Newsletter February 25, 2011

Newsletter from  Stewart Topping February 25, 2011

Since we have to make decisions everyday, it is important to make all of them correctly.  God is going to help us if we expect Him to.  We must believe that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6),  We must want a personal relationship with God before He can help us.  Please read and pray for help and understanding. Unbelief Have you ever wondered if the decisions we make affect our relationship with God! I want to use an example in the Old Testament that is a practical lesson for us today. These verses tell a story about the children of Israel who were led out of Egypt by Moses.  God supplied all their needs during that trip; God was with them day and night, but when it came to the decision to obey God and go across the Jordan River into the land of Canaan they refused. They were afraid of the Giants in the land.  This could be a similar situation with us; where God has taken care of our needs and then God asks us to do something and we decide not to do it. Maybe for some fear of making the wrong decision.  We don’t want to make the same mistake they did.  They spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness until they decided to follow God instructions. Hebrews 3:7-12 (KJV) 7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, Today if ye will hear his voice, 8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. 10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. 11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) 12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. Paul is telling us that if we hear God’s voice, we should not harden our hearts.  We harden our hearts when we don’t obey God.  We can become very cold to the things of God.  This is what happened with the Children of Israel; God supplied all their needs, but they couldn’t trust him with the decision to go over the Jordan River into Canaan.  Therefore they couldn't go over the Jordan River for 40 more years.  God said that they couldn't enter His rest (Canaan) because of unbelief.   If we go back a little bit in history we find that God made a covenant with Abraham. This covenant contained 3 aspects to it: (Gen 17:7-8) Possession of the Land: Canaan: (Gen. 12:7) He would make him a great Nation:  (Gen. 13:14,15,17, Gen. 15:7, Gen 13:2, 24:34,35) His seed would be blessed: Jesus (Gen. 17:19) After the covenant God was made with Abraham, sometime later, Joseph was sold into slavery and ended up in Egypt as one of the leaders.  The rest of his family followed him into Egypt because of the famine in the land.  At that time the total number of Jews were 75.  They spent the next 400 years in Egypt and  when Moses led the Jewish people out of Egypt and across the Red Sea they had grown to somewhere between 3 to 3.5 million.   After going through the opening of the Red Sea, it took them between 2-3 months to get to Mount Sinai where God gave them the Law. This gave them enough time to completely understand that God was in the midst of them day and night to take care of them.  But the 400 years in Egypt had more affect on them then the 2-3 months in their trip to Mount Sinai. What I want to do is show is that the Children of Israel are very much like us.  They had unbelief  and we can to. Sometimes it just takes time to understand that God is real and wants to help us. It could have been easier and quicker for them to obey but they took the hard way.  They were only concerned with their own wants and needs and not their personal relationship with God. God was hoping that since they had grown to a large nation, but in slavery and bondage to the Egyptians that they would be excited to be free and on their way to a new land promised to them; a land of milk and honey with God taking care of them. Here are but a few of the reasons for the Law?        He wanted them to worship one God.        He wanted them to understand that He was a personal God.        He wanted them to Trust Him; not complain and murmur.         He wanted them to depend on him for everything.        He wanted them to know that He would provide all their needs.  In a way there is no difference today the way we have gained our freedom from the bondage that we were in.  Moses delivered the children of Israel from bondage to a new country called Canaan which means “Gods Rest”.  We have been delivered from bondage of satan because of what Jesus has done on the cross and we are now citizen of heaven.  Heaven is where we have peace with God and a new relationship. The Blood placed on the sides and top of the door saved Israel from death when the Egyptians children were killed.  We have been saved by the blood of Jesus.  In both cases it was the sacrifice of a lamb; one imperfect and the other perfect.  Jesus was the perfect lamb and we are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.  They Jews had to sacrifice on a regular basic.  Their sacrifice never took away sin forever. Hebrews 10:4 (KJV) 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Remember that Israel was an earthly people that had earthly promises; they lived by faith in obeying the Law.  Christians are saved by grace and are heavenly people; filled with the promise of salvation by the Holy Spirit. 2 Corinthians 5:5 (KJV) 5 now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit . Earnest of the Spirit is a down payment, in this case this down payment is heaven and our salvation. Ephesians 1:13-14 (KJV) 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. There were many trials along the way for the children of Israel.  Stop and think about the needs of 3-3.5 million people; Housing, clothing, water, food, and of course their health.  The county was also a desert. Sometimes I think we are very similar to the Children of Israel in that we sometimes want to do our own thing.  But it is important to have a positive attitude towards God.   We should believe that God will provide us with food, clothing and housing, just like he did for the children of Israel? Philippians 4:19 (KJV) 19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV) 6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Trusting in God for our daily needs builds a solid relationship with God; if we trust Him to take care of our basic needs shouldn't we trust Him with all our needs.  We need to make sure that our decisions are in line with Gods Voice.  We need to listen and obey his voice.  It will take time, but it is possible.  If not we can be wandering without direction for a long time. "Life isn't about how you survive the storm, But how you dance in the rain"

