Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane is one of the most touching of all his
recorded prayers, if in fact it is not the most meaningful one. It is
found in John chapter 17.
This is the real Lord's
prayer! Jesus' work of teaching the disciples how and what to pray in
his sermon on the mount (cf. Matthew 6:9-13) cannot be rightfully
called, The Lord's Prayer. It may be called The Disciples' Prayer since
it was what the disciples were to pray. However, the private prayer of
Jesus in the garden may be rightfully called the Lord's prayer since it
was his prayer to the Father.
While Jesus' prayers
were brief publicly, they were longer privately. His private prayer in
John 17 consisted of no less than 26 verses as the Savior poured out
his heart's intentions before God. Much may be learned from an indepth
study of this touching and famous prayer prayed just prior to the
Lord's vicarious death on the cross.
2) We may have joy in the face of an antagonistic world (13-14).
3) We are in the world but not of it (15-16).
4) We are to be holy and fulfill our mission (17-19).
5) We are to be united (20-23).
6) We may partake of his heavenly glory (24-26).
While Jesus perspired
"as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground" (Luke
22:44) during such an emotion filled prayer, his unselfish requests
help us to appreciate the will of God for our lives. -- Gary
L. Grizzell
The word "burden" is used a multiplicity of times in the Bible. The word itself is found some 67 times and a form of it is seen no less than 95 times. What is the definition of a burden? Of the word BAROS (BURDEN) in the New Testament one authority wrote:
"BAROS ... denotes a weight, anything pressing on one physically, Matt. 20:12, or that makes a demand on one's resources, whether material, I Thess. 2:6 (to be burdensome), or spiritual, Gal. 6:2; Rev. 2:24, or religious, Acts 15:28." *
The most important burden bearing being done today is the burden bearing involved in living together in a sin cursed world. Think of the need for burden bearing from the spiritual perspective.
The Bible says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). The first pair, Adam and Eve, were the first to carry this burden in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1-6). They were to blame for creating this burden and soon learned that guilt is the great burden of sin. After they sinned, they were so bothered by this burden they hid from God and made figleaf aprons to cover themselves. Never before had they been afraid of God. God soon allowed the offering of animal sacrifices by which men might be forgiven and therefore the burden of sin be taken away (Gen. 4:4; Heb. 11:4). Today, we are grateful God has given his only begotten Son that we might have him as the sacrifice for our sins. The Hebrew writer said: "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins" (Heb. 10:4).
Jesus told a Pharisee, "For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (Jn. 3:16).
Paul wrote, "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (I Tim. 3:16). In II Corinthians 5:21 the Bible says concerning Jesus, "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." Christ is our sin offering who bears our sins (Isa. 53:10-11).
The great folly of man has always been to bear sin through humanly devised schemes.
Consider the following:
1) Some try to ignore the burden of sin. The humanistic oriented counselor of modern times denies that sin is real, yet one can see sin in his {the counselor's} own life. While some are treating the sin problem by saying, "Oh well, that's human nature," Paul the apostle says, No, that is the old man of sin (Rom. 6:3-4). Yes, it's true that "To err is human, to forgive is divine" but this old uninspired cliche is not to serve as an excuse for living a life of habitual sinning. At the trial of Jesus, Pilot tried to wash his hands of the burden of sin (Matthew 27:24), but water alone will not cleanse a man of his sins. It takes the blood of Christ (Revelation 1:5) along with belief and a penitent heart to be cleansed by immersion in water (Mark 16:16; Luke 13:3; Rom. 10:9-10; 6:3-4; Acts 22:16).
2) Others try to carry the burden of sin by blaming their sin on someone else. This is what Adam and Eve did (Genesis 3:12-13). "Well, I'm just as good as anyone down there in that church, therefore I don't need to become a member of the church to be saved." But, it does not matter how good you are but where you are, that is, in the body of Christ (Gal. 3:26-27; Eph. 1:3; Titus 3:5). On the day of judgment it will be worthless to say, "Lord, I was just as good as brother so-in-so." If you allow a religious hypocrite to keep you out of heaven, you'll be forced to spend an eternity with him in hell. "Every man must bear his own burden" (Gal. 6:5).
