When believe is first awarded to sinners at the cross in hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ and the good news of His accomplishment we can be assured that our old sin nature is crucified with Christ. Not only that but that He has given to us His righteousness as the sacrificial Lamb when we believe.

As young believers what we don't realize that which we have left to deal with is self. Dealing with self is a lifetime process. Yet there comes a time when we come to the end of self and Christ comes in to be our all in all.

That's not to say that we don't still have our shortcomings but that they are no longer our driving force.

We have made our home in Christ. I am the Beloved 's and the Beloved is mine.

This is what He did for and resurrected to share in us.

Happy resurrection day!

I used to be on this forum but not for a while. I was trying to get closer to God.

I was raised as Catholic but I was only a nominal Catholic. I left the Catholic Church and went Protestant in college. I became involved in Campus Crusade for Christ and went to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. After I graduated I became a pastor at a Baptist church for 3 years. But I had a bad experience and found intellectual problems with Protestantism. So I came back to the Catholic faith and has remained Catholic for the last 20 years.

"That a saving work must first be done in the heart is taken for granted here. The spiritual faculties of the unregenerate man lie asleep in his nature, unused and for every purpose dead; that is the stroke which has fallen upon us by sin. They may be quickened to active life again by the operation of the Holy Spirit in regeneration; that is one of the immeasurable benefits which come to us through Christ's atoning work on the cross.

But the very ransomed children of God themselves: why do they know so little of that habitual conscious communion with God which the Scriptures seem to offer? The answer is our chronic unbelief. Faith enables our spiritual sense to function. Where faith is defective the result will be inward insensibility and numbness toward spiritual things. This is the condition of vast numbers of Christians today. No proof is necessary to support that statement. We have but to converse with the first Christian we meet or enter the first church we find open to acquire all the proof we need.

A spiritual kingdom lies all about us, enclosing us, embracing us, altogether within reach of our inner selves, waiting for us to recognize it. God Himself is here waiting our response to His Presence. This eternal world will come alive to us the moment we begin to reckon upon its reality.

I have just now used two words which demand definition; or if definition is impossible, I must at least make clear what I mean when I use them. They are "reckon" and "reality."

What do I mean by reality? I mean that which has existence apart from any idea any mind may have of it, and which would exist if there were no mind anywhere to entertain a thought of it. That which is real has being in itself. It does not depend upon the observer for its validity.

I am aware that there are those who love to poke fun at the plain man's idea of reality. They are the idealists who spin endless proofs that nothing is real outside of the mind. They are the relativists who like to show that there are no fixed points in the universe from which we can measure anything. They smile down upon us from their lofty intellectual peaks and settle us to their own satisfaction by fastening upon us the reproachful term "absolutist." The Christian is not put out of countenance by this show of contempt. He can smile right back at them, for he knows that there is only One who is Absolute, that is God. But he knows also that the Absolute One has made this world for man's uses, and, while there is nothing fixed or real in the last meaning of the words (the meaning as applied to God) for every purpose of human life we are permitted to act as if there were. And every man does act thus except the mentally sick. These unfortunates also have trouble with reality, but they are consistent; they insist upon living in accordance with their ideas of things. They are honest, and it is their very honesty that constitutes them a social problem.

The idealists and relativists are not mentally sick. They prove their soundness by living their lives according to the very notions of reality which they in theory repudiate and by counting upon the very fixed points which they prove are not there. They could earn a lot more respect for their notions if they were willing to live by them; but this they are careful not to do. Their ideas are brain-deep, not life-deep. Wherever life touches them they repudiate their theories and live like other men.

The Christian is too sincere to play with ideas for their own sake. He takes no pleasure in the mere spinning of gossamer webs for display. All his beliefs are practical. They are geared into his life. By them he lives or dies, stands or falls for this world and for all time to come. From the insincere man he turns away.

The sincere plain man knows that the world is real. He finds it here when he wakes to consciousness, and he knows that he did not think it into being. It was here waiting for him when he came, and he knows that when he prepares to leave this earthly scene it will be here still to bid him good-bye as he departs. By the deep wisdom of life he is wiser than a thousand men who doubt. He stands upon the earth and feels the wind and rain in his face and he knows that they are real. He sees the sun by day and the stars by night. He sees the hot lightning play out of the dark thundercloud. He hears the sounds of nature and the cries of human joy and pain. These he knows are real. He lies down on the cool earth at night and has no fear that it will prove illusory or fail him while he sleeps. In the morning the firm ground will be under him, the blue sky above him and the rocks and trees around him as when he closed his eyes the night before. So he lives and rejoices in a world of reality.

