pomegran

I've been having experiences for the last two years. They're getting more intense as time goes by. They've come in different forms/ways, sometimes obviously disgusting and evil, other times beautiful to where I think it could be from God. They try to terrify me at times and at other times deceive me that they're from God. I've never seen anything definite with my eyes, it's usually a very strong perception and almost like a spiritual seeing. I have noticed wavy like changes in the atmosphere sometimes when they're at work. When things began to get bad, I changed my lifestyle. I studied the Bible more often and now have a daily regimen of different Bible related studies. The actual Bible is of the utmost importance. Sometimes I can literally feel the evil retreat when I get into the Word. I'm working on praying more frequently and diligently, and am pursuing fasting. Things that didn't work were many of the spiritual warfare books, techniques, and exorcism type activities one may find out there. I went towards these first in desperation, later feeling kind of foolish upon discovering their inadequacy. The best advice and information out there for me has always had an armor of God (Ephesians 6:11-18) focus. Ephesians 6:11-18 (NASB) 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against [a]flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against thespiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist inthe evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 [b]in addition to all, taking up theshield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all theflaming arrows of the evil one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 [c]With all prayer and petition [d]pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, [e]be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints- Thanks for reading God Bless You

I agree that these topics are not spelled out explicitly in the Bible. I have seen compelling arguments for some of them for opposing interpretations. Speaking from my own experience, I have not been to able to reach a solid belief on the existence and nonexistence of some of these "theories". I do agree that we should all examine any presupposed beliefs we have that have been taught to us and are not explicitly stated in the Bible. I find that you'll come across many different motives in people believing these things. Some are positively convinced they see in various scriptures that these things are true. Concerning the "rapture", perhaps some believers are "escapists", and yet I don't think it's fair to apply that label to all pre-trib believers. I believe many sincerely see the "rapture" in scripture as some of the verses concerning it are ambiguous. Bottom line is that yes it's important for us to be aware of the beliefs we hold and their scriptural support, yet we should also not judge others on their beliefs when the Bible is not entirely clear on a subject. Labeling pre-tribbers as escapists is saying you know the intents of the heart, which only the Lord knows. Some of them very well may be escaping the idea of wrath, and yet some may be convinced it is in scripture, etc. etc. I'm saying this from a neutral position, because I'm still unclear on whether I believe in the "rapture" and likely won't know until I meet the Lord. Though I know He justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies us whether we believe in the rapture or not as we strive to understand His Word. 1 Corinthians 4:5 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

Hi FlamingSword, praise the Lord for restoring your ability to read! How wonderful! I can very much relate to what you describe as your experience with the gift if discerning spirits. I think that is some great information above about being very familiar with the Word of God to test the spirits. (later edited to remove some advice not sure was very accurate :-\) As far as putting this gift to good use, I've been wondering that myself and am also interested to see if there are any suggestions.

Yoga was specifically created to unite a person with what Hindus believe to be the infinite "Brahman". This is their concept of God which is described as spirit in everything and thus pantheism. The exercises are a preparation of your body to achieve greater spiritual "oneness". We Christians believe in the true transcendent God. We worship Him rather than the creation, which is what pantheism entails. The very essence of what yoga exercises symbolize and their reason for coming into being contradicts Christian beliefs. Dawn33, you mention the Greeks and the Olympics as well as us using things that weren't invented by Christians. Sports and our use of the myriad things in our lives is different than participating in something that was created specifically for spiritual activity in another religion. I can't tell you exactly what can happen spiritually when people practice yoga and breathing/meditation/emptying the mind etc., but I have read that this can open people up to demonic influence. As Christians, it's important for us to have our intellect fully alert and to separate from things that have any appearance of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.

This is a topic I've been thinking about lately. My (professing nonbeliever) sister is a certified yoga instructor though it is not her main profession. I have read/heard in numerous places that yoga is a form of practicing eastern religion and Christians should not participate. My sister described to me an experience she had doing Kundalini yoga in which she was contorting her body into unbelievable positions and making really strange guttural mantra noises with the other instructor. That experience sounded like it had demonic elements to me. I personally have done a few yoga classes before I had any knowledge of it being related to Hinduism. People say that you end the session feeling relaxed and refreshed, but I'd usually feel bad and I'd have anxiety the entire session. The poses were fairly easy for me due to my past years experience with dance, but for some reason just felt uncomfortable. Because of this I didn't stick with it. Now I know that it's interconnected with Hinduism. The very fact that it's roots are from Hinduism lead me to not practice it. If it was a class called "Stretching and Balance" without predefined poses from Hindus, I'd have no qualms. But it's not, so I stay away.

