Mark 11:15-19
15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money-changers and the benches of those selling doves,
16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts.
17 And as he taught them, he said, Is it not written:
'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'?
But you have made it 'a den of robbers'.
18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.
What was going on here?
The area where they were trading was the court of the gentiles and as they were using the court of the gentiles they were robbing the gentiles of their place in Gods house.
Jesus hated people being robbed of a place in Gods house.
Matthew 23:13
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
The scribes and Pharisees made rules to stop people entering the kingdom of heaven. They made rules to hinder people entering Gods house. This is what Jesus hated.
They were denying the gentiles access into Gods house and religion still denies gentiles into Gods house today.
John 2:15-17
15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.
16 To those who sold doves he said, Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!
17 His disciples remembered that it is written: Zeal for your house will consume me.
Why didn't Jesus like his Fathers house being turned into a market?
They were selling animals for people to buy to be sacrificed.
To get blessed people were encouraged to buy things. It can be a dove or a set of videos or a book but what God offers is free. Not only were they denying gentiles a place in Gods house but they were making it harder for Gods people to receive from him too.
They had become introverted to the point that they were only interested in themselves.
Matthew 5:43-44
Love for Enemies
43 You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.'
44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
To the people of first century Palestine a neighbour was a fellow Jew and an enemy was a none Jew. This meant that they hated gentiles when the law clearly told them to love gentiles.
Leviticus 19:34
The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 10:18-19
18 He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing.
19 And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.
What relevance has all this got to do with The Church?
We are not to rob those who are not Christians of a place in Gods kingdom, we are not to make a quick buck out of those trying to come in, we are to love them because God loves them and we are to minister his grace to them.
Wednesday, 14 October 2009
Tuesday, 13 October 2009
Compared to the Riches There Are In Christ, Denominations Were But Small Change
The church is the joy of the whole earth, the sanctified, Gods elect, the chosen lady, the pillar and foundation of the truth, mount Zion, the body of Christ, one with Christ and each other in unity, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way, chosen in him before the beginning of time, eternal, fed and cared for by Christ, the glorious, radiant, victorious, redeemed warrior bride of Christ reflecting his glory and Jesus loves her so much that he gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word.
Jesus loves The Church. So don’t bad mouth The Church because Jesus takes it personally. He shall say “To the least of these you did/did not do/ to me.”
Jesus said that he would build his church and not anyone else’s.
In the United Kingdom Ecumenicalism is coming to an end. Ecumenicalism involves people trying to keep what is not of The Church and trying to fit the pieces together when they obviously don’t fit together. Jesus building his church is something completely different.
Compared to the riches that are in Christ denominations are but small change.
You may see buildings around with names like CofE, Methodist, Baptist or Roman Catholic but these labels are pin money compared to the riches in Christ. All denominations are becoming redundant churches are becoming redundant There is but one Church in England and that one church belongs to Jesus and he is building her.
John 17:20-22
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20 My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,
21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:
The Church is one. Jesus prayed it therefore it must be the case because if The Father didn’t answer The Son’s prayer we’re all lost.
The Church is one and Christ is building it. That which is not of him will not remain for Christ will build his church.
That one church its is the joy of the whole earth, the sanctified, Gods elect, the chosen lady, the pillar and foundation of the truth, mount Zion, the body of Christ, one with Christ and each other in unity, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way, chosen in him before the beginning of time, eternal, fed and cared for by Christ, the glorious, radiant, victorious, redeemed warrior bride of Christ reflecting his glory and he wants the world to see her as she truly is.
She is starting to be seen as one and this is The Lords doing and it is marvellous in our eyes.
John 13:34-35
34 A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
As his church and his church alone walks in love denominationalism and sectarianism are nailed to The Cross and the world will know that we belong to him.
Jesus loves The Church. So don’t bad mouth The Church because Jesus takes it personally. He shall say “To the least of these you did/did not do/ to me.”
Jesus said that he would build his church and not anyone else’s.
In the United Kingdom Ecumenicalism is coming to an end. Ecumenicalism involves people trying to keep what is not of The Church and trying to fit the pieces together when they obviously don’t fit together. Jesus building his church is something completely different.
Compared to the riches that are in Christ denominations are but small change.
You may see buildings around with names like CofE, Methodist, Baptist or Roman Catholic but these labels are pin money compared to the riches in Christ. All denominations are becoming redundant churches are becoming redundant There is but one Church in England and that one church belongs to Jesus and he is building her.
John 17:20-22
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20 My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,
21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:
The Church is one. Jesus prayed it therefore it must be the case because if The Father didn’t answer The Son’s prayer we’re all lost.
The Church is one and Christ is building it. That which is not of him will not remain for Christ will build his church.
That one church its is the joy of the whole earth, the sanctified, Gods elect, the chosen lady, the pillar and foundation of the truth, mount Zion, the body of Christ, one with Christ and each other in unity, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way, chosen in him before the beginning of time, eternal, fed and cared for by Christ, the glorious, radiant, victorious, redeemed warrior bride of Christ reflecting his glory and he wants the world to see her as she truly is.
She is starting to be seen as one and this is The Lords doing and it is marvellous in our eyes.
John 13:34-35
34 A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
As his church and his church alone walks in love denominationalism and sectarianism are nailed to The Cross and the world will know that we belong to him.
The Church
Ephesians 5
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.
Christ is The Head of The Church because he is the faithful husband.The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church—
The Church is radiant because she reflects the glory of Christ.
30for we are members of his body.
The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
31"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."32This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.
Christ and The Church are one.
The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
Christ and The Church are one.
The Church the foundation and pillar of truth is because Jesus is the foundation and pillar of truth.
The Church is the joy of the whole world because Jesus is the joy of the whole world.
The Church is eternal because Jesus is eternal.
The Church is glorious because Jesus is glorious.
Christ and The Church are one.
Ephesians 1:22
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Christ and The Church are one.
1 John 4:17
In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him
The Church and Christ are one.
1 John 3:2
Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
We will also see how The Church really is as well because The Church and Christ are one.
I Corinthians 3
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect] the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 11:7
A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.
As Christ is the glory of The Father, The Church is The glory of Christ.
Ephesians 1:4
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
The Church is eternal.
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
The Church is eternal.
1 Corinthians 2:7
No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.
The Church is eternal.
2 Timothy 1:9
who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
The Church is eternal.
Titus 1:2
a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time,
The Church is eternal.
1 Peter 1:20
He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
The Church is eternal because Christ is eternal.
Christ and The Church are one.
Ephesians 1:18-2:6
18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Ephesians 2
Made Alive in Christ
1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
So God rose Christ from the dead and seated him in the heavenly realms and God has risen us from the dead and seated us in the heavenly realms.
Christ and his Church are one.
Christ and The Church are one authority.
Matthew 22:44
" 'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."
Ephesians 1:22
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,
Romans 16:20
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
Christ and The Church are one.
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Matthew 25:45
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
Acts 9
1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied.
Jesus takes any attack on The Church personally.
The reason is simple. Christ and The Church are one.
Now The Church has a priesthood and here it is.
1 Peter 2:5
you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Revelation 1:6
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 5:10
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth."
Revelation 20:6
Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
These are the only references to The New Covenant Priesthood in the New Testament. It is the only New Covenant priesthood.
Under the old covenant you could only be a priest if you were from a priestly family. Under The New Covenant this is still true. By blood covenant we are of the family of Christ and he is The High Priest therefore we are priests.
These are some sacrifices of The New Covenant priesthood.
Ephesians 5:2
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Romans 12:1
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual] act of worship.
As John 4:23-24 says
23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth
Hebrews 13:16
Hebrews 13:15
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.
None of these sacrifices are a matter of ritual but a matter of lifestyle.
Hebrews 9:14
How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from useless ritual, so that we may serve the living God!
Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
One preisthood of believers and all equal.
Jesus loves The Church.
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.
Christ is The Head of The Church because he is the faithful husband.The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church—
The Church is radiant because she reflects the glory of Christ.
30for we are members of his body.
The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
31"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."32This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.
Christ and The Church are one.
The Church is The Body of Christ because The Church is The Bride of Christ.
Christ and The Church are one.
The Church the foundation and pillar of truth is because Jesus is the foundation and pillar of truth.
The Church is the joy of the whole world because Jesus is the joy of the whole world.
The Church is eternal because Jesus is eternal.
The Church is glorious because Jesus is glorious.
Christ and The Church are one.
Ephesians 1:22
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Christ and The Church are one.
1 John 4:17
In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him
The Church and Christ are one.
1 John 3:2
Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
We will also see how The Church really is as well because The Church and Christ are one.
I Corinthians 3
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect] the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 11:7
A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.
As Christ is the glory of The Father, The Church is The glory of Christ.
Ephesians 1:4
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
The Church is eternal.
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
The Church is eternal.
1 Corinthians 2:7
No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.
The Church is eternal.
2 Timothy 1:9
who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
The Church is eternal.
Titus 1:2
a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time,
The Church is eternal.
1 Peter 1:20
He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
The Church is eternal because Christ is eternal.
Christ and The Church are one.
Ephesians 1:18-2:6
18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Ephesians 2
Made Alive in Christ
1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
So God rose Christ from the dead and seated him in the heavenly realms and God has risen us from the dead and seated us in the heavenly realms.
Christ and his Church are one.
Christ and The Church are one authority.
Matthew 22:44
" 'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."
Ephesians 1:22
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,
Romans 16:20
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
Christ and The Church are one.
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Matthew 25:45
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
Acts 9
1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied.
Jesus takes any attack on The Church personally.
The reason is simple. Christ and The Church are one.
Now The Church has a priesthood and here it is.
1 Peter 2:5
you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Revelation 1:6
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 5:10
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth."
Revelation 20:6
Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
These are the only references to The New Covenant Priesthood in the New Testament. It is the only New Covenant priesthood.
Under the old covenant you could only be a priest if you were from a priestly family. Under The New Covenant this is still true. By blood covenant we are of the family of Christ and he is The High Priest therefore we are priests.
These are some sacrifices of The New Covenant priesthood.
Ephesians 5:2
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Romans 12:1
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual] act of worship.
As John 4:23-24 says
23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth
Hebrews 13:16
Hebrews 13:15
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.
None of these sacrifices are a matter of ritual but a matter of lifestyle.
Hebrews 9:14
How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from useless ritual, so that we may serve the living God!
Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
One preisthood of believers and all equal.
Jesus loves The Church.
Thursday, 24 September 2009
The Anointing
In The Old Testament the people who were anointed were kings, priests and prophets.
We are anointed as kings to administer justice, as priests to mediate between God and the lost and as prophets to preach the gospel.
As the Spirit of the Lord was on Jesus, the Spirit of the lord is on us, because as he anointed Jesus he has he has anointed us to preach good news to the poor. He has sent us to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour
By this it would appear that we are anointed for a practical purpose. If a meeting only attended by Christians none of which are poor, in bondage, blind etc is called anointed, what is the anointing in that instance for?
2 Corinthians 1:21
Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
By this it would appear that he has anointed us and makes us stand firm in Christ. He doesn’t anoint us and have us fall over or do windmills.
1 John 2:20
But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth
1 John 2:27
As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
By this verse it would appear that the anointing teaches us how to do what we are anointed to do.
It would appear that Ali is indeed on to something and that ’anointed’ is a word we use in the charismatic church to describe stuff that moves or inspires us emotionally that may have nothing to do with the anointing.
By this I believe that what is often called ’the anointing’ is a heightened awareness of Gods presence brought about by God in us. Which I just happen to have right now while writing this! Glory!
We are anointed as kings to administer justice, as priests to mediate between God and the lost and as prophets to preach the gospel.
