What the Book has meant to me.

When I was just a child, Mother and Dad gave it to me, they said son, in this book is a lot of history. It also will guide your path and bring you victory, but you must not be foolish, read it daily.  And often at my father’s knee he read the book to me, and when we went to church they opened it up you see.  The book was read and taught, its many stories astonished me. That book has a special place in my childhood memories.

But as a teenager that book was put on the shelf and out of my mind, only to be carried to church and back home.  I still remember its message, how the Christ had died for me, but it was not in keeping with what the world had to offer me.

For many years the book only served one thing you see, it took space on our table so others, like Mom and Dad could see.  But then something happened, it changed my life you see, a group of men took an interest in me.  The one who began to cut my hair at the age of thirteen ask me to come to a study of the book that can set a man free.

I had no clue that I was not free and resented it you see, that someone like my barber could say such a thing to me.  He told me the Christ, who I claimed to know, had told the same thing to some other people just like me. That if I knew the truth, the truth would set them free.  I went with my barber to the book study, on setting men free, and those five men were used of God, to help one like me.

It took many months before it came to me that life was in Jesus and that was the beginning of my victory.  I found He was life and that He would come and live in me; now that book is so precious, it brings such joy to me, it helps me walk and talk the life of liberty and yet, I understand you may not agree with me.

So I prayed this prayer; Dear Jesus will you open our eyes to see, the wonder of being in a relationship with thee.  The freedom from wants, and the joy of giving to those who are in need, like widows and orphans and others you send to me, and the freedom to let you have your way with me.

Now this book is not magic nor is it a good luck charm, its often called the “Word of God” and many just call it the “Bible” but in it is all “Truth” and its authors are many, but it comes from just one source.  Timothy states it best; All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

Bob Rice

http://fromourbackporch.blogspot.com/

Note: Tomorrow in my blog, I am beginning a series on “Beginnings”

I am a good Person

Revelation 22

It is in your best interest to read what Jesus is telling John in verse ten of this chapter; “And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” The Creator designed a book that we call the Bible and it's purpose is to show us how to find life, and live it to the max while on earth, but many have chosen to ignore or even disregard it, and live life by their own standards. The Creator has many attributes, one of those is His justice; God must be just and that is why He will judge mankind because He put into our hearts the way to truth, He sent preachers and teachers, prophets and apostles, but many have chosen to ignore all of that, and have placed faith in themselves or some other way; when Jesus has said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6)

All my Christian life I’ve had people tell me, God is love and I am a good person, so that make me ok, but (Love) is only one of His attributes, as stated above He is (Just) and because of that He sent His only Son to pay for you independence spirit, that says I know who you are God, but I going to do it my way. Romans 1:19,20, “For what can be know about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are with out excuse.”

If you search your heart and find you are not in right standing with God, by what God has said in His word, it is not to late, seek him, He longs to have a relationship with you. Jesus said; “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

From the Back Door,

Bob Rice

I am coming soon

Revelation 22:10-

Are you the kind of person who reads the last chapter of the book before you decide if it is a book worth reading?  I’ve never wanted to know the ending before beginning the book, for me it would take away the mystery, the drama, but the last chapter of Revelations, might be an exception.  Jan and I enjoy having house guest, but we prefer to know when they are coming so we can be prepared for their arrival and so that we can have the house clean and the menu planned.  Being prepared for your guest is of the utmost importance at our house, so that we can max out the time with our guest.  The next to the last verse in chapter 22 is from Jesus and this is what He is saying; “Surely I am coming soon.”

Jesus is the most important guest that has ever shown up at our house and the question is, have we prepared for His arrival, is the house (my life) free of lust, pride, greed, and the many other things that seem to find there way into my home.  Is Jesus going to enjoy the food that is being prepared, such as the fruits of the spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  He is coming soon!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

One beggar-telling other beggars

Do you remember how Jesus left this earth after He had finished the mission His Father sent Him to do?  Acts 1:6-11 gives the account of Jesus ascension into heaven, and what did his disciples want to know; when are you coming back to restore the kingdom of Israel, and this is what Jesus said; “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.”  The Scripture tells the following, “And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.  And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven?  This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” 

These witnesses have told what they heard and what they saw, I believe Scripture is very clear that this group of about 120 people never stopped looking and waiting for Jesus return, many were killed because they would not stop telling others about what they had seen or heard.  In the seventh verse of Revelation 22, we have Jesus speaking, “And behold, I am coming soon.  Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”  My dear friends, God cannot lie, Jesus is coming back in the same way as the witnesses saw him go into heaven. 

