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RileyG · Sep 11, 2024

Welcome Keith!

Michie · Sep 11, 2024

Michie · Sep 11, 2024

Materialism develops within man's soul when he constantly fixates upon the splendor of his material possessions. But materialism can only exist in your heart if it has "room to breathe." Otherwise, it suffocates from lack of attention.

Jesus said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on Earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:16-18).

You see, the more stuff you have, the more time and attention it takes to maintain it. You get to choose who or what is going to fill your soul. If you consider Jesus to be your treasure, your heart will be centered around Him. If, on the other hand, you choose to make material things your treasure, your heart will be primarily focused upon those things.

Continued below.

How to get out of the stranglehold of materialism

Do you find your joy in Jesus, or in your material possessions

www.christianpost.com

FreeinChrist · Sep 11, 2024

ADVISOR HAT

This thread is closed. The Statement of Purpose for this forum includes:

General Apologetics: This is not a forum where Christians are asked to defend their faith against objections and criticism from non-believers.

This thread is asking for a defense of Christianity.

Xeno.of.athens · Sep 11, 2024

hislegacy said:
That explains a lot of the difference we have - Personally, my faith is based solely on the inerrant Word of God. But you know that already.

I have heard you say it, that is all I know of it.

RileyG · Sep 11, 2024

Lord have mercy!

RileyG · Sep 11, 2024

Michie said:
I think Paul covers this in Scripture when he speaks of those where they are judged according to their conscience. Been missing seeing you around! Glad you stop in to visit every once in awhile.

Agreed.

RileyG · Sep 11, 2024

Thanks for sharing

joymercy · Sep 11, 2024

Shall we bring into play, overnight adoration to keep watch at French Parishes?

Will there be enough faithful to stay up and guard the parish, adoring and praying?

Have we not been at war against the evil one since the beginning?

tonychanyt · Sep 11, 2024

"Verily, verily" in King James Version was translated from the Hebrew: amen, amen. Some translated this Hebrewism as "Amen, I say to you". It was an ancient way of making emphasis by doubling the word.

Abraham, Abraham (Genesis 22:11)
Jacob, Jacob (Genesis 46:2)
Moses, Moses (Exodus 3:4)
Samuel, Samuel (1 Samuel 3:10)
Lord, Lord (Matthew 7:21-22)
Jerusalem, Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37)
My God, My God; in Greek, ἠλὶ, ἠλὶ (Mark 15:34)
Martha, Martha (Luke 10:41)
Simon, Simon (Luke 22:31)
Saul, Saul (Acts 9:4)
Song of Songs (Song 1:1)

The following is from Robert:

In Hebrew, the doubling is used for emphasis. So when you see something like "gold gold", you might translate this as "pure gold" or "fine gold" to emphasize how extremely goldy it is. Of course translators then struggle in translating this idiom, which is why in translating "die die" you see "surely die", "certainly", "in dying you shall die" (which I believe is a poor translation as it elaborates a bit too much).

This doubling occurs over a hundred times in the old testament, and when it does most often translators try to understand what is being emphasized and then express that, as in the following:

Gen 14.10: Now the Valley of Siddim [tar tar] pits. translated as "was full of tar pits"
Gen 18.10: And they piled them in [heaps heaps], and the land stank. translated as "countless heaps"
Numbers 14.7: “The land that we went through to explore is [very very] good. translated as "exceptionally good"
Eccl 7.24: Whatever is—it is far [deep deep]. Who can discover it? translated as "beyond comprehension"
2 Chron 31.6 And they gave [heaps heaps]. translated as "heaps upon heaps"

At other times, the doubling is included verbatim as the english doubling also conveys an emphasis.

Joel 4.14 Commotion, commotion in the valley of decision! For the day of Yahweh is near in the valley of decision!
Prov 20.14 “Bad, bad,” the buyer will say, but when one goes to him, then he will boast.
Eccl. 1.2 “Vanity of vanities!” says the Teacher, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!”
2 Chron 23.13 And Athaliah tore her garments and cried, “Conspiracy! Conspiracy!”

Sometimes the doubling is translated as "every":

2 Chron 13.11 They offer burnt offerings to Yahweh [morning morning] and [evening evening] translated as "every morning" and "every evening".

And finally sometimes the translators don't know what is being emphasized so they ignore the doubling:

Lam 1.16: For these things, I am weeping, my [eyes eyes] flow with tears translated as a single "eyes".

