I now come to the “I” in TULIP.  It is “Irresistible Grace” and the London Baptist Confession of Faith states it like this: “The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is the word of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts, and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word; by which also, and by the administration of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, prayer and other means appointed of God, it is increased and strengthened”.  Simply stated, this means that men cannot resist the grace of God if they are one of the elect.   Just because the gospel goes to all men and all men can hear it, doesn’t mean that they will be saved by it.  Only the elect will respond and repent of their ways before God. 

      Even though people reject the gospel, even if they are elected, the Holy Spirit will convert them one way or another.  It is ONLY the Holy Spirit that leads us to God: not works or thoughts or anything (Romans 8:14), (1 Corinthians 12:3), (2 Corinthians 3:6).

      After the Spirit calls us, He makes us reborn by giving us a new heart (John 3:3-8), (Titus 3:5), (Galatians 6:15).   Then the Holy Spirit raises the sinner from his spiritually dead state and makes him alive in Christ (John 5:21), (Ephesians 2:1, 5), (Colossians 2:13).  This is how irresistible grace works in the heart according the Scriptures.

                 I now come to the L in TULIP, Limited Atonement.  This basically means that when Christ died, he did not die for the whole world, only for His elected people (Matthew 1:21), (2 Corinthians 5:21), (Galatians 1:3, 4), (Titus 2:14). It also shows that even though God chose some, He still had to redeem them from their sins or else our reconciliation would not have been secured (Romans 5:10), (Colossians 1:21, 22). 

                 When Jesus was sent into the world by God the Father, He came to save only those to whom the Father had given Him.  Jesus came to save and die ONLY for His elect and none of them will be lost or left behind (John 6:35-40).    Also, all of the ones that accept Christ as their Lord and Savoir are the true sheep and the ones who reject Him are the ones who are predestined to be damned to Hell (John 10:11, 14-18) (John 10:24-29).  It is not on human will or act whether we are saved or not but on God who has mercy (Romans 9). 

                  Jesus was a man of great prayer and He even prayed for His elect in John 17.  In this prayer, Jesus makes it very clear that He is praying not for the whole world, but His elect ONLY.  It is an encouraging prayer to those who are saved. 

                       After the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln was asked to make “a few appropriate remarks” as someone called it.  His speech was very brief, but it became a timeless masterpiece in the history of the United States.  In this piece of wonder, Lincoln paid his respects to the soldiers who gave their lives for the cause of our wonderful country.  This paper will be remembered for generations to come.  He presented this speech on November 19, 1863 to a large crowd at a memorial service for the men who died at this massive battle. 

                      At about this time, Mrs. Lincoln was facing a very difficult time in her life: her children were dying quickly.  She had lost all but one of her children, Robert, who she would not allow to enter the Army because of the death of her four brothers who fought for the Confederacy.  At the closing days of the war, Lincoln was able to secure a relatively safe position on General Grant’s staff.  But despite all that Lincoln did for his wife, he could not detain the feeling of death and mental disorder from his love. 

                      Things in Washington were not going well also.  Many politicians were very dissatisfied with Lincoln and his policies.  So the Democrats took matters into their own hands by nominating (of all people) General McClellan.  This man was a pathetic general, so why would he make a better President.  Anyway, Lincoln won an easy victory over this so-called “general” 212 to 21 to be precise.  This now began his second term as President. The start of Lincoln’s second term could not have been better, Lee surrendered.  Yes, in the month of March, 1865, Lee surrendered to Grant at the Appomattox Courthouse while fellow soldiers looked on.  Many soldiers on Confederate side tried to assassinate Grant, but to no avail.  

                       The assassination of the great man Abraham Lincoln is as follows:  Lincoln, his wife, and Mr. and Mrs. Grant were to attend a comedy at Ford’s Theater in Washington D.C. called Our American Cousin.  A man named John Wilkes Booth, an actor who was mentally disordered, was planning to shoot Lincoln in the back of the head while no one was watching the door to the President’s Box.  So at 10:30 PM, while the president’s personal guards had gone to go have a good time, Booth snuck right up behind the President’s chair, and while all eyes were on the stage he took his .44 – caliber derringer that he carried everywhere and put it to Lincoln’s head and fired.  The president slumped over in his chair unconscious.  Booth escaped but was killed by Federal troops 12 days later. 

