The Grace of Salvation - Testimony

The Grace of Salvation

By Mohd. Saleem

I am no more than an ordinary man who has been spending life as if knowing nothing. I was born in a wealthy Muslim family in Pakistan, but when I was a few months old, I was carried to Saudi Arabia by my father. When I was about six, my mom passed away. As I grew older I had so many questions like almost everyone experiences at some point in life. Why am I here? Where did I come from? Is there really a God and if so where is He? Why doesn't He talk?

I have been studying the Quran since I was around 12. Later I also started reading other kinds of Islamic books like the Life of Prophet Mohammad, Hadiths, etc. I have been Wahabi or Ahlae Hadiths like most of the Saudi Muslims are. (Osama Bin Laden is also one of them.) They are very extreme and I have been one also.

I had been taught that Islam is the only way to Heaven. I was told, "If you do this, you'll get so and so blessings in Heaven," and "if you do that, you'll get so and so blessings in Heaven." I became an extremist for the religion Islam.

Well, I believed what I was doing was right, and if it is right, then there is no risk in digging. I had read about the prophets in the Quran and Hadiths, but Jesus Christ was the only personality that really touched me more than any others. I found out that Christians believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I very much wondered why they believe that. I started searching for Jesus Christ more and more. I had a Christian friend who used to study with me. I asked him one day if I could have his Bible. He was surprised and said "Sorry, you cannot have it." I assured him no one would ever know, "It will remain between me and you." But my father came to know that I read the Bible and that it was in our home. He was very angry and he knew I have only one Christian friend. So he took me with my uncle to this friend's home and warned them saying, "If you do this again and try to preach Christianity to a Muslim child, you'll have to suffer a lot and you know it. We will complain about it to Islamic Police (Mutawa) and you could be exiled from this country forever." I was a bit worried. I shouldn't have done this to my friend's family.

My father warned me, and so did my uncle, to pray five times a day as I used to pray, and one time in the mosque. I kept going, and many times when there was no one in the mosque I used to cry and ask God to show me, "who is this Jesus and who are you?" Often while the Imam (leader) of the prayer was praying in Arabic (as it's compulsory to pray in Arabic only), I did not give much attention to what he was saying. One day I was praying in the Mosque, during Zuhar's prayer (noon prayer). I wasn't thinking of Jesus Christ that time. I saw an image of a handsome person on the floor where we bow our heads in prayer. I was shocked. I never saw such a thing before. It was kind of an image on water. I heard in myself that this is Jesus Christ. This is the Lord!

My hunger to know about Jesus Christ grew more and more.

I did not have a Bible with me anymore. One day I was passing with a friend through shops and I came to an internet shop. I was on the Net on yahoo.com and there came a thought in my mind: type "Who Is Jesus?" I did, and got lots of web sites. I was amazed that I could search about Jesus Christ there.

A web site provided very nice information about who Jesus is, and prophecies about Him in the Old Testament, and how amazingly they are fulfilled in the New Testament.

I was very much amazed. I kept coming to this web site often. One day I thought of giving Jesus a try and so I said the salvation prayer on their web site.

I also had been seeing that same image of Jesus Christ often when I used to go in the Mosque to pray. One day I was walking toward a market using a short cut. It's a bit lonely area. Not many people cross through there. I was walking and had been thinking and asking God if what I was doing was right and should I be Christian or Muslim? I heard a voice behind me saying "My son, you are on the right path." I was again amazed. I had never had experienced these kinds of things.

But in all I had been going through, I became happier when I came to know the Holy Bible, which says many things. For example it says,

"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, 'This is the way; walk in it.'"1

And it says,

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."2

God has been faithful to me!

Where would I be if I did not search my Bible and ask God's guidance for my life? The God of the Bible replies like no other! That is reality!

In the Quran it says that some revelations are abolished or forgotten.

What does that mean? In fact it's exactly the opposite in the Bible.

In the Torah, Numbers 23:19,

"God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind."

And in Zabur (Psalms) 31:5,

"Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth."

And in Injeel (the Gospel of John) 17:17,

"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth."

Never did I find a single verse in the Bible saying that God lies or that He changes His verses and leads people astray.

In the Quran we are told to believe in all prophets and all the revealed Books of God which includes the Torah, Zabur, Injeel and even Daniel. If we do not believe in them, that they are the words of God, we are not Muslims. Many measures and efforts have been taken to destroy the Bible from this earth but they have never been successful. That proves that God who revealed knows very well how to keep it protected. I challenge all who say that the Bible has changed to prove it to me with evidence. Hundreds of scientist have studied it and have confirmed its clarity and what has been written.

The prophecies made in the Bible are being fulfilled in our very day. These are some of the most amazing things and confirm who is the author of this book. The very creator of this world knows what is going to happen tomorrow and the coming days. He does not predict it like a psychic but knows it!

It's also amazing to understand the differences between Jesus and Mohammad. In the Bible it says:

"In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God!"4

Why is Jesus Christ called the Glad Tidings, the Word of God, held nearest to Allah, but nothing is mentioned about Mohammad as such?

Also, why was Jesus Christ faultless and without sin, whereas many times in the Quran, Mohammad is reminded to repent of his sins. Every Muslim who reads the Quran with understanding knows it very well.

The Bible also says Jesus Christ did miracles and did many other things which no one except God can do...things like giving life to death, and healing the sick.

Why did Mohammad never do that? Despite many people of his time asking for miracles he refused. But one miracle is recorded in the Quran that he parted the moon in two. What benefit did it bring to humanity?

Before Jesus Christ was born, angels were sent to announce the noble birth of a faultless son through a virgin. But Mohammad being the greatest of Prophets in Islam does not have that much privilege? Why is nothing similar said for Mohammad?

If God really was able to make a virgin give birth, then why would it be difficult for Him to call Him His Son?

The Quran tells that there will be a revelation for mankind and mercy.5 Muslims will have to read the Injeel (Gospel) to find out about God's mercy for mankind.