February 18, 2011 Newsletter

Newsletter from  Stewart Topping February 18, 2011

For a long time people have thought of themselves as a Completed Jew or that God has taken the covenant that was made with Israel and given it to the Church because of there disbelief.  Today a special people have been called out to be separate and they are called the Body of Christ. They are not labeled Jew or Gentile. In the days of old, God called another special group out from the world; the nation of Israel.  Now God has called the Body of Christ out of the world to be separate and with the foundation of Jesus, not the foundation of the law. .... read on. The Body Of Christ Paul says we are the Body of Christ; it is a very special group of believers.  When you are born again you become a member in the Body of Christ; because you are filled and indwelled with the Holy Spirit.  1 Corinthians 12:27 (KJV)  Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.  The body of Christ doesn't live by the law but by the spirit (Gal 5:18).  It is not the Church you go to. It is who you are.  What is the Body of Christ? Why don’t we hear more about it?   Is it important for a Christian to understand? Where in scripture do we find reference to it?             1 Corinthians 12:12-14 (KJV) 12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we bebond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For the body is not one member, but many. The key is the one spirit; because with that spirit, Gods Holy Spirit, we are baptized into the body.  What is nice when this happens is that God doesn't call us Jew or Gentile anymore, only his Body of which he is the head.  It was the shed Blood of the perfect Lamb of God that set us free.  There was always the understanding that there is no forgiveness or redemption without the shedding of Blood from the beginning of time (after Adam sinned).  Jesus did shed his blood at the cross for you and I.  Colossians 1:18 (KJV)18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.  Some would think that the sacrifice began with the Mosaic Law; but actually the Sacrifice may have begun with Adam and eve;   Genesis 3:21 (KJV) 21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.   But most would not disagree with it beginning with Abel and Cain;  Genesis 4:3-5 (KJV) 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.  Now we see that the shedding of Blood continued into the Law Period.  They had daily sacrifices.  Colossians 1:14 (KJV) 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Why have blood sacrifices in the Old Testament ; because it is a type and shadow of the Death of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.  Sometimes we humans take a long time to understanding what God wants from us.  Sometimes we want to believe that it takes more than believing in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus to be redeemed.  Remember the verses in 1 cor. 15:1-5, it explains how simple it is be redeemed by God.  His only purpose God has is to reconcile us to Him.  He wants us to believe in Him, have a relationship with Him and trust Him.    Hebrews 9:22 (KJV) 22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; andwithout shedding of blood is no remission. The Body of Christ is a called out group having the same nature of God.  We have been saved by the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead.  If that power can raise a dead person than why can’t it restore one from spiritual death.  Of course it can you say!!!  We do have to believe that the shed blood of the perfect lamb has set us free from spiritual death. Mark 14:24 (KJV) 24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. We have communion in Church to recognize the Body of Christ; but do we see it as part of the shed blood that God required.  Do we do it in remembrance; that there was a need and requirement for a blood sacrifice? 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 (KJV) 16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?  17 For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. The common bond we have is the Body of Christ; we don’t use definitions of Jew or Gentle because we are new creatures in Christ and members of the Body of Christ.  It is a very exclusive club of believers filled with the spirit of God, the Holy Spirit. The purpose is to create the unity of the body, the same spirit and the one baptism (Holy Spirit).  One faith is the same belief in the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus. Ephesians 4:3-6 (KJV) 3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  One Lord – Jesus our Lord One Faith – The body of Christ  One baptism – The filling of the Holy Spirit Anything else will be confusing.  Today we have so many beliefs that it is confusing to people that call themselves Christians.  Praise God we are the Body of Christ!!!!