With his five senses he engages this real world. All things necessary to his physical existence he apprehends by the faculties with which he has been equipped by the God who created him and placed him in such a world as this.

Now, by our definition also God is real. He is real in the absolute and final sense that nothing else is. All other reality is contingent upon His. The great Reality is God who is the Author of that lower and dependent reality which makes up the sum of created things, including ourselves. God has objective existence independent of and apart from any notions which we may have concerning Him. The worshipping heart does not create its Object. It finds Him here when it wakes from its moral slumber in the morning of its regeneration.

Another word that must be cleared up is the word reckon. This does not mean to visualize or imagine. Imagination is not faith. The two are not only different from, but stand in sharp opposition to, each other. Imagination projects unreal images out of the mind and seeks to attach reality to them. Faith creates nothing; it simply reckons upon that which is already there.

God and the spiritual world are real. We can reckon upon them with as much assurance as we reckon upon the familiar world around us. Spiritual things are there (or rather we should say here) inviting our attention and challenging our trust.

Our trouble is that we have established bad thought habits. We habitually think of the visible world as real and doubt the reality of any other. We do not deny the existence of the spiritual world but we doubt that it is real in the accepted meaning of the word.

The world of sense intrudes upon our attention day and night for the whole of our lifetime. It is clamorous, insistent and self-demonstrating. It does not appeal to our faith; it is here, assaulting our five senses, demanding to be accepted as real and final. But sin has so clouded the lenses of our hearts that we cannot see that other reality, the City of God, shining around us. The world of sense triumphs. The visible becomes the enemy of the invisible; the temporal, of the eternal. That is the curse inherited by every member of Adam's tragic race.

At the root of the Christian life lies belief in the invisible. The object of the Christian's faith is unseen reality.

Our uncorrected thinking, influenced by the blindness of our natural hearts and the intrusive ubiquity of visible things, tends to draw a contrast between the spiritual and the real; but actually no such contrast exists. The antithesis lies elsewhere: between the real and the imaginary, between the spiritual and the matrial, between the temporal and the eternal; but between the spiritual and the real, never. The spiritual is real.

If we would rise into that region of light and power plainly beckoning us through the Scriptures of truth we must break the evil habit of ignoring the spiritual. We must shift our interest from the seen to the unseen. For the great unseen Reality is God. "He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." This is basic in the life of faith. From there we can rise to unlimited heights. "Ye believe in God," said our Lord Jesus Christ, "believe also in me." Without the first there can be no second.

If we truly want to follow God we must seek to be other-worldly. This I say knowing well that that word has been used with scorn by the sons of this world and applied to the Christian as a badge of reproach. So be it. Every man must choose his world. If we who follow Christ, with all the facts before us and knowing what we are about, deliberately choose the Kingdom of God as our sphere of interest I see no reason why anyone should object. If we lose by it, the loss is our own; if we gain, we rob no one by so doing. The "other world," which is the object of this world's disdain and the subject of the drunkard's mocking song, is our carefully chosen goal and the object of our holiest longing.

But we must avoid the common fault of pushing the "other world" into the future. It is not future, but present. It parallels our familiar physical world, and the doors between the two worlds are open. "Ye are come," says the writer to the Hebrews (and the tense is plainly present), "unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." All these things are contrasted with "the mount that might be touched" and "the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words" that might be heard. May we not safely conclude that, as the realities of Mount Sinai were apprehended by the senses, so the realities of Mount Zion are to be grasped by the soul? And this not by any trick of the imagination, but in downright actuality. The soul has eyes with which to see and ears with which to hear. Feeble they may be from long disuse, but by the life-giving touch of Christ alive now and capable of sharpest sight and most sensitive hearing.

As we begin to focus upon God the things of the spirit will take shape before our inner eyes. Obedience to the word of Christ will bring an inward revelation of the Godhead (John 14:21-23). It will give acute perception enabling us to see God even as is promised to the pure in heart. A new God consciousness will seize upon us and we shall begin to taste and hear and inwardly feel the God who is our life and our all. There will be seen the constant shining of the light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. More and more, as our faculties grow sharper and more sure, God will become to us the great All, and His Presence the glory and wonder of our lives.

O God, quicken to life every power within me, that I may lay hold on eternal things. Open my eyes that I may see; give me acute spiritual perception; enable me to taste Thee and know that Thou art good. Make heaven more real to me than any earthly thing has ever been. Amen."

