Open Heaven 26 October 2018 – Who Is My Neighbour?

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Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday Daily Devotional by Pastor E A Adeboye – Who Is My Neighbour?

Topic: Who Is My Neighbour? (Open Heaven 26 October 2018)

Memorise: “And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.”- Luke 10:27

Read: Luke 10:25-37 (KJV)

25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?

27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

Bible in One Year: Jeremiah 23-24, Luke 11:14-32

Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday MESSAGE:

The title of today’s devotional is a question which precipitated the parable of the Good Samaritan. The question is even more relevant today because the character of good neighbourliness is fast becoming a scarce commodity. It is even more astonishing to find out that the brotherly love that helped the Church to grow in the early days of the Christian faith is dwindling among 21st century believers, but this should not be so. In Galatians 6:10, the Holy Spirit answered the question of who our neighbour is when He admonished us thus:

“As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”

To prevent any ambiguity, the Holy Spirit also gave us practical examples of what He meant in the above scripture in James 2:15-16, saying:

“15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, 16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?”

Through this scripture, the Holy Spirit is saying that there is no good neighbourliness in theoretical spirituality that is not accompanied by action. In today’s Bible text, our Lord used the actions of the Samaritan to vividly illustrate good neighbourliness, contrasting his charitable deeds against the selfish attitudes of the priest and the Levite. It is unfortunate that the actions of the latter two reflect what is happening among Christian brethren today. To the pastor, the sick child of a neighbour may die, as long as he is not late to preach somewhere. A chorister would not want to be late for choir practice, even though her fellow sister is critically ill somewhere.

Beloved, the Holy Spirit demands that we add virtue to our faith (2 Peter 1:5). When we add the virtue of good deeds to our faith, the task of evangelizing the world will become very easy to accomplish. The story was told of the General Overseer of a reputable church in Lagos, Nigeria, whose decision to accept Christ was motivated by the kindness of a Christian couple during the Nigerian civil war. He wondered what kind of people would give a bowlful of rice to him, a hungry fugitive who was about to die, at a time when food was terribly scarce. He found out that they were Christians, and there and then he decided to join them in serving Jesus. Beloved, let your faith come alive today with good works.

Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday Prayer Point:

Father, please help me to add the virtue of good neighbourliness to my faith, so that the light of Christ may shine through me to the world.

Also Read: Open Heaven 25 October 2018 – Things Money Cannot Do

Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday Hymn 12: Take My Life, And Let It Be

1.Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in endless praise,
Let them flow in endless praise.

2.Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee,
Swift and beautiful for Thee.

3.Take my voice and let me sing,
Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee,
Filled with messages from Thee.

4. Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose,
Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.

5. Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne,
It shall be Thy royal throne.

6. Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee,
Ever, only, all for Thee.

Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Open Heaven 26 October 2018 Friday Daily Devotional.

Flatimes Notice Board: Until you are born again, God ever abiding presence will never be with you. You must be born again to enjoy continuous victory. Please say the displayed prayer below in faith:

Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.

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The post Open Heaven 26 October 2018 – Who Is My Neighbour? appeared first on Flatimes.

Christian Concern told they should pay for own security at Wilberforce Academy in Oxford

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Christian Concern told they should pay for own security at Wilberforce Academy in Oxford

The five day conference, which aims to train young Christians in leadership skills for public life, is normally held on a university campus and was meant to be at Lady Margaret Hall in Oxford in 2019. 

Other universities have expressed a desire not to host them in the past because of their views on transgenderism, homosexuality and abortion, such the University of Exeter. 

Christian Concern said in a statement: “Although we understand that the college’s Junior Common Room (JCR) has voted to oppose our booking, our correspondence has been directly with the college which has the requisite management and decision making power on these issues.

“Today (25 Oct), the college wrote to inform us that if they were to host our event, they would require us to pay for additional security, due to the likelihood of members of the LMH community – including staff and senior members – wishing to “express vehement disagreement” and engage in “sustained, “very noticeable” protest.”

“It seems that the college is afraid that members of its own community would be unable to maintain peaceful protest, bringing into question their commitment to their own college value of ‘fairness – openness and equality’. Surely if students or staff members were to act in violent or aggressive ways towards visitors to the college, then this would be covered under the college’s…

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Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Premier Christianity News.

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Russian Rebels in Ukraine Shut Down Churches

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Russian Rebels in Ukraine Shut Down Churches


Russian Rebels in Ukraine Shut Down Churches


Rebels in Ukraine’s Luhansk region are reportedly raiding Christian churches.


According to reports, the group, which controls Luhansk, has demanded that churches re-register as a religious organization, but the rebel group is denying approvals for those registrations.


Forum 18, a Norwegian human rights organization, says neither Baptist nor Seventh-day Adventist churches have been allowed to re-register.


There are also reports that Protestant churches have been raided in the past few months. In September, rebels raided a Baptist church in Brianka and the pastor of the church is facing possible punishment for allowing worship without registration.


