“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.” Matthew 4:23, KJV
“And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.” Matthew 9:35, KJV
“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Matthew 24:14, KJV
“Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Mark 1:14-15, KJV
Saul of Tarsus was called directly by the Lord to be an Apostle on the road to Damascus.
“Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, LO, WE TURN TO THE GENTILES. For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I HAVE SET THEE TO BE A LIGHT OF THE GENTILES, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.” Acts 13:46-47, KJV
“And he [Paul] reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. And when Silas and Timotheus were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ. And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: FROM HENCEFORTH I WILL GO UNTO THE GENTILES.” Acts 18:4-6, KJV
“And he [the Lord] said unto me [Paul], Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:21, KJV
“By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:” Romans 1:5, KJV
“For I [Paul] speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:” Romans 11:13, KJV
“For I [Paul] am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” 1 Corinthians 15:9, KJV
“For I [Paul] think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.” 1 Corinthians 4:9, KJV
“Whereunto I [Paul] am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.” 1 Timothy 2:7, KJV
“Whereunto I [Paul] am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.” 2 Timothy 1:11, KJV
Please also refer to the KJV Bible Verse List called “Apostle Paul’s Humility” KJV Bible Verse List, which you can find at the following URL:
Please also refer to the KJV Bible Verse List called “Apostle Paul Persecuted the First Century Church” KJV Bible Verse List, which you can find at the following URL:
Please also refer to the article called Article: “Why Did the Apostle Paul Have a Low Opinion of Physical Exercise?”, which you can find at the following URL:
Why do you take what has been fulfilled,
And try to apply it to this present time?
What you are doing is completely wrong,
It amounts to a serious doctrinal crime.
God’s Holy Word is not some kind of toy,
That you can simply twist to your desire,
If you do not stop with your foolishness,
Don’t be surprised if you end up in fire.
So before you attempt to teach the Bible,
You better make sure you’ve got it right,
If you change it to support your doctrine,
The Lord could cast you out of His sight.
Yet despite a warning in the Scriptures,
This is precisely what those Futurists do,
Pushing fulfilled prophecy to the present,
Man, those folks just haven’t got a clue.
They’re so drunk on man-made doctrines,
That have been preached for 200 years,
But when what they think doesn’t happen,
Watch how many will be filled with tears.
No doubt there’ll be great disappointment,
But they’ll only have themselves to blame,
As for the false teachers who taught them,
They’ll be embarrassed and full of shame.
Being as I live in an earthquake-prone area of the world not far from the convergence of two tectonic plates, some time ago, I installed a number of earthquake-related apps on my iMac, as well as on my iPhone. These things are pretty nifty. Does anyone even use that word anymore? I guess it kind of reveals my age.
Anyway, on my iPhone, one of these apps — which is free, by the way — is called “EQ Report”. This software is the official app for the earthquake-report.com website. The app provides a list of up-to-the-minute earthquakes which are occurring around the world. Within its settings, the user can adjust certain parameters so that the list only shows earthquakes which meet certain criteria.
For example, one can adjust which alert sound to use, the minimum magnitude of the quakes to be displayed in the list, the depth of the earthquake, and the region of the world from which one wants earthquakes to be listed. The one exception is that earthquakes with a magnitude of 6.0 or above are always displayed in the list regardless of one’s settings, and an alert will sound when such strong earthquakes do occur.
One thing I have noticed is that whenever earthquakes are strong enough to make the nightly news, there tends to be a lot of buzz on the Internet as well; particularly on the social networks, such as Facebook for example. Sadly, it has been my observation that sometimes, the comments which are made, and the information which is shared, is not always accurate. Having said that, I would like to use this blog post to put things in proper perspective for those of you who may have an interest in this topic.
First of all, as most people will already realize, there are earthquakes happening around the world all the time. In fact, they occur every single day somewhere in the world. Some of them — most of them, actually — are so weak, that they remain undetectable, and aren’t even noticed by us humans as we go about our daily affairs. They are only registered on machines at the various seismological agencies and institutions around the world.