In the Injeel (Gospel), Mark 10:46-47, one blind man cries out to the Lord Jesus Christ saying:

A blind man, Bartimaeus, was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

Also in the New Testament:

"Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life."6

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."7

The Lord Jesus Christ is not the mercy that was meant for people of His time or of His area only. God made Him Mercy for ALL MANKIND EVEN AFTER MOHAMMAD.

We know from the Bible that we are sinners and away from the Lord. Jesus Christ is the only provision for us to reconcile us with the Lord, because He was sinless and became sin for our sake. Our sins were transferred to Him.

Jesus Christ bore our sins and became sin for us. In Injeel (Gospel), it says:

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."8

To many other people, He said "your sins are forgiven" indicating He wants them to be saved from sins! He bore their sins!

Also from the New Testament:

"God made Him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God."9

Many people have found God's mercy in the Lord Christ and have been changed. One of them is me. Many look for the miracles, authority, Truth and only truth in the wrong places, and I also have been doing so, until I met Him, the only One who not only knows the way to God but Himself is The Way. In Jesus' very words:

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him."10

Mohammad and Muslims have been praying every day many times in their much-devoted prayers for guidance, and amazingly the last and greatest of Islam's Prophet kept praying for it till his death.11

Was Mohammad on the straight path? Is Islam the straight path? I encourage all Muslims to ask him or herself is it really true what they are doing to get to heaven?

I do not believe heaven is a place with a price tag on it, which can be bought by our deeds, but only through God's Mercy and grace. I pray God will give hunger in each of us more each day and we will turn to Him for our Spiritual food and our salvation! It is made so simple like never before. Come to Him with a humble heart. Seek His Face and find yourself in His arms!

We become a new creation in Christ. It was written long ago, but today it is still true! How our minds and our thoughts change because the One who created us knows how to fill that missing gap and to reinstall our spiritual life in the Lord Jesus Christ who is the only Way to Him!

So Brothers and sisters, open your hearts and minds to accept His amazing Love. Allow the Lord Jesus Christ into your life and see what happens next. The greatest adventure in the Universe begins. Whenever I have been in trouble He has been there and comforted me like no one ever could. He has shown me that He's alive forever and He loves us very much.

I praise and thank God for sending His Son the Lord Jesus Christ to die for me and for all of us, and making the marvelous and glorious bridge to reach Him! 

By Mohd. Saleem

The Transforming Touch - Testimony

The Transforming Touch

By  Heather

 Let me first tell you a little about myself and my life.  I am a single mother, and I have suffered greatly over the years. The devil has cursed my family. He has reigned over my family for many years, tearing us apart. Even to go as far as to take my brother's life from driving him mad, last May of 2000. So here I was at 26, depressed, feeling hopeless, alone, and couldn't get out of bed, gaining over 50 pounds, lost my job, and much more.

One day, out of the blue, I got a call from my daughter's father, that has not seen us in 3-1/2 years. He said he wanted to be a father. He told me stories of how he had been clean from drugs and alcohol for over two years. I was thinking this couldn't be possible, but something told me to give him a chance. After meeting him, (my daughter was in school) he started giving me a testimony on how Jesus changed his life. He was now a minister of God's word and did great works for Jesus. When I decided to let him see his daughter, I told him I needed a safe place for them to meet for the first time. It was Easter weekend and he suggested that we meet at his church. I agreed and to church we went.

WOW!  Let me tell you, I was so moved by this church. Jesus was drawing me there time after time again. I started asking questions about Jesus and the Christian life. I was very interested, but afraid. I felt the need to go and pray to Jesus for my salvation, but I couldn't get over my fear. Weeks later, I started becoming more comfortable I started praising Him and feeling His presence. I finally prayed at home I asked Jesus to bless me with His sprit. A few days later my daughter, her father, and I attended a youth rally in Michigan. They were over 1000 people there just loving Jesus and it moved me.

I went home that evening and while I was sleeping, I had a dream. In the dream, I was at a rally like I had just attended that evening and the youth minister was giving a message and called for someone to receive the Holy Spirit. Just then, I started to speak in tongues and only to wake hearing myself speak in this way, than as I lay in my bed a weight came over me, and a tingling sensation. Than as a mighty rush, fire burned through my body and centered on my heart and I could feel my heart being filled with His love and joy and my old heart was discarded and oh how powerful that was!  All I could do was lay there in amazement.

Then suddenly a vision of Jesus' profile came over me and than only to see His eyes with the greatest twinkle and fire in them. I just praised Him over and over again, all night long. Two days later at church I got up and gave my testimony and was baptized in Jesus name for the remission of my sins and here I started my New Birth in Christ.  Since then, the curse has been broken on my family and aliments have left me. I am so excited to go to church all the time. I have a great new job, I have lost 20 pounds, and my depression is no longer there. Oh how He has blessed me!!   I get up, pray, and praise Him aloud all the time.  Oh how Jesus keeps blessing me!! The Bible says, He is the comforter and counselor. It is true; I feel an everlasting comfort that could have only come from God. And He keeps counseling me in everything I do. There is a Jesus and He is all powerful, all knowing, all mighty, Hallelujah!  I praise Him for my Salvation, and being my King, the King of Kings. Hallelujah!!!!

From Witchcraft to Jesus - Testimony

From Witchcraft to Christ

Ronald Harnage

I had been in the occult for over 21 years when I found Christ. I was raised in the Baptist church, but things began happening in my life that they had no accountable explanation for. I grew up in a home that was periodically disturbed by what I believed were ghosts or spirits at least. I was told this was all a figment of my imagination and that I must be having mental problems. The fact that other people witnessed this activity at my home did not seem to phase the church.

I was told that demons were all in hell since Christ came, that there are no such things as ghosts, and there aren’t, but they included any paranormal activity as non-existent. So I began to question how the world must really be. I knew there must be some explanation and what began really as a skeptical approach at disproving the supernatural lead into a deeper and deeper involvement in the occult. It appeared to me to be the only means to explore and uncover any existence of God or anything supernatural.

