As I’ve stated on the top of this site, this blog is about looking forward to the return of the rightful ruler, the Lord Jesus Christ. He told us in Matthew 24 of some of the signs that we could look for in identifying the season for His return and the establishment of His literal reign on earth.
I haven’t blogged as much as some may have hoped, not as much as I had expected, but I got caught up in life and my family with a wonderful wife and two precious boys. I don’t want to sacrifice that, as I know that my family is my primary ministry, to my wife and my sons, raising them to be godly young men.
But as I’ve noted before, Israel is God’s Timeclock. And time is drawing to a close for the Obama Administration to facilitate a peace treaty between Israel and the PA (Muslims). Israel has bent over backward to give concessions in order to show goodwill towards peace. Abbas has done little to make goodwill gestures to the Jewish people.
Danny Ayalon in the guardian.co.uk notes:
Palestinians have quietly been allowed to regress from the conventional positions, many of which they formerly accepted, that are essential for any peace process. For example, the murder of four Israelis by Palestinian terrorists on 31 August, on the eve of negotiations, did not induce Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, to withdraw from peace talks. Yet the construction of a few apartments in Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank, has been viewed by many as a justifiable excuse for the Palestinians to walk out.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/oct/15/palestian-rejectionism-obstacle-to-peace; accessed 10/22/10.
Evidently, even the lady who shattered the glass ceiling is giving up on the idea of negotiating peace between Israel and the Muslim parties in control.
"As much as the United States and other nations around the world want to see a resolution to this conflict, only the parties themselves can take the difficult steps that will lead to peace. That is why the Obama administration is working so hard to support direct talks that offer a forum for both sides to grapple with the core issues in good faith. There is no substitute for face-to-face discussion and, ultimately, for an agreement that leads to a just and lasting peace. That is the only path that will lead to the fulfillment of the Palestinian national aspirations and the necessary outcome of two states for two peoples."
http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2010/10/149766.htm
What’s interesting about this is that this is setting the conditions that will be met as spelled out in the Bible, that the small ‘horn’ or ruler that arises out of the global government will make a strong (Hb. Gabar) covenant for seven years (Dan. 9:27, 11:28, 30, 32), a peace treaty in the Middle East, which no one has been able to establish. For this the world will follow this leader.
With the human governments of this world concluding that they have done all there is to do, and seeing the pressure intensify between the Jews and all the Muslim countries which surround them, the time is soon approaching.
Daniel 7:25 25 'He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
"Edifying Thoughts of a Tobacco Smoker", by J. S. Bach:
I found this great little poem for all you pipe smokers out there:
Whene'er I take my pipe and stuff it
And smoke to pass the time away,
My thoughts, as I sit there and puff it,
Dwell on a picture sad and gray:
It teaches me that very like
Am I myself unto my pipe.
Like me, this pipe so fragrant burning
Is made of naught but earth and clay;
To earth I too shall be returning.
It falls and, ere I'd think to say,
It breaks in two before my eyes;
In store for me a like fate lies.
No stain the pipe's hue yet doth darken;
It remains white. Thus do I know
That when to death's call I must harken
My body, too, all pale will grow.
To black beneath the sod 'twill turn,
Likewise the pipe, if oft it burn.
Or when the pipe is fairly glowing,
Behold then, instantaneously,
The smoke off into thin air going,
Til naught but ash is left to see.
Man's fame likewise away will burn
And unto dust his body turn.
How oft it happens when one's smoking:
The stopper's missing from its shelf,
And one goes with one's finger poking
Into the bowl and burns oneself.
If in the pipe such pain doth dwell,
How hot must be the pains of Hell.
Thus o'er my pipe, in contemplation
Of such things, I can constantly
Indulge in fruitful meditation,
And so, puffing contentedly,
On land, on sea, at home, abroad,
I smoke my pipe and worship God.
[from _The Bach Reader_ pp. 97-8, revised edition ISBN 0-393-00259-4]
viewed at http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Prohibition/Legal%20Drugs/Tobacco/Bach/
Whene'er I take my pipe and stuff it
And smoke to pass the time away,
My thoughts, as I sit there and puff it,
Dwell on a picture sad and gray:
It teaches me that very like
Am I myself unto my pipe.
Like me, this pipe so fragrant burning
Is made of naught but earth and clay;
To earth I too shall be returning.
It falls and, ere I'd think to say,
It breaks in two before my eyes;
In store for me a like fate lies.
No stain the pipe's hue yet doth darken;
It remains white. Thus do I know
That when to death's call I must harken
My body, too, all pale will grow.
To black beneath the sod 'twill turn,
Likewise the pipe, if oft it burn.
Or when the pipe is fairly glowing,
Behold then, instantaneously,
The smoke off into thin air going,
Til naught but ash is left to see.
