Podcasts about Alpheus

Playlist : Black Uhuru - Push push - 1980 - Lp Sinsemilla - Island Records Little Roy - Bus I Shut - 1981 - Lp Columbus Ship - Tafari Junior Delahaye - Love - 1982 - Lp Showcase - Wackie's Monyaka - Lamentation - 1983 - Lp Classical Roots Hevyaka Records Frankie Jones - Do Buckie Master - 1987 - Lp Compil Jah Children Invasion Chapter 4 - Tachyon Records Misty in Roots - Festa - 1989 - Lp Forward - Kaz Records Horace Andy – Secretly 2025 Heartical Riddim Yango Roots – Irie 2025 Dubmones feat Alpheus & Ranking Joe - Sheena Is A Rudie Now 2025 Echo Beach Dubmones feat Prince Alla and UBrown - I Wanna Be Sedated 2025 Echo Beach Lutan Fyah & Zion I Kings feat. Queen Omega - Days After Summer 2025 I Grade Music Solo Banton - Sound Teachings 2025 Reality Shock Records Earl Sixteen – Give Jah Praise 1980/2025 Partial Records Gt Moore – Utopia 2018 Partial Records 1980s The Harry J Sessions Clive Matthews – Only jah is able 2025 A-Lone Productions Album Going Home Amelia Harmony & Don Fe – Superman RMX + Dub 2025 Jah Catalyst

Episode 100, here we are! I was expecting some big production, but this episode snuck up on me So here it is for you to enjoy. To be sure this is no stinker, it is a jam packed banger but chalked full of newer tunes and stuff new(er) to me. None the less I hope you enjoy it, I would love nothing more than to renew my love for this show and my love for the culture, the scene and the music is unbreakable. So play it loud and keep on dancing. Listen Live on www.BootBoyRadio.net  Sunday          (6:00 pm - 8:00 pm EST - 00:00 - 22:00 GMT)  (Rocksteady Tonight Live) Wednesday  (7:00 pm - 9:00 pm EST - 00:00 - 02:00 GMT)  (Paddy Rock Live) As always thanks for listening Rocksteady Tonight is available iTunes: The Playlist is as follows: Fishbone   Racist Piece of Shit The Toasters   Pool Shark The Skatalites w/Clive Hunt   Desert Rose Buster Shuffle   Masterplan Mungo's Hi F feat.  Soom T & Zero   Jump Up Quickly (Zero Remix) Dubmones w/ Alpheus & Ranking Joe   Sheena Is a Rudie Now Macka B; Kingston Express   Good Day Gentleman's Dub Club   Fire - Jungle Remix Jack Radics; Big Youth; Clive Hunt   Fragile The Kilograms w/ Sammy Kay & Joe Gittleman   Faith & Love The Magnetics   Will You Love Me Tomorrow Kingston Sound System w/Jimmy Somerville   Smalltown Boy  Night Owls w/ Alex Desert & The Lions   Hercules Bumpin Uglies   Optimism in F# Bob Marley & The Wailers   Could You Be Loved Rude Boy George   Young Turks The Georgetown Orbits   Charlatan Napoleon Solo   Zombie Girl Winston Francis; High Notes   A Little More Oil in My Lamp The Fuss w/ Victor Rice   All the Time Dub Mr. Kingpin   Actions Speak Louder Chinese Connection Dub Embassy   BadMan The Slapstickers   The System Roy Ellis / Mr. Symarip & 65 Mines Street   Orchestration Reggae The Israelites   70th Week The Sidewalk Doctors   All My Loving Boomshot   Look a Like The Simmertones   Stand Firm Mango Wood   By Your Side Smooth Beans   Get Your Love The Steady 45's   Love Can Be

Delivered by Father Peter Tukan, SDB from Salesian Don Bosco Gerak in the Diocese of Labuan Bajo, Indonesia. Hebrews 4: 12-16; Rs psalm 19: 8-9.10.15; Mark 2: 13-17 WASTE BECOMES A BLESSING   Our meditation today has the theme: Waste Becomes a Blessing. Creativity that continues to happen in processing waste into blessings has become commonplace. Waste such as plastic and metal tend to increase day by day, and this sooner or later endangers human life and the environment. So there is a local, national, and global movement to recycle the waste.   There is a parish youth group making a multi-storey shelves to put flower pots on it. They were divided into 6 groups, so there were six shelves made. The material for the shelves was aqua packaging plastic collected from various places. The size, as well as the design of the shape of the shelves depends on the creativity of each group. The important thing is that each shelf is a place to accommodate 20-30 flower pots.   Finally, that youth's creativity succeeded in giving a new scene in the parish yard and rectory. The parish garden becomes very interesting to look at. The creativity made is for the parishioners a blessing for the entire parish. Useless plastics have been turned into a beautiful part of the garden for the good of all parishioners. That creativity inspires families to make their own in their own homes.   What happens with wastes turn into a blessing, an example for us to make a spiritual empowerment on the way to salvation. The primary mission of Jesus Christ on earth is to save us and the whole world from sin and death. Because of the spirit of this world and the power of Satan and its kingdom, our lives and the entire contents of this world are in seclusion and darkness. Every time we are tempted by the Evil One and end up falling into sin, our personhood and life become garbage. In the presence of the Lord we are rotten garbage.   So the Lord Jesus Himself says, "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." He comes to meet us in a state of rubbish, call us, cleanse us, and include us in His works. We rejoice when He comes to us with God's mercy, which means we are deeply loved and made significant.   Therefore there are those who become apostles, like Levi the son of Alpheus, some who become apostles of the nations like Paul and some who become like each of us today, as members of the one Body of Christ. Looking at and reflecting on each of us at this time, realize that we are always trash when we sin, but God also always turns us into blessings when we regret, confess and repent. Let us pray. In the name of the Father... O God, forgive us our mistakes and do not put us in temptation. Hail Mary full of grace... In the name of the Father...

Playlist : Alpheus Album « Quality time » Heartbeat 1999 enregistré chez Coxsone Dodd à New York Nothing can stop you/ / Running from my love/ ------------------------------------------------------- Alpheus – Keep the faith 2007 A-Lone Productions ------------------------------------------------------ Alpheus – Everything For A Reason 2007 Special Delivery Rude Yute/ Dem too wicked ---------------------------------------------------- Alpheus album from Creation 2011 A-Lone Productions From creation/Far away/ ------------------------------------------------- Alpheus – Good Prevails 2014 Liquidator Music Good prevails / Rudie No more/ ---------------------------------------------- Alpheus – Light Of Day 2018 Liquidator Music Light of day /Nah Go Tek It -------------------------------------------------- Alpheus – The Victory 2020 Liquidator Music The victory /Gonna Be Good / -Family Fruit/ Alpheus Live à Radio Canut : Nothing can stop you (Lecturer riddim) Kitty Kitty -------------------------------------------------- Alpheus – Unify 2024 Liquidator Music Equality

Británico de ascendencia jamaicana, Alpheus es hoy una de las grandes voces del ska, el reggae o el rocksteady. Con motivo de su actuación este viernes en Madrid baja a presentarnos su reciente trabajo “Unify”, hablarnos de sus 25 años de trayectoria y regalarnos una actuación acústica desde el rincón de los directos (acompañado por Rudy King de The Mighty Megatons). Abrimos con unas cuantas novedades de sabor jamaicano recién salidas de los hornos del sello Liquidator.Playlist;ROB PICAZO “Talk to me” (Soothe my soul)BIG BOSS MAN “Do the reggae” (The loafer rides again)MANGO WOOD “The cimmerian”TRAVELERS ALL STARS “I’ve got to tell you”SANTIAGO DOWNBEAT “Existencialistas” (Salon de baile)ROY ELLIS and THEE HURRICANES “Can you feel it” (Roy Ellis and Friends)ALPHEUS “Just a little” (single 2017)ALPHEUS “Unify” (Unify, 2024)ALPHEUS “Nothing can stop you” (Quality time, 1999)ALPHEUS “Good prevails” (Good prevails, 2014)ALPHEUS “Rudies” (The Victory, 2020)ALPHEUS “Medley; Equality, Kitty Kitty, Unify, Real Rudy” (directo en El Sótano)Escuchar audio

In 1837 Kirtland, Ohio, Jesse Harmon witnesses a community in turmoil, grappling with the fallout of the Kirtland Safety Society collapse and deeper cultural upheaval. His brother Alpheus, committed to their faith, explains that the challenges they face aren't just financial but a clash of ideas, with their prophet Joseph Smith seeking to weave spiritual principles into all aspects of life. Amidst the discontent and threats of violence, Jesse realizes the importance of faith, loyalty, and the courage to lead his family in uncertain times. As they prepare to leave Kirtland, Jesse embraces his faith, recognizing that true strength comes from unity, resilience, and unwavering belief in a higher purpose.Support the Show.

12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and he passed the whole night in the prayer of God.Factum est autem in illis diebus, exiit in montem orare, et erat pernoctans in oratione Dei.  13 And when day was come, he called unto him his disciples; and he chose twelve of them (whom also he named apostles).Et cum dies factus esset, vocavit discipulos suos : et elegit duodecim ex ipsis ( quos et apostolos nominavit) :  14 Simon, whom he surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,Simonem, quem cognominavit Petrum, et Andream fratrem ejus, Jacobum, et Joannem, Philippum, et Bartholomaeum,  15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who is called Zelotes,Matthaeum, et Thomam, Jacobum Alphaei, et Simonem, qui vocatur Zelotes,  16 And Jude, the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was the traitor.et Judam Jacobi, et Judam Iscariotem, qui fuit proditor.  17 And coming down with them, he stood in a plain place, and the company of his disciples, and a very great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast both of Tyre and Sidon,Et descendens cum illis, stetit in loco campestri, et turba discipulorum ejus, et multitudo copiosa plebis ab omni Judaea, et Jerusalem, et maritima, et Tyri, et Sidonis,  18 Who were come to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were troubled with unclean spirits, were cured.qui venerant ut audirent eum, et sanarentur a languoribus suis. Et qui vexabantur a spiritibus immundis, curabantur.  19 And all the multitude sought to touch him, for virtue went out from him, and healed all.Et omnis turba quaerebat eum tangere : quia virtus de illo exibat, et sanabat omnes. St Bartholomew the Apostle, whose name means: son of Tholomy, is beleived to be the same as the Nathanael whom the Master praised as the Israelite in whom was no guile. He preached the faith in India and Armenia. He was flayed alive and beheaded A.D. 71.

The Poem of the Man God is a retelling of the Gospel of Jesus of Nazareth as told in the private revelations of Maria Valtorta. In this episode we see Jesus reveals to James of Alpheus his future apostolic mission. *Intro music track Promesa by Blue Dot Sessions

An interview with reggae & rocksteady singer Alpheus recorded via telephone in 1999. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Jesse_I_Interviews Babylon Burning radio show: https://www.facebook.com/morefireblaze Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morefireblaze Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/morefireblaze

Obrim el programa d’aquesta setmana amb el gran Desmomd Dekker. Seguim repassant algunes novetats que teníem pendents d’escoltar: Nou LP d’Alpheus “Unify”; Les Testarudes estrenen segon senzill “My new name & I’ll never grow old”; Nou senzill d’avançament del nou … Continua llegint →

+ Holy Gospel according to St. Mark 2: 13 – 17 Once again he went out along the sea. All the crowd came to him and he taught them. As he passed by, he saw Levi, son of Alpheus, sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him. Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus heard this and said to them [that], “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” The Gospel of the Lord

Novedades con sabor jamaicano extraídas -en su mayoría- de los hornos del sello Liquidator. Disco destacado para The Oldians con su doble álbum “Soul’in Jamaica”. Playlist;(sintonía) THE OLDIANS “The fury is me!” (Soul’in Jamaica, 2023)THE OLDIANS “Believing in love” (Soul’in Jamaica, 2023)THE OLDIANS “You better run” (Soul’in Jamaica, 2023)THE OLDIANS “Reggae train” (Soul’in Jamaica, 2023)MANGO WOOD “The way” (Live at desk, 2023)MANGO WOOD “Never ever” (single, 2024)MANGO WOOD “Never can tell” (single, 2023)THE MOSKITO BITE “Down in Mexico” (single, 2023)COSMIC SHUFFLIN “Xmas ska” (single, 2023)RUDY BOLO “Trenta Soldi d’Argento” (single, 2023)ALPHEUS “Kitty Kitty” (single, 2023)SKA JAZZ MESSENGERS “Head over heels” (single, 2023)THE CHERRY BOPPERS feat PATRICIA RECKLESS “Monkey monkey” (ST, 2023)MADNESS “If I go mad” (Theatre of the absurd presents C'est la Vie, 2023)Escuchar audio

