DAY 3: GALILEE TO THE GOLAN (Peace to War).

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew.  They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen, "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:18-19).

It was a peaceful night of sleep in the historic city of Tiberius that night.  We awoke refreshed, and having broke fast with hearty Mediterranean fare we were on our way by 8:15 to another big day of touring.  We started the day by taking a boat ride on Galilee.  Most of our group thought this to be the highlight of the trip, it was still early and quiet, and not hard to imagine being with Peter, Andrew, James and John helping them to fish.  Yes, Galilee is only a lake, but still plenty big enough for a person to die in a storm.

We next stopped at Kibbutz Ginosar to see a 2,000 year old fishing boat that had been excavated from the mud of Galilee.  It was a fishing boat like the disciples would have used.  The boat was made of 12 different kinds of wood, the reason being there was a shortage of wood.  By the 19th century there was not a wooden boat to be found on Galilee (James Michener, The Source).

Our next stop was at the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5,6,7).  It was a peaceful, quiet place for meditation, but it is more of a traditional place than a historical place.

Capernaum is a historical place.  We know Jesus was there!  Jesus spent most of his ministry in north Galilee, in a 12 mile arc on the north side of the lake.  Capernaum is about in the center of that arc--it is known as the 12 miles that changed the world.  At least 8 miracles were performed in Capernaum, still there were many who did not believe.  To whom much is given, much is required.  We saw the synagogue in which Jesus taught and Peter's mother-in-law's house.

From the shores of Galilee to Caesarea Philipi was our next trip.  It was here Jesus asked the 12 to tell him who men say that he is, and then "Who do you say that I am?"  Here is the temple of Pan, the gate to the underworld (Hades) which would not prevail against the Church, Jesus told his apostles.

We hadn't stopped for lunch yet, and it was about 2 p.m. so we stopped in a Druze village on the way up to Mount Bental.  We had a delightful lunch of falafuls, swarmas and Coke Zero.  There were armed Israeli soldiers in the restaurant too--Syria was not very far away.

Upon reaching the summit of Bental, an extinct volcano, Keren, our guide, explained to us the border with Syria and told us about the war of 1967 and the real acts of heroism that were required for Israel to survive. After hearing that I mentioned to her that I thought it was Divine providence. Keren did not respond, so I am not sure if she heard me, or, that she did not agree with my belief.* I do believe, however, that there have been so many near miraculous outcomes with the Israelis that the hand of the Divine had to be in it.  We were so close to the war in Syria that we could hear it going on.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

Tom and Helen on Galilee.

*Keren was a delightful guide, and, I believe, very accurate in her presentations.  There were some matters in her presentation that were veried from what my previous guides told me.

DAY 2: MORE TO DO THAN WE HAD TIME FOR

Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea (Acts 8:40).

Food in the hotels in which we stayed was very good, so we ate a hearty breakfast in Tel Aviv, loaded our luggage on the bus and headed north to Caesarea by 8:30.

Caesarea was a city built by Herod the great as a gift to the Roman Caesars.  It was a beautiful city with all the amenities that a royal visitor or government official would expect: a 4,000 seat theater, a hippodrome, pools, baths and saunas were all there.  Caesarea became the defacto capital of Herod's kingdom.  The weather on the Mediterranean coast was much better than in hot old Jerusalem, and the people were not as contentious either, so government officials much preferred Caesarea to Jerusalem!

In the book of Acts there are 15 references to Caesarea.  There is evidence that Philip established a church there (see Acts 21:16),  Cornelius and his family became believers there and Paul was imprisoned there for 2 years as well, so Caesarea is an important place in Christian history.

Since I visited in 2008, quite a lot of restoration work had been done on the theater.  We made an attempt to demonstrate the acoustics of the theater, but there were many tourists there so it did not work out so well.  The theater in Jeresh, Jordan, is much superior--I was there in 2008.

Our next stop was Mt. Carmel where the prophet Elijah smote the prophets of Baal.  From both Carmel and Megiddo one can view one of the most fertile valleys in the world.  It is beautiful so it is hard to believe that the last battle will be fought here.  Northern Israel is where most of the fertile land is and where most of the prosperity is.  Could it be that partially explains why the northern tribes fell into idolatry more quickly because of too much prosperity?

