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jfaye -> RE: lost faith and are happy (3/27/2008 11:25:51 AM)
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I may have to make this two posts because of the extensive Scripture I would love for you
to read in this regard--I hope you read it through in it's entirety for there are points to be made
from the context of the whole:
[Part 1]
Example of the seed of faith, the Gospel, sowed on different soils,
what to expect:
Mark 4:9"..but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires
for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful..
15 "But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an
honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance."
I would question the soil of one, who thinks they had embraced the truth
of the Gospel and then found they did better without it!
Matthew 19:21 "Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions
and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one
who owned much property.
23 And Jesus said to His disciples, "Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of heaven.
24 "Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a
rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
25 When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?"
26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God
all things are possible."
Does the Lord require all of us to be in poverty having no material possessions or wealth?
No, but He does know what holds us back from loving Him, completely. If we can love Him
in the right proportion, then we will find ourselves looking for ways to share what we are
given with those who have so little. This is God's economy. Someone has to have the money
to share with those who do not, and it is a worthy trust if the one having it, realizes the value
of having it and sharing it.
Philippians 4:19 "And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches
in glory in Christ Jesus."
1 Timothy 6:6 "But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied
by contentment.
7 For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.
8 If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.
9 But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful
desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.
10 For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered
away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
Perhaps these griefs are not immediately evident--perhaps never in this life are they
truly discerned, and maybe in time many of them are--down the road a bit, after 'buying
into' the lie of their value, the temporary pleasure being able to meet all expectations, and
their reward worth the ultimate price we will pay for choosing 'this life' over 'eternal life'.
11 But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love,
perseverance and gentleness."
James 4:
13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend
a year there and engage in business and make a profit."
14 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears
for a little while and then vanishes away.
15 Instead, you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that."
16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.
17 Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin."
James 5:1"Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.
2 Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten.
3 Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will
consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!
4 Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you,
cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the
Lord of Sabaoth.
5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened
your hearts in a day of slaughter."
This last verse, number 5 speaks of the reality of what is occurring with the one
depending on the things of this life to be their god, and the rewards that truly are
delivered by that god!
Revelation 3:17 "..'Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of
nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and
naked,
18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white
garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be
revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
19 'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.
20'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will
come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me."
Luke 12:15 "Then He said to them, "Beware, and be on your guard against every form of
greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions."
16 And He told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man was very productive.
17 "And he began reasoning to himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no place to store
my crops?'
18 "Then he said, 'This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and
there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 'And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come;
take your ease, eat, drink and be merry."'
20 "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now
who will own what you have prepared?'
21 "So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
22 And He said to His disciples, "For this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life,
as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on.
23 "For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing."
Matthew 6: 19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy,
and where thieves break in and steal.
20 "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys,
and where thieves do not break in or steal;
21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22"The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full
of light.
23"But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in
you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Our vision is clouded by the promise of riches that do not gain heavenly reward!
24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will
be devoted to one and despise the other You cannot serve God and wealth.
James 1:9 "But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position;
10 and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will
pass away.
11 For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off
and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his
pursuits will fade away.
12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will
receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be
tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished,
it brings
forth death.
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father
of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow."
[Continued]
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