You have more potential than you may realise. But one of the best ways to achieve actual fulfilment in your life is to be part of a team. Who would you say was the best team ever? In many areas of life, it has been great teams who have achieved more together than they ever would have done apart.   In church history it was a group of talented and dedicated U.K. Christians known as the Clapham sect who united to successfully campaign for the abolition of slavery and the promotion of global missions. The world's most famous evangelist, Billy Graham, was a highly charismatic personality, but he freely admitted that he owed everything to God, his wife and a close team of associates who stayed together and supported him throughout their long lives.    Yet for all the effectiveness of so many great teams there is one that stands out above all others. John Maxwell wrote: ‘one could argue that Jesus constructed the most important team ever assembled. In less than one generation, the disciples of Jesus progressed from ignorant labourers to bold spiritual leaders in what is now the largest organisation in the world.'  The team that Jesus chose and trained to become history makers were a very mixed group of characters as we have been discovering over these past months. We have seen how easy it is to identify with them as they were very ordinary people just like us, each with their particular strengths and weaknesses.   For all the differences in their personalities and roles, these disciples who became the world's most successful team, were united in key areas. They have much to teach us if we want to grow in our faith and as members of teams of disciples.  1. They had a personal encounter with Jesus (John 1:43-45; John 1:1-4, 14-16; Matthew 16; John 6:68-69; Colossians 2:7) 2. They committed to fully follow Jesus (Matthew 4:18-22; Matthew 19:27) 3. They needed to be developed as trained disciples of Jesus  4. They continued to be faithful witnesses of Jesus throughout their lives (Acts 12:2; Revelation 1:17-18; Revelation 5:9; Revelation 1:5-7)  Apply  1. They had a personal encounter with Jesus. Four fishermen, Andrew, Peter, James and John, all met Jesus along the shores of Lake Galilee. Matthew was called by Jesus while sitting at his booth as a tax collector. Philip and Nathanael also came into contact with Jesus (John 1:43-45). In one way and another Jesus entered the lives of each of the disciples and developed a close relationship with them over a three-year period. Jesus called this band of brothers ‘friends', but they clearly understood that that Jesus was no mere man, but the Promised Messiah, God in human form (John 1:45; John 1:1-4). John went on to clarify that Jesus was the Word He was speaking of (John 1:14). When Jesus asked the disciples who they really thought He was, Peter stated he believed Jesus was the Messiah (Matthew 16). As opposition increased towards Jesus, many left him, but not his core disciples (John 6:68-69). What held them together was they were ‘rooted and built up' in their personal faith in Christ (Colossians 2:7). That's why they weren't being blown all over the place. They knew Jesus for themselves. Being a true disciple then means far more than knowing about Jesus or even merely believing in Him at an intellectual level; it means that you must have a personal experience of knowing Jesus. Even if you would say that you are a Christian: do you really know the Lord in a personal way? Do you feel His presence? Do you know Him as your best friend who is always close by you? Are you confident to daily walk with Him because you are sure your sins have been forgiven because of your repentance and through Christ's blood? Well this is what the Lord wants for you. 2. They committed to fully follow Jesus. They decided to wholeheartedly follow Jesus from the start (Matthew 4:18-22; Matthew 19:27). Peter and his brother and colleagues left their fishing careers, Mathew gave up tax collecting for the Romans, Simon the Zealot split from the terrorist group that focused on killing Romans. Each disciple left their old way of life behind. And that is what every true follower of Jesus must do. You cannot continue with an old sinful lifestyle, with old attitudes, with old forms of behaviour and friendships with those who mock God. You have to make a clean break to follow Jesus. God's call on your life may also involve you changing from a previous career. But whether or not you stay or leave your chosen profession, what matters is that you die to an old way of life and that you choose to live God's way and to be a faithful ambassador for Christ. A true disciple is much more than someone who attends church but someone who has consciously decided to prioritise following the example and teachings of Jesus. That's what the first disciples did but that was only the start of their story.   3. They needed to be developed as trained disciples of Jesus. Once Jesus had called individual disciples, He then brought them together as a team to form them in their characters and capabilities. And that's what He did patiently, consistently, directly and ultimately very effectively. His training meant that the team of disciples: needed to stay close to their mentor and rabbi even when others had arguments and left; had to be prepared to accept correction, they weren't too proud to learn and change; and needed to be ready to respond to new challenges. At first, Jesus sent them out to spread the good news of the kingdom of God in their home areas but finally he sent them out to make disciples throughout the whole world. Everything depended on them succeeding as a team. The responsibility for the whole future of the church and the growth of Christianity rested with this small, imperfect team that Jesus had raised up. There was no plan B. Today also the numerical and spiritual growth of the Christian church, locally and globally, primarily depends not on big events and public services, but with the training of groups of small groups of committed disciples who will in turn multiply faithful and fruitful disciples.  4. They continued to be faithful witnesses of Jesus throughout their lives. They obediently carried out their commission to spread the gospel wherever they went, no matter what difficulties they faced. And they were prepared to pay the ultimate price. We know of the fate of Judas who betrayed Jesus and hung himself, while the faithful James, the son of Zebedee, was executed by Herod in 44AD (Acts 12:2). Even though Peter was miraculously saved at that time from a similar execution and the Bible doesn't give the details, numerous writers of the time (or shortly after) described his death as having occurred in Rome during the reign of the mad Emperor Nero in 64AD. According to tradition, St. Peter was crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus. Although there are unreliable legends about the other disciples, there are strong traditions about their laying down of their lives for Christ. Russian Christians believe that Andrew was the first to bring the gospel to their land. Andrew also preached in modern-day Turkey, Asia Minor, and Greece, where it's believed he was crucified. Tradition says that Thomas preached as far as India, where he was killed. Many churches in the Middle East and southern Asia, including Sri Lanka, also mention Apostle Thomas in their historical traditions as being the first evangelist to establish their churches. Philip likely had a powerful ministry in Asia Minor and in North Africa, where he was put to death. Matthew ministered in Persia and Ethiopia, where some believe he was killed. Of the other disciples who were reportedly martyred, Bartholomew had extensive missionary travels to Ethiopia, India with Thomas and to Armenia and Southern Arabia. James the son of Alpheus is believed to have ministered in Syria. Simon the Zealot ministered in Persia and was killed after refusing to sacrifice to a sun god and Matthias, the replacement for Judas, went to Syria. John is one of the only disciples who's commonly thought to have died a natural death from old age. He was a church leader in Ephesus and is believed to have cared for Mary, Jesus' mother, in his home. During a time of persecution under Emperor Domitian, John was exiled to the island of Patmos, off the coast of Asia where he wrote the last book of the New Testament. At the end of his life, John had many revelations of Jesus in heaven. He had a vision of: - The conquering Christ: an awesome figure Revelation 1:17-18) - The compassionate Christ: He saw a vast crowd of people gathered (Revelation 5:9; Revelation 1:5-6) - The coming Christ: He foresaw that Jesus will return to earth in power and glory, overthrowing all evil, establishing His eternal kingdom and making all things new (Revelation 1:7). For John the past, present and future was all about Jesus. Jesus was the centre and meaning and hope of everything. That's why he and all the disciples had first followed Jesus and why they worked so effectively together as a team to shine his light in a dark world. We too need to encounter Jesus and live and work together as teams of real disciples to see Christ's kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. 

You have more potential than you may realise. But one of the best ways to achieve actual fulfilment in your life is to be part of a team. Who would you say was the best team ever? In many areas of life, it has been great teams who have achieved more together than they ever would have done apart.   In church history it was a group of talented and dedicated U.K. Christians known as the Clapham sect who united to successfully campaign for the abolition of slavery and the promotion of global missions. The world's most famous evangelist, Billy Graham, was a highly charismatic personality, but he freely admitted that he owed everything to God, his wife and a close team of associates who stayed together and supported him throughout their long lives.    Yet for all the effectiveness of so many great teams there is one that stands out above all others. John Maxwell wrote: ‘one could argue that Jesus constructed the most important team ever assembled. In less than one generation, the disciples of Jesus progressed from ignorant labourers to bold spiritual leaders in what is now the largest organisation in the world.'  The team that Jesus chose and trained to become history makers were a very mixed group of characters as we have been discovering over these past months. We have seen how easy it is to identify with them as they were very ordinary people just like us, each with their particular strengths and weaknesses.   For all the differences in their personalities and roles, these disciples who became the world's most successful team, were united in key areas. They have much to teach us if we want to grow in our faith and as members of teams of disciples.  1. They had a personal encounter with Jesus (John 1:43-45; John 1:1-4, 14-16; Matthew 16; John 6:68-69; Colossians 2:7) 2. They committed to fully follow Jesus (Matthew 4:18-22; Matthew 19:27) 3. They needed to be developed as trained disciples of Jesus  4. They continued to be faithful witnesses of Jesus throughout their lives (Acts 12:2; Revelation 1:17-18; Revelation 5:9; Revelation 1:5-7)  Apply  1. They had a personal encounter with Jesus. Four fishermen, Andrew, Peter, James and John, all met Jesus along the shores of Lake Galilee. Matthew was called by Jesus while sitting at his booth as a tax collector. Philip and Nathanael also came into contact with Jesus (John 1:43-45). In one way and another Jesus entered the lives of each of the disciples and developed a close relationship with them over a three-year period. Jesus called this band of brothers ‘friends', but they clearly understood that that Jesus was no mere man, but the Promised Messiah, God in human form (John 1:45; John 1:1-4). John went on to clarify that Jesus was the Word He was speaking of (John 1:14). When Jesus asked the disciples who they really thought He was, Peter stated he believed Jesus was the Messiah (Matthew 16). As opposition increased towards Jesus, many left him, but not his core disciples (John 6:68-69). What held them together was they were ‘rooted and built up' in their personal faith in Christ (Colossians 2:7). That's why they weren't being blown all over the place. They knew Jesus for themselves. Being a true disciple then means far more than knowing about Jesus or even merely believing in Him at an intellectual level; it means that you must have a personal experience of knowing Jesus. Even if you would say that you are a Christian: do you really know the Lord in a personal way? Do you feel His presence? Do you know Him as your best friend who is always close by you? Are you confident to daily walk with Him because you are sure your sins have been forgiven because of your repentance and through Christ's blood? Well this is what the Lord wants for you. 2. They committed to fully follow Jesus. They decided to wholeheartedly follow Jesus from the start (Matthew 4:18-22; Matthew 19:27). Peter and his brother and colleagues left their fishing careers, Mathew gave up tax collecting for the Romans, Simon the Zealot split from the terrorist group that focused on killing Romans. Each disciple left their old way of life behind. And that is what every true follower of Jesus must do. You cannot continue with an old sinful lifestyle, with old attitudes, with old forms of behaviour and friendships with those who mock God. You have to make a clean break to follow Jesus. God's call on your life may also involve you changing from a previous career. But whether or not you stay or leave your chosen profession, what matters is that you die to an old way of life and that you choose to live God's way and to be a faithful ambassador for Christ. A true disciple is much more than someone who attends church but someone who has consciously decided to prioritise following the example and teachings of Jesus. That's what the first disciples did but that was only the start of their story.   3. They needed to be developed as trained disciples of Jesus. Once Jesus had called individual disciples, He then brought them together as a team to form them in their characters and capabilities. And that's what He did patiently, consistently, directly and ultimately very effectively. His training meant that the team of disciples: needed to stay close to their mentor and rabbi even when others had arguments and left; had to be prepared to accept correction, they weren't too proud to learn and change; and needed to be ready to respond to new challenges. At first, Jesus sent them out to spread the good news of the kingdom of God in their home areas but finally he sent them out to make disciples throughout the whole world. Everything depended on them succeeding as a team. The responsibility for the whole future of the church and the growth of Christianity rested with this small, imperfect team that Jesus had raised up. There was no plan B. Today also the numerical and spiritual growth of the Christian church, locally and globally, primarily depends not on big events and public services, but with the training of groups of small groups of committed disciples who will in turn multiply faithful and fruitful disciples.  4. They continued to be faithful witnesses of Jesus throughout their lives. They obediently carried out their commission to spread the gospel wherever they went, no matter what difficulties they faced. And they were prepared to pay the ultimate price. We know of the fate of Judas who betrayed Jesus and hung himself, while the faithful James, the son of Zebedee, was executed by Herod in 44AD (Acts 12:2). Even though Peter was miraculously saved at that time from a similar execution and the Bible doesn't give the details, numerous writers of the time (or shortly after) described his death as having occurred in Rome during the reign of the mad Emperor Nero in 64AD. According to tradition, St. Peter was crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus. Although there are unreliable legends about the other disciples, there are strong traditions about their laying down of their lives for Christ. Russian Christians believe that Andrew was the first to bring the gospel to their land. Andrew also preached in modern-day Turkey, Asia Minor, and Greece, where it's believed he was crucified. Tradition says that Thomas preached as far as India, where he was killed. Many churches in the Middle East and southern Asia, including Sri Lanka, also mention Apostle Thomas in their historical traditions as being the first evangelist to establish their churches. Philip likely had a powerful ministry in Asia Minor and in North Africa, where he was put to death. Matthew ministered in Persia and Ethiopia, where some believe he was killed. Of the other disciples who were reportedly martyred, Bartholomew had extensive missionary travels to Ethiopia, India with Thomas and to Armenia and Southern Arabia. James the son of Alpheus is believed to have ministered in Syria. Simon the Zealot ministered in Persia and was killed after refusing to sacrifice to a sun god and Matthias, the replacement for Judas, went to Syria. John is one of the only disciples who's commonly thought to have died a natural death from old age. He was a church leader in Ephesus and is believed to have cared for Mary, Jesus' mother, in his home. During a time of persecution under Emperor Domitian, John was exiled to the island of Patmos, off the coast of Asia where he wrote the last book of the New Testament. At the end of his life, John had many revelations of Jesus in heaven. He had a vision of: - The conquering Christ: an awesome figure Revelation 1:17-18) - The compassionate Christ: He saw a vast crowd of people gathered (Revelation 5:9; Revelation 1:5-6) - The coming Christ: He foresaw that Jesus will return to earth in power and glory, overthrowing all evil, establishing His eternal kingdom and making all things new (Revelation 1:7). For John the past, present and future was all about Jesus. Jesus was the centre and meaning and hope of everything. That's why he and all the disciples had first followed Jesus and why they worked so effectively together as a team to shine his light in a dark world. We too need to encounter Jesus and live and work together as teams of real disciples to see Christ's kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. 

