Choose! Christ or Antichrist?

New Guest: Like this one, most posts are devotional; those related to CAR BIZ can be found by searching for that title. You might read 'Welcome,' the first post, dated November 12, 2008, in the archives.

Thursday and Friday, April 23 & 24, 2009
Devotions: Ps 16-18; 134, 135; Dan 2:31-3:18; 1 Jn 2:18-3:10; Lk 3:1-22

Lord, I take refuge in You; all the good I experience comes from You. Those who follow other gods multiply their sorrows. YHWH is my chosen Portion: I’ll stick with the one true God! I keep Him always before me; because I am with Him, I will not be moved. Therefore, my heart and soul rejoice! Even my body is secure. I submit to God’s judgment and His holy discipline. YHWH, keep me as the apple of Your eye, and protect me. Destroy my enemies, and preserve my life forever. I love You, my God! You are worthy to be praised, and You save me from my enemies. Death had wrapped its tentacles around me, but God set me free. How mighty and good is my God! With Your strength, I can crush a troop, leap a wall, overcome every obstacle. You make me agile, powerful, and holy. You have driven down my enemies before me, God. YHWH lives; blessed is my Rock; exalted is the God of my salvation. And so I praise my God forever! Bless YHWH, all who serve Him! Praise YHWH, all His servants. He is Lord above all gods, Sovereign of all that He created. YHWH, Your name endures forever, Your renown throughout the ages. The Lord vindicates His people, and has compassion on His servants. Hallelu Yah!

Daniel described and interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream: ‘O king, you beheld a mighty image of frightening aspect, with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet comprised of iron mixed with clay. As you watched, a great stone was cut out, not by human hands, and the stone struck the image on its iron and clay feet, smashing them—then the entire figure was shattered, and the wind blew away every fragment. The striking stone became a great mountain that filled the whole earth. This is the dream’s meaning: You, O king, are the golden head, and the remainder of the figure describes the empires that will succeed yours—each less noble than yours. The iron empire will smash all before it, but it will become brittle as it is alloyed with weakness, as its member intermarry outside their commonwealth. The God of heaven will set up a final, indestructible kingdom, that will stand forever. God has favored you with this dream and its interpretation—and all this will surely come to pass.’ Nebuchadnezzar honored Daniel, and elevated Daniel and his three friends to positions of great authority in the Babylonian empire.

Later, Nebuchadnezzar created a golden image 90 feet tall and 9 feet wide, and set it up on the plain of Dura in Babylon’s province. He commanded all royal officials to attend the dedication of this idol. The king’s herald further commanded that when the fanfare was sounded, everyone must fall down and worship the image—and anyone who did not obey this command would be cast into a fiery furnace. Nearly everyone complied. But certain Chaldeans accused certain Jews of disobeying the king’s decree: they reported that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not worship the golden image. Furious, the king had the three Jews brought before him. He confronted them, and they affirmed that they would not serve the king’s gods, nor worship the golden image he had erected. They also stated that their God could deliver them from the furnace—but whether He did so or not, they would not worship this graven image.

John the Elder wrote: ‘Children, we live in the last hour. Many antichrists have come, who went out from the Christian community, but were not of the Christian fellowship. You have been anointed by the Holy One, so you can understand this. I write to you because you are capable of knowing the truth. The biggest lie is denial that Jesus is the Messiah—whoever denies the Son also denies the Father, and is the antichrist. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you have received abide in and among you, and abide in the Father and the Son—in this way, you are promised eternal life. God’s anointing ensures your capacity to discern truth; so abide in Him, so that we may welcome His coming again. As He is righteous, everyone who does what is right is born of Him. See what love the Father has given us: we are called God’s children, and so we are! No one knows what we will become, but we know this: when He appears, we shall be like Him and perceive Him as He truly is. Everyone who has this hope purifies himself, as Jesus is pure. No one abiding in Christ continues to sin; and no one continuing in sin has seen or known the Lord. We are of the Lord or of the devil, doing right or sinning. No one born of God continues to sin, since God’s nature abides in him, and God cannot sin: those of the devil do not do right and do not love their brothers and sisters.’

Around 27 A.D., God’s word came to John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, and he left the wilderness and began to preach a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins throughout the region around the Jordan River. He embodied the prophecy concerning ‘the voice of one crying in the wilderness, “prepare the Lord’s way and make His paths straight. All flesh shall see the salvation of God.”’ John confronted those who came to him: ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee the coming wrath? Bear fruit fitting for repentance. And don’t think being a descendant of Abraham is enough to save you—God can make children for Abraham from these stones you see. Now is the hour of judgment; everyone who does not bear good fruit will be hewn down and cast into the fire!’ The hearers pleaded for John to tell them what to do. He replied, ‘Share with those who have nothing, clothing and food. Tax collectors: take no more than is required. Soldiers: rob no one by violence or false charges; be content with your wages.’ Many speculated that John might be the Messiah, but John said no: ‘I baptize you in water; but One is coming, mightier than I, Who will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire. I am not worthy to untie His sandals. He is ready to exercise judgment—He will gather the fruitful to Himself and burn the unfruitful with unquenchable fire.’ John had confronted Herod the tetrarch, for his adulterous marriage with his brother’s wife Herodias and for many other sins. Herod added to those the sin of imprisoning John. John had baptized Jesus, and as Jesus prayed, heaven opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove. And a voice from heaven said, ‘You are My beloved Son. I Am well pleased with You!’