Just next-door to Mt. Carmel is Meggido.  This site was important to the kings of old because it was a strategic location.  Meggido is a tel with 28 different layers of civilization to it. James Michener used Megiddo as a model for his novel, "The Source."  "The Source" was required reading for our Hebrew History class at Nebraska Christian College.  BTW, Bob and Polly Pat Michener were on the tour with us.  It was interesting to converse with them about their famous cousin.

On to Nazareth, "Shootsville" (The August 23, 2008 archive, "He Shall be called a Nazarene" explains it. ) to visit the church of the Annunciation.  It was there Gabriel announced to Mary that she would conceive and bear a son as a virgin--a son who would be the Savior of the World.  The church and its symbolism were impressive.  In stark contrast to the church was a sign placed by the Muslims warning Christians not to worship the Trinity because only Allah is God.

Though it was on the schedule, we did not stop at Cana where it is recorded that Jesus did his first miracle of turning water into wine.  It was getting late and dark so we drove on to Tiberius on Galilee to spend the night.  It was a long day.  Touring the Holy Land is not easy, but it is good!

Our Father's Love,
Tom

This picture is of Jerusalem, taken from the Mount of Olives.  I will try to do better in picture selection.

TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL UPDATE

If you remember the "Touched by an Angel" bullet of March 02, I said I would keep you all further updated on my mother's visitors that enter her apartment bedroom, but never leave.  I could just write them off to hallucinations, but I want to keep an open mind.  Mom saw one of these visitors yesterday, it was a male, the others being female.  She thought it was me so she didn't say anything.  I said, "Mom, if I enter your apartment I will say hello."  I asked her if she saw the man leave and she said, "no."

One would think if an elderly woman saw an unidentified person entering entering her apartment that she would be afraid.  My mother is not.  These visitors do not inspire fear, only curiosity.  I asked her again to ask the visitors to identify themselves.  I have my own theory and will share it at the appropriate time, but I will keep you updated.

Our Father's Blessings,
Tom

DAY ONE: OLD JAFFA

Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter.  He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea (Acts 10:5-6).

At the airport in Tel Aviv we were introduced to our guide, a charming 40 something female who both entertained and informed us about what we were seeing.  Her name was Keren. Keren has a great speaking voice making her easy to listen to Our bus driver was Heim.  To me it is amazing how he could navigate the crowed narrow streets with a tour bus and never put a scratch on it.  We were all very thankful for his important skill as a driver!  We tourists came to love them both.

Jaffa was an old city even during the time of Jonah.  When God commanded Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah left Joppa (now Jaffa) headed in the opposite direction.  Archaeologists have unearthed remains dating 2,000 years before Christ, establishing it as one of the world's oldest sea ports.  We saw archaeological evidence that the Egyptians were a significant part of the city's history.

Significant Biblical events happened in Jaffa other than Jonah's disobedience.  Tabitha/Dorcas was raised from the dead here (Acts 9) and Peter had his vision here in which God communicated to Peter that anything that God has made pure shall not be called impure, speaking of the conversion of Cornelius and his family which was soon to follow (Acts 10).

We walked the streets of old Jaffa.  The old streets are dark and narrow and turn alot--it wouldn't be hard to get lost. We met a woman who had moved there from Oklahoma, making Jaffa her home.  We saw the traditional home of Simon the Tanner as well as St. Peter's church where the alter faces west, symbolizing the church's openness to the Gentiles because of Peter's vision.  One of the items of interest is that there are so many cats in Jaffa.  Keren said the British (Brits) brought them to deal with all the rodents.

The Mediterranean coast reminds me a lot of California.  The weather was somewhat stormy that first day, the surf was up and there were surf-boarders surfing.  We had a festive supper, but were very tired, and eagerly went to bed.  March 12 and 13 blended together into one long day.  We spent the night in the next-door city of Tel Aviv.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

This wasn't the 777 we flew in on, but it is amazing to me that we can load up 300 people and all of their stuff and fly them at 500 miles per hour across the ocean.  What an age we live in! Below is Simon the tanner's front door. (A traditional site.)

THE TRIP TO ISRAEL (keeping the appointment)

Do two walk together, unless they have made an appointment? (Amos 3:3).

For Helen and me, the trip to Israel began much earlier than the 12th of March, we had many chores to do and responsibilities to make arrangements for before we could leave.  We left home on the evening of Tuesday, the 11th, because the flight out of Omaha was at 6 in the morning.  We checked into the motel, but did not sleep well due to the anxiety of checking in on time and of the flying itself (The missing 777 out of Malaysia was a big news item).

