Posts
Facebook claimed they would be deleting Discussion Topics; So I am posting them here. Feel free to use them or respond:
1. Time For The Prince Of Peace
November 29, 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters of the Land of Our Father;
Prepare to hear an impassioned plea to bring the Peace of God back to our troubled world Today! Please read and share our Father's Love to the best of your ability. You have seldom heard this message within the ideologies of mankind. Pray, meditate, relax, or whatever works best for you and allow God to bring His message Home for you in such a way that with your help, He can and will change your World! I am quite sure you will experience His "Rapture", His "Love" for you today if you will take a moment to heed the sound of His trumpet call! Join the ranks of His disciples!
In preparation for this testimonial, allow me to quote a few passages from the New International Version of the Word of God, spoken through children of Israel, Children of God.
Ezekiel 21:2-3 “Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary. Prophesy against the land of Israel and say to her: ‘This is what the LORD says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked."
Isaiah 55:11-12a; "so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song"
Hebrews 4:10-13; "for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account."
Isaiah 59:8; "The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks along them will know peace."
Proverbs 3:6; "in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
Psalm 49:1 "Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world,"
Psalm 50:12; "the world is mine, and all that is in it."
Isaiah 12:5; "let this be known to all the world."
Isaiah 18:3; All you people of the world, you who live on the earth, when a banner is raised on the mountains, you will see it, and when a trumpet sounds, you will hear it."
Mark 16:15; "He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.'"
Matthew 24:14; "a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come"
Isaiah 52:9; "Isaiah 52:9; 'How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, 'Your God reigns!'"
Listen then to this testimony from yet another son of men;
In His attempts to instruct His children in His Love and to prepare them for His Kingdom, God drew Moses from the troubled waters of the Nile in Egypt. At that time, Egypt represented the Mountains of religious thought and worship, a storehouse of myths and legends regarding the Lord of Creation. Through wrestling with Israel, God had led them into a time of seeming exile from His land, to better understand this stew of religious worship. Through their law, God instructed them to totally devote their enemies to the Lord. Yet true to form, Jacob deceived His brethren, bearing false witness in claiming our Father's blessing for themselves and destroying God's Way, [ie. His Promised Land]. Because of the enmity and strife brought on by their military action, and contiuing to shed the blood of God's children upon His Holy ground, God sent them into exile throughout all peoples, cultures, and lands, yet promised Salvation and a restoration within His Love and Family.
This promised messenger of salvation was born into this Jewish culture, in the small town of Bethlehem where livestock were raised for the Sacrificial rituals within Jerusalem, which was then the Mountain of religious culture within the Greek and Roman worlds, God's Zion if you will. God's Wisdom of the ages, as spoken through their prophets, had become flesh and dwelt among them in order to fulfill God's plan, which they had recorded, for salvation. As a Rabbi, this Messiah redefined the military interpretation of [totally devote them to God] through words such as "Love your neighbor as yourself"! He claimed their first commandment "Love the Lord your God" was the most important, but the second, like it from Leviticus 19:18b; "love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD." was very much like it. Emmanuel proclaimed that this narrow way of understanding the scriptures summarized all of their law and prophets. [Totally devote them], now required Love and Prayer and Peace to be shared through His children with their enemies; Indeed, there was no longer any room left for alterior interpretation. And yet, Christ's followers have been assuming the alterior interpretation for 2 millenium as they tend to stand in judgment upon the worship and ideologies of others.
Being persistent in sharing His message of Hope and Peace, and according to the firm belief of over 1.5 billion people worldwide, God apparently chose to wrestle again with the ideologies of mankind by speaking through yet another son of man, Muhammad (PBUH). The message this time was "You must submit to "My Wisdom, My Love, My Way, My Truth, My Light in service to your fellowman and to the Unity that I Am and that I represent". And yet, Muslims also have fallen prey to the sins of their fathers by bowing to images of favoritism and partiality in relation to the All Mighty Love of God for all of His Creatures within all of His Lands.
In this 21st century, these three religious brethren refuse to correct the obvious misinterpretations of the prophetic Wisdom of God as they freely exercise their militant strength and pride in actions of vengeance, anger, and the shedding of blood. These militaristic demons of Revelation 16:13 have now brought our world to the brink of further destruction as they tend to serve the son of perdition or destruction - clearly in defiance of a Loving God bearing witness against these sins of favoritism and partiality so obviously represented throughout the zionist culture and so many of its adversaries.
Leviticus 19:15; "Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly."
I Timothy 5:21; "I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism."
This 21st century has united His Land through electronics. For the past 3 years, God has been preparing me in miraculous ways to present this challenge through sharing His Wisdom as expressed in His Word through electronic soundbites. I have been anxious to speak, but He attempts to keep me humble - just sharing His Word into these troubled religious waters.
He has taught me that His Land represents the Dust of His Creation! The sand on the shores of His Spiritual waters! He has shown me through His Word that His People have inherited the earth! Not only Palestine, not only Israel! Indeed, his truth has been spread through their exile and oppression and His Story has reached the four corners of His altar, His Land! The time for fellowship offerings as we reap the harvest of the seeds they have planted has now arrived. He has instructed me without fail that we must not worship created things, persons, nations, or cultures! He has taught me that we must come together with all of creation and worship Him. We must submit together under His Way, His Truth, and His everlasting Life. We must be brought to our knees as we release our pride and we must confess that His Way is the only Way to Peace for those of us, His remnant, remaining here in His Land.
I am a common man and I live among common men. I have been raised at the feet of His beautiful Mountains here in the wonderful state of Colorado in America. I have been raised at the feet of His majestic mountains of Christianity; The seat of the religious right is within 100 miles of my home. I have been raised in multiple Christian cultures indoctrinated in manmade ideologies of "election". I am presently a member of a pre-millenial dispensationalist community - a strong advocate of the zionist movement. I have witnessed their pride, their arrogance, their fear, their enmity, their strife, and most recently, their intolerance of the worship practices of their fellowman as they appear to presume such practices serve false images of their god or some other god. Although I continue to worship God within that cultue, three years ago, I experienced a Spiritual awakening as I realized such pride, arrogance, enmity and strife could not possibly be the fruit of the Spirit I read of in the Word of God. I can only presume it was His Spirit that inflamed me to commit to studying His Word through the pursuit of His Love and His Righteousness.
Through this devotion and the study of His Story and the meaning of names, I have come to understand cultural meanings of my own name. The sur-name given me at my birth means "Border dweller" or "From under the bridge". My first name means Brave, or Lion-Hearted and I know that through His grace and prodding, I have been forced to be passionate about this calling - standing in the face of powerful adversaries within my culture, witnessing that Our God is Greater than our imaginations. My middle name means "little king" or "famous bearer." Through the lineage of my Mother, I bear the title "From West of the Bridge". Within that light, I welcome the participation in spreading His Love and His Peace with all of my cousins, brothers and sisters, friends and relation from Eastern cultures across this great divide - as well as full participation with all my loved ones here at home and throughout His great Land, no one stands exempt from His Love - all are invited to participate for Peace!
It is time to unite under His banner of Peace. It is my desire that He become greater and I become less as I request your help in bearing His Good News to all of Creation - beginning with a profound call to His People in His Holy Land to Create a lasting Peace in Palestine encompassing all of His Children. Sons and daughters of men, speak the words of God in Peace and Love and unite this troubled world into One Body according to His Divine call. In His purity, this has been the passion of Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindu's, and all of God's beloved Children whenever and wherever we have chosen to shed these sins of our prides. Sound the Horns of His Salvation throughout His Land!
I shall continue to bear such witness through all my days here on this earth. I invite you to see the journals of my travels available at http://www.oneyearbibleblogging.blogspot.com/ , http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1074381442 and
http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-Year-Bible-Blogging/322591628956 .
In desperation, given the importance of this mission to save His children further pain and heartache, I passionately urge you to actively engage in the conversations of others as we spread the Positively Good News of our Father's requirements for Peace, Love, Honor, and Respect - without allowing the urgency of this message to wane. Purify yourself in His Spirit through the confession of your own sins without focussing on the sins of your fellowman. Grant forgiveness before it is even requested! Call for His Justice for all people! Through our passion for humanity we have joined together before to change our world and make it a better place. Together, we have changed a world of slavery and apartheid! There has been so much more and there is still so much left to do!
We are the generation dedicated to positive change! We must absolutely believe that we WILL, with Our Father's Help and encouragement, secure the rights and privileges for our brothers and sisters upon all the Holy Grounds of Our Father. Once and for all time, let us adhere to His admonismnent of our sins of favoritism and partiality when it comes to bearing witness for the eternal life of our brothers and sisters, our friends and neighbors, our blood flowing throughout all of creation! Defeat the power of the devil once and for all! Commit, Submit! and Pray!
As with all those who would speak the printed Wisdom and Stories of God, I have not been called to forcast future events. However, I can absolutely use His printed word to interpret current events. In this lies the great miraculous proof of His Truth within His Story as it reflects Our Father's Printed Word! I have stood in witness to the Biblical truths reflected in Revelation 17:15-18 as the demonic influences of Zionism seek to devour the flesh of other religious cultures and Spiritual movements within Our Father's Holy land.
Revelation 17:15-18; "Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. The beast and the ten horns (although there is mystery to this story, Israel was considered to be representative of 10 tribes of the sons of Jacob, while the other two were symbolically centered within Jerusalem and were referred to as Judah) you saw will hate the prostitute (much of prophecy refers to both the 10 tribes and the two tribes (centered in Jerusalem) as prostitutes). They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings (religions) of the earth.”
I bear witness to the grief and wailing daily of all of God's children as we mourn the Holocausts - both in the evil tragedies reflected in Christian Europe against the Jewish people, and in the devouring of Palestinian lands and the 4 generations of "oppression camps", death, and demoralization of the displaced people and nation of Palestine. Emmanuel Himself is fully reflected in both these people as He was born and raised as a Palestinian Jew who lived His life reaching out to and loving His neighbors. His was the Way of Peace. Today we witness such tragedy in an amazingly close comparison to Revelation 18 as we mourn the loss of Godly virtue within our religious prides of favoritism and partiality!
What are we to do to rise above this grief? Our Brother, Sami Awad from Bethlehem, a Palestinian Christian, calls us to compassion and forgiveness for His Jewish brothers as He chose to lay in their tombs of Auschwitz and share their pain. Let us rally around His peace efforts, and instill His attitude of forgiveness and Love as we embrace the pain and heartache He experiences with His own people.
I believe Our Father's message to His people today is this. As you bear witness to His Story and the Truth of His Love and Compassion, It is time to quit bruising the heel of our brethren. It is time to recognize the blow to our prides for what it is! It is the Love of our God knocking down the walls of our Narrow enclosures. It is time to lay down our weapons of death, destruction, and bloodshed upon the Holy Lands of Our Father. It is time to beat our swords into plowshares! It is time to put our children to work for the next seven years and beyond in a worldwide effort to reclaim Our Father's Land.
Psalm 95:6; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker"
II Chronicles 7:14; "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
It is time for fellowship as we gather around the altar of our Lord and partake of the bread and the wine in remembrance of the unity, prepared by our Father within His body broken for us. It is time that through that body, we too break down our dividing walls of hostility and embrace our fellowman. It is time to forgive, live, and let live. It is time to be bound together as we seek to be worthy of the Love and approval Our Father's has granted us. It is time to Believe in the One and only Truth that is God! It is not a time for patience; This is a time for an impassioned call for renewal and rebirth! This is the great and awesome day of the Lord!
Deuteronomy 5:24; "The LORD our God has shown us his glory and his majesty, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that a person can live even if God speaks with them."
Deuteronomy 30:2b-3a; "when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes"
Psalm 95:6-8a; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if only you would hear his voice, 'Do not harden your hearts'"
Its time to believe in the power of the goodness of our God! His anger has passed, behold, His Love has come!
Please share this good news with all your friends and loved ones. You have nothing to lose and absolutely everything to gain! Believe in Christ again this Christmas! Bless Bethlehem with the reBirth of His Baby this Holiday Season!
Together, lets end humanities' rebellion against God once and for all. There has never been a more important time for you to spread His Good News to the ends of the earth. Challenge your friends to share His Good News. They may not presently believe in God, but challenge them to watch God in Action if they will only participate in this good work! This will change all of our lives! This will save our brothers and sisters on the battlefield! This will end fear and bloodshed! This will bring about a Peace in our times of nothing less than Divine, Biblical Proportion!
The trumpet has now sounded! This call to action is now yours. The roar of His spoken Word has never been louder! Serve your God and experience His blessing. If you are stuck in fear, (there is nothing to fear, guaranteed), hear Him speak again from His word and send it on for your Messiah as His Birthday Gift from You! There is no greater gift, there is no greater love. You'll never regret having taken part in this Great Day of Our Lord!
Isaiah 41:9-10 I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Through electronic media and whatever other gifts our Father has given you, it is time to Go out into all the world and spread His Good News and His invitation! Start communications calling on His Peace; Enter communications calling for His Peace; Pray for His Peace to reign in our hearts and minds all over the world. It is time to Love as we bear witness once again to this prophecy common to all from Isaiah 9:1-7;
"Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan - The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this."
With Love from Our Father
Your Brother.
Amen.
2. Happy Birthday Jesus
Dear Brothers and Sisters;
The following article is a shortened version of "Horn for His Holy Day" Please share!
I bear witness to the grief and wailing daily of all of God's children as we mourn the Holocausts - both in the evil tragedies reflected in Christian Europe against the Jewish people, and in the devouring of Palestinian lands and the 4 generations of "oppression camps", death, and demoralization of the displaced people and nation of Palestine. Emmanuel Himself is fully reflected in both these people as He was born and raised as a Palestinian Jew who lived His life reaching out to and loving His neighbors. His was the Way of Peace. Today we witness such tragedy in an amazingly close comparison to Revelation 18 as we mourn the loss of Godly virtue within our religious prides of favoritism and partiality!
What are we to do to rise above this grief? Our Brother, Sami Awad from Bethlehem, a Palestinian Christian, calls us to compassion and forgiveness for His Jewish brothers as He chose to lay in an open grave within their tombs at Auschwitz in an effort to experience their pain. Let us rally around His peace efforts, and instill His attitude of forgiveness and Love as we embrace the pain and heartache He experiences with His own people.
I believe Our Father's message to His people today is this. As you bear witness to His Story and the Truth of His Love and Compassion, It is time to quit biting at the heels of our brethren. It is time to recognize the blow to our prides for what it is! It is the Love of our God knocking down the walls of our Narrow enclosures. It is time to lay down our weapons of death, destruction, and bloodshed upon the Holy Lands of Our Father. It is time to beat our swords into plowshares! It is time to put our children to work for the next seven years and beyond in a worldwide effort to reclaim Our Father's Land.
Psalm 95:6; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker"
II Chronicles 7:14; "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
It is time for fellowship as we gather around the altar of our Lord and partake of the bread and the wine in remembrance of the unity, prepared by our Father within His body broken for us. It is time that through that body, we too break down our dividing walls of hostility and embrace our fellowman. It is time to forgive, live, and let live. It is time to be bound together as we seek to be worthy of the Love and approval Our Father has granted us. It is time to Believe in the One and only Truth that is God! It is not a time for patience; This is a time for an impassioned call for renewal and rebirth! This is the great and awesome day of the Lord!
Rick Sjaardema
Rick Sjaardema is a profile blogger on facebook and at One Year Bible Blogging dealing with faith and politics from a Biblical perspective.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-Year-Bible-Blogging/322591628956?ref=ts
http://oneyearbibleblogging.blogspot.com/2010_11_28_archive.html
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1074381442
3. Does d'evil Exist
The Bible represents a multitude of writings compiled from history. One of the most ancient stories, recorded for us from Moses study of Egyptian texts reflects a serpent in a garden. Following an image of temptation of man, Genesis 3:15 states "I will put enmity between you and the woman, he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
Interestingly, many stories later (Genesis 25:23-26), Jacob and Esau were born. Two nations would be divided. The older (Esau, (Red/routinely imagined wrathful)) seems to be representative of all men while the younger, (Jacob) had firm hold of his heel in seeming reference to the (serpant) of Genesis 3:15.
Indeed, in the Jewish consideration of being "Chosen" or "Set Apart", there has been a perceived enmity between this people group and all others for much of history culminating in the tragedy of the holocaust of WWII. As God set up their form of worship through Moses, there was a symbolism of the sacrifice where the Priest would take coals from the fire and bring them outside the camp, outside the walls of the city to a designated place to offer atonement for all of the people.
Another depiction of "Hell" came in the judgment of Korah and a group of religious and political leaders that challenged Moses authority. The earth opened up and swallowed these adversaries, obviously shocking the culture! In my early days of Christianity in the 1960's, a vast number of believers still imagined "Hell" was a place within the very earth. Few if any still believe that ideology, but few have dismissed the shaky grounds of shifting Biblical stories and ideologies of both this angel who fell from Heaven - fully dependent upon God, but too often deified even by the most prudent of Biblical scholars. With his shifting identity, Biblical ideologies also continue to shift from ancient Biblical times through the present day. With so many unanswered questions - and Biblical mythology and symbolism, this question "Does the devil or Hell for that matter exist" is a powerful question indeed! We can prove God, but can we prove the devil outside of our own selves?
In Jesus day, this reference to atonement or refinement of outsiders (Hell) was further symbolozed by a place of eternal burning - the refuse of the city was placed there - the dead of the poor were burned there. This city dump was called Gehenna. Jesus would claim as men cast out demons and ideologies that caused pain and suffering that he saw the devil falling from heaven. All very symbolic of the rifinement of the understanding of our spirits as God sent the Christ to pay the atonement for all of our sins, including those of the deceiver (Jacob). This salvation considering John 3:16-17, Matthew 12:31 and Mark 3:28 again appears to cover both for those within the city walls, and that scum of the earth (given the ideals of bigotry we often have in ideologies of self-righteousness) destined for Gehenna. With universal forgiveness on the table, one must question their judgment of their fellowman and how such resulting actions will affect their relationship with this Savior who gave His Life for all men!
Revelation 19:18-21 states that these false prophets and this beast - this image - we have served in our pride and self righteousness shall be thrown into an eternal lake of fire as our ideologies are refined to reflect the Almighty power and Saving Grace of our Lord and King who is blessed forever! No living or dead person was thrown into that lake - the understandings of our flesh are thus burned away and feasted upon in a celebration of universal spiritual renewal. Again, no room for a devil.
Revelation 20:14-15 states that Death and Hades are emptied of the dead in them as all peoples, nations, and tongues are judged and refined. Our badness is thus stripped away through Christ's ultimate power over the evils of mortal death and we are redeemed, cleansed by the blood of the lamb. Death and Hades are thus thrown, emptied of all who were in them, into that eternal lake of fire.
Given the fuller biblical imagery carried forward through Hebrew prophecy and religious history, it would seem that at least Biblically, this imagery of the devil only exists in our ideologies apart from the Love of God. As we depict God as a deity of wrath - thus being adversarial to our perceived enemies, we become adversarial and destructive to the very creation of the God we imagine we serve. We find ourselves at enmity with creation and become lost in fear of the spirit world. Thus, it would seem that the imagery of both d'evil and hell within the Bible have only been meant to bring us closer to him as we are forced to judge our own behaviors and resulting emotions.
Christs summary of all the law and the prophets (love your neighbor as your self) once and for all time destroyed the myth that the ancient Hebrew word for "destroy" meant something of military action; It meant the divine interpretation of "totally devote them to God"
4. Thoughts On The Faith Of President Obama
a. Initial post: "from President Obama: excerpts from chapter 6 of "Audacity of Hope"
"although it was Jimmy Carter who would first introduce the language of evangelical Christianity into modern national politics, it was the Republican Party, with it's increasing emphasis on tradition, order, and "family values," that was best positioned to harvest this crop of politically awakened evangelicals and mobilize them against the liberal orthodoxy."
"The single biggest gap in party affiliation among white Americans is...between those who attend church regularly and those who don't. Democrats, meanwhile, are scrambling to "get religion," even as a core segment of our constituency remains stubbornly secular in orientation, and fears - rightly, no doubt - that the agenda of an assertively Christian nation may not make room for them or their life choices."
"Each day, it seem, thousands of Americans...are deciding that their work, their possessions, their diversions, their sheer busyness are not enough...They need an assurance that somebody out there cares about them."
"If I have any insight into this movement toward a deepening religious commitment, perhaps it's because it's a road I have traveled...My grandfather had been raised by devout Baptist grandparents after his father had gone AWOL...while my grandmother's parents...were practicing Methodists." "...religious faith never really took root in their hearts."
"...my mother...Her memories of the Christians who populated her youth were not fond ones. Occasionally, for my benefit, she would recall the sanctimonious preachers who would dismiss three - quarters of the world's people as ignorant heathens doomed to spend the afterlife in eternal damnation...She remembered the respectable church ladies who were always so quick to shun those unable to meet their standards of propriety, even as they desperately concealed their own dirty little secrets; the church fathers who uttered racial epithets and chiseled their workers out of any nickel that they could...For my mother organized religion too often dressed up closed - mindedness in the garb of piety, cruelty and oppression in the cloak of righteousness...In her mind, a working knowledge of the world's great religions was a necessary part of any well - rounded education. "
"...I was made to understand that such religious samplings required no sustained commitment on my part...as a child I rarely came in contact with those who might offer a substantially different view of faith...my father had been raised a Muslim, by the time he met my mother he was a confirmed atheist...my mother remarried...a man who saw religion as not particularly useful in the practical business of making one's way in the world and who had grown up in a countr that easily blended it's Islamic faith with remnants of Hinduism, Buddhism, and ancient animist traditions...I was sent first to a neighborhood Catholic school and then to a predominantly Muslim school; in both cases, my mother was less concerned with me learning the catechism or puzzling out the meaning of the muezzin's call to evening prayer than she was with whether I was properly learning my multiplication tables
And yet for all her professed secularism, my mother was in many ways the most spiritually awakened person that I've ever known...she worked mightily to instill in me the values that many Americans learn in Sunday school: honesty, empathy, discipline, delayed gratification, and hard work."
"My fierce ambitions might have been fueled by my father - by my knowledge of his achievements and failures, by my unspoken desire to somehow earn his live, and by my resentments and anger toward him. But it was my mother's fundamental faith - in the goodness of people and in the ultimate value of this brief life we've each been given - that channeled those ambitions. It was in search of confirmation of her values...And it was in search of some practical application of those values that I accepted work after college as a community organizer for a group of churches in Chicago that were trying to cope with joblessness, drugs, and hopelessness in their midst."
"...My mother...found herself satisfying her need for meaning in her work and in her children. In such a life I, too, might have contented myself had it not been for the particular attributes of the historically black church, attributes that helped me shed some of my skepticism and embrace the Christian faith."
"...Out of necessity, the black church had to minister to the whole person...it understood in an intimate way the biblical call to feed the hungry and clothe the naked and challenge powers and principalities. In the history of these struggles, I was able to see faith as more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death; rather, it was an active, palpable agent in the world. In the day - to - day work of the men and women I met in church each day, in their ability to 'make a way out of no way' and maintain hope and dignity in the direst of circumstances, I could see the Word made manifest. ...the typical black sermon freely acknowledged that all Christians (including the pastors) could expect to still experience the same greed, resentment, lust, and anger that everyone else experienced...the sins of those who came to church were not so different from the sins of those who didn't, and so were as likely to be talked about with humor as with condemnation. You needed to come to church precisely because you were of this world, not apart from it; rich, poor, sinner, saved, you needed to embrace Christ precisely because you had sins to wash away, because you were human and needed an ally in your difficult journey...It was because of these newfound understandings - that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking, disengage from the battle for economic and social justice, or otherwise retreat from the world that I knew and loved - that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized. It came about as a choice and not an epiphany; the questions I had did not magically disappear. But kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side of Chicago, I felt God's Spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth."
"...any discussion of religion and it's role in politics can turn a bit less civil. Take my Republican opponent in 2004, Ambassador Alan Keyes, who deployed a novel argument for attracting voters in the waning days of the campaign...'Christ would not vote for Barack Obama'...'Why are you letting this guy give you fits?' they would ask me. For them, Mr. Keyes was a kook, an extremist, his arguments not even worth entertaining. What they didn't understand was that I could not help but take Mr. Keyes seriously. For he claimed to speak for my religion - and although I might not like what came out of his mouth, I had to admit that some of his views had many adherents within the Christian church.
"Mr. Obama says he's a Christian, but he supports the destruction of innocent and sacred life...What could I say? That a literal reading of the Bible was folly? That Mr. Keyes, a Roman Catholic, should disregard the Pope's teachings? Unwilling to go there, I answered with the usual liberal response in such debates - that we live in a pluralistic society, that I can't impose my religious views on another, that I was running to be a U.S. senator from Illinois and not the minister of Illinois. But even as I answered, I was mindful of Mr. Keyes's implicit accusation - that I remained steeped in doubt, that my faith was adulterated, that I was not a true Christian..."
"Liberalism teaches us to be tolerant of other people's religious beliefs, so long as those beliefs don't cause anyone harm or impinge on another's right to believe differently...Some on the left (although not those in public office) go further, dismissing religion in the public square as inherently irrational, intolerant, and therefore dangerous - and noting that, with it's emphasis on personal salvation and the policing of private morality, religious talk has given conservatives cover to ignore questions of public morality, like poverty or corporate malfeasance...But over the long haul, I think we make a mistake when we fail to acknowledge the power of faith in the lives of the American people...it's bad politics. There are a whole lot of religious people in America, including the majority of Democrats...when we discuss religion only in the negative sense of where or how it should not be practiced, rather than in the positive sense of what it tells us about our obligations toward one another; when we shy away from religious venues and religious broadcasts because we assume that we will be unwelcome - others will fill the vacuum. And those who do are likely to be those with the most insular views of faith, or who cynically use religion to justify partisan ends."
"I am suggesting that if we progressives shed some of our own biases, we might recognize the values that both religious and secular people share when it comes to the moral and material direction of our country...We need to take faith seriously not simply to block the religious right but to engage all persons of faith in the larger project of American renewal...Franklin and Jefferson, were deists who - while believing in an Almighty God - questioned not only the dogmas of the Christian church but the central tenets of Christianity itself (including Christ's divinity)...not all the Founding Fathers agreed; men like Patrick Henry and john Adams forwarded a variety of proposals to use the arm of the state to promote religion...it was Baptists like Reverend John Leland and other evangelicals who provided the popular support needed to get these provisions ratified. They did so because they were outsiders; because their style of exuberant worship appealed to the lower classes;...In the words of the Reverend Leland, 'It is error alone, that stands in need of government to support it; truth can and will do better without...it':"
"Let's even assume that we only had Christians within our borders. Whose Christianity would we teach in the schools? James Dobson's or Al Sharpton's? Which passages of Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which suggests that slavery is all right and eating shellfish is an abomination? How about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the mount - a passage so radical that it's doubtful that our Defense Department would survive it's application?...Surely, secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering the public square;...To say that men and women should not inject their 'personal morality' into public policy debates is a practical absurdity...If I want others to listen to me, then I have to explain why abortion violates some principle that is accessible to people of all faiths, including those with no faith at all...At some fundamental level, religion does not allow for compromise...If God has spoken, then followers are expected to live up to God's edicts, regardless of the consequences. To base one's life on such uncompromising commitments may be sublime; to base our policy making on such commitments would be a dangerous thing...the best we can do is act in accordance with those things that are possible for all of us to know, understanding that a part of what we know to be true - as individuals or communities of faith - will be true for us alone..."
"It would be helpful,...if in debates about matters touching on religion - as in all of democratic discourse - we could resist the temptation to impute bad faith to those who disagree with us...I cannot claim infallibility in my support of abortion rights...in years hence I may be seen as someone who was on the wrong side of history. I don't believe such doubts make me a bad Christian. I believe they make me human, limited in my understandings of God's purpose and therefore prone to sin...There are some things that I'm absolutely sure about - the Golden Rule, the need to battle cruelty in all it's forms, the value of love and charity, humility, and grace."
"I thought of Sasha asking me once what happened when we die - "I don't want to die, Daddy," she had added matter - of - factly - and I had hugged her and said, "You've got a long, long way before you have to worry about that," which had seemed to satisfy her. I wondered whether I should have told her the truth, that I wasn't sure what happens when we die, any more than I was sure of where the soul resides or what existed before the Big Bang. Walking up the stairs, though, I knew what I hoped for - that my mother was together in some way with those four little girls, capable in some fashion of embracing them, of finding joy in their spirits.
On a side note: The Washington Post reported: ""I let Jesus Christ into my life," Obama told the AME delegates. "I learned that my sins could be redeemed and that if I place my trust in Jesus, that he could set me on a path to eternal life. That I submitted myself to his life. I dedicated myself to discovering his truth and to carrying out his works."
Now from a personal point of view: I come across people outside the Church constantly that have left due to the judgmental attitude found within the Church. This, when the word of God in a nutshell is "Love". In reading the excerpts above, I too do not find myself in agreement with this man on faith and a number of issues. I am a Republican and certainly stand against Abortion. However, I have no right to judge his Christianity! I certainly do not hear a Muslim speaking. The concept I have read that "The Republican party does well in getting the baby out of the womb - However, the Democratic party worries much more for that period of time between the womb and the tomb" causes serious reflection. Certainly, we all share guilt before our Creator.
Roman's 1 is a fine chapter on the sin nature of the world. Romans 2:1, however, states: "Therefore you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are, when you judge another; for in passing judgment upon him you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.
I initially wrote these thoughts in response to a hate filled e-mail from a well meaning teacher and shared by many Christians who focussed upon the evil they realized was within the man (forgetting, perhaps that evil resides in each one of us). As the teacher who wrote this shared e-mai; I also stand in awe of the workings God has wrought through these United States of America, and many other nations in combating evil in our world (yet perhaps we forget that God deserves the ultimate glory for our successes). However, I do not think Jesus Christ would pledge allegiance to these United States of America! We too, are fallible and filled with evil. The membership of the church of Jeremiah Wright, from inner Chicago, certainly does not share my warm feelings of life in these United States of America. If we do not humble ourselves and show compassion and understanding of something other than ourselves, others will continue to distance themselves from us and will become our adversary. Our pride will become our downfall.
If we as a people, do not pledge our allegiance to God (by following His commands to love our fellow man & pray for those who persecute us), Country (yes, as represented by our present leaders), and our fellow man (in service, respect, and ultimately love), we shall fall. If in our addressing our concerns with the leaders God has allowed, through His ultimate control, in a more respectful way, we shall hold no countenance with our fellow man and we shall lose our privileges within our society. Rise up my fellow man, but don't do so by first digging a hole.
b. Response from a follower: I believe we can be sure of where we go when we die and where the soul resides after death. In general, I agree with the statements quoted. When it comes to the public arena, especially the political arena, none of us are good models of what a Christian should be. God doesn't love us because we have earned His love. God, in His grace, first loved us in Christ Jesus and, therefore, we respond with acts of love toward Him and toward our neighbor. Fruit doesn't bring life to a tree but fruit does prove that a tree is alive. The "fruit" in our lives proves that we are alive in Christ Jesus. He is the vine and we are the branches. If we are disconnected from Him we no longer are "alive" and we no longer bear the kind of fruit that proves we are spiritulally alive. We aren't saved by our fruit (good works) but fruit (good works) proves that we are saved.
c. My response: I agree that we can be sure of where we go when we die, but when the branch is cut off and thrown into the fire, I believe we see a refinement and rebirth. So often, a body within the kingdom may struggle and seemingly disappear; but just as the forest fire removes the old trees, the new seeds from that tree create a forest. Thus, even though the old culture of Israeli sacrifices have been removed, Moses and Aaron remain saved and await us in glory. Just as the Pharisees were challenged and cut off through the rebirth and ministry of Jesus Christ - He forgave their shortcomings on the cross and I believe they celebrate that chapter in the spiritual story with Him in glory - now refined and in full recognition of our Father's grand scheme and plan of redemption.
