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Mon 26/02/2024 16:24

PSALM 113 By David Ettinger
诗篇113篇 作者 大卫·艾丁格

The Psalm Universe
诗篇的世界
In that wonderful universe of the biblical Psalms, we certainly have our “biggies.”
在圣经中诗篇的美丽星空中，也有属于我们自己的“大星球”。
For primarily theological reasons, these include Psalms 2, 22, and 110.
关于基要的神学原理的，是诗篇第2、22以及110篇。
We also have the “heavies,” those dealing with guilt and sin.
我们也有一些“重量级的”，对付我们的亏欠乃至罪。
Central among these is Psalm 51, with other worthy candidates being Psalms 6, 38, and 130.
这其中居于中央的当属第51篇，当然第6、38以及130篇与之相比也是伯仲之间。
We also have the dark “imprecatory” Psalms, those in which curses are pronounced on enemies. These include Psalms 35, 83, 109, and 140.
我们也有一些针对仇敌发出诅咒的诗篇，这包括第35、83、109以及第140篇。
And, of course, there are just the flat-out long ones. These include Psalms 78, 89, 18, and the longest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 119.
当然还有一些超长篇，比如第78、89和第18篇，以及当选正本圣经最长章节的第119篇。
There are also a host of small Psalms which fall into various categories, but because they are brief, they hardly get noticed.
有相当一部分小型诗篇可以同时列入不同类型当中，但因为它们篇幅过小，往往很难吸引注意力。
However, one of these little psalms recently caught my attention. It is Psalm 113, and as far as I’m concerned, it is one terrific, little psalm!
然而其中一篇最近引起了我的关注，这就是第113篇，而且就我而言，这完全可以算的上是一篇极其精美的小诗歌！



Verses 1-3: Praising the Lord
Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, you his servants; praise the name of the Lord. Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised. |
第一至第三节：赞美主。
你们要赞美耶和华！耶和华的仆人哪，你们要赞美，赞美耶和华的名！耶和华的名是应当称颂的，从今时直到永远！从日出之地到日落之处，耶和华的名是应当赞美的！

What I love about this brisk start is that the command to praise God issues forth without compromise or explanation. The assumption is that God is who He is, and this alone is cause for praise. Of course, the admonition to praise the Lord is not directed at just anyone, but at “his servants,” those who know Him, love Him, adore Him, and serve Him. Praise and adoration are God’s rights, and He expects those who are His to thankfully and joyfully render it unto Him.
我喜欢这种及其简洁的开篇方式，就是那种发自内心的诉求，就是要赞美主，不需要任何妥协或者多余的赘述。这表明主就是主，他自己就是赞美的唯一理由。值得注意的是，这种赞美的行为主体不是任意的人，而是“他的仆人”，那些认识他，爱他，仰慕他而且服侍他的人。赞美和敬拜是主的权利，他希望那些属于他的人心怀感激的，喜乐的奉献给他。

Furthermore, we are told that praising God is to be our occupation for eternity. From the moment He brought us into a relationship with Him, we were to praise and adore Him. And we’re never to stop – in both this life and the next! We are to engage in a lifestyle of praise and worship, with the Lord at all time being at the summit of our thoughts.
它甚至告诉我们赞美主就是获得永生的方式。从他拣选我们与他联结的那一刻算起，我们就应该赞美他、尊崇他。而且我们永远不要停歇下来，无论是今生还是来世！我们开始了这种赞美和敬拜的生活方式，这种方式让我们时时刻刻把主放在我们思想的至高处。

Eternal praise includes daily praise, as we are to do so “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets” – from sunup to sundown. This does not mean we must spend every moment of every day praising God; this is impossible. However, we are to place God at the center of our existence, acknowledging and remembering him throughout every day, regardless of how busy or stressful it is.
永世的赞美意味着每一天的赞美，是因着那句“从日出之地到日落之处”中的从日出到日落。这不意味着我们需要花费每一天中的每一分秒去赞美，这真的很难实现。然而我们需要把主放在我们存在的中心，无论我们的生活有多么忙，或者生活的压力有多么大，每天都来铭记和念想他。

Verses 4-6: The Majesty of the Lord
The Lord is exalted over all the nations, His glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?
第4至第6节：主的大能
主超乎万民之上，他的荣耀高过诸天。又有谁能像我主耶和华，谁像耶和华─我们的　神呢？他坐在至高之处，自己谦卑，观看天上地下的事。

This truly is a majestic passage as we are reminded of God’s glory and power. What are the most powerful entities you can think of? Governments? Nations? Armies? Guess what, God is far mightier than all the nations of the earth combined. In fact, He reigns over them, and even scoffs at them (Psalm 2:4).
这节甚至可谓鸿篇巨著，来提醒我们知道主的荣耀和力量。你能想到的最高权威是什么呢？政府？国家？或者军队？要知道，我们的主比那些地球所有国家组成的联合部队更有力量。事实上，他管辖他们，甚至奚落他们（诗篇2:4）