- The Pursuit of God, chapter IV, AW Tozer, 1948

[That "other world" he speaks of must be apprehended in the here and now. "Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews" (John 18:36) He speaks of this in the now, in the present tense; that if in fact His kingdom were of the world His servants would fight. Likewise in Luke 17:21 Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you." The word "within" being "entos" in Greek meaning within, inside, and "is" is "estin" which is third person singular present active: again, here and now, the kingdom of God IS.

Here is a beautiful description of the heavens and the earth that will be: and this also is apprehended by faith, yea: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." (Heb. 11:1-3) "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain." (Isaiah 66:22) ]

"That it is probable the world shall not be annihilated, but refined. It Shall lose its present form and fashion, but not its foundation. Indeed, asGod raised it from nothing, so he can reduce it into nothing ; yet it doth not appear that God will annihilate it, and utterly destroy both the matter and form of it ; part shall be consumed, and part purified : 2 Peter iii. 12, 13,1 The heavens shall be on fire, and dissolved. Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for a new heaven and a new earth.' They shall be melted down, as gold by the artificer, to be refined from its dross, and wrought into a more beautiful fashion, that they may serve the design of God for those that shall reside therein ; a new world, wherein righteousness shall dwell, the apostle opposing it thereby to the old world, wherein wickedness did reside. The heavens are to be purged, as the vessels that held the sin-offering were purified by the fire of the sanctuary." - Stephen Charnock, (1628-1680),The Immutability of God, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, Volume 1, pg 376

[Do we realize how incredibly awesome and holy our LORD Yahweh is? "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke." (Isaiah 6:1-4)
Read Ezekiel chapter 1 and chapter 10 KJV, and apprehend the spectacular wonder and majesty of Him with whom we have to do: He who chose us in before the foundation of the world to walk in His holiness before Him. This is no small matter! This is dreadfully serious. Know that apprehend has two meanings: to capture or seize someone or something, as in the criminal was apprehended; and then also, to understand, perceive, and comprehend something. Both apply to our relationship with God.
"And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force." (Matthew 11:12)

I like the way this is written here:
"Jesus’ statement that “the kingdom of heaven suffers violence” is a graphic picture of the enthusiasm and excitement generated by John the Baptist’s and Jesus’ teaching. People were hungry for the truth and would not be kept away. For centuries, God’s prophets had predicted the Messiah’s coming, and now that the Messiah was here, nothing could hold back the flood of people pressing into the kingdom. We see some of this fervor in Luke 5:18–19, when some men literally tore through a roof to get to Jesus, and in John 6:15, when a crowd “intended to come and make him king by force.”
We should take note of the response of the believing people in Jesus’ day and share their passion. The gift of eternal life is beyond compare. Knowing Christ has come should create earnestness in us and a striving to be closer to Him. There is no place for apathy or ambivalence in the follower of Jesus Christ."
What does it mean that the kingdom of God suffers violence? | GotQuestions.org ]

2 Samuel 3:

6 While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul.

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One way to do it was to have sex with a concubine of the previous king, King Saul.

7 Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. And Ish-bosheth said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?”

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Ish-bosheth made an accusation. Was the accusation true?

8 Then Abner was very angry over the words of Ish-bosheth and said, “Am I a dog’s head of Judah? To this day I keep showing steadfast love to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers, and to his friends, and have not given you into the hand of David. And yet you charge me today with a fault concerning a woman.

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Abner did not admit or deny the accusation.

Did Abner had sex with Rizpah?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown wasn't sure:

It is not clear whether the accusation against Abner was well or ill founded.

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Benson's and Matthew Poole's commentaries were similar.

I think Abner had sex with Rizpah. At least Ish-bosheth thought so. Ish-bosheth needed Abner to command the army. If he weren't sure, he probably would not have accused him. Further, If Abner hadn't, he probably would have denied the accusation.

But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.”

The truth is we can take the cup of wrath from others.

We must be willing to take the cup of wrath from others. If we truly have faith in Our Lord Jesus.

Only those who are willing should
Ask Our Lord, to take the suffering of others and give it to us, who are willing to suffer for others.

Yes we will suffer the wrath, because of all the cup we have collected, but do not be afraid of those who are able to destroy your flesh. Remember, we are not part of this world.

Say to Our Lord, you're willing and he will give it to you. Say to those you're saving "your sin is forgiven" and witness the miracle.

