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rockytopva · Tuesday at 7:59 PM

After that… Miracles! Even this is no longer the 70’s… God is still interesting in doing wonderful things in our lives!

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tall73 · Tuesday at 7:55 PM

FredVB said:
Okay, I see the versions with honeycomb removed. That happened. Honeycomb is not controversial and never was. There is this that is evidence that passages change with copying and with translating. It is just a strange combination, fish and honeycomb together. Not really a natural arrangement. My suspicion has such basis, admittedly not proof, but legitimate suspicion, since early believers were not eating meat (this is historical), that there was meat, fish in this and other cases, added to texts.

You didn't even address the 12 Old Testament texts which speak about meat, which were written before the NT was even being composed.

These were written over many years, by many authors, and the notion that they would all be edited to add meat, and no trace would exist of the meatless originals is far-fetched. Especially if you say it is because early Christians didn't eat meat. Christians were not the only ones with a stake in the OT text.

Now as to the honeycomb being removed

a. The readings not having honeycomb were earlier. So the idea that it was removed because of a conspiracy doesn't follow clearly from that. Why would it be removed from the earliest that took us some time to become aware of again, but not from the mainstream majority text, if the goal was to hide it?

b. The vast majority actually still have honeycomb. The majority text reading has honeycomb and fish. The Text Critical English Version Byzantine Text Edition quantifies what percentage of manuscripts have each reading. 91.9 percent of manuscripts that contain the passage include honeycomb. So if the removal of honeycomb were part of the pro-meat conspiracy, they did a really bad job of it.

FredVB said:
Honeycomb being odd with fish, there is the suggestion to me that it was there and meat (fish) was put in.

Yet as mentioned before, there are none without fish. But there are (some) without honeycomb. If this was a far-reaching conspiracy, why not clean up all the evidence, and only have fish?

FredVB said:
Feeding the multitudes: there were lots of crumbs, filling up baskets afterward. No suggestion of any bones or parts from fish. It is conspicuously absent from mention if it is considered to have been really present.

Mark 6:43 And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. (NKJV)

FredVB said:
A reference? Book two chapter one, I thought I had mentioned it. Clement of Alexandria was a real person and really wrote.

Who claimed Clement of Alexandria was not a real person? But I couldn't find a reference to that passage in Clement of Alexandria's writings. I did find it in the later works from PseudoClement. I was not sure if you confused the names.

You did not give a reference earlier. And even now you did not give a full reference.

Is that Book 2 of the Ante-Nicene Fathers? He is in volume 2, but you haven't stated which of his extant works to look in,.

Why is it you are making the claim, but won't post any of the evidence?

linux.poet · Tuesday at 7:41 PM

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Bobthebomb · Tuesday at 7:36 PM

ldonjohn said:
This is how I know.

I was raised attending a fundamental Baptist church in east Texas. Every Sunday our preacher's sermon was about accepting Jesus as savior or go to hell. I heard about sin, hell, Jesus dying on the cross, and “believing” in Jesus. At age 13 we had a week long revival and at the end of each of his sermons the visiting preacher would walk up and down the aisle begging people to go to the altar to accept Jesus as their savior. At the first service I remember thinking to myself “I hope he doesn't come over to me.” Well, he did, and when he put his hand on my shoulder, I found myself walking down the aisle to the altar. I was met by my SS teacher at the altar, and he asked me if I wanted to accept Jesus as my savior. Of course, I said “yes” so he had me repeat a prayer after him. I was told that I was now “saved,” and the next Sunday I was baptized in the regular church service.

By the time I was about 17-18 years old I wasn't sure if anything I had heard in church was true. I didn't care anything about going to church; I forgot about God and did things teenagers do. Later I finished high school, went to college & graduated not knowing what kind of job/career I should pursue, and finally settled into a teaching career as a math teacher, got married and started thinking about things young married couples think about.

By the time I was about 25-26 years old I stated to question myself about thinking that God was not real. I had serious doubts about all the stuff I had been taught in church as a kid being true. I wasn't convinced that the bible was true or that God existed. I did not understand how “believing in Jesus,” if he WAS real, would save anyone, and I did not understand how saying a prayer “in Jesus' name would save anyone. None of it made sense to me and I just did not get it. But, although I did not “get it,” and I wasn't convinced that any of it was true, for some reason I began to think a lot about what would happen to me if I was wrong, and the bible is true.

