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The Jews were waiting for the Messiah from the day of Abraham[1]. But the first glimpse of the Messiah is shown to Adam after his fall[2], was foretold by Israel[3] and again by Baalam[4]. Moses looked forward to the day of the Messiah[5], which Jesus alluded to[6]. David’s throne is the throne on which the Messiah shall ascend, which will last for ever[7].

The Messiah is foreshadowed in the Old Testament (for David was a type of Christ). David spoke much of the Messiah as did other psalmists eg. Psalm 2, noting in this Psalm the Father, The Son and the Holy Spirit speak to each other[8], Psalm 9, Psalm 21 and Psalm 40. Zion is spoken much of in the Old Testament as the place of reign of the coming Messiah – that is Jerusalem[9]. All these things the Jews looked forward to.

Prophecy of Christ’s suffering

The suffering and humiliation of Christ is clearly foretold; indeed, the Gospel, notably Matthew demonstrates the truthfulness of the prophecies in Jesus Christ: see Psalm 22, Psalm 16, Psalm 40, and Isaiah 53 etc. Isaiah outlines the suffering of the Messiah for the sins of the people; he was to come to his own (Israel) and be rejected[10], he suffered for the sins: he borne our grief, carried our sorrows; he was stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted and he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities and by this we can have peace, and by his suffering we can, through faith have our sins washed way (Isaiah 53).

Prophecy on the nature of Messiah and his coming

The nature of the Messiah is shown in various portions of the Old Testament – especially the Prophets. Isaiah 11 shows him to be the king and ruler over the house of David in the time to come[11], and demonstrates the rightness of him being the heir to the throne, arising from the tribe of Judah[12], the rightful holder of the sceptre (See Psalm 45 & Isaiah 66). He was to come physically[13] (prophecy is to be read literally – see how Daniel read and interpreted the prophets[14]), and as saviour[15] as shown in Isaiah 53, which also clearly foretold of his suffering for our sake.

The Old Testament is also very specific as to when, where and how he was to be born. For instance Bethlehem[16] was prophesied to be his birthplace, born into the tribe of Judah (see endnote [11], also Matthew 1, Luke 3), at a time of great turmoil (Jeremiah 31:15 & Matthew 2:18), after the second temple was repaired[17] etc. Jesus did not come into the world unannounced, but the prophets stated a forerunner would first appear[18]. This was John the Baptist (see Matthew 3, John 1:19, Luke 3 etc).

There is today a rapidly growing movement in religious circles which has for its object the establishing of a common ground for worship, upon which professing Christians, Jews, Muslims and others may meet. Implicit in this is the recognition of the universal Fatherhood of God and, in consequence, the universal brotherhood of men. These are doctrines which carry an appeal, and have an attractiveness to the natural mind, and such passages as Malachi 2:10 and 1 Corinthians 8:6 are torn from their context to support what is asserted. We propose to examine the question in the light of Scripture, in which, and in which alone, is revealed the true basis of man's approach to God in worship.

 First, let us consider briefly the awful errors to which such a path way would, if followed, lead. If all men (we use the word as expressive of men and women — mankind) are the children of God and He is their Father, then quite obviously the doctrine of eternal punishment must be cast aside, for there is no suggestion in Scripture that one of God's children will ever eternally perish. This in turn makes the atonement unnecessary, and thus the Cross — the glorious centre and outstanding theme of Christianity — is no longer needed. The atoning work of Christ is belittled, if accepted at all, and He is stripped of glories which are unique to Himself. We shall refer to this point later.

 Now we concede at once that all men are the offspring of God. This is made perfectly clear in Paul's address to the Athenians (Acts 17). It is also made abundantly clear in that chapter that Paul is referring to men as being part of God's creation, and as standing in the relation of creatures to God as Creator. It is also clear that the Athenians had no knowledge of God as their Father; He was "unknown" to them; they were "ignorant" of the way of approach to Him, but in infinite mercy He had made it possible for them to "seek the Lord  and to "feel (to "search for") after Him". The context shows that man had become estranged from His Creator and the whole tenor of Scripture makes this clear beyond doubt. It is this creatorial relationship which Malachi refers to, in a book where men are strewn to have lost reverence for God.

