Sunday, September 4, 2016
The Sabbath...Saturday Or Sunday?
Question: "What day is the Sabbath, Saturday or Sunday? Do Christians have to observe the Sabbath day?"
Answer: It is often claimed that “God instituted the Sabbath in Eden” because of the connection between the Sabbath and creation in Exodus 20:11. Although God's rest on the seventh day (Genesis 2:3) did foreshadow a future Sabbath law, there is no biblical record of the Sabbath before the children of Israel left the land of Egypt. Nowhere in Scripture is there any hint that Sabbath-keeping was practiced from Adam to Moses.
The Word of God makes it quite clear that Sabbath observance was a special sign between God and Israel: “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested” (Exodus 31:16–17).
In Deuteronomy 5, Moses restates the Ten Commandments to the next generation of Israelites. Here, after commanding Sabbath observance in verses 12–14, Moses gives the reason the Sabbath was given to the nation Israel: “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day” (Deuteronomy 5:15).
God's intent for giving the Sabbath to Israel was not that they would remember creation, but that they would remember their Egyptian slavery and the Lord's deliverance. Note the requirements for Sabbath-keeping: A person placed under that Sabbath law could not leave his home on the Sabbath (Exodus 16:29), he could not build a fire (Exodus 35:3), and he could not cause anyone else to work (Deuteronomy 5:14). A person breaking the Sabbath law was to be put to death (Exodus 31:15; Numbers 15:32–35).
An examination of New Testament passages shows us four important points: 1) Whenever Christ appears in His resurrected form and the day is mentioned, it is always the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1, 9, 10; Mark 16:9; Luke 24:1, 13, 15; John 20:19, 26). 2) The only time the Sabbath is mentioned from Acts through Revelation it is for evangelistic purposes to the Jews and the setting is usually in a synagogue (Acts chapters 13–18). Paul wrote, “to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews” (1 Corinthians 9:20). Paul did not go to the synagogue to fellowship with and edify the saints, but to convict and save the lost. 3) Once Paul states “from now on I will go to the Gentiles” (Acts 18:6), the Sabbath is never again mentioned. And 4) instead of suggesting adherence to the Sabbath day, the remainder of the New Testament implies the opposite (including the one exception to point 3 above, found in Colossians 2:16).
Looking more closely at point 4 above will reveal that there is no obligation for the New Testament believer to keep the Sabbath, and will also show that the idea of a Sunday “Christian Sabbath” is also unscriptural. As discussed above, there is one time the Sabbath is mentioned after Paul began to focus on the Gentiles, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” (Colossians 2:16–17). The Jewish Sabbath was abolished at the cross where Christ “canceled the written code, with its regulations” (Colossians 2:14).
This idea is repeated more than once in the New Testament: “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord” (Romans 14:5–6a). “But now that you know God — or rather are known by God — how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years” (Galatians 4:9–10).
But some claim that a mandate by Constantine in A.D. 321 “changed” the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. On what day did the early church meet for worship? Scripture never mentions any Sabbath (Saturday) gatherings by believers for fellowship or worship. However, there are clear passages that mention the first day of the week. For instance, Acts 20:7 states that “on the first day of the week we came together to break bread.” In 1 Corinthians 16:2 Paul urges the Corinthian believers “on the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income.” Since Paul designates this offering as “service” in 2 Corinthians 9:12, this collection must have been linked with the Sunday worship service of the Christian assembly. Historically Sunday, not Saturday, was the normal meeting day for Christians in the church, and its practice dates back to the first century.
The Sabbath was given to Israel, not the church. The Sabbath is still Saturday, not Sunday, and has never been changed. But the Sabbath is part of the Old Testament Law, and Christians are free from the bondage of the Law (Galatians 4:1-26; Romans 6:14). Sabbath keeping is not required of the Christian—be it Saturday or Sunday. The first day of the week, Sunday, the Lord's Day (Revelation 1:10) celebrates the New Creation, with Christ as our resurrected Head. We are not obligated to follow the Mosaic Sabbath—resting, but are now free to follow the risen Christ—serving. The Apostle Paul said that each individual Christian should decide whether to observe a Sabbath rest, “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind” (Romans 14:5). We are to worship God every day, not just on Saturday or Sunday.
Answer: It is often claimed that “God instituted the Sabbath in Eden” because of the connection between the Sabbath and creation in Exodus 20:11. Although God's rest on the seventh day (Genesis 2:3) did foreshadow a future Sabbath law, there is no biblical record of the Sabbath before the children of Israel left the land of Egypt. Nowhere in Scripture is there any hint that Sabbath-keeping was practiced from Adam to Moses.
The Word of God makes it quite clear that Sabbath observance was a special sign between God and Israel: “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested” (Exodus 31:16–17).
In Deuteronomy 5, Moses restates the Ten Commandments to the next generation of Israelites. Here, after commanding Sabbath observance in verses 12–14, Moses gives the reason the Sabbath was given to the nation Israel: “Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day” (Deuteronomy 5:15).
God's intent for giving the Sabbath to Israel was not that they would remember creation, but that they would remember their Egyptian slavery and the Lord's deliverance. Note the requirements for Sabbath-keeping: A person placed under that Sabbath law could not leave his home on the Sabbath (Exodus 16:29), he could not build a fire (Exodus 35:3), and he could not cause anyone else to work (Deuteronomy 5:14). A person breaking the Sabbath law was to be put to death (Exodus 31:15; Numbers 15:32–35).
An examination of New Testament passages shows us four important points: 1) Whenever Christ appears in His resurrected form and the day is mentioned, it is always the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1, 9, 10; Mark 16:9; Luke 24:1, 13, 15; John 20:19, 26). 2) The only time the Sabbath is mentioned from Acts through Revelation it is for evangelistic purposes to the Jews and the setting is usually in a synagogue (Acts chapters 13–18). Paul wrote, “to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews” (1 Corinthians 9:20). Paul did not go to the synagogue to fellowship with and edify the saints, but to convict and save the lost. 3) Once Paul states “from now on I will go to the Gentiles” (Acts 18:6), the Sabbath is never again mentioned. And 4) instead of suggesting adherence to the Sabbath day, the remainder of the New Testament implies the opposite (including the one exception to point 3 above, found in Colossians 2:16).
Looking more closely at point 4 above will reveal that there is no obligation for the New Testament believer to keep the Sabbath, and will also show that the idea of a Sunday “Christian Sabbath” is also unscriptural. As discussed above, there is one time the Sabbath is mentioned after Paul began to focus on the Gentiles, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” (Colossians 2:16–17). The Jewish Sabbath was abolished at the cross where Christ “canceled the written code, with its regulations” (Colossians 2:14).
This idea is repeated more than once in the New Testament: “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord” (Romans 14:5–6a). “But now that you know God — or rather are known by God — how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years” (Galatians 4:9–10).
But some claim that a mandate by Constantine in A.D. 321 “changed” the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. On what day did the early church meet for worship? Scripture never mentions any Sabbath (Saturday) gatherings by believers for fellowship or worship. However, there are clear passages that mention the first day of the week. For instance, Acts 20:7 states that “on the first day of the week we came together to break bread.” In 1 Corinthians 16:2 Paul urges the Corinthian believers “on the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income.” Since Paul designates this offering as “service” in 2 Corinthians 9:12, this collection must have been linked with the Sunday worship service of the Christian assembly. Historically Sunday, not Saturday, was the normal meeting day for Christians in the church, and its practice dates back to the first century.
The Sabbath was given to Israel, not the church. The Sabbath is still Saturday, not Sunday, and has never been changed. But the Sabbath is part of the Old Testament Law, and Christians are free from the bondage of the Law (Galatians 4:1-26; Romans 6:14). Sabbath keeping is not required of the Christian—be it Saturday or Sunday. The first day of the week, Sunday, the Lord's Day (Revelation 1:10) celebrates the New Creation, with Christ as our resurrected Head. We are not obligated to follow the Mosaic Sabbath—resting, but are now free to follow the risen Christ—serving. The Apostle Paul said that each individual Christian should decide whether to observe a Sabbath rest, “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind” (Romans 14:5). We are to worship God every day, not just on Saturday or Sunday.
