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  1. The general teaching here, Kay, was to subject yourself humbly under the rule of those in authority (Romans 13:1), and lead what Paul taught elsewhere was a "quiet life," where you were not a nuisance to rulers but did your best to instead be a blessing to the cities and nations you were citizens of. The idea was not that they would be perfect in their judgments, but simply that they were not generally a terror to those who did things like praying for the peace and well-being of their nations (1 Timothy 2:1-4), but would be far more likely to be to those who demonstrated in the streets and threatened to rebel, as the Jews were doing against Rome, which would lead to their eventually being conquered and completely subjugated not many years later. This is essentially the same teaching Jesus was giving when he taught that if a Roman soldier commanded a Jew to walk a mile and carry has equipment by force, a disciple of Jesus should walk with him an additional mile as well, as a way of overcoming evil with good. So the teaching was not necessarily to expect the government to always be good and fair to you, but simply to understand that you would be much more agreeable to them if you were a blessing to their rule rather than a public nuisance and a potential threat to stability. As for your question about walking free of fear completely, I think this is only possible by walking ever closer to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, since He has not given us a spirit of fear, but One of love, power, and a sound mind.
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  2. Welcome to Worthy! Your question makes me think of thief on the cross. Although he did not have a water baptism he believed in Jesus and Jesus said he would be with him in Paradise.
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  3. Yes i was part of herbert w armstrongs church. And Garner ted Armstrong. I was only 18 when i heard his radio program. I was already a born again christian. But i did not really know the bible too well. So i could not dercern the errors he taught. I remain with them over ten years. What i learnt was dont make a man over christ. No man has more truth then whats already in the bible. Remember what John wrote you have no need for anyone to teach you. But the annoted teaches you. . Its saying you can understand for yourself. Once your born again you already know enough to move onward in knowledge from scripture. I looked to a man as superioer in knowldge in the word. And took it for granted that he was right because he sounded so righteous. They said we were the only true church. They said armstrong was Eljah to come. And i used circular reasoning to agree at that time. The bible is our only source of truth. In it the holy spirit has raise up letters from the Apostles to point to christ. We have to go by that alone. No man has extra understanding of the scriptures then what we can already understand by the holy spirit in us. Beware of men who say most christians dont get it. Or dont walk with God. They are trying to draw followers. Some are clueless and mean well. But they are wrong. Go by the bible only.
    2 points
  4. Greetings, Eslyn. Yes, of course this includes people who have been baptized. Baptism is merely an outward ceremony symbolizing a deeper truth; that we are to die to the old man and be raised up in newness of life in the new, through the Holy Spirit (preferable the baptism in the Holy Spirit). But there are many who have observed the outward ceremony who did not live out what it was meant to symbolize, whereas there are some who are living out the spiritual truth in their lives without having actually gone through the ceremony yet. So the more important question is: While it is never too late, are you ready to die to your old life and put on the new?
    2 points
  5. Not quite sure of the complete meaning of the OP question. But in my mind, what I have learned, is that God is a God of the last minute type. He is never early or late. He outfoxes the foxes and He out-thinks His adversaries. If our last breath is to ask His forgiveness, then as He rightly states in the scriptures, the late worker is still to be recompensed for the full day's pay as those that have been there the whole day have earned. This idea did not set well with the disciples until they understood its real meaning. No one earns the right to have the Gift of Salvation - it is readily available until the very last moment, no matter what.
    2 points
  6. Your entire post was just a compact outline of where we are today and put well. The last sentence is a big question mark though as I like to use the term " The genie is out the bottle and who's gonna put him back". Man's quest today is to reach the stars and they adamant on tinkering with the biology of life as from test tube babies to gene splicing. Yes, God is in control, but like the tower of babel, its structure can be struck down at any time. Our food source is not natural anymore and had to be modified and changed in ways to feed the growing world population. The frontier of science has reached epic proportions where knowledge is doubling every year now, that is astounding. You are correct though, we have to live and do the best to leave a better world for the next generation and let the chips fall where they may. Below is taken from google search engine. For example, nanotechnology knowledge is doubling every two years and clinicalknowledge every 18 months. But on average human knowledge is doubling every 13 months. According to IBM, the build out of the “internet of things” will lead to the doubling of knowledge every 12 hours.Apr 19, 2013
    2 points
  7. Yes, Marilyn, my analogy is that they are "feeding on artificial grass" - it has no truth or nutrition whatsoever. Jesus is our treasure in heaven and no amount of earthly things can measure up to Him...... in fact shouldn't even be included in the same sentence.
