My grandma is in the hospital. They just called my mom to her bedside because they are one step away from intubation, and that’s the last step my grandma wants them to take. I am not handling well. We were close til I moved states.

On the last day of this month, we will witness a clash of religions as a demonic, cultish secular religion dares to intrude on the greatest feast day in Christendom, using a lie to distract the attention of lost souls.

(LifeSiteNews) — Two observances — Easter and the recently contrived “International Transgender Day of Visibility” — fall on Sunday, March 31 this year, causing some to wonder “Is Easter being replaced with the ‘Transgender Day of Visibility?’”

It’s a valid question. For more than a few, it certainly will.

Others might dismiss this as nothing more than a coincidence. That would be a mistake.

On the last day of this month, we will witness a clash of religions as a demonic, cultish secular religion dares to intrude on the greatest feast day in Christendom, using a lie to distract the attention of lost souls from the most significant truth known to man: the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Depravity on the rise, starving humanity of the truth of the Gospel​

This collision of religions appears to be a climactic Romans 1 moment. St. Paul explained:

Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools… They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator… they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind.

Click to expand...

Do not underestimate the will and force of Satan to supplant Christianity with this perverse woke religion through which he seeks to eclipse truth. His aim is to starve humanity of the truth of the Gospel.

Continued below.

Hi Everyone.

Do you think Christian Forums is shrinking?

I don’t do too much online Orthodoxy but I think there is a lot of stuff on Reddit. There is lot of rubbish there to which is why I don’t use it much.

‘Any thoughts? I am sitting in an airport now waiting for a delayed plane…


Prodigal7

Here are some examples of this hermeneutical rule gathered from the Internet:

• “If water baptism were necessary for salvation, we would expect to find it stressed whenever the gospel is presented in Scripture. That is not the case, however. Peter mentioned baptism in his sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38). However, in his sermon from Solomon's portico in the Temple (Acts 3:12-26), Peter makes no reference to baptism, but links forgiveness of sin to repentance (3:19). If baptism is necessary for the forgiveness of sin, why didn't Peter say so in Acts 3?” John MacArthur, Grace to You. QA79
• The Bible says that it is the gospel that saves. "By this gospel you are saved . . . " (1 Cor. 15:2). Also, Rom. 1:16 says, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." Neither of these verses, which tell us what saves us, includes any mention of baptism. Matt Slick. Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry. 11/22/08
• Paul Ramsey quoting Gal. 3:2, states “in a passage where one is vigorously defending salvation ONE WOULD EXPECT Paul to mention baptism.”
• Baptism, then, cannot be part of the Gospel. The Gospel is the "power of God to salvation" (Romans 1:16). It tells us what is necessary to know in order to be saved. Paul left baptism out of the Gospel. Therefore Paul did not consider baptism necessary to salvation.
• If water baptism were necessary for salvation, we would expect to find it stressed whenever the gospel is presented in Scripture. However that is not the case at all. In fact there are many, many verses that declare salvation is by faith alone with no mention of baptism or any other requirement. Here they are for you to look up: John 1:12, John 3:16, John 3:18, John 3:36, I Cor 15:2-4, John 6:47, John 20:31. If baptism is necessary for salvation, then all these scriptures are wrong.
• Paul never made water baptism any part of his gospel presentations. In 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Paul gives a concise summary of the gospel message he preached.

Some observations on the “ONE WOULD EXPECT” rule for interpreting Scripture.

• This interpretive rule is only known to and used by Credobaptists.
• This interpretive rule is selectively used only for the Doctrine of Baptism and excludes all other doctrines.
• Demands exact precision in Scriptural language, where contextually none is given.
• What is not specifically stated in one passage of Scripture takes precedence over what is specifically and explicitly stated in multiple other passages of Scripture. In other words, the exception to the rule IS THE RULE.
• Ignores the common practice interpretive rule “Scriptura interpur Scriptura.”

By far the most common passage of Scripture the “ONE WOULD EXPECT” is articulated is Acts 3:19 “Therefore repent and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” Here we notice a close parallel to Acts 2:38, “repent and be baptized” and 3:19 “repent and be converted.” The Credos will point out due to “repentance” mentioned once in Acts 2 and once in Acts 3, “repentance is the most important part or necessary condition for the forgiveness of sins; Baptism would be seen as with baptism as secondary, non-essential and certainly not apart of the Gospel.

