eleos1954 said:

The bible doesn't teach that there are UFO's (material flying objects). It also does not teach demons can manifest themselves as material objects.

Some people say ... and even some in government and/or the military say they have seen them and/or actually have physical evidence of such.

As a Christian ...

What do you believe about the existence of UFO's and why?

If you believe UFO's (material spaceships) is true .... how do you reconcile that with scripture?

What do you believe in this regard?

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UFO means "Unidentified Flying Object." So anything flying in the air that is not identified is technically a UFO. So yes, they exist and it doesn't necessarily mean they are alien.

mikepoon said:

Thank you, sets777, for such a thoughtful and Scripture-filled response! I really appreciate how you’ve highlighted the assurance of life in the Spirit and the importance of walking in the light through repentance and faith. The way you connected David’s repentance to our daily walk with Christ is such a powerful reminder of God’s mercy and grace.

I found 1 John 1:5-7 especially encouraging, where it says that if we walk in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. It’s such a beautiful picture of God’s faithfulness as we strive to stay close to Him.

I’d love to hear your thoughts—what do you think are some practical ways we can “walk in the Spirit” daily, as Paul encourages in Galatians 5:24-25?

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My thoughts are on how Paul, in the previous verses before "Galatians 5:24-25," describes the ways Christians walk in the Spirit and those Christians who are instead walking in the flesh as follows:

Galatians 5:13-25 (NIV) Paul addressing and admonishing born-again believers who have the Spirit

13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other. You are not to do whatever you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you [Christians], as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we [Christians] live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Lord Jesus describes, and gives us examples, of the ways we walk in the Spirit, which is the way of love, and by which we manifest that we possess eternal life as follows:

Matthew 25:31-46 (WEB)
31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34 Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you took me in. 36 I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came to me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? 38 When did we see you as a stranger and take you in, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and come to you?’

40 “The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

44 “Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’

45 “Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ 46 These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

In addition, I cannot think of a better way to share the love of God to others then, in humbleness of heart and wisdom, we share the Gospel with others in the way God himself reveals it to us in the NT, so they also may be saved. Sharing well thought out Gospel tracts are good ice-breakers when approaching others to share the Gospel. I like the Christian tracts by Chick.com because of the illustrations.

1 Peter 3:15 Be ready to make a scholarly [well thought out] defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, but with gentleness and respect

Sharing the Gospel must always include a call to repentance for our sins to be blotted out, because without repentance, faith is disingenuous, and so, faith without repentance is not the kind of faith God seeks or grants eternal life.

Luke 24:46-47 (ESV) 46 “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead [the Gospel], 47 and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

Acts 3:19 … 19 “Repent therefore, and be converted [sanctified], that your sins may be blotted out

Acts 20:20-21 … 20 I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, teaching you publicly and from house to house, 21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus [sanctification].

Acts 26:20 ... I declared first in Damascus, at Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God [turn from darkness to light by the Gospel] doing works worthy of repentance. [sanctification]

2 Corinthians 7:10 (WEB) 10 For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, which brings no regret. But the sorrow of the world produces death.

By this repentant faith, God indwells us by His Spirit to give true believers eternal life.

Acts 2:37-38 … 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 5:32 (KJV) 32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.

John 14:15-17 (Young’s Literal Translation) 15 `If you love me, keep my commands, 16 and I will ask the Father, and another Comforter He will give to you, that he may remain with you -- to the age; 17 the Spirit of truth

A true believer is a Christian, which means, he is now a disciple (follower) of Lord Jesus - having died to the old life of sin, and now lives to follow Lord Jesus into a sanctified [separated] life onto the righteousness of love.

Acts 11:26 The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

Matthew 10:38 (WEB) 38 He who doesn’t take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.

Matthew 28:19-20 (WEB) 19 Go and make disciples of all nations

This is "The Faith" of the Gospel by which God chooses to forgive and save the sinner.

Living within are corrupted flesh, and in a corrupt world, is a test of our faith in Lord Jesus. At times, we will stumble, but if the true disciple repents, and continues on the path of Light, then he remains sanctified to God, being cleansed from all sins.

​

mikepoon said:

Thank you again for sharing these insights—your post is such a blessing to reflect on! God bless you!

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Blessings in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior

Nevyn Atall said:

Sad but true. I have to avoid it for the danger it poses to my personal salvation. One of the things He has been showing me is how to examine the logismoi when they assault me and in finding their targets, I find weaknesses to address in myself. When I allow myself to submit to violence, I find myself hating my enemy in a way that fits no experience I've ever had and I'm not even prone to emotional trauma. I'd honestly rather be killed or even just a beating than become that thing and risk having to face Him as that thing.

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Lord have mercy!

Fantine said:

They bought the mayor with golden handcuffs so it shouldn't be necessary.

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LOL, the NYC Mayor has very little influence, if any, over Governor Hochul or state AG Letitia James.

tonychanyt said:

By intelligence, I mean IQ.

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It's not a fruit of the Spirit in my opinion.

RDKirk said:

If he's going to cast a "no" vote on Gabbard, he should be calling a "no" vote on all of them.

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Mitch should retire. He’s approaching Biden territory cognitively

You could lodge a complaint against whatever equal opportunity sort of office your university has because insulting a religion, including Christianity, is a violation of one's rights. It is indeed hate speech.

Or just completely destroy your professor in the end of class review.

Matthew 13:7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.

Genesis 3:17 And to Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.

Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them

Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. 9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

JimR-OCDS said:

The book of Galatian's has to do with St Paul addressing the Church there where there was a
conflict between the circumcised Jews and the uncircumcised Gentiles. The Jews were pressuring
the Gentile converts to be circumcised and to observe Jewish religious traditions. St Paul even
corrected St Peter over it as he said that Jesus Christ death and resurrection freed us from the law
made by man. Christ freed us to observe God's laws alone.

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Amen!

We must be circumcised in our hearts!

Baptism replaced circumcision and it's now open to everyone!

I found this link for you, it doesn't specifically say:


(posting in fellowship)

Lord, please heal your servant

praying!

Paleouss said:

Greetings Christfreeservant. Much peace and love to you, friend.

You presented a work that said...

Then you stated that the goal should not be used for...

But then it says...

So my point is this...isn't "study the Scriptures so that we can learn..." simply a description of seeking a type of head knowledge? Important head knowledge, no doubt. But head knowledge none the less.

So this is what I'm reading...
1. We have a goal when reading the Bible
2. The goal should not be simply attaining intellectual knowledge.
3. The goal should be attaining knowledge so we can learn how to....

2 & 3 seem to be a contradiction.

I suppose one could say that what is being communicated is that one should not be studying simply for knowledge sake but study to attain knowledge for another purpose. But both options are a seeking of knowledge.

In my humble opinion, there are many reasons one studies and memories scripture daily. The primary and most important purpose is to strengthen the spiritual personal bond relationship with God. Its all about the relationship!

The love one has for something or someone is demonstrated through the amount of time spent with the loved one. If one never makes time to see, talk, interact with one's loved one. How much do you really love them? Doesn't seem to be much of a priority.

In regard to seeking instruction, God’s spiritual instruction is not just to lead to our education but one should take these teachings and “bind them around your neck” (Prov 3:3) and “bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart” (Prov 7:3). These verses are telling us that we should make God's word part of us.

This notion of ‘binding’ and ‘writing’ suggests the pupil is to receive instruction and internalize it in such a way as to make it second nature. If instruction is bound and written within you then the instruction and teachings are internalized and applied toward future behavior. If a way of behaving is second nature then it is said to be done almost without thinking, a habit that is ingrained, almost part of you, because it is so ingrained in you it becomes obvious to you.

So to me, the primary goal of study is to seek a more personal, in depth, loving relationship with our Lord. It is spending time with our loved One. The knowledge we acquired through that interaction should be taken and internalized within us so to prepare us for the enemy and also in our submission to the Spirit, it is to be expressed in our actions.

Keep seeking God's truth as if it were hidden treasure!

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The point is that we should not study the Scriptures just to gain head knowledge only and stop there. Yes, we study to learn, but then to put what we are learning into practice in our daily lives which has everything to do with drawing closer to our Lord in our relationship with him. If it is head knowledge only, perhaps for the purpose of intellectual debate only, then it does not serve the purpose for which it is intended which is for us to grow in our relationships with the Lord Jesus in closer and obedient walks of faith in him.

If divisiom and debate is a sin then it must quench the spirit I assume. Without the spirit how can we teach or learn anything? Theology isn't the way into the kingdom. Most people never really change their mind in debate. They only want to promote their theology. It seems useless

iluvatar5150 said:

The guy in your article, Manuel Perez, started his criminal activity in 2019, during the first Trump administration. If they're just arresting him now, that means the investigation started during the Biden administration.

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Indeed, I think there will be more, some perhaps from the new Trump administration. Also local police. The cartels were enriched by the human trafficking and big money has influence.

The new testament, psalms.

Sounds like politicians and their followers who despise each other

“I look forward to working with Mr. Kennedy to improve the health of all Americans, make our health care system more efficient and ensure HHS’ adherence to Kennedy’s ‘radical transparency’ commitment.”​

Floor Remarks by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa

“Nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to be Secretary of Health and Human Services”

Thursday, February 11, 2025

Continued below.

Yah (Hebrew: יהּ‎‎ Yah) is a short form of Yahwah. The short form of the name occurs 50 times in the text of the Hebrew Bible, of which 24 form part of the phrase "Halleluyah".

iluvatar5150 said:

The city (a suburb of Boston, not technically within Boston) just repealed all single and dual-family zoning laws across the city; increased the height limit on all residential multi-family buildings to four stories, with 6-stories being allowed provided the building meets certain conditions.

It's not going to complete fix the housing problem in the Boston area, but it's a good start.

In landmark zoning reform, Cambridge votes to legalize four-story multifamily homes citywide (corrected)

As expected, eight out of nine councillors supported bans on single- and two-family zones, dubbed “exclusionary zoning,” to address a housing affordability crisis.

www.cambridgeday.com

A bit of background:

Cambridge Is Nearing a Massive Zoning Overhaul. Here’s What That Means. | News | The Harvard Crimson

Cambridge officials are considering a dramatic change to the city’s zoning code in an effort to spur housing development and address what local politicians and advocates have described as a severe and far-reaching housing shortage.

www.thecrimson.com

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Very necessary. But people will wonder in a year why my rents havent stabilized or gone down???

Its a long term part of the solution. Not sure there are any short term parts - aside from perhaps a really bad pandemic.

Spiritual Jew said:

That Micah 4:3 occurs within the last days has to be taken into account.

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Michah 4, the last days includes when Jesus has returned and ruling from Jerusalem during the thousand years. Read verse 2. Verse 3 takes place at that time as well.

1 But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.

2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

3 And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

RocksInMyHead said:

None of your complaints about bias have anything to do with the subscription service being discussed (analytics tools), aside from the fact that Politico created them (or paid someone to create them, or bought out the person who created them) and hosts them.

Pretty sure that was the NYT. At least, I can't find any references to Politico staff doing it - just NYT staff over an op-ed.

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You are correct. That was Tom Cotton's "Have the NG Shoot the BLM protesters" Op-Ed in the NYT that had the staff of that paper in outrage.

Mitch McConnell also voted against Gabbard's confirmation. He is such an interesting character. I'm not sure whether he is trying to atone for the excesses of his past, or just be himself. It's obviously his last term in office, and it will end in 2026. He's 82 years old now.
I imagine he'll have a book deal in the works, and hopefully he will reveal how Trump caused him to reevaluate his priorities and put integrity over party, because no one, absolutely no one, was more partisan than McConnell.
I feel pretty sure he will vote against RFK, Jr. Why? Because he has lived all his life with polio, and he knows what a blessing the vaccine has been to all the generations who have reaped its benefits.
But despite the challenges he has faced with polio, he is now stronger, and I am grateful for his newfound spine. God bless you, Senator.

KateMae1023 said:

Hello! Yesterday, as I was with the man I am dating, he was frustrated with me.

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His frustration is his responsibility, not yours. any individual's ability to manage or not manage their own frustration becomes a problem when it adversely disrupts the relationship. Blaming you for his emotional conditions is called scapegoating and it's not healthy. Scapegoating that turns into the frustrated one claiming to also be a victim of your otherwise completely permissible behavior is called gaslighting.

I am NOT saying that is what your boyfriend is doing. I am simply telling you what scapegoating and gaslighting are so you recognize them when you see them. If and when they occur walk away. At best they are evidence of serious lack of maturity and at worst they are symptomatic of potentially very serious mental illness.

Here's how you test it: The next time you and your date have a disagreement, and he is visibly frustrated, simply ask him. "How are you feeling right now?" If he's like the average guy he'll say he's fine, okay, or alright. That might be true but that is not an identification of emotion, of his feelings. Guys tend to be in their heads and compartmentalize. Women are more emotionally integrated and relationship oriented. For him the conversation about getting a credit card is a factual matter, a logical matter, and it has nothing to do with feelings. He's wrong.

And you will not be able to tell him that.

So.... after he's said, "I'm fine," you follow that up with. "Thank you, I appreciate knowing that. Can we take a moment and regather the relationship?" If his head doesn't explode then you follow that up with, "How about you summarize your position and tell me why it is I, not anyone else, must get a credit card, and when you're done, I'll repeat what you've said so you know I was listening and understood it. After that I'll summarize my point of view and after that's acknowledged we can move on with the rest of our date."

because when people repeat themselves and/or the volume levels increase then it's time to summarize what's been said and move on.

KateMae1023 said:

He told me that it seemed that everything I said to him was argumentative.

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And what did he say about himself?

Are you always argumentative? Seriously. You know you better than anyone else, except God (and possibly your parents). Do you trust yourself to either 1) know your own behavior and the inner life that drives it, and 2) to accept maybe you are doing something you don't want to do? My wife, for example, had a habit of starting most of her replies with, "No." However, she married a counselor who's trained in behavioral observation. It is a very natural and normal human behavior to begin with "No," especially for those of us who are very analytical and perfectionist. We like to start with what needs improving, rather than observe and affirm that which is already excellent and thereby build goodwill, safety, and connection sufficient for tolerating disagreement and enough trust to listen to one another's differences. You can imagine how frustrating it is being married to me . I, on the other hand, had to learn how not to be so analytical, not start with the problem to be solved and, instead, start with an affirmation of my wife's point of view. Healthy couples move toward each other in occasions of disagreement..... but few couples start out that healthy. It's a skill we learn in the relationship itself. That's what dating is about = the finding of a person with whom I can close the distance even on occasions where we disagree.

Watch what happens when you do not reciprocate but, instead, ask him not to blame you for his frustration and tell you why he finds it frustrating. I don't know you KateMae but I do know women are amazing creatures and if he values every second he's with you then he will lean into that question, even if ridden with anxiety.

KateMae1023 said:

For example, he was trying to explain why I should get a certain credit card and told me the benefits. I immediately told him why I didn’t want it. Also, when he told me about my being argumentative, I immediately started defending myself.

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Ummmmm...... how does expressing your viewpoint mean you're being argumentative and defensive? How is his appraisal not argumentative and defensive (and adversarial)?

Most couples go through this. The healthy ones learn not to continue that pattern. Most healthy couples go through it twice. The first time during their courtship, and the second time 6 to 10 years into their marriage when it comes time to re-sort the territory and terrain of the relationship.

Is it okay if I defend my viewpoint? Am I allowed to explain why I hold the views I do?

In other words, put his cr@p back in his lap and see how he handles it because the guy that says, "No, that's not alright," or escalates when asked that question is the guy you ask to turn the car around and take you home. The guy who says, "Yes, of course," but then does not follow true is a guy who does not keep his word and there is not a man in this forum who will tell you that is acceptable. At best, it is a sign of immaturity, so you have to decide whether or not you believe this guy is valuable enough for you to grow with him as he matures. All men enter marriage without certain relationship skills. All men need to mature that way. All men have a little boy inside them and that's not a bad thing. Some of the best times in an adult relationship are when my little boy comes out to play with my wife's little girl . Adult conversations require the adults to act like adults.

KateMae1023 said:

The problem is, I do not feel like I am being hostile or argumentative. Most of the time, I feel like I am just peacefully sharing my opinion. He pointed out that I am contrary in almost every response I give to him, and as I was thinking over our conversations, I am.

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There's a very simple way to find out. Close your eyes and place you hand over your heart. Feel how fast you're breathing. If your heart is racing and your breathing is fast and shallow then it's likely your anxious and/or in defense mode. That's normal in episode of disagreement. It's not very good for complex problem solving, though. The problem is also fairly simple. Just slow down your breathing. Take long, slow, deep breaths and clear your head. Our brains are connected to respiration, pulse, and the fight-or-flight mechanism. Slowing down helps bring the parasympathetic nervous system back online. Not only is that the part of your wiring that helps you (and him) solve complex problems, it is also the part of your nervous system required to be relational.

If, on the other hand (no pun intended) you find you are calm and collected then he's probably the one being hostile unawares (if he's aware of it and did it intentionally then call your father or best friend to come and get you).

KateMae1023 said:

This is extremely discouraging because I fear that this has become completely second-nature to me. I hadn’t even realized it until he told me. I realize it is true, and I do not want to have such an argumentative nature. I am not only like this with him. I grew up in a family that argued all the time, so I feel like it is deeply ingrained in me. My close friends do not point this out, maybe because they have known me for so long, but I have been told this by another man I dated and my family. After he pointed this out, I tried to be very careful with my words, and intentionally filtering myself, but it is very difficult. Does anyone have any advice on ways I can stop being so disagreeable and argumentative?
Thank you so much!

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I recommend you not be so quick to accept you're the argumentative, defensive, hostile and/or frustrated one. I recommend you pick up a copy of a copy of "Boundaries" by Henry Cloud and John Townsend and read it. Then, when you're done, you read their book, "Boundaries in Dating," and after you've been married two to three years you read their book, "Boundaries in Marriage."

• Boundaries tell us what is right and wrong.
• Boundaries also teach us who we are. (I am not you and you am not me. I can think my own thoughts, have my own feelings, make my own choices and I do not have to think, feel, or choose like you).
• Boundaries must be firm but not rigid, flexible but not porous.
• Boundaries begin with the ability to say, "No."
• The first and biggest obstacle to healthy boundaries is the fear of consequences (he'll break up with me! My boss will fire me! My friend will hate me!).

Get the book and read it.