    2 points
  8. The magazine was the Plain Truth, the tv show was the world tomorrow. Now 1 of his followers teaches on a show called the Key of David. I got suckered in cause Armstrong gave everything away free. He also preached a lovely message, but it was false. Jesus was supposed to return in his life time. I think when he died his church fell apart. This is why I doubt all doomsday preachers. Look at what happened with Harold Camping last decade. One man in NYC spent his life savings taking out full page ads and paying for billboards announcing the day Christ would return. Other people took their children out of school cause we were supposed to leave soon. Who needed school. The Bible says Jesus will return but no one knows when. We have to live and plan for old age because the odds are we will all get old. What's important is to obey Jesus. It means to constantly fight against sins and that's not easy but it's necessary. Another dangerous group are the prosperity preachers. Many of us never got what we wanted in this life, but Christianity isn't about this life, it's about the next one. We have to do what's right by God so we make sure we go to heaven. I love the 2nd half of 1 Corinthians ch 3 where Paul is warning us that what we do now will effect us later. He didn't go into great detail probably because he didn't know either. I can see this so clearly because in my life I've seen America turn away from God and it did no good. I remember when we wanted sex outside marriage to be accepted, it was, and we have a mess. Then we wanted legal abortions, we got it, and another mess. We took prayer out of schools, and our kids no longer know what their gender is. It goes on and on. I see in the Bible that God is big on repentance and I think he's giving us time to repent. He's not big on destruction. We need to bring morality back and in 50 to 100 yrs the world will be better.
    2 points
  9. No one should expect public schools to teach the precepts of God, or even simple morals, as most know. Pro_22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Is this true? I believe it is. God said it. God is Light! It is the responsibility of parents for the training. That does not mean passing on the chore to the church or school. The foundation begins at home. And what the kids see their parents doing or not doing, is what is learned/caught. They're not stupid, and you cannot always fool them. You cannot tell them to do what I say, and not what I do. Each child eventually becomes responsible for their own life. But that does not negate the parents God breathed command to train them, regardless the outcome. I believe this is close to the top of priorities for Christian parents. The child is at the mercy of the parents. Good or bad. And the schools they send them to, the government schools, and you can only guess what they are teaching them. The chances are much better when Godly parents raise them in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. And insure they are not indoctrinated into secular government training/brainwashing in public school. It is happening, don't keep your hands over your ears and eyes. Teach them at home, or find a Christian school. Move if you cannot find one, get on a budget if you cannot afford one. Learn to do without. If you care about them. And pray over them daily. They are our responsibility. Not the churches!
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  10. Dont worry you are ok. Do not pay attention to these kind of thoughts. I do think you need to trust God more. If you worry too much it will stress you out. Keep thinking of Gods love for you. You are in his hands. He watches over you. Jesus is making a place for you. So when he comes you can be with him. We all have gifts from God. These are not powers but stuff we have a knack of doing. Dont stress over it. Are you keeping close to God ? Keep yourself in prayer and the word. Let God be your peace.
    2 points
  11. Shabbat shalom, brothers and sisters. This may come as a shock to some, but it really shouldn't take anyone by surprise or cause any consternation. The power doesn't exist in our faith! The power is in the One in Whom we PLACE our faith! That's a VERY important distinction! Faith is often misunderstood because of the difference between how the Greek text used the word "pistis" and how we use the words "faith" and "belief" in English today. There's a notable difference, but the bottom line is that the power of our faith is GOD'S power. It's to be found in the God of the Bible, YHWH, in Whom we place our faith and in Whom we trust! ALL wothwhile and lasting power is to be found in Him, and we do NOT exercise that power at all when we SAY we "exercise faith!" Our God is an AWESOME GOD! Just look at all the things He has made from the tiniest neutrino, quark, or "string" to the vastness of space with the myriads of galaxies, quasars, and nebulae, not to mention the HUGE volumes of empty space! In between these extremes, we see the vast complexity of what we can know as living things, from the tiniest viruses, to the huge whales, from the smallest plankton to the huge redwoods of the forest! When one studies biology and biochemistry and organic chemistry, one will come away with a DEEP appreciation for the intricate ways that ALL of God's creations work together flawlessly to form this vast biosphere in which we live. The fascinating way that the information that describes each species in stored in the DeoxyriboNucleic Acid (DNA) of that species, and how the body of that creature uses this coded information to develop organs, tissues, and fluids is truly amazing! The sheer complexity of any one species and then to compound that with the symbiosis of other life forms is just BEYOND normal comprehension! BRAG ON HIM! (That's what "praise" is.) Make Him STAND OUT from anyone or anything else! (That's what "glorify" is.) BOW THE KNEE before Him! (That's what "worship" is.) And, after all you've done to make Him as AWESOME as you can (and STILL He's greater), both in your eyes and the eyes of anyone to whom you're talking, then realize that you can come to Him and call Him "Daddy!" (That's what "Abba" means.) If that doesn't make your head swim, then you didn't do it right! Try again! Let's say you ask Him for something - anything. Do you really doubt that He could do it for you or give it to you, if He wanted to? The MAKER OF THE UNIVERSE couldn't do your silly little request? Nope. THAT'S not it. What you REALLY doubt is whether such an AWESOME AND RIGHTEOUS God would do it for the likes of YOU! And, you'd be RIGHT to doubt, IF ... YHWH was an exacting God. Psalm 130:3-6 (KJV) 3 If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? 4 But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. 5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. 6 My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning. David said and Paul quoted, Romans 4:1-25 (KJV) 1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. 5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. 6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, 7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. (Psalm 32:1) 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. (Psalm 32:2) 9 Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. 10 How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also: 12 And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised. 13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect: 15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression. 16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, 17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. 18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb: 20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. And, Yeshua` (Jesus) said, Matthew 7:7-11 (KJV) 7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? And, Luke 12:22-32 (KJV) 22 And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. 23 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. 24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? 25 And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? 26 If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? 29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. 32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
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  12. What is your take on it is never too late for anyone who is alive? Does this include people who have been baptized as well?
