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Are terms & phrases "fortresses" & "speculations and every lofty thing" in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 broad enough to include human thoughts of sexual lust, infatuation, financial & material greed, distractions, idolization?

Are terms & phrases "fortresses" & "speculations and every lofty thing" in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 broad enough to include human thoughts of sexual lust, infatuation, financial & material greed, distractions, idolization?

I practice soccer everyday. I’m training to become pro. I also watch it whenever I can. I still try to find time to read scripture and pray and I know it’s more important then soccer. Am I idolizing soccer? How do I stop if I am?

Blessings Brothers& Sisters This Morning I was reading some in Revelation and whenever I do I think of America,I do not see America in any of it & never have.So often I think that America is probably not there because it probably isn't going to be anywhere,or maybe it is just insignificant or maybe we will all be Raptured or maybe maybe maybe?????lol Anyway,after reading I thought I might listen to a video sermon and I saw one by Mark Correll,it was about America being spiritually connected to Israel "JERUSALEM",cute huh?He spoke about Americas foundation on Gods Word,being a Judeo-Christian Nation and a whole lot of history regarding Biblical precepts etc.....but thats not what I want to talk about.I want to talk about Blessings & curses and see what you all think about it... America was dedicated to God,our founding Fathers were men of Biblical principal(please lets not get off topic here if you disagree already-lol)!To summarize,America has been bountifully Blessed as One Nation under God...Now if we are spiritually connected to Israel because we are probably the only country on the planet that supports Israel then I'm sure we are also Blessed as Israel is Blessed,right? After all,that's what Scripture Says This country has become a powerful nation,we have prospered greatly yet slowly but surely we are turning away from God and thats what this video was about.....Gods Blessings for Israel were conditional,if you look at the Book of Dueteronomy you will see the Blessings & the curses......can we read the Book of Dueteronomy & see the curses of Israel upon us? 1-Duet28:28 (curses of madness).....Have you ever seen such a spirit of lunacy such as this,all you hear these days is mental disorders,bi-polar,clinical depression,manic depressive,paranoid schizophrenia etc...etc... 2-Duet 28:23-24 (Drought,disfavor of a nation , prayers of Elijah)......Global warming? 3-Duet 28:21-22(Disease,pestilence,nation against nation).......Nation against nation ....fatal epidemics,West Nile,aids,ebola,bird flu,zica,corona virus 4-Duet 28:30-31(Break up of Family)......divorce rates,abandonment,adultery,living together ...the statistics are alarming 5-Duet 28:41 (Children are a heartache) I don't have to elaborate here 6-Duet 28:43 (Strangers owning what we should own) we are 2 trillion in debt to China,so many foreign owned businesses,China owns 51% of the Empire State Bldg! 7-Duet 28:56-57 (Women hating their children-Molech,child sacrifice).........abortion,need I say more? Jesus took all curses ,we as Christians choose Life-the Way,the Truth & the LIfe-our lIving Redeemer is the curse reverser and we know God Loves us but as a Nation we must return to God"Make America Godly Again",she must repent So what do you think?I'm not sure what to think but we do see the signs of the times as I'm sure every generation sees them as the End Times.......Are our Blessings as a nation conditional,is America cursed for unrepentance,I think we've seen nothing yet? With love-in Christ,Kwik

I'm in an odd situation, one that led me to this forum to begin with. Recently, I've been trying to use a prayer journal and pray for specific individuals. In that time, I've felt a very strong desire to pray for an individual that I used to be infatuated with, whom I have not been in contact with in some years. The problem: back then, I idolized and lusted after this person. I genuinely placed them before God in pretty much every area of my life. Ex: he was on the worship band, so I stared at him during worship. He was funny, so I always thought of his jokes during church services. I would be so upset on days that he wouldn't talk to me, but I rarely ever prayed. (I know, I'm ashamed just thinking about it.) God told me in no uncertain terms that this person was not the one for me, even when I was still trying to hold on. Back to the present: I am actively trying to stop thinking about this person, and though it's taken some time, I've been mostly successful. I've been more focused on growing in my relationship with God than ever before, and I'm almost always in prayer. I have felt a call to pray for that person, their walk with Christ, their resistance to temptation, finding a community of believers, and so on. However, I do not trust my intentions. I don't know if this is truly God moving on my heart to pray for this person, or if this is me trying to stay attached to this person through prayer. If this is God's will, I don't want my fears to stop me--especially if this person really is wrestling with their faith. However, if this is just my flesh, I don't want to let myself fall back into old patterns of sin (lust and idolatry). So I guess my question is, is this God or my flesh talking? What advice would you give me on handling this situation? I have asked God for confirmation on whether or not this is Him. I have also asked a family member, a couple people who are more spiritually mature than me, and a couple friends. Now I'm asking for your input. Please help! Thanks!

