Sharing Love From Sweden - FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD AND FRIENDSHIP WITH EACH OTHER - Eva Haglund

FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD 

AND FRIENDSHIP WITH EACH OTHER

Eva Haglund, Sweden

Sometimes things done for God seem more important for Christians than the relationship with God. But God wants us to have the relation with Him as first place - not what we do for Him. Visions must not take first place. Some are never at home as they go about many things, but the relationship with God needs time seeking Him.  

We can read in the Bible in Luke 10:38, “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary,  who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me."

And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Here we learn that the relation with Jesus ought to take the first place. Mary was taking time with Jesus and sat at His feet.

We can understand that David spent much time  in his relationship with God, as we see when we read the psalms.

Jesus spent time in fellowship with the disciples. In John 21 He fixed a warm fire, breakfast and had fellowship, after the disciples had been out with the boat fishing. It is written in verse 12 that Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” It was at this occasion in fellowship, in verse 17, that Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.” He wants us to spend time with Him and have Him as his friend, not one who just comes and ask things from.

In Song of Solomon 6:3 we find the words “I am my beloved`s and my beloved is mine.” I  am  thinking about the relation with Jesus here - the friendship with Him.  I also think worship is important.  David had learned this and also Paul. We read when he worshiped in the prison in Acts 16:25, “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” In worship God is in the center. In Ps.113:1 we read, "Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord!" In Ps.149:3 is written, "Let them praise His name with the dance." So we can also praise God with dance as God is in the center and He is honored.

God wants us to take time in prayer and  we also need to spend time with the Word, reading the Bible. God is love (1 John.4:8) and  we need to learn to know this God of love more. In Eph.3:17 Paul prays that "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you being rooted and grounded in love, what is the width and length and depth and height - to KNOW THE LOVE of Christ which passes knowledge , that you may be felled with all the fullness of God."

If God is love then love is important.

Sometimes friendship and fellowship is not counted as so important among some Christians but Jesus say in John 15 to His disciples, “This is My commandment that you love one another as I have loved you.”

Jesus does not just mean to say hello but to have real friendship  and care for each other. I think He showed this when He washed the feet of the disciples. It is like a picture of showing care and love  among Christians.  Jesus also showed practical care at the beach. He fixed a warm fire and made breakfast with fish and bread. Jesus talks about friendship when He says “Greater love has no one than this than to lay down one`s life for his friends.”

The greatest love in friendship is then one is willing to give his life for a friend.  I also think we can get back relationships as Job and Joseph got back. We can have friends globally as we are in Body of Christ, but I think it is also good when we have friends who do not live so far away,  as  Ps.133:1 tells us.

It says “Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.” In 1 Cor.12 it is written about how we are members in a body who need each other. As members in a usual body need each other, each part has value.  The “hand” needs the “foot”. In a church building, the church is not a building but we need each other with different gifts with Jesus as the head. Then Christians also need a place to have meetings in. 

In the Old Testament we read about David and Jonathan's friendship in Scripture in 1 Sam. 20.

We can also understand that Elijah and Elisha in the Bible were friends. I think Elijah was Elisha's spiritual father and a close  friend. In 2 Cor. 2 I think that Elijah was a dear friend to Elisha when  when he knew that Elijah would go to heaven and said in verse 2:2 ”As the Lord lives and as your soul lives I will not leave you.”

In John 17:21 Jesus prays for Christians “that they all may be one as your Father is in me, and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” I think He talks about the love in the Body of Christ as we get from God and love as a testimony. I think God wants to restore more of real friendship in the Body of Christ where it needs more.

In Rev.3:20 is written, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me.” If anyone does not know Jesus, He is knocking at the door and wants to come in.

Jesus (Yeshua)  is a real friend – the best Friend who gave His life for us because of His love for us (Isaiah 53).

VIDEO: A Land of Diversity

Thursday, February 05, 2015 |  Israel Today Staff

Israel is often maligned as a racist, even apartheid state. But the truth, as demonstrated in the following video, is that Israel is a land of unprecedented coexistence given its tiny size.