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  13. anyone have the gift of "prophetic words of knowledge"? received it today and am working on it.
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  14. The cross and the promises. Gods personel love for us is through the cross. If we sometimes wonder if God really loves us and remembers us. Its can be seen very clearly in Jesus on the cross. So dont fear and dont doubt. Why doubt his LOVE ! His love is so personel. Jesus was sent to the cross for each person in this world. Your name was know to God before the world was made. He was not sent to the cross for others and not you. He was sent to the cross for you. So we do know God loves us. And he will give us all things. All things which is eternal life in a new heaven and earth and the city of God. Gods love will be in the city which he gives us true life. Here on earth we still have pain and crying. We have death. We lose people to death each year. But God promises no more death. In the city tens of thousands of years will go by and you will see no one die or hear of it. These are promises of God. And through them you know he loves you. Dont forget his good works for us. His love is seen in all his good works. Now that we know he loves us so much let us love him and Jesus. Lets live by his love. If he lay down his life for us let us do the same. We will never be perfect like him but we can show his love towards our brother or even strangers. Then we will have joy. The Joy of the lord is our strengh.
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  15. Your reaction, Please stop fighting, What? I'm not fighting, I'm quoting the bible, asking you for Scriptures which prove I am in error, nothing more? I have not called your posts junk, rubbish or heresies? All I am doing is asking you to show us anywhere in the Word of God where it clearly states than God does not have hands, feet, lions, hair, heart, back parts, eyes, that He does not walk, talk or even sits on a throne. That Jesus will not carry His wounds forever? Zec. 13:6, And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. Instead of saying please stop fighting after calling what I post junk and rubbish, how about a scripture or two, or say, I have none.
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  16. Thank you for the kind words!
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  17. Mike, here is how I see it. When we are saved, we are born again. However, most people who get saved have no real brokenness for their sins, or hatred of their old nature. They do not understand that salvation is an exchange. We were slaves to the devil, and when we get saved, we are to become slaves... servants..... to God. Not in thirty years. Right off the bat. Jesus bought us back with His blood, and here is one even mature believers often to not truly understand.... He owns us. We are not our own and when we finally get that, shame will fill us for how we have acted. Would it have been better for them to be brought to the point of brokenness and desperation before they accepted The Lord as their savior? Absolutely. Why is this important? First, when we do not tell them to count the cost, then salvation becomes ‘cheap’. To truly walk as a born again person, abiding in the vine, you have to hate your old fleshly nature that would try to pass itself off as spiritual when it is actually a filthy rag in God’s eyes, amen? You ha e to lose your life to find it. Our current Christianity has missed all these critical things and thus, we never see the need for putting off our old nature by faith. That is what should drive us to our knees to get saved! Sin has yet to become exceedingly sinful to us. And it must. So, in getting back to your question, I believe when we are saved, our old natures died with Him and we are given brand new natures. BUT.... if we do not ever do what Paul told us to do in Romans 7, and by faith reckon ourselves dead to sin and alive to God... as His children with new natures., our new natures profit us nothing. Why? Because we did not mix faith with the truth of who we are. We have up til now not seen any real need to put them off. They can be religious, but they cannot abide in Him where we do not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Now, I believe that soon, new converts will be brought to see their great need for brand new natures. But we have a mess on our hands because even among the true elect of God, they as yet cannot see who they really are because they are satisfied with running their own lives, with just “nice little sins”. But seld is self, and self must die. Now, let me explain why a saved person does have a new nature, albeit a nature He or she is not walking in. Because when we do see our desperate state, we can finally take what we know with our heads, that when Christ died, we died with Him, and appropriate it in an instant! Why? Because even if we have been saved twenty years and never put off our old nature, we STILL died with Christ when He died. Our ignorance has simply blinded us the the fact that we truly are new natured people. This is the awakening of which I speak, that the Lord has clearly shown me is coming. It is here right now for anyone tired enough of