Apparently, whistleblowers get financial rewards. Read it on this law firm's site.

Note that Bonnie Kristian, a writer for Christianity Today, thinks that the decision
of the Texas board of education to introduce (some) biblical into the Texas K12
curriculum, is pretty innocuous.

Texas offers "Christian" teaching about the Bible, in optional courses, and
what is offered is more "the Bible as literature". I have no problem with
this product being offered, in this way.

My objection to introducing religious courses into a secular K12 curriculum,
is that (as the world turns) material from other religions may be introduced,
AND state legislatures may decide to make these courses mandatory.

Even presenting the Bible as literature, may present one very parochial interpretation
of the bible, such as the young-earthers (who heavily deny the soundness of
the hard sciences). A curriculum of the Bible as literature, produced by conspiracy
theory believers, may present interpretations of the Bible that are not academically
respectable.

But, as Bonnie Kristian has mentioned, the current product that Texas is
offering, seems to be pretty mundane and inoffensive.

A Chinese bishop with a history of support for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) emphasized in a recent diocesan seminar the socialist state’s influence over the Church more than the Vatican’s, according to Catholics who attended the bishop’s talks.

Bishop Joseph Shen Bin of Shanghai, who was illicitly installed as bishop by Chinese authorities in 2023 and brought into communion with the Church by Pope Francis a year later under the Vatican-China deal, was featured as a speaker at a Vatican conference in May, where he promoted a “Chinese-style modernization” of the Church in line with socialist ideals.

Shen recently gave a diocesan seminar Nov. 4–6 about “Sinicization of Religion in Shanghai.” According to a report from Bitter Winter, Shanghai Catholics who attended the bishop’s seminar said he “did not discuss at all the Vatican Synod [on Synodality] nor Pope Francis and his recent documents.”

Continued below.

Coming to Lai’s defense have been more than 100 politicians from 24 countries.

Political leaders, a United Nations body, and human rights groups have publicly spoken out in defense of Jimmy Lai, the Catholic Hong Kong media mogul who faces possible life imprisonment for his involvement in pro-democracy protests, while the Vatican and senior Church leaders continue a policy of declining to make public statements on the case.

Lai appeared in court in Hong Kong for three days this week on charges of foreign collusion and sedition — the result of a stringent national security law that came into force in 2020.

He has persistently denied the charges which have so far revolved around a series of articles he wrote in his Apple Daily newspaper in 2019 and 2020 critical of a clampdown on civil liberties in Hong Kong.

The national security law was enacted to punish what China considers to be subversion, secession, terrorism and working with foreign powers but which critics say is being used to quash dissent by removing civil liberties and free speech.

Continued below.

Who were those persons? What genealogies?

1 Timothy 1:

3 As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons

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i.e., certain Judaizers

not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith.

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What were these endless genealogies?

Paul compared endless genealogies to myths and speculations, contrasting them to faithful doctrine. He wasn't complaining about genealogies already in the Hebrew OT; scriptural genealogies were fine. In the Jewish tradition, genealogies were important for establishing identity, heritage, and authority. They could also validate claims to priesthood or leadership within the community.

1 Timothy 4:

7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness.

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These endless genealogies were silly and irreverent as opposed to faith and godliness.

Certain individuals in the early church were using genealogies to promote themselves or to advocate for teachings that were not aligned with the Gospel.

What genealogies was Paul referring to?

Paul didn't specify the particular lines of genealogies except to point out their nature: They were silly, endless, mythical, speculative, irreverent, and contradictory. Spelling out the names in these endless genealogies was a waste of time.

He gave a final warning in 1 Timothy 6:

20 O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called "knowledge," for by professing it some have swerved from the faith.

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Focusing on these false myths could distract you from true faith. The Judaizers wanted Timothy and the Christians to focus on mythical Jewish genealogies. Paul put a stop to that kind of vain speculations and diversions.

Thanksgiving is one of those few national holidays when a semi-religious sentiment is allowed. It peeks through in reply to two obvious questions: Thanksgiving to whom for what? In search of an answer, it seems appropriate to quote three notable Americans on what this observance meant to them. The three writers are Henry David Thoreau, Mark Twain, and George Washington.

Henry David Thoreau: “My thanksgiving is perpetual. It is surprising how contented one can be with nothing definite — only a sense of existence. Well, anything for variety. I am ready to try this for the next ten thousand years, and exhaust it….My breath is sweet to me.”

