My Personal Testimony

September 24, 1977 started off as any Sunday for me, but the events of that day would change my life forever. That was the day that my squirming during the invitation at church caught the attention of my pastor. He noticed that I was hanging on to the back of the pew in front of me for all I was worth, scared to step out into the aisle and go up in front of everyone. After the last chorus was sung, he announced that if anyone needed to speak to him privately they should let him know after church. I waited after church to talk to him because I wanted to know about salvation. I knew that I needed to be saved, but wasn’t sure about how. The pastor and my mom (I was only 8) explained it all to me, then the pastor led me through the “sinner’s prayer” and told me that if I truly believed what I had just “prayed” (repeated) that all my sins were gone and that I would live forever in Heaven. He then told me about baptism and how it has nothing to do with salvation, but is the first command given by God to anyone who is saved. I didn’t want to let God down, so I was baptized a week later. Everyone was very happy for me and shook my hand and told me how I would never regret this decision.

The next three decades were pretty rocky for me. I went to church fairly regularly for the most part, but pretty much just did what I wanted the rest of the week. I hate to think how many people saw the things I did and were turned off of church because they couldn’t tell any difference between me and them. I could easily blend in at church or in the secular world, and could switch from one to the other without batting an eye. I had a vague notion in the back of my mind that something was wrong, but would find diversions to keep me from worrying about it too much. I was chasing after things of the world, but was still empty inside. When my marriage failed, I hit rock bottom. I started drinking pretty heavily and doing a lot of other things I’m ashamed of now, but God wasn’t finished with me yet.

In November of 1999, about a year after my divorce, I met the love of my life. Heather had been saved fairly recently, but hadn’t been in church much since then. We ended up getting married on December 17, 2000 and she joined the church I was a member of. We attended the morning worship services fairly regularly, and occasionally an evening service, but never Sunday school or Wednesday night services. When our pastor retired and a new one came in, the new one made a pretty bad impression on us and we left. We decided to visit around at the other churches in town, but specifically wanted to check out the Independent Baptist ones because of some issues we had with the SBC concerning Bible versions. I remembered as a teenager visiting Washington Street Baptist one time and thought we should give it a try. On March 18, 2007 we visited for the morning service, then again the following Sunday. The next Sunday, April 1, 2007, we joined.

The girls were in junior high at the time, so they were in Bro. Faron Danley’s Sunday School class. It didn’t take long before there was a problem. One Sunday after church, the girls told me that Bro. Faron had said that they were wrong about how to be saved. I was shocked, but wanted to make sure they hadn’t misunderstood something before I confronted him about it. I asked them to tell me everything that was said. They said that he had been talking about salvation and had asked who could tell him how to get saved. My girls answered right up and told him about the A B C’s of salvation: A - Admit you’re a sinner, B - Believe that Jesus died to pay for your sins, and C - Confess your sins to Him and ask Him into your heart. I was proud of them. They said it just like I had taught them. I asked what kind of problem Bro. Faron had with that. They told me how he had pointed out to them that nowhere in the Bible does it say to pray for salvation or ask Jesus into your heart, but simply to believe, or have faith in Him to save you. Jesus said it plainly in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Adding the other steps to it takes away from what He did for us and puts some of the responsibility for our salvation on us. I had to chew on that one for a while. It’s really hard to admit when you’re wrong, but to have been wrong for 30 years or so about such an important subject, and knowing you’ve taught it to your kids, is devastating. It took me more than a year after that to finally come to grips with the reality of the situation. I was trying to rationalize it by thinking that I must have been saved at some point because I did believe in Jesus and that He died to pay for the sins of the world. What kept coming back to me though was the fact that I had believed that I had applied the salvation Jesus bought for me by saying that “sinner’s prayer.”