 The reference in 1 Corinthians 8 completely refutes the suggestion of "universal Fatherhood" — in no way does it support such a heresy. The apostle says, "To us there is but one God, the Father." Who are the "us"? We are left in no doubt at all! In chapter 1 of the same Epistle Paul tells us to whom he is writing. "All that . . . call upon the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord." Those who are "waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ", and have been "called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord". These are they who stand in relation to God as Father. Thus the touchstone of the relationship is the One who is completely left out by those who propound these errors, Jesus Christ our Lord.

 In 2 Corinthians 6: 14, the Apostle writes, "Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers", and then goes on to describe the outstanding features of both believers and unbelievers — urging believers to separate themselves from the company of unbelievers in order that they might know the blessedness of God's promise — "I will . . . be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters." Again therefore we see that the thought of God's universal Fatherhood is not in accordance with Scripture.

 If the Fatherhood of God applies to all men, why did the Lord say to the religious leaders of His day "If God were your Father", adding those terribly solemn words "Ye are of your father the devil" (John 8: 42-44). Note carefully that these are the words of "a Man that hath told you the truth" (verse 40).

 Unquestionably the most serious feature of this teaching is the way in which the Lord Jesus Christ is left out, and this in the face of the Scripture "All men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father" (John 5: 23).

 Let us then enquire from God's Word as to the way in which we may know God as Father, and rejoice in the consciousness of relationship to Him as children. The Scriptures are abundantly clear as to this.

 In John chapter 1 we read, "As many as received Him (the Lord Jesus) to them gave He power (or right) to become the sons (children) of God, even to them that believe on His Name." In the previous verse (11) He had presented Himself to "His own, and His own (the Jewish people) received Him not". Galatians 3: 26 reads, "Ye are all,the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Thus we see that our relationship to God as Father is dependent upon the Lord Jesus Christ having His place, through faith, in our hearts.

 Let us now consider the actual words of Christ Himself in reference to this vital question. Matthew 11: 27 reads — "Neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and He to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him". Further in John 14: 6 we find these conclusive words "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me". Thus for the knowledge of the Father, and for the way to Him, we are dependent absolutely upon the Person of the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and there is no other way to God as Father.

 We must ever remember that He who is to be known in the blessed relationship of Father is God, and the dwelling place of Deity is "in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see" (1 Tim. 6: 16). God is righteous and holy — ever was such and ever will be; He has "purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity" (Hab. 1: 13); the stars in their scintillating beauty "are not pure in His sight" (Job 25: 5). Many scriptures show the moral distance between man and his God because of sin. Perhaps Romans chapter 1 portrays it in its clearest form, man actually preferring to worship the lowest creation and indulge in the most revolting sin, rather than retain and appreciate the knowledge of God. Of His earthly people — the Jew — God has to say "they are all estranged (foreigners) from Me through their idols" (Ezk. 14: 4); and of the Gentiles Paul writes "being alienated (non-participant) from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them" (Eph. 4: 18). Foreigners and non-participants — this is the condition of mankind as in sin — idolaters and ignorant of God. We do well to face the truth of Scripture, solemn and searching though it be!

 Into this dark scene of moral departure from and ignorance of God, there came One — God's blessed Son, He who in speaking to God as Father could say, "Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the world" (John 17: 24). As God looked upon Him here in Manhood He opened the heavens and said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3: 17). He, and He alone, could remove the distance existing between man and his God. "There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a ransom for all" (1 Tim. 2: 5, 6). It is through Him and His finished work on Calvary's cross that man can be reconciled to God. "When we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son" (Rom. 5: 10 cf also 2 Cor. 5: 18; Col. 1: 21 ; Eph. 2; 16). This glorious Person is presented in the Gospel to men as Saviour and Lord, and we have already noticed that it is "by faith in Christ Jesus" that we are made the "children of God ".

