We are all sinners.

Jesus came to save sinners.

Never give in. Never give up. Trust in God with all of your heart, strength and soul. No matter how hard it gets. Persevere. Stay strong.

Remember, as you are carrying your cross, Jesus is indeed carrying you!

Its not easy. We have to pick up our cross daily. Just remember you are not alone.

God bless you Aliemikeyj

DavidTheGnome said:

I'm not really sure entirely what I was thinking on the last post. What I do know is that I was in an extremely upset mood.
I know that Lucifer sometimes pretends to be God to deceive others. I know that he and God would never unite. Their enmity will never let up.
I'm not going to quit trying.
Yes, I am a mental mess.

Click to expand...

God specializes in Loving, guiding and finding uses for mental messes!

daq said:

If by "serious work" you mean mainstream scholarship, that would be accurate, and I don't expect to see anything like that happening anytime soon either. It is simply too easy on a surface level to dismiss this text out of hand as a Greek back-translation with some fanciful Jewish minded variants inserted into the text. However there are some variants, and they may sound to be pretty wild on the surface, but which after inspection end up being scriptural and possibly even scripture quotations and references.

Another example of such is the word used in the place of Wormwood in Rev 8:11, where we read, "And the name of the star was Scarlet", and that word for Scarlet, used here as a proper noun, is תולעת, (H8438 towla'), the color of the red dye made from the scarlet grub worm, and is used in the scripture for both the color of the dye and the worm itself. The most notable prophetic instance where this may be found in the scripture would be Isaiah 14:10-12.

Isaiah 14:10-12 LSV
10 All of them answer and say to you, Even you have become weak like us! You have become like to us!
11 Your excellence has been brought down to Sheol, || The noise of your stringed instruments, || The worm has been spread out under you, || Indeed, the worm [תולעה] is covering you.
12 How you have fallen from the heavens, || O shining one, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to earth, || O weakener of nations.

Thus in the Hebrew Apocalypse we have a red star fallen from the heavens who is named Scarlet, or Worm, or Towla' which means the same. Did "Worm" then later become a word that meant "Wormwood" in the Greek text rendered into Latin or even as late as English? This is more possible than most would probably like to imagine, but as we see, if this be the case, the original meaning of the text has been lost. It may indeed be a reference to Isaiah 14:11-12.

Rev 8:8 tells us by the Testimony of the Master that the above is indeed in full agreement with the things being spoken about in this passage.

Matthew 17:18-21 KJV
18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.
19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

Building on this premise and teaching he then says:

Matthew 21:18-21 KJV
18 Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.
19 And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away.
20 And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away!
21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

We see exactly this in the Apocalypse, in the same place where we read of the Star called Scarlet-Worm:

Revelation 8:8 KJV
8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

Enoch XVIII:11-16 (R.H. Charles 1917)
11. And I saw a deep abyss, with columns ⌈⌈of heavenly fire, and among them I saw columns⌉⌉ of fire fall, which were beyond measure alike towards the height and towards the depth.
12. And beyond that abyss I saw a place which had no firmament of the heaven above, and no firmly founded earth beneath it: there was no water upon it, and no birds, but it was a waste and horrible place.
13. I saw there seven stars like great burning mountains, and to me, when I inquired regarding them,
14. The angel said: 'This place is the end of heaven and earth: this has become a prison for the stars and the host of heaven.
15. And the stars which roll over the fire are they which have transgressed the commandment of the Lord in the beginning of their rising, because they did not come forth at their appointed times.
16. And He was wroth with them, and bound them till the time when their guilt should be consummated (even) ⌈for ten thousand years⌉.'

