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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – FEBRUARY 16

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Christians in the Hands of an Angry God!

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Jonathon Edwards is known for his authorship of the most powerful and most popular sermon ever preached, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”.

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Yes, that one sermon ignited the Great Awakening in England and the United States during the 1700’s!

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Jonathan Edwards – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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YOUTUBE SERMON by EDWARDS

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Now, one can go to YouTube and hear a very well-done and dramatic reading of that sermon (click here to listen.)

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And with one or two hearings, it is easy to understand why that sermon had such a dramatic effect upon its hearers!

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Yes, this passionate plea by Edwards, highlights the fiery results which he said will assuredly await all those who choose “Eternal Torment”, rather than repentance!

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Jonathon Edwards – Sinner in the Hands Monument – Wikipedia – Share-Alike License

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THE CEASELESS AGES!

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In this sermon, Edwards emphasizes just how long eternity is!

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And he presses upon the point, that being tormented in a fiery netherworld for all eternity, is an intolerable situation which never ends, and continues through the ceaseless ages!

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And so, for about an hour, this sermon repeatedly drives this point home to the listeners!

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And thus, after an hour of hearing the description of how long eternity is, it is small wonder that this most infamous recital about the fires of Hell had such a profound effect upon the Christian world who heard it!

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Hell – Dante’s Inferno – G. Dore – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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WHY ALL THE APATHY?

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But here’s the great question to be answered in today’s devotional:

“If Christians really do believe in this church-doctrine,

why then, are most Christians so complacent and apathetic toward Salvation?”

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Isn’t this odd? After all, you would think that the entire Christian community would be out there knocking on the doors of each and every neighbor and family member, warning them to “flee from the wrath to come!” Matthew 3:7-12

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Brooklyn Museum – The Bad Rich Man in Hell – James Tissot – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

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GOD HAS A WONDERFUL PLAN

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Considering how long eternity will be, you would think that preachers would be tearfully pounding their fists, pleading for parishioners to fall to their knees in repentance!

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But most are not!

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It doesn’t seem like they really believe the church-doctrine of “Eternal Torment”, does it? 

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Sunday preaching – Wikipedia – US Public Domain

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NICE SOFT SERMONS!

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But instead, most preachers are giving nice, soft & sweet sermons, about “God’s wonderful plan for your life”!

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And after church, we Christians are content to waste countless hours watching the big game.

And then we pursue our careers the rest of the week with the same aggression that we instead should have pursued the evangelism of the world!

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It just doesn’t make sense, does it?

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Audience hands – Wikimedia – Public Domain

 

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IN CENTURIES PAST

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Yes, you would think that those shrieks of terror from our deceased loved-ones would be enough to get us to begin evangelizing the lost souls in the world, beginning with our very own soul!

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Well, isn’t that what our predecessors did?

Didn’t Christians in earlier centuries train up their children in God’s Word, memorizing large portions, to take that Good News of Salvation to anyone who would listen?

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And, in spite of the ongoing threat of civil penalties for preaching that Gospel, it was still the primary objective of persecuted Christians during the Dark Ages in Europe, to carry on a clandestine evangelistic crusade through the countryside!

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And all this, while at the same time, providing for their family’s temporal, earthly needs!

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Burning at the Stake – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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WHY NO FEAR?

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Now this devotional was not intended to debate the question of “Eternal Torment”.

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But instead, this devotional merely questions just why the vast majority of Christians are resting so safe and securely in our TV room, knowing that nearly thousands of lost souls are slipping down into the grave on a daily basis?

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Listen… “If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death,

and those that are ready to be slain;

If you say, Behold, we knew it not;

does not He that ponders the heart consider it?

and He that keeps thy soul, does not he know it?

and shall not He render to every man according to his works?”

Proverbs 24:11, 12

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If this passage doesn’t strike fear into yours and my heart, then we are spiritually dead indeed, already!

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Calvary Cemetery Queens – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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NOW IS THE ACCEPTABLE TIME!

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And so, if we begin right now, to pray for strength to crack open our Bibles, to get to know more and more about the matchless character of God…

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…if we beg God to open our eyes, that we might look at life through the loving eyes of Jesus…

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…if we begin to study that we might show forth Christ’s holiness to all the world around us…

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…if we begin right now to cease all nagging and scolding of our family members, and instead, showing them our silent testimony of love, tenderness, and patience, making life thoroughly enjoyable for them…

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…then dear Soul…then, we just might possibly obtain that personal Christian victory…

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…a victory more wonderful and glorious than any previous generation ever realized!

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USMC – Prayer before Bible study – Wikimedia – public domain

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To continue reading, click here…

“FEBRUARY 17 (Christians in the Hands of an Angry God! Continued)”

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TODAY’S PRAYER…

“Dear Lord, Give me a zeal for purifying my heart in Thy Word, and prayerfully ordering my life aright, so that all the world can truly see Jesus in me, wherever I happen to be…

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FURTHER READING…

You may read this part 1 of a very lengthy series…May 12th . . . . Come Out of Her, My People! Part 1

Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license

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THE END

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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN

 

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“It (God’s Covenant) shall be established…

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for ever as the Moon…

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and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.”

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Psalm 89:37.

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“THE SCORNER (THE PHARISEE)”

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Please tilt your head to the left. Do you see a man with a very long pointed nose. (Obviously, the sketch to the right is just an exaggeration in order to help you find the face in the photo to the left.)

 

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Do you see an angry look? His right eyebrow is raised as if he is judging.

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This second face in the Moon appears to be that of a combination of a man as well as a fox.

Or maybe a wolf. Doesn’t he have a long narrow nose like a wolf or fox? Maybe even a dog.

Nevertheless, the expression on his face, as he appears to look down upon the Earth, is that of scorn.

Unlike the first Moon-man’s sad shock and awe; this ‘man/fox/wolf/dog’ appears to be that of anger and scorn.

As if he is disgusted at the sinful planet below.

He is very moral, you see!

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Moon – 2nd face Pharisee Scorner – by Cezar Popescu for Wikimedia – Universal Public Domain – cropped, highlighted & rotated photo

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READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Moon Into Blood Trilogy: 2nd Face: The Pharisee Scorner”

Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license

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TOMORROW…

FEBRUARY 17 . . . . Christians in the Hands of an Angry God! Continued

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20 MINUTE+ AUDIO STUDY IN JEREMIAH 

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ALL‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL.

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THIS STUDY #412 IS PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING, FORMER CEO OF FAMILY RADIO…

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above picture: Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.org – Public Domain

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