FREE IN CHRIST TO FOLLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT and THE WORD OF GOD!
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Six of Satan’s Devices of Which Not To Be Ignorant (shared from a fellow minister)
For so long, Satan has gotten the upper hand of me. He’s defeated me in so many ways in which I was not even aware that there was a battle. The bible tells us not to be ignorant of Satan’s devices. So that tells us TWO things: 1. Satan has scheme/plots/plans/devices/strategies under his belt. 2. These devices can be unknown/secretive/clandestine/covert.Just think in the natural world. When a team is playing basketball or football, they have a play book. This book is to be 100% confidential as far as the other team is concerned. The other team should not know the plans of the opposing team. The plans are supposed to be kept secret so that the team can ultimately DEFEAT the competitor. The other team is to be IGNORANT of the schemes in the other team’s playbook. They can know that the play book exists because I believe every professional team has a playbook, but it is the job of the coach to make sure that the play book does not fall into the wrong hands.
The same goes with covert operations in a war. The enemy is not to know what the other country has under its sleeve as far as attacks are concerned. That is a rule in war.
Well that’s how it goes with Satan, but let’s give him more credit than that. His tricks are FAR superior than the schemes and plays of sports teams and armies. Remember, Satan has been studying human nature since the very beginning. I’m talking about the FIRST TWO HUMANS WHO EVER WALKED THE FACE OF THE EARTH were deceived by Satan in his FIRST attempt! He was good at what he did then, and who are kidding, Satan can only have gotten better at it with time. Some speculate that it’s about 7,000 years later since Adam and Eve were around. Seven millennia and billions of people later will give you a lot of time to practice!
I thank God for the bible. The bible records many of Satan’s devices. If you look through the Old and New Testaments, you can see records of how Satan brought people down. Be not ignorant of His devices. KNOW the enemy. Learn his ways. You should be able to see him coming from a mile away. The older I get in the faith, the more I spot him further away. It used to be that I couldn’t see Satan at work until the damage was already done. But God and the Holy Spirit are making it so that I am PREVENTATIVE against his attacks by knowing which situations Satan works best in and by knowing how he operates. We already know that Satan works through our fleshly lusts and desires, but let’s look at some more unforeseen ways that you would not likely suspect. Satan already knows that seasoned Saints already know to avoid alcohol, drugs, parties, secular music, sex without one’s husband and wife, sexual images, profanity, etc. He knows most Christians can’t be outsmarted by those obvious temptations. So he works in other ways to bring down those in the church. I pray that you all are blessed by this note.
D I V I S I O N
Reading the bible has shown
me that God loves the number ONE. He likes when we work as one even
though we have many “body parts” and many gifts and ministries. Romans
12:4-5 talks of there being ONE body of Christ. Romans 15:6 talks of
Christians glorifying God with ONE mind and ONE mouth. 1 Corinthians
1:10-13 and 1 Corinthians 3:3 talk of how there should be no division
and that we should be of ONE and the same baptism, “thing”, mind, and
judgment. 1 Corinthians 10:17 talks of us being ONE body and ONE bread. 1
Corinthians 12’s chapter talks of how we are ONE body. 2 Corinthians
13:11 talks of us being of ONE mind. Galatians 3:28 say that we are ONE.
Ephesians 4:4 talks of ONE faith and ONE baptism. Philippians 1:27
speaks of us having ONE spirit and ONE mind. Philippians 2:2 talks of us
being of ONE accord and ONE mind. Colossians 3:15 talks of being of ONE
body. I Peter 3:8 tells us to be of ONE mind. God clearly LOVES when we
operate as ONE!
All the aforementioned bible
verses prove that God wants us thinking and operating as ONE. But for
some reason there are at least 33,000 Christian denominations. How does
ONE spirit, ONE mind, ONE faith, ONE baptism, ONE mouth, ONE accord, and
ONE body end up in at LEAST 33,000 denominations? Do you think that GOD
has anything to do with that high number of division? Absolutely not.
Where division is, you can know that Satan is at work. All the talk God
gives us of ONE in the New Testaments helps us to know that all these
divisions are one of Satan’s devices. When unbelievers hear that
Christians disagree in at least 33,000 ways with regards to Christian
doctrine, worship, theology, soteriology, and methodology, it makes them
mock us. They can’t figure how we all read the same bible that has the
same truths and yet can’t agree on the ONE thing God meant in the bible.
One of Satan’s devices is division. I’m sure you’ve heard of “divide
and conquer”. Well that’s one way in which Satan works. He knows he is
POWERLESS against Christ’s ONE huge Christian body. But when it comes to
many (33,000?) smaller bodies, he can work well in that. And he has.
W R O N G A G R E E M E N T S
Satan isn’t as powerful as we
think. He can’t really do anything to us unless we ALLOW him too. He
has to first get us to AGREE with him before he can wreak havoc in our
lives. And do we not agree with him every chance he gives us to? He can
have an evil spirit whisper in your ear that you’re gay, and without
even thinking, you’ll agree with the evil spirit thinking that it’s your
own mind telling you something that it’s true. And guess what? You
won’t act on something that you don’t agree with. For example, I won’t
murder someone unless I first reach an agreement in my mind that it
would be a good idea to do so.
Remember in the wilderness
after Jesus had a 40 day fast in Luke 4:3-13? Satan tried to give Jesus
an idea. And if Jesus was like us and agreed with Satan, he would have
acted on the temptation. But because Jesus has nothing in common with
evil, he of course disagreed with Satan. Jesus was not ignorant of
Satan’s devices. So what happened? Jesus rejected Satan’s suggestions
and the bible says that Satan departed for a SEASON! Imagine that!
Imagine a season in which Satan does not try to tempt you to sin! If you
learn his devices well enough, you can possibly be free of Satan for a
season! Many of us agree with doctors’ bad reports and say that because
our parents and grandparents had a certain disease that we too must
eventually get this or that disease. We agree with our haters’ opinions
of us and say that we will not succeed in life. We agree with the 50%
divorce statistic and say it’s only a matter of time before our
marriages fail. And in many cases, it’s only after we AGREE with the
enemy that chaos ensues. Stop making wrong agreements with Satan. It’s
one of his devices! Look at what happened when Adam and Eve made a wrong
agreement with Satan instead of with God about a particular tree:
WHAT GOD SAID: Genesis 2:17 – But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
WHAT SATAN SAID: Genesis 3:4 – And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall N O T surely die:
O F F E N S E
My pastor and first lady
blessed me SO with this topic! I thank God for it even today. They
taught and preached on it for several weeks. Offense is one of Satan’s
most successful devices. Satan can work most effectively in an offended
heart. If you are easily offended, I can accurately assume that you have
much mess going on in your life between you and your family, friends,
coworkers, church members, and spouse. I bet Satan used offense to ruin
your relationships. Maybe your husband said that your chicken needed a
little more seasoning. Maybe your coworker made you look bad in front of
a boss by telling her a mistake you made. Maybe your mother showed
favoritism to your brother over you. Maybe your best friend chose
someone else as her maid-of-honor.
And maybe this all happened
20 years ago and you STILL are harboring resentment and bitterness about
it. Satan likes people like you. If you can hold a grudge, Satan can
use you. And he WILL use you. And I can bet your bottom dollar that he
IS using you. Satan always works in an atmosphere of unforgiveness.