As the Spirit of the Lord was on Jesus, the Spirit of the lord is on us, because as he anointed Jesus he has he has anointed us to preach good news to the poor. He has sent us to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour
By this it would appear that we are anointed for a practical purpose. If a meeting only attended by Christians none of which are poor, in bondage, blind etc is called anointed, what is the anointing in that instance for?
2 Corinthians 1:21
Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
By this it would appear that he has anointed us and makes us stand firm in Christ. He doesn’t anoint us and have us fall over or do windmills.
1 John 2:20
But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth
1 John 2:27
As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
By this verse it would appear that the anointing teaches us how to do what we are anointed to do.
It would appear that Ali is indeed on to something and that ’anointed’ is a word we use in the charismatic church to describe stuff that moves or inspires us emotionally that may have nothing to do with the anointing.
By this I believe that what is often called ’the anointing’ is a heightened awareness of Gods presence brought about by God in us. Which I just happen to have right now while writing this! Glory!
What It Is To Be A Baptised Christian
Romans 6 says that we have been buried with Christ in baptism and risen to new life in him. As we have been buried with Christ we have also been crucified with Christ. Therefore our world view is that of Christ.
2 Corinthians 5says that Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. Therefore to be a baptised Christian is to be one who no longer lives for ones self but for Christ.
2 Corinthians 5 goes on to say the consequence of be one who no longer lives for ones self but for Christ saying that from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
As we regard no one from a worldly point of view, we regard them from Christ’s point of view. Because of what Christ has done, with Gods help we can fulfil our baptism vows.
With Gods help we are able to continue in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in breaking of the bread, and in prayers as the first century Christians did (Acts 2:41-43 ) If we still had a worldly point of view we wouldn’t want to do this. To be a baptised Christian is to be in communion with other Christians.
With Gods help we are able to persevere in resisting evil and whenever we fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord (James 4:7, 1 John 1:9) If we still had a worldly point of view we would be more likely to blame God like Adam did or The Devil like Eve did. To be a baptised Christian is to be responsible for ones own actions.
With Gods help we are able to proclaim by word a and example the good news of God in Christ. (Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19) If we still had a worldly point of view we would be unconcerned about proclaiming the good news. We would not be interested in how Christ looked but how we looked.
With Gods help we to serve Christ in others and love our neighbours as ourselves ( Leviticus 19:18 Matthew 19:19,Matthew 22:39,Mark 12:33,Luke 10:27,Romans 13:9, James 2:8) With a worldly point of view this would be impossible. Jesus said that if one sins against us seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to us and says, 'I repent,' we are to forgive them. Forgiveness of ours is contrary to the worldly point of view. The world wants to get even rather than turn the other cheek. So to be a baptised Christian is to go against the grain of the world and be Christ like.
With Gods help we are able to acknowledge Christ’s authority over human society, by prayer for the world and it’s leaders, by defending the weak, and seeking peace and justice. (1 Timothy 2:1-2 Philippians 2:11, Philippians 4:6-7,Isaiah 1:17)
As we are able to do these things with Gods help, being rooted and established in love we bring forth the fruit of The Spirit.
In short, to be a baptised Christian is to be unlike the world and making the world a better place by not being like it. We are the salt of the Earth.
2 Corinthians 5says that Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. Therefore to be a baptised Christian is to be one who no longer lives for ones self but for Christ.
2 Corinthians 5 goes on to say the consequence of be one who no longer lives for ones self but for Christ saying that from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
As we regard no one from a worldly point of view, we regard them from Christ’s point of view. Because of what Christ has done, with Gods help we can fulfil our baptism vows.
With Gods help we are able to continue in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in breaking of the bread, and in prayers as the first century Christians did (Acts 2:41-43 ) If we still had a worldly point of view we wouldn’t want to do this. To be a baptised Christian is to be in communion with other Christians.
With Gods help we are able to persevere in resisting evil and whenever we fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord (James 4:7, 1 John 1:9) If we still had a worldly point of view we would be more likely to blame God like Adam did or The Devil like Eve did. To be a baptised Christian is to be responsible for ones own actions.
With Gods help we are able to proclaim by word a and example the good news of God in Christ. (Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19) If we still had a worldly point of view we would be unconcerned about proclaiming the good news. We would not be interested in how Christ looked but how we looked.
With Gods help we to serve Christ in others and love our neighbours as ourselves ( Leviticus 19:18 Matthew 19:19,Matthew 22:39,Mark 12:33,Luke 10:27,Romans 13:9, James 2:8) With a worldly point of view this would be impossible. Jesus said that if one sins against us seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to us and says, 'I repent,' we are to forgive them. Forgiveness of ours is contrary to the worldly point of view. The world wants to get even rather than turn the other cheek. So to be a baptised Christian is to go against the grain of the world and be Christ like.
With Gods help we are able to acknowledge Christ’s authority over human society, by prayer for the world and it’s leaders, by defending the weak, and seeking peace and justice. (1 Timothy 2:1-2 Philippians 2:11, Philippians 4:6-7,Isaiah 1:17)
As we are able to do these things with Gods help, being rooted and established in love we bring forth the fruit of The Spirit.
In short, to be a baptised Christian is to be unlike the world and making the world a better place by not being like it. We are the salt of the Earth.
Thursday, 17 September 2009
Kicking Against the Pricks.
Evolution is about adaptation in response to environmental factors. Hence Alpine species of willow herbs are smaller than their relatives at lower elevations. The alpine species have the genes for larger size but those genes are redundant. The reason for redundant DNA is evolution.
Through evolution plants have developed defences. Some plants evolved stems that terminate at sharp points (Thorns) Others have evolved to have modified leaves (Spines) some cactus spines are evolutionary remnants of rigid petioles and midribs. Cacti have evolved to photosynthesise through their stems. Others have evolved short woody outgrowths (prickles) We can see how all these defence mechanisms evolved so it is hard for ‘creationists’ to kick against the pricks.
Through evolution plants have developed defences. Some plants evolved stems that terminate at sharp points (Thorns) Others have evolved to have modified leaves (Spines) some cactus spines are evolutionary remnants of rigid petioles and midribs. Cacti have evolved to photosynthesise through their stems. Others have evolved short woody outgrowths (prickles) We can see how all these defence mechanisms evolved so it is hard for ‘creationists’ to kick against the pricks.
Wednesday, 16 September 2009
My Thiest Evolution Position
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. God is the source of what is commonly known as The Big Bang It was more of an expansion than an explosion. God was the source off the beginning of The Universe.
Because of the expansion galaxies of different types of stars were formed and round some stars planets were formed.
Some planets developed with atmospheres and others didn’t . one planet that developed an atmosphere was Earth. Life did not appear out of nothing as the Universe did not appear out of nothing. God ids the source of all life as he is the source of all creation.
We know that Gametophytes evolved into Sporophytes and Sporophytes evolved into spermaephytes. Gynimospermae evolved into Angiospermae also known as Magnoliacae. Within Magnoliacea Monocotyledons evolved into Dicotoledons. Within all types of flora above the gametophytes there is redundant DNA. The presence of the same DNA in everything is due to them all having a common ancestor. ‘Creationists’ claim that it is due to having a common designer but as a daffodil has the same designer as the Horse Head Nebula and we can find no similarity other than the presence of chemical elements such a claim is ridiculous.
During the reproductive process of gametophytes the zygote undergoes repeated mitotic divi sions to form a multicellular diploid plant attached to the top of the female gametophyte. Because this new plant is not photosynthetic, it draws nour ishment from the gametophyte during its growth into a slender stalk ter minated by a tiny capsule. Within the capsule, spores are produced by the process of meiosis—haploid spores that, when dispersed by air currents, are ready to repeat the life cycle by growing into new gametophytes.
During the reproductive process of sporaphytes the diploid plant is attached to the gametophyte. There is no practical reason for this union. The reason that in the sporaphytes reproductive process the diploid plant is attached to the gametophyte is because it‘s diploid ancestors were attached to the gametophtye.
Evidence of evolution is often found during the embryonic phase of a species development. A classic example if that of the foetal dolphin having limbs and a nose at the front of its face like it’s land dwelling ancestors had.
Interestingly as evolution occurs by natural selection each generation produces of its own kind as God told everything to do so within the creation myth. ‘Creationists’ would claim that that only occurs within micro-evolution and that macro-evolution has been disproved. But by logic many small changes in a short time over a long time means big change over a long time. Therefore evolution does not mean that a monkey gave birth to an ape but that over successive generation due to small changes monkeys evolved into apes.
-
After millions of years of evolution we came to be in his image.
As God exists and he is good and it is obvious by the way human society is that we have fallen, it is obvious that we need a saviour and as God is good the incarnation would have to occur.
The incarnation was God become flesh, the divine logos walking among us, Gods son Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross for us and rose again in three days.
1 Corinthians 15:17-19
17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
‘Creationists’ and most Atheists would have us believe that the debate is between ‘creationism’ and evolution when in fact the debate is between Christ rising from the dead and our faith being futile and us to be pitied more than all men.
As Jesus did indeed rise from the dead our faith is not futile and we are not to be pitied more than all men. For by his resurrection he has made us alive in him.
I also believe in the virgin birth. As it is a scientific fact that parthenogenesis in humans is not impossible then there is no point debating it. Probability doesn’t come into it. The probability of us evolving from apes is staggeringly remote too but that’s what happened. The probability of somebody rising from the dead after going through what Jesus went through is even more staggering but it occurred nevertheless.
Because of the expansion galaxies of different types of stars were formed and round some stars planets were formed.
Some planets developed with atmospheres and others didn’t . one planet that developed an atmosphere was Earth. Life did not appear out of nothing as the Universe did not appear out of nothing. God ids the source of all life as he is the source of all creation.
We know that Gametophytes evolved into Sporophytes and Sporophytes evolved into spermaephytes. Gynimospermae evolved into Angiospermae also known as Magnoliacae. Within Magnoliacea Monocotyledons evolved into Dicotoledons. Within all types of flora above the gametophytes there is redundant DNA. The presence of the same DNA in everything is due to them all having a common ancestor. ‘Creationists’ claim that it is due to having a common designer but as a daffodil has the same designer as the Horse Head Nebula and we can find no similarity other than the presence of chemical elements such a claim is ridiculous.
During the reproductive process of gametophytes the zygote undergoes repeated mitotic divi sions to form a multicellular diploid plant attached to the top of the female gametophyte. Because this new plant is not photosynthetic, it draws nour ishment from the gametophyte during its growth into a slender stalk ter minated by a tiny capsule. Within the capsule, spores are produced by the process of meiosis—haploid spores that, when dispersed by air currents, are ready to repeat the life cycle by growing into new gametophytes.
During the reproductive process of sporaphytes the diploid plant is attached to the gametophyte. There is no practical reason for this union. The reason that in the sporaphytes reproductive process the diploid plant is attached to the gametophyte is because it‘s diploid ancestors were attached to the gametophtye.
Evidence of evolution is often found during the embryonic phase of a species development. A classic example if that of the foetal dolphin having limbs and a nose at the front of its face like it’s land dwelling ancestors had.
Interestingly as evolution occurs by natural selection each generation produces of its own kind as God told everything to do so within the creation myth. ‘Creationists’ would claim that that only occurs within micro-evolution and that macro-evolution has been disproved. But by logic many small changes in a short time over a long time means big change over a long time. Therefore evolution does not mean that a monkey gave birth to an ape but that over successive generation due to small changes monkeys evolved into apes.
-
After millions of years of evolution we came to be in his image.
As God exists and he is good and it is obvious by the way human society is that we have fallen, it is obvious that we need a saviour and as God is good the incarnation would have to occur.
The incarnation was God become flesh, the divine logos walking among us, Gods son Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross for us and rose again in three days.
1 Corinthians 15:17-19
17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
‘Creationists’ and most Atheists would have us believe that the debate is between ‘creationism’ and evolution when in fact the debate is between Christ rising from the dead and our faith being futile and us to be pitied more than all men.