In the OT animals were the sacrifice for sin. In the NT willing men are the sacrifice for sin. Those who are willing belongs to Our Lord Jesus.

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.

A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.

So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.

In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

The event is part of the White House’s Easter traditions, which also includes an Easter egg hunt and role. A flyer for the art event, which is open to select children of National Guard personnel, states that egg designs “must not include any questionable content, religious symbols, overtly religious themes, or partisan political statements.”

How sad.

U.S. government-funded Radio Free Asia is closing its Hong Kong operation out of concern for the safety of its staff and reporters, a move that comes after Hong Kong enacted a tough new national security law known locally as Article 23.

Radio Free Asia President Bay Fang said in a statement Friday that the outlet's programming and content will continue without disruption.

But, Fang said, actions by Hong Kong authorities, including referring to RFA as a "foreign force," raise serious questions about its ability to operate in safety following the enactment of Article 23.

The city's Beijing-backed legislature passed Article 23 legislation earlier this month and comes atop an already existing national security law that the central government imposed on Hong Kong in 2020. Article 23 refers to the part of Hong Kong's post-handover constitution, the Basic Law, that requires the territory to enact national security legislation.

Hong Kong's most prominent pro-Democracy paper, Apple Daily, shut down in June 2021 after its accounts were frozen and its publisher, Jimmy Lai, arrested. The last pro-Democracy paper, Stand News, closed in December 2021 after it was raided and its leadership arrested.

I`m homosexual

This occupant of the Whitehouse celebrates what God calls an abomination.

Hello everyone.

New member on the forum, but also new in accepting Jesus Christ 100% into my life.
- I am a 25 y/o scandinavian, who have been a "Christian" for my entire life. But I must confess.. I've never really known what it meant in that sense. Never read the bible, and I have sinned many times.. I have broken some of the commendments.. - This all came to me, after I began reading The New Testament, after being recommended by it by a man on youtube, but also read lots of references from the bible, which came from all sorts of videos on that platform.

I hope you all are having a nice day, and I can't wait to get to meet you!

Kind regards,
Kevin (with 1 v)

There are some who would propagate that it is not right to tithe (give) to the Christian church, because it is not stated in the New Testament.

Does a Christian have an obligation to tithe to his or her home church?

Should a Christian take complete ownership with where and how they give or is there a structure, commandment, direction in the New Testament on how to give?

The word tithe comes from the Hebrew word, "tenth," which means a 10% portion of your earnings/first fruits you made.

I am going to try and be blunt and quick. I met my girlfriend over a year ago online; we are in a long-distance relationship. She knew I was Christian from the beginning because I told her even before we got together. Throughout the relationship, we were sexual. In the past, I have mentioned not wanting to do anything sexual because I did not want to live in this sin, and she got upset, feeling unwanted, but we went back to normal. Recently, I had visited her for the first time, and we had premarital sex. When I got back just a couple of days ago, I mentioned the fact I can't live in this sin anymore. Justifiably, she got upset because the love of her life nearly suddenly said we may not be able to stay together. We have talked about it a lot, and at the moment, she is not interested in religion at all but sees no problem with me being Christian. Obviously, it would break her if we split up. We both realize this cannot go on anymore as it is and decided to break up or I become engaged with her, as that is the only way she is willing to wait until marriage; she needs to know I'm serious. This raises the question. Can I eventually marry a non-Christian? Or is it a sin to do so? There are a couple of verses I would like to talk about.

1 Corinthians 7:12-14

12 To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. 13 If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. 14 For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.

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Paul here states that if someone has an unbelieving spouse they are not to leave them unless they cannot work/live together and that a the other spouse is made holy by the other. And possibly that the unbeliving spouse and children are saved trough your household, until/unless they leave I dont 100% understand that.

2 Corinthians 6:14

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?

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I would like to qoute somone on this one.

"To be yoked is to be tied together, like oxen pulling a cart. What this verse is warning against is being tied together with someone that isnt going to work with you. If an unbeliever isnt willing to work with you and your not willing to work with the non believer then the cart doesnt move. But if you work together there isnt a reason you cant be yoked together." and also " its also worth noting that both of these verses were said by paul to specific groups of people so its not a lesson we need to follow precisely but a metaphorical understanding can still be useful. It wouldnt make much sense for paul to teach not to marry non believers then turn around and say its perfectly fine to marry non believers "

If we are to take pauls words to the Corinthians literally and as commands then anyone who came to faith before marriage should not be married as far as I understand.