3) Still others try to bear the burden of sin by the process of self destruction (the Judas complex). Some practice slow motion suicide by drinking their problems away. However, the problems are still there the next morning (cf. Gal. 5:19-21).
The answer to bearing up under the burden of sin is to live the faithful Christian life. The Bible says, "Casting all your care (anxiety) upon him, for he careth for you." God's Word teaches the Christian, "Be careful (anxious) for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (I Peter 5:7; Phil. 4:6-7). God promises to keep one who is a faithful Christian from being tempted above what he is able to bear (I Cor. 10:13). God desires to remove our burden of sin through forgiveness. We are reminded of His words long ago to a wayward people:
"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isa. 1:18).
When addressing the matter of Jewish circumcision for the Christian Paul wrote: "For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature" (Gal. 6:15).
Friend, which is the better choice, to seek to be a new creature in Christ or to resort to the Judas complex?
It all started as a result of man sinning in the Garden of Eden. God had said, "In the day you eat thereof, ye shall surely die" (Gen. 2:17). This was a prophecy concerning death and all the infirmities that accompany death. Then Adam ate of the forbidden tree and at that moment he died spiritually and at that very moment he physically became a decaying creature. [The word "death" means separation]. It would only be a matter of time before his spirit would depart from his body and he would die physically. At the age of 930 years Adam died. Tragically, he continued in the beautiful garden for less than 130 years, which was less than 14% of his total life span (James 2:26; Gen. 5:5; Gen. 5:3). Satan, who was involved in the fall of man into sin, was later indicted by the Lord for his relationship to physical infirmity (cf. Luke 13:16).
Likewise, today, man's body is in a state of decay. Interestingly, the Bible mentions numerous conditions:
Fever, Inflammation, Extreme Burning (Deut. 28:22).
Blains, Boils, Dropsy (Luke 14:2; Exo. 9:9; Job 2:7).
Madness (Deut. 28:28).
Dwarfism (Lev. 21:20, not allowed in priesthood, Lev. 21:18).
Botches, Canker (or gangrene) (Deut. 28:35; II Tim. 2:17).
Leprosy, Blindness, Lameness, Inability to speak (Matt. 15:30; Luke 5:12), and others.
While we rejoice in the great and marvelous achievements of medical science, we "groan being burdened" in the fleshly body and look forward to our heavenly body (II Cor. 5:4). The Christian is promised a better body which is eternal in nature (I Cor. 15:50-53).
The apostle Paul instructed to "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2). Jesus taught this same lesson while here on the earth, saying that burden-bearing involved feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and those in prisons (Matt. 25:34-40).
In I Corinthians 12:12-26 the inspired penman teaches the BODY CONCEPT. He pointed out there are different members which make up the spiritual body of Christ, just as different members make up the physical body of a man. Some are the eyes, while others are the hands or the feet. Each member is concerned about the other members. When one member rejoices, all the other members rejoice with that member. When one member suffers, all the others suffer with that one member. Therefore, to
bear one another's burdens:
• Rejoice with the brother who has had something good happen to him.
• Say to the brother who is sick or shut-in: "I'll be praying for you" and let him know that you mean it.
• If a Christian has fallen away from the faith and has been offended, then try to understand him; bear his burden and when he feels his burden becoming lighter because of your help he'll find it easier to come home to the Lord.
Remember, the Bible says to "Bear ye one another's burdens," not Ridicule ye one another's burdens.
Jesus carried His cross by doing His part as the savior of the world (John 3:16). He left the glories of heaven, the singing of angels and the walking of the streets of gold to come to a sin-cursed world and die at the hands of wicked men for wicked men. He left the joys of the Father's heavenly home to be beaten, mistreated, hated, mocked, spat upon, despised, falsely accused as a drunk and glutton, and nailed to a tree. "He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3). Ask yourself, "Is my burden as heavy as the burden our Lord carried?"
