imnotJohnSmith

1 minute ago, BeauJangles said:

 

Yes, it was. There were metal detectors in place at the gates. 

Thanks Jangles.

And well, that's what happen when you have a gun-free zone, it never works, criminals don't care, and thus law abiding gun owners are forbidden to act in time.

People should learn.  

The question is, is the festival a gun-free zone? California hates guns.

... but let's hope and pray this country get a reprieve from God, and do have a return to freedom and justice for all.

HI thomas, and others,

When it comes to be "reasonable", I think we need to define what is being reasonable,

"Being reasonable" is probably  at its peak in modern law enforcement systems, where everything should be proved by evidences that  can be "logically" and materially quantified and are "indisputable".

But converting to Christianity should always be considered a miraculous event, because as Jesus said, he chose us.

And we can't prove Jesus existed and that he was whom he declared himself to be, the Son of God,  in the ways the modern law enforcement systems require.

So I think we should try to be reasonable as much as we can, when preaching to others, but never worry about not being reasonable enough, because how much or what kind of being reasonable is enough or reasonable?

There is no answers, ultimately speaking.

If the ultimate reason is something on which everyone in this world would agree, then there is no ultimate reason.

Because, for now, nothing in this world is agreed by everyone.

So that's why it's called the Christian faith, not the Christian reason.

Hope I am making myself clear.

Thanks.

 Focus on "... believe on his name...",

His name is Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, Saviour of the world...

so you don't have to be perfect to stay saved, once you receive him, you become the sons of God, and that means eternal security.

LeeGreenForest

Maybe you should take a look at John 1:12,

"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: "

This verse helps me greatly on convincing myself that I'm saved forever, i.e. eternal security.

thanks for your two cents, Thomas,

But on many occasions people are unable to leave,

they need Abraham or Moses ,,, a deliverer.

I know Hitler was elected by democratic votes, more precisely NSDAP party was elected as the majority party in the German parliament, and thus Hitler as its party head, became the Chancellor, I studied history, ww2 history is interesting and Germany and its culture and history are interesting.

Thanks for the pdf, I've been trying to study the German language, this give me opportunity to use my dictionary and maybe learn some German words! What's amazing was, the other day I was watching a German ads, and I had one sentence completely understood by me, and my german language skills are very close to zero, it felt amazing.

10 hours ago, thomas t said:

Sadly, here on Worthy, we had a thread embracing useless political violence, too. Click at this one (and look at the dates, the two first posts remained unchallenged for 18 months!!). 

Well I took a look at that topic,

I don't like the Crusade, but it's not useless.

10 hours ago, thomas t said:

oh yes, thank you...

Prussia is gone for Germany. Note that in Prussia, two thirds of the population voted for Hitler in '33.

Turkey voted for Erdogan several times. So they truely chose him - and thus absence of freedom.

Well Israel first cried and sighed but later said why did we leave Egypt... so they were quite unsure about this, I guess?

Many believers voted for Hitler, too. In my opinion, it's the readiness to use unlimited violence that makes them rise. 

Sadly, here on Worthy, we had a thread embracing useless political violence, too. Click at this one (and look at the dates, the two first posts remained unchallenged for 18 months!!). 

 

But the Bible further explains in Judges 9:14

Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come and reign over us.’

This verse really is about behavior believers show. As sad as it may be - blindness to political extremism isn't limited to non-believers.

Thomas

So I guess your conclusion maybe non-believers and believers together brought tyranny onto themselves?

But what about Abraham gone to save his brother Lot in Sodom?

Abraham debated with God on sparing the city of Sodom for a certain number of righteous people in it. (GEN  18:23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also
destroy the righteous with the wicked?)

Well God in the end did destroy Sodom, but got Abraham and Lot a way out of it.

So I believe there are good and righteous people in Venezuela, iran, china, north Korea,and historically, Nazis Germany, Bolsheviks Russia, imperial Japan...

and they suffered or died in them. (in contrast to Abraham and Lot)

What should believers who are under tyranny/evil rule do, to secure the blessing and mercy God showed unto Lot?