Although I may disagree with an individual's or a "body's" ideologies, I refuse to relegate them to the eternal fires of Hell - to do so would result in serious fires of refinement for me (yet beyond the scope of my understanding). To do so would also demean the power of Salvation provided through Jesus Christ's sacrifice of atonement for the body of humanity! If i assume that through Adam, sin entered every man - then I dare not imply that Salvation was not the stronger blessing as it entered and granted God's free gift to every man. They may not want it now, but our Loving Father is certainly not going to banish a rebellious child from His presence forever - I believe the Power of Christ outplays the strength of any man's rebellion or blindness - especially as the Bible claims God Himself imposes such blindness and ideology - for His ultimate Glory - which is in the Praise of His Children - not for His power of wrath, but for His Power of Love. None of us as Father's can hope to compare.
d. Follower's response; He who loses his life will find it. I died with Christ at the cross. There I found God's grace and my salvation. Now I am alive in Christ and able to do good works and to love my neighbor as myself. Before I "died" at the cross with Christ, I was nothing but a "dead" person. Therefore, my only boast is in the crsso of Christ. The cross is reprehensible to many churches and Christians today, but to me it is central to my life. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. In the cross of Christ I have complete freedom to be the person God created me to be. Before I came to see myself on the cross with Christ I had no hope. Churches and others were teaching me to do good works and then I would find grace and salvation. I tried but I was hopelessly lost, sucked into a sewer of despair, not able to save myself. I was ejected from that sewer and for all intents and purposes, I was dead. Christ reached down and grabbed me as I reached the end of that sewer, and he brought me back to life. Then came the good works, not to save myself but because I am so thankful to Him for reaching down and saving me from my hopeless condition.
e. My response; I have come to conclude that we have no boast! As Christians, our boast remains embedded in the imagery of God. Given the church's continued warring factions and the destructive tendancies which flow from faith - our righteousness remains dirty rags. This blog began as a condemnation of condemnation - yet as judgment day looms, the judgment upon these warring factions and destructions through faith becomes greater and greater! Modern Christianity requires the world to bow down to their image of Trinitarianism, or the classify the non-believer in their "image" to be lost. Ultimately, this belief is non-biblical and in fact, anti-atonement and anti-salvation in its very reflection of Romans 5 wherin the salvation granted by the grace and mercy of the universal Salvation of a Universal Creator is overcoming all of our unrighteousnesses and creating something new.
In September of 2009, I wrote "Talk About Love". I am not a theologian, only a layman studying the word of God. I fully recognize the Spirit of an Almighty God destroying our imagery once again as judgment day looms. This past month, news of Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" hit the media - and along with it, the Church's attacks and the news that pastor's were losing their jobs based apparently on the ideology that Romans 5 was only written to Christians.
The Almighty Creator of the Universe is the refuge and strength of all mankind. All any religion has to sell is an insignificant image of the Salvation He offers as our imagery continues to build up separations between man as we have also set up imagery of evil alongside Salvation. We have two mountains mentioned first in Deuteronomy 11:29; Mount Ebal (pronounced ((long)a/voll) more properly spelled Eybal (almost like eye ball with eye being pronounced A). On this mountain, the wrestlers (Israel) pronounce the evil judgments of God while on Gerezim (long EE both times) they pronounce the blessings of God. It all seems to have to do with our imagery as man attempts to know good from evil. If we judge, we become judged. The same is reflected in our use of religious imagery. Once religion becomes intolerant and judgmental, it becomes destroyed.
Something new is on the horizon. While revisualizing the Universality of our Creator, it is exactly the opposite of claiming all religion is correct! It only reflects the teachings of Christ - "your faith has saved you"! And yet, it also reflects the fact that your faith has destroyed you. There is a hefty price that will be paid by the children of an unbelieving generation of those who refused to believe in the Universal Salvation of our Destroying Creator who is in the process of purifying all things through His fires of refinement, bonding together the body of Christ.
Theology for the past 500 years has been built upon our visions of Ebal as we raised our views of the devil above the powers of our Christ. Rob Bell has birthed a New imagery of Good and Evil on the world; His Story will tell how this Revelation will change our world. Little matters whether or not President Obama is "Good or Evil" in our reflective imagery, what matters is how we respond to our imagery of God as our actions are reflected in judgment or condemnation. Thank Goodness my book did not hit the market first! Can you imagine the controversy? I sit quitly back in this corner of my world attempting to build the Biblical authenticity of this new revelation.
Love Rick
5. THOUGHTS ON LOVE WINS
I have come to conclude that we have no boast in Christ, in fact all boasting is dangerously arrogant and intolerant, yet brings out the wrath of God through a time of refinement and cleansing! As Christians, our boast remains embedded in the imagery of God. Given the church's continued warring factions and the destructive tendancies which flow from faith - our righteousness remains dirty rags. My ultimate mission "Evangelizing Within Contemporary Religiosity began as a "judgment" of "judgmentalism and intolerance" of various faith groups; - yet as judgment day looms, the worldwide judgment upon these warring factions and destructions through faith becomes greater and greater! Modern Christianity requires the world to bow down to their image of Trinitarianism, or to classify the non-believer (in this image of trinitarianism) to be lost. Ultimately, this belief is non-biblical and in fact, anti-atonement and anti-salvation in its very reflection of Romans 5 wherin the Salvation granted by the grace and mercy of the Universal Creator is overcoming all of our unrighteousnesses while creating (making, refining, purifying) all things new.
In September of 2009, I wrote "Talk About Love". (see the link on One Year Bible Blogging's Discussion Page) I am not a "trained Seminarian, only a layman studying the word of God. I fully recognize the Spirit of an Almighty God destroying our imagery once again as (our imagery) of judgment day looms. This past month, news of Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" hit the media - and along with it, the Church's attacks and the news that Pastors who Love and promote Jesus Christ were losing their jobs (excommunicated, yet again) based apparently on the ideology that Romans 5 was only written to Christians or some other "theological dispute" reflecting the church's disbelief in the Power of YHWH's Salvation and Atonement, His free gift of grace and mercy through His perfect Love for His world.
The Almighty Creator of the Universe is the refuge and strength of all mankind. All any religion has to sell is an insignificant image of the Salvation He offers as our imagery continues to build up separations between man as we have also set up imagery of evil alongside Salvation. We have two mountains mentioned first in Deuteronomy 11:29; Mount Ebal (pronounced (long (A)/vall) more properly spelled Eybal (almost like eye ball with eye being pronounced A). On this mountain, the wrestlers (Israel) pronounce the evil judgments of God while on Gerezim (long EE both times) they pronounce the blessings of God. Etymology of Ebal is (bare Mountain) while Gerezim represents "cuttings off". Thus, perhaps God has instituted yet another symbolism to the (Wrestlers with imagery) of the monumental task of destroying Evil! We chip off a bit here and there as we seek to find His purity. Our challenges are set up in our actions and understandings of our fellowman as we wind our way through the confusions He set up at Babel - as fully reflected in Our Bible.
Something new is being birthed upon the Spiritual horizon while we revisualize the Universality of our Creator, which, by the way, is exactly the opposite of claiming all religion is correct! This new teaching (see Matthew 13:52) reflects the teachings of Christ - "your faith has saved you", and yet, it also reflects the fact that your faith is imagery is destroying you. There is a hefty price that will be paid by the children of an unbelieving generation of those who refused to believe in the Universal Salvation of our Destroying Creator who is in the process of purifying all things through His fires of refinement, bonding together the purified body for which He atoned.
Christian theology for the past 500 years has been built upon our visions of (Total Depravity) our Mount Ebal as we raised our views of the devil above the powers of our Christ. Rob Bell has presented on stage a new imagery of Good and Evil upon our world; History will tell how this Revelation will be received in our world. Little matters whether or not President Obama is "Good or Evil" in our reflective imagery; what matters is how we respond to our imagery of God as our actions are reflected in judgment or condemnation. Thank Goodness my book did not hit the market first! Can you imagine the controversy? I sit quietly back in this corner of my world attempting to build the Biblical authenticity of this new revelation.
Love Rick
6. THE RIGHT JESUS / UNIVERSAL SAVIOR
I often challenge this new doctrine of "right" Jesus which has been forged in the intollerance within the Religious Right. In reflection of that philosophy, I often walk the precipice of what I would consider to be heresy - this claim that ...My Way is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
So, here is what I see as Reality - and the Most High God - which is often condemned within church and family as Universalism.
Consider an X laying on it's side. I have often visualized the Bible as everything before and everything since has this center in Jesus Christ! However, we have now reached a new time of polytheism when there might appear to be many "right" Christs and many "right" religions! However, the truth of the matter is there is One Way, One Truth, and One Life. The life of Jesus is now represented in Zionism, the Religious Right, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witness, etc. etc. etc. to the point Jesus clothes have been ripped and torn and his body and blood get trashed over and over again.
Therefore, I fully believe we have reached a new Judgment Day! XXXXX; I happen to serve a Spirit of Peace which I recognize is revealed through Isaiah, Jesus, and so many ideologies and words reflected within the Bible. Therefore, I must consider the claims that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God - within the context of His words of John 10:34-35 where Jesus (through John) reflected on David speaking in Psalm 82:6. I cannot ignore a single word of scripture, nor can I dismiss a single word of history!
Therefore, how must we make sense of all of this? I must focus on the meaning of this word "Jesus" and consider this reflection on Our Father is one of the most important words within scripture! It must reflect the Father in a way no other Word does! This Word, made flesh came and dwelt among us - not Isaiah, not Jeremiah, not Jacob, not zionism, not Christianity; but Jesus! My mission then is to understand that Word - reflected as the very Wisdom of the Father reflected in Proverbs 8 - His very Intelligent Design which holds everything together and gives this world of soils or souls its being and life! This is why it is so important to me to preach that the very Word of Jesus means "Salvation"! My own name "Power" or "Bravery" might represent a warrior - but it doesn't come close to this only begotten Word "Salvation"!
So, How do I serve this Word? Where else in scripture is this Salvation or Savior found? If indeed it is fully reflective of the Father and represents His most potent voice in History, I want to know Salvation correctly! Thus, through the voice of Paul in Romans 5 and I Corinthians 15, I must believe in Salvation within this Universal scope! If I care to believe John Calvin's doctrine of Total Depravity fully reflected in these contexts, I am forced to believe in the Power of Universal Salvation! All other choices have been stripped away from me in my devotions.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise to me that when men of other faiths die, they meet the face of Salvation - or at first, perhaps, they must wrestle their demons until they believe.
Thus, one day, I think we will all face the judgment of what we have done in our lives and what we have believed and how we have considered and treated our fellowman! I believe we will all come before our King - the only one - and spit out the seeds of the pomegranite (seedy apple - reflected by several words throughout scripture). I do believe there is a straight line - that highway of the X on the right side of Christ is just as much of a highway as the highway that led into it! And yet today, all nations are being called back to the Prince of Peace. One day, every knee will bow and we will no longer need to tell our neighbor about God because we will all know Him. There is but one straight line - the very narrow way of Loving our Neighbor as ourselves. (Matthew 7:12-13). That 13th verse has a strong tendancy to be a stumbling block - as it was meant to be!
My efforts in this "Christian" year of evangelism then is not only to talk about Jesus, but to engage my neighbors in serving the Prince of Peace! Amen.
7. ALPHABETIC STUDY GUIDE TO THE BIBLE
Copyright Rick Sjaardema May 29, 2011.
I do not mind if you use this study, I just ask that you mention where it came from. Thanks.
As I have studied the Biblical names and places and the Hebrew language over the past year, I have begun to see a pattern within the English letters used. Although this may change over time, this is what I have compiled so far - look at the names of characters or places within His Story (His Words) and see if the letters themselves don't help to understand the deeper revelations from God - a bit like studying Hebrew - as God created all language.
A = Alpha and Omega; Asher; The path of to understanding the Wisdom of Salvation from the beginning of time.
B = Baals (Father figures, Lords, and Beths (houses)) of Benjamin, often the Sorrow of Sectarianisms
C = Creation or Christening of Children through Covenant - generally set apart for destruction to bear seeds from the remnant. And yet, as always, weeds come up with the crop renewing the harvesters day of atonement.
D = Dan (judgement) if left to God, great - yet, if we judge, our wells of sweet water become the bitter wells of demons. Sectarian judgment creates idols of ideology apart from a non-partial God.
E = Eternally encompassing everyone in an existing One-ness. He brings about Ephraims doubled fruitfulness often by destroying competing prides within Sectarianisms.
F = Flowing Fountains of Faith - A Fortified staff of Fruitful life or Fire for Sectarian Folly.
G = Gads of God(zilla)s (self destructive worship). Gapping Giants of Gomorrah (sheaves of faith) in Graves closed over by Granite Rolling stones of Gilgal, the wheels of Galilee. (for 'zilla' see z the whirring or buzzing of bees or locusts)
H = The humbling healing of the hills of ideology - a Festival of booths within the realm of fear of all that is seen and unseen; Heaven comes down and Glory fills our souls. The hills become alive!
I = Issachar's Joys and Sorrows of (Ideology/Idols) possessiveness or selfishness with God. The illnesses and illuminations within our own infamy.
J = Jealous Justice of the Creator bringing uniform praise (Judah) from all of the Cities. And yet, there continue to be Judases who defame Creation's Character; The Fruitfulness of Joseph's (YHWH Adds) Separations; The Jewel of the Nile (Leviathan) is Salvation's dog.
K = Kid's Knowledge of Kneeling within the His Kingdom of Kindness with Spiritual Hands outstretched to Love their fellowman.
L = Life of Learning; The Levitical [enjoin]ment of all living things.
M = The Manasseh's of separatist Mountains as Hills sheave together into ranges building monuments of Sectarian stagnation.
N(n) = hills of faith (as seen by men). borne to speak as they lift their heads above the ocean of humanity in inspirations of faith and belief. And yet, the pride of the hills often lead to the Naphtilic entanglements and hostilities of favoritism.
O = The Ocean or Sea of original creation containing the foundations of all fountains and wells - all from whom Love's sweetness and Sitnah's bitterness flows.
P = Power of Peace for all People, yet also reflected in the Prophesied Persons and Prefects who attempt to usurp that Power in their denial of that existential Power of Peace.
Q = A Quiver of quarrelling or quietness as one consumes and digests the Words of the only Holy Existence that is.
R = The Reubens - offspring of Revelations. The Rabbinical code of ethics revealed to bring rest to the sorrowfully cursed sons of our sufferings. (as always, not to become personified which promotes sorrow against our enemy).
S = Salvation; Simeon's Summons to Speak - Sent as Servant's to the Seemingly Spiritually Starved that they might See Salvation's Love.
T(+) = The bitterness (Mary) of Tamar (the palm of God's Heavenly hand)'s body and blood shed for the abuses of faith (Amnon) in the earth. An addition (Joseph) on the part of God bringing fruitfulness from the destructions of man's wrath.
U = The universal joy found in humility as our hill of faith is turned upside down - an act of being borne again if you will, creating a cup which can hold salvation in bringing water to the parched lips of our fellowman's suffering.
V = A voice in the valley of zion (wilderness of sin - an Arabah). A fountain of Love preparing the dry land for the power of peace, or the stagnation of bitterness, bent on perdition.
W = Wonderful Straightening of Ways as Justice treads mountains of pride into Wildernesses of sorrow, Wallowing in repentance to the Spiritual Sword of the Word of God.
X = Intersections of Ways - A Crucifixion moment where genuine faith is recognized through the death of excommunication while mankind witnesses what is meant to love our fellowman and to treat them as we wish for them to treat one another.
Y = A resurrection of new birth as inspiration rises from the Sea and brings showers of new life upon the earth.
Z = Zebulun's Resting Place where a people are granted the honor to dwell and asked to spread His Words of Love and Salvation. The Buzziness (Zillas) of such people may bee seen to bring the sweet polination of honey or the demonic destruction of locusts. Therein lies the zeal or zealotry of zionisms.
8. NO ONE GREATER - FIRST COMMANDMENT
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.abarim-publications.com%2FBible_Commentary%2FExodus20v3.html&h=07133
find it curious as I study the Word of God face to face that Seminarians who are taught to teach us about God - and study Hebrew would not tell us that the primary understandings through which we are taught are from the land of Canaan! Indeed, El and Allah reflect identical Hebrew structure, both Almighty in character. Why then, would these Shephards then set their wisdom above our fellowman?
Some claim that I set myself upon a pedestal! If that is what happens to those who ascend a pulpit, then I remain happy to sit in my small corner of this world as I bear witness to the Power of Peace I feel to be readily available at the hand of our Most High God.
To challenge my words to be an attempt to bring glory to myself is a slap in my face - and I shall thus attempt to change my tactfulness.
My desired reflections upon the command is that as I attempt to encourage truthfulness, that I not to appear to believe myself greater as a man than any other man. My challenge then to you, my fellowman is to increase your faith in the fact that Peace is possible as that Spirit of Our Lord has never left us nor forsaken us.
