Malachi 3:3 - "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"

He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy - when I see my image in it."

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Pass this on because this very moment, someone might need to know that God is watching over them. And, whatever they're going through, they'll be a better person in the end.

AMEN

SECURITY TIPS FOR WOMEN.

Once a while I do receive some nice tips or stories from my newsgroup, which I like to share it in this blogger. I do not write this tips neither do I know where it is from. I just like to share it with all the women visitors in this site.

Please take the time to read this. I know you are smart enough to know these pointers but there will be some, where you will go "Hmm, I must remember that."

After reading, forward it to someone you care about, never hurts to be careful in this crazy world we live in.

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do: The elbow is the strongest point on your body. If you are close enough to use it, do!

2. If a robber ask for your wallet and/or purse, DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM. BUT TOSS IT AWAY FROM YOU. Chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or purse than you and he will go for the wallet/purse. RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car: Kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won't see you but everybody else will. This has saved lives.

4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, or making a list, etc. DON'T DO THIS! The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

5. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot, or parking garage:

a. Be aware: look around you, look into your car, at the passenger side floor, and in the back seat.
b. If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.
c. Look at the car parked on the driver's side of your vehicle, and the passenger side. If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out. IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

6. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs. (Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot).

7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN! The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times. And even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN!

8. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP IT! It may get you raped, or killed. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking, well-educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked "for help" into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.

I'd also like you all to forward this to all the women you know. It may save a life. A candle is not dimmed by lighting another candle. I was going to send this to the ladies only, but guys, if you love your mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, etc., you may want to pass it onto them, as well.

WHY GO TO CHURCH?

A Churchgoer wrote a letter to the editor of the newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday.

I've gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me I can't remember a single one of them. So I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all." This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:

"I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this: They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me those meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!"

When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!

BACK FROM THE DEAD

The Remarkable Testimony of a Buddhist monk in Myanmar (Burma) who came back to life a changed man!

Introduction

The story that follows is simply a translation of a taped testimony from a man with a life-changing story. It is not an interview or a biography, butsimply the words from the man himself. Different people react in different ways when they hear this story. Some are inspired, some skeptical, a fewwill mock and ridicule, while some others have even been filled with rage and anger, convinced these words are the ravings of a mad man or an elaborate deception. Some Christians have opposed the story simply becausethe radical and miraculous events described herein do not fit their feeble image of an Almighty God.

We were first made aware of this story from several Burmese church leaders who shared it with us. These leaders had looked into the story and had not found any suggestion of it being a hoax. It was with this in mind that we decided to step out and circulate the story. We do not do so for any monetary gain, or with a motivation of self-promotion. We just want to let the story speak for itself, and invite Christian believers to judge it according to Scripture. If God wants any part of it to be intended for Hisglory or to encourage His people, then we pray His Spirit will work in the hearts of the readers in those ways.

Some people have told us they think the monk in this story never actually died, but that he just lapsed into unconsciousness, and the things he saw and heard were part of a fever-driven hallucination. Whatever you think,the simple fact remains that the events of this story so radically transformed this man that his life took on a complete 180-degree shift after the events described below. He has fearlessly and boldly told his story at great personal cost, including imprisonment. He has been scornedby his relatives, friends and colleagues, and faced death threats for his unwillingness to compromise his message. What motivated this man to bewilling to risk everything? Whether we believe him or not, his story issurely worth listening to and considering. In the cynical West many people demand hard evidence of such things, evidence that would stand up in acourt of law. Can we absolutely guarantee, beyond doubt, that all of these things happened? No, we cannot. But we feel it is worth repeating this man's story in his own words so that readers can judge for themselves.

* * *

My Early Years

Hello! My name is Athet Pyan Shinthaw Paulu. I am from the country ofMyanmar. I would like to share with you my testimony of what happened to me, but first I would like to give some brief background information from my life growing up.

I was born in 1958 in the town of Bogale, on the Irrawaddy Delta area of southern Myanmar [formerly Burma]. My parents, who were devout Buddhistslike most people in Myanmar, named me Thitpin [which means 'tree' inEnglish]. Our lives were very simple where I grew up. At the age of 13 Ileft school and started working on a fishing boat. We caught fish and sometimes also shrimp from the numerous rivers and streams in the Irrawaddyarea. At the age of 16 I became the leader of the boat. At this time Ilived in Upper Mainmahlagyon Island [Mainmahlagyon means 'Beautiful Woman Island' in English], just north of Bogale where I was born. This place is about 100 miles southwest of Yangon [Rangoon], our nation's capitol city.

One day, when I was 17, we caught a large number of fish in our nets.Because of the many fish, a large crocodile was attracted to us. It followed our boat and tried to attack us. We were terrified so we frantically rowed our boats toward the river bank as fast as we could. Thecrocodile followed us and smashed our boat with its tail. Although no one died in this incident, the attack greatly affected my life. I no longerwanted to fish. Our small boat sank because of the crocodile attack. We hadto go home to our village that night on a passenger boat.

Not long after, his employers transferred my father to Yangon City[formerly spelt Rangoon]. At the age of 18 I was sent to a Buddhist monastery to be a novice monk. Most parents in Myanmar try to send theirson into a Buddhist monastery, at least for a time, as it is considered agreat honor to have a son serve in this way. We have been observing this custom for many hundreds of years.

A Zealous Disciple of Buddha

When I turned 19 years and 3 months old (in 1977), I became a normal monk.The senior monk at my monastery gave me a new Buddhist name, which is the custom in our country. I was now called U Nata Pannita Ashinthuriya. Whenwe become a monk we no longer use the name given to us at birth by our parents. The name of the monastery I lived at is called Mandalay KyaikasanKyaing. The senior monk's name was called U Zadila Kyar Ni Kan Sayadaw [U Zadila is his title]. He was the most famous Buddhist monk in all ofMyanmar at the time. Everyone knew who he was. He was widely honored by the people and respected as a great teacher. I say he "was" because in 1983 he suddenly died when he was involved in a fatal car accident. His death shocked everyone. At the time I had been a monk for six years.

I tried hard to be the best monk I could and to follow all the precepts ofBuddhism. At one stage I moved to a cemetery where I lived and meditated continually. Some monks who really want to know the truths of Buddha do things like I did. Some move deep into the forests where they live a lifeof self-denial and poverty. I sought to deny my selfish thoughts anddesires, to escape from sickness and suffering and to break free from thecycle of this world. At the cemetery I was not afraid of ghosts. I tried to attain such inner peace and self-realization that even when a mosquito landed on my arm I would let it bite me instead of brushing it off!

For years I strived to be the best monk I could and not to harm any living being. I studied the holy Buddhist teachings just like all my forefathers had done before me.