Season 20 Episode 17 Kitty Kitty - Alpheus K2 - Melenas Bang - Melenas Can't Do Anything - Husbands Used to Surf - Husbands Hard-Hearted Way - Tele Novella Funeral - Tele Novella Stumbling Still - Nation of Language I Will Never Learn - Nation of Language Is It My Fault? - Sufjan Stevens So You are Tired - Sufjan Stevens Bushwick Cowboy - Vansire This episode features a clip of Israeli historian, political scientist, and tour guide Oren, from his YouTube channel travelingisreal.com. He has a lot of videos about Israel offering a pro-Israeli, but also highly informed and even-handed perspective. I think he's fantastic and recommend his content.

Inaugurem la temporada 2023-24 amb un programa carregat de novetats! Comencem escoltant un tema del gran Alton Ellis. Seguim repassant les darreres novetats: Nou single d’Alpheus “Equality”; Nou treball dels Prizefighter “Punch Up!”; “5th Avenue” és el nou LP dels … Continua llegint →

And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and he passed the whole night in the prayer of God.Factum est autem in illis diebus, exiit in montem orare, et erat pernoctans in oratione Dei.  13 And when day was come, he called unto him his disciples; and he chose twelve of them (whom also he named apostles).Et cum dies factus esset, vocavit discipulos suos : et elegit duodecim ex ipsis ( quos et apostolos nominavit) :  14 Simon, whom he surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,Simonem, quem cognominavit Petrum, et Andream fratrem ejus, Jacobum, et Joannem, Philippum, et Bartholomaeum,  15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who is called Zelotes,Matthaeum, et Thomam, Jacobum Alphaei, et Simonem, qui vocatur Zelotes,  16 And Jude, the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was the traitor.et Judam Jacobi, et Judam Iscariotem, qui fuit proditor.  17 And coming down with them, he stood in a plain place, and the company of his disciples, and a very great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast both of Tyre and Sidon,Et descendens cum illis, stetit in loco campestri, et turba discipulorum ejus, et multitudo copiosa plebis ab omni Judaea, et Jerusalem, et maritima, et Tyri, et Sidonis,  18 Who were come to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were troubled with unclean spirits, were cured.qui venerant ut audirent eum, et sanarentur a languoribus suis. Et qui vexabantur a spiritibus immundis, curabantur.  19 And all the multitude sought to touch him, for virtue went out from him, and healed all.Et omnis turba quaerebat eum tangere : quia virtus de illo exibat, et sanabat omnes. St Bartholomew the Apostle, whose name means: son of Tholomy, is believed to be the same as Nathaniel whom the Master praised as the Israelite in whom there was no guile. He preached the faith in India and Armenia. He was flayed alive and beheaded A.D.71.

Serge Guelon, a.k.a. Serial P, est ingénieur du son studio et live mais également riddim maker et bassiste. Il a œuvré pour de très nombreux artistes, aussi bien de la scène jamaïcaine comme U Brown, Luciano, Skarra Muchi et Queen Omega, que de la scène reggae française comme Manudigital, Bost & Bim, Max Livio, Lidiop, Mc Janik, Natty Jean, Nicodrum ou encore Kubix, Ras Shiloh, Typical Féfé, Mo Kalamity, Cedric Myton, Winston Mac Anuff, Alpheus, Willie Williams, Touré Kunda, la chanteuse gabonaise Tita Nzebi… une liste qui donne le tournis ! Serial P a également composé de nombreux riddims sur lesquels ont posé entre autres Earl Sixteen, Michael Prophet ou encore Cornell Campbell, Horace Andy, Luciano, Peter Morgan, Queen Omega. Il est aussi le fondateur du Dubwise Factory Studio, studios d'enregistrement, de mixage et de mastering.

Tuesday, 14 March 2023   And after they had become silent, James answered, saying, “Men and brethren, listen to me: Acts 15:13   In the previous verse, the words of Barnabas and Paul concerning their evangelism of the Gentiles were recorded, God having worked through the apostles with signs and wonders. With that, it now says, “And after they had become silent.”   It is certainly referring to the words of Barnabas and Paul as well as the voices of anyone else who may have had questions or comments. In other words, the dialogue has wound down and now a decision must be rendered by the council. With that, “James answered, saying.”   It is generally (though not universally) agreed that this is James, the son of Alpheus, also known as the brother of the Lord. He was the one singled out by Peter in Acts 12:17. Later, in Galatians 2:9, he is noted by Paul as one of the pillars of the church. The words here in Acts indicate that he is presiding over the council. As with other clues in Acts, it reveals that this James was the accepted leader of the church at this time.    Without the matter being explained in Acts, and though not explicitly stated, the implication is that James held the administrative reigns in church matters. He was obviously qualified to handle the affairs of the church in a better manner than the apostles. As such, he now addresses the assembly, saying, “Men and brethren, listen to me.”   As the assembly fell silent, and as James now addresses them to sum up the deliberations, it is certain that he is the overseer of the church at this time. His coming words will show that he was a man of understanding in Scripture and one who was able to come to a sound conclusion. With his conclusion, he will also render a judgment for the church to adhere to.   Life application: As noted above, nothing is said in Acts about how James came to be the leader of the church at this time. That would seem to be a glaring omission unless one understands that it is irrelevant to the purpose of the book. Acts has been written with various main themes and purposes in mind, but one of them is not how to structure the church.   Surprisingly, the epistles give scant information on how to do so as well. The pastoral epistles provide relevant information on some key points, but nothing is said about meeting times or places, order of worship, frequency of various events to be held, what to do with church resources (with but a few exceptions such as provision for widows in 1 Timothy 5), etc.   Individual churches are given great latitude in how they operate. The primary role of the church is certainly to bring forth the word of God to people, both the saved and the unsaved. The word is what explains the defect of sin in man and the sending of Jesus to bring him back to God through the forgiveness of sin. One reconciliation between the two has been made, it is then time to properly instruct believers in the word.   Churches that get too far off from this main idea will eventually devolve into nothing more than a social meeting or a congregation that is constantly trying to earn what Christ offers for free. Be sure that where you attend, the word is read and explained at every gathering.   Lord God, help us not to get misdirected from the main goal and purpose of the church, which is to get out the word concerning Jesus. You have sent Him to bring the world back to You through Him. Unless that is expressed and explained, we are not competently handling our time. Guide us, O God. Help us to get the good news out! Amen.  

Listen in as we begin a news series looking at the seven churches of Revelation. Notes//Quotes: Revelation 2:1-7 “The book of Revelation really is about the future, but what is says does not satisfy our curiosity or match what we think are the obvious things to say. It is not a disclosure of future events but the revelation of their inner meaning. It does not tell us what events are going to take place and the dates of their occurrence; it tells us what the meaning of those events is. It does not provide a timetable for history; it gives us an inside look at the reality of history. It is not prediction but perception. It is, in short, about God as he is right now. It ups the veil off our vision and lets us see what is taking place. - Eugene Peterson The Pattern: Who He is (Character) How it's going (evaluation) Promises made (conquering/overcoming) I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the colossus of the Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids, and the vast tomb of Mausolus; but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy, and I said, "Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on ever so grand.” - Antipater of Sidon Rev 2:2-3 “The theology that matters is not the theology we profess but the theology we practice.” - Francis Chan “Jesus's command to follow him is a command to align our loves and longings with his—to want what God wants, to desire what God desires, to hunger and thirst after God and crave a world where he is all in all.” - James K.A. Smith Matthew 24:12 Jesus is a teacher who doesn't just inform our intellect but forms our very loves. He isn't content to simply deposit new ideas into your mind; he is after nothing less than your wants, your loves, your longings. - James K.A. Smith “In any relationship, there will be frightening spells in which your feelings of love dry up. And when that happens you must remember that the essence of marriage is that it is a covenant, a commitment, a promise of future love. So what do you do? You do the acts of love, despite your lack of feeling. You may not feel tender, sympathetic, and eager to please, but in your actions you must BE tender, understanding, forgiving and helpful. And, if you do that, as time goes on you will not only get through the dry spells, but they will become less frequent and deep, and you will become more constant in your feelings. This is what can happen if you decide to love. Actions of love lead to feelings of love.” Tim Keller

"Edizione straordinariaaaa! Un super animale è in città! Ha una pistola e non ha paura di usarla! Eroe o Criminale?"L'episodio utilizza le seguenti musiche CC:"Monkeys Spinning Monkeys" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"Hard Boiled" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.Ref. "Larval development of the snapping shrimp Alpheus heterochaelis Say, reared in the laboratory"."Flow visualisation and high speed video analysis of water jets in the snapping shrimp (Alpheus heterochaelis)".

Saturday, 3 December 2022   But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Go, tell these things to James and to the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place. Acts 12:17   Note: You can listen to today's commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen)   You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at "Discern the Bible" on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).   The previous verse noted that those inside Mary's house opened the door and were astonished to see Peter there. Now it says, “But motioning to them.”   Rather, it is an aorist participle, “But having motioned to them.” The word kataseió is introduced here and will only be seen four times, all in Acts. It means to shake the hand up and down to attract attention as if signaling. In this case, Peter first motioned “with his hand to keep silent.”   It is a gesture common throughout the world. When someone is trying to get others to be quiet, they will make hand motions, usually accompanied by some stern facial gesture. Those inside probably started to explode with joy and words of welcome, not realizing that Peter had escaped. He would have to quiet them down and then quietly convey to them what had occurred. That begins with the words, “he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison.”   As there was no article before the word “angel” in the previous verses in this account, it was an unknown divine messenger who assisted Peter in his escape. However, Peter credits the action to the Lord, as is fitting. This is noted in Hebrews 1:14 which says that angels are “all ministering spirits sent forth.” The obvious implication is that they are sent forth by the Lord God. Thus, Peter rightly ascribes the deliverance to the Lord. Next, it says, “And he said, ‘Go, tell these things to James.'”   This is James, the son of Alpheus, also known as the brother of the Lord. In Galatians 2:9, he is noted by Paul as one of the pillars of the church. He will preside over the council in Jerusalem in Acts 15. As with other clues in Acts, this shows us that this James had become the leader of the church at this time. Peter specifically singles him out now rather than any of the other apostles. Only after mentioning James does he add “and to the brethren.”   Though not explicitly stated, the implication is that James held the administrative reigns of church matters. No reason is noted, but he was obviously qualified to handle the affairs of the church in a better manner than the apostles. After his words to those in the house, the verse finishes with, “And he departed and went to another place.”   With the news conveyed, and certainly for the safety of those inside, Peter departed. With this note, the record of the apostleship of Peter in Acts is all but over. He will be mentioned by name in the next verse and then only once again, in Acts 15 during the council at Jerusalem. From this point on, Saul (who is Paul) will become the focus of the Acts narrative until the end of the book.   Life application: The record of Acts thus far has focused mostly on the state of the Jews in relation to the gospel. However, an underlying tone of the account has also carried a strong acceptance of the message by Gentiles. This will increase immensely with the narrative moving to Paul. At the same time, there will be an underlying tone of some Jews remaining faithful to the gospel while the nation itself turns away from it more and more.   Paul will speak of this state of affairs in Romans 9-11. There he will note that “at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace” (Romans 11:5). This is referring to Jewish believers. As the epistle is written for the church at any time, it is a clear indication that there has been and will be a remnant of believing Jews throughout the church age. And this has been seen all along.   With the coming of the end times, the number of Jewish believers is exploding. Israel is now back in the land they were exiled from, and the prophecies concerning them as a nation are set to be fulfilled. Let us praise God for His faithfulness to this disobedient nation because of His faithfulness to the covenant He made with them. And in seeing His faithfulness to a covenant that is ready to vanish away, we can be certain of His faithfulness to us in the New Covenant that will never vanish away when they as a nation enter into the New Covenant. We have an eternal hope because of what He has done in the giving of Jesus for us. Consider what it means! Eternal life is promised to us because of Jesus. Thank God for Jesus Christ our Lord.   Glorious Heavenly Father, our hearts are filled with joy because of what You have done for us through the giving of Jesus. Thank You, O God, for Jesus Christ our Lord and our certain hope of eternal life in Your presence. Yes, thank You for this sure hope. Amen.

