Smagala-Potts could not provide a specific timetable for when a repaired Trump statue would be returned to the gallery floor. Stewart told the Express News, however, that the likeness would be reinstalled at the same time a statue of President Joe Biden, currently under production, is put on display.

Their behavior is no surprise.

When repeatedly asked by AOC which crime has Biden committed (after being reminded that RICO is not a crime but a category) Bob Bubulinksi refused to answer.

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When you don't even have a crime in mind, let alone any evidence of it you really should pack up and go home.

This is the most powerful Christian prayer that will connect you to the ligh
Those who do it every day will achieve peace and tranquility in the heart and soul, will distance themselves from dark beings and evil people and things in life, will not have bad dreams but can join higher light worlds at night
With each part of the rosary, you send light into your life and soul, yourself and the people you know and have around you, you also cleanse your soul like when you visit the confessional
...
For the greatest defense against darkness in life and the spiritual realm, and to achieve complete peace of mind and soul, do all 4 parts of the Holy Rosary, the Divine Mercy chaplet, and read the Biblical Stations of the Cross every day

• Russia has arrested 11 people, including all 4 gunmen suspected of carrying out the attack at a crowded concert venue in a Moscow suburb last night, the head of the country's Federal Security Service (FSB) has told President Vladimir Putin.
• At least 133 people are now known to have been killed as more bodies were found in the rubble, Russia's Investigative Committee said this morning. Men in camouflage broke into the concert hall, opened fire, and set the crowded venue ablaze. The death toll is expected to rise.
• The terror group ISIS has claimed responsibility but did not provide proof of the claim. U.S. officials confirmed to NBC News that they had been gathering intelligence for months that ISIS could mount a mass casualty attack in Russia, though no final assessment had been made yet about who was responsible. U.S. embassy officials issued a warning earlier this month urging people to stay away from large gatherings.

Pray The Holy Spirit comforts & heals all those affected by the terrorist attacks that occurred at the Moscow Concert Hall on 22-March-2024:

"Although it contains disturbing descriptions of rape, assault, and incest resulting in the birth of two children, enough to unsettle any adult, the book was placed in the Legacy High School Midland, Texas high school library."

They are not going to stop trying to push this material on kids.

As a short rejoinder, life is complicated enough without there being contradictions in the Bible. But rest easy, there are no contradictions in the Bible.

The Bible does not state contradictions, it states God’s Truth. First of all 2 Timothy 3:16 says that every word in the Bible comes from God. It either comes from God directly or it comes through those who were carried along by His Holy spirit, to borrow a phrase from 2 Peter 1:21.

Out of the Bible comes not contradictions, but the Truth. Psalm 119:160 says that the sum of God’s Word is the Truth. If we can make a momentary visit to the secular, Ayn Rand, who has no apparent use for God, says that contradictions do not exist; if you think you see one, then check your premises and you’ll find that at least one of them is wrong. And when a premise is wrong, then the idea of there being a contradiction falls apart.

Take the Book of Jonah. Jonah was upset since God told him to say to the Ninevens that God will destroy their city because of the sins of the people there, yet God ends up not destroying them. Jonah took that as a contradiction to what God told him to say. At first glance it seems like a contradiction. But a premise that would destroy that contradiction is a presumption that nothing happened that caused God to change course and not destroy Nineveh.

But something did happen that ended with God changing course: The Ninevens, upon finding out that God was going to destroy them because of their evilness, prayed to God for forgiveness. As a result, God forgave them and allowed their existence to continue.

Now, a callous person may see that as a contradiction. Problem is, if you can accept the Bible as the Word of truth, you can accept that the supposed contradiction concerning the Ninevans supports several truths in the Bible. One truth is God’s willingness to punish those who inflict evil, and the other is God’s willingness to forgive when you ask for forgiveness. And at the end of the day, if you have faith in God you have faith in the Truth which eclipses thoughts of perceived contradictions or other distractions from the Truth.