After several miserable years of doubting the truth of the bible, I started going to the church that I grew up in and pretend to be a Christian. Deep down inside I knew that I seriously doubted that I was a true “believer,” and many times I would try to work up a sense of “belief” then say a prayer asking God to save me. Afterwards I would have peace for maybe a day, but then the doubts would come back and again the fear & misery took hold of my life. The “believe in Jesus” part was the main thing that had me confused; I did not understand the meaning of “believe.” I began to ask people at church a lot of questions about the bible & about believing in Jesus. I still wasn't sure if any of it was true, but I wanted to know one way or the other. I talked to our SS teacher, the preacher, and other Christians. None of them could give me any answers that convinced me of the truth of the bible. No one could explain to me how saying a prayer in Jesus' name would save anyone. No one could convince me what was meant by “believing in Jesus.” I was still as confused as ever and did not know what to do about the matter. I found some books in the church library written by well known Christians authors, and I read those books over & over. Those books only repeated the stuff I had already heard in church. I still did not have any answers that convinced me that I would be “saved” if I “believed in Jesus,' and that I could know, without a doubt, that Jesus would hear me & save me. I thought that there was absolutely NO way I could ever know for sure that I believed in Jesus & was saved. By this time my life was consumed with fear; fear that I had missed something; fear that there was a missing link somewhere that I would never find. Fear that was I facing a tragic future.

I was miserable, hopeless, and helpless. I realized that all the things “I” was doing were not getting me any answers. I did not know what I should do. One night as I lay down to try and get some sleep, I looked up at the ceiling of the bedroom and said a prayer to a God who I wasn't sure existed. I said “God will you show me how to believe in Jesus?” Then I went to sleep and slept better that night than I had slept in a long time.

The next night I found the big family bible, dusted it off, and turned to the Book of John, the Gospel of John. That was the first time I had ever read in a bible outside of church. I did remember someone in church saying that if anyone wants to know about Jesus to read the Book of John.

As I began to read from the first verse of the Book of John I noticed that, for some reason, I was understanding the words I was reading in a way that I had not understood them in the past when reading the bible in Sunday school class as a kid. It was as though there was something inside of me that was enabling me to understand the words. At first it was kind of like a dim light that allowed me to grasp little bits of information that got my attention. When I read the first 14 verses, something inside of me said, “That is Jesus, and he is God who became a man; he created the world everything in it.”
As I continued to read, the light became brighter and I began to see the words I was reading in a different way. When I read John 3:16 it reminded me of all the things I had heard in church about Jesus dying on the cross.

Two verses that really got my attention were John 4:23-24 which said that we worship God in Spirit and in truth, and I saw that I had just found that missing link. That missing link was/is the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and that light just became much brighter as I realized that I was reading my answer from God. Suddenly I knew that God is real and that He was showing me the truth that I had been searching for.

I continued to read, and found 2 other verses that got my attention, John 5:39-40, where Jesus told the Pharisees that they were searching scripture looking for eternal life and those very scripture told of him, Jesus, but they would not come to him so that he could give them eternal life. Then the light became even brighter as I saw that Jesus wanted me to come to Him so He could give me eternal life.

Next, I discovered even more convincing words in John chapter 6, verses 28- 44, where Jesus told those who were questioning him about the work God the Father required of them, and he told them that the work God required of them was to “believe in” the one whom he has sent. IOW, to believe in Jesus. WOW, that really got my attention, and I was still unsure about the word “believe," but I kept reading because, although I wasn't sure what I was going to find, I was willing to accept whatever it would be if it convinced me how to believe in Jesus. In the rest of verses 30-44 Jesus told those who were questioning him that they can't come to him unless God the Father teaches & draws them to him, Jesus, as they hear and learn from him, God the Father. But the verse that turned that light on to full beam for me was verse 37 where Jesus said, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”