Jesus now expects us to carry our crosses if we would prepare ourselves for the heavenly home where sorrow does not exist and perfect joy reigns forever. We must interrogate ourselves daily by asking the question of the songwriter: "Must Jesus bear the cross alone and all the world go free?" Then the answer must be: "No, there's a cross for everyone and there's a cross for me."
"Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith" (II Cor. 13:5). It is an utter impossibility to expect a crown of life without previous crossbearing. Unless a man carries his cross he cannot be Jesus' disciple (Luke 14:26-27).
To Bear The Cross Means:
⇒ To live faithfully the Christian life (Mat. 7:21-23).
⇒ It means sacrifices in the work of saving souls (Mat. 6:33).
⇒ It means never putting the cross down (Luke 9:62).
Jesus carried His cross as far as was possible and He walked on to allow himself to be nailed to it. Though He could carry it no further than He did, He chose to meet it at Calvary. (see John 19:17; Mat. 27:31-32; Mark 15:20-21; Luke 23:26). Friend, your cross may become heavy, but you can walk on toward the door of heaven. Jesus is your example (I Peter 2:21).
Stephen carried the cross unto death! (Acts 7:60). We are to carry the cross unto death if necessary (Rev. 2:10). With reference to persecution, most of us will probably carry it until death rather than unto death. But one thing is certain, carry it we must! We can't carry it on Sunday and then put it down on Monday. We must carry it through the week: overcoming temptations, studying the Scriptures, praying, teaching and living for the Master (I Cor. 15:58). We will carry it until the Lord calls us home to gather around the great white throne with the angels and the redeemed of all the ages singing, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain" (Rev. 5:12).
* W.E. VINE, M.A. EXPOSITORY DIC. OF N.T. WORDS. Fleming H. Revell Co., Old Tappan, N.J., 1966. p. 157.
* All references are from the King James Version.
Gary L. Grizzell
The Old Testament contains numerous accounts of bravery, courage and faith which inspire and motivate us. One such account is in Daniel chapter three concerning three Jewish boys named Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
About 580 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold 90 feet high and nine feet wide. All peoples in the Babylonian Empire were to fall down and worship when hearing certain musical instruments. The consequence of refusal to bow was to be cast into a fiery furnace (verses 1-7).
As time passed, the three Jewish boys refused to worship the golden image. Members of the guild of astrologers (Chaldeans) told the King (8-12) and he was very angry (13-18). Even though given one more chance to worship the idol, they chose the fiery furnace. This made the king even angrier and he commanded the furnace to be heated up seven times hotter. The crucible became so hot that the mighty men of strength who cast them in burned to death. However, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego fell into the furnace unhurt (19-23).
Seeing them walking around in the fire and a fourth who looked like the Son of God, Nebuchadnezzar called them out. All the princes, governors and captains saw that not one hair on their heads had been singed, their coats were not changed nor had the smell of fire passed on them (24-27).
The king then decreed that all who spoke anything against the God of the three Jewish boys would be cut in pieces and their houses made a dunghill. The king then promoted them in the province of Babylon (28-30).
1) God hates idolatry (Acts 17:29-30).
2) We must obey God rather than man when man's law conflicts with God's law (Acts
5:29).
3) God steps in and helps in time of trouble to give sufficient strength to overcome the
hardships involved in practicing true religion (Matthew 28:20).
4) The three Jewish boys serve as examples of faith, courage and consecration to God.
5) The effect a godly life can have on a wicked man of power can be seen (Philippians
2:5).
As Christians go through the fiery furnace of life, we know that God is still in His
heaven and will strengthen, comfort and help us to endure the flames of persecution (I
Peter 1:6-7).




Every Member EVANGELISM!
The purpose of the Tracts For The Nations (TFTN) program is to preach the saving gospel of Jesus Christ to those who are lost and in doing so involve each member of the local congregation. These may be downloaded, printed out and used for personal study, class study and study with the lost. These 12 titles may be studied in chronological order.