The Book of Enoch: Enoch's Journeys through the Earth and Sheol: Chapter XVIII

The Book of Enoch, by R.H. Charles, [1917], full text etext at sacred-texts.com

sacred-texts.com

As with all things scripture: there are good mountains, (Mount Horeb the mountain of Elohim, Mount Tzion, etc.), and there are evil mountains, and the evil are devils, demons, and fallen ones, according to the Logos-understanding of the Testimony of the Master, (the Matthew passages quoted above herein, Mat 17:20-21, Mat 21:21), and these things were not even so much new when they were spoken but the correct understanding thereof was new, that is, the righteous and true understanding freely given in his Testimony in those Matthew passages.

Faith like a mustard seed to move mountains is not speaking of moving literal physical mountains by faith: it is about casting out evil, devils, demons, and fallen ones, which genos or kind will not go out except with prayer and fasting, (but some say that fasting has been added to the text: investigate the companion statement in Mark 9:29, for some manuscripts entirely omit Mat 17:21 due to the high probability that at one point a scribe either did not understand the Testimony or a line simply got skipped by mistake, (more likely intentionally omitted due to ignorance of the meaning of the passage)).

Click to expand...

OK, thanks for the comments - appreciated.

C. F. Beyers Naude was a white minister and theologian of the Dutch Reformed Church of South Africa. He was initially a believer of racial inequality and segregation. But he started to question the biblical justification for apartheid, and the ideologies of the Church. This led him to intensively study the Bible to demonstrate that those justifications were incorrect. His discovery led him to vocally support his biblical stance and conscience using the platform afforded him as a minister. This led to his home imprisonment and revoking of priviledges. Not as brutaI as with black ministers but he planted a seed for change that targeted the conscience of Christian believers with his findings and with what he could do with his resources, he did in support of those in the struggle.

If we interpret this in light of what is going on today in the American church, overall, but not in every congregation, and if someone said to you, “That church is really alive!”, what would you think they meant by that if you were not reading this Scripture in advance, but just on the basis of what you know of the church culture overall in America today?

From what I have observed over my 74 years of life as part of the gatherings of the church and/or as being a Christian 67 years of that time, and in five US states, and in 10 US cities, and in 4 different church denominations, and in multiple church congregations, as well as over my nearly 20 years of writing my devotions on the internet and interacting with people from many different locations (including from foreign countries, and from multiple church backgrounds and experiences), I would conclude that “alive” in the American church today has more to do with the world than with anything to do with God.

For “alive” is seen as something fun, exciting, entertaining, friendly, and full of activities and events and programs and things to do and people to meet and places to go, etc. It has to do with having a dynamic speaker who is funny, entertaining, charming, and a good communicator, who knows how to make people feel comfortable and at home, and who has a winsome personality. And then there has to be a really “cool” praise band with super talented musicians who play contemporary music that young people like, even if the old people prefer the old hymns. So, it’s like a big social club.

And the goal of these “churches” which are “alive” is to “draw in large crowds of people from the world,” and so they market the “church” to the people of the world in order to attract them to their gatherings. And, so they entertain them, and they provide all kinds of fun activities for them and for their children. But they don’t want to offend the people of the world and so they dilute/alter the character of God/Christ, and the character and purpose of the church, and they alter/dilute the gospel of our salvation to make them more acceptable to human flesh and to the ungodly of the world.

But in the eyes of God, that is not what he calls “alive.” For he is speaking of being alive spiritually, i.e. having first of all been crucified with him in death to sin, then raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. Those he deems “alive” are those who are denying self, dying daily to sin, and who are following him in walks of obedience to his commands (New Covenant), and in holy living, and in moral purity, honesty, and faithfulness. They are those who are committed to Jesus Christ and to serving him with their lives.

So, although a “church” gathering may have a reputation of being “alive” in the eyes of the world and of human flesh, they may be dead (or mostly dead) in the eyes of the Lord. For God doesn’t see like we humans see. For they may be full of followers of man who are not followers of God at all. But they may be those professing faith in Jesus Christ while they are still living much like they did before they professed faith in Jesus Christ. For their “faith” is shallow, lip service only, and they never did die to sin, and so they aren’t genuinely saved from their sins nor are they on their way to heaven.