                        Lincoln was taken back to his house where he was nursed until he died at 7:00 AM the next morning.  This great and godly man has left us great examples such as love, perseverance, and trust in God.  This man was probably the greatest president we have ever had and will ever have.  For he showed that he loved this country and the people in it more than himself, and because of these things he will be remembered for many more generations to come.

                               As soon as he term was up in the Army, he went back to New Salem with Election Day only two weeks away.  Now Lincoln was competing against a political party called the Democrats.  These were the faithful to Andrew Jackson, a famous general and Senator.   Lincoln was part of a party called the Whigs.  These were led by Lincoln’s lifetime political idol, Henry Clay.   To this party Lincoln remained until it desinigrated over the question of slavery. 

                               The plan that Abraham had as a state representative was to build more canals, roads and better schools.  He also wanted to lower interest rates so as to grow the economy in Illinois.  Lincoln had very good ideas for someone with very little education and political practice.  This was one of the key things to his success. 

                                When Election Day rolled around, Lincoln was defeated by overwhelming votes.  This did not seem to discourage him to much for he opened a general store and tried to see what God would have for him.  But things seemed very bad for Abe.  His business failed.  This also did not make him discouraged for he was asked to be postmaster of New Salem.  In 1834, Lincoln ran yet again for State Representative.  This time he was elected and then re-elected in 1834-1840.  And while he was in office, in the year 1837, he took a stand against slavery when some legislators decided to take a vote to abolish slavery by any means.  This was not to be for the legislation would not allow a vote to pass. 

                                Now in 1840, while attending a ball, he met his future wife: Mary Todd.   And after a very long courtship, they finally married on November 4, 1842.  Now you should know that Mary was very spoiled and haughty.  She would have unending grief for the loss of her sons who died in the Civil War and of sickness.  But Lincoln was patient and long suffering for her and sacrificed much for her and their children’s welfare.  These were the marks of a true Christian and father in this great man.    

                                At the time of these events, Lincoln was making about $1200-$1500 a year: very good for the time and place of the country.   So considering what people’s wages were in those days, Lincoln was actually a very wealthy man.   With wealth and popularity on his side, he decided to run for a seat in Congress.  Lincoln defeated Methodist preacher Peter Cartwright by overwhelming odds in the election of 1846. 

                                After a few years as a Congressman, Lincoln decided to start a law practice with a man named William Herdon, one of the best law men in all of Illinois.  Not long after this happened, Lincoln heard about a short, fat man named Douglas, also nicknamed the “The Little Giant”.  This man wanted to challenge Lincoln on the issue of slavery. So, in the year 1854, Douglas came to Springfield, Illinois to start debating with the great Congressman from Kentucky: Abraham Lincoln.

                                 Douglas started to give speeches immediately, telling of his Kansas-Nebraska Act which supported slavery.  Lincoln said that he would respond to this out cry the next night.  So only in shirt sleeves and collar, Lincoln made his speech.  Abe told his stand on slavery to Douglas and the hundreds of viewers who were listening.  Lincoln stated the famous phrase from the Declaration of Independence: “All men are created equal”, which he used time and time again to support his view on slavery.  Lincoln, although against any form of slavery whatsoever, avoided abolitionists groups because he hated violence.  The problem with this was that he would have to be forced to join the Republican Party.  The Whig Party was in rapid decline, but even though this was the case Lincoln remained a Whig until death. 