The video was put together by filmmaker Matty Brown who during his travels through the Holy Land was overwhelmed by the local diversity. Modern city life, Bedouin desert encampments, Orthodox Jews at the Wailing Wall, and so much more are what make up the fabric of Israel - a land of true diversity!

By the way - as Brown points out, the title of the video is not misspelled. It is an invitation to take a peek into the real Israel, not the negative caricature the international community likes to promote.

This Isreal from Matty Brown on Vimeo.

Want more news from Israel?
Click Here to sign up for our FREE daily email updates from ISRAEL TODAY.

Christians Urged to 'Stand Firm' with Israel at CO Summit

CBNNews.com

Thursday, February 05, 2015

Ad Feedback

Hundreds of Christians and Messianic Jewish believers from nearly two dozen states and more than a dozen countries have gathered in Loveland, Colorado, for a Stand Firm with Israel summit.

Pastor Wayne Hilsden of Jerusalem's King of Kings Congregation and Pastor Jonathan Wiggins of Resurrection Fellowship in Loveland organized the summit amid growing concerns that Christians around the world need to stand with Israel in a time of growing danger to Jews and Christians and rapidly growing anti-Semitism, especially in Europe.

Hilsden also announced the formation of a group called FIRM, Fellowship of Israel-Related Ministries, to emphasize the biblically based importance of supporting Israel and the Jewish people.

Standing with Israel doesn't necessarily mean agreeing with every decision made by the Israeli government, Hilsden explained. But it does mean acknowledging the eternal covenant the Lord made with the Jewish people in the land with Israel.

Post-Charlie Hebdo: Does France Face Civil War?

By Dale Hurd

CBN News Sr. Reporter

Wednesday, February 04, 2015

PARIS - French Holocaust survivors gathered last month on the 70th anniversary of the liberation the Auschwitz.

They are men and women who saw terrible anti-Semitism as children and who must again live in a time when some in France and in Europe want to kill Jews.

France's Jews have felt like a target for a long time. And the killings by Muslim terrorists at the Charlie Hebdo newspaper and kosher supermarket have only confirmed their worst fears, and it will cause more of them to leave France for Israel and the United States.

Post-Charlie: Same Old, Same Old

Some have called the massacre France's 9/11. But America clearly changed after 9/11. It's not at all clear if France has changed enough.

Yes, there have been arrests and more police and soldiers have been deployed. But political correctness is still so deeply rooted in France that speaking out too strongly against Muslim immigration and being labelled a racist can still end a career.

French TV commentator Eric Zemmour was fired in December for saying that Muslims should be deported to avoid "chaos and civil war."

Zemmour has written the bestseller, The French Suicide, about how France is being destroyed. CBN News had hoped to interview Zemmour, but his publicist told us he was in hiding because of death threats.

One week after the killings, Paris police banned an anti-Islamization march.

Even popular far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been tiptoeing around the subject. She's reportedly feuding with her foreign policy adviser, Aymeric Chauprade, who gave an exclusive interview to CBN News.

Chauprade angered Le Pen by saying that France is at war with some Muslims and in danger from what he called a fifth column of 1 million radical Muslims in France.

"The problem, which is maybe worse, is the sympathy from a large part of the Muslim population in France toward jihad and towards the radical idea," he told CBN News.

"(French leaders) refuse to accept the idea that violence is rooted in Islam. I do not say all Muslims are violent but that violence is rooted in Islam's holy texts," he said.

An Outpouring of Hypocrisy

The world saw millions of Frenchmen flood into the streets to say "I am Charlie." It was a touching outpouring of support for free speech in the face of Muslim terror.

But conservatives in France saw something else: hypocrisy.

The same French leaders marching for free speech have not allowed free speech critical of Islam, except for few Charlie Hebdo cartoons, and have crafted policies that have allowed Muslim extremism to flourish in France.

French author, journalist and publisher Jean Robin says the government brought on the attacks, by being harder on critics of Islam than on Muslims.