constantly failing , of having empty prayer closets. Of never bearing true spiritual fruits. But there are millions of saints that need to be awakened, and so I call it “future.” It is weird, because when the Lord told me of the awakening, I was so excited because I thought it would be message of hope for saints that are now struggling. What I did not expect was a backlash telling me I was a danger to listen to, because they cannot separate the real awakening from the false that Satan has had preachers promising in various churches and denominations... more of a new age thing. What is the difference? Life. righteousness. Holiness. Joy. Those truly awakened by God will discover the God who causes us to obey Him, because He indwells us! We start as children of God with holy “cores” that grow outward until fruits come to the surface. The fake awakening has no need to hate ones life, or a desperation to get freed from the grip of self. They are NOT the same. Mike, I know I am long winded, but I pray this helps. Blessings, Gids
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  18. Some things have changed lately in the RCC, as they know the "salvation by grace" popularity was causing loss of members. So they wisely CHANGED their doctrinal positions. But the salvation by grace, catholic version, must be maintained. Absolutely! Before this, NOBODY was saved in the RCC, as that was the SIN of presumption, presuming upon God to be GOOD enough to enter the heavenlies. So the 'church' was the only way to eternal life. (along with their rules and dogma) The cost to stay saved can be taken care of monetarily, before or after death. Think not? Ask a priest. Amen, and Amen! When I was catholic, I don't remember a bible ever being used/seen. We used church catechisms. Thus, false doctrine. At one time, after being saved, our church was over fifty percent ex catholic. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word. Sometimes, it is only a little seed planted, and the spirit then takes over, then life.
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  19. Guys, I hate to sound contrarian here; there are certainly a number of similarities. But it's actually a reference to a city, not a nation. That city is Rome, which will become the head of denominational Christianity during the end-times, and return to killing the saints and prophets just as she did during the inquisition. The oath Jesuits take still contains wording to the effect that, if called upon, they must be willing and able to kill those who preach "heresy." I do believe America will soon turn in a darker direction spiritually. But I don't think America is Mystery Babylon.
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  20. Gotcha. I will say that I fit the description at the beginning of your paragraph, but I don't expect to agree with everything any church teaches, so I find one that "mostly" agrees and either completely agrees on the important stuff or is not dogmatic about it. It took me three churches when we moved to KY to find such a church.
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  21. The OP might have a different definition.. I will give you my definition.. The revolving door church phenomenon to me is people who have their own ideas of what God should be and what Jesus should be.. Their God is a construct in their own heads formed by their own personal philosophies.. These people will go religion shopping looking for a religion that most closely conforms to their idea of what God should be about.. So for then the doors of churches become like revolving doors because they will enter for a very short time untill they hear something being preached that does not conform to their idea of what should be being preached and so they leave that church sometimes they do not even last in that church for one sermon.. They then go onto the next denomination shopping to find the one that preaches what they want to hear. Or the church that has a service style that they think is cool.. They will often abandon a church for the most trivial of matters..
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  22. Even Caiaphas prophetically said that it was good that the one should die for the many. The Lord can use anybody's mouth if He requires it to be said. Prophesy in the 'church' seems to have become a bit of a problem - just check out YouTube... so many of them there and also the best-seller racks of end day prophetic writings seems to have exploded into a get-rich-quick phenomenon. I have seen that exhortation in the assemblies has largely ceased where I have attended. And as far as future prophesy is concerned - take your pick. There is one to suit just about anyone's taste!
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  23. 2 Peter 3:9 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance KJV
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  24. Hi Jayne My husband is a Gideon and I have heard wonderful testimonies like these too.
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  25. Welcome Eslyn. We have a saying - "While there is life there is hope." Someone may refuse the Lord until the last moment, then understand and believe - and are then prepared to receive Him as Saviour and Lord.