1 Corinthians 7 17:24

21 Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. 22 For the one who was a slave when called to faith in the Lord is the Lord’s freed person; similarly, the one who was free when called is Christ’s slave. 23 You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings. 24 Brothers and sisters, each person, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation they were in when God called them.

I love this woman so much, she does not interfere with my Christian life (praying and going to church and stuff) and is willing to compromise. I do not think she is evil or darkess or a devil. I am not going to fool myself, its possible she comes to the faith but its possible she does not. I do not expect her to or plan on marrying her thinking she will. But if I must leave, as in it being a sin to stay I will, she knows God is my #1. Me and her promised to be together forever and had premartial sex, its just hard to give up something you are so attached to.

Thank you for your time any any possible responce or prayers. I am also requesting that you pray for her to come to Christ.

I was thinking about Hitler, someone said he was smart. I think he was low in intelligence, more like 70 IQ, the reason is that he was evil. A smarter person has barrier from getting evil. Everyone that`s evil I`ve seen, has low intelligence. And I also seen people very driven like him, they all have low intelligence. They get driven because they`re miserable in society. He was mentally-ill a little also, damaged from society, a smart person would stay more normal and healthy. He was very interested in people, which also is an indicator of low intelligence. Nothing wrong with that, it`s just typical among people with low intelligence. He also was for drugs, he used alot from doctor, and he made his men use it also to get more endurance, a person with higher intelligence don`t like drugs. He was into art also, but he quit when he couldn`t make it, a person with higher intelligence, would have endured the set-backs, and finally made it. He was interested in politics also, which also is an indicator of low intelligence. There`s many reasons, I can go, and on. Strategically, he didn`t have imagination, a person with higher intelligence, would have had some fantasy to come up with strategies. He was okay with ending his own life also when he lost the war, a smarter person wouldn`t be able to kill himself, he`d want to live. Sexually, he was perverted I think, based on what people say, which also is an indicator of low intelligence. His mother died by a jewish doctor, she had breast-cancer, and the doctor did an experiemental treatment on her, which she died from. But a smarter person wouldn`t get angry like that, and blame jews for everything later on, maybe even pretending he was angry. And he felt no connection to smart people like jews, which reads, and educates themselves alot, and likes latin, so he was okay with killing them. Latin is often looked down at, because it`s smart.

Why is he portrayed as intelligent just because he was evil?

Reader...
-
When a person comes to God by Faith in Christ... God gives them "Christ's righteousness" as "the imputed righteousness of Christ'.

This is the "Divine Exchange", whereby Jesus takes your sin, as "God hath made Jesus to BE .Sin....for us".

In other words, Jesus becomes our sin, as If He is the sinner.....= "God hath laid on Jesus the SIN (iniquity) .. of us ALL"..

Isaiah 53:6

That is John 3:16..... and 2 Corinthians 5:19... and Romans 3:17.

And what do we become now that Jesus has become our sin bearer?

We, the Born again become .."Made Righteous".... "made free from sin".. having Become..."THE Righteousness of God, in Christ"

How do we get that?

= "imputed righteousness" as "THE GIFT of Righteousness".

So, that is how we start as CHRISTians.......... and only 2 seconds earlier we were SINNERS, unforgiven..

Now, we are "made righteous", "Saints".

There is our Salvation...

But now, the next day starts and there you are born again, made righteous, and yet you have wrong thought patterns and you have habits and behavior issues, that are of the MIND.......not the Spirit.. as the Spirit is born again, but your MIND is not.

So, the process of Discipleship, the literal important part, is not trying to be some fake imitation of Christ.......but its to understand fully, who you have become, as a "new Creation IN Christ"....as learning what this is all about, is how you "work out your Salvation".

See reader, if you are born again, and not just water baptized and religious.... YOU ALREADY HAVE SALVATION....... AND NOW you are to learn how to exist in it., correctly.... = by gaining all the revelation knowledge that is available to you, so that you get your mind in line with God's perspective of you.

Baby Christians, do not have this yet., and they can be 50 yrs saved.
Mature BELIEVERS, do have the REVELATION.... and the mature believer, is this one...Paul teaches....>"as many as be PERFECT">.

And that means that you have attained to God's perspective regarding what it means to be a "new Creation in Christ".

If you dont have it.....you'll be talking about sin a lot.. You'll be trying to confess sin... You'll believe you can lose your salvation... You'll talk about Law and commandments a lot,.. You will believe that water washed away your sin.... and you will have no understanding of the Cross of Christ.