Forgiveness is what God majors on, and so you know that what God loves
is what Satan hates. Forgive quickly and thoroughly and watch Satan flee
from all of your relationships. He can’t work well in a relationship
that is flourishing with forgiveness! The thing about unforgiveness is
that you can’t pray for someone you hate, you can’t love someone you
hate, you can’t evangelize or preach to someone you hate. So when you
are offended by and unforgiving of someone, it’s one of the ways Satan
prevents you from being used of God to lead someone to Christ. If Satan
can convince you to be offended, he has convinced you not to minister to
someone. And so that enacts part TWO of his device. You may be the ONE
person God was going to use to lead this person to Christ; but since you
now are not speaking to the person and blocked them from your Facebook
and Twitter, they may never hear or experience the love of God. You may
be the only “bible this person will ever read”.
Proverbs 17:9 – Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
Proverbs 19:11 – Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.
I G N O R A N C E/P A R A N O I A/I N S E C U R I T Y/S U S P I C I O N
The reason I put these four
words together because they are related because of the fact that all
four lack or may lack one thing: TRUTH/REALITY. If you are ignorant of
something, it means that you are unaware of the truth of its existence –
unaware that it is REAL. To be paranoid is to believe that things that
are not real are real. To believe that lies are truth. Paranoid people
for example may think that the CIA is out to kill them or that some
woman at her job is hating on her and trying to get her fired when that
is so far from the truth; suspicion is related because it can make you
paranoid. And insecurity is when someone believes that aspects of
themselves are causing them to be inferior to others or disliked by
others when that is not true. An insecure person may think that she must
look bad if she walks in a room and a group of people start laughing.
Or an insecure girlfriend may think that everytime her boyfriend’s phone
rings that it’s his ex-girlfriend. Or an insecure boyfriend may think
that everytime his girlfriend doesn’t answer the phone that she’s with
another man. Insecurity has to do with imagining lies as being the
truth.
Satan can destroy the trust
in a Christian marriage by convincing one spouse that the other is being
unfaithful. He can ruin the trusting relationship between a pastor and
his congregation by making the pastor believe that some of his members
are thinking of leaving his church because they dislike his preaching
all of sudden. Satan can cause trouble between a coworker and a manager
because at the next meeting, the boss may say there is a new policy on
absentees a week after you called in sick on Monday and Friday. And so
you get paranoid that the boss is talking about you. Assumptions come
from paranoia, ignorance, and insecurity. And these assumptions are not
based on truth and so they can cause a lot of trouble in relationships.
Satan is the father of all
lies. Wherever a lie is, please and just know that it has started with
Papa Satan. He knows that truth sets free. He knows that lies bound and
cause grief. So he tells lies. He starts lies. He suggests things that
lead to lies. Don’t operate off of lies. Operate based off of truth. And
truth is not one and the same with facts. A doctor’s fact that people
with your form of cancer are doomed within 6 months. But God’s truth
about that same kind of cancer can be that you can be healed in a day
with a full recovery. So Satan can sometimes defeat you with FACTS that
are not God’s truths. Where lies are being spread, know that Satan is at
work with a demonic scheme to destroy. He knows that if the truth got
out about everything, then he would be powerless. He gets his powers
from YOUR belief in HIS lies. When you stop believing his false
reality/lies/attempts to make you paranoid and insecure, he has lost in
his tactic against you in this regard.
Romans 10:3 – For they being ignorant
of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own
righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of
God.
2 Corinthians 2:11 – Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
1 Samuel 18:6-9 – And it
came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of
the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel,
singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with
instruments of musick. And the women answered one another as they
played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten
thousands. And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and
he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they
have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?
And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.
P R I D E
Last but not least, Satan
defeats those who love God by using one of his most effective
tools/weapons of PRIDE. I cannot stress the importance of humility in
the life of the believer. Remember how that even the “best” Jews of
Jesus’ time were defeated and damned because they had too much pride to
admit their inefficiencies and weaknesses when it came to pleasing God
according to His holy standard. They did not receive Jesus because He
required that they humble themselves and admit that they were sinners
who needed a Savior. Satan can work more easily in a prideful heart than
even an offended heart.
An example in how Satan works
in this way is when he convinces you to apply pride to your repentance.
You can have done a sin and yet be too prideful to repent of it. I knew
a guy who was very lustful in his heart and deeds. And when I told him
about it, he denied ever being lustful towards his girlfriend even
though he and his girlfriend were close to having sex on several
occasions. He had a title in the church, and so I suppose he felt that
being a minister was incompatible with being horny. So instead of
humbling himself and admitting that fault, he instead denied ever
wanting to have premarital sex. And because he never humbled himself
enough to repent of this sin, he of course never repented on this sin.
Therefore, he never received forgiveness for this sin if he has not
repented of it.
Pride will cause you to deny
any wrongdoing, faults, or weaknesses. And when you don’t admit to
having a problem, you never confess the problem. And you never receive
forgiveness for something you can’t agree to have done. Satan used pride
to keep that young man from receiving God’s forgiveness. I don’t know
if he ever repented of it, but if he did not, Satan did a work in his
life. God does not allow for any pride in the lives of Saints. He wants
total humility from us. Humility is not just a cute word to refer to
yourself as. Having humility means that you ask for forgiveness
everytime you sin. Having humility means that you never think that you
are too holy to make a mistake. Having humility shows me that you ALWAYS
run to God for much-needed forgiveness. So conversely, to lack humility
means that you rarely if ever ask for forgiveness because you can’t
agree that you make mistakes.
It’s so sad to see preachers
who are so tough on their congregation be exposed for the wildest sins.
I’m talking about being caught having 15 year affairs with a prophetess
in the church. I’m talking about molesting five BOYS in his
congregation. I’m talking about pastors who kill their wives, chop them
up, store them in the freezer for years all so that they can have an
incestuous relationship with their daughter. I’m talking about
embezzling THOUSANDS of dollars from members “tithes & offerings”.
I’ve heard all these TRUE stories and more! It’s crazy how the most
prideful, self-righteous people have the most unbelievably secret sins.
That’s because pride is one of the best ways to cover one’s sin. If you
allow pride in your life, already know that Satan has some BIG,
disastrous plans for you and those closely associated with you. Pride
destroys. The bible says that by pride, people bring about their own
downfall.
1 Timothy 3:6 – Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.
Proverbs 16:18 – Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
I Peter 5:5 – …be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
D I S T R A C T I O N S
Remember the story about the
Mary and Martha sisters? One sister was so busy cleaning and being a
good hostess that she was missing out on a spiritual blessing from the
Messiah. She even tried to get the Messiah to cause her sister to miss
out on her blessing! She confused busyness for Jesus for being doing the
work of the Lord. Satan can have people so busy singing in a choir,
ushering the congregation to their seats, vacuuming after church
services, and playing the drums that they forget to minister to others
spiritually. This is not to make light of ushers and choir members, but
sometimes, God just wants you to evangelize to your family member. But
you’re so busy at church that the people who are “sick” are not getting a
“physician”, but the people who are “well” are.
I encountered this in my
blogging frenzy and my church attendance craving. I would spend
countless hours writing spiritual notes for my blog. And so I was
ministering in that regard because many people were blessed by the
notes. But if someone wrote me a private message asking for prayer, I
thought I was too busy with ministry to minister! I would get annoyed
and say to myself, “Why don’t she just pray for herself?! I can’t be her
relationship with God!” And I would be so busy at times going to church
that I wouldn’t even stop to be a loving Christian witness to those in
my every day life like friends, family members, and coworkers. I was so
busy LOOKING churchy that I had no time to BE the Christian I should
have been for God. Satan will have you so busy that you will think that
you do not have time to do the things God wants you to do.
There are such thing as
church distractions because many of the things we do in church today
have nothing to do with the church we read about in the New Testament.
The New Testament church and Jesus were out and about ministering to the
hurting and lost. Church today seems very into ministering to only
those who are saved IN the church’s four walls. Many church folk would
rather hold up a hurtful pro-life sign outside of an abortion clinic
instead of kindly approaching the expectant mother, praying for her,
asking her why she feels the need to do this, and offering her options
other than abortion. Many Christians will hold up hateful signs at gay
rallies and parades instead of pulling a homosexual to the side, praying
for them, and doing spiritual deliverance from the spirit of
perversion. Be not ignorant of even this most surprising device.