Tracts For The Nations
A series of twelve tracts have been produced to lead the reader to a basic knowledge of the Scriptures.
These are to be studied in the order listed below:
#1 God Is
(The Existence of God)
Thomas Eaves
#2 What Think Ye of Christ?
Eaves
#3 The Holy Spirit
Gary Grizzell
#4 Introduction To The Bible
Eaves
#5 Inspiration of The Bible
Grizzell
#6 Respect for Authority of Bible
Grizzell
#7 Salvation
Eaves
#8 Who Is A Christian?
Eaves
#9 The Church Christ Built
Grizzell
#10 The Worship of The Church
Grizzell
#11 Two Eternal Abodes -- Heaven or Hell
Grizzell
#12 The Second Coming of Jesus
And The Judgment
Eaves
NOTE TO READER: THESE 12 TRACTS WILL BE ADDED AS SOON AS WEBWASTER CAN GET TO IT!

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS


Your desire to win a friend to Christ is a good one. The Bible says that, "he that winneth souls is wise" (Proverbs 11:30). For you to win a soul to Christ these things must be present: 1) A prepared worker, 2) A pure seed, 3) An honest heart. Let’s look together at each of these.
You must prepare yourself to teach a lost soul the good news of salvation. You need to be prepared with your head, your heart and your feet.
By a prepared head I refer to a proper and necessary knowledge of the gospel of Christ. You must know the plan of salvation and be able to open your New Testament and show your friend the passages he/she needs to see. "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15).
By a prepared heart I refer to a good life. Be sure you are a New Testament Christian yourself and are living the faithful Christian life. "... let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity ... sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart" (read 2 Timothy 2:19-21).
By prepared feet I refer to a willingness to go to that person and try to set up a Bible study time. "Go," said Jesus (Matthew 28:19). You must be willing to simply ask the person if he would be willing to study the Bible with you. You may find this difficult. If so, practice with a loved one (or even in a mirror) what you will say before visiting your friend. Pray about your preparation. Jesus teaches his disciples to pray and the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous person is meaningful to God (Matt. 26:41; Jas. 5:16).
When visiting with your friend you may approach it by simply asking your friend if he is interested in spiritual things and thereby open the door for a discussion along these lines. If there is a good response, seek at some point in the conversation to make an appointment to study the Bible in a more indepth and systematic way. Perhaps you could leave a Bible tract on a relevant subject with him/her to read before meeting again.
You may wish to involve an elder or a preacher (in addition to your own preparation) if you think that Bible questions may arise during the study which you think you may need some assistance in answering.
Have confidence. God has not given His children the spirit of fear; that comes from another source (see 2 Timothy 1:7). Remember, if you are a New Testament Christian this means you have obeyed the five steps of the plan of salvation. You can certainly tell you lost friend what you did to receive forgiveness of sins! Having Bible knowledge plus having a good life equals failure in evangelism unless one is willing to go and teach that knowledge. Go therefore!
"The seed is the word of God" (Luke 8:11). Jesus compared the teacher of God’s Word to a sower who went forth to sow seed (Matthew 13:3-8). The seed is the message and the different kinds of ground represent the different conditions of hearts which men possess. Most hearts among accountable persons are like the stony ground, the thorny ground and the way side ground, in that none of these grounds successfully received the seed. These are compared to those who do not love the truth of God’s Word. Only one kind of ground in the parable which Jesus told successfully received the seed and that was the good soil ground. The good soil ground received the seed and became fruitful. This represents those who have good hearts and will choose to be receptive to the Word of God. Obviously then, the seed (the message) must be the pure, unadulterated gospel of Christ, the New Testament (see Rom. 1:16-17; 2 John 9-11; Acts 2:42; Gal. 6:2; Heb. 8:6; Jude 3).
To teach your friend the truth from the Bible is your goal. You will not, therefore, teach him the false, uninspired doctrines of mere men, but you will prove all things from the New Covenant of Christ with regard to how to become a child of God. Jesus condemned teaching the doctrines of men, saying, "But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" (Matthew 15:9). All are commanded to "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21).