A man whom I love accused me of trying to save my friends, and I wish that I could do that, but it is written that Jesus is the only way to the Father; I am no more than a beggar telling other beggars where to find the living water that will take away their thirst.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Words that are Trustworthy

Revelation 22:6-9

When I began to write on the Revelations, I told you many books have been written on this book, and there are four principal schools of thought dealing with the subject matter; the preterist, the futurist, the historicist, and the eclectic.  I may not have told you, but my intent was not to come to you with some dogmatic or arbitrary interpretation.  My desire was that we could look at this often-neglected book and gleam from the Spirit what has been promised.

The apostle John would be an unwavering witness in our courts today, because of the following statement, “I, John am the one who heard and saw these things.  And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, but he said to me, “You must not do that!  I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book.  Worship God.” (Revelation 22:8,9)  If you have stayed with me on this journey through Revelations, it would be unusual for you not to have opinions and that’s what a court of law does, based on the evidence.  The angel of the Lord had a concern about you when he showed John these truths, and the Spirit of God spoke the words onto paper using John’s personality, look with me at verse six; “And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true.  And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servant what must soon take place.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

No longer Damned-The Blame Game is Over

Revelation 22:3

If you grew up with brothers or sisters, and you happen to be the youngest, you may understand that the youngest got blamed for most everything that got broken, or did not meet the parent’s approval.  I’m not saying that those accusations were always wrong, but the fact still holds true, that in my house my brother or sister would point the accusing finger at me, and say, “Bobby did it.”  Most of the time they were correct in doing so.  It’s bad when you’re the youngest because the only thing you had to blame was the dog, and mother never bought into that tall tale.  I often joked with the guys at work, that it was no fun getting caught in a mistake, because we did not have our wives there to blame.  It seems from the beginning, man has been good at trying to pass on the blame for his actions, and many of us never stop to understand that it is not an act of God but of Satan. 

From the beginning of man, Satan has been the one making accusations before God about our performance and the intent of our hearts, Revelation 12:10 gives clarity to what he has been doing behind the scenes; “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ.  For the accuser of our brothers who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.”  No one likes a person to always be telling him or her about someone messing up, and that is especially true, when you understand that the accuser is not telling the truth, and it is particularly true when the one being accused is your child. 

Folks, that is what has been happening all our lives on earth, and the enemy speaks to us in a voice that sounds like our voice in our mind, and he tells you; your not good enough, not smart enough, and the world would be better off without you, and if that does not work, he tells you that you deserve better, that you have no need of anyone, and as the thoughts come into your mind, that same enemy is standing before God, saying, look at that no good Bob, Bill, Sue or Mary, they are trying to live this life without You.  The angel is telling John that no longer will we be accused, “No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.” (Revelation 22:3)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Best is yet to Come

Revelation 22:1-2

Often I think it does not get better than now.  Have you pondered the many blessings of sight, hearing, health, freedom, life, and the freedom to make choices and to love, and to be loved?  As I have aged, these things listed above and many more come often to my mind; how blessed I am, and often I tell the Lord thanks, thanks for life and all that comes with it, because He has become my life, and His blessings are new every morning. 

What are you looking forward to?  If my understanding of Revelation 22:1-5 is even close to what is being said, we who are in Christ have a great deal, I mean plenty to look forward to.  The apostle John is shown by the angel a river like no other he had ever seen, this river is the river of life; “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month.  The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.  No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.  They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.  And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.”

From The Back Porch,

Bob Rice

You will not miss New Zealand

Revelation 21:9-27

For over thirty years Jan and I dreamed of a vacation to New Zealand, we had read and been told of the beauty of the land and it’s people, but until we experienced it, till we walked on the land and met the people, it was only words in a book or pictures someone else had taken.  New Zealand exceeded our expectations in every way and one of the first areas we saw was Milford Sound, it runs 9 miles inland from the Tasman Sea and is surrounded by sheer rock faces that rise 3,900 ft or more on either side.  It has lush rain forests, with seals, penguins, and dolphins frequent the waters. Milford Sound is known as the wettest inhabited place in New Zealand and one of the wettest in the world. Everywhere you look is a waterfall but my words or the pictures we took cannot do justice to what we saw in the Sounds.  I am not sure what the garden of Eden looked like but New Zealand is one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen on this earth, and yet till you have been there it is hard to describe; as I read Revelation 21:9-27 I got that same feeling, to see it will be the only way you or I will understand, what John is seeing.