But let me interject here that the church is not a building, and it is not a social club nor a civic center nor a place of fun and entertainment. It is not a corporation under the state being marketed to the world like any other business. This is what it has been turned into, mind you, in the eyes of humans, but the church is none of that, and it is not a particular church denomination, either. The church is the people of God who have died to sin and who are living to God and to his righteousness, in the power of God, by the grace of God, according to the will and purpose of God for his church.

So, what the Lord wants his church to repent of today is this turning his church into a marketplace to be marketed to the people of the world, and of this unholy union with the government and with big business, and of these divisions of denominations, and of this overall diluting and altering of the truth of the Scriptures, and of the character of God and of his true church, and in order to attract the world to their gatherings. And he wants them to repent of these false gospel messages which are giving people permission to keep living in sin while promising them heaven as their eternal destiny.

Instead he wants them to deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience, and to serve him as head of his body, the church. And those who are doing that, in the power of God, who have not sold themselves out as slaves to sin and to other humans, he says will walk with him in white, in purity of relationship with him, and with true hope of eternal life with him. But for all who turn from their sins and from their rebellious ways to now follow Jesus in obedience and in surrender to his will, we all will be clothed in righteousness, and we have the hope of eternity with God in heaven.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

With Eternity’s Values in View

Alfred B. Smith 1916-2001

With eternity’s values in view, Lord,
With eternity’s values in view,
May I do each day’s work for Jesus
With eternity’s values in view.

Login to view embedded media

My nation, the USA, and the church in my nation are in great need of revival. Much of today’s evangelical church is one with the world, operates like big business, and follows the teachings of men and Marketing 101 over and above Scriptures, regarding how to conduct and to grow God’s church. This should not be! The gospel is being watered down (diluted) at enormous rates, and this is epidemic across the US in evangelical Christianity.

Words such as “sin”, “repentance,” and “obedience” are antiquated, as is the need for believers in Jesus Christ to take up their cross daily and follow Jesus Christ. Now they focus on the stage productions, performance, and appearance, so that they can draw in large crowds of people, i.e. they draw the world into the church gatherings, and with worldly methods to boot! They are the Laodicean Church of the 21st Century, and God is about to spit them out of his mouth. So, he is calling his adulterous and idolatrous church to repent of their ways and to turn back to God (See Revelation 2-3).


Send a Revival

An Original Work / June 25, 2011

Send a revival to this nation, Lord, I pray.
Bring us to our knees, Lord, humbly today.
Teach us to daily walk in your footsteps.
Guide us in your truth, and may we find rest.
Send a revival to this nation, Lord, I pray.
Bring us to our knees, Lord, humbly today.

Be our desire and our hearts’ pure devotion, Lord.
Make us a people who walk close to you.
Change our hearts to conform to your likeness.
May we love others who are in distress.
Be our desire and our hearts’ pure devotion, Lord.
Make us a people who walk close to you.

Teach us to be an example of your love, Lord.
May we serve others as though serving you.
Keep us in fellowship with you, I pray.
May we obey you in all things today.
Teach us to be an example of your love, Lord.
May we serve others as though serving you.

Login to view embedded media

Michie said:

She’s been gone for years. She was starting to have some health issues.

Click to expand...

Oh.
May she have health and peace in the Lord.

I do recall kind of she had health concerns.
It's been so long and she just literally popped into my head.

Akita Suggagaki said:

...

What in your view are the motives for abortion if not economic?

Click to expand...

How many programs are not enough?
Free housing, free food, WIC, money, phones.

Even if it is fear, there should be a counseling clinic right next door for pro life advice. I feel that ought to be a law.
It's annoying we are allowing illegal immigrants to get $3000 a month and live in nice hotels while we desire/demand our children to be aborted.

As for what other motives? Well, that's a very dark rabbit hole and do people really want to know.
Ever hear of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich.
Yeah, good mystic to watch and listen to on Youtube.