My life proceeded as a monk until I got very, very sick. I was in Mandalayat the time and had to be taken to the hospital for treatment. The doctors did some tests on me and told me I had both Yellow Fever and malaria at the same time! After about one month in the hospital I was getting worse. The doctors told me there was no chance for me to recover and discharged me to make arrangements to die.

This is a brief description of my past. I would now like to tell you someof the remarkable things that happened to me after this time...

A Vision that Changed My Life Forever

After I was discharged from the hospital I went back to the monastery whereother monks cared for me. I grew weaker and weaker and was lapsing into unconsciousness. I learned later that I actually died for three days. Mybody decayed and stunk of death, and my heart stopped beating. My body was prepared for cremation and was put through traditional Buddhist purification rites.

Although I faded away in my body I remember my mind and spirit were fully alert. I was in a very, very powerful storm. A tremendous wind flattened the whole landscape until there were no trees or anything else standing,just a flat plain. I walked very fast along this plain for some time. Therewere no other people anywhere, I was all alone. After some time I crossed ariver. On the other side of the river I saw a terrible, terrible lake offire. In Buddhism we do not have a concept of a place like this. At first Iwas confused and didn't know it was hell until I saw Yama, the king of hell[Yama is the name ascribed to the King of Hell in numerous culturesthroughout Asia]. His face looked like the face of a lion, his body was like a lion, but his legs were like a naga [serpent spirit]. He had anumber of horns on his head. His face was very fierce, and I was extremelyafraid. Trembling, I asked him his name. He replied, "I am the king of hell, the Destroyer."

The terrible, terrible Lake of Fire

The king of hell told me to look into the lake of fire. I looked and I saw the saffron colored robes that Buddhist monks wear in Myanmar. I lookedcloser and saw the shaven head of a man. When I looked at the man's face Isaw it was U Zadila Kyar Ni Kan Sayadaw [the famous monk who had died in a car accident in 1983]. I asked the king of hell why my former leader was confined to this lake of torment. I said, "Why is he in this lake of fire?He was a very good teacher. He even had a teaching tape called 'Are You aMan or a Dog?' which had helped thousands of people understand that their worth as humans is far greater than the animals." The king of hell replied,"Yes, he was a good teacher but he did not believe in Jesus Christ. That's why he is in hell."

I was told to look at another person who was in the fire. I saw a man with very long hair wrapped on the left hand side of his head. He was also wearing a robe. I asked the king of hell, "Who is this man?" He replied,"This is the one you worship: Gautama [Buddha]."

I was very disturbed to see Gautama in hell. I protested, "Gautama had goodethics and good moral character, why is he suffering in this lake of fire?" The king of hell answered me, "It doesn't matter how good he was. He is in this place because he did not believe in the Eternal God."

I then saw another man who looked like he was wearing a soldier's uniform.He had a large wound on his chest. I asked, "Who is this man?" The king ofhell said, "This is Aung San, the revolutionary leader of Myanmar." I wastold, "Aung San is here because he persecuted and killed Christians, butmostly because he didn't believe in Jesus Christ." In Myanmar the people have a common saying, "Soldiers never die, they live on." I was told that the legions of hell have a saying "Soldiers never die, but they go to hell forever."

I looked and saw another man in the lake of fire. He was a very tall man and he was dressed in military armor. He was also holding a sword and ashield. This man had a wound on his forehead. This man was taller than anyperson I have ever seen. He was six times the length between a man's elbow and the tips of his fingers when he stretches his arm out straight, plus one span of a man's fingers when he spreads out his hand. The king of hell said, "This man's name is Goliath. He is in hell because he blasphemed theEternal God and His servant David." I was confused because I didn't know who either Goliath or David was. The king of hell said, "Goliath is recorded in the Christian Bible. You don't know him now, but when you become a Christian you will know who he is."

I was then taken to a place [not in the Lake of Fire] where I saw both rich and poor people preparing to eat their evening meals. I asked, "Who cooked the food for these people?" The king of hell replied, "The poor have to prepare their own food, but the rich people get others to cook for them."When the food had been prepared for the rich people they sat down to eat.As soon as they started a thick smoke came up. The rich people ate as fast as they could to ease their consciences. They were struggling to breathe because of the smoke. They had to eat fast because they were fearful of losing their money. Their money is their god.

Another king of hell then came to me. I also saw a being whose job is to stoke the fires beneath the lake of fire, to keep it hot. This being asked me, "Are you going into the lake of fire too?" I replied, "No! I am only here to observe!" The appearance of this creature stoking the fire was very terrifying. He had ten horns on his head and a spear in his hand that had seven sharp blades coming from the end. The creature told me, "You are right. You came here just to observe. I cannot find your name here." He said, "You must now go back the way you came." He pointed me toward the desolate plain that I had first walked along before I came to the lake of fire.

The Road of Decision

I walked a long time, until I was bleeding. I was hot and in great pain.Finally, after walking for about three hours I came to a wide road. Iwalked along this road for some time until I came to a fork. One road,going off to the left, was wide. A smaller road went off to the right handside. There was a sign post at the fork saying that the road to the left was for those who do not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The smaller road tothe right was for believers in Jesus.

I was interested to see where the larger road led so I started down it.There were two men walking about 300 yards ahead of me. I tried to catch up with them so I could walk with them but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't catch up with them, so I turned around and went back to the fork in the road. I continued to watch these two men as they walked down the road away from me. When they reached the end of the road they were suddenly stabbed. These two men cried out in great pain! I also cried out when I saw what happened to them! I realized the bigger road ended in great danger for those who traveled down it.

Looking into Heaven

I started walking down the believers' road instead. After traveling for about one hour the surface of the road turned to pure gold. It was so purethat when I looked down I could see my own reflection perfectly. I then sawa man standing in front of me. He was wearing a white robe. I also heard beautiful singing. Oh, it was so beautiful and pure! It was much better and more meaningful than the worship we have in churches here on the earth. The man in the white robe asked me to walk with him. I asked him, "What is your name?" but he did not answer. After I asked his name six times the man answered, "I am the one who holds the key to heaven. Heaven is a very, very beautiful place. You cannot go there now but if you follow Jesus Christ you can go there after your life has finished on the earth." The man's name was Peter.

Peter then asked me to sit down and he showed me a place to the north.Peter said, "Look to the north and see God create man." I saw the EternalGod from a distance. God spoke to an angel, "Let us make man." The angel pleaded with God and said, "Please don't make man. He will do wrong and will grieve you." [In Burmese literally: "He will make you lose face."].But God created man anyway. God blew on the man and the man came to life.He gave him the name "Adam". [Note: Buddhists do not believe in theCreation of the world or of man, so this experience had a significant impact on the monk].

