Soldiers of Christ, arise,
And put your armor on,
Strong in the strength which God supplies
Through His eternal Son.
Strong in the Lord of hosts,
And in His mighty pow’r,
Who in the strength of Jesus trusts
Is more than conqueror.

Stand then in His great might,
With all His strength endued,
And take, to arm you for the fight,
The panoply of God;
That, having all things done,
And all your conflicts passed,
Ye may o’ercome through Christ alone,
And stand entire at last.

Leave no unguarded place,
No weakness of the soul,
Take every virtue, every grace,
And fortify the whole.
From strength to strength go on,
Wrestle and fight and pray,
Tread all the pow’rs of darkness down
And win the well-fought day.

Charles Wesley -Published 1741 – Public Domain

Courtesy of Timeless Truths Publications – Copyright © 2002- 2020  – Free Online Library

A man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.  Proverbs 21:16

No matter where you are in your journey through life, what matters most is what direction you go next.

Paul Mahaffie – The Gospel Mission, Sioux City, IA

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6

I’ve found a Friend, oh, such a friend!
He loved me ere I knew Him;
He drew me with the cords of love,
And thus He bound me to Him.
And round my heart still closely twine
Those ties which naught can sever,
For I am His, and He is mine,
Forever and forever.

I’ve found a Friend, oh, such a friend!
He bled, He died to save me;
And not alone the gift of life,
But His own Self He gave me!
Naught that I have mine own I call,
I’ll hold it for the Giver,
My heart, my strength, my life, my all
Are His, and His forever.

I’ve found a Friend, oh, such a friend!
All pow’r to Him is given,
To guard me on my onward course,
And bring me safe to heaven.
Th’ eternal glories gleam afar,
To nerve my faint endeavor;
So now to watch, to work, to war,
And then to rest forever.

I’ve found a Friend, oh, such a friend!
So kind and true and tender,
So wise a Counselor and Guide,
So mighty a Defender!
From Him who loves me now so well
What pow’r my soul can sever?
Shall life or death, shall earth or hell?
No! I am His forever.

George Stebbins 1878

Public Domain

God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

The One True God: Who spoke all things into existence (Colossians 1:16; Isaiah 44:24), existing eternally as three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22; Matthew 28:19; II Corinthians 13:14).[1]

The one true God.

And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.   I John 5:20

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. John 17:3

He who spoke all things into existence.

For by him (God the Son – Jesus Christ) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones (angelic powers), or dominions (power whether angelic or human), or principalities (holy angels), or powers (angelic beings – good or bad): all things were created by him, and for him.[2]  Colossians 1:16

Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the                    heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;                    Isaiah 44:24 

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; I Timothy 2:5

God exists eternally as three persons.

And the Holy Ghost (the Holy Spirit) descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven (the Father), which said, Thou art my beloved Son (Jesus Christ); in thee I am well pleased.        Luke 3:22

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Matthew 28:19

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the                                communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.                                        II Corinthians 13:14

…let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…

[1] Numerous Sources

[2] Definitions are from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words.

See Who Is God? article in this blog.

I was a seven when the nineteen sixties arrived and seventeen when they passed.  The music of that period had a profound impact on my life up to that point.  Not long after I became a Christian at the age of nineteen, I broke and threw away all the music records that I had collected and listened to up to that point in my life.

Most of the popular music of the sixties was depressing.  It was full of questions, infidelity, despair, and without any real answers to life.  It was about free love and rebellion.  Those who wrote and performed it admitted that their music was about sex and drugs and they lived it to the hilt.  Even the country music writers and performers lived it.  If you don’t believe me, watch Ken Burn’s documentary on country music’s culture, its stars and performers.  They sang about how they lived and they lived what they sang about and the end of it was tragic.

Some people, usually Christians, say that music is amoral, meaning that it does not influence behaviour one way or the other.  Personally, I have never heard an unbeliever say that.  Unbelievers know what the world’s music is about.

Even casual observation shows that music affects behaviour.  Those who indulge in sinful practices do not listen to hymns and spiritual songs while doing so.  Pagans who sacrificed children and worshipped demons did not sing hymns or psalms as they practiced these things.  On the other hand shopping centers and grocery stores often play music that relaxes and slows down the customer so that they will spend more time and money in the store.  There is sensual music and music that is violent.  Music does influence and reinforce bad behavior.