The credobaptists correctly point out that Peter specifically doesn’t address baptism in his second sermon, nor is there any mention of Peter’s hearers being baptized. The most reasonable explanation that Luke omits the topic of baptism during Peter’s second sermon….is that both Peter and John were arrested before they could administrate baptism. Just because baptism is not mentioned Acts 3, doesn’t necessary mean Baptism was not to be administered or imply non-essentiality. Peter and John’s assistants could have baptized them that day, or baptism could have been delayed for a day.

Descriptive vs. Prescriptive statements of in the Books of Acts concerning baptism. There are eight descriptions of baptism in the Book of Acts and only one prescriptive passage. Acts 2:38-39 is prescriptive and of course Peter teaches us about baptism before any took place in the NT era. We know it is prescriptive contextually,

• Dual Commands: “Repent and be Baptized.”
• Dual Promises: “For the forgiveness of sins” and “You shall receive the Holy Spirit.”
• Baptismal continuance: “This promise is for you and your children.”
• Geographical or Missional significance: “For all those to are far off and away.”

Acts 2:38 governs all baptismal practices of converts in the NT and has huge implications in Christian faith and life. For some Credos, the absence of baptism in one passage, nullifies and questions the validity of baptism as apart of the Gospel in eight other baptismal texts in Acts. Hence observation #4 from above. A horrid interpretive rule.

THE REAL ISSUE. At the root level we see a misunderstanding of how any one doctrine is established and the function of Doctrine in general.

How many passages of Scripture are needed to establish a Biblical doctrine? Take for example, the Scriptural teaching concerning the Incarnation. The incarnation is presupposed on every page of the NT and doctrinally binding on all Christians to believe. And it truly is apart of the Gospel, because if there is no incarnation, there is no substitutionary atonement, hence no Christianity.

The incarnation is established upon the virgin birth narratives of which there are only two (Matthew and Luke). Following the guidance from Scripture, it only takes two passages of scriptural teaching on the same subject matter to establish any article of faith. Two passages from different authors, two passages from the same author in two different books, or two passages from the same author within the same book, but two different contexts.

Baptism is a unique doctrine is Scripture as it is suffers from too much doctrinal content. We have at least two or three teaching from our Lord, eight or nine examples of baptism in the Book of Acts, multiple comments by Paul, and two by Peter. This is an enormous amount of information compared to the doctrine of the Incarnation.

From the establishment of doctrine we notice: Every doctrine found in Scripture is its own article of faith. And each article of Faith stands alone by itself and doesn’t need to be substantiated or authenticated by another doctrine. Creation doesn’t need to be substantiated by Redemption, Redemption doesn’t need to be substantiated by Sanctification; neither inspiration v. eternal life, justification v. Hell, God’s providence v. Angels, Baptism v. Christ's resurrection, etc. And all articles of faith are interrelated into an organically unified body of Church teaching (fides quae) and are to be believed separately without doubting.

We now end up where we started. Re-quoting one of our examples:

‘The Bible says that it is the gospel that saves. "By this gospel you are saved . . . " (1 Cor. 15:2). Also, Rom. 1:16…. Neither of these verses, which tell us what saves us, includes any mention of baptism.” Matt Slick. Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry.

Matt Slick quotes Romans 1:16 which contextually deals with the efficaciousness of the Word not baptism. And most importantly the usage of I Cor. 15:2-4 is most grievous. If one were to say, “Baptism is not apart of the Gospel because it is not listed in these verses, then what about the incarnation? Are we to say, God becoming man to take on the sins of the world, IS NOT THE GOSPEL? Nonsense.

The credobaptist usage of the “ONE WOULD EXPECT” argument is as common as is it fallacious. The belief for every text in the NT where the gospel is proclaimed, if baptism isn’t mention specifically in the text, then baptism isn’t necessary or accomplishes the things Scripture says it does…..is just bogus. This hermenuetical rule allows certain doctrines of Scripture to be dependent on others….and deciding that dependency is at the subjective whim of the interpreter.

And when you think about it….this “one would expect” argument comes dangerously close to transgressing the First Commandment: IF I WERE THE HOLY SPIRIT, I WOULD HAVE SAID IT DIFFERENTLY.

Ukraine Is Now 'Holy War,' Russian Church Declares​

The Russian Orthodox Church has approved a document that deems President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine a "Holy War."