I had an uncle that was into Native American Shamanism, and through him I became interested and began practicing spirit guide techniques. I began to explore that at the age of 12. At 13 I was introduced to a sorcerer and demonologist named Randy Simpson and was given access to his occult library. With this I began to progress into astral projection, meditative states and occult herbalism. At the age of 20 I joined Gavin and Yvonne Frost’s School of Wicca and completed the initiate’s course with them and was invited to join their coven, but decided to remain on my own.

I enjoyed going to parties and entertaining people with supernatural feats, and proving to skeptics that the supernatural was real,(on one occasion this backfired and a guy got saved,lol!). I did this by using trance states, and would reach into fires and grab hot coals that I would squeeze in my palms and then show everyone I was not burned, or walk barefoot on broken glass and sit down in it uncut. I would use psychic abilities to tell people very detailed events from their past. Sometimes I used telekinesis and on one occasion I levitated across a graveyard.

One night at a party I was asked to help a young Wiccan that was having some problems with a coven of Satanists. This opened a door where I became involved in helping people who were having problems related to black magic and poltergeist phenomena. I also became involved with the Atlanta Area Rainbow Family about this time and ran sweat lodge ceremonies on occasion. I taught guided meditation, working with spirit guides, and psychic self-defense, and had begun healing people of leukemia and cancer with occult herbalism.

In 1997 I met Dr. Lee Francis, a Native American from the Laguna Pueblo tribe. He had been involved with the Edgar Cayce Foundation and had also authored a book on empathic abilities. We became close friends and as he was shifting from teaching at the University of Missouri to the University Of New Mexico he invited me to come and be on his staff at the Native America Studies Department in a position sponsored by his organization, Wordcraft Circle of Native American Writers and Storytellers. While there I worked as a Human rights activist and founded the Coalition of Intertribal Native Students. We held the first Native protest since ’72 to stop the university from closing down the Native American Studies Dept. It was a 3 day prayer vigil that gained national attention. We hosted tribal shamans from all over the west.

I did, however, as misguided as I was, talk to God a lot. He was after me for years. Unfortunately I didn’t listen to Him much, but I could hear Him. I remember distinctly on one occasion He asked me, “Have you considered my Son Jesus?”, and I declined telling Him that I didn’t mind Jesus at all, but it was His people that I had problems with, lol. So for the longest time I continued in this mind frame. I know now that the devil consistently sent religious people into my life to reinforce the belief that Christianity was for shallow people and that there was nothing supernatural about it, but my how things have changed now! LOL.

I had my life pretty much set as to what I was going to do and planned on being a human rights representative at the United Nations. My last year at the university I went through a horrendous set of tragedies and I took some time off and went home to visit my parents. My mother had gotten saved three years prior and was now a Pentecostal Sunday School teacher.

Even though I was heavily involved in the occult, I didn’t have any problem with this. I wasn’t a Satanist and was basically a peace loving person and wasn’t prejudiced toward people,(even Christians, lol). Besides, I thought it would be a mark of maturity if I could hang out with Christians and act loving and accepting,(my! how big of me, lol). I felt that if it made my mother happy then it was alright, but it just wasn’t for me.

A Pentecostal tent revival came to town while I was there. My mother was all worked up to go and wanted my step-father and I to go with her. She was relentless about it. I think my step-father and I finally agreed so that she would leave us alone and let us watch t.v.lol. So we went the night it started.

We got there and there was a lot of singing and praying. The pastor began to preach and I think my mind wandered off somewhere, but the next thing I knew he had called someone up to pray over them for healing. This got my attention. I was curious to see what was going to happen, because I was a white witch, meaning I used witchcraft and medicinal herbs to cure people.

He began praying over a lady that had come forward. She had cancer.  He prayed for her and she began to jump up and down shouting that she was healed and praising God. I was thinking this has to be some kind of fake. Maybe he just paid her to do that.  I knew it took me several days to heal someone with cancer.

He kept calling more and more people up there and I continued seeing the same results. Excited people were saying they were healed and praising God. I came back night after night. I had to figure this thing out! lol. Something was going on! God had gotten my attention! After a few nights it became obvious it was no con game. No little tent preacher could afford to pay all those people to act like they were getting healed, lol.

So, I began to take an interest in what he was preaching. The supernatural power got my attention, but it was the preaching on the love of Christ,(and not damnation I might add), that began to change my mind. Preaching on hell wouldn’t have done me any good. I had heard that before. I had lived in hell all my life. I wasn’t scared of hell. I saw hell every day. I knew what demons were. Hell was just more of the same to me.  I knew that my life was cursed. I had been living with a sense of doom for some time and I felt that there was no escape.  It had really hit home over the past year.  The pastor preaching on sin and the condition of the lost seemed to confirm what I was already struggling with but hearing that God really loved me and that He sent His only Son to demonstrate His love for us, now that was something almost too good to hope in, and I liked that idea!

So, one night I came home from the tent revival and I was looking at the bible in my room. I was laying there reading the book of Matthew. I really wasn’t sure about this Jesus guy yet. I considered my self a man of peace and the occult had TAUGHT ME SOME VERY LIBERAL IDEAS ABOUT LOVE AND TOLERANCE, and some of the things Jesus had to say just didn’t sit right with my ideas about peace and love. I thought I would bring this up because I see so much of the exact same thinking in the church, however, I digress, lol.

I hadn’t made my mind up, but I finished reading for the night and turned my light off and went to bed. I was laying there trying to go to sleep when I heard the closet door open. Then the lamp next to my bed suddenly crashed to the floor. The window blind began beating against the window. I knew what it was. I knew it was demons trying to scare me. I was lying there deciding what to do, and pretending to ignore it. I really did not like demons. I came to the conclusion that if they did not like what I was considering, then it must really be a good idea!

