Degenerate Plants

Jeremiah 2:21

"Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?"

God asked Israel, "...how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?" God could not understand how Israel could turn from becoming a nation that had everything going for her into a nation that allowed iniquity to abound. Israel was the nation that God salvaged from the nation of Egypt. Israel was a nation that God guided and protected through the wilderness. She was a nation who had seen God work in miraculous ways. She was the only nation to which He personally appeared at Mount Sinai. Yet, she had become a degenerate nation.

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Drops of the Spirit

Acts 2:17

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:"

God promised the Christian that in the last days He would pour His Spirit upon "all flesh." It was after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ that this would happen. Before Jesus ascended to Heaven, His pouring of the Spirit was only for a select few, but after He ascended to Heaven, He made the pouring of the Spirit available for every believer.

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Loving as Jesus

John 13:34

"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another."

Jesus had just finished the Last Supper with the disciples. He knew what was about ready to happen. He knew that Judas would betray Him. He knew that Peter would deny Him. He also knew that the rest of the disciples would struggle with Peter's denial, so He wanted to make sure they learned to love as He did. He commanded the disciples to love as He loved so that those who hurt Him would not be pushed aside; rather, they would be given another opportunity to either get saved or to be accepted by other Christians.

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It's Not That Great

Isaiah 57:10

"Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved."

Several years ago when I was still in high school, I worked at a paper factory after school and during the summer. On Friday afternoon before we clocked out, a few of the men would talk about what they were going to do during the weekend. They would often say, "We are going to get smashed this weekend." They would then ask me what I was going to do, as if my Christian lifestyle was inferior to theirs. I responded that I would spend my weekend nights with my family and the daytime trying to reach people for Jesus Christ.

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Bible Thoughts by Terry Hedderman

Sunday, 3/1/15  Ps 71:2 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me. I understand praying for deliverance, but remember that all sunshine makes a desert; all victories make us cocky; all successes make us flabby and weak-willed.          In reading the daily comix, I often see cartoons about Hell. Often, it depicts the demons as being in charge. Basic Bible Doctrine: Hell was created, not for humans, but for the fallen angels. They will be inmates, not guards. Matt 25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. You may go to Hell if you choose to (and you choose Hell when you trust anything besides Jesus and Him alone to atone for your sins, or trust Jesus plus anything else, like good deeds, or church, etc.), but if you go to Hell, you’ll be an intruder. Jesus is not only the King of Heaven, but He is also the King of Hell.               Ps 137:1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. If sin has caused you to lose what you now realize was valuable,  1weep, and return as far back as possible.  2Apologize to God, and apologize and make restitution to whomever else you need to.  3Encourage others not to fall for the same sin.  4To others, remember that our duty is to restore them “in the spirit of meekness.”

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