Can a robot substitute for pastoral care? Can it bring a theological perspective to our prayers (relationship factor)? Christianity is not about religious activities or mere confession; it centers on the person of Jesus Christ who is the absolute mediator between Mankind and God the father. The essence of Christianity is "Relationship." Thus, worshiping an idol is wrong; having another mediator (any human being) is idolatrous. Worst of all, a new spiritual virus, by human intelligent activity without God, is born recently. They called it Robot Priest or Pastor. Here it is: "Robot priest unveiled in Germany to mark 500 years since Reformation" https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/30/robot-priest-blessu-2-germany-reformation-exhibition?fbclid=IwAR16ZEli1xnIKctvJSu9Hjo3RATZJ1Xq_HUGOWTk7PbBpSwI7Lc7QiCHHNg

Definition of "worship" : Ardent devotion; adoration. Every Catholic institution has images of Mary, Jesus and male and female figures. An example of this are two statues at the French Papal Palace of Avignon, one of Jesus about 20 metres above ground level, and the other is an enormous statue of Mary, much larger, grander and higher up than that of Jesus. This gives the greater honour to Mary than Jesus. It also clearly breaks the second Commandment forbidding making images of things in heaven. Job15:15 "Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight." Cardinal Newman, in his book, "The Development of the Christian Religion," admits that ... "Temples, incense, oil lamps, votive offerings, holy water, holidays and season of devotions, processions, blessing of fields, sacerdotal vestments, the tonsure (of priests and monks and nuns), images ... are ALL of pagan origin..." (Page 359). “Through some crack or other in the temple of God, the smoke of Satan has entered .” — Pope Paul VI, 1972 The Catechism of the Council of Trent states these words: "It is lawful to have images in the Church, and to give honor and worship unto them...". The twenty-fifth session of the Council of Trent decrees that the images of Christ and the Virgin Mary, and of the other saints, are especially to be had and retained in the churches, and that honor and veneration are to be paid to them. "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them..." —Exodus 20:5. Ok, so then why do so many catholics and the pope BOW DOWN before a statue of Mary in their worship places? Exodus 20:4,5 couldn't be any clearer that even BOWING down to a statue is idolatry. Yet, Catholics foolishly claim that they are not worshipping the statues they are bowing down to. BUT, God forbids us from even bowing to statues. In fact, the Bible is so clear on this matter that the Vatican has even REMOVED the second of the Ten Commandments to deceive you. Exodus20:4-5. "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth." Vs5 "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God." Isaiah 42:8 "I [am] the LORD: that [is] my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images." God DID specifically commanded CERTAIN statues to be made. Were they worshipped? No, were they bowed down to? No. Were the cerebrum on the ark of the covenant bowed down to or worshipped? No. Moses' brass snake was to demonstrate Gods healing power, so the people would know that their healing was from God and not just a coincidence, as you well know. Show me where God SPECIFICALLY commands us to make images of Mary and the pope and to bow to them? The Pope deleted the 2nd of the 10 commandments so they could use statues & images in worship. They split the 10th commandment on coveting into two commandments so they could still have 10 in number. Look at the list of 10 commandments published by the rcc! The issue here is not how the Ten Commandments are numbered, rather the issue is that most published lists of the 10 commandments do not include the words, "you shall not for yourself an idol".

IDOLATRY. This is MAKING IMAGES. The Catholic Council of Trent declares that: "It is lawful to have images in the church and to give honour and worship to them. ... Images are put in churches that they may be worshipped." The Oxford dictionary defines an idol as: "An image used as an object of worship. A person or thing that is the object of excessive devotion." An Idolater is a devoted admirer of idols. Answer: What does the Bible say about images and idols? 1. Exodus 20:4, 5. a) Thou shalt not MAKE unto thee ANY graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. b) Thou shalt not BOW DOWN thyself to them. c) Nor SERVE them. If you make any graven image you’ve broken this commandment, whether you worship it or not. Question 1: Do Catholics MAKE graven images? Yes. Question 2: Do Catholics KNEEL down to statues of Mary or Jesus? Yes. Question 3: Do Catholics SERVE Mary? Yes, as in "Legion of Mary." 2. Leviticus 26:1. a) "You shall make you NO IDOLS nor GRAVEN IMAGE. b) Neither rear you up a STANDING IMAGE. c) Neither shall ye set up any IMAGE OF STONE in your land to bow down unto it." Question 4: Do Catholics rear up STANDING IMAGES? Yes. Question 5: Do Catholics set up any IMAGE OF STONE? Yes. 3. Deuteronomy 4:16. "Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and MAKE you a GRAVEN IMAGE, the similitude of ANY FIGURE, the likeness of MALE or FEMALE." Question 6: Do Catholics make graven images of MALE or FEMALE? Yes. Mary is a female. Jesus and the apostles are males. 4. Deuteronomy 16:22. "Neither shalt thou SET thee UP ANY IMAGE: which the Lord thy God HATES." Question 7: Do Catholics SET UP ANY IMAGES? Yes. Question 8: Does God HATE IMAGES? Yes. 5. 1 Thessalonians 1:9. "How ye turned to God FROM IDOLS to serve the living and true God." Question 9: Did the early Christians turn FROM IDOLS? Yes. 6. Deuteronomy 27:15. "CURSED be the man that MAKES ANY GRAVEN or MOLTEN IMAGE, an abomination unto the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and putteth it in a secret place." Question 10: Does God put a curse on any person that makes any image? Yes. Question 11: Why does God call an image an ABOMINATION? Because He hates it. 7. Isaiah 40:18,19. "To whom then will ye liken God? or what LIKENESS will ye compare unto him? The workman melteth a graven image" Note: God has no visible form and we cannot liken him to any material object. The Catholic answer is that they say that they do not worship images. God's reply is not to MAKE IMAGES. 8. The early Christians had NO IMAGES. Early Christian writers such as Irenaeus, Clement, Cyprian, Athanasius, and Jerome, wrote strongly AGAINST images, statues and any manner of prayer or veneration regarding them. The Council of Constantinople in 381 AD voted unanimously to remove all images from the churches. 9. The Catholic church removes the second commandment against MAKING graven images from the list of 10 Commandments in Exodus 20:1-17. This presents them with the problem of only having 9 commandments. They resolve this problem by splitting commandment number 10 into 9 and 10 as follows: 9. You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife. 10. You shall not covet your neighbour’s goods. This is seen in the book "A brief summary of the Ten Commandments" by the Daughters of St. Paul, p.12,13: WHAT ARE THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD? The Catholic Catechism The Bible The Commandments of God are these ten: "I am the Lord your God: 1. You shall not have strange Gods before me. 1. No other gods. [omitted] 2. No Graven Images. 2. You shall not take the name of the Lord 3. Don’t take God’s Name in vain. your God in vain. 3. Remember to keep holy the Lord's day. 4. Keep Sabbath Day Holy. 4. Honor your father and your mother. 5. Honour Father and Mother. 5. You shall not kill. 6. Don’t Murder. 6. You shall not commit adultery. 7. Don’t Commit Adultery. 7. You shall not steal. 8. Don’t Steal. 8. You shall not bear false witness 9. Don’t bear False Witness. 9. You shall not covet your neighbour's wife. 10. Don’t Covet. 10. You shall not covet your neighbour's goods." Exodus 20:1-17. The number Two Commandment should be “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.” 20:4 Check your Catechism to see if they have left it out. Question: Why do you think they left it out? 10. Every Catholic institution has images of Mary, Jesus, male and female figures. An example of this are two statues at the French Papal Palace of Avignon, one of Jesus about 10 metres above ground level, and the other is an enormous statue of Mary, much larger, grander and higher up than that of Jesus. This gives greater honour to Mary than to Jesus. It also clearly breaks the second commandment forbidding making images of things in heaven. Question: Who do we believe, the Word of God or the Catholic Church? "We ought to obey God, rather than men." Acts 5:29.

The Romanite religion is apostate. https://carm.org/are-roman-catholics-christian

As a God-made creature, Mankind is a very visual species. Unless you are born blind, there is a very good chance that you think with your eyes. I dare anyone to declare that when they think of a word (a noun), that they don't have a visual image of it. Let me give you an example - when I tell you the word 'refrigerator' do you not picture a refrigerator in your head? It's probably a large white box of some sort and maybe it resembles a picture of your own refrigerator in your own kitchen. Now let me give you the word 'forest'. Do you see trees? As a non-denominational Christian I would love to find a Church. Recently, I have taken an interest in both Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy, not to dedicate myself to them nor join them, but purely to find out what they are all about. The biggest bugbear that I have with them however, is their use of icons. They have some similarities to Roman Catholicism, but in other ways they are completely different. I have since found out that they do not worship icons at all, but use them as focal points when praying. Now let me ask you all - do you find that wrong? Let me go back to my original point. How many of you when you hear the word 'God', form a picture in your head, no matter how brief or fleeting? I would place a safe bet that all of you do. Is God an old man with a white beard or does he look like someone else? Does it matter what he looks like as long as you acknowledge that your vision of him is not absolute and that it may be wrong? So, I need to ask you all. Are icons wrong? Can churches have pictures, images of saints, crucifixes and the like? Is it wrong to have stained glass windows, paintings of St. Francis, purple curtains, candles, pictures of the Virgin Mary with the baby Jesus, or pictures of Archangels, Cherubim and Seraphim? Before you answer my questions, please ask yourself this question? Is Jesus a man with long hair and a beard? If so, why do you think that he is? The Bible never told us what he looked like.

I propose the following consequences are the result of de-volution of cultures due to sin... Summary of Sin's Progression in a Culture: 1. Mankind rejected God’s truth. 2. Not only that but we have suppressed God’s truth and followed after unrighteousness. 3. Because of Mankind’s rejection of truth we fell into idolatry. 4. This leads to fornication and adultery in heterosexual relationships. 5. This is the classic example of the consequences of men not being spiritual leaders in their homes, in the Church, and in society at large. 6. Marriage is no longer valued. So... 7. This then leads to unnatural relations between women. 8. This then leads to unnatural relations between men. 9. God allowed mankind to have a degraded mind and be consumed by all sort of sin. Is this the case in the U.S. today and abroad? Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?