Know And Trust

And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you. (Psalm 9:10 ESV)
For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. (2 Timothy 1:12 NASB)

The two keywords to successful Christian living is know and trust. It sounds easy, but because of our sinful nature and our deeply ingrained belief that we can only trust ourselves, it is very, very difficult to know God and to trust Him.

Know
Jesus - positional holiness

1. Know the Bible;
2. Know God;
3. Know why God saves us;
4. Know how God saves us;
5. Know our standing before God.

Trust
Holy Spirit - practical holiness

1. Trust in God's Word;
2. Trust in God’s Sovereignty;
3. Trust in God’s Power.

Christianity is not about trying, but trusting.

F.R.O.G. - Fully Reliant On God

He cares for you
Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. (Psalm 55:22 ESV)
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7 KJV)

He has our good in His mind
He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32 KJV)
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28 ESV)

He is trustworthy
God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:9 ESV)
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 ESV)
And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you. (Psalm 9:10 ESV)

He is able
For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. (2 Timothy 1:12 NASB)

Your faith glorifies Him
He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; (Romans 4:20 KJV)

You cannot help yourself
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. (John 6:63 ESV)

Relying on yourself cause pain
Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys his servant? Whoever walks in deep darkness, without light, should trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.
Look, all of you who start a fire and who equip yourselves with flaming arrows, walk in the light of the fire you started and among the flaming arrows you ignited! This is what you will receive from me: you will lie down in a place of pain. (Isaiah 50:10-11 NET)
Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water. (Jeremiah 2:12-13 ESV)
Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the LORD. (Jeremiah 17:5 ESV)

Noah Film Perverts The Gospel

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Acts 2:21 KJV)
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Romans 10:13 KJV)
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:12 KJV)

The Paramount film Noah (2014), directed by Darren Aronofsky, written by Aronofsky and Ari Handel, is an American film supposedly to be based on the Bible's Noah. However, the film had so many deviations from the Biblical truth that it is actually very different in spirit from the true Noah. Many articles had been written in the Web about how the film is different from the Bible. Here an article from Answers In Genesis that gives a good review on how unfaithful is the Noah film to the Bible truth.

I would like to focus on the stowaway of Tubal-cain in the ark and the drowning of Methuselah in the flood. This is a direct challenge to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The ark is a type of Christ, which signifies salvation of God. "The ark was God's provision for Noah as Christ is God's provision for sinners. (A W Pink)" Anybody who wanted to escape from the flood can come into the Ark. No one need to be a stowaway. Any sinner can come to Christ for repentance and salvation. Nobody, not even Tubal-cain, would be rejected by Christ, if he is willing to repent and come to Him for salvation.

Those who were drowned in the flood typified those who rejected Christ. Noah, a preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5), had preached to them, but they refused to believe. They remained outside the ark and were drowned.

Tubal-cain the stowaway
In the Noah film, Tubal-cain was not allowed to come on board the ark. He had to be stowaway, hiding from Noah. That Tubal-cain had to be a stowaway implies that God’s salvation is not for all, in direct contradiction to the clear promise of God in Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13.

That there is a successful stowaway in the ark has another significance. It signifies that one day in the New Earth, we will find Tubal-cains, who somehow, can have eternal life by being a stowaway in Christ, bring sin and destruction to the New Earth all over again.

Methuselah drowned
Methuselah was reckoned a righteous man in the sight of God. In the Noah film, Methuselah was shown happily waiting to be drowned in the flood, having lived a very long life, ready to die.There are two interpretations for this, both are unbiblical and wrong.

The flood is a judgement of God on sinners. Being drowned in the flood implies being sent to hell. That Methuselah was drowned implied that a righteous man can go to hell.

An alternative interpretation would be a righteous person who do not trust in Christ can go to heaven. Methuselah was reckoned a righteous man in the sight of God  but he was not in the ark. By showing him outside the ark, happily waiting to be drowned, it implied that there is salvation outside the ark. That also implies there is salvation outside of Christ, in direct contradiction to Acts 4:12.

Handling Criticism

Listen
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. (James 1:19-20 ESV)
If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. (Proverbs 18:13 ESV)
Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. (Proverbs 19:20 ESV)
The person who hears the reproof that leads to life is at home among the wise. The one who refuses correction despises himself, but whoever hears reproof acquires understanding. (Proverbs 15:31-32 NET)

Attitude
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7 ESV)
The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor. (Proverbs 15:33 ESV)

Warnings
Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid. (Proverbs 12:1 ESV)
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. (Proverbs 12:15 ESV)
Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is honored. (Proverbs 13:18 ESV)
Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence. (Proverbs 15:32 ESV)
A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool. (Proverbs 17:10 ESV)
It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise than to hear the song of fools. (Ecclesiastes 7:5 ESV)

Response
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. (Proverbs 15:1 ESV)
If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone. (Romans 12:18 HCSB)
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. (Colossians 3:12-13 ESV)

Pray
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, (Matthew 5:44 ESV)
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. (James 1:5 ESV)