 Having completed the work of Calvary the Lord Jesus has "risen from among the dead" ascended from this earth to the Father. Before He left the scene in which He had suffered, He uttered those memorable words to Mary Magdalene, "Go to My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your God. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things unto her" (John 20: 17, 18). The link between these lovers of Christ had been forged in His precious death and victorious rising — and they were now to be introduced through Him, and as in association with Him, to His Father as their Father, to His God as their God. Thus we see the truth of the verse already quoted:

 "No man cometh unto the Father, but by Me" (John 14: 6).

 "For through Him we both (Jew and Gentile) have access by one Spirit to the Father" (Eph 2: 18). Commg to, and knowmg the Father, is one of the most precious privileges enjoyed by those "who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity". It is a privilege open to all Christians — it is the possession of the "little children" in the family of God, those of whom it is said, "Your sins are forgiven you for His Name's sake" (1 John 2: 12). "I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father ". Blessed knowledge! to be shared by every redeemed heart. Yet completely unknown by the unregenerate whatever their ecclesiastical pretension may be.

 The blessings connected with the knowledge of the Father are boundless. In Luke chapter 12 the Lord Jesus tells us that the Father knows all that we have need of in our pathway through this world; but there is much more than this! "Every good and perfect gift . . . cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness". Unchanging in His constant love the Father delights to flood our hearts with the bounty of His own affections from the boundless resources which are His in that scene of unclouded light (James 1: 17). He is "the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort" (1 Cor. 1: 3). No sorrow, no care, no anxiety, no pressure upon spirit or body — escapes His eye, and from Himself as Father comes the needed sense of mercy and comfort. He is the "Father of glory", and as in affectionate communion with Himself He would flood our hearts with the wisdom and intelligence of His glorious purpose in Christ, and of the "exceeding greatness of His power", which give us to know our place as an integral part of that vast inheritance of glory (Eph. 1). He is the "Father of spirits" and as such is engaged with the inward refining of our affections, having in view the blessed fact "that we might be made partakers of His holiness" (Hebrews 12: 9, 10).

 As in the enjoyment of this precious relationship to God as our Father may the features of the children of God be manifested in our walk. "In this the children of God are manifest . . . that we should love one another" (1 John 3: 10, 11). "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour" (Eph. 5: 1, 2).

Remember that we love because God first loved us

We must note that true sacrificial Christian love comes from God himself

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. - 1 John 4:7 ESV

If you really want to understand love, examine the life of Jesus Christ.

[W]e know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers 1 John 3:16 ESV

He, a King and High Priest became a servant, and died a traitor’s death (a death of a curse) because we sinned. It was in this that we know love:

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. - 1 John 4:9 ESV.

Know that it is commanded by God

We love because:
          God first loved us: We love because he first loved us 1 John 4:19 ESV, AND
          God commands us to do so.

"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.'  "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, Mat 5:43, 44 NKJV

The entire commandment system or ordinance of the God hangs on Love. The rules that should govern our entire life is based on what love is and what it does. Jesus states emphatically, in answer to a question on this matter:

"Teacher, which [is] the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is [the] first and great commandment. "And [the] second [is] like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself. "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." - Matthew 22:36-40 NKJV

This is most instructive: love is not merely a feeling, nor just an action of pleasure, as the movies portray it. Love is the essence of the Law – the way we relate to God and the way we relate to and interact with each other. Why? You might ask.

In essence the law deals with relationships and in particular the greatest foil of that relationship, which is “I”. Paul needed to die daily, because he knew that the greatest antagonist of his relationship with God, of his relationship with his friends and colleagues and his relationship with those he was attempting to bring the gospel to, was “I”.

Love suffers long and is kind; .. love.. bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

This cannot happen if love is inward looking

Love is an action that is always outward looking

 Love is always outward looking. The notion of loving oneself is a worldly concept; it arises from the work of Freud, whose work has wrecked havoc in the minds of many Christians, as it assumes that love always depletes oneself, and takes the notion that this is not a good thing. That is, one needs to love oneself in order to love.  This is a lie.

We love another, not because of self, but because Christ first loved us, and still loves us, what ever state we may be in. 1 John 5 has the following elliptical verse:

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

This indicates that the reason we love each other in this room is not because of our selves, but because the Father loves. It’s emphatic – everyone who loves the Father loves those others who are bone of the Father.