Curious thing this life - we want spiritual answers in a flesh/physical world.

He’s 100% right.

Joseph G said:

Login to view embedded media

Click to expand...

Well, here is an excerpt from my 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 devotional, which has a bit on Romans 8:38-39. So yes, if we die in a car accident or plane crash, we will still be saved, though we must try not to get into accidents by taking safety measures.

Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)‬: "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

According to Christian belief, if a person has accepted Jesus as their savior and believed in Him for salvation before their death, they will still go to heaven even if they die from a reckless accident. The Bible teaches that salvation is a free gift from God through faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8-9), and that nothing, not even our own actions or mistakes, can ultimately separate us from God's love (Romans 8:38-39). However, the passage in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 emphasizes that as believers, we have a responsibility to honor God with our bodies and live in a way that reflects His love and compassion for us and others. While the consequences of our actions may impact our lives on earth, they do not ultimately determine our eternal destination in heaven.

Temple of Holy Spirit Devotional:

Fantine said:

Obviously it needs to go to court. Hardball is the only language rogue Republicans understand.
I only hope none of them ever graduate to Congress. We have enough obstructionist and rabble rousers in the House already.

Click to expand...

Rogue Republicans? This was a rule adopted in 2010. The state legislators were majority Democratic and the state senate was majority Republican.

Also...what exactly is an obstructionist?

Chosen808 said:

Good day, I'm asking for prayer for salvation of Grand Lodge of Connecticut, Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Connecticut, African Harmony Grand Lodge, Grand Lodge of Delaware, Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Delaware, Grand Lodge of District of Columbia, Eureka Grand Lodge, King Solomon Grand Lodge, Prince Hall Grand Lodge of District of Columbia, Grand Lodge of Florida, Meridian Grand Lodge, Grand Lodge AF&AM of Florida (Scottish Rite), Renford P. Brown Grand Lodge, Union Grand Lodge of Florida, Belize, Central America, and St. John (Prince Hall), Grand Lodge of Georgia, Jeff Long Grand Lodge, Lazarus Grand Lodge of the Jurisdiction of Georgia, Modern Free and Accepted Masons of the World, Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Georgia, Smooth Ashlar Grand Lodge, St. Joseph Grand Lodge of Georgia & families. Thank you for all your prayer.

Click to expand...

I prayed for the salvation of all these Masons, from the Grand Lodge of Connecticut to the St. Joseph Grand Lodge of Georgia. Also, it is kinds strange why a lodge would appropriate St. Joseph's name, who was the husband of Mary.

Bradskii said:

Energy Dept. Pours Billions Into Power Grids but Warns It’s Not Enough (Published 2023)

America’s electric grids may need to expand by two-thirds by 2035 to handle future growth in clean energy, the agency said. The nation isn’t on track.

www.nytimes.com

'As part of the bipartisan infrastructure law in 2021, Congress approved more than $20 billion to upgrade America’s power grids.'

Really pleased to see it's bipartisan. Is it enough? No, more will need to be spent. So let's hope that whoever is sitting behind the Resolute Desk for the next 2 terms won't drag the chain.

The US used to astound us all with it's can-do attitude. Let's hope your get up and go hasn't got up and gone.

Click to expand...

I wonder if that's why they built those humongous fields of solar panels and a transfer station near us.

PARASHA: “Nasso” (Elevate) NUMBERS 4:21-7:89


We will see various themes in this Parashah study. In Chapter 4, the duties of some of the important Levite families; “B’nei Kohat” “B’nei Gershon” and “B’nei Merari” (sons of). Their jobs included taking down, transporting, and setting up the Mishkan (Tabernacle) throughout the wilderness journeys. Each family member had an important task within the Tabernacle and its furnishings. It is interesting to note that all the furnishings had to be covered by blue cloth. Blue symbolizes “HaShamayim” (The Heavenlies)

