently that the Bible is ambiguous on the topic of homosexuality.

"Well, I know the deep beliefs, I respect, I'm a Christian, I've read the Bible, and I know you can find the clauses that go both ways," he said. "I'm not here to argue that with you."

Well, I'm here to argue with Kerry. The Bible is clear on homosexuality – Old Testament and New Testament: Homosexuality is an abomination.

Kerry may not believe it. You may not believe it. But the Bible states it clearly and unambiguously. And, despite what Kerry says, there are no "clauses" that suggest anything else.

Here's a brief Bible study for the man who would be president.

It begins in Leviticus 18:22 (KJV): "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination."

That seems pretty clear to me. Maybe Kerry has another interpretation. The chapter goes on to state that people who commit these acts, and others God considers abominations, causes the land itself to be defiled.

Then, in the New Testament, Paul writes in Romans 1:22-27:


Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.


I'm still waiting for any Bible student to show me even one verse that suggests a more "tolerant" view of homosexuality.

Generally speaking, the best they can do is to suggest Jesus Himself never spoke out against homosexuality.

There are two problems with that statement:

First, Christians believe Jesus came not to overturn the law but to fulfill it. They believe He is the Word – its living fulfillment. They believe He is eternal and part of the Godhead that created the Heavens, the Earth and Man. Therefore, Jesus never contradicted any of the law. He quoted from it. He taught from it. He explained it. He affirmed it.

Second, Jesus did speak out, as recorded in Matthew 19:4-6:

And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Here Jesus had an opportunity to explain any middle ground in this issue of men and women. As if to underscore the point, he did later provide something of an exemption for eunuchs – men who do not have testicles. But he doesn't suggest God made homosexuals, lesbians, transgendereds, transvestites or bisexuals.

Kerry likes to be on both sides of all the issues. But that's difficult when it comes to God's unambiguous Word on relations between men and women. Maybe Kerry can let the American people in on which "clauses" he's found in the Bible that would justify homosexuality as anything other than an abomination.

You can choose to believe the Bible. You can choose to disbelieve it. But you cannot say it says something it does not say.







ARE YOU READY FOR THE RAPTURE?




JOHN3:16