WHO IS IN HEAVEN?

Have been somewhat saddened during this Christmas season of supposed goodwill, when reading articles in which the writers (mainly but not exclusively, men), in the name of 'theological truth', have been harshly critical of each other. Supposedly 'debating' elements of Christian Doctrine to which there will be no conclusive answers either way, until finally, we are able to ask the author of all truth.

As we again celebrate this special (some would say it's not!) time when we remember the birth of Jesus, (although best evidence points to His birth being in September or October!) we should be presenting a united face to the non-believing world, of the love and desire that Jesus has for each and every member of His creation. Unfortunately, this is not possible when we have insufficient grace to accept that others are entitled to a different viewpoint on many matters, without endangering anyone's salvation. Understanding the hugeness of God as 'oneness Apostolics' or 'traditional Trinitarians', makes absolutely no difference to whether we genuinely accept and live the life of Jesus as our Saviour and Lord.

In writing this, there will be those on both sides ready to cancel their subscriptions for such heresy! Of course, we all know that heaven will only be inhabited by 'Evangelical Baptist Trinitarian Pretorists', or is it 'Pentecostal Dispensational Oneness Apostolics'? In either case, what a small, lonely, narrow-minded place to be!

Then again, it may be much broader! Surely it's only Catholics, or Lutherans, or Methodists or AOG or...... How sad! A terrible picture to paint to a lost world, desperately needing the saving grace of Jesus.

But my Jesus came to define and empower us to battle satan, not to shoot each other in the foot or, more often than not, the heart. Let's then, get back to the two essential tasks Jesus left us with. Telling the whole world the 'good news' of Jesus and becoming the pure white, spotless bride for whom Jesus is preparing to return.

At this time the Lord is calling His people to unity of purpose, as He seeks the fulfilment of His earthly plan. Let's genuinely love and accept our fellow believers, putting aside our differences, becoming the truly effective, living witness and likeness of Jesus we are meant to be.

Of course it's idealistic! Impossible in our own strength! But as we cry out and submit to His will for our lives, it will become a reality. Then He will return!

And that jolly imposter, Father Christmas, may retire to his North Pole home and release his reindeer back into the wild, eternally winning the 'Green' vote! How's that for universal, 'PC' theology? But then again, maybe you disagree with me...

Find out more about us on...

http:// www.wwj.org.nz/about.php

FROM THE WORD

NOTE: Tried long and hard to find scriptures to support my Father Christmas ideology, but finally had to admit defeat. Doesn't seem to matter too much in a lot of theological arguments though!

THE GREAT COMMISSION
"Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:16-20)

"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”" (Revelation 19:6-9)

THE YEAST OF THE PHARISEES AND SADUCEES
"When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. “Be careful,” Jesus said to them. “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” They discussed this among themselves and said, “It is because we didn’t bring any bread.” Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." (Matthew 16:5-12)

DAVID'S DOODLINGS

DISCIPLESHIP
214.-235. Discipleship is...

... doing the right thing because we want to, not because we are expected to.
... being a servant both to God and man.
... honouring God with body, soul and spirit.
... loving the Lord with all our heart, soul and mind.
... being 100% committed to the Lord's cause.
... putting the Lord first in all things.
... placing the Lord's desires ahead of our own.
... applying the Lord's will to our mind and emotions.
... accepting the Lord's correction graciously.
... being joyful in the Lord - even while being corrected!
... subverting our will to His.
... centred upon giving rather than receiving.
... becoming a little more like Jesus every day.
... being prepared to die for our Lord.
... honouring and worshipping God as Lord, rather than a 'holy Father Christmas.'
... being the one God would like us to be.
... placing God's needs and others godly needs ahead of our own.
... helping others attain to their ministries, even to the expense of our own.
... being Jesus to others.
... retaining the joy of the Lord in times of personal sadness.
... putting wrongs right - graciously!
... walking as one with the Lord, night and day.