I read in several Christian prophecies on Polish YT channels,
that in the midst of World War 3, another pandemic, famine, and major earthquakes around the world, the so-called "Great Tribulation,"
all people in the world will get "Warning"..
It will be something like a dream, lasting one hour, where you will see your whole life, and all the good and bad things you have done, you will know that God is speaking to you, and you will be aware of everything and remember everything.
You will see the consequences of the bad things and sins you have done, and a sample of the dark worlds, the so-called "hell". It will also show you what the bright dimensions, the so-called "heaven", look like.
You will be given an explanation as to why this situation has occurred in the world. It is about purifying the souls of all people on Earth.
God will give all people the opportunity to choose the path of light or the path of darkness.
After this warning, half of humanity will decide to follow the light, the spiritual, the rest will return in a few weeks to the path of sin and pleasure.. to their old life.
Only after this warning, the shadow government of the world will send its representative, the so-called “anti-christ”…with their offer of a contract and a chip to the body, in exchange for a basic income and some food.
All people in the world will know the consequences of their choice.

The GOP's second Biden impeachment hearing was somehow worse than the first​

House Republicans spent Wednesday's Oversight Committee trying to turn two of Hunter Biden's former business associates into star witnesses. They failed.

MSNBC: Wednesday’s impeachment inquiry hearing in the House Oversight Committee managed to be somehow even less impressive, and even more damaging to the Republicans’ goal of bringing down President Joe Biden, than the first impeachment hearing held last year. Per the Constitution, the bar for impeaching — let alone convicting — a president is a high one. Despite that, House Republicans have tried to set the bar nice and low. And on Wednesday they showed how far they still are from clearing it.

Republicans claimed to have two witnesses who would finally rip the lid off this whole “affair” during Wednesday’s hearing, luridly titled “Influence Peddling: Examining Joe Biden’s Abuse of Public Office.” Chairman Jim Comer, R-Ky., promised in his opening statement to show “that Joe Biden has taken action after action to further his family’s plans to get rich.” That allegedly includes supporting efforts from his son, Hunter Biden, and his brother Jim Biden to capitalize on the family name.

The president’s son and brother have privately testified to the Oversight Committee. But apparently none of Hunter Biden’s testimony nor any of Jim Biden’s testimony was important enough for Republicans to include in a two-minute video claiming that “Joe Biden is the Biden family business.” Instead, Republicans played snippets from interviews Hunter Biden’s former associates, Tony Boboluski and Jason Galanis, gave the committee. They also played a snippet of video from Devon Archer, another former business partner of Hunter Biden.

Rather than use Archer’s testimony to the House Judiciary Committee, though, Republicans relied on an interview he gave former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. The Republicans’ decision not to use Archer’s sworn testimony may have something to do with the fact that, according to that transcript, he undermined Comer’s claim that then-Vice President Biden acted corruptly to Hunter Biden’s benefit in Ukraine. Archer declined the committee’s invitation to testify at Wednesday’s hearing.

Boboluski and Galainis, unlike Archer, have claimed then-Vice President Biden tried to corruptly use his office to enrich his family. Neither have yet offered any direct evidence to back up those claims, and Wednesday was no exception. “Is it your testimony today you witnessed the president commit a crime?” Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., asked Bobulinski, whose past shadiness includes a weird 2020 meeting during a Trump campaign rally while wearing a ski mask. “Yes,” he answered, but was unable to specifically name a crime that he’d witnessed Biden commit.

Cleverly, Democrats invited as their witness Lev Parnas, a former associate of Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani was an attorney for then-President Donald Trump, and Parnas was in on Giuliani’s attempts to dig up dirt on Biden in Ukraine. Trump’s attempt to strong-arm Ukraine and withhold military aid unless it announced an investigation of Biden eventually led to Trump’s first impeachment. Parnas was more than happy to remind everyone present that Trump had corruptly meddled with Ukrainian affairs to serve his own re-election campaign. Parnas, who was convicted in 2021 for campaign finance violations, was also keen to stress the origins of much of the muck he’d helped sling toward the Bidens. “The only information ever pushed on the Bidens and Ukraine has come from one source and one source only: Russia and Russian agents,” Parnas said. “The impeachment proceedings that bring us here now are predicated on a bunch of false information that is being spread by the Kremlin,” Parnas said.