It is my "desire" that Our World not only have faith in that desire for some distant lifetime, or for some distant corner of our heart and mind, but to serve that desire in this lifetime we share! My understanding depends greatly upon the reflectins of Messiah as we reflect upon the scriptures of God!
Such witness enables me to proclaim that We are ONE in and through Our Father which art in Heaven, Hallowed be His Name. May His Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven! May He forgive us of our shortcomings as we learn to forgive our fellowman of their own shortcomings in faith. May He grant all the dust of the earth His daily manna and lead us not into the temptations of war, but deliver us from the arrogances of our evil within; For To Him is all Glory as amongst us is His Kingdom; given that He bestows the only true Power since the beginning to this time forth and forevermore, Amen.
9. Understanding God of All (YHWH)
a. I am but a reporter of current events: How long must I challenge the theological flaws of favoritism and partiality when it comes to the Doctors? I did not write the book, I have only come to expose the truth by what was written through the who, what, where and when - as I interpret why - as we experience how!
Please do not miss my previous discussion of the first commandment (No other Gods) http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=322591628956&topic=17668 and the linked study from Abarim publications.
Reflect through this rendering of three days of military maneuvers within the Bible as we reflect on the ideologies of Gog and Magog (the pride and arrogance which serves to divide the Holy Land, and Jerusalem, into quadrants of partiality and favoritism. I hope that in understanding the representations of the individual kings and their renderings of Jehovah, you might understand the importance of our requirement of Universal Love and Acceptance of our fellowman a bit better - and shed whatever bigotry and bloodshed might be left in your Spiritual soil.
II Kings 9:16-25; "Then Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] got into his chariot and rode to (Y'izr@'e'l [God sows]), because Joram [Jehovah has exalted the people] was resting there and Ahaziah [I have grasped Jehovah and made Him (MY) possession] king of Judah [ideological praises of YHWH] had gone down to see him.
When the lookout standing on the tower [stronghold] in (Y'izr@'e'l) [God sows]) saw Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth]'s troops approaching, he called out, 'I see some troops coming.'
'Get a horseman,' Joram ordered. 'Send him to meet them and ask, 'Do you come in peace?'
The horseman [lover of power] rode off to meet Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] and said, 'This is what the king says: 'Do you come in peace?'
'What do you have to do with peace?' Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] replied. 'Fall in behind me.'
The lookout reported, 'The messenger has reached them, but he isn't coming back.'
So the king sent out a second horseman...
The lookout reported, 'He has reached them, but he isn't coming back either. The driving is like that of Jehu son of Nimshi [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth ideology borne of bitterness of destruction while YHWH adds - and thus given to the imagery of I and my people are those rescued by the (right) hand of salvation] - he drives like a madman!
When Joram [My People are exalted by Jehovah] saw Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] he asked, 'Have you come in peace, [Jehovah of all the earth]?'
sidenote: "Joshua [Jehovah is Our Salvation] 5:13-15; "Now when Joshua was near Jericho [ideologically 'city of palms' (heaven or gates of hell - lowest point on earth - next to the deepest rift line on earth (Jordan River) - known to be the river of humbling - earthy - the cleanser of the power lepers by 7 baptisms], he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua (Yeshua, your ideals of Messiah) went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua (Your ideals of Messiah) fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so."
Now, back to the Spiritual significance of II Kings 9:22b-25 while Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth] answers Joram [Jehovah is a God of favoritism or partiality of amongst people]:
"How can there be peace', Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth] replied, 'as long as all the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel [Jehovah is an unchaste attachment to God] abound?
Joram [Jehovah is a God of favoritism or partiality who exalts a people] turned about and fled, calling out to Ahaziah [I have grasped Jehovah and made Him (MY) possession], 'Treachery, Ahaziah!"
Then Jehu drew his bow and shot Joram between the shoulders. The arrow pierced his heart and he slumped down in his chariot. Jehu said to Bidkar [with a stab], his chariot officer [Man of war], 'Pick him up and throw him on the field that belonged to Naboth the (Y'izr@'e'l [God sows])light. Remember how you and I were riding together in chariots..."
Matthew 21:38; "But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance."
How long must I challenge the theological flaws of favoritism and partiality when it comes to the Doctors? I did not write the book, I have only come to expose the truth by what was written through the who, what, where and when - and interpret why - as we experience how!
b. http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D_OzITyx6RKY&h=2a751
(Do you really want the chariots of fire to swing down and pick you up?)
Listen to a continuation of II Kings 10; "II Kings 10:12b-17; At Beth Eked [house of shearers (i.e. threshing floor, circumcision, purification, reaping, cleansing, enlarging)] of the Shepherds, he met some relatives of Ahaziah [Jehovah (Yahu) holds (possesses)"]... They said, 'We are relatives (of the king of Judah)... we have come down to greet the families of the king and of the queen mother."
"Take them alive!' (Jehu) ordered. So they took them alive and slaughtered them by the well of Beth Eked"
After he left there, he came upon Jehonadab [Jehovah has fathered], son of Recab [riders on the storm - name of Leviathan], who was on his way to meet him. Jehu [Jehovah, God of all] greeted him and said, 'Are you in accord with me, as I am with you?'
"I AM", Jehonadab answered.
"If so,' said Jehu, 'give me your hand' So he did, and Jehu helped him up into the chariot. Jehu said, 'Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord. (and such was born the religious zealots who go throughout all the world to kill their brethren). Then he had him ride along in his chariot.
When Jehu came to Samaria [guardians], he killed all who were left there of Ahab's [father's brothers] family. according to the word of the Lord spoken to Elijah [E'l is (MY) Jahu]...
vs. 30-31; "The Lord said to Jehu [Jehovah, The Almighty over all the earth,]... your descendants will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.' Yet Jehu was not careful to keep the law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam [all the people will contend over YHWH], which he had caused Israel to commit."
John 15:2; "He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful."
How soon must we begin to mourn Yad L'achim again, before we fall facedown in the dust of the earth and come to our senses in this Spirit of Love, Joy, and Peace of the Most High unity of ONE?
c. II Kings 10:1b-11; "Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria; to the officials of Y'isr@'e'l, to the elders and to the guardians of Ahab's [Father's brother's] children. He said 'As soon as this letter reaches you, since ((your master's)) sons are with you and you have chariots and horses, a fortified city and weapons, choose the best and most worthy of your master's sons and set him on his father's throne. Then fight for ((your master's)) house.'
But they were terrified and said, 'If two kings [Moses & Elijah?] could not resist him, how can we?'
So, the palace administrator, the city governor, the elders and the ((guardians [Samaritans] watchers)) sent this message to Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth]: 'We are your servants and we will do anything you say. We will not appoint anyone as king; you do whatever you think best.'
Then Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] wrote them a second letter saying, 'If you are on my side and will obey me, take the heads of your master's sons and come to me in Y'izr@'e'l by this time tomorrow.' Now the royal princes, seventy of them, were with the leading men of the city, who were rearing them. When the letter arrived, these men took the ((princes (1st born sons?)) and slaughtered all seventy of them. They put there heads in baskets and sent them to Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] in Y'izr@'e'l. When the messenger arrived, he told Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth], They have brought the heads of the princes.'
Then Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth, the black smoke that fills our temples so that our priests cannot perform their functions of enjoinment] ordered, 'Put them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning (The dividing wall of hostility rests near eastern Jerusalem, along the Palestinian borderline, a line drawn in the dust of the earth, challenging mankind to throw stones or send fire from the sky).
The next morning Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] went out. He stood before all the people and said, 'You are innocent. It was I who conspired against my master and killed him, but who killed all these? Know then, that not a word the Lord has spoken against the house of Ahab [Our Father's brothers] will fail. The Lord has done what he promised through his servant Elijah [E'l is (MY) Almighty God]. So Jehu [Almighty black smoke that fills our temples of praise] killed everyone in Y'izr@'e'l who remained of the house of Ahab [Father's brothers], as well as all his chief men, his close friends and his priests, leaving him no survivor - (the entire economy of E'l and Ba'al theology of Canaan (Spiritually speaking)).
Luke 9:29-36a; "As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31 appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32 Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)
34 While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” 36 When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone.
Luke 9:37-45; "The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. 38 A man in the crowd called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. 40 I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.”
41 “O unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”
42 Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil[b] spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father. 43 And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.
While everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples, 44 “Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
Luke 9:51-55; "As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them[a]?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them
Luke 10:1-3; "After this the Lord appointed (seventy) others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves"
Luke 10:16-19; "He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
17 The (seventy) returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
18 He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you."
I challenge you to remove Satan from your heaven. Believe in God and that all your prayers for all your loved ones have been answered within the Power of the Name of Salvation! Now, instead of attempting to save them from your evil ideologies of Hell, Serve the Prince of Peace with them and save your enemies from the Hell of your own making!
9. Full Gospel theology cannot argue against God, A Universal Creator and Savior!
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DQJtPKRMmttU&h=2a751
Acts 17:24-26; "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them"
I Corinthians 15:1-28; "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that ((Christ died for our sins)) according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised - {by God, not of himself!}...
For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.
The Resurrection of (((the Dead)))
12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
{how can some of you say that the unbeliever is not saved - when you yourselves do not comprehend all knowledge of our Lord of Grace and Mercy?}
13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
{and yet, today our only hope appears to be in the afterlife, as too many believers claim Peace is not possible in this life until Jesus comes back - showing a sincere lack of faith in the Power of His Spirit which has never left us nor forsaken us - and through whom we serve]
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
*** this is extremely important! ***
21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.
*** All things have been given to Him - see verse 35-49 ***
24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ.
*** Please note the differentiation between God and Son here! This is one of the chapters which was glossed over at the Council of Nicea as those who contested the Trinitarian Doctrine could only do so under threat of excommunication! Only 3 bishops were brave enough to face excommunication - and after voicing their opposition to the creed, they were excommunicated by the emperor of that era, Constantine. That creed does not resemble this "saving gospel" related by Paul to the early church! ***
28 When he has done this, then (((the Son himself will be made subject to him))) who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.
*** this correlates with all of scripture - God and Son are not of an equal standing. The Trinitarian doctrine of the 4th century Church cannot be found in Scripture - and the Reformed doctrine, nor any other doctrine of favoritism or partiality - or zionism will stand up to scripture. This creed by Paul of I Corinthians 15 will stand up to every word and its deepest etymology. ***
(Continuation of) I Corinthians 15:29-58; sorry for so many words today!
29 Now if there is no resurrection (((if all men will not be saved))), what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? 30 And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? 31 I die every day—I mean that, brothers—just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised,
“Let us eat and drink,
for tomorrow we die.”
33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 34 Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame.
The Resurrection Body
35 But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
*** This last statement; "does not come to life unless it dies." is critical in discussing the resurrection of Christ with the Muslim! Without making absurd assertions that the Oneness in Mind Jesus had with the father was a Oneness in equal divinity (certainly heretical according to all scripture I have ever read), We will find the devout Muslim believes that Jesus did not actually die - because One must die in order to be resurrected! Therefore, Our Islamic brethren share this faith that Peace is not possible until Jesus comes back because they feel He must return to die - Him being the Prince of Peace! ***
37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body. 39 All flesh is not the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another. 41 The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
*** If you understand this passage (verse 37-44) to mean that even your favorite pets may be found in Heaven, I can only find theological arguments against such a belief, not scripturally based - such hope and belief is not, therefore, unrighteous - as far as I see it through this passage as it correlates to all of scripture - Perhaps you are beginning to see how this passage offers you faith, hope, and Love - all Spiritual gifts by which we can not only be saved, but Serve Peace on earth, and good will to not only men, but good will to all of creation! - I find it tough to argue against scripture, but I have no problem arguing against false theology! ***
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we[f] bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
50 I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”[g]
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”[h]
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
*** How dare anyone become selfish about these last two verses! Through such selfishness, pride, and arrogance, too many have destroyed the reputation of Salvation - it disturbs me that such false theology would proclaim that those who profess this Universal Salvation are the ones who are false teachers - and would utter those Pharisaical claims that "we" are somehow demon possessed. ***
58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
10. THE GOLDEN GATE
I had the following conversation with Israeli Christians this morning:
Christian Friend:
To much confusion in the church today...The only way is Jesus' way...You must be born again...Jesus say beware in Matthew Chapter Ten...I send you in the midst of wolves be ye wise as serpants, harrmless as doves...So why is it so hard for some to love...Why do we have to disagree...When God said call on me in Jeremiah 33:3...He will shew you great and mighty things, that you knowest not...So why cast our own opinions in the pot...We are all a part of the body of Christ you see...So why is it so hard for you and me...To just say Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life...Keep yourself from more pain and strife...A great Counselor is he...All you have to do is ask him and see...For he is mighty and strong...He keeps your hearts in a song...He is a great healer and a great friend...So just hold on to the end...For if one goes astray...He leaves the 99 to find the one some day...He will never leave you nor forsake you...Because his words are so true...If you can't just believe...Call on the Savior, Jesus is the key!!!
Response:
The Truth of Peace! In the Good News "Word" of Jesus which became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and Truth; [God provided Salvation] and We are Saved!
Romans 5:18; "Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men"
Brothers and Sisters in Christ; Let us not regurgitate the favoritisms and partialities of those faiths which have preceeded us within that sting of death - but let us clothe ourselves within the Robes of our High Priest of the order of Melchizedek; Hebrews 7:11; "If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come—one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?"
I Timothy 5:21; "I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism."
James 2:1; "My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality."
Indeed, Our Lord and Savior (revealed in the life and words of Jesus Christ - the physical embodiment of His Salvation of all of His Creation), proclaimed that the Narrow Way of Salvation was indeed that Golden Rule which can be found in every faith!
Matthew 7:12-13; "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
"Enter through the narrow gate [this Golden Gate]. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
Such is the bridge that crosses understanding in faith! Such is Our Salvation.
For more of this study, Read I Corinthians 15;
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=322591628956&topic=17672
BTW; I loved the poem shared by Faith.
Allow me to add these notes from my understanding of the Word of God:
Please note the other truth often missed within Matthew 13; "many (((enter))) through (((it!)))"
Note also the Words of the Prince of (((Peace))) in verse 21; "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven (((Kingdom of PEACE))) of all things seen and unseen, but only he who does the will of my Father ((Who indeed would be the Everlasting Father of the Prince of Peace?)) who is in heaven.
What exactly did Jesus say was this Kingdom of Heaven?
Matthew 10:7; "As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near."
Matthew 13:33; "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough." (Israel has been stuck with unleavened bread - they need Salvation too!)
Matthew 13:47-48; "Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away." Unfortunately, there are weeds and tears within the fabric of Christianity - also in need of Salvation too!)
Matthew 13:52; "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
Matthew 13:44; "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field." or perhaps like a branch thrown into a bitter well!
Therefore, Jesus chastises those who would hinder the childlike understandings of faith - for such appear to be false teachers - wolves destroying lesser faiths while dressed up in the Name Our Savior and Lord; Matthew 23:13; "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to." Who indeed is it that has the Historical tendency to excommunicate and martyr those who claim there is a better way - those who by their very nature pursue Peace and Righteousness and Love? Even now, the Spirit of division is causing many to condemn this teaching as some sort of evil Universalism - knowledge of the Words of Salvation - but not reflecting their own knowledge within the Spirit of Partiality.
Therefore, consider the twists and turns that have been made of the following passage through progressive theologies of Partiality and recognize the truth all over again! To proclaim "Jesus is Lord" in opposition to the fact; "The Father of all faiths is Lord" is a dead faith - separated by darkness and the gnashing of teeth to the Kingdom of Peace on earth as it is in heaven - but Glory to God in the Highest, "Your Jesus" was raised from the dead - and you have thus been justified from your sins of militarism, strife, and partiality in His Name!
Romans 10:5-13; "Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: “The man who does these things will live by them.”[a] 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’[b]” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’[c]” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”[d] that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”[e] 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
So, Don't be intollerant! Go ahead, enter your Spiritual houses of worship and sing your praises to this cultish phenomenon of Yahweh, fully revealed in scripture! But recognize, your cities of praise to Yahweh have within them the spirit of anti-christ revealed through divisions and bloodshed! For thus is the Kingdom of God! Your sins have been forgiven through this Wisdom of Salvation, but go and sin no more! Love your neighbor as yourself and lay down your weapons of war! Seek Peace and Pursue Him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength - for within the Salvation of Peace, you shall see God. The Stonecloud has been rolled away - and we are saved by the blood of His Lamb - and when all death's members are thus redeemed, We shall see God!