At the moment that God's Spirit turned that light on for me, I “got it.” All the things that I had heard in church as a kid, but did not understand, suddenly made sense to me. I saw that it's all about him. God's Spirit had just convinced me that the finished work of Jesus on the cross paid the penalty for my sin, in full, and that there is nothing that I could do or had to do to make myself acceptable to God for him to save me. I knew that Jesus took care of my sin problem for me, and immediately an enormous sense of relief overwhelmed my troubled soul. The Holy Spirit had just showed me that “believe in” meant to “depend on,” like a child depends on their parents to take care of them. I was convinced that God is real, the the bible is the truth, and that Jesus was waiting for me to come to him so he could save me and change me. I didn't have to try to believe; I couldn't help myself but to do anything except to believe. I could not have stopped myself from believing if I had wanted to. It was as though Jesus was right there in the room with me; no, I did not see a vision of Jesus, but I knew he was alive and there with me. I found myself talking to him, thanking him for dying on the cross for me, and I asked him to forgive my sin and to change me. I asked him to change me “his way.” I didn't really know what that meant, but that's what I wanted. Actually I came to “believe in” or to “depend on” Jesus before I called on Him. Like Romans 10:13-14 says, “...how shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed?”

That night, over 50 years ago I found a peace that I still have today. It is a peace that is impossible to explain to anyone who has never found that peace for themselves.

Yes, sometimes the devil tries to discourage me by putting the doubts back in my mind. He will try to get me to question my faith by telling me “you didn't really have enough faith,” or “ you didn't really commit your life to Christ,” or you didn't really repent,” or you didn't confess all your sin.” I remind the devil that it is not about anything I did, but it is all about what Jesus did for me on the cross. I will quote verse 3 of my favorite hymn to him.

My sin oh the bliss of this glorious thought
My sin not in part, but the whole
Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord Oh my soul

It Is Well with My Soul, Horatio G. Spafford

And then I quote my favorite scripture to him: John 14:6, “Jesus said I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”(KJV)

John

I never had any religious upbringing. My parents "believed" but were not practicing Christians in the sense of attending church. I attended Sunday school briefly, though I had stopped going by about six (I don't remember much about it). I know the stories (forgive the expression) though obviously not in any detail. I like the sentiment (NT at least) but I just cannot accept it as real.
I will keep looking though, you never know

Thank you for your reply

Jeff Saunders · Tuesday at 7:21 PM

Dan Perez said:
Any ones thoughts as to what Rom 6:3 says , That as many were BAPTIZED /. BAPTIZO. , into Christ Jesus.

were BAPTIZED /. into His Death. ??

And the Greek word Water /. Hydor. is. not. in. the Greek Text.

So how are WE. Baptized into His Death. ?/

dan p

He died for all humanity so we are all included because of what he did.

AV1611VET · Tuesday at 7:11 PM

Akita Suggagaki said:
I say even Nihil non est nihil. There is energy and substance in God's will before manifesting as creation.

Detectable energy?

Gene2memE · Tuesday at 7:09 PM

Canada is also undergoing a measles outbreak, centred on Ontario

How Canada became the centre of a measles outbreak in North America

Confirmed cases of measles in Canada are nearly three times higher than in the US, despite Canada's far smaller population.

www.bbc.com

The UK went through its own one in 2024, but is slowly getting it out of control.

Confirmed cases of measles in England by month, age, region and upper-tier local authority: 2025

www.gov.uk

Carmenls · Tuesday at 7:02 PM

Please pray that my son Jake can be happy tonight. Please pray that God heals him mind and body and that there is nothing seriously wrong. I love him so much. He suffers so much. Please ask for God's loving healing mercy. Thank you and God bless you. Carmen

Jipsah · Tuesday at 6:27 PM

Rob7 said:
But when He didn't return, as they expected, they refigured the event, and understood that God said, " "Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary" .. being the plan of Salvation, OT & NT ... It moved from the physical, sanctuary of the OT, to the Spirtual Sanctuary, in Heaven, where Christ moved from the Holy Place to the Holy of Holies, where he is officiating the Atonement, since 1844

Yeah, it's standard procedure for date-setters to come up with a very spiritual excuse for having their End Times forecasts turn out to be rubbish. The problem they all have is not believing what our Lord said:
"
Matthew 24
36“But about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone."

42“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming."

They stack hubris on top of ignorance, and are therefore compelled to fabricate a very religious-sounding excuse for their sure-fire can't-miss total-lock dates dates for our Lord's return come and go with incident, when simply accepting what our Lord exlicitly said wou;d have spared them their richly deserved embarassment.