Man's fame likewise away will burn
And unto dust his body turn.
How oft it happens when one's smoking:
The stopper's missing from its shelf,
And one goes with one's finger poking
Into the bowl and burns oneself.
If in the pipe such pain doth dwell,
How hot must be the pains of Hell.
Thus o'er my pipe, in contemplation
Of such things, I can constantly
Indulge in fruitful meditation,
And so, puffing contentedly,
On land, on sea, at home, abroad,
I smoke my pipe and worship God.
[from _The Bach Reader_ pp. 97-8, revised edition ISBN 0-393-00259-4]
viewed at http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Prohibition/Legal%20Drugs/Tobacco/Bach/
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Did the Apostle Paul Know JWs?
Notes on Colossians:
10.20.2010
One thing I’ve noticed as the LORD led me to Colossians, in a situation with a friend who has a brother who is JW, and is struggling with the whole JW argument, and thinks it makes a lot of sense. In my reading of Colossians, it seems that the book hits some points that speak directly to his struggle.
19 For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven .
21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, 22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister . Col 1:19-23 (NASB95)
· False religions always diminish the nature of sin and Christ’s work on the cross. That’s the one thing Satan knows restores us to God, and to a true understanding of who we are and our true spiritual needs. So in other religions, if you notice, he changes the focus off the work of Christ on the cross. Mormons think the cross is despicable. New Agers think so too, and believe it’s a sign for the un-progressed, un-enlightened fundamentalists.
· False religions are always works based, something we’ve got to do or achieve. Only in Christianity do you have salvation by grace alone through faith in Christ’s work on the cross.
2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. Col 2:2-4 (NASB95)
· coming to know Christ Himself, “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” gives us a wealth of assurance of being in Christ, of being adopted sons and daughters of God.
8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete , and He is the head over all rule and authority. Col 2:8-10 (NASB95)
· JWs may make some persuasive arguments. Many young believers will cuaght up in doing "topical studies," instead of reading the Bible fully through. I did it. What is needed, is for a time to stay away from false religions' websites and studies, and as baby Christians, you need to ground yourself in God’s word. Let Him grow you up. He gets the glory. If you try it in your strength, that most always fails. I’ve been there, done that, and fell on my face. You need to just take some time, and saturate yourself with God’s word, His Truth, the only Truth, and just rejoice in Him!
18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self -abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments , grows with a growth which is from God. Col 2:18-19 (NASB95)
· JW’s teach Jesus is the angel Michael. Even if your brother has a spiritual vision or dream, it is not truth, because it is not in worship of the true Biblical Jesus. 10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. 11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. 1 John 5:10-12 (NASB95)
Friend, all false religions contain some truth. That’s Satan's tactic. He takes some truth and slightly distorts it or adds to it. Like Mormons teach we are saved by grace through faith after we’ve done all we can do. The Bible says it’s not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph 2:8,9).
10.20.2010
One thing I’ve noticed as the LORD led me to Colossians, in a situation with a friend who has a brother who is JW, and is struggling with the whole JW argument, and thinks it makes a lot of sense. In my reading of Colossians, it seems that the book hits some points that speak directly to his struggle.
19 For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven .
21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, 22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister . Col 1:19-23 (NASB95)
· False religions always diminish the nature of sin and Christ’s work on the cross. That’s the one thing Satan knows restores us to God, and to a true understanding of who we are and our true spiritual needs. So in other religions, if you notice, he changes the focus off the work of Christ on the cross. Mormons think the cross is despicable. New Agers think so too, and believe it’s a sign for the un-progressed, un-enlightened fundamentalists.
· False religions are always works based, something we’ve got to do or achieve. Only in Christianity do you have salvation by grace alone through faith in Christ’s work on the cross.
2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. Col 2:2-4 (NASB95)
· coming to know Christ Himself, “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” gives us a wealth of assurance of being in Christ, of being adopted sons and daughters of God.
8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10 and in Him you have been made complete , and He is the head over all rule and authority. Col 2:8-10 (NASB95)
· JWs may make some persuasive arguments. Many young believers will cuaght up in doing "topical studies," instead of reading the Bible fully through. I did it. What is needed, is for a time to stay away from false religions' websites and studies, and as baby Christians, you need to ground yourself in God’s word. Let Him grow you up. He gets the glory. If you try it in your strength, that most always fails. I’ve been there, done that, and fell on my face. You need to just take some time, and saturate yourself with God’s word, His Truth, the only Truth, and just rejoice in Him!