1. Time For The Prince Of Peace
November 29, 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters of the Land of Our Father;
Prepare to hear an impassioned plea to bring the Peace of God back to our troubled world Today! Please read and share our Father's Love to the best of your ability. You have seldom heard this message within the ideologies of mankind. Pray, meditate, relax, or whatever works best for you and allow God to bring His message Home for you in such a way that with your help, He can and will change your World! I am quite sure you will experience His "Rapture", His "Love" for you today if you will take a moment to heed the sound of His trumpet call! Join the ranks of His disciples!
In preparation for this testimonial, allow me to quote a few passages from the New International Version of the Word of God, spoken through children of Israel, Children of God.
Ezekiel 21:2-3 “Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary. Prophesy against the land of Israel and say to her: ‘This is what the LORD says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked."
Isaiah 55:11-12a; "so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song"
Hebrews 4:10-13; "for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account."
Isaiah 59:8; "The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks along them will know peace."
Proverbs 3:6; "in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
Psalm 49:1 "Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world,"
Psalm 50:12; "the world is mine, and all that is in it."
Isaiah 12:5; "let this be known to all the world."
Isaiah 18:3; All you people of the world, you who live on the earth, when a banner is raised on the mountains, you will see it, and when a trumpet sounds, you will hear it."
Mark 16:15; "He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.'"
Matthew 24:14; "a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come"
Isaiah 52:9; "Isaiah 52:9; 'How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, 'Your God reigns!'"
Listen then to this testimony from yet another son of men;
In His attempts to instruct His children in His Love and to prepare them for His Kingdom, God drew Moses from the troubled waters of the Nile in Egypt. At that time, Egypt represented the Mountains of religious thought and worship, a storehouse of myths and legends regarding the Lord of Creation. Through wrestling with Israel, God had led them into a time of seeming exile from His land, to better understand this stew of religious worship. Through their law, God instructed them to totally devote their enemies to the Lord. Yet true to form, Jacob deceived His brethren, bearing false witness in claiming our Father's blessing for themselves and destroying God's Way, [ie. His Promised Land]. Because of the enmity and strife brought on by their military action, and contiuing to shed the blood of God's children upon His Holy ground, God sent them into exile throughout all peoples, cultures, and lands, yet promised Salvation and a restoration within His Love and Family.
This promised messenger of salvation was born into this Jewish culture, in the small town of Bethlehem where livestock were raised for the Sacrificial rituals within Jerusalem, which was then the Mountain of religious culture within the Greek and Roman worlds, God's Zion if you will. God's Wisdom of the ages, as spoken through their prophets, had become flesh and dwelt among them in order to fulfill God's plan, which they had recorded, for salvation. As a Rabbi, this Messiah redefined the military interpretation of [totally devote them to God] through words such as "Love your neighbor as yourself"! He claimed their first commandment "Love the Lord your God" was the most important, but the second, like it from Leviticus 19:18b; "love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD." was very much like it. Emmanuel proclaimed that this narrow way of understanding the scriptures summarized all of their law and prophets. [Totally devote them], now required Love and Prayer and Peace to be shared through His children with their enemies; Indeed, there was no longer any room left for alterior interpretation. And yet, Christ's followers have been assuming the alterior interpretation for 2 millenium as they tend to stand in judgment upon the worship and ideologies of others.
Being persistent in sharing His message of Hope and Peace, and according to the firm belief of over 1.5 billion people worldwide, God apparently chose to wrestle again with the ideologies of mankind by speaking through yet another son of man, Muhammad (PBUH). The message this time was "You must submit to "My Wisdom, My Love, My Way, My Truth, My Light in service to your fellowman and to the Unity that I Am and that I represent". And yet, Muslims also have fallen prey to the sins of their fathers by bowing to images of favoritism and partiality in relation to the All Mighty Love of God for all of His Creatures within all of His Lands.
In this 21st century, these three religious brethren refuse to correct the obvious misinterpretations of the prophetic Wisdom of God as they freely exercise their militant strength and pride in actions of vengeance, anger, and the shedding of blood. These militaristic demons of Revelation 16:13 have now brought our world to the brink of further destruction as they tend to serve the son of perdition or destruction - clearly in defiance of a Loving God bearing witness against these sins of favoritism and partiality so obviously represented throughout the zionist culture and so many of its adversaries.
Leviticus 19:15; "Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly."
I Timothy 5:21; "I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism."
This 21st century has united His Land through electronics. For the past 3 years, God has been preparing me in miraculous ways to present this challenge through sharing His Wisdom as expressed in His Word through electronic soundbites. I have been anxious to speak, but He attempts to keep me humble - just sharing His Word into these troubled religious waters.
He has taught me that His Land represents the Dust of His Creation! The sand on the shores of His Spiritual waters! He has shown me through His Word that His People have inherited the earth! Not only Palestine, not only Israel! Indeed, his truth has been spread through their exile and oppression and His Story has reached the four corners of His altar, His Land! The time for fellowship offerings as we reap the harvest of the seeds they have planted has now arrived. He has instructed me without fail that we must not worship created things, persons, nations, or cultures! He has taught me that we must come together with all of creation and worship Him. We must submit together under His Way, His Truth, and His everlasting Life. We must be brought to our knees as we release our pride and we must confess that His Way is the only Way to Peace for those of us, His remnant, remaining here in His Land.
I am a common man and I live among common men. I have been raised at the feet of His beautiful Mountains here in the wonderful state of Colorado in America. I have been raised at the feet of His majestic mountains of Christianity; The seat of the religious right is within 100 miles of my home. I have been raised in multiple Christian cultures indoctrinated in manmade ideologies of "election". I am presently a member of a pre-millenial dispensationalist community - a strong advocate of the zionist movement. I have witnessed their pride, their arrogance, their fear, their enmity, their strife, and most recently, their intolerance of the worship practices of their fellowman as they appear to presume such practices serve false images of their god or some other god. Although I continue to worship God within that cultue, three years ago, I experienced a Spiritual awakening as I realized such pride, arrogance, enmity and strife could not possibly be the fruit of the Spirit I read of in the Word of God. I can only presume it was His Spirit that inflamed me to commit to studying His Word through the pursuit of His Love and His Righteousness.
Through this devotion and the study of His Story and the meaning of names, I have come to understand cultural meanings of my own name. The sur-name given me at my birth means "Border dweller" or "From under the bridge". My first name means Brave, or Lion-Hearted and I know that through His grace and prodding, I have been forced to be passionate about this calling - standing in the face of powerful adversaries within my culture, witnessing that Our God is Greater than our imaginations. My middle name means "little king" or "famous bearer." Through the lineage of my Mother, I bear the title "From West of the Bridge". Within that light, I welcome the participation in spreading His Love and His Peace with all of my cousins, brothers and sisters, friends and relation from Eastern cultures across this great divide - as well as full participation with all my loved ones here at home and throughout His great Land, no one stands exempt from His Love - all are invited to participate for Peace!
It is time to unite under His banner of Peace. It is my desire that He become greater and I become less as I request your help in bearing His Good News to all of Creation - beginning with a profound call to His People in His Holy Land to Create a lasting Peace in Palestine encompassing all of His Children. Sons and daughters of men, speak the words of God in Peace and Love and unite this troubled world into One Body according to His Divine call. In His purity, this has been the passion of Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindu's, and all of God's beloved Children whenever and wherever we have chosen to shed these sins of our prides. Sound the Horns of His Salvation throughout His Land!
I shall continue to bear such witness through all my days here on this earth. I invite you to see the journals of my travels available at http://www.oneyearbibleblogging.blogspot.com/ , http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1074381442 and
http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-Year-Bible-Blogging/322591628956 .
In desperation, given the importance of this mission to save His children further pain and heartache, I passionately urge you to actively engage in the conversations of others as we spread the Positively Good News of our Father's requirements for Peace, Love, Honor, and Respect - without allowing the urgency of this message to wane. Purify yourself in His Spirit through the confession of your own sins without focussing on the sins of your fellowman. Grant forgiveness before it is even requested! Call for His Justice for all people! Through our passion for humanity we have joined together before to change our world and make it a better place. Together, we have changed a world of slavery and apartheid! There has been so much more and there is still so much left to do!
We are the generation dedicated to positive change! We must absolutely believe that we WILL, with Our Father's Help and encouragement, secure the rights and privileges for our brothers and sisters upon all the Holy Grounds of Our Father. Once and for all time, let us adhere to His admonismnent of our sins of favoritism and partiality when it comes to bearing witness for the eternal life of our brothers and sisters, our friends and neighbors, our blood flowing throughout all of creation! Defeat the power of the devil once and for all! Commit, Submit! and Pray!
As with all those who would speak the printed Wisdom and Stories of God, I have not been called to forcast future events. However, I can absolutely use His printed word to interpret current events. In this lies the great miraculous proof of His Truth within His Story as it reflects Our Father's Printed Word! I have stood in witness to the Biblical truths reflected in Revelation 17:15-18 as the demonic influences of Zionism seek to devour the flesh of other religious cultures and Spiritual movements within Our Father's Holy land.
Revelation 17:15-18; "Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. The beast and the ten horns (although there is mystery to this story, Israel was considered to be representative of 10 tribes of the sons of Jacob, while the other two were symbolically centered within Jerusalem and were referred to as Judah) you saw will hate the prostitute (much of prophecy refers to both the 10 tribes and the two tribes (centered in Jerusalem) as prostitutes). They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings (religions) of the earth.”
I bear witness to the grief and wailing daily of all of God's children as we mourn the Holocausts - both in the evil tragedies reflected in Christian Europe against the Jewish people, and in the devouring of Palestinian lands and the 4 generations of "oppression camps", death, and demoralization of the displaced people and nation of Palestine. Emmanuel Himself is fully reflected in both these people as He was born and raised as a Palestinian Jew who lived His life reaching out to and loving His neighbors. His was the Way of Peace. Today we witness such tragedy in an amazingly close comparison to Revelation 18 as we mourn the loss of Godly virtue within our religious prides of favoritism and partiality!
What are we to do to rise above this grief? Our Brother, Sami Awad from Bethlehem, a Palestinian Christian, calls us to compassion and forgiveness for His Jewish brothers as He chose to lay in their tombs of Auschwitz and share their pain. Let us rally around His peace efforts, and instill His attitude of forgiveness and Love as we embrace the pain and heartache He experiences with His own people.
I believe Our Father's message to His people today is this. As you bear witness to His Story and the Truth of His Love and Compassion, It is time to quit bruising the heel of our brethren. It is time to recognize the blow to our prides for what it is! It is the Love of our God knocking down the walls of our Narrow enclosures. It is time to lay down our weapons of death, destruction, and bloodshed upon the Holy Lands of Our Father. It is time to beat our swords into plowshares! It is time to put our children to work for the next seven years and beyond in a worldwide effort to reclaim Our Father's Land.
Psalm 95:6; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker"
II Chronicles 7:14; "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
It is time for fellowship as we gather around the altar of our Lord and partake of the bread and the wine in remembrance of the unity, prepared by our Father within His body broken for us. It is time that through that body, we too break down our dividing walls of hostility and embrace our fellowman. It is time to forgive, live, and let live. It is time to be bound together as we seek to be worthy of the Love and approval Our Father's has granted us. It is time to Believe in the One and only Truth that is God! It is not a time for patience; This is a time for an impassioned call for renewal and rebirth! This is the great and awesome day of the Lord!
Deuteronomy 5:24; "The LORD our God has shown us his glory and his majesty, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that a person can live even if God speaks with them."
Deuteronomy 30:2b-3a; "when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes"
Psalm 95:6-8a; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if only you would hear his voice, 'Do not harden your hearts'"
Its time to believe in the power of the goodness of our God! His anger has passed, behold, His Love has come!
Please share this good news with all your friends and loved ones. You have nothing to lose and absolutely everything to gain! Believe in Christ again this Christmas! Bless Bethlehem with the reBirth of His Baby this Holiday Season!
Together, lets end humanities' rebellion against God once and for all. There has never been a more important time for you to spread His Good News to the ends of the earth. Challenge your friends to share His Good News. They may not presently believe in God, but challenge them to watch God in Action if they will only participate in this good work! This will change all of our lives! This will save our brothers and sisters on the battlefield! This will end fear and bloodshed! This will bring about a Peace in our times of nothing less than Divine, Biblical Proportion!
The trumpet has now sounded! This call to action is now yours. The roar of His spoken Word has never been louder! Serve your God and experience His blessing. If you are stuck in fear, (there is nothing to fear, guaranteed), hear Him speak again from His word and send it on for your Messiah as His Birthday Gift from You! There is no greater gift, there is no greater love. You'll never regret having taken part in this Great Day of Our Lord!
Isaiah 41:9-10 I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Through electronic media and whatever other gifts our Father has given you, it is time to Go out into all the world and spread His Good News and His invitation! Start communications calling on His Peace; Enter communications calling for His Peace; Pray for His Peace to reign in our hearts and minds all over the world. It is time to Love as we bear witness once again to this prophecy common to all from Isaiah 9:1-7;
"Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan - The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this."
With Love from Our Father
Your Brother.
Amen.
2. Happy Birthday Jesus
Dear Brothers and Sisters;
The following article is a shortened version of "Horn for His Holy Day" Please share!
I bear witness to the grief and wailing daily of all of God's children as we mourn the Holocausts - both in the evil tragedies reflected in Christian Europe against the Jewish people, and in the devouring of Palestinian lands and the 4 generations of "oppression camps", death, and demoralization of the displaced people and nation of Palestine. Emmanuel Himself is fully reflected in both these people as He was born and raised as a Palestinian Jew who lived His life reaching out to and loving His neighbors. His was the Way of Peace. Today we witness such tragedy in an amazingly close comparison to Revelation 18 as we mourn the loss of Godly virtue within our religious prides of favoritism and partiality!
What are we to do to rise above this grief? Our Brother, Sami Awad from Bethlehem, a Palestinian Christian, calls us to compassion and forgiveness for His Jewish brothers as He chose to lay in an open grave within their tombs at Auschwitz in an effort to experience their pain. Let us rally around His peace efforts, and instill His attitude of forgiveness and Love as we embrace the pain and heartache He experiences with His own people.
I believe Our Father's message to His people today is this. As you bear witness to His Story and the Truth of His Love and Compassion, It is time to quit biting at the heels of our brethren. It is time to recognize the blow to our prides for what it is! It is the Love of our God knocking down the walls of our Narrow enclosures. It is time to lay down our weapons of death, destruction, and bloodshed upon the Holy Lands of Our Father. It is time to beat our swords into plowshares! It is time to put our children to work for the next seven years and beyond in a worldwide effort to reclaim Our Father's Land.
Psalm 95:6; "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker"
II Chronicles 7:14; "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
It is time for fellowship as we gather around the altar of our Lord and partake of the bread and the wine in remembrance of the unity, prepared by our Father within His body broken for us. It is time that through that body, we too break down our dividing walls of hostility and embrace our fellowman. It is time to forgive, live, and let live. It is time to be bound together as we seek to be worthy of the Love and approval Our Father has granted us. It is time to Believe in the One and only Truth that is God! It is not a time for patience; This is a time for an impassioned call for renewal and rebirth! This is the great and awesome day of the Lord!
Rick Sjaardema
Rick Sjaardema is a profile blogger on facebook and at One Year Bible Blogging dealing with faith and politics from a Biblical perspective.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-Year-Bible-Blogging/322591628956?ref=ts
http://oneyearbibleblogging.blogspot.com/2010_11_28_archive.html
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1074381442
3. Does d'evil Exist
The Bible represents a multitude of writings compiled from history. One of the most ancient stories, recorded for us from Moses study of Egyptian texts reflects a serpent in a garden. Following an image of temptation of man, Genesis 3:15 states "I will put enmity between you and the woman, he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
Interestingly, many stories later (Genesis 25:23-26), Jacob and Esau were born. Two nations would be divided. The older (Esau, (Red/routinely imagined wrathful)) seems to be representative of all men while the younger, (Jacob) had firm hold of his heel in seeming reference to the (serpant) of Genesis 3:15.
Indeed, in the Jewish consideration of being "Chosen" or "Set Apart", there has been a perceived enmity between this people group and all others for much of history culminating in the tragedy of the holocaust of WWII. As God set up their form of worship through Moses, there was a symbolism of the sacrifice where the Priest would take coals from the fire and bring them outside the camp, outside the walls of the city to a designated place to offer atonement for all of the people.