As Jesus did indeed rise from the dead our faith is not futile and we are not to be pitied more than all men. For by his resurrection he has made us alive in him.
I also believe in the virgin birth. As it is a scientific fact that parthenogenesis in humans is not impossible then there is no point debating it. Probability doesn’t come into it. The probability of us evolving from apes is staggeringly remote too but that’s what happened. The probability of somebody rising from the dead after going through what Jesus went through is even more staggering but it occurred nevertheless.
Friday, 3 July 2009
Wondering Preacher
I heard him on a mountainside a long time ago
Wanted to follow him wherever he would go.
Some want to follow religion and leave him behind
Some want to follow each other, the blind leading the blind
I saw him feed thousands and turn water into wine
Heard him rebuking those who were demanding a sign
Some want to portray him as one who is just like them
They want to repackage him again and again
He is always the same and he will not change
To the world around us he seems so strange
He wondered through the land setting free
And he taught by the shores of Galilee.
I follow him beside still waters and stay close through the storm
Where love grows as cold as ice he will keep me warm
I'll follow him through the tears as saints of ages past
I'll follow him through the years , he'll shelter from the stormy blast.
Some want to follow religion and leave him behind
But others will seek him and him they'll find
I'll follow him wherever he goes. with that wondering preacher, I will roam
For I know that wondering preacher from Nazareth, will lead me home.
Wanted to follow him wherever he would go.
Some want to follow religion and leave him behind
Some want to follow each other, the blind leading the blind
I saw him feed thousands and turn water into wine
Heard him rebuking those who were demanding a sign
Some want to portray him as one who is just like them
They want to repackage him again and again
He is always the same and he will not change
To the world around us he seems so strange
He wondered through the land setting free
And he taught by the shores of Galilee.
I follow him beside still waters and stay close through the storm
Where love grows as cold as ice he will keep me warm
I'll follow him through the tears as saints of ages past
I'll follow him through the years , he'll shelter from the stormy blast.
Some want to follow religion and leave him behind
But others will seek him and him they'll find
I'll follow him wherever he goes. with that wondering preacher, I will roam
For I know that wondering preacher from Nazareth, will lead me home.
Sunday, 14 June 2009
No More Noise
After listening to much 'theology' and religous dogmatism I have returned to The Quiet.
At Church today after communion I was anointed with oil and the dogmatic noise stoped.
I agree with Thomas A Kempis when he said that he would rather have contrition then be able to define it.
Away from the noise we can understand that when Jesus said "This is my body" or "This is my blood" he was not saying "Now spend the next 2000 years philosophyung about it."
Our God is a God of justice and endless dogmatism can never bring justice.
Took an untrodden path once, where the swift don't win the race,
It goes to the worthy, who can divide the word of truth.
Took a stranger to teach me, to look into justice's beautiful face
And to see an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
:- Bob Dylan
Religion does not look to justice.
Away from the noise all that can be heard is The Gospel.
1 Corinthians 2:2
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
1 Corinthians 1:23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
In all the noise, Christ crucified is hardly if ever mentioned.
At Church today after communion I was anointed with oil and the dogmatic noise stoped.
I agree with Thomas A Kempis when he said that he would rather have contrition then be able to define it.
Away from the noise we can understand that when Jesus said "This is my body" or "This is my blood" he was not saying "Now spend the next 2000 years philosophyung about it."
Our God is a God of justice and endless dogmatism can never bring justice.
Took an untrodden path once, where the swift don't win the race,
It goes to the worthy, who can divide the word of truth.
Took a stranger to teach me, to look into justice's beautiful face
And to see an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
:- Bob Dylan
Religion does not look to justice.
Away from the noise all that can be heard is The Gospel.
1 Corinthians 2:2
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
1 Corinthians 1:23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
In all the noise, Christ crucified is hardly if ever mentioned.
Monday, 18 May 2009
Why I Am A Thiest Evolutionist
When I became a Christian in 1987 I didn’t know that you had to believe in a literal interpretation of Genesis to be a Christian and so I became a Christian believing in evolution.
It could have been a matter of weeks before I was being given lots of nonsensical tracts refuting evolution including the waffle about Piltdown man, Nebraska man, the bone of an extinct pig, Neil Armstrong’s footprint being only an inch deep, carbon dating being inaccurate that everything was vegetarian before the fall, nothing died before the fall, the Earth is only 6000 years old, etc. etc.
After a while I became a creationist.
As somebody who had studied botany and understood the scientific method I don’t know how I became a creationist but I guess I just trusted the people around me.
After a while I came across Theist Evolutionists and thought they made more sense scientifically but I could not reconcile my theology to the theory of evolution.
The main stumbling block was the ‘through one man’ thing in Romans. They didn’t seem to have a reasonable explanation. This meant that for about six years I battled with the fact that if evolution wasn’t true everything I knew about botany wasn’t true either and the ‘through one man’ thing.
I had already concluded that the first chapter of Genesis was a poetic message that God is the source and the first course of all existence. I also had concluded that the talking snake was not literal. Interestingly I didn’t believe it was literal talking snake when I was five or six. As The kingdom belongs to such as a little child, that spoke a lot to me. But I still had a problem with the ‘one man’ stuff.
This went on for about five or six years until a couple of years ago.
I had to seek The Lord and reconcile the two myself and did so through Anselm’s Ontological Approach.
Which is that..
Every being in nature - every animal, every person, every idea- implies the existence - implies the existence of some being greater than itself ; thus ultimately every being points to the existence of a Supreme Being, whom we call God
If we rank the qualities of mankind from the lowest to the highest , this will point us to the nature of God since he is above the highest.
Therefore God is loving, merciful and compassionate because these are the highest qualities of mankind.
By the lowest qualities off mankind it is obvious that mankind has fallen.
As God is a loving God he would naturally want to save fallen man.
Therefore the incarnation occurred.
--
This would mean that if there was a literal one man called Adam or Adam means the whole human race (The Hebrew Adam simply means ‘Man’) the incarnation would have still taken place. Because of sin we experience spiritual death and Christ rises us up from it.
Now I rejoice in the complexities of Gods glorious Universe. The one who made them lives in me.
Also, the final reason is because i think that Young Earth Creationism is insane.
It could have been a matter of weeks before I was being given lots of nonsensical tracts refuting evolution including the waffle about Piltdown man, Nebraska man, the bone of an extinct pig, Neil Armstrong’s footprint being only an inch deep, carbon dating being inaccurate that everything was vegetarian before the fall, nothing died before the fall, the Earth is only 6000 years old, etc. etc.
After a while I became a creationist.
As somebody who had studied botany and understood the scientific method I don’t know how I became a creationist but I guess I just trusted the people around me.
After a while I came across Theist Evolutionists and thought they made more sense scientifically but I could not reconcile my theology to the theory of evolution.
The main stumbling block was the ‘through one man’ thing in Romans. They didn’t seem to have a reasonable explanation. This meant that for about six years I battled with the fact that if evolution wasn’t true everything I knew about botany wasn’t true either and the ‘through one man’ thing.
I had already concluded that the first chapter of Genesis was a poetic message that God is the source and the first course of all existence. I also had concluded that the talking snake was not literal. Interestingly I didn’t believe it was literal talking snake when I was five or six. As The kingdom belongs to such as a little child, that spoke a lot to me. But I still had a problem with the ‘one man’ stuff.
This went on for about five or six years until a couple of years ago.
I had to seek The Lord and reconcile the two myself and did so through Anselm’s Ontological Approach.
Which is that..
Every being in nature - every animal, every person, every idea- implies the existence - implies the existence of some being greater than itself ; thus ultimately every being points to the existence of a Supreme Being, whom we call God
If we rank the qualities of mankind from the lowest to the highest , this will point us to the nature of God since he is above the highest.
Therefore God is loving, merciful and compassionate because these are the highest qualities of mankind.
By the lowest qualities off mankind it is obvious that mankind has fallen.
As God is a loving God he would naturally want to save fallen man.
Therefore the incarnation occurred.
--
This would mean that if there was a literal one man called Adam or Adam means the whole human race (The Hebrew Adam simply means ‘Man’) the incarnation would have still taken place. Because of sin we experience spiritual death and Christ rises us up from it.
Now I rejoice in the complexities of Gods glorious Universe. The one who made them lives in me.
Also, the final reason is because i think that Young Earth Creationism is insane.
Thursday, 30 April 2009
Wednesday, 22 April 2009
Answering Athiests
1. Christianity must destroy reason before introduce faith
2. destroy happiness before introduce salvation
3. is profoundly anti-pleasure especially in the area of sex
4. Sexual pleasure is the most intense form of pleasure
5. To deny oneself pleasure, or to convince oneself that pleasure is evil…
:- George H. Smith
1, Many Athiests avoid reason when debating the subject and use ptolmic dogmatism instead.
2, Many Athiests come across as so angry and express such bitterness towards Christians it appears that to be an Athierst one has to be miserable.
3, Christians know the God who invented sex while many Atheists persue pleasure in speaking against Christianity
4, Sexual pleasure is the closest physical act to something spiritual but knowing Jesus is the real thing.
5, Many Athiests spend vast quantities of energy trying to convince everyone that Christianity is evil. They use ridicule, dogmatism and sarcasm in their ptolmioc rants against us. They come across so miserable that you would think they thought pleasure was evil.
'Religious people split into three main groups when faced with science. I shall label them the "know-nothings", the "know-alls", and the "no-contests".'
:-Richard Dawkins
Athiests are split into two main groups. Those who don't believe there is a God and are content and fundamentalists who are those who don't believe there is a God and constantly speak against those who believe in God for no apparant logical reason at all.
Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence."
:- Richard Dawkins
Science is the great cop out. As many Christians believe in evolution it can't be used to disprove the existance of God.
Where is the "handiwork" of a loving and caring God in leprosy? In muscular dystrophy? In Alzheimer's disease? In genetic disorders, causing some children die of old age when they are barely 10 years old? In wildwires, killing humans and animals alike in horrible agony? In allowing diseases, murders, genocides, unspeakable atrocities?
:-Many
That's a classic reworking of Anselms Ontological Approach. Why can't you Athiests invent any methods of your own instead of changing ours?
The fact that the majority of people do not suffer from such disorders is testeament to Gods goodness. As for murders, genocides, unspeakable atrocities, they prove that man has fallen and needs a saviour. As we need a saviour and God is good the incarnation had to occur.
Complex, statistically improbable things are by their nature more difficult to explain than simple, statistically probable things.
:-Richard Dawkins
The probability of life evolving from simple one celled creatures to us means that we are improbable and as a result difficult to explain. As we are improbable and we are here however improbable God is is irrelevant. Actualities are what are important here and not probabilities.
God exists, if only in the form of a meme with high survival value, or infective power, in the environment provided by human culture.
:-Richard Dawkins
Has anyone seen one of these memes? Is there also a meme for believing in memes? Why won't any psychologist or neurosurgeon back up your theory of memes?
The meme for blind faith secures its own perpetuation by the simple unconscious expedient of discouraging rational inquiry.
:-Richard Dawkins
I obviously havn't got that meme then. Here's a rational enquiry on your theory. Has anyone seen one of these memes? Is there also a meme for believing in memes? Why won't any psychologist or neurosurgeon back up your theory of memes?
I am against religion because it teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding the world.
:-Richard Dawkins
That has got to be the most nonsensical phrase ever. The Bible actually tells us to seek understanding.
What has 'theology' ever said that is of the smallest use to anybody? When has 'theology' ever said anything that is demonstrably true and is not obvious? What makes you think that 'theology' is a subject at all?
:-Richard Dawkins
From systematic theology came the scientific method of deduction. Therefore wothout theology there would be no science as we know it. As a result theology has given us all the scientific discoveries so far. Fundamentalists in both theology and science may deny the link between the two magisteria but it is still there never the less.