I got up and turned the light on and began flipping through the bible. The activity had not stopped at all, if anything it was more dramatic. The closet door was opening and closing, the window blind still banging against the wall and I was hearing scratching and hissing. I was beginning to feel a little panic, I knew from people witnessing to me before that there was some type of prayer of salvation. I was hurriedly flipping through the bible to find it. After a few minutes of this I was becoming frustrated. It was too big of a book! lol. I didn’t know where it was, and of course like any skillful witch, I knew it had to be done the right way, with the right spell, lol. I also knew though, that sometimes with the supernatural you just had to improvise.

So I gave up trying to find it in the big book and began calling on the Lord. I asked Him to save me and forgive my sins. I told Him that I believed Him that He had raised His Son from the dead. I really had to struggle with this a few minutes. I at first had a hard time believing God raised anyone from the dead. I knew if I didn’t get past this then this prayer wasn’t going to be real,it wasn’t going to be accepted,and wasn’t going to work. It was like something powerfully intense was bearing down on me at that moment screaming “:No! You can’t honestly believe this!” I felt utterly hopeless at this moment as I looked at the window blind banging maniacally against the window.I asked God to help me and for some moments I struggled to find some answer, but then a thought pierced through my mind,bright and crystal clear and i heard “So,with everything you’ve seen me do these past two weeks you think I can’t also raise the dead? There is no difference to Me in healing the sick or raising the dead,one is no harder than the other. I am God,I can do anything! I had to admit that did make perfect sense and at that moment the struggle seemed to cease.I believed and I asked Jesus to be my Lord and Savior and from that night forward I was a changed man! The next night I returned to the revival and publicly confessed Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I was Baptized in the Holy Ghost and felt the whole world lift from off my shoulders! My long search for a real and powerful God was over.

I experienced such an oppressive attack from the enemy after that. It was several weeks before I believed without a doubt that I was saved. The enemy put up quite a fuss about it. They of course hate seeing a lost soul get saved,but when they lose one of their own servants they get really upset about it, lol! I was under quite an attack on my mind for a while. I really had to fight to get out from under it, but all that fighting taught me how to pray and seek His presence!

I daily thank my God for coming into my life and rescuing me from something that very few people escape from, and now I help others, ministering to all walks of life, but I have also been used by the Lord to lead many out of witchcraft, so many that I have lost count now. It gives me special joy to lead a lost soul to the Lord, but even more so a witch, because I know how deceptive it is and how few escape. Perhaps it was one of life’s strange ironies or more likely, I think the poetic justice of God, but a poltergeist caused me to wander into the occult, and then a poltergeist caused me to find Jesus…

This all came about I believe because I had a praying mother. I see so many Christian parents that have just given up on their children because they are so far gone, but I believe I am living proof that you can’t be so far gone that God is unable to get a hold of you. I also think on that Great Day there are going to be a lot of praying parents up in the front of the line!

I also have relatives and a few old friends that can attest that what I have shared with you is true. They remember how I was before I became a Christian and also were witnesses to a lot of what I have described.

Doctrinal Statement

The Bible is our all-sufficient rule for faith and practice. This Statement of Fundamental Truths is intended simply as a basis of fellowship among us (i.e., that we all speak the same thing, 1 Corinthians 1:10; Acts 2:42). The phraseology employed in this statement is not inspired or contended for, but the truth set forth is held to be essential to a full-gospel ministry. No claim is made that it contains all biblical truth, only that it covers our need as to these fundamental doctrines.

The Scriptures Inspired

The Scriptures, both the Old and New Testament, are verbally inspired of God and are the revelation of God to man, the infallible, authoritative rule of faith and conduct (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).

The One True God

The one true God has revealed Himself as the eternally self-existent “I AM,” the Creator of heaven and earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed himself as embodying the principles of relationship and association as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:10,11; Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22).

The Godhead

(a) Terms Defined

The terms trinity and persons, as related to the godhead, while not found in the Scriptures, are words in harmony with Scripture, whereby we may convey to others our immediate understanding of the doctrine of Jesus Christ respecting the Being of God, as distinguished from “gods many and lords many.” We therefore may speak with propriety of the Lord our God, who is One Lord, as a Trinity or as one Being of three persons, and still be absolutely scriptural (examples, Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; John 14:16,17).

(b) Distinction and Relationship in the Godhead

Christ taught a distinction of persons in the godhead which He expressed in specific terms of relationship, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but that this distinction and relationship, as to its mode is inscrutable and incomprehensible, because unexplained (Luke 1:35; 1 Corinthians 1:24; Matthew 11:25-27; 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 John 1:3,4).

(c) Unity of the One Being of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Accordingly, therefore, there is that in the Father which constitutes Him the Father and not the Son; there is that in the Son which constitutes Him the Son and not the Father; and there is that in the Holy Spirit which constitutes Him the Holy Spirit and not either the Father or the Son. Wherefore, the Father is the Begetter; the Son is the Begotten; and the Holy Spirit is the One proceeding from the Father and the Son. Therefore, because these three persons in the godhead are in a state of unity, there is but one Lord God Almighty and His name one (John 1:18; 15:26; 17:11,21; Zechariah 14:9).

(d) Identity and Cooperation in the Godhead

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are never identical as to person; nor confused as to relation; nor divided in respect to the godhead; nor opposed as to cooperation. The Son is in the Father and the Father is in the Son as to relationship. The Son is with the Father and the Father is with the Son, as to fellowship. The Father is not from the Son, but the Son is from the Father, as to authority. The Holy Spirit is from the Father and the Son proceeding, as to nature, relationship, cooperation, and authority. Hence, no person in the godhead either exists or works separately or independently of the others (John 5:17-30,32,37; 8:17,18).

(e) The Title, Lord Jesus Christ

The appellation Lord Jesus Christ, is a proper name. It is never applied in the New Testament either to the Father or to the Holy Spirit. It therefore belongs exclusively to the Son of God (Romans 1:1-3,7; 2 John 3).

(f) The Lord Jesus Christ, God With Us

The Lord Jesus Christ, as to His divine and eternal nature, is the proper and only Begotten of the Father, but as to His human nature, He is the proper Son of Man. He is, therefore, acknowledged to be both God and man; who because He is God and man, is “Immanuel,” God with us (Matthew 1:23; 1 John 4:2,10,14; Revelation 1:13,17).

