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<GLEANINGS-FOR-THE-DAY>
<20 November 2002>

Contents:
----------
1) <Devotional> "The forgiveness factor " - Ravi Zacharias
2) <Bible-Study> "The first miracle" (Pt-12)- Charles Wigg
3) <Prophecy> "The Redeemer's Return" (Pt-84)- A.W.Pink


1)  <DEVOTIONAL> <SLICE-OF-INFINITY>
"THE FORGIVENESS FACTOR"
Ravi Zacharias

In Shoah, Claude Lanzmann's documentary on the Holocaust, a leader of the 
Warsaw ghetto uprising speaks of the bitterness that remains in his soul 
over how he and his neighbors were treated by the Nazis. "If you could lick 
my heart," he says, "it would poison you." One can easily understand how he 
felt, and how difficult it is to forgive a crime so great when the sins 
committed were  of such a heinous, horrific nature.  But let us look at the 
cost of such bitterness.

In order to put forgiveness into perspective, we would do well to consider 
the logic of unforgiveness, to which Bosnia provides a most graphic example. 
The wholesale slaughter of people in Bosnia and Rwanda is a bloody reminder 
of poisonous hearts, the fearsome result of unstoppable human vengeance. The 
ongoing cycle of repaying vengeance with vengeance undoubtedly contributed 
to the twentieth century being the bloodiest century the world has ever 
seen.

Indeed, forgiveness is costly but unforgiveness may be costlier. I believe 
that ultimate forgiveness is seen best in the cross of Jesus Christ. In the 
cross of Christ I see the greatest price paid for one's forgiveness but also 
the greatest good gained in rebuilding one's own life. The cross of Christ 
does not minimize evil or gloss over reality; rather, it shows evil at its 
ugliest, even while offering a new beginning in the most profound sense of 
the term. But the grace of forgiveness, because God Himself has paid the 
price for our sinful hearts, is a Christian distinctive and stands 
splendidly over and against our hate-filled, unforgiving, poisoned world. 
God's forgiveness gives us a fresh start.

May I close with a poem? Hear the beautiful words of an elementary school 
teacher:

He came to my desk with a quivering lip,
    the lesson was done.
"Have you a new sheet for me, dear teacher?
    I've spoiled this one."
I took his sheet, all soiled and blotted
    and gave him a new one all unspotted.
And into his tired heart I cried,
    "Do better now, my child."

I went came to the throne with a trembling heart;
    the day was done.
"Have you a new day for me, dear Master?
    I've spoiled this one."
He took my day, all soiled and blotted
    and gave me a new one all unspotted.
And into my tired heart he cried,
    "Do better now, my child."

(Footnote 1: Anonymous, “A New Leaf,” James G. Lawson, compiler, The Best 
Loved Religious Poems (Grand Rapids: Fleming H. Revell, 1961). Used by 
permission.)

Are you in need of forgiveness?  The Cross is for you. God offers you a new 
sheet today.  Will you receive it?
---
Copyright (p)(c) 2001 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). 
Reprinted with permission. A Slice of Infinity is a radio ministry of Ravi 
Zacharias International Ministries.

_______________________________________________________________________

2)  <BIBLE-STUDY>
"THE FIRST MIRACLE" (PART-12)
Charles E. Wigg
....
Elisha goes to the source of the problem:   Next we read that the men of 
Jericho come to Elisha with a problem. They were dwelling in the place of 
the curse, but were glad to point out that the situation of the city was 
pleasant, but had to admit, that the water was bad, and the land barren, 
(produced no crops). We have already seen in an earlier that Jericho 
represents the more acceptable and pleasing aspects of the world. But we are 
warned by John, that the whole world, whether it be the Egyptian, the Sodom 
and Gomorrah, the Jerusalem, or the Babylon aspects of it, all lie in the 
wicked one, in the very bosom of the Devil. 1John,5:19, (Darby), and we are 
not to love it or anything in it, 1John, 2:15-17. Elisha had got the victory 
over Jericho, 1 John 5:4-5. He had been there, but was no resident of that 
city. So he asked the men to bring him a new cruse, and to put salt in it. 
He cast this in at the source of the waters, and there proclaimed the word 
of God. “Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters……”  There is 
teaching for us in his actions. The new cruse, represents the believer, 
2Cor.5:17, the salt represents the grace of God given to the believer, and 
the believer’s presence in this world is to have a preserving and purifying 
effect. Matt. 5:13. The only way to change this world is to change the 
people in it. When there is a strong presence of believers in any place, 
then there is a healing of the waters. They by their godly and holy lives, 
have a purifying, preserving effect on the community.

One of the most corrupting things in society today is alcohol. It breaks up 
homes, it clothes people in rags, it makes children poor
and destitute. Yet I recall hearing an account on the radio, the news on the 
Australian Broadcasting Commission channel. They told how that the Melbourne 
Symphony Orchestra had gone to the U.S.A for a concert tour. They went to 
one place, (it may have been Dallas Texas,) booked into the hotel, and then 
ordered alcoholic drinks to be brought to their rooms. But the room service 
people informed then that there was no alcohol available in that hotel, in 
fact in that town.

The musicians expressed their amazement, and asked what had happened. They 
were told that Evangelist Billy Graham had been having meetings in that 
place, and so many people were converted to Christ, that there was no longer 
any sale for liquor. The same thing happened in one town in Western 
Australia. The great problem in that place were the Aborigines. But an 
evangelistic team of Aborigines came from another place, they had preached 
the gospel to their fellow Aborigines, so many were saved that most of the 
hotels had to close, and the police numbers were more that halved. These are 
practical illustrations of what this miracle means. [To be concluded]
---
[Reproduced with permission]
_____________________________________________________________________

3)  <PROPHECY>
"THE REDEEMER'S RETURN" (PART-84)
GOD'S DEALINGS WITH THE EARTH DURING THE TRIBULATION PERIOD 2/2
Arthur W. Pink
....
No less than thirteen chapters--6 to 19--in the last book of the Bible are 
devoted to a description of the terrible judgments which God will pour upon 
the earth during the Tribulation period. We cannot now review all of these 
chapters, but will confine ourselves to a brief examination of a portion of 
the sixth. "And there went out another horse that was red: and power was 
given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they 
should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword" (Rev. 
6:4). The symbolism here is easily interpreted. The "red horse" denotes 
blood-shed and slaughter. Peace is taken "from the earth" not merely from 
one country, or even from a whole continent, but from the earth itself. The 
fulfillment of this is yet future. But coming events cast their shadows 
before them, and the length of the shadows which are even now cast across 
the earth, shows how near we have approached to the dread reality itself. 
Today, the saints of God are "the salt of the earth," preserving the human 
race from going to utter corruption, and the Holy Spirit who is now here 
exerts a restraining influence upon the powers of evil. But in the day 
contemplated by Rev. 6 the Holy Spirit will have gone, the Church will have 
been removed, and then will the wildest passions of men be let loose and a 
time of mutual slaughter and universal carnage shall ensue.

"And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of 
balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living 
creators say, a measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley 
for a penny" (Rev. 6:5, 6). The "black horse" symbolizes lamentation and 
mourning: the "balances" that which will be employed for carefully weighing 
out the cereals: the "penny" is a day's wage (see Matt. 20:2). Added to the 
horrors of universal war, depicted by the previous "seal" judgment, there 
will be an unparalleled scarcity of food, and the very necessaries of life 
will be sold at famine prices. For centuries God has blessed the earth with 
abundant crops, but His mercies have been received without thanksgiving. But 
in that day there shall be a general scarcity of food and multitudes will 
die of starvation.

"And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was 
Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given unto them over the 
fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword; and with hunger, and with 
death, and with the beasts of the earth" (Rev. 6:8). As it was in connection 
with His plagues upon Egypt of old, so during the Tribulation period God's 
judgments will increase in severity. The "pale horse" signifies Death, and 
his rider is thus denominated. Death is accompanied by Hades: the former 
seizing the body, the latter claiming the soul. In this one judgment no less 
than a fourth of earth's inhabitants will be slain by God's avenging agents, 
while those that are left will be tormented by the pangs of hunger and 
terrified by wild beasts.

"And I beheld when he opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great 
earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon 
became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell upon the earth, even as a fig 
tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the 
heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain 
and island were moved out of their places" (Rev. 6:12-14). In addition to 
the horrors of war, famine, and wild beasts, there will follow the most 
fearful convulsions of Nature. First, there is a "great earthquake," an 
earthquake unparalleled in the history of man, and beside which the 
destruction of Pompeii and the catastrophe at San Francisco will, by 
comparison, fade away into utter insignificance. God Himself terms this a 
great earthquake--great in its severity and great in its reach, for it will 
shake the entire earth and even the mountains and islands of the sea will be 
moved out of their places. Next, we are told that, to add to the sufferings 
of earth's afflicted inhabitants, the "sun" will be darkened, as though it 
were reluctant to shine upon such a scene of judgment and death. 
Furthermore; the moon will be transformed into an object of horror. Long had 
men despised the precious blood which the Lamb of God shed upon the Cross. 
But now the day will have come when God will compel all men to look upon 
blood. Now that it is too late for the blood of Christ to save them, God 
will mock them by turning the moon into blood, so that it shall no longer 
shed its silvery light as hitherto, but will then cast a crimson glow upon 
the scene of God's judgments. As though this were not enough, the heavens 
will exhibit their wrath upon the earth which crucified their Creator, and 
will cast their stars upon it. All nature will be convulsed and all the 
earth will be encompassed by these unparalleled plagues.

A similar picture of the Divine judgments which will be inflicted at this 
time is furnished by the prophet Isaiah, "Behold the day of the Lord cometh, 
cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate. And He 
shall utterly destroy the sinners out of it. For the stars of heaven and the 
constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened 
in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I 
will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and 
I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the 
haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a man more precious than fine gold; 
even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir. Therefore I will shake the 
heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the 
Lord of hosts, and in the day of His fierce anger" (Is. 13:9-13). These 
words are to be taken at their face value and understood literally.

What shall be the effect of all this? Let us return to Revelation 6 and read 
the Holy Spirit's own description of the consternation of mankind at this 
time. "And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and 
the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free 
man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And they 
said to the rocks and the mountains, Fall on us, and hide us from the wrath 
of the Lamb. For the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall be able 
to stand?" (Rev. 6:15-17). A prayer meeting is convened--one unrivaled for 
size and earnestness, and one to which all classes and conditions of men 
assemble. Kings and rulers will be present. Hitherto they were more often 
found at Race-meetings than Prayer-meetings. all classes of men will be 
there. Many an opportunity for prayer had they missed in the past. Many the 
time they had lain down at night upon a pray-less bed. They had regarded 
prayer as a profitless occupation, as so much time wasted, as an exercise 
fit only for women and children. But now they fall prostrate on their faces. 
When prayer would have availed, they scorned it; now that it is useless they 
go at it with a will. Such is the pravity and folly of human nature. But 
note the object of their prayers! They pray not to the living God, but to 
the inanimate rocks and mountains. They cannot pray to the Lord God for they 
never learned how to address Him, and now it will be too late to learn for 
the Holy Spirit, who is the inspirer of all real prayer, has been "taken out 
of the way." They pray not to the Rock, but to the rocks. They had made 
material things their gods, and so to these they now address their 
petitions. Note, too, the burden of their prayers! They ask to be hidden 
from the face of God and from the wrath of the Lamb. When they had 
opportunity, they refused to acknowledge His Love, they slighted the 
overtures of His Mercy, so now they have to endure His wrath. To see God's 
face is the deepest longing of His people: to be "hid from His face" will be 
the one desire of those left behind for judgment.

Above, we have reviewed only down to the end of the sixth "Seal" judgment. 
There is a seventh which is itself divided into the seven "Trumpet" 
judgments, the seventh of which is again divided, divided into the seven 
"Vial" judgments. Little does the world dream of what is coming upon it. The 
present war with all its horrors gives but a faint conception of what will 
shortly come to pass on this earth. Not only will peace be entirely removed 
from the earth, not only will all Nature be convulsed by the outpouring of 
God's wrath, but the Bottomless Pit will be opened and out of it shall issue 
two hundred millions of supernatural locusts, having tails like scorpions 
and stings in their tails, and for five months they will "torment" those who 
have not been destroyed by the previous plagues. The torment inflicted by 
these infernal creatures will be so unendurable, that we are told "And in 
those days shall men seek death." But mark the still more awful sequel--"and 
shall not fine it: and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from 
them"(Rev. 9:6). At a later stage, earth's inhabitants will be "scorched 
with great heat" and so terrible will be their suffering and so incurable is 
the wickedness of their hearts as it will then be manifested, that we read, 
"and they gnawed their tongues for pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven 
because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds" 
(Rev. 16:9-11). Such will be a part of the "indignation" which God will yet 
pour out upon this guilty world as His response to that cry made by His 
beloved Son as he hung upon the Cross. But we must turn now and consider 
another prominent feature of the Tribulation period, namely, [To be 
concluded]

_____________________________________________________________________

<QUOTABLE-QUOTES>
Jared Waterbury
LIFE'S HOURS?

"Life's hours are too precious to allow them to be consumed with the 
fleeting vanities of this world."

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