LOVE YOUR ENEMIES...

You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy."
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:43-44).

1. Reasons to Love your enemies:

a. God commands us to love (A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another - John 13:34)

b. Our highest calling is to spread the Gospel and help others grow in Christ (By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another - John 13:35).

c. Jesus loved his enemies. Make him your example. (O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! - Luke 13:34).

2. Hints to Love your enemies:

a. Realize that you may have misinterpreted the other person's words.

b. Don't take things personally or give in to hurt feelings. Instead, see the other person as someone with a problem who needs God's help and your prayers.

c. Determine what part you played in the problem.

d. See problems as opportunities to grow in Christ.

e. Forgive . . . even if your enemy does not apologize.

f. Pray for your enemies.

3. Evaluate your Love for your enemies:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails" (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

Score yourself from 0-10 on each of the following.

"0" means, "I need a lot of improvement."
"10" means, "I'm great at this."

____ I am patient.
____ I am kind.
____ I do not envy.
____ I do not boast.
____ I am not proud.
____ I am not rude.
____ I am not self-seeking.
____ I am not easily angered.
____ I keep no record of wrongs.
____ I do not delight in evil.
____ I rejoice with the truth.
____ I always protect.
____ I always trust.
____ I always hope.
____ I always persevere.
____ My love never fails.

Love Your Enemies!!!
God Bless!!!

TELL ABOUT JESUS TO OTHERS

TELL ABOUT JESUS TO OTHERS

Before Jesus departed to His heavenly throne to take His position as Lord and Christ, He spent a final time with His eleven disciples. The last command that He gave them was this: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20).

If these are the last words that Jesus gave His disciples, we must consider that they are of the utmost importance to Him, and to ourselves. Jesus commands us to tell others about Him.

Christ commanded us to tell others about Him and promised to give us power to do it. In the same way that a person is called to be a witness in a legal proceeding, we are asked to be His witnesses. In a legal proceeding, the witness will testify to the things that they have personally seen and heard; they will give an account based on what they have observed or experienced insofar as it has relevance to the current proceedings. As Christians, we have the opportunity and responsibility to tell others what we have "seen" and "heard" and what we have experienced in our walk with the Lord.

Think what it is that we have received. To know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord is the greatest thing in all of life's experiences, indeed in the entire universe. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it" (Matthew 13:45-46).
Jesus commands us to tell others of His great salvation. He wants everyone to know about Him. He suffered a horrible death so that all of mankind could be reconciled to the Father. The only way for that truth to be known is for some one to tell it. We are that "someone." Why should we tell others? We should tell others because they need to know that Jesus loves them and longs to give them life. He desires to rescue each one from the pit and consequences of sin.

"The Lord . . . is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). We need never fear that we will be left alone to speak for Him without support; He will always give us what to say and power to be effective. "And teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).

God Bless!!!

TENTH COMMANDMENT...

“You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbour."

 

'Covet' is an inordinate desire to possess what belongs to another, usually tangible things. Coveting is not just wanting something, but it is wanting something at the expense of another. If we are focused on something another owns and we are consumed with getting it, we most likely will not love that neighbour.  In Matthew 6:19-21 Jesus reminds us that where ever our treasure, there our heart will be also.

Ultimately being a covetous person will lead to your personal destruction. Coveting is something that can destroy you from the inside out. Remember that God will NEVER bless ill gotten gains. He will NEVER bless relationships that are hatched out of covetousness nor will He bless us materially. Place your faith and contentment in Jesus and you will experience joy beyond belief!

NINTH COMMANDMENT....

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour”

God’s will is that :

I never give false testimony against anyone,

twist no one’s words,

not gossip or slander,

nor join in condemning anyone

without a hearing or without a just cause...

Rather, in court and everywhere else,

I should avoid lying and deceit of every kind;

these are devices the devil himself uses,

and they would call down on me God’s intense anger.

I should love the truth,

speak it candidly,

and openly acknowledge it.

And I should do what I can

to guard and advance my neighbour’s good name...

EIGHTH COMMANDMENT....

" You shall not steal..."

HOW DOES GOD WANT US TO GET STUFF?
1. Work- “Let him that stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something good” (Eph. 4:28)

2. Invest- “Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them. His lord said to him, well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord” (Matt. 25: 20,21)

HOW CAN A PERSON STEAL?
1. Theft

2. Robbery (“A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him . . leaving him half dead” - Luke 10:30)

3. Seizure- Using without permission

4. Deceit (“The Lord hates dishonest scales and dishonest weights” - Prov. 20:23)

5.  Defraud- To deprive of something by deception

 

SEVENTH COMMANDMENT....

Adultery breaks every other commandment.

• Adultery is stealing.
• It steals the love from another.
• It steals someone's wife away.
• It is taking Love that does not belong to you.
• Adultery destroys trust.
• Adultery is a living lie. It is done without the knowledge of the spouse.
• Adultery is Coveting someone who does not belong to you.
• Adultery is the supreme example of Selfishness.

SIXTH COMMANDMENT.....

YOU SHALL NOT MURDER....

