2 Timothy3: "But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. They are the kind who work their way into people's homes and win the confidence of vulnerable women who are burdened with the guilt of sin and controlled by many desires. Such women are forever following new teachings, but they never understand the truth, and their teachers fight the Truth just as Jannes and Jambres fought against Moses. Their minds are depraved and their faith is counterfeit."(1-8) Paul wrote this Letter in 66CE from prison in Rome, shortly before his execution by the emperor, exhorting Timothy to remain faithful.
James1: "Whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your Faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything."(2-4) ... "for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They can't make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do."(6-8)... "those who are rich will fade away like a flower in the field. The hot sun rises and dries up the grass; the flower withers, and its beauty fades away. So also, wealthy people will fade away with all of their achievements."(10-11) ... "Temptation comes from the lure of our own evil desires. These evil desires lead to evil actions, and evil actions lead to death."(14-15) ..."Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above, Who created all heaven's lights. Unlike them, He never changes or casts shifting shadows."(17) .."be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.Your
anger can never make things right in God's sight."(20) 'Get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives and humbly accept the Message God Had Planted in your hearts, for it is strong enough to save your souls.
It is a Message to obey, not just to listen to. If you do not obey, you are only fooling yourself, it is like looking your face in a mirror but doing nothing to improve your appearance."(21-25) ..."If you claim to be religious but do not control your tongue, you are just fooling yourself and your religion is worthless.
Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God means that we must care for spiritual orphans and widows in their troubles and refuse to let the world corrupt us." (26-27)
James3: "If you do not brag about the good you do, then you will be truly wise! But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your hearts, do not brag about being wise. That is the worst kind of lie. For jealousy and selfishness are not God's kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, un-spiritual,
and motivated by the Devil. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every kind of evil. But the Wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no partiality and is always sincere." (13-18) James the half-brother of Jesus and a leader in the Jerusalem church, wrote this Letter around 45CE, in order to correct the false belief that appeared among the believers regarded to Faith. The false belief said that a person can have faith without a change of behavior. The practical instructions that James gave to the believers regarding the true life of faith and its social implications helped them to understand the difference.
Luke 21: "By standing firm, you will win your souls. And when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies then you will know that the time of its destruction has arrived."(20) ..."And Jerusalem will be conquered and trampled down by the Gentiles until the Age of the Gentiles comes to an end. And there will be strange events in the skies -signs in the sun, moon and stars. And down here on earth the nations
will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides... the stability of the very heavens will be broken up."(24-26) Luke, a Gentile physician and associate of Paul, wrote the Gospel around 60CE.
Matthew 24:"As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to Him the various Temple buildings. But Jesus told them, 'Do you see all these buildings? I assure you, they will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another.' Later, Jesus sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to Him privately and asked, 'When will all this take place? And will there be any sign ahead of time to signal Your Return and the End of the World?' Jesus told them, 'Do not let anyone mislead you. For many will come in My Name, saying, I am the Messiah. They will lead many astray. And spiritual wars will break out near and far, but do not panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won't follow immediately. The nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other in the spiritual world and there will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the physical world. But all this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come.'"(1-8) ..."The time will come when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about: the sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing in the Holy Place... For that will be a time of greater horror than anything the world has ever seen or will ever see again. In fact, unless the Time of Calamity is shortened the entire human race will be destroyed.But it will be shortened for the sake of God's chosen ones.Then if anyone tells you, 'Look, here is the Messiah,' or 'There He is,' do not pay any attention. For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great miraculous signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God's chosen ones.'"(15-24).."Immediately after those horrible days end, the sun will be darkened
the moon will not give light, the stars will fall from the sky and the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then at last the sign of the coming of the Son of Man will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the nations of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man arrive on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with the sound of a mighty trumpet blast and they will gather together His chosen ones from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven." (29-31) Matthew's Gospel, written probably between 60-65CE records the advent of this long-awaited age of a new kingdom on earth -The Kingdom of Heaven.
Hebrews1: "Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets.
But now in these Final Days, he has spoken to us through His Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance and through the Son He made the universe and everything in it." (1-2)
"The Son reflects God's own glory, and everything about the Son represents God exactly. The Son sustains the universe by the mighty power of God's Command. After the Son died to cleanse us from the stain of sin, the Son sat down in the place of honor at the Right hand of the majestic God of heaven. This shows that God's Son is far greater than the angels, just as the Name God gave Him is far greater than their Names. For God never said to any angel what He said to Jesus: "You are My Son, Today I have become Your Father,' And again God said, 'I will be His Father, and He will be My Son.' And then, when God presented His honored Son to the World, God said, 'Let all the angels of God worship His Son.' God calls His angels 'messengers swift as the wind and servants made of flaming fire.'"(3-7)
Hebrews 2: "Furthermore, the future World we are talking about will not be controlled by angels. For somewhere in the Scripture it says, 'What is man that You should think of him and the Son of Man that you should care for Him. For a little while You made him lower than the angels and You crowned him with glory and honor. You gave him authority over all things.' Now when it says 'all things,' it means 'nothing is left out.' But we have not yet seen all of this happen. What we do see in Jesus, who 'for a little while was made lower than the angels and now is crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death for us. Yes, by God's grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone in all the World. And it was only right that God -Who Made Everything and for Whom Everything was Made- should bring His many children into glory. Through Jesus' suffering, God made Him a perfect leader, One fit to bring them into their salvation."(5-10) .."Because God's children are human beings -made of flesh and blood-
Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could He break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death." (14-15)
Hebrews' writings have an uncertain author or authors. The writings appeared a few years before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem (70CE). Apparently, after some pressure and persecution, the believers were having second thoughts about their decision to leave Judaism to become Christians. So, this Letter shows how Christianity is superior to Judaism. In every way, Christ is shown to be better.
As God, He is superior to angels, to Moses, and to the Old Testament priests. As a man, Jesus Christ is able to identify himself with our human struggles. Jesus Christ sealed a New Covenant that is far superior to the Old Covenant. So the writings encourage the believers to move beyond questions about the basics of the Faith and follow the examples of the many faithful men and women of the past, who followed God in the midst of chaos and persecutions.
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