Charles Haddon Spurgeon on Criticism in a sermon delivered on 1st July 1888:
QUOTE
Brother, if any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him; for you are worse than he thinks you to be. If he charges you falsely on some point, yet be satisfied, for if he knew you better he might change the accusation, and you would be no gainer by the correction. If you have your moral portrait painted, and it is ugly, be satisfied; for it only needs a few blacker touches, and it would be still nearer the truth.
UNQUOTE

Israel Restoration Prophecies Fulfilled

In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea. He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. (Isaiah 11:11-12 ESV)
Indeed, the coastlands look eagerly for me, the large ships are in the lead, bringing your sons from far away, along with their silver and gold, to honor the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has bestowed honor on you. (Isaiah 60:9 NET)
"Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when it shall no longer be said, 'As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,' but 'As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.' For I will bring them back to their own land that I gave to their fathers. (Jeremiah 16:14-15 ESV)
"Hear the word of the LORD, O nations, and declare it in the coastlands far away; say, 'He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.' (Jeremiah 31:10 ESV)
I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. (Ezekiel 36:24 ESV)
When the sticks on which you write are in your hand before their eyes, then say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. And one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms. (Ezekiel 37:20-22 ESV)
I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them," says the LORD your God. (Amos 9:14-15 ESV)
I will whistle and gather them because I have redeemed them; they will be as numerous as they once were. Though I sow them among the nations, they will remember Me in the distant lands; they and their children will live and return. I will bring them back from the land of Egypt and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon, but it will not be enough for them. (Zechariah 10:8-10 HCSB)
They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Luke 21:24 ESV)
Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. (Romans 11:25 ESV)

Israel was restored on 14th May 1948.

Two Greatest Commandments

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (Deuteronomy 6:5 ESV)

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD. (Leviticus 19:18 ESV)

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had left the Sadducees speechless, they met together. One of them, a legal expert, tested him. "Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
He replied, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: You must love your neighbor as you love yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands." (Matthew 22:34-40 CEB)

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live." (Luke 10:25-28 ESV)

What Satisfies You?

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. (John 6:35 ESV)

You open your hand; you satisfy the desire of every living thing. (Psalm 145:16 ESV)

Based on the Bible, God should be your source of satisfaction. (John 6:35, Psalm 145:16, Psalm 103:1-5)

Based on our natural self, self should be your source of satisfaction.

Freedom Comes From Truth

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32 ESV)

Democracy cannot give you freedom. Freedom comes from truth.

Undeserved Grace of God

And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. (Romans 4:22 KJV)
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (Romans 4:5 KJV)

The concept of the undeserved grace of God is introduced early in the Bible, in Genesis, where Abraham is reckoned as righteous by the grace of God (Genesis 15:6). Men are such great sinners that all system devised by them will fail, and if they succeed, it is by the undeserved grace of God.

Democracy does not work, but succeeds in United States and Western Europe because the concept of the equality of men is embedded into it because of the Bible.

Meritocracy is fair, but it did not reckon that men are sinful and unfair, which means that meritocracy will break down after one or two generations.

Every fair system will break down because of the sinfulness of men. No checks and balances can prevent it.

Tiger Mothers

Each competitor must exercise self-control in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. (1 Corinthians 9:25 NET)
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33 KJV)

There are so many mothers who are proud to be Tiger Mothers, forcing their children to study and spending money on education.

The Christian mother need not do so. All she need to do is the know the Bible, learn to study the Bible herself. Then she can teach her children the Bible and the methods of study the Word. All these techniques which the children picked up in the study of the Word will be put to good use when they study their secular subjects.

The Christian mother may not have the domain knowledge of the subjects which her children are studying when they grow older. But she can be assured that they have learned how to study, plus those who know the will of God will definitely succeed.

Rebuke

Proof that God loves you
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. (Revelation 3:19 KJV)
For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. (Proverbs 3:12 KJV)
If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. ( (Hebrews 12:7-10 KJV)

Attitude when rebuked
A wise son heareth his father's instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke. (Proverbs 13:1 KJV)
As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear. (Proverbs 25:12 KJV)
My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: (Proverbs 3:11 KJV)

Scorner
Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. (Proverbs 9:8 KJV)
Smite a scorner, and the simple will beware: and reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge. (Proverbs 19:25 KJV)

Our action
Open rebuke is better than secret love. (Proverbs 27:5 KJV)

As He Is So Are We

Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgement: because as he is, so are we in this world. (1 John 4:17 KJV)

No Worry

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (Matthew 6:24-34 KJV)

Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:29-31 KJV)

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows. (Luke 12:6-7 ESV)

When we start to earn money, suddenly value take on a monetary dimension. Before that, we stretch out our hands and our parents provide. They are like God answering our prayers. But now we earn our money and we become dependent on money. Then Mammon takes over as our master.

Taken from the following website:
QUOTE
Anxiety is a funny thing. We hoard up worries the way we hoard money and material goods. In some eras and cultures, people live hand-to-mouth and rely on each growing season to make it another year. I’m grateful not to live in a culture like that, yet I realize we’ve lost a certain perspective it fosters: our eyes no longer look to God to provide for daily needs. Instead, we take bread for granted and borrow trouble ahead of schedule, focusing on the adequacies and inadequacies of our insurance policies and savings accounts.
UNQUOTE