Sent Back with a New Name

Then Peter said, "Now get up and go back to where you came from. Speak to the people who worship Buddha and who worship idols. Tell them they must go to hell if they don't change. Those who build temples and idols will also have to go to hell. Those who give offerings to the monks to earn merit forthemselves will go to hell. All those who pray to the monks and call them'Pra' [respectful title for monks] will go to hell. Those who chant and'give life' to idols will go to hell. All those who don't believe in JesusChrist will go to hell." Peter told me to go back to the earth and testify about the things I had seen. He also said, "You must speak in your new name. From now on you are to be called Athet Pyan Shinthaw Paulu ["Paul who came Back to Life."].I didn't want to go back. I wanted to go to heaven. Angels opened a book. First they looked for my childhood name (Thitpin) in the book, but they could not find it. They then looked for the name I had been given when I entered the Buddhist monk hood (U Nata Pannita Ashinthuriya) but it wasn't written in the book either. Then Peter said, "Your name is not written here, you must return and testify about Jesus to the Buddhist people."

I walked back along the gold road. Again I heard beautiful singing, thekind of which I have never heard before or since. Peter walked with me until the time I returned to the earth. He showed me a ladder that reached down from the heaven to the sky. The ladder didn't reach to the earth, but stopped in mid-air. On the ladder I saw many angels, some going up to heaven and some going down the ladder. They were very busy. I asked Peter,"Who are they?" Peter answered, "They are messengers of God. They are reporting to heaven the names of all those who believe in Jesus Christ and the names of those who don't believe." Peter then told me it was time to go back.

It is a Ghost!

The next thing I was aware of was the sound of weeping. I heard my own mother cry out, "My son, why did you leave us now?" I also heard many other people weeping. I realized I was lying in a box. I started to move.My mother and father started shouting, "He is alive! He is alive!" Other people who were farther away did not believe my parents. I then placed my hands on the sides of the box and sat upright. Many people were struck with terror. They cried out, "It is a ghost!" and ran away as fast as their legs could carry them.

Those who remained were speechless and trembling. I noticed I was sitting in smelly liquid and body fluids, enough to fill about three and a half cups. This was liquid that had come out of my stomach and my insides while my body was lying in the coffin. This is why people knew I had indeed been dead. Inside the coffin there was a type of plastic sheet fixed to thewood. This sheet is placed there to retain a corpse's liquids, because many dead bodies release much fluid like mine did.

I learned later that I was just moments away from being cremated in theflames. In Myanmar people are placed in a coffin, the lid is then nailed shut, and the whole coffin is burned. When I came back to life my mother and father were being allowed to look at my body for the very last time.Moments later the lid of my coffin would have been nailed shut and I would have been cremated!

I immediately started to explain the things I had seen and heard. People were astonished. I told them about the men I had seen in the lake of fire,and told them that only the Christians know the truth, that our forefathers and us have been deceived for thousands of years! I told them everything we believe is a lie. The people were astonished because they knew what kindof a monk I had been and how zealous I had been for the teachings of Buddha.

In Myanmar when a person dies their name and age is written on the side of the coffin. When a monk dies, the monk's name, age and the number of yearshe has served as a monk are written on the side of the coffin. I had already been recorded as dead but as you can see, now I am alive!

Epilogue

Since 'Paul who came back to life' experienced the above story he has remained a faithful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ. Burmese pastors havetold us that he had led hundreds of other monks to faith in Christ. His testimony is obviously very uncompromising. Because of that, his message has offended many people who cannot accept there is only one Way to Heaven,the Lord Jesus Christ. Despite great opposition, his experiences were so real to him that he has not wavered. After many years in the Buddhistmonk hood, as a strict follower of Buddhist teachings, he immediately proclaimed the Gospel of Christ following his resurrection and exhorted other monks to forsake all false gods and follow Jesus Christ with all their hearts. Before the time of his sickness and death he had no exposure to Christianity at all. Everything he learned during those three days in the grave was new to his mind.

In a bid to get his message out to as many people as possible, this modern-day Lazarus began distributing audio and video cassette tapes withhis story on them. The police and Buddhist authorities in Myanmar have donetheir utmost to gather these tapes up and destroy them. The testimony you have just read has been translated from one of those cassette tapes. We are told it is now quite dangerous for citizens of Myanmar to be in possession of these tapes.

His fearless testimony has landed him in prison at least once, where the authorities failed in their bid to silence him. Upon his release he continued to testify of the things he saw and heard. His current where abouts are uncertain. One Burmese informant told us he is in prison and may have been killed, while another informant was told he is now released from prison and is continuing his ministry.

Translated by:Asian Minorities OutreachP.O.Box 901Palestine, TX 75802 U.S.A. EMail: monkstory@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.antioch.com.sg/mission/asianmo

God and the Geese!

There was once a man who didn't believe in God, and he didn't hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion and religious holidays. His wife, however, did believe, and she raised their children to also have faith in God and Jesus, despite his disparaging comments. One snowy Eve, his wife was taking their children to service in the farm community in which they lived. They were to talk about Jesus' birth. She asked him to come, but he refused.

"That story is nonsense!" he said. "Why would God lower Himself to come to Earth as a man? That's ridiculous!"

So she and the children left, and he stayed home. A while later, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blizzard. As the man looked out the window, all he saw was a blinding snowstorm. He sat down to relax before the fire for the evening. Then he heard a loud thump. Something had! Hit the window. He looked out, but couldn't see more than a few feet. When the snow let up a little, he ventured outside to see what could have been beating on his window.

In the field near his house he saw a flock of wild geese. Apparently they had been flying south for the winter when they got caught in the snowstorm and couldn't go on. They were lost and stranded on his farm, with no food or shelter. They just flapped their wings and flew around the field in low circles, blindly and aimlessly. A couple of them had flown into his window, it seemed.
The man felt sorry for the geese and wanted to help them. The barn would be a great place for them to stay, he thought. It's warm and safe; surely they could spend the night and wait out the storm. So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide, then watched and waited, hoping they would notice the open barn and go inside.

But the geese just fluttered around aimlessly and didn't seem to notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them. The man tried to get their attention, but that just seemed to scare them, and they moved further away. He went into the house and came with some bread, broke it up, and made a breadcrumb trail leading to the barn. They still didn't catch on.

Now he was getting frustrated. He got behind them and tried to shoo them toward the barn, but they only got more scared and scattered in every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where they would be warm and safe.

"Why don't they follow me?" he exclaimed. "Can't they see this is the only place where they can survive the storm?"

He thought for a moment and realized that they just wouldn't follow a human. "If only I were a goose, then I could save them," he said out loud. Then he had an idea. He went into barn, got one of his own geese, and carried it in his arms as he circled around behind the flock of wild geese.

He then released it. His goose flew through the flock and straight into the barn -- and one-by-one, the other geese followed it to safety.

He stood silently for a moment as the words he had spoken a few minutes earlier replayed in his mind: "If only I were a goose, then I could save them!" Then he thought about what he had said to his wife earlier. "Why would God want to be like us? That's ridiculous!"