“Follow Me”  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 1 Cor. 11:1   The single most important directive in the Gospels is the Savior's "follow me." It occurs in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. "If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Matthew 16:24). "As He was passing along, He saw Levi, the son of Alpheus, sitting in the tax collector's place and He said to him, 'Follow me"' (Mark 2:14). "'One thing is still lacking to you. Sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven, and come, follow me.' When he heard these things he was much grieved, for he was very rich" (Luke 18:22-23). "You do not believe because you are not of my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them and they follow me" (John 10:27).   I have not seen clear statistical evidence that fewer Christians die of cancer than non-believers or that they are immune in greater degree from the diseases that afflict the human race.   Some of the kindest, most selfless persons I have known have had more than their share of bad health.  The fact that they belong to Christ did not protect them from disease.   Therefore, I will not follow Christ for promised healing.   I will not deny or dispute evidence of supernatural healing but I will rejoice at every recovery from what seems to be hopeless, threatened death.   I will not hesitate to pray for a better health for my loved ones and acquaintances.   I will set no limits on what God may do but I will not follow Christ only for promised healing.   I see no sign that Christians escape disaster and accident more often than others. I've seem the evil that men can do.   Therefore, I will not follow Christ for any promised protection from natural or man made disaster.    I will not scoff at amazing survivals nor deny that providence has and continues to work for the good of God's own but I will continue to pray for protection from wicked men and tragedy. Just the same, I will not follow Christ just because he can protect me from accident or catastrophe.   I do not believe that God has to bless you with financial prosperity.    David said that he "had not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread" and in the deepest needs of this life, that is certainly true but all of us have known good people who have not prospered.   Therefore, I will not follow Christ for promised freedom from physical want or hope of affluence.   God wills that the mind of Christ be formed in us and there is no doubt in my mind that the Christian's attitudes and actions will be improved by his Christianity, but I will not follow Christ for any promise of personality enhancement or perfection.   Why then follow Christ?  Why become a disciple of Jesus when life may become more complicated as He so often warned?   For one reason alone:   In Jesus we get the chance to behold the face of God.  He is the truth, the everlasting truth, he is Emanuel God in the flesh.  I know that in His life, death, and resurrection, I am redeemed to God, the giver of life.   I believe that nothing can separate us from the love of God.  He has all power and goodness and I trust Him and His promises.  To him, I offer my life, damaged or whole, brief or full of years.  It matters not.  God is my rock.  God is my anchor. He  is the one certain thing in an uncertain world.  He is to be worshiped, not for my benefit but because HE is worthy.   He saves me.  When this poor man cried out He heard me.  HE saved me.  He is my justification.  To worship the God of our salvation, to offer sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving; that alone is our vocation.  We offer our lives to God, not so as to be healthy, wealthy, or wise, not even so to gain the strength to do great things for Him; we offer our lives to Him because He alone has claim upon us.    Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." 2 Timothy 3:12.  "If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name." 1 Peter 4:16.  "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4.  What He has promised is that He will never leave us; He will never forsake us, and those who believe in His Son Jesus Christ for salvation will have ultimate victory and nothing "will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39.        True faith is not determined by circumstances.  Mature faith believes in the supernatural power of God because "nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:37.  Mature faith also bows to the sovereign purposes of God.  "We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28.  "For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." Philippians 2:13.   Real faith is to center your life on Almighty God.  Mature faith believes in the supernatural power of God, and mature faith bows to the sovereign purposes of God.  Mature faith is based on the steadfast promises of God and the greatest is this, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16.     

Friday, 18 November 2022   Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword. Acts 12:2   Acts 12 opened with the note that Herod the king had stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. With that noted, it next says, “Then he killed James the brother of John.”   This is then James the son of Zebedee recorded in Matthew 4 –   “Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.” Matthew 4:21, 22   He is known in early writings ast James the Greater. James the Less is James, the son of Alpheus noted in Matthew 10:3 when the apostles were designated by name. The only mention of him in Acts outside of this verse is that he is noted among the apostles after the ascension of the Lord –   “And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.” Acts 1:13   No reason why he was selected to be killed is given, but it does show that he was prominent enough and outspoken enough to be noticed and brought forth. So, despite not having anything recorded concerning his apostolic work, it is certain he was faithful and productive. It is a good indication that Acts is structured around Peter and Paul for a reason. Even if the other apostles did a great deal of work, the ministries of Peter and Paul are given special attention, showing the shift from the Jewish people to the Gentiles. Of James, it notes that he was killed “with the sword.”   Because of this, it is certain that this was a Roman and civil execution. Like John the Baptist, there is an obvious political element to what occurred. Being death by a sword, it could be either decapitation or being thrust through. Either way, the description of his death comes down to two words. This is in complete contrast to Stephen who was given almost an entire chapter of the events surrounding his stoning.   As for his death, it appears that this is something hinted at by what Jesus said in Matthew 20 –   “Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. 21 And He said to her, ‘What do you wish?' She said to Him, ‘Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.' 22 But Jesus answered and said, ‘You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?' They said to Him, ‘We are able.' 23 So He said to them, ‘You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.'” Matthew 20:20-23   James certainly participated in the sufferings of Christ. But more, in a sense, the request was granted. James is noted as the first apostle to be martyred now in Acts. It is known that John was the last surviving apostle. Thus, the two sons of Zebedee were granted two positions of honor in their lives and deaths as chosen apostles of Jesus.   Life application: If the mother of James was alive at this time, she may have questioned God's goodness in allowing her son, who had done so much in his ministry, to be killed in such an ignoble way. Or she may have understood that this was an honorable death in the eyes of the Lord. As tragic as it may be for someone to lose a family member, we cannot impute wrongdoing to God when it occurs.   The fact is that we are all going to die. Paul goes further and says –   “But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” 2 Timothy 3:10-12   We have been told this, it is included in God's word, and therefore, it should not be a surprise to anyone when a faithful, godly believer is persecuted in some manner. This doesn't mean God is uncaring. It means that God is receiving glory through the right conduct of His people. It is also a sign to those who engage in the persecution that His judgment upon them will be just and deserved when it comes.   We need to consider our earthly bodies less and look to what is promised. Our time now is in a fallen world where we can expect things to occur that may seem bad from our perspective. But in seeing how they fit into what lies ahead, they are not really “bad.” What God does, and what He allows in our lives, will always lead to what is good. Trust this as you consider the events of the world around you. Look at all things from an eternal perspective and you will be much better off as you trudge through this life of difficulty, trial, and woe.   Lord God, help us to maintain an eternal perspective on things and not get too caught up in the temporary, transitory things that will have their end. We know that good is promised for us, and so whatever happens now must be leading us to the good that lies ahead. Thank You that we can know this and cling to it while we are here in this life of difficulty. Amen.  

While very little is known about James, Son of Alpheus, we know that he shared a similar trait with all the other Apostles, He sacrificed everything to follow Jesus. What are you willing to sacrifice for Jesus?

Plug into our Peoples Church service that is specially packaged for the entire family. We are a church located in Polokwane with a burning passion to spread the Gospel. We pray this message brings you hope.   Connect with us: If you would like to be part of our church or need any prayer request or maybe you are new please see the links below and follow the relevant one by simply clicking and leaving your details, a member of Peoples Church will be in touch with you soon.   I'M NEW HERE If you follow this link you will be able to fill in our virtual welcome card.   https://www.peopleschurchplk.org/guest/welcome_card.html   GET INVOLVED If you would like to start serving at Peoples Church, kindly click the link below and fill out the form.   https://peopleschurchplk.churchcenter.com/people/forms/90752   INVITATION RESOURCES   Use these resources to invite your friends and family members to church.   https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvuJFny_UTLKgtFC_WI_uyDvGUSdTA?e=5LATsG     SALVATION   Gave your life to Christ? Congratulations! Let us know about it.     https://peopleschurchplk.churchcenter.com/people/forms/91127     NEED PRAYER   If you would like us to pray for a request that you have, please let us know.     https://peopleschurchplk.churchcenter.com/people/forms/90748   HAVE A TESTIMONY?   We love stories of answered prayer. If you would like to encourage someone by sharing your testimony, fill in the form below.   https://peopleschurchplk.churchcenter.com/people/forms/90749