Thoreau, the dean of American nature writers, is the man who spent a year living in semi-solitude in the woods near a pond and then wrote a book named for the pond — Walden. The volume stands today as one of the enduring landmarks of American letters.

Continued below.

Abortions dropped sharply in Iowa immediately after a strict abortion ban went into effect there, according to data from a major pro-abortion group.

Data from the Guttmacher Institute, released on Thursday, show an average of 400 clinician-provided abortions per month in Iowa over the first six months of 2024.

After the state’s six-week ban went into effect on July 29, “the number of abortions dropped to an estimated 250 in August, a decrease of 38% from the average over the first six months of the year,” Guttmacher said.

Continued below.

Did God give Cain the mark to protect his life so that he might eventually come back to repentance after life of tirbulation, or was it just a stigma?

linux.poet said:

AMBASSADOR HAT​

From the Christian Philosophy and Ethics SOP:


This thread looks like it's discussing politics, which the General Politics forum is more suited for:



Therefore, this thread has been moved from Christian Philosophy and Ethics to General Politics.

AMBASSADOR HAT OFF​

Click to expand...

Not everything is politics (regardless of what the politicians think).

As for freedom of speech, as I have mentioned before many times,
CHRISTIANS are morally-ethically bound to bear true witness about our
shared reality. Bearing false witness about our shared reality, is called LYING,
and the Bible asserts that there are very serious and just results for those
who will not turn from their LYING. (Philosophically, Christians always have
freedom of speech, but we temper this ability with prudence, about what
should be said.)

The corollary in the American Bill of Rights, is that we have "freedom of speech",
but this does not give us immunity from prosecution for what we speak. It is the
same with God's law.

There are many corollaries between the American Consitutional rights, and the
Judeo-Christian moral-ethical system, even if this site considers all discussion
of the fair rule of law in America, to be POLITICAL only.

In all my posts in the "current event" section, I try to make clear connections
between Christian morality-ethics, or the impact that certain current events
would have on the Christian community.

Call this "Politics" if you wish, but in my book, this is Christian life within
a secular state that has "separation of church and state".

On Nov. 21, Brazil’s Federal Police charged Father José Eduardo de Oliveira e Silva of the Diocese of Osasco in São Paulo state as part of a group of 37 people that includes former President Jair Bolsonaro on suspicion of plotting the violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, plotting a coup d’état, and belonging to a criminal organization.

According to authorities, the publication of the list of defendants in the final report of the investigation into the alleged coup d’état was authorized by the country’s Supreme Federal Court.

The charges stem from the investigation by the Federal Police into an alleged plot to assassinate then-President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his vice president, Geraldo Alckmin, and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. Military personnel and military police have already been detained in connection with the investigation.

Continued below.

wing2000 said:

....however, rounding up and detaining illegal immigrants will increase DHS spending considerably.....private prison companies are elated (their stock prices shot up since the election).

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All stocks went up on the Trump Trade. I also assume that it will increase DHS spending but spending is what our government loves. I believe this admin is starting with illegal/ amnesty(?) criminal aliens and this will take time unless the government has been tracking location.

lifepsyop said:

I don't think most people really analyze Fascism or Communism that much, but instead develop a kind of simplistic map of good and evil which defines their reality. Most people think of Hitler as Satan, the Nazis as demons, Auschwitz as Hell, etc. The western world's political ideology is framed around WW2 as a central axis point of what is right or wrong. Everything we do or do not do is to avoid becoming a Nazi.

- Open borders because only Nazis care about which ethnic groups they live around.

- Have to start X war because otherwise we are reenacting the 'appeasement of Hitler'

etc.

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I think the above scenario represents a kind of "sin" of the church in postwar western liberal democracy.

We have replaced the moral framework of the NT with a type of secular moral framework that I outlined above.

For example, Homosexuality, something that is spelled out in the New Testament in black and white as sinful, is passively tolerated by the Christian community. On their way to church, many Christians may drive down a street covered in LGBT pride flags and think nothing of it.

But just imagine that street had a NAZI SWASTIKA hanging from every other window. Those same Christians would become apoplectic and go into immediate crisis mode.

What conclusions can we draw from this? It is an example of how postwar consensus Christians have reframed their morality along secular lines.

The secular sin of Fascism is a hundred times worse than the Biblical sin of homosexuality.


This is the "Boomer Truth Regime" that is now being cast aside. The Postwar Consensus is crumbling as we speak.

Oseas said:

Isaiah 2:22- Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of ?