Creationists make it sound like a ‘theory’ is something you dreamt up after being drunk all night
:-Isaac Asimov
I some cases that is true.
I don’t believe in God. My god is patriotism. Teach a man to be a good citizen and you have solved the problem of life.
:- Andrew Carnegie
That's what Hitler thought.
Faith means not wanting to know what is true.
:-Friedrich Nietzsche
Atheism is as blind as any religion. Just because you can't see the moon during the day doesn't mean it's not there.
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered. Religion is answers that may never be questioned.
:-Unknown
Not true. It is reasonable to question ones beliefs.
George Bush says he speaks to God every day, and christians love him for it. If George Bush said he spoke to god through his hair dryer, they would think he was mad. I fail to see how the addition of a hair dryer makes it any more absurd.
:-Unknown
Of course not all Christians have worked out that all politicians say such things to get their votes. God not existing sounds equally absurd to us. If somebody said God doesn't exist because a hair dryer doesn't exist we would call that a ridiculous argument. I fail to see how the non existance of a hair dryer makes it any more absurd.
You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep-seated need to believe.
:-Carl Sagan
What evidence have you got that there is not a God?
2. destroy happiness before introduce salvation
3. is profoundly anti-pleasure especially in the area of sex
4. Sexual pleasure is the most intense form of pleasure
5. To deny oneself pleasure, or to convince oneself that pleasure is evil…
:- George H. Smith
1, Many Athiests avoid reason when debating the subject and use ptolmic dogmatism instead.
2, Many Athiests come across as so angry and express such bitterness towards Christians it appears that to be an Athierst one has to be miserable.
3, Christians know the God who invented sex while many Atheists persue pleasure in speaking against Christianity
4, Sexual pleasure is the closest physical act to something spiritual but knowing Jesus is the real thing.
5, Many Athiests spend vast quantities of energy trying to convince everyone that Christianity is evil. They use ridicule, dogmatism and sarcasm in their ptolmioc rants against us. They come across so miserable that you would think they thought pleasure was evil.
'Religious people split into three main groups when faced with science. I shall label them the "know-nothings", the "know-alls", and the "no-contests".'
:-Richard Dawkins
Athiests are split into two main groups. Those who don't believe there is a God and are content and fundamentalists who are those who don't believe there is a God and constantly speak against those who believe in God for no apparant logical reason at all.
Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence."
:- Richard Dawkins
Science is the great cop out. As many Christians believe in evolution it can't be used to disprove the existance of God.
Where is the "handiwork" of a loving and caring God in leprosy? In muscular dystrophy? In Alzheimer's disease? In genetic disorders, causing some children die of old age when they are barely 10 years old? In wildwires, killing humans and animals alike in horrible agony? In allowing diseases, murders, genocides, unspeakable atrocities?
:-Many
That's a classic reworking of Anselms Ontological Approach. Why can't you Athiests invent any methods of your own instead of changing ours?
The fact that the majority of people do not suffer from such disorders is testeament to Gods goodness. As for murders, genocides, unspeakable atrocities, they prove that man has fallen and needs a saviour. As we need a saviour and God is good the incarnation had to occur.
Complex, statistically improbable things are by their nature more difficult to explain than simple, statistically probable things.
:-Richard Dawkins
The probability of life evolving from simple one celled creatures to us means that we are improbable and as a result difficult to explain. As we are improbable and we are here however improbable God is is irrelevant. Actualities are what are important here and not probabilities.
God exists, if only in the form of a meme with high survival value, or infective power, in the environment provided by human culture.
:-Richard Dawkins
Has anyone seen one of these memes? Is there also a meme for believing in memes? Why won't any psychologist or neurosurgeon back up your theory of memes?
The meme for blind faith secures its own perpetuation by the simple unconscious expedient of discouraging rational inquiry.
:-Richard Dawkins
I obviously havn't got that meme then. Here's a rational enquiry on your theory. Has anyone seen one of these memes? Is there also a meme for believing in memes? Why won't any psychologist or neurosurgeon back up your theory of memes?
I am against religion because it teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding the world.
:-Richard Dawkins
That has got to be the most nonsensical phrase ever. The Bible actually tells us to seek understanding.
What has 'theology' ever said that is of the smallest use to anybody? When has 'theology' ever said anything that is demonstrably true and is not obvious? What makes you think that 'theology' is a subject at all?
:-Richard Dawkins
From systematic theology came the scientific method of deduction. Therefore wothout theology there would be no science as we know it. As a result theology has given us all the scientific discoveries so far. Fundamentalists in both theology and science may deny the link between the two magisteria but it is still there never the less.
Creationists make it sound like a ‘theory’ is something you dreamt up after being drunk all night
:-Isaac Asimov
I some cases that is true.
I don’t believe in God. My god is patriotism. Teach a man to be a good citizen and you have solved the problem of life.
:- Andrew Carnegie
That's what Hitler thought.
Faith means not wanting to know what is true.
:-Friedrich Nietzsche
Atheism is as blind as any religion. Just because you can't see the moon during the day doesn't mean it's not there.
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered. Religion is answers that may never be questioned.
:-Unknown
Not true. It is reasonable to question ones beliefs.
George Bush says he speaks to God every day, and christians love him for it. If George Bush said he spoke to god through his hair dryer, they would think he was mad. I fail to see how the addition of a hair dryer makes it any more absurd.
:-Unknown
Of course not all Christians have worked out that all politicians say such things to get their votes. God not existing sounds equally absurd to us. If somebody said God doesn't exist because a hair dryer doesn't exist we would call that a ridiculous argument. I fail to see how the non existance of a hair dryer makes it any more absurd.
You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep-seated need to believe.
:-Carl Sagan
What evidence have you got that there is not a God?
Monday, 6 April 2009
Intelligent Design is Bad Theology
Intelligent Design is a gap theory. It is from a long line of ideas that put God in gaps in human knowledge or understanding.
This is theologically ludicrous because by creation Gods attributes can be clearly seen and God has made himself known.
God does not hide in the gaps within human knowledge.
Intelligent design states that because things are to complicated to happen on their own there must have been a 'higher power' that intelligently designed them.
The problem with this is that the 'higher power' does not necessarily have to be The God of The Bible if a god at all.
The 'higher power' can be anything.
Also, as Intelligent Design is a gap theory it does not disprove evolution but rather fills in the gaps and as a result it does not prove that Genesis 1-3 are accurate accounts.
Any gap theory is unscientific because science is about discovering what is not known by deduction
As much that is not explained now will be explained as human knowledge increases the gaps will get smaller until the idea will backfire.
Intelligent Design is both unscientific and theologically not Christian
It's a new version of the pre-adamic race theory which claimed dinosaurs existed before God made Adam and that demons are spirits of the people of the pre-adamic race.
Of course that is nonsense.
Gap Theorists Committed to literal creation because of their acceptance of a “literal” view of Genesis cannot accept the conclusions of evolution based on the geologic column. Nor can they accept that the days in the Genesis record correspond to geologic periods. So they propose that God reshaped the earth and re-created all life in six literal days after “Lucifer's flood” (which produced fossils); hence the name “ruin-reconstruction.” Satan's sin supposedly caused this flood and the resulting judgment upon that sin reduced the previous world to a state of being “without form and void.”
While the gap theorist may think Lucifer's flood solves the problem, this actually removes the reason for the theory in the first place. If all, or most, of the sediments and fossils were produced quickly in one massive worldwide Lucifer's flood, then the main “evidence” that the earth is extremely old (based on the assumed slow formation of the sediments) no longer exists.
Yet again this goes against orthodox theology. In The beginning God created The Heavens and The Earth. Young Earth Creationists, Old Earth Creationists and Theist Evolutionists within The Church all agree that in the beginning God created The Heavens and The Earth and did not reconstruct them.
God is not the source of Creations initial reconstruction but the source of its entire existence from nothing.
God created The Universe we live in today from nothing. It is against 2000 years of Church teaching and The Bible to say that God reconstructed The Universe from something that already existed.
It infers that God did not at first make The Earth for us but for the devil. That is theological insanity.
The fact that The Gap Theory is scientifically ludicrous is not the worst thing about it but that it is theologically not Christian.
From The Gap Theory came Intelligent Design Theory
What Christians don’t get is that The Gap Theory never worked in the first place and will continue not to work. They are playing themselves into the Atheists hands.
Atheists would say that science proved there is not a God, meaning that the gap that God once occupied has been filled by human knowledge.
Those who adhere to Intelligent Design are fighting against this assertion by trying to use science to show that the gap is not filled, which means there is still room for God's existence. As scientific knowledge increases the gap gets smaller.
As by creation Gods attributes can be clearly seen and God has made himself known it is ludicrous for us to be looking for him in gaps within human knowledge.
What is known by us is evidence for Gods existence and not what we don’t know.
Intelligent Design advocates also like using probabilities. As probabilities are not constant they are no argument for or against Gods existence. The question isn’t if God is probable but if God is actual.
Another problem is that Intelligent Design does not prove the historical fact of Christ’s death and resurrection which is what the Christian faith stands on.
This is theologically ludicrous because by creation Gods attributes can be clearly seen and God has made himself known.
God does not hide in the gaps within human knowledge.
Intelligent design states that because things are to complicated to happen on their own there must have been a 'higher power' that intelligently designed them.
The problem with this is that the 'higher power' does not necessarily have to be The God of The Bible if a god at all.
The 'higher power' can be anything.
Also, as Intelligent Design is a gap theory it does not disprove evolution but rather fills in the gaps and as a result it does not prove that Genesis 1-3 are accurate accounts.
Any gap theory is unscientific because science is about discovering what is not known by deduction
As much that is not explained now will be explained as human knowledge increases the gaps will get smaller until the idea will backfire.
Intelligent Design is both unscientific and theologically not Christian
It's a new version of the pre-adamic race theory which claimed dinosaurs existed before God made Adam and that demons are spirits of the people of the pre-adamic race.
Of course that is nonsense.
Gap Theorists Committed to literal creation because of their acceptance of a “literal” view of Genesis cannot accept the conclusions of evolution based on the geologic column. Nor can they accept that the days in the Genesis record correspond to geologic periods. So they propose that God reshaped the earth and re-created all life in six literal days after “Lucifer's flood” (which produced fossils); hence the name “ruin-reconstruction.” Satan's sin supposedly caused this flood and the resulting judgment upon that sin reduced the previous world to a state of being “without form and void.”
While the gap theorist may think Lucifer's flood solves the problem, this actually removes the reason for the theory in the first place. If all, or most, of the sediments and fossils were produced quickly in one massive worldwide Lucifer's flood, then the main “evidence” that the earth is extremely old (based on the assumed slow formation of the sediments) no longer exists.
Yet again this goes against orthodox theology. In The beginning God created The Heavens and The Earth. Young Earth Creationists, Old Earth Creationists and Theist Evolutionists within The Church all agree that in the beginning God created The Heavens and The Earth and did not reconstruct them.
God is not the source of Creations initial reconstruction but the source of its entire existence from nothing.
God created The Universe we live in today from nothing. It is against 2000 years of Church teaching and The Bible to say that God reconstructed The Universe from something that already existed.
It infers that God did not at first make The Earth for us but for the devil. That is theological insanity.
The fact that The Gap Theory is scientifically ludicrous is not the worst thing about it but that it is theologically not Christian.
From The Gap Theory came Intelligent Design Theory
What Christians don’t get is that The Gap Theory never worked in the first place and will continue not to work. They are playing themselves into the Atheists hands.
Atheists would say that science proved there is not a God, meaning that the gap that God once occupied has been filled by human knowledge.
Those who adhere to Intelligent Design are fighting against this assertion by trying to use science to show that the gap is not filled, which means there is still room for God's existence. As scientific knowledge increases the gap gets smaller.