Timothy Newton pleaded guilty [to child sexual abuse of a family member] on Oct. 24, 2023.

He also possessed material involving animal sexual abuse and child sexual abuse as young as infants.

The Commonwealth pushed for an active sentence of 40 years, but instead the Judge Robert G. MacDonald sentenced him to 360 years with 335 years suspended, leaving only 25 years to serve.

John 13

I note that Jesus was passing on last important principles as His ministry was coming to a close.

Jesus knew He had all sufficiency in the Father and had nothing to gain by effort or esteem.

So he proceeded to pass on to His future leaders the foundation for their coming ministry - to be servant leaders tending even to the least honourable parts of His flock as the feet represented.

Any hesitation and refusal to accept this outpouring of love was greeted by stern rebuke. Leaders were to serve one another - no room for competitiveness.

Then in John 14

The trinity is beautifully put in verses 9-11

Then in verse 12 Jesus states believers would do the works He did - agreeing with Mark 16

This is Easter - Jesus completes His utter demolition of the power of death...

And so will we -

A little while ago a Pastor in the North of New Zealand mid service was interrupted by a woman yelling, sobbing, bursting into church with a dead son crying out 'do something'

The Pastor was shocked and had the church pray.

The Pastor had a doctor in the congregation check for vital signs - there were none - an ambulance was called.

He then took the child, felt right out of his depth, and cried out to the Father in anguish - and the boy was immediately restored to life in his arms.

This is Easter.

This is the season of Life.

Death is defeated...

...and the least are loved.

Just saying hello
While I can accept there is more that we currently know and that there may have been a creator, I personally don't believe in praying, a heaven or hell but respect those who try to live an honest life according to the Golden Rule "Treat others the way you want to be treated yourself".

English Standard Version, 1 John 3:

9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

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practice
ποιεῖ (poiei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular

The Greek present tense indicates a continuing action, something that happens continuously or repeatedly, or something that is in the process of happening.

Amplified Bible:

No one who is born of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin

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could you say a prayer for Erica, she feels like she might pass away soon with her condition, pray for healing ... thanks (I just got off the phone with her)

A hail storm that devastated a Texas solar farm has sparked concern within the surrounding community and among energy experts, who are questioning if “green” energy is really that safe.
The March 15 storm shattered “hundreds of panels” at the Fighting Jays Solar farm in Fort Bend County, Fox News reported.
Aviator Ryan Ashcraft captured aerial footage showing the baffling extent of the damages.

Resident Nick Kaminski expressed worry about the broken solar panels potentially leaking harmful chemicals, such as cadmium telluride, a semiconducting material commonly used in panels that can cause “major health problems in inhalation and ingestion,” according to an iCliniq medical report.
“My concern is, with the hail damage that came through and busted these panels up, we now have some highly toxic chemicals that could be potentially leaking into our water tables,” Kaminski, of Needville, told KRIV-TV. “I have a family — two children and a wife. My neighbors have kids, and a lot of other residents in the area who are on well water are concerned that the chemicals are now leaking into our water tables,” he added.
Needville Mayor Chas Nesvadba told Fox News that the Fort Bend County Environmental Health Department is investigating the incident and that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has been contacted regarding the potential health risks.

Hi,

Jesus said: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
John 13:34.

Jesus spoke this to his disciples, they spent 3 years together, experiencing many miracles etc.
What did Jesus mean with that verse ? Love your close christian friends and family ?

Thing is, sometimes we do not want to associate with certain people or christians, because as you know associating with people takes time, resources and energy (mental and physical). We humans are limited in time, resources and energy and don't we all want to spend this first on wife and children and then on close relatives and then on close friends and then on the less familiar friends and then on the strangers. We prioritize because we are limited, we get tired, we get stressed, demotivated etc. If we were unlimited like God we don't have to prioritize.

Isn't it more fun to associate with people who have things in common right ? same social class, same education level, same culture, same ethnicity etc, yes maybe shallow way of thinking or living life, but it is easier so isn't it ?

Maybe the solution is, if each christian was directly connected to God, what I mean is, if each christian could hear directly from God, like humans talking to humans, maybe this would solve lots of problems but problem is, reality doesn't work like this it seems ?
Sometimes I see this, one christian angry at another christian, but if God told him directly to not be angry and that God has another plan for him, I suppose it would be easier or not ?
Sometimes I see christians disagreeing with eachother, can be many topics, but If God communicated directly to both what God wants, the disagreement would end pretty fast wouldn't it ?