One of the characteristics of a Spirit filled Christian in Ephesians 5:19 has to do with music.  It says that a Spirit filled believer speaks to himself in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in his heart to the Lord.  That description sets out a certain quality of music that is manifested in the believer by the Holy Spirit.

Is that the type of song that is in your heart?

…he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord. Psalm 40:3

…let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…

Its my body, its my choice, is a slogan used by the abortion rights people. Can a Christian woman say this?

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost           which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?            I Corinthians 6:19

Actually, can anyone honestly say, its my body, its my choice?

Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the                    heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;                    Isaiah 44:24

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.     Psalm 19:14

That Christians should sing is ever so right.

Everyone sings when its cheery and bright!

It’s harder to sing when its dreary and stark.

The lost only notice when we sing in the dark.

Monty McCoy – 1980 (plus or minus)

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope (confident assurance). Romans 15:4

These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may (continue to) believe on the name of the Son of God. I John 5:13

But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. John 20:31

….let the word of Christ dwell in you richly….

How did God reveal Himself to man?

For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men                         of God (the prophets and apostles) spake as they                                                   were moved (carried along) by the Holy Ghost.                                        II Peter 1:21              

 Prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:

Propheteia  (prophecy) – the speaking forth of the mind and counsel of God.  Though much of the OT prophecy was purely predictive,…prophecy is not necessarily, nor even primarily, foretelling.  It (prophecy) is the declaration of that which cannot be known by natural means,…., it is the forth-telling of the will of God, whether with reference to the past, the present, or the future.[1]

Will – thelema – Not by the will (or desire) of man….not of human origin, not by human desire or design, not the product of human effort.[2]

….the human author’s wills did not direct or carry the Scripture….man’s will, including his will to make mistakes, did not bring the Scripture…they (the human authors) wrote under the operation of the Spirit; therefore, those things they wrote were His, directed by His will, not theirs.  The human wills of the authors were not the originators…..of God’s message….the (Holy) Spirit was the source and the guiding force; the author’s wills were not.  God did not permit the will of sinful man to divert, misdirect, or erroneously record His message.[3]

No part of God’s revelation was unveiled or revealed from a human source or out of the prophets unaided understanding.[4]

…but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

“Moved” – phero – to bear, to carry, being moved, signifying that they were borne along or impelled by the Holy Spirit’s power, not acting according to their own wills, or simply expressing their own thoughts, but expressing the mind of God in words provided and ministered by Him.  Phero is translated “bear” in the sense of carrying and/or supporting (Luke 23:26/John 2:8, 15:2).  Phero is also translated “driven”, of being borne as in a storm tossed sea (Acts 27:15&17).[5]

The Holy Spirit bore men along.  Perhaps we can best understand “bearing” by referring to the use of the same word in Acts 27:15&17.  Just before the ship that was taking Paul to Rome was wrecked on the island of Malta, it ran into a terrible storm.  The experienced sailors could not guide the ship because the wind was so strong.  They finally had to let the wind take the ship wherever it blew.  The ship’s being driven, directed, carried about by the wind, is described in these verses by the same word used in 2 Peter 1:21 that describes the Spirit’s driving, directing, and/or carrying the human authors of the Bible as He wished.  The word is a strong one, indicating complete superintending by the Spirit of all that the human authors wrote.  Nevertheless, just as the sailors were active on the ship, so the human authors were active in writing as the Spirit directed.  The Spirit carried the Word and in His perfection gave us the truth that is the Scripture.  The human authors wrote under the operation of the Spirit; therefore, the things they wrote were His.[6]

The human authors were not passive and robot like as held by the mechanical dictation position.  God chose to use the vocabulary,  experience, background and writing style of each human author to express His will and to reveal Himself to mankind through the Old and New Testament Scriptures.

…let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…

[1]W.E. Vines Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words –pg 492, Copyright 1984, 1996, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN.

[2]W.E. Vines Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words –   pg 162, Copyright 1984, 1996, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN.

[3]What You Should Know About Inerrancy – Charles C. Ryrie,                  pgs 46&47, Copyright 1981 – Moody Bible Institute of Chicago.

[4]NKJV MacArthur Study Bible Notes on 2 Peter 1:21

[5]Definitions by W.E. Vines Expository Dictionary of Old and New            Testament Words – Copyright 1984, 1996, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN.

[6]What You Should Know About Inerrancy – Charles C. Ryrie,                  pgs 45&46, Copyright 1981 – Moody Bible Institute of Chicago.