In another instance, police officers shut down the morning worship service at Revival Baptist Church. Pastor Dmitry Sirbu is facing legal threats for allowing the worship gathering.


In August, armed men reportedly raided Grace Church of God Pentecostal Church in Alchevsk during the church’s worship. The group forced the church to lie on the floor while the men seized church computers.


Andrei Litsoev, head of the Religious Organizations and Spirituality Department of the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry in Luhansk, hasn’t commented on why the churches are being denied registration.


According to The Christian Post, Catholic churches in the area are waiting to hear on their own applications for registration.


Luhansk authorities say…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Christianity Explored taken up across Albania

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Christianity Explored taken up across Albania

Christianity Explored (CE) is a seven week series for people who want to investigate Christianity or brush up on the basics. It explores who Jesus is, why he came and what it means to follow him and is done in many churches throughout the UK.

The course was only brought to Albania in May this year, with 80 pastors attending the launch in Tirana, the capital. Now, six courses have finished with 36 people saying they have become Christians.

Pastor Craig Dyer is the Director of Training for CE and has visited Albanian churches to help launch it there.

Dyer told Premier Christian Radio that the idea to translate it started when some Albanian pastors were using the CE prison ministry version and asked if they could have the original course material for regular use in churches too. 

“They loved the way that it took people directly to Mark’s gospel and didn’t assume any prior knowledge” he said. 

To produce the course material in their vernacular, CE teamed up with Albanian pastor Erion Cuni and the charity Adopt-A-Child, who provide food, medical care and relational support for children in Albania from poor families.

140 CE leaders have been now been trained and 1,500 course notebooks printed, with 26 courses currently going on. 

“We’re so encouraged to see the uptake” Dyer said, “It’s always a miracle, it’s always of God’s grace and we know that with anything like that…

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Apple’s Tim Cook Says, Being Gay ‘Is God’s Greatest Gift to Me’

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Apple’s Tim Cook Says, Being Gay ‘Is God’s Greatest Gift to Me’


Apple’s Tim Cook Says, Being Gay ‘Is God’s Greatest Gift to Me’


Four years after becoming the first major CEO to come out as gay, Apple’s Tim Cook says he has no regrets.


“I’m very proud of it – yes, absolutely. To me, it is God’s greatest gift to me,” Cook told CNN in a new interview. 


Cook further said he came out as gay to support children who are being bullied.  


“I am a private person,” Cook said, describing his struggle to make his sexuality public. He added he wanted to show children that “you can be gay and still go on and do some big jobs in life – that there’s a path there. That is the reason I did it.”


Asked his thoughts on the Trump administration’s debate over the definition of gender, Cook said, “My strong view is that everybody should be treated with dignity and respect, and that’s the way I look at everyone.”


Cook’s comments about God sparked a debate on social media.


“I love Tim Cook and Apple but that’s a stupid comment,” Holly Elizabeth wrote on CNN International’s Facebook page. “God didn’t make you gay. It was a personal choice.”


Another person, Marcia N. Smith, wrote, “I wonder which God is that because it isn’t the God of the Bible.”


Others, though, applauded Cook. 


“I for one am happy to hear he gives Glory to God for his happiness,” Marlon Wilson wrote.


Michael Foust is a freelance writer. Visit his blog, 

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Pastor Dave Stone Says Retiring to Make Way for Younger Leader Is ‘Best Thing’ for Church

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Pastor Dave Stone Says Retiring to Make Way for Younger Leader Is ‘Best Thing’ for Church

(Photos: Facebook)Dave Stone, senior pastor of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky and his younger successor Kyle Idleman (Inset).

Dave Stone, senior pastor of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, who announced his retirement at age 57, said he chose to step down from the helm of the 25,000-member church to make way for younger leadership.

“I’ve seen a lot of church leaders and business CEOs who have stayed longer than they should have,” Stone told WDRB News in a recent interview. 

Stone announced in September that over the next six- to-nine months he will be handing over the church’s senior pastor responsibilities to 42-year-old Kyle Idleman who is serving as Southeast Christian’s teaching pastor. He told WDRB that his mentor, former Southeast Christian Pastor Bob Russell, retired from the helm of the church in 2006 at age 62 to make way for his leadership.

“He chose to step aside because he knew that the way to influence a church, and to help it grow younger, is by having younger leadership,” Stone said.

Stone expanded the church from its main campus in Louisville to include six satellite campuses during his tenure and he believes that the church’s growth will continue under Idleman.

“If you believe in your heart that those who don’t…

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Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – The Christian Post.

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MP calls for religious freedom for all faiths

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MP calls for religious freedom for all faiths

Speaking on Thursday during an annual debate on international freedom of religion or belief in Westminster Hall, Jeremy Lefroy who’s a Christian and the Tory MP for Stafford told MPs that human rights issues must apply to people of all faiths and even those without one.