Another depiction of "Hell" came in the judgment of Korah and a group of religious and political leaders that challenged Moses authority. The earth opened up and swallowed these adversaries, obviously shocking the culture! In my early days of Christianity in the 1960's, a vast number of believers still imagined "Hell" was a place within the very earth. Few if any still believe that ideology, but few have dismissed the shaky grounds of shifting Biblical stories and ideologies of both this angel who fell from Heaven - fully dependent upon God, but too often deified even by the most prudent of Biblical scholars. With his shifting identity, Biblical ideologies also continue to shift from ancient Biblical times through the present day. With so many unanswered questions - and Biblical mythology and symbolism, this question "Does the devil or Hell for that matter exist" is a powerful question indeed! We can prove God, but can we prove the devil outside of our own selves?
In Jesus day, this reference to atonement or refinement of outsiders (Hell) was further symbolozed by a place of eternal burning - the refuse of the city was placed there - the dead of the poor were burned there. This city dump was called Gehenna. Jesus would claim as men cast out demons and ideologies that caused pain and suffering that he saw the devil falling from heaven. All very symbolic of the rifinement of the understanding of our spirits as God sent the Christ to pay the atonement for all of our sins, including those of the deceiver (Jacob). This salvation considering John 3:16-17, Matthew 12:31 and Mark 3:28 again appears to cover both for those within the city walls, and that scum of the earth (given the ideals of bigotry we often have in ideologies of self-righteousness) destined for Gehenna. With universal forgiveness on the table, one must question their judgment of their fellowman and how such resulting actions will affect their relationship with this Savior who gave His Life for all men!
Revelation 19:18-21 states that these false prophets and this beast - this image - we have served in our pride and self righteousness shall be thrown into an eternal lake of fire as our ideologies are refined to reflect the Almighty power and Saving Grace of our Lord and King who is blessed forever! No living or dead person was thrown into that lake - the understandings of our flesh are thus burned away and feasted upon in a celebration of universal spiritual renewal. Again, no room for a devil.
Revelation 20:14-15 states that Death and Hades are emptied of the dead in them as all peoples, nations, and tongues are judged and refined. Our badness is thus stripped away through Christ's ultimate power over the evils of mortal death and we are redeemed, cleansed by the blood of the lamb. Death and Hades are thus thrown, emptied of all who were in them, into that eternal lake of fire.
Given the fuller biblical imagery carried forward through Hebrew prophecy and religious history, it would seem that at least Biblically, this imagery of the devil only exists in our ideologies apart from the Love of God. As we depict God as a deity of wrath - thus being adversarial to our perceived enemies, we become adversarial and destructive to the very creation of the God we imagine we serve. We find ourselves at enmity with creation and become lost in fear of the spirit world. Thus, it would seem that the imagery of both d'evil and hell within the Bible have only been meant to bring us closer to him as we are forced to judge our own behaviors and resulting emotions.
Christs summary of all the law and the prophets (love your neighbor as your self) once and for all time destroyed the myth that the ancient Hebrew word for "destroy" meant something of military action; It meant the divine interpretation of "totally devote them to God"
4. Thoughts On The Faith Of President Obama
a. Initial post: "from President Obama: excerpts from chapter 6 of "Audacity of Hope"
"although it was Jimmy Carter who would first introduce the language of evangelical Christianity into modern national politics, it was the Republican Party, with it's increasing emphasis on tradition, order, and "family values," that was best positioned to harvest this crop of politically awakened evangelicals and mobilize them against the liberal orthodoxy."
"The single biggest gap in party affiliation among white Americans is...between those who attend church regularly and those who don't. Democrats, meanwhile, are scrambling to "get religion," even as a core segment of our constituency remains stubbornly secular in orientation, and fears - rightly, no doubt - that the agenda of an assertively Christian nation may not make room for them or their life choices."
"Each day, it seem, thousands of Americans...are deciding that their work, their possessions, their diversions, their sheer busyness are not enough...They need an assurance that somebody out there cares about them."
"If I have any insight into this movement toward a deepening religious commitment, perhaps it's because it's a road I have traveled...My grandfather had been raised by devout Baptist grandparents after his father had gone AWOL...while my grandmother's parents...were practicing Methodists." "...religious faith never really took root in their hearts."
"...my mother...Her memories of the Christians who populated her youth were not fond ones. Occasionally, for my benefit, she would recall the sanctimonious preachers who would dismiss three - quarters of the world's people as ignorant heathens doomed to spend the afterlife in eternal damnation...She remembered the respectable church ladies who were always so quick to shun those unable to meet their standards of propriety, even as they desperately concealed their own dirty little secrets; the church fathers who uttered racial epithets and chiseled their workers out of any nickel that they could...For my mother organized religion too often dressed up closed - mindedness in the garb of piety, cruelty and oppression in the cloak of righteousness...In her mind, a working knowledge of the world's great religions was a necessary part of any well - rounded education. "
"...I was made to understand that such religious samplings required no sustained commitment on my part...as a child I rarely came in contact with those who might offer a substantially different view of faith...my father had been raised a Muslim, by the time he met my mother he was a confirmed atheist...my mother remarried...a man who saw religion as not particularly useful in the practical business of making one's way in the world and who had grown up in a countr that easily blended it's Islamic faith with remnants of Hinduism, Buddhism, and ancient animist traditions...I was sent first to a neighborhood Catholic school and then to a predominantly Muslim school; in both cases, my mother was less concerned with me learning the catechism or puzzling out the meaning of the muezzin's call to evening prayer than she was with whether I was properly learning my multiplication tables
And yet for all her professed secularism, my mother was in many ways the most spiritually awakened person that I've ever known...she worked mightily to instill in me the values that many Americans learn in Sunday school: honesty, empathy, discipline, delayed gratification, and hard work."
"My fierce ambitions might have been fueled by my father - by my knowledge of his achievements and failures, by my unspoken desire to somehow earn his live, and by my resentments and anger toward him. But it was my mother's fundamental faith - in the goodness of people and in the ultimate value of this brief life we've each been given - that channeled those ambitions. It was in search of confirmation of her values...And it was in search of some practical application of those values that I accepted work after college as a community organizer for a group of churches in Chicago that were trying to cope with joblessness, drugs, and hopelessness in their midst."
"...My mother...found herself satisfying her need for meaning in her work and in her children. In such a life I, too, might have contented myself had it not been for the particular attributes of the historically black church, attributes that helped me shed some of my skepticism and embrace the Christian faith."
"...Out of necessity, the black church had to minister to the whole person...it understood in an intimate way the biblical call to feed the hungry and clothe the naked and challenge powers and principalities. In the history of these struggles, I was able to see faith as more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death; rather, it was an active, palpable agent in the world. In the day - to - day work of the men and women I met in church each day, in their ability to 'make a way out of no way' and maintain hope and dignity in the direst of circumstances, I could see the Word made manifest. ...the typical black sermon freely acknowledged that all Christians (including the pastors) could expect to still experience the same greed, resentment, lust, and anger that everyone else experienced...the sins of those who came to church were not so different from the sins of those who didn't, and so were as likely to be talked about with humor as with condemnation. You needed to come to church precisely because you were of this world, not apart from it; rich, poor, sinner, saved, you needed to embrace Christ precisely because you had sins to wash away, because you were human and needed an ally in your difficult journey...It was because of these newfound understandings - that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking, disengage from the battle for economic and social justice, or otherwise retreat from the world that I knew and loved - that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized. It came about as a choice and not an epiphany; the questions I had did not magically disappear. But kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side of Chicago, I felt God's Spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth."
"...any discussion of religion and it's role in politics can turn a bit less civil. Take my Republican opponent in 2004, Ambassador Alan Keyes, who deployed a novel argument for attracting voters in the waning days of the campaign...'Christ would not vote for Barack Obama'...'Why are you letting this guy give you fits?' they would ask me. For them, Mr. Keyes was a kook, an extremist, his arguments not even worth entertaining. What they didn't understand was that I could not help but take Mr. Keyes seriously. For he claimed to speak for my religion - and although I might not like what came out of his mouth, I had to admit that some of his views had many adherents within the Christian church.
"Mr. Obama says he's a Christian, but he supports the destruction of innocent and sacred life...What could I say? That a literal reading of the Bible was folly? That Mr. Keyes, a Roman Catholic, should disregard the Pope's teachings? Unwilling to go there, I answered with the usual liberal response in such debates - that we live in a pluralistic society, that I can't impose my religious views on another, that I was running to be a U.S. senator from Illinois and not the minister of Illinois. But even as I answered, I was mindful of Mr. Keyes's implicit accusation - that I remained steeped in doubt, that my faith was adulterated, that I was not a true Christian..."
"Liberalism teaches us to be tolerant of other people's religious beliefs, so long as those beliefs don't cause anyone harm or impinge on another's right to believe differently...Some on the left (although not those in public office) go further, dismissing religion in the public square as inherently irrational, intolerant, and therefore dangerous - and noting that, with it's emphasis on personal salvation and the policing of private morality, religious talk has given conservatives cover to ignore questions of public morality, like poverty or corporate malfeasance...But over the long haul, I think we make a mistake when we fail to acknowledge the power of faith in the lives of the American people...it's bad politics. There are a whole lot of religious people in America, including the majority of Democrats...when we discuss religion only in the negative sense of where or how it should not be practiced, rather than in the positive sense of what it tells us about our obligations toward one another; when we shy away from religious venues and religious broadcasts because we assume that we will be unwelcome - others will fill the vacuum. And those who do are likely to be those with the most insular views of faith, or who cynically use religion to justify partisan ends."
"I am suggesting that if we progressives shed some of our own biases, we might recognize the values that both religious and secular people share when it comes to the moral and material direction of our country...We need to take faith seriously not simply to block the religious right but to engage all persons of faith in the larger project of American renewal...Franklin and Jefferson, were deists who - while believing in an Almighty God - questioned not only the dogmas of the Christian church but the central tenets of Christianity itself (including Christ's divinity)...not all the Founding Fathers agreed; men like Patrick Henry and john Adams forwarded a variety of proposals to use the arm of the state to promote religion...it was Baptists like Reverend John Leland and other evangelicals who provided the popular support needed to get these provisions ratified. They did so because they were outsiders; because their style of exuberant worship appealed to the lower classes;...In the words of the Reverend Leland, 'It is error alone, that stands in need of government to support it; truth can and will do better without...it':"
"Let's even assume that we only had Christians within our borders. Whose Christianity would we teach in the schools? James Dobson's or Al Sharpton's? Which passages of Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which suggests that slavery is all right and eating shellfish is an abomination? How about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the mount - a passage so radical that it's doubtful that our Defense Department would survive it's application?...Surely, secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering the public square;...To say that men and women should not inject their 'personal morality' into public policy debates is a practical absurdity...If I want others to listen to me, then I have to explain why abortion violates some principle that is accessible to people of all faiths, including those with no faith at all...At some fundamental level, religion does not allow for compromise...If God has spoken, then followers are expected to live up to God's edicts, regardless of the consequences. To base one's life on such uncompromising commitments may be sublime; to base our policy making on such commitments would be a dangerous thing...the best we can do is act in accordance with those things that are possible for all of us to know, understanding that a part of what we know to be true - as individuals or communities of faith - will be true for us alone..."
"It would be helpful,...if in debates about matters touching on religion - as in all of democratic discourse - we could resist the temptation to impute bad faith to those who disagree with us...I cannot claim infallibility in my support of abortion rights...in years hence I may be seen as someone who was on the wrong side of history. I don't believe such doubts make me a bad Christian. I believe they make me human, limited in my understandings of God's purpose and therefore prone to sin...There are some things that I'm absolutely sure about - the Golden Rule, the need to battle cruelty in all it's forms, the value of love and charity, humility, and grace."
"I thought of Sasha asking me once what happened when we die - "I don't want to die, Daddy," she had added matter - of - factly - and I had hugged her and said, "You've got a long, long way before you have to worry about that," which had seemed to satisfy her. I wondered whether I should have told her the truth, that I wasn't sure what happens when we die, any more than I was sure of where the soul resides or what existed before the Big Bang. Walking up the stairs, though, I knew what I hoped for - that my mother was together in some way with those four little girls, capable in some fashion of embracing them, of finding joy in their spirits.
On a side note: The Washington Post reported: ""I let Jesus Christ into my life," Obama told the AME delegates. "I learned that my sins could be redeemed and that if I place my trust in Jesus, that he could set me on a path to eternal life. That I submitted myself to his life. I dedicated myself to discovering his truth and to carrying out his works."
Now from a personal point of view: I come across people outside the Church constantly that have left due to the judgmental attitude found within the Church. This, when the word of God in a nutshell is "Love". In reading the excerpts above, I too do not find myself in agreement with this man on faith and a number of issues. I am a Republican and certainly stand against Abortion. However, I have no right to judge his Christianity! I certainly do not hear a Muslim speaking. The concept I have read that "The Republican party does well in getting the baby out of the womb - However, the Democratic party worries much more for that period of time between the womb and the tomb" causes serious reflection. Certainly, we all share guilt before our Creator.
Roman's 1 is a fine chapter on the sin nature of the world. Romans 2:1, however, states: "Therefore you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are, when you judge another; for in passing judgment upon him you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.
I initially wrote these thoughts in response to a hate filled e-mail from a well meaning teacher and shared by many Christians who focussed upon the evil they realized was within the man (forgetting, perhaps that evil resides in each one of us). As the teacher who wrote this shared e-mai; I also stand in awe of the workings God has wrought through these United States of America, and many other nations in combating evil in our world (yet perhaps we forget that God deserves the ultimate glory for our successes). However, I do not think Jesus Christ would pledge allegiance to these United States of America! We too, are fallible and filled with evil. The membership of the church of Jeremiah Wright, from inner Chicago, certainly does not share my warm feelings of life in these United States of America. If we do not humble ourselves and show compassion and understanding of something other than ourselves, others will continue to distance themselves from us and will become our adversary. Our pride will become our downfall.
If we as a people, do not pledge our allegiance to God (by following His commands to love our fellow man & pray for those who persecute us), Country (yes, as represented by our present leaders), and our fellow man (in service, respect, and ultimately love), we shall fall. If in our addressing our concerns with the leaders God has allowed, through His ultimate control, in a more respectful way, we shall hold no countenance with our fellow man and we shall lose our privileges within our society. Rise up my fellow man, but don't do so by first digging a hole.
b. Response from a follower: I believe we can be sure of where we go when we die and where the soul resides after death. In general, I agree with the statements quoted. When it comes to the public arena, especially the political arena, none of us are good models of what a Christian should be. God doesn't love us because we have earned His love. God, in His grace, first loved us in Christ Jesus and, therefore, we respond with acts of love toward Him and toward our neighbor. Fruit doesn't bring life to a tree but fruit does prove that a tree is alive. The "fruit" in our lives proves that we are alive in Christ Jesus. He is the vine and we are the branches. If we are disconnected from Him we no longer are "alive" and we no longer bear the kind of fruit that proves we are spiritulally alive. We aren't saved by our fruit (good works) but fruit (good works) proves that we are saved.
c. My response: I agree that we can be sure of where we go when we die, but when the branch is cut off and thrown into the fire, I believe we see a refinement and rebirth. So often, a body within the kingdom may struggle and seemingly disappear; but just as the forest fire removes the old trees, the new seeds from that tree create a forest. Thus, even though the old culture of Israeli sacrifices have been removed, Moses and Aaron remain saved and await us in glory. Just as the Pharisees were challenged and cut off through the rebirth and ministry of Jesus Christ - He forgave their shortcomings on the cross and I believe they celebrate that chapter in the spiritual story with Him in glory - now refined and in full recognition of our Father's grand scheme and plan of redemption.