 Audio recordingSermon manuscript:The name “James” was common among the Jews during New Testament times. This means that there is more than one “James” in the New Testament. In fact, there are three “Jameses.” Let us briefly go through them so that we know which James we are talking about today. The James we know the least about is sometimes referred to as “James the less.” This James was one of the 12 apostles. He is the son of Alpheus. That is about all that we know about him. There was another man named James who was also one of the 12 apostles. He is sometimes called “James the greater.” We know quite a bit more about this James. This James was the brother of the apostle John. He was part of what some people have called “the inner circle” of the apostles. On some occasions Jesus took along only Peter, James, and John. For example, these were the only three apostles at the mount of transfiguration. This James was the first of the 12 apostles to die. He was killed by King Herod Agrippa I. When the Gospels speak of James, they are almost always referring to this James, the brother of John, the son of Zebedee. The James whose feast day we are observing today is only mentioned in the Gospels. In fact, you heard his name mentioned in our Gospel reading today. The people of Jesus's hometown ask, “Isn't this Jesus the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother named Mary? Aren't his brothers named James, Joseph,” and so on? This third James in the New Testament is called the brother of our Lord Jesus. From our Gospel reading today we can gather that Jesus had a somewhat large family. Four brothers are named, and there must have been at least two sisters. What does it mean that Jesus has brothers and sisters? Matthew and Luke tell us in their Gospels that Mary conceived and became pregnant by the Holy Spirit before Joseph and she ever came together. Mary was a virgin. So one explanation for these brothers and sisters would be that they were born after Jesus in the natural way through the union of Mary and Joseph. In a sense they would be half-siblings—the same mother, but not having God as their father in the same way that Jesus has God as his Father. There are a couple other possible explanations. Some have hypothesized (without any real evidence) that Joseph was a widower before he married Mary. From this previous marriage he had children. Then the siblings that are mentioned would be step-siblings, no blood relation at all. They would be born of Joseph and some unnamed woman who died before Joseph and Mary were married. Another possible explanation is that these siblings are actually cousins. Supposedly sometimes the words, brother and sister in Greek, can mean “cousin.” Both of these possibilities seem more speculative than the explanation that they were Jesus's half-siblings. Let's get back to who James was. When James and Jesus's other brothers are mentioned those couple times in the Gospels it is not in a very flattering way. On one occasion Mary and Jesus's brothers seem embarrassed by Jesus. They think he has lost his mind and they want to take him away. On another occasion Jesus's brothers seem impatient with how he is doing things. If Jesus is who he says he is, then they want him to get on with it. Notably, there is no mention of Jesus's siblings being at his cross, although Mary is there. But maybe we shouldn't be too hard on them for that, since none of the 12 apostles were there either except for the apostle John. The impression that the Gospels give with its couple of references makes James seem somewhat unfriendly and somewhat unimportant. This, however, changes quite dramatically with Jesus's resurrection from the dead. After Jesus rose from the dead he appeared to James. Paul tells us this. Evidently when Jesus came to his brother, James, this brought about his conversion. It also must have inspired great zeal in him. He ends up being the bishop, or overseer, of the Christian congregation in Jerusalem. This is a position of great significance and influence. Paul calls James a pillar of the church along with Peter and John. Our first reading today from the book of Acts tells of how James's words carried the day at the council of Jerusalem. Our second reading was from the epistle of James. The author of that book of the Bible is this same James, the brother of Jesus. So it is good for you to remember that there are three Jameses in the New Testament, two of whom are more prominent. James, the apostle, the brother of the apostle John, the son of Zebedee, is one of them. The Gospels mention him quite frequently. But then there is James, the brother of Jesus, whom we are considering today. He is only mentioned a couple times in the Gospels, and that not very flatteringly. But then, after Jesus rose from the dead, he was converted. He became very influential and important in the early church as the bishop of Jerusalem. James eventually was martyred. That means that he died for being a Christian. It is thought that this took place about 62 A.D. The Jewish historian, Josephus, says that the Jewish leaders took advantage of a time when there was no Roman governor in Judea. They had a quick trial, found James guilty, and sentenced him to death. The exact manner of death is not known with complete certainty. He might have been stoned—rocks being thrown at him until he died from the injuries. He might have been thrown off the top of the temple. It's possible that he was thrown from the top of the temple, did not die from that, and then was stoned until he died. So what can we learn from the example of James, the brother of our Lord? The most important lesson comes from observing God's grace in his life. It appears that James did not believe in his brother until Jesus appeared to him after he rose from the dead. Let us remember that the apostles and the women, also, did not believe in him until they saw him after he rose. But James seems not to have been a follower of Jesus before he was crucified. He grew up in the same house as Jesus with the same parents, yet he did not believe until, finally, he did. There is a lesson for us here. Christians cannot be manufactured. There is no sure-fire way to make your children Christians. We should always try to foster the Word of God and prayer and be examples of faithfulness in our homes. While we cannot manufacture Christians, we certainly can manufacture unbelief. Unbelief comes naturally, and so all that is needed for that is hypocrisy and neglect. But even in good homes with good spiritual conditions (like Joseph and Mary's home must have been), faith can fail to take root, or it can be scorched by the sun, or it can be crowded out by other cares and concerns. But then, like James, people can also be converted again. I'm sure Mary and Jesus would have preferred it if James had remained believing. Unbelief is the breaking of the first commandment, the greatest commandment. But the time wasn't right it seems. The right time in the divine story of God's dealing with the man James, was that he shouldn't come to faith in Jesus until later. Each one of us has a similar divine story of God's dealing with us when it comes to faith. We are all fighting against the old Adam and the devil. We grow weak and weary. May God make it so that we are strong—that is always best—but it also happens that we stumble and fall, and may God pick us back up again to fight another day. God be praised for doing so! But sometimes people don't get back up. Or they don't get back up for a long time. The example of James, the brother of our Lord, the eventual bishop of Jerusalem, shows us that God converts unbelievers who have been unbelievers for quite some time. It is not as though people who have been unbelieving cannot be converted. This does not happen by random chance, though. It always happens through God's own means. James, Jesus's brother, was not converted by chance. He was converted the same way that any of us are converted: The Word of God came to him. He was brought to repentance for his sins, and he believed that the crucified and risen Lord Jesus was his Savior. Of course the messenger in James's case was the Word himself, our Lord Jesus Christ, but that same Lord Jesus Christ is at work in the Word of God that speaks to us as well as the Word of God that we speak to others. Last week we heard how the Scriptures are God-breathed. Since God breathed them out they also powerful and effective. That same passage says that we should be ready with the Word of God when it is convenient and when it is inconvenient. We should be patient. We should teach. That Word of God works as God wants it to work. It is the Word of God alone that creates faith. The Holy Spirit in the inspired Word creates faith. So let us take stock of ourselves and be honest with ourselves. How many of us have people in our lives whose unbelief troubles us? Wouldn't Mary have been troubled by the unbelief of her children? So also there are bound to be several people here today who are troubled by their children's unbelief. Many of these same people might believe that they did everything they could for their children's spiritual wellbeing. The kids were dropped off for Sunday School. The kids were dropped off for Vacation Bible School. The kids were dropped off for Confirmation. The kids were dropped off for youth group. Who could ask for anything more? But let us take stock of ourselves and be honest with ourselves. Was our home full of hypocrisy? Was our home devoid of the Word of God, the Catechism, and prayer? Did we work against the truthfulness of God's Word by not following it, pursuing every other goal imaginable, making sure our kids were fully vested in activities—in sports and school and so on so that they would get a good job? And we were pretty successful in that, were we not? The kids, by and large, have good jobs. According to how most people think, that's what really matters. I know lots of people who are troubled by their children's unbelief, but I don't know many people who are willing to go to their children and confess their sins. There is a hope that people will somehow, someway get converted by chance. We don't want to help. We don't want to change. We don't want to admit that we've done wrong. But answer me this: If we can't admit that we've done wrong, how can we expect anybody else—including our children—to admit that they've done wrong? The example of James shows us that it is never too late so long as we are still alive on this earth. If we are still alive, then we are still in the time of grace. Jesus says, “As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent Jesus. Night is coming when no one can work.” Jesus is the light of the world. You know that. You are therefore equipped. Jesus is in the Word of God that you have heard, which works faith. You can bring that Word of God also to others. But this should be done in humility—one sinner to another. Then there is hope because the Scriptures are inspired and powerful. James was converted. You may be converted. The people you love may be converted. But this is always done the same way. It is by hearing the Word, taking it to heart, and believing in Jesus.

Getting to Know the Disciples, Episode 9: If James son of Alpheus were alive today, he probably wouldn't have a YouTube channel or TikTok account. He was happy to serve in the background, away from the spotlight. In fact, he's only mentioned four times in the Bible, only as part of a list with the other disciples. But it turns out we know quite a lot about James! Far from obscure and boring, James led a thrilling life of kingdom building and disciple making. Join Pat Morley as we shine a spotlight on this superb example of a level-5 leader. What's a level-5 leader, you ask? Join us and find out!  --------------------- Find Bible study video series at http://mimbiblestudy.com Help us to continue this vital ministry by partnering with us: http://maninthemirror.org/give Learn more about Man in the Mirror at http://maninthemirror.org

- Press the PLAY button to listen to the catechesis of the day and share if you like -+ A reading from the holy Gospel, according to Matthew +Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.Coming down the hill with them, Jesus stood on a level place. Many of his disciples were there and a large crowd of people who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon. They gathered to hear him and be healed of their diseases; likewise people troubled by evil spirits were healed. The entire crowd tried to touch him because of the power that went out from him and healed them all.The Gospel of the Lord.

- Press the PLAY button to listen to the catechesis of the day and share if you like - + A reading from the holy Gospel, according to Matthew + Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor. Coming down the hill with them, Jesus stood on a level place. Many of his disciples were there and a large crowd of people who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon. They gathered to hear him and be healed of their diseases; likewise people troubled by evil spirits were healed. The entire crowd tried to touch him because of the power that went out from him and healed them all. The Gospel of the Lord.

[12] And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and he passed the whole night in the prayer of God. Factum est autem in illis diebus, exiit in montem orare, et erat pernoctans in oratione Dei. [13] And when day was come, he called unto him his disciples; and he chose twelve of them (whom also he named apostles). Et cum dies factus esset, vocavit discipulos suos : et elegit duodecim ex ipsis ( quos et apostolos nominavit) : [14] Simon, whom he surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Simonem, quem cognominavit Petrum, et Andream fratrem ejus, Jacobum, et Joannem, Philippum, et Bartholomaeum, [15] Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who is called Zelotes, Matthaeum, et Thomam, Jacobum Alphaei, et Simonem, qui vocatur Zelotes, [16] And Jude, the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was the traitor. et Judam Jacobi, et Judam Iscariotem, qui fuit proditor. [17] And coming down with them, he stood in a plain place, and the company of his disciples, and a very great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast both of Tyre and Sidon, Et descendens cum illis, stetit in loco campestri, et turba discipulorum ejus, et multitudo copiosa plebis ab omni Judaea, et Jerusalem, et maritima, et Tyri, et Sidonis, [18] Who were come to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were troubled with unclean spirits, were cured. qui venerant ut audirent eum, et sanarentur a languoribus suis. Et qui vexabantur a spiritibus immundis, curabantur. [19] And all the multitude sought to touch him, for virtue went out from him, and healed all. Et omnis turba quaerebat eum tangere : quia virtus de illo exibat, et sanabat omnes.

Welcome to Episode 529. This week we have two tales for you: about the unlikely kindness of outcasts and a psychopath on wheels.COMING UPGood Evening: Thank Yous: 00:01:06Alpheus Williams' Woman in the Woods as read by Danielle Hewitt: 00:06:21Erik C Martin's A Night at Crystal Skates as read by Stephen Gagin: 00:22:16PERTINENT LINKSSupport us on Patreon! Spread the darkness.Shop Tales to Terrify MerchErik C MartinErik C Martin on Twitter (@ErikCMartin)Stephen GaginOriginal Score by Nebulus EntertainmentNebulus on FacebookNebulus on InstagramSPECIAL THANKS TOAmanda GottfriedSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/talestoterrify. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Welcome to Episode 519. This week's guest host is Andrew Gibson, who has three tales for you, about a manifesto to hate, a precocious young hero, and the search for the origin of a planet's curse.COMING UPGood Evening: Guest Host Andrew Gibson: 00:01:06B.W. Carter's Testament as read by Andrew Gibson: 00:04:21Alpheus Williams' The Boy Who Never Grew Up as read by Jasmine Arch: 00:13:52Malena Salaza Marciá's Prayers of the God-Fearing as read by Emily Strand: 00:23:54PERTINENT LINKSSupport us on Patreon! Spread the darkness.Shop Tales to Terrify MerchAndrew GibsonAndrew Gibson | The Narrator Nook DiscordAndrew Gibson | The Haven Discord Jasmine ArchJasmine Arch | New MythsEmily StrandEmily Strand on Twitter (@ekcstrand)Original Score by Nebulus EntertainmentNebulus on FacebookNebulus on InstagramSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/talestoterrify. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

*** CHAPTER 13:  JESUS CALLS MATTHEW TO BE A DISCIPLE AFTER THE miraculous cure of the paralytic, Jesus left the house and, as he passed along, saw Matthew, known as Levi, the son of Alpheus, sitting in the customhouse-where he performed his duties as tax collector.  Jesus said to him:              “Follow me.”             Matthew arose and followed him.             Later Jesus sat down to a meal in Matthew's house.  With him were his disciples and many tax collectors and sinners.             Pharisees and scribes who saw them eating together were surprised and said to the disciples:             “Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?”             Jesus, hearing them, said:             “They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.  I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Daddy English kicks off the episode with new music from Pzed and continues the authentic Reggae vibe with selections from Amlak Redsquare, Meta & The Cornerstone, Alpheus and many more. Padrino's rendition of 'Stranger In Town' is something special, all this and more. Enjoy @ReggaeInTheCityPodcast @DaddyEnglishBI Facebook @ReggaeInTheCityUk #Gorilla #AimToTheHead

- Press the PLAY button to listen to the catechesis of the day and share if you like -+ A reading from the holy Gospel, according to Luke +Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.Coming down the hill with them, Jesus stood on a level place. Many of his disciples were there and a large crowd of people who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon. They gathered to hear him and be healed of their diseases; likewise people troubled by evil spirits were healed. The entire crowd tried to touch him because of the power that went out from him and healed them all.The Gospel of the Lord.

- Press the PLAY button to listen to the catechesis of the day and share if you like - + A reading from the holy Gospel, according to Luke + Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor. Coming down the hill with them, Jesus stood on a level place. Many of his disciples were there and a large crowd of people who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon. They gathered to hear him and be healed of their diseases; likewise people troubled by evil spirits were healed. The entire crowd tried to touch him because of the power that went out from him and healed them all. The Gospel of the Lord.

“6:12. And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray: and he passed the whole night in the prayer of God. 6:13. And when day was come, he called unto him his disciples: and he chose twelve of them (whom also he named apostles): 6:14. Simon, whom he surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, 6:15. Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alpheus, and Simon who is called Zelotes,” “6:16. And Jude the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was the traitor. 6:17. And coming down with them, he stood in a plain place: and the company of his disciples and a very great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the sea coast, both of Tyre and Sidon, 6:18. Who were come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. 6:19. And all the multitude sought to touch him: for virtue went out from him and healed all.” Excerpt From The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete Anonymous https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-bible-douay-rheims-complete/id955129088 This material may be protected by copyright. Music is from Gregorian Chant in Paradisum. Mihi Autem Nimis. Psalm 88:17. To me Thy friends O God….