First, the sixth commandment forbids murder.No matter the wrong, we do not have the authority to track down those who have hurt us, and kill them. That power is entrusted solely to civil authorities.

Second, the sixth commandment forbids abortion. Abortion is the unlawful killing of innocent human life. Here is a letter from 1st B.C. written by a businessman, Hilarion, to his pregnant wife, Alis; “Know that I am still in Alexandria. And do not worry if they all come back and I remain in Alexandria. I ask and beg you to take good care of our baby son, and as soon as I receive payment I shall send it up to you. If you are delivered of a child [before I come home], if it is a boy keep it, if a girl discard it. You have sent me word, ‘Don’t forget me.’ How can I forget you. I beg you not to worry.”Abortion was a major cause of death among women. Ingested poisons produced miscarriage and  also frequently led to the death of the mother.

 

Third, the sixth commandment forbids euthanasia - so-called mercy-killings. Euthanasia is always a sin. We are never to kill the elderly, or the handicapped, or the terminally ill. No person has the right to determine that another life is without value. The intrinsic value of a person’s life does not come from what he does, but from who he is, and he is an image bearer of God.

Fourth, the sixth commandment forbids suicide. Just as we must not unlawfully take the life of another, so we must not take our own life.

Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

Choose Christ, and choose life. God Bless!

FIFTH COMMANDMENT.....

HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.....



The Hebrew word behind the English honor is kaved; kaved carries the idea of weightiness, so we are to give weight to our parents. We might say it like this, ‘You should give your parents a ton of respect!’ This is the duty of every child and it sets the pattern for how that child will relate to every other authority structure in life. Children do not come out of the womb honoring their parents. Rather, Scripture teaches us that we are born in sin and in our sin we will be automatic rebels against our parents. But parents are given by God to children to serve as His lieutenants and honoring father and mother is the foundation that prepares little hearts to honor God.

What was Jesus doing as a child, and as a teenager and as a young adult, making clay pigeons to fly? No, he was fulfilling the 5th commandment, honoring his father and mother, his imperfect and sinful father and mother. He was obeying them and honoring them perfectly. Christ fulfilled the 5th commandment all the way to the cross where even as he died he was caring for his mother by giving her, as it were, to John.

Christ kept the 5th commandment so that He died on the cross he could bear the penalty for sins of every disobedient little child and every rebellious teenager and every selfish adult who would believe in Him.

God Bless!

FOURTH COMMANDMENT.....

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy"

 

 

The Sabbath is much more than a weekly day of rest. It is the one day each week that we devote totally to God, and thus it is a good regulator and barometer of our relationship with Him. Do you know the Mars bar advertisement? “A Mars a day helps you work, rest, and play!”—That was smart, because the advertisers knew that we all value those things. And some of us are much better in one of these areas than in others. Are you a good worker? Do you love your work? Are you committed to it?

 

This is from the internet...

 

IN PRISON—You spend the majority of your time in a 10×10 cell.
AT WORK—You spend the majority of your time in an 8×8 cubicle.

IN PRISON—You get time off for good behavior.
AT WORK—You get more work for good behavior.

IN PRISON—They allow your family and friends to visit.
AT WORK—You aren’t even supposed to speak to your family.

IN PRISON—You must deal with sadistic wardens.
AT WORK—They are called managers.

Are you a workaholic?

What does this commandment mean?

To keep one day each week special to remember God and to rest. But notice that it also says to work hard for six days! If God could take a rest, so can you! God is God and you are not. Rest reminds us we are not indispensable, and whenever we sleep the world goes on just fine without us!

We are:

SALT—to make our workplace less rotten!
LIGHT—to show Gods glory.
YEAST—to quietly infiltrate and multiply.

Everyday is a Sabbath day for the Christian—separated to God, for worship, and to rest from our labors.

THIRD COMMANDMENT...



"You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name"





This commandment deals with the way we worship our God. We are to take our worship seriously. We shouldn’t come to worship as though we are going to a party or a picnic but to come with respect for our God. How would we react if we were going to visit the prime minster? When we come to God we must come with respect. There are a lot of people today who say things like “Oh God” in their conversation and this is using the name without proper respect.

What’s in a name? In Shakespeare’s "Romeo and Juliet," Romeo asks that very question: What’s in a name? A rose by any other name still smells just as sweet." But names are far more important than Romeo would have us believe. The word "empty" or "vain" means to use the name in a "worthless" or "deceitful" way.

We’re like Tiger Woods once he signed his contract with Nike: now whenever Tiger Woods plays golf he carries the Nike logo with him. The people of Israel in the Old Testament carried the name Yahweh; God placed his name on them like a logo.
The New Testament reiterates this idea for Christians in 1 Peter 4:16, where it says, "However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name." If you’ve become a follower of Jesus Christ, you bear the name of Jesus-Yahweh saves.

The bottom line is this: As followers of Jesus Christ, we carry His name wherever we go and whatever we do. If we’re followers of Jesus, we don’t take off the uniform when we’re not in church, but we carry His logo-His name-with us wherever we go. Whenever we misrepresent God we violate the third commandment!!!