Gene2memE · Tuesday at 6:27 PM

I propose a similar solution - retain universal suffrage, but impose severe limits on electoral candidate selection.

Candidates for any elected role must be able to pass tests based around knowledge, skills and applied competencies. The more important, meaningful and impactful the desired role, the more difficult and lengthy the testing. The testing for a lifetime judicial appointment or a presidential candidate should be substantially different from the testing for a city councillor or school board member.

The old English model of public service examinations would be a good starting point. India's current Civil Service Exam provides a model - multiple rounds of testing, conducted over a lengthy period of time (I think it's 12 months) with multiple different elements (there's a verbal exam/interview, a series of general knowledge exams and then another series of exams/assessments based around competencies and practical applications). I think the pass rate is about 1-2%, and you're only allowed a set number of attempts.

That way, no matter who the voter votes for, they know they're going to end up with a candidate that is qualified for the role they are seeking.

There are - of course - dangers and drawbacks to this. It may just end up creating a political class whose main skill is scoring high on tests (this was a common complaint of many English-style civil services). It may also discourage electoral participation by people who are potentially good leaders, but don't perform will in examination-type scenarios. Perverse incentives abound

Christsfreeservant · Tuesday at 6:10 PM

“Do not fret because of evildoers,

Be not envious toward wrongdoers.

For they will wither quickly like the grass

And fade like the green herb.

Trust in the Lord and do good;

Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the Lord;

And He will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord,

Trust also in Him, and He will do it.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light

And your judgment as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;

Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,

Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.” (Psalm 37:1-7 NASB1995)

There are many wicked people in this world, and not all of them are those who are being publicly identified as “evil,” but many of them are being publicly identified as “good.” And many who are being called “evil,” are not evil, but are “good.” So, please do not put your trust in what you hear or read or think you see on the internet or on television or coming from any other media source, pastors included. For lies and liars abound all over the place. And deception is huge just about everywhere you look these days.

But there are definitely real wicked people who are plotting and carrying out evil against those who have done them no harm. And many that they target are true followers of Jesus Christ. For Christian persecution is definitely on the rise, and some people making false professions of faith in Jesus are only helping in the charge against those who are true servants of the Lord Jesus. For some who profess to be good are our enemies, in disguise. And so they purposefully try to make Christians look bad so that we will be hated.

But we are not to fear these evildoers and what they might do to us. For our Lord was very upfront with us in letting us know that if we follow him with our lives that we will be hated and persecuted as he was, and that suffering is part of the Christian life, helping to make us more like Jesus. And if we are treated as Jesus’ enemies treated him, we will be falsely accused of wrong, when we are doing right. And we will have people who will lay mental traps for us to fall into, so that they will have cause to accuse us wrongfully.

But we are not to give way to fear of what they might do to us, but we are to put our trust in the Lord, and then keep on doing the good that we ought to do, as his followers, and as called of God to specific areas of ministry. And we do this because we love God, and we want to obey him, but also because we love our fellow humans, and we want them to hear and to believe the truth so that they can be delivered out of their slavery to sin, so that they will now walk in obedience to our Lord and to his New Covenant Commands.

And when this says that we should delight ourselves in the Lord, and he will give us the desires of our hearts, please know that if truly our delight is in the Lord, our desires will now be what he desires for our lives, and they won’t be sinful, fleshly, and selfish desires. And if we truly delight in the Lord, this isn’t just about feeling good and feeling happy, but it is about being joyful in service to him, with a desire to obey his commands and with a commitment to put sin to death and to live holy lives, pleasing to him.

And if we are slandered by those who oppose us, if they bring false charges against us in hopes to discredit us so that people will no longer listen to us –which was the intent of Jesus’ enemies always, and why they put him to death – then we must give it all over to the Lord, trusting that he will take care of us and that one day, maybe even after we die, the Lord will bring our true character into the light, and we will be exonerated of the lies spoken against us. For the Lord will plead our case for us. So we’re to have no fear!

For Our Nation

Professionally recorded in Nashville, TN
Via Gerry Peters, music producer and arranger
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.