Join Inside Towers Managing Editor Jim Fryer in this third installment of “Tower Masters”. This series focuses on the men and women who, for decades, have not only survived, but thrived as independent operators in the wireless infrastructure field. Inside Towers talks with longtime developer in the wireless infrastructure space, Jimmy Chiles. Although Chiles is now an Operating Partner with Digital Bridge, his career spans the gamut from 600-site towerco owner to founding and developing several fiber and data center operations. Chiles began his career in the late ‘70's with Motorola and went on to found Netlink, a facilities based 850 MHz CMRS operator which he sold to Sprint in 1999. He then started TPI, a provider of metro fiber and enterprise data centers he later sold to ExteNet Systems. Next was his towerco venture, Broadcast Towers, which sold to Global Signal (now Crown Castle). Following that, Chiles founded Aspen Communications, an ethernet based metro fiber business in Dallas, then Alpheus, a provider of metro fiber and enterprise data centers. Most recently, prior to joining DigitalBridge, Chiles was an Executive VP with ExteNet. (Whew!)Listen in on this lively half-hour discussion between two long-time acquaintances in the industry as they cover the myriad of issues facing the tower sector. Support the show (https://insidetowers.com/subscription/)

The one and only original style wicked and wild desde las catacumbas del reggae del ska y del rocksteady... Con una entrevista al hombre llamado Alpheus.

Alpheus Chewning is a Virginia Beach author, folklorist, ghost-walk guide, and living historian with a focus on Chesapeake Bay pirates, the Civil War, & regional hauntings. In this episode we get a taste of what it would have been like aboard a pirate ship during the Golden Age of Piracy [1680 - 1730]. We learn about their egalitarian ethics, ship contracts & recruitment; what they ate; how they slept; using the bathroom; their clothing; flag pictograms & symbolism; superstitions & common phrases; the dividing of treasure; and of course, their brutal yet creative guerrilla battle tactics. When it comes to story time, Al recounts the tale of Blackbeard's curse upon the legendary treasure buried at today's First Landing State Park. His second story, which also blends history & folklore & dates to the early 18th century, is a potent parable about a beautiful & eccentric animal-whisperer/plant healer who was accused of being a witch by her neighbors. The last third of the episode is dedicated to local hauntings: ghosts' participation in a Civil War reenactment; a profound theory about past lives, & more. From the first colonist ships, to Indian graves & pirate battles, we end back at the storied First Landing State Park as Al speaks of his paranormal investigation of a young woman's ghost. Pirates, witches, and ghosts, this episode is beach campfire gold!  Check out Al's Histories & Haunts Facebook, his books on Virginia Beach, and if you're in the area, join one of his guided ghost walks. To learn more, watch Al's cameo in The Pirates of the Chesapeake Bay documentary or read his recommendation of the best book on the topic.  Follow Our Numinous Nature & my naturalist illustrations on InstagramCheck out my shop of shirts, prints, and books featuring my artContact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com

Il gambero pistola prende il nome da una delle sue chele destra o sinistra che è molto più grande dell'altra e somiglia a una pistola.Aprendo e chiudendo la velocemente produce un'onda d'urto di una potenza devastante che stordisce o uccide piccoli pesci.Un colpo di pistola a un metro produce 140 dB, un razzo in decollo 180 dB il gambero pistola ne produce rullo di tamburi oltre 200 dB.200 dB è un livello di pressione sonora enorme.Lo vuoi mettere dell'acquario di casa? Meglio di no, ti romperebbe i vetri dell'acquario!

We made it out of 2020 yall! We couldn't have survived this outrageous year if it weren't for you, our unity community, so thank you for the support. We are pumped to start season 2 of Checkered Cast with a bang by bringing you an interview with the organizers of The Supernova International Ska Festival, Tim & April Receveur (www.supernovaska.com). We talk to them about their background with ska music, how they got the insane idea to DIY an incredible music festival, and the challenges they have faced having to change up their plans due to the Covid curveball of 2020. We are including some of Tim & Aprils music recommendations on this episode which features songs from; Alpheus, Buddah Council, Emily Capell, Half Past Two, The Loving Paupers, and more. Check them out on social media & make sure to like the Supernova Ska Festival Page on Facebook(. If you are not already part of the Supernova Ska Community Facebook group that Tara runs & are planning to attend the festival definitely go join the group. We also would appreciate if you hit the like button on the Checkered Cast Facebook page ( & follow us on Instagram ( Make sure to stay in touch with us through our social media, leave us some comments on instagram @checkeredcast, or drop us a line at our Anchor.fm & if you haven't checked out our Thursday Ska Chat Happy Hour zoom (6pm-9pm EST) yet head over to Facebook where we post the link every week. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/checkeredcast/message

FDA 批准颈动脉窦压力反射刺激疗法治疗心衰Lancet 血ACE2水平与心血管疾病及死亡的关系Science子刊 一种具有几何适应性的人工心脏瓣膜BAROSTIM NEO系统BAROSTIM NEO系统包括一个植入式脉冲发生器（IPG）、一个颈动脉窦含铅套件和一个程序。医生将BAROSTIM NEO脉冲发生器植入晚期心力衰竭患者的左或右锁骨下方，并在患者的左或右颈动脉窦处放置颈动脉窦导线，然后将脉冲发生器连接到颈动脉窦导线上。医生根据病人的个人需求制定脉冲发生器程序，然后向颈动脉的压力感受器传递电脉冲。压力反射激活（BAT）疗法的目的是激活颈动脉壁的压力感受器，刺激自主神经系统的传入和传出神经，大脑接收到神经信号作出相应反应：松弛血管、降低心率、并通过改善肾功能来减少液体储留。2019年8月，FDA批准BAROSTIM NEO系统用于药物治疗无效的、不符合心脏再同步化治疗适应症的、难治性心力衰竭患者。《BeAT-HF研究：这项研究证明了压力反射刺激疗法（BAT）对射血分数降低的心力衰竭患者的安全性和有效性》Journal of American College of Cardiology，2020年7月 (1) BeAT-HF研究是一项多中心、前瞻性、随机对照研究，纳入408名射血分数降低的心力衰竭（HFrEF）患者中，入组要求：纽约心功能分级II-III级、射血分数≤35%、药物治疗方案稳定≥4周、不符合心脏再同步化治疗的I类指征。这篇报告重点汇报了D队列中、NT-proBNP

Beefy is back for 2020 and here he is banging out the tunes trying to make sure that The Ska Show with Beefy keeps the prestigious mantle of being the SECOND best Ska Podcast on the planet (https://blog.feedspot.com/ska_podcasts/) We bloody love it here at Ska Central! We're still not sure what we have to do to get the number 1 spot though - just keep being awesome I guess! Beefy is quickly making this little corner of the Ska Universe his very own as every week the World's (2nd) Greatest Ska Radio Show (sponsored by Masita.com.au - the best sports teamwear in Australia) brings the world some of the best Ska music currently out there. Broadcast live from Melbourne to Australia and the rest of the world on 88.3 Southern FM, no other ska show boasts the diversity or the innovation of what Beefy brings to the Ska party! 2019 has proved to be The Year Of Ska and it's up to the Big Beef Man to make sure it stays that way into 2020! As always Beefy kicks the show off with another awesome live set and this week we're back to welcoming Mustard Plug to these shores for Ska Nation 2020. Then we get 2020 underway with pure gold from The Specials, The Bennies, The Skluttz, Dilip N The Davs, Zen Baseball Bat, Alpheus, Staflos, The Bakesys and Grave Danger ! Check out The Ska Show with Beefy Facebook page for playlists and other fun stuff! Send me your music if you're in a band - do it & I'll play it.

Jack Dempsey, author of "Michigans Civil War Citizen-General: Alpheus S. Williams"

Jack Dempsey, author of "Michigans Civil War Citizen-General: Alpheus S. Williams"

Jack Dempsey, author of "Michigans Civil War Citizen-General: Alpheus S. Williams"