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Of the Holy Spirit of Christ. Now you raise an important question and one sure to stir the masses (if they took the time) who are not especially living a proactive life in His Spirit. Or, some identifying marks of those things spoken from year-to-year to weigh Religious VS Pentecostal enviornments. The 100-year old bristle of what line of reason these may serve to instruct in their chosen tradition:

A. 'What seems good to us and the Holy Spirit Pentecostal tradition.'
B. 'What seems good to us and the tradition of religious conformity.'

Those men of God who ''visit'' congregations without tarrying are not especially equipped to correct from their learned ''corner'', it takes years to confirm. Neither are the Pentecostals who are bound by conformity. ''Provoking one another to good works'' is largly our lot, but Pentecostal expressions that may scold you if you dare step away from some of today's contentions as I was publicly for not raising my arms or, maintaining other Apostolic traditions that are missing (1 Cor 11:16, 1 Tim 5:23).

So yes, there are times NOT to withdrawl, and times to entreat the Lord's corrective measures we need to grow with. With Paul's advice on wine to Timothy steps away from today's conformity to 'faith'. The only conformity He directs us towards is the giving of thanks, praying in the Spirit and fellowship. Be it Pentecostal or purely religious, we could go right down the line in a one by one checklist whether we have the Apostle's approval (1Cor 11:2) in the ''tradition'' they have committed to us.

I don't see it either honestly - but it's nice to see Christians unite - there is something special when it happens.

Last year our local library starting to bring in books that had bad sexual content and gender confusion for kids! The library board meeting was packed. And we saw Catholics, Lutherans, Baptists, and Charismatics all united to fight against what they all agreed was evil. It was good to see!

Honestly though - unity is probably wishful thinking this side of Heaven.

chevyontheriver said:

Thank you again for telling me how I'm wrong and petty I am and how I don't understand things.

The 1962 monitum on the writings of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin still stands unless and until a pope actually lifts that monitum. So the Church does not accept his writings. The Church officially, still, rejects those writings. I guess I just don't understand anything.

I may have succeeded in getting you to spell Teilhard's name correctly, so I suppose that is some consolation.

The Chilling Truth About Teilhard de Chardin

Many Catholics remain unaware of the Catholic Church's repeated censure of Teilhard and his works.

www.catholic365.com

https://ia601609.us.archive.org/0/items/the-truth-about-teilhard-schumacher/The_Truth_About_Teilhard_Schumacher_text.pdf

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My apologies, I did not intend to offend you!

Anyway, I'm giving up social media for Advent, which is begins next week.

So, when you don't see me here, it has nothing to do with you or anyone else.


God Bless

keras said:

then ideas like going to live in heaven and of one final ‘big bang’ annihilation of the godless, are seen to be wrong.

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It does not matter. Earth will be as Heaven is. That is why we are to pray Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Then everything will be the way we always thought it should be.

Its Okay said:

I am interested in prioritising following Christ even at the cost of losing divergent traditions, unhealthy ingrained thinking, bias steeped in pride etc.

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The forum uses multiple sections to achieve this goal. If you're looking to prioritize following Christ through practical means, the Daily Devotional section and the section on Spiritual Formation and Disciplines may be what you are looking for.

Usually what I've found to help with thinking matters such as unhealthy ingrained thinking and pride is a good debate. Spending time in the Discussion and Debate (Christians Only) sections will help you overcome these vices. I recommend the Christians Only section because you are looking to grow in Christ through debate, not evangelize unbelievers, which the other D&D section is for.

Its Okay said:

I believe obedience to God’s Son is the definition of being a Christian, but the topics on offer, seem to be more about validating religious traditions and personal convictions. Am I getting this wrong?

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Romans 10:9 does say that you need to acknowledge Jesus as Lord to accept the Gospel, and thus obey Him, but you seem to be missing the other half of the thought, which is to believe that God raised Christ from the dead. It's not just about obedience to Christ's commands, because that can lead to works-based salvation - you need to believe that Christ's death paid for your sins, and that is the only atoning sacrifice that is sufficient to pay our infinite offense against God.

As for the topics, it depends on which forum you're looking at. While we do have a lot of activity in our congregational subforums, I don't think a lot of the other topics are about validating convictions or traditions. That's not why this forum exists.

Its Okay said:

Where do we get down to business, the basics, the simple teachings of Jesus separate from distractions like politics and media and worldly education which soon enough will disappear like dust in the wind? I just wanna discuss Jesus’ actual words, what they meant and the relevance today. Can you point me to those specific conversations?