When you teach your friend the pure message salvation you will show him from the New Testament what one must do to be saved, as follows:
1. Hear the gospel — John 20:30-31; Rom. 10:17.
2. Believe — Rom. 1:16; Acts 18:8; Heb. 11:6.
3. Repent — Luke 13:3; Luke 24:47; Acts 3:19; Acts 17:30.
4. Confess faith in Christ — Matt. 10:32; Acts 8:37; Rom. 10:10.
5. Be baptized (immersed) — Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 10:47-48; 22:16;
Rom. 6:1-6; Gal. 3:27; Col. 2:12; I Peter 3:21.
6. Continue faithful till (or if necessary, "unto" death) — Matt. 25:21, 34; 2 Peter 1:1-11; Rev. 2:10; Heb. 6:1; I John 1:6-9; Rev. 22:17.
God has done His part by the giving of His Son and the gospel of salvation. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). The honest heart is necessary on the part of your friend if he/she is to successfully receive the seed of the Word of God. Remember the parable of the sower and the class of persons the good soil represents? (Matt. 13:3-8). The good soil ground represents that class of persons who love the truth. Your good question asked about how you might win your friend to Christ, that is, "the effective way in winning a friend." If you as a teacher do your part in teaching (with proper preparation and attitude), then it is really left up to the lost person (your friend) as to whether or not he will allow himself to be won to the Lord. Man is a free moral creature, meaning that God made man with the freedom of choice (free will). A sinner can chose to be saved or choose to reject the gospel. Jesus said, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine ... " (John 7:17).
Do your part and then pray for your friend to choose to have a love of the truth of God’s Word. In God’s mind, if you have been a faithful teacher, you will be successful as a teacher independent of your friend’s response. This is true in that God does not hold the Christian teacher responsible for the hearer’s response. It is God who adds to His church and He only adds those who obey Him (read Acts 2:36-41, 47).
On the day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts chapter two, these three elements are seen: 1) A prepared worker (the apostle Peter), 2) A pure seed (the Word of God which Peter preacher), 3) Honest hearts (about 3,000 gladly received the message and were baptized, Acts 2:41). When your friend responds to the preaching of the deity, the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and the plan for the remission of sins as these about 3,000 did, then he will be won to the Lord. Satan will have lost control of another soul and Christ will have won another soul for an eternity in heaven, provided that souls remains faithful until death.
Don’t beat yourself up with guilt if your friend chooses to reject the pure gospel of Christ. Many will reject heaven and choose rather to walk that broad road of convenience into an everlasting hell (Matt. 7:13-14). Note the importance in personal responsibility in the following passages: Eph. 2:8-9; James 2:24; Rom. 2:6; Acts 2:40 - "Save yourselves from this untoward generation."
Much more could be said about different methods of approach in teaching the gospel. Scriptural methods include but are not limited to the following methods: tract evangelism, radio, television, Bible correspondence courses, Bible video (or filmstrips), internet, gospel meetings, lectureships, vacation Bible school, and others. However, (generally speaking) no matter what method one uses in teaching the gospel to a lost soul, the bottom line is that there must be a time for sitting down together, face-to-face, with an open Bible. Remember that the power is in the seed, not in the sower. (Heb. 4:12; Rom. 1:16).
Modern day expedients in teaching the gospel are beneficial to us only when we use these and not allow these to use us. Understanding the importance of simply being obedient, loving, prepared workers is the reason the early Christians could say that they had preached the gospel to every creature in their day! (Rom. 1:18; Col. 1:6, 23). They did this without the modern means of technology we have today. We may be thankful and use today’s advanced methods but the bottom line is that eventually we must arrange a face-to-face Bible study with the lost person.
There is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun. When a man dies, his souls drops off into eternity where time shall be no more. We must then all stand before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10). We should seek to teach these things to our fellowman, relatives and friends. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost and his followers will do the same (Luke 19:10; I Pet. 2:21 - Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps").