DaisyDay · Sep 11, 2024

BPPLEE said:
The difference between conspiracy theories and the truth is about 3 years

Naw, Kennedy has been a kook for decades.

Michie · Sep 11, 2024

Apparitions And Criticism Of Church

One thing shared in common by several rejected or partially rejected alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary: their mention of the Church in any sort of negative light.

175 Years Ago, Mary Appeared at La Salette, and Wept| National Catholic Register

Start with Our Lady of LaSalette in 1846, where a prophecy to do with a coming devastating crop failure given to both seers (Melanie Calvat and Maximin Giraud) was officially accepted while a “secret” granted solely to Melanie was alternately (depending on bishop) rejected, accepted, and, finally, rejected again.

The spurned message had said, in part, “The priests, ministers of my Son, the priests, by their wicked lives, by their irreverence and their impiety in the celebration of the holy mysteries, by their love of money, their love of honor and pleasures, the priests have become cesspools of impurity. Yes, the priests are asking vengeance, and vengeance is hanging over their heads. Woe to the priests and those dedicated to God who by their unfaithfulness and their wicked lives are crucifying my Son again!” It wasn’t a message to warm the hearts of clerics.

And it didn’t stop there. “A great number of priests and members of religious orders will break away from the true religion; among these people there will even be bishops.”

Then: “The Holy Father will suffer a great deal” and “the Church will witness a frightful crisis.”

“For,” said Melanie’s secret, “the devil will resort to all his evil tricks to introduce sinners into religious orders” and “many convents are no longer houses of God, but the grazing grounds of Asmodeus [a king of demons] and his like.”

Continued below.

Apparitions And Criticism Of Church | Spirit Daily Blog

One thing shared in common by several rejected or partially rejected alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary: their mention of the Church in any sort of negative light. Start with Our Lady of LaSalette in 1846, where a prophecy to do with a coming devastating crop failure given to both seers...

spiritdailyblog.com

tonychanyt · Sep 11, 2024

KevinT said:
I have always thought that casting lots was something akin to rolling dice.

Right. I understand that the U&T were special kinds of lots.

Michie · Sep 11, 2024

RALEIGH, N.C. (OSV News) — A day after breaking bread with farmworkers and listening to their stories, a delegation on a pastoral visit to the Diocese of Raleigh heard a series of presentations on realities, best practices, current policies, and pastoral insights by diocesan volunteers and leaders at the Catholic Center in Raleigh Aug. 3.

The Aug. 1-4 pastoral visit was organized by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Subcommittee on Pastoral Care of Migrants, Refugees, and Travelers. Participants from the USCCB and the Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network, joined by Raleigh parishioners and community organizers, witnessed the efforts of parishes accompanying workers and learned about their working and living conditions.

Panel discussions highlight farmworker conditions

Continued below.

North Carolina pastoral visit reveals farmworkers' harsh experiences

A day after breaking bread with farmworkers and listening to their stories, a delegation on a pastoral visit to the Diocese of Raleigh heard a series of presentations on realities, best practices, current policies, and pastoral insights by diocesan volunteers and leaders at the Catholic Center...

www.oursundayvisitor.com

KevinT · Sep 11, 2024

Xeno.of.athens said:
Would you weep for Job when this happened were you a son of God in the gathering before God?

It is hard for me to weep before an event occurs. For example, I know intellectually that as the war between Russian and Ukraine goes on, that more and more young men are going to be viciously killed because of the power-grabbing machinations of politicians. And that makes me very sad. But I don't weep. If, on the other hand, I was standing at the side of the body of the boy, I would certainly weep.

KT

chevyontheriver · Sep 11, 2024

Jesse Dornfeld said:
How you raise your children, and how you treat your spouse, but especially how you raise your children, is paramount to the success of Christianity in the next generation.

Gen Z is largely rejecting Christianity en mass. I am not blaming anyone here specifically, but millennials have REALLY dropped the ball in instilling the faith in the younger generation.

I am a millennial, but I am not married and I have no children so maybe I do not have a place to stand. However, I do know that pretty much all the millennials I went to Youth Group with are either very nominally Christian, they believe things like universalism and other extremely liberal views, or they have no interest in Christianity and are into Paganism or new age weirdness.

We have really dropped the ball as a generation. We want to be our children's best friend so we don't lay down the law. We let their heart roam, so to speak. I am not saying to not let your children ask questions. In fact, I have read that allowing your children to ask questions is the best way to pass your faith onto your kids. To be open and honest with them. To invite their questions and if you don't know, to say, "Let's find out together."

But my parents laid down the law when I was a child. I did not get to do whatever I wanted. I did not get exactly what I wanted for my birthday very often. I thank my parents for not putting up with my crap. I am better for it today.

So you want to be relatable and open with your kids. But you also want them to know that when you make a rule, it's not a debate; that's the rule.

Thanks for coming to my TedTalks.

The trouble began with your parent's generation, though not all of them. Many were taught a very weak and vague faith by the catechists who listened to the theological experts of the day. The fundamental principle here is 'you can't teach what you don't have'. Many in your parent's generation never caught the faith, but instead a cultural Christianity, so they couldn't pass the faith on to their children. Some caught the faith despite that because in the cultural Christianity of the time it was still possible, sometimes, to figure it out. But now, with the culture changed so much in an anti-Christian direction it's rare. Kids still come to faith here and there, and I see a bunch here and there. Some parents know and teach the faith. Some catechists know and teach the faith. But overall it's a wasteland.

Your generation could be accused of dropping the ball, but many of them were never handed the ball in the first place. They got at best a cultural Christianity. So don't be so hard on them. Look at it like this. You and some like you are in a big boat. And there are people out in the water after a shipwreck. You guys in the boat are pulling them in one by one. That's the job today. Rescue who you can. The folks in the water are not enemies but really need you.

Offline4Better. · Sep 11, 2024

KevinT said:
I think your answer was tongue-in-cheek. But I do worry that, esp as AI's appear to get better, that we will start turning to AI for all our questions, bowing down to it and asking for answers. Seems like a great stand-in for the idols of old.

KT

My answer is a joke. 80% of the answers I give to Tony Chan are jokes, cos humor is funny.

But yes, this joke may become reality in a few decades.

KevinT · Sep 11, 2024

tonychanyt said:
Mt 28:16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.

I had overlooked this explicit numbering of "11" in the verse you referenced. Thanks for pointing it out.

KT

KathrynAragon · Sep 11, 2024

probinson said:
That was almost certainly Paxlovid. Here's an article you might find interesting about Paxlovid.

The key thing to know is that Paxlovid’s blockbuster effect was found in people who had neither been infected with SARS-CoV-2 nor vaccinated. But by the time it actually reached the open market, the vast majority of the high-risk US population had already been infected or vaccinated. That immunity provides substantial long-term protection from severe Covid-19 when future infections occur, a fact which should not be minimized.

https://insidemedicine.substack.com/p/new-paxlovid-trial-flops

Yes, it was Paxlovid. I absolutely hated the side effects which were exactly the same as COVID and all it seemed to do was make everything worse, so after 1 dose I didn't take any more and I was FINE.

Mercy Shown · Sep 11, 2024

David Lamb said:
I would say that if they don't believe, then they didn't really believe in the first place.

Of course we can’t know that. It is just a conjecture on our part. I think Hebrews 6:4 is a very strong argument against this. Still, from God’s all seeing point of view this would be the case but not from our limited point of view.

This still does not impact whether God grants all men an informed choice.

David Lamb said:
They were like the seed in the parable that fell by the wayside, among thorns, etc. When God does a work in a person's heart, He completes it, as we read in Philippians:

“being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete [it] until the day of Jesus Christ;” (Php 1:6 NKJV)

This is true if we abide in him. But apart from him you can do nothing. We have the free choice to leave Him in which case we will wither and return to a state where we can no longer choose Him.

David Lamb said:
As for Galatians, yes there may have been those in the Galatian church who had sneaked in, and were not really believers, or Paul may have been addressing (when he wrote things like "O foolish Galatians!") believers who were being led astray by false teachers.

How can one be led astray in less, like Eve they decide to trust someone or something more than God? They were being led astray by their own bad choice to follow a different path.

David Lamb said:
Yes, Jesus did ask, "Will you leave also?", but we know that apart from Judas Iscariot, none of them did. In His high priestly prayer in John 17, He said:

“"While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” (Joh 17:12 NKJV)

He was lost by His choice.

David Lamb said:
If a Christian shirks God given responsibilities, then he will be subject to God's chastisement.

And if he or she ignores God’s chastisement then they have ignored so great a salvation.

BelieveItOarKnot · Sep 11, 2024

Christsfreeservant said:
Summary

Although I confess that I still do not totally grasp all the meaning of what is said in Romans 9, I see that the overall picture here, from beginning to end, is about how the Jews, who were once God’s chosen people, as an entire race, had largely rejected Jesus Christ as their Lord and Messiah and were still trying to be saved by following the Old Covenant liturgical and ceremonial laws. But they were not true Israel by physical descendance, nor by keeping liturgical laws, but only by faith in Christ Jesus, our Lord, as is required of all who would belong to God and to have eternal life with God.

Not an accurate summary at all. You left out the fact that God Himself placed all of Israel, spiritually blinding them by the "spirit of slumber." Romans 11:8

No different than any of us were placed under, shown in 2 Cor. 4:4 and Eph. 2:2 for examples.

What is the missing component in your summary? Our adversary, the devil.

Paul tells us that when the O.T. was read, their MINDS, the minds of these people, were blinded, 2 Cor. 3:14

Well, WHO exactly blinded them? That would be THE DEVIL

And God fully allows said blindness. And only God can "allow" us to "see" the obvious

When we do see, we, like Paul, will bemoan our condition, knowing full well we can't change it. We can however tell the truth of it

Who then in Romans 9 was "not Israel?" That answer is obvious. The party who BLINDS. Our adversary, the devil

Who receives mercy then and who does not?

People receive Mercy

Devils do not

Who then are the vessels of mercy in Romans 9? People

Who are the vessels of dishonor? The devil and his messengers

Romans 11:32
For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.

IF God allows you to see and speak truthfully, that you are a sinner and that your sin is in fact "of the devil," these matters will become so obvious they will LEAP off the pages

But for those who remain blinded, they will not and can not see it, nor speak the truth of it, no matter how hard they try, and these are fulfilling the scriptures also

germo155 · Sep 11, 2024

When I watched some of the videos of Mmiddleton how to conquer sin, I feel bondage, there is no freedom in this message. Kind of like you need to work ur way to heaven and stop sinnin, no mention about Spirit, and how we can overcome. But "us" overcoming, I used to listen he's videos, but many times I start feel condemnation, bondage. I also watched lots of deliverance subject and so we need to be perfect as God want us to be perfect, that includes eating out demons so we are holy front of God and this is Gods command basically? If I understood him correct. My English isn't good

Bob Crowley · Sep 11, 2024

Sword of the Lord said:
I'm not hating, and I find it humourous, but I always know when I see you there's a 99% chance you will mention your old Presbyterian pastor at some point lol

He left a strong impression on me.

The night my father died when I was still an atheist he said "You'll become a Christian" and "You'll meet a pastor. You'll think he's great but all he'll do is to discourage you even more."

The pastor he was referring to was the Presbyterian pastor whom I met nearly four years later.

About nine years after that as I was about to leave his church he said he owed me an apology.

I asked him why. He replied "You needed encouragement but all I've done is to discourage you even more!"

He'd quoted my deceased father back to me word for word about himself. When I pointed that out, he blurted "You really did see your father that night!!"

But I learnt a lot from him and he was prophetic. I found if he thought something was going to happen it did sooner or later. I'm still waiting on a couple of things, but a number of them have already happened.

Obviously God thought he was going to be important enough to show my father who had just died on the night of 11 January 1979 that I would meet him down the track, late in 1982 as it happened.

My father never met the pastor but he was being shown me meeting the pastor a few years down the track and said so. He didn't say that about anybody else, although he did indicate another pastor would cause me trouble.

I hold the pastor in high respect even if he tended to be discouraging. He said "I tend to discourage people. I don't mean to but I do."

I think part of the problem for him was that he could see problems people would make for themselves in years to come.

Christsfreeservant · Sep 11, 2024

Don’t let the raindrops
Spoil your day.
Don’t let the clamoring
Get in the way.
Don’t let opinions
And thoughts of the millions
Impact how you’re feeling.
Trust God, bow and pray.

Don’t let your feelings
Rule what you do.
Don’t let misgivings
Affect your life, too.
Don’t let the stages
Of life with its phases
Lead you through the ages.
Let God’s Word lead you.

Don’t trust in idols.
They cannot help.
Don’t trust in princes,
Or in yourself.
Don’t trust in anything
That is not leading you
To follow in God’s way.
Obey now your Lord.

Don’t live defeated
because you’re mistreated.
Don’t let emotions
Ruin devotions.
Don’t let the enemy
Ruin your energy,
And stop your ministry.
Live victoriously!

An Original Work / January 2, 2020

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Apparitions And Criticism Of Church​

Panel discussions highlight farmworker conditions​

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Apparitions And Criticism Of Church

Panel discussions highlight farmworker conditions