                                 In 1856, Lincoln publicly announced himself as a Republican and then attended a Republican convention in Blooming ham, Illinois in May of that year.  Then in the year 1858, Douglas came back to Illinois for reelection.  Of course Lincoln would be his opponent.  When the “Little Giant” found out that Lincoln was against him, he declared, “I shall have my hands full.  He is the strong man of the party- full of wit, facts, dates- and the best stump speaker, with his droll, ways and dry jokes in the West.”  (Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia)   Now there were to be seven debates that were to take place between the two great men.  Each would be about a length of three hours taking place between August and October of that year.  The gist of all seven debates was the issue of slavery.  Each man stayed on the subject and respected each others option, even when they were angry.  The debates astounded people all over the state of Illinois.  Thousands of people would flock the streets and buildings just to hear the two great men speak.  At the first debate, 10,000 people stood in the blithering hot sun to listen to these great speakers debate over the biggest issue of the time.  In Freeport, Illinois, 15,000 stood in the drizzling rain to listen.   

                               Lincoln felt very sure of defeating Douglas in this election.  But when the polls were counted, the Democratic Douglas had won 54 to 46.  Lincoln was somewhat relieved to be the loser of this election, because it gave him time to press his view on slavery more to the population.   But even through this loss, in 1860, the Illinois Republican Convention voted Lincoln to be the nominee for President of the United States of America.  This is how Lincoln was voted into nomination: A very well known senator named Steward won the first ballot 173-1/2 while Lincoln had 102.  Then when the second ballot was taken, most switched their votes to Lincoln’s ballot, making Lincoln only two votes behind Steward.  But on the third ballot four Ohio delegates changed their vote to Lincoln, which allowed Lincoln to win over Steward by only two votes.  God’s hand was truly on the election of nominees for president on the Republican side. 

                             Meanwhile, in the Democratic Party, Douglas (of course) was nominated.  This act made many Southern voters angry to the point where they stalked out of the room and then went on to create their own convention.  After creating a convention, they nominated John C. Breckinridge, a native of Kentucky.  The big day was here: the ballets were counted and then publicly announced.  Lincoln won by 40% of the electoral vote.  Douglas came in last but he went on to work for Lincoln when he was president. 

                          On February 11, 1861, Lincoln was to travel to Washington D. C. where he would start to give his inauguration speeches.  But, rumors of assai nation were heard around Baltimore, the city Lincoln was currently residing in.   So his closest friends smuggled him out of Baltimore into Washington D.C…  Now the media did not this sudden move by the soon to be president, because it made them look very bad in front of the world. 

                          In the day of March 4, 1861, Abraham Lincoln, who now had grown a beard at the suggestion of a young girl, was sworn into office as the 16^th President of the United States of America.  His inaugural addressed was aimed toward the Southern states to try to bring them back to the Union.  He said that he did not want to interfere with the “institution of slavery” as he put it in his address.  Lincoln also said in his address that he did not want to start a war with the States of rebellion.  That was the last thing he wanted to happen in the country. 

                          But, unfortunately, war was necessary to stop the rebellion in the states.  After the Rebels attacked and occupied Ft. Sumter, a Federal fort, Lincoln had had enough.  He called for 75,000 volunteers to fight the Rebels before the situation got to out of hand.   This act caused Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas to join the rapidly growing Confederacy.  No president of the United States of America had faced a crisis as a civil war.  Lincoln was working day and night trying with all the power he had as Commander and Chief to stop this war and bring union to America.  He also faced many hardships such as finding money to support campaigns; supplies, and support from the people to bring this country together.  Many military decisions were made by Lincoln himself.  Even though lacking military experience and training, he made some very good decisions for the Army.  This showed that he pondered his decisions and that he was not a rash man. 

                       Two years later, in the year 1864, after firing two terrible generals, Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant as head of the Army of the Potomac.  That same year Grant was appointed to the position of commander of all the armies of the Union.  Lincoln gave Grant his full support even when casualties ran high and defeats were many. 

                       On September 22, 1862, Lincoln presented his Emancipation Proclamation to all the people of Washington D.C. and all the people around the country.   His famous, but brief, speech stated that on January 1, 1863, all slaves in Washington D.C. that were in a  rebellious state, would be for evermore free.  This speech was also pinpointed toward the Rebel states more that D.C…   As a result of the Proclamation, 186,000 former slaves joined the Union Army.  Most served behind the lines, but those who fought were very brave.  