This flies in the face of Freud – John, who is a witness of Jesus Christ’s great love for us writes that we love because God, himself, loves us. And it is this action, alone, that allows us to love other Christians to the full depth that Christ loved the church – agapao.

Our ability to continue loving others, is not of ourselves, and in this Freud is right – love must come from somewhere - but he was wrong to make love’s fountain sexual rather than divine, of our selves rather than of the Father. Out love flows from the fountain of love He has for us. Never forget this – Freud teaches to love oneself in order to love – God teaches that we can love because he loves us.

Note that this does not mean you should not have a regard for one’s self.

Love must grow – we must work at it

• Writing to the Corinthians, Paul states

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things…

• And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
• Jacob after 7 years had not lost his first love

And Jacob served seven years for Rachel. And they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.  Genesis 29:20

 1 WHAT was it blessed God,
Led Thee to give Thy Son,
To yield Thy well-beloved
For us by sin undone?
'Twas love unbounded led Thee thus
To give Thy well-beloved for us.

2 What led Thy Son, O God,
To leave Thy throne on high,
To shed His precious blood,
To suffer and to die?
'Twas love, unbounded love to us,
Led Him to die and suffer thus.

3 What moved Thee to impart
Thy Spirit from above,
Therewith to fill our heart
With heavenly peace and love?
'Twas love, unbounded love to us,
Moved Thee to give Thy Spirit thus.

4 What love to Thee we owe,
Our God, for all Thy grace!
Our hearts may well o'erflow
In everlasting praise:
Make us, O God, to praise Thee thus
For all Thy boundless love to us.

Our Lord here illustrates a great Scriptural truth by a very familiar fact in nature. That fact is, that in plants and seeds life comes by death. The seed must be put into the
ground, must rot, decay, and die if we want it to bear fruit and produce a crop. If we refuse to bury the seed and will keep it without sowing it, we shall never reap any harvest. We must be content to let it die if we want corn.

The wealth of spiritual truth which this beautiful figure unfolds is very great. The death of Christ was the life of the world. From it, as a most prolific seed, was to spring an enormous harvest of blessing to souls and of glory to God. His substitution on the cross, His atoning death, were to be the beginning of untold blessings to a lost world. To wish Him not to die, to dislike the idea of His death (as the disciples evidently did), was as foolish as to keep seed-corn locked up in the granary and to refuse to sow it. "I am the corn of wheat," Jesus seems to say. "Unless I die, whatever you in your private opinion may think, my purpose in coming into the world will not be accomplished. But if I die, multitudes of souls will be saved."

"Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth." Redemption is a solid basis for confidence. David had not known Calvary as we have done, but temporal redemption cheered him; and shall not eternal redemption yet more sweetly console us? Past deliverances are strong pleas for present assistance. What the Lord has done he will do again, for he changes not. He is faithful to his promises, and gracious to his saints; he will not turn away from his people.

[However] it is not enough, however, to admire the spectacle of the innocent bleeding for the guilty, we must make sure of our interest therein. The special object of the Messiah’s death was the salvation of his church; have we a part and a lot among those for whom he gave his life a ransom? Did the Lord Jesus stand as our representative? Are we healed by his stripes? It will be a terrible thing indeed if we should come short of a portion in his sacrifice; it were better for us that we had never been born. Solemn as the question is, it is a joyful circumstance that it is one which may be answered clearly and without mistake. To all who believe on him the Lord Jesus is a present Saviour, and upon them all the blood of reconciliation has been sprinkled. Let all who trust in the merit of Messiah’s death be joyful at every remembrance of him, and let their holy gratitude lead them to the fullest consecration to his cause.

Peter stated that Jesus was the Son of the Living God, as distict from the son of any other god; and furthermore, he was the Son, not just a friend, good man or anyone else - but the Son. This was a profound statement. It reminds me of Psalm 2:

I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Psalm 2:7

CS Lewis[1] wrote: "You must make your choice. Either this man was and is the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."

So what should our response be? Perhaps taking the words of the Holy Spirit is best:

[T]hat all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. John 5:23.

Arnold Fruchenbalm points out that the fact the son was begotton of the Father where begotten means he was the "unique" Son, not that he came into being at the time of His birth, that is he was not created by the father[2] but rather Christ is from everlasting unto everlasting. What is unique is the Son-Father relationship.

Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, £as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.

I and My Father are one." John 10:25 -30

[1] C.S. Lewis (1996), Mere Christianity, Touchstone Books, New York: NY, p.56

[2] Arnold Fruchenbalm, God the Father published on line at: <http://www.arielm.org/dcs/pdf/mbs051m.pdf>

I, even I, am the Lord, And besides Me there is no saviour. (Isaiah 43:11)

And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. (1 John 4:14 ESV)

Introduction

We note four things:

1. There is one God. He is the Lord God Jehovah and is also called The Lord God Saves . If you are a Jew, His name is I Am . If you are not a Jew, “He is the God who made the world and everything in it”: He is the Lord of heaven and earth.
2. God is Holy:
3. And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying: ‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified.'” Leviticus 10:3 (NKJV)
4. Man sinned and from this everyone has sinned, even the most holy pious person.
5. The punishment for Sin is death: The wages of sin is death.

There is need of salvation

Hence we have a problem: All of humanity was destined for death. The hardest thing for any person to accept is that there is nothing whatsoever good in him or her, that is if we compare ourselves with God, His glory would so overwhelm us that we would die looking at Him.

1. The Old Testament shows the principle of the acceptable method to deal with sin.
2. The Bible teaches that sin cannot be glossed over: God has to deal with it because he is holy.
3. Once you have sinned you have been stained for ever: stained by corrupt flesh as the book of Jude put it. Hence sin must be dealt with; both intentional sin and un-intentional sin.
4. Sin can only be dealt with by the shedding of blood.

And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission. Hebrews 9:22 (NKJV)

Satan's biggest lie these days is the notion that there is no here-after: that at death we are return just to dust. Yet we all have souls – the very nature of each one us resides in the soul. Your soul is either lost to an eternity separated from God, or saved:

.. cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:50 (NKJV)

God came in the flesh

Human's required a sacrifice that could be the substitute for himself. This was Jesus Christ, God in the flesh.

If God became flesh, there are some very special characteristics about Him. We are not left in the dark concerning his nature and character: in the old testament there are at least two, if not three characters what are types of Christ: these are shadows of what and who the Messiah actually was , but nevertheless gives us evidence of the character of the person of Jesus

God came in the flesh as the Son

God was manifested in the flesh (KJV) or He appeared in a body, (NIV)

1. Jesus is the Son of God
2. Jesus Chris is the Messiah
3. Jesus is God who came in flesh. (we will know He came and was crucified because He still bares the marks of the Cross - see The Revelation))
4. Jesus Christ the Messiah came to save us from our sins
5. He redeemed us from the curse of the law, which we could never keep
6. He has died for our sin, and hence if will allow him to bear our punishment we are saved.
7. Jesus Christ the risen Son of God is acting as our mediator between us and God, if you accept him as our mediator

Salvation is only in Jesus

Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12 (NKJV)

•  But there is a hope in Christ Jesus. No-one need fall into the clutches of hell. Hell was built for Satan and his angels, not humans – but billions will be cast into hell because they have rejected the Lord God Jehovah (Yahweh).

•  You need to submit: if you rule your life you have no hope, because a ruler of his own life must provide the means to deal with sin, and the wages of sin is death.

•  You need to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God.

•  You need to let Christ rule your life – because as rule he provides, through his own suffering, the passage to salvation.

For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of [rule over] both the dead and the living. Romans 14:9 (NKJV)

What must I do to be saved?

So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Acts 16:31 (NKJV)

If you are saved

and He [Christ] died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. 2 Corinthians 5:15 (NKJV)

Jesus Christ Our Saviour

If there is no God, then all that exists is time and chance acting on matter. If this is true then the difference between your thoughts and mine correspond to the difference between shaking up a bottle of Mountain Dew and a bottle of Dr. Pepper. You simply fizz atheistically and I fizz theistically. This means that you do not hold to atheism because it is true , but rather because of a series of chemical reactions… … Morality, tragedy, and sorrow are equally evanescent. They are all empty sensations created by the chemical reactions of the brain, in turn created by too much pizza the night before. If there is no God, then all abstractions are chemical epiphenomena, like swamp gas over fetid water. This means that we have no reason for assigning truth and falsity to the chemical fizz we call reasoning or right and wrong to the irrational reaction we call morality. If no God, mankind is a set of bi-pedal carbon units of mostly water. And nothing else.

Darwin’s adherents assume that there is no soul, no God and no life after death. Accepting this hypothesis is unsound, because if it is true that there is life after death, God must punish you with an everlasting punishment for which no torment on earth can rival. Your depression, thoughts of suicide, loneliness, bitterness, hate, envy and utter misery will be a mere trifle when you are sent to hell¹.

If you were merely a bag of chemicals, we are wasting our time dealing with depression, misery and loneliness because this hypothesis must be reduced to a mere chemical reaction. Indeed, the greatest hypocrisy of the God haters, who ascribe to Darwin’s theory, and hence must accept the hypothesis they are but a bag of chemicals, is that they demand 18% of the entire countries budget in order to stay alive and another large sum to deal with the social consequence of this unethical immoral group. This is irrational! You desire to stay well for what purpose? I do so because I know God and I desire to obey him. I help those in need because God demand’s it – I work in health for that very reason. Your hypothesis demands that ANY weak genetic material must be destroyed. For the sake of the community you need to kill those that are resource constraints because Darwin demands the weak die and the strong live. They must die in order that their genetic material is prevented from being transmitted to future generations. I find the consequence of Darwin’s theory untenable – yet most have never thought about what the hypothesis really means. Hitler did and acted upon it.

So why do you care if a friend gets ill or dies – to do so is irrational according to Darwin’s theory – I observe that the bags of chemicals that shades me, feeds me and makes the world look pretty do not care if one of their number becomes ill or dies. You believe both a tree and your body are but evolved entities – no different in beginning and ending.

[the] grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire [from the Bible]

The greatest folly of Darwin’s adherents is to dismiss the soul. The word “soul” comes from the Greek psyche a word also used in English. We all have soul – the soul is emotion (often referred to as the heart especially in literature); it is mind (and hence it reasons – that is, it thinks things through) and it is the will (and hence decides). The soul is God given – there is no chemical explanation for it. We all have one, given by God; the attributes that makes humans God conscious, or spiritual, which can have hindsight and foresight, can forecast and reason (which is why you worry): that which makes you, you. It is the soul that will be rewarded if you believe in Jesus Christ and punished if you deny him.

1. It is interesting to note that most humans believe there is life after death. Westerner’s who believe they are some what more evolved than others tend to believe they are merely bags of chemicals.

Extracts from Alexander Hislop: The Two Babylons or The Papal Worship Proved to be the Worship of Nimrod and His Wife

"And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the Lord. And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast of unleavened bread--seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten" (Num. 28:16,17; see also Mark 14:12; 1 Cor. 5:7,8, etc.).

In the following we find that Christianity becomes subsumed by paganism: taking on its form and adding a few bible thoughts to make it look worthy of glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ – it doesn’t. If Christians need to celebrate anything more than the Lord’s Supper, let it be Passover, where Christ becomes the Passover lamb.

Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover [pa´s?a], was sacrificed for us. (1 Corinthians 5:7)

Hislop answers the question

 What means the term Easter itself? It is not a Christian name. It bears its Chaldean origin on its very forehead. Easter is nothing else than Astarte, one of the titles of Beltis, the queen of heaven, whose name, as pronounced by the people Nineveh, was evidently identical with that now in common use in this country. That name, aas found by Layard on the Assyrian monuments, is Ishtar. The worship of Bel and Astarte was very early introduced into Britain, along with the Druids, "the priests of the groves."

…

The festival, of which we read in Church history, under the name of Easter, in the third or fourth centuries, was quite a different festival from that now observed in the Romish Church, and at that time was not known by any such name as Easter. It was called Pasch, or the Passover, and though not of Apostolic institution, * was very early observed by many professing Christians, in commemoration of the death and resurrection of Christ.