There are 700+ David sayings for you to view at ...

http:// www.wwj.org.nz/dd.php

A MESSAGE FROM ROY

Although this PGIM! e-letter is sent free, some readers have decided to support this Ministry one or more times a year by sponsoring a week's PGIM! @ USD $50.00. Can I ask you to consider sponsoring a specified week/s? You will get an acknowledgement on your particular week/s of sponsorship (unless you do not want it). If you are interested to help this very informative & helpful newsletter, please email me, Roy McGreevy, as it is God who authored this idea through me in the USA. roy@kscbtv.com. I look forward to hearing from you... thanks. Roy

FROM YOU - TO ME -TO YOU

REPLIES RECEIVED TO BRUCE'S LETTER FROM LAST WEEK. See Last Week's Newsletter

Bruce,
The Bible is THE revelation of God to mankind. According to the Bible, God chose to begin with Abraham, create a nation for himself, to whom he would reveal himself and through whom the entire world would be reached with the message of God's love and plan of salvation. That revelation culminated in Jesus Christ, the final revelation of God to man. Christianity is the only way to God, not because men say so, but because God revealed his only plan and we have since called it Chrisianity. "There is no other name under heavan by which we can be saved" refering to Jesus. Anyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again and has accepted that forgiveness, is a part of the family of God, a christian. Anyone who does not, is not, and is condemned already because he has rejected the only way.

Does this limit the power of God? Who but an all powerful God could impact the world through one intinerent rabbi in an insignificant little country in the Middle East?

As for the incarnation, this is fundamental. Without it there is no salvation, for without it Jesus would not have been able to be the perfect sacrifice. Read John 1:1-14. John makes it clear: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. Jesus the Word, was God. John leaves no room for any other interpretation. Then in vs 14, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us". He leaves no doubt that Jesus was also a man. He did not just appear to be a man, or appear to eat and drink, or appear to die. He lived and died and rose again. They saw him, they touched him, they talked to him, they buried him, and they saw him again after the resurrection.

The incarnation is not a limitation of God's power, it is one of the most awsome displays of his power and his love for us, that he would become flesh!

The Bible is not one of the "least garbled revelations", it is the only Revelation of God to man. And, archeology (Dead Sea Scrolls and such) has shown it to be very accurately transmitted to us from the original writings. The only errors or questionable parts are minor and insignificant. The earliest manuscripts of Isaiah from about 100 B.C. read almost exactly the same as our current Isaiah (in the original language) that is over 2000 years of accurate preservation of the message of Isaiah. And that is just one example. Do you not trust the current English translations? I could probably name a dozen, all done by different groups with differring doctrines and yet they are remarkably consistent. No one is force feeding us their own "translation" of the original. We can be very confident that the Bible we have today, is accurate.

And how would events in an insignificant (compared to God) country like the U.S. impact our belief in his Word and its truth? Perhaps only if you believe some false prophecy about the importance of the U.S. and western prosperity in God's plan.

Henry

Henry A.L. Wollman
Moody Bible Institute, Database Administrator

Hi David
Maybe the first time that somebody from a country as remote as Namibia comments. My mondays with WWJ is not the same anymore.

It seems to me that Bruce from Olympia Washington USA has read the book : "Fingerprints if the gods" and has something wrong somewhere.
Jesus is the most written about man that walked this earth. The Bible is most written about book ever published. Even the Koran refers to Jesus as somebody that seems to be above all normal humans.

To Bruce. Begin to study The Book and the historians on the life of Jesus and you will be amazed at all the supernatural things you will discover.

Love in Christ

Willem Gobabis
Namibia.

David
I'd like to reply to Bruce (as in the 'From me to you to me' section) - if this isn't a usable offering, I am still quite happy if you file it in the rotary underdesk filing cabiniet or if you were to forward it from me to him, there is a soul there that may be salvable if he isn't just being provocative. What you do with this is up to you.

Please keep up the good work, each week it is a joy to start with your thoughts and exhortations. May God bless you and keep you.

John.

Bruce,
I really appreciate your comment for we are all too often trying to limit God and put Him into a box of our own construction to suit our own agendas. But the question that you ask leaves me with a problem. You used the phrase 'we Christians' and later applied the term to yourself. You also said that you 'believed the Bible... as the least corrupted of the messages received by mankind' Are you not guilty of the same fault as you started with? You too are fitting God into your box. If the Bible is a message received by humanity as you claim, (and presumably from God) then what gives you the right to pick and choose what bits to believe or not believe.

