(Setting Goals for your Life )

Old Testament Bible Verses for Setting Goals 

“Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! 

Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm 

so that I will be free from pain.” ~ 1 Chronicles 4:10 

But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work 

will be rewarded. ~ 2 Chronicles 15:7 

May he give you the desire of your heart and make all 

your plans succeed. ~ Psalm 20:4 

But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of 

his heart through all generations. ~ Psalm 33:11 

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires 

of your heart. ~ Psalm 37:4 

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust

 in humans. ~ Psalm 118:8 

Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders 

labor in vain. ~ Psalm 127:1 

Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your 

own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, 

And He will make your paths straight. ~ Proverbs 3:5-6 

Without consultation, plans are frustrated, But with many c

ounselors they succeed. ~ Proverbs 15:22 

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will 

establish your plans. ~ Proverbs 16:3 

In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD 

establishes their steps. ~ Proverbs 16:9 

Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s 

purpose that prevails. ~ Proverbs 19:21 

The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance.

 ~ Proverbs 21:5 

Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, 

But happy is he who keeps the law. ~ Proverbs 29:18

 But the noble make noble plans, and by noble deeds 

they stand. ~ Isaiah 32:8 

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew [their] strength;

 they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, 

and not be weary; [and] they shall walk, a

nd not faint. ~ Isaiah 40:31 

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not 

perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams 

in the wasteland. ~ Isaiah 43:19 

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways 

higher than your ways and my thoughts than 

your thoughts. ~ Isaiah 55:9 

But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, 

whose confidence is in him. ~ Jeremiah 17:7 

What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, 

and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with 

your God? ~ Micah 6:8

 And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; 

make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. 

For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to 

the end it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely 

come; it will not delay. ~ Habakkuk 2:2-3 

New Testament Bible Verses for Setting Goals 

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and 

rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 

but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, 

where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves 

do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, 

there your heart will be also. ~ Matthew 6:19-21 

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, 

and all these things will be added to you. ~ Matthew 6:33 

Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, 

you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will 

move. Nothing will be impossible for you. ~ Matthew 17:20 

But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible,

 but with God all things are possible. ~ Matthew 19:26 

And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, 

if you have faith. ~ Matthew 21:22 

Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing 

the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him 

who sent me and to accomplish his work. ~ John 4:34 

And we know that for those who love God all things work 

together for good, for those who are called according 

to his purpose. ~ Romans 8:28 

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed 

by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern 

what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable 

and perfect. ~ Romans 12:2 

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all 

that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 

to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all 

generations forever and ever. Amen. ~ Ephesians 3:20-21 

I can do all things through him who strengthens me. 

~ Philippians 4:13 

Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of 

God in Christ Jesus. ~ Philippians 3:13-14 

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 

You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God,

 you will receive what he has promised. ~ Hebrews 10:35-36 

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, 

let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely,

 and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 

looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, 

who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, 

despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of 

the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners 

such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow 

weary or fainthearted. ~ Hebrews 12:1-3 

You do not even know what will happen tomorrow. 

What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little 

while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 

‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’

 ~ James 4:13-15

The Origin Of Denominations

                         Today there are more than 600 different denominational churches, each teaching different man-made doctrines, each with different forms of worship, each with different human devised plans of salvation, and each wearing different religious names. There is no scriptural justification for this confusion, “For God is not the author of confusion” (1 Corinthians 14:33). What do you think the Lord thinks about all of this? Such cannot be pleasing to the Lord.

                    The word "denomination" comes from the same root word as denominator in fractions, which means to divide. Religious division is sinful. God’s word says, “Now I plead with you, brethern, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10). This is not happening in denominationalism. Denominations are of human origin and have no scriptural authority to exist.

                      Every denomination is in conflict with the one church which Jesus built. Jesus says in Matthew 16:18, “I will build My church”. The word “church” is singular, meaning one and only one and the word “My” is possessive, meaning it belongs to the Lord. The Lord only built His one church. Jesus never promised to build even one denomination. The church of Christ , which Christ built, began nearly 2000 years ago. There were no denominations in the first century and for hundreds of years thereafter. The Lord did not establish any of the denominations, but man did.

                                 The denominations have had their beginnings during the past 500 years. The Lord never built any of the more than 600 different denominations so man could have a choice of which church he wants to join. All of this is man’s doing. Now there are literally hundreds of differing denominations, each with its own name, its own peculiar man-made doctrine and practice which contradicts the Bible. How can any of these differing doctrines be true? They can’t. Anything that contradicts or is different from the Bible is false doctrine, which is designed by Satan to cause people to be eternally lost.