The alarm went off at 3:30 a.m. and we were out by 4:15.  We went through the checking-in process only to find out that, because of bad weather in Chicago, the flight would be delayed 2 hours.  Still we made the flight to Chicago in time to catch the flight to New York.  Even though we were late to New York, we were able to board El Al to Tel Aviv on time.

The 777 was packed with Jewish people going to Israel to celebrate the feast of Purim.  Seated next to me was a Jewish man who struck up a conversation with me.  By this time of the day I just wanted to relax my brain, but he didn't let me.  So we talked of our families, our occupations, and even politics (I asked him why Jewish people support Obama even though he is anti Israel.)  But then we got to religion.  For me, my mind being what it was, it was like bringing a butter knife to a sword fight.  My seat partner had a law degree from Georgetown University, but was a financial planner.  Who am I, but a lowly Iowa farmer.  So he tried to impress on me the superiority of Judaism over Christianity by saying, "A whole nation witnessed the giving of the law and they passed it on to their children.  In Christianity only a few people witnessed the resurrection, and who knows if they saw anything or not?"

I wished my reply would have included this, but it did not, "Your law, witnessed by a whole nation, says a fact is established by 2 or 3 credible witnesses, and the credibility of those witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ is well established."  What I did say to him was still pretty good.  "Yes, a whole nation did witness the giving of the law, and they all died in the wilderness because they did not believe God."  That pretty much ended our discussion.  He had a lavatory stop to make and prepare for prayers at 6 a.m. on the 13th, which it was because of time-zone loss.  I'm not sure why God made the appointment for us to sit together.  My argument was not impressive, but perhaps God thought he needed to hear it.

We arrived at Ben Gurion airport at 4:30 p.m. and we immediately started our tour at old Jaffa.  (Continued tomorrow).

Our Father's Love,
Tom

WE ARE HOME (for a while)

Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you" (Mark 5:19).

Helen and I are home.  We departed the 12th of March, 2014, on a trip to Israel.  It was the second one for me, but the first time Helen was willing to travel outside the United States.  We went with a group from the South Yukon Church of Christ let by pastor Dr. Perry Greene.

It was a great trip, blessing both body and soul.  Basically, our diet was Mediterranean fare, though one night some of us went to McDonald's to eat.  We walked close to 5 miles each day--one of our group had a pedometer.  It was not easy walking either, walking up steep stairs or down steep inclines, through narrow tunnels, both wet and dry.  We all came home in better shape than we left.

I was in the Holy Land 6 years ago.  There has been much excavating and discovery since that time that it was very interesting to return.  One of my personal beliefs which I came to hold from my first visit, and this visit only strengthened it, is that the place of Israel in these last days is to be the developer and protector of artifacts and antiquities for all the world to see.  People are coming from all over the world to see the story of the Bible told there.  I'm not sure how many are being made believers in Jesus Christ, but I know that some are.  If the Muslims had full control over what is now Israel, very little Biblical evidence would exist because the archeology does not tell the story of Islam.

When we arrived in Israel the CEO of the tour company met us in Tele Viv.  As he shook each of our hands he said, "Welcome home."  He meant, of course, that Israel is our spiritual homeland, the place where the events that paid the price of our pardon actually happened.  Helen and I are now at home in Iowa--not quite Heaven yet--trying to bear witness to the truth of the Bible until we are finally home with the Lord.  Over the course of the coming weeks I will try to share a few of these important things with you.  

Our Father's Love,
Tom  

The picture of the "Dome of Rock" is a holy place to Muslims.  The most holy place to the Jewish people today is the Western Wall.  It is located below and to the right of the DOTR.

NO MAN'S SLAVE

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36).

If I remember correctly, I am currently watching the mini series, Centennial, for the 13th time.  It was given to me for Christmas in 1998 by the lovely and gracious Helen in video casett form.  I took a couple of years off watching it because of not having a VCR player that worked.

My favorite episode of the mini series is of the cattle drive of 1868 when John Skimmerhorn and R.J. Poteet and cowboys trailed 3,000 cattle from Texas to Colorado to start the Venneford Ranch.  The foreman of the cowboys was a black man named Nate Person.  Nate had been a slave before the Civil War, now he was free.  One of the great lines of the episode was when Nate said, "When you are a cowboy you are no man's slave."  There's something about a cowboy.  I've raised cattle and hogs.  The hogs make the money, but nobody writes songs about farmers who raise pigs.  There's some romance and freedom in being a cattleman.  The cattleman is out in the open spaces making his own decisions--cattleman walk a little taller than other men.