                       The last battle of the Civil War was just around the corner: the Battle of Gettysburg.  Gen. George Meade had decided to stay on the offensive while Lee retreated after the bloody Union defeat at Fredericksburg.   So on the first day of July, in the year 1863, the two massive armies met for the last time in a little town in Pennsylvania called Gettysburg.   This was the bloodiest battle in the history of the United States to take place on American soil.  Lee badly beaten, retreated across the field to regroup his very dead and confused army.  Grant let him retreat for his army was badly beaten and confused as well.  This was a great victory for the Union for this battle had won them the war. 

                              The great Abraham Lincoln was born in 1809 and died in 1865.  He served as the 16^th President of these United States of America and was probably the greatest and most godly president we have ever been blessed with.  This great, unselfish, man helped keep our country together in the harsh years of the Civil War even when he was harassed and hated by many for his beliefs, but he stood his ground to the very end.  This essay is about his life as a backwoodsman and his life as a political genius.  I hope you find it appealing to your thirst for information on Lincoln’s life.

                              On his father’s side, Abe’s ancestry dates back to a humble weaver, Samuel Lincoln, who immigrated to America from Europe. He settled in Hingham, Massachusetts during the year 1637.  After a few years in Hingham, in the year 1778, Samuel had a baby boy born to him and his wife in Virginia: Thomas Lincoln.  This man was to be the father of the great Abraham Lincoln. Soon thereafter, though, Thomas lost his father in a tragic accident.  He continued to live in the backwoods of Kentucky, while learning his trade as carpenter. Soon he became very skilled with this trade to where he could support himself quite well. Even through all of this work and hardship, he never lacked the basic essentials in life.  He always had what he needed.  Thomas was an honest man who always paid his taxes on time and attended jury duty when called.  In 1806, he fell in love with a completely illiterate woman, Nancy Hanks.  They were married in the same year they met.  Not much is known about Lincoln’s mother except that she came from a very poor Virginia family and that she always signed her name with an “X”.  As I had stated before, she was completely illiterate. 

                              After their marriage, the small Lincoln family moved to a small town which is called Elizabethtown, Kentucky, where, in 1807, a little daughter was born to them: Sarah Lincoln.  Not much is know about Lincoln older sibling.  All that is known is that she died at a very early age.   In December of the same year, Thomas saw that is was time to move once again.  This time it was to a bigger and greater piece of land in Hodgenville, Kentucky.  It had 348 acres, and on those 348 acres, a great man of God was born.  Abraham Lincoln was born into this world on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Thomas Lincoln, in a log cabin near Hodgenville, Kentucky. 

                             But times were hard, and in 1816, Thomas and his family were forced to move to Gentry Ville, Indiana. Thomas had lost his title on the land he previously owned.  So they packed everything that they could possibly carry, and headed for Indiana.  They crossed over the Ohio River into Indiana to settle in Gentry Ville.

                              The time of year the Lincolns left was a terrible time to choose, for it was winter.  So, as soon as Thomas brought his family to Gentry Ville, he immediately erected a crude shelter to keep out the cold while he built a proper home for him and his family.  After two years of living in Indiana, milk sick broke out, resulting in many deaths in the area.  One of its first victims was Nancy Hanks Lincoln.  She died on October 5, 1818, in Gentry Ville, Indiana.  Thomas was heart-stricken, but he persevered and in the next year, he took a trip to Elizabethtown, Kentucky, where he met and married Sarah Bush Johnson: a widow of three children.  They remained together for the rest of their lives. Abe was very fond his new mother.

                             Abraham grew very quickly, and as he grew he was given more and more responsibility.  Chopping down forest trees and splitting logs were Abe’s specialty.