It is interesting to understand the root meanings of these names; “Gershon” (Ger) means “sojourner” a visitor and not a permanent resident. “Merari” (Maror) means, “sad” or “bitterness”. And then “Kohat” meaning “togetherness in a congregation (Kahal). So these family members transported the furnishings of the Tabernacle from one site to another for the 40 years they were in the wilderness. By the meanings of these names, we can see; “We move together as a congregation, but as sojourners, not permanent residents, and even though sometimes moving can be sad, and we go through bitter times, we must remember that YHVH is with us and will never abandon us”

We are all “sojourners” on planet Earth. At times, we run into bitter experiences such as job losses, perhaps untimely deaths, divorces, lost friendships, etc…yet we must remember that we are all part of the Body of Messiah, In the universal "Body" of Messiah, we have many “Kehilot” (congregations, assemblies) and we must encourage each other to stay firm and keep our eyes and hopes on the World to Come, Eternity, The New Jerusalem, we all have our permanent residence there, and there we will no longer be “sojourners” and there will be no more “bitterness” and this earth will be re-made, re-fashioned into, perhaps, what it was in the beginning of time, before sin and corruption, and the New Jerusalem will come down to sit on the “New Earth” forever. “Baruch HaShem!”

In the service to Adonai, we each have different jobs and ministries to perform. The Body of Messiah consists of many members, some preachers/pastors/rabbis, teachers of the Torah, of Hebrew, Youth ministers, musicians, praise and worship members and leaders, finance personnel, maintenance personnel, prayer warriors, intercessors, counselors, and the list could go on, HaShem has put his Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) on every born-again believer and has given each member different gifts and jobs to do in the body of Mashiach. We have all been “elevated” to perform our different ministries in the Body of Messiah Yeshua.

In this Parashah, there are the repeated Hebrew letters “Ayin and Dalet” In this case the two letters are pronounced “ED” which in Hebrew means “witness’. The word for “congregation” is “Adat” which has the letters “Ayin and Dalet” the other word “Avodah” (service) also has the letters “Ayin and Dalet”.

We can look at it in this way; When we “serve” or do “service” in our “congregations” we should be good “witnesses” to those who observe us, as also, there are “witnesses” in the heavenlies who observe our service to our LORD and God. Just as the different families of the Levites served in the Tabernacle and later in the temple, so we also should serve in our congregations using our spiritual gifts and abilities.

There should be no laziness in the body. We were not appointed just to show up on the sabbath and/or on Sundays just to sit in the pews, listen to the message, drop some money in the box, and leave. It is much, much more than that, anyone can do just that, what are you doing with YOUR gifts of the spirit?

Service in the Mishkan started at 30 years old and ended at 50. (4:29) Each Levite family member had a twenty-year commitment to serve. When did Yeshua begin his ministry? When he was 30 years old! Coincidence? Or obedience to the Torah?

Chapter 5; Unclean persons isolated! Anyone who was physically unclean had to be put outside the camp until the uncleanliness had passed. When we sin we can consider ourselves spiritually “outside the camp" Out of fellowship with YHVH. Our spiritual condition is much more important than our physical condition, as Adonai looks upon the heart and not upon the flesh. But once we repent and get right again with our LORD, we are back in fellowship and in right standing. We could be physically inside the synagogue or church, going through the “praise” motions, yet spiritually miles away, yet through true confession and “Teshuvah” when we “Shoov” (return) to Adonai, He accepts us again. He never leaves us, we leave HIM!

(5:5) Confession and Restitution; Part of our lives is “confession and restitution” If we have wronged our brother or sister in Messiah, we must confess that “wrong” and if possible, make up the “wrong” if it is possible. If not, when all we can offer is a sincere “I am sorry for what I did” then, it is up to the person wronged to be mature enough to accept that and leave the event in the past, and not mention it at all, forevermore.