God dwarfs the earth by His majesty, but surely He has met His match in Heaven itself. After all, the greatest of human minds cannot make a dent in comprehending the vastness and magnitude of the heavens. Surely even God looks at the heavenlies with awe. Not so! Not only does God not marvel at the vast infinitude of the “great beyond,” but He must “stoop down” to even view them. No, God doesn’t actually stoop; this is an example of hyperbole (exaggerated language to demonstrate a point). The picture, however, is clear: as vast and mighty as the heavens are, they are but as anthills to God, so much mightier is He than are they.
凭借他的大能，上帝使世界变得渺小，但是他能与天国相比吗？毕竟，最强大脑也猜不透天堂的边际在哪里。即便是主他自己，面对天国时也是带着敬畏的。不但如此，主不但瞠目惊叹于这种无边无际，更要放低自己的身段看待天国。并不是主真的屈尊，而是一种夸张的例子（为了阐释某种观点而使用夸张的文字）。可以肯定的是，即便天国至高至大，但相形于造物主，便形同虚无，因为我们的主胜过万有，高于一切。

Verses 7-9: The Blessings of the Lord
He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes, with the princes of his people. He settles the childless woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord.
第7至第9节：主的祝福
他从灰尘里抬举贫寒人，从粪堆中提拔穷乏人，使他们与王子同坐，就是与本国的王子同坐。他使不能生育的妇人安居家中，为多子的乐母。你们要赞美耶和华！

Despite God’s might and majesty, He is still a lover of men and women, and is not too “big” to care intensely about we “little ones” here on planet Earth. Therefore, He raises us spiritually from the “ash heap” – the eternal death sentence of sin – and gives us eternal life with Him in Heaven, where we will be equal to the “princes” of this life. In blissful eternity – made possible by the shed blood of Jesus Christ – we will take our place among the princes of the faith: Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, and so many more who have been lifted from the ash heap. We will worship our King side-by-side for eternity.
尽管主是无所不能的至高者，但他仍然钟爱着世人，这种天壤之别也不能阻隔他对我们的关心。因此，他从尘土——也就是那种罪的终极审判，永久的死亡中——将我们的灵提升起来，赐给我们与他同住天国的福分，让我们得永生。在永恒的极乐中，因为基督耶稣的宝血变为可能，我们也会变得像亚伯拉罕，雅各布，约瑟夫，摩西，大卫，以赛亚，杰里米亚以及向他们那样的信心的王子，并被主将我们从灰尘中提升起来。为着那永生，我们将会肩并肩，一起敬拜我们的国王。

The “childless woman” – a metaphor for spiritual condemnation – will become the “mother of children.” Before we came to Christ, we were spiritually barren – bereft of God and damned. But after bowing the knee to Christ, we are blessed with the fruit of salvation, our spiritual barrenness banished forever.
“没有孩子的女人”——一个被定罪的比喻——将会变成“孩子们的母亲”。在我们还没有来到基督面前时，我们精神上是贫瘠的，被主唾弃和定罪的。但自从我们屈膝承认基督那一刻起，我们被祝福，得到了解救的果实，我们在精神上的不结果子的状态完全不复存在。

Between the recognition of God’s majesty and the gratitude we feel from all He has done for us, how can we not “Praise the Lord”!
既然我们意识到了主的大能，有感恩我们所能感知到的他为我们做的一切，我们怎么能够不“赞美主”！