When was not doing farm work (which he hated by the way) he would attend an ABC school about two or three miles up the road in a log cabin.  Now something you need to know is that, in those days, teachers in country schools were just barley educated above their students.  This was a great difficulty to both the teacher and the student.  In his entire life, Abraham Lincoln had only less than a year of schooling.  But he could read and write and do basic arithmetic to some extent. 

                             Also in his spare time, Abe would love to read books by John Bunyan, Aesop, and Daniel Defoe. He loved to read the Bible as well. 

                              By the time Abe was 19 he had grown to his predestined height: 6ft. 4in!  This young man was lean, muscular, and had huge hands at the end of very long arms.  This gave him an awkward looking appearance.  Now as I had said before, Abe hated farm work.  One neighbor commented on his laziness, “Abe was awful lazy, he would laugh and talk and crack jokes and tell stories all the time!” (Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia c)

                              But in 1829, Lincoln would learn to not be lazy, for he was offered a job by a man named James Gentry to haul a cargo-laden-flat boat down the Missisipi to New Orleans.  This was a very risky job, because you could be robbed or killed from drowning.  Lincoln, by God’s loving hand, was able to go where he needed to go.

                              After this quick employment, Lincoln went to work for a Mr. Denton Offutt as a clerk in a general store in the year 1831.  The store location was in New Salem, Illinois.  Everyone in this town loved Abe because of his jokes and stories and good humor.  His pay was $15 a month as well as using the store for sleeping quarters.  People also liked Abe because he could draw up legal papers for the illiterate people of New Salem. 

                              In the spring of 1832, Abe took his first big step in politics: he ran for a seat in the Illinois House of Representatives.  About a month after Abe publicly announced his candidacy, Offutt’s store went bankrupt leaving Lincoln without employment or money.  But the time could not have been better for the governor was enlisting men to fight against Chief Blackhawk, an Indian who was causing trouble for the settlers.  Lincoln immediately enlisted and served well in the Army.  Out of the three months he served, he never saw any fighting, but he took pride in serving nonetheless. 

            This paper is about what my position of authority would have been in America in the 1850s.   There were many fantastic occupations in government I could have chosen from, but the one that I thought would work best is an abolitionist.  An abolitionist was a person who wanted to put a stop to slavery and all of its terribly evil practices. The reason I picked this position is because I personally believe that slavery is very wrong and cruel and should not be used anywhere in the world.

With all of the chaos and trade that was booming in the cotton industry, even with all of that should not have made the men more selfish for more money by locking up and making slaves of thousands of Negros from over the water. This is against what Jesus said in the Bible, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”   Unfortunately, slavery also shows utter hatred for other men who are just minding their own business in their own country when a bunch of white men come and take the black man away to a place where he knows no one.  This also shows the pride of man in the sense that he thinks that he is better than the Negro that comes to his house to work and live because of his skin where he has come from when he has done nothing wrong.

           If I were an abolitionist, I would try to stop slavery the best that I possibly could without taking drastic measures as many others have.  Many have been very violent in how they handle the issue of slavery.  In the state of Kansas, 200 people were killed because both abolitionist and proslavery supporters decided that it was time to fight it off.  This I would not have done but would have tried to do it peaceably, without the fighting and chaos.

          I am a Christian, and I believe that abolishing slavery by force is wrong and that doing it by legally is the best way to go.  A man named John Brown is a fine example on how abolitionists can get violent and out of control.  In the year of 1859, John Brown got a group of slaves and told them to come with him and revolt.  They did and he raided Harpers Ferry, VA.  He lost and was hanged for treason soon after. 

          Now this is why I would want to be an abolitionist, so I could help to end this evil that was in our country and which plagued the hearts of men for so long.