These are just six of MANY of
his devices. I chose these six because they are the six in which Satan
won many battles against me. I thank God for informing me of this in
order that I might gain the victory over Satan in my life through Christ
Jesus! Please read my newer note which lists five MORE of Satan’s
devices that he uses quite effectively in the believer’s life.
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
The Book of Philippians - Summary
The Book of Philippians is in the Bible's New Testament. Paul wrote this letter to the church at Philippi, which he had established (Acts 16:11-40).Paul was a prisoner when he wrote the book of Philippians. But he used his time in prison well. He even told his guards about Jesus (Philippians 1:13). And he was glad that people were speaking about Jesus (Philippians 1:12-30).
Paul encouraged the Christians in Philippi to work together (Philippians 1:27). They should love each other (Philippians 2:1-4). So, they should be humble. Paul reminded them that Jesus was very humble. (Philippians 2:5-11). But now, God gives great honour to Jesus.
Paul warned the Christians about some people who did not know Jesus (Philippians 3:1-4, Philippians 3:17-19). He wanted the Christians to trust God more. Even Paul himself wanted to know God better (Philippians 3:10-11). Paul did not pretend that he was already perfect (Philippians 3:12). But he knew that God will change us totally (Philippians 3:21). So, we should be glad (Philippians 4:4). We should do the right things (Philippians 4:8-9). And we should trust God to provide whatever we need (Philippians 4:10-19).
Author, Date and Place of Writing
The early church was unanimous in its testimony that Philippians was written by the apostle Paul (see 1:1).
Internally the letter reveals the stamp of genuineness. The many
personal references of the author fit what we know of Paul from other NT
books.It is evident that Paul wrote the letter from prison (see 1:13–14). Some have argued that this imprisonment took place in Ephesus, perhaps c. a.d. 53–55; others put it in Caesarea c. 57–59. Best evidence, however, favors Rome as the place of origin and the date as c. 61 (see chart, p. 2261). This fits well with the account of Paul’s house arrest in Ac 28:14–31. When he wrote Philippians, he was not in the Mamertine dungeon as he was when he wrote 2 Timothy. He was in his own rented house, where for two years he was free to impart the gospel to all who came to him.
Purpose
Paul’s primary purpose in writing this letter was to thank the Philippians for the gift they had sent him upon learning of his detention at Rome (1:5; 4:10–19). However, he makes use of this occasion to fulfill several other desires: (1) to report on his own circumstances (1:12–26; 4:10–19); (2) to encourage the Philippians to stand firm in the face of persecution and rejoice regardless of circumstances (1:27–30; 4:4); (3) to exhort them to humility and unity (2:1–11; 4:2–5); (4) to commend Timothy and Epaphroditus to the Philippian church (2:19–30); and (5) to warn the Philippians against the Judaizers (legalists) and antinomians (libertines) among them (ch. 3).Recipients
The city of Philippi (see map, p. 2445) was named after King Philip II of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great. It was a prosperous Roman colony, which meant that the citizens of Philippi were also citizens of the city of Rome itself. They prided themselves on being Romans (see Ac 16:21), dressed like Romans and often spoke Latin. No doubt this was the background for Paul’s reference to the believer’s heavenly citizenship (3:20–21). Many of the Philippians were retired military men who had been given land in the vicinity and who in turn served as a military presence in this frontier city. That Philippi was a Roman colony may explain why there were not enough Jews there to permit the establishment of a synagogue and why Paul does not quote the OT in the Philippian letter.Characteristics
- Philippians contains no OT quotations (but see note on Job 13:16).
- It is a missionary thank-you letter in which the missionary reports on the progress of his work.
- It manifests a particularly vigorous type of Christian living: (1) self-humbling (2:1–4); (2) pressing toward the goal (3:13–14); (3) lack of anxiety (4:6); (4) ability to do all things (4:13).
- It is outstanding as the NT letter of joy; the word “joy” in its various forms occurs some 16 times.
- It contains one of the most profound Christological passages in the NT (2:5–11). Yet, profound as it is, Paul includes it mainly for illustrative purposes.
Outline
- Greetings (1:1–2)
- Thanksgiving and Prayer for the Philippians (1:3–11)
- Paul’s Personal Circumstances (1:12–26)
- Exhortations (1:27—2:18)
- Paul’s Associates in the Gospel (2:19–30)
- Warnings against Judaizers and Antinomians (3:1—4:1)
- Final Exhortations, Thanks and Conclusion (4:2–23)
************
Shared by: Rev Gerri Merrick ~ Rejoice International
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Monday, April 25, 2016
GOD IS ALL and ALWAYS!!!
Saturday, April 9, 2016
CHRIST THE KING
For Luke, the ascension was a significant moment in the disciples'
personal transformation and the advance of the gospel through the
church. He emphasized the importance of the ascension by ending his
Gospel with this event and beginning his second volume, Acts, with it.
The ascension had a profound impact on the disciples. Up to the moment
that Jesus ascended to heaven, the disciples seemed to be puzzled,
trying to figure it all out. But after the ascension, they worshiped
Him. They traveled back to Jerusalem with great joy. They maintained a
regular presence in the temple—worshiping God.
At first, the disciples' reaction to Jesus' ascension may catch us off
guard. Jesus had just "left them." And yet they were happy—filled with
joy. Why this reaction? After all, when Jesus told them at the end of
John 13 that He would soon leave them, they were deeply disturbed.
Thus, He encouraged them by teaching them about the ministry of the
Holy Spirit (John 14–17). He kept them from the brink of utter despair
by saying, "You are not losing Me, but I am going to be with you in a
different way through My Spirit."
The ascension of Jesus produced joy because the disciples realized what
amazing benefits would come to them when Jesus returned to the Father.
The ascension of Jesus produced joy because the disciples realized what
amazing benefits would come to them when Jesus returned to the Father.
When Jesus ascended, all the promises regarding the Spirit's ministry to
the disciples were about to be fulfilled. The disciples accepted His
ascension, for they had accepted Jesus' word about the promised One to
come. Their doubts and fears were gone. They were convinced of who He
was. They knew that He died to forgive them of their sins. They knew He
was alive from the dead. In His resurrection, they had hope in victory
over death.
They trusted Him. For these reasons, Jesus' departure gave the disciples joy.
The benefits of the ascension are many:
- When Jesus ascended and sat down at the Father's right hand, the Father verified the accomplishment of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and confirmed that the final payment for sin had been made (Heb. 10:11-14).
- When Jesus ascended, the intercessory work of Jesus on behalf of His people began. In this ministry, we are assured that we will always have access to the Father forever (1 John 2:1).
- When Jesus ascended, His eternal reign over all enemies began. As Peter wrote, "Now that He has gone into heaven, He is at God's right hand with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him" (1 Pet. 3:22).
- Finally, when Jesus ascended, the church was empowered to accomplish its mission. In Ephesians 1:22-23, writing about Jesus' resurrection and ascension, Paul said, "[God the Father] put everything under His feet and appointed Him as head over everything for the church, which is His body, the fullness of the One who fills all things in every way."
Jesus Christ is the King of the universe, and Satan can do nothing about it.
Jesus Christ is the King of the universe, and Satan can do nothing
about it. What Satan can do is tempt us to forget about Jesus as King.
He uses a thousand tricks to do it, but he is after one thing—to eclipse
our present awareness of who Jesus is and where He is. In the Book of
Acts, Stephen, right before being stoned, looked up into heaven and saw
Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father. The New Testament points
us to this picture so that we will have a settled confidence that Jesus
our Savior is the King over all things.
Joy, hope, and mission are three consistent responses of the disciples
to Christ's resurrection and ascension. In light of these two great
events, we see the disciples transformed and mobilized to follow Jesus
on His mission.