I had been under a lot of conviction and decided to take a week off to have time to get my spiritual life straightened out. The devil was hitting me hard. My family was in so much turmoil that it seemed like things would never get better. Monday, September 22, 2008, was the first weekday of my vacation. Heather went out of her way to make sure I would have plenty of peace and quiet so that I could pray and read the Bible without interruption. It didn’t take very long on that first day before I was face down on the floor pouring my heart out to God. I repented of my stubbornness and acknowledged that I was hopelessly lost and that there was no way I could ever change that in any way through my own effort. Believing requires no effort on our part. You either believe something or you don’t. When you start to sit down on a chair, you either believe it will hold you up or you don’t. If you do, you just sit down without worrying about it. If you don’t, you will either not sit down, or just put a little of your weight on it to test it and support the rest of your weight yourself and can’t really get comfortable. You will not be able to rest in that chair. It’s the same way with salvation. You either believe in Jesus or you don’t. If you do, you will trust in him without worrying about it. If you don’t, you will either stay away from Him completely, or rely on your own efforts and hope He can take care of whatever you might miss. When I got up off that floor, I knew that I had been saved. I had it all together now, or so I thought.

Over the next few months, God was working on me. The subject of baptism seemed to keep coming up, but I thought that since I had already been baptized that it was settled for me. Sometime in late December or early January, my pastor, Bro. Earl Baugh, Jr.,  was preaching about baptism. He explained that baptism has nothing to do with salvation, but according to Acts 2:41 is how believers are added to the Church, the Bride of Christ. It was the first time I ever remember really giving much thought to the passage in Revelation 19:6-9 about the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Revelation 19:6-9

6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

In this passage we see that there is the Groom (Jesus), and the bride (the Church), but there are also the guests, or “they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.” These people must be saved or they wouldn’t be in Heaven, but they are not a part of the Church. Bro. Earl also talked about Acts 8:35-38 and explained that baptism can only be administered after salvation.

Act 8:35-38

35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

36  And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

37  And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

38  And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

I really had to chew on this one for a while. I couldn’t be baptized again, because then everyone would know that I had been wrong all those years. I tried to convince myself that since I was now saved and going to Heaven, it didn’t matter what my role would be there as long as I was there. Admitting to God that I had been wrong was hard enough, even though I knew that He already knew it all along. It wasn’t until a few months later that I was finally able to swallow my pride and admit it to everyone. Finally, on April 26, 2009 I was baptized as a true believer. Now, not only do I know where I’m going when my time in this world is over, I know what position I’ll have. I'm so glad that God was patient with me and protected me through several times when I probably should have died so that I could live long enough to learn the truth.

Arrogance

My Way?

Frank Sinatra had a lot of hit songs in his time, but his biggest hit was probably “My Way.” In the song he reflects back on the life he’s lived and how he lived it on his own terms and made his own rules. Nobody told him what to do.  Those sentiments were nothing new when Sinatra recorded the song. They go all the way back to Adam and Eve and are woven into human history ever since.

Genesis 2:15-17

15  And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

16  And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Gen 3:6-7

6  And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

7  And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. 

We all know what happened to them for their disobedience to God’s command. Their sin brought death into the world, and the curse has been handed down through every generation since.  A prime example of this is in the very next generation with their sons, Cain and Abel.

Genesis 4:1-8

1  And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.

2  And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

3  And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.

4  And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

5  But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

6  And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

7  If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

8  And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 

God had a specific way He wanted the sacrifices to be done, and Abel did his right. Cain decided to do things his own way and it didn’t work. God accepted Abel’s offering and rejected Cain’s. Cain’s sin didn’t end there. He became jealous to the point that he ended up killing his own brother.

Luke 22:47-51

47  And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him.

48  But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?

49  When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword?

50  And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.

51  And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him. 

According to John’s account of this story it was Simon Peter who cut off the servant’s ear. While Peter was doing what he thought was right by trying to defend Jesus, he was still in the wrong. Jesus knew what was going to happen to Him once these people arrested Him. He knew of the torture and humiliation He would suffer, and the painful death on the cross that awaited Him. He knew that if He didn’t go through all of that, then there would be no way we could be saved from the penalty of our sins and spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Sometimes what seems like the right thing to do does more harm than good to the cause of Christ.

Proverbs 14:12  There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. 

