The Gathering Place

09/30/2024

This is a very balanced and biblical approach to the subject overall. A good solid read!

Spiritual Warfare in the Storyline of Scripture: A Biblical, Theological, and Practical Approach

07/30/2024

In Psalm 1:4 the wicked (ungodly) are compared to chaff.

As Chaff they have no roots; they are blown with the wind; they are useless to the plans of God; they are neither beautiful nor fruitful.

John the Baptist used a similar word picture in Matt. 3:10–12 when he described God as a harvester, visiting the threshing floor and separating the grain from the chaff. “He will burn up the chaff!”

What a tragedy for people to spend their entire lives on earth as chaff and, as far as eternal things are concerned, amount to nothing.

The true character of the wicked, the ungodly, will be revealed at the judgment; they will be seen as chaff, worthless lost souls.

In that day the chaff will be revealed and removed, even from among God's people. Even so, come Lord Jesus!

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

This video is about “Consuming Fire” by Third Day. Video made by Gary McDuffee. https://www.patreon.com/user?u=29627169&fan_landing=true ...

07/18/2024

Psalm 33:5–13 (NKJV):
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
9 For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.
10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
13 The Lord looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men.

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06/14/2024

Ecclesiastes 12:6–7 (NKJV):
Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed,
Or the golden bowl is broken,
Or the pitcher shattered at the fountain,
Or the wheel broken at the well.
7 Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.

Have you ever thought about this?
In 100 years like in 2123 we will all be buried with our relatives and friends.
Strangers will live in our homes we fought so hard to build, and they will own everything we have today. All our possessions will be unknown and unborn, including the car we spent a fortune on, and will probably be scrap, preferably in the hands of an unknown collector.
Our descendants will hardly or hardly know who we were, nor will they remember us. How many of us know our grandfather's father?
After we die, we will be remembered for a few more years, then we are just a portrait on someone's bookshelf, and a few years later our history, photos and deeds disappear in history's oblivion. We won't even be memories.
If we paused one day to analyse these questions, perhaps we would understand how ignorant and weak the dream to achieve it all was.
If we could only think about this, surely our approaches, our thoughts would change, we would be different people.
Always having more, no time for what's really valuable in this life. I'd change all this to live and enjoy the walks I've never taken, these hugs I didn't give, these kisses for our children and our loved ones, these jokes we didn't have time for. Those would certainly be the most beautiful moments to remember, after all they would fill our lives with joy.
And some of us waste it day after day with greed, selfishness and intolerance.
Every minute of life is priceless and will never be repeated, so take time to enjoy, be grateful for, and celebrate your existence.

04/20/2024

"In friendship...we think we have chosen our peers. In reality a few years' difference in the dates of our births, a few more miles between certain houses, the choice of one university instead of another...the accident of a topic being raised or not raised at a first meeting--any of these chances might have kept us apart.

But, for a Christian, there are, strictly speaking no chances. A secret master of ceremonies has been at work.

Christ, who said to the disciples, 'Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you,' can truly say to every group of Christian friends, 'Ye have not chosen one another but I have chosen you for one another.'

The friendship is not a reward for our discriminating and good taste in finding one another out. It is the instrument by which God reveals to each of us the beauties of others.”

C.S. Lewis

04/11/2024

The Resurrection of the body. What is it? What will it be like?

Question of the Week: If the new creation is a realm with different physics, even different laws of physics and different dimensions, how can we enter into it and function in it with physical bodies?

My Answer: 1 Corinthians 15 describes the resurrection bodies that humans will gain who have received the redemption from their sin offered by Jesus Christ. Paul uses the analogy of a plant and the plant’s seed. The plant cannot be resurrected into a new plant unless it dies. It is the seed that the dead plant leaves behnd that gets transformed into a new plant.
According to 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, “So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” Our resurrected bodies indeed will be incorruptible. They will not decay. They cannot be injured. They will not suffer any kind of weakness. They will be able to fully function in the new creation, taking full advantage of the new physics and new dimensions of the new creation realm. Thanks to our new bodies, we will all be able to recognize the individual spirits that are controlling the bodies just like we do in the present creation.
What will life be like in the new creation with our new bodies? 1 Corinthians 2:9 declares that it will be so wonderful, so loving, so rewarding and so beautiful that no one here on Earth can see, hear, imagine, or conceive just how amazingly wonderful, loving, rewarding, and beautiful it will be. However, doing everything we can right now to imagine and conceive of what the new creation will be like will powerfully motivate us to do everything we can to prepare for our future careers in the new creation.

03/31/2024

Happy Easter

If Jesus didn't rise from the dead, then we would have no hope. But because Jesus conquered death, we joyfully celebrate that one day we will also experience a bodily resurrection.

For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. (1 Corinthians 15:52–53)

03/16/2024

LOYALTIES FORMED BY THE SPIRIT

Scripture Reading:
1 Chronicles 12:1-22

Then the Spirit came on Amasai, chief of the Thirty, and he said: “We are yours, David! We are with you, son of Jesse! Success, success to you, and success to those who help you, for your God will help you.” So David received them and made them leaders of his raiding bands. –I CHRONICLES 12:18

When the Holy Spirit brings people together, great things can happen.

These were difficult days for the king in waiting, a fugitive running from Saul. Many had deceived and betrayed him, so anyone wanting to join him was treated with extreme caution. Amasai approached David to join forces with him because the Spirit prompted him.

Their divine encounter resulted in a powerful relationship between them.
When the Spirit touched Amasai, he pledged his loyalty to David. It marked a major turning point in his life, possibly the tipping point in the future king’s rise to power. He might not have been as successful if the Spirit did not join them together in a bond of loyalty. David needed a military leader to assure him of more victories, so the Spirit caused and created their strategic and unique partnership.

Amasai’s exploits were already legendary. He led the Thirty, the name given to the thirty most powerful warriors in the land. They had distinguished themselves for their military prowess. Prudently, David made them the core of his army and appointed them his personal bodyguard. It was as if the Spirit foresaw his need, so drew them together.

Amasai was not only valiant but also a man of the Spirit. Because of his prophetic ability, he spoke revelation into David’s life and told him of amazing victories awaiting him. The Spirit gave him spiritual insights and a much-needed supernatural word of encouragement. David needed men like him who walked with God and heard from heaven. Because of his spiritual sensitivity, he committed himself and his fighters to the son of Jesse. By accepting them, David was provided a fierce, courageous, and intensely loyal cohort to whom he could entrust his life.

Point of Application
Partnerships created by the Spirit are special.

By working together, David and Amasai experienced incredible victories. With their unique talents, they furthered God’s noble mission.

Perhaps the Holy Spirit will nudge you to come alongside and support someone in ministry or to simply be an encouraging friend to someone that is going through a difficult time in his or her life.

Perhaps you’re the person that needs encouragement. Know that God is aware of your trials and in His time God will send to you a “partner in the Spirit.”