Ed Christian's World

The Manuscript Evidence…

People claim the Bible isn’t trustworthy. The argument is that it has been changed and copied over. It was written centuries after the events, so it simply cannot be accurate. Let’s consider how the accuracy of an ancient manuscript is determined.

It is based on: 1) the number of manuscripts that exist. 2) the time period between the original event and the first recorded manuscript. For example, the number 2 book in all of history is the “The Iliad” written by Homer. It has 643 manuscripts with a 400 year gap.

What is the number 1 book in manuscript authority? The New Testament. It significantly trumps the #2 book. It has 24,970 manuscripts compared to The Iliad’s 643. The entire New Testament has only about a 250 year gap.

In fact, there are New Testament books with only about a 100 year difference from the original. The truth is that there is no ancient writing more attested to than the New Testament. The words written down are real. Believe it. Receive it. Trust in it. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God endures forever.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 2 Timothy 3:16

Today put your confidence and trust in God’s word no matter what your circunstance may be. He is truth, so must His Word be truth in your life.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Magdalene In Paris…

The DaVinci Code claimed that Mary Magdalene fled from the early church and moved to France. Picture this: a first century Jewish woman from a little fishing village in Galilee called Magdala says, “You know what? I think I’ll go to France, see the sights, have some wine and cheese.”

It sounds ridiculous, but that’s what the DaVinci Code proclaims. All sorts of people read this and embraced it, with one fabrication on top of the next! Amazing how people accept things that have no basis.

Is there something that we can absolutely believe in and confidently live by? Without a doubt, it is the Word of God! The true Word of God has the power and the evidence that makes it a rock.

Do what it says, believe what it declares, live every part of your life in the Word. Live it and you will see it.

No, Mary Magdalene never went to Paris or France, but the Word of God has come for real. The Bible, take it for what it is, and it will change your life.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

Read the Word of God and meditate on it today. Put what you read into practice and live by it. It’s the real thing. You will feel His power work within you.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Mule and The Horse..

Psalms 32:8-9 warns us not to be like the horse or the mule. The horse has to be pulled back with a bridle or it will run off on its own. The mule tends not to move forward without a great tug from its master. Both animals obey only because they’re bridled and are forced to comply.

Believers often show this same behavior. There are those who jump ahead of God and have to be reined in like the headstrong horse. Then there are those believers who hear God’s call but refuse to listen and drag behind like the stubborn mule. Their obedience does not come willingly from the heart.

God wants you to obey Him because you want to; not because you have to. Doing what’s right needs to come from a desire to please Him. Do you want to truly walk in the will of God? Then listen and obey with a willing heart.

A walk that strives to please God will lead to knowing God more, loving Him more, being with Him more, and being like Him more. Seek God, seek Him from the heart, walk after His heart. You can leave the bridle to the horse and the mule.

So that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, Colossians 1:10

Obey God with a joyful heart. Find God’s heart today and seek His will for you. Let Him lead you and guide you. Be mindful not to rush ahead but walk with Him side by side.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The God Of Who?

Jacob wrestled the angel, or God, and said, “Please tell me your name.” The being did not reveal his name. God changed Jacob’s name during that wrestling match to Israel. Israel was Jacob himself. Later when he offered up a sacrifice, he called God “the God of Israel.”

By referring to God in this way, he was calling God the God of me – one who has my name in His name. God had given to Jacob the name Israel. In turn, Jacob gave the name, the God of Israel, to God. When you’re born again, you become a new person. Through this new birth, this new you is joined to God and God is joined to you. Your identity is now in Him, never apart from Him.

You need in that sense to name God. You can’t change His name, but in your new birth you can claim that He is now the God of you; the God of me. You’ll be able to say with confidence, “My Beloved is mine and I am His.” Our God is and forever will be the God of Israel, the God of me, the God of you.

My beloved is mine, and I am his; he grazes among the lilies. Song of Solomon 2:16

Say to the God of Israel that you are completely His and that He is Lord and King in your heart. Be confident that you belong to Him. Keep His name upon your heart forever.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always

Ed

The Big Picture…

It was early morning, the sun had just begun to rise. Grandfather took me on a journey to the city through the desert riding on horses. The purpose of the trip was to pick up supplies for the school. But, as usual, he had more than one purpose in mind.

