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GLEANINGS FROM THE WORD Experiencing an extraordinary God in ordinary life Issue #418 February 18, 2002 Fake Fish Sitting on my desk is a wooden fish ornament given to me by a friend a few years ago. It’s shaped like a fish and coloured like a fish. The scales, eyes and mouth have been painted on with care. It has been meticulously handcrafted so that the body even moves like a fish when you wiggle it. The model has been carefully shaped and sanded so it even feels somewhat like a fish. Despite all the superficial resemblance, the care in crafting and the attention to detail, it will never be a fish. It will always be a model and never the real thing. It will never be truly alive. It can be like that with churches. Many churches have wonderful rituals and music. They claim the name Christian, but they don’t believe in the Bible or in the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins. They tell us that the resurrection was a myth and that Jesus wasn’t born of a virgin. They speak only of God’s love, but never His wrath. They present the world with a nice looking model that seems like a church, but without Christ, they will never be truly alive. Make no mistake; God’s Word is true. Jesus was God incarnate come as a baby and born to a virgin. He was crucified for our sins, died on the cross and resurrected. He sits at the right hand of God and is coming again for those who believe in Him and to judge the world. If a church preaches anything different, it is as of little value to your eternal soul as my wooden fish would be to a man dying of hunger. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths 2 Timothy 4:1-4 NIV Until next time, may you know the truth and be surrounded by real fish. Hallelu Yah Kevin Did you know that the Christian faith is different from all other faiths? There are overlapping moral values between different religions, but only in Christianity is your salvation guaranteed by a gift from God. All you have to do is accept His love. To be certain of your eternal destination, email me. I’ll share a few Bible verses that explain why a relationship with Him is so important and a prayer that will make it possible. To share your thoughts on this issue of Gleanings, or to share prayer concerns email us at corbin_writer@hotmail.com. or write us at : Gleanings From The Word 114 Oak Street Sherwood Park, AB Canada, T8A 0V8 At Gleanings, we have a dedicated team of prayer warriors and all prayer concerns are kept strictly confidential. If you enjoyed this issue of Gleanings From The Word, email it, in its entirety, to a friend. For information on use of Gleanings in your church newsletter or other situations please visit the permissions page on our website
© 2001 K.F. "Kevin" Corbin All Rights Reserved SUBSCRIBE TO GLEANINGS FOR FREE
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