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plaques told John to come with him; “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.”  John tells us “he was carried away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.  It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed – on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.  And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

John goes on to tell of the measurements of the city and “The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass.”  But John does not quit telling us what he is seeing, its walls are adorned with every kind of jewel and John was amazed to not see a temple in the city, only to discover that its temple is the Lord God, the Almighty and the Lamb.  John tells us; “And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.”  I can only imagine what it will be like, but I guarantee no one that enters that city, will miss New Zealand.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

What Time Line is Your's

You must ask the question, if God’s word is true when did I die, and the answer is in Christ on the cross. God hates independent living, He wants us to be dependent, to abide in Him.  Galatians 2:20, states; “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”  This truth has skipped past many Christians; they are trying their best to live the Christian life, depending on their ability, with little or no understanding that Christ is their life.  Colossians 2:20, asks this question; “Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules.”  Do you recall what Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished,” (John19: 30) sin had been paid for and death had been defeated. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.  The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.  Folks, the Scripture above is about a future, but you and I have already entered into Christ’s time line, He had no beginning and has no end, we are eternal, death and sin have no hold on us.  All who are in Christ will not see the second death; will not stand before the White throne judgment of God.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Integrity

As we come to the end of 2009, I wonder how or why can the Senators and the Congressmen and women turn a deaf ear to those who sent them to Washington.  And I believe I’ve found the reason in a few quotes, let me know if you agree or disagree.

“The glue that holds all relationships together - including the relationship between the leader and the led is trust, and trust is based on integrity.”

 Brian Tracy

If Brian Tracy is correct, and it is a matter of trust, and trust is based on integrity, what is integrity?  So once again let us look at what other men have stated on the subject of integrity: Spencer Johnson said, “Integrity is telling myself the truth. And honesty is telling the truth to other people.”  Francis Bacon said,  “It is not what we eat but what we digest that makes us strong; not what we gain but what we save that makes us rich; not what we read but what we remember that makes us learned; and not what we profess but what we practice that gives us integrity.”  And Doug Firebaugh stated,  “Integrity is not something that you should have to think about...nor consider doing...but something in the heart that is already done.”

If we the led can no longer put faith in the glue, what are our objections?  Alan K. Simpson said, "If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters." It is my personal belief, that the glue that has held our relationship since the foundation of this Republic between the leader and the led, is gone because integrity is no where to be found in the halls of the Congress or the Senate of this United States of America.  How can God bless America when its leaders are void of trust?

God have Mercy on us,

Bob Rice

http://fromourbackporch.blogspot.com/

New Past, New Present, and a New Future

Revelation 21:5-8

How many times have we said, that did not work, we need to start over; I’ve done it at the family level, at the business level, and often at the spiritual level, and new beginnings are a good thing.  But in all of these you have the old history, the baggage, the hurts and the scars that make you look back on the past, or often I have been guilty of looking to the future, because where I am in the present is not working out the way I had hoped for.  I experienced a lot of windshield time in my life, driving from one project to another, and that can be a very good time to reflect on how you are doing, to pray for God’s direction, or it can be as it was often for me, to move into the dreamer realm of wishful thinking, looking for utopia; a desire to be the hero, and the sad news is after the time of dreaming you are still stuck in the reality of the now.

The sad news is that many of us who have placed our faith in Jesus Christ, do not believe the “Truth,” but “Truth” has spoken, and Jesus said, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46)  Jesus has told us that we have entered into Him, and He has entered into us, that by faith, and it not by your faith, but the faith that God the Father has given you, so do not get the big head, it’s all the grace of our Father.  This is what Jesus said about you, if you have entered by faith into a relationship with Him: “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”  You and I have been given the ability to set our minds on whatever we desire to, that is truth, and Paul goes on to say; “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”(Colossians 3:2-3)   My dear friend Bill liked to ask this question, “How many sins did you commit 2000 years ago?”  The answer is none you had not shown up on earth, yet you are placing your faith in Jesus, who died for all your sins, because if He did not cover all of them, you do not have standing in heaven before God.  So just as you rightly believe that 2000+ years ago Jesus died for your sins, in like manner when Jesus died on the cross you also died, and you got a new past, a new present, and a new future.

From the Back Porch

Bob Rice

Make all things Right

The apostle Peter’s account of the Last days

The apostle Peter gives this account of the last days before God returns to make all things right; in 2 Peter 3 he tells us we should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandments of our Lord and Savior through the apostles, know that in the last days scoffers will come, and they will be followers of their own sinful desires.  “They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming?”  Peter says listen in chapter 3:8, “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”  Peter says the Lord is not slow in keeping His promises, but is patient toward you; not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Often people ask how will the world end, God has spoken on this issue in 2 Peter 3:10-13; “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.  Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn!  But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”

There is no fear in death for a believer only expectation of being in the presence of our Lord and Savior and the Father, but John tells us there should be great fear for anyone who has not entered into a relationship with Jesus Christ.  “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of like, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Former things are forgotten

Revelation 21:1-4

I can remember as if yesterday, falling out of the tree in the circle at the end of 3738 Liberty drive, or riding my brother’s bike and falling off to skin my arms and legs on the pavement, and who did I run to, my mother, she knew how to wipe away every tear from my eyes.  I was reminded of my life as a child as I read the account of the New Jerusalem, in Revelation 21:1-4.  John is seeing all things new; “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

