by Chuck Ness
The painting above is a powerful image when you consider who the boy is. The famous painter Jacques Tissot made this masterpiece. It invokes the purpose of the boy's existence in this World. It reminds me of the cross on the back of the donkey his mother rode to Bethlehem, and the one He rode into Jerusalem. His destination was the same from the beginning, and I am sure there are many moments He was reminded that He was to be about His Fathers business.
by Chuck Ness
Don Richardson spent many years in Papua New Guinea. In his research, he investigated many cultures and their religious ceremonies. This book is a result of that investigative work. The first time I read this book was back in 2004, and I still find myself picking it up from time to time. The information inside is well worth the few dollars you may spend.
Besides being an avid reader of Christian literature, I am also a history buff, so I love learning about different cultures and how they came about. Yet, regardless of how cultures around the World and throughout history are different, I am always amazed at how similar the people truly are. My faith in God has always allowed me to see those similarities, and this book helps reiterate my belief that God created us all to be one people under The One true GOD.
by Chuck Ness
This is just a continuation of leftists trying their best the remove the evidence of what their policies lead to. Along with educating children of the future to believe that Communism is the best solution to all of makind's problems. Something the elitist mindset has been trying to accomplish for hundreds of years. They dream of the time when mankind will again need them to rule so they can be the leaders of a new type of feudalism. Ever since the black death freed people from being owned by the land, elitists have been doing all they can to regain control of us, and for them Communism is the perfect tool.
Make no mistake, the fall of feudalism led to 700 years of freedom for billions of people the World over. This led to the growth of the great middle class, which in reality gives us control. Yet, they have been trying to wrest back control from us since the 15th century. Communism is the best tool they have found to keep us under control. Now they are on the verge of destroying the middle class, and thus our power, with a fake pandemic. Just as the left wants to squash the truth about history by deleting their p[age on the horrors of Communism, the left also wants to squash the truth about China and creating the virus.
by Chuck Ness
In my ministries, I never emphasize food nor clothing. While it is true that these are essential for a physical existence, they are not as essential as the Word.
Dear brothers and sisters, the primary purpose of the Church isn’t to take care of the symptoms of a fallen World, such as starvation and crime, but rather to bring the Gospel to men so that they will be brought into a position of hungering and thirsting for righteousness.
In the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
A strong desire for anything is often represented in the Scriptures by hunger and thirst for the blessings of a pardon and peace because of our sin.
Those who are lost thirst for the Living water Christ offers (John 4:14) (John 7:37) (Isaiah 55:1-2) To hunger and thirst after righteousness is to hunger and thirst after Christ
by Chuck Ness
"Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.” Psalm 143:8
God still speaks through the Holy Spirit. The question is, are we listening? Do we desire to hear His voice over our own voice? Most of us are moving 100 miles per hour throughout the day, but are we willing to stop everything to get alone with Him to listen to Him?
Allow God to speak life into your soul and always remember that His voice will never contradict His Word. God speaks in multiple ways. He can speak in prayer. He can speak through others. Also, let’s remember to stay in the Word because He has spoken.
Remember that we must listen to what He has said in the Bible. He has revealed everything to us that we need to live a life of godliness. There is nothing in the world that compares to GOD's Word, because the Bible is completely sufficient for all our needs.
by Chuck Ness
I brought my tomato plants inside the house about a Month ago to allow the tomatoes that were still on the plants to mature instead of letting the plants die in the cold. A Month later one plant has mostly died, but there is still one the last tomato that is almost ready to harvest. As you can see, the other plant is still hanging in there and even has some new tomatoes growing.
Now while the plants themselves are wilting away with every day that passes by, you will notice how the plants send all there energy to the tomatoes so their seeds could survive, even though that ensures the plant itself would die sooner.
Sadly, humans are not so wise. Unlike plants and animals, we humans destroy our seeds so that we, not our children, will survive. Instead of ensuring the propagation of our kind, humans will often times sacrifice our future generations so that we can have more for ourselves.
After all it costs money and time to raise a child, and in doing so we must sacrifice things we would otherwise enjoy. This is why we humans will often times sacrifice our children to the god of self, so that we can enjoy the benefits a care free life might offer us. Benefits we would otherwise not enjoy if we are encumbered with the responsibility of a child.
“But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ." Galatians 1:11-12
by Chuck Ness
As I was reading Proverbs this morning, I was reminded of what I wrote in my journal many years ago.
"A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
He rages against all wise judgment."
Proverb 18:1
I had a dream last night about an old friend I haven't see in years. His name is Larry, and he was a preacher of his own church in Columbus Georgia. The last time I saw him was a time in my life when all I wanted was to be away from people. If anyone got too close I would disappear.
It was after my 2nd marriage fell apart. Our son had recently died, and it led to problems unforeseen. My wife was never the same, and things just deteriorated in our marriage. We separated, and I ended wondering around the country. I would stay in a place long enough to work a few Months and then leave town without notifying anyone. Sometimes I would leave without even collecting my last paycheck. I figured if I wasn't going to give a notice why collect the check.
For a few years I kept getting an urge in my heart to just go. It was about ten years or so before I truly accepted Christ in my heart. OH I knew Him, but didn't have a relationship with him. Today I know my uncomfortable feeling came from trying to run from Him. I would begin feeling uneasy and just pack up my backpack, chose a destination, and start hitchhiking from place to place. Working for awhile and then start hitchhiking again.
The only thing I ever had that I cared about in those days, was the backpack that had some cassette tapes of music for my Walkman, an old poncho for rain or to make a lean-to with. A mess kit, a compact fishing pole with some hooks, a bar of soap, a toothbrush and toothpaste, a few changes of socks and underwear, some jeans, a few shirts, and one set of nice pants and a dress shirt I would wear when I needed to apply for job when my money ran low. I hate begging. (Yes the backpack pictured, is the one I carried around America with me)
If I needed money I would just get a job as an auto mechanic, a carpenter, a cook or even a dishwasher. Jobs were easy for me to get in those days. I was young, in great shape, and not picky.
I offer this because of the advice my friend gave me when he was trying to reach my heart. I was lost, and he wanted to save me. Larry was a Preacher of his own small church whom I met in the mid "70"s while I was still in the service, stationed at Ft Benning Ga. So here it was almost 10 years after I first met Larry, and I was hitchhiking from Texas to Columbus Ga. When I arrived, he was the first person I looked up, and called.
To this day I am convinced that God led me to Columbus, because HE was still trying to reach me. When I look back, I can recall many instances in my past when the timing of certain things happened that were of such importance, I now know God was intervening so I would wake up to His calling. Yet time and time again I would momentarily respond, just to fall back into my old ways. This was one of those times. Larry, and his wife Mary, invited me to stay with them. He knew I was broken and needed a good friend. Being a good man of God, Larry was truly interested in bringing me to Christ.
I stayed with them for a few Months, and I even publicly gave my life to Christ. I truly thought I had been saved, because I began to change. Yet later I realized I hadn't, because I never had a true relationship with Him. No one walks away from Christ, you are either His or just a pretender who goes through the motions. Many new followers believe they are saved, yet our Lord Jesus reads the hearts, and even His anointed can see the truth. Larry was a true anointed Saint, and he knew that I was still holding out.
Well one day we were at a restaurant, I had recently gotten a job at, and he again attempted to reach me. Larry told me that I reminded him of the character in the Eagles song, "Desperado". He told me that the original definition of a desperado was not what Americans believed it is. Instead, the true definition was derived from the Latin word, "disperare". Which means to despair or to lose hope.
The character in the Eagles song is a loner. He was living day to day like I was. Surviving day to day with no love in his heart. Like the character in the song, I too had hardened my heart. I refused to come in from the cold, regardless of how uncomfortable I was from living the way I was. He said that without love I would one day die from lack of feelings if I didn't wake up.
He went on to explain that it's not good for a man to have no one. To walk away from everyone, regardless of how some people may have treated me, was not the way to heal from the hurt I was feeling. All I was doing was making my heart harder by the day. He told me, that the world is full of men who had hardened their hearts just to become lonely bandits or renegades. The final destination of such a person, he said was not good. Just an eternity separated from the ONE who truly loves us. GOD.
We had a good long talk that day, and I really felt like he hit a raw nerve. He also told me to read Proverbs 18:1, and heed the advice in it. Later I read the Proverb, and I can see why he told me to read it, because I was isolating myself from people. Something that I still seem to do from time to time. When I do, I know I need to go to Christ.
"A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
He rages against all wise judgment."
Proverb 18:1
Well, after that long talk, I started reading the Bible more, and truly thought I was headed for greener pastures in my walk with Jesus. Yet, one day something happened, and I again grew angry. OH, the reason matters not, since all anger truly comes from our own insecurities and our inability to give everything to Christ. That conversion was just whitewash on the outside of my decaying soul. So I eventually packed up my backpack and headed to the nearest freeway entrance to leave for another destination. I remember reasoning to myself that I wasn't the type who Jesus wanted, so I just accepted reality, and did what I always did, I ran away again.
Truth is I never allowed Jesus into that certain room in my heart where I kept things locked away. Thus I refused to let the love of Christ sink into my heart as much as I thought I had. Or maybe he just got too close to the truth and I was afraid of the unknown. It was so much easier to be alone, than to let others become part of me. For many years in my life that was the true, I refused to let anyone in to that part of me that was angry over so many things.
I always believed in God, and that Jesus is the only way to gain salvation. However, it took more trials, more disappointments, and more tragedies in my life before I finally gave Him the key to that one room in my heart that held all the anger I had inside. My friends advice did eventually sink in, and once I truly understood how my own inability to love others, or to allow others to love me was stopping me from allowing Christ into my heart. That's when I finally began to have a soul changing relationship with the lover of my soul.
Isn’t it amazing how we can listen to the lyrics of songs and paste them on those we know. It’s as if the person who wrote the song knows us and what makes us tick. Personally I think we can listen to most songs and, depending upon how we look at them or what part of the song rings more special in our ears, we will see our friends and relatives in them. I guess that is why Brother Larry saw me in that song. To him, I was the true definition of the Latin word that desperado came from.
Below are the Lyrics to the song, and a video of the Eagles performing it.
""""Desperado, why don't you come to your senses? You been out ridin' fences for so long now Oh, you're a hard one I know that you got your reasons These things that are pleasin' you Can hurt you somehow
Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy She'll beat you if she's able You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet
Now it seems to me, some fine things Have been laid upon your table But you only want the ones that you can't get
Desperado, oh, you ain't gettin' no younger Your pain and your hunger, they're drivin' you home And freedom, oh freedom well, that's just some people talkin' Your prison is walking through this world all alone
Don't your feet get cold in the winter time? The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine It's hard to tell the night time from the day You're losin' all your highs and lows Ain't it funny how the feeling goes away?
Desperado, why don't you come to your senses? Come down from your fences, open the gate It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you You better let somebody love you (let somebody love you) You better let somebody love you before it's too late""""
Chuck Ness
Tertullian said that The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. Yet today I see the church in America dying a slow death due to the fact that the Saints in America like their blood too much to offer it as a sacrifice for Christ and His church today.
That's because too many Christians in America are so connected to the world that they refuse to face the danger Christ told us we must face for Him. Jesus said to the disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. (Matthew 16:24-25) At the time the disciples did not understand that Jesus was going to die on the cross.
Imagine if Paul was more worried about his flesh than his soul? Paul, and the rest of the Apostles picked up their cross and followed Christ to their death. Like Paul, they faced many dangers and I am convinced they all came close to death many times before they paid the ultimate price of following Christ.
Remember, if your doing the Lords work, He does not promise that you will succeed at your task unmarked or even alive. What he promises, is eternal existence in a place He has prepared for you in one of the Fathers mansions. If you die in the process of carrying that cross, then the Lord is saying your work in the world is complete and it's time to take up residence in your new home in Heaven.
I do know one thing. Christ is watching Christians in America who are so comfortable in their life that they will never even consider risking it all for Him. Is that you?
I pray that those who have ears to hear will hear His voice and call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Joel Rice
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1 (NASB 1515). The prologue of the Gospel of John, starting with verse 1 and ending with verse 18 of chapter 1, are some of the strongest verses supporting not only the Deity of Jesus, but also of Jesus being the Unique God the Father. At first glance we notice right away that John uses some unique choices of words in describing Jesus. The “Word” is translated from the dominate singular Greek word “Logos”, which can also be translated as: measure, computation, reason, account, expression or even wisdom. A good basic definition of logos is “the expression of thought – not the mere name of an object.” (Vine’s 1252) Why would John have used this word to describe Jesus? What meaning would it have to the Jewish readers of his time? What would it bring to mind of 1st century Gentiles? Most importantly, what does it mean to you and me today?
by Chuck Ness
Peter Stoner wrote in his book, "Science Speaks", that mere coincidence cannot explain the prophecies Jesus fulfilled. He applied the science of probability to show the chance of only eight prophecies being fulfilled in one man. That probability was calculated to be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000! That's 1 in quintillion. When Stoner's calculations were submitted to the American Scientific Affiliation for verification, both a committee of review and the Executive Council found them "dependable and accurate in regards to the scientific material presented" (see foreword by H. Harold Hartzler in Science Speaks).
It doesn't take a mathematical genius to understand that a 1 in a quintillion shot of winning something is astronomically impossible. Believe me when I tell you, if casino owners used those odds in a promotion to lure customers to Vegas, they would never attract a single gambler. Those kinds of odds are proof that any prophecies being fulfilled are a result of shear chance. So what can we campare a number with 17 zeros with? Is there any comparison we can make to help understand that huge number?
by Jose Barajas
“Andy Dufresne : That's the beauty of music. They can't get that from you... Haven't you ever felt that way about music?
Red : I played a mean harmonica as a younger man. Lost interest in it though. Didn't make much sense in here.
Andy Dufresne : Here's where it makes the most sense. You need it so you don't forget.
Red : Forget?
Andy Dufresne : Forget that... there are places in this world that aren't made out of stone. That there's something inside... that they can't get to, that they can't touch. That's yours.
Red : What're you talking about?
by Chuck Ness
To fully appreciate “The Revelation of Jesus Christ”, one must read it in conjunction with passages from other books of the Bible. Specifically, but not exclusively, Scriptures found in Daniel, Zechariah, Ezekiel, and various verses found in the New Testament. I also believe having an understanding of world history, economics, and politics is a must to get a proper perspective of the end times. However, even with all these tools at ones disposal we find no shortage of opinions as to what these visions of John represents.
A quick search on Google shows that there are almost 100 million sites claiming to have insight that can help the reader understand this book, and that is just the English web sites. What and who to believe can be greatly influenced by each individual’s understanding of a select number of Scriptures and ones understanding of when this letter was written. Even among those who agree on the major points find that they disagree on many minor issues. To make it a bit simpler, there are four four distinct interpretations when it comes to eschatology, Preterist, Historicist, Spiritualist, and Futurist.
“SILVER COINS”? WHY NOT GOLD? These TEN coins correlate to PEOPLE WHO ARE SINNERS, therefore THEY ARE EXTREMELY VALUABLE IN THE EYES OF GOD. But isn't** GOLD** more valuable than SILVER? This all depends upon your PHYSICAL and SPIRITUAL perspectives. As the late Dr. Chuck Missler pointed out time and again, “Silver is Levitically symbolic of BLOOD. We will find that the Tabernacle rested on silver, with every detail being symbolic of Christ... wood once alive depicted (Christ's Humanity), the gold His Diety, The planks rested on SILVER SOCKETS; silver is the Levitical symbol for BLOOD...” Even Judas, as he threw the 30 pieces of SILVER on the temple floor, exclaimed, “Behold I have betrayed innocent BLOOD!” Matthew 27:4. SILVER CONNOTATES SACRIFICE, THE LETTING OF BLOOD. Everything OUTSIDE the Tabernacle was SILVER, but INSIDE WAS GOLD.
What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing (2 Samuel 23:16)? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense says is an absurd waste.
Sometimes the beauty of our faith is not seen in our preaching, anointing, noise making, programs, nor in our zealousness but rather in our simple act of kindness. Just as David's heart was revealed in the kindness he showed Johnathan's grandson, Mephibosheth. (2Samuel Ch 9)
For many, ministry is just tool they use to acquire earthly treasures, yet for the Apostle it was the other way round. Their labor was more intense and harder than other men so as to be a blessing to the weak and the poor saints. They did not mind doing anything for the glory of The Gospel Of Jesus Christ.
by Adam Lustig
One thing is for sure, whether we are believers in Yahshua or not, the busyness of this life can attribute to us forgetting the essentials of life. Folks that are far away from God get caught up in the trappings of this world and the business of it eventually brings them to a place where they say “where has my life gone.”
I love this time of the year, Nov 01 - 12/31, is my favorite because, thankfulness is on my thoughts. From God’s daily blessings to the birth of the savior of the world, my heart is glad.
by Chuck Ness
Throughout His ministry, Jesus never once broke the fourth commandment which required that all Jews observe the Sabbath. He was after all Jew. However, He did give us a clue that a change to the Sabbath was coming. To make my point, you must first understand that the original manuscripts of the Scriptures were not divided into verses and chapters.
The Old Testament manuscripts were written by scribes for the religious leaders to study. The New Testament manuscripts were letters originally written to be dispersed amongst the believers to read. They were like the letters you receive today. Just a document written in sentences and paragraphs with no verse or chapter numbers.
by Adam Lustig
”Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought
him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught
great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch."
Acts 11:25-26
Have you ever thought what the world would be like without Christianity impacting it? Ask a secular person who has heard propaganda and misinformation about Christianity and they will tell you everything they have heard minus the the truth of scripture. Many of us get upset the way Christianity has been attacked by the/a lie, forgetting that many of us were there at one time.
I originally shared this back in March of 2010, but have since learned more about the situation. So I decided to update the information and repost it. This is a home video of an incident that took place in December of 2009 in Astrakhan, which is in Southern Russia. It starts with a 38-year-old Chechen man who decided to pull a trick at a wedding where he was a guest. He claimed he had an unloaded gun and was going to act like he was playing Russian Roulette. So he puts a gun to his head, when another man with a microphone attempts to stop him.
We are not sure what he told the man with the mike, but whatever he told him alleviated the guys worry and allowed the man to do what he wanted to do. Maybe he told him the gun was unloaded, or just a blank. Either way the man with the microphone allowed him to proceed. Meanwhile, amongst the the group of men standing around is a younger man taking the whole scene in without realizing what is about to happen. So the Chechen puts the gun to his head and pulls the trigger………. Click………. it does not fire. He then cocks the gun to give someone else a chance at the game.
Now this is the moment where someone has a free will choice to be wise, or foolish. See, like Adam, every human has been given the right to freely choose between right and wrong, wise or unwise. So we can freely decide what want to do, where we want to go, and who we wish to hang out with. Now, while Adam did sin, he was not created with a will to sin. Yet, because he chose with his own free will to eat the forbidden fruit, all men have been handed down to them, from Adam, the will and desire to sin. Today, humans have a 50% chance they will choose unwisely. OH, God could have made us perfect without the ability to sin, but then we would be nothing more than Chatty Cathy dolls repeating and doing whatever was programmed into us. Is that the kind of life you would wish to live?
Well in this incident, there is a young man would have been better if he did not have a free will choice. See, In this video we have many people who are drinking intoxicating beverages of their own free will. Remember, there are consequences for our chioces in life. Yet we can freely chose what we desire to do. So now we have one man who unwisely chose to play a bad joke at a wedding reception. While another man unwisely falls for it. The young man has a 50/50 chance of coming away unharmed. Ultimately it will be his free will choice.
So after the jokster plays his trick, the younger man steps up to prove his manliness by taking the gun from the jokster's hand. Believing this is all a joke and, that the gun is unloaded. He then places the muzzle of the gun against his head and pulls the trigger. The gun goes off, and the guy drops like a sack of potatoes........................
There is no blood splatter, so it does not look like there was a live round in the chamber, but there could have been a blank cartridge in it like starting postols do. However, most people who never use guns are clueless as to the fact that you can kill yourself with a blank starter pistol that has only dummy rounds. Especially if you put it against your head. The percussion of the gunpowder is powerful enough to blast a hole into your head and kill you, or at least do major damage.
I stated earlier that we all have a 50% chance of choosing what is right and what is wrong in this fallen world. However, that’s only if you put your faith in the World. If your faith is in the One who died for your salvation and you always go to HIM when you make important, and even some non important decisions, then you can be assured that your choices can be 100% correct all the time.
The two men in this video both trusted in their own understanding instead of the Lords. It is unwise to drink so much your faculties are not clear. It is unwise to play pranks with a gun. It is unwise to put even an unloaded gun to you head and pull the trigger. Sadly, the young man chose unwisely. When we put our faith in God, and follow His precepts correctly, then we will never allow ourselves to be in a position to chose unwisely as the young man in this video did.
As an aside, I have had my YouTube channel since early 2010, but in the last two years Google has removed 90% of the videos I had posted. I am shocked they have not removed this one, But they still could. I still have some of them on my hard drive, but there are some I am really upset that are lost forever. Gotta love the cancel culture huh? NOT!
This video has been posted to my (OneVike YouTube) account since March of 2010. Below is a comment from about 4 years ago by, a Mike Baxter, which may help shed some light on the situation. His take is as good as any I have read, so I'll let you decide what you want to believe about the incident. Yet know this, the news media reports that is was not a joke, the man lived, but he is brain damaged for life.
It's not fake ... what happened was, the firearm is a "less than lethal" pistol that shoots 'rubber bullets' and does not need to be registered (many pistol shootings and road rage you see on Russian videos is with this type firearms) .. BUT at closer range it could kill.
The first guy does rack the slide chambering a round (it's easy to see in slow motion) BUT he does not pull the trigger if you look closely its easy to see in fact, the trigger moves FORWARD slightly and he is not touching the trigger ... what he did was use the de-cocking lever to decock the pistol, and it makes a loud click.
Then he racks it again ejecting a live round, (in better resolution videos you can see the round falling to the ground in contrast to someone's black jacket) and then he passes the pistol to the second guy who assumes its empty and shoots himself, he did not die but survived with some brain damage after surgery.
The first guy was changed with mischief and reportedly said he thought the gun was empty, but if so, why did he try to stop the guy at the last second?? ... very weird (suspicious) and unsafe to say the least, reports indicate everyone involved was drunk.
Today, Christians around the world celebrate December 25 as the birth date of Christ.
But this is incorrect. The date was chosen to attract the people of the pagan religion, who celebrated the birth date of the sun on that day.
The story of the birth of Christ and John, pinpoints the exact date of his birth.
According to Luke, the Angel Gabriel visited Zacharias while he was performing his priestly duties.
He announced the birth of his child, John.
I created a new chart that lists 23 women from the Scriptures. There are more than 23 women I could cover, but I took the 23 I felt were more recognizable to most Christians. Now, we all know who these women are, and their stories. From Eve to Mary, these women have had as great an impact on mankind as the men. Three, or maybe 4, are not known for their love of the One true GOD, while the others are remembered for their strength and courage in the face of adversity.
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