Still, when one is a slave to Jesus Christ, he is the most free that he will ever be because he belongs to the family of God and heir to His wealth.

Our Father's Blessings,
Tom

TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL?

Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14).

My mother will be celebrating her 94th birthday the 28th of this month.  One of my daily tasks is to stop and visit with her and make sure all is well with her.  One day during my visit she told me that a woman enters her apartment and goes into her bed room.  She waits for the woman to come back out, but she never does.  I told mom that sometimes we think we see movement out of the corner of our eyes and think it is a person, but it is not. Emphatically she said, "NO!"  "I see the door open and a woman comes in, but I never see her go out!"

I am not sure what to make of it.  It could well be just a hallucination, but there could be more to it than that. I have told mom to let me know when it happens again.  It has been over a week now and she has said nothing.  I am going to ask mom about it again and ask her to talk to the woman and find out what her name is and what she is doing.  I was thinking that maybe it is an angel sent to minister to my mother.  I will bring up-dates as this plays out.

Our Father's Blessings,
Tom

ALEXANDER MCKEAG'S LOVE

. . . Love your enemies . . . If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? (Matthew 5:44, 46).

"A love that risks nothing is worth nothing" (Alexander McKeag).*

Our Father's Love,
Tom

*A favorite character of mine in James Michener's Centennial.  Perhaps the mention of his name will stir up some Centennial fans.  In any case, McKeag's thought about love is true.

THAT WHICH CALLS FORTH LOVE

Finally, brothers, whatever is . . . lovely . . . think about such things (Philippians 4:8).

Last Thursday, about noon,  the parking lot of the local convenience store was clogged and I was in a hurry--not a good combination.  Helen and I were going to travel to my daughter's to celebrate her birthday and to watch my grandson play basketball.  When I pulled into the parking place, I thought I needed to square up, so I backed up, not noticing that a young man in a 2014 Chevy Cruze had pulled in behind me.  He honked the horn to warn me, but it did not register in my hurried brain.  I did stop, however, but not before I scraped his new car.  The young man was very angry and said some very bad things, but I did understand his feelings.  It was his first new car after years of driving old "clunkers." I have had that same kind of experience.  We exchanged insurance company information and the local police came and investigated the accident.  Prior to our leaving the scene the young man apologized to me for his behavior.  I was truly amazed.  He didn't have to do that.  I am pretty sure if I would have given the young man the same behavior that he gave me at the beginning there would have been no apology forth coming!  I do give this young man a lot of credit!!

The Greek word is prosphile, lovely, in Philippians 4:8.  In his commentary, The Daily Study Bible, William Barclay says that this word could be translated, That which calls forth love.  One of the things that Christians are called to consider is, What do my thoughts, attitudes and behavior "call forth" in others?  Fear and bitterness will call out the same in those around us.  Criticism and rebuke can call forth resentment and anger in others.  However, empathy and kindness can well call forth the best in others--I found that to be true in the convenience store parking lot that day.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

HOW TO EVALUATE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.  Anyone who does not love remains in death.  Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him (I John 3:14-15).

I was motivated to post this Scripture because a little congregation I am currently serving is going through some strife right now.  I ask for your prayers.  Our labors are in vain if our people are unconverted in their hearts and do not love.

Our Father's Love
Tom

JESUS CHRIST: SOURCE OF GRACE AND PEACE

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:7).

Isn't it interesting that what God does Jesus does?  God the Father and the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ are the source of grace and peace.  The greeting that Paul uses to address the Christians at Rome is duplicated in nearly each of his epistles.  With out Christ there is no grace--You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace (Galatians 5:4)(See also 2 Timothy 1:9-10).  The "Bullets" I write are not comprehensive studies, but are only intended to plant seeds and be thought starters.  Many, many scriptures could be added in terms of reference for Jesus being the source of grace.

Grace isn't just about justification, it also has to do with training in righteousness; it isn't just about getting to Heaven, it is about how to live on this earth.  These words from Paul to Titus are instructive: For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ . . . (Titus 1:11-13 emphasis mine).

Being taught by the grace of God, being assured about life after death brings peace to the lives of those that have faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Those who possess true faith in Jesus are committed to replicate His life in theirs--to be like Him.  It is in that effort that Holy Spirit strengthens and gives peace to the believer.

In Hope,

Tom

JESUS CHRIST: CREATOR AND SUSTAINER

I am the Lord, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself (Isaiah 44:24).

. . . yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live (I Corinthians 8:6).

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made;  without him nothing was made that has been made.  (John 1:1-3).

He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born over all creation.  For by him all things were created: things in heaven and things on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created for him and by him.  He is before all things and in him all things hold together (Colossians 1:15-17).

In the past God spoke to our forefathers 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 he made the universe.  The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word . . . (Hebrews 1:1-3).

I have simply chosen to use Scripture to communicate the truth that Jesus Christ is the creator and the sustainer of the universe.  To believe that Jesus is a created being is to believe in a Jesus who is less than he is.  A faith in a false Christ is a false faith, unable to save.

In Hope,
Tom

JESUS CHRIST: KING OF KINGS

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).

I am now just recovering from an intense cold--I haven't been able to put together a coherent thought in close to a week.  I hope these thoughts make sense.

Our current president would like to be king because working with congress is such a messy and cumbersome business.  Congress has made it almost impossible to get the president's agenda passed into law.  That means, of course, that the government is working exactly as the framers of the Constitution intended.  We have lived in a democracy so long that we do not appreciate what it was actually like to live under a king who had executive, legislative and judicial powers to use at his whim.  Life and death could be executed at his word.  That kind of power makes government very efficient and can be very good if a good king is the ruler.  But, our fore fathers were Christians and they understood the Biblical truth that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Men of earth, sons of Adam, cannot handle that kind of power.

There is one who wields that kind of power and authority already: But about the Son he says, "Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom" (Hebrews 1:8). 
There is no higher authority than the authority of Jesus Christ. His rule is incorruptible!  Even with all the checks and balances in our constitutional government we still have to deal with plenty of corruption.  We look forward to the day when government will be perfect: They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of Lords and King of Kings--and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers (Revelation 17:14).

In Hope,
Tom

JESUS IS TO BE WORSHIPPED

But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son . . . (Galatians 4:4).

If God could be fully comprehended He would not be God--some of what the Bible says about Him is difficult to understand.  We only know about Him from what He has created,  from what He has chosen to reveal to us in the historical records and in His Spiritual revelation, the Bible.  History tells us that Jesus Christ was born about 6-4 BC.  More than any other person, Christ has shaped the cultures and the history of the world in which we live.  Today, for every eight people in the world, one of them is a practicing Christian.  While Islamists use force, violence and death to convert people to Islam, Christians use the Divinely powerful weapons of truth and love to bring people to submission to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of the characteristics of Christ is that He is worthy of worship: Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).  What legitimate prophet would accept worship?  In the Bible there are none.  The Bible does not record angels accepting worship either.  Anyone professes to be an angel or a prophet who accepts worship is false and not to be believed!

One of the reasons Jesus is to be worshipped is that He is in the form of God and equal with God (Philippians 2:6-8).  Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be held on to, but He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant and was born in the likeness of a human being.  He submitted Himself to the Father, becoming obedient unto death on a cross to pay for the sins of humanity.  If that great act of love does not touch your heart to worship, most likely, nothing will.

Our Father's Love,
Tom

WHO DO YOU SAY JESUS IS?

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, other say Elijah,  and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:13-17).

The truth that is one of the foundation rocks of the Christian faith is that Jesus is the Christ, the one specifically appointed and annointed by God to be the Lord and Savior of the world.  Muslims call him a prophet, and that he was, but he was much more than a prophet.  "Jehovah's Witness" call him an angel, but he was much more than an angel, being the very Son of God (Hebrews 1:1-4).

"Trinity" is a word used in Christian theology to partially describe God.  "Trinity" is not found as a word in the Bible so it must be understood that it is not a word that was inspiried by the Holy Spirit to be a description of God.  It was on that basis that a number of great Christians were not "trinitarians" in their Christian theology, Isaac Newton being one of them.  One of the problems with using non-inspired words is that they can be deficient in communicating the exact truth that God wants communicated, though they can be helpful in bringing a truth into clarity.  In the coming "Bullets," the use of the term, "trinity," will be avoided, leaving the reader to draw his own conclusions about who Jesus is.

One truth that is clear about Jesus, if he is not believed to be the Lord of your life and the one and only savior from your sin, your faith is deficient.  Who do you believe Jesus is?

Our Father's Love,
Tom  

FAITH IN CHRIST IS CRUCIAL

He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him (John 3:36).