Suddenly it all made sense. That is what God had done. We were like the geese--blind, lost, perishing. God had His Son become like us so He could show us the way and save us.

As the winds and blinding snow died down, his soul became quiet and pondered this wonderful thought. Suddenly he understood why Christ had come. Years of doubt and disbelief vanished with the passing storm. He fell to his knees in the snow, and prayed his first prayer:

"Thank You, God, for coming in human form to get me out of the storm!"

Just a Short Story for All!

SOME GREAT WORDS OF WISDOM FROM LISA MORISON - well worth a read and reflection!

When an old lady died in the geriatric ward of a small hospital near Dundee, Scotland, it was believed that she had nothing left of any value. Later, when the nurses were going through her meager possessions, they found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to every nurse in the hospital. One nurse took her copy to Ireland. The old lady's sole bequest to posterity has since appeared in the Christmas edition of the News Magazine of the North Ireland Association for Mental Health. A slide presentation has also been made based on her simple, but eloquent, poem. And this little old Scottish lady, with nothing left to give to the world, is now the author of this "anonymous" poem winging across the Internet:

Crabby Old Woman

What do you see, nurses?
What do you see?
What are you thinking
When you're looking at me?

A crabby old woman,
Not very wise,
Uncertain of habit,
With faraway eyes?

Who dribbles her food
And makes no reply
When you say in a loud voice,
"I do wish you'd try!"

Who seems not to notice
The things that you do,
And forever is losing
A stocking or shoe?

Who, resisting or not,
Lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding,
The long day to fill?

Is that what you're thinking?
Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse,
You're not looking at me.

I'll tell you who I am
As I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding,
As I eat at your will.

I'm a small child of ten
With a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters,
Who love one another.

A young girl of sixteen
With wings on her feet
Dreaming that soon now
A lover she'll meet.

A bride soon at twenty,
My heart gives a leap,
Remembering the vows
That I promised to keep

At twenty-five now,
I have young of my own,
Who need me to guide
And a secure happy home.

A woman of thirty,
My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other
With ties that should last.

At forty, my young sons
Have grown and are gone,
But my man's beside me
To see I don't mourn.

At fifty once more,
Babies play round my knee,
Again we know children,
My loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me,
My husband is dead,
I look at the future,
I shudder with dread.

For my young are all rearing
Young of their own,
And I think of the years
And the love that I've known.

I'm now an old woman
And nature is cruel;
'Tis jest to make old age
Look like a fool.

The body, it crumbles,
Grace and vigour depart,
There is now a stone
Where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass
A young girl still dwells,
And now and again,
My battered heart swells.

I remember the joys,
I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living
Life over again.

I remember the joys,
I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living
Life over again.

So open your eyes, people,
Open and see,
Not a crabby old woman;
Look closer . . . see ME!!

Remember this poem when you next meet an old person who you might brush aside without looking at the young soul within...........we will all, one day, be there, too!

PLEASE SHARE THIS POEM. IT'S SOMETHING WE ALL NEED TO READ!

WHY WE NEED TO STUDY THE LIFE OF CHRIST?

Why We Need To Study The Life Of Christ!


I recently read a few articles and websites (sorry no bibliography included here) that talk about the life of Christ. I later wonder why I or we need to study the life of Christ in order to know about what Christianity is all about. Later I compiled the overall general opinion of all the reasons we need to know Christ. The need or important to study the Life of Christ because When we come to the Christ of the Gospels we are at the fountainhead of the New Testament and the fulfillment of much of the Old. Jesus Christ is the focal point of all history of all times. He is the fulfillment of Old Testament hope for; He is the source of all New Testament revelation and expectation. He is everything at Christian faith is built on. To study the life of Christ is to study the fountainhead of all New Testament revelation and the fulfillment of the Old Testament. Reading the New Testament is liked to relive the pages of Scripture recorded by the gospel writers is to walk with our Lord in His earthly ministry and preparing what our own ministry on this life ought to be likewise. Understanding the life of Christ is to see, sense and behold God in human flesh that no other religions are all about. The Gospel writer John described it more vividly or concisely of what it meant to us:


And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him, and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth was realized through Jesus Christ. No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him (John 1:14-18).


The Gospel writers are the eyewitness of the living Jesus. When we study the life of Christ in the Gospels we meet the “real” Jesus. The ‘real’ Jesus is not the figment of our imagination that comforts us in our errors and confirms our prejudices and preconceived notions. The real Jesus is the Christ of the Gospels, the full manifestation of deity in human flesh. It is this Jesus Whom we shall meet in the gospels. The Jesus of our imaginations has little to offer, but the Jesus of biblical history is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). All the incidents or the story lines are identical in the four books of the gospel. It reliability and originality ever intrinsic any readers’ thoughts or minds. The life of Christ confronts us with a personality which forbids indecision and neutrality of our faith in Him. His life aids us to learn of God’s pattern and provision for our Christian experience like what Paul wrote in Romans chapter 5:


“Much more, then, having been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Rom. 5:9,10).


The most important point of the need to study life of our savior is to remember that the study of the life and teachings of Christ is foundational to a proper understanding of the dispensational distinctions between God’s program for Israel in the Old Testament, and His program for Gentiles in the New. Lastly not to leave out any points, we need to know that Jesus Christ is the determining factor between life and death, heaven and hell in our Christian life and faith.


Early Age of Our Lord Jesus.


More than 2000 years ago God sent an angel to speak to a Virgin Mary whom was engaged to Joseph, a carpenter. The angel told Mary that that by God's power, she would conceive and bear a son to be named "Jesus".


When Joseph learned that she was pregnant, he was not happy and thought of termination but an angel instructed him to marry her. Joseph obediently married her and took her tot Bethlehem and registered for a census. While there, Mary gave birth to Jesus. She laid him in a manger because there was no room at the inn. Angels invited the Shepherds to visit Jesus in Bethlehem. Later, wise men (the visitors) brought gifts to Jesus. The visitors were probably astronomers or priests from Persia (wise men), rather than kings as tradition picture them. In the ancient world, astronomy and astrology were closely linked. There could have been more or less than three; the figure is arrived at solely because of the three kinds of gift. They brought which we will discern on the next paragraph. Probably, Gentile philosophers, who, through Divine assistance, had improved their knowledge of nature, as a means of leading to the knowledge of the one true God. The one from east – so Arabia as frequently called in scripture. It lay to the east of Judea, and was famous for gold, frankincense and myrrh. The gifts themselves may represent aspects of Jesus’ ministry: gold for a king; frankincense for a priest (representing the prayers of the people) and myrrh for his burial as crucified savior.


