Resolved to Remain Faithful!

Daniel 1:8, “But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine…”

verb (used with object), resolved, resolving : to come to a definite or earnest decision about; determine (to do something)

The Babylonian strategy was to take the brightest and best from each culture and make them Babylonian in their thinking and Babylonian in their religion.

Daniel and his friends are humble enough and smart enough not to balk at being renamed, they know that sticks and stones and Babylonian spears can break their bones, but changes of names couldn’t really harm them.

Whereas, when it came to their eating habits, that was another story. Long before we knew about germs and microbes and the nature of diseases, God knew. So He forbade the nation of Israel to eat certain foods that were prone to disease, if not handled right. Foods like pork and crustaceans. Foods that King Neb was likely to serve for dinner.

In addition, the Babylonians had a practice of offering their animals to their gods as sacrifices before they ate them. So for Daniel and his friends wanted to stay away from eating any meat that had been offered to idols.

Daniel was definite about his conviction to maintain inner purity! As we live in a world prone to seek out the mediocre, I pray we resolve to not defile the inner purity we discover in Jesus. You know I love ya, Don

How do I become a Christian? Part 2 Immersion

How do I become a Christian?

·      Hear the Word (Audibly & Spiritually)

·      Respond (Believe, Repent, & Confess)

·      Die to Self & Unite with Christ (Immersed in Water : Baptism)

Hear the Word ● Respond to the Word ● Do the Word

Baptism (ˈbapˌtizəm) - the religious rite of immersion of an individual in water, symbolizing purification, regeneration and admission to the Christian faith.

Baptism is a public profession of faith in Jesus Christ. It is the declaration of a believer that they have received Christ into their life and have become a “new Creation” in Him. Christian Baptism is … A Sacrament: A Outward and Visible Representation of a inward and invisible reality!

Sign of Conversion: Matthew 28:16-20

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing (immersing) them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Death to the former things: Colossians 2:12

“…having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”

As a way of Life and Eternal Life: Romans 6:1-7

“What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.”

As the means of Salvation: 1 Peter 3:19-22

“After being made alive, he (Jesus) went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— to (KJV – “Like unto”) those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”

So, why wait ... become a follower of Jesus and let him bring hope to your life. If you would like to be baptized, call me at 317-966-1959 and we can chat about it. You know I love ya, Don

How do I become a Christian?

This chart is all the conversions in the New Testament.

The bible is clear...HEAR the Word followed by RESPOND to the word and then DOING the word. Be completely immersed and united with Jesus.

You know I love ya,
Don

SEIZE the Opportunities!!!

Christ-followers must be people of courage. To be courageous is to grasp the opportunities that are available because of God’s blessings. That does not mean we are not tempted to be afraid. Courage simply means we keep on doing what’s right even when we are afraid.

When the firemen and policemen entered the World Trade Center on September 11 they were afraid. But they were heroes because they did their duty in spite of their fear.

The church is not just interested in getting people out of burning buildings. We are interested in keeping people out of a burning hell! This task is going to take courageous heroes of the faith that will wallow in God’s blessings and share them loudly with our friends, neighbors, and family.

All too often, we forget the hour we spent in church and act like the man who had a fight with his wife so they were giving one another the silent treatment.

Problem was the man realized his wife would have to wake him at 5:00 am for an early morning business flight to Chicago. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence, he wrote on a piece of paper, "Please wake me up at 5:00 am."

The next morning the man woke up, only to discover it was 9:00 am, and he had missed his flight. Furious, he was about to go let his anger out on his wife when he noticed a piece of paper by his bed...it said, "It is 5:00 am, wake up."

The time is up for the church (For you and for me) to stop the silent treatment of the world and start demonstrating the power of God’s blessing. Jude 24 states, “Now to Him who is able to keep us from falling and to present us without blemish.” Do you believe those words??? Than seize the opportunities God has blessed you with!!!

You know I love ya...so get out these and seize the opportunities!!! Don

My Favorite Benedictions (NIV)

These are some of my favorite Scripture Benedictions:

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Aaronic Blessing: Numbers 6:22-27 - The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:“ ‘ “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

Jesus Blessing: Matthew 28:16-20: Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Personal Blessing: Romans 15:13 : May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Unity Blessing: Ephesians 6:23-24 : Peace to the brothers and sisters,^c and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

Equipping Blessing: Hebrews 13:20-21 : Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

God’s Power Blessing: Jude 24-25: To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

You know I love ya, Don

Getting above the rats!

Airplane and a rat! An airplane pilot was flying his plane one day when he heard a scratching sound behind him. Knowing he was the only one on board, he quickly realized that it must be a rat. Putting on his oxygen mask, he began to increase altitude and continued this until the scratching and gnawing sounds stopped. After concluding his flight, the aviator searched his plane and found the dead body of the rat next to a hydraulic line that was almost chewed into. He had killed it by taking it to an altitude where there wasn’t enough oxygen to sustain its life. Had he not done so, that little rat could have taken the pilots life.

When we study the truths of the apostle’s teaching, we elevate ourselves to a place that eliminates the unrighteousness from our lives.

Hebrews 4:12 states, “ For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

It could be that you are having trouble in your life because your altitude is too low and you need to rise above the muck of the flesh and allow the Word of God to lift you up.

You know I love ya, Don

God's story includes you and your story!

Look at the entire bible from the beginning to the end, and you will see that it is a story. We call it the story of redemption. God’s rituals of communication tell how we were created in God’s image, how we fell away into sin, how God worked in history to restore our relationship to him. God worked through the patriarchs, through Israel, and through the prophets. Finally God came to us in the person of Jesus Christ who lived among us, He was rejected and crucified for our sake, overcame the power of death by being resurrected from the dead, ascended into heaven, and will return again to restore the created order and make it new.

The story extends from Genesis to Revelations and on through your and my life. And REDEMPTION in God’s story is the key through which all other stories of the Bible are to be understood.  

Unfortunately, we often get lost in the particulars of the stories of the O.T. or of the Gospels. We want to know the moral of the story of Abraham or of Moses or of David of the prodigal son. But forget the story is there to reveal God’s nature…the primary purpose of these stories is not to teach morals or values (Although most do and we accept that). The ritual acts of communicating in worship are to reveal God redeeming love manifested ultimately in the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The parts and pieces serve the larger story as part of the plot and action, as well as teach us how to live…

Romans 10:17 states, “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”

So, are you in God's story? If not, you need to be. You know I love ya, Don