One thing I want you do today, he said, is to keep watch over the sun.

It was a strange directive, even for a nine year old, but I did my best, noting from time to time it’s position in the sky. At journeys end, upon our return, he questioned me.

What did you see? He asked

Nothing out of the ordinary, I replied, nothing of note. The sun was just the sun.

I imagine, Grandfather said, that at times it was obscured by the mountains, the trees, and the buildings of the city. But otherwise, I imagine it stayed the same, certainly the same size. I would also imagine that the landscape was continually changing, everything was changing around us except for the sun.

That’s true, I said, but isn’t that the way the sun works?

Yes, but why is that the way the sun works? Then he added, It’s because although a mountain or a house or even a hand can appear bigger than the sun and can, for a time obscure it, the reality is that the sun’s true magnitude, it’s actual size, is so enormous, so colossal, that the highest mountain on earth is as nothing in comparison.

It doesn’t appear so in the short run, but it becomes clear over the long run. Even in our little journey, everything we saw completely changed, the hills, the mountains, everything but the sun. If we had traveled thousands of miles, it wouldn’t have made a difference. The sun’s colossal magnitude is manifested by it’s changelessness.

What does that reveal? I asked.

Then Grandfather smiled and said two thousand years ago, Jesus said, ‘ I am the Light of the World.’ Since that time, ages have begun and ended, continents and civilizations have been discovered, kingdoms and empires have risen and fallen, kings and luminaries have appeared and passed away. And some of these have, for a moment, seemed larger.

For a time they obscured the figure of the Nazarene. But in the long run, over the course of the long journey, they’ve all passed away. Everything has changed… except Him.

All the rest lies in ruins and rubble or in the pages of history… but He remains, unchanged, undiminished.. as central, as pivotal and as colossal as He has ever been. Everything changes but Him. He is the sun. And the immensity of His magnitude is manifested by His changelessness.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains– where does my help come from? Psalms 121:1

This is my favorite verse in the Bible as it reminds me I can do nothing without Him. I am constantly amazed in today’s world by how people forget where they come from or where they are going.

I think we need to relearn just how much we rely on God in our daily life. I generally start my day with a quiet conversation with Him before I do my daily posts. I then go outdoors and do a top down observation of the wonders He has presented for the day.

I notice the life all around me from the birds flying in the sky to the beetles crawling on the ground. I watch the leaves as they ruffle in the gentle breeze He provides. I smell the newness of the day in the fragrances of the flowers and grass. Then I look up and thank God for giving me another glorious day.

I would like to remind everyone to go out and look up! Then thank God for all He gives you everyday.

The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over the mighty waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. Psalms 29:3-5

Today, see all things in view of the big picture. Whatever problems or issues you have are small in comparison to Him and will pass away in the magnitude of the Son.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Zeus’ Mid-life Crisis…

In Greek mythology, the king of the gods was Zeus. He was married to Hera. Zeus was always carrying on affairs with gods and mortals. He actually would take human form and animal form.

This was Greek religion. Gods of the ancient world were projections of people projected onto gods. Zeus was a fantasy of a lot of frustrated, middle-aged Greek men going through a midlife crisis. Pagan. You project; you make your own god. It’s not just the pagans who do this. Believers often do that, too.

We make God into our own image. We project our ideas onto God. We downplay parts of His Word to conform to our lives. We’re no better than the pagans when we’re making God into our own image, instead of conforming our life to Him.

That’s pagan because it doesn’t bring any life. Stop trying to conform God to your image. This is an impossible task. Instead, start letting your life conform to His Word. We are to be transformed into the same image from glory to glory.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2.

Let yourself be conformed completely to the Word. Take the Word at full strength and do not project your own ideas. Be a projection of His image, today.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Olah Offering…

The most radical offering in ancient Israel was called the Olah – the burnt offering or whole offering. It’s translated into Greek as holocaustos, from which we get the word holocaust. Olah means simply to go up.

