 A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Home · About Us ·  · Podcast · Free emailSee here for more info. Wednesday, November 5, 2008  This windmill is on our Amish friend's farm on Paradise Lane near Strasburg, Pennsylvania in Lancaster County.  Listen to us share this message on your audio player.Play background music "The Eternal Kingdom" "You, O LORD, reign forever; Your throne endures from generation to generation" (Lamentations 5:19). As God's children we are heirs to a kingdom that will last forever. Jeremiah proclaimed in our daily verse that, "You, O LORD, reign forever." What tremendous assurance this should bring to every believer reading this message today. Jeremiah didn't make this proclamation of praise in the setting of an edifying worship service where devoted worshipers were excitedly lifting their voices in praise and thanksgiving. Instead he spoke these words even as he was acknowledging the desperation of his people and confessed that they had turned their backs against God. They were spoken during a time of social and spiritual chaos, as Judah's captivity to Babylon was imminent. The period leading up to the fall of Judah is instructive. During this time the nation slipped deeper and deeper into apostasy. 2 Chronicles 36 is a solemn record of the fall of Judah and the onset of the Babylonian Captivity. It records the final three Kings in Judah who were each described as doing "evil in the eyes of the Lord." It's not a pretty picture and without a doubt the people of the land endured grave consequences as a result of having wicked rulers that likely modeled and endorsed their own personal wickedness. "The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them through His messengers again and again, because He had pity on His people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked God's messengers, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets until the wrath of the LORD was aroused against His people and there was no remedy" (2 Chronicles 36:15,16). The passage ends with a phrase that greatly intrigues me, "and there was no remedy." There came a point when it's as if God essentially said "Enough is enough." We see this at other times in the Bible such as the flood and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We also witness this wrath unfolding as temporal earthly kingdoms fell (Daniel 5). We will one day all see it at the culmination of the age. Where is America as it is being weighed in the balance of God's holy vindication or any other country for that matter? When will it be determined by God that there is no remedy? Surely only God knows, but we must all be numbered among those the Scripture calls a "remnant." The remnant is those whose hearts remain true to God no matter the cost. At the time of Jeremiah's writing, the remnant of true followers would have included Jeremiah, Daniel, Meshach, Shadrach, Abednego and others whose names are not recorded in the Bible. In our daily text God gave Jeremiah spiritual eyes to look beyond present extreme circumstances and declare, "Your throne endures from generation to generation." Now 2,600 years later all around the world we sing "Our God Reigns." We will be making this proclamation throughout eternity and we will be living it out. In a glimpse behind the veil in John's vision, recorded in the book of Revelation, we read, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever" (11:15). The King of kings will turn our days of mourning into joyous eternal dancing if we keep this extremely important perspective before us today! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily Prayer: Dear Father, You were King of the heavens before time was begun and You will be King for all eternity. What joy and assurance that truth brings to our spirits today. Our temporal burdens are lightened when we transport our hearts to the New Jerusalem where there is no temple in the City because You, Lord God Almighty are the City's temple. The City won't need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because Your glory is its light, and the Lamb is the City's lamp. By its light the people of the world will walk. The City's gates will never be shut on any day, because there is no night there. Nothing unclean and no one who does shameful things or tells lies will ever go into it. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life will enter the City. Heal our land and forgive us of our sins. We want to walk earnestly with you on this earth and live with joyous anticipation of eternity in heaven. In the blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen. (See Revelation 21 for further encouragement and future blessing) Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources (Click on the link to open and play) "Handel's Messiah" Video And He (Jesus Christ) shall reign forever and ever!!!2 Chronicles 36 Text Audio Lamentations 5 Text Audio "Does Truth Matter Anymore" Video As we were scrolling between channels following current events last night we came across this program on our Christian TV station and due to a number of situations we are confronting found this challenge so powerful. We especially encourage pastors to watch this but really all earnest contenders for truth. This is part one of a five part John MacArthur series. You can watch each part of the series by following the link at the upper right. It is not for the faint of heart. (Note: it has a rather long intro before MacArthur speaks.)  The Truth War: Fighting for Certainty in an Age of Deception By John MacArthur / Thomas NelsonRight now, Truth is under attack, and much is at stake. In a postmodern culture, Christians are caught in the crossfire of alternative Christian histories, emerging faulty texts, and a cultural push to eliminate absolute Truth altogether. As a result, many churches and Christians have been deceived. Worse still, they propagate the deception that poses itself as Truth! In The Truth War, John MacArthur reclaims the unwavering certainty of God's Truth and anchors Christians in the eternal, immovable promises found in His Word. Info about multi-media files used on daily encouragement. Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne. |
 Stephen and Brooksyne Weber "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update Revised 10/21/08 Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details.(2008 YTD financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net through 11/04/08: $16,616.00) SUBSCRIPTION INFO  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? To receive these free "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent unsolicited. It was sent to you because you signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If this newsletter no longer meets your needs we will be happy to remove your address from the list immediately. To remove your address merely use the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each message. Weekly Version: The weekly version is designed for those who do not check their email regularly. It is merely the Friday message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Please feel free to pass these messages on! "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. "A Little Foolishness" - A humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) I haven't had time or "inspiration" for this for awhile but it has several stories that get regular page views. "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. We are distributing this CD without charge in our ministry. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. If any reader in this series would like a CD merely write us and request one.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2008 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Daily Encouragement (11/05/08) "The Eternal Kingdom"