"The people who are responsible for these attacks are the ones showing off now and demonstrating for freedom of speech, which they crushed year after year," Robin said. "We don't have the freedom to say the ones who demonstrated are the ones responsible for what happened."

When CBN News asked French writer Renaud Camus about the French government's commitment to free speech, he burst out laughing.

"They have not been protecting free speech," he said. "The aim of the government over the 40 years has been to impeach free speech, to express itself on the main subject of the replacement of population, which is totally banned from the media, and which is what you're not allowed to talk about it."

Camus has been banned himself because of his warnings about Islam.

A Self-Inflicted Wound?

And France's unwillingness to confront the problem of Muslim immigration and radicalism strongly enough could help ensure there will be more attacks like the one on Charlie Hebdo and the kosher supermarket.

All of those French conservatives we interviewed warned of civil war, and of a future like Lebanon or Yugoslavia, although Camus added that, "Civil war is the wrong expression. There will be nothing civil about it."

After what should have been a clear wake-up call for France, it's not at all clear that France will do what it takes to prevent the next attack.

Chaurpade said France has to "fight very firmly, very strictly, against the Islamization of French society. There is an Islamization process, and we have to stop it clearly."

The number one best-selling book in France right now is Submission, by Michel Houellebecq. The story is set in the future when France has a Muslim president and French women begin wearing veils. It was released, coincidentally, on the day of the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

There are likely to be more terrorist attacks in France, not only because of the government's fear of political correctness, but because there are simply too many Muslim jihadists in the country to stop all of them.

"They Will Run and Not Grow Tired" ✡ Do You Believe in Miracles?

Those whose hope is in the Lord will have renewed strength; they will grow wings like eagles; they will runand not grow tired. ISAIAH (40:31)   וְקוֹיֵ יְ-הוָה יַחֲלִיפוּ כֹחַ יַעֲלוּ אֵבֶר כַּנְּשָׁרִים יָרוּצוּ וְלֹא יִיגָעוּ יְשַׁעְיָהוּ מ:לא v'-ko-yay a-do-nai ya-kha-lee-fu ko-akh ya-a-lu ay-ver kan-sha-reem ya-ru-tzu v'-lo yi-ga-u

Today's Israel Inspiration True, Isaiah may not have had in mind the upcoming Jerusalem Marathon when he spoke the words of today's verse! Rather, the prophet envisions the spirited returnees to Zion, such as the devoted volunteers of United Hatzalah who truly “run to save lives and don’t grow tired.” Next month, they will be pounding the pavement at the Jerusalem Marathon to raise funds for life-saving ambucycles.   Support Team Running2Rescue at the Jerusalem Marathon »  Fighting for a Breath A diverse group of volunteer medics in Israel, including Arabs and Jews, work side by side to save a life in this frightening scenario.   Watch here » Running to the Rescue Revital Stein, 21, from Raanana, Israel will be running in the Jerusalem Marathon next month for United Hatzalah, saying “every person joining our team is helping to save more lives.”   Read More » Do You Believe in Miracles? True Stories Celebrating Divine Providence  When events occur that defy all laws of nature and reason, you know you are witnessing a miracle. In this widely-acclaimed, award-winning, New York Times Critic’s Choice 65-minute docu-drama, Hanoch Teller presents incredible-but-true miraculous events in the lives of ordinary people – powerful evidence of the Almighty’s constant involvement in mankind’s existence. These heart-warming episodes, re-enacted by top performers, fully orchestrated by leading musicians and enhanced by state-of-the-art graphics and effects, are a celebration of Divine Providence. You’ll laugh – you’ll cry – you’ll stand up and cheer – and most of all… you’ll BELIEVE! Get this Great Deal » Today's Israel Photo Asher Hevroni is a dedicated United Hatzalah volunteer in northern Israel who races around to calls on his bicycle, which was recently upgraded to an electronic bike thanks to a donor.   Support United Hatzalah » Thank You Today's Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored by Jack Abbott from North Kingston, Rhode Island. Toda Raba!   Sponsor a day » “Makes Me Feel Closer” It’s great to hear from so many of you - stay in touch and let us know where in the world you are enjoying Israel365!   Stay in Touch » I enjoy reading your posts each day from Irvine, Kentucky, USA. May God bless Israel.- Roger Richardson Dear Rabbi, I too just found your website. I received the first email yesterday. Seeing the Hebrew writing and translation makes me feel closer to your glorious land.  May God bless you continually.  Chuck S., North Carolina USA Shalom, Rabbi Tuly Weisz RabbiTuly@Israel365.com