Ah, Psalm 113. Now that’s one terrific, little psalm!
啊，诗篇第113篇，真是一篇短小却又绝美的诗歌啊！



WHAT JESUS WENT THROUGH.. FOR YOU
耶稣为你经历了什么
At the age of 33, Jesus was condemned to the death penalty. At the time crucifixion was the "worst" death. Only the worst criminals were condemned to be crucified. Jesus was to be nailed to the cross by His hands and feet. Each nail was 6 to 8 inches long. The nails were driven into His wrist, not into His palms as is commonly portrayed. There's a tendon in the wrist that extends to the shoulder. The Roman guards knew that when the nails were being hammered into the wrist, that tendon would tear and break, forcing Jesus to use His back muscles to support himself so that He could breathe.
在其33岁的时候，耶稣被判处死刑。当时，受钉十字架而死是“最糟糕的”死法。只有最坏的罪犯才会被判处钉十字架。耶稣的手和脚被钉在十字架上。每个钉子长6到8英寸。钉子钉在他的手腕上，而不是通常所说的手掌。手腕上有一条筋延伸到肩膀。罗马兵丁知道，当钉子钉在手腕上时，那条筋就会撕裂和破裂，迫使耶稣使用其背部肌肉来支撑自己，以使他还能呼吸。
Both of His feet were nailed together. Thus He was forced to support Himself on the single nail that impaled His feet to the cross. Jesus could not support himself with His legs because of the pain, so He was forced to alternate between arching His back then using his legs just to continue to breathe. Imagine the struggle, the pain, the suffering, the courage.
他的双脚被钉在一起。因此，他只好用将其双脚钉住十字架的单个钉子，来支撑自己身体的重量。因为太痛，耶稣不能用双腿支撑自己身体的重量，所以他被迫交替拱起他的背部，然后使用他的双腿，只是为了能继续呼吸。想象一下那种挣扎、疼痛、痛苦和需要的勇气。
Jesus endured this reality for over 3 hours. Yes, over 3 hours! Can you imagine this kind of suffering? A few minutes before He died, Jesus stopped bleeding. He was simply pouring water from his wounds.
耶稣忍受这种痛苦长达3个多小时。是的，超过3个小时！你能想象这种痛苦吗？他死前几分钟，耶稣停止流血。他的伤口只是在淌水。
From common images, we see wounds to His hands and feet and even the spear wound to His side... But do we realize His wounds were actually made in his body. A hammer driving large nails through the wrist, the feet overlapped and an even large nail hammered through the arches, then a Roman guard piercing His side with a spear. But before the nails and the spear, Jesus was whipped and beaten. The whipping was so severe that it tore the flesh from His body. The beating so horrific that His face was torn and his beard ripped from His face. The crown of thorns cut deeply into His scalp. Most men would not have survived this torture. He had no more blood to bleed out, only water poured from His wounds. The human adult body contains about 3.5 liters (just less than a gallon) of blood.
从一般的图片上，我们看到他手脚上的伤口，甚至他腰上被枪刺的伤口...但我们认识到他的伤口实际上是在他的身上。用锤子将大钉子钉在手腕上，双脚重叠，用一根大钉子穿过足弓，然后罗马兵丁用枪刺穿他的腰。但在使用钉子和枪之前，耶稣曾被鞭打和殴打。鞭打是如此严重，以致从他的身上撕下肉来。殴打如此可怕，以致他的脸撕破，他的胡子从他的脸上扯掉。荆棘的冠冕深深地切入他的头皮。大多数人不会幸免于这种折磨。他的血都流尽了，他的伤口只能淌水了。我们人类成年人的身体含有约3.5升（仅少于1加仑）的血液。
Jesus poured all 3.5 liters of his blood; He had three nails hammered into His members; a crown of thorns on His headband, beyond that, a Roman soldier who stabbed a spear into His chest. All these without mentioning the humiliation He passed after carrying His own cross for almost 2 kilometers, while the crowd spat in his face and threw stones (the cross was almost 30 kg of weight, only for its higher part, where His hands were nailed)
耶稣流尽了所有3.5升的血;他的身上钉了三个钉子;他的头上带着荆棘冠冕，除此之外，一个罗马士兵把枪刺入他的胸口。所有这些没有提及他所受到的羞辱。耶稣携带他自己的十字架后走了近2公里，而且过程中，有人朝他的脸上吐痰、扔石头（十字架几乎重30公斤，并只是到钉耶稣的双手的较高的地方）
Worse of all of the above, was the wrath from his Father he had to endure. God's righteous anger was poured out upon him.. the righteous one.. to save us.. we who had no righteousness, but Jesus took our place, he took our punishment. God's justice and holiness were satisfied, so that his mercy and grace could be given to fallen man.
上面所有的情况中最糟糕的是，耶稣必须得忍受他的天父的烈怒。上帝的公义愤怒倾倒在他身上...义人...以拯救救我们...我们没有公义，但耶稣代替我们，承担了我们该受的惩罚。上帝的公义和圣洁得以满足，所以上帝的慈爱和恩典可以赐给堕落的人。
Jesus had to endure this experience, so that we can have free access to God. So that our sins could be "washed"away. All of them, with no exception!
耶稣必须忍受这种经历，以使我们能够自由接近上帝。以使我们的罪能“洗净”。所有的罪，没有例外！
JESUS CHRIST DIED FOR US! He died for us! Let us forever worship Him and give thanks forever and worship at His feet.
What will ye do with this Jesus?
Will you respond like the thief and the religious leaders who cursed him?
Will you wash your hands of him like Pilate?
Will you mock Him like Herod?
耶稣为我们而死！他为我们死了！让我们永远敬拜他，永远感谢他，并匍匐在他的脚下敬拜。
你会如何对待耶稣？
你会像强盗和咒诅他的宗教领袖那样回应吗？
你会像本丢彼拉多那样逃避处死耶稣的责任吗？
你会像希律那样讥笑他吗？
OR
Will you accept Him as the Son of God.. like the Centurion and the second thief?
The most important question ever is WHAT THINK YE OF CHRIST?
The answer will determine, where you will spend eternity
或者
你会像百夫长和第二个强盗那样，接受耶稣作为上帝的儿子吗？
最重要的问题是你如何看待基督？
答案将决定你是永远待在天堂还是地狱