Surely, to accept the name 'Christian' for yourself means that you believe the book that tells you what a Christian is; anything less than a full acceptance is merely a partial obedience and probably more of a Brucianity than a fully orbed Christianity. There is nothing wrong with a Brucianity except that it isn't Christianity and it most certainly is not 'Good News' If Jesus was not God (as he himself claimed) then his sacrifice is insufficient for both you and for me too and one of us is still unforgiven (to say nothing of everyone else!)

Where do I get my ideas from? from the Bible. There are things in it which are hard to understand and more which is harder to submit to even when I do understand it, but I do not think I have the right to pick the nice bits and the easy bits or to twist it to my own satisfaction - actually Peter says 'destruction' there not 'satisfaction' and that is the ultimate problem. God has got it right, let us not refuse his solutions just because of our own need to fit an infinite God into our own small boxes.

John Barrs: resident in the UK

Hello again David,
In response to Bruce's letter, I am sympathetic to his general point of view, though I would say it differently. I am puzzled about the discontinuity between much of Christian speech and Christian action when it comes to Jesus and God. We use language that speaks of power and wisdom beyond description, then try to squeeze Jesus and God into narrow boxes that fit our minds. One line of Christian thought named in John 1 is that people met the Logos in Jesus. If the Logos was the agent of creation, why could it/him not have been part of the development of religions other than Judaism? What are the other sheepfolds alluded to by Jesus in the Gospel of John? If God loves all of humanity, why would the Logos refrain from engagement with the vast majority that was not Jewish? Why do we act as though we believe God is so weak that God needs our interventions to protect institutions (such as marriage or the family)? I believe the Bible contains a great deal of truth (all of it is true in some way), but we are too quick to use it as a weapon or tool for protecting our cultural, political, and personal prejudices, and to avoid confronting our own failures to be faithful to the Jesus of the Gospels (as contrasted to the Jesus of the creeds developed under the authority of a non-Christian emperor). Faithfulness is not in saying "I believe" and then acting as though I don't.

This Christmas, let us all remember the point of Christmas is not a cute baby but the willingness of God to meet us in weakness rather than power. May Christmas celebrations include space for the risen Christ in our minds, hearts and lives.
Shalom,
Jim Kenney
Canada

ON FUNDRAISING
David,
I have just removed my name from your list as over the past three months or so the thrust of your letters (through your supporters so that you yourself do not have to 'wear it') has been along that time-worn American path of asking for money, money, money!

The icing on the cake was today's post in which Roy (roy@kscbtv.com) said "... Can I ask you to consider sponsoring a specified week/s? You will get an acknowledgement on your particular week/s of sponsorship (unless you do not want it). If you are interested to help this very informative & helpful newsletter, please email me, Roy McGreevy, as it is God who authored this idea through me in the USA."

Sadly, I did not think that you New Zealanders were tempted to trust in riches and plead in God's name for mammon.

While I no longer want your newsletter, I do pray that God will continue to bless you and that He will reveal His Will for you in your special ministry. To Him be the glory and honour.

Richard.

AND MY REPLY...

Hi Richard

Thanks for your email.

Sorry to hear that you are going off the list.

The donations ad from Roy has been in there in the same way, each week for some time now. And it happened literally as he says. He approached me to do it after the Lord told him to do it.

I operate this ministry entirely by faith. My wife works to cover most of our living expenses. The Lord does provide, but through people. I see Roy's completely unsolicited offer as being part of God's provision.

I would appreciate your thoughts and suggestions as to other ways in which we may pay the considerable bills involved in running the ministry. I am trying to achieve a balance in what we do. Everything is for free, but donations are welcomed. That seems a pretty good balance to me. Please suggest how I may pay the bills.

We have had donations from the US, Britain, Australia and New Zealand from people who have wanted to help, for which we are very grateful.

Your ideas would be appreciated.

Cheers
David

No reply has been received. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated too.

Your comments to me or fellow readers are always welcomed at... david@wwj.org.nz

LAUGHING AT OURSELVES

***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused***

*** "Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others." ***

224. WWJD?
Most people assume WWJD is for "What would Jesus do?" But the initials really stand for "What would Jesus drive?"

One theory is that Jesus would tool around in an old Plymouth because, "God drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden in His Fury."

But in Psalm 83, the Almighty clearly owns a Pontiac and a Geo. The passage urges the Lord to "pursue your enemies with your Tempest and terrify them with your Storm."