(5:11) Concerning unfaithful wives; in the days of old in Israel, if a wife was accused by her husband of adultery, she had to either confess or take an oath of “not guilty” a prayer was written with the name YHVH on it, and washed off into a bit of muddy water, if the woman told the truth, nothing would happen to her and the husband would have to accept her and HE would have to confess his “jealous spirit” BUT If the woman were guilty, then, her thigh would rot and her belly would s swell, that would be a horrible punishment, sounds like her womb would never again harbor a child. A lesson to all marriages is to be faithful one to the other. Not that the same thing would happen, but where there is adultery, there is the spirit of jealousy, the spirit of HaSatan, and many times, broken marriages and lives, marriage is a covenant, and a broken covenant leads to the curse.

Chap 6. The Law of the Nazarite. After reading this chapter, we ask ourselves, are there Nazarites today? Is there any prohibition of undergoing a Nazarite vow? Torah does not prohibit it, if a person feels compelled to take a Nazarite vow, then, that person should honor that vow. However, most people who wish to serve the LORD in a special way will just dedicate themselves to that desire and service for as many years as they wish. The important aspect is "faithfulness" Those who serve should do so wholeheartedly.

The Priestly Blessing; a very important blessing that says a lot:

MAY YHVH BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU: The word "Keep" in Hebrew is "Shamar" (guard). Part of God's blessing is that he "guards" us or "protects" us.

This is written in the Hebrew “singular” YOU not the plural YOU, because Israel, and all believers today are as ONE (Echad) in unity and ONE in fellowship, Adonai KEEPS us by “guarding us against curses and calamity, against sickness, poverty, He delivered our souls from the curse of sin, through Yeshua HaMashiach. HOWEVER, we can, through rebellion, bring on to ourselves these curses!

MAY YHVH MAKE HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND BE GRACIOUS UNTO YOU. The idea of “shine” is happiness, purity, and friendship so, May “P’nei Adonai” bring happiness to you and keep you pure “tahor” and bring to you many friends, also GRACIOUS is from the Hebrew “Chen” (grace) something that is not merited, by GRACE we are saved, not by our own merit, He showed us the “Face of Grace” in YESHUA HaMASHIACH who is our YESHUAH (salvation)

LIFT UP HIS COUNTENANCE UPON YOU AND GIVE YOU PEACE. May YHVH give his “attention” to you, and may you rest in HIS SHALOM! When we have Yeshua as Mashiach, we have that internal shalom, despite the world around us being in a lot of “unrest” So

THEY SHALL PUT MY NAME ON THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL AND I WILL BLESS THEM. We can see that one of the names of God which is EL, is part of the name “YisraEL” and the most sacred name; YHVH is part of “Y’HUdaH (Judah)

It is interesting to note that the "Aaronic Blessing" starts with 3 words, then the next line has 5 words, and the last line has 7. (This is in the original Hebrew) 3 then 5 then 7. These numbers remind us of "Elohim" who shows us "Grace" and "Perfection" through Jesus/Yeshua.

Chap 7 “The offerings of the leaders” The leaders of the Tribes of Israel brought offerings to the Mishkan, great offerings of silver, gold, and other items, for the maintenance of the Tabernacle. Today, we bring tithes and offerings, yet our offerings can also be the offering up of our Time and Talent as well as our finances, it all goes back to using our spiritual gifts to edify the body of Messiah.

Our service to the Body of Messiah/Christ Jesus is a "life-long" commitment. Let us not grow weary, but continue to serve, run the race. and finish what we start, to the Glory of God.

We fled Northern Virginia 20 yrs. ago.

Tolkien R.R.J said:

Was any whipping due to random acts of racism or was it due to criminal activity?

Click to expand...

You mean like trying to escape slavery?.....yeah, very frequent.
Are you so ignorant of our history that you actually believe the stuff you have posted?

Tolkien R.R.J said:

Wiki is our source now!

Click to expand...