Tradition, not the gospels say the Magi were three kings and that the presents they gave the baby had special significance as mentioned above. The term used, Magi, originally designated a priestly class of the Medes and had come to be used generally of Eastern sages versed in knowledge of the stars. The wise men were miraculously led where or not God employed a regular through rare conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn for this purpose is a minor question, seeing the star- standing over where the child was the Magi intention.


For Matthew the Magi’s visit also represents the Messiah’s relationship to the Gentile world and is also fitting introduction to other prophetically significant events of Christ’s infancy. The story is in keeping with the ‘royal’ Messianic expectation of the Jews and with the character of Herod. The Magi supposed to report the incident and where about of the child Jesus to Herod instead they knew why that Jesus came for a good purpose for all mankind as we notice that Magi even bowed down and worshiped the child and left the place with many gifts. And finally the angry Herod still sent out his soldiers to persecute all children below the age of two. This bring about the next journey of Jesus to Nazareth and that where was fulfilled what has been spoken on effect by several of the prophets that He shall be called a Nazarene – that is He shall be despised and rejected, shall be a mark of public contempt and reproach.


What we learned from Matthew 2 from Wesley’s commentary is that the Magi represented a new world for all the Gentile people. The birth of Jesus was not meant for the salvation of the Jews only but to all Gentile worlds. It also indicates that the coming of Jesus who known before hand and known throughout the world at the ancient times. That is very essential for our study of why we need to know the purpose and reason of the Magi visit to Jesus family after traveling hundred or thousand miles away from home or country but we still do not actually know what these Magi people came from.


Later the visitors told Herod the Great, a wicked king, that Jesus would rule Israel without informing the location. . Judea was ruled by Herod as King. So no matter how King Herod still sent his soldiers to kill the children in Bethlehem, in a way to ensure baby Jesus will be killed too but warned by an angel, Joseph took his family to Egypt. Many years after the death of Herod, they returned to Israel and raised Jesus in a town called Nazareth. The birth of Jesus, it was a time of issuing the decree of Augustus Caesar where census was to be taken as a preliminary to a poll tax in the provinces. Everyone had to be taxed so Joseph was of the family of David and would have to be enrolled what that family had its landed inheritance.


Joseph was really poor and because unable to complete the equitable taxation. He decided to move from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth. The journeys were probably ignorant of the fact that they were helping to fulfill the prophecy that pointed to Bethlehem as the birthplace of Christ. In a manger a child was born, how the angel of the land announces the conception of Jesus. The host of angel praising was bring a good tidings of great joy and peace with God was about to be thrown open to all mankind which is no longer to be confined to the Jew but to be offered to the whole Gentile world.


Here the circumcision of Jesus on the eight day, it must be obeyed and declared His name Jesus. There we found Simeon, the elderly man approaching death who believed he would see the Messiah before dying. Nevertheless, he too, having recognized the infant Jesus and rejoiced focuses on cost an ominous warning for mercy (vs 35). Next Anna enters, saintly old eccentric who probably had more of a reputation as a nuisance than a prophet among the temple guards who speaks of Christ to all those quiet hopers in Israel.


It is about the boy Jesus in His Father’s house when the parent took Him to the temple as the custom of the law (Passover) to offer sacrifice that required a pigeon or turtledoves for a sin offering for those who were poor. We see here Jesus spent these days in the temple sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them; and asking them questions. In the temple, where the school of the rabbis were held, and law regularly expounded. Jesus kept on asking question. It was the custom in Jewish rabbinical school for scholars to ask questions. Here Jesus expresses His High consciousness of His mission and office; His life is to be uniquely a human life wholly lived to God, a life which is in all parts and in very aspect an act of worship, as man’s life ought to be and never had been. He must be in His Father’s house yet obedient toward His earthly parent too as He had to return home for a normal life until His time has come.


We notice the People’s New Testament commentary on Luke 2 talks about the time of Jesus’ birth until the age of twelve. We learned that He loved the word of God and at the meantime; he was an obedient boy toward His earthly parent. It is an encouragement for all of us that no matter what sort of lives whether poor or rich. We much serve our God with all our heart and honor those on this world no matter what.


Jesus Relationship with His Earthly Parent.


The early story here does not portray Him as doing any supernatural deed or speaking in an unduly authoritative. The message here is just that Jesus “must be about my Father’s house (Luke 2 v49).” I do not blame Jesus wish to do God’s business but let read verses 43 and 44 of Luke chapter 2: “And when he feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parent did not know it, but supposing him to be in the company they went a day’s journey.” Two things that I find inconsistent was first, Jesus apparent disregard for his parents’ time and feeling. Second, if Jesus had been an irresponsible child his parents would never have gone a whole day without knowing his whereabouts. They should trust him and knew he was an obedient boy. This suggests that Jesus’ motive of staying behind was not carelessness or disrespect. It must have something else in mind.


As I read on, Jesus was only found in the temple sitting among the teachers listening to them and asking them questions. He was missing for three days. The parent must have gone searching through the whole Jerusalem and maybe through the night. Finally, Jesus’ parent found him and next conversation begins in verses 48 – 50 of Luke chapter 2. His mother said to him “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold your father and I have been looking for you anxiously (literally: in pain). And to my surprised, he answered “why is it that you sought me? Did you not know I must be in my father’s house?” They stagnant of what was spoken by him. To my understanding, Jesus answers because there is laid on him an inner necessity to be in his father’s house. The main point of the whole passage probably lies is the contrast between “Your father” and “My father.” Mary says, “Your father and I have been searching for you.” Jesus answers, “You should have known I would be at house of my father.” Jesus has chosen this crucial stage in His life on the brink of manhood and told his parent in an unforgettable way that he knows his real father and his purpose to be here on earth. It will mean, as Simeon said in Luke 2:35 “A sword will pierce through your soul also, Mary.” The time will come when Jesus will be killed at Jerusalem and three days rise from the dead and that will be a great pain to Mary. And is not this three days vigil of Mary and Joseph a foreshadowing of that experience as she said “Your father and I have been seeking you in pain.”


The response of Jesus toward his parent are not just mere irresponsible or rude. He was obedient and good son. He is doing what he was here to do and he knew what his parent would go through in the later part of their life that will be more painful than this. Another reason is that Jesus should expect his parent to know where he was as the temple was the only place he will go.


Miracle during Jesus Ministry


Jesus did many miracles to show others that he was God's son. God gave Jesus power over nature, power over disease, and even power over death! Miracle explains here is God’s design was not only to put faith to the test but also to deepen it, to raise their expectation of a cure and to prepare them to receive it; and the cordial acknowledgment, so touchingly simple, with they immediately made to Him of His power to heal them, show how entirely that object was gained. We see this in Matthew 9:29.