As by creation Gods attributes can be clearly seen and God has made himself known it is ludicrous for us to be looking for him in gaps within human knowledge.
What is known by us is evidence for Gods existence and not what we don’t know.
Intelligent Design advocates also like using probabilities. As probabilities are not constant they are no argument for or against Gods existence. The question isn’t if God is probable but if God is actual.
Another problem is that Intelligent Design does not prove the historical fact of Christ’s death and resurrection which is what the Christian faith stands on.
Sunday, 22 February 2009
Doing Church
Q, What is attractive about The Church to the world?
Q, What is glorious about The Church in the eyes of the world?
We want to encourage people to come Christ.
How do we do this?
Are they going to just wonder into the meeting on Sunday?
Ephesians 3:10
10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
How is the manifold wisdom of God going to be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms through The Church?
Are the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms going to go to the meeting on Sunday?
Are the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms going to attend mass next week?
Obviously we must let Christ be known in The World.
Isaiah 40:5
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
Gods vision is that all mankind together will see his glory. God wants his glory revealed to The world.
How is this going to happen?
Is all mankind going to ‘go to church’ next week?
Jesus gave a demonstration of revealing his glory.
John 2:1-11
Jesus Changes Water to Wine
1On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, 2and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."
4"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied, "My time has not yet come."
5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
6Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
7Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
8Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, 9and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."
11This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
Jesus revealed his glory by turning water into wine.
This was a wedding reception. The religious bit had taken place earlier. It was not in a church. It was amongst the ‘churched,’ ‘de-churched’ and ‘un-churched’ It was amongst all mankind.
There didn’t seem to be that much of a ‘wow factor’
As I said, it was not a religious setting.
This leads to another question.
What has ‘going to church’ got to do with our mission as Gods Covenant People?
Cafe Church is one method, Having 'church' in a pub is another, and there are many other ways.
God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son and the world has a right to
But Café Church and the church meeting down the pub also have problems.
The Church in the pub has people above a certain age in the pub wanting old hymns and no modern songs while those below a certain age don’t want any songs at all. Due to the secularists getting their own way for so long, we have generations not having a clue about Christianity while the older generations have fond memories of Christianity.
The problem is obviously a generation gap.
Most songs sang in church would be incomprehensible to people outside the church.
Café Church has the same problem. The songs make it just like another service.
Therefore God must be praised by different methods.
One of the Hebrew words for praise means ‘tell of’ so we are called to tell of him.
I believe that some in the ‘emergent church’ have got it wrong, when they talk about different ways of ‘doing church.’
We shouldn’t be ‘doing church’ we should be ‘being church.’
While we are ‘being church’ we should speak of Christ.
Q, What is glorious about The Church in the eyes of the world?
We want to encourage people to come Christ.
How do we do this?
Are they going to just wonder into the meeting on Sunday?
Ephesians 3:10
10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
How is the manifold wisdom of God going to be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms through The Church?
Are the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms going to go to the meeting on Sunday?
Are the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms going to attend mass next week?
Obviously we must let Christ be known in The World.
Isaiah 40:5
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
Gods vision is that all mankind together will see his glory. God wants his glory revealed to The world.
How is this going to happen?
Is all mankind going to ‘go to church’ next week?
Jesus gave a demonstration of revealing his glory.
John 2:1-11
Jesus Changes Water to Wine
1On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, 2and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."
4"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied, "My time has not yet come."
5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
6Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
7Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
8Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, 9and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."
11This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
Jesus revealed his glory by turning water into wine.
This was a wedding reception. The religious bit had taken place earlier. It was not in a church. It was amongst the ‘churched,’ ‘de-churched’ and ‘un-churched’ It was amongst all mankind.
There didn’t seem to be that much of a ‘wow factor’
As I said, it was not a religious setting.
This leads to another question.
What has ‘going to church’ got to do with our mission as Gods Covenant People?
Cafe Church is one method, Having 'church' in a pub is another, and there are many other ways.
God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son and the world has a right to
But Café Church and the church meeting down the pub also have problems.
The Church in the pub has people above a certain age in the pub wanting old hymns and no modern songs while those below a certain age don’t want any songs at all. Due to the secularists getting their own way for so long, we have generations not having a clue about Christianity while the older generations have fond memories of Christianity.
The problem is obviously a generation gap.
Most songs sang in church would be incomprehensible to people outside the church.
Café Church has the same problem. The songs make it just like another service.
Therefore God must be praised by different methods.
One of the Hebrew words for praise means ‘tell of’ so we are called to tell of him.
I believe that some in the ‘emergent church’ have got it wrong, when they talk about different ways of ‘doing church.’
We shouldn’t be ‘doing church’ we should be ‘being church.’
While we are ‘being church’ we should speak of Christ.
Thursday, 12 February 2009
Thomas a Kempis
I love Thomas A Kempis' anti-intellectualism in the Imitation of Christ.
It was necessary at the time he wrote because of the dominance of scholastic theology.
Like much theology of today scholasticism had nothing to offer the needs of the human heart.
-
To imitate Christ it is necessary first of all to meditate upon the account of Christ in the Gospels: 'Let our chiefest endeavour be to meditate upon the life of Jesus Christ'. 'What will it profit you to dispute profoundly on the Holy Trinity if you are devoid of humility and are thereby displeasing to God, the Trinity?' It is better to feel remorse for sins before God than to be able to define the dogma of the Trinity. For 'all is vanity except to love God and serve him only'.
:- Thomas A Kempis
-
Both to meditate upon and to take up the Cross are important: 'In the Cross is salvation, in the Cross is life; in the Cross is protection against our enemies; in the Cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness; in the Cross is strength of mind; in the Cross is joy of spirit; in the Cross is the height of virtue and in the Cross is perfection of holiness. There is no salvation of the soul, nor hope of everlasting life, but in the Cross.'
:-Thomas a Kempis
It was necessary at the time he wrote because of the dominance of scholastic theology.
Like much theology of today scholasticism had nothing to offer the needs of the human heart.
-
To imitate Christ it is necessary first of all to meditate upon the account of Christ in the Gospels: 'Let our chiefest endeavour be to meditate upon the life of Jesus Christ'. 'What will it profit you to dispute profoundly on the Holy Trinity if you are devoid of humility and are thereby displeasing to God, the Trinity?' It is better to feel remorse for sins before God than to be able to define the dogma of the Trinity. For 'all is vanity except to love God and serve him only'.
:- Thomas A Kempis
-
Both to meditate upon and to take up the Cross are important: 'In the Cross is salvation, in the Cross is life; in the Cross is protection against our enemies; in the Cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness; in the Cross is strength of mind; in the Cross is joy of spirit; in the Cross is the height of virtue and in the Cross is perfection of holiness. There is no salvation of the soul, nor hope of everlasting life, but in the Cross.'
:-Thomas a Kempis
Sunday, 8 February 2009
George Herbert Compline
(George Herbert 1593-1633 was one of the members of the Gedding Community. The Gedding community was probably the first Emergent Church.)
George Herbert Compline
*Teach me your love to know;
That this new light, which now I see,
May both the work and workman show;
Then by a sun-beam I will climb to you.
*O, let your grace, without cease drop from above
*Sine is still hammering my heart
Unto a hardness void of love:
*Let supplying grace, to Crosse his art,
O, let grace Drop from above!
MY words and thoughts do both express this notion, That LIFE has with the sun a double motion. The first IS straight, and our diurnal friend; The other HIDDEN, and doth obliquely bend. One life is wrapt IN flesh, and tends to earth; The other winds towards HIM, Whose happy birth Taught me to live here so THAT still one eye Should aim and shoot at that which IS on high; Quitting with daily labour all MY pleasure, To gain at harvest an eternal treasure.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, The love of God and The fellowship of The Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.
George Herbert Compline
*Teach me your love to know;
That this new light, which now I see,
May both the work and workman show;
Then by a sun-beam I will climb to you.
*O, let your grace, without cease drop from above
*Sine is still hammering my heart
Unto a hardness void of love:
*Let supplying grace, to Crosse his art,
O, let grace Drop from above!
MY words and thoughts do both express this notion, That LIFE has with the sun a double motion. The first IS straight, and our diurnal friend; The other HIDDEN, and doth obliquely bend. One life is wrapt IN flesh, and tends to earth; The other winds towards HIM, Whose happy birth Taught me to live here so THAT still one eye Should aim and shoot at that which IS on high; Quitting with daily labour all MY pleasure, To gain at harvest an eternal treasure.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, The love of God and The fellowship of The Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.
Elizabeth of The Trinity Compline
*O lord my God Let us walk in your love
*And let us rest in your love
*You are enthroned above the seraphim
*We cry out to you lord
Holy holy holy lord God Almighty
Heaven and Earth are full of your glory
O my God, Trinity whom I adore, let me entirely forget myself that I may abide in You, still and peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity; let nothing disturb my peace nor separate me from you, O my unchanging God, but that each moment may take me further into the depths of your mystery!
Pacify my soul! Make it your heaven, your beloved home and place of your repose; let me never leave you there alone, but may I be ever attentive, ever alert in my faith, ever adoring and all given up to your creative action .
*Holy Father you created Heaven and Earth
*Lord Jesus you died to set me free
*Holy Spirit you comfort and reveal.
*Thank you father for sending your son
*Thank you Jesus for dieing for us
*Thank you Holy Spirit for showing us the way
O my 'Three', my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in whom I lose myself, I give myself to you as a prey to be consumed; enclose yourself in me that I may be absorbed in You so as to contemplate in your light the abyss of your Splendour!
*And let us rest in your love
*You are enthroned above the seraphim
*We cry out to you lord
Holy holy holy lord God Almighty
Heaven and Earth are full of your glory
O my God, Trinity whom I adore, let me entirely forget myself that I may abide in You, still and peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity; let nothing disturb my peace nor separate me from you, O my unchanging God, but that each moment may take me further into the depths of your mystery!
Pacify my soul! Make it your heaven, your beloved home and place of your repose; let me never leave you there alone, but may I be ever attentive, ever alert in my faith, ever adoring and all given up to your creative action .
*Holy Father you created Heaven and Earth
*Lord Jesus you died to set me free
*Holy Spirit you comfort and reveal.
*Thank you father for sending your son
*Thank you Jesus for dieing for us
*Thank you Holy Spirit for showing us the way
O my 'Three', my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in whom I lose myself, I give myself to you as a prey to be consumed; enclose yourself in me that I may be absorbed in You so as to contemplate in your light the abyss of your Splendour!
Eucharistic Community
I’ ve had a look at the Maybe community’s website and found some stuff on Eucharistic Community.
http://www.maybe.org.uk/cms/scripts/page.php?site_id=mb&item_id=community
They sat that
“The Eucharist (also known as the Mass, Communion, the Lord's Supper or Breaking of Bread) is at the heart of our being community. In the sharing of this meal of bread and wine our sense is that Jesus is, amazingly and mysteriously present. In his presence we are nourished and made at one with each other and with the worldwide Church ancient, present and yet to come…”
This is so true. The first ever Eucharist was a meal amongst friends where they communed with Christ and each other. So often in church there is no communing at all.
In the context of a community sharing with each other the Eucharist means more.
We are made at one with each other and with the worldwide Church ancient, present and yet to come and we are made one with him.
http://www.maybe.org.uk/cms/scripts/page.php?site_id=mb&item_id=community
They sat that
“The Eucharist (also known as the Mass, Communion, the Lord's Supper or Breaking of Bread) is at the heart of our being community. In the sharing of this meal of bread and wine our sense is that Jesus is, amazingly and mysteriously present. In his presence we are nourished and made at one with each other and with the worldwide Church ancient, present and yet to come…”
This is so true. The first ever Eucharist was a meal amongst friends where they communed with Christ and each other. So often in church there is no communing at all.
In the context of a community sharing with each other the Eucharist means more.
We are made at one with each other and with the worldwide Church ancient, present and yet to come and we are made one with him.
Saturday, 7 February 2009
Emerging Church
So many people don't like it.
---
http://emerging-church.blogspot.com/2006/12/called-emerging-emergent-church.html
“Called emerging, emergent church movement, and emerging church spirituality, this post-modern way of doing church is causing people to question the validity of its teachings. Simply put, many emerging church teachings are rooted in Contemplative Spirituality, which comes from the East.”
-----
Don’t these people know that Jesus came from The East too?
Don’t they know what selah means?
Obviously we have to keep our eyes on Jesus.
---
http://emerging-church.blogspot.com/2006/12/called-emerging-emergent-church.html
“Called emerging, emergent church movement, and emerging church spirituality, this post-modern way of doing church is causing people to question the validity of its teachings. Simply put, many emerging church teachings are rooted in Contemplative Spirituality, which comes from the East.”
-----
Don’t these people know that Jesus came from The East too?
Don’t they know what selah means?
Obviously we have to keep our eyes on Jesus.
Atheists advertising on busses
No Emergent Christians Blog is complete without the bus adverts.
The jokes on the Athiests.
The jokes on the Athiests.
Anselm Compline
*Those blessed ones of your's shall rejoice according as they shall love;
and they shall love according as they shall know.
*How far they will know you, Lord, then! and how much they will love you!
* Father, bless the work that is done,and the work that is to be.
* Father, bless the servants that we are,and the servant that we will be.
O Lord our God, grant us grace to desire you with our whole heart;
that, so desiring, we may seek, and seeking find you;
and so finding you may love you: and loving you, may hate those sins from which you have redeemed us.
*And you, Jesus, are you not also a mother?
*Are you not the mother, who, like a hen,
gathers her chickens under her wings? Truly, Lord, you are a mother;
*for both they who labour
and they who are brought forth
are accepted by you.
*You have died more than they, that they may labour to bear.
*It is by your death that they have been born, for if you had not been in labour, you could not have borne death; and if you had not died, you would not have brought forth.
For, longing to bear sons into life, you tasted of death,
and by dying you begot them.
and they shall love according as they shall know.
*How far they will know you, Lord, then! and how much they will love you!
* Father, bless the work that is done,and the work that is to be.
* Father, bless the servants that we are,and the servant that we will be.
O Lord our God, grant us grace to desire you with our whole heart;
that, so desiring, we may seek, and seeking find you;
and so finding you may love you: and loving you, may hate those sins from which you have redeemed us.
*And you, Jesus, are you not also a mother?
*Are you not the mother, who, like a hen,
gathers her chickens under her wings? Truly, Lord, you are a mother;
*for both they who labour
and they who are brought forth
are accepted by you.
*You have died more than they, that they may labour to bear.
*It is by your death that they have been born, for if you had not been in labour, you could not have borne death; and if you had not died, you would not have brought forth.
For, longing to bear sons into life, you tasted of death,
and by dying you begot them.
Friday, 6 February 2009
Rebuilders of The Church's Lost Heritage
Isaiah 61:1-5
The Year of the LORD's Favour
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favour and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendour.
4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
---
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon The Church, because the LORD has anointed The Church to preach good news to the poor and The Church shall preach good news to the poor.
He has sent The Church to bind up the broken-hearted and The Church shall bind up the broken hearted, He has sent The Church to proclaim freedom for the captives and to the captives freedom shall be proclaimed Release from darkness for the prisoners and the prisoners shall be released. The poor, the broken-hearted, the captives, the prisoners and those who mourn will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendour.
The poor, the broken-hearted, the captives, the prisoners and those who mourn will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
The Year of the LORD's Favour
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favour and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendour.
4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
---
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon The Church, because the LORD has anointed The Church to preach good news to the poor and The Church shall preach good news to the poor.
He has sent The Church to bind up the broken-hearted and The Church shall bind up the broken hearted, He has sent The Church to proclaim freedom for the captives and to the captives freedom shall be proclaimed Release from darkness for the prisoners and the prisoners shall be released. The poor, the broken-hearted, the captives, the prisoners and those who mourn will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendour.
The poor, the broken-hearted, the captives, the prisoners and those who mourn will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
Applied Theology and the Religionisation of The Church
If you knew the whole Bible, and the sayings of all the philosophers, what should all this profit you without the love and grace of God?
:- Thomas A Kempis
You can be religious without having any faith in God. More importantly you can have faith in God without being religious.:-Bonhoeffer.
Religion has to do with form, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws doctrine, dogma and labouring. It has nothing to do with grace or a living faith in the living God.
Major W. Ian Thomas writes, “It is one of the subtleties of Satan which causes men to flee from God and seek to silence His voice in the very practice of religion. So it is that man, to suit his own convenience, has reduced God to a theological formula, an ethical code, or political program, a theatrical performance in a religious setting, the hero worship of some vivid personality.. In, The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis has the senior devil, Screwtape, say to his nephew, Wormwood, "One of our greatest allies at present is the church itself," i.e. "Christian religion."
What does God think of religion?
Amos 5:21"I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies.--
Amos 8:10I will turn your religious feasts into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.
God hates religion.
What did Jesus have to say about religion?
Matthew 23:13-33 (New International Version)
13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to………….
……..33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
Jesus hates religion.
Religion is opposed to Christ. Religion tries to control The Holy Spirit. Religion has people upset because healing occurs outside a healing meeting. Religion is rule upon rule do and then do. God hates religion.
Jesus never came to found a religion but to set the captives free.
Religion opposes God. Religion acknowledges what God has done in the past while resisting what God is doing now.
Religion is legalistic and therefore opposes grace.
The Church which is the body of Christ has been religionsed.
The greatest threat Christianity has always faced has never been secularism, but the religionisation of The Church.
A living relationship with Christ has been replaced by form, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws and labouring.
Religion is not spiritual. Religion is carnal minded crap. Religion is for the ego. Religion is worthless.
What has this got to do with applied theology?
James 1:26-27
26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
James is clearly using the word religion in a very tongue in cheek way,. What he is saying is that if you want to engage in a religion that pleases God in heaven, help the homeless, the poor, the disenfranchised and the powerless it sounds like good religion, but it is in fact applied theology.
This has nothing to do with special buildings, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws, doctrine, dogma and labouring.
His second point is very important. He tells to guard against the corrupting influence of the world.
Ephesians 2:10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Good works do not make a good man but a good man does good works. :- Martin Luther.
Luke 4:18-19
18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour”
1 John 4:16-17 (New International Version)
16And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.
His grace compels us.
Go and preach the gospel and if you have to use words. :-Francis of Assisi.
The problem is that due to the religionisation of The Church, applied theology has been turned into religion. Religion turns The Bible into a rule book where people have to follow sets of rules and regulations for God to save them, while applied theology is an outward working of the glorious gospel of grace.
Acts 15:11No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."
Ephesians 2:5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
Ephesians 2:8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
2 Timothy 1:9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
We are saved by grace.
Romans 3:24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
Galatians 5:4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
Titus 3:7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
We are justified by grace.
:- Thomas A Kempis
You can be religious without having any faith in God. More importantly you can have faith in God without being religious.:-Bonhoeffer.
Religion has to do with form, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws doctrine, dogma and labouring. It has nothing to do with grace or a living faith in the living God.
Major W. Ian Thomas writes, “It is one of the subtleties of Satan which causes men to flee from God and seek to silence His voice in the very practice of religion. So it is that man, to suit his own convenience, has reduced God to a theological formula, an ethical code, or political program, a theatrical performance in a religious setting, the hero worship of some vivid personality.. In, The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis has the senior devil, Screwtape, say to his nephew, Wormwood, "One of our greatest allies at present is the church itself," i.e. "Christian religion."
What does God think of religion?
Amos 5:21"I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies.--
Amos 8:10I will turn your religious feasts into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.
God hates religion.
What did Jesus have to say about religion?
Matthew 23:13-33 (New International Version)
13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to………….
……..33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
Jesus hates religion.
Religion is opposed to Christ. Religion tries to control The Holy Spirit. Religion has people upset because healing occurs outside a healing meeting. Religion is rule upon rule do and then do. God hates religion.
Jesus never came to found a religion but to set the captives free.
Religion opposes God. Religion acknowledges what God has done in the past while resisting what God is doing now.
Religion is legalistic and therefore opposes grace.
The Church which is the body of Christ has been religionsed.
The greatest threat Christianity has always faced has never been secularism, but the religionisation of The Church.
A living relationship with Christ has been replaced by form, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws and labouring.
Religion is not spiritual. Religion is carnal minded crap. Religion is for the ego. Religion is worthless.
What has this got to do with applied theology?
James 1:26-27
26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
James is clearly using the word religion in a very tongue in cheek way,. What he is saying is that if you want to engage in a religion that pleases God in heaven, help the homeless, the poor, the disenfranchised and the powerless it sounds like good religion, but it is in fact applied theology.
This has nothing to do with special buildings, formalism, formulae, rituals, rules, regulations, rites; legalism, laws, doctrine, dogma and labouring.
His second point is very important. He tells to guard against the corrupting influence of the world.
Ephesians 2:10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Good works do not make a good man but a good man does good works. :- Martin Luther.
Luke 4:18-19
18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour”
1 John 4:16-17 (New International Version)
16And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.
His grace compels us.
Go and preach the gospel and if you have to use words. :-Francis of Assisi.
The problem is that due to the religionisation of The Church, applied theology has been turned into religion. Religion turns The Bible into a rule book where people have to follow sets of rules and regulations for God to save them, while applied theology is an outward working of the glorious gospel of grace.
Acts 15:11No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."
Ephesians 2:5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
Ephesians 2:8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
2 Timothy 1:9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
We are saved by grace.
Romans 3:24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
Galatians 5:4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
Titus 3:7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
We are justified by grace.
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
Spiritual Espionage
Ephesians 6:10-13
The Armour of God
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (New International Version)
3For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
We do not wage war as the world does.
The world uses weapons of mass destruction while we use weapons of mass construction.
The world curses and we bless.
The world speaks hate filled propaganda and we speak the truth in love.
So we are at war but we do not wage war as the world does.
This is fortunate because the world does not always have a strategy while we should have a divine strategy.
We can go in guns blazing with no clearly planned strategy and lose the war (The Vietnam way) or we can have a clear strategy on how to take territory but not have any strategy for what to do after victory so that they all hate us (The Iraq way)
We can scream “We bind you Devil” and see no victory (The Vietnam) or we can take over a political agenda and have the world hate us (The Iraq) Both techniques are more religious than anything else.
In The Old Testament, Israel often went to war with a clear strategy.
In 2 Chronicles 20 the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to make war on Jehoshaphat. Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea. It is already in Hazazon Tamar" (that is, En Gedi). 3 Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. 4 The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.
Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD which was a good idea Joshua was deceived by the Gibeonite because he didn’t enquire of The Lord. By enquiring of The Lord a strategy to win the battle was to be given.
Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the LORD in the front of the new courtyard and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 'If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.'
Of Course The Lord said “Yes!”
"But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."
All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD.
Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.
He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.' "
A clear strategy was given and followed and the battle was won.
Joshua had a clear strategy for taking Jericho and for taking Ai and by clear strategy the cities were taken.
Ephesians 6:14-18
14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests is a way of getting strategy. Another way of having a good strategy is by reconnaissance.
Intelligence gathering is good. Reconnaissance was a strategy in the old Testament.
Deuteronomy 1:22-2322 Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to." 23 The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe.
Joshua 2:1
Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look over the land," he said, "especially Jericho." So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
Joshua 7:2
Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, "Go up and spy out the region." So the men went up and spied out Ai.