How difficult it is for me to see a world without hate, fear, pain, death, no longer a need to run to mother with my broken life, because God the Father and the Son will be there in a new heaven and a new earth.  This was Adam & Eve’s life till they broke fellowship with God and by their act of disobedience allowed sin, and sin brought about hate, fear, pain, death and broken relationships, especially with God the Father.  John was not the first to be shown what God is going to do in what you and I call the future, in the book of Isaiah 65:17, “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind.”  It is so difficult to see things as God sees them, because we are time critters, our life evolves around time, but God is the Creator of time and it has no control over him.  Our goal is to ask God to let us have a view from heaven, that is what Isaiah and John are seeing.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Wisdom from the Old Mesquite Tree

Wisdom from the Old Mesquite Tree

At a very young age Tommy and I were wondering what made someone good or bad. 

 As we sat in that old Mesquite tree, Tommy said girls are good you see, but that seemed strange to me, I ask what makes them good, and Tommy said that is just the way they come. 

Now I had a sister, as sweet as she could be, but I do recall she pushed me from that tree, and did she not, push me out of the window on my head, and tried to drown me at the age of only three, O’ Tommy, I asked, what would make a girl bad?

Well, if it was possible for a girl to be bad, she would do bad things, things like what I said, like talking in class or telling a big fat lie, or maybe spitting on the sidewalk.  So now I felt much better about my sister, you see, she never spat on the sidewalk as for as I had seen.

Tommy’s wisdom was so amazing, I asked, what makes a boy bad, and this is what he said, boys can’t help being a little bad, but why might that be, it’s because we seem weird to those who have forgotten the joy of sitting in a tree. 

It is not that we mean to be bad, Tommy said to me, it’s just that boys need to be free, free from what, Tommy, and this is what he said to me; from books and homework, and wearing shoes, and doing things that girls do, and that seemed good to me.  What about spitting on the sidewalk and telling tall tells and pulling pigtails and having a peach off of Mrs. Jericho tree, and Tommy said, that just being a boy you see.

Bob Rice

The Prize that comes with Life

Revelation 20:11-15

Acts 20:24, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” That is the heart of everyone who has their name written in the book of life, Revelation 20:11-15 gives this account: “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it.  From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.  Then another book was opened, which is the book of life.  And the dead were judged by what they had done.  And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.  Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.   And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”

The gospel of John is clear that God is love, and that he wants everyone to believe and find life eternal. John 3:16-18, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”  Of all the prizes you have ever gone for this prize has life, right now and that life has no end, and best of all, it is a gift, only after receiving it will you understand the value.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Prize

Revelation 20:11-15

Often in this life I’ve been driven to win the prize, as a child it may have been a race with Jimmy, Gary, or Richard, and as I got older it may have been to catch more fish than my brother Freddie.  It may have been to win the heart of my wife, or to win a trip at work.  I was driven to be the best, to get my name on some list, so that people who would not remember my name the next day would give me recognition. 

My dear friend Johnny Anderson worked very hard to become “Mr. Texas” and this is what he told me; “The prize consumed me, I ate, slept, and drove my body to become “Mr. Texas” and after winning that title, I felt empty.”  It was not a week later, it was the very night he got the reward, and Johnny went back to work in his gym, looking for another title, anything to make him feel alive.   Johnny was told by someone to look to Jesus, that all that he hoped for and wanted could be found only in Jesus Christ, and Johnny Anderson found life and he has not been empty since, in fact he was one of five men who showed me where to find life eternal.

The apostle Paul tells about pressing on toward the goal in Philippians 3:14, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”  Paul, like my friend Johnny and many others have entered into Christ, not by some act on their part, but by faith and the grace of God.  This is what the apostle Paul said in Ephesians 2:8,9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Is your name in the book of Life?

Revelation 20:11:15

How do mothers know?  I have never understood how my mother knew what I was doing in my bedroom as a small child, but she would be in the kitchen and yell, “Bobby you stop doing (whatever it was I was doing, and I was being quiet) and I mean now.”  That was long before cameras were invented to spy on the kids, so how did she know?  When I read Revelation 20:11-15 today, this thought came into my mind; “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”  (Galatians 6:7-8) 

We cannot con God, He must be true to His nature, yet many have no understanding of what God has said on judgment, but He is clear that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God.  So what makes us righteous, only the Son, look at Ephesians 2:8,9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”  The apostle Peter ask this question; “And, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”  Why is that question not being discussed?  Our life on earth is at best 120 years, and then comes judgment, and that is what Revelation 20:11-15 is all about. “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it.  From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.  Then another book was opened, which is the book of life.  And the dead were judged by what they had done.  And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.  Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.   And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”