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Either Daily Devotionals or Christian Scriptures should be what you are looking for. I would recommend starting a topic in Christian Scriptures with the words of Jesus that you wish to discuss.

Here are a couple of threads in Christian Scriptures which discuss the words of Jesus:

There's more where those came from. Enjoy.

tonychanyt said:

Ep 5:


Was Paul teaching that a husband needed to earn his wife's respect?

No. Paul taught mutual love and mutual respect between the husband and wife.

Col 3:


Wives, if you want to "earn" your husbands' love, respect them and submit to them.

Husbands, if you want to "earn" your wives' respect, love them.

The point wasn't so much about earning love and respect as about mutual love and respect. Paul pointed out the ways: Husband, love your wife, and she will be inspired to respect you. Wife, respect your husband, and he will naturally love you. These are the two approaches to achieving mutual love and respect between husband and wife. Paul described complementary obligations rather than a conditional "earning" system.

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As happy as I am with your recommendations, for clarity I'd like to add some nuance to the common interpretations for the various NT verses dealing with the husband/wife relationship.

Although in the English language one might correctly say that from an NT perspective both husband and wife are supposed to love and respect one another, the Greek wording that Paul is using to describe the 'love/respect' for husbands towards their wives and vice-versa is clearly asymmetrical and different depending on the direction.

E.g. Paul says husbands should 'love' their wives - and he uses the Greek word ἀγαπάω (agapaō) (G25) for that (Ephesians 5:25, Colossians 3:19). However when speaking about wives should love their husbands he is using a different Greek word φιλάοἰ (philandros) for that (G5362) (Titus 2:4). It is up for interpretation what to make of that but still significant - these words are not full synonyms.

The asymmetry becomes even starker in the 'respect' verse in Ephesians 5:33. Only modern translations use the English word 'respect' to translate the Greek word φοβῆται, phobeitai (G5399) yet nearly ALL older English translations use the word 'fear'. Observe the following for this Greek word 'phobeitai':

• in the NT this word is universally translated as 'fear' except for modern translations in Ephesians 5:33 - modern translators somehow didn't consider this translation to be acceptable or befitting from the 20st century on-wards to describe the relationship between husband and wife.
• our English word 'phobia' is directly related to this very word
• the verb φοβῆται, phobeitai (G5399) by definition is an asymmetrical word that can only be applied in the direction from the subject to the one who rules/subjects; e.g. from the one in submission towards to the one in authority/power. That is why the NT tells us to 'fear' (Greek: phobeitai) God and tells wives to 'fear' (Greek: phobeitai) their husbands. By using this very word Paul is directly confirming the concept of Patriarchy - he couldn't have written the reverse: a husband is not commanded to 'fear' (Greek: phobeitai) his wife - because would be the Biblical framework upside down.

So in summary: while in English the words love/respect may be used symmetrically for husbands/wives - this usage obscures or even whitewashes the fundamental difference Paul is teaching for the relationship between the marital partners.

Let's face it - in modern Western churches it is common now to downplay or even deny the Patriarchal aspect of Paul's teaching because it has become so incompatible with modern Western society and its values.

And even when it is still taught, a common argument is: respect/submission towards the husband is conditional to him being a good man. That line of reasoning however would also mean that a husband's love towards his wife also is conditional to her being a good woman. (Both are obviously false statements).

Paul's writings make it plausible husbands need the exhortation to love their wives; and wives need the exhortation to respect/submit to their husbands. I suspect Paul highlights the typical weak points for both sexes.

We are now living in these later times that the Scriptures speak of, and this passage of Scripture is just one small portion of all the teachings on the kinds of things we will be faced with in these last days before the return of Christ. For there will be false “christs” among us, and not all of them will literally call themselves “the Christ,” but they will want to be worshipped by other humans as though they are “the savior” of all humankind. And there will be false shepherds of the people who will lie to and deceive the people.

And I personally see many of these “false christs” as false images of the true and only Christ of God. And these false images are being presented in preacher’s sermons, in some people’s daily devotionals, in videos (especially the short ones), in memes (short messages in one picture), in movies, in TV shows, in cartoons, in “Christian” songs and poetry, in “worship” lyrics, and via the teaching of Scriptures OUT OF CONTEXT and thus twisting them to say whatever they want them to say, much of which are lies of the enemy.