He explained: “Too often we are only concerned about the persecution of our own faith and we need to stand up for people of any faith that are being challenged.

 

“We hang together so that we don’t hang separately.”

The debate took place ahead of International Freedom of Religion or Belief Day on Saturday following an application from Jim Shannon, Democratic Unionist MP for Strangford, who is also a Christian.

Lefroy argued that if MPs receive police protection where they travel to countries where people are persecuted for their faith, they should use that privilege to speak up for freedom of religion and belief.

Aid to the Church in Need

Decapitated statue of Our Lady in the destroyed St Addai’s Church, Karemles, northern Iraq

 

Particular concern was raised for people being persecuted for their faith or lack of belief in countries including Pakistan, India, China, Nepal, Turkey, Egypt and Iran.

While we enjoy considerable freedom of persecution in the UK comparatively, Christian Tory MP for Congleton, Fiona Bruce said threats to this privilege exist.

Using the…

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Lauren Daigle Performs Hit Song on The Ellen Show

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Lauren Daigle Performs Hit Song on The Ellen Show


Lauren Daigle Performs Hit Song on The Ellen Show


Lauren Daigle made her Ellen debut on Tuesday when she took to The Ellen Show stage to perform the hit song “Still Rolling Stones” from her new album. 


On Tuesday, award-winning Christian artist Lauren Daigle appeared on The Ellen Show, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, and had the opportunity to worship God through music. 


Daigle, who met DeGeneres briefly in 2010 at her American Idol audition, serenaded the studio audience singing the lyrics: “Now that You saved me / I sing ’cause You gave me / A song of revival.” 


As Daigle sent praise up to the Lord, she was able to bring church to the Ellen Stage and illustrate her love for Christ in an impactful and engaging way.


After her performance, DeGeneres announced that she would be giving everyone in the audience a copy of Daigle’s new album Look Up Child.


Many are seeing Daigle’s appearance on Ellen as a breakthrough in Hollywood and in the music industry for Christians and Christian music.


One YouTube user commented on the video of Daigle’s performance that was posted by “The Ellen Show” channel saying, “I am genuinely surprised to see a christian artist appear on ellen! And i have to say, as a lauren daigle fan, im not complaining! i hope millions of people come to know God as their savior because of this!”


Another person took to social media to express her amazement at Daigle’s performance writing on…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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Bible stories teach computers to ‘express’ themselves

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Bible stories teach computers to ‘express’ themselves

While computer services are already widely available to translate words between two languages, the researchers aim to solve the “machine translation problem where the source language and target language are simply different textual styles”.

Thirty-four versions of the Bible and two machine learning tools were used to develop a new system that can automatically convert written works into different styles for different audiences.

 

Professor Daniel Rockmore of Dartmouth College, New Hampshire who was one of the team members said in the study that they saw in the Bible “a large, previously untapped dataset of aligned parallel text”.

According to the research published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, this is not the first parallel dataset created for style translation, but it is the first that uses the Bible.

Keith Carlson, a PhD student at Dartmouth and lead author of the research paper about the study said: “The English-language Bible comes in many different written styles, making it the perfect source text to work with for style translation.”

The team used 34 Bible versions ranging from the King James Version to the Bible in Basic English.

The texts were then fed into two systems – a statistical machine translation system called Moses that compared texts and a neural network framework commonly used in machine translation called Seq2Seq.

Stay up to date with…

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Oregon Bakery Fined for Not Baking Same-Sex Marriage Cake Appeals to Supreme Court

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Oregon Bakery Fined for Not Baking Same-Sex Marriage Cake Appeals to Supreme Court


Oregon Bakery Fined for Not Baking Same-Sex Marriage Cake Appeals to Supreme Court


An Oregon couple who closed their bakery after being fined $135,000 for refusing to bake a cake for a same-sex wedding is asking the Supreme Court to intervene in their case. 


Aaron and Melissa Klein, who owned Sweet Cakes by Melissa in Gresham, were fined by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries in 2015 after they refused to bake a cake for a wedding with two brides. At the time, the Bureau of Labor and Industries also told them that they were not allowed to “cease and desist” from stating the conviction that their beliefs exempt them from baking cakes for same-sex weddings. 


The Kleins took their case to the Oregon Court of Appeals, who rejected their appeal but lifted the restriction on speaking their convictions. They next appealed to the Oregon Supreme Court, who denied their appeal this summer.


The Klein’s attorneys filed a petition on Monday, asking that their case be heard before the Supreme Court. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Colorado bakery that refused to bake a same-sex wedding cake. However, that 7-2 decision focused on the Colorado Civil Rights Commission’s hostility towards the owner’s religious beliefs. Observers believe that ruling did not settle the issue in other cases where that kind of overt hostility was not on display.


Two weeks ago, the United Kingdom’s highest court ruled in…

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