                                Their divisive human creeds that govern them come from the minds of men and not from God. Their creed books hold their group together as a denomination. Methodist Churches preach the Methodist Discipline, Baptist Churches preach the Baptist Manual, Catholic Churches preach the Catholic Catechism, etc. The main reason for the religious division of denominationalism is man will not accept God’s word as final authority. Even by their names they do not claim to be the Lord’s church. They seem to be ashamed of the Lord by not wanting to wear His name.

                          Jesus says, “For whoever shall be ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of Him the Son of Man also will be ashamed” (Mark 8:38). If the Lord is ashamed of people, they will be eternally lost in Hell. Since they are not the Lord’s church they call themselves by names that give glory and honor to the many different people, places, or things other than the Lord. The Lutherans honor their founder, Martin Luther. The Methodists who were founded by John Wesley give honor to the methodical way they do things. The Presbyterians founded on the doctrine of John Calvin give honor to the presbuterous (Greek word for elders). The Baptists give their honor to John the Baptist while the Pentecostals give honor to the Jewish Day of Pentecost.

                               The Apostolic Church give their honor to the apostles. And the list goes on and on. All denominations are unscriptural since each denomination has a human founder, and not Christ. Denominationalism is plagued with division, conflicting creeds and doctrines, unscriptural worship, and false "salvation practices", which leave a person lost since it is different from what God requires in the Bible. They want to do man's will and not God's will, thus God will not save them in their folly.

                              When a church has the wrong name, teaches the wrong doctrine, is organized the wrong way, worships the wrong way, has the wrong terms of membership, and the wrong plan of salvation, it cannot be the Lord’s one true church. A denomination is a substitute of man’s creation and has no authority from God to exist. What benefit is there in joining a man-made denomination? One will be eternally lost in doing so. As sad as it is, Jesus says, there will only be a few people in this world saved (Matthew 7:13-14). This is in spite of the Lord making His tremendous sacrifice for unworthy man to enable him to be cleansed from soul condemning sin so he can be saved.

                                The division and confusion of denominationalism has paved the way for atheism, agnosticism, humanism, skepticism, modernism, and a denial of the Bible. This division is in contradiction to the prayer of Jesus for all who claim to believe in Him, “that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21). All of this division and confusion has come from man and not from the Bible.
                                It is often the case that people do not want the truth. “In latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving sprits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron” (1 Timothy 4:1-3). Denominations have their conscience so seared with false teaching that, most of the time, they are impossible to reach with the truth of God’s word. Near the end of the first century the apostle John said, “many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

                            They are still around and have had 1900 years to multiply. Men have altered, revised, manipulated, rearranged, added to, and ignored what God has said in the Bible into whatever they have seen fit. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12). The confusion in denomina-tionalism is guided by opinion, pride, prejudice, impulse, physical sensations, emotionalism, and assumptions. Denominations give their allegiance to the authority of men over that of Christ. Since God’s word is true (John 17:17), that which disagrees or is different from it is false.

                         Their sin is not in changing man-made laws, but in making their own religious laws and setting aside the laws of God. All denominations are the result of the many departures man has made from the teaching of the Bible. People need to renounce the sin of denominationalism(By Ron Boatwrigh)

ကယ္တင္ျခင္းရဖုိ.ယံုၾကည္ျခင္းျဖင္.သာ Are We Saved By Faith Only?

Most denominations falsely teach that we are saved by “faith only”.

But what does the Bible say? “But do you want to know, 

O foolish man, that faith without works is dead” (James 2:20). 

One is foolish and is fooling himself if he thinks he can 

please God with a dead faith. Only an active living faith will save.

 “You see then that a man is justified by works, 

and not by faith only” (James 2:24). 

                        This is the only place in the Bible that mentions “faith only” and here it condemns it as a false doctrine. We are only justified, which results in our being saved, by an active faith which is demonstrated by our works and not by a dead faith of “faith only”. Satan says we are justified and saved by “faith only”, but God says we are not justified and saved by “faith only”. 

                          God has not promised to save anyone who has a dead faith. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26). A dead faith will not do any good, but only cause one to be eternally lost. Are people saved when they believe? What does the Bible say? In John 12:42-43 we read, “Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed on Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” Were these people saved? They believed. 

                    Then we also read in James 2:19, “You believe there is one God. You do well, even the devils believe and tremble.” Are the devils going to go to heaven because they believe and even tremble? I think not. If this is all that is required to be saved, then the devils are saved and will be in heaven also. We must do all of what God has commanded us. Our Lord says in Matthew 28:20, “Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.” We cannot pick and choose and take a verse out of context but we must take all of what the Bible says. 

                We cannot be pleasing to God by dreaming up our own plan of how God is going to save us. We must follow His plan and only His plan if we expect Him to save us. Our salvation in heaven is too great to loose, because if we don’t go to heaven we will spend forever and ever in a burning Hell. Many people don’t really believe this, but they all will one day. God is a loving God. He loved us so much that He gave His only begotten Son to die for us (John 3:16). Why did Jesus have to die? Because God is not only a loving God but he is also just. 

 Justice demands punishment for the guilty. 

                    God has specified in the Bible how He will erase anyone’s guilt. But we must obey God’s instructions. Those who continue to be guilty are those who have not obeyed what God has said. At the end of time when Christ comes back 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 says that He will come “In flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” God is not only a loving God but He will also take vengeance on those who do not obey His will. 

                  Also we read in Hebrews 10:30-31, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay says the Lord. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” We must do His will, not our will. We read in Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but He who does the will of My Father in heaven.” We cannot go to heaven by just calling Jesus, Lord, Lord. In order to go to heaven we must do the will of God. 

                        Those who have not done the will of the Father cannot go to heaven. This may sound harsh, but eternal punishment will be harsh beyond description. Also we read in Hebrews 5:9 in speaking of Christ, “He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” If a person has not obeyed the will of God as clearly stated in the Bible, Christ is not the author of their eternal salvation and they are lost. Baptism is connected with sinners. Most denominational churches encourage people to be baptized BECAUSE they have ALREADY been saved from sins. I cannot think of a more flagrant crime against both God and Man than to teach lost sinners, who are wanting to be saved, something different than what God says in the Bible. 

                      To make an impression on them that they are already saved when God has not promised it is grievously wrong. But Ananias told Saul of Tarsus to "arise and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). In Acts 2:37, it was SINNERS, not Christians, who cried out, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" The apostle Peter answered in verse 38, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Baptism is for SINNERS because it is for the forgiveness of their sins. Many good people erroneously think they are saved when they “accept Christ as their personal saviour” and say the sinner’s prayer. 

                  But where do you find these instructions in the Bible? They are not there. This is something man has dreamed up. Then two or three weeks later they are baptized, but they are not baptized for the purpose of the forgiveness of their sins and to be saved because they thought their sins were forgiven and they were saved earlier. In this case their sins were not forgiven and they were not saved because their baptism was not for this purpose. 

                       They still have every sin they have ever committed and are still lost. Many good people in this situation are still lost because they have believed a lie. As we read in 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12, “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth.” Jesus says in Mark 16:16, "He that believes and is baptized shall be saved". There is nothing hard to understand about this. 

                        Until people do what Jesus says that one must do to be saved then they are still lost. God has no non-essential commands. When we fail to obey a command of God, we have just broken it. We must obey God by doing what God says to do, when God says to do it, how God says to do it, and for the reason God says to do it. Nothing is more important than pleasing God by doing His will so that we can go to Heaven.

                     We are saved by the unmerited favor of God through our “obedience to the faith” (Romans 16:26). There is no way that anyone could ever be good enough to go to heaven, because “all have sinned” (Romans 3:23). There is no way we could earn or merit heaven, because heaven will be a gift of God (Romans 6:23) for those who obey Him (Matthew 7:21). To have faith in God is to believe, trust, and do all He says. Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 

                            Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’”. Why? Why will those be told to depart into Hell? They had not done the will of the Father. Just professing that we believe in Jesus is not enough. Jesus says we must do “the will of My Father in heaven”, if we expect to go to heaven. Our faith must be an obedient faith by doing the will of God if it is to be a saving faith; otherwise it is not a saving faith.

                         Faith without obedience is a dead and useless faith, which will cause one to be lost. “By faith Noah, being divinely warned…prepared an ark for the saving of his household” (Hebrews 11:7). Noah and his household were not saved by “faith only”, but by an active obedient faith. If Noah had a “faith only” faith he would have perished. “Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18). When one really believes God, he will do anything and everything God says and thus has a living and saving faith. “You believe that there is one God. You do well. 

Even the demons believe and tremble” (James 2:19). One is no better than the demons with a “faith only” faith. To those who claim to be “saved by faith only” the Lord says, “But why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). Jesus is “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Hebrews 5:9). He has only promised to save those who obey Him; not those who say they have faith and do not obey Him. The only way we can show our faith in Christ is if we are willing to accept and obey all of what He says. 