Miracle is an event in the external world brought about by the immediate agency or the simple volition of God, operating without any use of means capable of being discerned by the senses, and normally designed to authenticate the divine commission of a religious teacher and the truth of his message. We know any miracle occurrence at once above nature and above man knowledge. It indicates the intervention of power is not merely limited by laws either of matter or of mind; it is a power interrupting the fixed law with governs their movements or supernatural power. The law of nature involved is miracles is the sense no muscular force can control the action of physical force, the law of gravity is neither suspended nor violated but counteract by stronger force like Christ walking on the water.


The New Testament here are four Greek words principally used to designate miracles:
1. Semeion – a “sign” i.e. an evidence of a divine commission; an attestation of a divine message (John 2:10; 18; 23).
2. Terata – “wonder,” causing events; portents; producing astonishment in the beholder (Act 2:19)
3. Durameis – “mighty works;” works of superhuman power (Act 2:22).
4. Erga – “works;” the works of Him who is “wonderful in working.” (John 5:20; 36).


Miracles are seals of a divine mission. It is a proof that they were message of God. Our Lord appealed to miracles as a conclusion proof of his divine mission. It is a established the evidence of the senses to those who are witnesses of them and other maybe a testimony of such witnesses. A miracle is contrary to experience. There is no explanation for miracle while experience that is. No matter what, it is personal action of God to man and cannot be explained by wisdom of man or modern science but only Him as any fact of history in the Bible well authenticated are credible.


This Miracle - characteristics of Bible miracles.


Noteworthy characteristics of the Biblical miracles are their open and public nature, their simplicity, their purpose and motive. Some were performed in private or before small groups (1Ki 17:19-24; Mr 1:29-31; Ac 9:39-41), but often they were public, before thousands or even millions of observers. (Ex 14:21-31; 19:16-19) Jesus’ works were open and public—there was no secrecy attached to them; and he healed all who came to him, not failing on the pretext that some lacked sufficient faith.—Mt 8:16; 9:35; 12:15.
Simplicity marked both miraculous cures and control over the elements. (Mr 4:39; 5:25-29; 10:46-52)


Biblical miracles generally were performed without outward display, frequently in response to a chance encounter, a request, and that on the public street or in an unprepared place.—1Ki 13:3-6; Lu 7:11-15; Ac 28:3-6. Miracles were not mysterious acts performed merely to satisfy curiosity and to mystify. They always helped others, sometimes directly in a physical way and always in a spiritual way, turning persons to true worship. Bible miracles involved not only animate things but also inanimate ones, such as calming the wind and sea (Mt 8:24-27), stopping and starting rain (1Ki 17:1-7; 18:41-45), and changing water into blood or into wine (Ex 7:19-21; Jn 2:1-11). They also included physical cures of all types, such as “incurable” leprosy (2Ki 5:1-14; Lu 17:11-19) and blindness from birth. (Jn 9:1-7) This great variety of miracles argues for their credibility as backed by the Creator, for it is logical that only the Creator could exercise influence in all areas of human experience and over all forms of matter.


The miracle of Jesus did many wonder through the Bible and how it influences people of that time and how the word of it teaching still come alive today. Have we said that the Bible is never a part of our life? Moreover, we know the Bible is still one of the best sellers in the world until today.


The Transfiguration.


A miraculous event witnessed by Peter, James, and John, in which Jesus’ “face shone as the sun, and his outer garments became brilliant as the light.” (Mt 17:1-9; Mr 9:2-10; Lu 9:28-36) Mark says that on this occasion Jesus’ outer garments became “far whiter than any clothes cleaner on earth could whiten them,” and Luke states, “the appearance of his face became different.”


The transfiguration occurred on a mountain sometime after Passover of 32 C.E., quite a while before Jesus’ final trip to Jerusalem. It probably took place at night, for the apostles “were weighed down with sleep.” (Lu 9:32) At night, the event would be more vivid, and they did spend the night on the mountain, for it was not until the next day that they descended. (Lu 9:37) Just how long the transfiguration lasted, however, the Bible does not say.


Prior to ascending the mountain, Christ had asked all of his disciples: “Who are men saying that I am?” whereupon Peter replied: “You are the Christ.” At that Jesus told them that he would die and be resurrected (Mr 8:27-31), though he also promised that some of his disciples would “not taste death at all” until they had first seen “the Son of man coming in his kingdom,” or “the kingdom of God already come in power.” (Mt 16:28; Mr 9:1) This promise was fulfilled “six days later” when Peter, James, and John accompanied Jesus into “a lofty mountain” (Mt 17:1; Mr 9:2; Lu 9:28) where, while praying, Jesus was transfigured before them.


What is the significance of the transfiguration?


During Jesus’ transfiguration, Moses and Elijah also appeared “with glory.” (Lu 9:30, 31; Mt 17:3; Mr 9:4) It had been foretold that God would rise up a prophet like Moses, and that promise was fulfilled in Christ. (De 18:15-19; Ac 3:19-23) There were many similarities between Moses and Jesus, such as: Babes were killed at their births, though they themselves were spared (Ex 1:20–2:10; Mt 2:7-23); they both experienced fasts of 40 days’ duration (Ex 24:18; 34:28; De 9:18, 25; Mt 4:1, 2); both were raised up by God in the interests of true worship and to effect deliverance (Ex 3:1-10; Ac 7:30-37; 3:19-23); they were each privileged by God to mediate a covenant with his people (Ex 24:3-8; Heb 8:3-6; 9:15); both were used by God to magnify his name (Ex 9:13-16; Joh 12:28-30; 17:5, 6, 25, 26).


It was also foretold that God would send Elijah the prophet, among whose works was that of turning persons of Israel to true repentance. While Jesus was on earth, John the Baptizer did a work of that kind and served as the Messiah’s forerunner, fulfilling Malachi 4:5, 6. (Mt 11:11-15; Lu 1:11-17) But, since the transfiguration occurred after the death of John the Baptizer, Elijah’s appearance in it indicates that a work of restoration of true worship and vindication of God’s name would be associated with the establishment of God’s Kingdom in the hands of Christ.


During the transfiguration, Jesus, Moses, and Elijah talked about Christ’s departure that he was destined to fulfill at Jerusalem.” (Lu 9:31) This exodus or departure, evidently involved both Christ’s death and his subsequent resurrection to spirit life.


As Moses and Elijah were being separated from Jesus, Peter, “not realizing what he was saying,” suggested the erecting of three tents, one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. (Lu 9:33) But as the apostle spoke, a cloud formed (Lu 9:34), evidently (as at the tent of meeting in the wilderness) symbolizing God’s presence there on the mountain of the transfiguration. (Ex 40:34-38)


From out of the cloud, there came God’s voice, saying: “This is my Son, the one that has been chosen. Listen to him.” (Lu 9:35) Years later, with reference to the transfiguration, Peter identified the heavenly voice as that of “God the Father.” (2Pe 1:17, 18) In the transfiguration, evidently Moses and Elijah represented the Law and the Prophets, both of which pointed toward and were fulfilled in Christ. Whereas in the past God had spoken through prophets, he now indicated that he would do so through his Son.—Ga 3:24; Heb 1:1-3.