SOAK IN SCRIPTURE

CHINESE

神的主权

Rev. Darryl Dedert

圣传归正教会改革宗华语堂

sermonaudio.com/sermon/22224232636918

长久的安慰

Rev. John Byl

圣传归正教会改革宗华语堂

sermonaudio.com/sermon/222242320225792

与神关系的首要诫命 The First Commandment Concerning the Relationship with God

Rev. Simon Yin

圣传归正教会改革宗华语堂

sermonaudio.com/sermon/218242113424524

如何遵行第一诫命 How to Obey the First Commandment

Rev. Simon Yin

圣传归正教会改革宗华语堂

sermonaudio.com/sermon/24242112361441


ENGLISH

Unconventional Warfare

Steven Lee | United Prayer Meditations

Daily United Prayer

sermonaudio.com/sermon/224241443242490

Taking Hold of God in Prayer

Dr. Joel Beeke | United Prayer Meditations

Daily United Prayer

sermonaudio.com/sermon/1292416561352

The Attraction of Christ

Ian Macleod

Hope Reformed Church

sermonaudio.com/sermon/22524239146772


God Knows All Things

Owen Alford

Christ Bible Church

sermonaudio.com/sermon/22624713482272



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Luke 15:11-24 ESV


I am most certain that all of us, if we have lived for very long, have some regrets over things done and/or said in the past. I know that I do. But we can’t go back into the past and undo those things, can we? At least not in real life. Maybe in science-fiction movies, we can, but not in reality. We can’t change history. What is done is done and what was said was said and we can’t make it disappear, no matter how hard we may try.

But we can make attempts at righting the wrongs done, where possible, under the direction of the Holy Spirit. We can confess wrongdoing, and truly repent of what we did, and seek forgiveness from those we sinned against in the past… But let me back up for a minute here. Whenever we sin against God or against other humans we should repent (turn away from) our sins and now go the opposite direction, by the grace of God. That is a given!

But repentance, if it is genuine, is not just a change of mind, but it is a change of mind resulting in a change of behavior. It is a lot like making a U-turn in a road. You were traveling one direction, but now you are traveling in the opposite direction. But you don’t keep making U-turn after U-turn and go back and forth between “sin, confess, sin, confess,” etc. But this doesn’t make us perfect or mean that we will never sin again, but true repentance does not stay on a sinful course, repeating the same sins over again.

The beautiful thing about the prodigal son is that he saw the error of his ways and he truly repented of his sins. He came to himself (to his senses), this tells us. But those who continue in their sinful practices have not yet come to their senses, for their past is not really past. They may have short periods of time when they take pauses, but then they continue on in the same deliberate and habitual sins against God and against other humans. No true repentance! No true humility! And just saying, “Sorry,” doesn’t do it.

The beautiful thing about this story is that, even though the man did what was evil in the sight of God, and he wandered and he went his own way, for a time, God, who is represented by the father in this story, received him back with open arms because he returned to the father, and he humbled himself and was willing to become a servant, and he recognized his own unworthiness. But when God forgives, he forgives, and he wipes the slate clean so that we can now walk in victory over darkness and now walk in the light of God’s love and grace.

But his forgiveness of our sins is not free license to continue in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord. The Scriptures are quite clear that if sin is what we practice, i.e. what we keep going back to over and over again, and if obedience to our Lord and holy living are not our practice, that we do not truly know God. We are not in genuine relationship with the Lord Jesus. And we will not inherit eternal life with God unless we truly repent (turn away from) those sins to now follow him in obedience to his commands.

Now the Lord Jesus put a song in my mind this morning that is a secular song put out by a father-daughter duo who started singing together in 2020 during the Covid pandemic. And they have become immensely popular. They both have beautiful voices. And in the song they are discussing how they are thinking about the future and the past, but how time keeps on turning, and how they keep on learning. And they came to the conclusion that they can’t change the past, and they really don’t know what the future holds for them, and so they would rather be here in the present.

And it is true that we can’t go back in time and undo what was done. And we have only some control over what happens to us in the future. But what we can do in the present is to not continue to live in the past and to not keep repeating the same sins over again. We can make that spiritual U-turn in our lives and now live in the present, in the here and now, by the grace of God, in his power, strength, and wisdom. And we can be someone else, not the same person we were before. We just have to humble ourselves before God and become his servants by making him Lord of our lives. We just have to turn or return to him and he will receive us, like this father did his son.