Introduction Amen. Amen. Well, the world, as I look around, the world is filled with spectacular buildings, and I have an appreciation for the art and science of architecture. I was a mechanical engineer, but I think I esteem architecture more than any of the sciences that were taught at MIT. I’m just kind of an architect, want to be. I know we have some architects in our church and you can come afterwards and say, “Thank you for plugging my profession,” but there's such a combination of science and art in a beautiful building. And I have been in some really beautiful buildings in my time. Recently, I had the opportunity to be in the most spectacular cathedral I'd ever seen in Prague, in the Czech Republic. And my good friend, Preston, is here today. I didn't know you were going to be here, brother, but it was Saint Vitus Cathedral. Have you been in there? Unbelievable, a spectacular cathedral there in Prague, in the Czech Republic. The construction in that building began in the year 1344, went on for centuries. It's over 400 feet long, 200 feet wide, almost 270 feet high. It's a 27-story high building, has amazing flying buttresses, stunning stained glass windows. Some of the stained glass was just spectacular the afternoon that we were there. It was a very hot day. Calvin and I were there, and the light was just streaming in through the stained glass. And there are all these different scenes that you could see as you looked at the stained glass. Biblical scenes, scenes of creation, of the death and resurrection of Christ, the final judgment. I've also seen some church history as well, especially from that region of the world, Bohemia and different scenes from church history. It's really quite amazing. Many of the people that worship throughout the centuries there were illiterate, and so they just got a lot of education by looking at these stained glass windows, and I can't even imagine all the work and artistry and skill that went into that structure. Now, from the beginning of time, people, human beings, have thrown themselves into architecture, and they built spectacular buildings, and the work of the architect has been on display throughout the pages of scripture, for good or ill. And we see, for example, the Tower of Babel, which was built with the state-of-the-art technology, and they found ways to build stronger bricks and then higher buildings and they were trying to make a stairway to Heaven, really, and make a name for themselves so they wouldn't be scattered throughout the world, but God interfered with that building project and began the start of nations and language at that point. But it didn't end there. You have, for example, the Great Pyramid of Cheops, which I've never seen with my own eyes, but which is just a marvel of achievement and one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. And I think, as far as I know, the only one that's still standing. Ancient building projects have been the fruit of human ingenuity and engineering. They're still on display like the Colosseum in Rome, which I've never seen, the Great Wall of China, which I have seen. The Taj Mahal, which I would love to visit at some point, been to India several times but I've never seen it. Buildings of the Bible The Jews were especially proud of the temple of Solomon. They were amazed at its beauty and at its skill, and they really put their faith in it and they trusted in it, that it would protect them from all harm. As a matter of fact, as judgment was looming in the days of Jeremiah, Jeremiah had to warn them not to trust in the temple of the Lord. So do not say "The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord." In other words, just keep saying that like a mantra, over and over, that God's never going to destroy us, because we have this beautiful temple, but even was going on in the days of Jesus and his disciples. You remember when they went to the temple of Herod, which had been rebuilt and built up over 46 years, and was really pretty spectacular. And as the disciples were leaving, in Mark 13:1, as they were leaving the temple, one of Jesus's disciples said to Him, "Look, teacher, what massive stones, what magnificent buildings," just in awe of the building and the structure. The Ephesians were that way too, about their own temple, the Temple of Artemis, which was one of the great wonders and also one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. And they were fanatically committed to that temple as a holy place and as a place of lucrative business as well. And we know the story about the riot in Ephesus, in Acts 19 in verse 34, where they all shouted in unison for about two hours, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians." I think the funniest part about that is most of the people who were there, didn't know why they were there. And so they just joined in. Talk about a mob mentality. "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians." Why are we here? What's going on? And that these things are going on and they're just rioting. And then the city clerk quiets the crowd and says, "Men of Ephesus, doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the Temple of the great Artemis, and of her image, which fell from Heaven?" They were very proud of that temple, of that holy building, that holy structure. Antipater of Sidon, who compiled the list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. That's how we even know what they are, described the temple with these words. "I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots along the top. And I have seen the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the Colossus of the Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids. I've seen all of that and the vast Tomb of Mausolus, but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy. And I said, apart from Olympus, the sun has never looked on anything so great." That was the Temple of Artemis of the Ephesians. It was easy for the Ephesians to boast about their impressive temple. But Paul, here in the text you just heard read, sets before the eyes of their heart something far more glorious, a structure far more expansive and dramatic, and radiant with the glory of God, and that is the Church of Jesus Christ. Something that will supplant every building project that ever has been, is now, or ever will be. The greatest building project in the history of the world is the Church of Jesus Christ. And I do not mean the cathedrals. I don't mean this building that we assemble in every week. I don't mean any of the church buildings, the Crystal Cathedral, any of these places that have been built for worship. But I'm talking about the spiritual temple of God, I'm talking about the Church of the living God, the church of Jesus Christ. It's a spiritual temple, that we are told, and we're going to look at it today, made up of “living stones.” “Living stones,” individual believers from every generation in human history. Now, God had the blueprint for that, the plan of it “before the foundation of the world,” before God even said, "Let there be light," He had the whole structure worked out. God is the architect who made the plans and God is also the builder who was executing the plans. And God is the owner who will get all the glory, and God is the dweller who will live there for all eternity in the center of his people. God the Father gave the command, God the Son paid for it in blood, and God the Spirit is now constructing it. It's going on before our spiritual eyes, even as we speak. Look again at verses 18-22, "For through Him, we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him, you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit." Those are the verses we're going to look at today. Formerly Excluded, Now Having Free Access “Remember What You Were” Now, we begin by reminding ourselves that we Gentile believers, the Ephesian Gentile believers, were formerly excluded, but now having free access. This whole section in Ephesians 2 has been a lesson of the journey of salvation for the Ephesians. Where they were when the Gospel first came to them and where they are now and will be for all eternity. They began in verses 1-3 of chapter 2 as living dead. “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live. When you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature, following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were, by nature, objects of wrath.”That's where the Gentile believers began, spiritually dead, “enslaved to the world, the flesh, and the devil, could not escape, by nature, objects of wrath.” The wrath of God could have fallen at any moment and God would have been just in condemning them and sending them to Hell. That's how they began. “But God,” verses 4-6, “but God, because of the great love with which He loved us, God who is rich in mercy, even when we were dead in transgressions and sins, made us alive with Christ. It is by grace you have been saved.” How rich is that? And then verses 8-10, celebrate the richness of God's salvation by grace, “For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not by works, so that no one can boast, for we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them.” Now, when I look at Ephesians 2:10 and then I go to the end of the chapter, and I'm finding about a structure, a spiritual temple that's rising, I bring the two together. We are being crafted by God to be a temple, a spiritual temple, and we are actually workers in that temple to enlist, He has enlisted our aid so that that we can help construct it. We are also workers in this temple. We'll talk more about that at the end of the message. That's Ephesians 2:10. Gentiles Now Brought Near Now, Paul wanted to be certain that the Ephesian Christians, these Gentile believers, understood how they had formerly been excluded. Look at verses 11 and 12, “Therefore remember, that formally, you who are Gentiles by birth and called uncircumcised by those who call themselves in circumcision, that done in the body by the hands of men. Remember that at that time, you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.” That's what you were. All of us were that way. We were excluded. We were outsiders, but now, in verse 13, we have been, “brought near through the blood of Christ.” “We who were once far away, we have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” And how is that possible? Well, Christ destroyed the barrier, the “dividing wall” that the Law of Moses had set up. God had set up barriers forbidding the Gentiles from inclusion among the people of God. The laws of circumcision, the dietary regulations, the concern for genealogy, all of those things were barriers and dividing walls, the animal sacrificial system, but Jesus came and destroyed it all. Look at verses 14-16. “He himself is our peace, who has made the two, one, and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the Law, with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace and in this one body, to reconcile both of them to God through the cross by which He put to death or hostility.” The Gospel of Peace Proclaimed by Christ That's the language of reconciliation, the language of blood atonement. Jesus Christ has taken our sins on Himself, and He suffered and died on the cross. He shed his blood, and He received in himself the due penalty for our wickedness and our sin. He was our substitute. And if we simply believe in Him, repenting of our sins, and casting all of our hope and our trust on Christ, we are forgiven. We who were once outsiders, we have now been “brought near through the blood of Christ.” And so, verse 17, he says, “He came and preached peace to you who are far away and peace to those who were near.” That's Jesus Christ. So, that's all by way of introduction to bring us up to this point, in verse 18. Jesus Christ has come and preached peace to you through the Gospel. Isn't that marvelous? Can't you picture in your mind's eye what it says in John 20, on the night of that first day of the week, what we celebrate every year at Easter Sunday, how Jesus came. And though the doors were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst, and said, "Peace be with you." Isn't that magnificent? He came and preached peace to those who are near at that moment, Jews, and said, God's not at war with you anymore. God is at peace with you now. “Having been justified through faith, we have peace with God,” but also, he came by means of the apostles, by means of the missionaries, by means of evangelists. He came out to the town of the Ephesians to Ephesus, and he preached peace to them, too, those who were once far away. And he said, God is saying, in Christ, peace be with you. Free Access by Christ in the Spirit If you repent and believe, there's peace with God. And therefore, we have, according to the text, free access to God. Look at verse 18, "For through Him, we both,” Jewish believer, and Gentile believer in Christ, “we both have access to the Father by one Spirit." So he's expanding now, including Jewish believers. They were all one, Jewish believers and Gentile believers. We are all free in our access to God. We can get into the presence of Almighty God, any time. Actually, in the past, everyone was excluded, not just Gentiles, but Jews as well, excluded. Apart from the redeeming work of Christ, we'd have all been outsiders. The real barrier, the real “dividing wall of hostility” was between us and God and it was our sins. The holiness of God, and he could not be in fellowship with sinners like us without it being atoned for. The message again and again in the Old Covenant, as we've seen was, "This far, you may come in no further." We saw how God spoke to Moses out of the flames of the burning bush, and there was this bush burning and it was not consumed and Moses went over to see this great sight. And as he drew near, he was immediately told, "Do not come any closer." That's the mediator of the Old Covenant. What is he told? “Do you not come any closer. Take off your shoes, for the ground on which you're standing is holy ground, because of my holiness, because of your sinfulness, you cannot come into my presence.” Even the high priest was excluded. Leviticus 16, "You must tell Aaron and his sons that He may not come into my presence anytime he chooses." Just ponder that from Leviticus 16. He may not come in any time he chooses. No one else may ever come in. But even the sons of Aaron may only come in once a year, and never without blood. We're told in the Book of Hebrews. So tell him he may not come. He does not have free access. Yes, but we do. We have free access. Look at Verse 18 again. “In him, we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.” How sweet is that? We know that Jesus, when He died on the cross, and when He said, "It is finished." The curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom, and He opened for us, it says, in the Book of Hebrews, “a new and living way into the very presence of God. And he has cleansed our conscience by the blood of Christ,” God has. “And He has washed us with pure water, and we are cleansed, and we are invited, even commanded to come into the very presence of God.” “We have access to the Father by one Spirit.” So it's the same in the verse I just quoted a moment ago, in Romans 5:1-2. If you'll look at the second verse. Romans 5:1 says, "Therefore since we have been justified through faith, we have the peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, and access by faith into this grace in which we now stand." All of us, I say, all of us underestimate the privilege of that access. Every single one of us underestimates, and under-uses the access. We don't pray enough. We don't come into the presence of God enough. We are characterized, tragically, by prayerlessness. And this text is in a very sweet way, Ephesians 2:18, beckoning to you to come into the presence of God more than you do, to come in again and again, to “pray without ceasing,” to live your lives in fellowship with God. Having free access into the presence of God. As it says in Hebrews 4:16, “let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” So we can approach the throne of Almighty God any time, bringing any burden, great or small, right into the presence of our heavenly Father. By the power of the Spirit, we have access. We all do. Spiritual Access, Not Physical Access This access is spiritual, it's not physical. This is the very thing that the Lord was preparing the human race for. In His amazing conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, you remember that? Remember that conversation He had with her, and He's talking about springs of living water flowing out from within us, from which we can drink any time? We're going to talk about that more at the end of Ephesians 3, I can't wait. It's such a sweet meditation on how the Lord yearns to have intimate fellowship with us all the time by the power of the Spirit. Jesus brings up, as you remember, her sin. "Go call your husband and come back." You remember? "I have no husband." And Jesus said, "You're right in saying you have no husband, the fact is, you've had five husbands and the man you're now living with is not your husband. What you've said is quite true." A very interesting way of dealing with her statement. She said, "I perceive sir, that you are a prophet. Now our Father said that we ought to worship on this mountain and you Jews claim we should worship on that mountain." So That was very deft of her I think clever. “Alright, let's change the subject and quickly.” She brings up the issue of a place of worship and this is very relevant to the text we're looking at today, And Jesus began to reveal the fullness of the Father's plan to this woman, this Samaritan woman, and He spoke these words, “believe me, woman, a time is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit in truth.” What is He saying? He's saying there's going to come a time very soon when the Old Covenant will be abolished, destroyed, made obsolete and you will not need to go to one particular geographical location anymore to worship God, you'll be able to worship God by the spirit anywhere in the world. Very thing that the Jews were forbidden to do. “You may not worship God under every spreading tree and on every high mountain, you can't do that, you have to go to the one place I chose.” And they had these pilgrimages to the one place that God chose, Jerusalem. But we are free to worship anywhere. Now, I'm not against buildings, I'm not against the structure, I'm very grateful for them during a downpour, aren't you? I praise God for the air conditioning, which works so well to keep us generally Cool. I find that I preach better to colder people. So the hotter it is the sleepier you all get and me too. So the structure is needed because we have bodies and I think this is a beautiful building and I'm not against the buildings that people erect to worship God, I'm not against it, I'm just saying He's not confined to that space. And believe me, I'm not saying you don't need to come to church on Sunday, you wouldn't believe how many people kind of quote Jesus, in John 4 and say, “I can worship anywhere, I don't have to be in church on Sunday. “We'll get to that toward the end. That's not what I'm saying, but what I am saying is, there isn't just one locus, one place of worship anymore, it's gone. Now, we can worship God anywhere. Just as Stephen saw or foresaw, so plainly, in Acts 7:48, “the Most High does not live in houses made by men,” and so we are able to worship God anywhere in this spiritual temple. God’s Nation, Family, and Temple Now, in Verse 19, he broadens out, to give us a sense of the greatness of the church. The greatness of what has happened to these Ephesian Christians, these Gentiles, what they are now, a part of, they underestimate the church and he wants to help them to see the greatness of the church. Look at verse 19, “Consequently, you Gentiles are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household.” Now, in the New Testament, there are lots of images for the Church but here we have three right in this passage that we're looking at. The Church is a nation of which we are citizens, the church is a family of which we are adopted members, and the church is a building of which we are “living stones.” Now later in Ephesians 4, we'll add a fourth beautiful image, the Church is the body of which we are living members. That just shows the amazing complexity of the Church. We need all of these metaphors. Can I just say to you as an aside the Church is the grandest, glorious work that God has done in history. This is the work of God. This is the greatest display of the glory of God is the Church of Jesus Christ. That's what he's doing. So look at each of these images. Nation: No Longer Outsiders, Now Citizens First, nation. We are no longer outsiders now we are citizens, all Christians everywhere are welcome, right into the presence of God. Our status has changed forever, we're no longer aliens, we're no longer outsiders, we are now citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. Our citizenship is in Heaven, it says in Philippians 3, we are citizens. Christ is the King and we are His subjects, and Gentile Christians are every bit as much citizens as Jewish Christians. Equal Access, equal privileges. Family: Adopted Members of God’s Household Secondly, family. We are all, every one of us, adopted members of God's household. Now, the Greek word household here is a rich and full word, the Ephesians would have understood it well, would have to do with a wealthy man and his family, and his estate. And so that's the issue of this household, a grand estate, a large and wealthy family, and Paul asserts that we are beloved, adopted members of this family of God. Back in Ephesians 1:4-6, we have these words “in love,” speaking of God the Father, “in love, He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will, to the praise of His glorious grace.” It says in John 1:12-13, “As many as received Him, as many as believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” And then in Romans 8:15-17, “For you did not receive the Spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of son-ship or of adoption by which we cry ‘Abba Father.’