It is so important to have your name in the book of life that will determine your life for ever, and I know many say it is not a real hell, but God said it is a lake of fire and that it does not end, and you will not die but live forever.  Is your name in the book of life?  That is the most important question you have ever been asked!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Exceptional at Deception

Revelation 20

Earlier in chapter twenty, we read that Satan was bound for a thousand years, and Jesus has ruled on the earth for that thousand years, and mankind still has a fallen nature that came from Adam.  Now we have Satan released from his prison; “and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.  And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (Revelation 20:8-10)

Our enemy, the one who has done a number on me and I bet on you also, is now defeated, his army was deceived by all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, they believed a lie, they were going to battle with God’s only Son, and God sent fire down from heaven and consumed them.  The sad news is hell will be full of people who fell for the devil’s schemes, and that was never God’s intent!  Hell was designed for the devil and his angels, no one else, Jesus is clear, one way to God the Father; John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”  The deceiver has lied to you, if you believe you can come to the Father any way but by the offering of the blood of His Son.  The great news is your reading this and you still have time to agree with Jesus and put your faith in Him only.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

"The Truth will set You Free"

John 8:32

I was called to be a salesman, and I spent forty years of my life, learning the art of selling.  Few are born with the gift and I was not one of them, I had to observe, study, train and I was still learning the gift of selling, at the end of my forty years.  In those forty years, I ran across some very talented people who had exceptional abilities, but some of them were lazy and others were void of moral and spiritual values.   They were often very intelligent and gifted in speech and were fun to be around, but without exception, they would lie or deceive the customer; the order was the goal and to them it did not matter how you arrived at the sale.  They had the ability to earn your trust, if they knew the customer was a strong Christian and family man, then they would come to him as a like minded person, if they believed him to be very liberal, then they were also liberal, they were exceptional at deception.

I was always amazed at the salesperson with so much going for them, and yet felt the need to deceive when truth would have earned them the business.  One day I read in the gospel of John were Jesus was encountering some Jews who told him that they did not agree or even believe what He was telling them.  Jesus had made the statement that “the truth will set you free” and they were quick to tell him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone.”  Listen to Jesus reply in John 8:44; “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  It was my observation, that truth was not what the salesperson that lied and deceived wanted to hear, any more than these folks Jesus was talking to.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Mesquite Tree and Me

The Mesquite Tree and Me

When I was just a mere lad, a lad of only three

I lived by a circle that had a mesquite tree

And in that tree was magic for one who is but three

From that tree I saw a black man the first I’d ever seen

I learned his name was Joe and he had a mule you see

The mule was used by Joe to plow the ground in a field close to that tree.

It was an amazing time for one who’s only three

I spent time with Joe underneath my magic tree.

One day while in my tree my mother came to me

Her eyes were red her face was wet and tears came readily.

She said her young brother Chester would come home no more.

She said the Germans had killed him in the big war overseas.

One day while in my tree someone said to me

The war is over yonder, and we have victory.

And now I’m much older a lad of four you see

And Joe’s shack has turned into a house, and Joe had to leave.

And now the field that had been plowed is not the place for me

For a tractor took the place of Joe, and left a hole in me.

The view from my tree is houses everywhere, but with the house came Tommy, Darleen, and me.

Darleen was pretty, the prettiest girl I’d ever seen and Tommy was just like me.

We won many battles in that Mesquite tree, the war with the Indians and many others you see.

But the biggest war came when others wanted in our tree.

Now as a young man, a man of six, I’m told to leave my tree.  I have to get some education or something like that you see.  At first it was such trauma, I missed that mesquite tree, and when I returned from school, that was where mother would find me.

Now I’m seven and the tree does not look so big, and yet my friends Jimmy and Richard are hanging out in that old Mesquite tree with me.   We still fight our battles, some seem real, but other things are beginning to replace that tree for me.

Bob Rice

The God of Easter

Revelation 20:4-6

I was a very small child when I was told about Easter; mother would go to the store and buy a dozen eggs and a kit that had dye and little paper images that you put on the eggs.  I remember that the images would be very light on the egg until you put the egg into the dye and then it would standout because all the surface of the egg was colored but the image.  It was a mysterious trick, it was magic to my young mind, but mother would explain that where the image was placed the dye would not cover.

Mother also made sure that we understood that Easter was not about eggs and bunnies but about God’s love and His only Son being willing to step out of glory, out of being worshiped, to take on flesh and become one of us.  That he came not as a king, though he was Creator God, and in coming He knew that His Father’s requirement was the shedding of His blood, for the forgiveness of sin.  Hebrews 9:22 states; “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.”