[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 5:16-21; 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]

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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Jesus said After the tribulation Matthew 24:29 I am Post trib pre wrath believer in Jesus. If someone disagrees and is Pre trib that's fine, you can be saved and be pre trib. and Post tribbers dont make it a salvation issue. you are still. brother in Christ. It is the pre trib people who teach with this cult like false gospel that you must be pre trib or you're not saved, or they will break fellowship with you, and they mock. and that's wrong. Because the truth is not on their side they have to threaten you. when the Bible clearly says after the tribulation scores of verses but Matthew 24 is the most damning because it's coming from Lord Jesus Christ directly.

Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Mark 13:24-25 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Rushing Wind - Keith Green

Rushing Wind blow through this temple
Blowing out the dust within
Come and breathe Your breath upon me
I've been born again

Holy Spirit, I surrender
Take me where You want to go
Plant me by your living waters
Plant me deep so I can grow

Jesus you're the One
Who set my spirit free
Use me, Lord
Glorify Your Holy Name through me

Separate me from this world, Lord
Sanctify my life for You
Daily change me to Your image
Help me bear good fruit

Every day You're drawing closer
Trials come to test my faith
But when all is said and done, Lord
You know, it's been worth the wait

Jesus, You're the One
Who set my spirit free
Use me, Lord
Glorify Your Holy Name through me

Rushing Wind blow through this temple
Blowing out the dust within
Come and breathe Your breath upon me
For I've been born again

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Kirk Cameron has some thoughts on what it really means to "turn the other cheek."
The actor said intolerance, at least when it comes to evil and tyranny, is, in fact, a “very essential Christian virtue,” one which, he added, America’s founding fathers espoused.

In a Feb. 21 appearance on the “Timcast IRL” podcast with Tim Pool, Cameron touched upon a number of topics, including his fight against “religious viewpoint discrimination” in public libraries and Noah Webster’s Christian influence on education.
But it was in response to Pool’s apparent reference to a Christian Post story earlier this month about his comments on conservative Christians playing a role in America's decline by being “tolerant and accepting” that led to a lively conversation between Pool and Cameron.

Crediting a 2023 speech by entrepreneur Patrick Bet David for his comments, Pool summarized David's speech as essentially saying, “Christians in this country are good people who keep saying OK to these people, being tolerant, allowing them to live the way they want to live.
"But what happens is they push more into the institutions, they introduce dangerous, bad ideas, they start targeting kids, and now we're here where we are today."

Cameron responded by saying “turn the other cheek” and “love your neighbor” were never intended to allow for the tolerance of evil.

“… I see so many who are just tolerating evil and that’s not loving your neighbor,” he said. “At the end of the day, the two great Commandments of Christianity are to love God with all of your heart, mind, soul and strength, and the second is like it, to love your neighbor as yourself.

“If you 'tolerate' the kinds of things that bring misery to your neighbors and ultimately strip them of their liberties, you're not loving them.”
As an example, he cited Just War Theory, followed by most Christians for over a thousand years, which states that if you believe your enemy is preparing to attack, you are justified in defending your own people by attacking first.

Cameron said the Constitution is another means of mitigating against overreach by tyrants.
“We don't tolerate tyranny, either from the outside or the inside, and that is a very essential Christian virtue, is to not tolerate that type of thing,” he added.

Hi,

So imo the hardest job as a christian is to love your neighbour and fellow christian.
Thing is we sometimes want our circle of friends to be small, we select our circle of friends, we dont want to deal with some people sometimes.
Is not that we hate them, thing is the difference could be to many or great that we don't have the energy and patience to deal with some people.
Our love is imperfect, we are only human. God's love is perfect, Jesus love is perfect that is why he could deal with all types of people.

Br,

Inflation has changed the way many Americans shop. Now, those changes in consumer habits are helping bring down inflation.
Fed up with prices that remain about 19%, on average, above where they were before the pandemic, consumers are fighting back. In grocery stores, they're shifting away from name brands to store-brand items, switching to discount stores or simply buying fewer items like snacks or gourmet foods.
More Americans are buying used cars, too, rather than new, forcing some dealers to provide discounts on new cars again. But the growing consumer pushback to what critics condemn as price-gouging has been most evident with food as well as with consumer goods like paper towels and napkins.

In recent months, consumer resistance has led large food companies to respond by sharply slowing their price increases from the peaks of the past three years. This doesn't mean grocery prices will fall back to their levels of a few years ago, though with some items, including eggs, apples and milk, prices are below their peaks. But the milder increases in food prices should help further cool overall inflation, which is down sharply from a peak of 9.1% in 2022 to 3.1%.
Public frustration with prices has become a central issue in President Joe Biden’s bid for re-election. Polls show that despite the dramatic decline in inflation, many consumers are unhappy that prices remain so much higher than they were before inflation began accelerating in 2021.