Perhaps God favors Dodge pickup trucks, because Moses' followers are warned not to go up a mountain "until the Ram's horn sounds a long blast."

Some scholars insist that Jesus drove a Honda, but didn't like to talk about it. As proof, they cite a verse in St. John's Gospel, in which Christ tells the crowd, "I did not speak of my own Accord."

Meanwhile, David rode an old British motorcycle, as evidenced by a Bible passage declaring that "the roar of David's Triumph is heard in the hills."

Joshua drove a Triumph sports car with a hole in its muffler: "Joshua's Triumph was heard throughout the land."

And, following the Master's lead, the apostles carpooled in a Honda: they were in one Accord.

223. SLEEPING THROUGH THE SERMON
I was pastor of a small church in a rural community. Wilbur and his wife, Leah, attended every Sunday morning. Wilbur was a farmer, and whenever he came into the house from the field and sat down, he would fall asleep.

It was such a habit that when he came into church and sat in the pew he would also soon fall asleep. I discovered that some of the members of the church were taking bets to see how long I could keep Wilbur awake on Sunday mornings.

Wilbur's wife was embarrassed by his behavior, especially when he began to snore. She tried everything to keep her sleepy spouse awake. She complained to him that she was getting calluses on her elbow from poking him in the ribs in a futile attempt to keep him alert. One day while shopping in the grocery store, she saw a small bottle of Limburger cheese. Leah bought it and dropped it in her purse.

The next Sunday morning I had just started the sermon when Wilbur began to nod. When I finished the first point in my three-point sermon, I could see I was losing him. As I started the third point, Wilbur began to snore. Quietly, Leah opened her purse, took out the bottle of Limburger cheese and held it under her husband's nose. It worked. Wilbur sat up straight and, in a voice that could be heard all over the church, said, "Leah, will you please keep your feet on your own side of the bed!"

Now one of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 600 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/laugh.php

FACTS FOR FUN

LAST WEEKS QUESTION: Do mosquitoes feed on blood?

ANSWER:Actually not! Female mosquitos do obtain blood from humans and animals (my wife confirms this!), but only to nourish their eggs. Their food actually consists of nectar and other plant juices.

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: What is our body's largest organ?

Answer Next Week.

SOME FUN FACTS
861. A VEGETARIAN KILLER
Amazingly, Hitler was a vegetarian. (Yet treated Jews and others as animals to be hunted and killed.)

862. STICKING TOGETHER
When a young crocodile cries out in distress, any adult within hearing range will respond with a fully-fledged attack, even though it is not related. (Not surprising the species has survived so long. Something for us to learn?)

863. COW POWER
A single cow provides nearly 200,000 glasses of milk during her lifetime. (Does a cow suffer calcium deficiency in her bones with age?)

A CHALLENGE FOR YOU

SIGHT sore i i i i i i i
sore
sore
sore

Answer at the end of A David Musing

You can download a 250 item sample Trivia Book at Truly Trifling Trivia

Or view all 1200 online at...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/facts.php

FREE MP3 DOWNLOAD OF THE WEEK

In association with Inspirational Tapes Ministries
inspirational.org.nz
we are pleased to offer you this inspirational MP3 download - absolutely free of charge!

FREEDOM FROM THE FEAR OF MAN

By: Ray Comfort

Ray Comfort of Living Waters Publications is an internationally-renowned Christian evangelist, speaker and author. He is the author of over 35 books, including Hell's Best Kept Secret, Revival's Golden Key, Comfort, The Feebleminded, How to Make an Atheist Backslide, The Mystery, and many others.

Download your free MP3 today at ...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/tape.php

HAVE A LOOK AT MOSES TABERNACLE IN DETAIL

The Tabernacle was a structure built by the children of Israel under the supervision of Moses, around 1450 B.C. The layout of the Tabernacle and the materials of its construction were specified in great detail to Moses by God at Mount Sinai, a few weeks after the children of Israel had left hundreds of years of slavery in Egypt (the Exodus). The Tabernacle was a portable construction, made by wise, skilful workmen and transported by one tribe (the Levites) through the 40 years in the desert wilderness and on into the land of Canaan.

The purpose of the site is:
1. to describe the layout, structure and furnishings of the Tabernacle
2. to relate these pictures from the book of Exodus (the second book of the Bible) to the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament.

A fascinating site to visit at...

http://www.domini.org/tabern/tabhome.htm

HAVE A 'PUNNY' CHRISTMAS

1. A bicycle can’t stand on its own because it is two-tired.
2. What’s the definition of a will? (it’s a dead giveaway).
3. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
4. A backwards poet writes inverse.
5. She had a boyfriend with a wooden leg, but broke it off.
6. A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
7. With her marriage she got a new name and a dress.
8. Show me a piano falling down a mineshaft and I’ll show you A-flat minor.
9. When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.
10. The man who fell into an upholstery factory is now fully recovered.
11. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.
12. You feel stuck with your debt if you can’t budge it.
13. He often broke into song because he couldn’t find the key.
14. Every calendar’s days are numbered.
15. A lot of money is tainted. It taint yours and it taint mine.
16. A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.
17. He had a photographic memory that was never developed.
18. A plateau is a high form of flatter.
19. The short fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
20. Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.
21. Once you’ve seen one shopping centre you’ve seen a mall.
22. Those who jump off a Paris bridge are in Seine.
23. When an actress saw her first strands of grey hair she thought she’d dye.
24.Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to know basis.
25. Santa’s helpers are subordinate clauses.
26. Marathon runners with bad footwear suffer the agony of defeat.

Many more puny puns to love and hate at 'The World's Greatest Groans'...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/groans.php

FAMOUS WORDS AND PHRASES FROM THE BIBLE

"A FLY IN THE OINTMENT' is used to describe an undesirable person or something that has gone wrong with a system or procedure. It originates from Ecclesiastes 10:1 which tells us that "dead flies spoil the perfumer's ointment."

Many more interesting Bible facts at...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/gfacts.php

A DAVID MUSING

CHRISTMAS TIME
Christmas time comes but once a year,
To be happy, you drink lots of beer!
Putting your gifts on the credit card,
Then come the repayments, oh so hard!

But Jesus came on Christmas Day,
Forever more to show the way,
How to enter into God's glorious presence.
In the ultimate of all Christmas presents!

So this Christmas, for some cheer,
Party less, put aside the beer,
And enter into the Holy Place,
To meet with God, face to face.

His servant and yours

David Tait

Today's Word Puzzle Answer: Sight for sore eyes!

REPRODUCTION OF NEWSLETTER CONTENT

Most weeks we get enquiries about reproducing, in electronic or print form, articles contained in 'PGIM!' We welcome and encourage you to utilize this material. Freely received, freely given. We would ask though, that the source be acknowledged as an encouragement to others to subscribe to this newsletter also.

Subscription opportunities are available here Subscribe Here

at the bottom of each newsletter or at...
https://www.macnet.co.nz/wwjesus/pay.html

DONATIONS

Each month, because of the size and nature of our web site and maintenance of our sophisticated emailing system, it costs over $200 in provider fees to bring this ministry to you. If you are able to help us meet this expense your credit card donation would be very much welcomed at Make Donations Here as a live connection or at https://www.macnet.co.nz/wwjesus/pay.php
if you prefer to paste the address into your browser. Thanks.

CHANGING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS - OR IF THE NEWSLETTER STOPS

Each week we can lose up to 1% of our readers when they change email addresses without letting us know. If you are about to change your address, please advise us of both your old and new addresses here at
enquiries@wwj.org.nz and we will happily change our records to ensure ongoing delivery. Thanks.

Please also keep our address in your address book, as sometimes servers will automatically delete your address if there is even a one off problem in delivery. If your newsletter doesn't arrive, please let us know and we will reinstate you.

LINKS

If you would like to link your web site to ours, and ours to yours, please advise us on
links@wwj.org.nz

DID THIS EMAIL HAVE A BLUE BACKGROUND AND RED HEADINGS?

YES - Great!
NO - Your web browser needs to be set to 'Rich Text'. If you have an older 'Text Only' browser, this email may also be viewed on our web site at ...

http://www.wwj.org.nz/wwword.php

ABOUT US

WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God’s people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ’s return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord’s direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our website
wwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.

Walking With Jesus Ministries
3 Hetley Crescent
Taradale
Napier 4001
New Zealand

Phone: (06) 8449-377 International (+64) 8449-377
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz

Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "… so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4)

For comments upon and contributions to this service, please contact
david@wwj.org.nz