Mother would explain that Jesus met all the requirements of God; that Jesus was our Lamb without blemish before God, and that by faith we could enter into a relationship with Him, and that life is eternal.   In fact Jesus would become our life that is called the exchange life the apostle Paul give a great account of that in Romans Chapter 6.  His life and His blood can be compared to the image on those eggs we dipped into the dye, where the image was place on the egg, the dye was not allowed to color.  Very much the same has happen in the life of anyone who has enter into Jesus Christ, by His blood, that was shade on the cross.  When the Father sees Jesus life living in you, His life blocks out the coloring of sin, and the Father sees you without blemish, clean, and purify before Him.  Hebrews 1:3, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.”

Mother also told me about the resurrection of the dead, and that was to a young child just as mysterious as the image on the egg. She told me that Easter was not about Jesus dying for mankind but about His resurrection to life over death.  Now I understand and believe that we were crucified with Christ and that the life we now live is Christ living life in our earth suite, and that is why it was so important to place all our faith in Jesus Christ; the risen God.  In Revelation 20:4-6 we have this account of the first resurrection; “Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed.  Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.  They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.  The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.  This is the first resurrection.  Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection!  Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.”

The first to be resurrected are the ones who have gone through the seven years of the “great tribulation” and were faithful to Christ, they did not take the mark of the beast, they were killed and many were beheaded for the faithful testimony of Jesus the Christ.  Many believe the “Church,” will be taken out by Christ before the seven years of the “great tribulation” takes place, and that the “Church,” the “Bride of Christ” will reign with Him for the thousand years.  I pray that is true, but this I know, it is of the utmost importance to be covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, so that by faith through God’s grace you enter into a relationship with the God of Easter. The Lamb!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The King is Coming

Revelation 19:11-16

Growing up in the fifties my hero’s were cowboys and the Lone Ranger and many other good guys rode white horses; looking back it seems like the bad guys wore black hats and the good guys wore white hats.  Do you ever wonder where they came up with black was evil and white was good?  As we began to grow and got street smart, we understood that it was not what a man wore externally but who he was internally that made the man.  In fact it was not based on what we saw as much as how the man acted when no one but God and he were watching, and a man who passes that test is called a man of integrity.

The eleventh verse begins; “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse!  The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.”  Often I’ve heard it said that life was just uncomplicated in the fifties and there is some truth to that, but on the larger scope it was a time of stronger families that played together, went to church together, worked together, and had a clear understanding of good and evil.  The writer of the westerns had an understanding of right and wrong, and they knew that in the end good would overcome evil.  It so important to remember that God is the Creator, and that he is not limited by time or controlled by time, so what the apostle John is seeing is the future, and he sees Jesus coming back to earth on a white horse.  Jesus came first as a servant and a redeemer, that was not what the chosen people were looking for, but this time He is coming as judge.  Picking back up in verse twelve; His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.  He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.  In the gospel of John 1:1-4, it is clear that John is calling Jesus the “Word of God” “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.  In him was life, and the life was the light of men.”  In John 1:14 it states, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is not only the “Word of God” He is life and the great news is that we have been invited into that life.  Back to verses 14-16;  “And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.  From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron.  He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.  On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”

Jesus is coming back, this time as the King who will rule the nations, this time his chosen people will understand whom he is but they will have some questions; in Zechariah 13:6, “And if one asks him, “What are these wounds on your back?’ he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of my friends!”  The one on the white horse with the army dressed in white on white horses, whose name is King of kings and Lord of lords is coming back with a spirit of grace for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.  Zechariah 12:10 gives this account; “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.”  The King is coming and God gave Zechariah the prophet, little is known concerning him, but God chose to let him see down through the ages, the coming of the Messiah King.  Zechariah is being shown much of what the apostle John is now telling us.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

I've got my Invitation

Revelation 19:9

“And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”  And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

There is something special about being invited to a wedding; the invitation alone tells you that you were selected to be part of something very special in the life of that person.  You may be thinking that many are invited, even the old uncle that no one in the family likes, but you will have to agree that for most weddings the list is confined to those that are special to the bride and groom and their parents.  On a few occasions, I’ve been the guest at the rehearsal dinner, and that is a very select group of people whom are very special to the bride and groom.  To be part of the dinner you must have a very exclusive relationship with the wedding party, and that is what verse nine is all about.

Isaiah the prophet gives us insight to the Lamb that is being referred to above; “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7).  The gospel of John gives this insight; “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)  It is very clear in Scripture that Jesus is the Lamb but whom is the bride that is being referred to?