In order to win a friend (or foe) to Christ, the real question one must ask himself is this: Am I willing to pay to price necessary in order to prepare myself to teach my friend the saving gospel?
-- Gary L. Grizzell
QUESTION:
Who or What
should be the final
authority regarding the most important issues
of life?
ANSWER:
answer it one must first seek to identify the
important issues of life. The Bible gives us a
knowledge of the existence of God, creation, Jesus
Christ, salvation, heaven and hell. It gives us a
knowledge of God's will for us (Eph. 5:17). The
Word of God frees us from sin and all its evil
consequences which reach out to grab and
destroy us. It frees us from the power of sin (Col.
1:13-14). It frees us from the pollution of sin, that
is, guilt and fear (2 Tim. 1:7). It frees us from the
pleasure of sin (Heb. 10:25). It frees us from the
old man of sin (Rom. 6:3-4). It offers us heaven
where we will be free from the presence of all sin.
The Bible tells man of his origin, his purpose of
existence, and his destiny (Gen. 1:1; Eccl. 12:13-
14; 2 Cor. 5:10). The Bible is the only book that
deals sufficiently with the subject of death (Gen.
2:17; Gen. 3:1-6, 19; Rom. 5:12; 6:23).
The same book which answers these significant
questions also teaches that God pleased when
men seek authority only from Him in His word
with reference to salvation, Christianity and
religion. This is the case since, "All scripture is
given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction
in righteousness: That the man of God may be
perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good
works" (2 Tim. 3:16-17). God is displeased when
men either add to or subtract from His word (see
Deut. 4:2; Prov. 30:5-6 & Rev. 22:18-19). Men
must not tamper with God's written revelation
from Heaven. In every age since the beginning of
the world, God has required men to recognize His
authority. To those who lived under the Law of
Moses, it is written, "The secret things belong
unto the LORD our God: but those things which
are revealed belong unto us and to our children
for ever, that we may do all the words of this
law" (Deut. 29:29). In the New Testament Age in
which we now live, God's inspired word
commands, "And whatsoever ye do in word or
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God and the Father by him" (Col. 3:17).
Therefore, men today must have a book, chapter
and verse from the New Testament of Christ for
whatever they teach or practice with regard to
salvation. We are to abide in the doctrine of Christ
if we expect to have a saving relationship with
God the Father (2 John 9). In view of this fact,
someone who respected Bible authority once
stated, "Let us speak where the Bible speaks and
be silent where the Bible is silent." Another
correctly stated, "In the Bible there are facts to be
believed, commands to be obeyed, and promises
to be enjoyed." These statements are in harmony
with the teaching of Colossians 3:17.
Accepting God's standard of truth by which we
live and seek eternity with God, we must reject
the false standards which men seek to impose
upon us today. Some of these faulty,
unauthorized standards are: feelings, human
wisdom, conscience only, dreams, personal
experiences, false traditions, and false "gospels."
In place of giving priority to feelings, study (2 Tim.
2:15); in place of human wisdom, get God's
wisdom (I Cor. 1:18-25); in place of the conscience
only, educate your conscience by the word of God
(Acts 9:1-2; 23:1; John 8:31-32); in place of
socalled modern-day miraculous dreams, accept
only the meaning of the recorded miraculous
dreams of certain ones in the first century (Acts
2:17; I Cor. 13:8-10); in place of personal
experiences, let us appreciate the testimony of the
Lord (Rev. 1:9; 6:9); in place of false gospels, let
us accept the one and only gospel of Christ (Gal.
1:6-9).
Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God said,
"He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my
words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I
have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last
day" (John 12:48). May we let Christ be the
authority in our lives today by hearing, believing
and obeying His teaching. In so doing, we may
expect Him to receive us at the last day, taking us
into heaven where we shall live eternally in joy
and peace (read John 14:1-3).
-- Gary L. Grizzell
























