Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem(8/7/23)[Prayer]

The Holy Scriptures | 8/7/23 | left that other site

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

John 3

Jesus Teaches Nicodemus

3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.[a]”

4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit[b] gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You[c] must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”[d]

9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.[e] 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,[f] 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”[g]

16 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. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

_______________________________________________________

New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

God Bless America.

ML/LTOS

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Our Father in Heaven,
We Come before You in Prayer
For we know That You Are the Potter,
And We Are the Clay
We pray that we will always be supple and yielding to Your touch
So That You will form us into Your Image.

Let all that has been Concealed
Be Revealed.

Father, We Pray For The Peace Of Jerusalem,
According To Your Will and Promise.
We Pray That You Will Forgive The Sins
of Our Own Nation,
and Lead us all to Godly Repentance.
Create in Us Clean Hearts, Oh LORD,
and Renew a Right Spirit Within Us.

This we Pray Together,
As We Await Your Messiah,
Blessed Be He,
To Set Up His Kingdom,
And Make All Things Right.

God Bless America.

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

John 3

Jesus Teaches Nicodemus

3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.[a]”

4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother's womb to be born!”

5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit[b] gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You[c] must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”[d]

9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

10 “You are Israel's teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.[e] 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,[f] 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”[g]

16 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. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

_______________________________________________________

New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

When I was Music Director at Biker Church, we played a lot of the old hymns. Songs like "I'll Fly Away" and "I Saw The Light" were really popular. Bikers seem to like The Blues, so I ended up composing a lot of the music for the church in the 12-Bar Blues Format. These were never converted to MP3, so they now only exist on a single CD in my possession, and, of, course, in my mind.

Johann Sebastian Bach was the Music Director of FOUR Churches in Leipzig from 1723 to 1750. It was his JOB not only to play the organ but to train and direct the musicians, and write new music, using the old hymns, and the Lutheran Liturgical Calendar. Since there are 52 Sundays in the year, and lots of Holy Days as well, Bach wrote hundreds of cantatas. They are only now becoming available in order...all of them... on You Tube.

I am listening to them one at a time, and enjoying them immensely, even though I don't speak a word of German. Bach used the secular musical forms of Dance, Opera, Counterpoint, Fugues, and overlapping melodies in his Cantatas. Sometimes, he would take the old hymn, and surround it with a totally different melody, weaving around it like a butterfly, always in harmony, but never quite touching. The effect is wonderful, but I'll bet there were some folks in the congregation that considered it daring and quite shocking. The old hymns (called the Canta Firma in Musicology) got "born again", and are now considered part of the Classical Repertoire. If the Internet is forever, then these hymns have been given "eternal life".

The Blues, as a genre, are not very holy. Mostly the lyrics are about sexual conquest, infidelity, loneliness, homelessness, aggression, wandering, and so on. However, when Scripture is fit into that 12-Bar format, the Blues take on a new life. They are, in effect, "born again".

There is a guy on the Internet who calls listening to Bach's Cantatas a "SCHLEPP".

There are other people on the Internet that call The Blues "The Devil's Music". Both of these viewpoints come from not understanding the content of the music. They need to get more information before making such judgments.

I love Hiking, and, when the weather is nice, I can hike for hours in the woods with my dog. When I was younger, I used to go to the gym every day, but lately, all my exercise seems to be "running at the mouth" and "Jumping to Conclusions". Both of these "exercises" can actually be detrimental, rather than beneficial, to one's overall health!

Thirty years ago an assistant pastor shared a statement about the latter "Exercise", which has stayed with me for over thirty years, and has brought me great peace. I didn't think of it as exactly "Scriptural" advice, but upon revisiting John 3, I see that it was, indeed, Scriptural.