Recently, a "Jehovah's Witness" stopped at my house intending to "witness."  At the time it was not convenient to visit so a lively discussion did not happen, but that encounter made me think that I should make a special effort to communicate to all that one's believe about Jesus Christ is the most crucial belief one can ever have.  It makes the difference between life and death, salvation and hell.

A person cannot read Matthew, Mark, Luke or John and not be confronted with a decision to make.  One can read about any other person in history and his thinking about that person makes little difference--Mohammed pales in comparison.  Not so with Jesus.  An encounter with Jesus Christ in the gospels forces one to make a decision about him.  Is he the Lord and Savior? Or, is he a liar and fraud or lunatic?  Those are the only choices that can be made about him.

So, the next few "Bullets" will be about Jesus Christ because what you believe about Christ is crucial!

Our Father's Love,
Tom  

CHRISTIAN CONFLICT RESOLUTION

For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).

I am the chairman of the board of a small non-profit service organization.  At a recent board meeting our director did not like the direction the board was taking so she made an emotional display and left the meeting.  At that point it was not possible to continue the meeting so the official meeting was adjourned even though there was business that needed attention.  Though our director was successful in short-term control of the meeting, in the long term, business has to proceed or it will mean the death of our non-profit.  No business can be emotionally directed without failure.

How to proceed?  First, pray a lot.  The real adversary, who can stimulate our emotions so that we act in a manner that is not wise, is active.  We need God's help.  In these kinds of situations it is always necessary to remember that satan is the one behind the event.  Satan is a destroyer, not a builder! 

Second, we must remember that our director is a sister in Christ, not an enemy combatant!  She is due the respect of her Christian family.  Being a Christian, I have every confidence that she will consider the difference between what her flesh desires and the legitimate direction of the board of directors.

Third, keep meetings logical and fact-based, do not allow emotions to rule.  This is the mark of emotional maturity. 

Our Father's Love,
Tom

FAMILY: FOUNDATION OF A NATION

. . . let each of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Ephesians 5:33).

The family is the foundation of the nation.  According to a Family Research Council study cited in "The Foster Report,"*  a married couple's decision to stay together is more influential in lowering the number of teenage out-of-wedlock births, unemployed dads, and Americans on welfare than any other factor.  Family cohesion is the main factor in determining whether a child will graduate from high school, families will end up on welfare, and young men will be employed or not.

Encouraging and cultivating good marriages is very very difficult in our present culture, but it must be done--the health of a nation depends on it!

Our Father's Blessings,
Tom

*The Foster Report is page of cited trends and facts in The Christian Counseling Connection. 

MINISTERING TO THE WHOLE PERSON

May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

At my home church, the sign over the main entrance to the gymnasium reads, "FAMILY LIFE CENTER, Ministering to the WHOLE person."  One of the foundational beliefs of my church is that a person is not just a spirit, though he is a spiritual being. That is what it means to be created in the image of God.  Jesus also spoke of our spiritual nature when quoted from Psalms 82:6 which speaks of humans as being gods (See John 10:34).  Certainly, the ministry of the Church of Christ has to be a ministry that feeds the spiritual nature of a person.

A person is a body as well.  The genetic code of each person is a little different, perhaps by degrees of minutia, but still making each of us different and unique.  Medical science would not be possible if there were huge differences in people's physical make up, so while being more alike than we are different there are still enough differences to make each of us unique as a snowflake--and we are all a little "flaky" at times.  The body is a temporary dwelling place of the spirit/soul until its death.  The stewardship of the body is essential, enabling us to serve the Lord as best as we can as long as we can.

The soul is the result of spirit and body coming together.  The basic outline of this is Genesis 2:7 which says that the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life and man became a living soul.  The soul is the image of God expressed within the framework of the body's genetic code.

So, what do we do as a church to minister to the whole person?  First and foremost, we worship our God, and the Lord Jesus Christ.  We teach the word of the Spirit, the Bible, to nourish and strengthen our spirits. We emphasize Christian fellowship because God intends for us to be social--we need "Jesus with skin on" for mutual support as we live in this.  We work together, doing acts of service.  We pray together.  We have a community vollyball league in the gym opening opportunities for relational evangelism. 

At my church, we want our people to do well in every way.  We want them to be spiritually healthy, physically healthy, financially healthy, and have emotional/social health.  One of the signs of the presence of the Kingdom of God is wholeness.  My church can do better in ministry to the whole person--we are not there yet.  With God's help, we will do better, that is our goal.

Grace&Peace,
Tom