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  26. Many years ago I gave my daughter her first Bible lesson.....Romans10:13...... really haven’t been able to improve on that
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  27. There are as many responses on how to be in Christ as there are scriptures covering the subject, and all of them are correct. The problem I see is that any one of them is sufficient, and that not dependent on the total of the others. What happens to the soldier in a foxhole that cries out “God, save me”? E.g., Mar 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; (Anyone doubt this?) How about this? Act 2:21 . . . whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? Act 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved . . (and those of your house can be saved the same way?) Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
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  28. Shalom, Marilyn. Wow. Your interpretation of these verses needs some guidance. First, "heavenly" doesn't mean what you THINK it means. The Greek word used in Hebrews 11:16 is epouraniou, meaning "of/from-above-the-sky." This is the same word that is applied to the city in Hebrews 12:22: 22 Alla proseleeluthate Sioon orei kai polei Theou zontos, Ierousaleem epouranioo kai muriasin aggeloon, 22 Alla = 22 But proseleeluthate = you-shall-come Sioon = to-Zion orei = a-mountain kai = and polei = a-city Theou = of-God zontos, = living, Ierousaleem = Jerusalem epouranioo = in-above-the-sky kai = and muriasin = ten-thousands (myriads) aggeloon, = of-messengers, It's also the SAME WORD that is used for the sun, moon, and stars in 1 Corinthians 15! 40 kai soomata epourania kai soomata epigeia alla hetera men hee toon epouranioon doxa hetera de hee toon epigeioon 41 allee doxa heeliou, kai allee doxa seleenees, kai allee doxa asteroon; asteer gar asteros diaferei en doxee. 40 kai = 40 and/also soomata = bodies epourania = from-above-the-sky kai = and/also soomata = bodies epigeia = from-above-the-ground alla = but hetera = one men = truly hee = the toon = of-the epouranioon = things-above-the-sky doxa = brightness hetera = one de = but hee = that toon = of-the epigeioon = things-above-the-ground 41 allee = one doxa = brightness heeliou, = of-[the]-sun, kai = and/also allee = another doxa = brightness seleenees, = of-[the]-moon, kai = and/also allee = another doxa = brightness asteroon; = of-[the]-stars; asteer = a-star gar = for asteros = a-star diaferei = differs en = in doxee. = brightness. That the city is currently being built above the sky (in the same "space" as the sun, moon, and stars exist) does NOT mean that it will stay there! To the contrary, we read in Revelation 21:1-4 that it descends out of the sky to the New Earth: Revelation 21:1-4 (KJV) 1 And I saw a new heaven (Greek: ouranon kainon = a new sky) and a new earth (Greek: gheen kaineen = a new earth): for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven (Greek: katabainousan ek tou ouranou apo tou Theou = "descending out of-the sky from the God"), prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven (Greek: foonees megalees ek tou thronou = "a loud voice out of-the throne") saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Second, yes, they "confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth," (or "in the Land,") but that was DURING THEIR LIFETIMES! They were looking for the SAME CITY arriving that we are today! Third, don't you understand, yet, what the Millennium is all about? This is the reign of the MESSIAH (the CHRIST)! The One Chosen by God to be both Israel's King and the King of Kings or the Emperor of the World-wide Empire that Yeshua` builds! This is what the children of Israel looked forward to experiencing! This is what they have anticipated since LONG before Yeshua` came on the scene the first time! To expect them not to be resurrected at the beginning of the Millennium is as ludicrous as expecting those of us who aren't Jewish to be in "Heaven" for the Millennium! We are to "RULE AND REIGN WITH HIM!" That's hard to do from some theoretical place called "Heaven!" Fourth, NO ONE is EVER going to be resurrected to die again! When Avraham and David are resurrected, they will be the SAME SUPERBODIES that we shall be, being immortal and incorruptible!
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  29. The same could be said for the pre-trib doctrine
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  30. Yes, the frequency of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are what I meant.....sorry to not clarify that. We are getting so many earthquakes in recent years so very close together like birth pangs as the Bible says, and really large quakes, too. Plus the tsunamis in recent years. Of course, a day is like a thousand years to the Lord and vice versa.
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  31. The bible proves itself - and the holy spirit quickens. An analogy: A guy gives me a book without a cover and claims it is a repair manual for my 1960 John Deere Tractor. Should I believe him? Well, I followed its instructions on replacing the water pump and removing the gas tank and it precisely told me the absolute correct things to do. The result was my tractor is running strong now. i.e. the book proved itself. The bible does that for me on a daily basis. Oh, and I now have, over the last38 years, four bonafide miracles in my life, not including the answers to prayer that were not "miraculous". Those with faith in Jesus have faith, but it is not blind faith. He has proven himself.