Joy, hope, and mission are three consistent responses of the disciples to Christ's resurrection and ascension.
We go forward with hope and joy because the King of the universe
promises that He will never leave or forsake us. If we want to
experience greater transformation and the joy of following Jesus on
mission, we should build our confidence on the finished and sufficient
work of Jesus Christ. The resurrection and ascension testify to the
completion and perfection of His work.
CHRISTIAN? or CATHOLIC?
YOUR LIFE IS A GIFT FROM GOD and JESUS CHRIST PAID TO SET YOU FREE FROM SIN & DEATH...make certain You are Born Again through Faith in Him as your Savior, Lord and King....
Question: "I am a Catholic. Why should I consider becoming a Christian?"
Answer: First, please understand that we intend no offense in the wording of this question. We genuinely receive questions, from Catholics, along the lines of “What is the difference between Catholics and Christians?” In face-to-face conversations with Catholics, we have literally heard, “I am not a Christian, I am Catholic.” To many Catholics, the terms “Christian” and “Protestant” are synonymous. With all that said, the intent of this article is that Catholics would study what the Bible says about being a Christian and would perhaps consider that the Catholic faith is not the best representation of what the Bible describes. As a background, please read our article on “What is a Christian?”
A key distinction between Catholics and Christians is the view of the Bible. Catholics view the Bible as having equal authority with the Church and tradition. Christians view the Bible as the supreme authority for faith and practice. The question is, how does the Bible present itself? Second Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” This text tells us that Scripture is not “just the beginning,” or “just the basics,” or the “foundation for a more complete church tradition.” On the contrary, Scripture is perfectly and fully sufficient for everything in the Christian life. Scripture can teach us, rebuke us, correct us, train us, and equip us. “Bible Christians” do not deny the value of church tradition. Rather, Christians uphold that for a church tradition to be valid, it must be based on the clear teaching of Scripture and must be in full agreement with Scripture. Catholic friend, study the Word of God for yourself. In God’s Word you will find God’s description of, and intention for, His Church. Second Timothy 2:15 declares, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
A second key difference between Catholics and Bible Christians is the understanding of how we can approach God. Catholics tend to approach God through intermediaries, such as Mary or the saints. Christians approach God directly, offering prayers to no one other than God Himself. The Bible proclaims that we ourselves can approach God’s throne of grace with boldness (Hebrews 4:16). The Bible is perfectly clear that God desires us to pray to Him, to have communication with Him, to ask Him for the things we need (Philippians 4:6; Matthew 7:7-8; 1 John 5:14-15). There is no need for mediators or intermediaries, as Christ is our one and only mediator (1 Timothy 2:5), and both Christ and the Holy Spirit are already interceding on our behalf (Romans 8:26-27; Hebrews 7:25). Catholic friend, God loves you intimately and has provided an open door to direct communication through Jesus.
The most crucial difference between Catholics and Bible Christians is on the issue of salvation. Catholics view salvation almost entirely as a process, while Christians view salvation as both a completed status and a process. Catholics see themselves as “being saved,” while Christians view themselves as “having been saved.” First Corinthians 1:2 says, “To those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy.” The words “sanctified” and “holy” come from the same Greek root. This verse is declaring that Christians are both sanctified and called to be sanctified. The Bible presents salvation as a gift that is received the moment a person places faith in Jesus Christ as Savior (John 3:16). When a person receives Christ as Savior, he/she is justified (declared righteous – Romans 5:9), redeemed (rescued from slavery to sin – 1 Peter 1:18), reconciled (achieving peace with God – Romans 5:1), sanctified (set apart for God’s purposes – 1 Corinthians 6:11), and born again as a new creation (1 Peter 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:17). Each of these is fully accomplished at the moment of salvation. Christians are then called to live out practically (called to be holy) what is already true positionally (sanctified).
The Catholic viewpoint is that salvation is received by faith, but then must be “maintained” by good works and participation in the Sacraments. Bible Christians do not deny the importance of good works or that Christ calls us to observe the ordinances in remembrance of Him and in obedience to Him. The difference is that Christians view these things as the result of salvation, not a requirement for salvation or a means of maintaining salvation. Salvation is an accomplished work, purchased by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ (1 John 2:2). God offers us salvation and assurance of salvation because Jesus’ sacrifice was fully, completely, and perfectly sufficient. If we receive God’s precious gift of salvation, we can know that we are saved. First John 5:13 declares, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
We can know that we have eternal life, and we can have assurance of our salvation because of the greatness of Christ’s sacrifice. Christ’s sacrifice does not need to be re-offered or re-presented. Hebrews 7:27 says, “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when He offered Himself.” Hebrews 10:10 declares, “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” First Peter 3:18 exclaims, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice was absolutely and perfectly sufficient. Jesus declared on the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). Jesus’ atoning sacrifice was the full payment for all of our sins (1 John 2:2). As a result, all of our sins are forgiven, and we are promised eternal life in heaven the moment we receive the gift God offers us – salvation through Jesus Christ (John 3:16).
Catholic friend, do you desire this “so great salvation” (Hebrews 2:6)? If so, all you must do is receive it (John 1:12) through faith (Romans 5:1). God loves us and offers us salvation as a gift (John 3:16). If we receive His grace, by faith, we have salvation as our eternal possession (Ephesians 2:8-9). Once saved, nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing can remove us from His hand (John 10:28-29). If you desire this salvation, if you desire to have all your sins forgiven, if you desire to have assurance of salvation, if you desire direct access to the God who loves you – receive it, and it is yours. This is the salvation that Jesus died to provide and that God offers as a gift.
Answer: First, please understand that we intend no offense in the wording of this question. We genuinely receive questions, from Catholics, along the lines of “What is the difference between Catholics and Christians?” In face-to-face conversations with Catholics, we have literally heard, “I am not a Christian, I am Catholic.” To many Catholics, the terms “Christian” and “Protestant” are synonymous. With all that said, the intent of this article is that Catholics would study what the Bible says about being a Christian and would perhaps consider that the Catholic faith is not the best representation of what the Bible describes. As a background, please read our article on “What is a Christian?”
A key distinction between Catholics and Christians is the view of the Bible. Catholics view the Bible as having equal authority with the Church and tradition. Christians view the Bible as the supreme authority for faith and practice. The question is, how does the Bible present itself? Second Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” This text tells us that Scripture is not “just the beginning,” or “just the basics,” or the “foundation for a more complete church tradition.” On the contrary, Scripture is perfectly and fully sufficient for everything in the Christian life. Scripture can teach us, rebuke us, correct us, train us, and equip us. “Bible Christians” do not deny the value of church tradition. Rather, Christians uphold that for a church tradition to be valid, it must be based on the clear teaching of Scripture and must be in full agreement with Scripture. Catholic friend, study the Word of God for yourself. In God’s Word you will find God’s description of, and intention for, His Church. Second Timothy 2:15 declares, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
A second key difference between Catholics and Bible Christians is the understanding of how we can approach God. Catholics tend to approach God through intermediaries, such as Mary or the saints. Christians approach God directly, offering prayers to no one other than God Himself. The Bible proclaims that we ourselves can approach God’s throne of grace with boldness (Hebrews 4:16). The Bible is perfectly clear that God desires us to pray to Him, to have communication with Him, to ask Him for the things we need (Philippians 4:6; Matthew 7:7-8; 1 John 5:14-15). There is no need for mediators or intermediaries, as Christ is our one and only mediator (1 Timothy 2:5), and both Christ and the Holy Spirit are already interceding on our behalf (Romans 8:26-27; Hebrews 7:25). Catholic friend, God loves you intimately and has provided an open door to direct communication through Jesus.