(g) The Title, Son of God

Since the name Immanuel embraces both God and man, in the one person, our Lord Jesus Christ, it follows that the title Son of God describes His proper deity, and the title Son of Man, His proper humanity. Therefore, the title Son of God belongs to the order of eternity, and the title Son of Man to the order of time (Matthew 1:21-23; 2 John 3; 1 John 3:8; Hebrews 7:3; 1:1-13).

(h) Transgression of the Doctrine of Christ

Wherefore, it is a transgression of the doctrine of Christ to say that Jesus Christ derived the title Son of God solely from the fact of the Incarnation, or because of His relation to the economy of redemption. Therefore, to deny that the Father is a real and eternal Father, and that the Son is a real and eternal Son, is a denial of the distinction and relationship in the Being of God; a denial of the Father and the Son; and a displacement of the truth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh (2 John 9; John 1:1,2,14,18,29,49; 1 John 2:22,23; 4:1-5; Hebrews 12:2).

(i) Exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord

The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, having by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, angels and principalities and powers having been made subject unto Him. And having been made both Lord and Christ, He sent the Holy Spirit that we, in the name of Jesus, might bow our knees and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father until the end, when the Son shall become subject to the Father that God may be all in all (Hebrews 1:3; 1 Peter 3:22; Acts 2:32-36; Romans 14:11; 1 Corinthians 15:24-28).

(j) Equal Honor to the Father and to the Son

Wherefore, since the Father has delivered all judgment unto the Son, it is not only the express duty of all in heaven and on earth to bow the knee, but it is an unspeakable joy in the Holy Spirit to ascribe unto the Son all the attributes of deity, and to give Him all the honor and the glory contained in all the names and titles of the godhead except those which express relationship (see paragraphs b, c, and d), and thus honor the Son even as we honor the Father (John 5:22,23; 1Peter 1:8; Revelation 5:6-14; Philippians 2:8,9; Revelation 7:9,10; 4:8-11).

The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ

The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. The Scriptures declare: a. His virgin birth (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31,35). b. His sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22). c. His miracles (Acts 2:22; 10:38). d. His substitutionary work on the cross (1 Corinthians 15:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21). e. His bodily resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:39; 1 Corinthians 15:4). f. His exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9,11; 2:33; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:3).

The Fall of Man

Man was created good and upright; for God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” However, man by voluntary transgression fell and thereby incurred not only physical death but also spiritual death, which is separation from God (Genesis 1:26,27; 2:17; 3:6; Romans 5:12-19).

The Salvation of Man

Man’s only hope of redemption is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ the Son of God.

a. Conditions to Salvation

Salvation is received through repentance toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. By the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, being justified by grace through faith, man becomes an heir of God according to the hope of eternal life (Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians 2:8; Titus 2:11; 3:5-7).

b. The Evidences of Salvation

The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the Spirit (Romans 8:16). The outward evidence to all men is a life of righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24; Titus 2:12).

The Ordinances of the Church

a. Baptism in Water

The ordinance of baptism by immersion is commanded in the Scriptures. All who repent and believe on Christ as Savior and Lord are to be baptized. Thus they declare to the world that they have died with Christ and that they also have been raised with Him to walk in newness of life (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 10:47,48; Romans 6:4).

b. Holy Communion

The Lord’s Supper, consisting of the elements—bread and the fruit of the vine—is the symbol expressing our sharing the divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:4); a memorial of His suffering and death (1 Corinthians 11:26); and a prophecy of His second coming (1 Corinthians 11:26); and is enjoined on all believers “till He come!”

The Baptism in the Holy Spirit

All believers are entitled to and should ardently expect and earnestly seek the promise of the Father, the baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire, according to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the normal experience of all in the early Christian church. With it comes the endowment of power for life and service, the bestowment of the gifts and their uses in the work of the ministry (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4,8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31). This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of the new birth (Acts 8:12-17; 10:44-46; 11:14-16; 15:7-9).

With the baptism in the Holy Spirit come such experiences as an overflowing fullness of the Spirit (John 7:37-39; Acts 4:8), a deepened reverence for God (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 12:28), an intensified consecration to God and dedication to His work (Acts 2:42), and a more active love for Christ, for His Word, and for the lost (Mark 16:20).

Sanctification

Sanctification is an act of separation from that which is evil, and of dedication unto God (Romans 12:1,2; 1Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 13:12). Scriptures teach a life of “holiness without which no man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). By the power of the Holy Spirit we are able to obey the command: “Be ye holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15,16). Sanctification is realized in the believer by recognizing his identification with Christ in His death and resurrection, and by faith reckoning daily upon the fact of that union, and by offering every faculty continually to the dominion of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:1-11,13; 8:1,2,13; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 2:12,13; 1 Peter 1:5).

The Church and Its Mission

The Church is the body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of her Great Commission. Each believer, born of the Spirit, is an integral part of the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven (Ephesians 1:22,23; 2:22; Hebrews 12:23).

Since God’s purpose concerning man is to seek and to save that which is lost, to be worshiped by man, and to build a body of believers in the image of His Son:
We as the Church:

a. To be an agency of God for evangelizing the world (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19,20; Mark 16:15,16). b. To be a corporate body in which man may worship God (1 Corinthians 12:13). c. To be a channel of God’s purpose to build a body of saints being perfected in the image of His Son (Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Corinthians 12:28; 14:12).  We give continuing emphasis to this reason-for-being in the New Testament apostolic pattern by teaching and encouraging believers to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. This experience: a. Enables them to evangelize in the power of the Spirit with accompanying supernatural signs (Mark 16:15-20; Acts 4:29-31; Hebrews 2:3,4). b. Adds a necessary dimension to a worshipful relationship with God (1 Corinthians 2:10-16; 1 Corinthians 12-14). c. Enables them to respond to the full working of the Holy Spirit in expression of fruit and gifts and ministries as in New Testament times for the edifying of the body of Christ (Galatians 5:22-26; 1 Corinthians 14:12; Ephesians 4:11,12; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Colossians 1:29).

The Ministry

A divinely called and scripturally ordained ministry has been provided by our Lord for the threefold purpose of leading the Church in: (1) evangelization of the world (Mark 16:15-20), (2) worship of God (John 4:23,24), and (3) building a Body of saints being perfected in the image of His Son (Ephesians 4:11,16).

Divine Healing

Divine healing is an integral part of the gospel. Deliverance from sickness is provided for in the Atonement, and is the privilege of all believers (Isaiah 53:4,5; Matthew 8:16,17; James 5:14-16).

The Blessed Hope (Rapture)

The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ and their translation together with those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed hope of the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:16,17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians 15:51,52).

The Millennial Reign of Christ

The second coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints, which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one thousand years (Zechariah 14:5; Matthew 24:27,30; Revelation 1:7;19:11-14; 20:1-6). This millennial reign will bring the salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21,22; Zephaniah 3:19,20; Romans 11:26,27) and the establishment of universal peace (Isaiah 11:6-9; Psalm 72:3-8; Micah 4:3,4).

The Final Judgment

There will be a final judgment in which the wicked dead will be raised and judged according to their works. Whosoever is not found written in the Book of Life, together with the devil and his angels, the beast and the false prophet, will be consigned to everlasting punishment in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death (Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 19:20; 20:11-15; 21:8).

The New Heavens and the New Earth

“We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21,22

Interrupted by the Voice of God! - Testimony

Joshua Woodcook
Interrupted by the Voice of God!

My ex-girlfriend and I broke up after a long relationship, and I was really tore apart inside… I started getting heavy into smoking pot…. I would look forward to going home just to get high… I would do it everyday, literally. I was going on my 6th month straight of this routine, when one night I was laying in bed completely baked… I had just bought a new ounce (which cost me over $80) and everything just came crashing in on me. I started feeling really bad about what I was doing and went back and forth for about a half hour debating in my mind whether I should just flush the whole ounce. I finally decided to do it…

For the next two weeks or so after that, a lot of weird things started happening. I would see situations around me, and have strong feelings to do things for those people. A lot of the time I didn’t even want to do it, but the feeling inside was so strong I had to. I had been telling my ex-girlfriend all these weird things I was going through… Anyway I found out my Aunt had a brain tumor and was getting surgery for it, so I thought I should pray for her. It had been a LOOONG time since I had prayed before, but as I was finishing, I had this thought enter my mind that was basically along the line of, “you’re going to go to church tomorrow, and when the pastor calls for people to go down front, you go down front.” I didn’t think much of it, and just passed it off. Well it turns out my ex girlfriend had been telling one of her friends all that stuff I was going through, and that friend went to a church in Malibu. Her friend actually called me that day and invited me to go on Sunday to her church. Needless to say I was a little tripped out, I thought it was strange, and I guess that’s why I said okay.

So Sunday morning I headed out for Malibu. I was really late, and had almost decided to just turn around and go home, but I decided to keep going.

I was right at downtown LA…with all the skyscrapers right there when all of a sudden I heard this voice. It was an audible voice, just as if I was speaking out loud to you. He said “Joshua, see that dove, that’s for you” and as soon as I heard it, I saw a white dove start to fly as if someone had just dropped it…. AS SOON as I saw the dove, this bolt like electricity shot through my body. It didn’t hurt or anything, but I just broke down and started to cry. I pulled off my sunglasses because they were getting all fogged up, and I heard the voice again…as clear as day, and He said, “Joshua, see that man on the side of the road, He’s one of my angels.” And I looked, and saw kneeling on the side of the 10 freeway a man with very dark skin, and pure white clothes…so white they almost seemed to give off their own light. Again, as soon as I saw him, that same “electricity” shot through me.

Now everything was happening so fast, and my mind was reeling trying to connect everything. Before I was able to, I heard His voice again, (and it was the last time I heard Him audibly) and He said, “Joshua, My love is all around you and My signs are everywhere” and after He said that, I saw a white balloon rise straight up from the freeway directly ahead of me. This all happened in a matter of seconds, although thinking back on it now, it seems like it took an hour. But after the balloon, everything hit home and I realized it was really God! That night I went to the church again, and at the end of the service, sure enough, the pastor called for people to come down front if they wanted to. I ran down front and stood eagerly expecting something to happen….5 minutes go by, then 10, I said forget it, and turned to leave just as someone came up and started praying. It was a quick little prayer, and then they left. So I thought, okay, I’m outta here, and as I turned again to leave, I felt Him very strongly say, “No, I’m not finished yet…just stand here and be patient.” So I stopped and waited.

Almost 20 more minutes went by and by that time I couldn’t be patient anymore so I turned to walk out. Again, just as I did, another man came up and started praying for me. All of a sudden I started to feel that electricity again…really subtle in my feet. But then it started getting stronger and it felt like it was filling up my whole body until I couldn’t even stand anymore. So there I was on the floor, feeling this energy flowing through my body in waves… I started getting freaked out… I thought this was all wrong and I was even starting to be afraid. It felt like something was literally rising out of me…this really made me afraid but then I heard His voice again. It was so clear, I couldn’t even tell if it was audible or not (I don’t know if the people around me could hear it, but I doubt they could). But he said “Joshua don’t be afraid… I’m cleansing you of your sins… I’m taking away all of those things of the past” and I just remember the comfort that flooded my body as soon as He spoke. I wasn’t afraid anymore. Then He said, “Joshua, I’m holding your hand right now.”

And as soon as He said that, my left hand “exploded” into the most intense feeling of the electricity I have ever experienced to this day… It didn’t hurt at all, but it was so intense… I could feel His power… and I KNEW He was holding my hand! Then He said “Joshua, now you know I am real…you’ve heard about me since you were a kid…I am Jesus…I am the living God” Then my mind started flooding with memories from all through my life….moments where He had protected me and been with me, and I had never even known it.