Judges 1:22-2522 Now the house of Joseph attacked Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23 When they sent men to spy out Bethel (formerly called Luz)
Judges 18:2
So the Danites sent five warriors from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and explore it. These men represented all their clans. They told them, "Go, explore the land." The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah, where they spent the night.
This spiritual espionage goes on against us too apparently
Galatians 2:4
This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves.
We have five references to Gods people gathering intelligence on the enemy.--
When I first felt lead of The Lord to gather intelligence I was shocked to find that I first had to gather intelligence on The Church. I didn’t have a clue what most of The Church in my home town was doing. I didn’t know who was leading churches even and I had to find out. I felt lead to pray for those in authority and I didn’t know who was in authority. I found out who all the town councillors were easily but to find out who all the pastors etc. were was a lot harder. The religious control of denominationalism is the cause of this.
I know I was not the only one doing this and through prayer all churches know what each other are doing and so there is only one Church here that is one body many parts. Denominationalsm is being defeated.
As time has gone on it has become easier for me to know what is going on. I first started praying for councillors and then The Lord had me get to know many of them in person afterwards.
There are many things of use to us for prayer like crime statistic for instance. Or where road accidents most often occur.
The Armour of God
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (New International Version)
3For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
We do not wage war as the world does.
The world uses weapons of mass destruction while we use weapons of mass construction.
The world curses and we bless.
The world speaks hate filled propaganda and we speak the truth in love.
So we are at war but we do not wage war as the world does.
This is fortunate because the world does not always have a strategy while we should have a divine strategy.
We can go in guns blazing with no clearly planned strategy and lose the war (The Vietnam way) or we can have a clear strategy on how to take territory but not have any strategy for what to do after victory so that they all hate us (The Iraq way)
We can scream “We bind you Devil” and see no victory (The Vietnam) or we can take over a political agenda and have the world hate us (The Iraq) Both techniques are more religious than anything else.
In The Old Testament, Israel often went to war with a clear strategy.
In 2 Chronicles 20 the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to make war on Jehoshaphat. Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea. It is already in Hazazon Tamar" (that is, En Gedi). 3 Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. 4 The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.
Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD which was a good idea Joshua was deceived by the Gibeonite because he didn’t enquire of The Lord. By enquiring of The Lord a strategy to win the battle was to be given.
Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the LORD in the front of the new courtyard and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 'If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.'
Of Course The Lord said “Yes!”
"But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."
All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD.
Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.
He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.' "
A clear strategy was given and followed and the battle was won.
Joshua had a clear strategy for taking Jericho and for taking Ai and by clear strategy the cities were taken.
Ephesians 6:14-18
14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests is a way of getting strategy. Another way of having a good strategy is by reconnaissance.
Intelligence gathering is good. Reconnaissance was a strategy in the old Testament.
Deuteronomy 1:22-2322 Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to." 23 The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe.
Joshua 2:1
Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look over the land," he said, "especially Jericho." So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
Joshua 7:2
Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, "Go up and spy out the region." So the men went up and spied out Ai.
Judges 1:22-2522 Now the house of Joseph attacked Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23 When they sent men to spy out Bethel (formerly called Luz)
Judges 18:2
So the Danites sent five warriors from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and explore it. These men represented all their clans. They told them, "Go, explore the land." The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah, where they spent the night.
This spiritual espionage goes on against us too apparently
Galatians 2:4
This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves.
We have five references to Gods people gathering intelligence on the enemy.--
When I first felt lead of The Lord to gather intelligence I was shocked to find that I first had to gather intelligence on The Church. I didn’t have a clue what most of The Church in my home town was doing. I didn’t know who was leading churches even and I had to find out. I felt lead to pray for those in authority and I didn’t know who was in authority. I found out who all the town councillors were easily but to find out who all the pastors etc. were was a lot harder. The religious control of denominationalism is the cause of this.
I know I was not the only one doing this and through prayer all churches know what each other are doing and so there is only one Church here that is one body many parts. Denominationalsm is being defeated.
As time has gone on it has become easier for me to know what is going on. I first started praying for councillors and then The Lord had me get to know many of them in person afterwards.
There are many things of use to us for prayer like crime statistic for instance. Or where road accidents most often occur.
Sunday, 1 February 2009
The Salt of The Earth
2 Chronicles 6:5a
'Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there,
The temple of The Lord has his name there.
1 Corinthians 3:16
16Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?
The temple that we are that Gods Spirit dwells in has his name.
John 14:12-14
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it
We have the right to use his name.
As Solomon dedicated the temple in Jerusalem we are to dedicate ourselves to The Lord.
2 Chronicles 7:1-3
The Dedication of the Temple
1 When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 The priests could not enter the temple of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled it. 3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, "He is good; his love endures forever."
May all that is not of God within his Church be consumed by fire and may his temple which is us be filled with his glory.
May The Church bring a reverence towards The God of Israel in this time in Jesus’ name.
2 Chronicles 7:11-14
The LORD Appears to Solomon
11 When Solomon had finished the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the LORD and in his own palace, 12 the LORD appeared to him at night and said: "I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.
13 "When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land
The Church is his people who are called by his name. When we humble ourselves, seek his face and repent he has promised to heal our land.
God is able to bring a nation back to him. God is able to heal a nations economy. God is able and he has promised that if we humble ourselves, pray and turn away from wickedness , he will do it.
We are the salt of The Earth. We can stop the rot.
'Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there,
The temple of The Lord has his name there.
1 Corinthians 3:16
16Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?
The temple that we are that Gods Spirit dwells in has his name.
John 14:12-14
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it
We have the right to use his name.
As Solomon dedicated the temple in Jerusalem we are to dedicate ourselves to The Lord.
2 Chronicles 7:1-3
The Dedication of the Temple
1 When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 The priests could not enter the temple of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled it. 3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, "He is good; his love endures forever."
May all that is not of God within his Church be consumed by fire and may his temple which is us be filled with his glory.
May The Church bring a reverence towards The God of Israel in this time in Jesus’ name.
2 Chronicles 7:11-14
The LORD Appears to Solomon
11 When Solomon had finished the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the LORD and in his own palace, 12 the LORD appeared to him at night and said: "I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.
13 "When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land
The Church is his people who are called by his name. When we humble ourselves, seek his face and repent he has promised to heal our land.
God is able to bring a nation back to him. God is able to heal a nations economy. God is able and he has promised that if we humble ourselves, pray and turn away from wickedness , he will do it.
We are the salt of The Earth. We can stop the rot.
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
The Bride Reigns With The Faithful Husband
Genesis 49:10 (King James Version)
10The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Genesis 49:10 (New International Version)
10 The sceptre will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs [a] and the obedience of the nations is his.
Footnotes:
Genesis 49:10 Or until Shiloh comes ; or until he comes to whom tribute belongs
Shiloh has come!
Christ has the sceptre and Christ has the staff . He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and his Kingdom is coming.
The kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 3:2, 4:17, 10:7, 20:21,25:34, Mark 1:15, Luke 9:62 and Luke 21:31)
No it’s not way over there it’s at hand.
Look it’s coming now!
I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone "like a son of man," dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
This is The Christ we serve in all his glory. He is The King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He has all power in Heaven and on Earth. He is The Faithful Husband and we The Church are his bride.
As his bride we reign with him.
As his bride we take his name. We have the right to use his name.
Jesus said "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
He didn’t say that just people with dog collars would do it did he?
Those who believe.
After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
Jesus is the same yesterday., today and forever so that wasn’t then. That was now. The Kingdom of God is at hand.
Jesus said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
As his bride we go in his name.
Jesus continued “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
We are not alone!
The one with the sceptre and staff, the king of kings and lord of lords who has all power in Heaven and on Earth his with us until the end of the age.
Some say he was speaking of the apostolic age but then they can’t say when it ended. Because we’re still in it.
He is with us because he is the faithful husband and we reign with him.
Jesus wants us to reign with him not by becoming something different but being who we are in him.
Religion makes The church seem powerless.
We have a blood covenant with God Almighty!
Psalm 68
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.
May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.
As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God.
But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.
10The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Genesis 49:10 (New International Version)
10 The sceptre will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs [a] and the obedience of the nations is his.
Footnotes:
Genesis 49:10 Or until Shiloh comes ; or until he comes to whom tribute belongs
Shiloh has come!
Christ has the sceptre and Christ has the staff . He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and his Kingdom is coming.
The kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 3:2, 4:17, 10:7, 20:21,25:34, Mark 1:15, Luke 9:62 and Luke 21:31)
No it’s not way over there it’s at hand.
Look it’s coming now!
I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone "like a son of man," dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
This is The Christ we serve in all his glory. He is The King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He has all power in Heaven and on Earth. He is The Faithful Husband and we The Church are his bride.
As his bride we reign with him.
As his bride we take his name. We have the right to use his name.
Jesus said "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
He didn’t say that just people with dog collars would do it did he?
Those who believe.
After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
Jesus is the same yesterday., today and forever so that wasn’t then. That was now. The Kingdom of God is at hand.
Jesus said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
As his bride we go in his name.
Jesus continued “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
We are not alone!
The one with the sceptre and staff, the king of kings and lord of lords who has all power in Heaven and on Earth his with us until the end of the age.
Some say he was speaking of the apostolic age but then they can’t say when it ended. Because we’re still in it.
He is with us because he is the faithful husband and we reign with him.
Jesus wants us to reign with him not by becoming something different but being who we are in him.
Religion makes The church seem powerless.
We have a blood covenant with God Almighty!
Psalm 68
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.
May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.
As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God.
But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.
Denominations and Religous Control
John 17:20-22
Jesus Prays for All Believers "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:
Jesus prayed that this Church would be one and it is but religous people don't want to be in his Church but in their own.
They love their doctrines and denominations more than Jesus and it is their doctrines and denominations that they serve.
In Acts chapter 3 peter and John Healed a Crippled Beggar A man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" so the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.
This was an amazing miricle but the denominational religous people didn't like it at all.
The man jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Were the religous people pleased?
Far from it!
The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
Religoin wants to lock people up. Religion is bondage.
What did they find disturbing?
Peter and John proclaimed Jesus instead of them!
If a miricle happens in a church that is not of a denominationalists denomination the denominationalist is disturbed greatly by it.
The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest's family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: "By what power or what name did you do this?"
Now if Peter had said that they were dioing it in the name of the priests they would probably be delighted and then tell them to ask for permission first and then not give them permission again. Like all religous people are, they were control freaks.
When they said "By what power or what name did you do this?" they meant "How dare you! We are in control round here and we say what God can do and not you." Religous people are such control freaks they actually try to control God himself.
But Peter didn't bottle out. Filled with the Holy Spirit, he said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.' Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
They were most annoyed by this. Peter and john were not from their denomination and such an act was a threat to their denomination.
When God moves amongst his people in another Church that isn't a denominationalists denomination they get very annoyed. They may even claim it is of The Devil. Religous people are full of bitter envy and selfish ambition. They are men pleasers rather than God pleasers.
When The Charismatic move came, a lot of Penticostals were up in arms about it. "How dare God bless The Anglicans! How are we going to stop him?"
Eventually after much debate (Religous people love debate) To stop God doing anything and to stop the advancement of Gods Kingdom they warned them to speak no longer to anyone in the name of Jesus.
It didn't work!
But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
These people were expert politicians and so after further threats they let them go. Religous people love to use threats like "You are in great danger." and "Be like us or go to Hell" and "your soul could be lost if you don't turn around" quite often they will reel you in and make you feel secure and then they'll laty it on once they have you in their grasp. They are power crazy decievers out for themselves.
They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened.
In John chapter 9 Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind.
The blind mans neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him." But he himself insisted, "I am the man." "How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded. He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see." "Where is this man?" they asked him. "I don't know," he said.
Were the denominationalist happy?
Of course not!