The most crucial difference between Catholics and Bible Christians is on the issue of salvation. Catholics view salvation almost entirely as a process, while Christians view salvation as both a completed status and a process. Catholics see themselves as “being saved,” while Christians view themselves as “having been saved.” First Corinthians 1:2 says, “To those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy.” The words “sanctified” and “holy” come from the same Greek root. This verse is declaring that Christians are both sanctified and called to be sanctified. The Bible presents salvation as a gift that is received the moment a person places faith in Jesus Christ as Savior (John 3:16). When a person receives Christ as Savior, he/she is justified (declared righteous – Romans 5:9), redeemed (rescued from slavery to sin – 1 Peter 1:18), reconciled (achieving peace with God – Romans 5:1), sanctified (set apart for God’s purposes – 1 Corinthians 6:11), and born again as a new creation (1 Peter 1:23; 2 Corinthians 5:17). Each of these is fully accomplished at the moment of salvation. Christians are then called to live out practically (called to be holy) what is already true positionally (sanctified).
The Catholic viewpoint is that salvation is received by faith, but then must be “maintained” by good works and participation in the Sacraments. Bible Christians do not deny the importance of good works or that Christ calls us to observe the ordinances in remembrance of Him and in obedience to Him. The difference is that Christians view these things as the result of salvation, not a requirement for salvation or a means of maintaining salvation. Salvation is an accomplished work, purchased by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ (1 John 2:2). God offers us salvation and assurance of salvation because Jesus’ sacrifice was fully, completely, and perfectly sufficient. If we receive God’s precious gift of salvation, we can know that we are saved. First John 5:13 declares, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
We can know that we have eternal life, and we can have assurance of our salvation because of the greatness of Christ’s sacrifice. Christ’s sacrifice does not need to be re-offered or re-presented. Hebrews 7:27 says, “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when He offered Himself.” Hebrews 10:10 declares, “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” First Peter 3:18 exclaims, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice was absolutely and perfectly sufficient. Jesus declared on the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). Jesus’ atoning sacrifice was the full payment for all of our sins (1 John 2:2). As a result, all of our sins are forgiven, and we are promised eternal life in heaven the moment we receive the gift God offers us – salvation through Jesus Christ (John 3:16).
Catholic friend, do you desire this “so great salvation” (Hebrews 2:6)? If so, all you must do is receive it (John 1:12) through faith (Romans 5:1). God loves us and offers us salvation as a gift (John 3:16). If we receive His grace, by faith, we have salvation as our eternal possession (Ephesians 2:8-9). Once saved, nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing can remove us from His hand (John 10:28-29). If you desire this salvation, if you desire to have all your sins forgiven, if you desire to have assurance of salvation, if you desire direct access to the God who loves you – receive it, and it is yours. This is the salvation that Jesus died to provide and that God offers as a gift.
Sunday, April 3, 2016
Sunday, March 27, 2016
Saturday, March 26, 2016
GLASSWINGED BUTTERFLY
Facts about Glasswinged Butterfly,
"Scientific name for Glasswinged Butterfly is Greta Oto". The Glasswinged Butterfly is a variety of brush-footed butterfly that belongs to the Greta genus of the Nymphalidae family. The Glasswinged Butterfly range is from Mexico in the course of Colombia and Panama, and they fly through Florida, too. The Glasswinged Butterfly is mostly renowned for its transparent wings. The Glasswinged Butterfly is one among the most stunning butterflies on the earth due to their vivid coloration or unique form. Even though most other varieties of butterflies protect against their predators by means of their colored scales that outline their wings, the Glasswinged Butterfly evolves transparent wings to conceal itself from its killers rather than to discourage them.
Features
The Glasswinged Butterfly has transparent wings, with a maximum wingspan, ranging from 2 1/8 inches to 2 1/4 inches (5.5 to 6.0cm). The tissue amid the veins of the wings of the Glasswinged Butterfly resembles glass, as it is short of the dyed scales found common among other butterfly varieties. These lucid wings make the Glasswinged Butterfly very difficult for voracious birds follow it during the flight. The dense borders of the Glasswinged Butterfly wings are dark brown in color, sometimes colored with orange or red, and they have a dark body color. The adult Glasswinged butterflies exhibit many interesting behaviors, such as extensive migrations and lekking (take part in a communal breeding display on a lek: among male butterflies.
The Glasswinged Butterfly has no scales, and there are just transparent membranes, which signifies that the wings can be looked directly through them. When the membranes of the Glasswinged Butterfly are positioned in the correct way, they will refract (of water, air, or glass that makes a ray of light will change direction when it enters at an angle) light such that unbelievable, wonderful colors are revealed in the wings of the butterfly. It will be similar to an apparent soap fizz, capturing the light and revealing its immense collection of colors within. However, when the Glasswinged Butterfly are in flight, it is impossible to spot them because their wings are basically lucid.
In spite of the look of delicate wings, the Glasswinged Butterfly is amazingly strong and enables the glass wings to continue extensive traveling flights, whereby they tour to a maximum distance of 12 miles (19.3km) per day. Interestingly, to locate a mate, male Glasswinged Butterfly assemble together in the shaded crooks of the rainforest understory, their primary home, and emit pheromones to magnetize female butterflies in competitive surroundings.
Diet
The Glasswinged Butterfly visits ordinary flowers, such as Lantana and drinks the nectar of the flowers of the plant. The caterpillars of the Glasswinged Butterfly feed on some toxic plants.
Breeding
Though both male and female Glasswinged butterflies visit a variety of plants for drinking of nectar of their flowers, the female Glasswinged Butterfly prefers to lay her eggs on the tropical plants that belong to the Solanaceae genus Cestrum. The green caterpillars of the Glasswinged Butterfly have a green color body and eat these poisonous plants and are maybe poisonous to their predators in the course of secondary chemicals accumulated in their tissues. Usually, the chemical extracts of a caterpillar are inedible to ants. Adult Glasswinged Butterfly are also considered toxic, but their toxicity effects chiefly from the male butterflies consuming on flowers, such as Asteraceae whose nectar includes pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These similar alkaloids are transformed into pheromones, too, by the male Glasswinged Butterfly and used to magnetize female butterflies. Groups of male butterflies flutter around, dispersing pheromones so as to assist them to mate with a female butterfly, a performance called lekking.
"Scientific name for butterfly Lepidoptera". Glasswinged Butterfly are insects. A Glasswinged Butterfly is a herbivore; Meaning that as a caterpillar its first food is its own eggshell and than it will eat the leaves of the plant on which it is hatched. When it becomes a butterfly, it will feed mostly on nectar from flowers, rotting fruit and water with a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw.
Life cycle of a Glasswinged Butterfly comes in four stages, egg, larva "caterpillars", pupa "chrysalis" and adult Butterfly.
A Glasswinged Butterfly will attach its eggs to leaves with a special glue.
When caterpillars become fully grown they will attach to an appropriate leaf or small branch, than they will shed the outside layer of their skin and a hard skin underneath known as a "chrysalis" will be their new look
An adult Glasswinged Butterfly will come out from the "chrysalis" than it waits a few hours for its wings to dry and fill with blood, before it takes its first flight.
Glasswinged Butterfly can see yellow, green, and red. An adult butterfly average life span is from a week to a year
The top flight speed of a Glasswinged Butterfly is 12 miles per hour and some moths can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
A Glasswinged Butterfly is cold-blooded, which means the body temperature is not regulated on its own. A Butterfly can't fly or eat if their body temperature is below 82 degrees fah (28 cel). Glasswinged Butterfly's are often basking in the sun with their wings open to gain heat and than the veins in the wings carry the heat to the body.
A Glasswinged Butterfly has sense organ, on their feet or tarsi, for tasting
The estimate is between 15000 and 20000 different species of butterfly.
A Glasswinged Butterfly has a small body, made up of three parts – the head, abdomen and thorax. A Glasswinged Butterfly has two large eyes, which are made up of many small parts which are called "compound eyes".
A Glasswinged Butterfly has two antenna's on the top of their heads, which they use to smell, hear and feel. A Glasswinged Butterfly’s mouth is a long tube a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw when its done eating, it rolls the tube back up.