So to sum up, we've established that Biden is innocent and the GOP is colluding with Russia again.

Hey everyone here, I new in this group and looking for new beliver friends. I dont have many belivers around, I dont go church lot.

From the day, businessman Donald Trump came down the escalator to announce his White House bid, say what you will, he soon stepped into a collaboration of his own personal gallery of insincere backstabbers. Not just any RINOS, but world-class who dance wonderfully to the glee of the far-left element. For the left, a treacherous RINO is simply a “moderate”.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but a good number of these keep a ‘Christian’ affiliation. Those of us who recognize accuracy are well aware of the many such who’s lifeblood is for these many same traits that have always been counter to MAGA. Such ‘spiritual maturity’ needing extraction is now long past being brazen.

But RINO-lites are not as obvious. Some are closeted holdouts and some have infiltrated. For instance, some members of the GOP in your state may carry a particular disdain for Donald’s call for “one-day voting’ and ‘paper ballots’. Less important but more popular, every RINO today is known for maintaining the misleading narrative of the January 6 event being an “attack on the US Capitol” while shielding the public from PDJT’s request for additional security measures.

Comments such as this serves the RINO well so as to lessen the alarm, dilute our resolve,


Could a few snippets here speak of the spiritual core of the RINO and leftists?

1. "I wish I was a slave to an age-old trade, like ridin' around on railcars and workin' long days." These lyrics evoke a sense of nostalgia for a bygone era, romanticizing a simpler way of life that involves hard work and a clear sense of purpose.
2. "Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways." The repeated plea for mercy suggests a recognition of past mistakes or reckless behavior, acknowledging the need for forgiveness and redemption.
3. "Call it one drink too many, call it pride of a man, but it don't make no difference if you sit or you stand." These lines address themes of self-destruction, pride, and the cyclical nature of human behavior, suggesting that regardless of the specific actions taken, they can still lead to trouble and regret.
4. "We do it over and over and over again." This repetition highlights the idea of being stuck in a continuous loop of making the same mistakes or repeating the same patterns of behavior.
5. "Down in the valley with whiskey rivers, these are the places you will find me hidin'" The valley symbolizes a place of solace or retreat, where the narrator seeks refuge from the complexities and challenges of life. The whiskey rivers may represent escapism or self-medication to cope with inner turmoil.

All thoughts welcome, ,

I've been on this forum before many years ago, still like to try understand what different Christians believe and why, whilst continuing to run the race.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” John 14:6-7 (ESV)

God's word is irrevocable and eternal. The Law of Moses contained a testimony to the eternal word of God and His judgment upon all men, that they all are sinful and all must die. Until this is fulfilled the world will not be restored. This is what Jesus meant in Matthew 5.

17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

Every "stroke of a pen," or "small letter," indicates what the Law *means,* and does not infer that the Law will remain in effect *as a covenant* after the Cross. It just means that what the Law anticipated, namely the death of Christ and the death of all men, along with the failure of the covenant of Law, must take place before the present world ends. God's word of judgment against Adam can never fail. It must all come to pass.

Engoron wrote in his decision last month finding Trump liable for fraudulently inflating the value of his assets that he found Cohen’s testimony credible about Trump indirectly ordering him to reverse engineer financial statements. The judge did not directly address questions about Cohen’s tax evasion plea, but noted: “This factfinder does not believe that pleading guilty to perjury means that you can never tell the truth. Michael Cohen told the truth.”

Engoron needs to be held accountable.