The apostle Paul gives us some insight on the bride in 2 Corinthians 11:2, “I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy.  I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.”  What makes marriage so special is that God the Father designed and established it for a man and a woman as one of His first actions.  In the book of beginning we see the following, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” (Genesis 2:24)  One flesh, and when we enter into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ we enter into His life, that is why the church is referred to as His bride.  It is not referring to a building, or religious order, the church is all who enter into Christ by faith, believing in His ability to keep His promises.  That is why Galatians 2:20 has such special meaning to me; “I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” 

How special that wedding supper is going to be for all of us in Christ, I can only imagine that moment, our Jewish brothers understand this so much better than we do, in that it was the custom for the groom to go and prepare for his bride, and the bride to be ready when the groom came with his wedding party to get her, but only when the father said it is time.  That is what Jesus is waiting for, the moment when His Father will say; it is time to go get your bride.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

In a Single Day

Revelation 18

The Eighteenth chapter is titled the fall of Babylon, it refers to her as a she, and John is introduced to what he is seeing, by an angel that has great authority, and the angel shows John a place, many believe it is referring to a government that God will destroy.  As I read the chapter, it seemed to be a place or country rich in resources, full of greed, full of wealth, and a very powerful nation and government.

But God said, it is a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, and that all nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth committed immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.

Next the apostle John tells us that he heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plague; for her sins are heaped high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.  Pay her back as she herself has paid back others, and repay her double for her deeds; mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed.  As she glorified herself and lived in luxury, so give her a like measure of torment and mourning, since in her heart she says, ‘I sit as a queen, I am no widow, and mourning I shall never see.’  For this reason her plaques will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”

Let me quick to state that I do not have insight into what the Scripture is referring to as Babylon, it sounds like a great nation or government, but this is very clear, it is a real place, a place where the world came for its wealth and for pleasure and God is going to judge it, and the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn, not because they care for her, but they have lost the biggest consumer of their goods and services.  The Scriptures state that in a single hour she has been laid waste.

What is the message the apostle hears from heaven; “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!” Heavens view seems so different from what so many preachers and teachers are telling us today, but I’m putting my money on the view from heaven.  As I stated above, I have no clue of what Government or nation this scripture is referring, but the profile sure looks like it could fit the United States.  That is only observation and many who are scholars have written on this chapter, and few if any would come to this conclusion.  But one point that we would be in agreement, is that you want to be in the group that God calls His people, you do not want to share in her sins or her plaques.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Fake Religion

Revelation 17

I was sure tempted to look at what others have said about this chapter, but that is not in keeping with my goals of putting on paper what I understand, or have knowledge of.  Many books have been written on what people believe the Revelations are saying, it is a wise person who first reads the Scripture and asks the Holy Spirit to give them insights. I understand a battle is going to take place between the great prostitute and the beast.  We have already identified the beast, and I’ve often heard that the woman or prostitute is the fake church or religion; your guess is as good as mine.

It is clear that John is talking about things that have not come to pass at the time of his writing.  If you read between the lines, it seems as if this prostitute has power over nations and kings, and the beast and the ones with his mark on them, make war with the great prostitute.  It looks like ten kingdoms come together to give power to the beast.

It is clear from Revelation 17:14, “They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and Kings of kings, and those with him are called chosen and faithful.”  It is also clear that the beast will be doing the will of God when he destroys the great prostitute, but he will not have a clue that it is God who is arranging this fight.  Revelation 17:17, “for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal powers to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled.  It is clear that John is talking about the ten rulers of these ten nations.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A message to the Self-Seeking

Revelation 16:2-21

Dad was right, we do not learn from history, so we are destined to repeat the lessons and the pain that goes with them.  What does the apostle John see in the first bowl of God’s wrath; “The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image.  The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died.  The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and spring of water, and they became blood. Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say:  “You are just in these judgments, you who are and who were, the Holy One, because you have so judged; for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.”  And I heard the altar respond: “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments.”  The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch people with fire.  They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.”

These people did not tear their clothes as Josiah did, no they cursed the name of God, and the next three plaques were even more terrible, and still the people refused to repent.  God has blessed us so much, but have we forgotten where the Bible is in our home, not that it is lost, most often it is on the bookshelf, or table in the living room, but is it in our hearts, in our minds, or have we lost it?  The apostle Paul gives us this word in Romans 2:8, “but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.  There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.  For God shows no partiality.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Repeating of History

Revelation 16:1

When the word wrath comes into my mind, my first thought is, it’s pay back time, I messed up and my actions have brought about the anger, the rage, the fury of someone, who has the ability to punish my actions; but my thinking never transfers to God as someone who is angry.  Chapter 16, begins this way; “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”  My dad loved history, he loved to read about things that had transpired at other times, and often he made the statement; “ man has learned nothing from history, and because of that we are destined to repeat it.”