Br,

Jesus was a man but he was the Son of God too. He knew he would die but come back to life. Yet, he experienced intense distress and anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane. Why? What was about to happen that caused him to sweat blood?

Judas betrayed Jesus. Peter denied him. The disciples forsook him. The wicked people spit on him, punched him, flogged him, mocked him, crowned him with sharp thorns, and finally nailed him to the cross. Jesus didn't complain about any of these to the Father.

Matthew 27:

46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

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That was the most painful moment of Jesus' life. As humans, we can't appreciate the depth of this pain. The Father and the Son/Word had been together for all eternity. There is a connection, a spiritual communion between the Father and Son. At this point, this connection was temporarily severed/forsaken for the first and only time. Jesus raised a rhetorical question because he experienced the cut/separation all humans experience when sinning. Without this separation, it was impossible for Jesus to die (Romans 6:23) physically. Sin cannot be imposed upon the divine nature of Christ. After this separation, he took on our sins and died for our sins. Jesus died; his divine nature did not.

Jesus alluded to Psalm 22:

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?

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Jesus felt forsaken and the separation. That was the temporal moment for the transaction of the divine exchange, 2 Corinthians 5:

21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

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Heb 9:

28b Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many.

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Soon after Jesus experienced this separation, Matthew continues:

50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

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Did Jesus' divine nature leave his human nature on the cross?

I think so. When Jesus made the first cry, the Holy Spirit (the divine nature/component) disconnected from Jesus' human spirit. Jesus then took on sin. When he made the second cry, his human spirit left his physical body to die. But then, immediately, his human spirit rejoined the deity Holy Spirit. I speculate that Jesus' divine component left him between the 1st and the 2nd cry.

Sin cannot be imposed upon Christ's divine nature. Without carrying sin, Jesus could not have died physically. In terms of spiritual mechanics, that was how God/Man died. God did not die, and the divine nature of Jesus did not die. Jesus took up our sins and died. 1 Peter 2:

24a He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

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How would this affect the redemption of humankind?

After the 2nd cry, Matthew 27:

51 behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

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Jesus was the first man who had the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Jesus didn't just die: He yielded up his human spirit. By doing so, the separation between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place was torn down. After Jesus' resurrection and ascension, he sent the Paraclete Indwelling Spirit to connect with our human spirit to God. The indwelling Spirit was released if and only if Jesus died.

What happened to the condition of Jesus' body?

Paul spoke in (NIV) Acts 13:

35 So it is also stated elsewhere:“ ‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’
36“Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay."

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Jesus' body was sinless. It did not decay.

See also From the sixth hour there was DARKNESS over all the land until the ninth hour.

I know it's "Good Friday" and many celebrate the crucifixion as being on a Friday, but it really couldn't have been because of the 3 days and 3 nights just wouldn't fit. You'd have 2 days and 2 nights only. Part of Friday before sundown could count as a day, then the night = 1 day, 1 night. Then Sabbath day and Sabbath night = 2 days, 2 nights, but then Jesus is already gone when the women get to the tomb on the first day of the week (Sunday) at or before dawn.
Even Matthew 28:1 shows it may have even been earlier than that: "In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week"
Since the end of the Sabbath would be sundown on Saturday, some have made the supposition that they went to the tomb

"“as it began to dusk and come toward the first day of the week.” This event, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary coming to view the tomb, is not recorded in any Gospel but Matthew.

The translations differ about this verse, so to properly understand it we must pay strict attention to the Greek text, the Jewish customs, and the event itself. This event occurred on Saturday, Nisan 17, in the late evening, just as the Jewish day Sunday was “dawning,” i.e., starting, that is just before the Saturday Sabbath ended at sunset and Sunday, the first day of the week, began. The fact that Matthew records that the Sabbath was just ending at sunset tells us that Matthew is written from the point of view of Jewish timing, not Roman timing. The Jews began their new day at sunset, while the Romans began their new day at midnight (like Westerners still do). This verse is not speaking about Sunday morning when the sun came up, as many people believe.