Biden has echoed the criticism of many left-leaning economists that corporations jacked up their prices more than was needed to cover their own higher costs, allowing themselves to boost their profits. The White House has also attacked “shrinkflation,” whereby a company, rather than raising the price of a product, instead shrinks the amount inside the package. In a video released on Super Bowl Sunday, Biden denounced shrinkflation as a “rip-off.”
Consumer pushback against high prices suggests to many economists that inflation should further ease. That would make this bout of inflation markedly different from the debilitating price spikes of the 1970s and early 1980s, which took longer to defeat. When high inflation persists, consumers often develop an inflationary psychology: Ever-rising prices lead them to accelerate their purchases before costs rise further, a trend that can itself perpetuate inflation.

“That was the fear — that everybody would tolerate higher prices,” said Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY, a consulting firm, who notes that it hasn't happened. “I don't think we've moved into a high inflation regime.”
Instead, this time many consumers have reacted like Stuart Dryden, a commercial underwriter at a bank who lives in Arlington, Virginia. On a recent trip to his regular grocery store, Dryden, 37, pointed out big price disparities between Kraft Heinz-branded products and their store-label competitors, which he now favors.

Most of what is written about Christian Nationalism is silly. Critics and analysts sweepingly deride conventional Christian conservatives as Christian Nationalists. By some counts, there are, by this definition, tens of millions of Christian Nationalists. Sometimes even civil religion, with its homage to a vague deity, is labeled Christian Nationalism. If so, all presidents from George Washington to Joe Biden are Christian nationalists. Sometimes the target is folk religionists who conflate God and country.

They sometimes sport paraphernalia with American flags draped around the cross. These folk religionists typically aren’t aware they are Christian nationalists. They don’t publish articles, much less books. And they typically don’t have policy agendas, just an attitude that God and country should be interchangeably honored.

But some more intellectual Americans do consciously self-identify as Christian Nationalists. Politico has published an article about two of them. But unhelpfully the article does not explain distinctions and, like a hundred other articles, focuses on a combination of Christian conservative and New Right views held by their subjects without defining why they call themselves Christian Nationalists.

Christian Nationalism is distinct from conventional Christian conservatism. The former are typically post-liberals who want some level of explicit state-established Christianity. The latter have been and largely still are classical liberals who affirm traditional American concepts of full religious liberty for all. Both groups want a “Christian America.” But the former want it by statute. The latter see it as mainly a demographic, historical, and cultural reality.

What are y'alls thoughts and opinions about this?

I just wanted to share with my Orthodox Brothers and Sisters this photo of how the candle wax formed into the shape of The Cross during my evening prayers tonight. It really comforted my heart.

Has he popped in?
Did I miss him?

Proverbs 6:16-17 God hates hands that shed innocent blood, Life begins at conception that is a living. being that embryo, is living. over and over in the bible you see it say "and she conceived seed" this is another reason not to vote, or care about these wicked leaders people vote in, "Trump" says IVF is good, listen God will judge this country. they think it is good to go kill the embryos flush them down the toilet if they are deformed , it's like eugenics. and so many "Pro life" politicians come out and support IVF, love IVF. Stem cell research is straight out of the pits of hell, you're not right with God if you support it. and the so called conservatives supporting this have blood on their hands

Trump loves IVF

This is what is coming soon to America from God:

Hosea 13:16 “Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.”

They wants to rip up and exterminate babies, well the bible says God will rip up the womb and the children that they did decide to keep and not flush down a toilet, or throw in the trash.

Hello,

I returned to Jesus Christ almost 12 years ago when I repented all of my sins. I found this website the other day when I was searching for something else, and this forum showed up on the search engine.

God bless.

A quote from the early modern philosopher, Nicolas Malebranche "To be a faithful Christian one must believe blindly; but to be a philosopher one must see evidently."
(From Concerning the Search After Truth)


Do any of y'all have thoughts on these two claims? Is it the case that Christians believe blindly? Must a philosopher "see evidently."
(I take the second claim to be an epistemic one requiring an evidenced foundation, i.e., clear and distinct ideas in the Cartesian fashion. Of course, for Malebranche, this includes God's extra-experiential guarantee)

For me, both claims are too strong, regardless of context. I don't see Christian faith as being without reason, which I take "blind faith" to entail. If blind faith simply means *lack of certainty,* which it likely did for Malebranche, then the claim tells its age, imo.

Malebranch was a convinced believer, and he was also a Cartesian. Like Descartes, he was enamored with the idea of certainty and securing everything down to a certain foundation. If a belief couldn't be secured in some way to certainty, it was not knowledge- strictly speaking. I don't have that kind of epistemic standard. I'm not sure it's possible, and I certainly don't see philosophy as needing a certain foundation in that sense. I'm happy if things are reasonable and not obviously false. We know all kinds of things that can be doubted.

As an aside, Malebranche's occasionalism seems unnecessary and only exacerbates the dualism, but I would agree God guarantees veracity. It just think the divine guarantee is through the created order and not in spite of it or along with it. His occasionalism seems very ad hoc and unhelpful.