Believe

Believe

Act 16:25-34

25  And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.

26  And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

27  And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.

28  But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

29  Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,

30  And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31  And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

32  And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.

33  And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.

34  And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

Verse 30 is the only place in the New Testament where the question of how to be saved is asked so plainly. Paul and Silas did not tell the jailor to confess his sins, as some do based on I John 1:9. They didn’t tell him to pray, as some do based on Romans 10:13. They didn’t tell him to be baptized, as some do based on Mark 16:16. They didn’t even tell him to invite Jesus into his heart, but simply said, "believe."

I John 1:9 – 2:2

1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

2:1  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

The confession of sins mentioned in this passage is not intended to acquire salvation for a lost person. John is clearly writing to people who are already saved. Remember, when John wrote this, he didn’t divide it into chapters and verses. He goes on to state that Jesus “is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” It would not have been worded this way if he had been addressing the lost.

Romans 10:13-14

13  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

14  How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Verse 13 is often used to justify praying to acquire salvation, but in verse 14 we see that they cannot call on Him if they have not already believed in Him.

Mark 16:16

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

This verse is often used to teach that baptism is necessary for salvation. The first part of the verse mentions baptism after belief, but the second part of the verse states that “he that believeth not shall be damned,” with no mention of baptism. Salvation is acquired by believing, and baptism is commanded for believers, therefore baptism does no good for those who are not saved already.

Matthew 11:28

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Jesus invites us to come to Him. How many times have you read a tract or heard a presentation instructing a lost person to invite Jesus into their heart? How many people have been misled by this backward thinking? He doesn’t want a place in your life. He wants to give you a place in His life.

I spent over thirty years of my life thinking I was saved because I said a little prayer and asked Jesus into my heart. If I had died during that time, I would have ended up in Hell. It wasn’t until I started going to Washington Street Baptist Church that I heard the truth proclaimed about salvation. Most of the other things I was taught were right, but the one most important thing was wrong. How many churches are out there teaching and preaching the truth about everything else, only to lead the people right into Hell with these false teachings about salvation? 

Do You Believe in Him?

Isaiah 14:12-14 - How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

Attributes of Jesus Christ	Attributes of Santa Claus
Eternal – Revelation 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.	Eternal – A child knows nothing of his beginning. To a child, Santa has just always existed.
Lives in the North – Psalm 48:2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.	Lives in the North – Tradition holds that Santa lives at the North Pole.
Wears Red – Revelation 19:13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.	Wears Red
Has White Hair and eyes “as a flame of fire” – Revelation 1:14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;	Always pictured as an old man with white hair like wool and a twinkle in his eye.
Ascended and Gave Gifts – Ephesians 4:7-8 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.  Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.	He is said to ascend up on high and give gifts
Christians anxiously await His coming – Revelation 22:20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.	Children anxiously await his coming
Omniscient – Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. Matthew 9:4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?	“He sees you when you’re sleeping. He knows when you’re awake. He knows if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake.”
Omnipresent – Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.	He must be omnipresent, because he has the ability to visit over a billion homes in a 24 hour period. That’s over 1100 per second!
Omnipotent – Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.	He has the ability to make presents for over a billion children each year and deliver them all in one night. He can even make an Xbox 360 out of wood. Pretty good carpenter, huh?
Has spirit helpers (angels) – Matthew 4:11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.	He has spirit helpers (elves) - Webster, 1828: "ELF... a spirit, a ghost..."
Invites children to come to Him – Mark 10:13-15 And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.	He invites children to come to him. Parents bring their children to him.
God’s name is called “holy” at least 25 times in the Bible. *	"Santa" is Spanish for "holy". Santa is from the Latin word "sanctus" which means also "saintly, holy". Our English words "saint, sanctify, etc…" come from "santa."
Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.	"Kriss Kringle A US name for Santa Claus derived from the German Christkindl (little Christ child)." (Brewer's Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Phrase and Fable, p. 334)
We’re told more than 50 times in the New Testament to believe in Him. ** Joh 3:16-18 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.	Children are encouraged to believe in him. How many Christmas cards have you seen with pictures of Santa and the word “believe?”

In Luke 10:18, Jesus compares Satan to lightning when He said, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." Lightning always takes the path of least resistance. The Bible also compares the devil to a "roaring lion" in 1 Peter 5:8. When a lion hunts, he doesn’t go after the biggest, strongest, or fastest prey he can find. He goes after the ones with the least ability to run away or defend themselves, the injured, the youngest, the smallest, or the weakest.

Colossians 2:8 - Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Isaiah 42:8  I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.

Who is your focus on this Christmas?

* God’s name is holy:

Leviticus 20:3  And I will set my face against that man, and will cut him off from among his people; because he hath given of his seed unto Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.

Leviticus 22:2  Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they profane not my holy name in those things which they hallow unto me: I am the LORD.

Leviticus 22:32  Neither shall ye profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the LORD which hallow you,

1Chronicles 16:10  Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.

1Chronicles 16:35  And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to thy holy name, and glory in thy praise.

1Chronicles 29:16  O LORD our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own.

Psalm 33:21  For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

Psalm 99:3  Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.

Psalm 103:1  A Psalm of David. Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Psalm 105:3  Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.

Psalm 106:47  Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto thy holy name, and to triumph in thy praise.

Psalm 111:9  He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.

Psalm 145:21  My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.

Isaiah 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Ezekiel 20:39  As for you, O house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD; Go ye, serve ye every one his idols, and hereafter also, if ye will not hearken unto me: but pollute ye my holy name no more with your gifts, and with your idols.

Ezekiel 36:20  And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.

Ezekiel 36:21  But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.

Ezekiel 36:22  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.

Ezekiel 39:7  So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.

Ezekiel 39:25  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name;

Ezekiel 43:7  And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places.

Ezekiel 43:8  In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post by my posts, and the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger.

Amos 2:7  That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father will go in unto the same maid, to profane my holy name:

Luke 1:49  For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

** Believe in Him:

Mark 1:15  And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Mark 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Luke 8:12  Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

John 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

John 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

John 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

John 3:36  He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

John 5:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

John 6:35  And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

John 6:40  And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:47  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

John 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

John 7:39  (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

John 8:24  I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

John 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

John 11:26  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

John 11:40  Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?

John 12:46  I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

John 12:47  And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

John 16:27  For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.

John 20:29  Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

John 20:31  But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

Acts 10:43  To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

Acts 13:39  And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Acts 15:11  But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.

Acts 16:31  And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Romans 1:16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Romans 3:22  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

Romans 3:26  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Romans 4:3  For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

Romans 4:5  But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Romans 4:24  But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;

Romans 10:4  For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

Romans 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Romans 10:10  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

1Corinthians 1:21  For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

Galatians 2:16  Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Galatians 3:6  Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

Galatians 3:22  But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

Ephesians 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

1Timothy 1:16  Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.

1Timothy 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

2Timothy 1:12  For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

Hebrews 3:18  And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?

Hebrews 4:3  For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Hebrews 10:39  But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

Hebrews 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

James 2:23  And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

1Peter 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.

1John 3:23  And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.

1John 5:1  Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.

1John 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

1John 5:13  These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 

Change Your Underwear

There's an old sea story about a ship's Captain who inspected his sailors, and afterward told the first mate that his men smelled bad.
The Captain suggested perhaps it would help if the sailors would change underwear occasionally.
The first mate responded, "Aye, aye sir, I'll see to it immediately!"
The first mate went straight to the sailors berth deck and announced, "The Captain thinks you guys smell bad and wants you to change your underwear."
He continued, "Pittman, you change with Jones, McCarthy, you change with Witkowski, and Brown, you change with Schultz."
THE MORAL OF THE STORY:
Someone may come along and promise "Change," but don't count on things smelling any better.

Anthropomorphic Nouns

The English language has some wonderfully anthropomorphic collective nouns for the various groups of animals.

We are all familiar with:

a herd of cows,

a flock of chickens,

a school of fish,

and a gaggle of geese.

However, less widely known is:

a pride of lions,

a murder of crows

(as well as their cousins the rooks and ravens),

an exaltation of doves,

and, presumably because they look so wise, a parliament of owls.

Now consider a group of baboons. They are the loudest, most dangerous, most obnoxious, most viciously aggressive and least intelligent of all primates. And what is the proper collective noun for a group of baboons?

Believe it or not, a congress!   

A CONGRESS OF BABOONS!

I guess that pretty much explains the things that come out of Washington !

You just can’t make this stuff up.

Go green – Recycle Congress in 2012!!!