These rarely-noticed temblors may be MINOR earthquakes in the 3.0 to 3.9 magnitude range, or they may be LIGHT earthquakes in the 4.0 to 4.9 magnitude range. To be honest, earthquakes in the MINOR and LIGHT classification are really nothing to worry about. You might notice a LIGHT earthquake if you are sitting right on top of or very near to its epicenter, but that is about it. It is really nothing to get bent out of shape over.
Other earthquakes may be a little stronger and are more noticeable by us as we carry on each day. These shakers are referred to by seismological organizations as MODERATE earthquakes, and have a magnitude of 5.0 to 5.9 on the Richter scale. With this level of earthquakes, you may feel a quick, sudden jolt or two, and maybe some brief, slight rolling motion. These quakes can cause slight damage to some buildings if they are not constructed properly according to earthquake-resistant building codes.
Where I live, we experience this class of earthquakes on a fairly regular basis, perhaps every few months or so. Sometimes, if I am busy, or even sleeping, I won’t even notice them if they are on the lower end of the MODERATE scale. Or I may look up and I will think to myself “Was that an earthquake?”
Further up the Richter scale are what seismological agencies refer to as STRONG earthquakes. These temblors have a magnitude of 6.0 to 6.9. You will definitely feel and notice these shakers without a doubt. It is within this range where more widespread damage begins to occur; particularly if a populated area is located near the epicenter. But again, it also depends a lot on the construction of the buildings in the area. I have been through plenty of earthquakes of this magnitude during my lifetime where very little damage was reported.
Beyond that, we have what are referred to as MAJOR earthquakes, which are in the 7.0 to 7.9 magnitude range. With these temblors, the damage can become really serious, depending on the location of the epicenter, and again, the construction of the buildings. I have been through a number of these over the years in Mexico, Japan, and in my current locale.
Finally, we have what are referred to as GREAT earthquakes, which have a magnitude of 8.0 or more. These quakes can result in catastrophic damage, and can wipe out entire communities, depending on the location of the epicenter. Pray to God that you never have to go through one of these.
As I mentioned a moment ago, I have been through A LOT of earthquakes during my lifetime of every classification, including one great earthquake — what is known as a thrust earthquake — in August of 1993. That earthquake had a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX, meaning that it was violent. It generated a minor tsunami of about seven feet. While we did experience some structural damage, and a few serious injuries, by God’s Grace, not a single soul died as a direct result of that long, powerful, grinding quake. The New York Times reported the following on August 9, 1993:
—– Begin Quote —–
The earthquake, in an area known for strong tremors, measured 8.1 on the Richter scale of ground motion, said Frank Baldwin of the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colo. Officials at the University of California Seismographic Station at Berkeley said the station measured the quake at 8.2. An earthquake of 8 or above is considered great and capable of causing tremendous damage in populated areas.”
Several aftershocks were reported, the largest measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale, said Marvin Carlson of the earthquake center. More aftershocks are expected.
Sixty people were treated at Guam Memorial Hospital, mostly for minor cuts and bruises, said an administrator.
Cars caught on bridges tumbled into rivers and there were reports of rock and land slides, the police said. Communication with the northern part of the island was difficult because of downed telephone poles.
—– End Quote —–
Sometimes, after an earthquake has occurred, and there has been time for further analysis, seismological agencies will downsize the magnitude of a quake. This may possibly explain why on the Wikipedia website, the very same earthquake is assigned a magnitude of 7.8, instead of 8.1 or 8.2, as reported in the New York Times. In fact, on the U.S. Geological Survey website, the 1993 earthquake is also now listed as being a 7.8 quake. Whatever the case may be, I can tell you that I was here; I experienced it; and it was the longest and most powerful earthquake I have ever been through in my entire life.