Jesus says much about His deity. We must accept this if we are to be of the Truth. We build the rest of our beliefs on the Truth. It's like learning addition/subtraction, then multiplication. If we learn the fundamentals wrong, our beliefs and arguments will also be polluted. Exodus 3:14 14 And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” John 8:57-58 57 Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

I’ve found other people discussing the Bride on other forums as well. Someone brought up that in Mark 2:19 some Bible versions (KJV, ASV, ERV, YLT) translate a description of the apostles as “children of the bridechamber”, 19 And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. Other versions translate this as “friends of the bridegroom” or “groomsmen”. However, taking the translation “children of the bridechamber” led me to consider another verse, where Paul is speaking of our mother from above, free Jerusalem, in Gal 4:26-27 26 But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. 27 For it is written: “Rejoice, childless woman, who does not give birth. Burst into song and shout, you who are not in labor, for the children of the desolate are many, more numerous than those of the woman who has a husband” We know Jesus is the Bridegroom and if the apostles are “children of the bridechamber” as well as having free Jerusalem from above as their mother, then it follows that Jerusalem is the Bride. This would then bring us full circle to Revelation 21:9-10. “Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.”[g] 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy[h] Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God Considering the other translations with Jesus saying the apostles are "friends of the Bridegroom" or "guests of the Bridegroom", it makes me wonder why he didn’t explicitly state them as Bride in these analogies if they were intended to be understood as the Bride.

There are two things we should note in this regard: (a) God does not want His people being dismayed at the signs in the heavens (which is a heathen practice) (Jer 10:2) and (b) the sense of urgency has been incorporated into the Gospels already (Mt 25:13). Jeremiah 10:2-5 10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2 Thus says the Lord: “Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. 3 For the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. 4 They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple. 5 They are upright, like a palm tree, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, For they cannot do evil, Nor can they do any good.” If you take the whole of these verses together, it is showing that Israel is not to follow the futile idolatry of the Gentiles. My Thomas Nelson study Bible footnotes Jer 10:2 as: The way of the Gentiles was worshiping natural phenomena by means of handmade icons and symbolic imagery. The signs of heaven were the astral deities (8:1-3) worshiped in the days of Manasseh and reinstituted following the death of Josiah and the collapse of his reforms. dismayed: The heavenly realms held a certain awe of terror for the nations, but Israel was to worship God who held the heavenly realm under his control. I see a difference between us discussing the possibility of these "blood moons" signifying something and the Gentiles being dismayed by the signs of heaven which they worship. Also, these lunar eclipse tetrads were around long before John Hagee decided to preach about them. While I have looked into the "blood moon" tetrads, I personally have not heard or followed anything specifically from John Hagee and think that it's another topic in its entirety.

As I see it, talking about the "blood moons" is talking about signs in the heavens given to us, and while it may be a deflection, it can also instill a sense of urgency to work all the more diligently. I have to agree that Christians are exercising freedom in looking into these things if they so desire. If a Christian is focused only on these "blood moons" at the expense of everything else, then that is not good. However I personally think a lot of us are aware that nothing is definite until God has revealed it to us, thus we keep a more balanced perspective and still pursue what the Gospel has/is teaching us, perhaps with more urgency as hmbld stated.

I'm mostly a lurker, but really appreciated what you had to add to the thread. I think some of the ways Christians try to show others they disagree or are in error is destructive. Love is lacking. This is one reason I mostly lurk, after having been trampled quite thoroughly in a different Christian forum that was overflowing with the aggressive. Certainly this is not something approved by Christ. You are beloved and much more than just tolerated!

Hi Niki23, I was curious to see what you were talking about in the video. I got a foreign spiritual feeling at the part you mentioned too... I wonder if it is like a seducing spirit type of thing.

other one, just a heads up, I think you meant Sept. 23, 2017

While all these things are sad indeed, looks like we're ramping up for something! Birth pangs coming closer together and more intense perhaps.

Sister, I can definitely relate to these things you talk about. Indescribable fear and the interference with our finding and spreading the truth. I'll try to turn up the volume on my battle always knowing He is much greater. Thank you for your help and sharing your experience.

Thank you Sister. I actually had posted that I read an article about Nephilim recently that credited Doug Hamp's work on this subject, then edited my post to what you see now. So yes I understand what you're explaining and think there is a definite possiblility that Nephilim will be or are here. The reason I edited my post is that I start feeling spiritually attacked every time I post in Christian forums. Is this unusal? Things come into my mind like "you're spreading lies" etc. It's really hard to battle.... seems like most people don't have this problem! :\