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Stealing Baby Jesus

Jesus' Preeminence Doctrine-False Christmas

Source: Tracking Systems Direct

Link to Source: Click here to view source

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2014-12-10

Scripture: Colossians 1:12

Author: Illustration Exchange
11

ILLUSTRATION

NBC News:

When Baby Jesus disappeared … from a Nativity scene on the lawn of the Wellington, Fla., community center, village officials didn't follow a star to locate him. A GPS device mounted inside the life-size ceramic figurine led sheriff's deputies to a nearby apartment, where it was found face down on the carpet. An 18-year-old woman was arrested in the theft.

Giving up on old-fashioned padlocks and trust, a number of churches, synagogues, governments and ordinary citizens are turning to technology to protect holiday displays from pranks or prejudice.

It's a sign of the times. Holiday display theft is on the rise, and Baby Jesus is a particularly common target.

  • At First United Methodist Church in Kittanning, PA., a baby Jesus was stolen and replaced with a pumpkin.
  • In Eureka Springs, AK., someone who took off with a plastic baby Jesus from a public display, as well as the concrete block and chain that was supposed to keep it locked down.
  • In Meridian Hills, IN, a couple stole the figurine, and then led police on a high-speed chase in an effort to keep their loot.
  • A parishioner of a Brooklyn church prayed that whoever stole the Baby Jesus from a $1,700 Nativity scene dedicated to his late parents would have the heart to return it.

Sensing the opportunity, reports NBC News, security companies have increasingly started rolling out products and special seasonal contracts specifically designed to address the threat. "We have seen a growing number of cities and homeowners simply frustrated with holiday theft and vandalism, and that is the primary reason behind the increased use of GPS theft recovery systems during the holidays," explained a Tracking System Direct specialist.

APPLICATION

"Stealing" Jesus isn't just a "seasonal" threat.

Everyday, whether at the hands of false religions, pseudo-Christian cults, false prophets, or even secular humanists and atheists, Jesus is being plucked from his place of prominence in the Gospel message.

Materialists and commercialists pluck him from the center of the Christmas season and replace Him with Santas and sleighs and gifts and gadgets galore.

Secular humanists and atheists rob Him of His divinity, reducing Him to mere human, or worse yet, mythical status.

Take whatever security measures are necessary to keep Jesus in your Christmas this holiday season, giving Him, in all His glory, His place of preeminence.

"Giving thanks unto the Father ... Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:12-18, KJV).

You Are What You Eat

Devotion Doctrine-False False Teachers

Source: First We Feast

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Contributed By: Stephen Kingsley | Date Posted: 2013-09-27

Scripture: Matthew 4:4

Author: Stephen Kingsley
10

ILLUSTRATION

Authorities in China have seized over 22 tons of fake beef. What is fake beef? This fake beef was made of pork that had been treated with paraffin wax and other industrial chemicals. Earlier this year 904 people were arrested, also in China, for selling fake meat made of rat, fox, and mink.

APPLICATION

Due to a lack of careful monitoring and regulations, It is difficult for those who live in China to know what they are eating. We are far more diligent to monitor what we allow consumers to consume in the US. But although our beef may be real, what can't always be as sure about what we consume spiritually. To avoid stuffing yourself with the fake words produced by false prophets and teachers, consider applying the following tests to the spiritual fare set before you.

1.  Is it scriptural? Beware of teaching that exalts a difficult verse of Scripture at the expense of the many clear verses that deal with the same topic.

2.  Is it orthodox? Not that we cannot learn something new, but very studious gifted men and women of God have been mulling over textual difficulties for over 19 centuries. Be cautious of anyone with a new idea on a crucial doctrine.

3.  Is it Christ centered? Think of every biblical topic as a spoke in a wheel with Christ at the center, the hub. Every topic is valid as long as it connected to the hub and glorifies Christ and his saving grace.

4.  Is it extra biblical? God moved in history through 15 centuries and by over 40 specially called and prepared writers completed the accepted canon of Scripture. Many in the modern age claim to have extra revelation on par with Scripture, but all such writings to date have added nothing of value, have been contradictory to Scripture, and have led followers further from Christ, not closer. Beware of teachers having "itchy ears" who want to be praised for their unique and special insights.

5.  Does it bring God's people together in Christ, or divide? False teachers are justly criticized. Beware of those who paint fair criticism as persecution in an attempt to create an emotional barrier between their followers and those of Christ.

A Piece of the Truth

Doctrine-False Truth Satan

Source: BETWEEN TWO TRUTHS – LIVING WITH BIBLICAL TENSIONS, by Klyne Snodgrass, p. 35

Link to Source: Click here to view source

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2013-07-06

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:2 ; Matthew 7:15

Author: Illustration Exchange
6

ILLUSTRATION

Once the Devil was walking along with one of his cohorts. They saw a man ahead of them pick up something shiny. “What did he find?” asked the cohort?
 
“A piece of truth,” the Devil replied.
 
“Doesn’t it bother you that he found a piece of the truth?” asked the cohort.
 
“No,” said the Devil, “I will see to it that he makes a religion out of it.”
 
Klyne Ryland Snodgrass (1944 -  ) is an American theologian, author and professor of New Testament Studies at the North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois. His publication Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus garnered a 2009 Christianity Today Book Award.

APPLICATION

The most zealous adherents of religion are often those who hold only "a piece of the truth." That's because it only takes a grain of truth to make a false sect seem plausible, and it only takes a grain of truth to inflame the human heart with pride.

"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves” (Matthew 7:15).
 
Illustration Exchange

Bad Advice For Free

Advice Doctrine-False Worldliness

Contributed By: Jody Schmidt | Date Posted: 2013-06-22

Scripture: 1 John 2:15

Author: Jody Schmidt
4

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The Nocebo Effect

Doctrine-False Bible False Teachers

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2013-05-27

Scripture: 2 Peter 2:1

Author: Illustration Exchange
5

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The Gospel According to Oprah

Salvation Works Salvation Doctrine-False

Contributed By: Phil Booe | Date Posted: 2013-03-01

Scripture: John 14:6

Author: Phil Booe
5

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Keep the Gospel Pure

Object Lessons Doctrine-False Gospel

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2012-06-26

Scripture: Galatians 1:1

Author: Pastor Steven Degner
3

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Water Wealthy

Doctrine-False Truth Spirituality

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2012-03-26

Scripture: John 7:37

Author: Illustration Exchange
6

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Vanity Sizing

Truth Doctrine-False Self-deceived

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2012-02-06

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:3

Author: Illustration Exchange
6

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Intent On Seeing A Spaceship

Doctrine-False Teachability Truth

Contributed By: Illustration Exchange | Date Posted: 2011-12-12

Scripture: 1 John 4:1 ; Hebrews 11:1

Author: Illustration Exchange
1

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