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What Does it Mean to Believe?

Whoever believes in Him shall not perish . . .

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only

begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him

shall not perish but have everlasting life”—John 3:16

What does it mean to Believe?

The word, believe in the New Testament is used as a condition for salvation. In Acts 16:31, The Apostle Paul said to the Philippian jailer, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.” And in Romans 10:9, the Bible says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

The Biblical meaning of belief is related to faith. In fact, you cannot have one without the other. Believing faith is the very basis for our redemption. The way in which we are justified by God is through believing faith–Romans 4:3b “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Ever since the Protestant Reformation, Biblical scholars have grappled with Continue reading “What Does it Mean to Believe?”

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Betrayal

Jesus Betrayed by Judas Iscariot

“Jesus became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me’ . . . ‘That is the one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.’ So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore, Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly.’”—John 13:21, 26-27.

“Who has not felt the bitter sting of betrayal? If there was one thing a cowboy’s life on the open range depended upon, it was the certainty that his

Betrayal ~ Broken Trust

friends on the trail were looking out for him. That cowboy riding by his side would have his back when a stamped erupted or a snake suddenly struck. Someone would be there if danger threatened from any direction. He was not alone. There were perils on the open range and no cowboy would leave another in harm’s way. Yet that is exactly what happened to Jesus. One who had walked with Him for three years, shared in His ministry, listened to His teaching, and had seen His miracles now will turn on Him as His enemies close in. The Continue reading “Betrayal”

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Meeting By An Old Watering Hole

Finding water on cattle drives was an absolute necessity for both cattle and drovers. Most trails like the Good Night Loving Trail, the Great Western Trail and the Chisholm Trail over which cattle were pushed to rail heads in the north had well marked watering places. These watering places whether it was a muddy pond or a fast-moving river were often called ‘watering holes’ by the cowboys.

Watering holes for travelers in the days of Jesus were just as necessary and sought after as those of the wild west.  One such watering hole is that

An old watering hole

described in the 4th chapter of John. It was an ancient well dug by Jacob. It was located at a historical and spiritually significant parcel of land located

between the twin mountains of Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim. At the time of the writing of John’s Gospel it was still in use and provided life-giving water to the residents of the little Samaritan village of Sychar.

It is at this well, an old watering hole where a very famous and life- Continue reading “Meeting By An Old Watering Hole”

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Jesus Feeds the Hungry Crowd

Jesus Blesses a Meager Lunch and With it Feeds Thousands

Jesus hardly sat down ‘til He looked up and saw a huge herd of folks a-comin’ for more teachin’. He tested His pardner Philip by askin’ him, “Where do you reckon we’ll buy bread to feed all these people who are a-comin’?” . . . ol’ Andrew, Peter’s brother, he spoke basket of biscuitsup, “All we got is this little cowboy here that’s got five biscuits and a couple of little perch packed for his lunch . . . Jesus gave thanks for the biscuits and they started passin’ them around. Then He did the same with the fish ‘til every single one had plenty–John 6:5-11 (The Gospel of John Cowboy Style).

 

“What a miracle, when Jesus took that young lad’s lunch that consisted of a handful of biscuits and a couple of small fish and with His blessings fed thousands. By this miracle we can know the way it is when Jesus blesses something. He can take that which is small and make it big. He can take the offering of our service and use it to the grater good for His Kingdom. Never underestimate what God can do with what little we hand to Him in faith.” Searching Heart and Scripture, page 49.

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Reap What you Sow

What you plant is what you get! Any farmer knows that. The kind of harvest he will get is determined by the kind of seed he sows. If he sows seeds of corn he will get a corn crop. If he sows wheat seed he will get a wheat crop. Likewise, good seed will produce a good crop, and bad seed a bad crop. This is an unchanging law of nature established and determined by God’s divine law–“Whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” Galatians 6:7-10

 The law of Sowing and Reaping

Three unwavering Principles of Sowing and Reaping . . .

I. First Principle – I Reap what I Sow . . . If I plant corn, I will reap corn. If I plant wheat, I will reap wheat. It is an unchanging, unwavering law. Same is true in our spiritual life . . . “For the one who sows to the flesh will from Continue reading “Reap What you Sow”