The declaration came during a congress of the World Russian People's Council in which religious, political and cultural figures in the country met at the site of Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a focal point for the Orthodox faith in Russia.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, also heads the council and is an ally of Putin. He has been criticized for providing a religious justification for the war and failing to unequivocally condemn the killing of people in Ukraine.

In February 2022, Patriarch Kirill said that Ukraine and Belarus were part of "Russian lands" and called the Ukrainians who were defending themselves against Russian aggression as "forces of evil," pitching the war as a battle for the future of Christianity.


Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) presents flowers to Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill in Moscow on February 1. The Russian Orthodox Church he heads has declared the invasion of Ukraine a "holy war."ALEXANDER KAZAKOV/GETTY IMAGES
"From a spiritual and moral point of view, the special military operation is a Holy War, in which Russia and its people, are defending the single spiritual space of Holy Russia," the document released on Wednesday said under the heading "special military operation," which is the official Kremlin term for the invasion.

As a Christian, I believe in getting involved with trying to change society to be more Christ-centered. The pagans and atheists think that Christians should be excluded (not all, probably) but no one should be excluded from this very important work.

Elsewhere, I watched Trump's ad about how this country is deteriorating (my word) and the image thatstands out most at this time is that of a bizarre-looking clown teaching children about perverse things.. I'm surprised we don't see children running away from this in tears! I myself hated clowns growing up, and I never even saw any this strange looking. It was such a better era then. ..

In any case, some Christians have told me that Politics and Religion don't mix.

Well, I find that thought quite odd.

What takes precedence, the Holy Week celebrations and observances or the papal conclave? Would the ranking Cardinal stand in for the pope or would they rush a vote for new one?

It's just something I was thinking about when I was considering what Napolitano said about him and also knowing how busy the pope is this week.

Today I've had a terrible day because I unleashed 5 years of bottled up anger I've had against God and essentially called Him a useless shepherd that doesn't care for His flock, that I hated Him and tested Him to kill me right on the spot or that I otherwise would buy a bottle of sleeping pills on the way home and do it myself.

For context, I have OCD and depressive episodes and I'm currently on medication but I still suffer greatly from this illness. I have better days but there are exceptions like today where I feel downright exhausted of life and would want nothing more than to fall into an eternal slumber or to never have been brought into existence at all.

But for the 5 past years of being a christian I suffered from every possible intrusive thought, doubting my salvation has been my daily bread, developed a phobia for prayer somehow and these have been, speaking mentally, one of the darkest periods of my life. I occassionally ask God to take my life but He won't listen to any kind of prayer I utter. I haven't lost my faith but why does it seem like God harbors an intense hatred against me by afflicting me with this disease?

In Romans 8:29-30 Paul says:

29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

But what exactly is Paul saying about foreknowledge in this piece of scripture? Is it that God looked down the corridors of time and saw those who would believe and those who wouldn't and he chose those who he foreknew would believe in him? Absolutely not, because if he had looked through the corridors of time there wouldn't have been anybody to be saved. But, we're already debating total depravity in a different thread. I want to cover God's foreknowledge because its a beautiful and wonderful thing.

Another example of foreknowledge would be Genesis 4:1 where Adam "knew" his wife and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. Do you think Adam knew his wife in the English sense? Of course he did! She was his wife and thy lived together for almost 1,000 years how could he have not known who she was! What about John 10:14 as another example when Jesus says "I know my own and my own know me." In the sense of knowledge his statements make no sense. Afterall, of course Jesus knows who his sheep is, he is God and of course his sheep know who Jesus is even the demons know who Jesus Christ is and that he's the messiah. But, its more in the Biblical sense of foreknowledge where it makes complete and total sense.

These are just a few examples of foreknowledge in the Bible, it's actually scattered quite well throughout Biblical history. Now, I don't know ancient Hebrew and Greek but I can say what foreknowledge is in the Bible based on being taught by people who do know ancient Greek and Hebrew. Its not that God foreknew in the sense of knowledge its that he foreknew his children in an incomprehensibly intimate sense. Adam knew his wife in the most intimate way possible, Jesus knows his sheep in the most intimate way possible and his sheep know him in the most intimate way possible. When Jesus says "I never knew you" in Matthew 7:23 for example what he means is he's never had an intimate and close relationship to them. Always when the Bible mentions foreknowledge it means a deep and intimate connection between man and God, or man and wife and this isn't just a normal loving relationship. God loves his sheep and his sheep love God in the deepest and most passionate of ways. Or in the example of Peter saying that Jesus was foreknown before the foundation of the world it means that God knew and deeply loved Jesus from the beginning of time.

