Cyber Missionaries

The second letter of Jesus was addressed to the messenger of the church at Smyrna. During the time of John, Smyrna was apparently a city of great beauty and impressive architecture that circled Mount Pagus like a “crown”.  When walking through the city, one would see the Ephesian gate, a gymnasium (near the harbor), a stadium (west side), a theater (holding 20,000 and located on the northwest mountain slope), temples to Zeus (including a large altar), Cybele (the Mother Goddess, near the harbor), Aphrodite, Dionysius, and the Emperors (probably Tiberius in 26 AD and Domitian before 96 AD), the harbor, a library, and a massive agora with a bema on the west and a basilica on the north. This wealthy city was also known for its exceptionally good wine that could be used for both enjoyment and medicinal purposes. Smyrna was dedicated to the worship of the emperor and the imperial cult. Along with the other cities of Asia Province, Smyrna competed for the honor of building a te...

Have you ever wondered how Henry Ford made his first car, how Steve Jobs made the first Apple Macintosh computer, or how Bill Gates coded the first Windows operating system? Have you ever wondered how God made you? The Psalmist said, "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well." Psalms 139 14. God is the perfect workman. The making of the human being was a wonderfully thought-out process conceived in the infinite mind of Divine Love. Let's begin at the beginning of time, when God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..." Genesis 1:26. What was God's intention through in this statement? Let's find out: Image: the word image was translated from the Hebrew word pselem which meant shadow, phantom or ghost . God's intention was for the inner unseen being of man, which we understand today as the soul, to resemble His own. Likeness: the word likeness was tr...

If you have a phone in your hand, I believe the first place you'll go to for definition is Google. What is discernment according to Google? It is the ability to judge well. Let's look at another definition from Noah Webster's 1828 dictionary: Discern: To distinguish; to see the difference between two or more things; to discriminate; as, to discern the blossom-buds from the leaf-buds of plants. To discover by the intellect; to distinguish; hence, to have knowledge of; to judge. To see or understand the difference; to make a distinction; as, to discern between good and evil, truth and falsehood. Discernment: The act of discerning; also, the power or faculty of the mind, by which it distinguishes one thing from another, as truth from falsehood, virtue from vice; acuteness of judgment; the power of perceiving differences of things or ideas, and their relations and tendencies. Discernment is vital for making the right decision. How does it work? Let us examine the definitions a...

  The history of the seven churches began at the anointing of Jesus Christ in 27 AD, and it is this church that is His agency for the proclamation and demonstration of the saving gospel. It is this church that will, in the succeeding generations, be His people until the end of time.  Said the apostle Paul, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise." (Galatians 3:26-29) During the time of John, Ephesus was a metropolitan city in the Roman Empire's province of Asia Minor, known today as modern Turkey. It was a city of elites, much like New York or Dubai today, a center for trade, pleasure, and antiquities culture of many cultures especially Greek and Roman.  Ephesus ...

"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet. Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: " (Revelation 1:10-11) Said the apostle, "I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." (Revelation 1:12-16) Who was this? John fell on his face at the sight, but he felt hand touch him and heard an encouraging voice said, "Fear not; I am the first ...

Adam and Eve yielded over their position as king and queen when they chose to disobey the command of God through the flattering deceptions of the Devil. The Bible says that the Devil has “...the power of death…” Paul in his letter to the Romans said, “...sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned…” Romans 5:12 . When you see death, decay or deterioration occur, you are now sure that you are stepping into the territory of the Devil.  Sin and death are twin siblings, and sin is the elder of the two. Death cannot be born if sin does not precede it. The Bible says that “...the wages of sin is death…” Romans 6:23 . In the above verse Paul said that by Adam, sin entered the world and death followed closely behind. God was dead serious when He told Adam, “...thou shalt surely die…” if they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He knew of the power that Satan wields. Had Adam and Eve heeded God’s comma...

A hesitant victim can be conquered by the art of baiting. Google dictionary defines bait as food placed on a hook or in a net, trap, or fishing area to entice fish or other animals as prey. The word “entice” means: to attract or tempt by offering pleasure or advantage. In his book The Art of War, Sun Tzu said, “Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.” The Prince of Darkness is a skilful general who plans and devices his baits with such mastery that countless men, women, youth and children throughout the ages fall victim to his attacks. He is no respecter of persons and does not have any mercy even on women and children. His mind is totally bent on the destruction of the human race. The benefits and advantages presented by him are dedicated to our destruction. In the previous chapter, we learned that the Devil reinforces his attacks against his enemies by presenting them with benefits. In the second chapter of this book, we identified the second enemy that we ...