If you care to take the time and make the effort to research the articles, the referenced resources are at the bottom of the wiki page. It is far better than anything you have referenced in your so-called postings. They sound as though they have come from KKK flyers and the democratic party (copperheads) machine.
You might want to take some time to educate yourself before you stand before God and He confronts you with your sins. That won't be a pretty day.....for you.

tonychanyt said:

I can only guess.

Joseph was a G435-man, Luke 1:


Matthew 14:


1 Corinthians 13:


Is there anything we can infer about Joseph's age from the use of 'man' to describe him in Luke?

Not much other than that he was supposed to be a mature, responsible man who ate more than a child.

On the other hand, we know that Mary didn't marry Joseph for his money, Luke 2:


I don't think Mary married some rich old man. They were too poor to afford a lamb, Leviticus 12:


Later in Luke 2:


When Jesus was 12, Joseph was still alive.

Joseph was a laborer, a carpenter, Matthew 13:


By the time of Jesus' public ministry at 30 years old, there was no mention of Joseph being alive.

I am a romantic I guess Joseph was a physically capable man of moderate means in his 20s when he married.

Click to expand...

Woo, Joseph, one of my favorite saints.


Anime style St. Joseph holding Jesus, source: the internet

Reluctant Theologian said:

Stories circulated that Joseph was a widow who already had other children before marrying Mary - although the Bible doesn't refer to that (other than that Joseph had already died at the time of Yeshua's crucifixion; supporting the hypothesis he was significantly older than Mary), it also doesn't exclude it.

Click to expand...

Check out How old was Joseph when he married Mary?

Reluctant Theologian said:

the word 'bar' meaning 'son' is also used in Proverbs 31:2 .

Click to expand...

Good point. I added to the OP to elaborate. Take another look. Thanks.

Belonging to Abba said:

I have a Linksys router from over ten years ago that I am thinking of using when I sign up for home internet. Should I buy a new router because of security concerns? The older Linksys router required an ethernet cable connection and a CD rom drive for installing, neither of which my laptop has, but I can get an external CD rom drive and Ethernet to USB connector. However the Linksys setup was complicated and I had to chat online with Linksys to set it up properly in the past. It has been reset so I would need to set it up again. There is a good deal on Spectrum internet now, so I may want to get the router that is less complicated to set up so I can make sure it is working when the Spectrum installation person comes to my location. Best Buy told me that the newer routers can download all the installation files over the Internet, I think without an installation CD, but I have to ask about this. I don’t have a need for a really great router since I live at an apartment and don’t need to cover a large area or distance and I will be the only person using it. My main purposes are basic web-browsing on a laptop, email, and YouTube streaming, etc. Also if I get a new router which brand would you recommend?

Click to expand...

What is the speed on the older one. Some of the older door bells and stuff requires the older speed. I have enough trouble getting something brand new to work. I would not want to mess around with something old and outdated. That could be slower than the new ones. Spectrum requires passwords for everything so it is a big problem to set up. I have some lights and stuff like that on the wifi and my furnace even my tv there is a lot of stuff you have to use the password to try to get it to hook up so you can use it.

Belonging to Abba said:

Well maybe there are more fees in addition to the $30 a month for Spectrum. Since the mobile hotspot on my phone may be sufficient for connecting a laptop to the internet, I could return the wireless router I bought, but I would spend more on unlimited data on my phone.

Click to expand...

I use Verizon.

For a long time I was on a 12-gig fixed-maximum family plan that was cheap and served me well, as long as we were somewhat careful of our use. It wasn't very restrictive for our normal use. But I had a phone widget that kept constant track of usage, and we usually got within a couple of gigs within the maximum.

When we realized we needed more data, I went to a slightly more expensive unlimited plan. Funny thing about the unlimited data plan, though. Now that it doesn't matter how much we use, we never get anywhere close to the amount of data we used before. Nowhere close. When we used more than 10 gigs nearly every month...now we barely go over 4.

Hmm. Curious.

I need to get back into the habit of praying the psalms more. Thanks for reminding me

My daughter licked her finger and then rubbed it in my eye.