It was absolutely incredible!!

All of that happened June 13, 1999…my life hasn’t been the same since!

Now I have an awesome relationship with Him…although some times are better than others…. We talk a lot, but now it is inside…between my spirit and His….I hear Him in much the same way you hear these words within yourself as you read this letter. That voice is your own spirit and it exists independent of your flesh and blood body. That part of you which really makes you who you are, is immortal…it will live forever. Jesus was and is fully God… what He represents as a man was the full consciousness of God, entering into this world… His creation… being plugged in and taking on all the physical aspects of you and I…. and when Jesus gave His life as a sacrifice on the cross, it was to be a covering for each and everyone of us… to wash away all of our sins that keep us separated from God. When Jesus rose from the dead, it was a promise to all who will believe in Him, that they too will be risen and break free from the chains of death.  In the spirit, our sins are clearly seen to anyone who would look at you. So that means that every dark dirty little secret you have within you, that you wouldn’t want anyone to know, would be naked and exposed when you are purely spirit (like when you die and leave the body) except when we are in the spirit things are much, much clearer, so even little secrets you may have now would bring an incredible amount of shame and embarrassment there.

People will literally run and hide in the outer darkness, to be as far from the light as possible. God is light…to be separated from Him, and be fully aware of all our sins would be absolute torment in the spiritual world. Hell is real.

Jesus’ sacrifice actually washes away all of those dirty secrets…and they disappear….you will have nothing to hide…no embarrassment or shame. You will be able to sit in the Infinite Creators’ lap, as His child… filled with His love which is beyond words to describe how wonderful it is…. you will be able to explore the infinite mystery of His creation… to travel to worlds without bounds… to move at the speed of thought… to exist outside of time, and talk with people from all ages of the world… and then Heaven…. a place so amazing and wonderful that the least aspect of it is beyond any man’s ability to even imagine how amazing it will be!! And it is all given freely to whoever will recognize their own sin and ask for forgiveness… To ask God to come and live within their own hearts, and to fill them with His love. The only way one can be absolutely positive in their future after this world, is to know the One who can transform your mind and present you faultless before the throne of God… and that One is Jesus… living within your heart… who you get to know better than your closest friend.

That’s what this is all about for me. If it was just religion or just church, it couldn’t change my life. But Jesus is REAL… He is ALIVE and active in our lives already… He is my most precious friend… to make the next step and actually meet Him would transform your life. It’s amazing and it’s so simple!!!

All you have to do is talk to God… I’m not going to write a fancy prayer or tell you exactly what to say… It’s between you and God… just be real with Him… Admit that you have made mistakes and have sinned, then ask Him to come inside your heart and wash all of those things away. Just pour your heart out to Him, and thank Him for sacrificing Himself for YOU… All it takes is an honest and sincere heart which recognizes it’s own brokenness, and cries out for help. God is AWESOME!! And He LOVES YOU with an EVERLASTING LOVE….

If you would like to talk or share your own experiences with me… or if you would like to have someone to pray for / with you, please write me!

Joshua Woodcook

joshw@mirageinkjet.com

A Prophetic Word for 2017 - Sybella Owens

Sybella Owens walks very closely with God, studying the Bible, and praying and interceding for others very much.  Her prophesies are tested, tried, and true, because of the purity of her own personal life and the call of God on her life.  We are sure that what she has to say is very valuable, heard from the heart of God during her prayer times so let us listen and if this prophesy resonates in our spirits, may we go forward.  Amen.

WORD FOR 2017 FOR THE BODY OF CHRIST - THE SEASON OF "GO!" The Lord put a word in my heart tonight, by His Holy Spirit, for the BODY OF CHRIST FOR 2017. This is a lengthy message and took time to prayerfully write in the Spirit. The Lord has been giving me words by His Holy Spirit for my local church and the Body of Christ at large for years. The words He gives for the start of a new year are often more lengthy because it is an overview of the year to plant seeds, give direction, sometimes warnings, exhortations, whatever is on God's heart for the Body of Christ. So I encourage you to please TAKE THE TIME to PRAYERFULLY read through this or save it and put it aside, maybe print it out so you can PRAY OVER IT WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND ASK HIM WHAT PART(S) IF ANY ARE FOR YOU TO PERSONALLY TO RECEIVE. He may show you a part for others, please pass on it as the Spirit of God leads as this is for the BODY OF CHRIST AT LARGE NOT JUST MY REGION OR COUNTRY. You will see all the scriptures the Holy Spirit gave to go with this Word at the bottom.

I believe that some of you may have been praying and asking God for the "WHEN" to step out or "GO". You know the "what, " it's just the "WHEN TO GO" you're WAITING on God for. I believe there may even be a few of you who have been waiting for YEARS to step out and "GO" in a BIG way. You have been DOING ministry work, you have been FAITHFUL where you are, ALLOWING God to train you, but you KNOW that GOD has CALLED YOU to "GO" to something BIGGER and you are WONDERING will this come to pass? "Is it time to GO yet," is the cry in your heart. I see a vision of some of you as RUNNERS at the starting line of a race (like in the Olympics) and you are bent down poised and literally in the starting position just waiting on the gun to go off, which is in matter of seconds.

Then I believe the Lord is showing me there are SOME of you who are asking God for the "WHAT." You need DIRECTION in what to "GO" into or where to "GO" to in this NEW SEASON that will be here in a FEW weeks. I believe as you are seeking Him especially now that He will show you and I want to encourage you to REALLY PRESS IN for that, consider fasting.