I am taking wagers here. This OP is NOT about whether Judas Iscariot will be resurrected to eternal life or not. I'm assuming you think he will be. This post focuses on wagering on what you believe.

Let proposition P1 = Judas Iscariot will be resurrected to eternal life.
P2 = Judas Iscariot will be resurrected to eternal damnation.

Between 0 and 10, how much weight do you put on each of the above propositions? The stronger your belief in a proposition, the higher the weight. Your weighting scheme will determine the betting odds.

This is not a lotto/gambling bet. This is a wager to mathematically and scientifically measure the strength of your belief. Put money where your mouth is. If you are interested in mathematically finding out the strength of your belief, then tell me those two weights. See Subjective (Bayesian) Probability.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are not promised a life of ease and comfort. In fact, we are promised the opposite of that. We are promised that we will suffer and be hated and persecuted and betrayed and denied and that we’ll be unwanted, cast aside, forsaken and forgotten. And we are promised that friends and family and “church people” will turn against us and want nothing to do with us because we are following Jesus Christ with our lives, and because we are obeying the Lord, and because we are speaking the truth.

Now this is not teaching that our lives will be absolutely miserable and that we will go around moaning and groaning all the time. Just the opposite! We are taught that we will have joy, and that we will express joy, despite our circumstances, and despite how others treat us. We will have joy in our salvation from our slavery to sin, and from being in fellowship with Jesus Christ, and from being in fellowship with other believers who are also in genuine fellowship with Jesus Christ (this is not always the case).

For we can be going through all sorts of trials and tribulations and heartaches and persecutions and still have the joy of the Lord. For our joy should be in Jesus despite our circumstances. For we can accept what we cannot change, and what we cannot control, believing that God is allowing these things to take place in our lives for a reason. Yet, we are not to accept (tolerate, pacify) sin in our own lives or in the lives of others who profess faith in Jesus, but we cannot control what others do, but only what we do.

In the last devotion, the Lord had me write on the subject of difficult circumstances and not understanding why things happen to us the way that we do, and not understanding why God does what he does, the way that he does, and why he allows what he allows in our lives. And this one was also about misunderstanding how God works because of misimpressions that we were given of him and how he works, perhaps from childhood, and how those misconceptions can color how we see and respond to God today.

So, it is helpful to us if we are students of the Scriptures who study them in context, who read them in context so that we can see “the big picture.” For there we get a correct biblical understanding of the divine character and will of God and of why he does what he does, and of why he allows what he allows, and with regard to what purpose those things serve in our lives in making us into the people of God who he wants us to be. For he allows us to go through tough times to make us into the people he wants us to be.

So, we can have joy, even through our tears, when we can grasp that, and when we can accept that God allows evil people to do evil to us to make us strong and determined to follow him with our lives and to not give up at the first sign of opposition. It is kind of like “on the job training,” or like an athlete training for a major competition. It can be painful getting ourselves ready for that competition, and it involves sacrifice and determination and perseverance, and that is why hardships are necessary in our lives.

If life is too soft, if it is too easy for us, if it does not challenge us and oppose us and work against us so that we learn resistance and so that we gain strength and determination, then we will never make it when the going gets rougher, which it is, and which it will continue to get rougher as the days progress. We won’t have the stamina and the perseverance to stand the hard tests if we are not put to the test and forced to stand or else to fail. So suffering and persecutions are for our good.

[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 6:22-23; Lu 21:12-19; Jn 15:1-21; Jn 16:33; Jn 17:14; Ac 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]

And what is the end result if we respond appropriately to our trials and if we do not let them defeat us, but we let them strengthen us and improve us in character? Well, if we are talking here about the genuine believer and follower of Jesus Christ, who is in the process of sanctification, and of being made holy, and of denying self and dying daily to sin, and of walking in obedience to our Lord, in practice, the end result is salvation from sin and eternal life with God, which God promised to those who love him.