The advice was regarding getting upset or hurt or even angry about something that you hear, either from a person's own lips, or second hand. Before you get angry, or hurt, or insulted, or whatever, GET MORE INFORMATION! It is quite possible that you are not getting the whole story, or it may be gossip, or even what we now call "FAKE NEWS". This has been a an important part of my spiritual life for over 30 years and has served me well.

However, with the advent of the Internet, we still get caught on occasion. How many times have we re-posted a story, thinking it was absolutely true, only to be embarrassed and humiliated when it turned out to be fake? (In my humble opinion the most egregious of these fake stories were the ones attributing the great Hymn "Precious Lord" to Bandleader Tommy Dorsey, when it was written by The Rev. Thomas Dorsey, a Black Baptist Minister, and the one attributing the Koran (Sura 9:11) with saying that a great eagle from the West would destroy Islam. I knew about Rev. Thomas Dorsey already, but I did deep research on the Eagle Story and found out that it was fake fake fake.) The "Fact Check" has become part of our world in ways it never was before.

Nicodemus was a religious man, a Member of The Council, and a respected Teacher of Israel. In his meetings with the Ruling Council, he was hearing about a very disruptive Preacher who was causing an uproar in the community. This was a dangerous situation, as Israel was under the Occupation of the Romans at the time. There is Scriptural evidence that only one other member of the Council was sympathetic to this new Preacher, (Joseph of Aramathea), so Nicodemus was essentially in a tight spot. Should he just join the crowd and condemn the new Preacher, or should he "GET MORE INFORMATION"?

Although it did not make a difference with the Council in the long run, Nicodemus chose to "GET MORE INFORMATION". There is some speculation that he went to Jesus by night, to avoid detection. It could also have been because his work day was over and it was the only time he was free. I have also read that prominent rabbis sometimes met with each other in the evenings to talk about things without having to explain them to eager disciples crowding around. In any case, he sought out Jesus and had a wonderful talk with Him. Jesus talked to Nicodemus as a fellow Teacher, and shared with him the Eternal Truth.

Aren't you glad Nicodemus didn't "jump to conclusions and run at the mouth" like so many others did?

Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[TianaHighrider]

Good morning. Blessings and Prayers up.

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, TianaHighrider, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[etabeta]

Joining in prayer. God bless.

(I will listen to the Bach’s Cantatas!! Thanks.)

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The best versions are the Netherlands Bach Society.

Period Instruments and small ensemble, just like it probably was..

Can you imagine going to church on Sunday and hearing these for the first time every week?

It boggles the mind.

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, Etabeta, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Videos by the J.S.Bach Foundation are also excellent. Most are done live with an audience.

[redryder_90]

Amen

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, redryder_90, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[NEWwoman]

Amen, left that other site

And it’s what the Bereans did later with Paul.

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
Acts 17:11

Joining in prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem and for our beloved America.

[DarthVader]

Amen !!! <><

Psalm 28

Of David.

1 To you, O Lord, I call;
my rock, do not refuse to hear me,
for if you are silent to me,
I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplication,
as I cry to you for help,
as I lift up my hands
towards your most holy sanctuary.*

3 Do not drag me away with the wicked,
with those who are workers of evil,
who speak peace with their neighbours,
while mischief is in their hearts.
4 Repay them according to their work,
and according to the evil of their deeds;
repay them according to the work of their hands;
render them their due reward.
5 Because they do not regard the works of the Lord,
or the work of his hands,
he will break them down and build them up no more.

6 Blessed be the Lord,
for he has heard the sound of my pleadings.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
in him my heart trusts;
so I am helped, and my heart exults,
and with my song I give thanks to him.

8 The Lord is the strength of his people;
he is the saving refuge of his anointed.
9 O save your people, and bless your heritage;
be their shepherd, and carry them for ever.

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, NEWwoman, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, DarthVader, For Your Prayers and Wonderful Psalm For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[Jeanbl]

AMEN, thank you. Joining in prayer.

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, Jeanbl, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[Hiskid]

Amen

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, Hiskid, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS