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Well should Christians Celebrate Both the Sabbath and Sunday Church Worship,as practiced today in Christian Faith Traditions? or should we Celebrate each day as a Sabbath Rest Spiritual Worship Celebration in Our Lord Jesus Christ?

1 Corinthians 3:16 - "Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" The holiness we are seeking is not a legislative or legalistic set of rules; it is Christ's very own quality of life. The Holy Spirit works in us not merely a new desire to love, but He imparts to us Christ's very own love. We develop more than just a general faith in Jesus; we actually begin believing like Jesus, with His quality of faith. It is God in us that makes us holy. AFFIRMATION: I approach God with great trembling, great joy, deep worship, and holy fear, who has called me unto Himself for His own will and purpose. Hebrews 11:1 - "Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen." Observation: AS A DEED ENABLES ME TO LAY CLAIM TO PROPERTY THAT BELONGS TO ME, SO MY FAITH ENABLES ME TO LAY CLAIM TO GOD'S PROMISES THAT BELONG TO ME. IF I BUILD MY FAITH - MY TITLE DEED - ON GOD'S WORD, IT WON'T MATTER IF THE DEVIL HITS MY BODY, ATTACKS MY FINANCES, OR TRIES TO STEAL MY PEACE. I CAN KICK HIM OFF MY PROPERTY BECAUSE MY FAITH WILL BE THE PROOF OF OWNERSHIP I NEED. NOTHING CAN STAND IN MY WAY! I BUILD MY HOUSE OF FAITH AND MOVE IN! "If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God." - 1 Peter 4:11 NIV One of the greatest revelations of the New Testament is that Christ dwells within His people who live on the earth. That is why they are called the Body of Christ. We actually become the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in the earth, but we also become His mouth. God speaks prophetically through His people. "If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God." - 1 Peter 4:11 NIV Think about a statement of Paul's: "...the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you..." - Romans 8:11 AMP. What type of human being does this really make you? It makes us like God in the earth. Not that we are God, but we are sons of God and made in His image. We are "Godlike ones." The Lord told Moses: "See, I make you as God to Pharaoh" - Exodus 7:1. We speak as God's earthly representatives. By releasing the voice of the Lord through the power of the spoken word, we can decree a thing and it will come to pass. It will happen. And it's all done by speaking words of faith. "You shall also decide and decree a thing, and it shall be established for you; and the light [of God's favor] shall shine upon your ways." - Job 22:28AMP ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

God responds with a literal invasion of heaven to earth through the worship of the believer. God responds to the praises of His people as mentioned in Isaiah 42:13 --"He shall go forth like a mighty man; he shall stir up his zeal like a man of war. He shall cry out, Yes, shout aloud; he shall prevail against his enemies." As a communion with God in praise and worship, affirm out loud each of the below psalm verses 5 times per day. Also use them as a prayerful meditation as you go throughout the day. Psalm 8:1 - O LORD, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. NLT Psalm 19:7 - The instructions of the LORD are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. NLT Psalm 20:7 - 7 Some boast in chariots and some in horses, But we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God. NASB Psalm 24:1 - The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. NLT Psalm 24:8 - Who is the King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle. NASB ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Ever wonder why? Why laws and rules? Why sin and sacrifice? The Law of Moses was the Knowledge of how one may live on earth without sin, yet the Law was perfect, mankind alone is not, soo sacrifices were instituted to take the place of the action called for when creation breaks the laws of its intended programming, which is immediate death. What was missing from The Law of the Knowledge to live a perfect life, was The Wisdom of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in Mankind that they may decern how to properly apply The Law in their lives. Therefore since the flesh of man was corrupted by sin and not worthy to hold The Holy Spirit, an ultimate sacrifice must be made as a blueprint for cleansing ones flesh that the Holy Spirit may indwell and give wisdom and instruction to walk the narrow path successfully. Soo you see The Law, is the Law of Order for Mankind, The original purpose and rules, a lofty target that only God Himself could reach. We were given The Word which became flesh and overcame this sinful world and lit up the Way to redemption and a return to The Source of Love. The Spirit comes that Mankind may have the power to overcome this sinful creation, creation ruled by entropy, that mankind may abide in the fullness of the Creator forever. Every Living thing has rules for living an optimum orderly life. When you break these rules of living you sin. But the reasons for the rules are not random "unfair" rules, they are orderly and through obedience to these Natural Laws you will not sin. Mankind was not created for the scenario you see around you today, this is the reaction of creation to Sin, or disorder. Therefore to understand why we believe what we do you must start with Rule Number One. Do Not Reject God's Word. In fact hold to his rules that you may live out your life in peace. That is the task and purpose of life, to return your life to Order for eternity. Now, when you look at Moses Law you will see a program that causes the body and spirit of a man to live orderly, as intended. Now, when you look at Yeshua's commands you will see the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit on how to apply God's Knowledge of intended living and now cleansed of sin you receive the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT to overcome temptation. Notice that Yeshua said He was the Way, that we walk A Path, we do not and never were intended to walk in his exact footsteps, he gave us leeway to move right and left within the confines of The Path of optimal living. All this Knowledge ONLY made available THROUGH the Holy Spirit, which Who can only be received by the cleansing of sin, which is made possible by accepting the Sacrifice of The Word who became flesh and fulfilled the Law of Life, was sacrificed and resurrected and in BELIEVING in Him who cleanses us from sin, we are cleansed and are made WORTHY to house the Spirit of God that we may receive POWER to overcome this world!! We are free from the LAW because we are no longer UNDER it, we are ABOVE it! BUT as Paul states, Do not use this forgiveness of sin as a means to do evil, for you will GRIEVE the SPIRIT, and you will slowly lose your JOY. I hope you can see the simplicity of our faith. May God bless you.

2 Corinthians 6:17 - "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing: and I will receive you." The lifting up of hands is very beautifully parabolised in the making of the ark of the covenant with the mercy seat. God told Moses that He would commune with Him from above the mercy seat between two cherubims. These cherubims were made with their wings stretched out above them. This spiritually represents a believer coming before God's presence with his hands lifted up. It signifies the receiving of the presence of God. Affirmations: WHEN I INITIALLY BELIEVED THE WORD OF GOD, I WAS BORN AGAIN. I WAS SEPARATED SPIRITUALLY FROM THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS AND SEPARATED TO THE KINGDOM OF LIGHT. I GIVE THE WORD OF GOD FIRST PLACE IN MY LIFE; IT CONTINUES TO SEPARATE ME FROM THE POVERTY AND THE ANXIETY AND THE SICKNESS AND THE HATRED AND THE DARKNESS OF MY OLD HABITAT. Matthew 6:10 - "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Jesus urged us to do an about-face in our approach to reality because His Kingdom is at hand. He brought His world with Him, and it's within our reach. He wants us to see reality from God's perspective, to learn to live "from" His world "towards" the visible world. Jesus never made the gospel simply a doctrinal exercise. His reality -- is to raise up believers who work with Him to destroy the works of the devil, who demonstrate and prove the will of God here on earth as it is in heaven. Affirmation: MY GOAL IS NOT ONLY TO CREATE A BETTER LIFE HERE, BUT, THROUGH SURRENDER, TO EXTEND THE KINGDOM OF GOD TO EARTH. FAITH BRINGS TO EARTH HEAVEN'S PROVISIONS; SURRENDER BRINGS GOD'S PRESENCE INTO THOSE PROVISIONS. Song of Solomon 3:7,8 - "Behold his bed, which is Solomon's; sixty valiant men surround it , the valiant ones of Israel. They all hold swords, being expert in war; every man has his sword on his thigh because of fear in the night." TO REACH THE BED OF THE TRUE SOLOMON, WHICH IS GOD, YOU MUST PASS THROUGH SIXTY BRAVE SOLDIERS. THESE SOLDIERS (WHICH ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF GOD'S NATURE) CARRY THE WORD OF GOD LIKE A SWORD, SEARCH DEEPLY WITHIN YOU TO FIND OUT YOUR SECRET PRESUMPTIONS; AND THEY ARE APTLY FITTED TO DESTROY THEM. "FEAR OF THE NIGHT" -- THE NATURE OF GOD FIGHTS AGAINST ALL THAT KEEPS YOU IN DARKNESS, THAT IS , FIGHTS AGAINST YOUR SELF-NATURE WHICH TAKES FOR ITSELF ALL THAT RIGHTFULLY BELONGS TO GOD. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Wow! The Holy Spirit is to be acknowledged as a person at all times. Why? Because He is. I didn't understand what it meant for the the Holy Spirit to be the access point to Jesus until the closer I think I am to Jesus, the more the Holy Spirit shows me that there is a process to get to the King. Firstly, it is important that we get to know who the person of the Holy Spirit is. In my experience, He is the 'information center' who is willing to reveal all that one needs to know 'if' we are obedient to His instructions. I say this because the Holy Spirit speaks to us everyday; He answers questions, comforts us and guides us in all things but our obedience to His voice is what really determines whether He can trust us to share even more truths with us. He speaks to us in our dreams While I understood that the Holy Spirit will teach us everything and remind us of all that Jesus has spoken John 14:26, it was only two months ago that I learn that He is the One who has given all of us our dreams. There are different kinds of dreams; some are for warning, some are prophetic and some are for making intercessions etc. But for us to identify the kind of dreams we have it will take more than our physical understanding to interpret such. I wasn't able to distinguish my dreams until after a few months of spending time with the Holy Spirit. He knows every person from our past and those who are in our lives presently The Holy Spirit uses people who we are familiar with to bring across His message in our dreams. Though I always understood that He does that, I never appreciated its importance until the Lord showed me in my dream someone I knew from High School but only keep in touch through social media. But as there is no partiality with God Romans 2:11, He revealed that this person was very troubled and in that case I was to make an intercession. Not surprisingly, when I reached out to the young lady on Facebook, she confessed the exact, and I repeat THE EXACT issue that the Holy Spirit had shown me in my dream. Isn't our God amazing!? It was in that moment of confession that I recognized that our dreams are probably the most common medium through which the Holy Spirit speaks. Continual Fellowship strengthens the Holy Spirit's trust in us We will rarely find ourselves sharing very sensitive information with strangers. It is the same with the Holy Spirit. He will put us through all kinds of tests to see how trustworthy we are and two ways to show our trustworthiness is by being obedient and engaging in prayer and worship. I cannot help but emphasize the word obedience, after-all the bible states that Obedience is better than sacrifice, a listening ear than the fat of rams, 1 Samuel 15:22. So I found that the more I worship, the further the Holy Spirit takes me into the spiritual realm. I am truly humbled to know this much more to experience it. All honor and praise to the Holy Spirit. Continual Repentance It is so important that we repent of our sins daily as we serve a holy God. As for me I sin everyday - not only by my deeds but by my very thoughts. Getting to know the Holy Spirit speaks to understanding His standards and meeting His expectations according to the Word of God. I struggle at times to be consistent in worship and reading the word but thanks be to God He understands that the spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak Matthew 26:41. Therefore the Holy Spirit being fully aware of our weaknesses just wants us to seek cleansing so He may continue to work through us as He so desires. I can do nothing without the Holy Spirit. I literally ache in the spirit if I ever feel like I've disappointed Him. How can you tell that you have disappointed the Holy Spirit? Let me hear from you...

Psalm 8:1,2 - "O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings has thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightiest still the enemy and the avenger." God equates praise with strength. Praise stops satan in his tracks. It is a weapon to use in calling a halt to satan's maneuvers. Psalm 9:1-3 - "I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will show forth all thy marvellous works. I will be glad and rejoice in Thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High. When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence." Isaiah 60:1 - "Arise (from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you - rise to a new life)! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!" There is a way that we run that causes us to have victory. It is not enough to be on the course, we must be ON course the entire way. To the level that we maintain our FOCUS, we will also maintain consistency establishing the Throne of God in the earth through that CALLING of God on our life. Observation: I OPEN MY BIBLE AND STIR MYSELF UP WITH GOD'S GREAT PROMISES FOR MY FUTURE. I READ THEM OUT LOUD SO MY EARS CAN HEAR WHAT MY MOUTH IS SAYING. Romans 10:17 - "So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing, by the Word of God." AFFIRMATIONS: I always receive from God because I have faith and do not doubt. I continually ask, seek, and knock concerning the things God has prepared for me understandidng His CALLING on my life because Jesus says I will receive, find, and it will be opened for me. I forget those things which are behind and reach forth to the calling God has put into my heart. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Psalm 42:1,2 - "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?" Observation: HE CREATES IN ME THE DESIRE TO FIND HIM AND RUN AFTER HIM. HE TAKES ME WITH HIS HAND AND LEADS ME WHERE I CANNOT GO BY MYSELF - ALONG A WAY THAT NO HUMAN EYE CAN SEE, AND THAT IS THE WAY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Hello brothers/sisters! This is a continuation to my first post, ' A Catholic belief-- Worshipping saints? ', as I can't post responses. Check it out here to get further information and not be confused : kwikphilly said: I was surprised to know that "most" of your friends are catholics,that's different.......so,may I ask,how did you come to islam?Or perhaps you asre referring to the acquaintances you made on the internet,just wondering? response: I was raised muslim by an Islamic family. To be more specific, I was raised Shia muslim, one of the two major denominations of Islam, the majority being Sunni Islam. As I grew up I did not touch on many other faiths but around 13 years old my curiosity finally sparked up a thought about our abrahamic religions. I began researching and studying, and my parents also did not mind it at all which was a blessing. And for catholic friends, I meant that in my life at the moment. Most of my school friends / community are catholics so I've learned a fair amount from them. Steven S said: Simply put, the catholics believe that they decide who are and aren't saints based on a process called canonization. This is done posthumously and involves a few steps, such as investigating the life of the person in question, how they lived, their deeds, etc.. It also includes beatification, which is basically a "verification" of a miraculous occurrence being attributed to their intercession after death. Basically, in lay terms, this means that someone was to have prayed for them to intercede with God, after they are dead, and then that prayer is answered, indicating, in the opinion of the catholic church, that the person is in heaven and that God is answering their prayers. This typically has to occur one more time and then, after this process, they are canonized. Not to beat around the bush, none of this is mentioned in the actual bible. The bible mentions saints many times throughout both the old and new testament, but it is either directly plural or in the plural sense with the one instance of the singular version being Philippians 4:21 (Php 4:21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you. ) The bible never mentions a process, at all, like the one mentioned above. The general understanding of the word as it stands amongst evangelical and most general protestant denominations is that the saints are followers of Christ, people whose ultimate faith lays in God. I believe that the greek root in this instance actually means something along the lines of "one who has been made holy" or something along those lines (I fully admit that I am no greek expert by any stretch). All of my brothers and sisters here are saints, as are all the ones who have physically passed on before me. .......... In short, this is a practice based on tradition that has been developed over centuries in the catholic church. There is no biblical basis for either the canonization process or prayer to saints. Whether or not it is idolatry in a technical sense, it is certainly not a biblically rooted practice. .......... response: Very good context! I also see this is how Catholics believe. Now I have one question: Even if intercession is not biblical, is it still fair to deem it wrong or idolatry? I am sure there are many Christian practices that may not be exactly biblical, but I still do not think it negates the idea of intercessions. Intercession may be inaccurate in terms of bible evidence, but is it morally wrong and/or religiously wrong? A fair and just God should say that it isn't; Jesus chose John as a disciple and apostle, John was steadfast on his faith and close to God both physically and spiritually (Jesus even personally praised him during one point in time in the bible), so If I asked Jesus, on behalf of your clean apostle John, to grant me a prayer, why is that wrong? John SAW Jesus and Jesus PRAISED him for his good intentions and motives. If I asked Jesus for something, and mentioned John, and knowing how close John was to Jesus, would that not further facilitate the granting of my prayer? I am reiterating the same question over and over again but I'm just trying to be as clear as possible. Sorry to get into detail, but if the majority Christian faith believe in intercessions (Catholics and denominations of), it gets me kind of curious as to why the minority (Christians; not by much though) would not believe in it. Is it possible to say that half of Christians would not be sent to paradise, even if they believe in Jesus as God and Savior, because they intercede with saints? That would definitely have an impact of how Christians view the atonement and salvation. ( See my first post about this topic)

Haggai 2:9 - "The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts." Hebrews 6:1 - "Therefore let us go on and get past the elementary stage in the teachings and doctrine of Christ, advancing steadily toward the completeness and perfection that belong to spiritual maturity." Nearly 2000 years ago, the author of the book of Hebrews exhorted the Jewish Christians to leave the elementary teachings and principles about Christ, urging them to press forward into maturity. Today as we are DISCIPLED into a higher life in Christ we come before the very throne of God with boldness and confidence - stepping into maturity - as we encounter new realms of the Glory of God. Psalm 149:6 - "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand...." We are being commissioned by the Lord to step into new realms of Glory through worship and high praise. As we do this together, we are going to see the Kingdom of Power and Glory made manifest. God's Kingdom is taking dominion upon the earth and is displacing every stronghold of the enemy. Through high praise we destroy the plans of the enemy and bring to earth new realms of Glory not yet revealed. We are stepping into a realm of timelessness where the miracles in His presence are being made known to us. As we continue Heavenward, we are breaking the constraints of the natural realm and shaking off old paradigms. The doors of Heaven are opening wider than we've ever seen before and we are witnessing the unfolding of the scrolls of DESTINY. Both the seen and unseen worlds are being changed from one degree of Glory to another, and all are being transformed by the ever-increasing Glory of God. QUESTIONS TO ASK MYSELF: How much time do I spend each day praising God out loud? Do I believe that praising and worshiping God will lead me into new realms of glory? PRAYER: Father, let me continually see Your goodness pass before me. Jesus wash Your Bride with Your Word - sanctify me so that I will be a resting place for Your holy habitation; You will present to Yourself - the Church in all her Glory. Holy Spirit, teach me how to move and operate in the realm of Glory as this time of acceleration is upon us, that I may arise in faith, in the experiential knowledge of the Son of God, with unparalleled demonstrations of the Kingdom of Power and Glory. In Jesus' name, Amen. AFFIRMATIONS: The Lord blankets me with His tangible, manifest presence, and cloud of glory. God is enlightening the eyes of my heart so that I would experientially know the inheritance of glory that lies within the saints. I declare the word of the Lord and see it supernaturally manifest. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Revelation 3:7 - "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, 'These things says He who is holy, He who is true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens." TAKING HOLD OF THE KEY OF DAVID The key of David is entering into the most holy place where the glory dwells. The tangible presence and glory of God is accessed through intimate Throne Room worship. Jesus paid the price and shed His Blood so that we could enter in to the holiest of all through Him (Hebrews 10:19-22) Colossians 1:27 - "To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." We must enter the "Throne Zone" in order to see the tangible glory of God manifested in our midst. It is in that place that we find the glory and anointing needed to transform atmospheres on earth. We are called to be carriers of His glory. By laying hold of the KEY OF DAVID, we lay hold of the glory of His Spirit allowing Him to manifest in us and through us. It is all about having a throne room paradigm. This is the proper perspective for believers. SEEING FROM THE HEAVENLY PERSPECTIVE Ephesians 2:5,6 - "Even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." We are not to see things from an earthly vantage point but from a Heavenly perspective. It is there that we are seated in the Heavenly places ablove all demonic forces. As we take hold of this key of worship in the glory, we move into deeper realms of intimacy with God, greater revelation and understanding of His divine purposes, and we have the anointing to establish and plant His Kingdom in the earth. Psalm 18:33 - "He makes my feet like the feet of deer, and sets me on my high places." The Lord is calling us up higher. When God begins to manifest His glory, we need to make sure that we don't try to pitch tents and build debasing structures. Jesus was transfigured before the eyes of Peter, James and John. Peter suggested tents be build, but this was not the heart of God. When man sees the glory, there is the fleshly reaction to capitalize on what God is doing--building earthly structures, etc. NEW WINESKIN THINKING Mark 2:22 - "And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins." If we are to partake in what God is pouring out in this hour, we must have a new mindset--a new wineskin ie. we don't lean on our own understanding. Leaning on natural thinking and old ways are like crusty and stiff wineskins. These mindsets cannot carry the new wine of God's glory that is being poured out. WE SHOULD HOLD TRUE TO THE WORD, BUT REMAIN FLEXIBLE IN REGARDS TO HOW THINGS SHOULD LOOK IN REGARDS TO THE MOVING OF GOD'S SPIRIT. 1 Corinthians 2:11 - "For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God." As believers we need to set our natural thinking aside, and ask the Lord to help us see with the eyes of His Spirit. The natural man cannot understand the ways of the Spirit. But our spirit within us is created to see and understand His ways. We commit ourselves to see with the eyes of our hearts and allow God to blow our minds with His limitless power! Affirmations: NOW IS THE TIME FOR ME TO MOVE INTO GLORY REALM WORSHIP. I APPREHEND THAT TANGIBLE GLORY OF GOD IN MY LIFE AND SETTLE FOR NOTHING LESS! MY MISSION IS TO CARRY HIS GLORY AND RELEASE IT. I AM DRAWN TO HIS HEART BY THE TRUE RICHES OF HIS PRESENCE. I CRAVE INTIMACY WITH THE LORD. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Shekinah Glory (Read Ephesians 2 & 3) Exodus 25:8 & 40:34 8“Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. 34Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. (Shekinah is the Hebrew term (SEKINA) in Rabbinic literature which reverently expresses the divine presence. It is derived from the Hebrew word “SKN” which means to dwell, abide, and settle down. The term does not appear in the Old or New Testament. The correlation of Shekina – “that which dwells” with God’s presence is found in Exodus 25:8 and 40:34.) 1 Kings 8:10-11 10It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 11so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD. (When the ark of the lord is placed in the temple in Jerusalem, a cloud representing the Shekinah subsequently falls on the temple thereby symbolizing it’s new habitation.) Psalm 24:3-4 3Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place? 4He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood And has not sworn deceitfully. Matthew 5:8 - “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." (In the Old Testament the priests were commanded to wear a turban with a gold band attached to it. On the gold band the words “holiness unto the Lord” were engraved which speaks of purity; while the gold speaks of holiness. When God looked from the Shekinah glory at the priest standing in front of Him, He sees him pure and holy. In order to come before the holy presence of God to worship Him we need to have clean hands and a pure heart.) John 1:14 14And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. Ephesians 2:19-22 19So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, 20having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, 21in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, 22in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. (Several passages in the New Testament imply the belief that the Shekinah was first incarnate in Jesus (John 1:14) and later in the church (Ephesians 2:19-22).) Ephesians 3:9-13, 20, 21 9and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; 10so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. 11This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. 13Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory. 20Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. 1 Thessalonians 2:10-12 10You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and uprightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers; 11just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children, 12so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory. (Other examples of how the believer is called to experience the Shekinah glory.) Matthew 5:23-24 23“Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. (We cannot worship God with sin in our hearts. Just as the priest should not even be spotted in his garments when coming before God, likewise our hearts must be clean and pure from spots.) Leviticus 9:7 7Moses then said to Aaron, “Come near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, that you may make atonement for yourself and for the people; then make the offering for the people, that you may make atonement for them, just as the LORD has commanded.” (Before a priest could offer sacrifices for others, he had to offer one for himself, to be purified from sin.) Psalm 19:12-13; 51:2 12 Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. 13Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins;Let them not rule over me; Then I will be £blameless, And I shall be acquitted of great transgression. 2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin. (Before we can offer spiritual sacrifices to God, we should examine our hearts from any presumptuous sin and ask the Holy Spirit to cleanse us from any hidden sins lurking in our hearts.) ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Hello brothers/sisters! After a fair amount of time spent chatting about this idea with some members, I feel like It would be efficient if I made it a post. In the shortest way possible, the question is : How do Catholics actually view the saints? Some information: It seems that the Catholic belief of saints has been a little misconceived, but nonetheless very controversial. Before touching on how a Catholic 'worships' a saint, I think it is fair to point that some Catholics may have exaggerated their belief of what a saint actually is. If you look in Catholic churches, you may find candles mounted with statues of supposed saints ( reminding us very well of how idols were shown in the older times ) and these sorts. Now one can confidently say that in Christianity, the one lone person who deserves worship is God, our Jesus Christ. Although Catholics tend to observe this as well, I think it is fair to say that maybe we should look at what they actually consider what saints are? Most of my friends are Catholics, and information from them concerning how saints are went like this: Their general view tells me that because saints have a close relationship with God, It is possible to intercede from them, praying towards God, on behalf of them. Some members on the forum told me that this counts as idolatry, because only Jesus deserves to be worshiped and no one can intercede for Jesus Christ. Now I do see why this can initially show offense, but I, not being Catholic nor Christian, may find a better understanding of it. I will give an example of how a Catholic actually may perceive the intercession of a saint: We will have three people. Ben, Bob , and Bill . Ben is the moderator of a website, and Bob and Bill are sub-moderators. Now I come in, wanting to also be a sub-moderator of this site. I will say to Ben " Hello Ben! On behalf of Bob and Bill (the sub-moderators of the site) may I be a sub-moderator as well? " --- You will see I haven't actually asked Bob and Bill for anything. The question was entirely directed to Ben , but I merely referenced Bob and Bill because as they are sub-moderators to Ben, they will have a better name to themselves then If I used somebody like Bart( Bart is our fourth person, being a normal member). Ben chose Bob and Bill to be sub-moderators, for their knowledge and skill, and so referencing them may give me a better chance of Ben accepting my proposal of being a sub-moderator as well. Does this example above count as idolatry? I will appreciate feedback and criticism where applies. I will apologize beforehand for any Catholic who took offense to anything in this thread -- I do not have all the knowledge and I could have definitely misconstrued something. My aim is to clear up possible confusion with how Catholics view a saint, because in our Abrahamic religions, idolatry is not welcome.

Blessings Brothers & Sisters..... Lately I have been hearing a lot about the desire to be "top poster",I have had a couple of private conversations where one member is actually taking a little "time off" from posting because he/she got so caught up in trying to accumulate posts that their purpose for being here at Worthy ,in the first place,became blurred,,,,,,I have not heard this from just one member but this particular one prompted me to begin this Thread,,,,,,,as we are always happy to see that Worthy Christian Forums is a very active and lively place,we must always be mindful of the True Purpose of our Calling,,,,,,,, As a new member it is always exciting to see our number of posts increase,we start out a "newbie" & soon a junior,senior,diamond etc,,,, I remember I was just thrilled to become a "Royal Member" but at that time I barely understood how it all worked,BTW,,,,I'm still just as excited to be here & very grateful to God for leading us all here,,,,,,,Praise the Lord,may we always be excited going about our Fathers Business & fellowshipping with one another! How many "posts" we have is not what is important but our motives are and the substance of what we are posting,,,,,,,, There are many Forums here ,outside of the Inner Court,where we can have some fun,let our hair down & just chit chat,,,,,,,, we enjoy the time we spend together and & that is fantastic.,,,,there is a time & place for everything & it is fine for Christians to take time out to just relax,,,,,,but are you just relaxing or trying to "post"?Your goal should not be "I want to have more posts than this one or that one" It is not a competition,it is a Blessed Place that God has Provided for us,,,,,He should ALWAYS be our number ONE priority,it is not about us,it is ALL about Him,,,, There is nothing wrong with having the desire to be productive,to give as much as you can,to do as much as you can but sometimes it is a good idea to re-think your position,your motives,the desires of your heart I hope to encourage everyone to keep on striving to be the very best you can be and continue to participate,getting to know one another & doing what we came here to do,,,,,,just don't lose focus or get distracted by the things that are not important,I know some people that say very little (like my husband) but when they do speak ,they speak volumes The speak volumes because they are grounded & rooted in the Word of God,mindful of their words,prayerful and in Relationship with the One they love,the One they rely on to give them the Words,,,,,,,,,don't get side tracked,keep your eyes on Jesus,not your posts,,,,,,,,,,,,,, When I first came to Worthy so did Oakwood,we became friends & we were both here a lot in the wee hours of the morning when very few people were on,one day he brought to my attention that he was trying to catch up to me and it almost became a race for points,I had to pause for a moment & remember why I was here,,,,,,,,I never again looked at how many posts I had,I don't care,I want to say what the Holy Spirit prompts me to say,,,,,,,& then there is also my time to goof around but never to be anything more than the humble servant I am,let us boast for CHRIST,,,,,,,,,To God be the Glory With love-in Christ,Kwik

I will make first a disclaimer. I have always found parallels in The Lion King for the Bible/Christian Life. Now I know some would disagree, that's OK. These are just my thoughts & interpretations. The Lion King: A King is Born But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:10-11 SCENE SYNOPSIS: Simba has just been recently born, and Rafiki approaches Pride Rock. His goal is to present Simba to the kingdom, so that they can bow down and worship the newborn king. So many times, we want to only focus on Jesus at Christmas. While we know that Christmas is a time to celebrate his birth, every day should be a celebration. What do we know? We know that Jesus was born of a virgin Mary, and that he was blameless and perfect. As we see in this scene, the entire kingdom turned out to worship him. They knew that one day, he would be their king.. and they had better start worshiping and bowing down to him. The Bible tells us in Romans 14:11 that “Every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord”. This is a powerful sentiment, and one not to be taken lightly. Not only does God tell us that one day, everyone will worship him. He commands Christians to worship him on an ongoing basis. (Psalm 95:6; Romans 12:1; John 4:23). In fact, he also tells us in his word- that if we do not worship our King, the rocks will cry out in our place. (Luke 19:40) To worship God, every day should be our primary focus. We worship him through reading his Word, spending time with him, praying to him, helping others, being a light, evangelizing and more.

http://www.christianityboard.com/blog/48/entry-1031-power-study-c61/ INTERCESSION

I hope everyone here is doing well! I am putting together a list of songs that fit into many categories. Topics like Story, Friendship, Peace, Passion, Pain, etc. An example of Story would be: Big Daddy Weave - My Story Or under friendship Newsong - Sheltering Tree What are some that you can help me out with? THANKS SO MUCH!

What do you think of Biblioatry? Had you heard the term before? I read this article and thought I'd get some feedback: I think that I am more inclined toward the last definition. Why? Because I have known many hardcore fundamentalist Christians who attempt to interpret the Bible “literally” and who have extreme “reverence for the letter of the Bible” but who did not “worship” the Bible in any real sense. To put it differently, they never placed the Bible in the place of God. So, here’s my definition of biblolatry: Worshiping the Bible instead of the God of the Bible. I want to unpack that a bit, because the phrase “worshiping the Bible” can be easily misunderstood. According to the Bible itself, there is only one object of worship which is worthy of worship: God alone. We see this most plainly in the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Deuteronomy 5.7). Only God deserves that loftiest position. And yet, from time to time and in a variety of ways, we may place the Bible in that position. How might we do this? All the things I’m about to list are things that I’ve been guilty of from time to time in my own life. But they are all things that I now try to avoid: Treating a copy of the Bible we own with an unusual and superstitious amount of respect. I’m sure you’ve seen what I’m talking about — not letting the Bible touch the floor, obsessing over the condition of each page of the Bible, never placing another book on top of the Bible, etc. This is just silly. The copy of the Bible in question is simply a collection of paper, ink, and (p)leather. It is not God. Viewing the Bible as some sort of magical device to help us feel better. I’ve done what I’m about to describe more often than I’d like to admit. I’m having a bad day, so I flip his Bible open to a random page and scour that page for something to help mefeel better. This is just silly. Treating the Bible this way equates it with other silly things that people make into idols: like horoscopes and the like. Thinking that the words of the Bible are more important than the God who inspired them. This one is harder to nail down into a concrete example. But I fear that sometimes we all get so wrapped up in the words of the Bible itself that we become blinded to the God who stands behind them. Again, this is just silly. God is to be worshiped, not the Bible! So perhaps from time to time we all need to lift our noses out of our Bibles and remember to direct the vast majority of spiritual attention toward God himself. Even our study of the Bible should direct us toward God. Instead of reading it for its own sake, maybe we should look for how our reading of the Bible points us to God, and dwell there instead of on the words themselves. Thinking that there exists within the Bible itself some secret code that will unlock the mysteries of the universe, the end times, etc., etc. This isn’t one that I’ve gotten into much, though I dabbled in it a bit as a late teen thanks to my obsession then with eschatology. This mentality has been most clearly seen in the all the Bible Code books (I’ll let you find them on your own if you want to). This is just silly too. The words of the Bible aren’t magic and they aren’t hiding anything. Instead, they’re intended to turn us toward God, not Christian conspiracy theories! Why Does Bibliolatry Matter? You might be thinking something like this: Who cares Matt! As long as someone is reading the Bible, that’s a good thing, right? And you aren’t completely wrong. It is better that someone worship the Bible than something else, I guess. But in the end, bibliolatry is just as wrong as any other form of idolatry. Why? Because it violates the first commandment, plain and simple. So then, if bibliolatry is wrong, which it is, and is to be avoided, which it should, then what is the correct way to view the Bible? I’m so glad you asked! Jesus talks about this very topic in John 5. I’ve written some about this chapter of John before (here and here), but I’ll set the scene again. Jesus healed a man who had been suffering for many, many years (John 5.1-9a). This healing happened on the Sabbath, which made some Jewish leaders angry because they believed that what transpired was considered work and Jews weren’t to work on the Sabbath (John 5.9b-16a). So these leaders confronted Jesus (John 5.16b) and Jesus came back at them with a long diatribe in which he expertly defended himself (John 5.17-47). And during part of Jesus’ long speech he said this: You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5.39-40) Ouch! Jesus really hits them where it hurts. These Jewish leaders were likely Pharisees, who were considered to be experts in the law and taught it to the people with regularity. And here Jesus tells them that their life’s work, studying the Scriptures diligently. was ultimately misguided. This must have really struck at their core identity, which is never fun. To put all of this in different words: Jesus told these Jewish leaders that they were guilty of bibliolatry. They were worshiping the Bible and not the God of the Bible. Specifically, they thought that they could be receive eternal life through their study of the Scriptures, when their only way of accessing eternal life, Jesus himself, was standing right in front of them! So, to bring things back to today, bibliolatry matters because when we worship the Bible instead of Jesus, we run the risk of placing our faith and the hope of our salvation in the wrong place! How Can We Respond to Bibliolatry? Here are a few ideas about how to respond to the threat of bibliolatry: Focus on Jesus. What makes the Bible special is that it is inspired by God and through it Jesus is best revealed to the world. Thus, as we read the Bible, we should focus more on Jesus and less on the words themselves. I know this is a fine distinction. But we can easily be bogged down and miss Jesus who is revealed all throughout the Bible! Allow the Bible to do its job. In 2 Timothy 3.16-17 the job of the Bible is described this way: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” So as we read and study the Bible, are we allowing it to teach, rebuke, correct, and train us in righteousness? And is their proof in our lives that our Bible reading and study is working? What might that proof be? Well the passage from 2 Timothy plainly tells us that if we let the Bible do its job in our lives, then we will be better equipped to do every good work. Mindblown. The true test of whether or not we are using the Bible properly just might be whether or not we are doing the good works that God has prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2.10)! Read the Bible with others. Like many other things in life, community can help! If we only read the Bible alone, then we very well may become worshipers of it instead of Jesus. Conversely, if we read and study the Bible with others, especially if that group of people is diverse in a variety of ways, then we can build in safeguards against bibliolatry. (Please note that I’m not saying that we should never read the Bible alone. I am, however, saying that we should always have a healthy dose of communal Bible reading!) Obey what we read. Perhaps the truest sign of bibliolatry is that we spend all of our time reading and studying the Bible and spend almost no time doing what it says (other than the whole “meditate on the law” part!). Jesus didn’t die so that we could all sit with our faces gazing down at our Bible-filled laps. No! He died so that we could join him in his cosmic mission to make all things right by reconciling them himself! And as we read the Bible, it should inspire us to join in that mission, not avoid it by merely learning more about it! Please don’t misunderstand me. Studying the Bible is greatly important! I’ve devoted my entire adult life to this task. But our love for the Bible should never rival our love for Jesus and our devotion to the Bible should never deter us from living out the mission of Jesus in the real world. The danger of bibliolatry is real but quite subtle. Do you agree? If so, let me know how you think we should deal with this danger in the comments below. If not, why not? God bless, GE

God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is looking for you, so that you can worship Him. In John 4: 23, The Lord Jesus Christ declared that "...the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him."

I was reading a Psalm recently. Psalm 81. I'm not the best at faithfully reading my bible, but this time God really pulled me deeply into it. Old testament, history, etc... things I'm not a very good student of. Add to that the Psalms, and you read a few, they start to feel like the same thing over....and over....and over... My attention focus impaired brain just doesn't usually follow either subject (history or the psalms) very well. This time, however, I followed all the extra notes and references and read the Psalm all the way through twice, then went back to each one and focused on each side note. God called me to examine it deeply. In it, I discovered God asked for two things (in this Psalm). First... to worship ONLY God, that there IS only one God. Second... that worship and praise is not optional. It's actually a statute or a command. It was for Israel, too. Continued reading reveals a bit about israel's history, it makes reference to the waters of Maribah where people were beginning to question God and to grumble and Moses and Aaron didn't obey completely either. It talks about how Israel DID not obey Him. Obey what? Well we know that God does ask some things of us, but in this passage, it seems like God is saying they didn't obey the two points above. They worshipped false God's and Idols, and they did not praise Him. It goes on to say that the results of obedience would have had a worldly impact (it specificially says then those who were against God would turn back cringing before God in my Amplified bible). It also said that Israel itself would have had all of it's needs provided for, comparing these provisions with honey flowing from rock and fine wheat. Instead, Israel spent years wandering in a desert and then MANY MORE years later on as slaves... all because mankind is disobedient of the most basic principles. Love ONLY God and prove it through your praises. So, when we praise, what can it affect? Whom can it affect? Sounds to me like Psalm 81 reveals that when we praise, we have national (even global) impact on those around us as well as provisions and blessings for ourselves. No wonder God commanded praise.

This is one of my very favorite worship songs that probably none of you have heard from a local (to me) guy. It goes along with a couple of my favorite verses about shining like the stars in the heavens: "Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." Daniel 12:3 (NASB) "14Do all things without grumbling or disputing; 15so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, 16holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain. 17But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all. 18You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me." Philippians 2:14-18

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jlGmJtKaWo New song by Kim Walker-Smith.