Although I may disagree with an individual's or a "body's" ideologies, I refuse to relegate them to the eternal fires of Hell - to do so would result in serious fires of refinement for me (yet beyond the scope of my understanding). To do so would also demean the power of Salvation provided through Jesus Christ's sacrifice of atonement for the body of humanity! If i assume that through Adam, sin entered every man - then I dare not imply that Salvation was not the stronger blessing as it entered and granted God's free gift to every man. They may not want it now, but our Loving Father is certainly not going to banish a rebellious child from His presence forever - I believe the Power of Christ outplays the strength of any man's rebellion or blindness - especially as the Bible claims God Himself imposes such blindness and ideology - for His ultimate Glory - which is in the Praise of His Children - not for His power of wrath, but for His Power of Love. None of us as Father's can hope to compare.
d. Follower's response; He who loses his life will find it. I died with Christ at the cross. There I found God's grace and my salvation. Now I am alive in Christ and able to do good works and to love my neighbor as myself. Before I "died" at the cross with Christ, I was nothing but a "dead" person. Therefore, my only boast is in the crsso of Christ. The cross is reprehensible to many churches and Christians today, but to me it is central to my life. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. In the cross of Christ I have complete freedom to be the person God created me to be. Before I came to see myself on the cross with Christ I had no hope. Churches and others were teaching me to do good works and then I would find grace and salvation. I tried but I was hopelessly lost, sucked into a sewer of despair, not able to save myself. I was ejected from that sewer and for all intents and purposes, I was dead. Christ reached down and grabbed me as I reached the end of that sewer, and he brought me back to life. Then came the good works, not to save myself but because I am so thankful to Him for reaching down and saving me from my hopeless condition.
e. My response; I have come to conclude that we have no boast! As Christians, our boast remains embedded in the imagery of God. Given the church's continued warring factions and the destructive tendancies which flow from faith - our righteousness remains dirty rags. This blog began as a condemnation of condemnation - yet as judgment day looms, the judgment upon these warring factions and destructions through faith becomes greater and greater! Modern Christianity requires the world to bow down to their image of Trinitarianism, or the classify the non-believer in their "image" to be lost. Ultimately, this belief is non-biblical and in fact, anti-atonement and anti-salvation in its very reflection of Romans 5 wherin the salvation granted by the grace and mercy of the universal Salvation of a Universal Creator is overcoming all of our unrighteousnesses and creating something new.
In September of 2009, I wrote "Talk About Love". I am not a theologian, only a layman studying the word of God. I fully recognize the Spirit of an Almighty God destroying our imagery once again as judgment day looms. This past month, news of Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" hit the media - and along with it, the Church's attacks and the news that pastor's were losing their jobs based apparently on the ideology that Romans 5 was only written to Christians.
The Almighty Creator of the Universe is the refuge and strength of all mankind. All any religion has to sell is an insignificant image of the Salvation He offers as our imagery continues to build up separations between man as we have also set up imagery of evil alongside Salvation. We have two mountains mentioned first in Deuteronomy 11:29; Mount Ebal (pronounced ((long)a/voll) more properly spelled Eybal (almost like eye ball with eye being pronounced A). On this mountain, the wrestlers (Israel) pronounce the evil judgments of God while on Gerezim (long EE both times) they pronounce the blessings of God. It all seems to have to do with our imagery as man attempts to know good from evil. If we judge, we become judged. The same is reflected in our use of religious imagery. Once religion becomes intolerant and judgmental, it becomes destroyed.
Something new is on the horizon. While revisualizing the Universality of our Creator, it is exactly the opposite of claiming all religion is correct! It only reflects the teachings of Christ - "your faith has saved you"! And yet, it also reflects the fact that your faith has destroyed you. There is a hefty price that will be paid by the children of an unbelieving generation of those who refused to believe in the Universal Salvation of our Destroying Creator who is in the process of purifying all things through His fires of refinement, bonding together the body of Christ.
Theology for the past 500 years has been built upon our visions of Ebal as we raised our views of the devil above the powers of our Christ. Rob Bell has birthed a New imagery of Good and Evil on the world; His Story will tell how this Revelation will change our world. Little matters whether or not President Obama is "Good or Evil" in our reflective imagery, what matters is how we respond to our imagery of God as our actions are reflected in judgment or condemnation. Thank Goodness my book did not hit the market first! Can you imagine the controversy? I sit quitly back in this corner of my world attempting to build the Biblical authenticity of this new revelation.
Love Rick
5. THOUGHTS ON LOVE WINS
I have come to conclude that we have no boast in Christ, in fact all boasting is dangerously arrogant and intolerant, yet brings out the wrath of God through a time of refinement and cleansing! As Christians, our boast remains embedded in the imagery of God. Given the church's continued warring factions and the destructive tendancies which flow from faith - our righteousness remains dirty rags. My ultimate mission "Evangelizing Within Contemporary Religiosity began as a "judgment" of "judgmentalism and intolerance" of various faith groups; - yet as judgment day looms, the worldwide judgment upon these warring factions and destructions through faith becomes greater and greater! Modern Christianity requires the world to bow down to their image of Trinitarianism, or to classify the non-believer (in this image of trinitarianism) to be lost. Ultimately, this belief is non-biblical and in fact, anti-atonement and anti-salvation in its very reflection of Romans 5 wherin the Salvation granted by the grace and mercy of the Universal Creator is overcoming all of our unrighteousnesses while creating (making, refining, purifying) all things new.
In September of 2009, I wrote "Talk About Love". (see the link on One Year Bible Blogging's Discussion Page) I am not a "trained Seminarian, only a layman studying the word of God. I fully recognize the Spirit of an Almighty God destroying our imagery once again as (our imagery) of judgment day looms. This past month, news of Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" hit the media - and along with it, the Church's attacks and the news that Pastors who Love and promote Jesus Christ were losing their jobs (excommunicated, yet again) based apparently on the ideology that Romans 5 was only written to Christians or some other "theological dispute" reflecting the church's disbelief in the Power of YHWH's Salvation and Atonement, His free gift of grace and mercy through His perfect Love for His world.
The Almighty Creator of the Universe is the refuge and strength of all mankind. All any religion has to sell is an insignificant image of the Salvation He offers as our imagery continues to build up separations between man as we have also set up imagery of evil alongside Salvation. We have two mountains mentioned first in Deuteronomy 11:29; Mount Ebal (pronounced (long (A)/vall) more properly spelled Eybal (almost like eye ball with eye being pronounced A). On this mountain, the wrestlers (Israel) pronounce the evil judgments of God while on Gerezim (long EE both times) they pronounce the blessings of God. Etymology of Ebal is (bare Mountain) while Gerezim represents "cuttings off". Thus, perhaps God has instituted yet another symbolism to the (Wrestlers with imagery) of the monumental task of destroying Evil! We chip off a bit here and there as we seek to find His purity. Our challenges are set up in our actions and understandings of our fellowman as we wind our way through the confusions He set up at Babel - as fully reflected in Our Bible.
Something new is being birthed upon the Spiritual horizon while we revisualize the Universality of our Creator, which, by the way, is exactly the opposite of claiming all religion is correct! This new teaching (see Matthew 13:52) reflects the teachings of Christ - "your faith has saved you", and yet, it also reflects the fact that your faith is imagery is destroying you. There is a hefty price that will be paid by the children of an unbelieving generation of those who refused to believe in the Universal Salvation of our Destroying Creator who is in the process of purifying all things through His fires of refinement, bonding together the purified body for which He atoned.
Christian theology for the past 500 years has been built upon our visions of (Total Depravity) our Mount Ebal as we raised our views of the devil above the powers of our Christ. Rob Bell has presented on stage a new imagery of Good and Evil upon our world; History will tell how this Revelation will be received in our world. Little matters whether or not President Obama is "Good or Evil" in our reflective imagery; what matters is how we respond to our imagery of God as our actions are reflected in judgment or condemnation. Thank Goodness my book did not hit the market first! Can you imagine the controversy? I sit quietly back in this corner of my world attempting to build the Biblical authenticity of this new revelation.
Love Rick
6. THE RIGHT JESUS / UNIVERSAL SAVIOR
I often challenge this new doctrine of "right" Jesus which has been forged in the intollerance within the Religious Right. In reflection of that philosophy, I often walk the precipice of what I would consider to be heresy - this claim that ...My Way is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
So, here is what I see as Reality - and the Most High God - which is often condemned within church and family as Universalism.
Consider an X laying on it's side. I have often visualized the Bible as everything before and everything since has this center in Jesus Christ! However, we have now reached a new time of polytheism when there might appear to be many "right" Christs and many "right" religions! However, the truth of the matter is there is One Way, One Truth, and One Life. The life of Jesus is now represented in Zionism, the Religious Right, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witness, etc. etc. etc. to the point Jesus clothes have been ripped and torn and his body and blood get trashed over and over again.
Therefore, I fully believe we have reached a new Judgment Day! XXXXX; I happen to serve a Spirit of Peace which I recognize is revealed through Isaiah, Jesus, and so many ideologies and words reflected within the Bible. Therefore, I must consider the claims that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God - within the context of His words of John 10:34-35 where Jesus (through John) reflected on David speaking in Psalm 82:6. I cannot ignore a single word of scripture, nor can I dismiss a single word of history!
Therefore, how must we make sense of all of this? I must focus on the meaning of this word "Jesus" and consider this reflection on Our Father is one of the most important words within scripture! It must reflect the Father in a way no other Word does! This Word, made flesh came and dwelt among us - not Isaiah, not Jeremiah, not Jacob, not zionism, not Christianity; but Jesus! My mission then is to understand that Word - reflected as the very Wisdom of the Father reflected in Proverbs 8 - His very Intelligent Design which holds everything together and gives this world of soils or souls its being and life! This is why it is so important to me to preach that the very Word of Jesus means "Salvation"! My own name "Power" or "Bravery" might represent a warrior - but it doesn't come close to this only begotten Word "Salvation"!
So, How do I serve this Word? Where else in scripture is this Salvation or Savior found? If indeed it is fully reflective of the Father and represents His most potent voice in History, I want to know Salvation correctly! Thus, through the voice of Paul in Romans 5 and I Corinthians 15, I must believe in Salvation within this Universal scope! If I care to believe John Calvin's doctrine of Total Depravity fully reflected in these contexts, I am forced to believe in the Power of Universal Salvation! All other choices have been stripped away from me in my devotions.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise to me that when men of other faiths die, they meet the face of Salvation - or at first, perhaps, they must wrestle their demons until they believe.
Thus, one day, I think we will all face the judgment of what we have done in our lives and what we have believed and how we have considered and treated our fellowman! I believe we will all come before our King - the only one - and spit out the seeds of the pomegranite (seedy apple - reflected by several words throughout scripture). I do believe there is a straight line - that highway of the X on the right side of Christ is just as much of a highway as the highway that led into it! And yet today, all nations are being called back to the Prince of Peace. One day, every knee will bow and we will no longer need to tell our neighbor about God because we will all know Him. There is but one straight line - the very narrow way of Loving our Neighbor as ourselves. (Matthew 7:12-13). That 13th verse has a strong tendancy to be a stumbling block - as it was meant to be!
My efforts in this "Christian" year of evangelism then is not only to talk about Jesus, but to engage my neighbors in serving the Prince of Peace! Amen.
7. ALPHABETIC STUDY GUIDE TO THE BIBLE
Copyright Rick Sjaardema May 29, 2011.
I do not mind if you use this study, I just ask that you mention where it came from. Thanks.
As I have studied the Biblical names and places and the Hebrew language over the past year, I have begun to see a pattern within the English letters used. Although this may change over time, this is what I have compiled so far - look at the names of characters or places within His Story (His Words) and see if the letters themselves don't help to understand the deeper revelations from God - a bit like studying Hebrew - as God created all language.
A = Alpha and Omega; Asher; The path of to understanding the Wisdom of Salvation from the beginning of time.
B = Baals (Father figures, Lords, and Beths (houses)) of Benjamin, often the Sorrow of Sectarianisms
C = Creation or Christening of Children through Covenant - generally set apart for destruction to bear seeds from the remnant. And yet, as always, weeds come up with the crop renewing the harvesters day of atonement.
D = Dan (judgement) if left to God, great - yet, if we judge, our wells of sweet water become the bitter wells of demons. Sectarian judgment creates idols of ideology apart from a non-partial God.
E = Eternally encompassing everyone in an existing One-ness. He brings about Ephraims doubled fruitfulness often by destroying competing prides within Sectarianisms.
F = Flowing Fountains of Faith - A Fortified staff of Fruitful life or Fire for Sectarian Folly.
G = Gads of God(zilla)s (self destructive worship). Gapping Giants of Gomorrah (sheaves of faith) in Graves closed over by Granite Rolling stones of Gilgal, the wheels of Galilee. (for 'zilla' see z the whirring or buzzing of bees or locusts)
H = The humbling healing of the hills of ideology - a Festival of booths within the realm of fear of all that is seen and unseen; Heaven comes down and Glory fills our souls. The hills become alive!
I = Issachar's Joys and Sorrows of (Ideology/Idols) possessiveness or selfishness with God. The illnesses and illuminations within our own infamy.
J = Jealous Justice of the Creator bringing uniform praise (Judah) from all of the Cities. And yet, there continue to be Judases who defame Creation's Character; The Fruitfulness of Joseph's (YHWH Adds) Separations; The Jewel of the Nile (Leviathan) is Salvation's dog.
K = Kid's Knowledge of Kneeling within the His Kingdom of Kindness with Spiritual Hands outstretched to Love their fellowman.
L = Life of Learning; The Levitical [enjoin]ment of all living things.
M = The Manasseh's of separatist Mountains as Hills sheave together into ranges building monuments of Sectarian stagnation.
N(n) = hills of faith (as seen by men). borne to speak as they lift their heads above the ocean of humanity in inspirations of faith and belief. And yet, the pride of the hills often lead to the Naphtilic entanglements and hostilities of favoritism.
O = The Ocean or Sea of original creation containing the foundations of all fountains and wells - all from whom Love's sweetness and Sitnah's bitterness flows.
P = Power of Peace for all People, yet also reflected in the Prophesied Persons and Prefects who attempt to usurp that Power in their denial of that existential Power of Peace.
Q = A Quiver of quarrelling or quietness as one consumes and digests the Words of the only Holy Existence that is.
R = The Reubens - offspring of Revelations. The Rabbinical code of ethics revealed to bring rest to the sorrowfully cursed sons of our sufferings. (as always, not to become personified which promotes sorrow against our enemy).
S = Salvation; Simeon's Summons to Speak - Sent as Servant's to the Seemingly Spiritually Starved that they might See Salvation's Love.
T(+) = The bitterness (Mary) of Tamar (the palm of God's Heavenly hand)'s body and blood shed for the abuses of faith (Amnon) in the earth. An addition (Joseph) on the part of God bringing fruitfulness from the destructions of man's wrath.
U = The universal joy found in humility as our hill of faith is turned upside down - an act of being borne again if you will, creating a cup which can hold salvation in bringing water to the parched lips of our fellowman's suffering.
V = A voice in the valley of zion (wilderness of sin - an Arabah). A fountain of Love preparing the dry land for the power of peace, or the stagnation of bitterness, bent on perdition.
W = Wonderful Straightening of Ways as Justice treads mountains of pride into Wildernesses of sorrow, Wallowing in repentance to the Spiritual Sword of the Word of God.
X = Intersections of Ways - A Crucifixion moment where genuine faith is recognized through the death of excommunication while mankind witnesses what is meant to love our fellowman and to treat them as we wish for them to treat one another.
Y = A resurrection of new birth as inspiration rises from the Sea and brings showers of new life upon the earth.
Z = Zebulun's Resting Place where a people are granted the honor to dwell and asked to spread His Words of Love and Salvation. The Buzziness (Zillas) of such people may bee seen to bring the sweet polination of honey or the demonic destruction of locusts. Therein lies the zeal or zealotry of zionisms.
8. NO ONE GREATER - FIRST COMMANDMENT
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.abarim-publications.com%2FBible_Commentary%2FExodus20v3.html&h=07133
find it curious as I study the Word of God face to face that Seminarians who are taught to teach us about God - and study Hebrew would not tell us that the primary understandings through which we are taught are from the land of Canaan! Indeed, El and Allah reflect identical Hebrew structure, both Almighty in character. Why then, would these Shephards then set their wisdom above our fellowman?
Some claim that I set myself upon a pedestal! If that is what happens to those who ascend a pulpit, then I remain happy to sit in my small corner of this world as I bear witness to the Power of Peace I feel to be readily available at the hand of our Most High God.
To challenge my words to be an attempt to bring glory to myself is a slap in my face - and I shall thus attempt to change my tactfulness.
My desired reflections upon the command is that as I attempt to encourage truthfulness, that I not to appear to believe myself greater as a man than any other man. My challenge then to you, my fellowman is to increase your faith in the fact that Peace is possible as that Spirit of Our Lord has never left us nor forsaken us.
It is my "desire" that Our World not only have faith in that desire for some distant lifetime, or for some distant corner of our heart and mind, but to serve that desire in this lifetime we share! My understanding depends greatly upon the reflectins of Messiah as we reflect upon the scriptures of God!