In 2Kings 22:1, we have this insight from history; “Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem.”  This young king came on the scene of Judah after a very wicked and evil king Manasseh had reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem.  The Bible gives this account of Manasseh’s actions in 2Kings 21:2, “And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.  Verse 9 tells more of why God was angry with Manasseh and the people of Judah; “But they did not listen, and Manasseh led them astray to do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.”  This young king came on the scene of Judah at a very dark time in history, it had many degenerate rulers and the people were very sinful.  They had not worshiped the God of their fathers; in fact the temple was in great need of repair, so Josiah ordered the high priest to count out the money that was needed to pay the workmen so they could rebuild the temple.  This nation, the people who God calls His chosen people, have stopped reading the Scriptures, in fact it is worse than that, they misplaced the Scriptures.  In 2Kings 22:8, “And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.”  Josiah is one wise young king, and when the book of the Law was read to him, he tore his clothes; this was a sign in that time of repentance and humbling yourself before God.  These were the king’s orders; “Go, inquire of the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all of Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found.  For great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.” Are we the enlightened people of 2009, repeating history?

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

They Conquered

Revelation 15

Have you ever been at the center of an action; an action that you knew would change the lives of all who were part of that family, business, church, or even nation?  We call that being an insider, and the apostle John sure fits that description.  John sees seven angels with seven plagues; these are the final plagues of God’s wrath, their target is, the people of earth who turned down the gift of God’s love, His only Son, Jesus.

John goes on to share that he sees “what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire – and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.”  The ones standing are those who by faith overcame the beast and its image, they would not take his mark or bow down to his image, they put into practice this truth; “for everyone born of God overcomes the world.  This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.” (1John 5:4)  These dear saints place their faith in the unseen God, and they overcame, no it was more than that; they conquered.

The enemy of God and of us has always had the offering of an image, for Jesus it was; “Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”  Do you understand the offer, Satan is saying you do not have to die on a cross to win back the world; all you have to do is bow down and worship me.  You and I would be very wise to do what Jesus did; “Be gone, Satan!  For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” (Mt.4: 8-9)

I know you recall the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, three men who were confronted by king Nebuchadnezzar to worship a golden image of the king, and this was their reply to the king about the punishment of death in a furnace.  “If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.  But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17-18)

Satan’s images come in many forms, it maybe a women, a child, a job, or power over others, or even the ability to “Do it your way.”  I’ve sure fallen for his schemes and it always comes at a price that I am not willing to pay.  My prayer is that by faith in Christ, you will overcome the world.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Next Harvest

Revelation 14:14-20

I grew up a city boy, but my roots go back to farmers, both mom and dad had grown up on farms, and mom’s dad, still owned his farm in Murray, Texas, when I was a small child.  I loved that farm, it had red dirt, and that dirt got all over your clothes, the water supply was a stock tank where the cows drank, and even as a small child that just did not seem right.  Granddad had four girls and four sons, and as he got older, in his sixty’s, the girls wanted him off that farm, off the red dirt that grew cotton, oats and Milo, and so he began to stay a while with each of the girls, and I would often talk to him about farming.

One of my fondest memories was growing beets in my garden at 3738 Liberty Drive in Corpus Christ, Texas.  My beets seemed to love that black clay we called a yard, and mother had taught me how to add the leaves from our trees and the grass that I cut to my garden area, so that the clay would break down and become more like soil.  Granddad was coming for his two weeks stay and my crop of beets were looking good.  I had the nicest beets but I had a problem, it became clear that I had grown more beets than we could eat or give away.  That’s when Granddad told me I needed to harvest my crop and go to market, and that’s what he and I did.  We pulled and washed the beets, then we tied them into small bundles and were off to see Mrs. Barnet at the small mercantile she owned at the end of the street.  As I walked home with my Granddad, I had made a dollar and some change off my harvest, and that was one of the best days of my young life, I was rich, because Granddad was so proud of me, and all I could think of was the next harvest.

Man has been working the ground from the time of Adam, and the sickle was the tool used to cut the harvest of grain or grapes, we have this account from Jesus, “But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mark 4:29).  Remember that John was one of the three apostles that saw Jesus being transfigured in Mark 9:2-3, and now John once more sees the glorified Christ, but this time he has a sharp sickle in his hand.  As a small child, I sowed beet seeds, why, because I wanted to harvest beets. The two harvests that John is describing, are the results of man sowing rebellion against God, and reaping judgment of a life of sin; what John is seeing is the harvest of sin from the earth.  I need to be reminded that anything that is not of faith is sin.  The apostle Paul tells us in Galatians 6:7, 8, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”

From a child I was told that obedience brings about blessing, and rebellion causes judgment, and I learned to believe that to be truth, because that was the law my mother and dad enforced in our home.  I always had a choice, each morning was a new day, and each day I could obey and receive blessing, or I could rebel and receive my dad’s wrath.  God from the beginning has been very clear about blessing and curses, the nations and the people in them will be judged on what they sowed.

Jesus said, what does it profit a person to gain the whole world and lose his soul.  Satan is making each of us the same offer he makes Jesus, if you will only bow down and worship me, I will give you the whole world.  It is a shell game, and like all shell games the prize is never under the shell you pick; the prize is to run your own life, “Do it your way.”  God tells us that you will reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life with Jesus Christ.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice