He was led away as a lamb to the slaughter. Not like a farmer taking his sheep to be butchered for meat, but like the Old Testament priest taking the scapegoat to the tabernacle so the sins of the nation could be laid on its head. Our sins were laid upon Jesus so that, on the cross, He could carry them away. Only through faith in Him can you receive the redemption found in having Him take your sin upon Himself.

Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, April 3

"They took Jesus, and led Him away." John 19:16

He had been all night in agony, He had spent the early morning at the hall of Caiaphas, He had been hurried from Caiaphas to Pilate, from Pilate to Herod, and from Herod back again to Pilate; He had, therefore, but little strength left, and yet neither refreshment nor rest were permitted Him. They were eager for His blood, and therefore led Him out to die, loaded with the cross. O dolorous procession! Well may Salem's daughters weep. My soul, do thou weep also.

What learn we here as we see our blessed Lord led forth? Do we not perceive that truth which was set forth in shadow by the scapegoat? Did not the high-priest bring the scapegoat, and put both his hands upon its head, confessing the sins of the people, that thus those sins might be laid upon the goat, and cease from the people? Then the goat was led away by a fit man into the wilderness, and it carried away the sins of the people, so that if they were sought for they could not be found. Now we see Jesus brought before the priests and rulers, who pronounce Him guilty; God Himself imputes our sins to Him, "the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all;" "He was made sin for us;" and, as the substitute for our guilt, bearing our sin upon His shoulders, represented by the cross; we see the great Scapegoat led away by the appointed officers of justice. Beloved, can you feel assured that He carried your sin? As you look at the cross upon His shoulders, does it represent your sin? There is one way by which you can tell whether He carried your sin or not. Have you laid your hand upon His head, confessed your sin, and trusted in Him? Then your sin lies not on you; it has all been transferred by blessed imputation to Christ, and He bears it on His shoulder as a load heavier than the cross.

Let not the picture vanish till you have rejoiced in your own deliverance, and adored the loving Redeemer upon whom your iniquities were laid.

Also the streets are usually vacant...

Movie Lessons
https://terrylclark.substack.com/p/movie-lessons?publication_id=934525&post_id=159448762&isFreemail=false&r=1maoyr&triedRedirect=true&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, April 1

"Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth." Song of Solomon 1:2

For several days we have been dwelling upon the Saviour's passion, and for some little time to come we shall linger there. In beginning a new month, let us seek the same desires after our Lord as those which glowed in the heart of the elect spouse. See how she leaps at once to Him"; there are no prefatory words; she does not even mention His name; she is in the heart of her theme at once, for she speaks of Him who was the only Him in the world to her. How bold is her love! it was much condescension which permitted the weeping penitent to anoint His feet with spikenard- it was rich love which allowed the gentle Mary to sit at His feet and learn of Him- but here, love, strong, fervent love, aspires to higher tokens of regard, and closer signs of fellowship. Esther trembled in the presence of Ahasuerus, but the spouse in joyful liberty of perfect love knows no fear. If we have received the same free spirit, we also may ask the like. By kisses we suppose to be intended those varied manifestations of affection by which the believer is made to enjoy the love of Jesus. The kiss of reconciliation we enjoyed at our conversion, and it was sweet as honey dropping from the comb. The kiss of acceptance is still warm on our brow, as we know that He hath accepted our persons and our works through rich grace. The kiss of daily, present communion, is that which we pant after to be repeated day after day, till it is changed into the kiss of reception, which removes the soul from earth, and the kiss of consummation which fills it with the joy of heaven. Faith is our walk, but fellowship sensibly felt is our rest. Faith is the road, but communion with Jesus is the well from which the pilgrim drinks. O lover of our souls, be not strange to us; let the lips of Thy blessing meet the lips of our asking; let the lips of Thy fulness touch the lips of our need, and straightway the kiss will be effected.

So many today preach that Christianity should be a life of ease, yet Christ's life of suffering serves as example for us, that we should follow in His steps (1 Pet. 2:21), because in so doing, our faith will strengthen and mature (Jas. 1).

Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, March 29

"Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered." Hebrews 5:8

We are told that the Captain of our salvation was made perfect through suffering, therefore we who are sinful, and who are far from being perfect, must not wonder if we are called to pass through suffering too. Shall the head be crowned with thorns, and shall the other members of the body be rocked upon the dainty lap of ease? Must Christ pass through seas of His own blood to win the crown, and are we to walk to heaven dryshod in silver slippers? No, our Master's experience teaches us that suffering is necessary, and the true-born child of God must not, would not, escape it if he might. But there is one very comforting thought in the fact of Christ's "being made perfect through suffering"- it is, that He can have complete sympathy with us. "He is not an high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities." In this sympathy of Christ we find a sustaining power. One of the early martyrs said, "I can bear it all, for Jesus suffered, and He suffers in me now; He sympathizes with me, and this makes me strong." Believer, lay hold of this thought in all times of agony. Let the thought of Jesus strengthen you as you follow in His steps. Find a sweet support in His sympathy; and remember that, to suffer is an honourable thing- to suffer for Christ is glory. The apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to do this. Just so far as the Lord shall give us grace to suffer for Christ, to suffer with Christ, just so far does He honour us. The jewels of a Christian are his afflictions. The regalia of the kings whom God hath anointed are their troubles, their sorrows, and their griefs. Let us not, therefore, shun being honoured. Let us not turn aside from being exalted. Griefs exalt us, and troubles lift us up. "If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him."

It is so easy to turn our backs on Him, though He never will do so to us.

Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening Devotions

Morning, March 27

"Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled." Matthew 26:56

He never deserted them, but they in cowardly fear of their lives, fled from Him in the very beginning of His sufferings. This is but one instructive instance of the frailty of all believers if left to themselves; they are but sheep at the best, and they flee when the wolf cometh. They had all been warned of the danger, and had promised to die rather than leave their Master; and yet they were seized with sudden panic, and took to their heels. It may be, that I, at the opening of this day, have braced up my mind to bear a trial for the Lord's sake, and I imagine myself to be certain to exhibit perfect fidelity; but let me be very jealous of myself, lest having the same evil heart of unbelief, I should depart from my Lord as the apostles did. It is one thing to promise, and quite another to perform. It would have been to their eternal honour to have stood at Jesus' side right manfully; they fled from honour; may I be kept from imitating them! Where else could they have been so safe as near their Master, who could presently call for twelve legions of angels? They fled from their true safety. O God, let me not play the fool also. Divine grace can make the coward brave. The smoking flax can flame forth like fire on the altar when the Lord wills it. These very apostles who were timid as hares, grew to be bold as lions after the Spirit had descended upon them, and even so the Holy Spirit can make my recreant spirit brave to confess my Lord and witness for His truth.

What anguish must have filled the Saviour as He saw His friends so faithless! This was one bitter ingredient in His cup; but that cup is drained dry; let me not put another drop in it. If I forsake my Lord, I shall crucify Him afresh, and put Him to an open shame. Keep me, O blessed Spirit, from an end so shameful.

Communion Meditation for 23-March-2025

I will open with scripture from Psalms 19:14. “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Through Christ, amen.

Good morning church family. I hope each of you is well today on this beautiful March Sunday. The topic of our Communion Meditation today is “Cornerstone.”

Jesus often used parables, or representative stories, to deliver his message to the common people of the day and many people did not understand the true meaning of the parables. Just like the way The Rocky and Bulwinkle cartoon show had two levels of understanding, one for children and one for adults.

The cornerstone was the first and most important stone placed in construction of a stone or masonry building in ancient times. Today, with modern construction practices, cornerstones are mostly ceremonial or decorative rather than functional. A Keystone is the top, final, last stone fitted into an arch that keeps the arch intact by gravity and by the geometry of the stones. Stay with me, I will get to the point!
The word, “Cornerstone” is mentioned multiple times throughout scripture as a metaphor for Jesus as the foundation of the church and of our faith. The Word’ “Keystone” is also mentioned in scripture, used interchangeably with “Cornerstone” in some instances. The cornerstone and the keystone are first and last in building construction, Alpha and Omega.

REV 22:13. “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and Last, The Beginning and the End.”

Isaiah 28:16. “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.”

EPH 2:19-20. Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.

1 Peter 2:6. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

References to Cornerstone are also representative of how the Pharisees, high priests, and other religious leaders rejected Jesus as Messiah.

PS 118:22. “The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.”

Acts 4:11. “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.”

Finally, woe unto those who reject Him.
MAT 21:44. “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.”

Let us pray:

Father God, master and creator of the universe, we thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus, the cornerstone of your church and of our faith. We can never begin to repay you for the sacrifice of your son, Jesus, or earn the forgiveness and salvation you have given to us. As we prepare to take communion in His honor, let us always bear in mind that the cup and bread represent His sacrifice that bore our sins away. We praise you and worship You, Father, on this Sunday and on every day. In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.

We are not just fighting a Spiritual Warfare, but also Physical Warfare. Thank you, Barbara.
What are they Hiding?
https://quteshirts.substack.com/p/what-are-they-hiding

The Lord's Prayer
Mat 6:5  And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 
Mat 6:6  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 
Mat 6:7  But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. 
Mat 6:8  Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. 
Mat 6:9  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 
Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. 
Mat 6:11  Give us this day our daily bread. 
Mat 6:12  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 
Mat 6:13  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. 
Mat 6:14  For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

Cody Wilson Thwarts Another Attempt To Stop Ghost Guns
This video covers political philosophy as much as DIY gun building.

https://youtu.be/bZRugDpYBuc

“No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, And no one has power in the day of death.
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭8‬:‭8‬a
Tragic to hear of the death of Gene Hackman and his wife.(His dog died too.) Though he was rich and famous, death came to his household also. Hope that he and his wife knew Jesus as their Savior before they passed, regardless of how they died. And hopefully all who read this have either come to Jesus for salvation or will come to Him.

Staunton Virginia real estate agent Wilson Fauber, had been found guilty of hate speech by the Virginia Board of Realtors. His violation? A post in 2015 about his support for traditional marriage, that being marriage between a man and woman. His post violated ethic rules of the National Association of Realtors. Wilson has to undergo reeducation classes and pay a fine, or have his real estate license suspended. In other words, you can’t speak biblical truth if you are a real estate agent. Wilson is fighting this. We believers in Christ need to support him.

Numbers
Chapter 16

1 Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men:

2 And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown:

3 And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

4 And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face:

5 And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even to morrow the LORD will shew who are his, and who is holy; and will cause him to come near unto him: even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him.

6 This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company;

7 And put fire therein, and put incense in them before the LORD to morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the LORD doth choose, he shall be holy: ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.

8 And Moses said unto Korah, Hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi:

9 Seemeth it but a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself to do the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them?

10 And he hath brought thee near to him, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee: and seek ye the priesthood also?

11 For which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the LORD: and what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him?

12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab: which said, We will not come up:

13 Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us?

14 Moreover thou hast not brought us into a land that floweth with milk and honey, or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards: wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up.

15 And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the LORD, Respect not thou their offering: I have not taken one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them.

16 And Moses said unto Korah, Be thou and all thy company before the LORD, thou, and they, and Aaron, to morrow:

17 And take every man his censer, and put incense in them, and bring ye before the LORD every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; thou also, and Aaron, each of you his censer.

18 And they took every man his censer, and put fire in them, and laid incense thereon, and stood in the door of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron.

19 And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the congregation.

20 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

21 Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.

22 And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?

23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

24 Speak unto the congregation, saying, Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.

25 And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him.

26 And he spake unto the congregation, saying, Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be consumed in all their sins.

27 So they gat up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side: and Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood in the door of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and their little children.

28 And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind.

29 If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men; then the LORD hath not sent me.

30 But if the LORD make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the LORD.

31 And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them:

32 And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods.

33 They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and

LINCOLN’S VIOLATIONS OF THE CONSTITUTION

The Presidential oath of office that Lincoln swore to was "to preserve, protect and defend" the Constitution of the US.

I apologize up front for truthful, accurate, factual posts here that may hurt any Lincoln fan's feelings...

Secession of states was not prohibited by the US Constitution at that time. Therefore it was completely legal...


#1 Lincoln ordered the military blockade of Southern ports.

This an act of war.

Only Congress can do that.

At that time Lincoln certainly violated the US Constitution.


#2 Lincoln ordered hundreds of Northern newspapers who dared to speak out against him to be shut down. And their owners and editors were arrested for disloyalty.

This is a clear violation of the 1st Amendment of the Constitution that Lincoln swore to uphold.


#3 Lincoln ordered the arrest of Ohio Congressman Clement Vallandigham for the crime of speaking out against him.

Can you imagine that?


#4 Ex parte Merryman,

Chief Justice of the US Roger Taney, sitting as a judge of the United States Circuit Court for the District of Maryland, ruled that Lincoln had violated the US Constitution when he illegally suspended the Writ of Habeas Corpus.

After hearing this Lincoln signed an arrest warrant to have the Chief Justice of the US arrested.

#5 US Constitution Article lll...