I do think both Christian faith and philosophy should proceed in the light of the available evidence, whatever that may be. There has to be some coherence between the availble evidence and my faith. If it is certain, then it must be included. And I think our degree of credulity in the evidence should track its evidentiary value. For instance, if the evidence is strong, I should have a similar credence of belief. But all veritable/credible evidence to which I have access should be a viable aspect of my faith and/or philosophy. Depending on the level of credulity required, I can't simply reject evidence as false because it doesn't seem to fit.

Of course, I see things that way because of my faith, i.e., all truth has one Source. Does that article of faith make it blind, then? I don't think so. First, I have reasons for thinking one Source makes sense. But I also don't think any of us can escape making ontological claims/commitments on the world, i.e. large assumptions about reality, and I don't think we can be certain of the ontological claims we make. No matter how one sees the world, a step of faith is being made somewhere epistemically important. I don't think that's all blind faith. I mean, we all have our reasons. And, I think many people today can live with a lack of certainty. That's where I think many have moved beyond the Cartesian obsession with certainty as an epistemic requirement. Since the time of Malebranche, we have a new physical account that allows for uncertainty. A lot has changed. Certainly for me, I think we can have reasonable faith and a less than certain philosophy.

I'm new here. I used to go to church when I was growing up, but fell away when it closed. It's almost 20 years later and I want to explore my faith again. I am lonely too, so I hope I can make some friends here as well. I look forward to meeting you all.

"The brutal murderer who took the life of Laken was one of the millions of illegal aliens that the Biden Administration simply released and unleashed upon our country," Johnson wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
It is hard for me to come to grips with the fact that there are still quite a few Americans who support the horrifying Biden administration border polices. All of the criminals, the fentanyl deaths, the mental patients, the terrorists, and now the flow of well-dressed Chinese men of military age and still a large number of Democrats still support Joe. So too they remain silent at the government abuses against those who stand up to policies of the Democrats.

Other cities in California are seeking to expand the ability for non-citizens to vote. In the November 2024 general election, voters in Santa Ana, located in Southern California’s Orange County, will decide whether or not to allow illegal immigrants to vote in all city elections.
They can find people to run the elections who don't care about the election complaints of American citizens.

I only speak English so I probably will make a fool of myself here over my Greek question but I can’t find a satisfactory answer anywhere.

Revelation 9:21 talks of sorceries but when I use a Greek lexicon I find pharmakeia which to an English speaker I would have assumed to be related to pharmaceuticals. Commentaries explain it away as sorcerers using drugs in their witchcraft.

When I looked up modern Greek translations and imported the same verse into Google translate it gave the word “drugs”.

There is a big difference at least in modern language between drugs and sorcery. Can anyone who is a native Greek speaker (modern Greek) explain to me how that verse reads in your bible and how you interpret it and in Greek speaking countries is this verse (and other verses using the same word) understood differently than in English speaking countries?

please pray

The Mi Amore convention was closed by organizers early Saturday after officers arrived at the venue in the Russian capital, despite police being unable to find evidence of illegal activity.

wanted for questioning

TEARS THAT TOUCH THE WORLD
感动世界的泪水
“But if you will not listen to it, My soul will sob in secret for such pride; And my eyes will bitterly weep and flow down withtears, because the flock of the Lord has been taken captive…Jeremiah 13:17.”
你们若不听这话，我必因你们的骄傲在暗地哭泣，我眼必痛哭流泪，因为耶和华的群众被掳去了。 耶利米书 13:17

What is it that makes a true prophet of God? A true prophet walks with God, witnesses for God and warns the people. Yes, he does all of these things and more. But the main and defining characteristic of every prophet of God is tears because he/she weeps the very tears of God.
神真正的先知是什么？真正的先知与神同行，为神做见证，警示人们。是的，他做所有这些事并且更多，但神的每个先知最主要的，最典型的特征是眼泪，因为他/她流淌的是神的眼泪。

Maybe some of you have Jeremiah's in your church. He/she is always warning people. Everything is going well but still he/she urges you to return to faith. He stands up in church meetings and says you need to pray instead of spending thousands on some church activity. You want to lock this person up. This is what happened to Jeremiah. Everyone was saying to Him, please shut up.
也许你们中一些人在教会读过耶利米书，他/她一直在提醒人们。一切都很好，但他/她仍然督促你回到信心中来。他在教会聚会时站在那里说你需要祷告，而不是在一些教会活动中花费数千元，你想要把这个人关起来，这就是耶利米书中发生的事。每个人都对他说，请闭嘴。

If your tears are from the heart of God, they will affect the view you have of your nation. The true prophet of God will say things that are totally against the prevailing view of the world and indeed many in the church.
如果你的眼泪来自于神的心灵，他们就会影响你对你国家的看法。神真正的先知会说与世界现存观点完全不同的事情，教会中的许多事情也是如此。