Although many translations have the word “dawn,” in this verse, we must not confuse that with the Western view of “dawn,” i.e., when the sun comes up. To the Jews, a new day “dawned,” or started, at sunset. The Greek text reads in a way that seems very difficult when translated literally, which is due to the idioms involved. A very literal rendering of the Greek text is: “Now late of the [on the] Sabbaths, at the dawn toward the first of the Sabbaths.” This is a very difficult sentence, and to understand it we need to know two things: the first thing is that “Sabbaths” (the plural of Sabbath) was the regular Jewish idiom for a week. The second thing is that the word “dawned” is the Greek word epiphōskō (#2020 ἐπιφώσκω; pronounced eh-pee-'phōs-kō), which literally means, “to grow light,” and it was used of the “dawn” or “beginning” of something. In the United States, we have the same basic idiom and use “dawn” for the beginning of something. When something brand new is coming that will make significant changes, someone might say, “A new day is dawning,” even though it is technically not either a new “day,” nor is it “dawn.”

[For more on epiphōskō, see " style="color: rgb(45, 123, 255); text-decoration: none; cursor: pointer; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-family: inherit;">commentary on Luke 23:54.]

According to Jewish reckoning of time, the new day was beginning, or “dawning,” at sunset on the weekly Sabbath. Thus, sunset on Saturday started Sunday and the new week. Many English versions read “dawn” in this verse, but to understand the verse, we must realize that the sun is going down and the new day is starting; the verse is not saying that the sun is coming up. About this verse, Robertson writes: “This careful chronological statement according to Jewish days clearly means that before the Sabbath was over, that is before six PM, this visit by the women was made ‘to see the sepulcher.’”a Robertson is correct that this is a “careful chronological statement,” and not paying attention to it is one of the reasons people wrongly think the Bible contradicts itself in the timing of some of the events that occurred after the death of Jesus.

If we read the verse in an amplified form with notes included, we get: “Now late of the [on the] Sabbaths [the week, i.e., as the week was ending on Saturday night], at the dawn [the ‘beginning’] toward the first of the Sabbaths [i.e., at the beginning of the next week, which started at sunset Saturday night when Sunday, the next week began].”

Matthew 28, REV Bible and Commentary

Matthew 28 REV - Now late on the Sabbath day, as it began to dusk and come toward the first day of the week - Bible verse

www.revisedenglishversion.com

There is this that supports a Thursday crucifixion, however, she does not take into consideration the "dawn" being Saturday at sundown:

"The Passover Sabbath
The Feast of Unleavened Bread, also known as the Feast of the Passover, was celebrated in remembrance of the Israelites being delivered from Egyptian bondage. This feast is set on Nisan 15 (Leviticus 23:6) and could fall on any day of the week. This feast day, preceded by a day of preparation, is a High Sabbath (a day of rest). It’s also called a High Day.

John 19:31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

John 19:31 says that Jesus was crucified on the Preparation Day before the High Day Sabbath of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This places the date of Jesus’ crucifixion on Nisan 14. Since the Passover feast is set according to a specific date on the calendar, the question becomes, on what day of the week was the feast day that year?

Three Reasons for a Thursday Crucifixion​

I (Shari Abbott, Reasons for Hope* Jesus) hold to a Thursday crucifixion, and I will share three reasons and biblical support for this. I will also explain why a Wednesday or Friday crucifixion day does not fit with what the Bible reveals."

Was Jesus Crucified on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?

Was Jesus crucified on a Friday? Did He die on Wednesday or Thursday? What does the Bible reveal? It might surprise you.

reasonsforhopejesus.com

And here is the Wednesday crucifixion, which I personally tend to believe is the likely one.
"The Bible indicates that Jesus had to be crucified on Wednesday and arose sometime in the Saturday evening hours before the end of the Sabbath, contrary to the popular belief that He was crucified on Friday. This is further supported by the fact that the Jewish day begins and ends at 6 P.M. (sunset), with the daytime hours beginning at the “First hour” from dawn until 8 A.M. and lasting through the “Twelfth hour” of 6 P.M. to sunset. Additionally, the six days of Passover were being observed, culminating with the yearly High Sabbath (Leviticus 23), a three-day feast beginning on Wednesday sunset."

Was Jesus Crucified on Friday or Wednesday?

Scripture trumps tradition when it comes to Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. The Bible states Jesus was crucified on Wednesday and arose Saturday.

mesabiblestudy.com

Wednesday is also taught in many Messianic assemblies.
Keep in mind also this:
Easter has nothing to do with Passover nor does Easter have anything to do with any of the Jewish festivals. Pesach or Passover is the word that should have been used in Acts 12:4.

But, bottom line with all this is the Gospel, that Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose from the dead on the third day. His death on the cross redeems us, His blood cleanses our sin; His resurrection justifies us (Romans 4:25)