Section 3. Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them.

Lincoln committed treason.

Lincoln waged war upon his own country. Unless one considers secession legal and the Confederacy was a sovereign nation.

#6 Lincoln sent Union troops door to door in areas of Maryland, a Union state, to confiscate weapons.

This is a clear violation of the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution.

_____________________________

Many Constitutional violations against Maryland

'Maryland my Maryland' was published calling Lincoln a tyrant and a despot and a vandal.

Lincoln as already mentioned, trashed the Constitution by suspending the Writ of Habeas Corpus and sending troops door to door confiscating weapons in areas of Maryland.

Maryland was a Union state.

Lincoln ordered the arrest of thousands Marylanders for the crime of 'suspected Southern sympathies'.

Lincoln ordered the arrest of US Congressman Henry May representing Maryland. #7

Lincoln also had arrested...

Most of the Maryland State Legislature #8

Most of the Baltimore city council #9

The police commissioner of Baltimore #10

The mayor of Baltimore #11

Thousands of prominent Maryland citizens. #12

These people were arrested and held in Military prisons, without trial, some of them for years.

This trashing of the Constitution upset many Marylanders. One of them was named Booth.

Committing so many crimes against Maryland would end up giving Lincoln a big "headache".

SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS



April 25 1861, When it looks as though Maryland may secede from the Union, Lincoln sends a letter to General Winfield Scott giving him permission to bombard Maryland's Cities.

This war criminal Lincoln couldn't wait to bombard innocent civilians. We call that Terrorism these days.



#13 Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation.

This is a direct violation of the US Constitution and the US Supreme Courts decision on the matter.



#14 The Lincoln administration allowed the taking of private property for public use without just compensation or due process of law.

This is a clear violation of the 5th Amendment.

A prime example is the Union army stealing Robert E Lees home, Arlington House, which they used as Headquarters.

Since dead Union soldiers were stacking up like cordwood, they started burying them in Lee's yard. There were so many Union soldiers graves here, this was to become Arlington National Cemetery.


#15 The Lincoln Administration routinely used water torture against the thousands of Union prisoners arrested and jailed without trail.

This violates the 8th Amendment,

"Cruel and unusual punishment".


#16 Lincoln was Commander-in-Chief of an Army whose invasion of the South resulted in the deaths of 50,000 Southern civilians.

The Armed Forces Tuba-Euphonium Ensemble performed the works of Richard Strauss, Rocco DiGiovanni, Kenyon Wilson, and Franz von Suppé in the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall at The U.S. Army Band 2025 Tuba-Euphonium Workshop; MSG Daniel Ord, conducting. #AFTEE #MilitaryMusic #Euphonium #Tuba #TEW2025 #TEW #Music

This post was written by Michelle Lesley, women's Bible teacher and incredible woman of God. Enjoy.
~
A little story about church...

We had a fellowship tonight at church. Somebody told me last week that it was a church-wide fellowship, so my husband and I were planning to go, but this morning I noticed in the bulletin that it was for the young adults' SS classes (early 20s-early 40s). We're almost 56 and 61.

I mentioned this offhand to a couple of the younger women I was chatting with after the service this morning and said we probably wouldn't go because we didn't want to be "party crashers". They both declared that to be silly and said, "Just come. Nobody's going to give that a second thought.".

So we decided to go, mainly because we love these young people, but also because we think the Titus 2 multi-gen model is important and we want to help foster that. (Just an aside- all my life I've attended churches with age segregated adult SS classes, and in my experience this really hinders Titus 2 multi-gen fellowship and relationships.)

So we went. Out of about 75 attendees, we were the oldest people there. And we had a wonderful time spending time with these young adults we love. And they seemed to feel the same way, and acted like it was perfectly natural that we were there.

This is just one of the reasons I love my church so much.

But I'll be honest- I have encountered so many downright ugly younger professing Christians on social media who take every chance they get to disrespectfully slander their older "Boomer" brothers and sisters in Christ, that every time I'm in a situation like I was in tonight, I wonder if any of the younger people I'm with are secretly thinking such things about my husband and me. And sometimes I'm hesitant to fellowship with them because of that.

And you know what I do? I tell that thought to shut up and go away, because the younger people at my church aren't like that. They love us, and we love them.

Moral of the story: Don't listen to ungodly idiots on X who wouldn't know Christian character if it walked up and introduced itself, and go love your church.

https://x.com/AGAlanWilson/status/1887230549334294587