At this point, I would like to briefly discuss earthquake activity for our current year. That is, 2020. For the record, as I write this post on the early morning of January 11, 2020, based on my settings in the “EQ Report” app, since January 1st of this present year, while there have been a lot of MINOR and LIGHT earthquakes, there have been exactly 38 MODERATE earthquakes between magnitude 5.0 and 5.9, and only 4 STRONG earthquakes in the 6.0 to 6.9 magnitude range. The strongest earthquake thus far this year has been the 6.6 magnitude quake which occurred near Puerto Rico on January 7, 2020. There have been no major earthquakes yet this year. Neither have there been any great earthquakes, thank God.
One thing I would like to mention here is that we need to be careful regarding the descriptive words we use to describe these earthquakes. For example, it really irks me when the news media, online websites, etc., purposely resort to using sensationalism and exaggeration when describing these quakes, for the benefit of increasing both their readership, as well as their profit margin. They will use phrases such as “major earthquake”, when in reality, there have been ZERO actual MAJOR earthquakes thus far this year. Not only that, but as we have already seen, there have only been four STRONG earthquakes thus far this year. All the rest were moderate, light or minor in magnitude.
Sadly, I have noticed that a lot of people on the social networks do the very same thing. However, in all fairness, I prefer to attribute a lot of their misguided comments to human error, emotionalism, possibly wanting to draw attention to themselves, or maybe just plain old ignorance; meaning that they do not properly understand how seismological agencies classify earthquakes.
For example, a person who has never experienced an earthquake in their life, might be freaked out by a 4.5 quake, and will tell all their online friends that they had a “strong” earthquake, or a “very big” earthquake, or even a “major” earthquake. Of course, that just isn’t so. But they don’t know that; because they have never been through an earthquake before. My gosh, a 4.5 is hardly noticeable, and we would barely turn our heads here where I live.
So friends, if you are going to talk about earthquakes, please be careful regarding the language that you use. Keep a level head about it, and please don’t blow things out of proportion when earthquakes do happen, due to your own fear, or due to some other reason. Let’s be responsible with our words, and not be guilty of spreading unnecessary worry and fear. As Christians, we should strive to give people hope, peace and trust in the Lord, and not worry and fear. We need to let them know that God loves them, and that He will take care of them no matter what, if they are trusting in Him, and obedient to His Will. The Bible teaches us that if we know that God loves us and cares for us, then we should not fear, no matter what comes our way. So again, let’s carefully measure our words when it comes to earthquakes, and strive to be accurate. Allow me to share a few Bible verses with you for your personal consideration:
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7, KJV
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3, KJV
“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” 1 Peter 5:7, KJV
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” 1 John 4:18, KJV
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41:10, KJV
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7, KJV
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27, KJV
“Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” Psalm 119:165, KJV
“The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” Psalm 34:7, KJV
“When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee: And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat. Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven. Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats: For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words.” Proverbs 23:1-8, KJV
“There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt. But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand. As he came forth of his mother’s womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.” Ecclesiastes 5:13-15, KJV
“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:19-21, KJV
“. . . Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Matthew 19:23-24, KJV
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Mark 8:36-37, KJV
“And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Mark 10:17-25, KJV
“And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest? Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Luke 12:16-34, KJV
“Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.” John 6:27, KJV
“Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:13-15, KJV
“And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away.” 1 Corinthians 7:31, KJV
“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” Philippians 4:11, KJV
“Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” Colossians 3:2, KJV
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 1 Timothy 6:6-10, KJV
“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5, KJV
“Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you. Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.” James 5:1-7, KJV
“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” 1 John 2:15-17, KJV
“And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it.” Luke 4:5-6, KJV
“In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” 2 Corinthians 4:4, KJV
“Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.” 2 Corinthians 2:11, KJV
Please also refer to the KJV Bible verse list called “Materialism”, which you can find at the following URL:
I believe that Jesus and the First Century Apostles and Disciples were the Firstfruits of the Resurrection. Furthermore, based upon my understanding of the Scriptures, I believe that God has been working throughout the ages since that time to bring in the latter fruits and the latter harvest.
“Firstfruits of the Resurrection” KJV Bible Verse List:
If you are sick and tired of all of the violent war talk by the politicians and the military-industrial complex, then come and listen to some original, thought-provoking anti-war songs by evangelist Bill Kochman!
