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CSI Good News
(Church of South India Good News)
Vol. 3 / Issue 31 / September 6 2001
Contents of this issue
Editorial
Enduring Home
Bible - Word of God
Florida Contact person
News Items (Common to all issues) :
Through the Valley of Death & other Books
Download Articles in Handheld Computers
Kids Page - Free Tutorials
Hindi / Malayalam/Tamil Bible Online
Your Spam Folder
Your Feedback
Editorial
Matthew 7:21-23, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'
I have seen that this verse is being used by Muslims, Hindus and other non-Christians to prove that no matter what you do in the name of Jesus, one day Jesus will tell you, 'I never knew you; depart from Me." And it surprises me more when we hear the same thing from Christians in our Churches. Do these verses say that if you prophesied in the name of Jesus, cast out demons in His name, and done many wonders in His name then you have to go to hell fire? Of course not! This verse very clearly says that Jesus will say to those who did all these things but went astray from God or could not walk in the will of God perfectly. Why? Because once saved not always saved. We have to live according to His will every day so that not only we could keep our salvation but also enter into heaven.
The above verses does not mean that you should not prophesy in the name of Jesus or cast out demons in the name of Jesus or do mighty deeds in the name of Jesus but these verses talk about a person who did all but could not stand in salvation till the end. These verses talk about a person who once walked with God but is backslidden. If God will send to hell those who do mighty deeds in the name of Jesus then why Jesus Himself did all the healing, prophecies, casting out of demons etc.? Not only that but He Himself said in John 14:12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father."
Jesus also said in Mark 16:16-18, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."
These are the signs of believers! And do you know what the mission of Jesus was? Jesus went into the synagogue and He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." (Luke 4:17-21)
Yes, this was the mission of Jesus:
1. "Preach the Gospel to the poor" - Bible says in Revelation 3:17-18 "Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'; and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see."
Yes, Jesus became poor for us so that we may become rich and enter into heaven. He came to preach the Gospel of abundant life. You need not to live in misery, pain, blindness or in tears but He wants to bless your life and wants to give eternal life.
2. "He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted" - Jesus came to heal our broken hearts and He wants to heal you. No matter what your situation today, He can help you. He is the prince of peace who can give you the peace that passes all understanding.
3. "To proclaim liberty to the captives" - He came to liberate those who are in bondage and in sin. He came to make captives free. He said in John 8:36 "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed." Yes, He wants to deliver you from your sin, alcoholism, pornography, immorality and all your addictions.
4. "And recovery of sight to the blind" - Jesus' mission was not only to deliver people from their bondages but also to heal their sicknesses. Bible says that, He is the God who heals our sicknesses. It is His quality that He wants to heal us not only spiritually but also physically.
5. "To set at liberty those who are oppressed" - Are you oppressed, Jesus wants to liberate you from your oppression. He wants to remove every depression and fear from your heart. The same God says in Isaiah 51:12, "I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid Of a man who will die, And of the son of a man who will be made like grass?"
Yes, He wants to comfort you and wants to wipe away all your tears.
6. "To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." - Jesus came to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD. No matter what you did in past, no matter how broken you may be, no matter what sin you might have committed, Jesus has answer for all your problems. Come to Him as you are and He will accept you and give you a new life.
This is the mission of Jesus and He is the God who does not change. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. What He did for others He will do for you. He wants to wipe away all your tears, He wants to heal your sicknesses, He wants to give you peace, joy and happiness that world can not give. He wants to comfort you and wants to deliver you. He did this before, He is doing it today and will do forever. If He wants to do this then why He will send you into hell fire? No, He will not just because you did mighty things in the name of Jesus. But yes, because you did not walk in His holy ways. But if you turn to Him, He will forgive you and bless your life.
Enduring Home
By Sheela Isaac
1 Ki 11:38, 'Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you'.
Here God speaks about enduring home. There is a story of King Solomon. His story starts with glorious things. If you read the whole story you will find how God blessed him. You will find the enormous riches in his life, gold, silver, palace, servants, kingship and everything that a person can think of. It looks that God was pleased with him very much, so that He gave everything even enormous wisdom.
Every thing looks like a great dream isn't it? You dream of things of the world and here is everything at your hands. A man, whose entire dream appears to have come true. Nothing is lacking in his life. God made him king. The glorious story begins, but what happened to this story? If you go ahead and read the whole thing you will be surprise to see the end of this great dream.
He could not walk in the ways of God properly. He was not grateful to God who blessed him so much. He was not faithful to God who appeared before him twice. He could not be trustworthy before God who gave him enormous wisdom.
1 Ki 4:29, "And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore".
1 Ki 4:30, "Thus Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt".
1 Ki 4:31, "For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations".
1 Ki 4:32, "He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five".
1 Ki 4:34, "And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon".
2 Chr 9:22, "So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom".
2 Chr 9:23, 'And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart".
You may be thinking why? Why he failed God? Why he was not grateful toward God? Why he could not walk in God's ways? Why he was not able to please God as he did at the start?
The reason is very simple. He walked away from God. He rejected the one and only true God. His wives turned his heart toward foreign gods. He was not loyal to the only true God who gave him every thing, who raised him to the position of king.
1 Ki 11:4, "For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David".
1 Ki 11:5, "For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites".
1 Ki 11:6, "Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David".
Here it says clearly that Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord.
What else does it say?
1 Ki 11:7, "Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon". 1 Ki 11:8, "And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods".
He tried to please his wives and their so called gods which were nothing but only idols and stones. He failed to walk in the ways of the one and only true God.
What was the consequence of it:
Did God say ok fine. "I am the God of love, I am merciful God and so you need not to worry. I am the God who does not judge anybody". Did He say that? NO read these verses.
1 Ki 11:9, "So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,"
1 Ki 11:10, "and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded".
1 Ki 11:11, "Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, "Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant".
What else did God do to Solomon:
1 Ki 11:14, "Now the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon,"
1 Ki 11:23, "And God raised up another adversary against him,"
1 Ki 11:31, "And he said to Jeroboam, "Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: 'Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you".
God became the adversary of Solomon. The same God who blessed him and gave everything is now standing against him. The end of this glorious story was very sad, very bitter. The glorious dream ended in despair and pain.
God is speaking the same thing to you and me. You should not go after another gods. God's messages did not change. The same message is for this generation also. Yes my friend this message is for you. Today we see the same thing in the lives of people. They boast about themselves saying, "I respect all religion. I respect all gods because Bible teaches about LOVE. I do not want to hurt anybody. God is love so you must tolerate everybody". Solomon did the same thing, he not only loved his foreign wives but loved their gods too and it became a snare for him. We do not find anywhere in the Bible that he repented from his sins. You may not find this great man in heaven when you get there. You may not find this great writer of poems and books of Bible in heaven. You may not find this great man of great wisdom in heaven. Very sad!!!
If you are doing the same thing as Solomon did remember destruction is ahead of you. This is so plain and simple. Never ever forget that it is God, who gave you life on this planet. Never ever forget that all the blessings come from the one and only true God Jesus. Never ever forget that the day you rebel against the true and living God you will be finished. Never ever take it easy. Don't ever say "I respect all religion". Mohamed cannot save you from hell fire, Buddha cannot nor Rama or Krishna". If you want a happy life look toward Jesus who is one and only true God. I am not ashamed to say that. This Gospel who saved me can save you from eternal hell. This Jesus who pulled me out from miry clay can change your life too. This Jesus who died for me and rescued me from sin can help you too. Always remember what God said, "There is none other beside Me, You should not have another gods before Me".
If you are going through the same situation like Solomon. repent from your sins. Repent and turn to Jesus. Repent, Repent, Repent. God will forgive you and give you a place in heaven and take care of your future. He will restore your broken life and broken home and give you everything back which you've lost.
Pray this prayer from your heart:
Lord Jesus I am sorry for all the things I've done. I am sorry that I rejected you many times through my thought and deeds. Forgive me. Many times without my knowledge I rejected you. Lord forgive me. I never thought this to be so serious matter. I never knew about it. I was ignorant please forgive me. Wash away my sins in your precious blood and cleanse me. Forgive and forget my sins. Come into my life. Come into my heart. Make me your child. I pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Bible - Word of God
By Sherly Isaac
His Word is a lamp to our feet
And a light to our path.
He guides us in the right path
when we go astray, when we take wrong way
He again puts us in the right path
He shows us where to go and not to
His Word brings deliverance and liberation
Where sinner will get forgiveness and freedom
His blood washes us from all our sins
He forgives and forgets our sins
Even He blots out our transgressions
And remembers no more
His Word is the way, the truth and the life
No one can go to the father except through Him,
He is the way to heaven
Absolute truth is He and no sin in Him
He gives eternal life who turn to Him
Abundant life He has in Him
His Word is comfort and consolation
When we go through tears and pain
He gives comfort and consoles our soul
He wipes away our tears
And fills my soul with His peace
The peace which passes all understanding
Florida Contact person
Any CSI members living in Tampa, Lakeland, St. Pete area, in FL, please contact Mr. Anand (Daniel Cherian) by email at anand1ae@yahoo.comor by phone 813 354 8455.
Through the Valley of Death & other Books
As many of you know that in the year 2005, our dad was very sick even unto death. God miraculously healed him. We have compiled it in a book form. I sure believe that it will inspire you and encourage you greatly.
This book is available for purchase at JasmineCorp Store
Also read these two books by Sherly Isaac "Allah and Elohim - Are they the same God" Available at JasmineCorp Store, and "Is Jesus God?" Available at JasmineCorp Store,
Both books compares the Bible and the Quran and read eye opening facts about Jesus, God of the Bible, Allah and Islamic faith. I am sure that you want to read this.
Download Articles in Handheld Computers
You can now download articles in Palm Doc format for your palm handheld computer. It will work with any devise that has Palm OS and Palm Doc Reader installed. To download click on the link named "Palm Doc Format" i.e. at the top of this page by the side of each articles.
Kids Page - Free Tutorials
Now you can learn Graphics and web designing online at Kid's page. These tutorials are free for kids who subscribe for CSI Kids Newsletter. Currently tutorials for Paint Shop Pro, HTML and Dreamweaver are available.
So please enroll your kids by going to http://kids.csinewsletter.org/member/join.asp
And visit CSI Kid's page at http://kids.csinewsletter.org
Hindi / Malayalam/Tamil Bible Online
Now you can read Bible in Hindi online at http://www.hindibible.org
in Malayalam online at http://www.malayalambible.org
in Tamil online at http://www.hindibible.org?ver=tamil
Your Spam Folder
If you are getting this newsletter in your bulk/junk/Spam folder please hit the "not junk" or "not spam" button so that you could receive it in your mailbox. Also adding news@csinewsletter.com email address into your contact list can avoid this email from ending up in your bulk folder.
Your Feedback
Your feedback and comments are Welcome. Please send your Parish news & articles to Editor (Sherly N. Isaac) at this address News@csinewsletter.comThe messages submitted will be checked whether they are correct according to the word of God. Editor reserves the right to accept, reject or edit the messages. The writers are responsible for the contents of their writings.
 
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