"Scientific name for Glasswinged Butterfly is Greta Oto". The Glasswinged Butterfly is a variety of brush-footed butterfly that belongs to the Greta genus of the Nymphalidae family. The Glasswinged Butterfly range is from Mexico in the course of Colombia and Panama, and they fly through Florida, too. The Glasswinged Butterfly is mostly renowned for its transparent wings. The Glasswinged Butterfly is one among the most stunning butterflies on the earth due to their vivid coloration or unique form. Even though most other varieties of butterflies protect against their predators by means of their colored scales that outline their wings, the Glasswinged Butterfly evolves transparent wings to conceal itself from its killers rather than to discourage them.
Features
The Glasswinged Butterfly has transparent wings, with a maximum wingspan, ranging from 2 1/8 inches to 2 1/4 inches (5.5 to 6.0cm). The tissue amid the veins of the wings of the Glasswinged Butterfly resembles glass, as it is short of the dyed scales found common among other butterfly varieties. These lucid wings make the Glasswinged Butterfly very difficult for voracious birds follow it during the flight. The dense borders of the Glasswinged Butterfly wings are dark brown in color, sometimes colored with orange or red, and they have a dark body color. The adult Glasswinged butterflies exhibit many interesting behaviors, such as extensive migrations and lekking (take part in a communal breeding display on a lek: among male butterflies.
The Glasswinged Butterfly has no scales, and there are just transparent membranes, which signifies that the wings can be looked directly through them. When the membranes of the Glasswinged Butterfly are positioned in the correct way, they will refract (of water, air, or glass that makes a ray of light will change direction when it enters at an angle) light such that unbelievable, wonderful colors are revealed in the wings of the butterfly. It will be similar to an apparent soap fizz, capturing the light and revealing its immense collection of colors within. However, when the Glasswinged Butterfly are in flight, it is impossible to spot them because their wings are basically lucid.
In spite of the look of delicate wings, the Glasswinged Butterfly is amazingly strong and enables the glass wings to continue extensive traveling flights, whereby they tour to a maximum distance of 12 miles (19.3km) per day. Interestingly, to locate a mate, male Glasswinged Butterfly assemble together in the shaded crooks of the rainforest understory, their primary home, and emit pheromones to magnetize female butterflies in competitive surroundings.
Diet
The Glasswinged Butterfly visits ordinary flowers, such as Lantana and drinks the nectar of the flowers of the plant. The caterpillars of the Glasswinged Butterfly feed on some toxic plants.
Breeding
Though both male and female Glasswinged butterflies visit a variety of plants for drinking of nectar of their flowers, the female Glasswinged Butterfly prefers to lay her eggs on the tropical plants that belong to the Solanaceae genus Cestrum. The green caterpillars of the Glasswinged Butterfly have a green color body and eat these poisonous plants and are maybe poisonous to their predators in the course of secondary chemicals accumulated in their tissues. Usually, the chemical extracts of a caterpillar are inedible to ants. Adult Glasswinged Butterfly are also considered toxic, but their toxicity effects chiefly from the male butterflies consuming on flowers, such as Asteraceae whose nectar includes pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These similar alkaloids are transformed into pheromones, too, by the male Glasswinged Butterfly and used to magnetize female butterflies. Groups of male butterflies flutter around, dispersing pheromones so as to assist them to mate with a female butterfly, a performance called lekking.
"Scientific name for butterfly Lepidoptera". Glasswinged Butterfly are insects. A Glasswinged Butterfly is a herbivore; Meaning that as a caterpillar its first food is its own eggshell and than it will eat the leaves of the plant on which it is hatched. When it becomes a butterfly, it will feed mostly on nectar from flowers, rotting fruit and water with a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw.
Life cycle of a Glasswinged Butterfly comes in four stages, egg, larva "caterpillars", pupa "chrysalis" and adult Butterfly.
A Glasswinged Butterfly will attach its eggs to leaves with a special glue.
When caterpillars become fully grown they will attach to an appropriate leaf or small branch, than they will shed the outside layer of their skin and a hard skin underneath known as a "chrysalis" will be their new look
An adult Glasswinged Butterfly will come out from the "chrysalis" than it waits a few hours for its wings to dry and fill with blood, before it takes its first flight.
Glasswinged Butterfly can see yellow, green, and red. An adult butterfly average life span is from a week to a year
The top flight speed of a Glasswinged Butterfly is 12 miles per hour and some moths can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
A Glasswinged Butterfly is cold-blooded, which means the body temperature is not regulated on its own. A Butterfly can't fly or eat if their body temperature is below 82 degrees fah (28 cel). Glasswinged Butterfly's are often basking in the sun with their wings open to gain heat and than the veins in the wings carry the heat to the body.
A Glasswinged Butterfly has sense organ, on their feet or tarsi, for tasting
The estimate is between 15000 and 20000 different species of butterfly.
A Glasswinged Butterfly has a small body, made up of three parts – the head, abdomen and thorax. A Glasswinged Butterfly has two large eyes, which are made up of many small parts which are called "compound eyes".
A Glasswinged Butterfly has two antenna's on the top of their heads, which they use to smell, hear and feel. A Glasswinged Butterfly’s mouth is a long tube a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw when its done eating, it rolls the tube back up.
A
Glasswinged Butterfly has three pairs of legs and their feet have
little claws that help them stand on flowers. The Glasswinged
Butterfly's wings are made up of hard tubes that are covered with a thin
tissue. The butterfly's wings are covered with fine dusty like scales. A
Glasswinged Butterfly has four brightly colored wings having
distinctive patterns made up of tiny scales. The bright patterns scales
sometimes have hidden ultraviolet patterns for attracting mates. The
bright colors are also used as camouflage to hide them or scare off
predictors.
BLUE MORPHO
Blue Morpho Butterfly Facts, Scientific name Blue Morpho Butterfly is
Morpho menelaus. A Blue Morpho Butterfly is a herbivore, Meaning that
as a caterpillar its first food is its own eggshell and than it will eat
the leaves of the plant on which it is hatched. When it becomes a
butterfly, it will feed mostly on nectar from flowers, rotting fruit and
water with a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks
like a straw. All in Butterflys in the same family (Menelaus Blue
Morpho) Morpho peleides (Peleides Blue Morpho) Morpho rhetenor
The Blue Morpho is one of several species of bright blue butterflies. They are part of the Morpho genus, Nymphalidae family and Lepidoptera order.
The term Blue Morpho can refer to the Menelaus Blue Morpho (Morpho Menelaus), Peleides Blue Morpho (Morpho Peleides) or Rhetenor Blue Morpho (Morpho Rhetenor).
The Common Blue Morpho Butterfly, species name Morpho peleides, is also called the Emperor, the Blue Morpho and Peleides Blue Morpho. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is one of the largest butterflies in the world, with a seven to eight inch (17.8 to 20.7 cm) wingspan. The Blue Morpho Butterfly bright blue wings generate their color due to thousands of tiny scales. The wings are flashed quickly to frighten away predators. Hence the Blue Morpho Butterfly wings are not actually colored blue but look that way. The underside of the wings is brown, and the drab color helps them blend in when the wings are folded against the body or when the Blue Morpho Butterfly are at rest. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also have bronze colored spots on their wings that look like eyes, potentially scaring off predators. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also preferring to stay in groups to deter predators.
The Common Blue Morpho Butterfly is an iridescent butterfly found in Mexico, Central America and northern South America. The Blue Morpho Butterfly do not live in the Neartic biome region defined by the Isthmus of Panama.
Blue Morpho Butterfly comes in four stages, egg, larva "caterpillars", pupa "chrysalis" and adult Butterfly.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly will attach its eggs to leaves with a special glue.