…

That festival agreed originally with the time of the Jewish Passover, when Christ was crucified, a period which, in the days of Tertullian, at the end of the second century, was believed to have been the 23rd of March. That festival was not idolatrous, and it was preceded by no Lent. "It ought to be known," said Cassianus, the monk of Marseilles, writing in the fifth century, and contrasting the primitive Church with the Church in his day, "that the observance of the forty days had no existence, so long as the perfection of that primitive Church remained inviolate."

…

The forty days' abstinence of Lent was directly borrowed from the worshippers of the Babylonian goddess. Such a Lent of forty days, "in the spring of the year," is still observed by the Yezidis or Pagan Devil-worshippers of Koordistan, who have inherited it from their early masters, the Babylonians. Such a Lent of forty days was held in spring by the Pagan Mexicans, for thus we read in Humboldt, where he gives account of Mexican observances: "Three days after the vernal equinox...began a solemn fast of forty days in honour of the sun." Such a Lent of forty days was observed in Egypt…

Hot Cross Buns and Eggs

 The hot cross buns of Good Friday, and the dyed eggs of Pasch or Easter Sunday, figured in the Chaldean rites just as they do now. The "buns," known too by that identical name, were used in the worship of the queen of heaven, the goddess Easter, as early as the days of Cecrops, the founder of Athens--that is, 1500 years before the Christian era.

 The origin of the Pasch eggs is just as clear. The ancient Druids bore an egg, as the sacred emblem of their order. In the Dionysiaca, or mysteries of Bacchus, as celebrated in Athens, one part of the nocturnal ceremony consisted in the consecration of an egg. The Hindoo fables celebrate their mundane egg as of a golden colour. The people of Japan make their sacred egg to have been brazen. In China, at this hour, dyed or painted eggs are used on sacred festivals, even as in this country. In ancient times eggs were used in the religious rites of the Egyptians and the Greeks, and were hung up for mystic purposes in their temples. From Egypt these sacred eggs can be distinctly traced to the banks of the Euphrates.

Smith on Passover for Christians (Smith’s Bible Dictionary)

(1) Passover is a type of deliverance from the slavery of sin.

(2) It is the passing over of the doom we deserve for your sins, because the blood of Christ has been applied to us by faith.

(3) The sprinkling of the blood upon the door-posts was a symbol of open confession

(4) The Passover was useless unless eaten; so we live upon the Lord Jesus Christ – the flesh needs to be consumed (See John 6).

(5) It was eaten with bitter herbs, as we must eat our Passover with the bitter herbs of repentance and confession, which yet, like the bitter herbs of the Passover, are a fitting and natural accompaniment.(6) As the Israelites ate the Passover all prepared for the journey, so do we with a readiness and desire to enter the active service of Christ

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The saying of James should come into our mind, as we read the words of Luke's narration of the Angels visting the shepherds the following comes to mind - "Has not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him." (James 2:5.) The lack of money debars no one from spiritual privileges. The things of God's kingdom are often hidden from the great and noble, and revealed to the poor. The busy labor of the hands need not prevent a man being favored with special communion with God. Moses was keeping sheep, Gideon was threshing wheat, Elisha was ploughing, when they were each honored by direct calls and revelations from God. Let us resist the suggestion of Satan, that religion is not for the working man. The weak of the world are often called before the mighty. The last are often first, and the first last. (JC Ryle - Luke chapter 2). Others also come to mind - we see David being the shepherd of the family being called by God to be the deliverer of Israel.

The primary roles of a shepherd with his sheep were guiding, providing food and water, protecting and delivering, gathering scattered or lost sheep, and giving health and security. The needs of sheep are primarily physical. Not being abundantly endowed with intelligence and lacking the capacity to find food and water for themselves in marginal environments, they require a benevolent and capable human leader who will guide them to places where these essentials can be found. Since sheep tend to wander, a concerned shepherd must search for them and bring them back when they become lost or when for some reason the flock has become scattered. A sheep’s lack of natural defenses leaves it susceptible to the attacks of predators. (Thomas Golding)

I see another picture here, the angels comes to those that are the most capable of understanding what a saviour is – the one who is able to protect and deliver the sheep from the wolf.