18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self -abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments , grows with a growth which is from God. Col 2:18-19 (NASB95)
· JW’s teach Jesus is the angel Michael. Even if your brother has a spiritual vision or dream, it is not truth, because it is not in worship of the true Biblical Jesus. 10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. 11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. 1 John 5:10-12 (NASB95)
Friend, all false religions contain some truth. That’s Satan's tactic. He takes some truth and slightly distorts it or adds to it. Like Mormons teach we are saved by grace through faith after we’ve done all we can do. The Bible says it’s not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph 2:8,9).
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Baptists ~ an Uninterupted Line?
I have a Muslim friend to whom I've tried to painstakingly show that Christians (true ones, who follow the Bible) were not involved in the Crusades against Muslims. The Roman Catholic church of the time, was "the" governmental power of much of Europe and Asia minor. Though it had emerged from the Biblical Christian faith, it had adopted teachings not of the Bible. The Roman Catholic Church was leading people away from the gospel of salvation by grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone, straight to hell. The true Christians were among those slain in the mass murders of the Crusades, that Christians of today are accussed of and blamed of being their descendents . And many Protestant Christians go around making apologies for the Crusades, as if that's a blemish on our past. It is no such thing for the true born-again followers of Christ.
There is a site I've linked on here, where I do increasingly more and more studying; http://www.reformedreader.org/. Their are many quotes, articles and sermons about Baptist faith and beliefs. C.H. Spurgeon, one of the greatest Baptist pastors of 19th Century in England, said this concerning the Baptist faith, and I thought it was really interesting.
We believe that the Baptists are the original Christians. We did not commence our existence at the reformation, we were reformers before Luther and Calvin were born; we never came from the Church of Rome, for we were never in it, but we have an unbroken line up to the apostles themselves. We have always existed from the days of Christ, and our principles, sometimes veiled and forgotten, like a river which may travel under ground for a little season, have always had honest and holy adherents. Persecuted alike by Romanists and Protestants of almost every sect, yet there has never existed a Government holding Baptist principles which persecuted others; nor, I believe, any body of Baptists ever held it to be right to put the consciences of others under the control of man. We have ever been ready to suffer, as our martyrologies will prove, but we are not ready to accept any help from the State, to prostitute the purity of the Bride of Christ to any alliance with Government, and we will never make the Church, although the Queen, the despot over the consciences of men.
—Charles H. Spurgeon
http://www.reformedreader.org/history/list.htm, accessed October 14, 2010.
___________________________
i.a In the early Middle Ages, investigation of heresy was a duty of the bishops. Alarmed especially by the spread of the Albigenses, the popes issued increasingly stringent instructions as to the methods for dealing with heretics. But they translated the New Testament into Provençal, and, soon after, those reading it for the first time saw, in the Scarlet Woman of Revelation, the Roman Church. In 1209, Innocent III lost his cool, and began preaching a crusade against the Albigenses.
The story of that crusade is a chapter in history that the Roman Catholic historians have done their best to obliterate.
H G Wells, Crux Ansata
The last discourse of S Dominic to the Albigenses betrays a man who, as Wells puts it, “has lost his faith in truth because his truth has not prevailed”:
For many years I have exhorted you in vain, with gentleness, preaching, praying and weeping. But according to the proverbs of my country, “Where blessing can accomplish nothing, blows may avail”, we shall arouse against you princes and prelates, who, alas! will arm nations and kingdoms against this land… and thus blows will avail where blessings and gentleness have been powerless.
http://www.askwhy.co.uk/christianheresy/0811Inquisition.php, accessed Oct. 14, 2010.
i.b Persecution by the Romans was rampant during the early centuries. It was not until the wedding of Church and State under Constantine in A.D. 313 that "Christians" began to persecute (true) Christians. While the Roman Catholic Church did not personally kill its opponents, the "State" to which it was wed did the work of killing those who opposed the Church's doctrines. It was this union which led to the bloodbath that ensued, and continued through the centuries. True believers were not allowed to worship and believe as the Bible taught. For their fidelity to Scripture, their reward was banishment, scourging, drowning, burning at the stake, etc. All this was because they strove to live a quiet life and follow the teachings of Scripture.
http://www.reformedreader.org/histb.htm, accessed Oct. 14, 2010.
There is a site I've linked on here, where I do increasingly more and more studying; http://www.reformedreader.org/. Their are many quotes, articles and sermons about Baptist faith and beliefs. C.H. Spurgeon, one of the greatest Baptist pastors of 19th Century in England, said this concerning the Baptist faith, and I thought it was really interesting.