On 6/15/2019 at 5:02 PM, Who me said:

Actually the crusades were a counter attack against islamic agression, partly in responce to there attacks, partly as a responce for a call for help from thje Bysantine empire and partly an attempt to gemerate peace in europe.

Unfortunetly the responce to those who were different lead to a violent dealing with them, in both europe and in the near east as jews christians and muslims were butcher indiscriminetly.

True.

On 6/15/2019 at 11:43 PM, Tampered With said:

I hardly think rounding up Jews by the Crusaders on their way to the Holy Land into their Synagogues and burning them alive (men, women, and children) was a defense against Muslims or and act for God!

Also true.

Even for true believers, we are weak in the flesh, and things could easily got out of hand, into a spiralling mess.

I don't like the robbing, pillaging, rape and murders in the Crusade, but Christendom might be snuffed out by Islam if it wasn't for the Crusade, from a secular/historical view.

Nazi Germany was within a generation's  time, 1930s to 1945, but later, East Germany paid much more, to 1989~91, maybe still today, the whole Germany is recovering economically from unification, and East Prussia is lost to Russian forever maybe?

Turkey's Erdogan is not too long in power? Just quite recently, maybe?

Hamas is different story.

The real seriously bad one are Venezuela, iran, china, north Korea.

The bible says, (can't remember the exact quotes), all earthly powers and governments are raised by God.

So God raised up Venezuela, iran, china, north Korea,and historically, Nazis, Bolsheviks, imperial Japanese militarism... because of our unbelief?

Your thoughts please.

But Thomas,

this also show Israel didn't like it in Egypt.

Exodus 2:23 ¶ And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of
Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of
the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto
God by reason of the bondage.
24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his
covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.
25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God
had respect unto them.

Guess they paying for the choice of their fathers, right?

thanks thomas

5 hours ago, Jayne said:

You have to go back to Abraham to see the why's of it all.

Joseph's great-grandfather, Abraham was told all the details.

From Genesis 15 - 

"Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.”

God had two things going on at the same time according to his explanation to Abraham.

[1] The Hebrew people, which numbered less than 90 [I can't remember the exact number] would leave the Promised Land and be, initially, a "guest" of Egypt - then a slave.  As they grew from less than 90 to about 2 million, they became a nation all unto themselves.  When leaving, the Hebrew women would go to the Egyptian homes and ask for their possession and were granted them.

•   They had to grow into a large enough people group to constitute a "nation".
•   They had to leave with enough possessions to support that new nation.

[2]  God was giving 400 years of merciful patience to the vile inhabitant of the Promised Land - the Amorites in particular.  Remember "it is God's will that none should perish".  But they do perish. But NOT because God isn't patient and merciful.  These people were given 400 years to repent.  

•  Just like God gave the Ninevites time to repent during Jonah's days.  A people so brutal and vile and violent and gross.  But God was patient with them and he brought his plan of repentance to them and they did repent.
•   ....for a while.  Then in Nahum's days, [a couple of hundred years later], they fell back into sin and God destroyed them.

God is merciful beyond belief and bears with mankind more than WE would if WE were him.

 

 

 

Thank you Jayne.

I'll read more of the chapters

...

But it has been difficult for me to explain the faith to people under totalitarian regime.

So they believe, but all that come are conflicts and distress, there seem to be little consolations.

Almost all of them are first time/generation believers, I guess they just have to bear the iniquities of their fathers unto the third and fourth generations?(Numbers 14:18  The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy,forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.)

That's why it get me started to link it with the situations with Israel in Egypt. But I'm afraid their belief wont' last to third or fourth generations before it's extinguished.

Some of the totalitarian regimes today are far worse than Pharoahs.

So any  thoughts on this people-under-bondage in the context of our current world?

wow so many warm welcomes from so many of you, I'm thrilled. So thanks.

I've scan through the chapters in Bible,

wasn't that God let them go to Egypt for food because of a famine,

and it went well in the beginning until "...a Pharaoh that knows not Jospeph..." 

why 4oo years of slavery ? that's so long!