There is something that I am watching closely, for it has the appearance of falseness, for it does not fit with our present culture, even with our present “church” culture. And that is that many prominent men in the political world or in the world of big business or in the news media are all of a sudden professing faith in Jesus Christ, it would appear. And then we are receiving videos and pictures of very large crowds of people purportedly in spiritual revivals and in genuine worship of Christ, and having their lives altered.

But if this was honestly taking place, it would be reflected in changed hearts, minds, behaviors, and lifestyles, which would begin to be evident on people’s social media posts, and in preacher’s sermons, and in the life of “the church,” as a whole. And there would be people being honest and repenting of their sins and wanting to make restitution for wrongs committed, and broken marriages restored, and estranged families being brought back together, and the true gospel would now be being taught predominantly.

I personally am not seeing such a movement of God taking place at this time, not here in America, anyway, and it does not fit with what the Scriptures teach regarding the characteristic traits of these final days before our Lord’s return and with true biblical revival of human hearts and souls. But all this could be a front for the appearance of a false “christ” and a false gospel message which is presently permeating the American church. So, we who are servants of the Lord need to have discernment in these matters.

One of the things that we need to check for is how they are presenting the character and actions of Jesus Christ when he lived on this earth. Are they accurate to the Scriptures? Or are they teaching subtle lies intended to lead us to what is false? Are they teaching that we must deny self, die to sin daily, and walk in obedience to our Lord’s commands? And are they teaching that if we continue in deliberate habitual sin, and if we are not obeying our Lord, that we will not inherit eternal life? If not, they’re withholding truth.

So, this requires that we are testing whatever we are hearing or reading, or think that we are seeing, against the Scriptures taught in context. For we are to see that no one leads us astray. For many false teachers and prophets will arise and lead many astray. And the love of many will grow cold. “But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24:13-14). But it must be the true gospel.

For we need to understand this, that in these last days before the return of Christ there will come times of difficulty. People will be “lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV)

And I believe that “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power” in their lives is really where so much of the church in America is today, and where so many professing Christians are today. And so this is why we must test everyone and everything against the Scriptures, taught IN CONTEXT, and in prayer, praying for spiritual discernment so that we are not captivated by the lies of the enemy, and so that we are not being led astray from our pure devotion to Jesus Christ as Lord (Owner-Master) of our lives.

[Matthew 24:1-51; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18; 1 Timothy 4:1-5; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 2 Peter 2:1-22; 2 Peter 3:1-18; 1 John 2:18-25; Jude 1:17-23; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22; Revelation 6:9-14; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13; Revelation 18:1-24; Revelation 19:1-21; Revelation 20:1-15; Revelation 21:1-27, etc.]

For, if our faith in Jesus Christ is genuine God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in the Lord, it will result in us being crucified with Christ in death to sin, and us being raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves (addicted) to sin, but now as slaves (servants) of God and of his righteousness. Sin will no longer be what we practice, but righteousness and godly living and obedience to our Lord’s commands will be our practice, by the grace of God, and in the power and wisdom of God, directed by God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 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 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

Though Your Sins Be as Scarlet

Frances J Crosby, 1880
William H. Doane, 1876

“Though your sins be as scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they be red like crimson,
They shall be as wool!”
“Though your sins be as scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow.”

Hear the voice that entreats you,
Oh, return ye unto God!
He is of great compassion,
And of wondrous love;
Hear the voice that entreats you,
Oh, return ye unto God!

He’ll forgive your transgressions,
And remember them no more;
“Look unto Me, ye people,”
Saith the Lord your God!
He’ll forgive your transgressions,
And remember them no more.

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At the top of her lungs
She cried out in exasperation.
Nothing was working out
According to her expectations.

Life was not giving her
What she thought life was all about.
Life was giving to her
What she had hoped that it would not.

So her expectations,
She learned, were not to be realized.
And all that she hoped for
Was now only to be fantasized.

Her thinking about life,
It seemed, was so unrealistic.
Her thinking must now change,
So that she does not go ballistic.

A change of mind she needs
Away from that on which she now feeds.
Belief in Jesus Christ
Will yield a life which to Christ now heeds.

For by true faith in Christ
She can die to that life of confusion.
So a new life in Christ
Will bring that old life to its conclusion.

Now this new life in Christ
May change not all her circumstances
But her trust now in Christ
Gives peace now in Christ which advances.

An Original Work / April 20, 2023

Glory to God!

AveChristusRex said:

They will be in my prayers. Sancta Maria, Ora Pro Nobis.

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Thank you.

