Truth really can be stranger than fiction.
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La verdad puede ser más extraña que la ficción.
First Page - ¡Ya está en marcha! Todas las historias son verídicas, o están basadas en hechos reales. Lectura ilimitada por $4.99 / mes. No hay que descargar nada. Lea en su teléfono, tableta u ordenador.
Manna Minutes Podcast: Eye-opening Bible study in less than five minutes! Access all episodes here.
Manna Minutes en español:
Estudio bíblico que nos hace abrir los ojos en menos de cinco minutos! Acceda a todos los episodios aquí.
Manna Minutes Podcast auf Deutsch:
Augenöffnendes Bibelstudium in weniger als fünf Minuten! Alle Episoden finden Sie hier.
Was There A Curse On Helen's Romantic Life?
The Third Man by Angela Sheffield is based on a true story. Read chapter one now!
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¿Qué tiene que ver conmigo? por Teófila Gottfried
Lo que leemos en la Biblia tiene que ver con todos los seres humanos, sean cristianos o judíos, ateos o agnósticos, budistas, musulmanes o adherentes a alguna de las filosofías o nuevas religiones que surgen en el mundo. ¿Por qué? Ver mayor información sobre este interesante libro.
Scripture of The Day - St. John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Escritura del día - San Juan 14,6
Jesús le dijo: Yo soy el camino, y la verdad, y la vida; nadie viene al Padre, sino por mí.
Bibelstelle des Tages - Johannes 14,6
Jesus spricht zu ihm: Ich bin der Weg und die Wahrheit und das Leben; niemand kommt zum Vater, denn durch mich!
Does Matthew 25:31-46 Tell Us We Can Earn Our Salvation Through Good Works?
We remember once when a man tried to convince us that simply by doing the works of charity we see in the passage of St. Matthew 25, verses 31 to 40, that we can earn salvation. Granted, it does appear, at first glance, that the man is right. But, there is more to it, as we shall soon see. Let's get into the study. We read, "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. And before him shall be gathered all nations. And he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. He shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat. I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink. I was a stranger, and ye took me in. Naked, and ye clothed me. I was sick, and ye visited me. I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my BRETHREN, ye have done it unto me." (St. Matthew 25:31-40)
If we take a closer look at this passage, we notice that in verse 40 (the last verse we read) that Jesus lets us know that the works of charity were done for His BRETHREN. That is very important to keep in mind. Now then, we should understand to whom Jesus referred when He spoke of His brethren. We must not overlook this point. We invite you to go with us to the Scripture of St. Mark 3:35 where Christ says, "Whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother..."
So there we have it. Christ is specifically speaking about feeding, giving drink, clothes and lodging; visiting and serving His brethren, not just people in general. And remember, His brethren are those who do the will of the Father. Those who do not do the Father's will are not the King's brethren. Yes, there is a difference. Because there are some people who will help Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists; but they hate the followers of Christ. Are we to think that people who won't serve the King's brethren are going to spend eternity with the King? No, they will not. Now let's take a look at the passage of St. Matthew 25:41-46, which tells us what the King will say to the people on His left. We read: "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat. I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink. I was a stranger, and ye took me not in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment. But the righteous into life eternal."
Who's to say whether the people represented by the goats on the King's left didn't do charity work among non-Christians? The Lord doesn't say they didn't. Christ only says that they did not help His brethren. He doesn't say they didn't help people in general. Is Jesus saying that we'll go into everlasting punishment if we fail to do charity work among His brethren? Among those who do the Father's will, in other words? No, that is not what He's saying. We are mistaken if we think we can earn heaven through charity work, even charity among true followers of Christ. That's because we are saved by grace, not by works (See Ephesians 2:8). What then are we to think about the passages we've just read? Don't they appear to be saying we can indeed earn salvation by serving Jesus' brethren? Don't they appear to be saying that we'll go to eternal punishment if we refuse to serve Jesus' brethren? What are we to think about these passages? Although the Lord does not say it here in these passages of St. Matthew 25, His Word teaches us that the goats to His left were cursed, because they had no love in their hearts. Not because they didn't serve the King's brethren. Many of Jesus' brethren live in abject poverty. They have nothing with which to help the brethren of Christ. Are we to think they're going to be rejected by Christ in the day of judgment, because they were too poor to help? Certainly not. Even doing much charity work without LOVE, carries no weight with the Lord as far as personal salvation. We know this because of what 1 Corinthians 13:3 says. We read, "Though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity (love), it profiteth me nothing."
So, it's not about doing charity work for the sole purpose of being in right standing with God. It's about being filled with the love of Christ, which will compel us to do works approved by God among Christ's brethren as well as among unbelievers.
Recommended Christian Books and Bible Studies
God Said: Jacob Have I love and Esau have I Hated: The Mystery of Predestination in Romans
True Paranormal Stories: Does the Christian Bible Explain the Fifth Dimension?
Spanish English Bilingual Bible Study and Sunday School Lessons
Based on true events, The Third Man by Angela Sheffield, brings the Bible up close and personal as the characters face real issues of life: Betrayal, deceit, romance, bitterness, anger against God, hopelessness, will power, perplexity, triumph, unforgiveness, mental illness, and the "Alcohol made me do it" excuse. Read chapter one FREE now.
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