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit, that we are the children of God. Now, if we are children, then we are heirs, heirs with Christ, co-heirs with Christ” and that's what we are. Building: A Temple Rising And the third image here is of a building that's rising and becoming more and more built up more and more glorious, a more and more elaborate structure all the time. This building, it says in verse 20 is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.” Now, this building has a long history, if you look back at the history of the Temple, and before that to the history of the tabernacle, the tabernacle was the start of this idea, of a place where God would dwell in the midst of His people and how God showed to Moses a vision of how it was to be built, and how he built this tent, this holy tent, this tabernacle, by the instructions and the vision that God had given Moses on the mountain. And so, he built it and when he built it, God came and filled it with His presence, with the glory cloud. And no one could enter the tabernacle because of the glory of God which filled the place. And then how, centuries later, David once he was established as king in Jerusalem and all of his enemies had been defeated, and he's there, he says, "Here I am living in a palace of cedar, while God is still in a tent. I want to build a permanent dwelling place where God can dwell in the midst of His people." It was a good idea. David was showing initiative toward God, "Hey, God maybe you hadn't thought about this before. I'd like to think of this thing. This is something I want to do for you." I love it. And isn't it how sweet how God speaks to David, through Nathan the Prophet, kind of putting him in his place, but at the same time, greatly exalting him too. He says, "Are you the one to build a house for me? I'm going to build a house for you. And after you're gone, after you die, I'm going to raise up one of your sons and he will build a house for my name and his kingdom will endure forever and ever." Now, you know, he's not talking about Solomon, but he kind of is. It's like yes and no. He is talking about Solomon because when he sins, I will beat him, but I'll never take my love from him and you read about it, but he says that then there's this greater son whose kingdom will never end, and that's Jesus, and “He will build a dwelling where I will live in the midst of my people, forever.” And that's fulfilled in the Church of Jesus Christ that's the very thing that Paul is talking about. Now, when Solomon built the temple, the same thing happened again in the 2 Chronicle 7 the glory of the Lord entered the place. And it filled the place and God's glory radiated there, and there was a symbol of God's desire to dwell in the midst of his people and fellowship with His people, but you know that the Jews, in subsequent generations and centuries, sinned and sinned and sinned some more and God sent them warnings but they wouldn't listen. And so at the right time, under the judgment of God, and the justice of God, it was time for the glory cloud to leave the temple of Solomon and to leave the people and then judgment to come. And it came and the Babylonians came and they acted it says in Psalm 74, “like men wielding axes and they chopped up all the carved wood and they burned it and they destroyed the temple, the place where God had met with His people.” So, still this yearning for a place where God could dwell in the midst of his people unfulfilled, but there is the son of David who's coming and he would build it, and Jesus is that one, and he has come to build this true, true dwelling place, and so Jesus came and died on the cross and He was buried on the third day, He was raised from the dead and He showed Himself to His disciples and appeared to them over a period of 40 days, and then He went up and ascended and He went through the heavenly realms and He went through, it says in the Book of Hebrews, “the greater and more perfect tabernacle that's not man-made, not built by human hands” and that's the true heavenly dwelling place where God will dwell with His people forever. And that's the work of Christ. Church: God’s Dwelling Place Now, the Church is the dwelling place of God. Look at Verses 21 and 22, “in Him,” Christ, “the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord and in Him, you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.” That is what is going on around the world, does not matter what the lead story is, CNN, or BBC News, or any of the news outlets you follow. The number one story, every day, is the building of His Church. That is the story of human history. That's what's going on in the world, nothing else matters. This is the only eternal building that's getting built. This is it. Peter gives us some other images here that help us to understand this a little bit better. In 1 Peter chapter 2:4-5, Peter says this, “as you come to Him, the living stone rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him. You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices as acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” So as each individual person in “every tribe and language and people and nation,” all around the world, comes to genuine faith in Christ, they become alive. They were dead now, they're alive. They are “living stones.” Kind of a paradoxical image, but we are then settled into a place in the wall of this spiritual temple that God had been reserving for us in particular, from “before the foundation of the world.” It's like a jigsaw, puzzle and only you can go there, you're the only one who can fit in there, and let me tell you something when it's all done, there'll be no gaps in the walls, amen. Every elect person will be saved, every jigsaw puzzle piece will be put in, and they'll all be there, how glorious is that? And we are living stones and we're set into the walls to be this holy temple rising, filled with the Holy Spirit, filled with the presence of God. That's what we are. Peter has to go ahead and complexify the image because we're also a “holy priesthood offering sacrifices inside the structure.” That's true, another sermon, another day, but we are “living stones” and we have been quarried from Satan's dark kingdom by some special ops people, who have gone up over the walls of Satan's dark kingdom, they've scaled the walls. I picture like ninjas, or some kind of SEALS, Navy SEALS or something like that, and they're going up over the walls, and they're in enemy territory, and they're finding these dead stones, and by the Gospel they're bringing them to life and they're getting them out of there and they're “transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the beloved Son,” and we’re settled into a wall and will be there forever. That's evangelism and missions. That's what's going on, and it's thrilling. It's thrilling. And I have no idea where I am in my notes. Alright, I'm sorry. The Apostles and Prophets the Foundation: Christ the Cornerstone An Amazing Image Ah, yes. The “apostles and prophets are the foundation of this building.” What does that mean? Members of God's household verse 20, “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.” This is an amazing image. Every grand and glorious and lofty structure has to have a solid foundation, an immovable foundation. “It can't be on sand,” Jesus taught us in the Sermon on the Mount, where it shifting and the structure is going to fall. We need something that will never move. And Paul says, "It's the apostle and prophets with Christ He as Himself as a chief cornerstone.” It's a challenging statement here especially since Paul himself says in 1 Corinthians 3:11, “no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Christ Jesus.” It's like, what a minute, so is it Christ Jesus, or is it “the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus as the chief cornerstone.” Friends, it's not either/or. It's both/and. Christ Jesus is the foundation of this structure, it's true. But how do we have access to Christ Jesus, except by the words of scripture? By the words of the holy apostles and prophets, by this book, we come to know Christ. By the words of the apostles and prophets, the apostles and prophets mediate God's word to a dying world in the form of this book. That's how we know you. You don't know anything about Jesus, apart from this book. And so, as the apostles were “eyewitnesses of His glory” as Peter says. as 1 John 1:1 says, “that which we have seen with our eyes, what we have handled, what we have interacted with concerning the Word of Truth, this we proclaim to you.” They were eyewitnesses, the apostles, and prophets. Peter was the rock on which Jesus would build his Church, not just his confession, but him as eyewitness and the other apostles having been with Jesus for three years and being able to testify to the world, “We have seen, and we testify that He is the Son of God!” And so, the apostles and prophets represent to me in this verse, scripture as it testifies to Jesus, the chief cornerstone. Christ as Cornerstone Now, what does it mean that Jesus is the chief cornerstone? Well, architects tell us that's the first stone you set and everything else gets its reference from that everything else goes in reference to Jesus, the chief cornerstone. It has to be perfectly proportional, it has to be 90 degrees if you want the walls 90 degrees, it has to be solid and everything else is based on Christ. So it's the same thing he teaches, in 1 Corinthians 3:11, “no one can lay a foundation other than one almighty God already laid a chosen and tested cornerstone.” Isaiah 28, that's Jesus. Fitly Framed Together And so, the “apostles and prophets” is the scripture's testimony to Jesus. When Jesus rose from the dead, comes to the upper room, appears to the disciples and He says, in Luke 24, "This is what I told you when I was with you. Everything must be fulfilled. That is written about me in the Law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms, then He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. So, as evangelists and missionaries, go out, they testify based on the words of the apostles in the history of Jesus and the prophets of the Old Testament as they got ready for Jesus, and even the prophets of the New Testament. We'll talk about that when we get to chapter 3, as Paul says, "Now revealed to the apostles and prophets", and we'll get to that, but this is all the immediate Word of God revealed to the human race and we all, verse 21, are built together. “In him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.” I love the KJV in verse 21, "In whom", listen to this, "all the building fitly framed together", isn't that awesome? “Fitly framed together, groweth unto an Holy Temple in the Lord.” “Fitly framed together,” we are perfectly fit together in this holy structure Jews, Gentiles, believers in Christ alike all of us joined together. Now, in Ephesians 4:16, we'll get the same image with the body side. Ephesians 4:16, “from Him, the whole body joined and held together by every supporting ligament grows and builds itself up as each part does its work.” So, we're fit well together. God’s Final Dwelling Place I was reading some time ago about the Taj Mahal, and in one of the walls, this is a magnificent structure, and in one of the walls, there is a flower, an inlaid flower, one inch square, made of precious stones, polished, set in the wall, think about it. One inch square with 60 different stones, 60 different hues and colors, etcetera, but yet set in there so perfectly that you can't feel anything. It feels like glass. I'm thinking, how long did they work on that flower? But that's the image I have. We are perfectly fit together in the wall, in perfect unity with each other, at least we will be in the end when God's done saving us. That's the picture we have here. This is God's final dwelling place. “In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord and in Him, you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.” The Spirit Indwells Us While We Wait Now, there is an already and a not yet sense of this. We are already this, it's already happening, we are already one in Christ, we are already united through the Spirit, we can already assemble together with brothers and sisters all over the world, and we can worship God by the Spirit. It's already going on at the present tense. You are a building, indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, but you must know there's better and more yet to come. There's a not-yet aspect to this. And so, the Book of Revelation completes our study for the day before I get to applications and that is the picture of the New Jerusalem. "Then I saw a New Heaven and a New Earth, for the first Heaven and the first Earth had passed away, and there was no longer any seen. Then I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband." That is this structure, that's Zion, this is the heavenly Zion, that's the very thing that he's talking about here. It's not different, it's the same, the New Jerusalem is the church of Jesus Christ. "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying," Now, here's the key, " ‘Now, the dwelling of God is with men and He will live with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.’" That's what God has wanted all along. “I want a place where I can dwell together with my people.” That's it, that's the not-yet part. God will dwell in our midst, and we will see His face and the whole city will it be irradiated with the glory of God in Christ, and there'll be no temple in that city we're told, because “God and the Lamb and the church are the temple. All one together.” Alright, so that's the complex image we have here by way of application. Application Are You on the Outside Looking In? First, let me just plead with you if you know yourself to be an outsider of all of this. I plead with you, don't stay an outsider, you've heard the Gospel today of Christ crucified, resurrected, how all you need to do is repent and believe and you will immediately become a living stone having been rescued from Satan's dark kingdom, you will be set in a place that has been reserved for you “from before the foundation of the world,” for you. Just come to Christ. Don't leave here an unbeliever I plead with you, be reconciled to God. Christians: Recognize the Majestic Picture of the Church Christians, do you recognize the majesty of this work? Do you see the glory of it? Do you see how this makes life worth living? It really does. This work is worth doing, and this is glorious. Think about the Church. Think about these images. You're citizens of a holy nation, you are adopted sons and daughters of the family of God, and you are living stones in this amazing structure that's rising and becoming bigger and more glorious all the time. That's amazing, praise God for that. And so, if I could just say esteem the Church, think highly of the Church. This isn't like a club we come to on Sundays. Well, you know, I go occasionally, I come. “I'm in this and I'm in that and I go to church from time to time on Sunday morning.” This is the work God is doing in the world. So esteem the Church, be in the Church. “Do not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, ”as it says in Hebrews 10:24, “some are in the habit of doing. But Let's gather together and encourage one another and all the more as you see the day approaching.” Be a covenant member of this Church. If you're just a visitor, be a covenant member of a church where you live, be committed to the Church Access to God Also concerning access. I spoke of it in the middle of the sermon, I want to say it again. You have access to God now that you're part of this holy temple. Take advantage of it, and what's burdening you. What did you carry in here today? What are you struggling with? What are you worried about? Is it money? Is it a relational problem? Is a marital issue? Are you're struggling with sin, is there some sin issue, your guilty conscience, is that bothering you? You have access to the “Father by the Spirit.” Take advantage of it now. Cast your burdens on him in prayer. And don't just go in there and reference to your burdens pray for your brother and sisters. Find someone after, we're about done, we really are. Find someone and say, "How can I pray for you today?", and pray for him. “You have access to the Father by one Spirit.” An Exhortation for Church Involvement And let's get involved in this building project, what do you say? I'm not saying be involved in what used to be known as the Building and Grounds Committee, or find out what deacons are doing yard work in the church. I think the church looks great. I'm not saying there's not work to be done. Please don't, whoever's in charge of that be angry. That was a great recruiting time and you didn't take advantage. I'm trying to give you recruiting to a higher level. Get involved in the building of the Church of Jesus Christ use your spiritual gifts, Have a ministry, throw yourself into this building project be involved in evangelism and discipleship. Get your five lost people's names and pray for them and open the door to evangelism and witness. And finally, can I just say, look forward to Heaven. Look forward to what it's going to be like to be in the New Jerusalem surrounded by the people of God, indwelt by God through His Spirit. Close with me in prayer. Prayer Father, what a glorious passage is this. Ephesians is glorious, thank you so much for the things we're learning in this book, and I pray that we would not only just be members of this grand and glorious eternal building project, but that we would be laborers as well. We living stones in the wall, but also those special ops forces that scale the walls of the kingdom of darkness and rescue lost people. Help us to do all of that. We pray that in Jesus name, Amen.