When caterpillars become fully grown they will attach to an appropriate leaf or small branch, than they will shed the outside layer of their skin and a hard skin underneath known as a "chrysalis" will be their new look
An adult butterfly will come out from the "chrysalis" than it waits a few hours for its wings to dry and fill with blood, before it takes its first flight.
The Morpho peleides has a very short lifecycle, just 115 days from egg to adulthood to death. After the Blue Morpho pupates, it loses the ability to eat and instead can only drink.
These butterflies have a broad diet. Their eggs are laid on plants in the Leguminosae family, Lonchocarpus, Medicago satvia, Bignonicaeae, ithecellbium and others. Their caterpillars are known to be cannibalistic if no other food is available. The larva are beige with green patches. The Menelaus morpho has several sub-species, and for some of these, the caterpillars may have yellow patches. The caterpillars in the Blue morpho family prefer the leaves of plants in the pea family.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly can see yellow, green, and red. An adult Blue Morpho Butterfly average life span is from a week to a year
The top flight speed of a Blue Morpho Butterfly is 12 miles per hour and some moths can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly is cold-blooded, which means the body temperature is not regulated on its own. A Blue Morpho Butterfly can't fly or eat if their body temperature is below 82 degrees fah (28 cel). Blue Morpho Butterfly's are often basking in the sun with their wings open to gain heat and than the veins in the wings carry the heat to the body.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly is a true insect, with a proboscis, a long protruding mouth part used to suck its food. The adults drink the juice of many rotted fruits, especially rooted fruit like the lychee, kiwi and mango. Drinking the rotted fruit can make them drunk; the drunk Blue Morpho Butterfly wobbles in flight. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also drink nectar, the juices of dead animals and some fungi. The rapid flashing of their bright blue wings and the brown underside can make them hard to find, since it looks like they are disappearing and reappearing.
The adults of the Blue Morpho Butterfly species spends most of its time within 16 feet (five meters) of the forest floor. The Blue Morpho Butterfly will sometimes chase mates to all levels of the forest. Males are larger and more brightly colored than the females.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly are not listed with a conservation status with the IUCN. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is sought by collectors, but its greatest predators are the flycatcher and jacamar.
The Rhetenor Blue Morpho is found in the Amazon basin. It is distinguishable from other Blue Morpho Butterfly by its more concave forewing.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has three pairs of legs and their feet have little claws that help them stand on flowers. The Blue Morpho Butterfly's wings are made up of hard tubes that are covered with a thin tissue. The Blue Morpho Butterfly's wings are covered with fine dusty like scales. A Butterfly has four brightly colored wings having distinctive patterns made up of tiny scales. The bright patterns scales sometimes have hidden ultraviolet patterns for attracting mates. The bright colors are also used as camouflage to hide them or scare off predictors.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has sense organ, on their feet or tarsi, for tasting
The estimate is between 15000 and 20000 different species of butterfly.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has a small body, made up of three parts – the head, abdomen and thorax. A Blue Morpho Butterfly has two large eyes, which are made up of many small parts which are called "compound eyes".
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has two antenna's on the top of their heads, which they use to smell, hear and feel. A Blue Morpho Butterfly’s mouth is a long tube a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw when its done eating, it rolls the tube back up.
The Blue Morpho is one of several species of bright blue butterflies. They are part of the Morpho genus, Nymphalidae family and Lepidoptera order.
The term Blue Morpho can refer to the Menelaus Blue Morpho (Morpho Menelaus), Peleides Blue Morpho (Morpho Peleides) or Rhetenor Blue Morpho (Morpho Rhetenor).
The Common Blue Morpho Butterfly, species name Morpho peleides, is also called the Emperor, the Blue Morpho and Peleides Blue Morpho. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is one of the largest butterflies in the world, with a seven to eight inch (17.8 to 20.7 cm) wingspan. The Blue Morpho Butterfly bright blue wings generate their color due to thousands of tiny scales. The wings are flashed quickly to frighten away predators. Hence the Blue Morpho Butterfly wings are not actually colored blue but look that way. The underside of the wings is brown, and the drab color helps them blend in when the wings are folded against the body or when the Blue Morpho Butterfly are at rest. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also have bronze colored spots on their wings that look like eyes, potentially scaring off predators. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also preferring to stay in groups to deter predators.
The Common Blue Morpho Butterfly is an iridescent butterfly found in Mexico, Central America and northern South America. The Blue Morpho Butterfly do not live in the Neartic biome region defined by the Isthmus of Panama.
Blue Morpho Butterfly comes in four stages, egg, larva "caterpillars", pupa "chrysalis" and adult Butterfly.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly will attach its eggs to leaves with a special glue.
When caterpillars become fully grown they will attach to an appropriate leaf or small branch, than they will shed the outside layer of their skin and a hard skin underneath known as a "chrysalis" will be their new look
An adult butterfly will come out from the "chrysalis" than it waits a few hours for its wings to dry and fill with blood, before it takes its first flight.
The Morpho peleides has a very short lifecycle, just 115 days from egg to adulthood to death. After the Blue Morpho pupates, it loses the ability to eat and instead can only drink.
These butterflies have a broad diet. Their eggs are laid on plants in the Leguminosae family, Lonchocarpus, Medicago satvia, Bignonicaeae, ithecellbium and others. Their caterpillars are known to be cannibalistic if no other food is available. The larva are beige with green patches. The Menelaus morpho has several sub-species, and for some of these, the caterpillars may have yellow patches. The caterpillars in the Blue morpho family prefer the leaves of plants in the pea family.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly can see yellow, green, and red. An adult Blue Morpho Butterfly average life span is from a week to a year
The top flight speed of a Blue Morpho Butterfly is 12 miles per hour and some moths can fly up to 25 miles per hour.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly is cold-blooded, which means the body temperature is not regulated on its own. A Blue Morpho Butterfly can't fly or eat if their body temperature is below 82 degrees fah (28 cel). Blue Morpho Butterfly's are often basking in the sun with their wings open to gain heat and than the veins in the wings carry the heat to the body.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly is a true insect, with a proboscis, a long protruding mouth part used to suck its food. The adults drink the juice of many rotted fruits, especially rooted fruit like the lychee, kiwi and mango. Drinking the rotted fruit can make them drunk; the drunk Blue Morpho Butterfly wobbles in flight. The Blue Morpho Butterfly also drink nectar, the juices of dead animals and some fungi. The rapid flashing of their bright blue wings and the brown underside can make them hard to find, since it looks like they are disappearing and reappearing.
The adults of the Blue Morpho Butterfly species spends most of its time within 16 feet (five meters) of the forest floor. The Blue Morpho Butterfly will sometimes chase mates to all levels of the forest. Males are larger and more brightly colored than the females.
The Blue Morpho Butterfly are not listed with a conservation status with the IUCN. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is sought by collectors, but its greatest predators are the flycatcher and jacamar.
The Rhetenor Blue Morpho is found in the Amazon basin. It is distinguishable from other Blue Morpho Butterfly by its more concave forewing.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has three pairs of legs and their feet have little claws that help them stand on flowers. The Blue Morpho Butterfly's wings are made up of hard tubes that are covered with a thin tissue. The Blue Morpho Butterfly's wings are covered with fine dusty like scales. A Butterfly has four brightly colored wings having distinctive patterns made up of tiny scales. The bright patterns scales sometimes have hidden ultraviolet patterns for attracting mates. The bright colors are also used as camouflage to hide them or scare off predictors.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has sense organ, on their feet or tarsi, for tasting
The estimate is between 15000 and 20000 different species of butterfly.
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has a small body, made up of three parts – the head, abdomen and thorax. A Blue Morpho Butterfly has two large eyes, which are made up of many small parts which are called "compound eyes".
A Blue Morpho Butterfly has two antenna's on the top of their heads, which they use to smell, hear and feel. A Blue Morpho Butterfly’s mouth is a long tube a "proboscis" - a long narrow tube in their mouth that looks like a straw when its done eating, it rolls the tube back up.
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