Copyright © 2015 Israel365, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up for daily Israel Scenes and Inspiration on our website,www.israel365.com. Our mailing address is: Israel365 34 Nahal Ein Gedi Apt #17 Beit Shemesh 9909875 Israel

Pop Evil Rocker Casts Demon Out of Brother

 

2/4/2015 CBN  charisma news

Pop Evil's Tony Greve (YouTube)

"I'm playing in these venues; I'm touring with Judas Priest. That's crazy, you know what I mean? I'm getting to do all this stuff, and so there's almost, in one sense there's an emotional high about that," Anthony recalls. '"You're like, 'Wow, this is the stuff that I dreamed of doing and I'm doing it. I'm getting to live it."' 

As guitarist for the hard rock band Pop Evil, Anthony Greve enjoyed the success of having four Top 10 singles and living the life of a rock star. 

"For me it was an identity thing," says Anthony. "This is who I am, I'm Tony Greve; I'm the guitar player of Pop Evil. This is what I do. It becomes your identity. I think that scares people. Who would you be, if you weren't you?" 

Anthony's life was consumed with music, drugs and alcohol, but the partying wasn't enough, and he fell into a deep depression.

"There's an emptiness because it's not what you thought you'd be," Anthony recalls. "The bigger the band got, the emptier. It was like going into a black hole. It felt like you were just walking into a black hole going deeper and deeper into darkness. And there was less and less hope the further we went. And at this time, I remember crying out to God—who else are you going to cry out to? But people began to come into my life."

One of those people was a pastor who prayed with him, but Anthony says he didn't feel differently afterward. A few nights later, alone in his hotel room, Anthony had a talk with God.

"I said, 'There's nothing different, but I believe in You,'" Anthony remembers. "I said 'God, Why is this still hard?' And I heard God speak to me so crystal clear, He said, 'I created you for a relationship with Me. It'll never work without Me.' And this was the thing: I'd never repented. I'd never repented of my sins, and for the first time in my life, I felt the Holy Ghost convicting me about my sins. So I began to just confess my sins out to God and as I did, I broke. I mean something in me broke. I just—it was like I fell into His arms."' 

Anthony decided he should leave the band. He couldn't wait to tell his family what had happened.

'"I remember calling home and being like, 'Listen, you guys, I know you don't understand, but I met Jesus. He is real.' I thought, 'I'm going to leave all of this and I'm going to come home and I'm going to get to have a real relationship with my family.' And they didn't want that. They didn't want that. They were livid. My father was livid that I was going to leave this band. I mean, the fame, the money that we're about to make; all this stuff. The band's about to blow up. And all of a sudden, you know, Tony changes his mind and says, 'I don't want this anymore.'"

Crushed by guilt and confusion, Anthony gave in to the pressure to stay with the band. 

"I felt trapped. 'What about all of our fans? We have record deals. I'm signed to managers. I literally felt like, 'You know what? There's no way out of this thing.' So I backslid. And drinking, girls, you know, that sort of thing again, but in the back of my mind, you know, I'm like, 'I can't be living this way,' there was just this fight." 

As a young Christian, Anthony was torn between his new faith and the world that was pulling him back in. He was on a visit home when he says the Lord spoke to him again. 

"He said, 'Mark 9:26.' The passage was a story about Jesus casting an evil spirit out of a boy's body. I read this passage, and I really freaked out because I thought the Lord was trying to tell me that I had a demon in me."

Anthony didn't understand what was happening but felt that something supernatural was at work. So when a friend suggested that he try consulting a Ouija board, Anthony was willing.

"I thought, 'It's a piece of plastic and a board, I mean, how harmful can it be?'" Anthony recalls. "All of a sudden it began to work. And something began to feel terribly wrong. And in that moment, my brother cries out and this thing enters his body. And it just kind of flies him back to the ground. I remember stepping back and just being terrified. He turned and looked at me. I had never experienced that much hate in all of my life to see this thing looking at me through my brother. And the Lord spoke to me and said, 'it's going to be you or him.' And again, he brought that Scripture back to mind, '9:26. 9:26, cast out that devil, boy!' And all of a sudden I felt boldness hit me, and I remember I just jumped over my brother and palmed his head and took authority over that devil. It was like it lost all power immediately. Just gone. His head shot back, his eyes rolled back. I mean, he just—this thing convulsed at the name of Jesus."

Anthony says that experience made his decision very clear. 

"What became so real to me about this experience was God's Word, was His Word. Because Scripture says, Jesus said, 'I have given you power and authority to cast out devils in my name.' And it hit me, I thought, 'Wow.' I thought, 'If this is real, which I just experienced, then that means everything that Jesus said is real and is true.' I was either going to choose the world or I was going to choose God, but I knew that you cannot have both; the two are just totally contrary to one another. And so eventually I just—I laid it all down. I left the band and just totally gave my life to God. Just to be completely surrendered to Him and used by Him.'" 

After leaving the band, he began a journey to discover God's plan for his life.  That search led him to seminary where he is preparing to go into the ministry. Anthony says that now he understands his purpose. 

"I didn't know who I was before. Even though, yeah, I was Tony Greve of Pop Evil. Yeah, I had all those things. There was this emptiness of this not knowing, this un-belonging. And knowing, you know, that God is real, that God is my Father, that I have a relationship with Him. There's no greater fulfillment than that."

The Real Reason the Pentecostal Movement Keeps Growing

 2/4/2015 ED STETZER charisma magazine

Here are some reasons the Pentecostal Movement continues to grow. (Lightstock)

There are parts of the globe where the greatest church growth is happening through the Pentecostal movement. One of the most frequently asked questions is: "In a world where the church seems to be declining in many areas, how they are bucking the trend?"

There is never one reason why a movement succeeds. But some factors rise to the surface. Pentecostals will say they are growing because the Spirit is moving in a powerful way. I get that, and actually would affirm that as part of the reason, but from a sociological perspective, other things are happening and worth exploring.

I was recently asked (by Pentecostal leaders) what some sociological reasons might be. So following that meeting, and in this brief post, I want to explore how the beliefs of Pentecostals actually promote and produce growth compared to other more "mainstream" groups.

Pentecostals Value Their Shared Experience

From a statistical perspective, Pentecostals tend to be less "nominal" than other believers. The reason is often obvious—the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.

In almost all Pentecostalism (as contrasted to other continualist streams), speaking in tongues follows the Holy Spirit's baptism. After that experience, it's hard to say, "Oh I don't take this whole thing serious, I don't even know if it's real."

When you believe you're speaking in another language, that belief reshapes the way you think about faith!

Being a nominal Presbyterian, Methodist or Baptist is easier, though there are some outward expectations, like baptism (among credobaptists), that can mark a spiritual commitment. But Pentecostal believers and churches constantly emphasize spiritual practice and engagement.

That helps make a more robust faith.

So more often than not, stagnation is not as compatible with a real Spirit-filled experience. The end result—it's harder to be a nominal Pentecostal—the beliefs of the movement tend to weed out nominalism. Because of what is happening in church and the community of faith, people tend not to just hang around as casual observers.

Either you join in it, or you move on. Many join. Movements populated by nominals are usually in decline. Nominals don't populate Pentecostalism, so it grows.

Pentecostals Want to Share Their Values

Not only does a valued distinctive encourage participation and growth in the local body, but it also provides an imperative for growth outside of the local body. When you appreciate what you have as much as Pentecostals do, you aren't satisfied to experience it yourself. You think others should have the same opportunity to partake of the movement of the Spirit of God.