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Because of Evildoers
An Original Work / July 22, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:06 PM

Neostarwcc said:
Sorry I forgot to update you all! He successfully had the surgery 2 weeks ago and is ok right now. He gets the sutures removed on Friday and will find out Friday if he has cancer or not. Right now he is in massive pain and the pain will get worse on Friday when they remove the sutures and will slowly get better over time. They've got him on prescription pain killers but they apparently do nothing. Please pray for him and I'll update you guys Friday on how it goes

continued prayers!

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:02 PM

July is just flying by!

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:02 PM

Hail Mary,
Full of Grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary,
Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death.
Amen

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:01 PM

May they rest in peace and rise to glory!

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:01 PM

Thank you. A step in the right direction! Glory to God!

DragonFox91 · Tuesday at 6:01 PM

I'm not sure what more can be said in a situation like that. OP did fine, sharing Christ died for his personal sin & rose to give him eternal life

My guess is he's well-learned based on his response & he took time to think out his beliefs. I would venture he's read the Bible to a greater extent then many people who identify as Christians. His response can't be given the care he requires in that short time frame. His response requires Apologetics & time. Sadly, I fear many Christians downplay the need for apologetics when evangelizing. The NT is more then just 'you will believe b/c an Apostle told you.'

RileyG · Tuesday at 6:00 PM

That's really too bad. I really enjoyed some of their stuff.

RileyG · Tuesday at 5:59 PM

Good! Just leave them alone!

RileyG · Tuesday at 5:54 PM

PloverWing said:
I wish you success and safety as you defend your country.

One possibility you might consider is to pray the Daily Office, as your schedule permits. My church's Book of Common Prayer has liturgies for Morning Prayer, Noonday Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Compline. All of these are services that can be done without clergy. You can pray them on your own, or you can gather with a few friends if there are others nearby who want to join you. Praying all four each day is a lot, but pick one that fits your schedule well, and try praying it regularly -- daily, if you can.

An online version of the Book of Common Prayer is here: The Online Book of Common Prayer . It's in English, but your English seems excellent.

Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer assume you have access to a Bible. Bible passages can be found online (at least, in English; I hope Ukrainian too?), if you don't have a print copy of the Bible. Noonday Prayer and Compline (late evening) are shorter and more self-contained.

To be clear, there are many kinds of spiritual disciplines that are useful for Christians, and the Daily Office is just one. But I know a number of Christians who find it beneficial.

(posting in fellowship)

Great advice!

I'm not Anglican, but I also love the Daily Office from the Book of Common Prayer, as well as the prayers within it. I find them very uplifting.

RileyG · Tuesday at 5:52 PM

God bless our Holy Father!

chevyontheriver · Tuesday at 5:46 PM

The Barbarian said:
President Donald Trump is tired of defending Attorney General Pam Bondi and wants her to take the flak for the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
“One thing that’s been clear is his feelings about it,” an unnamed White House official told

President Donald Trump is tired of defending Attorney General Pam Bondi and wants her to take the flak for the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

“One thing that’s been clear is his feelings about it,” an unnamed White House official told

1/2Skip Ad
Continue watchingDonald Trump Cancels Another Mainstream Interview with NBC and Heads for Safety of Fox and Friendsafter the ad

Trump Wants Pam Bondi to Take the Heat Over Epstein Crisis/

The president doesn’t want to be on the hook for the outrage over his administration’s handling of the Epstein files.

Trump Wants Pam Bondi to Take the Heat Over Epstein Crisis

The president doesn’t want to be on the hook for the outrage over his administration’s handling of the Epstein files.

www.thedailybeast.com

Sounds like Trump should take the heat, considering what has been revealed about Trump's birthday card sent to Epstein. Presuming that isn't a deep fake.

I never cared much to know all about Epstein. But now that the 'list' went from being on Pam' Bondi's desk to never having existed, I really want it to come out. I get it that too many powerful people will be on that list, but if it became public maybe we could clear out a bunch of Democrats AND Republicans and have a shot at a decent government again.

Trump doesn't get it that cleaning out corruption is a chunk of what got him elected. And that if that means Trump is part of the corruption he has to go too.

Valletta · Tuesday at 5:46 PM

wing2000 said:
....say, did you ask yourself why this Obama "finding" wasn't raised from 2016-2020?

We can't have individuals within the government putting out false information in order to try and con the American people into supporting their candidates. Call it treason, call it whatever. I don't know if the have enough to convict Obama or not before a jury of his peers, but they have enough on others.

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