Sometimes, when we are in the middle of difficult circumstances, and all seems to be going against us, and not for us, and Jesus enters into those circumstances, we may not even recognize that it is him there. We may be so focused on our problems that we don’t even see him there waiting to speak to us, to bring comfort and encouragement to our hearts, and to counsel us in the way that we should go. For all we see are the waves crashing against us, and all we see are impossible situations, when instead we need to see that Jesus is right there and he has it all under control.

And if we pray, and we ask the Lord to reveal himself to us, so that we know that it is him speaking to us, and he shows us that it is him, and that we should not be afraid, then we need to trust him to lead us in the right direction. And if we then step out in faith, and we walk by faith and not by sight, but then something happens that shakes our faith, we are not to give way to fear. We are not to lose sight of Jesus and that he is there and that he is in control of what is going on about us. And we need to trust him. For he has it all handled. We just need to believe that he does.

Now, this is certainly not teaching that we sit back and do nothing. For the Lord has things for us to do, by faith in him. He has given us gifts of his Spirit, and he has assigned us particular roles (body parts, functions) in his body which he intends for us to fill. And he has given us all sorts of instructions in the Scriptures regarding what we should be doing and not doing. But we must not go in the flesh, and we must not leave God out of the picture, but we must walk by faith in his strength and power, letting him lead and empower and equip us to do the work he has called us to do.

For he is not going to call all of us to easy stuff. In fact, he taught us that if we follow him that it means death to sin and to self and following him in obedience wherever he leads us, and it means we will be hated and persecuted and that we will be faced with a lot of challenges and difficult situations to try our faith. But we are to grow in our walks of faith through these trials and not let them defeat us. And we are to trust the Lord that he is there and that he has all things under his control, and then we must follow his lead and walk by faith and not by sight.

So, the encouragement here for all of us who profess faith in Jesus Christ is to trust the Lord fully with our lives, to surrender all to him, to die with him to sin, and to live for him and in righteousness, holiness, godliness, and in obedience to his commands. And then we are to walk by faith and not by sight, trusting the Lord to lead us in the way that he would have us go. And then we need to obey him, even if it means having all kinds of things crashing against us, and people hating us and disapproving of us. And we need to believe that God has all things under his control. So trust Him.

[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]

VOICE OF TRUTH

By Mark Hall & Steven Curtis Chapman
II Corinthians 12:7-10/I Corinthians 1:20-24

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I’m in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He’s holding out His hand

But the waves are calling out my name and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I’ve tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again, “Boy, you’ll never win!”
“You’ll never win!”

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, “Do not be afraid!”
And the voice of truth says, “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

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Executive Summary​

This report examines how well major faith traditions retain their members, the reasons people disaffiliate, and the reasons people attend religious services. Additionally, this report considers how atheists and agnostics differ from those who say they are “nothing in particular.” Finally, it analyzes the prevalence of charismatic elements as well as prophecy and prosperity theology in American churches and the role of charismatic Christianity in today’s Republican Party.

“Unaffiliated” is the only major religious category experiencing growth.

• Around one-quarter of Americans (26%) identify as religiously unaffiliated in 2023, a 5 percentage point increase from 21% in 2013.
• While the percentage of Americans who describe themselves as “nothing in particular” is similar to a decade ago (16% in 2013 to 17% in 2023), the numbers of both atheists and agnostics have doubled since 2013 (from 2% to 4% and from 2% to 5%, respectively).

Catholic loss continues to be highest among major religious groups; white Evangelical retention rate has improved since 2016.

While most disaffiliate because they stop believing, religious teachings on the LGBTQ community and clergy sexual abuse now play a more prominent role.


Most unaffiliated Americans are not looking for a religious or spiritual home.

Exploring the prevalence of charismatic elements in American churches.

• Half of American churchgoers say they have received a definitive answer to a specific prayer (50%), nearly four in ten say the “Spirit” has empowered them or someone else to do a specific task (39%), three in ten say they have received a direct revelation from God (29%) or witnessed divine healing of an injury or illness (27%), and roughly two in ten have seen people speaking in tongues (21%) in the past year.
  • Republican Christian nationalists are significantly more likely than non-Christian nationalist Republicans to have witnessed or experienced at least three charismatic events in the past year.