And who are those who “agape” love him, i.e. who are those loving him? We are those who prefer what God prefers, and what he prefers is all that is holy, righteous, upright, morally pure, honest, faithful, and obedient to him and to his commands. So if we are those who are loving him, we are those who are preferring to live through Christ, embracing God’s will, choosing his choices, and obeying them through his power and strength. And we are those loving other humans with this same kind of agape love.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Believe Him

An Original Work / July 15, 2013

My heart cries: Lord, won’t You hear me
Seeking You for the answers
To my heartache and questions
I have concerning my life?
Speak, Lord, to me right now.

“Oh, dear one, why don’t you trust Me
With your life’s circumstances?
Give your all on the altar
In submission of your will
To My purpose for you.

“Surrender your life completely
To your Lord and your Savior.
He has all things planned for you
For His glory and honor.
He’ll work all things for good.

“Believe Him. He will fulfill all
Of His promises to you
For your life and your future.
Trust Him. Rest in His love.
He’ll give you peace from above.”

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Hey everyone!
I recently had a tonsillectomy on my birthday that was absolutely terrifying. I had been sick since Christmas Eve 2023 with Strep Throat and numerous antibiotics. I am doing better now and almost completely healed!
I bring this up as I feel my faith has been tested to the ultimate strain. A few days after my surgery, I developed a heart arrhythmia and my wife took me to the hospital. I was so afraid in the hospital that I was shivering, crying, and talking to my wife about not wanting to die. Now I do suffer from extremely bad anxiety (especially health stuff) - but this was FEAR. I had never felt a more intense and emotional fear in my life. I am still battling it as I have worn a Holter monitor and am waiting to see a cardiologist - I feel as if I'm waiting for something bad to happen.
This fear I have...does this mean I have no faith? Am I not saved? I realized that almost all of my fears and worries seem to circle around the idea of DEATH. Ironically as it sounds, I am Deathly afraid to Die. As Christians we are taught that death is a part of life, and commanded to "Not Be Afraid". But I am terrified....
Is this wrong as a believer? Where is the line drawn between anxiety/worry and faith?

I apologize if this post is a little confusing. In short, does having fear - on a day to day basis - mean that I have no Faith?

Hey guys, (M29)

as you probably have read in the title, I'm a former Southern Baptist that started questioning and drifting and found himself, of all places, thinking he was running from God, when in reality God was running to him.

Let me fill you guys in, when I was almost a senior in high school, I was sexually assaulted at a youth retreat. This caused me to spiral spiritually into things like eastern meditation and interest in the occult.

In my late twenties (about 27-present) I have had an interest in the catholic church, not for its physically beautiful buildings but for its spiritually fulfilling disciplines such as Lectio Divina, the Daily Examen, and the Rosary. Specifically through praying the Rosary daily I feel that the Lord Jesus is teaching me what it means to experience him daily. As many times as we reflect upon who Jesus is as God and man through his Mother, Mary, I feel like my perspective is shifting in a positive direction away from gritting my teeth internally and just following after my own thoughts about what the Bible says to really reflecting upon the traditions that have existed for the past 2,000 years.

Faith is not belief alone. I am learning that I desperately need discipline in the form of repetition in prayer, genuine reflection on what the Scriptures teach (not just reading, asking what commentaries say, and trying to apply certain aspects of a passage that may or may not be applicable to me in this modern setting, and yes, I am aware that all Scripture is useful. What did Paul actually mean by that?)

The rosary has become a way for me to express my dependence on God the Trinity.

"Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
As it was in the beginning, is now and forevermore shall be,
World without end,
Amen."

Do I think that there's a chance that I've been a Christian this whole time and that this is just a deeper step into the Lord's will? Yes.

Do I also think it's possible I have never known Jesus truly before after this? Yes.