             The second of the five points is probably the most debated and hardest to understand.  It is the “U” in Calvin’s tulip, witch stands for unconditional election.  Now, as the title clearly points out, it means simply that God has chosen to save some and damn others to hell. When God elected a person, it was by no condition of the person or on anything that he has done or will do, but out of His divine mercy and grace towards that person.  (Romans 9: 11-13), (2 Thessalonians 2: 13, 14)

             Since we are totally depraved and have no good in us, we cannot choose God nor have any desire for God. Left to ourselves, we would choose to pursue sin and ungodliness. (Romans 9:16)  It would have been completely justified if God had just damned us all to hell, but out of His mercy and love; He chose to save some and not others.  (Romans 9: 10-24), (Romans 11: 4-6)

             Election was made on the basis of a mighty and sovereign God who has abundant mercy and love toward the elect. It was not on the will or want of man, because since we are totally depraved, we would not choose God on any basis. (Matthew 20: 15)   It is God who chooses and then the Holy Spirit enlightens that person at the predestined time.  Another thing is that ALL of God’s elect will be saved.  None will be left out or left behind.  If that were so, then God could not be trusted and we would have a liar for a God.

            Here are more references from the Word of God about unconditional election. (Exodus 33:19), (2 Timothy 2:10), (Ephesians 2:10), (John 15:16), (Matthew 11:27), (Ephesians 1:4), (1 Thessalonians 1:4,5), (Deuteronomy 7:6,7).

            After showing you all of these verses from the Bible, it is hard to believe that there is a belief called Arminianism.   

            In this essay I am going to talk about my opinion on entertainment.  Is entertainment helpful or is it a distraction from our Christian walk?  What forms of entertainment are inappropriate for Christians?  Should immorality and profanity be passed off as an art?  That is what I am going to discuss in this essay.

            To start off, I will talk about my opinion about entertainment.  Well, I think that entertainment in and of itself is just fine.  There are many forms of entertainment such as: music, reading, movies, television and so on.  Probably the form of entertainment that I will be talking about is movies and television.  Movies have taken a great role in the lives of many Americans.  It is talked about and watched many, many times.  Movies are very influential on the lives of us as people, because they can show much and do much, while keeping your mind lazy.  In this way, I think that entertainment in the film industry is not a good thing.  But, if we are careful and discerning about what we see and watch, we can have a great time viewing movies and shows that appeal to us.

            Is entertainment helpful or is it a distraction for Christians?  This is a very good question that I will try to answer.  Entertainment, as I have said before comes in many different forms.  So, once again I will refer to the film industry.  In this way, entertainment can be a distraction, because what we watch can make us desensitized to many things that we should be sensitized to.  Some of these things are violence, profanity, and immorality.  Watching these things over and over again can distract and even affect our walk with God.  Profanity is probably the worst that is put into movies, because the Lord’s name is misused more that ever in our day.  Many other words are said that are too vulgar to describe here in this essay.  Also, listening and watching these things can make us want to say these things and even Christians have fallen into that trap.  So we must be very careful about what we watch and see.

           What types of entertainment are appropriate for Christians?  Well, just about anything you can think of except bars, night clubs, and immorality.  These are forms of entertainment that the world says is OK.  We as Christians need to steer clear away from these things.  They will bring you down and destroy your soul.  Even good forms of entertainment can be used for bad motives.  Take music for example, there is nothing wrong with music, but the world has twisted it so it will fulfill their lustful desires.

          Now to the final question: should immorality and profanity be passed off as and art? The answer is absolutely NO!! We should not be partaking in these evil and profane things witch can jeopardize our souls and destroy our very spirit?? NO!!  The world today has made the name of our Lord a funny thing to laugh at and misuse.  We must NOT listen or partake in any of these things.  It will destroy you.

         So in conclusion entertainment is fine as long as it is within the boundaries of God’s Word.

               The first letter in Calvin’s tulip is “T” for “total depravity”.  Total depravity means very simply that we are completely polluted with sin in thought and deed.  Everything that a man does is affected by the sinful nature that we inherited from our first human father Adam when he ate the forbidden fruit.  When the word “total” is used, it implies that man is COMEPLETLY sinful all the way to his core (Genesis 6:5).