WaPo also has interesting graphs. I liked this one showing that white evangelical Protestants are currently holding steady, with about as many joining as leaving.

Trump calls his globe-trotting ex-diplomat ‘my envoy.’ Neither is in office.​

Richard Grenell is meeting with far-right foreign leaders, attacking President Biden and offering a glimpse at what U.S. foreign policy could be like in a second Trump term​

After an anti-corruption crusader unexpectedly won last year’s presidential election in Guatemala, democracy teetered on the edge in the Central American country. Amid law enforcement raids on election offices and threats of violence, the Biden administration worked feverishly to lay the groundwork for a peaceful transfer of power.

But not Richard Grenell, a former diplomat and intelligence official in Donald Trump’s administration, who arrived in Guatemala in January, days before the new president was to be sworn in — and threw his support behind a right-wing campaign to undermine the election.

Grenell met with a hard-line group that sued to block the inauguration, which thanked him for his “visit and trust.” He defended Guatemalanofficials who had seized ballot boxes in an effort to overturn a vote declared “free and fair” by the United States and international observers, and he attacked the U.S. State Department’s sanctions against hundreds of anti-democratic actors.

Grenell’s intervention highlights the extraordinary role he has carved out in the three years since Trump left the White House. From Central America to Eastern Europe and beyond, Grenell has been acting as a kind of shadow secretary of state, meeting with far-right leaders and movements, pledging Trump’s support, and at times, working against the current administration’s policies.

The former president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., in an online chat with Grenell last month, touted his record as ambassador to Germany and called him a “top contender for Secretary of State.”

“Grenell fulfills the top priority that Trump is looking for in his second term, which is absolute loyalty,” said Trump’s former national security adviser, John Bolton, who has called Trump “unfit” to be president and warned about a potential administration of enablers.

Bloomberg and the New York Times recently reported that Grenell and Trump’s son-in-law and former adviser Jared Kushner are proposing major real estate developments in the Balkans that could pose conflicts of interest if either of them served in another Trump administration.

Last year, Grenell was elected to the board overseeing the Conservative Political Action Conference, a standard-bearer for the conservative movement that has become an unofficial arm of the Trump campaign.

Quite a career arc, from having to resign from the Romney campaign for being gay, to being on the board of CPAC and a top Secretary of State candidate.

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Ephesians 3:14-19 NIV

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

"As Christians celebrate the Holy Week, they do so with varying beliefs depending on their sect. Evangelical Christians are the most likely (92% say yes) to believe in life after death, while Roman Catholics express more doubt (67%). Among the other Abrahamic faiths, Muslims (87%) strongly believe while Jews predominately doubt the existence of life after death at a majority level (60%). Hindus (71%), who celebrated the arrival of spring with Holi this week, and Sikhs (67%) are also firm in their belief of life after death."
Is there life after death? Majority of Canadians believe they may have more than one life to live - Angus Reid Institute

The apostle Paul felt confident enough in the Lord and in his walk of faith, by the grace of God, that he could encourage other Christians to imitate his walk of faith and to use him as a model or as an example of what genuine faith in Jesus Christ really looks like. He never claimed to be perfect, but he walked the walk, and he did not just talk it. He took God and his word to heart, and he obeyed the Lord in doing what he said to do, and he did not walk in sin, but he led a holy and a godly life committed to Jesus Christ.

For, although he had not yet finished the race, he was running the race every day, fighting off the lies of the enemy, opposing enemy forces, proclaiming the truth of God’s word, and exposing the fruitless works of darkness and the liars and the deceivers who were trying to lead other Christians astray. He was committed to truth and to righteousness and to leading other people to do the same. And he continued on this path despite being hated and persecuted and falsely accused, and all for the glory of God. Amen!

But then he also encouraged the Christians to keep their eyes on those who walk according to the example that they had in Paul and in the other apostles. And this is where “the rubber meets the road,” so to speak, i.e. this is the most important point, i.e. the moment of truth. And this is where it is critical that we know and understand the truth of God’s word and what a genuine follower of Christ should look like. So we must be students of the Scriptures who study them in their appropriate context.

For the image being presented to us today of what a “good Christian” looks like is often the opposite of what the Scriptures teach us, and the opposite of what Paul and the other apostles modeled to us. For in today’s world we have this image of a good Christian as someone who is just a “good deed doer” and who is “nice” to everyone and who goes around just making people feel good about themselves. And this, too, is the image that many today are painting of Jesus Christ, which is not the truth.

