The Bible offers two circumstances to truly define death: the departure of the soul (Genesis 35:18) and the departure of the spirit (Genesis 25:8).
Trials, afflictions, and heartaches may presently abound, but those who know the Lord rejoice, knowing that those things only exist for a season.
God offers no account of anyone (apart from Jesus Christ) who ever suffered quite like Job. Job in many ways serves as an example for believers today.
Few people grasp the purposes or the benefits of suffering affliction. Instead, most individuals place a great premium upon trying to avoid troubles of any kind.
Murder is an act of hatred originating in the heart. Man, however, is not the inventor of murder. It is, in fact, the will and work of Satan.
The Old Testament Law declares and expresses the mind of God. It demonstrates God’s hatred for sin and His desire for just judgment.
A tremendous spiritual and physical battle wages around the value of life and the determination of when life begins. Unfortunately, Christians have incorporated the unscriptural terminology of the world by allowing the opposition to define these most important matters. This is especially true concerning the birth of a child. According to the Bible, a woman who is expecting is said to be “with child” (Genesis 16:11; Matthew 1:18). Modern terminology removes the direct association of the unborn to life. Sadly, the termination of the unborn life is simply labeled as an “abortion” rather than murder (the ungodly shedding of innocent blood). To abort means the cancellation of a mission. A woman who is “with child” has another living soul “with” her. As time progresses in the child’s development within the womb, the mother becomes “great with child” (Luke 2:5) until she is “ready to be delivered” (Revelation 12:4; see also 1 Samuel 4:19; Isaiah 26:17).
The Lord permits no rivals. In Isaiah 43:11, He said, “I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.” Yet, there is a battle on the horizon that will bring all matters to a head. The Antichrist will sit in the temple of God claiming to be God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). He will torture the people of God (the Jews) and blaspheme the name of God. He will set up his image and demand that the people worship him (Revelation 13:14-15). This peak of idolatry and blasphemy will lead to the culmination of God’s jealousy when He returns to judge the world (Revelation chapter 19).
There are certain areas where the Lord shows some of His greatest care and concern. He takes great offence and moves swiftly in their defence when men abuse these areas. For instance, the Bible says that the Lord is jealous for His “holy name” (Ezekiel 39:25). Perhaps, with this in mind, the Lord said, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain” (Exodus 20:7). The Bible also says that God is jealous for Jerusalem (Zechariah 1:14; Zechariah 8:2), which is His land (Joel 2:18). When people abuse His name or His land, God takes these things particularly personally. Unfortunately, in these last days, men are increasingly abusing both His name and His land.
In the presence of others, Paul carefully behaved himself in such a way to bring glory to God. For example, when Paul was in the presence of the believers at Thessalonica, he was gentle, “even as a nurse cherisheth her children.” He laboured “night and day” because he “would not be chargeable” to the believers. Paul conducted himself in such a godly way that he had no problem suggesting that the believers themselves were witnesses of “how holily and justly and unblameably” he had behaved among them. Paul thought his testimony was so important that he would rather personally suffer than bring any reproach or blame upon himself or the work of God.