              Total depravity is due to the sin of our father Adam.  When he sinned, the veil of fellowship with God and salvation from evil was completely cut off.  He also brought death into the human race by his great wickedness (Romans 5:12), (Ephesians 2:1-3), and (Colossians 2:13).  Total depravity also means that we CANNOT receive salvation on our own accord (2 Corinthians 3:5).  The Holy Spirit has to convict us; I will talk about this in later posts.  There is much evidence in the Bible that explains we are completely sinful.  David, the king of Israel, states in Psalms 51:5 and 58:3 that we have been totally sinful even from the womb.  Here are more references that support total depravity: (Genesis 8:21), (Ecclesiastes 9:3), (Jeremiah 17:9), (Mark 7:21-23), (John 3:19), (Romans 8:7, 8), (1 Corinthians 2:14), (Ephesians 4:17-19), (Ephesians 5:8), and (Titus 1:15).  The Bible is full of evidence for total depravity.

           Jesus taught that we must be born again in order to enter the kingdom of Heaven.  In John 3:5-7, Jesus says that we must be born anew.  What Jesus means is that we have to be reborn by the Spirit of God in order to have fellowship with Him.  Until He regenerates us, we are children of the devil (Ephesians 2:1, 2). 

          Another thing that must be pointed out is that NONE is righteous, no not one (Ecclesiastes 7:20), (Isaiah 53:6)!!  When we say that we are without sin, we are completely and absolutely wrong on the subject (1 John 1:8, 10).

         So this is what total depravity means and what the Bible says about it.  To me it is pretty simple.  Why in the world would we sin everyday and every moment if we were not sinful??  It just does not make any sense.  Unfortunately, this is what many evangelicals think and believe today.

        Throughout the entire Old Testament, which is the first part of God’s Word, and throughout the New Testament, we see God’s amazing mercy towards His people when they sinned and rebelled.  This is what the book of 1 Chronicles teaches us.  It tells us that God shows mercy even through sin and rebellion.  The book of 1 Chronicles starts where the very interesting book of 2 Kings left off.  Interestingly enough, no one really knows who wrote the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles, but Jewish tradition says that the prophet Ezra wrote it.  They say it was written around the fifth century B.C.  During the start of Chronicles, Israel is in great despair because they have fallen into exile.

        Among the Israelites themselves there has been civil war and it has made them so discombobulated that they can’t get a hold on one another.  Wealth and provisions are also slim in Israel and many of the nations around them are plundering there cities and villages.   The nation has been sinning against God, and that is why they have been taken into exile.  God did not look the other way and say that He will not punish them. No, the punishment was that they were to be exiled for 70 Years.  Also at the start of Chronicles, the author goes into great detail about the genealogies and decedents of Adam.  He starts with Adam, the first human being at the beginning of the list of people.  This was a way of saying that God’s providential hand was with the human throughout history.  Even from Adam. 

       The Chronicler writes this book as a reminder to the people that they are God’s chosen race and will be with them to the end.  Providentially, this same idea is fleshed out through the whole Bible, not just the Old Testament.  The book of Chronicles also displays to us that salvation is and has been the same from the beginning of time.  Take Israel for instance, they had to have faith in God in order to be saved from their enemies.  It is the same with us today.  We must have faith in Jesus Christ in order to be saved from the wrath of God on the last Day.  The Bible is not dispensational.  It shows the same way of salvation and church authority throughout the entire Word of God.  

        Now, I am going to go back to the culture and basic essentials for the lives of the Israelites.  The temple of the Lord was probably the most prized and important possession of Israel.  It gave them a sense of security because they could see God in the form of a cloud there.  The temple was also used by God to let the people know if they had displeased Him.  He would tell the priest and the priest would communicate it to the people.  Sometimes God was not pleased at all with the people.  When this happened, their enemies would rise up and take them captive.  In doing this, the Israelites gave a great example to us: blessings only come upon those who obey God. 

        Even though Israel was the chosen nation of God, they still sinned regardless of that promise.  God dealt with their sin by sending them into exile for 70 years.  God does not look the other way when we sin.  After the 70 years were over, the people returned to Judah and repented of their sin of idol worship, and this is the time era of where we received the book of Chronicles.