Was Jesus kind? Yes, he was. And kindness is being willing to tell people the truth even if they end up hating you and murdering you in return, which is what they did to Jesus Christ. For they didn’t like it that he told them the truth about their lives and that he told them that they needed to change and that they needed to surrender their lives over to him to make him Lord of their lives. And they didn’t like it that he did not conform to their worldly standards and to their religious hypocrisy and to their human traditions.

So, it is critical that we follow the model that Paul provided for us as to what it means to be a Christian. And Paul, contrary to what many people are presenting of him, was not someone who was “struggling” with (regularly giving in to) sin. For he taught that if sin is our practice, and not righteousness, and not obedience to our Lord and to his commands, that we are not in true fellowship with Jesus Christ, and we will not inherit eternal life with God unless we repent and we obey our Lord, in practice.

So, be very careful about who you are listening to, and who you are following, for not everyone is of true faith in Jesus Christ who claims to be. Not everyone tells the truth. Liars and deceivers abound these days, in and out of the gatherings of “the church.” So learn to be those who test everything you read and hear against the teachings of the Scriptures, but do so within the appropriate context, and not out of context. For many lies are being perpetrated today via teaching Scriptures out of context.

Take for example, Ephesians 2:8-9 is being taught absent of verse 10, and so many are teaching that we are to do no works at all. But verse 10 dispels that by telling us that we are God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them. And John 10:28-30 is being taught absent of verse 27 which tells us that Jesus’ sheep listen (adhere) to him, he knows them, and they follow (obey) him, and they have eternal life, and they will never perish.

For Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin and to self) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our old lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if for Jesus’ sake we deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience, in practice, then we have the hope of eternal life. For he also said that not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven but the one DOING the will of God (Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).

[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 4:17-32; 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]

VOICE OF TRUTH

By Mark Hall & Steven Curtis Chapman
II Corinthians 12:7-10/I Corinthians 1:20-24

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I’m in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He’s holding out His hand

But the waves are calling out my name and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I’ve tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again, “Boy, you’ll never win!”
“You’ll never win!”

But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, “Do not be afraid!”
And the voice of truth says, “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth..

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I honestly don’t know what I’m going through. But it does feel like I’ve been cast out. I’m a faithful Christian who lives the typical Christian lifestyle. Bible, sermons, church, etc. But I know I sinned earlier this year and I honestly seek to change. I’ve already asked for forgiveness of my sin. However the circumstances of my situation are confusing as I had a biblical vision that lasted several days. It was awful. It went about as wrong as one could go. With that said, I was painting a car for several days straight. I don’t know if my vision was from paint fumes or some form of failed spiritual attack. I know my ventilation was poor. Plus I read online that it takes about 5 days for one’s body to rebound from paint fume exposure. But also Christians frequently have spiritual warfare. So I’m very unsure what I experienced.

I know the various Bible quotes about salvation is forever and also not being left or forsaken. But it doesn’t explain what I’m feeling. This is why I’m asking for prayers. Thank you.

Psychologists tell us that the practice of lying is universal (or nearly so) amongst humans. They also tell us this practice begins at a very young age. Parents with toddlers, or with long memories of having had toddlers, may well be able to relate to that. However, the object of this thread is not to debate the truth of these assertions. For the purposes of this discussion I would like you to take these as true. I wish to discuss whether the practice of lying differs between participation in forums such as this and how it is practiced in "real life".

In the real world I periodically lie. I do not know to what extent my lying compares with human norms. Do I lie more frequently, or tell much bigger whoppers than the average human? I don't know. I like to think that my lying is less intensive than average, but I would like to think that wouldn't I? (I reviewed my interactions yesterday and the closest I can come to a lie was in omitting to truthfully tell a high pressure salesman that I was not making a decision today because I did not entirely trust what he was telling me.)

And finally I get to the point. I have, as far as I am able to recall, despite telling lies in the real world from time to time I have never told a lie on this forum, or on any other forum several of which I was active on for over a decade and a half. I find this odd and am uncertain as to what compels me to be scrupulously truthful online, but not elsewhere. I have some thoughts, but I would welcome suggestions as to what you think might be the cause. Also, if you feel comfortable doing so, comment on whether you have had similar experiences. And if any of you can identify an instance in any of my posts where I demonstrably lied that would be helpful, as it would remove the anomalous contrast.