February 11, 2011 Newsletter

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Newsletter from  Stewart Topping     February 11, 2011

I continue to receive positive comments about the weekly Newsletter.  I would to hear from you.  You can go to our website at this Link and make a comment.  You can also go to the prayer blog and post a prayer or a praise report at this Link.  God bless you and your's, have a great day in Jesus. Below is an article of great importants, spend sometime thinking about it. Double-Minded Have you ever wondered what the Bible says about being doubleminded and why it is important?  You may ask what does it have to with anything.  Itmakes a difference on how strong your relationship with God is and if you believe that satan is part of the problem.  You can not under estimate him.   He can mess up your mind and create doubting in God and his Power. Psalms 119:113 (NKJV) 113 I hate thedouble-minded, But I love your law. WhenDavid wrote this Psalm he was making a comparison with double-minded and theLaw.  The Law was given to Moses after heled the children of Israel out of Egypt. The law was for governing the people who will be called the nation of Israel. The Israelites were to follow the law to the letter.  Why the comparison? If you follow the lawcompletely then you would be single minded. So when you are double minded you are not following the law. Christian's saved by Grace don’t live by the law; but we do live by the spirit. If you are led by thespirit then you are not under the law.(Gal 5:18)  So you don’t have to be concerned about thelaw. but we should still should be concerned with our relationship with God and if we are singled minded.  Lets look at another verse of scripture. James 4:7-8 (NKJV) 7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Submitting to God in important in our relationship with God; when we believe it produces Faith and then it will give us authority over satan.  When you believe you will exercise your faith and satan will flee from you; he will stop talking to you. Remember he is the power of the air.  So if we tell him to stop messing with our mind, get lost; he will have to flee from us.  Allways remember that satan canmess with our mind since he is the Prince ofthe power of the air.  He talked to Adamand Eve and look what happened with them. We are affected by things we hear;  radio, cell phone, computer, TV, other people and satan because he is the prince of the power of the air. Ephesians2:1-2 (KJV)1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the courseof this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: A double-minded person is someone who doubts God and His promises because he hears something else thatconfuses them. They may ask God for help, but are unsure if God will comethrough for them or not. He does not realize that his own doubts about God hinder the fulfillment of his prayers. "That man should not think he willreceive anything from the Lord!"  (Quote from an article written by Rob Chaffart) James 1:7-8 (NKJV)7 For let not that mansuppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he isa double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. If you planned in advance to drive 100 miles to pick up something, as youapproach the pickup place would you say “I wonder if it is open” or “I hope itis open”.  You would have to be doubleminded to have doubt.  The same is true of God; whenyou know him and expect answer to prayer, direction in your life, health andfamily.  You wouldn’t say I hope he willhear my prayer. When you are single minded there is a clear understanding of whoyou are and a clear understanding that God is part of your life.  When you are single minded, you will receive fromGod. Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV)6 Be careful fornothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keepyour hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Jesus will keep you heart and mind; you must stay single focused, be positive and have a clear direction.  It is very important to betransformed by the renewing of your mind. Start with expecting God to answer prayer. Romans 12:2 (KJV)2 And be not conformed tothis world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye mayprove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Satan wants you to be conformed to the world, because he is the prince of this world.  Jesus defeated him on the cross, being buried and raised from the dead by the power of God.  It's his power we want in our lives not the power of satan. Check out this great book … “Satan” by Lewis Sperry Chafer Here is the Introduction from the book; The world has been willing to comply with the wishes and projects of Satan to the extent of ceasing to believe that he really exists; this Unbelief being most advantageous to his present undertakings. Yet the Opinions of men have never changed the facts of revelation, and, According to Scripture, Satan exists; still possessed with great power And influence over the affairs of men--a power and influence to be Increasingly dreaded as this present age advances. The teachings of Scripture on this important subject are but little Understood by Christians and seem to be entirely outside the thought of The world. It is,there fore, to be expected that any attempt to present this truth will seem,to many, mere folly and fiction. The name Satan has by no means been lost. It has, however, been associated with a most unscriptural fancy. Without reference to revelation, the world has imagined a grotesque being, fitted with strange trappings, who has been made the central character in theatrical performances; and by this relation to the unreality of the theatre, the real character of Satan has come to be only one of the myths of a bygone age. Scripture reveals adetailed description of the person and career of Satan; beginning with his creation; his original condition; his fall, and on to his kingdom with all its developments, and his final defeat and banishment. Itpresents a personage so mighty and so prominent in the world to-day tha tthe Christian heart would fail, were it not for faith in the One who has triumphed over all principalities and powers. You can read a copy bygoing to the following; SatanHis Motives and Methods by Lewis Sperry Chafer  here is the link You can buy used books on  www.bookfinder.com  $5.13 includes shipping from Abebooks