The Pharisees Investigated the Healing. how religous people love to investigate matters. They love to be busy doing nothing.
They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. Isn't that naughty? Well nowadays the same type of people wouldn't want people healed any time but a sabbath!
This healing wasn't in a Church or a synagogue either! It needed investigating!
Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see."
Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath."
Religous people are always critical.
Were they interested in the miricle?
No they were interested in some religous legalism that they made into a long wiinded dogma.
What they meant was "He not of our denomination. We never sent hiim. He is wrong and were right."
But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided.
Denominationalists quite often turn on each other. They love their stuopid pet doctrines to much to love other Christians.
Finally they turned again to the blind man, "What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened." The man replied, "He is a prophet."
The Jews still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents. "Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?"
"We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was born blind. But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself." His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. (The control freaks religous peoplem always are) That was why his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."
A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God, they said. "We know this man is a sinner."
He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"
Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
He answered, "I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?"
Hallaluyah!
I like asking denominationalists who ask lots of sstupid questions if they want to come to my Church too.
I get the same reply the blind man got.
Then they hurled insults at him and said, "You are this fellow's disciple! We are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't even know where he comes from."
They told him that he was of the wrong denomination.
The man answered, "Now that is remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."
What a glorious reply!
To this they replied, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" And they threw him out.
They love to control.
Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
"Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."
Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you."
Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him.
Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind."
Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?"
Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.
Religous people are blind and denominationalist are the most blind of them all.
Jesus Prays for All Believers "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:
Jesus prayed that this Church would be one and it is but religous people don't want to be in his Church but in their own.
They love their doctrines and denominations more than Jesus and it is their doctrines and denominations that they serve.
In Acts chapter 3 peter and John Healed a Crippled Beggar A man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" so the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.
This was an amazing miricle but the denominational religous people didn't like it at all.
The man jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Were the religous people pleased?
Far from it!
The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
Religoin wants to lock people up. Religion is bondage.
What did they find disturbing?
Peter and John proclaimed Jesus instead of them!
If a miricle happens in a church that is not of a denominationalists denomination the denominationalist is disturbed greatly by it.
The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest's family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: "By what power or what name did you do this?"
Now if Peter had said that they were dioing it in the name of the priests they would probably be delighted and then tell them to ask for permission first and then not give them permission again. Like all religous people are, they were control freaks.
When they said "By what power or what name did you do this?" they meant "How dare you! We are in control round here and we say what God can do and not you." Religous people are such control freaks they actually try to control God himself.
But Peter didn't bottle out. Filled with the Holy Spirit, he said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.' Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
They were most annoyed by this. Peter and john were not from their denomination and such an act was a threat to their denomination.
When God moves amongst his people in another Church that isn't a denominationalists denomination they get very annoyed. They may even claim it is of The Devil. Religous people are full of bitter envy and selfish ambition. They are men pleasers rather than God pleasers.
When The Charismatic move came, a lot of Penticostals were up in arms about it. "How dare God bless The Anglicans! How are we going to stop him?"
Eventually after much debate (Religous people love debate) To stop God doing anything and to stop the advancement of Gods Kingdom they warned them to speak no longer to anyone in the name of Jesus.
It didn't work!
But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
These people were expert politicians and so after further threats they let them go. Religous people love to use threats like "You are in great danger." and "Be like us or go to Hell" and "your soul could be lost if you don't turn around" quite often they will reel you in and make you feel secure and then they'll laty it on once they have you in their grasp. They are power crazy decievers out for themselves.
They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened.
In John chapter 9 Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind.
The blind mans neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him." But he himself insisted, "I am the man." "How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded. He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see." "Where is this man?" they asked him. "I don't know," he said.
Were the denominationalist happy?
Of course not!
The Pharisees Investigated the Healing. how religous people love to investigate matters. They love to be busy doing nothing.
They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. Isn't that naughty? Well nowadays the same type of people wouldn't want people healed any time but a sabbath!
This healing wasn't in a Church or a synagogue either! It needed investigating!
Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see."
Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath."
Religous people are always critical.
Were they interested in the miricle?
No they were interested in some religous legalism that they made into a long wiinded dogma.
What they meant was "He not of our denomination. We never sent hiim. He is wrong and were right."
But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided.
Denominationalists quite often turn on each other. They love their stuopid pet doctrines to much to love other Christians.
Finally they turned again to the blind man, "What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened." The man replied, "He is a prophet."
The Jews still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents. "Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?"
"We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was born blind. But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself." His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. (The control freaks religous peoplem always are) That was why his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."
A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God, they said. "We know this man is a sinner."
He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"
Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
He answered, "I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?"
Hallaluyah!
I like asking denominationalists who ask lots of sstupid questions if they want to come to my Church too.
I get the same reply the blind man got.
Then they hurled insults at him and said, "You are this fellow's disciple! We are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't even know where he comes from."
They told him that he was of the wrong denomination.
The man answered, "Now that is remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."
What a glorious reply!
To this they replied, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" And they threw him out.
They love to control.
Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
"Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."
Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you."
Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him.
Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind."
Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?"
Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.
Religous people are blind and denominationalist are the most blind of them all.
Tuesday, 27 January 2009
Religion
2 Timothy 3
Godlessness in the Last Days
1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. 6They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
These people are in the world today and they are called religious people.
They are lovers of themselves and their religious beliefs. They have massive egos. They are proud and conceited.
They are very pious. They go to Church early and leave late. They have a denominational mentality. They love their Churchianity more than Jesus. They deny the power of God and should be avoided.
Jesus had much to say to the likes of them.
Matthew 23
Seven Woes
1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5"Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6they love the place of honour at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi.'
8"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. 9And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.[b] 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
But how religious people like their robes and fancy prayers. How they like being called ‘father’ or ‘reverend’ or ’spiritual’ and it is all for show.
13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
They shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces!
They are a hindrance to the gospel
They make Christians depressed. They stop God being God . Religion wants you unmotivated it hates zeal. They make you ashamed of the gospel and wraps truth round untruths.
At one time these people wouldn’t read the bible in a language the people understood.
They shut the kingdom out!
They don’t enter the kingdom themselves and shut it out for others. It is religion that they serve and not God.
15"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
-
These religious people will do anything to make non-religious Christians like them. After all they are always right. The put God in a box and try to stop God being God. Religion is of Hell and their godless doctrines are of Hell.
1 Timothy 4
Instructions to Timothy
1The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. 4For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving
Satan is a religious fanatic!
Religious demons preach doctrines that forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
Those filthy demons don’t stop there.
They have invented lots of weird doctrines and superstitions regarding the sacraments. They have made the Eucharist something that it isn’t and they deny some of it. Why? Because desecrating the covenant meal is as close as they can get to desecrating the covenant.
They also have invented much about baptism which is the sign of the covenant. They do not want Gods covenant people to know what And who they are in Christ.
16"Woe to you, blind guides! You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.' 17You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? 18You also say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.'
19You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22And he who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.
Such trifling matters matter much to religious people. The difference between Jesus being Gods eternal son and the Eternal son of God is a great matter to them. They could bore people for hours about such a trifling matter. How many angels can stand on the head of a pin or the colour of the holy virgins eyes are great matters for debate. The light of Christ is hidden from them by religious nonsense.
They confuse people with their mind numbing ’theology so they can make other Christians like them. People who are not Christians after being around these people tend to look into other religions instead. (Which is what the devil wants.)
23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
How religious people can be formulaic to the point of emptying their message of grace is astounding!
How everything religious has to be correct to the point where it takes up all their time so that secular society can rot in peace is even more astounding.
Then when society goes to hell they whinge and whine about it still not doing anything to stop the rot!
25"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
Religion is just a show. It is worthless.
27"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Religion kills people.
29"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' 31So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
32Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!
33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
At this point religious people start screaming religious phrases like “That’s not in love.” and “Jesus gentle, meek and mild.”
I’d rather be like Jesus than be like them.
34Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. 35And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
Religious people like being in control. They will cast you out of the synagogue to control. They will threaten with excommunication to control.
Religious people are total control freaks!
Everything has to be done according to their specification. They are obsessed with the detail. Yes you may share a prophecy but not during the Eucharist and you can speak in tongues but only at home if at all. Yes you can feed the homeless but first we must discuss this amongst the elders and then we‘ll decided who can do what. Religious people like to control what Gods does..
37"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. 38Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"
I am not ashamed of the gospel. Religion is ashamed of the gospel.
If you like what I’ve written here feel free to comment ‘Amen and if you don’t I pray you get free from religion in Jesus‘ name.
Godlessness in the Last Days
1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. 6They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
These people are in the world today and they are called religious people.
They are lovers of themselves and their religious beliefs. They have massive egos. They are proud and conceited.
They are very pious. They go to Church early and leave late. They have a denominational mentality. They love their Churchianity more than Jesus. They deny the power of God and should be avoided.
Jesus had much to say to the likes of them.
Matthew 23
Seven Woes
1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5"Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6they love the place of honour at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi.'
8"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. 9And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.[b] 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
But how religious people like their robes and fancy prayers. How they like being called ‘father’ or ‘reverend’ or ’spiritual’ and it is all for show.
13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
They shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces!
They are a hindrance to the gospel
They make Christians depressed. They stop God being God . Religion wants you unmotivated it hates zeal. They make you ashamed of the gospel and wraps truth round untruths.
At one time these people wouldn’t read the bible in a language the people understood.
They shut the kingdom out!
They don’t enter the kingdom themselves and shut it out for others. It is religion that they serve and not God.
15"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
-
These religious people will do anything to make non-religious Christians like them. After all they are always right. The put God in a box and try to stop God being God. Religion is of Hell and their godless doctrines are of Hell.
1 Timothy 4
Instructions to Timothy
1The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. 4For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving
Satan is a religious fanatic!
Religious demons preach doctrines that forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
Those filthy demons don’t stop there.
They have invented lots of weird doctrines and superstitions regarding the sacraments. They have made the Eucharist something that it isn’t and they deny some of it. Why? Because desecrating the covenant meal is as close as they can get to desecrating the covenant.
They also have invented much about baptism which is the sign of the covenant. They do not want Gods covenant people to know what And who they are in Christ.
16"Woe to you, blind guides! You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.' 17You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? 18You also say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.'
19You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22And he who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.
Such trifling matters matter much to religious people. The difference between Jesus being Gods eternal son and the Eternal son of God is a great matter to them. They could bore people for hours about such a trifling matter. How many angels can stand on the head of a pin or the colour of the holy virgins eyes are great matters for debate. The light of Christ is hidden from them by religious nonsense.
They confuse people with their mind numbing ’theology so they can make other Christians like them. People who are not Christians after being around these people tend to look into other religions instead. (Which is what the devil wants.)
23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
How religious people can be formulaic to the point of emptying their message of grace is astounding!
How everything religious has to be correct to the point where it takes up all their time so that secular society can rot in peace is even more astounding.
Then when society goes to hell they whinge and whine about it still not doing anything to stop the rot!
25"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
Religion is just a show. It is worthless.
27"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Religion kills people.
29"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' 31So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
32Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!
33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
At this point religious people start screaming religious phrases like “That’s not in love.” and “Jesus gentle, meek and mild.”
I’d rather be like Jesus than be like them.
34Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. 35And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
Religious people like being in control. They will cast you out of the synagogue to control. They will threaten with excommunication to control.
Religious people are total control freaks!
Everything has to be done according to their specification. They are obsessed with the detail. Yes you may share a prophecy but not during the Eucharist and you can speak in tongues but only at home if at all. Yes you can feed the homeless but first we must discuss this amongst the elders and then we‘ll decided who can do what. Religious people like to control what Gods does..
37"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. 38Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"
I am not ashamed of the gospel. Religion is ashamed of the gospel.
If you like what I’ve written here feel free to comment ‘Amen and if you don’t I pray you get free from religion in Jesus‘ name.
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