The point is brother and sisters, if you're struggling in your faith don't give up. Don't give up even when your Southern Baptist upbringing tells you to. "Seek the Lord while he may be found..." "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with your whole heart" "Trust in the Lord with all of your heart, lean not on your own understanding" To me that's what goes on too often in church, we don't full trust God and we try to rely on our own philosophy, that's why the church has failed as a unit. John 17:22-23 says that unity was Jesus' vision for his church. We are all one, but we aren't all united in truth. Am I wrong? Until we get that right and learn to submit to truth we can't ever change the world for the Kingdom of God. Tell me what you guys think.

Thank you all.

I wanted to discuss patriarchy's resurgence and where Christians fit into the conversation. Should Christians be involved? If you agree, how should we address the subject? What would you say? If you disagree, how would you respond to the topic as a believer?

I'm bringing this to your attention in light of a post I saw earlier. It's an accurate representation of the dominant voices you'll encounter from both ends of the spectrum. Christian or otherwise.

Matt 5.17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."

I get this passage thrown at me a lot by Christians who want to promote the Law of Moses as still applicable. I got it thrown at me by a Jewish guy over 10 years ago who wanted to prove that Jesus did not advocate for NT Christianity, but rather, for the Law of Moses. And I'm getting it now from Sabbath Day advocates who even deny that Sabbath Law is associated with the Law of Moses! So what is this all about?

Jesus spoke these words about the Law of Moses while Israel was still under the Law of Moses. NT Christianity says that the Church is no longer under the Law, but instead under Christ alone. We are not under the Law of Moses. We are not under Sabbath Law. So did Jesus say that the Law of Moses was irrevocable in this passage?

I would say that Jesus was indicating that there were no loopholes for the Law of Moses, that it was irrevocable as long as it was in effect. Once the agreement, or covenant, was broken, it could not be applied as an agreement any longer, obviously. But Jesus was only talking about the Law as a current covenant, and as such was irrevocable under those terms.

So did God's word fail? Did the failure of the Law as a covenant agreement with Israel fail? Well, certainly the agreement failed, but the Law had been both a curse and a hope. It was a curse because it upheld the curse of death imposed since the garden of Eden. No matter how much good Israel did, no matter the fact they were in a covenant relationship with God, they would still die.

At the same time, the word of God in the Law promised something better as a fulfillment, a way to overcome death, and a way to redeem from sin forever. As such, the Law was the hope of final redemption, even though it confirmed the curse of death. As Jesus said, the seed must go into the earth and die before it can bear fruit. Jesus had to die on our behalf so that we could join him in his death in order to be reborn through his resurrection from the dead. Jesus had to suffer death for sinners in order to forgive them and give them a 2nd chance.

So as irrevocable as the Law was, as sure as it confirmed human death, as sure as it confirmed Israel's failure to obtain final redemption, so also it was a guarantee that death would be overcome and that Israel would be saved. Jesus would die for sinners and forgive them for all the sins they committed against God. Then he could grant them his spiritual life again, this time in the form of resurrection and eternal life.

The Law did not fail. It succeeded not through its own form, but in the form of its projection of Christ, who was its object all along. The Law was a seed planted so that through the resurrection of Christ we could grow and bear fruit for eternal life. We no longer live by the Law, but we live by the life of Christ, who died for us that we might live for him.

The USA is out of the top 20 for the first time in a long, long time. Why are people in other countries so much happier, generally speaking, than they are in the USA?

Is it true that the Septuagint was only originally translated into the Pentateuch and none of the other Old Testament books were originally translated? If so, should this cast doubt on its use by Orthodox Christians?

I want to share with you what I think the main symbols of Revelation mean, because I haven't really heard anyone preaching it like that. There is nothing harsh ethically or otherwise in it. Please comment on what you think, and whether you think it fits with the rest of the Bible.

Basically, I think that when it says "buy and sell" in chapter 13, it means to teach teachings that are untrue, just as in the Prophets a prophet mentioned buying wine and milk "for free" in the sense of receiving true teachings, the truth here being God -- the only uncreated being in existence, while everything is something created.