We believe that the Baptists are the original Christians. We did not commence our existence at the reformation, we were reformers before Luther and Calvin were born; we never came from the Church of Rome, for we were never in it, but we have an unbroken line up to the apostles themselves. We have always existed from the days of Christ, and our principles, sometimes veiled and forgotten, like a river which may travel under ground for a little season, have always had honest and holy adherents. Persecuted alike by Romanists and Protestants of almost every sect, yet there has never existed a Government holding Baptist principles which persecuted others; nor, I believe, any body of Baptists ever held it to be right to put the consciences of others under the control of man. We have ever been ready to suffer, as our martyrologies will prove, but we are not ready to accept any help from the State, to prostitute the purity of the Bride of Christ to any alliance with Government, and we will never make the Church, although the Queen, the despot over the consciences of men.
—Charles H. Spurgeon
http://www.reformedreader.org/history/list.htm, accessed October 14, 2010.
___________________________
i.a In the early Middle Ages, investigation of heresy was a duty of the bishops. Alarmed especially by the spread of the Albigenses, the popes issued increasingly stringent instructions as to the methods for dealing with heretics. But they translated the New Testament into Provençal, and, soon after, those reading it for the first time saw, in the Scarlet Woman of Revelation, the Roman Church. In 1209, Innocent III lost his cool, and began preaching a crusade against the Albigenses.
The story of that crusade is a chapter in history that the Roman Catholic historians have done their best to obliterate.
H G Wells, Crux Ansata
The last discourse of S Dominic to the Albigenses betrays a man who, as Wells puts it, “has lost his faith in truth because his truth has not prevailed”:
For many years I have exhorted you in vain, with gentleness, preaching, praying and weeping. But according to the proverbs of my country, “Where blessing can accomplish nothing, blows may avail”, we shall arouse against you princes and prelates, who, alas! will arm nations and kingdoms against this land… and thus blows will avail where blessings and gentleness have been powerless.
http://www.askwhy.co.uk/christianheresy/0811Inquisition.php, accessed Oct. 14, 2010.
i.b Persecution by the Romans was rampant during the early centuries. It was not until the wedding of Church and State under Constantine in A.D. 313 that "Christians" began to persecute (true) Christians. While the Roman Catholic Church did not personally kill its opponents, the "State" to which it was wed did the work of killing those who opposed the Church's doctrines. It was this union which led to the bloodbath that ensued, and continued through the centuries. True believers were not allowed to worship and believe as the Bible taught. For their fidelity to Scripture, their reward was banishment, scourging, drowning, burning at the stake, etc. All this was because they strove to live a quiet life and follow the teachings of Scripture.
http://www.reformedreader.org/histb.htm, accessed Oct. 14, 2010.
Monday, October 4, 2010
The Conditioning of the Masses
The Conditioning of the Masses
This article written by Heidi Swandler describes just the sort of thing that I wanted to communicate. In it she talks about how the world governments and government entities have been preparing people to receive the coming one-world leader, the Bible has predicted for over 3,000 years as the "small horn" or power who arises out of the final human led one-world empire, and gains the allegiance and power of all 10 regions in control.
When the U.N. begins openly appointing people to make contact with extraterrestrails that New Agers have taught, being told by their "spirit guides" (but a guide to where is the question), are coming to beam billions of people of the wrong vibration off the planet, so the rest of humainity may make there evoluitonary jump to divinity and "one-ness" with all things.
These are indeed hairy days we are living in. Not to mention that I may have seen the star of Maitreya last Friday morning, looking due west toward Columbus. It was a star that changed it's brightness and at times would completely dissapear, but then, reappear. What was interesting was it didn't seem to be in regular intervals. This morning going out to work, I looked up in the same area, and nothing was to be seen.
When the world-leaders begin preparing the people of the world for catastrophe, making contact with aliens, and the disappearance of billions, it looks like the rapture is near. Even so, Come Lord Jesus.
This article written by Heidi Swandler describes just the sort of thing that I wanted to communicate. In it she talks about how the world governments and government entities have been preparing people to receive the coming one-world leader, the Bible has predicted for over 3,000 years as the "small horn" or power who arises out of the final human led one-world empire, and gains the allegiance and power of all 10 regions in control.
When the U.N. begins openly appointing people to make contact with extraterrestrails that New Agers have taught, being told by their "spirit guides" (but a guide to where is the question), are coming to beam billions of people of the wrong vibration off the planet, so the rest of humainity may make there evoluitonary jump to divinity and "one-ness" with all things.
These are indeed hairy days we are living in. Not to mention that I may have seen the star of Maitreya last Friday morning, looking due west toward Columbus. It was a star that changed it's brightness and at times would completely dissapear, but then, reappear. What was interesting was it didn't seem to be in regular intervals. This morning going out to work, I looked up in the same area, and nothing was to be seen.
When the world-leaders begin preparing the people of the world for catastrophe, making contact with aliens, and the disappearance of billions, it looks like the rapture is near. Even so, Come Lord Jesus.
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