I believe God is about to LAUNCH many people who have been BEHIND THE SCENES, "in hiding," so to speak (in pits, getting trained, praying at all hours in the wee hours of the night and no one really knows what you are doing BUT GOD does). I believe that there is a group of WARRIORS and people that God has indeed been TRAINING for YEARS, some 10 years or more, some a bit less, but it has been more then just a few months, it has been years. It has been letting God MOLD you, you have been the CLAY ON THE POTTER'S WHEEL and it has FELT like it. You have ALLOWED GOD to MOLD YOU. You have walked through the FIERY FURNACE and miraculously COME OUT on the other side and DON'T smell of smoke! Sure, you may "FEEL" like you WREAK of smoke, but THE TRUTH is you DON'T. When others look at you, they keep remarking on your FAITH and they see CHRIST IN YOU. Sound familiar? Listen for your "GO."

There are a remnant of people that are being called in this VERY HOUR, for this VERY SEASON that is almost UPON US, that are going to be RAISED UP to "GO" and TAKE YOUR PLACE ON the FRONT lines. There is indeed a "CHANGING OF THE GUARDS" that is about to take place and is even in motion right now. It is happening not only in the larger platforms in the world and the USA but ALSO in the churches, in businesses, in places of power and influence. There are MAJOR SHIFTS that are TAKING PLACE, even now, in the SPIRIT realm and we are and will continue to see it in the natural. This INCLUDES the BODY OF CHRIST!

There are people that God has been TRAINING, they have been in BOOT CAMP, TRAINED to be FAITHFUL TO HIM NO MATTER WHAT. People who know WHO they are and WHO'S they are because they have spent time in the SECRET PLACE WITH THE LORD and HIS WORD. Even when they thought they were going to die they DID NOT AND WILL NOT turn away from God.  The Lord has INVESTED much time in you. YOU are about to get called into your "GO."

There are SONS and DAUGHTERS of the LIVING GOD who are NOT AFRAID to STAND UP and TAKE their place "GO" AND TAKE the LAND THE HAS PROMISED YOU AND GIVEN YOU.

There are those who are chomping at the bit and READY AND WILLING, you are WAITING to be RELEASED to STEP INTO your CALLING. God is about to pull the trigger to "GO!" Remember the image, the Holy Spirit gave me for you, a runner bent down at the starting line, about to sprint. When a runner is in that position it means he/she is READY. He/she is NO LONGER stretching. He/she is NO LONGER warming up, he/she is NO LONGER doing warm up laps, he/she is NO LONGER standing straight about to take the position, no, he/she IS IN THE POSITION, bent down, READY, within SECONDS that gun is going to go off and he/she will "GO!" We have been in part for many in a season this year of "on your mark, get set and...." we have been waiting for the "GO!" It did not come because many of us were not yet ready.

BUT where I believe the Holy Spirit of God has shown me (in part) we are right now IS about to enter into THAT SEASON OF "GO!" There is a DISTINGUISHING SHIFT that is taking place, it is MORE intense, it is MORE charged, there is MORE anointing and MORE authority that I believe is going to be RELEASED on the BODY OF CHRIST for SUCH A TIME AS THIS. The LION OF JUDAH, JESUS CHRIST is about to ROAR UPON and THROUGH many. The LORD IS ABOUT TO SAY "GO!"

Those who the Lord has called as WARRIORS are being SUITED UP and have their ARMOR ON and they are about to "GO" and be RELEASED in to the spirit to WAR more INTENSELY than EVER BEFORE. The angels of the Lord are already warring on our behalf and we are about to REALLY join them in a way that we have not experienced before. I believe those who are CALLED to WAR WILL GO TO WAR. Some of this WAR will not look as you expect for it will come straight from the FATHERS HEART of LOVE. They will know us by our LOVE and HIS LOVE never fails!

Those who are called to PREACH and TEACH will have a NEW level of open doors to them TO "GO", as well as, BLOCKADES that will have to be OVERCOME, prayed into, OR TO "GO" over, around or through. This is a BIG YEAR OF STRATEGIES being sought and released on both sides. The Body of Christ will need to be on TOP of strategies from God and listening to prophets, the prophetic streams and the five-fold ministry needs to come forth more. Those who are called to PROPHESY will "GO" and do so MORE and MORE, where they can, even on the streets, one on one, or online, through writing, songs, prophesy to the dead bones that they may NOW LIVE! God NEEDS HIS WORD TO GET OUT. Please Be OBEDIENT and "GO" when the Lord calls you to do so. You only learn by stepping out. Those are called OR led by the Holy Spirit TO "GO" into healing ministries, miracles, to encourage, evangelists, laid down lovers, helps, will and need to "GO." Those who are BLESSED to GIVE need to give in OBEDIENCE, LED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, whether it be your time, smile, laughter, words, prayers, money, prayer etc. Now is the time of salvation, today. WE ARE AT TODAY.

DON'T LISTEN TO THE LIE that if you are not some famous evangelist or "big name" you don't make a difference, don't compare yourself with others. THE ONLY NAME THAT MATTERS IS JESUS! That is a trap of the enemy, you run YOUR race. EVERY PART MATTERS, GOD NEEDS EVERY ONE OF US. What one can do, another cannot. WE EACH need to "GO" AND do OUR PART that GOD has called us too.

We need EACH OTHER AND NEED TO BE IN UNITY LIKE NEVER BEFORE. There can be no more petty distractions, jealousies, competition, malice, unforgiveness, gossip, bad seeds etc. It is TIME WE TURN AWAY FROM THOSE THINGS, AWAY FROM FOOLISH ARGUMENTS AND "GO" TO UNITY IN CHRIST JESUS.

God bless each one of you in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Always in His Love, your sis Sybella

SCRIPTURES:

Mark 3:25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

2 Timothy 2:23 Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels

Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless.

2 Timothy 2:14-17 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene.

Ephesians 4:16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Romans 12:4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function...

Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

1 Corinthians 12:12-20,26-27 But now there are many members, but one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” ... But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.

Ephesians 4: 11-13 So Christ Himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Colossians 3:13-14 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.

Matthew 10:7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'

Luke 9:60 But He said to him, "Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God."

Acts 5:20 "Go, stand and speak to the people in the temple the whole message of this Life."

John 13:35 "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

John 1:5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Ezekiel 37:1-14

Sybella Owens' link to her website www.sybellasblessingshop.com/blog