Every single story I hear goes something like this.
Someone grew up in a family that was religious, they went to Church and did Church activities, they never took it seriously or wanted to go to Church but went because their family made them, and now as they got older, they no longer go.

So now according to them they left the faith, even though in the beginning they seemed to want nothing to do with, and they have no mention of having a life changing spiritual experience or believing in God or Jesus with all their heart at one time, it all centered around "Church activities" whatever that means, and them no longer wanting to go.

We must ask, what does it mean to be a Christian? Does it mean to go to a Church one time, and be raised in a family of people who say they are Christians?

Now if they said they believed in Jesus and God with all their heart at one time in the past and no longer do, then that's a different story. But they never imply or claim they did, only that they went to a Chruch building.

I try to be kind to everyone, even when they don't speak kindly to me. But the toughest thing is to speak with non-believers because as soon as I mention God or Jesus, they no longer want to speak. That's not what they want to hear, but as it is a huge part of my life, it's mostly what I talk about. And so I'm finding it difficult to make friends and find a romantic partner because of this. Now I don't want a non-believer as a romantic partner anyway, so that doesn't really matter. But it's so difficult to find faithful people. People who actually know the Bible and live by Biblical principles. The same thing goes for friends. And I'm not sure where to look, so all I feel like I can do is trust God that the right people will cross my path at the right time. Any advice is welcome. Thanks for listening, my fellow believers. May God bring you blessings and joy.

“He was ordered removed by an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office of Immigration Review Sept. 24, 2020, and was removed to Mexico Sept. 29, 2020,” the immigration rep said.
“At an unknown date and location Ortiz-Vite reentered the United States without inspection by an immigration official.”
Ortiz-Vite has now been charged with felony murder, open murder, carjacking, carrying a concealed weapon, and felony use of a firearm after Garcia’s bullet-riddled body was found on US 131 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, around 11:40 p.m. Friday.

Border policies have consequences.

Hi, I'm Ingrid Guerci. This is my first post here. I hope to participate in some interesting discussions. I enjoy gardening, hiking, watch movie, photography, and an am avid reader.

The Venezuelan TikToker who went viral last month after defending illegal immigrant criminals and urging migrants to squat in U.S. homes is now on the run from immigration authorities, according to a new report.

Leonel Moreno has claimed that his family, which includes his wife and young daughter, has received $350 a week in government handouts since entering the U.S. illegally.

On top of that, he had claimed to be making $1,000 a day as a TikTok influencer. However, his account, which at one point had more than 500,000 followers, appeared inactive Wednesday morning. His verified Instagram account, however, has about 17,000 followers and posted two videos Wednesday morning showing him waving a stack of $100 bills as he posed with his baby girl.
Moreno allegedly cut off his ankle monitor after receiving border parole and is now listed as an "absconder" from immigration authorities, the New York Post reported Wednesday, citing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) documents.

ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Moreno reportedly received border parole in April 2022 as part of the government's Alternatives to Detention program, which is supposed to track catch-and-release migrants when there is not enough room to detain them.

Moreno previously told his audience he planned to make a business out of "invading" abandoned houses and taking them over with squatters' rights laws, then selling them for a profit.

Most of us should be aware by now that we are in the middle a war against the globalists and that Trump and his team are the tip of spear in this war , along with over 200 generals in over 30 countries all helping to destroy the globalist infrastructure.

Anyway one part of that infrastructure is underground tunnels that are all around the world used for child trafficking and other evils , and from what i'm hearing , the soldiers fighting in these tunnels are not just fighting against humans but non humans as well , some say they are chimeras.

Also I am hearing that the globalists through their puppet governments have been hiding things from us like cures for cancer , alternative energy etc.
And that they have also been hiding from us people that they call non human entities or off worlders. Apparently there not calling them aliens because the entities are telling them that they have always been here , even before us and that they live underground , also in Antarctica I believe.

Now the point is , the talk out there is that once Trump is back in office , and he will be , then all of this stuff that has been hidden from us is going to be revealed , including the non human entities that are going to share their technology and lots of other wonderful things with us.

The majority of secular society are exited by all this and can't wait for us to begin OUR NWO once this war is won.
And many of them are into new age thinking , tarot cards , crystals etc.

Obviously what looks good to them is not looking too good to me , because i'm thinking bible prophecy. So what are your thoughts on the matter?