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  32. I think he's more addressing the cut and paste of a ton of unrelated scripture as a less than effective evangelistic method. Few people read all of a post that is more than a paragraph or two. And just slapping up a bunch of scripture for someone is a lot different from handing them a bible and telling them the truth can be found there. But I may be just projecting. I'm fairly new here and one of my very first frustrations was a propensity for many people to create huge and disjointed posts. It's as if every post is a bible study in a post. And I did read one of them and the guy was just all over the place. i.e. the post did not deserve my time. My personal rule for posting is that, unless it includes worthwhile humor or other interesting writing styles, never put too many words in a single post, and address one point at a time, and as succinctly and with as few cut and paste references as possible. It increases the odds someone will read the whole thing.
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  33. I don't do health insurance since the day Obamacare became the law of the land, but I dumped dental insurance a LONG time ago. It's not worth it. I just pay out of pocket. And if it's SERIOUS, it is no longer considered "dental". i.e. if you DO have health insurance, it covers "major" dental stuff. Kinda weird. I am on a "cleaning" plan with the local dentist. Very nice people. I pay $275 and that gets me two appointments during the year (every six months). One includes "cleaning" and the other includes cleaning and X-rays. So, to recap, I get TWO cleanings and x-rays for $275, with NO insurance involved. The price you are being quoted is really high, unless they are in a high rent area, which I suppose is always possible.
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  34. Please pray for Israel this week as this is the 70th Anniversary week and also the week Donald Trump will most likely pull out of the nuclear deal with Iran which may have big concequences for the middle East , pray that there will be no dividing of the land or parts of Jerusalem and that things will go peaceful when the U.S. anbassy will be moved to Jerusalem! There could very well be war on the end of this week. In God we Trust as He will defend Israel,we serve a might God !
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  35. It took time because we were taught if we left the church we were leaving christ. And if you rejected armstrong you were rejecting christ Apostle. And then christ himself. So i was afraid i would lose salvation. But over time others pointed out scriptures to me that showed me where i was in error. I learn God was a trinity. Salvation by grace through faith alone. Sabbath was for Isarel. And so many things. Also the worldwide church of God itself turn away from Armstrong and became mainstream. Hank the bible answer man had Joe Takach on his show. And they talked of the changes. A lot of people left at that time. God was doing a work to get people away from Armstrong theology. But i was saved before i was a member. A lot of people were not saved and were never saved while in that church. I could tell they did not have God during those years. While at my boyhood church i could see God there. And to top it off christ came to me in a dream when i was 18 and told me not to go with this church. In the dream i was in a great hall and everything was white. And i stood before christ and he sat on a high place before me. And he said why are you going with the worldwide church ? He then said i did not send you there. And then said they are not of me. Then i woke up. I thought about it and came to the idea that maybe satan was tricking me. So i went to this cburch anyway. God does not want anyone wasting years in a false church. Now i am so agaist false doctrines of men. We have the bible and the gospel. Lets stick with and hold on to it. God bless you.
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  36. Amen and amen , we're saved by grace and not by works so nobody boast! Jesus did it all,all to Him I own!
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  37. While the Bible is the final authority as to the truth and it is to test all things, some men are given gifts to teach and preach the word. There are many gifted writers that I like to read and listen to. How the word is planted in your heart is a personal between you and the Lord. There are certainly wolves in sheep clothing and yes ask and pray for discernment to weed the fields of the tares. It's all about your choice in the matter.
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  38. Gary Lee, Sorry! I am very saddened to read of the attack and murder of your AWANA friends in Christ Jesus and leaders in the wonderful ministry that teaches the young the Bible verse by verse, helping them to learn the armor of God and to use it fully.
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  39. 2Ti_2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed I have just about had a fill of the critics here, of the very ones out there actually trying to do something constructive for our youth. All I hear is criticism after criticism, and one very LOUD CRITICIZER, who offer NOT any solutions, but point fingers at those in the arena of spiritual warfare, fighting the good fight, dedicating their time and efforts to the actual labor of love for the teaching of the the good news to the youth. Awana Flag Pledge I pledge allegiance to the Awana flag which stands for the Awana clubs, whose goal is to reach boys and girls with the gospel of Christ and train them to serve him. At my church, we started Awanas about thirty years ago. During this time, I have no idea how many lost souls are now saved, when attending the awanas club. Every Wednesday night, my wife picks up our grand kids to go to Wednesday night club meeting at church. Once a year, every year, all my kids, then my grand kids, learned to work in my shop building awana grand Prix race cars, to compete, learning how to put forth effort to get better results. I have a collection of all our families past racers. Memorizing scripture is priority, weekly reciting. It is a very large part of our church ministry, INVOLVING the youth in the sharing of the gospel. I have no idea of the people associated with awana higher ups that were attacked here and accused as bad, and I personally don't care. The results are in the pudding. It is a great program to involve the young at an early age and then in to young adults that are awana leaders. I have only heard praise of awanas club by the parents, especially non member parents, that allow their children the opportunity to hear the gospel. This forum is the ONLY time I have heard any criticism. By the way. Just so you know. Our awana head leader and her husband were killed during a home invasion by a young man. They were both stabbed multiple times, and the husband was air lifted but died shortly. We buried them last Friday. My wife and all the awana leaders and the youth, wore their awana jackets to honor a fallen sister.They were also foster care parents, like my family was, and we went on out of town trips for training together with our families. Their grown foster children attended. They both had a great love for the children, training them up as scripture tells us. So much time has been sacrificed by all the awana leaders over the years for the youth. It is a shame to see awanas labeled by other 'Christians' so unlovingly, ignorantly. It's better to keep the mouth shut, and thought a fool, than open it and remove all doubt. if ever there was a time I felt like leaving................
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  40. As for me, I will support my Lord's many local churches. For God the Holy Spirit has called me to some of them, each quite different from the others where God has called me to serve Him. I am in awe of his power, His righteous wrath, and His mercy and grace. I treasure the fact that God the Holy Spirit has called me of all people while even an an avid atheist to turn about and be of his fold, and to be part of any one of his churches, never mind being called across country to some, the local bodies of Christ Jesus. Wow what a privilege! God has led me to churches from one end of this country way across to another. Yes I confess I love His churches! I treasure the individuals in them! They have helped me when I suffered greatly. They have stood by me when I needed them. They have been the grandest of people. Through them I see the word of God come true daily. Praise God for the personal thrill of being part of the local bodies of Christ Jesus.
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  41. I see some on here are blaming the churches. I would say that it maybe some are to blame. But I don't put all the blame on the churches. When we reach our 20's we are for the most part no longer under the thump of our parents. I think for some, church going and all that goes along with that is just for show. Their parents make them. They want to please their parents. But in truth they never really let Jesus into their hearts or their lives. Then when they reach the age of adulthood, they go their own way. Not because of what the church did or did not do. But because they made a choice. So while yes I will agree that some churches can be to blame. But not all. Sometimes people just choice the Dark Side. Some of them attended my church. Some of them left and went their own way. Some of them did not come back. But I attended the same church. And here I am, following the path. So I can not say the blame is on the church alone. A choice was given. A choice was made.
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  42. It happen to me. But I never forgot the teachings. Then I came back. So here I am today. There you have it. A confession about my imperfect self. Still through it all. God was there. Waiting for me. Putting things in place in my life to guide me back. Then he welcomed me with his open arms. Now here I am. Maybe others were even praying for me. I do not know. So then I ask. Should we simply forget the ones who have lost their way?
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  43. If I understand Paul correctly, his celibacy was a gift from God. Not all people can live this way of course and the Lord loves the little children and gave us the means to have them. A family is a wonderful thing, and children are God's gift. We just need to obey God, and if He sends someone along for us to be united with, then that's wonderful. Otherwise some people enjoy the single life! Each choice involves sacrifice in different ways. As Paul said, if you are happy being single, do not seek a wife. But most of us are built for deep relationship with another person and, as a committed Christian, this would be heterosexual and after putting God first in our lives.
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  44. Mine too ! I listen to him on oneplace.com. I like to hear him once a day.
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  45. No the USA isn't Babylon. http://biblehub.com/revelation/18-24.htm If you believe the blood of prophets is found in Babylon,then you should understand a prophet cannot die outside of Jerusalem. http://biblehub.com/luke/13-33.htm
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  46. You are saying that we cannot use the Bible to witness to non-believers until the existence of God is proved to them? I wish so badly that you could have been at my church Sunday and heard the testimonies from our Gideon speaker about people who are saved by reading the Bible. I love to hear these testimonies. A Gideon team was in a prison not long ago for men who have life sentences. They were allowed to pass out Bibles to the men who would take one. One man yelled and screamed, "I'm not taking that book! Get away from me!" The Gideons cam back a couple of weeks later to talk to any of the men who wanted to discuss what they had been reading or to ask more about Christ and salvation. They saw the angry man. He was frightening looking. He yelled at them again, "Hey! Hey!" They were nervous. Then he said, "I didn't take one of your Bibles, but my cell mate did. HE CAN'T READ so he wanted me to read it to him and I got saved!!!" That's the supernatural power of the gospel. Another Gideon [business men who pass out and place Bibles all over the world] was in Japan not long ago. He was talking to a local preacher who was sharing his testimony with him. He said, "As a very young man, I was not saved and was a thief. That's how I made my way through life. I broke into a girl's school one night to find some money. Some of the girls woke up and began screaming. One of the girls threw something at my head and hit me with it. I grabbed it in my hand - why, I don't know - and escaped. It was a Bible. I kept it for a while - why, I don't know - but one day I began to read it and I saw my sin. I was saved and am now a pastor." The Bible is not "information" from God. It's a living, two-edged sword. It does not return to God void. It's had supernatural authority. Because it is the literal "word of God", it can be miraculously used as you see above. To convince someone of the existence of God without the Bible is futile. Yes, Romans 1 says that people have no excuse. But that doesn't mean to lay the Bible aside until you've convinced some and then and only then to share "information". God's word is infinitely more supernatural than mere information.
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  47. Rom 1:20 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: KJV With out the writing down on paper 'The spoken Word 'IS' God John 1:1-4 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. KJV That is why it is crucial we understand The Written Word in combination with The Teacher 'The Holy Spirit' is able to form within us our beginnings to know God... John 1:14 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. KJV The perfect solution to the death problem John 3:3 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. KJV Those that have new birth cannot consider the Word of God as anything but 'The Authority' from God... because The Teacher will allow no other view 2 Tim 3:15-17 15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. KJV
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  48. God created the heavens and the Earth. Where God lived before He created the heaven is not revealed in Scripture, but we do lnow He created them and those who dwell in them. Genesis 1:1,In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Revelation 12:12, Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. God knows and has named every star of the heavens, Psalm 147:4, He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.
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  49. It's not wise to generalize And you'd be wrong in assuming that the above statement applies to me. Actually, I'd find Paul's way a much easier lifestyle than one of Torah observance--but if there's a question--which, there is--then it makes sense to invest the necessary time and effort into getting it right, rather than just *assuming*. Not true. I'm trying to have a conversation here, and the evidence in favor of Paul isn't very convincing. I was hoping for better, honestly. Ad hominem fallacy. Please either provide information furthering your position or don't, but do refrain from attacking my character. Furthermore, your response indicates that you don't understand my position at all. Helpful replies only please, thanks. Actually I'm trying to find the truth, so you'd be wrong again. If you'd like to help me find it, that would be great. Otherwise, why do respond here? Do you know what drives seekers away? Responses like yours. Thankfully, I'm already a believer, just with some questions. I can tell you from years of not being one that unhelpful character attacks that provide zero useful information, such as your reply, are exactly what drives people AWAY from the faith. Please refrain. If you want to help new believers, and not just make a prideful display of how right you think you are, then you would do better to address questions, concerns, and doubts with understanding instead of condemnation and judgement. The Jewish position has long been that we are saved by God's grace, not through works. No one has managed to live a life of perfect Torah adherence except for Yeshua. Torah has been God's definition of what sin IS through the ages. Yeshua taught it and observed it. Early Christians followed it. The reason Paul and the apostles disagreed was over Torah adherence. The answer on what role Torah plays in gentile Christianity isn't clear to me. The church founded by Yeshua has more than the writings of Paul documenting the early followers. There are many versions of the canonized Bible even. There are many interpretations of all those versions. The truth really isn't apparent at all. If you weren't indoctrinated with one tradition or another as a child, you'd come into everything trying to sort through the muck and decide what's valid and what isn't, and that's exactly where I'm at. If one is to "love God with your whole heart", then surely it would mean keeping his commandments. Yeshua even made that clear. Do the works save us? No. Are they the works without which faith is dead? Maybe? And Paul's teachings seem to contradict this, making them potentially one of the false teachings that the apostles were warned about. We are commanded to test the spirits. Like I said before--if Paul's legit, I trust that this truth will prevail. Likewise, if he's not, then I'll eventually know that as well, because those who seek do find--and I'm still seeking.
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  50. This does demonstrate that he eventually had a few moments of agreement with the apostles. Still, why would Jesus have him go all the way to Jerusalem, have a vision, and leave...instead of meeting up with the followers of Jesus there? Something just doesn't fit. Furthermore, let's explore why Jews might be objecting to Paul--could it be his insistence that it was ok for new believers not to be Torah-observant? Matthew 5:17 17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Heaven and Earth are still here, so I'm not sure how Paul can argue that the law isn't in effect. Apparently these Jews had the same concern. This is essentially a repeat of a few verses earlier, where we see that there is an additional assertion tacked on: Acts 15:19 19 “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.” In the early days, any foreigners living among the Jews would have been expected to eventually assimilate the Jewish law and lifestyle. That certainly seems to be the suggestion here. It sounds like what's essentially being said here is, "Give them just these few commands to start out with, because we know they'll be studying in synagogue every Sabbath to faithfully learn the rest in due time".
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