Revelation 21

1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
² And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
³ And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
⁴ And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
⁵ And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
⁶ And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
⁷ He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
⁸ But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
⁹ And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
¹⁰ And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
¹¹ Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
¹² And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
¹³ On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
¹⁴ And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
¹⁵ And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
¹⁶ And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
¹⁷ And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
¹⁸ And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
¹⁹ And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
²⁰ The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
²¹ And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
²² And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
²³ And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
²⁴ And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
²⁵ And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
²⁶ And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
²⁷ And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

2 Samuel 22

 1 And David spake unto the Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul:
² And he said, The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
³ The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.
⁴ I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
⁵ When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;
⁶ The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me;
⁷ In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.
⁸ Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because he was wroth.
⁹ There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.
¹⁰ He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and darkness was under his feet.
¹¹ And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: and he was seen upon the wings of the wind.
¹² And he made darkness pavilions round about him, dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies.
¹³ Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled.
¹⁴ The Lord thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice.
¹⁵ And he sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and discomfited them.
¹⁶ And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuking of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.
¹⁷ He sent from above, he took me; he drew me out of many waters;
¹⁸ He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me.

¹⁹ They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the Lord was my stay.
²⁰ He brought me forth also into a large place: he delivered me, because he delighted in me.
²¹ The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness: according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.
²² For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
²³ For all his judgments were before me: and as for his statutes, I did not depart from them.
²⁴ I was also upright before him, and have kept myself from mine iniquity.
²⁵ Therefore the Lord hath recompensed me according to my righteousness; according to my cleanness in his eye sight.
²⁶ With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.
²⁷ With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury.
²⁸ And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayest bring them down.
²⁹ For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and the Lord will lighten my darkness.

³⁰ For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
³¹ As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.
³² For who is God, save the Lord? and who is a rock, save our God?
³³ God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.
³⁴ He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.
³⁵ He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
³⁶ Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.
³⁷ Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.
³⁸ I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed them; and turned not again until I had consumed them.
³⁹ And I have consumed them, and wounded them, that they could not arise: yea, they are fallen under my feet.
⁴⁰ For thou hast girded me with strength to battle: them that rose up against me hast thou subdued under me.
⁴¹ Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.
⁴² They looked, but there was none to save; even unto the Lord, but he answered them not.
⁴³ Then did I beat them as small as the dust of the earth, I did stamp them as the mire of the street, and did spread them abroad.
⁴⁴ Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people, thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen: a people which I knew not shall serve me.
⁴⁵ Strangers shall submit themselves unto me: as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me.
⁴⁶ Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their close places.
⁴⁷ The Lord liveth; and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation.
⁴⁸ It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me.

⁴⁹ And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
⁵⁰ Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.
⁵¹ He is the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.

Psalm 143

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.
² And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.
³ For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.
⁴ Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.
⁵ I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.
⁶ I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.
⁷ Hear me speedily, O Lord: my spirit faileth: hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.
⁸ Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.
⁹ Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.
¹⁰ Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.
¹¹ Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name's sake: for thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble.
¹² And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.

New Bible Versions Are Vatican PerVersions

Legion: Mark 1:5-17 - Gregory A. Miller

The KJV Defended as God’s Preserved Word - Dr. Scott Johnson

When the Church Adopts the World’s Philosophy of Entitlement

by Greg Mills

The defining characteristic of American culture as we stand in the twenty-first century is chaos. In society at large, there exist practically no agreement on the basic rules of moral, artistic, or civil conduct. We are witnessing a recurrence of the tragic situation described in Judges 21:25, “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” The only standard upon which people seem to be able to agree is that every individual has the right to determine his own rules, and develop his own concepts of good and evil.

This phenomenon is a disaster for our society, for any society. And yet, the secular culture cannot be blamed for the moral collapse of our nation. Man is a fallen creature, incapable of raising himself above the depravity of his nature. Moral leadership must come from God’s people, that is, from the Church. The Church is the agency which has forsaken its responsibility to be salt and light in a world of corruption and darkness.


The modern Church has lost its ability to lead precisely because she has adopted the world’s assumption that each individual has the right to determine his own understanding of the faith once delivered to the saints, construct his own vision of a Church fellowship, develop his own definition of living a Christian life. The interpretation of Scripture is left to one’s own personal preference. The ultimate criterion for theological truth is personal experience. The right of private judgment in matters religious reigns supreme.
A building which is slowly slipping from its foundation will inevitably fall. The Church has slipped from her foundation – the Bible.

Baptists have never held any man-made document above the authority of Holy Scripture. For Baptists, the Bible has always been the sole basis and the sole standard for Christian doctrine. It is because of the Baptists’ confidence and acknowledgement of the absolute authority of the bible that we have developed explicit doctrinal statements. Our forefathers in the faith had no desire to conceal our beliefs (or lack thereof) behind the ambiguous statements that have become popular in our day – statements like, “We have no creed but the Bible.”
Instead of vaguely rambling about matters of eternal weight, Baptist have sought to encourage sound doctrine through the foundational documents they published and embraced.

A true revival of our churches and a real reformation of our culture will not be built upon the shifting sands of moral relativism. They must be built upon the Rock.

Ephesians 6:10-20

¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
¹³ Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

¹⁴ Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
¹⁵ And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
¹⁶ Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
¹⁸ Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
¹⁹ And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
²⁰ For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

The Sword vs. The Lightsaber

Psalm 23

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

God's Greatest Expression of Love

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" John 15:13

The greatest example of one laying down his life for his friends is Christ. We can never fully comprehend the spiritual aspect of Christ’s suffering and shame, but medical studies shed glimpses of light on the physical agony and all the horror that Jesus endured on the cross.

"For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds" Hebrews 12:3

The physical trauma of Christ begins in Gethsemane with one of the initial aspects of His suffering— the bloody sweat. It is interesting that the physician of the group, St. Luke, is the only one to mention this. He says, "And being in agony, He prayed the longer. And His sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the ground."

Though very rare, the phenomenon of Hematidrosis, or bloody sweat, is well documented. Under great emotional stress, tiny capillaries in the sweat glands can break, thus mixing blood with sweat. This process alone could have produced marked weakness and possible shock.

After the arrest in the middle of the night, Jesus was brought before the Sanhedrin and Caiaphas, the High Priest. A soldier struck Jesus across the face for remaining silent when questioned by Caiaphas. The palace guards then blindfolded Him and mockingly taunted Him to identify them as they each passed by, spat on Him, and stuck Him in the face.

In the early morning, Jesus, battered and bruised , dehydrated, and exhausted from a sleepless night, is taken across Jerusalem to the Praetorium of the Fortress Antonia, It was there, in response to the cries of the mob, that Pilate ordered Bar-Abbas released and condemned Jesus to scourging and crucifixion.

Preparations for the scourging are carried out. The prisoner is stripped of His clothing and His hands tied to a post above His head. The Roman legionnaire steps forward with the flagrum in his hand. This is a short whip consisting of several heavy, leather thongs with two small balls of lead attached near the ends of each. The heavy whip is brought down with full force again and again across Jesus’ shoulders, back and legs.

At first the heavy thongs cut through the skin only. Then, as the blows continue, they cut deeper into the subcutaneous tissues, producing first an oozing of blood from the capillaries and veins of the skin, and finally spurting arterial bleeding from vessels in the underlying muscles. The small balls of lead first produce large, deeps bruises which are broken open by subsequent blows.

Finally the skin of the back is hanging in long ribbons and the entire area is an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding tissue. When it is determined by the centurion in charge that the prisoner is near death, the beating is finally stopped.

The half-fainting Jesus is then untied and allowed to slump to the stone pavement, wet with His own blood. The Roman soldiers see a great joke in this provincial Jew claiming to be a king. They throw a robe across His shoulders and place a stick in His hand for a scepter. A small bundle of flexible branches covered with long thorns is pressed into His scalp.

Again there is copious bleeding (the scalp being one of the most vascular areas of the body). Then the soldiers take the stick from His hand and strike Him across the head, driving the thorns deeper into His scalp. Finally, they tire of their sadistic sport and the robe is torn from His back. This had already become adherent to the clots of blood and serum in the wounds, and its removal, just as in the careless removal of a surgical bandage, causes excruciating pain— almost as though He were again being whipped and the wounds again begin to bleed.

The heavy beam of the cross is then tied across His shoulders, and the procession of the condemned Christ, two thieves and the execution detail, begins its slow journey. The weight of the heavy wooden beam, together with the shock produced by copious blood loss, is too much. He stumbles and falls. The rough wood of the beam gouges into the lacerated skin and muscles of the shoulders. He tries to rise, but human muscles have been pushed beyond their endurance.

At Golgotha, the beam is placed on the ground and Jesus is quickly thrown backward with His shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression at the front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square, wrought-iron nail through the wrist and deep into the wood. Quickly, he moves to the other side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms too tightly but to allow some flexion and movement. The beam is then lifted in place at the top of the posts and the titulus reading "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" is nailed in place.

The left foot is pressed backward against the right foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven thought the arch of each. As He pushes Himself upward to avoid the stretching torment, He places His full weight on the nail through His feet. Again there is the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between the metatarsal bones of the feet.

As the arms fatigue, great waves of cramps sweep over the muscles, knotting them in deep, relentless, throbbing pain, With these cramps comes the inability to push Himself upward. Hanging by His arms, the pectoral muscles are paralyzed and the intercostal muscles are unable to act. Air can be drawn into the lungs, but cannot be exhaled. Jesus fights to raise Himself in order to get even one short breath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood stream and the cramps partially subside. Spasmodically, He is able to push Himself upward to exhale and bring in the life-giving oxygen.

He endures hours of this limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is town from His lacerated back as He moves up and down against the rough timber. Then another agony begins. A deep crushing pain deep in the chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart.

The compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues--the tortured lungs are making a frantic effort to gasp in small gulps of air. The markedly dehydrated tissues send their flood of stimuli to the brain. Jesus gasps, "I thirst."

He can feel the chill of death creeping through His tissues. With one last surge of strength, He once again presses His torn feet against the nail, straightens His legs takes a deeper breath and utters His seventh and last cry, "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit."

Apparently to make double sure of death, the legionnaire drove his lance through the fifth interspace between the ribs, upward through the pericardium and into the heart. Immediately there came out blood and water. We therefore, have rather conclusive post-mortem evidence that our Lord died, not the usual crucifixion death by suffocation, but of heart failure due to shock and constriction of the heart by fluid in the pericardium. As some have said, a broken heart is what killed our Lord.