How many of the so-called prophets in the church today are preaching with tears? Lots of preachers are loud. They shout. But it is not how loud the voice of the prophet is; it is the number of tears he/she sheds.
如今教会中多少所谓的先知是用眼泪传道的呢？许多传道者在大声喊叫，他们声音很大，但主要并不在于先知的声音有多么大，而在于他们洒了多少泪水。

Let me finish with this. First, a word to the people in fivefold ministry - the shepherds of the church. When was the last time that you wept? When was the last time you preached through your tears in agony? Are you acting like a Jeremiah in your pulpit - preaching with tears? When was the last time you agonized before God for your church?
让我们以此结尾。对教会中的羊群所说的话会产生五倍事工。你最后一次哭泣是什么时候呢？你最后一次在痛苦中用你的眼泪传道是什么时候呢？你像耶利米一样在你的讲坛上讲道吗？用眼泪传道吗？你最后一次因为你的教会，在神面前感到极度痛苦是什么时候呢？

A word to the rest of us - tears are important for us as Christian's in deep repentance to God, in compassion for the world and especially the hurting and deprived; for a passionate love of the brethren. Surely the place where tears need to be shed are first and foremost the prayer closet, where they are surely filter into the pulpit and then into every member of the congregation.
对我们其他人来说的一句话是，眼泪对我们很重要，因为基督徒是对神进行深度忏悔，对世界，尤其对伤害和剥夺充满怜悯，对弟兄姐妹们充满同情。有眼泪流出的地方是第一重要的，最重要的是祷告的地方，在那里泪水会进入到讲坛，渗透进会众每一位成员的心中。

When we have shed tears ourselves, we can identify with others who will come to us crying. So often someone comes to us and we say 'why is this person crying'? Maybe this is because we have never known what it is to weep ourselves.
当我们自己流泪的时候，我们就能够和来到我们面前哭泣的人产生共鸣，一些人经常来到我们面前，我们就会问他为什么哭泣？也许因为我们从未了解过他为什么哭泣。

Many of the strongest men of the Bible wept; men such as Paul, Jeremiah, Nehemiah and Jesus Himself. So why can’t many of you men become like a little child? Strong men do cry; they do agonize for their families and their communities/churches.
圣经里许多强大的人也会哭泣，诸如保罗，耶利米，尼西米以及耶稣本人。那么为什么你们中的许多人不能变得像一个小孩子一样呢？强大的人也会哭泣，他们会为他们的家庭和社区/教会感到痛苦。

It is time for tears in the church; tears of repentance towards God; tears of speaking the honest truth like Jeremiah did. It is time to understand that people are shedding tears all around you. Only when you shed tears yourself can you touch their lives with the love of God; because as you have been comforted, you can bring the comfort of God to others. (Read 2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
是时候在教会哭泣了，面对神流出悔恨的泪水，像耶利米所做的一样，讲述正直的真理而流泪，是时候理解在你周围流泪的所有人了。只有当你自己流泪的时候，你才能够以神的爱触摸到他们的生命。因为当你被安慰时，你就能把神所赐的安慰带给其他人。 （阅读哥林多后书 1:3-4 ）

Please take time to read the whole of the book of Jeremiah. Yes, all of it. Maybe you will learn how to cry biblically. A final thing believer… remember one day there will be no more tears…amen!!!
请花时间阅读整本耶利米书，是的，整本。或许你会学到如何像圣经所描述的那样哭泣。最后一件事，信徒们要记得终有一天不再有眼泪...阿门！！！

God bless you, Keith
愿神祝福你！Keith

SOAK IN SCRIPTURE

CHINESE

PROVERBS

















06-千方百计的健康生活 The Healthiest Life

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Hi everyone, I would greatly appreciate your prayers. I am on antipsychotic medication and it has given me a condition called metabolic syndrome, it is a problem with your hormones and blood sugar. I am extremely ill with this, it is very painful. There is no treatment for this, it is incurable. Please pray for a miraculous healing from metabolic syndrome! Thank you!

Hell there my name is Corinthian aka Cjones, C.lady i was with my husband for 32yrs and married for 30yrs I tragically lost his may 12 2022 my soulmate the love of my life we have 11 children 8 grandsons 8 granddaughters number 9 granddaughter on the way I have 8 daughters and 3 sons 4 son in-law Ive decided to get on this site to meet life minded people some may know where im coming from and some may not and that ok I believe we’re all here to be helper one to another

What does this mean? Scripture tells us, plainly, that we will serve one of two possible Masters, Satan, or God the Father.

But what if a person doesn’t want to serve either of them? Can the folks who believe in free will actually decide not to serve either Satan or God? Can a free will advocate be independent of the control of either of these two Effectual Fathers?