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Click Here For The Story You Must Read. I have been hearing so many stories on TV in those days concerning the birth of Jesus, the Bible is very clear concerning his birth. Jesus is the Salvation of God granted to all man, and revealed only to those who are born again according to Jn 3:3 & 5, where we read that there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews and teacher in Israel. The same came to Jesus by night and said unto Him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher from God; for no man can do these miracles that you do, unless God be with him.” Jesus ignoring his comment replied: “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see nor enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. The water is the word of God and that word is Christ. The Gospel of John 1:14 writes: The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and full of truth. In John 1:12 says: to all who did receive Jesus, to those who believed in his name, he gave them the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. For many people born again is to attend a church or to partake of certain emblems. The bible say to put off our old self and to put on the new self, created to be like God. Salvation is instantaneous and progressive, Jesus saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. You have heard the saying: we become what we eat or read? Jesus in John 6:54 states: whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood, has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. Jesus’s revelation of is not given to man by observation of days or by much study, Jesus said: You study the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. Jesus’s revelation is given to man by the Holy Spirit from the scriptures as was revealed to Elisabeth, Simeon, Anna, the Magi, the shepherds, to all the prophets and apostles. In Lk 24:44 Jesus said: “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Jesus is the center and reason for writing the Bible. It was written, for us to know that Jesus is the Christ. David the King of Israel praying concerning his son Salomon, prophesied of Jesus under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he said: Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal Son with your righteousness. May he judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice, May he defend the afflicted among your people and save the children of the needy; may he crush the oppressor of man. David Continued saying: May he endure as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations, May he be like rain falling on a mown lawn, like showers watering the earth, In his days may the righteous flourish and prosperity abound till the moon is no more. May he rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth, May the desert tribe’s bow before him and his enemies lick the dust. May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun. Then all nations will be blessed through him, and they will call him blessed. Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds. Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. David also said: The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make all your enemies a footstool for your feet.” When Jesus came to visit us the first time asked the Pharisees, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied. He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he said, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put all your enemies under your feet.”’ If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions. In 2Cor 3:6 we read: God has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. The Bible is a spiritual book written by inspiration of the Holy Spirit through the hands of prophets and apostles, and only the Spirit can reveal us the truth of the Bible. Transformation to the believers is not achieved by information, but by revelation of the truth of the scripture by the Holy Spirit. Here is how the miraculous birth of Jesus toke place: In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word be fulfilled to me” Then the angel left her. After Mary meet with the angel, she decided to go to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and there she greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, she was six months pregnant. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, in a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, my baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months, and after John was born she returned home. Now Mary was pledged to Joseph, but when Joseph found out that she was found to be pregnant before they came together, and because Joseph was faithful to the law, he did not want to expose Mary to public disgrace, he had in mind to leave her quietly. But after he had considered this, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Of him the Isaiah prophet spoke about 700 years before he was born, saying: Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Which mean God with us) When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod reign. The Magi came from the east to Jerusalem and asked him, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose, and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. So he called together all the chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them: where the Messiah was to be born? “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet Micah wrote: But you, Bethlehem Ephrata, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” Herod at this called the Magi secretly to found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. Then He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him. “Those days were also the days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone went to their own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting the child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. In the meantime the Magi after they had heard King Herod, they went on their way, and the star they had seen before it rose again and went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When the Magi saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the stable, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. This was also the time when shepherds were living out in the fields nearby, for they were keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around about them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom God’s favor rests.” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. After the shepherds had worshipped they returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told by the angel. The Magi also returned to their country after they had worshipped, but by another route because they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod. In the meantime, on the eighth day of Jesus birth, when it was time to circumcise the child according to Abraham custom and the Law of Moses. He was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived. There in the Temple the Holy Spirit prepared a glorious encounter, He brought in two witnesses at the same time. 1st witness is a man called Simeon, who was a righteous and devout man. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. At that same time a 2nd witness also came in the temple, prophetess Anna, of the tribe of Asher. She was old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She stayed in the temple worshiping, fasting and praying. She came up to the temple at the same time, gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking for the Lord’s Messiah At the same time Jesus parents brought in the child to do as was the custom of the Law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised me, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.” The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts maybe be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul.” About 2 years later after Jesus birth Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” But an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said: “Get up,” “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.” There in Egypt the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him. 2 years after the slaughter of boys Herod died, Jesus is about 4 years old, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take his life are dead.” So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But because Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went to live in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene. And there in Nazareth the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him. Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he was saying to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. Jesus is 12 years old. From the age of 12 till the age of 30 there is no evidence of Jesus until he is presented to Israel by John, he grew under the entire Law of Moses to obey for all of us, he came to fulfill the scriptures. For it says that from the time their parents found him in the temple he went home to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. The time came when John the Baptist was, preaching in the wilderness of Judea saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” John is the one who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah saying: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” People went out to John from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? That is God’s wrath on all those who refused to become born again. John said to them “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” all This events happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing. The next day Jesus went where John was baptizing, as soon John saw Jesus coming toward him said, “Look the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” The reason for the baptism in water is to confess our sins publically so Jesus can be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. If we say we have no sin we make God to be a liar, for the scripture says: all men have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Read the condition of man that is not in Christ in Rom 1:18-32 and 3:10-18. Jesus is walking toward John, in the river to be baptized. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?” Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented and baptized Jesus. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he John saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased, listen to him.” Jesus is the one that from ancient time God spoke to Moses in Horeb saying: I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the Messiah speaks in my name. After Jesus was baptized, comes out of the Jordan, and was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, the tempter came to him tempting Jesus in the three most common temptation of the life of a man and woman. 1st Jesus was hungry, the devil said make this stone bread, “Away from me, Satan! It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. 2nd Jesus was brought by the devil on the pinnacle of the temple, and said: throw yourself down and God will send angels to protect you, Jesus replay, “It is written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ 3rd Satan toke Jesus on a high mountain and said to him I give you all glory, fame of this world, if you bow down and worship me. Jesus replay, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him alone. Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. When Jesus came out of the test in the wilderness he was about thirty years old and he began his ministry, He went to Nazareth, were he had been brought up, and on a Sabbath day, as was his custom. (this means that in the 18 years of his silence he was invited to read) He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” From this time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” As he was going from village to village he chose his 12 disciples. John also was preaching and people will constantly come to him to be baptized. An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going after him.” To this John replied, and give his testimony about the Messiah, he said: “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.” The one who comes from above John said is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. Whoever accepts will certified that God is truthful. For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has placed everything under him. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. This happened before John was put in prison. On one occasion of John preaching Herod had John arrested and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, she was Philip’s wife who was his Brother and was alive, for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.” Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet, but because of Herodias pressure he arrested John. When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulon and Naphtali— to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: The “Land of Zebulon and the land of Naphtali, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, the Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness, have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. When John from the prison heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. I tell you this: Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” The day came when Herodias toke the occasion to have John put to dead; This happened on Herod’s birthday when the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much that he promised her with an oath to give her whatever she asked if she will sleep with him one night, the girl went and told her mother about Herod proposal to her. Prompted by her mother, the girl went to Herod and said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted and had John beheaded in the prison. His head was brought in on a platter given to the girl, who give to her mother. John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus. John prophesied about what would happen to him when he said: he must increase I must decrease. John is the type of us of the old man the man of the earth; - Jesus is our type of the new man after we are saved, the man from heaven. Those who are in Christ are a new creature. They have faith in the work of the cross, and have received God love in Christ, they are different because they have believed the Gospel of Salvation and are sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, now they are a new creation in Christ, for the old has past everything has become new; it’s certain, a change must take place in a life who is in Christ. The scripture says: For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. We must put to death, the desire of the flash as Gal 5:19-21; because of these desires, the wrath of God is coming to this earth. We used to walk in these ways, in the life we once lived. But now we must also rid ourselves of all such things and of anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from our lips. We must not lie to each other, since we have taken off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in the knowledge and image of our Creator. Now after John’s death Jesus went spreading the good news of the Kingdom everywhere and news about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them all. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him. At one occasion, being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘there it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in you with in your midst.” Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. People will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, man marring man ladies marring ladies up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. The Bible says that God appeared to Abraham; and as he looked up 3 men were there, they went with him, they eat and announced the birth of Isaac; then as they were leaving, the Lord remained with Abraham who was pleading for the city of Sodom and Gomorrah, the other two men went to Lot, they eat, and before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom— young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot saying: “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you do to them what you like. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.” “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved to break down the door. But the two men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door. The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against those two cities is so great that he has sent us to destroy it, for their sins are gravies”. As soon Lot left Sodom with his wife and his two daughters, Jesus states that, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven on the city of Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed them all. “The same will be on the day when the Son of Man is coming.” On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife! She looked back and became a pillar of salt. Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.” You have heard people saying “I am a very spiritual person” to be a true spiritual person, one must have the Holy Spirit, for those are the ones who will be taken up at the rapture Mt 25:1-13 Here is David the sweet singer of Israel said concerning Jesus while praising the Lord in songs: Open for me the gates of the righteous; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter and are saved. I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation. For the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you. The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine upon us. You are my God, and I will praise you; you are my God, and I will exalt you. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever and for every generations of Those who seek him diligently from a sincere heart. The Lord knows the thought of every men heart, good and bad. The scripture rad, As we come to him, the living Stone—rejected by man but chosen by God and precious to him—we also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God. Through Jesus Christ then let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of our lips that openly professes his name. And do not forget to do well and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. Again the Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” Now to us who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and, “A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message of truth who is Christ—which is also what they were destined for. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth (who is Christ the Lord) but have delighted in their wickedness. We, we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, so that we may declare the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once we were not a people, but now we are the people of God; once we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy through Christ our Lord, who is God’s favor extended to all man. We must know this, that in the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. Without him nothing was made that has been made. All things were created by God’s Son, and everything was made for him. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins with his blood, he sat down at the right hand of God in heaven, Jesus must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore all things, as he promised long ago through all his holy prophets, and placed all enemy under his feet We must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has, since the beginning of creation.” Some they say the earth came out of with a big bang, and man evolved. But they deliberately distort God’s word to their damnation, they forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was flooded and destroyed. By the same word this present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the Day of Judgment and destruction of the ungodly. In view of all this, see to it that we do not refuse him who speaks from heaven. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens. “The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, all things created by man—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with us, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. For the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in that day the heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. “done in it” are things done by man. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought we to be? We ought to live holy and godly lives as we look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of the ones made righteous in Christ, for he is our righteousness. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, we must not be afraid, for our Father has been pleased to give us the kingdom. So let us be thankful, and so worship God with reverence and awe, for our “God is also a consuming fire. Let us not throw away our confidence; we will be richly rewarded. We need to persevere so that when we have done the will of God, we will receive what he has promised. For, “In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.” “But my righteous one will live by faith. I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back says the Lord our God.” But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith in Jesus and are saved. Friends, we must have nothing to do with what the world is doing, we must not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love for the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. We must know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. The scripture says “God oppose the proud but gives grace to the humble” those who love the world, the god of this present age has blinded their minds because of unbelief, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Even we were in the same conditions when we were dead in our trespasses and sins in which we once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler, the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient to the gospel. All of us once lived 13) among them following the desires of our flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. Ps 90:7-11 says that all men are continuously under God’s wrath, and they finish their years with a moan. – This reveals me that no matter how good I am, without Christ I am not good enough for God, for we must be perfect as he is perfect. Men invent all kind of doctrines and say that are Biblical; but we are instructed from the scripture that we must have nothing to do with foolish and stupid arguments about the Bible, because you know they produce quarrels. The Bible interpret itself, and do not need any special human interpretation. We must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. We must gently instruct unbelievers with prayer and supplication to God in the hope that He will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth who is Christ our Lord, so that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will, each person is tempted and dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is full-grown, gives birth to death. In view of God’s mercy then let us NOT offer our body to sin, but let us offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to God—this is our true and proper worship, for we are not under the law but under grace. We must not conform to the pattern of this world, but we must be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Then we will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking or do not handle, do not touch, do not taste! As some teach, for the Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer. God’s kingdom is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives man approval. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification as the Holy Spirit Teaches in God’s word. Paul the great preacher of all time wrote: For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom were still living at that time, though some had fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, last appeared to me, with much tangible proof. I did not deserve it for I am the chief off all sinners. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners of whom 14) I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience and grace as an example for those who would believe in him and so receive eternal life. Now if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of them say that there is no bodily resurrection of the dead? If there is no bodily Resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is our faith. Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, for the apostle and us are testifying that God raised Christ from the dead. Yet some say that Christ did not raise with his body? If the dead body are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, our faith is futile; we are still in our sins. Then those also who have died hoping in Christ for their resurrection to life again are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all people. If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die.” But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, he is the first fruits of those who have died in Christ. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all. V29 reads: Now if there is no resurrection from the dead, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? This verse has been misleading many, a religion teaches the prayers to the dead because of this verse; but the dead cannot hear. The frase “what will those do who are baptized for the dead” refer to those who became Christians and died in the Lord; then those who have remained are baptized because they want to be reunited with their departed friends or family in the life to come. “If the dead are not raised their baptism is useless”. Do not be misled: “Bad Company corrupts good character.” Let us come back to our senses as we ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God, I say this to our shame, God made no mistake when he created Adam, God created him in his image and likeness. God had a plan for man from the beginning. When Jesus was on this earth, on one occasion Philip asked: “Lord, show us the Father and that will be good enough for us.” Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a 15) long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work in the power of the Holy Spirit. The revelation of a triune God is clear, Jesus 2nd person praying to God on the throne the 1st person, the Holly Spirit 3rd person leads Jesus to be tested in the desert. All align with the prophets Lk 24:44 who travelled on this earth as strangers looking for a city whose builder was God, they were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received the promises, why? God had planned something better so that together would they be made perfect and receive the allotted inheritance. Daniel at the vision of the last week, want the meaning but God said, no Daniel is for a distant future; “As for you Daniel, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.” Is obvious that there is a resurrection from the dead; someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” as is the species so God gives a body. So it will be with the resurrection from the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam Jesus, is a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man. I declare to you, that those who live this life in the passion of their flesh cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. At the first resurrection all people whose names are found written in the book will be delivered. “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear the voice of the Son of God and multitudes who are in the dust of the earth will come to life again: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all die, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear friends let us stand firm. Let nothing move us. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that our labor in the Lord is not in vain. |