And just as for 6 days God created everything, so also all creation can be symbolized by a six, while He Himself -- by a seven -- the eternal Day for rest, the eternal Sabbath. And so, all the "created truth", can be represented by a six.

And in the end times, whoever will receive a false teaching, and believe it, would receive the spirit of faith in something created yet not true. While the true believers would continue to have the Holy Spirit of faith in things that are true (Spirit is the spirit of faith in truth).

And this is where the Revelation mentions image of the beast. Image is something worshipped. And if the image speaks, it means it's a human being, or the words of this human being, which are received by people instead of the words of Christ. These other words can't find justification in the Bible that is.

But not only the teaching of people can be something created -- our goods deeds can be too. They are after all the creations of our hands, even though they come with the help of God. And so they cannot be worshipped either, aka believed in for salvation. I.e. we do them knowing they save because of Matthew 25, yet after we worked them, we don't remember them and don't trust in them as the foolish farmer in his crop. We forget them like the right hand mustn't know what the left hand does, and we just say: we did what we had to, we are unprofitable slaves of God. The danger from these works come because they don't have eyes to see or ears to hear, and so trusting in them for salvation would seem to only make God angry -- provided God is the same God as He was in the Old Testament.

So what are we left with, is to only believe for salvation in the presence of the Holy Spirit in us, which *is* the Blood of Jesus, because the "blood of every creature is its life", yet the Spirit is Eternal Life -- "my Words are Spirit and they are Life". When our heart has the Holy Spirit, the inner, shabby, sin-nature-ridden garments of our heart are made clean. Yet if guilty conscience shipwrecks our faith, the wine of the Spirit flows out through the holes, burnt by these hot coals (a seared conscience just doesn't feel them, yet the effect on our wine sack is the same). And we become naked, and our shame can be seen -- the Wedding Garment gone. Yet, if we have not trusted in our grapes for salvation (meaning the works of Matthew 25) and haven't been lucky to go the Lord with the oil of the Spirit filling to the brim the lamp of heart, these grapes will provide the last washing of the Blood of Jesus at the Great Judgement ("the blood of grapes"). But if we do die in the Lord, we go to heaven right away, as it's written (I'm paraphrasing): they who have the Spirit of faith to the brim, because of the wine sack without holes and works of praise to the Lord, shall not come to the Judgment, but have already passed from death to life.

This is one of those knee-buckling hymns when I sang it the first time on Lenten Service last Wednesday.

It was composed by Herbert Brokering (of Earth and all Stars) and text by Carl Schalk. Composed sometime in the 1980’s at Holden Village, WA during a week long summer camp. Strong tune, Strong text. Recording by the American Repertory Singers. Enjoy.

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Thine the amen
Thine the praise
alleluias
angels raise
Thine the
everlasting head
Thine the breaking
of the bread
Thine the glory
Thine the story
Thine the harvest
then the cup
Thine the vineyard
then the cup is
lifted up
lifted up.

Thine the life
eternally
Thine the promise
let there be
Thine the vision
Thine the tree
all the earth
on bended knee
Gone the nailing
gone the railing
gone the pleading
gone the cry
Gone the sighing
gone the dying
what was loss
lifted high.

Thine the truly
Thine the yes
Thine the table
we the guest
Thine the mercy
all from Thee
Thine the glory
yet to be
Then the ringing
and the singing
then the end
of all the war
Thine the living
Thine the loving
evermore
evermore.

Thine the kingdom
Thine the prize
Thine the wonder
full surprise
Thine the banquet
then the praise
then the justice
of Thy ways
Thine the glory
Thine the story
Then the welcome
to the least
Then the wonder
all increasing
at Thy feast
at Thy feast.

Thine the glory
in the night
no more dying
only light
Thine the river
Thine the tree
Then the Lamb
eternally
Then the holy
holy holy
celebration
jubilee
Thine the splendor
Thine the brightness
only Thee
only Thee.