We are only saved through faith when our faith has produced our obedience. If we really have faith in Christ, then we will do anything and everything He tells us, and only then will our faith save us. At the end of time the Lord will come “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:8). Who are those who do not know God? “He who says ‘I know Him’, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in Him” (1 John 2:4). 

 One is only lying to himself and everyone else if he says he is saved and knows God, but does not keep God’s commandments. The lie of Satan says that there is nothing that we must do to qualify for the salvation that God wants to give us, except to have a dead faith. Those who do not know God and end up being lost are those who do not obey God by keeping His commandments. “But God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 

Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness” (Romans 6:17-18 KJV). It is only when we have obeyed God’s instructions from the heart that we are made free from sin and become servants of righteousness; not before. God’s word says, “you have purified your souls in obeying the truth” (1 Peter 1:22). We do not purify our souls with a dead faith of non-obedience. It is absolutely necessary that we obey God in order to be saved. Paul asks the question, “Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth?” (Galatians 3:1). 

Satan is the one who bewitches people into not obeying the truth of God’s word so they can be saved. Those who think they can obtain God’s blessing of salvation contrary to what God tells us in His word are only fooling themselves. We are saved only by an obedient faith. If one chooses not to obey all the Lord says, he has chosen not to be saved. 

If one claims to have faith, but does not obey, really he has no faith at all. If one has faith in God and His word, he will do all that God says, the way God says, and for the reason God says; and only then will his faith save him. The only kind of faith that can save us is “faith working through love” (Galatians 5:6). We are not saved by the salvation-robbing doctrine of “faith only”. A dead faith will do us no good on Judgment Day.

ေက်းဇူးေတာ္ကု္ိ ဆံုးရွံုးနုိင္သလား

Can We Fall From God’s Grace And Be Lost? Can a Christian fall from God’s grace and be eternally lost? Let us see what God has said about this in the Bible. Let’s let the Bible answer this question. 

1) 1 Corinthians 10:12 “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” Why such a warning if it is impossible to fall from grace? 

2) Galatians 5:4 “You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” Isn’t it strange, that people who say they believe the Bible also say that we cannot fall from grace, when the Bible so plainly says that we can fall from grace? Who should we believe, man or God? How much clearer could the Bible have said this? 

3) Romans 8:12-13 “Therefore, brethern, we are debtors not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Paul is talking to Christians and tells them if they live according to the flesh you will die spiritually. In other words you will be lost. 

4) James 5:19-20 “Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.” The Bible here says that a believer can wander from the truth and be lost. But also one who wanders from the truth can be won back.

 5) 1 Corinthians 9:27 “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” Even the apostle Paul knew it was possible for him to become a castaway and be lost even after he had preached to others. 

6) 2 Peter 2:20-22 “For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the later end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: a dog returns to his own vomit and a sow, having been washed, to her wallowing in the mire.” Can one turn from the way of righteousness after they have escaped the pollutions of the world? The Bible says so. Will this cause them to be lost? Yes. This is a description of the pitiful state of one who turns away from God after they have been saved. In other words they have become lost after they were saved. 

7) 1 Corinthians 8:11 “And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died.” The Bible says that a weak brother can perish. 

8) Revelations 2:10 “Be faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life.” Eternal life is conditional on one remaining faithful. What will happen if one does not remain faithful until death? 

9) 1 Corinthians 15:2 “By which you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.” Will you be saved if you do not hold fast to the word of God? One’s salvation is conditioned on “if you hold fast”. 

10) 2 Peter 1:10 “Therefore brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble.” A Christian’s election is not a sure thing or such a command would not have been given in the Bible. 

11) Hebrews 3:12 “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God.” So the Bible says that a Christian can depart and leave God if he develops an evil heart of unbelief. 

12) Luke 8:13 Jesus says “But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.” The Bible says that believers can fall away, but some men say differently. Who are we going to believe: men or God? 

13) 1 Timothy 4:1 “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.” The Bible says we can depart from the faith. What happens when we depart from the faith in God? We are lost. 

14) 1 Timothy 5:12 “Having condemnation because they have cast off their first faith.” They were once saved but are now condemned. Why were they now condemned and lost? Because they had cast off their first faith. The false doctrine, that a child of God cannot so sin as to fall from God's grace and be eternally lost, is a lie of Satan. This same lie was told by Satan in the Garden of Eden to Eve, when he said "You will not surely die" (Genesis 3:4). 

Satan told Eve that disobedience to God would not result in death, but it did. This false doctrine is also referred to as “once saved, always saved” or “the impossibility of apostasy”. This is one of the many lies Satan tells today to cause many people to be eternally lost. Satan wants us to be complacent and not be concerned about being lost. When Satan accomplishes this he has the battle won with us.