When I meet with Pentecostal leaders, they're strategizing about where to plant a church. They break out the maps and determine where they need to focus their attention.

Never mind there are already six churches in a 10-block community. To them, there's not a Spirit-filled church in that community until they plant one. So they are often avid planters, not just in their own area, but also around the world.

Worth Sharing the Spirit-Filled Experience

Pentecostals believe in their approach. Their Christian walk has benefited, and they think everyone should have access. While others are figuring out what to do now to achieve growth, Pentecostals are focusing on who they are and are achieving growth.

When you think your expression is worth sharing (be it Pentecostal, Calvinist or Anabaptist), you are more likely to share it with others and start new churches.

So What Does It Mean for the Rest of Us?

One key to growth is for you actually to believe what you have is so important that propagation to other contexts in its current version is necessary. The Vineyard Church movement exploded in growth in the 1980s for this reason. They thought that people needed to experience what the Vineyard had to offer.

Baptists thought that way in the 1950s. Methodists thought that way during the Second Great Awakening.

Pentecostals believe they have something worth propagating. And that's worth learning from.

Odd Distinctives

Of course, to non-Pentecostals, all this seems odd. Sometimes for younger or dissatisfied Pentecostals, they want to de-emphasize the supernatural.

Well, I'd have some theological nuances I'd like to bring in, but from a sociological perspective my response is: "I wouldn't downplay what is in the engine." You don't care for some of their expression? That's fine. But Pentecostals are trying to reach the lost and grow the kingdom.

Their distinctives apparently aren't hindering their growth—their distinctives are propelling growth globally.

People Want a Faith With Flavor

One of the dangers today is "bland evangelicalism." Many evangelical churches and denominations are in a state of plateau or decline. Some groups are trying to downplay their distinctives to be more acceptable. Who wants to duplicate that? Nobody.

Sometimes the difference between an expanding movement and one that is retracting is how they deal with their distinctives. Some are in protection mode. They feel like they have to preserve their specialness by locking it down and guarding it. Ironically, they end up smothering the mission by covering the light that would shine through their specially designed glass.

Others embrace and celebrate their unique values and expression. In doing so, they attract people who are seeking something more than bland.

For example, I recently reviewed the stats for the 25 largest faith groups in the United States. In the year I reviewed, the only two orthodox Christian groups growing on the list were the Assemblies of God and Church of God (Cleveland). So what do all of the declining denominations have in common?

Most are mainline, a few are evangelical, but most simply are not as excited about what they believe—and don't think it needs to be propagated as much—as the Pentecostals do.

Ed Stetzer is the executive director of LifeWay Research. For the original article, visit churchleaders.com.

Unless otherwise specified, the opinions expressed are solely the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of Charisma Media.

- See more at: http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/48148-the-real-reason-the-pentecostal-movement-keeps-growing#sthash.gWsXe9aM.dpuf

Knesset Speaker: Bible is Jews' Deed to This Land

Thursday, February 05, 2015 |  Israel Today Staff

RELATED STORIES

• Torah's Protective Edge
• Thanksgivukkah: When Hanukkah and Thanksgiving Collide
• Jesus, Lennon and the Sabbath Table

Topics:

Bible

Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein (pictured) on Tuesday was among the 100 people honored at the second annual “Jewish 100” event in New York for positively influencing the lives of the Jewish people over the past year.

Hosted by the Jewish newspaper Algemeiner, the event saw Edelstein, Donald Trump and late Jewish comedian Joan Rivers, among many others, awarded the title “Warrior for Truth.”

In his acceptance speech, Edelstein lamented that “today unfortunately there is no concept of pure, ultimate truth,” especially when it comes to the Land of Israel. “The ‘truth’ of the claims by others on our land does not exist,” he continued.

Edelstein went on to explain that the truth of the Jewish claim to the land is firmly linked to the Bible. “When I leave my home I walk on paths where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob walked. And that’s the truth regarding our rights to the land.”

Want more news from Israel?
Click Here to sign up for our FREE daily email updates from ISRAEL TODAY.