The apostle Peter viewed the transfiguration as a marvelous confirmation of the prophetic word, and by having been an eyewitness of Christ’s magnificence; he was able to acquaint his readers “with the power and presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2Pe 1:16, 19) The apostle had experienced the fulfillment of Christ’s promise that some of his followers would “not taste death at all until first they see the kingdom of God already come in power.” (Mr 9:1) The apostle John may also have alluded to the transfiguration at John 1:14.


Jesus told his three apostles: “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of man is raised up from the dead.” (Mt 17:9) They did refrain from then reporting what they saw to anyone, apparently even to the other apostles. (Lu 9:36) While descending the mountain, the three apostles discussed among themselves what Jesus meant by “this rising from the dead.” (Mr 9:10) One current Jewish religious teaching was that Elijah must appear before the resurrection of the dead that would inaugurate the Messiah’s reign. So, the apostles inquired: “Why, then, do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus assured them that Elijah had come, and they perceived that he spoke of John the Baptizer.—Mt 17:10-13.


The transfiguration, it seems, served to fortify Christ for his sufferings and death, while it also comforted his followers and strengthened their faith. It showed that Jesus had God’s approval, and it was a fore-view of his future glory and Kingdom power. It presaged the presence of Christ, when his kingly authority would be complete.


How Miracles Are Signs Of “Attribute” Of God?


The meaning of attribute is an inherent characteristic; an object closely associated with or belongs to a specific person, thing office “a scepter is the attribute of power.” When the name of God is mentioned in the Bible, it refers to an attribute, or characteristic. Next do Jesus has this attribute since in this course we are studying about the life of Christ. There are four main attribute, I can list out here since other are not that important.


1. Eternality – One attribute God possesses is that He is eternal. He is not constrained by time. If Jesus is God than He must be eternal, in John 8:58 Jesus said in answer to the question from the Jewish leader “Most assuredly, I tell you before Abraham has born, I am.” This linguistic evidence is sufficient for us to think about. And next in John 17:5, Jesus in the middle of the prayer, He said “Now Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed.”

2. Omniscience – As attribute which Jesus demonstrated which belongs to God is His ability to know things which He could only know if He were all-knowing e.g. Matthew 16:21; Luke 11:17; John 4:29.

3. Omnipotence – If God is all-powerful than Jesus can do likewise. For example, Matthew 28:20 Jesus promised to be with His follower “even to the end of the age.” In Mark 5:11-15, Jesus used a herd of swine to remove demons from a possessed man. Next John 11:38-44, rising of Lazarus from the dead. All these are the attribute of God in Jesus.

4. Omnipresence – God is everywhere present Jesus made the same claims in this attribute as well in Matthew 18:20 & 28:20.

The definition of attribute in Christ can assured us that if you ask for anything in the will, characteristic or attribute of Jesus, it will be granted because He is always equivalent to God.


The Temptation of Christ.


We also need to study and learn the importance of the temptation of Christ during His life. It is a symbols of man conquered over the sins of His own flesh. According to Matthew Henry, temptation of Christ is a test or a conquest to secure not only comfort toward one’s ministry or preparing his faithful servant in what the world is coming ahead. It is observed as:


The time when heaven were opened, spirit descended and to be tempted like Christ early ministry. The battle this temptation is to secure a place in God kingdom because of the below reasons.


Great privilege and a special token of divine favor to God that nothing is going to stop us from Satan attack.
Great honors come from humbling ourselves through temptation.
God usually prepare his people for temptation.
The assurance of our Son ship is trust the preparation for temptation


Before Christ, begin his ministry. He got himself baptized. Next, he did not go to Jerusalem but returned into the wilderness. It is time for communion with God, His withdrawal into the wilderness because:


To gain advantage of him, it is a time to meditate on communion with God and for God to prepare Him an opportunity to do his best and exalted in his own strength.
To give advantage for the tempter as less company is easy to access in the wilderness. The enemy sun and wind with come unto his testing is also there.


The main reason of the temptation was for Satan to bring him to sin against God and rendered him forever incapable of being a sacrifice for the sins of other. It is:


To despair of His Father’s goodness.
To pressure upon His Father’s power.
To alienate His Father’s honor, by giving it to Satan.


In order to do all these, let see how the Satan managed the temptation:


1. Christ began to be hungry. The Satan asked him to turn stones into bread for his own necessary support. Here we found Jesus answered him that it is wrong to live by bread but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. It is better to starve to death than to live and thrive by sin. It is a test of bodily desires/weakness.

2. Satan asked him to jump down from the highest point of the temple since He is the son of God. Jesus again answered it is wrong to test God. It is written to honor the scripture and it is written as the sword of the spirit. He tempted him to presume His Father’s power and protection.

3. The devil took him to a high mountain and showed him all the kingdom of the world. Tempt Christ to bow and worship him and he will have all. Instead, Jesus answered that he serves no body but God. It is a test of man desire for power or authority and it is wrong.

We can learn from these temptations of Jesus from Matthew Henry commentary. They show, for example, that—

o The Devil is not a mere quality of evil, as some people claim, but that he is a real, invisible person.
o The temptation of Jesus also shows that all the world governments are the Devil's property. For how could the Devil’s offering, them to Christ have been a real temptation if they were not really his?


Jesus did not deny that they were Satan's, which he would have done if Satan did not own them. Satan is really the unseen ruler of all the nations of the world! The Bible plainly says, “The whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.” (1 John 5:19) God's Word, in fact, calls Satan “the god of this system of things.”—2 Corinthians 4:4. This information helps us to understand why Jesus said: “My kingdom is no part of this world.” (John 18:36) It also helps us to understand why nations hate and try to destroy one another when it is the desire of all normal persons to live at peace. “Satan . . . is misleading the entire inhabited earth.” (Revelation 12:9)


The Healing Power of Jesus


As I went through the Wesley’s commentary not much of notes are given but what I gathered from the studies about the healing of power of our Lord Jesus. I can gain insight into this by a careful consideration of Mark chapter 6. I read there that people brought the sick to Jesus to be healed. In the context, I also learn that upon seeing that the thousands who had come to him had grown hungry, Jesus fed them miraculously. (Mark 6:35-44, 54-56) Healing the sick and feeding the hungry were outstanding displays of loving compassion, but they were not they the primary ways in which Jesus helped others.


Jesus felt pity for those around him primarily because of their spiritual needs. Those needs were of chief importance, more so than physical needs. Consider the account at Mark 6:30-34. The incident recorded there took place on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, close to the time of the Passover in 32 C.E. The apostles were excited, and for good reason. Having just completed an extensive tour, they came to Jesus, no doubt eager to tell him their experiences. However, a crowd gathered. It was so large that Jesus and his apostles could neither eat nor rest. Jesus told the apostles “Come, you yourselves, privately into a lonely place and rest up a bit.” (Mark 6:31) Boarding a boat, probably near Capernaum, they sailed across the Sea of Galilee to a quiet place. But the crowd ran along the shore and arrived ahead of the boat.


The sight of this crowd of thousands, including sick ones, who eagerly awaited him, touched Jesus’ heart. (Matthew 14:14; Mark 6:44) Focusing on what aroused Jesus’ compassion and how He responded. Mark wrote, “He saw a great crowd, but he was moved with pity for them, because they were as sheep without a shepherd. And he started to teach them many things.” (Mark 6:34) Jesus saw more than a mass of people. He saw individuals having spiritual needs. They were like sheep straying helplessly, having no shepherd to guide them to green pastures or to protect them. Jesus knew that the coldhearted religious leaders, who were supposed to be caring shepherds, actually despised the common people and neglected their spiritual needs. (Ezekiel 34:2-4; John 7:47-49) Jesus would treat them differently, doing the greatest possible good for them. He began teaching them about God’s Kingdom.
So although Jesus performed miracles, by healing people etc, he was not known as the miracle worker, he was known as the GREAT TEACHER not only a Son of God performance miracle to make the people know He was not merely a man. The whole Bible is really a teaching of Jesus backing it up with the healing of miracles.


The Feeding Of The 5.000 Indicates The Compassionate Of Christ For Mankind.


Jesus had been teaching them many things.” Time ran on. The hour got late. They were all hungry. So this miracle-working man of God fed five thousand men with but five loaves of bread and two fish, and there were twelve baskets of fragments left over—Mark 6:30-44. So why this miracle differs from the feeding of the 5000, I would say Jesus performs this miracle of feeding the crowd of people was not a sign of His greatness or what He can easily do with God by His side. The main point was as follow.


Our Lord Jesus was greatly followed by multitude of common people coming to Him for life and grace compared with the wicked arts of the scribes and Pharisees to blemish him ant to blast his interest. The common people were more honest but meaner himself and made himself of no reputation. The crowd that followed Him underwent a great deal of difficulty for three days, and had nothing to eat but their hunger for the word of Jesus with gave them security and sense of peace in their hearts that was better than food. They never speak of leaving Him until the disciples spoke of dismissing them because their hardship of feeding them as they brought along just food for themselves.


Here we see Christ has a compassion for all that were in wants and straits, so He had a special concern for these that were reduced to straits by their zeal and diligence in attending on Him. Humble Jesus looked upon with pity and tenderness as they went through hardship for Christ’s sake. We observe with what sympathy Christ said in Mark 8:3- If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.


What I am trying to say was this miracle was differing because Christ was feeling, concern and sympathy was involved. As a good shepherd, it was hard for Him to see the sheep goes astray or in hunger. He will do what He could to feed the sheep and lead them to a quiet place to rest like what we found in Psalm 23. We have nothing to fear knowing what Jesus was in person than seeing Him perform miracles that even can shocked His disciples with fear of His mighty power but seeing Him performing the feeding miracle for the 5000 people. We know He was a gentle person in heart and never stop loving them, and also never use His might to harm any of His people or believers.


His crucifixion and resurrection.


The Jewish leaders always wanted to kill Jesus. They find all means but fail and eventually they accused him of blasphemy, and had Jesus arrested. They brought him to a Roman governor named Pilate tried Jesus. He found him totally innocent and wanted to release Jesus but when the Jews threatened to riot, Pilate had no choice condemned Jesus to death on a cross and instead released the guilty Barnabbas. During crucifixion, He was beaten by Roman soldiers, scourged, stripped, and nailed to a cross. He was crucified between two robbers, and died. The faith of the two robbers ended themselves in paradise with Him.


During the final hour, He still asked to forgive all of man's sin. Our Lord uttered the most memorable words from the cross, pleading "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). And the two men crucified beside Him. He told them "Verily I say unto thee, to day shalt thou be with me in paradise" (23:43), as well as John 19:26, Matt. 27:46, Mark 15:34, John 19:28, Luke 23:46, and John 19:30 "It is finished.” He literally died of a broken heart, a ruptured heart, and hence the flowing of blood and water from the wound made by the soldier's spear (John 19:34).


We know later upon His death, His body was placed in the new tomb of a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea. Jesus had promised the disciples he would come back after he died. His enemies knew this. So, to prevent or ensure anyone from stealing the body, they had soldiers guard the tomb of Jesus and covered the entrance with a huge stone. After the third day of His death, an angel descended, and the soldiers fled. The disciples came and found an empty tomb. Jesus had risen from the dead! He appeared to many believers, commanding them to teach and baptize others before He was taken into heaven.


The resurrection of Christ is fundamental to all the Christian's assurance that Christ's work is complete and redemption is accomplished that we are not under the Old Testament but under the New Testament. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is not about a mere historical curiosity, but an event of enormous consequences to you. According to Romans 1:4, Jesus' resurrection affirms the Bible's high claims about Him, and also that He alone is the way to heaven. Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."(John 14:6, NKJV) Christ's resurrection guarantees there will be a Last Judgment (Acts 17:31), and that there is a heaven and a hell (Revelation 1:18).Yet this Risen Christ offers the forgiveness of sins and everlasting salvation for whoever believes in Him (John 11:25, 6, Romans 4:24, 25). Everyone is given a new salvation under His grace and mercy through these implications.


Conclusion.


Jesus life was not an interesting one. He came with only one intention that was to save men from the wrath of God. He undertook the mission to go before men that do not trust Him instead thoughts of ways to get rid of Him. Many miracles were performed to win man's heart to Him but yet not all accept Him. Eventually, Jesus had suffered on the cross, and as the Apostle explains the suffering, saying, "This was to demonstrate His righteousness; because of the forbearance of God He passed over sins previously committed" (Romans 3:25). God had forgiven the sins of the Old Testament believers on the basis of Christ's future sacrifice, just as He forgives today on the basis of Christ's past sacrifice, done once for all time (Hebrews 10:12). And in it all, God remains holy. We are no more under the sinful man of Adam but a righteous man in Christ Jesus. This is how the final episode of Christ's life came to end and a new beginning for all men under His new plan. We need to know that Christ's death was not optional, for it was central to God's plan of salvation. To learn or study the history of Christ life to know His plan for us all and to value what He has done for us to the extend that He had to die for all. No man is willing to lay down his life for nothing but our Lord laid down His life because He values/loves us and to ensure that we have a place in heaven. All this knowledge of His life can we repay back by be obedience to His word and live in His likeness. I guess this is not too much of God asks for us in return.