The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. John 10:11b- 13a

I am [says Jehovah] intelligent [prudent] (10:30)

Who has performed and done it, Calling the generations from the beginning? 'I, the Lord, am the first; And with the last I am He.'" (41:4)

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (41:10)

I am the Lord, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, (42:8)

For I am the Lord [Yahweh] your God, The Holy One of Israel , your Saviour; (43:3)

Fear not, for I am with you; (43:5)

Everyone who is called by My name, Whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him." (43:7)

"You are My witnesses," says the Lord, "And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me. (43:10)

"I, even I, am the Lord, And besides Me there is no saviour." (43:11)

"I have declared and saved, I have proclaimed, And there was no foreign god among you; Therefore you are My witnesses," Says the Lord, "that I am God." (43:12)

"Indeed before the day was, I am He; And there is no one who can deliver out of My hand; I work, and who will reverse it?" (43:13)

"I am the Lord, your Holy One, The Creator of Israel , your King." (43:15)

"I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. (43:25)

"Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: 'I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God.'" (44:6)

Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, And He who formed you from the womb: " I am the Lord, who makes all things,…" (44:24)

I am the Lord, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, (45:5)

That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the Lord, do all these things.' "Rain down, you heavens, from above, And let the skies pour down righteousness; Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation, And let righteousness spring up together. I, the Lord, have created it." (45:5-8)

"Look to Me, and be saved, All you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other." (45:22)

"Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, And all the remnant of the house of Israel , Who have been upheld by Me from birth, Who have been carried from the womb: Even to your old age, I am He, And even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; Even I will carry, and will deliver you. (46:3,4)

Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, 'My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,' (46:9,10)

"Listen to Me, O Jacob, And Israel, My called: I am He, I am the First, I am also the Last. 13 Indeed My hand has laid the foundation of the earth, And My right hand has stretched out the heavens;" (48:12,13)

Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel: "I am the Lord your God" (48:17a)

Kings shall be your foster fathers, And their queens your nursing mothers; They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth, And lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me." (49:23)

"I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid Of a man who will die, And of the son of a man who will be made like grass" (51:12)

But I am the Lord your God, Who divided the sea whose waves roared— The Lord of hosts is His name. (51:15)

For thus says the Lord GOD:… Therefore My people shall know My name; Therefore they shall know in that day That I am He who speaks: 'Behold, it is I.'" (52:4,6)

"I was sought by those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. I said, 'Here I am , here I am ,' To a nation that was not called by My name." (65;1)

Printable form http://www.life-everlasting.net/Pages/Messages/God/I Am from Isaiah.pdf

http://www.life-everlasting.net/Pages/Messages/God/I Am from Isaiah.php

What a friend we have in Jesus,
all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
all because we do not carry
everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged;
take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful
who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge;
take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In his arms he'll take and shield thee;
thou wilt find a solace there.

We learn... from this passage, that Christ is the true source of peace. We read that our Lord winds up all His discourse with these soothing words--"These things have I spoken unto you, that you might have peace." The end and scope of His parting address, He would have us know, is to draw us nearer to Himself as the only fountain of comfort. He does not tell us that we shall have no trouble in the world. He holds out no promise of freedom from tribulation, while we are in the body. But He bids us rest in the thought that He has fought our battle and won a victory for us. Though tried, and troubled, and vexed with things here below, we shall not be destroyed. "Be of good cheer," is His parting charge--"Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Let us lean back our souls on these comfortable words, and take courage. The storms of trial and persecution may sometimes beat heavily on us; but let them only drive us closer to Christ. The sorrows, and losses, and crosses, and disappointments of our life may often make us feel sorely cast down; but let them only make us tighten our hold on Christ. Armed with this very promise let us, under every cross, come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Let us often say to our souls, "Why are you cast down, and why are you disturbed?" And let us often say to our gracious Master--"Lord, did not You say, Be of good cheer? Lord, do as You have said, and cheer us to the end."

A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell

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