Post by pitbull on Sept 11, 2008 5:08:00 GMT -5
DAILY WISDOM
“The fruit of the righteous [is] a tree of life; and he that winneth souls [is] wise.” [Proverbs 11:30]
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
AND THERE WAS GREAT JOY IN THAT CITY
Acts 8:1-8
Great joy came at a difficult time due to persecution.
Sometimes problems and troubles arise where it seems God doesn’t love us. But it is for the furthering of the Gospel.
Even though there were problems, they went everywhere preaching.
Great joy came to Samaria at what was a difficult time at Jerusalem:
1. Great joy followed the preaching of the Word of God [vs. 5]
2. Great joy came when the people gave heed to the Word of God [vs. 6]
3. Great joy came after God had done a great work [vs. 7, 12-13]
• Salvation and baptisms
• Demons cast out
• Sick were physically healed
RELIGIOUS AWARENESS
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as depicted in the New Testament. It has been gradually developing itself for four thousand years. "Patriarchs and prophets, saints and martyrs, from Adam to John the Baptist, with great expectation, were looking forward to some glorious age indistinctly apprehended, but ardently desired." Most Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God and the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament, and that the New Testament records the Gospel that was revealed by Jesus. With an estimated 2.1 billion adherents, or approximately 33% of the world's population in 2007, Christianity is the world's largest religion. It is normally divided into four main sections: Catholic [Western and Eastern rites], Protestant/Reformed, Anabaptist, and Pentecostal. It is the predominant religion in Europe, the Americas, Southern Africa, the Philippines and Oceania. It is also growing rapidly in Africa and Asia, particularly in China, South Korea and the Middle East. Christianity is considered an offshoot of Judaism, and includes the Hebrew Bible (known to Christians as the Old Testament) as well as the New Testament as its canonical scriptures. Like Judaism and Islam, Christianity is classified as an Abrahamic religion. The name "Christian" (Greek ×ñéóôéáíüò), meaning "like Christ", “similar to Christ”, or "miniature Christ", was first applied to the disciples in Antioch, as recorded in Acts 11:26. The earliest recorded use of the term "Christianity" (Greek ×ñéóôéáíéóìüò) is by Ignatius of Antioch.