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Esther

If not you, who? by Dr. Frankln L. Kirksey The saying, “If not you, who? If not now, when?” is attributed to Rabbi Hillel. Someone explains, “Hadassah, better known by her Persian name Esther, is a central figure in the Old Testament Book of Esther. Her account is one of courage, faith, and divine providence, illustrating how God can use individuals to fulfill His purposes.” King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) of Persia chose Esther to become Queen. These words from Mordecai to Esther come from Esther 4:14, a key verse in this book, “Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Let’s note three movements in this biblical account. First, Esther faced a pressing need. Her people, the Jews, were in peril, and they were about to encounter a terrible ordeal. The situation was desperate, filled with a sense of urgency and emergency. But does a need alone constitute a call? On a worldwide scale that would be impossible for one person. Edward Everett Hale penned thi...
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Thou art with me

Alone, yet not Alone by Dr. Vance Havner "Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me." - John 16:32 Blessed paradox of the Saviour and the Saint! Our Lord was a solitary soul, yet not alone. And the Christian who presses into the deeper things of God will often be lonely but never alone. Paul was lonely in the Roman prison: “All men forsook me.” (2 Timothy 4:16) But he was not alone: “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me.” (v. 17) Jacob may fancy himself alone in a strange land, with a stone for a pillow, but he will make a discovery: “Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” (Genesis 28:16) Jesus said, "And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone." (John 8:29) Live as though He were with you, for He is. You have His word for it and you can be confident of His promise, though you may no...
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Your Response To The Nearness of God

Philippians 4:1-7 ESV Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved. [2] I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. [3] Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. [4] Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. [5] Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; [6] do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  8] Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of...
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Knowing Christ

(EDITED From Grace Gems) Thomas Brooks, 1667, "HEAVEN on EARTH!" That knowledge which accompanies salvation, is a heart-affecting knowledge. It affects the heart with Christ, and all spiritual things. Oh, it does wonderfully endear Christ and the things of Christ to the soul. ... Oh, none but Christ, none but Christ! I cannot live in myself, I cannot live in my duties, I cannot live in external privileges, I cannot live in outward mercies; I can live only in Christ, who is . . . my life, my love, my joy, my crown, my all in all. Oh, the more I come to know Him . . . in His natures, in His names, in His offices, in His discoveries, in His visits, in His beauties, the more I find my heart and affections to prize Christ, to run after Christ, to be affected with Christ, and to be wonderfully endeared to Christ! Oh God, forbid that my heart should be affected or taken with anything in comparison with Christ. The more I kn...
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Supremacies of life. John 14

He [Sir Walter Scott] then desired to be wheeled through his rooms in the bath-chair. We moved him leisurely for an hour or more up and down the hall and the great library. “I have seen much,” he kept saying, “but nothing like my ain hoose—give me one turn more!” Next morning he desired to be drawn into the library and placed by the central window, that he might look down upon the Tweed. Here he expressed a wish that I should read to him. I asked, from what book. He said, “Need you ask? There is but one!” I chose the fourteenth chapter of St. John's Gospel.’ He listened with mild devotion, and, when Lockhart had finished reading of the Father's house and the many mansions, he said, ‘That is a great comfort!’ F W Boreham, ‘The Supremacies of Life’,  The Luggage of Life  (London: Charles H Kelly, 1912), 44-45. Elizabeth Foord.  A diminutive woman in size who was one of God’s greatest of servants.  Small in stature but mighty in faith, Mrs Elizabeth Foord ...
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Repentance.

Repentance for One and All Isaac Watts warns, “There is no repentance in the grave.” Let’s see what the Bible says about repentance for one and all. First, there is the practice of repentance for one and all. The word repentance means a change of mind and heart that leads to a change in direction. Luke 13:1-5 reads, “There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.’” Repentance is not just words of remorse. It is interesting to note there are...
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The Cathedral and Dudley Foord

Elizabeth Foord was the granddaughter of Bishop Barker. I once took Dudley and Betty to the Newcastle Cathedral after he preached for me at the Baptist Tabernacle, to see the Bishop Barker museum pieces, such as his Bible. As we were getting out of the car at the Cathedral Dudley said to me “Oh I should have told you if we run into the Bishop or the Dean he will throw us out of here!” I laughed. I said I was going to say the same thing.
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Church fathers

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Inglesia ni Cristo

What is Iglesia ni Cristo? Iglesia ni Cristo was founded by Felix Manalo in 1914 in the Philippines. The phrase “Iglesia ni Cristo” is Tagalog (the language of the Philippines) for “Church of Christ.” Sadly, while claiming to be a church, Iglesia ni Cristo has all of the basic elements of a cult. The first and foremost is a single charismatic leader who claims to have a special revelation from God. Felix Manalo was a former Catholic who abandoned Catholicism in his teens. He experimented with several Protestant denominations and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Manalo finally started his own church, the Iglesia ni Cristo, in 1914. When a schism in the church appeared in 1922, he began claiming to be God’s prophet in an effort to accumulate power and re-assert his leadership over the church. Some of his claims are that the Iglesia ni Cristo was prophesied in the Bible. The specific prophecy quoted is Isaiah 43:5–6, “Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east,...
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Great is Thy Faithfulness

The most beautiful memory I have of our time at Hope Christian Community Church was after short prayer and worship service after a family fun day outreach. Our Samoan church family led us in singing the hymn Great is Thy Faithfulness. We sang it in gratitude for God’s great grace that day. The words come from Lamentations 3:19-26 ESV - 19 Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! 20 My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. 21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: 22 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” 25 The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. 26 It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. The Unfailing Compassions of God. The Source -the steadfast love of the Lord ...
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Trivialities and immensities

Sometimes we mistake the trivial for the immense.   It wasn’t the rain put him there it was the tree falling on him.  Likewise sometimes we forget the immense in the face of the trivial.   Philippians 4:1-9 ESV - Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved. 2 I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. 3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds...
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Mistaking the trivial for the immense

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The watchmakers eulogy

St Petrock, Lydford, Devon - The gravestone is inscribed as follows:- Here lies in the horizontal position The outside case of George Routleigh, Watchmaker, Whose abilities in that line were an honour To his profession: Integrity was the main-spring, And prudence the regulator Of all the actions of his life: Humane, generous and liberal, His hand never stopped Till he had relieved distress; So nicely regulated were all his movements That he never went wrong Except when set-a-going By people Who did not know his key; Even then, he was easily Set right again: He had the art of disposing of his time So well That his hours glided away In one continual round Of pleasure and delight, Till an unlucky moment put a period to His existence; He departed this life November 14, 1802 Wound up, in hopes of being taken in hand By his Maker, And of being Thoroughly cleaned, repaired and set-a-going In the World to come.
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Pride and Power by Steven Willing (shortened version)

Every generation produces its version of the holy tyrant. The names change but not the pattern. Even the titles can vary: senior pastor, ruling elder, or influential layman with the loudest voice in the room. What they share is a widening circle of personal authority and the slow accumulation of wreckage that follows them: broken relationships, silenced dissent, fleeing members, shattered congregations.  This pattern should not surprise us. Augustine identified this impulse 16 centuries ago and gave it a name: the  libido dominandi  — the lust to dominate.  In “The City of God” (14:28), Augustine drew the defining contrast between two cities, two loves, two images of self. The earthly city is built on love of self and contempt for God. The heavenly city, on the other hand, is built on love of God and contempt for self. In the earthly city, men are ruled by  libido dominandi . In the heavenly city, by the love of serving. Augustine added a twist t...
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