Jesus is the Olah, the whole sacrifice, total offering, the Olah that goes up. He went up from Jerusalem to the Father. He went up from the Mount of Olives. There are profound connections here because that which is totally offered up as a sacrifice, totally consumed, is that which goes up.

We’re all called to go up. We don’t just have a walk in the Lord, we have an upward walk. Paul says the upward call. You go up when you become totally consumed in the Lord, in worship, praise, serving Him in love.

The one who’s totally consumed with God won’t be able to help himself or herself. If you’re totally consumed with God, you’ll go up, rise, ascend. You’re to be a little version of Jesus. Jesus is the Olah, the total sacrifice. He who ascends. You do the same, and so shall you.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

Hold nothing back, but be totally consumed in your walk and in worship. Serve Him wholly and mightily as He gave Himself totally all out for you.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Leah’s Yahudah…

Jacob had two wives, Rachel and Leah. Rachel was loved. Leah was unloved. Rachel was beautiful, but apparently Leah was not. Yet, God looked down and blessed her. He gave her children.

One of them named Judah, or in Hebrew, Yahudah, which means praise, thanks, worship. From Yahudah, Leah’s baby, we get the tribe of Judah, from which came Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Yahudah, Judah. Leah was unloved, but not by God who looks to the inside, not the outside.

Her praise, her Yahudah, her Judah, resulted in the birth of Jesus. It doesn’t matter what people think of you. Praise Him in your problem: hardship, weakness, rejection, trouble, loneliness – in all things.

From your praise will come your blessing, the redemption of your situation, as it was with Leah. From your praise will come your answer and the fullness of His blessing.

Through your praise will come Yeshua, Jesus. It doesn’t matter what you’re going through, praise Him and Yeshua, Jesus, will come through.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100

Let your praises spring forth from your soul at all times. Praise Him in all circumstances, even when you don’t feel like it, when it is hard, praise anyway. Your blessing awaits.rn

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Cornerstone Construction…

Rosh Pinah is one of the most important titles in Scriptures. Psalm 118 says the stone that the builders rejected has become the Rosh Pinah, the cornerstone.

In Acts 4:4-12, Peter says, “He is the stone which you the builders rejected, but which has become the Rosh Pinah, the cornerstone.” One of Jesus’s titles is Rosh Pinah in Hebrew, which means literally, Rosh (head) and Pinah (corner), head of the corner, cornerstone.

The cornerstone is the first stone from which everything else is built. Only upon Jesus can you build your life. You can’t build your life on marriage, career, or anything else. You can only build it on the cornerstone. He is the Rosh Pinah, the beginning of everything. Begin everything with Him.

Start your day on the cornerstone – because everything that is not founded on Him will surely fall apart. Everything founded on Him, will surely stand. Build your life on Him. He is the only foundation that anything can be built upon. He is your cornerstone. He is your Rosh Pinah.

So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” Isaiah 28:16

Start everything with Yeshua. Go to the chief cornerstone for lasting joy in what you touch upon today. Don’t start anything without Him!

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Your Kata…

If you’re reading the Gospels in Greek, you see the word kata. Kata means according to, by, or on the basis of. Matthew the gospel kata, Mark kata, Luke kata, John kata. It’s the good news of God.

Even though your unsaved friends may never read the Gospel and have it manifested, they need to see it. Because of this, the Gospel needs to be the gospel kata, – kata you, according to you.

Every time you show them God’s love, forgive them, rejoice when you have no reason to, they’re reading the Gospel kata without realizing it. Every time they see your peace, faith, generosity, your love for them, they’re going to see the Gospel kata, according to you.

It doesn’t matter if they take Bible studies or what they think of the Bible. They’ll be reading it because the Gospel will come into their ears, eyes and hearts.

Get that Gospel into every part of your life, because in as much as you live it, it will be translated to the world, the Gospel kata, the Gospel according to you.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Be a shining example of God’s light to the world. Show love through random acts of love for others. Live the love, let them see God’s love in you, flowing out.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed