The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 2 Peter 3:10.
In the day of the Lord, just before the coming of Christ, God will send lightnings from Heaven in His wrath, which will unite with fire in the earth. The mountains will burn like a furnace, and will pour forth terrible streams of lava, destroying gardens and fields, villages and cities; and as they pour their melted ore, rocks and heated mud into the rivers, will cause them to boil like a pot, and send forth massive rocks and scatter their broken fragments upon the land with indescribable violence. Whole rivers will be dried up. The earth will be convulsed, and there will be dreadful eruptions and earthquakes everywhere. God will plague the wicked inhabitants of the earth until they are destroyed from off it.
The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and be removed as a cottage. The elements shall be in flames, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll.
The earth’s crust will be rent by the outbursts of the elements concealed in the bowels of the earth. These elements, once broken loose, will sweep away the treasures of those who for years have been adding to their wealth by securing large possessions at starvation prices from those in their employ.
The great general conflagration is but just ahead, when all this wasted labor of life will be swept away in a night and day.
There will be . . . great destruction of human life. But as in the days of the great deluge Noah was preserved in the ark that God had prepared for him, so in these days of destruction and calamity, God will be the refuge of His believing ones. Through the psalmist He declares, “Because thou has made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” “For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion. . . .” Then shall we not make the Lord our surety and our defense?
We should be preparing for the mansions that Christ has gone to prepare for them that love Him. There is a rest from earth’s conflict.
Maranatha p. 283
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prayer Requests
—–Please keep us in your prayers for wisdom and guidance on future decisions regarding Jim’s dad’s medical care. Kelly
——Please continue to pray for Ron. He is in a lot pain with his broken collarbone and now his ribs are hurting every time he takes a deep breath or coughs or even moves. Rose
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Friends
All the eyes of my Primary class were focused on Mrs. DeMink as she placed a jar of water on the table at the front of the room. She began to talk about what happens to our heart when we sin. As she did so, she squirted some black liquid into the water. The water became black. Then she explained that only Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross could cleanse our heart again. As she did so, she squirted another liquid into the jar. The water in the jar turned red. Then, as she stirred the liquid in the jar, it became as clear as it had been originally. We were all amazed.
Although I do not remember much about the occasional visits to my grandparents’ church, that illustration stayed in my memory. I’ve often wished that I knew what chemicals she used, so I could share that illustration with others. Truly the cleansing blood of Jesus is our greatest need.
Look upon Jesus, sinless is He;
Father impute His life unto me.
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life, whiter than snow.
Cover with His life, whiter than snow;
Fullness of His life then shall I know;
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life, whiter than snow.
Deep are the wounds transgression has made;
Red are the stains; my soul is afraid.
O, to be covered, Jesus with Thee,
Safe from the law that now judgeth me.
Cover with His life, whiter than snow;
Fullness of His life then shall I know;
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life, whiter than snow.
Longing the joy of pardon to know;
Jesus holds out a robe white as snow;
“Lord, I accept it! leaving my own,
Gladly I wear Thy pure life alone.”
Cover with His life, whiter than snow;
Fullness of His life then shall I know;
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life, whiter than snow.
Reconciled by His death for my sin,
Justified by His life pure and clean,
Sanctified by obeying His word,
Glorified when returneth my Lord.
Cover with His life, whiter than snow;
Fullness of His life then shall I know;
My life of scarlet, my sin and woe,
Cover with His life, whiter than snow.
How much we need this cleansing from sin that our Dear Saviour so freely offers us. Indeed, He urges us to reach out and accept of His grace. His Great Heart of Love yearns over us, yet how often we are content with “playing church” without the change of heart that we must have. John tells us, “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” 1 John 1:6-2:6
With tears in His voice, our Loving Saviour earnestly pleads, “Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you.” “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Zech 1:3; Isa 1:16-18 Isaiah advises, “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” 55:6, 7
In vision, John saw those who had listened to the Holy Spirit’s pleading voice and had been washed in Jesus’ blood. He tells us, “I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Rev 7:9-14
“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Cor 7:1 “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” 1 Thes 5:23,24
Rose