Such witness enables me to proclaim that We are ONE in and through Our Father which art in Heaven, Hallowed be His Name. May His Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven! May He forgive us of our shortcomings as we learn to forgive our fellowman of their own shortcomings in faith. May He grant all the dust of the earth His daily manna and lead us not into the temptations of war, but deliver us from the arrogances of our evil within; For To Him is all Glory as amongst us is His Kingdom; given that He bestows the only true Power since the beginning to this time forth and forevermore, Amen.
9. Understanding God of All (YHWH)
a. I am but a reporter of current events: How long must I challenge the theological flaws of favoritism and partiality when it comes to the Doctors? I did not write the book, I have only come to expose the truth by what was written through the who, what, where and when - as I interpret why - as we experience how!
Please do not miss my previous discussion of the first commandment (No other Gods) http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=322591628956&topic=17668 and the linked study from Abarim publications.
Reflect through this rendering of three days of military maneuvers within the Bible as we reflect on the ideologies of Gog and Magog (the pride and arrogance which serves to divide the Holy Land, and Jerusalem, into quadrants of partiality and favoritism. I hope that in understanding the representations of the individual kings and their renderings of Jehovah, you might understand the importance of our requirement of Universal Love and Acceptance of our fellowman a bit better - and shed whatever bigotry and bloodshed might be left in your Spiritual soil.
II Kings 9:16-25; "Then Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] got into his chariot and rode to (Y'izr@'e'l [God sows]), because Joram [Jehovah has exalted the people] was resting there and Ahaziah [I have grasped Jehovah and made Him (MY) possession] king of Judah [ideological praises of YHWH] had gone down to see him.
When the lookout standing on the tower [stronghold] in (Y'izr@'e'l) [God sows]) saw Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth]'s troops approaching, he called out, 'I see some troops coming.'
'Get a horseman,' Joram ordered. 'Send him to meet them and ask, 'Do you come in peace?'
The horseman [lover of power] rode off to meet Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] and said, 'This is what the king says: 'Do you come in peace?'
'What do you have to do with peace?' Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] replied. 'Fall in behind me.'
The lookout reported, 'The messenger has reached them, but he isn't coming back.'
So the king sent out a second horseman...
The lookout reported, 'He has reached them, but he isn't coming back either. The driving is like that of Jehu son of Nimshi [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth ideology borne of bitterness of destruction while YHWH adds - and thus given to the imagery of I and my people are those rescued by the (right) hand of salvation] - he drives like a madman!
When Joram [My People are exalted by Jehovah] saw Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the earth] he asked, 'Have you come in peace, [Jehovah of all the earth]?'
sidenote: "Joshua [Jehovah is Our Salvation] 5:13-15; "Now when Joshua was near Jericho [ideologically 'city of palms' (heaven or gates of hell - lowest point on earth - next to the deepest rift line on earth (Jordan River) - known to be the river of humbling - earthy - the cleanser of the power lepers by 7 baptisms], he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua (Yeshua, your ideals of Messiah) went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua (Your ideals of Messiah) fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so."
Now, back to the Spiritual significance of II Kings 9:22b-25 while Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth] answers Joram [Jehovah is a God of favoritism or partiality of amongst people]:
"How can there be peace', Jehu [Jehovah is Lord of all the Earth] replied, 'as long as all the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel [Jehovah is an unchaste attachment to God] abound?
Joram [Jehovah is a God of favoritism or partiality who exalts a people] turned about and fled, calling out to Ahaziah [I have grasped Jehovah and made Him (MY) possession], 'Treachery, Ahaziah!"
Then Jehu drew his bow and shot Joram between the shoulders. The arrow pierced his heart and he slumped down in his chariot. Jehu said to Bidkar [with a stab], his chariot officer [Man of war], 'Pick him up and throw him on the field that belonged to Naboth the (Y'izr@'e'l [God sows])light. Remember how you and I were riding together in chariots..."
Matthew 21:38; "But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance."
How long must I challenge the theological flaws of favoritism and partiality when it comes to the Doctors? I did not write the book, I have only come to expose the truth by what was written through the who, what, where and when - and interpret why - as we experience how!
b. http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D_OzITyx6RKY&h=2a751
(Do you really want the chariots of fire to swing down and pick you up?)
Listen to a continuation of II Kings 10; "II Kings 10:12b-17; At Beth Eked [house of shearers (i.e. threshing floor, circumcision, purification, reaping, cleansing, enlarging)] of the Shepherds, he met some relatives of Ahaziah [Jehovah (Yahu) holds (possesses)"]... They said, 'We are relatives (of the king of Judah)... we have come down to greet the families of the king and of the queen mother."
"Take them alive!' (Jehu) ordered. So they took them alive and slaughtered them by the well of Beth Eked"
After he left there, he came upon Jehonadab [Jehovah has fathered], son of Recab [riders on the storm - name of Leviathan], who was on his way to meet him. Jehu [Jehovah, God of all] greeted him and said, 'Are you in accord with me, as I am with you?'
"I AM", Jehonadab answered.
"If so,' said Jehu, 'give me your hand' So he did, and Jehu helped him up into the chariot. Jehu said, 'Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord. (and such was born the religious zealots who go throughout all the world to kill their brethren). Then he had him ride along in his chariot.
When Jehu came to Samaria [guardians], he killed all who were left there of Ahab's [father's brothers] family. according to the word of the Lord spoken to Elijah [E'l is (MY) Jahu]...
vs. 30-31; "The Lord said to Jehu [Jehovah, The Almighty over all the earth,]... your descendants will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.' Yet Jehu was not careful to keep the law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam [all the people will contend over YHWH], which he had caused Israel to commit."
John 15:2; "He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful."
How soon must we begin to mourn Yad L'achim again, before we fall facedown in the dust of the earth and come to our senses in this Spirit of Love, Joy, and Peace of the Most High unity of ONE?
c. II Kings 10:1b-11; "Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria; to the officials of Y'isr@'e'l, to the elders and to the guardians of Ahab's [Father's brother's] children. He said 'As soon as this letter reaches you, since ((your master's)) sons are with you and you have chariots and horses, a fortified city and weapons, choose the best and most worthy of your master's sons and set him on his father's throne. Then fight for ((your master's)) house.'
But they were terrified and said, 'If two kings [Moses & Elijah?] could not resist him, how can we?'
So, the palace administrator, the city governor, the elders and the ((guardians [Samaritans] watchers)) sent this message to Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth]: 'We are your servants and we will do anything you say. We will not appoint anyone as king; you do whatever you think best.'
Then Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] wrote them a second letter saying, 'If you are on my side and will obey me, take the heads of your master's sons and come to me in Y'izr@'e'l by this time tomorrow.' Now the royal princes, seventy of them, were with the leading men of the city, who were rearing them. When the letter arrived, these men took the ((princes (1st born sons?)) and slaughtered all seventy of them. They put there heads in baskets and sent them to Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] in Y'izr@'e'l. When the messenger arrived, he told Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth], They have brought the heads of the princes.'
Then Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth, the black smoke that fills our temples so that our priests cannot perform their functions of enjoinment] ordered, 'Put them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning (The dividing wall of hostility rests near eastern Jerusalem, along the Palestinian borderline, a line drawn in the dust of the earth, challenging mankind to throw stones or send fire from the sky).
The next morning Jehu [Almighty God of all the earth] went out. He stood before all the people and said, 'You are innocent. It was I who conspired against my master and killed him, but who killed all these? Know then, that not a word the Lord has spoken against the house of Ahab [Our Father's brothers] will fail. The Lord has done what he promised through his servant Elijah [E'l is (MY) Almighty God]. So Jehu [Almighty black smoke that fills our temples of praise] killed everyone in Y'izr@'e'l who remained of the house of Ahab [Father's brothers], as well as all his chief men, his close friends and his priests, leaving him no survivor - (the entire economy of E'l and Ba'al theology of Canaan (Spiritually speaking)).
Luke 9:29-36a; "As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31 appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32 Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)
34 While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” 36 When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone.
Luke 9:37-45; "The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. 38 A man in the crowd called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. 40 I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.”
41 “O unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”
42 Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil[b] spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father. 43 And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.
While everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples, 44 “Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
Luke 9:51-55; "As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them[a]?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them
Luke 10:1-3; "After this the Lord appointed (seventy) others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves"
Luke 10:16-19; "He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
17 The (seventy) returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
18 He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you."
I challenge you to remove Satan from your heaven. Believe in God and that all your prayers for all your loved ones have been answered within the Power of the Name of Salvation! Now, instead of attempting to save them from your evil ideologies of Hell, Serve the Prince of Peace with them and save your enemies from the Hell of your own making!
9. Full Gospel theology cannot argue against God, A Universal Creator and Savior!
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DQJtPKRMmttU&h=2a751
Acts 17:24-26; "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them"
I Corinthians 15:1-28; "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that ((Christ died for our sins)) according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised - {by God, not of himself!}...
For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.
The Resurrection of (((the Dead)))
12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
{how can some of you say that the unbeliever is not saved - when you yourselves do not comprehend all knowledge of our Lord of Grace and Mercy?}
13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
{and yet, today our only hope appears to be in the afterlife, as too many believers claim Peace is not possible in this life until Jesus comes back - showing a sincere lack of faith in the Power of His Spirit which has never left us nor forsaken us - and through whom we serve]
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
*** this is extremely important! ***
21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.
*** All things have been given to Him - see verse 35-49 ***
24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ.
*** Please note the differentiation between God and Son here! This is one of the chapters which was glossed over at the Council of Nicea as those who contested the Trinitarian Doctrine could only do so under threat of excommunication! Only 3 bishops were brave enough to face excommunication - and after voicing their opposition to the creed, they were excommunicated by the emperor of that era, Constantine. That creed does not resemble this "saving gospel" related by Paul to the early church! ***
28 When he has done this, then (((the Son himself will be made subject to him))) who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.
*** this correlates with all of scripture - God and Son are not of an equal standing. The Trinitarian doctrine of the 4th century Church cannot be found in Scripture - and the Reformed doctrine, nor any other doctrine of favoritism or partiality - or zionism will stand up to scripture. This creed by Paul of I Corinthians 15 will stand up to every word and its deepest etymology. ***
(Continuation of) I Corinthians 15:29-58; sorry for so many words today!
29 Now if there is no resurrection (((if all men will not be saved))), what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? 30 And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? 31 I die every day—I mean that, brothers—just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised,
“Let us eat and drink,
for tomorrow we die.”
33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 34 Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame.
The Resurrection Body
35 But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
*** This last statement; "does not come to life unless it dies." is critical in discussing the resurrection of Christ with the Muslim! Without making absurd assertions that the Oneness in Mind Jesus had with the father was a Oneness in equal divinity (certainly heretical according to all scripture I have ever read), We will find the devout Muslim believes that Jesus did not actually die - because One must die in order to be resurrected! Therefore, Our Islamic brethren share this faith that Peace is not possible until Jesus comes back because they feel He must return to die - Him being the Prince of Peace! ***
37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body. 39 All flesh is not the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another. 41 The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
*** If you understand this passage (verse 37-44) to mean that even your favorite pets may be found in Heaven, I can only find theological arguments against such a belief, not scripturally based - such hope and belief is not, therefore, unrighteous - as far as I see it through this passage as it correlates to all of scripture - Perhaps you are beginning to see how this passage offers you faith, hope, and Love - all Spiritual gifts by which we can not only be saved, but Serve Peace on earth, and good will to not only men, but good will to all of creation! - I find it tough to argue against scripture, but I have no problem arguing against false theology! ***
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we[f] bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
50 I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”[g]
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”[h]
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
*** How dare anyone become selfish about these last two verses! Through such selfishness, pride, and arrogance, too many have destroyed the reputation of Salvation - it disturbs me that such false theology would proclaim that those who profess this Universal Salvation are the ones who are false teachers - and would utter those Pharisaical claims that "we" are somehow demon possessed. ***
58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
10. THE GOLDEN GATE
I had the following conversation with Israeli Christians this morning:
Christian Friend:
To much confusion in the church today...The only way is Jesus' way...You must be born again...Jesus say beware in Matthew Chapter Ten...I send you in the midst of wolves be ye wise as serpants, harrmless as doves...So why is it so hard for some to love...Why do we have to disagree...When God said call on me in Jeremiah 33:3...He will shew you great and mighty things, that you knowest not...So why cast our own opinions in the pot...We are all a part of the body of Christ you see...So why is it so hard for you and me...To just say Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life...Keep yourself from more pain and strife...A great Counselor is he...All you have to do is ask him and see...For he is mighty and strong...He keeps your hearts in a song...He is a great healer and a great friend...So just hold on to the end...For if one goes astray...He leaves the 99 to find the one some day...He will never leave you nor forsake you...Because his words are so true...If you can't just believe...Call on the Savior, Jesus is the key!!!
Response:
The Truth of Peace! In the Good News "Word" of Jesus which became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and Truth; [God provided Salvation] and We are Saved!
Romans 5:18; "Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men"
Brothers and Sisters in Christ; Let us not regurgitate the favoritisms and partialities of those faiths which have preceeded us within that sting of death - but let us clothe ourselves within the Robes of our High Priest of the order of Melchizedek; Hebrews 7:11; "If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come—one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?"
I Timothy 5:21; "I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism."
James 2:1; "My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality."
Indeed, Our Lord and Savior (revealed in the life and words of Jesus Christ - the physical embodiment of His Salvation of all of His Creation), proclaimed that the Narrow Way of Salvation was indeed that Golden Rule which can be found in every faith!
Matthew 7:12-13; "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
"Enter through the narrow gate [this Golden Gate]. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
Such is the bridge that crosses understanding in faith! Such is Our Salvation.
For more of this study, Read I Corinthians 15;
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=322591628956&topic=17672
BTW; I loved the poem shared by Faith.
Allow me to add these notes from my understanding of the Word of God:
Please note the other truth often missed within Matthew 13; "many (((enter))) through (((it!)))"
Note also the Words of the Prince of (((Peace))) in verse 21; "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven (((Kingdom of PEACE))) of all things seen and unseen, but only he who does the will of my Father ((Who indeed would be the Everlasting Father of the Prince of Peace?)) who is in heaven.
What exactly did Jesus say was this Kingdom of Heaven?
Matthew 10:7; "As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near."
Matthew 13:33; "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough." (Israel has been stuck with unleavened bread - they need Salvation too!)
Matthew 13:47-48; "Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away." Unfortunately, there are weeds and tears within the fabric of Christianity - also in need of Salvation too!)
Matthew 13:52; "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
Matthew 13:44; "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field." or perhaps like a branch thrown into a bitter well!
Therefore, Jesus chastises those who would hinder the childlike understandings of faith - for such appear to be false teachers - wolves destroying lesser faiths while dressed up in the Name Our Savior and Lord; Matthew 23:13; "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to." Who indeed is it that has the Historical tendency to excommunicate and martyr those who claim there is a better way - those who by their very nature pursue Peace and Righteousness and Love? Even now, the Spirit of division is causing many to condemn this teaching as some sort of evil Universalism - knowledge of the Words of Salvation - but not reflecting their own knowledge within the Spirit of Partiality.
Therefore, consider the twists and turns that have been made of the following passage through progressive theologies of Partiality and recognize the truth all over again! To proclaim "Jesus is Lord" in opposition to the fact; "The Father of all faiths is Lord" is a dead faith - separated by darkness and the gnashing of teeth to the Kingdom of Peace on earth as it is in heaven - but Glory to God in the Highest, "Your Jesus" was raised from the dead - and you have thus been justified from your sins of militarism, strife, and partiality in His Name!
Romans 10:5-13; "Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: “The man who does these things will live by them.”[a] 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’[b]” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’[c]” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”[d] that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”[e] 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
So, Don't be intollerant! Go ahead, enter your Spiritual houses of worship and sing your praises to this cultish phenomenon of Yahweh, fully revealed in scripture! But recognize, your cities of praise to Yahweh have within them the spirit of anti-christ revealed through divisions and bloodshed! For thus is the Kingdom of God! Your sins have been forgiven through this Wisdom of Salvation, but go and sin no more! Love your neighbor as yourself and lay down your weapons of war! Seek Peace and Pursue Him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength - for within the Salvation of Peace, you shall see God. The Stonecloud has been rolled away - and we are saved by the blood of His Lamb - and when all death's members are thus redeemed, We shall see God!
No comments:
Post a Comment