This charge is not just to Timothy. All of us who profess the name of Jesus are to be those who “wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience.” All of us are to resist the devil, and flee temptation, and draw near to God in full assurance of faith. All of us are to put to death, by the Spirit, all evil, all sins, so that we can run with perseverance the race marked out for us to run by our Lord Jesus, who is the author and perfecter and finisher of our faith, a faith that comes only from God, and not from us (Hebrews 12:1-2; James 4:7-10).

And when I say that this faith comes from God and not from ourselves, I am not saying that we have no part in it. It is just that the faith to believe in Jesus originates with God, it is authored and perfected by Jesus Christ, it is gifted to us by God, and it is divinely persuaded of God. So it is going to align fully with God’s will and purpose for our lives which is expressed for us in the Scriptures (OT & NT). And Jesus taught that to come after him we must deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience to his commands (Luke 9:23-26).

The faith to believe in Jesus Christ does not originate with human flesh. Thus, we can do nothing in our own flesh to earn or to deserve our own salvation. This faith, therefore, is not of the will nor of the flesh of man, but it is solely of God. So he is the ONLY one to define what this faith looks like. And the faith to believe in Jesus, taught in the Scriptures, teaches us that Jesus died on that cross so that we will now die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands.

[Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12-13; 1 Peter 2:24; Romans 6:1-23]

But not only that. It teaches us that if we profess that we are in fellowship with God, but while we walk (in conduct, in practice) in sin, we are liars. And if we claim that we are in relationship with God, that we know him, but while we do not make it our practice to walk in obedience to his commands, we are liars. And it teaches us that not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one DOING the will of God. Many professers of faith in Jesus will be told to depart from the Lord, instead (1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; Matthew 7:21-23).

[Hebrews 10:19-23; Colossians 3:5-10; Ephesians 4:17-24; Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 6:10-20; 1 Timothy 6:11-12; John 6:44]

But not all who profess faith in Jesus Christ accept this biblical teaching on the subject of what biblical faith looks like from the perspective of God and the Scriptures. Many want to believe that they can make verbal professions of faith in the Lord Jesus and now all their sins are forgiven (past, present, and future), and heaven is now secured for them when they die, but regardless of how they live. And they view God more like a genie in the sky there to do every good for them regardless of how they live.

And so they go on living in sin, and for self, and for selfish and fleshly and ungodly desires. Yet they will claim the promises and blessings of God over their lives, and they will expect God to be there for them, to grant their every request, and to meet their every need. And they will still anticipate that heaven awaits them when they die, and they will convince themselves that God will not judge them for their sins. But they blaspheme (profane, disrespect and show irreverence to) the Lord by their wicked behaviors.

And it isn’t as though many of them do not know the truth of what the Scriptures teach. Many have learned the truth from childhood on up, but have rejected the truth in favor of the lies so that they can continue in their deliberate and habitual sins. And I believe God has shown many of them multiple years of mercy in continuous calls for repentance and for changed hearts and minds, and yet they still refuse his calls, and they continue in their sins. And this will end in death, not life, if they do not change course.

So, if you are one who is still living in disobedience to the Lord, still addicted to your sins of choice, even though you have made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, please read the Scriptures in their full context, for they do not promise you eternal life with God. They promise that you will NOT inherit eternal life with God unless you change course, and you truly repent of your sins, and you deny self, die daily to sin, and follow Jesus Christ in walks of obedience to his commands, in practice. So please take this to heart.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 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 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

Paradise Valley

Lyrics by Noah White, Music by Virgil Stamps (1935).

As I travel thru life, with its trouble and strife,
I’ve a glorious hope to give cheer on the way;
Soon my toils will be o’er and I’ll rest on that shore,
Where the night has been turned into day.

As I roam the hillside, or I list to the tide,
As I pluck the sweet flowers that grow in the dale;
A faint picture is there of a land bright and fair,
Where perennial flowers ne’er fail.

Tho’ your garden is rare, it is naught to compare
With the flowers that bloom in the garden above,
In the midst of it grows, Sharon’s perfect sweet Rose;
‘Tis the wonderful Flower we love.

Up in paradise valley By the side of the river of life,
Up in paradise valley, We’ll be free from all pain and all strife;
There we’ll live in the garden, ‘Neath the shade of the evergreen tree,
How I long for the paradise valley, Where the beauty of heaven I’ll see.

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Do they limit the number of children one can have like China does?

That's unfortunate.

Praying for a mass conversion of Japan and those in the far east.